#25558 - 06/10/09 04:53 PM
Re: Top 5 movies
[Re: Saligia]
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Diavolo
Moderator
stalker
Registered: 09/02/07
Posts: 3778
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I do have more movies I can keep watching but these are five that popped up while thinking about it. Of course there have been newer movies I like but if they will stand the test of time, only time will tell. I wiki-ed some basic info to add.
Once Upon a Time in the West (Italian: C'era una volta il West) is a 1968 epic spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone. The film stars Henry Fonda cast against type as the villain Frank, Charles Bronson as his nemesis "Harmonica", Jason Robards as the bandit Cheyenne and Claudia Cardinale as Jill, a newly-widowed homesteader with a past as a prostitute. The screenplay was written by Leone and Sergio Donati, from a story devised by Leone, Bernardo Bertolucci, and Dario Argento. The widescreen cinematography was by Tonino Delli Colli, and Ennio Morricone provided the film score.
In Europe, the film was a substantial box office success, playing for multiple years in some cities. However, it was greeted with a mostly negative critical response upon its 1969 theatrical release in the United States and was a financial flop. The film is now generally acknowledged as a masterpiece and one of the best western films ever made.
Seven Samurai (Shichinin no samurai?) is a 1954 Japanese film co-written, edited and directed by Akira Kurosawa. The film takes place in Warring States Period Japan (around 1587/1588). It follows the story of a village of farmers that hire seven masterless samurai (ronin) to combat bandits who will return after the harvest to steal their crops.
Seven Samurai is frequently described as one of the greatest and most influential films ever made, and is one of a select few Japanese films to become widely known in the West for an extended period of time. It is the subject of both popular and critical acclaim; it was voted onto Sight & Sound's list of the ten greatest films of all time in 1982 and 1992, and remains on the director's top ten films in the 2002 poll.
La Grande Bouffe (Italian: La grande abbuffata, English: The Grande Bouffe and Blow-Out) is a 1973 French–Italian film directed by Marco Ferreri.[1] It stars Marcello Mastroianni, Ugo Tognazzi, Michel Piccoli and Philippe Noiret. The film tells the story of four friends who gather in a villa for the weekend for the express purpose of eating themselves to death. Bouffer is French slang for "eating" but with the added nuance of stuffing oneself... (the Italian abbuffata means "great eating").
Marco Ferreri won the FIPRESCI Prize given by the International Federation of Film Critics at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival.
The film was somewhat controversial upon its original release with its scatological humour and comic depictions of sex and over-eating.
Apocalypse Now is a 1979 American epic war film set during the Vietnam War. The plot revolves around two US Army special operations officers, one of whom, Captain Benjamin L. Willard (Martin Sheen) of MACV-SOG, is sent into the jungle to assassinate the other, the rogue and presumably insane Colonel Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando) of Special Forces. The film was produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from a script by Coppola and John Milius. The script is based on Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness, and also draws elements from Michael Herr's Dispatches, the film version of Conrad's Lord Jim (which shares the same character of Marlow with Heart of Darkness), and Werner Herzog's Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972).
Blade Runner is a 1982 American science fiction film, directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, and Sean Young. The screenplay, written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples, is based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick. The film depicts a dystopian Los Angeles in November 2019 in which genetically manufactured beings called replicants – visually indistinguishable from adult humans – are used for dangerous or menial work on Earth's "off-world colonies". Following a replicant uprising, replicants become illegal on Earth and specialist police called "blade runners" are trained to hunt down and "retire" escaped replicants on Earth. The plot focuses on a brutal and cunning group of recently-escaped replicants hiding in Los Angeles and the semi-retired blade runner, Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), who reluctantly agrees to take on one more assignment.
D.
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#25648 - 06/14/09 08:46 PM
Re: Top 5 movies
[Re: Saligia]
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TornadoCreator
member
Registered: 10/24/07
Posts: 579
Loc: No Fixed Address
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It all depends what you want out of a film. If you're looking for films that make you think and explore emotions then that's very different from the all out fire, death and explosions blockbuster category.
For the first category, in no particular order.
Fight Club - It will already be listed by someone. It is a nice work of art really, the colours and atmosphere is exceptional and the story well told albeit a little predictable. I've never seen a better Brad Pitt performance though.
Hard Candy - I actually watched this again only about 3 hours ago. It is one of the most moving, disturbing and eerily realistic psychological horrors I've ever seen. If you're going to watch it though make sure it's without distractions, it's a very subtle film.
Pulp Fiction - I'm not entirely sure why this makes me think, but it does. The film is expertly made and it's one that takes the standard and twists it only slightly but enough. Unfortunately it led to Quentin Tarantino being treated like a God with future films that simply don't measure up (*cough* Kill Bill).
8MM - You get to watch a spiral of emotion in a single character as he simply takes too much. Nicolas Cage is a fantastic actor and he's given far to little exposure. One of the rare films where I was actually vying for blood on the characters behalf. Extremely immersive.
