My Favorite Movies

Simply flawless,that's all there is to it.It's hard for me to talk about this film as I have nothing but good things to say about as it's my favorite film of all time.The whole cast is awesome,led by Brando's legendary performance as Don Vito Corleone,quite possibly my favorite performance ever.And Al Pacino became a star here as Michael,who goes from straight laced college man to cold-hearted mafioso.James Caan,Robert Duvall,John Cazale...I could go on and on.Francis Ford Coppola's direction is excellent,there's an amazing score by Nino Rota,the period detail is spot on.I love this movie to death.My number one film of all time.

I give the 1st movie the slight edge cause this one has no Brando but just as much of a masterpiece."I know it was you Fredo"...

They don't make them like this anymore unfortunately.3 badass performances led by the ultimate badass,Clint,in this epic western.Eli Wallach is a force of nature as the weasly,greedy Tuco and Lee Van Cleef is one evil bastard as Angel Eyes.This is just pure cinema,no messages,no moral to the story.An extremely stylish,unique masterpiece.The final duel is the perfect marriage of music and images.Ennio Morricone's score is derservedly legendary and is almost a character in itself.In my opinion the best western of all time(and one of the best films of all time,period),although Leone's followup,Once Upon A Time In The West,is a close second.One of my top ten films of all time.

Absolutely phenomenal biopic of middlewight champ Jake LaMotta.Deniro puts in a career best performance here,going from young and in fighting shape to older and overweight(Deniro gained 60 pounds).Joe Pesci is also great as LaMotta's long suffering brother.These two have such terrific chemistry,even here in their first film together.The fight scenes are shot and edited in such a cool way,they're the best I've ever seen.The cinematography is beautiful black and white,the music score is all classical,the time period feels just right(1940's-50's).In my opinion,Deniro and Scorsese's best,and that's saying something.One of my top ten films of all time.

Classic David Lynch,his best film.I guess it's kind of a mystery/thriller but the plot is not not really the point,kind of like Hitchcock's "macguffin".The real focus of the film seems to be that underneath the idyllic surface of things,possibly lie dark and terrible secrets.Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern strike just the right note as the naive,too curious teenagers.They feel like they come right out of a 50's film.Dennis Hopper is scary as hell in this.In my opinion,he has to be one of the most evil characters in film history,a truly frightening psycho who makes you afraid for the other characters' well being when he's on screen.A career best performance for Hopper in what was a banner year for him back in 1986,between this,Hoosiers,and River's Edge.He's excellent in all three.The cinematography is beautiful and the music score by Angelo Badalamenti is very effective.Fascinating movie,though admittedly not for all tastes.One of my top ten films of all time.

Probably my favorite cult movie.Still makes me laugh.Bruce Campbell is just hilarous in this,the scene where he says groovy still cracks me up.The camerawork,even 20 years later,is still impressive.In my opinion it's some the best ever,it's just so inventive and dazzling and well...fun.There's not a wasted moment in this,it's just hugely entertaining from start to finish.It's kind of The Godfather of splatter comedy flicks if you will,simply the best there is.

Awesome,has been ripped off about a million times since '86.This has such a good ensemble cast and a full throttle pace and intensity to it.The alien queen is so wicked looking and cool.The whole cast is great,especially Sigourney Weaver in her signature role and James Cameron brings his usual obsession with technology and gear.Just classic.One of my top ten films of all time.

Still weird,still awesome over 30 years later.One of my top ten films of all time.

Amazing,like Tarantino's head exploded and this was the result.Could have been a mess but Tarantino pulled it off big time.This,along with Vol 2 is Tarantino's masterpiece.It's stylish,audacious and though it cribs from many genres and films,once again Tarantino makes it his own.The House of Blue Leaves battle is astoundingly kickass.This also has to be the most ultraviolent major american film since Total Recall.I honestly can't say enough good things about this.Great characters(my favorite in this has gotta be O-Ren Ishii and her whole backstory,gotta love the anime sequence) and setpieces.The only bad thing is I don't know if Tarantino has anywhere to go but down after this.I don't think he'll ever match or top this.One of my top ten films of all time.

