Top 5 Favourite Movies

[zackryder]

godfather (im not gonna decide between sequels/trilogies)
LOTR
shawshank redemption
pulp fiction
schindlers list

 

[SingerAuto]

Pulp Fiction
Shawshank Redemption
Up In Smoke
Guardians of the Galaxy
The Empire Strikes Back

 

[Jermei]

Shawshank
Die Hard
T2
Goodfellas
Pulp Fiction

 

[ahme4]

Inglourious Basterds
Midnight in Paris
Traffic
Goodbye Lenin!
Gangs of New York

top 5 is hard but those come up pretty quick in my head

 

[Da Speeit]

Godfather (just settle on both I an II)
Bicycle Thieves
8 1/2
Un Femme est Un Femme
Not Another Teen Movie

 

[Ricky13]

I'm fascinated by what establishes proper suspension of disbelief versus what pulls people out of it. Of course individual willingness plays a big part; acculturating to a new visual language fatigues the eye and the mind.

Especially early Mann versus later Mann. Ain't no diner scene in a later Mann version of Heat (otherwise known as Miami Vice). For some reason, grainy handheld makes it less palatable when Jamie Foxx is dropping fools. On closer inspection, it's all there. Tubbs and Crockett are as professional, their wants and needs as clear as with McCauley and Hanna.

It's great, that diner scene, but every viewing of it for me now screams "first De Niro/Pacino scene!!!!". Get out of my head, cinematic cultural significance asshole.

Latter Mann gets a lot of flack for the handheld camera work, but he's always been a bit less accessible than your average thriller action director. It's like he's making it tougher on himself, but I heard he rewatched HEAT and is considering going back to traditional film to do the Christian Bale flick about Enzo Ferrari.

That's kind of a bummer, though I'm the last person not to give something a chance anymore. I felt Mann was on to something, like how digital allowed him to evoke a sepia toned nostalgia of times past in Public Enemies. It felt like he was building toward using the medium to its fullest. I was looking forward to it.

I love the minute zoom into Jamie Foxx's eyes just after he wastes the Predator. It's been a mantra through the series, and even Colin Farrell invokes the Trudy-ism -- but without a word you can tell by that look that he ain't playing.

Fucking great scene. I love the way Mann hardly waits for anything to register. The zoom is meant to show character intent but our minds automatically go to "PLEASE keep the camera steady".

Reminds me of the opening montage in Ali, where he cuts off reels and reels of exposition and distills the racially charged thrust of the film in seconds.

[YT]kE_lIZmqJtI[/YT]

Black kid (holy shit is that Randy from The Wire?) watching black man paint a blue-eyed/blond-haired Jesus. An almost throwaway reference to Emmett Till. It's this delirious opening I can never shake and rewind every time, and the handheld shaky shots of the back of Sam Cooke's head add to the dream feel. Craft and then some.

I'm amused that RISES is regarded as not only one of the best BAT-flicks, but one of the best superhero films of all time BECAUSE it's realistic, which isn't an indictment despite the notion I think if you're going into fantastical territory you might as well dive in feet first.

But it goes to show me what people are willing to go along with. It isn't that they think RISES is without flaw, but they're just willing to go along with it more than the other hokey drek.

Last superhero film I feel embraced the spirit of the fantastical and executed was Spiderman II. I don't even read comics, really, and I'm sure you have a better idea of what's true to the medium (does this even matter?), but it's the only one I can watch and believe the internal conflict of a superhero in.

THREE USES OF A KNIFE is my bible!

Here I thought I could surprise you.

While I do agree with the sentiment, it feels a little pissy -- a little too Patton Oswalt-y -- for something that should be more delightful. A rat is serving food: you want the film to be as charming as we can muster.

That's interesting. I'm too busy watching Remy swing off pans and scramble underneath tables.

What's the stopgap?

I was a reactionary asshole and just needed to get over myself. All the most tangible things annoyed me. Noisy Japanese kids, overt emotion, and most importantly, a metaphorical culture I couldn't apprehend because my mind wasn't open to it. And I was only watching Miyazaki at that point. This was three years or so ago. I actually watched Paprika recently and fucking loooooooooooooooved it. Like an imagination vessel burst in my head and spilled over to everything else. Will slowly rewatch Miyazaki like a non-dick.

