In ill narrated films , a voice - over is utilize to clear up jumbled plot of ground point and offer context , often for a photographic film lame by a muddled script . In the best - narrated picture show , however , the spokesperson - over provides insight into the mind of the primary characters . Sometimes , the narrator is the master character , and sometimes it ’s someone not appearing in the film , but it ’s helpful to supply analysis and perspective otherwise not find .

In Martin Scorsese films , for case , the graphic symbol are often undependable narrators , and do thing audiences wo n’t agree with .   This makes the narration necessary , because   it allows us to understand why they made the pick they did , and adds another layer of complexity and depth . In film likeThe Princess Bride , the narrative is necessary because the events of the film take stead within the structure of a fairytale being read aloud , and service a much more casual purpose . Set your internal vocalism to a young Richard Dreyfuss , and proceed to 10 of the best narrated movies , ranked .

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

There ’s not one character inThe Wolf of Wall Streetwith any redeem lineament , and you might even feel like taking a shower after watching it , but its pithy narrative defies you to not be instantly blow into the creation of effete avarice surrounding the New York Stock Exchange .

Leonardo DiCaprio team up with Martin Scorsese to tell the biographic explanation of Jordan Belfort , the " Wolf of Wall Street " , who in his ' 20s went from feature an entry - level position at a Wall Street house to plant his own firm and diddle investor out of trillion . The narration dexterously explains why Belfort did what he did and , even after attain succeeder , continue to manoeuver illegally even as the feds shut down in .

BIG FISH

Some would argue the intensity level ofBig Fishlies inTim Burton ’s power to enchant audiencesto breathtaking phantasy worlds with his imaginative art - counsel . The strong point instead lies in Albert Finney as a narrator , a blowhard father in his death throe , chronicling for his misanthropic boy a lifespan well lived .

Young Edward Bloom ( played by Ewan Mcgregor ) happen travel circus , wartime , fish the size of shark , giant , and possibly Heaven throughout the escapade that is his life , and no one screw if it was really straight . At the end of the film , it does n’t really weigh , because the legend give his living meaning .

A CHRISTMAS STORY

A Christmas Storyhas become a vacation classic as reliable as encounter fruitcake   in the mail . Not only is there something dependable about its showcase of an All - American Mid - Western family   from the ' fifty , there ’s something comforting in the   Revelation of Saint John the Divine of oecumenical disfunction inherent in celebrating the holidays .

Ralphie Parker just wants a Red Ryder air rifle for Christmas , but as the most important day of the year draw near , he has to continue out of the way of the schoolyard bully , his cantankerous forefather , and his worrisome female parent , who contends that he ’ll film his eye out if he gets it . The narration is done by Jean Shepherd , who also write it , and leave some of the most   memorable dialogue in any holiday film .

AMERICAN BEAUTY

American Beautyis a different sort of film now , in the wake of Kevin Spacey ’s in question report , but not so long ago , consultation listened to his dulcet tones as Lester , narrate a slice - of - life story in the American suburbs . He ’s a salesman that ’s stick on the endless merry - go - round that is mid - life and the American Dream , and want off .

Just as he has an awakening of his senses , his family suffers something of a crash with the decisions of his married woman and daughter causing him to rethink some of his choices . His poignant , sardonic , and often hilarious reflection are what snagged him an Academy Award for Best Actor and the movie the Academy Award for Best Picture .

THE PRINCESS BRIDE

Like all fairytales , The Princess Bridebegins with " Once Upon A fourth dimension … " and terminate with " And They Lived Happily Ever After " , and include kidnapped princess , daring fencer , evil lords , giants , and rodents of unusual size . The ' fourscore classic is recounted to a young boy ( Fred Savage ) by his gramps ( Peter Falk ) , and never gets old .

Its timeless qualityis due to its enduring story construction , but beyond that , the pithy dialogue and uproarious spot that Westley , Buttercup , Inigo , Fezzik , and the repose of the misfit group get into are what make it stomach up alongside other narrated films .

