Monday, December 24, 2012

My movie list; 17 of my favorites.

Film is so awesome. One of my favorite things ever… The chance to get lost in a world of pictures, words, sound, music and light… all for the sake of feeling something- beauty, fear, love, sadness, rage… Some of my favorite movies are interpretations of really great books. So this is where some of my favorites stem from… however, there are several that were strictly screenplays.

Anywho… in no particular order here is a list.

Easy Rider.
Possibly one of the greater explanations of what real freedom is by a very stoned Jack Nicholas.  Also, the story of the epic soundtrack is hilarious… The makers of the film just picked some cool sounding songs for the sake of argument before it was pitched to Crosby Stills & Nash who then said there really couldn't see doing any better than what was there, so that soundtrack stuck.







Event Horizon.
Just great super spooky move with space and science and lots of hell references. Time travel and demential musings are also a favorite subject matter of mine. The lines "What is the shortest distance from one point to another?" "A straight line?" "Wrong. Zero. You fold space." illustrate a great concept.







Donnie Darko.
More time-y wime-y fun. Great soundtrack, again. Ohhh, young love.











Contact.
More space-y wace-y goodness. Based on a screenplay that turned into book by Carl Sagan. A great Jody Foster flick… Also offering an all too poignant point that government will ultimately hold the human race at arms length from its next phase of development...







Fight Club.
Not Chuck's best book, but one hell of a great movie. Desperate coping mechanisms we never so much fun nor so productive! And the sexiness of the whole thing really rings true with the taste of the book… It really is one of the best sex scenes on film. And the Dust Brothers did a wonderful job of providing the tunes.






Speaking of super sexy…

Closer.
This is one of my cry into a bottle of chardonnay films. Oh, the brutality of love. And some fine acting. And a very very fine Natalie Portman… the little girl from the Professional is all growed up.








Naturally,

Leon: The Professional. 
If you don't know Luc Besson films this one will sell you. A stunning Gary Oldman (one of the best actors ever- he makes any film good) A cleaner (hit man), an orphaned girl (a young Natalie) and a truly psychotic drugged-out cop… what could go wrong?








Traffic (or if you have a whole day, the much more compelling Traffik)
Want to get a good look at that War on Drugs? Go here. No one is spared.










Brazil
Terry Gilliam's inspired and fantastic interpretation of "1984." And a great song. Government working at its administrative best. Everyone should change their last names to something unmistakable… you'll thank me in 10 years.








12 Monkeys
Another great dystopian Terry Gilliam film. Inspired by the short "La Jete," with great visuals and two concepts at its heart that could fuel an entire doctorate in ethics… saving the planet at the cost of humanity as we know it & using those we have deemed inhumane for the purpose of experimental exploration…






Ghost in the Shell.
One of the most engaging Mangas I know. A great thinker on the nature of consciousness as well as a visually stunning film. 










Se7en
A great Christmas flick, considering it examines sin in contemporary America… And I'll go out on a limb and side with John Doe when it comes to who's innocent…









Requiem for a Dream
One of the harder movies to watch ever made… but you can't look away!Everyone but the Author of the book says it is a film about addiction, wrong. It's a film about LOVE. And if you want to read some  heartbreaking novels look no further… Hubert Selby Jr. scary good.







Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas. 
Another Terry Gilliam film, and again great book. Wonderful acting by Depp and del Toro… the American Dream was never so clearly realized and the monologues are so well done. It probably helped that Depp lived in Hunter's basement for roughly a year to prep for the film… it shows. And one could argue that without this experience Jack Sparrow never would have been.






and saving a few of the best for last…

Leaving Las Vegas
Cheers! Here's to finding love at the end of the line.
… also a really great soundtrack…









Blade Runner
Stunning. Just Stunning. The plot is wonky compared to the book, but still great. 









Apocalypse Now Redux
Based on my bible, The Heart of Darkness. You have to watch the Redux and not the '79 original. The storyline is all mangled in the '79 version and the picture is so much cleaner. This is three and a quarter hours of filmmaking GOLD. The documentary is also a great companion.








So, if you find yourself in need of some relaxing this week, may I make a suggestion?

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