My Favorite Movies

My personal favourite film. Titanic broke my heart and keeps a peice still. 11 Academy Awards, Highest Grossing film ever. 'My Heart Will Go On' haunting soundtrack. Winner of my Greatest Disaster Films. Winner of mr Greatest Epics. Winner of my Best Film from the 1990's. Winner of my Greatest Romantic Period Film.

The Perfect Film. Casablanca is one of my favourite films. To me it represents everything a film should, i.e. the perfect film. The most quoted, and loved of films. A great love story, great action, mystery, suspence, sadness, comdey all in equal greatness. The greatest romantic drama of wartime sacrifice. The great Classic, with the classic song, "As Time Goes By" perfect cast, Bogart, Bergman, Rains, the Academy Award for Best Picture and more famous quotes than any other. "I think this is the begining of a beautiful friendship"and ".Here's looking at you, kid." and "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time Goes By." and "Round up the usual suspects." and "We'll always have Paris." and "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine." Winner of my Best Film from the 1940's. Winner of my Top Romantic Films.

One of the best films of all time. Christmas classic, Philosophical genius, each person's life touches many others. With the complex, engrossing, Everyman performance by Stewart as George Bailey. Every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings. Winner of my Top Family Film. Winner of my Most Inspirational Film. Winner of my Best Christmas Movies.

Considered to be the greatest film of all time. "Rosebud." The most geniusly clever film I have ever seen. It doesn't answer 'the question', what is the meaning of life, but it responds to the American Dream with harsh honesty in this tragic story, which in a way answers the big question. Acclaimed for its innovative narrative structure, deep focus cinematography, soundtrack, literate screenplay, and nuanced portrayal of the central character. Citizen Kane is truly the best. Winner of my Greatest Drama Films. Winner of my Greatest Film Entrances.

Tragic, three part romantic saga with Mob boss Don Corleone and the rising, son Michael. Gripping suspense and memorable dialogue "I'll make
him an offer he can't refuse". The visually grand images of times and places contrast with the film's graphic violence. The Godfather remains among the most celebrated, landmark films of all time. Winner of my Best Film from the 1970's. Winner of my Greatest Crime and Gangster Films.

Top of all Sci movies. Cooly spectacular science fiction space epic, Kubrick's best. The First space scene is one of my favourite scenes ever, with Strausses Waltz playing to the glory of mankind. The meaning of the film's final sequence, however, is really confusing. HAL 9000 the computer, with that clam voice is unforgettable. "Open the pod bay doors, HAL." Winner of my Greatest Science Fiction Films.

One of the scariest of all the films I have ever seen. 'The Master Of Suspence' Alfred Hitcock's crowning glory. The infamous shower scene and shrieking score will remain etched in your mind and ears for ever. Must be seen from the begining. "A boy's best friend is his mother." Winner of my most Thrilling Film. Winner of my Greatest Film Death Scene.

Gone With The Wind stands as the most enduring symbol of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Arguably the most loved film of all time and one of the greatest; Gone With The Wind is clearly one of filmdom's greatest cinematic achievements. Winner of ten Academy Awards including Best Picture, it broke the records and created one that would stand for many decades. It has sold more tickets than any other film in history and adjusting for inflation, the film is the highest grossing of all time. Scanning the South's tragic history during the Civil War and the Reconstruction period, told from the view of Scarlet O'Hara, Gone With The Wind is primarily a star-studded Civil War epic drama. However it is so much more than that, it is one of only two films that truly represent America, the other being The Godfather. Set during the time when the nation was forged it has become etched in the American cultural psyche. Gone With The Wind is about war, history, social class, politics, race, work, fashion, the land, language, religion, romance, relationships, death, gender roles, regional distinctions all seen through the lens of the American experience heightened by the "Immortal tale of the old South". Scarlet O'Hara, the indomitable, selfish, fiery Southern belle, played by Vivien Liegh in her greatest performance steals the show and creates a character that encapsulates a great leading lady performance. What makes her character as great as it is, is her twisted romance with Rhett Butler, Clarke Gable, culminating in the greatest line in movie history 'Frankly My Dear I don't give a damn'. It also includes other great lines such as "After all, tomorrow is another day!" and "As God is my witness, I'll never be hungry again." Pure classic, pure great, pure cinema. Winner of my Best Film from the 1930's.

The musical of life, "to sing in the rain". Delightful musical send-up of the transition period from silent to sound films. "Good Morning", "Make 'Em Laugh," "Broadway Rhythm" among the best. With the most talented dancer Gene Kelly singing, dancing and splashing in puddles. Winner of my Best Film from the 1950's.

