Woody Allen has been writing and directing films for 45 years, and has managed to amass sixty-three writing credits (including television), and forty-six directorial credits. He's one of the few filmmakers to work steadily throughout his entire career, and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. But of all those films -- many of which are classics -- which does he feel a particular affinity to?

In a candid interview with The Times [registration is required], Allen spoke out about aging, casting, romance, and what he thinks of his long cinematic career, which he doesn't feel all too hot about. He explains: "I've squandered an opportunity that people would kill for. I have had complete artistic freedom. Other directors don't get that in their lifetime. But I have a very poor record given the opportunities I've had." Allen goes on to praise the likes of Fellini and Kurosawa, while saying of his own features: "There are a few better than others, half a dozen, but it's a surprising paucity of worthwhile celluloid."

Care to take a guess on what those six films are? Here are two hints: Neither Annie Hall nor Manhattan make the list.

The six films that rise above the other forty are:

Purple Rose of Cairo -- Mia Farrow plays a woman so in love with a film that she visits it every day until the star (Jeff Daniels) walks out of the picture and falls in love with her.

Match Point -- Allen's first film in the UK finds Johnathan Rhys Meyers torn between the woman he marries (Emily Mortimer) and the woman he lusts after (Scarlett Johansson).

Bullets Over Broadway -- Woody heads back to the twenties to visit what happens to theater and good-guy playwright (John Cusack) when it's backed by mobsters.

Zelig -- Woody Allen whips himself into a "human chameleon" called Leonard Zelig in this mockumentary that puts the filmmaker into a number of real-life vintage newsreel clips.

Husbands and Wives -- More in the filmmaker's classic territory, he, Mia Farrow, Judy Davis, and Sydney Pollack struggle through the woes of marriage, divorce, and young paramours.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona -- Another ScarJo installment, this finds her getting intermingled in a complicated romance with Javier Bardem and his ex (Penelope Cruz) while on vacation with Rebecca Hall.

I bet that wasn't the list you were expecting. Do you agree with Woody's picks? Weigh in below and offer up your own.