The magazine editors are bigger idiots for trusting them.
What the list should have been titled is The 500 Favourite Films of Empire Readers. Truer but not as catchy.
500 Greatest Films Page 13
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ April 21 2011, 9:16 AM BSTPulp Fiction, please don't try to justify this self indulgent artifice, it's a jamboree bag of film cliches.
Nah, Pulp Fiction is great.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ April 21 2011, 9:16 AM BSTThe Fight Club, can't comment, I'm rather glad to say I haven't viewed this one yet.
Why are you 'glad to say' you haven't seen it?!
It's a good film, anyway.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ April 21 2011, 1:43 PM BSTThe magazine editors are bigger idiots for trusting them.
What the list should have been titled is The 500 Favourite Films of Empire Readers. Truer but not as catchy.
Any list like that is only a reflection of the tastes and views of those asked; there's is no, and can be no such thing as a concrete, factual list of the greatest films in order.
Alas there can't, but a film industry only vote I think would be the closest we could get to having the definitive list. A list by experts in the field who know how to make films. And film critics. It will still cause disagreement and still be subjective really, but it shouldn't have blaring anomalies like One Flew Over and Rear Window outside the top 100, Midnight Cowboy outside the top 300!! and The Maltese Falcon as low as 273 
I'm imagining film industry voters would not let these aknowledged masterpieces fall so low.