Welcome to the fourth and final installment of the countdown of my twenty all-time favorite films! To get you up to speed, here's what I've picked so far...

20. Spider-Man 2

19. Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

18. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

17. Blade Runner

16. Sweeney Todd

15. Fantasia

14. Pulp Fiction

13. Ratatouille

12. The Nightmare Before Christmas

11. Princess Mononoke

10. Die Hard

9. Star Wars

8. The Wizard of Oz

7. Raiders of the Lost Ark

6. Kingdom of Heaven: Director's Cut

And now for the top five...

5. Serenity (2005)

As a huge fan of Joss Whedon's Firefly, the short-lived Fox series that captured the imaginations of a generation of cult viewers, I am a bit biased towards the feature film sequel, Serenity. This movie could have been disappointing and I would still love it just for the characters. But "disappointing" is the last word one could use in describing Serenity. It delivers the goods on every conceivable level and even manages to transcend the groundbreaking TV series. The show was only 14 episodes long, and as such many questions were left unresolved, especially those regarding the mysterious River Tam (Summer Glau). Those questions are answered, but Joss Whedon goes a step further in the film and gives the entire Firefly universe a great big, explosive finale, ending the story in an amazingly satisfying way.

This year, many people have praised District 9 for its amazing effects and visuals despite having a $30 million budget-well, Serenity was given a budget of $40 million (and came in under than amount once production was complete) and looks more polished and impressive than, say, any of the Star Wars prequels. Whedon certainly got the most out of his budget, because the film's visuals are astounding and the action sequences thrilling beyond belief. However, it's not about the effects-it's about the story and characters, and those elements are Whedon's trademark. The characters are just as fun and interesting to watch as they were on TV and the story is set-up in ways that allow the viewer to examine and learn more about the inhabitants of Serenity. The film's messages are pretty wide-ranging, dealing with issues of faith, mortality, and politics, and they all hit home in powerful ways. Serenity excels in the action and story departments, but the most special thing about this amazing film is that fans get to spend two more glorious hours with one of the greatest casts of characters ever conceived.

4. The Dark Knight (2008)

I didn't think this movie would end up so high on the list; I began writing this article by compiling a bunch of favorite titles and narrowing them down to twenty. Then, to rank them, I simply picked the weakest of the bunch, then the next weakest, then the next, and so on and so forth, all according to my personal preference. And surprisingly, The Dark Knight ended up at number 4. I should have expected that; from the moment I first saw this movie, I was in love with it. Twenty years from now, this masterpiece will define this decade of cinema, and stand out as a benchmark not just in the superhero genre, but in cinema itself.

Dark Knight was a big improvement on its predecessor, and Batman Begins was no slouch; it reinvented the character's cinematic persona in brilliant ways, but The Dark Knight took that character development as a springboard to go to new heights. The movie is absolutely non-stop from beginning to end, and I'm not talking about action. Sure, the set-pieces are there and are incredible, but the intensity comes from the stark realism of the world and its characters and the absolute terror Heath Ledger's Joker inspires. It's a deep, layered examination of Batman, a fascinating character, but also of modern society and the true meaning of a hero. When the characters debate about the morality of Batman and his relationship with the Joker, they're not just talking in literal terms-there's a very real, very relevant subtext there that illustrates the modern issues of terrorism and torture as much more complex and less black-in-white than politicians tend to think. But at the end of the day, I really love the film because of how well it does capture Batman-a fascinating comics character whose true complexity hasn't ever really been brought to light in cinema.

3. The Godfather (1972)

The Godfather is so often referred to as one of the greatest films ever made that it seems cliché to include it so high on the list. But it's true- The Godfather is filmmaking at its best. It's amazingly well written, and captivates you not with action or spectacle, but with conversation. This is a movie about people talking, and yet the three hour run time really does fly by. The movie is richly detailed and layered, and each viewing illustrates new things to love. The saga of the Corleone family Michael's transition from good man to bad man is captivating and complex-you can't turn your brain off during this movie, but Coppola rewards the viewer's investment over and over before the movie ends. The sequel, The Godfather: Part II is often called the greatest sequel ever made, and while I'll admit that it is an absolutely spellbinding masterpiece, I still prefer the original film. It's got a bigger, richer ensemble and, while gloomy, doesn't sink to the same levels of unfathomable darkness as its successor. Plus, you don't see Marlon Brando with cotton-balls in his cheeks or an orange-peel in his mouth in Part II.

