A shame that AFI named it #9 on the Top 100!

Rating: 10/10 (4 August 1999)

"Schindler's List" is easily one of the greatest films ever made. The technical wizardry and stark reality of this picture alone blow the great classics (Graduate, Casablanca, On The Waterfront) out of the water. Undeniably affecting historical drama has never been more fully realized and displayed in its nakedness like it is here. Steven Spielberg richly deserves life-long accolades for creating this film. His choice of b&w cinematography is brilliant. Every tear, gunshot, death, laugh and cry are all fully realized. Spielberg's epic is a far cry from normal Hollywood movie making and that unto itself is an amazing accomplishment for the misguided 90s filmmakers.
Easily, the greatest creative element for this film is Ralph Fiennes. Without his central protagonistic presence, "Schindler's List" would certainly be a flawed examination of the Holocaust. Instead, Fiennes' character displays uncontrollable impulsive fits of rage and unpredictability which epitomizes the Nazi aura. Fiennes' performance is the best in recent years, and his finely drawn and provocative character richly deserves to be recognized as one of the greatest ever drawn up!
True to life affecting drama has never been better and it seems incomprehensible to expect a motion picture of this magnitude and quality to appear again in our lifetimes.