Man on the Moon followed by
Moon... how poetic is that?
MOVIE #38
Shrykespeare
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) – Director: James Cameron; starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong and Robert Patrick. Forget
Titanic, forget
Avatar, THIS is Cameron’s best work. The match-up between Arnold and the T-1000 puts most other action movie match-ups to shame. Linda Hamilton transitioned from a scared rabbit in the first film to a buff, tough,
muchacha here. And the T-1000 is one of the best-realized villains ever conceived… who else got goose bumps when, after being liquefied, it started to reconstitute itself? And the ending… I was not expecting to well up, but well up I did. One of the best endings, ever, full stop.
(4th appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eajuMYNYtuY
silversurfer
Harold and Maude (1971) - Director: Hal Ashby; starring Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort and Vivian Pickles. I remember we went to a local restaurant a few years ago which hosted movie nights (basically you pay for your meal but are presented with a movie to watch while you eat - usually an art house classic), and this particular night the owner was talking of movies which were coming up in the coming months, and Harold and Maude was one he was raving about. I'd heard of the movie before, but (rather stupidly) was a little put off by the relationship of Gordon and Cort's characters due to their age difference. However, we gave it a go and I was so glad I did. From the opening scene I knew i was into something fascinating and delightful, where Harold, carefully walking through the study, makes a little name tag, lights a candle, and then hangs himself before his not-very-startled mother responds by asking him if he thinks it's funny. A tiny smile indicates that yes, he does...very much so! But beyond the absurd comedy is a wonderful story of human existence from both ends of the spectrum and how their relationship develops is a delight to watch. It's witty and both leads bounce off each other perfectly (I still don't understand how Gordon didn't win an Oscar for her role, I suppose it was just a little too leftfield for the Academy), while Ashby's direction is well paced and Cat Stevens' soundtrack complements the emotional tone of the movie just right. So I guess while it may still offend some people, I found it such a delightfully uplifting movie from start to finish.
(3rd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mz3TkxJhPc
thegreenarrow
Early Summer (1951) - Director: Yazujiro Ozu; starring Setsuko Hara, Chishu Ryu and Chikage Awashima.
(2nd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OCrlBOH-72I
transformers
South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut (1999) - Director: Trey Parker and Matt Stone; starring Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Trey Parker and Matt Stone shocked and offended audiences with the
South Park movie and just about every minute of it is brilliant, witty, vulgar and side-splittingly funny.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAYMJnO9LBQ
englishozzy
Man on the Moon (1999) - Director: Milos Forman; starring Jim Carrey, Gerry Becker, Danny DeVito and Courtney Love. Easily Jim Carrey's best performance to date, he embodies Kaufman's personality and by the end of the movie you truly believe you are watching Kaufman forgetting that it is Carrey at all. A perfect biopic of a controversial comedian that plays out as if Kaufman himself had made the movie. This being obvious in the opening sequence with Carrey telling us that we are not seeing the film as it is rubbish and standing there while the end credits come up before we have watched anything. Of course this film would not have been so far up my list if it wasn't for the performance from my fav actor.
(2nd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2L9RtSw943A
Ron Burgundy
Moon (2009) - Director: Duncan Jones; starring Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey and Dominique McElligott. A new type of Sci-Fi that I think is right up there with
Sunshine and the new
Star Trek, but better. With hints of mystery and drama it makes for maximum intrigue. It’s about a guy who is on the moon working by himself, rather lonely, harvesting a new type of energy, and he later finds out that he may not be as alone as he first thought. Go watch it now if you haven't already.
(2nd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twuScTcDP_Q
Buscemi
House of Sand and Fog (2003) - Director: Vadim Perelman; starring Jennifer Connelly, Ben Kingsley, Shoreh Aghdashloo, Ron Eldard and Frances Fisher. The battle over a house between the previous owner and the new owner in 1991 California becomes a matter of life and death in this drama. The acting is incredible, with the viewer being able to feel the characters' emotions and struggles over this battle. The direction (from a first-timer, no less) has feel of a seasoned pro who knows his actors and let's them drive. The screenplay compliments the acting and direction and has probably one of the best surprise endings in cinematic history. The film also has some sentimental value: it was the first R-rated movie I ever got to see by myself (I was thirteen and my mother got me my ticket while she went to see the PG-13
Mona Lisa Smile in another auditorium).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fovfxKGCYzo
Chienfantome
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) – Director: Steven Spielberg; starring Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott and Paul Freeman. I was born the same year as one of the most iconic film characters ever. It could be a reason for a special bond with Indiana Jones, but it’s not really. The qualities of the film need no extra personal reason. It is just plain great.
Raiders of the Lost Ark, for me, personifies the Adventure genre. It created the perfect jubilation of the genre. All the fun, all the action, all the humor, personified in not only an amazing character, but in a whole universe, so perfectly crafted. Spielberg understands what needs to populate such a film. All the supporting players, the exoticism, the danger, the jokes. And he found the perfect actor to fit the fedora. Harrison Ford has never been better than under the hat of Indiana Jones.
