# The most inspiring films according to AFI

From It's a Wonderful Life and To Kill a Mockingbird to Schindler's List, Rocky, E.T. and Saving Private Ryan: the top 15 of the American Film Institute's '100 Cheers' list of the most inspiring American films (2006).

- 41 votes · 15 items
- Oct 30, 2023 · celine_episode
- https://even.best/en/l/4634/the-most-inspiring-films-according-to-afi

## Top 15

1. **Schindler's List (1993)** (5 · ▲6 ▼1) — Steven Spielberg. The industrialist who saved more than a thousand Jews.
2. **It's a Wonderful Life (1946)** (5 · ▲5 ▼0) — Frank Capra. An angel shows George Bailey his town without him. Number one.
3. **Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)** (3 · ▲3 ▼0) — Frank Capra. A naive senator against Washington corruption.
4. **Breaking Away (1979)** (2 · ▲3 ▼1) — Peter Yates. Four Indiana teenagers and a bicycle race.
5. **Saving Private Ryan (1998)** (2 · ▲3 ▼1) — Steven Spielberg. A squad goes looking for one soldier after D-Day.
6. **E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — Steven Spielberg. A boy helps an alien get home.
7. **The Grapes of Wrath (1940)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — John Ford. The Joad family on the road to California.
8. **Apollo 13 (1995)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — Ron Howard. 'Houston, we have a problem.'
9. **Hoosiers (1986)** (2 · ▲2 ▼0) — David Anspaugh. Gene Hackman coaches a small-town Indiana basketball team.
10. **To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)** (1 · ▲2 ▼1) — Robert Mulligan. Atticus Finch defends a wrongly accused Black man in Alabama.
11. **Rocky (1976)** (1 · ▲2 ▼1) — John G. Avildsen. A Philadelphia boxer gets his shot at the champion.
12. **Miracle on 34th Street (1947)** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — George Seaton. Macy's Santa Claus goes on trial.
13. **The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)** (1 · ▲1 ▼0) — David Lean. British prisoners build a bridge for the Japanese.
14. **The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)** (0 · ▲1 ▼1) — William Wyler. Three servicemen come home after the war.
15. **The Miracle Worker (1962)** (0 · ▲0 ▼0) — Arthur Penn. Anne Sullivan and young Helen Keller.

How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.