GOODFELLAS

That Henry Hill ( Ray Liotta ) tell his own movie , giving an insider point of opinion to the depravity of the gangster lifestyle , is one of the most spectacular reasons whyGoodfellasremains one of Martin Scorsese ’s most brilliant moving picture . The use of narration is one of the most effective of all time because Hill is n’t always a reliable narrator , but we forgive him for it because we can see his linear perspective .

Hill represents the romanticized nature of the gangster genre , as he ’d opt to be a gangster than the President of the United States . His intoxication with being somebody important ultimately allows for his precipitous ascension into a whizz and inevitable drop into a second-rate nobody , which is almost worse than being gunned down by his best booster .

AMERICAN PSYCHO

There ’s a spellbinding measure to Christian Bale ’s narration inAmerican Psycho , which lulls you into a off-key good sense of surety shortly before his sociopathic Patrick Bateman strikes with an ax . His witty narrative is guess to receive you into the inmost recesses of his mind , yet all the exposition reveals nothing about the character .

Bateman is a cuticle of a human ; a concept , a fabricated totem to ensure a certain pretence is maintained while he give into his dingy urges . Bateman , for all his luxurious modus vivendi and his Wall Street entourage , is a nonpayment setting . The material Bateman is unknown even to him , and the biting smuggled clowning shows not only how a man becomes a goliath , but how a demon affect to be a man .

APOCALYPSE NOW

hail as one of the greatest motion picture of all fourth dimension , Apocalypse Nowis a singular journeyinto the nub of dark during the concluding days of the Vietnam War . Told from the full stop of view of Captain Willard ( Martin Sheen ) , an Army police officer sent on a mission to pop a rogue Colonel who ’s cash in one’s chips insane , the story countenance viewer to   feel like they ’re live each peril as he does .

As he journey further in his Navy patrol boat to turn up Colonel Kurtz ( a career - good Marlon Brando ) , he realizes that much of the truths he adhere to about the civilized humans and the meaning behind war are ruse , and in the jungle become meaningless . Kurtz has let out " the revulsion " , that only soldiers capable of truly suppressing their humans are strong enough to win , and Willard sees how easygoing it becomes to cast off morality in favor of rage .

STAND BY ME

This ' 80 classic total - of - age photographic film was base on Stephen King ’s " The organic structure " , and provides one of the best exercise of poignant articulation - over narration . Richard Dreyfuss ’s sonorous interpreter over the events of the film have been much - parodied over the years , as much out of homage than mockery .

endure By Meinvolves the journey of four boys ( Wil Wheaton , Corey Feldman , River Phoenix , and Jerry O’Connell ) to regain the physical structure of a stranger who ’s been killed near their country homes . Along the way , through encounters with coloured grapheme and leech filled marsh , they determine about each other and themselves in a elbow room that profoundly changes their lives .

THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION

The serene , even - stagger timbre of the narration inThe Shawshank Redemptionisn’t just about bring home the bacon context of use inside a prison ; it ’s about make the men behind barroom seem like a kinfolk , and showcasing all of the making love , friendship , dysfunction , and raw emotion that entail .

The " submarine sandwich " of the film   is Andy Dufresne ( Tim Robbins ) , a banker who is jug for bolt down his wife and her lover . The motion-picture show is ironically never shown from his linear perspective , but admit observations from Red ( Morgan Freeman ) , a lifer who befriends Andy and watches him make something of himself under the harsh of consideration .

NEXT:10 Narrated Movie Flops , Ranked

In a dusty landscape Finn stares out into the distance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Ben Affleck as Christian drumming his hand on the table while talking to Cynthia Addai-Robinson’s Marybeth in The Accountant 2

Chronicle Ending Explained - How Andrew Is Stopped In The Superhero Movie

best-narrated-movies-ranked

the wolf of wall street

Ewan McGregor in Big Fish

A-Christmas-Story

American Beauty Mena Suvari as Angela laying down surrounded by rose petals

The Princess Bride

9 goodfellas

Patrick Bateman (Christian Bale) with an axe in American Psycho

Willard looking questioningly in Apocalypse Now

The young boys in a woods in Stand by Me

Andy (Tim Robbins) screaming in the rain in The Shawshank Redemption

Movies