User-generated. That’s what gives IMDb’s Top 250 movies an edge over a ton of other rankings out there. The list is presented “as rated by regular IMDb users,” which indicates its perspectives are largely those of people who are quite passionate about movies. While it’s not quite representative of the general public, a user-generated list of this magnitude is nonetheless eye-opening.
On IMDb, users rate movies on a scale of up to 10. The top-rated movie is “The Shawshank Redemption,” with a score of 9.2 based on 2.7 million votes. This is fascinating, as it implies that by this scale, there’s no such thing as a perfect movie. Users on IMDb have the opportunity to rate every movie ever made, and yet, the film that reigns supreme over all others is a 9.2, not a 10. By this scorecard, no film in existence is a perfect 10. That’s wild.
One of the best features of perusing IMDb’s list is all in the name. After all, this is the Internet Movie Database, and upon clicking any given title in the top 250 movies, users can instantly find a wealth of statistics. From box-office numbers to crew information to a complete filmography of the cinematographer, IMDb has it all.