Tom Hanks says he made only 4 'pretty good' movies... What are your favorites?

Tom Hanks, lovingly known as 'America's Dad,' has built one of Hollywood's most successful careers, with over 80 credited films and countless major awards nominations and wins. He has won hearts around the world with his performances, making the job of ranking his films very difficult.

In September 2022, while being interviewed by People magazine, Hanks said, "No one knows how a movie is made, though everyone thinks they do. I've made a ton of movies - and four of them are pretty good, I think."

While he didn't elaborate in his interview on which four movies he felt were "pretty good," he was quoted in an appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast in November 2021 about his three most favorite films in his career. He didn't rate them based on their popularity or success but "by way of the personal experiences that I had while I was doing them," Hanks explained.

So here we go! We did the hard work and ranked our top twenty Tom Hanks' movies - which really was quite a feat - his entire catalog is impressive! Check out our picks and find out his personal top three-rated movies at the end!

At #20, for those old-school Tom Hanks fans, we have 'The Money Pit.' He plays the part of a young, madly in love newlywed, married to actress Shelley Long. They buy their dream mansion and decide they will fix it up with laughable results.

'Cloud Atlas,' our #19 pick, is described on IMDB as "an exploration of how the actions of individual lives impact one another in the past, present, and future." It is quite a dense movie, perhaps calling for not one but multiple viewings to unpack it all.

Although many critics were not thrilled with the film, fans loved our #18 choice, 'The Da Vinci Code,' and it sure showed up at the box office; the movie became a top-grossing film for the actor. Hanks makes for an excellent Robert Langdon alongside French actress Audry Tautou as Sophie Neveu.

Our long and emotional #17 pick is 'The Green Mile.' A huge commercial success, it brought in four Oscar nominations for the production. Hanks played the role of the death row correctional officer, set during the Great Depression. When an unusual convict arrives on his row, Hanks' character experiences supernatural events.

What dog lover doesn't remember all the slobber in our #16 Tom Hanks movie?! Hanks plays the role of Detective Turner, who fights crime alongside his canine sidekick Hooch. The film was so successful it spawned a whole franchise.

Meryl Streep stars alongside Tom Hanks in 'The Post,' coming in for us at #15. The film tells the true story of how a journalist at The Washington Post tried to publish the infamous Pentagon Papers in 1971.

Tom Hanks seems to love starring in American biographical films. 'Captain Phillip,' ranking for us at #14, tells the true story of the 2009 Maersk Alabam hijacking. Hanks plays the Captain taken hostage by Somali pirates.

Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio star in this fast-paced crime film based on a phenomenal true story. Our #13 pick, 'Catch Me If You Can,' is a retro flashback with a tremendous supporting cast. The lead duo is quite entertaining in the long cat-and-mouse game between the con man played by DiCaprio and the investigator played by Hanks.

Our #12 choice is 'You've Got Mail,' which was another opportunity for Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks to play off their amazing on-screen chemistry. You'll find them on our list again soon! Exploring the new world of electronic mail, this romantic comedy dives deep into the exploding internet of the late 90s and how romances emerged.

Oh, #11, I can hear the opening music now - "wooly bully!" (If you know, you know!) A romance between a human and a mermaid, a cast with Tom Hanks, Darryl Hannah, and Eugene Levy, Chicago in the 80s, what more could you want? This classic rom-com still holds water today!

And here they are, as promised, for our #10 choice. It was the beginning of Hanks and Ryan's on-screen chemistry and it was truly electric. The story revolves around loss, love, and a lack of technology from that time causing happenstances that will give you all the rom-com feels. A true must-see!

So we are in the final countdown, with our #9 pick. Apart from being known as "America's Dad," Tom Hanks is also known as "Mr. Nice Guy," which made him just perfect for the role of Mr. Rogers. This heart-warming film will bring back some nostalgia from your days singing along in the neighborhood. Hanks was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for his professional display in 2020.

Denzel Washington and Tom Hanks are formidable in our #8 film, in which Hanks plays an AIDS patient in the 80s fighting for his life and discrimination against the newly circulating illness. Hanks won his first Oscar and his first Golden Globe in 1993 for his incredible performance.

The #7 pick finds Tom Hanks starring alongside Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, and Lori Petty in this comedy-drama sports film. The film tells the dramatized story of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during WWII. Why a women's professional baseball league you might ask? The men were at war! It is a cult classic that was remade into a TV series for Amazon Prime in 2022.

Hanks gives life through his voice his voice, to the animated character Woody in the four Toy Story films, which we have grouped together for our #6 choice. These films have become an enormous franchise for the Disney corporation and the favorite film(s) for every little kid and adult alike.

It would be a real shame if this movie wasn't in our top five best Tom Hanks movies, so here it is, #5. Every child fantasizes about wanting to be all grown up - which is just what happens to Hanks' character in this film. With iconic scenes everyone can recall, this is a great film to walk down memory lane with your kids or just with yourself to return to being a kid! Hanks was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Golden Globe for his presentation in 1989.

Our #4 choice, the docudrama 'Apollo 13,' won critical acclaim and blew the minds of audiences for its incredible accuracy and attention to detail. Tom Hank's portrayal of astronaut Jim Lovell was impeccable and emotional, as it is nearly impossible not to cry at some point during his execution.

Ok, we've arrived at our top three! Tom Hanks' performance in our #3 'Cast Away' was revolutionary at the time. It was unprecedented for a film to have no dialogue or music for 45 minutes, but Hanks pulled it off. And he was deservedly nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe in 2001 for his incredible work.

Our #2 'Saving Private Ryan' is an epic WWII film with great care, detail, and direction by Steven Spielberg. Hanks plays the role of Captain John Miller, who sets out to find Private Ryan, the last living son of a family. The movie is courageous, heartbreaking, honest, gruesome, and patriotic. Hanks was nominated for both an Academy Award and Golden Globe in 1999 for his outstanding performance in the film.

Our #1 pick for the best Tom Hanks' film is Forrest Gump! This film won over the hearts of nearly everyone who saw it. It was an iconic film, and soundtrack, showcasing eras and music of American history. It tops many lists of best movies of all time, and Hanks' execution was unbeatable. He won both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe in 1995 for his portrayal of the always memorable Forrest Gump.

And finally, it's the hour for Tom Hanks' top three rated movies in his career. He was quoted with Bill Simmons in 2021 "'A League of Their Own,' 'Cast Away,' and 'Cloud Atlas' as the three best experiences he has had making movies." Let's hear him explain why these three films have held such a special place for him during his vast career.

Hanks told Simmons that filming 'A League of Their Own' was like being a kid again. "All I did all summer was play baseball...I had all my family with me...We lived in a house in the middle of cornfields. It was great, and my entire family still speaks about it."

Hanks further explains on the podcast about his experience filming 'Cast Away,' where his whole family accompanied him as well, including on two trips to Fiji. "There was nothing but adventures every single day, every single night."

And his final pick was the filming of 'Cloud Atlas' in Germany, where Hanks reveals the phenomenal ensemble cast were "people who were just trying to do the hardest, best work on this deep throw."