"Somewhere over the rainbow, Way up high, There's a land that I heard of, Once in a lullaby, Somewhere over the rainbow, Skies are blue, And the dreams that you dare to dream, Really do come true." Simply the stuff that dreams are made of. The ageless, timeless words of the dreams of the young and the old, a dream that everyone is familiar with and surely has dreamt of once in their lifetime. The Wizard of Oz is a very much like a dream that really does come true. The ultimate family, fairytale and fantasy film that is universally loved and cherished. The journey down the Yellow Brick Road in search of the Wizard of Oz that tapped into the deep dreams and imagination of generations from the 1930s to today. A journey that made Judy Garland a star, along with the great characters of Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. A journey through the magical Technicolor Land of Oz, that made Hollywood the dream factory that it is famous for. A journey that reminds us that there is "There's no place like home," entered upon the world's cultural consciousness. Perennially ranked among the top ten best movies of all-time in various critics' and popular polls, and has provided as many indelible quotes such as: "Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore," "There's no place like home" and "I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!" Yet more than anything in the film it's signature song "Somewhere over the rainbow," sung soulfully by the young Judy Garland and voted the greatest movie song of all time by the AFI, is what makes the Wizard of Oz one of the greatest films of all time. Winner of my Greatest Song Films.

Hitchock classic. Obsession and suspense combine in this eerie drama. His famous fear of heights and the tense score by Bernard Herrmann, considered by many film writers and scholars as Hitchcock's most ambitious film. I would agree.

Spielberg's ulimate masterpiece, A profoundly shocking, disturbing film, like the nightmare that was the Holocaust.

"Along time ago, in a galaxy far, far away." The first of an epic space opera franchise and a fictional universe by writer/director George Lucas that has expanded and evolved since 1977 to become a worldwide pop culture phenomenon that has no rival. The beginning of the series to end all series, a film that may not be about history but certainly maked history. Spawining two sequels The Empire Strikes Back and Return Of The Jedi, a prequel trilogy and an Expanded Star Wars Universe that virtually created a lifestyle brand. A worldwide epic that has had a irreversible impact on not just the Sci-Fi genre but on films in general. One of the main reasons the film is so great is that despite being about a "galaxy far away", set in a "along time ago", the characters, themes and story are firmly rooted in old hollywood. In the iconic scene where Luke Skywalker looks longfully to the hrizion (with two suns) he could be Dorothy in the Wizard Of Oz, or James Dean, the scene of the lightsaber duel between the wise Jedi knight Obi-Wan Kenobi (Guinness) and the ultimate villain, the black-garbed sinister Lord Darth Vader (voice of Jones), could be a scene from a medieval swashbuckler epic. The whole film is filled with allusions to the past despite being filled with aliens and galactic battle ships, a quasi-Western film about a battle as old as time between good (the rebel forces) and evil (the Imperial Galactic Empire). Star Wars is an ultimate spectacular space adventure that combines the old and the new: from a desert farm to Jabba the Hutt; the big and the small: from the epic battle between the Rebels and Empire to a simple coming of age story; and good verses evil. Truly one of the greatest sagas ever told and one of the greatest films ever put to screen. "May the force be with you." Winner of my Greatest Film Scores.

Greatest film of the 2000's decade. End to the best saga of the age. 11 Academy Awards, second highest grossing film worldwide. Winner of my Best of the Decade 2000- and Top Film of 2003.

One of my new all time favourite movies, simply perfection. The best silent film ever and one of the greatest comedies ever. Poetry in motion.

The Disney Triumphant masterpeice. It really looks as though the music was made for the cartoons. Each of the eight segments are genius giving new life to the classical greats. The Sorceror's Apprentice with micky, The Nutcracker, Waltz of the flowers and so much more.

"Let's go home Debbie", one of the greatest westerns of all time. The inspriation for countless of classics from Lawrence Of Arabia to Star Wars. The "Duke" John Waynes, best performance as the eternal outisder, verging on villian. A complex western masterpeice.

The greatest musical ever. A stroke of purer cinema and musical genius by two of Hollywood's greatest musical composers Rodgers and Hammerstein, who's names have become synonymous with the Hollywood musical. From the famous opening shot of Maria daydreaming, standing arms open wide on top of a mountain singing one of the greatest songs in cinema "The Sound of Music" through the Von Trapp family, the romance and marriage and the war to the end credits of the family escaping over the mountains The Sound of Music is filled with a mixture of comedy, love, romance, suspense and the most wonderful collection of songs one film has ever held. Such songs as the incomparable "The Sound of Music", "Maria," "My Favorite Things," "You Are Sixteen, Going On Seventeen," "Climb Every Mountain," "Do-Re-Mi," and "Edelweiss." The Sound of Music stands as the monumental musical, imitated but never duplicated, a musical masterpiece that celebrates music of every kind from a symphonic waltz to a simple guitar, epic and intimate. Not only a musical milestone, The Sound of Music has become a cultural event, as such I have been on the Sound of Music tour in Salzburg, Austria, one of the highest grossing films of all time and certainly one of the most popular films ever. A personally much loved classic that strikes a note in every heart. Winner of my Best Film from the 1960's.

