Fantaverse Top 100 Movies of All Time (Thread #6): 50-41

[W]

Don't worry Monkey, I've got quite a few that are sure not to be repeated left to go. I won't, however, guarantee you'll like them.

[Shrykespeare]

MOVIE #42


Shrykespeare

Braveheart (1995) – Director: Mel Gibson; starring Mel Gibson, Patrick McGoohan, Brendan Gleeson and Sophie Marceau. A terrific historical drama, with some of the most realistic and brutal battle sequences ever shot. Gibson is magnificent as Scottish hero William Wallace, and McGoohan is equally fantastic as the evil and ruthless Edward Longshanks. Filled with action, romance, and a welcome amount of humor, Braveheart is easily the best “epic” historical saga I’ve ever seen. (3rd appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBXBtORI7pE


silversurfer

Early Summer (1951) - Director. Yazujiro Ozu; starring Setsuko Hara, Chishu Ryu and Chikage Awashima. I remember we picked this up in our local DVD store a few years ago as we read this was by the same guy who had directed Tokyo Story (which we also wanted to see but was too expensive) but at a much better price. We decided we'd check it out, and found it to be one of the most poignantly beautiful tales which deals with the culture clashes of traditional and contemporary Japan. It's so delicately directed with lush landscapes and the quietness of the movie only makes it all the more breathtaking. We were captivated by the style and Setsuko Hara's stunning beauty (Yes, guys, I'm feeling the love for the Asian ladies here...), it is such a stunning tale and one of the greatest dramatizations of everyday life I have ever seen. I recently got the chance to watch Tokyo Story too and was just as amazed by that too, and with time I have no doubt that too will rank in my top 100, and I look forward to seeing the remaining of this trilogy with An Autumn Afternoon and Late Spring, but for now this is the Ozu masterpiece which has made my list, it's subtleness and tragic beauty, relieved with some delightful comic dialogue is without doubt on of the most inspiring movies I've seen in recent years and reaffirmed my belief in the beauty of cinema.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCrlBOH-72I


thegreenarrow

The Orphanage (2007) - Director: Juan Antonio Bayona; starring Belen Rueda, Fernando Cayo and Roger Princep. I first heard about this when I saw it was produced by Guillermo Del Toro, and within the first five minutes I knew we were getting something of that high standard. It's a classic ghost story (much in line with the likes of The Innocents and other classics), I can't see it ever dating, but with a little of a chilling Del Toro-esque style to it. I really enjoyed the acting in the movie, especially the lead character Laura, she provided such a profoundly honest performance as the mother of her missing son, and the eventual reveal is heartbreaking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jA6pPzh6Bd4


transformers

Transformers (2007) – Director: Michael Bay; starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, John Turturro and Tyrese Gibson. Transformers may get a lot of shit, but I love this film. It's story line isn't the greatest, but it's not a piece of high art, it's a movie about giant robots bashing the shit out of each other and it does that exceptionally well. The effects are stunning and the action sequences are jaw-dropping. This is one of the most entertaining films ever made, it's just a flat out fun film to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnwmUZuF5OY


englishozzy

District 9 (2009) - Director: Neill Blomkamp; starring Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, Nathalie Boltt, Sylvaine Strike, David James and Vanessa Haywood. Every year there is always one film that stands out due to its originality as we struggle for new ides and can guarantee Hollywood will ruin it by doing countless sequels and re-imagining's. On the upside, District 9 is one of the standouts of 2009, Blomkamp has done extremely well with the money given to him and Copley is one of the breakout stars of recent years. District 9 has a profound message running through its veins on tolerance towards other races, but for all the political jargon you have an explosive and exciting sci-fi that grips you until the end. (5th appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVmfv2AlLhs


Ron Burgundy

Gladiator (2000) - Director: Ridley Scott; starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Richard Harris, Oliver Reed, Connie Nielson, Djimon Honsou and Derek Jacobi. My favourite Aussie actor is Russell Crowe, and this is my second fave movie from him as Maximus Decimus Meridius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife, and he will have his vengeance, along with some help from the late Oliver Reed and a hostile Djimon Honsou. Joaquin Phoenix also plays his role as the villainous son of the emperor really well, and before I knew who he was I always hated his character here which is what a good actor can do. Some great gladiatorial scenes with crisp direction from legendary director Ridley Scott make this a worthy top 50 selection for me. All I can say is that if you haven’t watched this already make sure you bloody well do!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvTT29cavKo


