Lists
- ranked 12 in The IMDb Top 250
- ranked 14 in The Guardian Top 100 Films
- ranked 20 in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies
- ranked 25 in Empire 100 Greatest Movies (1999)
- ranked 34 in My Favourite Film
- ranked 38 in Cinema Fusion Movie Bloggers' Top 100 Movies
- ranked 38 in Empire 100 Greatest Movies (2003)
- ranked 42 in Total Film's 100 Greatest Movies Of All Time
- ranked 45 in WGA 101 Greatest Screenplays
- ranked 59 in BBC 100 Greatest American Films
- ranked 105 in Empire 500 Greatest Movies (2008)
- ranked 158 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (March 2006)
- ranked 160 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (December 2006)
- ranked 164 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (August 2005)
- one of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
- one of AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies Nominees
- one of BAFTA Best Film Winners
- one of Best Director Academy Award Winners
- one of Best Picture Academy Award Winners
- one of Guardian 1,000 films to see before you die
- one of The New York Times Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made
- one of AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies, 10th Anniversary Edition
How dense could I get?
Right up until the showdown with Billy, I actually found Nurse Ratched to be a somewhat sympathetic character. To be blunt (and profane!): she was a cold bitch, but she was also responding to McMurphy, and he was an asshole.
For most of the movie, it could've gone two ways. I was half expecting something to go terribly wrong on one of McMurphy's excursions. Whoops, that guy really is insane, and he really did just shoot that guy with a harpoon...