My Favorite Movies

Woody Allen's greatest film, by far.

After you've sat through 4.5 hours of top-notch suspense, acting and directing, you think to yourself: this has been a worthwhile life experience and another viewing wouldn't hurt.

probably the funniest film ever

The only film where you ask yourself: is this as good, or better than the original??

Best. Western. Ever.

''Duke! Don't toy with my emotions!''

And yes, this film does do precisely that. it's almost truly overwhelming, and it seems stupid considering it's only a musical, right? you would expect cheesiness, and half-assed tunes which bore the socks off of us. but we get quite the contrary, and something unique as well: a unlimited pastiche of some of the greatest songs ever written, by artists inlc. Elton John, R n' H, Lennon and McCartney, David Bowie, Dollie Parton, The Police and, most essentially, Madonna (the Like A Virgin sequence is one of the most hilarious and well done numbers of the film). Set in Paris at the turn of the century, the use of music is obviously out of place. This deliberate anachronism Baz Luhrman uses is enchanting, and just makes us realise that time is the most overrated aspect of the universe. Use of modern music, expressionist acting, smash cuts and Shakespearian structure seems most hard to pull off. However, due to the film's idealistic art direction, cinematography and unrelentless flow, Baz Luhrman more than pulls it off.

The finale is the perfect exemplar for 21st century avant-garde filmmaking. The plot flows with such fluidity that we even anticipate the next song. It flies by and toys with your emotions indeed...the ending is grandiose and opera. It's also a modern blend of La Traviata and La Boheme with absinth, an all star cast and Kylie Minogue thrown in.

Don't miss Placido Domingo as the singing moon. that itself is worth the price of the ticket.

give in to the claustrophobic 5-hour experience of smelly Nazis in a U-boat who you sympathise with. ok, it's not a plot or setting you would like to be stuck with for 5 hours on a Sunday afternoon, but hey! top-notch acting, directing (given the circumstances) and realism...not to mention the intensity. it's also very depressing (go for it!)

''On every street in every city, there's a nobody who dreams of becoming a somebody.''

A most uplifting and reassuring tagline, especially FOR the nobodys, or even, ''losers'' out there.

Scorsese being my favourite director of all time, this is is him at his most raw and real.

The one liner ''You talkin' to me?'' is so infamous that it is used in our everyday speech. Almost every person will put on the 'Robert DeNiro expression' and imitate him to themselves in the mirror atleast at some point in their life, if not, multiple. hell, even French chav Saiid does it in 'La Haine' and he's about as cultured as my left buttcheek. Every one knows it one way or another...

As 'God's lonely man', methinks this is DeNiro at his riveting best, as well as this role being his iconic screen character, and NOT Jake LaMotta, not Noodles, not Jimmy Conway, not young Vito Corleone, hell, not even psychopathic paedophile Max Cady...but everydayman, observant, idealistic, morally ambitious and golden-hearted Travis Bickle. a random and unique name for the hero, or if you must, anti-hero...

Travis has been horribly misinterpreted as a villain, and even made it into the 50 greatest Villains of all time by AFI! stupid Americans.

The film title, in all its simplicity, labels his occupation. when it comes down to the elaborately detailed, personal and visually vivid voiceovers, we are reminded that he's just a Taxi Driver. an average lower-middle class choffeur.

His obsession with weapons and being the lone ranger and idealising his own rules and commitments are only but childish. His goal is to save the 'Damsel in Distress', per se, from the 'venal' pimps and druggies. He's essentially a do-gooder in the end, in spite of the killing of three people at the end as well as the inevitable visitations to adult movies. The freaky mohawk is simply childish too, only wanting to look rebelklious and kill the baddies.

The screenplay couldn't be better. It stays true to the entire situation.

The sleepy jazzy score by Bernard Herrman links with Travis' frame of mind: always on the move, straightforward, and always alive. awake. wired. never-ending. The transfixing lead in to the tune proper has a prominent effect of brief psychosis, paranoia, then mysticism and eventually leading in to a stream of flowing rythm, akin to the streets of NYC.

It FEELS like a documentary, taking us through the slums of the city and meeting new people and observing every face and mannerism on every person. The setting also echoes your typical 70's crime flick, or even a horror film (especially the dark and fulvrous Lynchian corridor with crawling pimps), but on the whole, it seems like the hero (who ironically sticks out like a sore thumb) is the one to save the day (more like the night) and brings an element of redemption to the vulnerable waste land of shadows, neon lights and the creatures of the underworld...

By far Hitchcock's most thrilling flick, packed with sharp acting, witty dialogue and unforgettable sequences

Wonderfully bizarre, surreal and philosophical.

It's already infamous for being the 'gay cowboy flick', and it is as well as being, as it says on the tin, a universal love story. The acting is utterly convincing, and Heath Ledger was completely robbed of the Oscar for Best Actor. From the mind that brought us 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon', Ang Lee is the surprise of the century. Who would have thought that a Taiwanese director could pull off a homosexual Western so genuinely? The research put into the film is astonishing, and all thanks to him. The complete opposite side of the hemisphere makes a mini-epic masterpiece intended for western audiences. The original music is astounding, resonant and haunting. The landscapes are, of course, more than breathtaking especially on the big screen (reminiscent of Gus Van Sant's 'My Own Private Idaho')...idyllic scenery juxtaposing the cruelty and viciousness of the American public. Man vs Nature. What makes the film so monumental is its subtlety and modesty, obvious symbolic set pieces out of the wazoo, staring us right in the face. Ang Lee's attention to detail and presision is immensely admirable. The film has a fusion of emotions, ranging from many moments of bleak humour to shocking tragedy. You may call it the gay 'Titanic', judging especially from the poster art (see the resemblance?). It's been overwhelmingly parodied on TV shows and youtube videos across the world, and that's a good thing. It means that it's iconic, and part of every day humour, as is Star Wars, LOTR and The Godfather. Whether looked upon by ignorant souls, gays, bis, staights, lesbians, transvestites, or any other race in the world, they will at least recognise that it is indeed a universal love story...

Pure cinema.

The most underrated masterpiece ever.

FRRREEEDOOOOM!