From T. E. Lawrence's memoir Seven Pillars of Wisdom is the Majestic adventure and character drama - the epic story of T. E. Lawrence played to perfection by Peter O'Toole. The cinematography is unequaled by anything I have seen. Winner of my Best of the British Films.

The Citizen Kane Of Hollywood. Sunset Boulevard is a classic that takes on the hollywood dream. The at times disturbing, gothic and ultimately tragic noir with character of the century the deluded silent star Swanson who actually lived a version of the character in real life as did the butler. Also real life people, The Waxworks, such as Buster Keaton, Anna Q. Nilsson and H. B. Warner, who, like De Mille, play themselves. Swanson is ready for her close-up in this impacting slice of Hollywood life depicting a reclusive, former silent screen actress. The film won three Academy Awards, including Best Screenplay but did not win best picture because the academy didn't like the subject matter i.e. hollywood. "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up." and "I am big! It's the pictures that got small."

The one film that would best sum up Hitchcock's career, style and mastery. Great screenplay and acting from Stewart, and the most beautiful actress Grace Kelly. The story and smaller sub story's are amazing. Winner of my Greatest Alfred Hitchock Films.

The real world of theatre. I have never seen a film with such brilliant dialogue as All About Eve. A classic story with unbelieveable revelations of backstage betrayal. "Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night." The ultimate in Sophisticated performances, especially by Davis and the great critic Sanders. Forget all the snappy dialogue in other films, this film has the monopoly.

One of my new all-time favourite films. Has one of the best, most romantic tearful, endings ever. The best of the phenomeon that was Charlie Chaplin.

Rated as the greatest British film by the BFI, I would hav to agree. One of the greatest villians ever to grace the screen Harry Lime (Welles) is the center of this twisty-turny mystery notable for its Academy Award-winning cinematography and distinctive, recurring strange music. A giant ferris wheel and a spectacular last chase scene in the sewers highlight this tale of intrigue. Set in a really tragic post-World War II Vienna. Winner of my Top Film Noir Films.

Best Film from the 1980's.

Crushing Classic, the Great Gritty drama of union corruption memorable, mainly, for Brando's best performance. The end scene on the docks is unforgettable. A must see Classic. Won Best Picture. "You don't understand! I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I could've been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am."

The sizzling sequel, is almost superior to the original, the second Gothfather movie lives up to it's expectation, with lots of crime, murder and violence. Shows us the world of Don Vito Corleone before and after the story in the original film. Outstanding period detail and refined violence. "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer."

The greatest comedy classic in Cinematic History. Hilarious comedy with stellar performances by Monroe, Curtis and Lemmon, and memorable musical numbers. Memorable throughout, especially for the last line, "Well, nobody's perfect." Some Like It Hot is the perfect comedy.

Cool, Intricate myster, revival of film noir. Roman Polanski's best film. Played brilliantly by private detective Nicholson. The unforgettable scene of sister/daughter the unbelieveable twists and turns and the memorable last line: "Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown."

Oh the Horror! Dark, creepy and tragic representation of Vietnam War. From Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness. Coppola's best war film, his Vietnam epic. Brando as Kurtz was incredible, all the performances were sensational. "I love the smell of napalm in the morning."

The greatest hero ever Atticus Finch in the greatest courtroom drama ever. Lives up to Harper Lee's novel, which I was inspired to read after watching the film. We all need a lesson in compassion and the evils of prejudice from time to time, and it is here to give it. Robert Duvall is really scary as recluse Boo Radley. Winner of my Classic Courtroom Films.

Dr Strangelove is the greatest black comedy ever made. I found it to be one of the funniest, cleverest films I have ever seen. Stanley Kubrick is simply a genius of film making, like Mozart was a genius of music or Rembrant with art. In my opinion Dr Stranglove comes in a close second after Space Odessey. Peter Sellers is also a genius but, a genius of comedy his three performances were side splittingly funny as they were staggeringly perfect. One can see that it was made as a cynically objective, Monty Python-esque, humorous, biting response to the apocalyptic fears of the 1950s. The final scene montage of exploding nuclear bombs with the song We'll meet again, is amongst the most memorable endings ever. "Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!"

"You talking to me?"

One of the greatest films ever, the quintessential film noir thriller

The gripping, penetrating, and engrossing examination of a group of twelve jurors in a 'seemingly' open-and-shut murder trial case.