My Favorite Movies

Garbage Day!

Wow. Absolutely fantastic. Using DV has given Lynch a flexibility and a freedom that really allows him to explore the worlds he creates like never before and Dern is simply amazing in such a challenging role (roles?). Most of the common Lynchian themes are present (dichotomous women, menace lurking beneath the mundane surface, amibiguity of authorship) and yet this time it all feels more raw, a work which is untouched by studio interference. Lynch has always been somewhat of an auteur but with INLAND EMPIRE he has succeeded in creating a work that is his and his alone. Lynchian in every way.

I'm sure I could add more, but only after a few more viewings of this remarkable film.

One more thing though... William H Macy? I mean... what?!

Lynch is a genius. This is the proof.

A lot of people may struggle to get into this film as Lynch is an incredibly inscruitable film-maker but, even if it takes a repeat viewing or two, this film is well worth the effort. Kyle McClachlan is a superb avatar for the director and our guide into a archly Lynchian realm where Dennis Hopper gives perhaps his finest performance as the terrifying Frank. The entire cast are on top form and the dream like sequence with Dean Stockwell singing into a lamp is surely one of the all time highs of cinema. Be warned that this is a relentless and claustrophobicly dark film, Lynch isn't interested in sugar coated happy endings (pay close attention to the end of the film and you will understand).

Fascinating film which, strangely perhaps, does not suffer from being an extension of a TV pilot. Naomi Watts is fantastic as our guide into Lynchville. The are some incredibly touching scenes (most notably Club Silencio) and a plot which, for Lynch, is actually quite accessable on the surface but also possesed of many layers and so its still well worth repeat viweings to get into tthe meat of it all. Its easy for that first viewing to fly past on a wave of gloss and weirdness but the clues are there for those that look. There is a lot more to this film than it seems at first and a dedicated audience will be rewarded.

A comparison of characters' personalities and actions at different stages of the film will do a lot to reveal what's actually going on.

Who would beleive the ultimate spagghetti western would be shot in the US? And yet here it is. Gorgeous to look at with a great cast. Leone's homage to the genre is on a par with the classics it draws inspiration from.
Morricone's score, while not as iconic as The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, is one of the composers best. The story is a classic and the actors all deliver wonderful performances. Fonda in particular gives a fantastically menacing showing as Frank, going completely against the grain compared to his usual trustworthy, everyman schtick. Robards too manages to play Cheyenne as a rascal without blunting the dangerous edge to his character coming across as how Tuco may have were he to ever regret his life (ever so slightly)
The opening scene is audaciously brilliant as well.

Unfairly criticised on release. Everything about it is cool and the script is to die for. The attention to detail in all the characters idiosyncrasies borders on obsesiveness. The Dude is simply Bridges greatest role where he has to act completely against the grain of the noirish storyline and yet still maintain an easy going affability throughout. The fact that almost everything said by the dude is recycled from something he heard earlier is a stroke of genius. Soundtrack = Gold. I would love a second visit to the Dude's LA but it would be so hard to match up to this that it is for the best that we never see him again.

The coolest film ever made. CAN YOU DIG IT?!

Please stop the remake before its too late!!!

A great showing from a pretty much unknown cast. Cinematography that revels in the grime and darkness of New York. A simple story of struggle. And awesome dialogue.

Possibly the best war film ever made. As Corporal Steiner, Coburn maages to balance his effortless cool with a sense of weariness that really emphasises the pointless nature of their situation. Maximillian Schell is tremendous as the pompous and insecure aristocrat desperate to earn what Steiner has even though Steiner himself never wanted it. The film features the same balletic violence assosciated with all of Peckinpah's work but, far from glamourising war, it only serves to emphasise its brutalitly. The ending perfectly encapsulates the sheer madness of it all.

Herzog's finest in my opinion, lush locations and a psychotic lead that only Kinski can pull off.

Too funky! This film is one of the greatest things I have ever seen!

This is the real deal. They don't make 'em like this anymore. No CGI nonsense just extravagance. The charriot race is the icing on the tastiest cake of them all!

Stunning film. Not really a war film but a very atmospheric descent into insanity and unchecked authority. Even a completely bonkers Marlon Brando seems to enhance rather than hinder.

Second best Brit gangster flick, forget lock stock and two piles of steaming cack!

The ultimate Brit Gangster flick, Guy Ritchie wishes he could do half as well. Carter is such a bastard and yet the film does not suffer for it. Definitely one of the all time iconic Brit-Flicks.

SPOILER!