The equally great second half of Tarantino's epic revenge tale.Michael Madsen,Darryl Hannah and David Carradine all have expanded roles here and they all turn in excellent performances.Madsen is the down on his luck Budd who still has some tricks up his sleeve.He really infuses the character with some depth and is one of the only somewhat sympathetic characters.Hannah is one hateful bitch in this.Love the showdown between her and the Bride in the trailer.And then there's Carradine who gives the performance of his life as Bill.I cant believe how good he is in this.The training sequence with hardass Pei Mei is another highlight.This has more of a spaghetti western feel,which I loved,a lot of the great composer Ennio Morricone's music is used from past films.More character moments and storyline in this,unlike the action extravaganza of Vol 1.This is more traditional of Tarantino.And last but not least,there's Uma Thurman who continues to be the anchor of these two films,she's goes deeper into what makes the Bride tick here,she's never been better.One of my top ten films of all time and the best film of 2004.

Love this movie.Bale is incredible in it and the book is even better(and ten times more gruesome).

Great movie,the best of Romero's dead films.Zombies in a shopping mall,can't get any better than that.This truly is a cult film,and one of the best at that,with really bizarre music by some Italian rock group named Goblin and plenty of exploding heads and guts ripped out.

One of the best action movies ever,period.

Still can't believe that this won best picture considering all the skin crawling content,but when it's this well made...

Micheal Mann rules.This is so good.Pacino and Deniro together=movie heaven.The only problem I have with this is the subplot with Natalie Portman,not really needed.I guess it's there to flesh out Al's character but when your movie's pushing 3 hours...But oh well,it doesn't affect the movie that much.Everything else is fantastic,the bank robbery shootout still impresses and man I fucking hate Waingro and Van Sant.

Awesome movie,the best in the entire series.Yoda and Darth Vader are great,you got Boba Fett in there,the ice planet Hoth and the Colt 45 spokesperson himself,Billy Dee Williams.This has the best storyline and is a lot darker than the original but keeps the saturday matinee feel George Lucas was going for.Even if you don't know anything about Star Wars this is a great movie(although it probably wouldn't make any sense).Definitely number 1 in the ranking of Star Wars movies.

This was such a huge part of my childhood and I still love the original trilogy today.Alec Guinness kicks ass(not literally as he is pretty old) as Obi-Wan,I think he set the standard for all future Wise Old Mentor roles.And James Earl Jones as the voice of Darth Vader,one of the best villains of all time.What can I say?,he IS Darth Vader,his vocal performance is perfect(although I think he had the best part in Empire).The effects still hold up,although the light sabers look a little dodgy even with the 97' touchups.Cons-only one-Mark Hamill,what is it with Lucas casting bland blond pretty boys?But I guess he is supposed to be this wide eyed kid so his natural lameness fits.I would rank this 2nd in the overall series.

Clint laid out the blueprint for his whole badass career with this movie,the terrific first part of the "Dollars trilogy"(even though they're not really a trilogy).The Ennio Morricone score is of course,great as is Sergio Leone's direction,especially as this was a low budget production.A must see for western or Clint fans.

There's something about these old movies,especially the old Universal horrors,they're just so cool.This is a deserved horror classic and a terrific film.The only thing missing is a music score.I love the design and look of the gothic architechture of Dr Frankenstein's castle and the graveyard in the opening sequence.Boris Karloff and Colin Clive are so good.Karloff along with Bela Lugosi are my favorite old school horror stars.Karloff creates a legendary character and performance with no dialogue.He also looks genuinely creepy at times,with still impressive lighting and makeup.The monster is just cool looking.Clive does a wonderful job as a man obsessed with bringing the dead to life.A must see for horror buffs interested in the genre's history.Many now cliche situations and characters were started right here.

Awesome sequel to the equally awesome original.Man,between this and Aliens James Cameron is the master of sequels.Great effects and action and Arnold's best performance.Although I could do without the touchy feely,Terminator learns how to be a better cyborg stuff but whatever.It's a small part of the overall film and doesn't detract from it too much.And the T-1000,great villain,creepy bastard.The CGI is still pretty damn cool(love the face through the bars bit)but some of the practical effects,wtf?The T-1000 hanging from the back of the car part looks like they borrowed a dummy from Super Dave Osbourne.The only problem I have with this is Edward Furlong.Please,please,please don't cast shitty child actors,arrggh.But it could've been much worse,Temple Of Doom(Dr Jones!,shudder).