(5th appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7THge74MSpQ
numbersix
A Clockwork Orange (1971) - Director: Stanley Kubrick; starring Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Godfred Quigley and Anthony Sharp. This film caused outrage from the start, and it’s still not surprising to see people revile at it. It’s a pretty faithful adaptation (the film ignores the final chapter of the book, which many criticize as being flat) of a provocative novel, but it’s an important one. Both Kubrick and author Burgess are trying to deal with the role of violence in our society, and most importantly of society’s way of dealing with it. You can’t help but see the vast lack of empathy the government has as they try to force a solution instead of preventing it naturally. The ultimate irony is that the government’s actions almost makes you feel sorry for a rapist and murderer as his free will is snatched away through a series of horrific experiments. It also is a story about the emptiness of vengeance, told through the subplot of Mr Alexander whose wife is raped by Alex’s gang (that scene makes me sick to my stomach) and eventually dies. Interestingly, something like this actually happened to writer Anthony Burgess, so in a way this story is also cathartic in coming to terms with his trauma and rage. Add this to an incredibly unique art and music design, and you’ve got one of the best and most thought-provoking films of all time.
(4th appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40Xc-9YeWE4
Banks
My Cousin Vinny (1992) - Director: Jonathan Lynn; starring Joe Pesci, Marisa Tomei, Fred Gwynne, Ralph Macchio and Bruce McGill. The epitome of a timeless, instantly classic, well-made comedy. Joe Pesci is always a sight to behold when he’s trying his hand at comedy, especially here. And there’s a reason Tomei won her only Oscar for this movie, she does almost as much of the comedic heavy lifting as Pesci – culminating in easily the best scene of the movie. “Imagine you’re a deeya…”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMjwiP29cg4
BarcaRulz
The Shining (1980) - DirectorL Stanley Kubrick; starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall and Danny Lloyd. One of the most intense films ever made. The mood it is able to set from the moment the family arrives is amazingly eerie and the suspense just begins to build almost unbearably. Fantastically acted and well written, not to mention superbly directed. The soundtrack is also fantastic.
(5th appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bztYTkBiR0Q
Geezer
Saw (2004) - Director: James Wan; starring Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell, Tobin Bell and Danny Glover. I am no fan of horror films. I don't tend to like anything in the horror genre. But the hype around
Saw when it came out was so great that I had to see it. I went to see it by myself, one of the few times I've done that, and it never left me. I was simply shocked by how good a movie it was. It wasn't particularly scary, it was just a strikingly original film with a fantastic plot, that carries itself without an inflated budget. It’s absolutely a phenomenal film, with the single greatest ending of any film I have ever seen.
(5th appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKPy5RWuqNA
leestu
In the Heat of the Night (1967) - Director: Norman Jewison; starring Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates and Lee Grant.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LsoG2H_aek
W
Monsters, Inc. (2001) - Director: Pete Docter; starring Billy Crystal, John Goodman and Steve Buscemi. Though not most people’s favorite Pixar film,
Monsters, Inc. is certainly mine. Sully and Mike Wazowski seem to have been built around what John Goodman and Billy Crystal would be as monsters. The voice/character match is pretty much perfect. And Boo is so cute! I love the whole Monstropolis universe and the Laugh Factory is a great attraction if you ever get to Disney World.
(2nd appearance)
Monster's Inc. Musical:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqaHBfBSSuc
NSpan
Rushmore (1998) – Director: Wes Anderson; starring Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams and Brian Cox. Taking cues from Hal Ashby (
Harold & Maude) and Mike Nichols (
The Graduate), Wes Anderson--for better or worse--ushered in a new era of filmmaking. Without
Rushmore, films like
Igby Goes Down, Juno, Charlie Bartlett, Rocket Science, Little Miss Sunshine, The Squid and the Whale, and all of Jared Hess's films would probably not exist... (I'd delve into this deeper, but the AV Club says it all quite eloquently in this article:
http://www.avclub.com/articles/10-films ... s-an,2054/). Some would argue that we'd be better off *without* this new so-called "indie" genre, but I doubt anyone would deny the impact it has had in the world of film. Historical significance aside,
Rushmore is a smart and entertaining film from start to finish. Genuinely charming, Rushmore was most of the world's introduction to the phenomenon that is Wes Anderson.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hQel3noQeI
undeadmonkey
Good Will Hunting (1997) – Director: Gus Van Sant; starring Robin Williams, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. To be honest, it’s been almost ten years since I’ve seen this, but I still remember how inspiring of a movie it is. It’s got great script; you know most scripts with this much cussing usually amount to not much more than a student script, but it works here. The acting brings the script to another level. The younger cast brings such believability to their characters and Robin Williams was just mesmerizing, fantastic, I don’t know if there is a good enough word to describe it. It’s such a shame that we haven’t seen anything as great from him since. Wow, I really need to see this again.
(3rd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z02M3NRtkAA
JohnErle
Zodiac (2007) – Director: David Fincher; starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. Brilliantly deconstructs the true crime genre and makes every previous serial killer movie seem tacky and exploitative by comparison. The hoops the police had to go through to make a case gave me immense respect for them, and never once does this movie glamorize the killer.
(2nd appearance)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dWgRfb17-M
Saw moves up to #4 overall (who'da thunk it?!).
Raiders moves up to #8.
The Shining is now #11.