Buscemi

A Clockwork Orange (1971) - Director: Stanley Kubrick; starring Malcolm McDowell, Godfrey Quigley, Anthony Sharp, Patrick Magee and Warren Clarke. The life and fall of a teenage gang leader becomes the basis for one of the most harrowing and out-there science fiction films in cinematic history. The film is brutal, bleak and hard to watch at times but it's one of those films where you cannot look away. However, that's only part of what makes it so damn good. McDowell's acting (his finest performance, which makes it sad that he's gone from this to making crap on a daily basis) is natural and just plain terrifying. Kubrick's direction hits the mark and makes something designed to scare you from engaging into this type of behavior. The madness of Kubrick and the creepiness of the source material creates something so insane that it becomes his crowning achievement. (3rd appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5n2NXuQ5ako


Chienfantome

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) – Director : Michel Gondry; starring Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Elijah Wood, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Wilkinson and Kirsten Dunst. If I had had to make a Top 100 back in 2004 or 2005, this is a film that would have probably appeared much higher than #42. Because when I first saw it, it instantly became one of my favourite films, thinking it was one of the very very very best films I had ever seen in my entire life (lol). A few years have passed, the excitement had time to cool down, and a second viewing confirmed me that this is indeed an immense film, but maybe a 42nd spot in a Top 100 fits it better than a place in the Top 30. Which is already an amazing place. But afterall, what an amazing film. What an amazing symbiosis between a director and a screenwriter. Kaufman needed not only a crazy filmmaker to put his screenplay on the big screen, he also needed one with a high sense of creativity and a talent to master any kind of visual idea. Gondry is that man, a director for whom impossible is a word that does not exist. Eternal Sunshine is that rare kind of film where absolutely anything can happen, both narratively and visually. And the minds and hands behind it make it seem natural. It’s a beautiful and fucked up tale of how difficult it can be to live with your past. It’s a love story like no other. Sometimes beautiful. Sometimes bitter. Sometimes optimistic. Crazily unique. (2nd appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnSgSe2GzDc


numbersix

Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979) - Director: Terry Jones; starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Terry Jones. While The Holy Grail is a brilliant film in itself, it suffered slightly from the episodic nature of the narrative, as if the guys couldn't shake off their Flying Circus structure. That was all resolved in Life of Brian, a daring and hilarious parody of the story of Christ. By mimicking the narrative, the crew could go much deeper than having a few superficially silly moments. They could combine such moments with biting satire at a time when religion was still sacrosanct. In fact it was banned in my own country for almost a decade. Not surprising, when they portray religions as stemming not from dedicated faith or historical accuracy, but from mass hysteria and gross misinterpretation. There's also an evident poke at the misguided guerrilla groups of the 1970's, which were oppositional without standing for anything at all. And all these deep ideas are represented with the Python's particular blend of surreal and hilarious humour. (2nd appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krb2OdQksMc


Banks

Saw (2004) - Director: James Wan; starring Cary Elwes, Tobin Bell, Danny Glover and Leigh Whannell. I know a few of you guys dismiss Saw as an average horror film, but it blew my mind years ago – and even with the twist known, I still love it whenever I get a chance to watch. A strong first film in a trilogy (the storyline really ends after Saw III), Saw presented a new type of villain – a serial killer that’s never killed anyone. Amanda says it all when she’s found after surviving one of Jigsaw’s traps: “He…helped me.” A morality tale wrapped in a horror film, with a great twist ending to boot. (4th appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKPy5RWuqNA


BarcaRulz

Lawrence of Arabia (1962) - Director: David Lean; starring Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Omar Sharif. An excellent movie that I first watched when I was only 7. It obviously did not have that profound an affect then, but I remember enjoying it, which is why I re-watched it when I was 17 and I loved every second of it. The acting is brilliant by all involved, and the story is both powerful and riveting that you can't help but get sucked into it as it all unfolds. The cinematography and the script are both brilliant, and in my opinion that plays a huge role in how little this film has aged since its release.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQA_ldX0VI0


Geezer

The Lion King (1994) - Director: Rogers Allers and Rob Minkoff; starring: Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, Nathan Lane and Jonathan Taylor Thomas. My all time favorite amongst the Disney classics. It has just stuck with me more than any other. I love the music, I love the story, I love the characters, I just love it all. I still quote it all the time, and it’s still acceptable! That takes something special from an animated film. The Lion King will never stop being cool for the whole family. (3rd appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sj1MT05lAA


leestu

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and her Lover (1989) - Director: Peter Greenaway; starring Richard Bohringer, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren, Alan Howard and Tim Roth. This movie impressed me so much when I first saw it at the cinema that I went back and watched it two more times during its run; which is extremely rare for me. This dark tragic love and revenge story may not be to everyone’s taste (one of my friends walked out on it halfway through), but is a beautifully filmed visual treat to watch with fantastic use of colour and music; and great acting from the three leads.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXLRdeYFHss


W

Billy Madison (1995) - Director: Tamra Davis; starring Adam Sandler, Darren McGavin and Bridgette Wilson. The first Sandler starring role (not counting the never released in theaters Going Overboard) is all over the map and at times incoherent. But a comedy (for me) doesn't have to be a great "film" (as you well know). It's a very funny, extremely quotable stupid comedy with great cameos from both Steve Buscemi and Chris Farley. There's so many great lines here like the old woman saying, "If peeing your pants is cool, consider me Miles Davis," or Chris Farley's "That is cor-rect!" and this one (link) to name a few. (5th appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7w64fbqYQY


NSpan

The Princess Bride (1987) – Director: Rob Reiner; starring Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Mandy Patinkin, Billy Crystal, Andre the Giant, Peter Falk, Fred Savage and Carol Kane. (4th appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njZBYfNpWoE


undeadmonkey

Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) - Director: Jay Roach; starring Mike Myers, Heather Graham, Verne Troyer and Michael York. If you know me, I usually can’t stand this kind of stupid comedy film. They are filled with dirty jokes, one-dimensional characters, thin plots just thick enough to service the gags, boobies abound for no apparent reason (well cleavage in this film, as its only PG-13). And yet defying all odds, I laughed throughout this movie. Believe me, I tried not too. The film just worked for me, Austin Powers just felt more natural back in his original habitat the 1960s (to me he was just awkward in the first film), the story flowed fast enough not to have any downtime to think about the stupidity of the situations. So whenever I want a no-thinking comedy I turn this on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knNCtO7gf7g


JohnErle

Brazil (1985) – Director: Terry Gilliam; starring Jonathan Pryce, Robert DeNiro, Katherine Helmond and Michael Palin. Christopher Nolan may have watched a few Terry Gilliam movies to learn how to create a dream-like atmosphere. (5th appearance)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Wh2b1eZFUM



Brazil moves back up to #4. Billy Madison, Princess Bride, Saw and District 9 all jump into the Top 20.

[BarcaRulz]

Billy Madison with 5 picks? Did not see that one coming at all!

[Chienfantome]

Billy Madison with 5 picks? Did not see that one coming at all!

Me neither Barca, it scares me a bit

[numbersix]

MOVIE #42

Shrykespeare: Braveheart (1995) – While McGoohan does indeed ham it up to the max, I can't say I like this film. Plus, I wouldn't call it "historical" considering the ridiculous amount of inconsistencies, from who Wallace is to the use of kilts. But that's minor. What's major is that it's so ridiculously black-and-white (Wallce=pure and good, English=nasty and bad) that it's hard to endure three hours of it.

silversurfer: Early Summer (1951) - Interesting to see an Ozu movie on anyone's list. I haven't seen this, but I've watched Tokyo Story, An Autumn Afternoon, and Late Autumn. To be honest, none of those films have really stuck with me. While in theory I appreciate Ozu's method of slow, deliberate film-making, it's hard for me to be entirely captivated. I also feel a lot of the drama derives from the changing face of Japanese culture and while in some way I can "get" that, it doesn't have the same impact that Ozu probably intended. So I can respect Ozu but I'd be lying if I said I loved his films.

thegreenarrow: The Orphanage (2007) - It was an alright film. I'm kind of tired of ghost stories that start off creepy and end up sentimental, and I have to say I hated the ending. The bit with the old lady did shock me, though.

transformers: Transformers (2007) – I saw it a few months ago. It wasn't terrible, it wasn't great.

englishozzy: District 9 (2009) - I can totally understand why people can enjoy this as an action film, and Copley is great, but it's profound message of tolerance falls flat due to its "intolerant" demonising of Nigerians.

Ron Burgundy: Gladiator (2000) - I was somewhat disappointed by this after watching it. It was okay, and Crowe and Phoenix delivered good performances, but it felt like a very convoluted attempt to have a few action sequences. And some of them were good, but the film as a whole just didn't work.

Buscemi: A Clockwork Orange (1971) - So crazy it just might work, eh? Well that's Kubrick for you. A divisive film, and I'm on the side that thinks it's brilliant.