This is a great film,masterfully directed by Scorsese and acted out by a great cast.And you know what?,this may be considered cinematic blasphemy but I like this a little better than Goodfellas.I find it's a little more consistent in what it's trying to do.This is one of Deniro's last good performances before he stopped giving a shit.Man it would be good to get him back.Joe Pesci is perhaps even scarier and more psychotic than he was in Goodfellas,the characters are quite similar.Sharon Stone is better than normal,but she's the weak link in the chain here.The soundtrack is extremely well put together and the 3 hours fly by at a brisk pace.One of the best films of the 90's.

Great movie,but,it loses me a little in the last half hour when it turns from a mob movie to a drug one.I've alway felt that whole sequence didn't mesh with the rest of the film.Still a great film though.

I would rate this third overall in the series.It loses some points because the ending basically rehashes the ending of A New Hope,i.e. the Death Star run and subsequent destruction of the DS.That being said it's still a great film with a lot of strong stuff in it:the Jabba the Hut scenes,Yoda's death scene,the Emperor,the final Vader vs Luke confrontation,etc.Speaking of Luke,what is up with Hamill's hair in this?It looks like he got a bowl cut by Stevie Wonder,or maybe Lucas wanted to save some money because of all the effects and cut it himself,I dunno.

Great movie,lead to a ton of horrible,"hip"knockoffs in the 90's but none came close to being this good.

Awesome movie.Great effects,a cool plot and kickass fight scenes.Because of all the imitators that followed(and the inferior sequels),you almost forget how good this is,until you watch it again.

Classic,with one of the best,and creepiest villains ever.

Another underrated movie,great atmosphere and performances from Rourke(his career best until Sin City) and Deniro and a chilling twist ending.I wish more people would see this.

Classic horror/thriller that has such an oppressive,overwhelmingly bleak atmosphere that you feel unclean just watching it and features a really brutal ending.Brad Pitt is a little weak in this at times,particularly at the end,but Morgan Freeman is excellent,as is Kevin Spacey.They even manage to throw in Richard "Shaft" Roundtree and R.Lee Ermey(the apeshit drill instructor from Full Metal Jacket) in small roles.Not the feel good movie of the year by any means (it doesn't have a very positive view on humanity)but it's extremely well made,particularly the cinematography and production design,which is run down and grimy.

An old favorite of mine,I rewatched it recently and I remembered all the gross stuff and great makeup but forgot how well acted it was.It really grounds the horror in reality.It is pretty sad though.

Hilarious.Burton's best movie and criminally underrated.Try and find ten people who have seen this.It's a shame as Depp is great in it as the worst director of all time.

Western masterpiece by the master Sergio Leone.For me this is a very close second to The Good,The Bad and the Ugly as my favorite Leone film.This is more serious and mature compared to the playful Dollars trilogy.The film may not be for everyone as it's lengthy and Leone establishes a very deliberate pace.The music by Ennio Morricone,is once again fantastic,with each of the four main characters getting their own theme.Standout performances here include Henry Fonda as a cold evil bastard,the villain of the film.He's revealed in a great shot and sequence meant to shock audiences used to Fonda's good guy image.Jason Robards is also excellent as the wily outlaw Cheyenne.And of course,good ol' Charles Bronson,used to very good effect here with his classic strong silent type schitck,easily the best film he was ever in.As per Leone,the camera shots and set pieces are fantastic and unique,I love the opening sequence at the train station,which is just three shady looking men waiting for a train,which sounds boring but Leone makes it interesting with a great payoff.Just a great film.