 

[bandicoot]

Godfather (just settle on both I an II)
Bicycle Thieves
8 1/2
Un Femme est Un Femme
Not Another Teen Movie

If you're not joking, I totally think this is a great comedy. Totally did the parody genre justice imo.

 

[ElJuanHubbard]

Good Will Hunting
Jackie Brown
Donnie Darko
Juice
The Voices


In no particular order, and any one of them could be changed out for about a hundred others and the list would still be accurate. I really like movies lol

 

[Da Speeit]

If you're not joking, I totally think this is a great comedy. Totally did the parody genre justice imo.

My girlfriend bemoans that she can never evoke the emotive joy that appears on my face when the coach breaks jake in half on the practice field.
That is a 10/10 film

 

[minute bull]

Especially early Mann versus later Mann. Ain't no diner scene in a later Mann version of Heat (otherwise known as Miami Vice). For some reason, grainy handheld makes it less palatable when Jamie Foxx is dropping fools. On closer inspection, it's all there. Tubbs and Crockett are as professional, their wants and needs as clear as with McCauley and Hanna.

It's great, that diner scene, but every viewing of it for me now screams "first De Niro/Pacino scene!!!!". Get out of my head, cinematic cultural significance asshole.

Ha! So far only Sonny and I have claimed MIAMI VICE is superior to HEAT. Even Sigh won't get on board with VICE.

That's kind of a bummer, though I'm the last person not to give something a chance anymore. I felt Mann was on to something, like how digital allowed him to evoke a sepia toned nostalgia of times past in Public Enemies. It felt like he was building toward using the medium to its fullest. I was looking forward to it.

I'd be surprised if he went through with it. The freedom of digital directly benefits Mann's (overwrought?) style of coverage coverage coverage. He can do take after take after take without worrying about capacity.

Maybe you're like me; I really dig what Mann does with digital. It feels like I'm a spectator on the street, but in a different world and a different time. He hung his hat on the fact if you traveled in time to PUBLIC ENEMIES how you saw it onscreen is exactly how you'd see it for real. Same quality lights, etc. Feels good, man.

Reminds me of the opening montage in Ali, where he cuts off reels and reels of exposition and distills the racially charged thrust of the film in seconds.

[YT]kE_lIZmqJtI[/YT]

Black kid (holy shit is that Randy from The Wire?) watching black man paint a blue-eyed/blond-haired Jesus. An almost throwaway reference to Emmett Till. It's this delirious opening I can never shake and rewind every time, and the handheld shaky shots of the back of Sam Cooke's head add to the dream feel. Craft and then some.

Not available in my country. It's a shame the ALI clips have been wiped off youtube. I revisit the boxing sequences every now and again -- might be time to rewatch the whole film.

Last superhero film I feel embraced the spirit of the fantastical and executed was Spiderman II. I don't even read comics, really, and I'm sure you have a better idea of what's true to the medium (does this even matter?), but it's the only one I can watch and believe the internal conflict of a superhero in.

Do you generally find it difficult to like superhero films? SPIDERMAN 2 is so good...

Here I thought I could surprise you.

I'm surprised. Trust me.

That's interesting. I'm too busy watching Remy swing off pans and scramble underneath tables.

Don't get me wrong. All that's fun and I love RATATOUILLE. But it's like Patton Oswalt himself. At first you think he's a lovable nerd with wry things to say. But the closer you look at his tear-strained eyes and forced smile that he's a man who lives with a knife in his heart, the pain is that palpable. His comedy's got a keen edge to it, but every now and again he'll reveal this blistering anger enough to give anyone pause. Like, "Whoa, buddy. What happened to the jokes?"

RATATOUILLE is a light film where you can see the veracity of life within it, which makes is rather sublime in how delicately it's conveyed -- then like a thud there's "EVEN TRASH IS BETTER THAN A CRITIC WHO CONTRIBUTES NOTHING!"

Whoa, buddy. What happened to the talking rat with the chef's hat?