Plus he throws Coronation Street's Alf Roberts off a multi-storey car parl. What's not to love!

Not up to the books standards, but two great performances from Depp and Del Toro esaily elevate this to greatness

Psychadelic insanity with a top notch soundtrack. Post Modern before anyone knew of the term.

Simply fantastic

You want the best? We've got the best. This is it ask someone to describe a James Bond film and it will square up to this perfectly. Action, gimmicks, babes, baddies its all here. Some of the best lines are to be found within its script and Oddjob is the king of henchmen.

Anderson's films have a pac and style that is all their own. Hackman is in dominant form.

The Ultimate Boy's Own adventure. Plenty of tension, some great action and reams of characters you can root for. The tribute at the end is a sobering reminder of the actual loss of life that brought about the tale.

Classic Stiff Upper lip stuff

MAHONEY!!!

Excellent film, three actors and one director at the top of their game. The tracking shot in the club is still fantastic today.

Moving and beautiful to watch. A strong performance by Bernal.

Beautiful film and the act it is done in one continuous take is simply astounding

I'm biased because I wrote a dissertation on this but I still think the film is a gem. The acting is somewhat sterile but I feel that it is simply reflecting the world in which the character live. The ideas behind the film are disturbingly credible and the underlying notion that anyone can succeed is handled well, you never feel like the film is preaching to you. A bittersweet ending ensures that the film stays with you after the credits have rolled. A story of triumph over adversity on par with Shawshank (wow, did I just go there?)

Iconic for a reason

The original is still the best. A set peice masterclass.

Geekfest. One for the nerds only I think

Beautiful film with excellent performances from all involved andan audacious ending.

McQueen's best film, ultimate 60s cool. The car chase is just the icing on the cake.

Not as strong as Blue Velvet but the story is irresistible and Dafoe gives one of the creepiest, sleaziest performances ever. A fairly mainstream outing for Lynch which can be taken at face value (though there are layers to be sure). Definitely one of his most accessible works.

Balletic violence and pitch perfect casting. Harsh and brutal just like Peckinpah.

If Reservoir Dogs was Tarantino brashly sounding his arrival as a contender to the throne, then Pulp Fiction is surely the chinned one's coronation as the king of cinema cool.

Beautiful and simple tale of love. The shots were revolutionary in their day and still look amazing today.

Moving film shot in beautiful surroundings. Morricone's soundtrack pushes this film over the top.

To hell with the remake, this is the real deal. Plenty of suspense and excellent pacing.

Not as good as Tenenbaum but even more quirky. Bill Murray is priceless with his deadpan delivery.

Fascist propaganda? perhaps but the film is so damn well-made. A career defining role for Eastwood.

Its all in the Leon-Mathilda dynamic (A pscho Oldman doesn't hurt though)

Insanity at its finest. Scatterbrained nonsense that somehow doesn't fall apart thanksto its own bizzare internal logic.

I prefer this to the sequel (not that its any slouch). Lavish in scale and yet intimate in its examination of the characters.

Whre to start? The lines, the action, the cast. This film is class. "I aint got time to bleed!"

A startling film. Simple and disturbing. Gore comes across as an intelligent and reasonable man and the film begs the question what kind of world would we be in had he won? My only problem is that this film will only be seen by people who already know the message it conveys. The narrow minded who have already made their mind up are the ones that need to see it.

Amazing film, Vincent Price is camp/menacing/funny/crruel/sympathetic all at once. Corman low budget extravaganza which again manages to live up to its source material. Hell Jane Asher was pretty hot back in the day! In summary, Vincent Price = Gold in anything he's ever made, see it now!

Hilarious film amde all the funnier by being so alarmingly accurate. A collection of highly underrated comedy actors present bizarre and yet beleivable oddballs obsessed over their dogs success. I love dead-pan humour and this as it in spades.

There was a brief period of time where Tom Cruise decided to be an actor instead of a movie star. This is one of the products of that brief moment. Yes, its a remake but no, its not rubbish. Great film with an amazing psycho turn from Diaz. Wonderful imagery and another wonderful soundtrack (as we've come to expect from Crowe). The climax on the rooftop is great stuff as suddenly things come crashing into place. Wonderfully dreamlike.

Pisses on Pirates of the Carribean from a great height! You want your swash buckled? This is the film to see. Rousing soundtrack and a stereotypical Flynn performance (is he even acting?)

Utterly charming film with two great performances from Paul Giamatti and Thomas Hayden Church who now look to be getting some well deserved recognition. The wine analogy works brilliantly (if a little heavy towards the end). Funny and touching in equal doses, a grown up romance.