Fantastic film noir/thriller from the Coen Bros,who after a two film slump,are back with a vegeance with this viciously entertaining film.The plot is pretty straightforward:an average joe stumbles upon a drug deal gone bad, steals a bag of money and is pursued by a relentless killer.That simple premise is a springboard for a compelling game of cat and mouse between the two men with a world weary sheriff watching from the sidelines.The whole cast is great:between this,Grindhouse and American Gangster,Josh Brolin is having a hell of a year,he turns in a career best performance here as Moss,the man who finds the money who is more wily then he appears.Javier Bardem radiates menace as the psychopath on the trail of the money,he's truly frightening and I would rank him up there with Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs and Frank Booth in Blue Velvet.You're honestly afraid for the other characters when he's lurking around.Tommy Lee Jones does his best work in years as the sheriff,granted he could probably do this kind of role in his sleep,but when it's this well acted and written,who can complain.And Woody Harrelson has a small but memorable role as a cocky bounty hunter.The film is very suspenseful,there's a scene with a ringing telephone that's worthy of Hitchcock.This isn't for the faint hearted as there's violence aplenty in addition to the aformentioned nerve wracking,but there are dollops of the trademark Coens black comedy.The best film of 2007.

Wow.I mean just...wow.I expected this to be good,but what I got was the best damn movie I've seen in a long time and easily the best movie I've seen this year.I've never been a big Dicaprio fan but he won me over with his performance here.He did a terrific job,in fact the cast was excellent across the board with Jack Nicholson being a standout of course.The movie is 2 and a half hours but it barrels along,I didn't feel the time at all.It was nice to see a movie where I didn't know where it was going.Movies have gotten awfully predictable lately it seems.Welcome back Martin Scorsese,great to see you in the crime genre again.The best film of 2006.

Highly entertaining film that attempts to recreate the grindhouse double bill experience.The first film,Planet Terror,is the best grade Z early '80s zombie outbreak movie you've never seen,it was a blast from start to finish,the most fun I've had during a film in a long time,I had a grin plastered on my face during the whole thing.The casting was great(great to see Michael Biehn on the big screen again),the gore was extremely over the top,I loved the John Carpenter-esque circa Escape From New York synth music score.Robert Rodriguez,who I was never a big fan of,has really impressed me lately with this and Sin City,I look forward to his next film.Ok moving on to the second film,Death Proof.I'm a huge Quentin Tarantino fan so any time he has a film out it's an event for me.This film I loved as well but it does have some slow patches to it.Now,Tarantino has talky scenes in all his films,but the characters in this were pretty normal people for the most part and that's a little different for Tarantino.QT's always worked with actors who really nail his dialogue and characters and these women,especially the second group,were a little weak(particularly Zoe Bell,who is a stuntwoman,not an actress).Kurt Russell,on the other hand is fantastic as the psychopathic Stuntman Mike.There's a brutal car wreck and a fantastic car chase sequence,those were also highlights.The fake trailers were terrific,I was especially fond of Machete,the only thing off was while Werewolf Women of the SS was funny,it just didn't look like a trailer,the other ones are spot on accurate.Oh yeah,and QT makes an unwelcome return to acting in both films.Dude,you're a brilliant writer/director but please don't act anymore,it's painful.

Kickass followup to Fistful of Dollars has Clint and Lee Van Cleef as "bounty killers"teaming up to take down the villian.More great Leone style and Morricone music score,this is a little more confident and expanded in scope compared to Fistful.Love the scene with Van Cleef lighting the match on Klaus Kinski's neck,man what a badass.Also love the scene when Clint and Van Cleef decide to team up.Great stuff.

Awesome,simply awesome.This blows all the other Batman movies away(although that wouldn't be that tough considering the last two,Batman and Robin anyone?),features stellar direction from Christopher Nolan(Memento,Insomnia) and a dream cast,almost all of them are British,maybe that's why they're so good.Did I say the cast was good?Except for Katie Holmes of course,weak.This takes a comic book story seriously,like it was taking place in the real world.The best film of 2005.

Great movie.This would be my second favorite Clint film.Gene Hackman is such a hateful villain you're just begging for Clint to take him out.This is Clint's last western,and it's just as well,as it would be hard to top it.The ending is one of the best ever,so intense.Clint gets really pissed and his old murderous side comes back and that is something you really don't want.The only real complaint I would have is the Kid,he's pretty annoying but the character is supposed to be obnoxious so I guess I can't really complain.