American Beauty - A look into suburban life which few people could deny having far too much truth to it. The film is honest and entertaining. It has some great characters and Kevin Spacey gives a decent performance throughout. Well worth watching.
For the more mindless entertainment
Con Air - A fantastic action film. Great acting. Great special effects. Great pacing. It even had great music in it. People rarely give it it's dues as it didn't break any boundaries but then it wasn't trying to.
Layer Cake - A film about drug crime without as much pretension as some of the others out there. Great acting again and a thrilling storyline. Well worth watching. A word of warning, it is a little more 'British' than people may be prepared for.
The Matrix - A guilty pleasure if ever there was one. An interesting concept and some fantastic special effects... just ignore the sequels though, they suck the hairy balls of Satan, and not in a good way.
The Dark Knight - This is a good contester for best film of all time. Some of the best special effects I've ever seen, the best acting I've seen in years from Heath Ledger, a storyline with very few faults and none that are not people specifically looking to tear the film apart. It's everything people have said it is, a damn masterpiece, and it even makes you think at times.
V for Vendetta - An exploration on a utilitarian state which is thrilling without being mindless or obvious. The emotional heights of the film where a welcomed surprise. Well worth watching.
I own all of the above films on DVD and I can fit my entire collection into a single cardboard box along with my Xbox 360 games, so as you can imagine, I only buy the best films I see.
I hope these summaries where useful, let me know what you think of the films should you get a chance to see them, I'm sure you've seen a few, I didn't exactly choose obscure stuff.
_________________________
If you can't practice what you preach, at least have the decency to preach what you practice
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#25689 - 06/16/09 12:09 AM
Re: Top 5 movies
[Re: Jake999]
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ceruleansteel
member
Registered: 10/15/07
Posts: 549
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If this is the movie that I think it is, my friend tried to get me to watch it with him once, but the fuckin' dimple in that guy's chin was such a distraction that I couldn't stop looking at it...it would be like meeting your future inlaws for the first time only to find that your MIL was a circus freak. Remember the mole scene in that particular Austin Powers flick? Exactly.
THE FUCKIN' DIMPLE!!!
He finally turned it off about halfway through and told me how much I sucked.
Edited by ceruleansteel (06/16/09 12:09 AM)
Edit Reason: dimples and moles...
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#30001 - 09/24/09 08:48 PM
Re: Top 5 movies
[Re: Satans Scrotum]
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ThinkingCap
stranger
Registered: 09/11/09
Posts: 11
Loc: Tennessee
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Not sure if you still have time to watch movies or not, but I have a few that haven't been listed but are just amazing pieces of art. These are all films that stayed in my mind for weeks after I had watched them.
I have only stated my thoughts/opinions on what these movies are all about, and you may well find a completely different meaning. That's why I tried to choose well-crafted films that could be enjoyed no matter what themes you found within them.
1) The Fall
Directed by Tarsem (The Cell), this film is focused on the relationship between a young actor and a little girl in a hospital. Shot from the point of view of the girl, the plot follows both real life events and those that occur within a fable the actor is telling the girl. The visuals and the storyline blend seamlessly and result in one of the finest movies I have ever seen. If you've seen The Cell, then you have some idea of what to expect.
2) Stay
Directed by Marc Forster, Stay is a complex movie with the finest details meticulously planned out to accentuate an already clever movie that deals with the subconscious. I'm afraid to say more for fear of spoiling parts of the movie for you, but this is most assuredly a film that will not tolerate mindless viewers and requires a sharp eye to catch all of the nuances in the story.
3) The Fountain
I am hesitant to recommend this one (directed by Darren Aronofsky (Pi, Requiem for a Dream)) due to its heavy references to Mayan religion and The Tree of Life. However, if you are willing to keep an open mind while watching, the references serve as a tool to deliver deep insight into loss and grief. The plot structure is also well developed and engaging.
4) The Chumscrubber
This is more of a juvenile movie than the last three I have listed. Directed by Arie Posin, it focuses on a suburban neighborhood filled with "perfect" people who have a slew of insecurities and problems. This is more of a satire, and you older people will most likely find a different way to connect with this than I did. Some people I have shown this to come away saying that it was depressing and upsetting. I personally find the brutal honesty in this film to be hilarious.
5) Pathology
Directed by Marc Scholermann, I enjoy this movie for the visuals more than anything. It does have an interesting story line following a group of pathologists that kill other people in unusual ways, then test each other to see if anyone can figure it out. But the violence and sex combined with the film crew's amazing cinematography makes the film incredibly beautiful. The two writers, Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, have amazing skill at what they do and all of the films that they have been involved in (Crank, Gamer) have had just as fantastic visuals as this one does.
I hope that you find some entertainment in these movies! I love watching films and to say that these five are in my top ten really says something about their quality.
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