Long time, first time. These are the 50 I'd remove, listed in current AFI order. Because I don't want to write more than a sentence or two for each, some of my reasons are going to come across as more flip than I intend. (But some will be exactly as flip as I intend)
It should go without saying, but this is all based on personal preference, and all opinions are my own. That means you can't have them, so come up with your own reasons as to why M*A*S*H is bad.
By the way, I love how different everyone's lists are!
Raging Bull - I like it, but I don't know what's in here that isn't in at least one of Citizen Kane, Taxi Driver, and Rocky, all of which are staying on my version of the list.
Lawrence of Arabia - C'mon, this is a British film.
Vertigo - I'm with Ben Mankiewicz in that I like it, but don't love it. Maybe Rebecca or Laura instead?
City Lights - I think the Tramp comes across as kind of a creep in this and the comedy doesn't really work for me.
The Searchers - It's very pretty to look at, but I don't think there's a ton else going for it.
Psycho - A victim of its own success. Everyone knows the shower scene and who the real killer is, which rob the movie of much of its intended tension. Also, the movie falls apart after the detective dies, and finishes with a huge anticlimax followed by an exposition dump. I'd much rather have The Exorcist, Halloween, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and so many other horror movies before this.
The Graduate - I truly dislike poor little rich boy Benjamin Braddock.
Chinatown - Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Some Like it Hot - I think it's the weakest Wilder movie on here, so off it goes.
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial - There are better coming of age movies, better kid's movies, and better sci-fi movies.
Apocalypse Now - I like it, but I think the story of the making of this movie is more interesting than the movie itself.
The Godfather Part II - I think this is redundant with The Godfather.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - I prefer Mr. Smith Goes to Washington in the "outsider shakes up an institution's status quo" genre.
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - There have been better hand drawn animated movies since this.
Annie Hall - Even putting Woody Allen's personal life to the side, he's so distracting as an actor that I can't watch him without rolling my eyes.
The Bridge on the River Kwai - This is British too.
The Sound of Music - The opening shot is wonderful and iconic, but the movie drags so much after the wedding, and I'd almost rather listen to the soundtrack than watch the movie.
Shane - "Come back, Shane"? More like "Shut up, kid"
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - I believe this is standing in for the LotR trilogy, and don't think it's strong enough on its own to be on the list.
The Deer Hunter - Put All Quiet on the Western Front back on the list.
M*A*S*H - I haven't given much thought to re-ranking the list, but this is likely at the very bottom. Racist, sexist, and that fucking interminable football game.
North by Northwest - It's such a fun ride, but it's also so nonsensical, and I don't need it on the list. Putting Charade on instead would at least give us Audrey Hepburn.
The Gold Rush - I like it more than City Lights, but there are still better silent movies.
Nashville - I could go either way with this, but something else needed to come off to reach 50, and I didn't feel all that strongly about it remaining.
Duck Soup - I love the Marx Brothers (btw it's weird that it looks wrong to me if "brothers" isn't capitalized), but this isn't the film of theirs I'd put on the list.
Sullivan's Travels - For "road trip with a fish out of water" I prefer It Happened One Night.
American Graffiti - I don't care about nostalgia for the 50s, even if the then novel soundtrack is great.
The African Queen - I think they've both been in better movies.
Unforgiven - Movies don't have to be subtle to be good, but I was turned off at how much this beats you over the head with its themes.
Tootsie - An 80s comedy with Bill Murray? Why not Ghostbusters?
A Clockwork Orange - Pretty sure this is British too!
Saving Private Ryan - There are more good things in this movie than the opening sequence, but there's a reason everyone only ever talks about the opening. It's not enough to be on the list.
The Shawshank Redemption - An uplifting ending, but not much else to me.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - There are already so many non-traditional Westerns on the list, and I like The Sting better anyway.
Forrest Gump - I still resent being dragged to see this in the theater when I was 7.
All the President's Men - This just didn't connect with me for whatever reason.
Spartacus - Maybe it's a case of watching too many Italian sword and sandal movies, but the ancient Rome setting saps the life out of me.
Titanic - I just can't bring myself to care about Jack and Rose.
Easy Rider - Maybe I'm just too square.
A Night at the Opera - This isn't the Marx Bros film I'd have on the list either. Although it may not be the BEST Marx Brothers movie, I think Animal Crackers is the MOST Marx Brothers movie, if that makes sense.
Bringing Up Baby - I think there are better screwball comedies. My Man Godfrey anyone?
The Sixth Sense - I think this goes down from good to only ok if you know the twist, which everyone does by now.
Swing Time - There's no need for blackface on the list, and there are other good Rogers/Astaire movies to replace it with.
Sophie's Choice - Like Nashville, I could really go either way with this.
The French Connection - If you're going to have a cop that doesn't do things by the book, at least make him likable. Beverly Hills Cop over this any day of the week.
Pulp Fiction - Like most of QT's movies, I would rather watch the movies that influenced it.
The Last Picture Show - This is the only one of the 100 that I have to look up to remember what it's about.
Yankee Doodle Dandy - Besides the out-of-nowhere blackface scene and the blind patriotism, I think most of George M Cohen's songs sound the same. He really lucked out with Over There.
Toy Story - Yet another movie about a cowboy fighting against being made obsolete? There have been better CGI animated films since this came out.
Ben-Hur - I wish this didn't put me to sleep, but it does. The chariot race is great though.