My favorite Coen Bros' movie,this is a very cool gangster movie set in the 1930's.It has a lot of cool old-school dialogue,a good cast(particularly Jon Polito as Casper and Albert Finney as Leo)and it's unique,I mean how many Irish gangster movies are out there?And of course,there's Gabriel Byrne.It's great to see him as the lead in a movie,he's such a cool actor who perfectly captures the 30's gangster attitude.

Chow Yun Fat stars as a tough cop who teams up with a hitman to stop an insane gangster who's a major arms dealer.There's probably less plot here than in The Killer,but it's enough to support the ultraviolent,absolutely kickass action sequences,with the final showdown taking place in a hospital.Chow Yun Fat is his usual charismatic,badass self and Tony Leung is also good as the hitman.This is John Woo's masterpiece,one the best action films ever made.It's a real shame how far Woo went downhill after coming to America.Shoot Em Up cribs heavily from this film,especially the hero carting a baby around while blowing guys away.A must see for anyone who call themselves an action fan.

The gangster movie as over the top 80's cartoon,this is extremely entertaining and highly quotable too.Not to mention it basically inspired the Grand Theft Auto games.

Bruce Lee kicking ass.That's all you really need to know.

The most underrated of Tarantino's films and the most mature and subtle.Sure all the Tarantino trademarks are there but there's a lot less flash and almost no onscreen violence.Back in '97 I think a lot of people,myself included,were expecting Pulp Fiction 2 and that's not this at all.Of course this has terrific use of music,heavy on 70's soul.The film is basically Tarantino's take on the blaxploitation genre via the Elmore Leonard novel Rum Punch and a love letter to Pam Grier,who's never been better.Robert Forster was also resurrected from the Hollywood graveyard with his strong,understated performance.This really has grown on me over the years.Deniro is hilarous as a stoner ex-con,and Samuel L Jackson is also excellent.In fact,the whole cast in perfect,even Chris Tucker in a small role.

Excellent film noir.A convoluted plot to say the least but that's part of the fun.

Classic,though I'm not as enthusiastic about it as I once was due to the fact that I've watched it about 5 million times.That said,this debut film is better than 90% of the movies with veteran directors behind them.

Like this movie a lot,Gary Oldman going completely batshit is alway a pleasure,here as an extremely corrupt DEA agent.

Classic horror film about demonic possession,particularly a young girl in need of the title character.Jason Miller is excellent as the troubled Father Karras,in fact it's just as much his story as it is the possessed girl.The whole cast is great,although a lot of Linda Blair's effectiveness comes from the makeup and Mercedes McCambridge's voice from hell(she overdubbed Blair's voice in the possession scenes).Speaking of makeup,it still looks great,especially the final stage of possession.Great job by makeup effects legend Dick Smith.I don't find the film that scary,more disturbing really.I think it depends on your religious background(or lack thereof).

The original makes his own rules cop movie.I swear,there's nothing better than watching Clint mow down some scum and snarl some great one-liners.

Very cool movie about rival magicians in the late 19th century.Very well made and acted,with two very good performances from Bale and Jackman and it even has David Bowie in a small but important role.This may not be for everyone as it does go off into some far out places by the end and the two lead characters are pretty damaged people.But for those who are game you'll be rewarded.One of the best films of 2006.

Visually stunning interpretation of the classic horror novel,directed by Francis Ford Coppola.Gary Oldman is Dracula and Anthony Hopkins is Van Helsing and they both seem to be having a lot of fun,hamming it up,two very entertaining performances.Winona Ryder is her usual solid self as the object of Dracula's affections.Keanu Reeves,however is awful as Ryder's fiancee.His attempt at a british accent is laughable and every line he delivers is as stiff and wooden as a board.He can be effective in the right role,but he's in way over his head here.The supporting cast is good,save for another miscast pretty boy(Bill Campbell) playing Quincy,the texan who helps hunt down the Count.The film won Academy Awards for makeup and costume design,deservedly.Coppola uses pretty much every in camera trick known to man for the effects,some dating back to the silent era.The music score is excellent,truly foreboding and atmospheric(parts of it have been used countless times in movie trailers).Yes,the film can be quite theatrical and over the top at times,but that's what makes it so enjoyable.