Fantastic film. Take three phenomonal actors and give them a golden script and this is what you get. Harkens back to the Westerns of old while roughing it up a little. All the characters have a certain amount of nobility but none are presented as pure. Although Richard Harris is only in the film briefly, he too manages to shine in a film which is really dominated by the three central performances. This is up there with The Wild Bunch and The Shootist for films about a dying way of life.

Fantastic film, though hardly a heartwarmer. A great tale of insecurity and people's self destructive pursuit of happiness. The script is razor sharp and the performaces are fantastic. Too many people concentrate on the infidelity within the film but that is realy more of a symptom of the real issue: insecurity. All four characters are deeply insecure and, although the approach it in different ways, it is that insecurity which in the end defeats them all.

Not Carpenter's best but so what? Its easily his most fun (They Live coming close though). Russel as Jack Burton hams it up wonderfully among a fairly straight cast and I think that's what makes it work: That all these characters take it seriously stops it from descending into nonsense, while Jack Buurton is our way into the world, just as bemused and bewildered as the audience. "Its all in the reflexes."

Hilarious and so well done it killed the airplane disaster flick as a genre. This would be Neilsen's first comedic role and his dead pan delivery makes the film. The cast are all game for a laugh and nobody takes themselves too seriously. Even the cornier lines are classics nowadays.

"I eat Green Berets for Breakfast, and today I am very hungry!" The ultimate action film with one liners all over the shop and a body count that needs a supercomputer to calculate it. Bennet is the greatest bad guy ever!

It deserves the recognition it enjoys. The script is golden and Claude Rains should go to jail for grand theft cinema: He steals the show with ease and gets all the best lines...

Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds?
Captain Renault: I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!
[a croupier hands Renault a pile of money]
Croupier: Your winnings, sir.
Captain Renault: [sotto voce] Oh, thank you very much.
[aloud]
Captain Renault: Everybody out at once!

Biting satire with lashings of farce. Each actor infuses their character (or in Sellers case, characters) with so much personality that nothing they do feels forced. The eponymous Strangelove's appearance tpowards the end lifts the film into legendary heights.

Not as good as its predecessor but thats not to say that this isnt excellent. For me this is Pacino's film. Michael's evlution is gripping cinema

Why Bruce Campbell isn't a bigger star is beyond me. I love this film the idea is so off the charts and yet perfectly reasonable within the the films itself. Campbell and Ossie Davis bring just the right doses of comedy and sentimentality to make the characters work. And Coscarelli is a pro at the low-budget masterpiece.

The emos and wannabe goths kinda spoiled it for everyone, but this is still a great film with some fantastic visuals. Ignore the sequels and tv series.

Classic overblown action film set in the 2nd world war. Its up there with Guns of the Navarone. Once the action starts up it doesn't stop and it een has a fairly good plot to back it up.

Excellent. Terrible as a realistic war film but as entertainment it excels. Lee Marvin is perfect and the rest of the cast work well too. The sequels are appalling

A great film which manages to highlight the stark contrast in attitudes to war. The jingoism of some characters vs the battle weariness of others is probably the best aspect of the film. The cast is stellar too, and they don't disappoint.

This deserves all the praise that Saving Private Ryan seemed to garner. Better characters a more grounded story and Lee Marvin on top form.

Perhaps the best Bond film in terms of being a straight spy thriller. The gadgets are toned down and the espionage played up. Robert Shaw is a tremendous villain too, no fancy gimmicks, just ruthless aggression but what a terrible wine faux pas!!!

Fantastically brutal and twisted film. Pretty unrelentless and some may find it hard to sit through but this is well worth the effort. An amazing study in spite.

Absolutely astounding film. I stumbled onto it by accident on late night on BBC4 and was instantly hooked by the bizarre premise. Scathing examination of the bourgeoise built upon the most audacious conceit. See it and love it.

Brilliant horror film. Utilises suspense over shocks and shows how the real horror is in what's NOT shown. This film uses sound, camera angles, lighting and, GASP, ACTING and not "special" effects. And guess what? It works all the better for it, todays crop of horror makers could do worse than to pay attention to this excellent film. Avoid the trash remake that does everything this film didn;t and suffers badly for it.

Excellent noir. Bendix gives a great performnce and the rest of the cast do a good job too. Nicely put together. The film shows a nice level of patience in its story telling while never dragging. No jump cuts or anything like that, again the story is front and centre and that's what holds your attention.