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nihilistdude2000
my top 10 (critical and personal faves)
1. mulholland drive (a very personal, multilayered, multithematic masterpiece)
2. nights of cabiria (fellini - every scene is memorable and SUPERB, and has one of best endings in movie history,imo)
3. la strada (fellini - another beautiful and touching film and ending -Giuletta Masina is the most emotionally expressive actress EVER, hands down)
4. pulp fiction (a blend of artistic direction w/ hollywood pulp material)
5. taxi driver (excellent de niro performance of mental deterioration when desires and dreams are destroyed - a similar vein to the mental deterioration of diane in MD)
6. schindler's list (another touching and beautiful film - nice score/acting)
7. star wars sextology (I - VI) (love the storyline and its sci-fi elements)
8. fargo (very entertaining, this one never gets old to me)
9. dersu uzala (my favorite kurosawa flick - belongs in top 250 for sure)
10. city lights/modern times/the gold rush - (chaplin was a true comic genius. and when you consider he wrote, produced, starred in, composed the music for his movies, and basically was the first international hollywood film celebrity, his films gotta have a place in the top 10. i thought modern times was the funniest but i loved the storyline and ending in city lights, very touching.)
honorables:
the good, the bad, the ugly (one of the best examples of the power of the medium of film i can think of)
donnie darko (too many convoluted elements from a first time director to be a top 10)
eternal sunshine of the spotless mind (excellent, beautiful film, but not "epic" enough to be a top 10)
the big lebowski (like Fargo, very entertaining, a bit too "shallow" and silly for top 10 though)
city of god (one hell of a good film, in time will probably grow)
citizen kane (a directorial and thematic masterpiece, i only leave it out of the top 10 for its rewatch-ability factor, i.e., its a little boring at times)
the sixth sense (the twist ending makes this movie)
the usual suspects (great entertainment, but lacking in the "artistic humanity factor"; twist ending makes this movie as well)
braveheart (a damn good movie)
american beauty (the movie that got me into film - i was very moved and impressed by its theme - too political for my top 10 though)
snatch (very entertaining, this one never gets old either)
crouching tiger, hidden dragon (used to be in my top 10 - has some very nice parts to it)
I also like the film L.A. Confidential. Great noir film, much better than say, Chinatown, imo.
Reviews
Puppy Dog Pals: The New Crew/Raiders of the Lost Bark (2020)
Recast Rolly's New Voice
The new Bingo voice is pretty similar but the Rolly voice is too different both in tone and overall delivery.
Before Sunrise (1995)
Not really feeling it.....
I don't think I've ever seen a romantic drama so devoid of....romance.
The insipid dialogue dragged on and on and I never got the feeling that the characters felt anything more for one another than physical lust. How could ANYONE feel a mental spark with someone else based on such inane conversation? Every time Ethan Hawke opened his mouth and said something I couldn't help but think of what a douschebag his character was and marveled that any female would consider spending time with him as romantic.
Truthfully, the time the two main characters spent together reminded me more of a few bad dates I've had with little chemistry rather of than two people falling in love. The only thing that was convincing was the actors' physical expressions, and I commend them for at least managing to deliver some sense of plausibility to this tale through their physical acting skills. When they weren't talking but were looking at each other or hugging each other, then I believed their was some love there. But again, that is the PHYSICAL, so I couldn't help but feel it was just hormonal lust at work. I certainly couldn't see their relationship going beyond 2 or 3 more dates.
I think Linklater could've been a little more imaginative and romantic with the dialogue. I understand the need to not be sappy or clichéd, but c'mon, the thing with romance is that it NEEDS FANTASY and IMAGINATION, something the dialogue in this movie lacked. But the coolest part of the movie was the end when they revisited all the places they had hung out the night before, except this time the spots did not contain...them! Interesting look at how social relationships really add another dimension to physical spaces and locations.
Strangely this movie did leave me with a strange feeling of unholiness, impurity, and debasement for any previous casual sexual encounters...