Really cool flick about a freedom fighter(terrorist?)going against a totalitarian government in 2020 London.An interesting story punctuated by kickass action scenes(particularly the ending)and the best vocal performance since Darth Vader.V is a very cool character(although he does look a bit like Zorro by way of the Phantom of the Opera)

I love this movie.It's basically The Goonies vs the Universal monsters and it's very entertaining and a lot of fun.I hadn't seen it in years and it still holds up for me.The makeup effects and monster designs are fantastic,especially the Mummy and the Gillman.The film breezes along and at only 82 minutes,it's short and sweet.Of course this is very 80's and there are some cheesy moments complete with a montage set to an awful song but that's to be expected as it's a pop film released in 1987.Yeah,a lot of the appeal here is probably nostalgia but I don't care.

This surprised the hell out of me.I had fairly low expectations but damn,I loved it.It's just so cool to watch,the atmosphere,old school film noir dialogue and sleazy/cool characters.Mickey Rourke stole the show as the badass with a heart.It's like watching a comic book unfold with actors in it.Gory and violent as hell too.One of the best movies of 2005.

Charming fantasy/comedy about a scissor handed man who is taken in by a suburban family.A truly strange premise is pulled off by Director Tim Burton and a solid cast.Johnny Depp's performance as Edward is really quite impressive,as he doesn't have a lot of dialogue,he mostly uses his facial expressions and movements to convey his emotions.It's almost a silent film performance.A very interesting bit of casting:Anthony Michael Hall,who was the put upon geek in the John Hughes movies,here plays the Jerk Boyfriend role/Edward's nemesis.Alan Arkin is hilarious as the clueless dad who doesn't seem to ever pay attention to what's going on around him.And there's a nice small role by Vincent Price as Edward's creator.Burton has been criticised as a surface over substance director,but his work here is very heartfelt,this is his most personal film(along with Ed Wood).The "snow" scene is a genuinely beautiful moment.The ending is a little conventional,with a violent(well,for this movie anyway)confrontation,it almost seems like an outtake from Burton's previous film Batman.It's a little out of place for a film that was an oddball comedy that took some satirical jabs at he suburbs(portrayed as a pastel eyesore here) up to this point.But oh well,it's a tiny quibble in such a well done film.

This was great,epic scale film-making you just don't see anymore.But a little too epic,perhaps.It would have been perfect about 30 minutes shorter(cut the bs subplots and supporting characters)but better too much Kong than too little.Kong steals the show of course,incredible CGI work,maybe the best ever,you actually forget he's an effect and that's an amazing feat.Kong vs the T-rexes,fucking awesome and the rest of the action was kickass too.One of the best of 2005.

Very good film,not a real pick me up movie,though you probably know that going in(I hope).I was suprised by the direction,it was unlike anything Spielberg has ever done,it didn't pull any punches with some pretty harsh violence,definitely not a glorifed shoot-em up style.Some very good performances here too,particularly Eric Bana and Daniel Craig.My only complaint is it was a bit overlong(almost 3 hours).One of the best films of 2005.

This is the first film adaptation of Thomas Harris' novel Red Dragon which introduces Hannibal Lecter,in a much smaller part than the following films.Here he's played by Brian Cox,whose approach is very different than Anthony Hopkins,He's not as creepy but you still get a sense of intellectual menace from him.Yes this is very 80's in spots(which makes sense since,uhhh it was made in the 80's?)but who cares?,it's Michael Mann.Forget CSI,this is the best thing William Peterson has ever done(he's rocking a kickass beard to boot)and its way,way better than Red Dragon,the 2nd version of this story.Peterson is a little weak in a few scenes but overall he gives a strong,effective performance.Tom Noonan is very creepy as the serial killer who thinks of himself as the "Red Dragon"(not explained very much here,moreso in the novel)although his childhood flashbacks are removed altogether.There's some questionable use of music here but great use of Iron Butterfly's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" during the climax.Definitely worth a look if you've only seen Red Dragon.