Chienfantome: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) – I keep chaning my mind about this film. Sometimes I love it, sometimes I'm nonplussed. Right now I think I do like it. Carrey and Winslet are great, and there is something deeply sad about having your memories erased, whether good or bad. It's kind of part of who we are, whether we like them or not, and the film plays on that. I still wish they included the ending that Kaufman wrote.

Banks: Saw (2004) - The only thing that blew my mind is how people can like this . And the morality tale element is pretty lame, to be honest. Don't think anyone deserves the kind of torture. IF twisted morality is your thing, Seven does that way better. This is just torture porn with a large, silly twist, plain and simple.

BarcaRulz: Lawrence of Arabia (1962) - Stunningly beautiful film. The version I have is almost 4 hours long and it just speeds past so quickly. And I agree, it has barely aged at all.

Geezer: The Lion King (1994) - Nope, still haven't seen it. Shameful, I know.

leestu: The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and her Lover (1989) - Yep, certainly not something everyone will love as it's very symbolic (a critique of England under Thatcher) and quite provocative. Nyman's great score manages to give it a sense of feeling that eases the cerebral element of it. A powerful film. I've loathed everything Greenaway has done since, though. That guy just hates his audience and wants to "teach" us something, which I find arrogant and pretentious.

W: Billy Madison (1995) - Yikes, this is getting lotsa love. Still haven't seen enough to make a comment.

NSpan: The Princess Bride (1987) – Great fantasy movie. That's probably the best thing about the 80's, its great fantasy flicks.

undeadmonkey: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999) - What I liked about the original was its amusing jokes about James Bond's tired tropes, revealing them to be dated. The henchmen backstories are just brilliant. The sequels lost all of that and tried to be outright comedies but never really worked for me. But this is fun.

JohnErle: Brazil (1985) – Oh, I don't know. The dreamscapes of Gilliam go way beyonf what Nolan achieved in Inception. In Inception dreams are cold and constricted, in Gilliam's world they're what represents our freedom. Very different, and for me Brazil is infinitely better.

[JohnErle]

JohnErle: Brazil (1985) – Oh, I don't know. The dreamscapes of Gilliam go way beyonf what Nolan achieved in Inception. In Inception dreams are cold and constricted, in Gilliam's world they're what represents our freedom. Very different, and for me Brazil is infinitely better.

What I said was that Nolan should have watched a few Terry Gilliam movies. Every frame of Brazil is more dream-like than anything in Inception. I think Skryke edited my comment to make me look like less of an asshole. Good luck with that!

PS - I won't spoil the surprise but a couple of my top 10 picks showed up in this round. That almost makes up for the 3 movies I hate and the 2 you'd have to pay me to see. (There I go, being an asshole again.)

[NSpan]

NSpan: The Princess Bride (1987) – Great fantasy movie. That's probably the best thing about the 80's, its great fantasy flicks.

I wrote a paragraph about Rob Reiner accomplishing a Lucas/Spielberg-level of achievement by creating a fantasy world that is so completely engrossing (and disbelief-suspending) while, at once, being a source of unbridled entertainment for every demographic. But then I accidentally deleted it.

[Shrykespeare]

Movie #42

NSpan - The Princess Bride - Obviously, I adore this movie. Our sixth overlap. (10/10)

Banks - Saw - Great choice, sir! Our sixth overlap as well. (9/10)

englishozzy - District 9 - Great choice. Our 12th overlap. (9/10)

transformers - Transformers - Great popcorn movie, but it's SUCH a Michael Bay film. I'm surprised to see that the film that gave you your screen name so LOW on your list, frankly! (9/10)

numbersix - The Life of Brian - So many great scenes, like the spaceship, the stoning, Biggus Dickus, etc. And full frontal nudity! (9/10)

Ron Burgundy - Gladiator - Great film, but it does drag in some places. (8/10)

Geezer - The Lion King - Disney definitely was on a roll in the 80's-90's with this, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, and Little Mermaid. Pity it stopped. (7/10)

Buscemi - A Clockwork Orange - Like most Kubrick, it's very well-done, but I have a hard time sitting through it. (5/10)

[W]

If you're an American that grew up in the 90's, there's a good chance you've got a soft spot for Billy Madison...

[NSpan]

Stop looking at me, SWAN!

[W]

Stop looking at me, SWAN!

O'Doyle RULES!

[transformers2]

It's too damn hot for a penguin to be just walkin' around here. I got send him back to the South Pole.

[Geezer]

NUDIE MAGAZINE DAY! NUDIE MAGAZINE DAY!

[undeadmonkey]

i loathe billy madison. adam sandlers worst film

[Buscemi]

He called the shit poop!