2. Back to the Future (1985)

Back to the Future is a film that never gets old no matter how many times I see it. I'm a big fan of time travel stories, especially when the concept is used creatively, and Robert Zemeckis' classic film really pushes the limits of the concept (in a good way). The idea of being a teenager and going back in time to meet your parents when they were the same age as you is such a great one that it's surprising BTTF was the first story to attempt it. But the movie goes a step further, and forces protagonist Marty to not only interact with his folks but befriend them and play matchmaker. The plot is inventive, the script is extremely clever and well written, and Zemeckis' direction is top notch, turning the third act into a real nail-biter.

Still, it's the cast that sells this movie. Whenever I revisit this classic and see Michael J. Fox's performance, it makes me sad. He's so natural in the role that it doesn't even look like acting-and that's the mark of someone adept at their craft. That he can't practice that craft anymore due to his Parkinson's disease is a tragedy (though the man has been inspiringly optimistic about it all). Christopher Lloyd is equally great, and he's not in movies much anymore either-though he doesn't have an excuse. Crispin Glover, Lea Thompson, Thomas Wilson...the whole cast is just perfect, and when you think about it, none of them have been in a notable film role in years. It's a shame, but they made a terrific ensemble in 1985. Back to the Future is a "desert island" movie for me, one I love so much that I can hardly explain why.

1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001-2003)

When it comes to naming my favorite movie of all time, I have no doubts-Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings Trilogy is the best in my book. But wait, you might be thinking, isn't it three films? How can you put three films in the number one spot? Well, as I said earlier when I talked about including Dr. Horrible (a forty-minute short film), this is my list and I make the rules. So there. Seriously, though, while each film in the trilogy does have its own distinctive flavor and while Jackson and co. went to great lengths to make sure each installment had a proper opening and climax, I consider this trilogy to be one big movie; J.R.R. Tolkien's masterwork is often referred to as a trilogy, while in truth it is simply a novel that was once split into parts to save costs on paper. The Jackson films are a big, three-part adaptation of the novel-and what an adaptation they are.

No book has ever been brought to the silver screen so effectively. Jackson did so much right with the trilogy that it's hard for me to know where to begin. First off is the script(s)-Jackson, along with co-writers Fran Walsh and Phillipa Boyens wisely trimmed many plot points that didn't directly deal with Frodo's journey (sorry Tom Bombadil), but wrote it in such a way that you don't miss what's been left out. All the characters are written exceptionally well, and the multi-storyline narratives of parts 2 and 3 are handled expertly. The excellent scripts were brought to life by Jackson's amazing directorial vision. He utilized the gorgeous New Zealand landscape to great effect, making the audience believe that they really had gone to Middle Earth. Furthermore, the designs of the creatures (like Orcs) are just out-of-this-world cool, and all of the buildings and structures are a wonder to behold. The best part? Most of these visuals I'm describing were achieved without CGI. They used make-up and models and it looked a thousand times better than contemporary films going crazy with the computer.

The most amazing part of the trilogy might be in the casting-the novel boasts a huge, iconic cast, and Jackson somehow kept almost every character in the films while simultaneously managing to cast every role perfectly. There is no actor in the trilogy I feel is out of place-find me a movie that was better cast than this and I'll show you a real Orc. I won't even bother to name all the actors, but for me, Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn), Ian McKellan (Gandalf) and Christopher Lee (Saruman) steal the show. But again, the cast is so dense and rich that it's hard to pinpoint individual stars for praise.

HowardShore's musical score is another thing I love-it really elevates the films to another level. I have on doubt in my mind that his scores are the best film compositions ever written. There's just no competition. The three films that make up The Lord of the Rings trilogy are easily my favorite movies of all time-in their Extended Edition forms, that is. The theatrical cuts weren't as good (though still a spectacle), and if you haven't seen the extended versions, stop reading this and hunt them down. You won't be sorry. Each film in the trilogy is better than the last, and as a whole, it's an incredibly rich, vivid translation of one the greatest novels of the twentieth century. The Lord of the Rings is my generation's Star Wars, and for me, no other film beats this trilogy.