The best Coen brothers films
The top 3 according to 30 votes from people: Fargo · No Country for Old Men · Raising Arizona. (Updated Aug 2, 2026.)
The best of Joel and Ethan Coen's 18 films together, ranked by consensus between Gold Derby, IndieWire, Time Out and Rotten Tomatoes scores.
Top 12
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1
Fargo
1996. Frances McDormand's pregnant police chief in snowy Minnesota; Oscars for her and the screenplay.
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2
No Country for Old Men
2007. Javier Bardem's Anton Chigurh; four Oscars including Best Picture.
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3
Raising Arizona
1987. Nicolas Cage and Holly Hunter kidnap a baby; their gentlest film.
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4
A Serious Man
2009. A physics professor in 1967 Minnesota whose life falls apart.
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5
Miller's Crossing
1990. Gabriel Byrne in a Prohibition-era gangster war.
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6
Blood Simple
1984. Their debut, a Texas neo-noir made on a small budget.
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7
Inside Llewyn Davis
2013. Oscar Isaac as a folk singer in 1961 Greenwich Village; Grand Prix at Cannes.
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8
The Big Lebowski
1998. Jeff Bridges as the Dude, bowling and a rug that really tied the room together.
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9
Barton Fink
1991. John Turturro as a blocked writer in Hollywood; Palme d'Or, Best Director and Best Actor at Cannes.
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10
The Man Who Wasn't There
2001. Billy Bob Thornton as a barber in black-and-white 1949 California.
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11
True Grit
2010. Hailee Steinfeld and Jeff Bridges in the Charles Portis western; ten Oscar nominations.
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12
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
2000. The Odyssey in Depression-era Mississippi; its bluegrass soundtrack won the Grammy for Album of the Year.
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.
Is something missing?
Comments (2)
Fargo at #1, 'You're darn tootin'!'
The Big Lebowski only #3? The Dude abides.