My favorite movies that were box office flops.

The masterpiece that was way ahead of it's time. Before Mortal Kombat, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Matrix, and Jackie Chan, there was....Jack Burton. Kurt Russell is in full John Wayne mode as the truck driver with a mouth bigger than the open road. Jack gets caught up in a gang war in San Francisco's Chinatown that leads to all manner of ghosts, demons, and bizzare creatures. John Carpenter's visuals are unparalleled. As are his visionary martial arts fights, that would go on to be copied in movies, tv shows, and endless video games. Before wire-fu became the norm in martial arts movies, Carpenter did it first. Wall to wall fights back up a fast moving, and freewheeling story that never stops to catch it's breath. Kurt Russell is on a whole new level of cool in this one. Never at a loss for words, he's a guy that's not quite as sharp as he thinks he is. He's got an able sidekick in Wang Chi, played by Dennis Dun. Wang has a girl to rescue, and is Hell with a sword. James Wong is the 2000 year old Lo Pan, a man cursed to live a life of no flesh until he finds a prophesized girl to marry. One of the potential girls comes in the form of Kim Cattrall, who is the pushy lawyer Gracie Law. (clever, right?) Backed up by another classic Carpenter musical score, this is a film that set the stage for the world's facination with high flying martial arts, even if they didn't know it at the time.

STAR WARS FANS REJOICE!!!!!! This is the movie that Phantom Menace and Attack Of The Clones wanted to be. A sweeping, epic extravaganza of everything that is best about Star Wars. The epic battles between ground armies, the sweeping space battles, and the close quarters contacts between Jedi and their various opponents are all note perfect. Chief success in this movie are an amazing battle up the vertical face of a mountain, and a stirring duel between Anakin Skywalker and Count Dooku on the sandy dunes of Tattooine. The voice cast does an amazing job of conveying more emotion than most of their live action counterparts. Partiularly effective is Matt Lanter as Anakin Skywalker. He makes Anakin heroic, sympathetic, and brave, while letting out hints of the darkness brewing within. All without once ever appearing in the flesh on screen. Director Dave Filoni keeps everything fast and exciting while maintaining the epic scale we expect the Clone Wars to be. The animation may not be of the ground breaking Pixar level, but it is amazing nonetheless. So much attention to detail, bringing things very close to perfect photorealism, while maintining the animated spirit of the animated series by Genndy Tartakovsky. The visuals are simply awe inspiring. The movie is getting absolutely slammed by critics, and some hardcore fanboys alike. Harry Knowles of Aint-It-Cool-News said "the movie never once feels like Star Wars." WHAT????? What movie were you watching??? I had considered deducting the movie's rating a bit because at first, the musical score by Kevin Kiner is a bit jarring at first, especially during the introduction of the main theme. But as the movie went on, the score grew in scale, and by the time Anakin and Dooku throw down, the score is right on. Also, Ashley Eckstein's headstrong padawan, Ahsoka, refers to Anakin as "Sky Guy". I don't think a padawan would get away with calling their master by a teenage nickname, but since she is such a spirited character, I found myself not minding. I'll take her over Jar Jar Binks any day of the week. Which brings up another point. Lucas wanted Jar Jar to be a funny character. What he failed to realize is that in Star Wars, characters always found humor in the moment. They didn't really on pratfalls. The filmmakers remember that here. There are some geniuenely funny moments here, mostly involving the ineptness of the Federation's Battle Droids. There's a choice moment I won't ruin for you, but it has to do with Ventress taking her frustrations out on a particular droid that asks one too many stupid questions. If they had begun the prequel trilogy with a movie of this caliber, Star Wars would still reign supreme in the eyes and hearts of geeks all over the world. I don't know how much direct involvment George Lucas had in this, but I have to (in spite of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom Of the Crystal Skull) big points for letting screenwriter Dave Gilroy and director Filoni run with this. Ths is the movie I have been waiting for all summer. The one movie that completely went FAR FAR beyond my expectations. I have to say it...sorry Dark Knight fans (of which I am one), but this is the best movie of the summer. THE FORCE IS BACK!!!!!!!

John Carpenter's remake of the 1951 classic is a masterpiece of atmosphere, characterization, tension, scares, and flat out, lose-your-lunch gore. A first rate cast, led by Kurt Russell, portray a group of scientist in the Antarctic that come into contact with an alien life form that change itself into any living thing it comes into contact with...including them. What follows is a case of mass paranoia and fear, as the men come to not trust each other because none of them may be who he appears to be. Release two weeks after E.T. in 1982, the movie was then seen as a vile and disgusting blood fest. Today it is considered one of the finest scifi/horror movies ever made. The setting is utterly convincing, and you develop a real sense of isolation that these men live in. The cinematography by Dean Cundy is masterful, and you feel cold just watching it. Kurt Russell, Carpenter's most frequent collaborator, is in top form as the team's helicopter pilot who's forced into a leadership position that he doesn't want. Wilford Brimley is the chief scientist, and the first to realize the threat to the world this alien represents. His descent into madness (or is he no longer himself) is tragic and frightening. The remaining actors, T.K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard A. Dysart, Thomas G. Waites, Peter Maloney, Richard Masur, Charles Hallahan, and Joel Polis create believable characters without ever making them stereotypical. John Carpenter is at the top of his game here. His build up of tension, and the horrific release of terror when the thing struts its stuff is nothing short of incredible. Of course the true star of the movie is The Thing. Effects master Rob Bottin created one of the most celebrated monsters in movie history. A creature that can change into anything it wants, it never has just one established shape. It can change whenever it wants, and never does so in a clean way. The blood, slime, and anything else you can think of, flows here like in no other movie. Those effects, working hand in hand with Carpenter's virtuoso direction combine to make The Thing one of the best, scariest, grossest, most tension filled movies ever made.