I was a reactionary asshole and just needed to get over myself. All the most tangible things annoyed me. Noisy Japanese kids, overt emotion, and most importantly, a metaphorical culture I couldn't apprehend because my mind wasn't open to it. And I was only watching Miyazaki at that point. This was three years or so ago. I actually watched Paprika recently and fucking loooooooooooooooved it. Like an imagination vessel burst in my head and spilled over to everything else. Will slowly rewatch Miyazaki like a non-dick.

Ah yes. The annoying little girls. Yes, I know them. I myself love them -- the little girls -- but I can see how some of them you just want to punt.

 

[bandicoot]

My girlfriend bemoans that she can never evoke the emotive joy that appears on my face when the coach breaks jake in half on the practice field.
That is a 10/10 film

I lose my shit damn near every time that coach is on screen.

 

[blitzk]

In no particular order:

1. Saving Private Ryan
2. Snatch
3. The shawshank redemption
4. Goodfellas
5. Lord of the rings: the two towers

 

[Goodfella86]

Goodfellas
L.A. Confidential
Midnight Run
Heat
Lebowski

 

[kicks]

Some good ones in here and some I will have to check out.

In no particular order
1. Fear and loathing in Las Vegas
2. A perfect world (I don't know why)
3. Rain Man
4. Silence of the lambs
5. Stranger than fiction

 

[Goodfella86]

Shawshank
Die Hard
T2
Goodfellas
Pulp Fiction

Excellent list.

 

[minute bull]

That's a great list, too. All of those run the gamut of emotions, even SILENCE OF THE LAMBS gets pretty funny and touching beneath its intensity.

 

[Psychedelic]

Tough question. It's hard to single out 5 movies out of tens of masterpieces, but I would nominate :

- Oldboy (the Korean film, not the shitty remake)
- The Holy Mountain
- The Omen (1976)
- V For Vendetta
- El M

 

[chickenluver]

1. Ran, 1985
2. Heavenly Creatures, 1994
3. Three O'Clock High, 1987
4. Shadowlands, 1993
5. The Secret Garden, 1993

My man. I'm gonna add your other picks to my watchlist

 

[HwoarangStyle]

Backdoor Sluts 1
Backdoor Sluts 2
Backdoor Sluts 3
Backdoor Sluts 4
Backdoor Sluts 5

 

[The Solid Man]

Come and See: WWII film seen from the perspective of a young boy from a Belorussian village who joins a resistance army

Incredible movie. As nightmarish, unrelenting and unforgettable as they come. A definitive 10/10 that leaves you like this from start to finish. They way Klimov pulled off that close up of the rape victim is unreal. So many great scenes, just one after another. This one's in my favorite movies list too. Great pick.

My man. I'm gonna add your other picks to my watchlist

Thanks, I really appreciate that... I hope you're not disappoint...

 

[Patrick Jane]

Bloodsucking Freaks
Re-Animator
A Clockwork Orange
Psycho
John Wayne Bobbitt Uncut, just kidding, actually it's American Psycho

 

[Ricky13]

Ha! So far only Sonny and I have claimed MIAMI VICE is superior to HEAT. Even Sigh won't get on board with VICE.

Like you said earlier, it's a stark visual language to absorb. I get it. He doesn't seem to give a shit as long as the story is told and the era is evoked. He also changes speeds a bunch - think it was both 24 and 30 fps on Public Enemies? He has his rolling shutter thing going during the shootout scene in that film. There's even muzzle flashes providing lighting! I can see why it's a pain in the ass. It's a form versus function battle (as always) for a viewer. For me, it's how I think one would feel in the middle of that shootout.

I'd be surprised if he went through with it. The freedom of digital directly benefits Mann's (overwrought?) style of coverage coverage coverage. He can do take after take after take without worrying about capacity.

He hung his hat on the fact if you traveled in time to PUBLIC ENEMIES how you saw it onscreen is exactly how you'd see it for real. Same quality lights, etc. Feels good, man.

Yup. And his affinity for nighttime gas-lamp lighting and neon hues works so much more easily without concern about adequate exposure.

Not available in my country.

That's too bad. I'm guessing you have the Blu-ray anyway. Have fun with it. I know it's a harder one to watch.

Do you generally find it difficult to like superhero films? SPIDERMAN 2 is so good...