Final Grade: C+
Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
Amateurish
I'll keep this short. The comedy in this movie is amateurish, at best. Some of the things might have been funny if you saw them in real life, but the jokes don't translate well to the big screen. Basically this seems like the kind of script I myself or anyone with perhaps a tiny wee bit of talent might write. But definitely an amateurish effort. I'll give the filmmaker points for originality and avoiding a lot of movie clichés, but otherwise this is a pretty poor effort. 5/10. Oops I need to write a few more lines here it seems so let's see... There were a few "hehe" giggle moments in the film but mostly the jokes fall flat. Part of the humor is maybe referencing your own personal experiences with people you may have known like Napoleon or Uncle Rico, so you might say "ha, i get it!" But still I can't recommend this to anyone... is that 10 lines yet? I hope so.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Escape to Middle Earth
I must confess I was not very big on the movies when I first saw them. I prefer more quirky, offbeat stuff. But I watched them again recently and they are truly magnificent. One just has to be in the mood for escapist fantasy. The story works because it is told through the eyes of the ordinary, everyday hobbits, which could be any one of us. It's easy to imagine ourselves as the hobbits, on an epic quest to save the Earth. The themes of friendship, loyalty, determination, hope, and camaraderie are brilliantly presented. This movie could very easily have been sloppily done and cheesy, but they really did a great job with it. They brought the world of Middle Earth alive and I commend them for that. This truly is one of the greatest fantasy adventure films of all-time. Escape to Middle Earth my friends.
White Chicks (2004)
Slightly annoying, but good for a few laughs
The movie had a few funny scenes in it. I actually saw more funny scenes in the movie then I did in the previews for the movie which is a good thing. Some of the characters are annoying as hell, but some also are very funny. If you're looking for a great movie, this is not it, but if you're just looking for a few cheap laughs to tickle the funny bone, this will probably suffice. It is probably JUST funny enough to justify a viewing, just be sure that you're in the mood for this kind of movie. I like the Wayans brothers, they seem like pretty nice guys, so I'm inclined to give them a favorable review. There were a lot of things that could have been "overdone" in this type of movie, like a lot of animosity between Wayans and the two "rival" non-African FBI agents, but they kept it at just the right level, thank god. I actually liked most of the scenes involving the other two FBI guys, so they did a good job writing the parts for those two. The Latrelle Spencer character was also very funny and great. Worth a watch probably. 6/10.
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Bogey is great, this film is not
Now I really enjoy Humphrey Bogart. He's great. He was good in this. Some other performances weren't bad either - but also some were AWFUL (ahem, Mary Astor). But in this film the plot is *too thick*. I love a nice thick plot but this is over the top to the point of confusion. There is very little character development, IMO. The "love story" angle between Bogart and Astor was incredibly weak. To the point of being awful. The plot, scenes, and characters is just a big jumble of confusion to the point to where you don't really care what's going on in the story anymore. The one plus in the film, aside from Bogart, was some nicely written dialogue. But really this film does not belong in top 250, or at the least, belongs in the 200-250 range. A much better classic noir film is Double Indemnity, or even the Big Sleep.
Ginger e Fred (1986)
A "modern" Fellini film - surprisingly good
This wasn't a bad film, though those without previous knowledge of Fellini's films may not like it as much. Giuletta Masina and Marcello Mastroani give their usual great performances. I actually thought Marcello gave one of his better performances here, in that he displayed a great comedic timing. I am mostly familiar with Fellini's pre-1970 films so I was not sure how a film made in the 1980's would do (given how much cinema had changed from the 50's/60's to the 80's), but he still delivers an enjoyable film, thanks in large part to good acting by the two leads. I enjoyed the satirical attack on television and the modern era (advertisting, etc.), which I happen to strongly agree with. The TV show scene near the end contains your typical Fellini "magic" and aesthetics, so I enjoyed that as well. This is by no means comparable to Fellini's masterpieces, but is still a well-made and enjoyable film, and more accessible than some of his more outrageous stuff he's made in past years. 7/10.