Fight Club is director David Fincher's masterpiece about male bonding taken to the Nth degree. The movie almost hypnotic in the way it draws you into its world right from the opening credits. Stunning visuals, and a "nothing is quite what it seems" storyline keep the viewer hooked from start to finish. Edward Norton and Brad Pitt are two strangers who have a chance (or not so chance) meeting on an airplane, and a series of events lead them to create an underground fight club, where men take their animal rage on life out on each other. Loyalty mixes with betrayl in one glaring reveal after another, all leading up to a stomach roller of a shock that I defy ANYONE to see coming. Heavy on social commentary, the movie raises valid points on how people judge their worth based on their possesions. How can rid yourself of the conventional wisdom, and accepted social order of our society to become something more? What would the results be? If you are not happy with who you are, who would you become? All this and more is thrown at you, and would require more than one viewing to even begin to make sense of it all. Fortunately, the movie is more than worthy of that second viewing and then some. A one of a kind movie, and an absolute must see.

An unsung classic from the same team that brought us the Back To The Future trilogy. Written by Robert Zemekis and Bob Gale, and directed by Steven Spielberg. An all star cast goes for broke in the story of how paranoia gripped America in the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Everyone was sure they were next. Commies were everywhere, they were sure of it. John Belushi is "Wild" Bill Kelso, a renegade army pilot that is convinced that he's hot on the trail of hidden squadrons of Japenese Zeros. A wayard tank company led by Dan Aykroyd asks family man Ned Beatty to post an anti-aircraft gun in his front yard. Toshiro Mifune is the commander of a lone Japenese submarine that is determined to blow something up, having missed out on Pearl Harbor. So he and his crew set their sites on Hollywood. In their quest, they capture a local man named Hollis Wood, played ultimate redneck Slim Pickens. All of this going down while soldiers, saliors, and marines break out into an all out brawl during a USO dance. Lost of laughs and action, and some of the best miniature special effects work in cinema history. Standouts in that area is an attack by the Japenese on an amusement park (watch the ferris wheel), and a dogfight over Los Angeles between Belushi's P-40 Tomahawk, and an unarmed plane containg to hot and heavy lovers whose entry into the mile high club accidentally gets them identified as an enemy fighter. Steven Spielberg supposedly issued an apology for this movie when it bombed in theaters. No apology necessary, Steve. You should be proud of it. You've made FAR worse movies (Hook, AI, The Terminal).

Oh how the mighty have fallen. Of all the wrestlers to try their hand at acting, only Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson showed he has not only the physical skills, but the actual acting chops to become the next big action star. This gem from 2003 is easily his best film to date, and was a perfect balance of action and comedy. Teamed with Seann William Scott (also HIS best movie) it's the story of a "collector" who is sent to the Amazon to retrieve the wayward son of tough crime boss. While there, he runs afoul of another crime boss, played to practiced perfection by the one and only Christopher Walken. Since Johnson's character despises guns, what we get are some of the toughest, most inventive fistfights in recent years. Director Peter Berg keeps things moving at a lightning pace, and makes great use of the jungle surroundings. Not only for the composition of shots, but for fitting it into the storyline. Johson and Scott make a great team, create believable characters, and have actual chemistry. It's too bad the movie was not successful, because these are two characters I would've like to see more of. It also would have prevented Johnson from being reduced to a Disney bitch. He's capable of so much more. Like this movie. Let's hope the opportunity comes along someday.

One of the most underrated comedies of all time. South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are two slackers who create their own sport in their driveway, basketball with baseball rules, that quickly becomes the new national pasttime. With their teammate, Squeak "Lil Bitch" Scolari, they become national heroes in a game where cheating is the norm, and you score by grossing out your opponent. As politically incorrect as you can hope for, the laughs come fast and furious. Between the quick one liners and physical sight gags, the laughs do not stop. Not least of which are the names chosen by some of the teams....The Milwaukee Beers, The San Fransico Ferries and more. Rent or buy it now, you won't be sorry.

Of all the Die Hard wannabe's to come down the pike, Jean-Claude Van Damme's "Die Hard In A Hockey Arena" is one of the best. A lightning faced action movie that makes absolutely the most of it's surroundings. From fist fights in the kitchen, to gun fights in the locker room, to dangling from the overhanging scoreboard, Van Damme puts his best Bruce Willis forward, as he tries to stop a group of terrorists that have taken hostages in the arena during the last game of the NHL Stanley Cup finals. Director Peter Hyams does his usual double duty as director of photography and provides action on a large scale. Powers Boothe is the smooth criminal holding not only the Vice President hostage, but Van Damme's daughter as well. He's calm, methodical, and smooth as he executes his plans and his hostages with ease. Plenty of time is given to Van Damme to showcase his martial arts skills as the fights are plentiful, and up close and personal. The movie is not perfect of course. Some of the bad guys are too cliched, and the final downfall of the bad guy not only defies the laws of physics, but is kind of lame. Still, it's a great action movie, and proof that Van Damme could've had a much bigger career than what it has become.