We’re gonna par-tay like it’s 1969

Above: Judging by what’s written on the chalkboard, Professor Benson refuses to go down gracefully regarding Les Biches.

You remember Raymond Benson? He’s the guy who gave us last year’s list of the Top Ten Films of 1968 for the Encyclopedia Britannica Movie Blog. You know: the guy who completely blew off your humble narrator’s cherished Les Biches. (I’m still smarting from that one, RayRay.) Well, fire up the bong and slip on your tea-shades: this Friday (August 7) he’ll begin posting his Top Ten Films of 1969, a two-week series sure to thrill, entertain, puzzle and madden us all. As he did last year, Mr. Benson is offering a prize to the first person to correctly predict what his #1 selection will be. Will The Wild Bunch take it? Easy Rider, perhaps? The Sicilian Clan? Army of Shadows? Hello Dolly? The mind positively boggles. At the invitation of the Britannica Brain Trust, I’ll be ranting from the peanut gallery comment section along with a wild bunch of other bloggers, fans and cineastes. You be there, too! It all starts here.

Benson's 69 x 10:

#10: Where Eagles Dare

#9: Alice's Restaurant

#8: The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

#7: They Shoot Horses, Don't They?

#6: On Her Majesty's Secret Service