Oh not at all. I love superheroes, the idea of them, the little I know of the mythos. I'm just not as on board with the darker, grittier, more realistic versions. I'm childlike when it comes to that stuff. I want to be inspired. I want to see a hero fighting personal battles for the greater good, which most of them tend to do, but my god the darker stuff is so solipsistic.

I actually enjoyed Guardians of the Galaxy and The Avengers. It's people coming together, putting differences behind them. It's why they spend the first half of those films hating each other.

Batman/Wayne on other hand, in the Nolan films, is always battling not to hate himself. This is intriguing of course, but it's not fun the way Nolan does it because he has to anchor everything in reality. Spiderman 2 handles the same conflict with such a sense of fun, and almost joyous sacrifice. "He's just a kid," kills me every time. They hold him up on their shoulders. He's a superhero.

I'll articulate this better one day.

Don't get me wrong. All that's fun and I love RATATOUILLE. But it's like Patton Oswalt himself. At first you think he's a lovable nerd with wry things to say. But the closer you look at his tear-strained eyes and forced smile that he's a man who lives with a knife in his heart, the pain is that palpable. His comedy's got a keen edge to it, but every now and again he'll reveal this blistering anger enough to give anyone pause. Like, "Whoa, buddy. What happened to the jokes?"

Oh I get it. I do like to think that was handled delicately enough, and that probably has to do with the fact that I'm not aware of much of Oswalt's work apart from a couple cameos on Community, perhaps. So I'm even less aware of the seedy underbelly of his comedy. I know where you're coming from. I had this issue with Birdman, in fact, and how it's a love letter to art/theatre/cinema but hates so much about the process of being an artist.

Ah yes. The annoying little girls. Yes, I know them. I myself love them -- the little girls -- but I can see how some of them you just want to punt.

I feel like such a knob for even saying that. I'll come around. I'm not American, but I can absolutely see why someone from Japan might find the idiosyncrasies of kids in American movies grating.

There's thousands that love anime. I'd rather not miss out because I don't have the patience to absorb a culture.

 

[Fijeeto]

In no order:

Transformers: The Animated Movie
Big Trouble in Little China
Akira
Robocop
The Thing

 

[Fijeeto]

If you're not joking, I totally think this is a great comedy. Totally did the parody genre justice imo.

Agreed. Captain America will always be Jake Wyler to me.

 

[Francis Rossi]

-The Prestige
-Watchmen
-The Dark Knight
-Layer Cake

Picking a fifth is tough. But the three that come to mind are all foreign action dramas. The Koreans and now Indonesians know how to do it right.

Aye. Hong Kong's lost its spot. Everyone got old and there are very few people capable of doing the work. Could easily have slipped in some Sammo, Jackie or Lau Kar Leung films into my top five.

 

[Francis Rossi]

If you're not joking, I totally think this is a great comedy. Totally did the parody genre justice imo.

I remember that one. Tis good. The parody genre's somewhat in the shit at present, thanks to those godawful Epic Movie-type shit stains that inexplicably make a small fortune. Have to go back a few years to find good ones, like pre-90s Mel Brooks, Airplane, Naked Gun, Kentucky Fried Movie, etc.

 

[LSXMMA]

Training Day
Shawshank Redemption
American History X
Law Abiding Citizen
Freeway

 

[europe1]

Aye. Hong Kong's lost its spot. Everyone got old and there are very few people capable of doing the work. Could easily have slipped in some Sammo, Jackie or Lau Kar Leung films into my top five.

Or they went Bulletproof Monk.



Hong Kong is still the GSP of Asian Action cinema though.

 

[Zer]

Aye. Hong Kong's lost its spot. Everyone got old and there are very few people capable of doing the work. Could easily have slipped in some Sammo, Jackie or Lau Kar Leung films into my top five.

I watched some Sammo films recently. The Prodigal Son and Magnificent Butcher are so legit, probably my fav martial arts flicks ever now (I'd give the edge to Prodigal Son because of Lam Ching-ying)

 

[Te Huna Matata]

Friday

 

[Hitman81]

Probably going to forget something but here goes...

1. Jurassic Park
2. Batman Begins
3. Pulp Fiction
4. The Empire Strikes Back
5. There Will Be Blood