Let's Talk about Epics

[TripleHBK]

I love Horror films. I watch them year round all the time, any time, every chance I get. But August of each year I break away from my beloved horror genre to rest up in anticipation of the fall season. During this month I'll usually focus on another genre (typically Action or Summer Blockbusters) or will choose to visit or re-visit titles that I don't often watch. Tonight I decided to re-visit the 2008/2009 John Woo film epic "Red Cliff". A Historical Epic that to the best of my knowledge was never screened theatrically in the states. (For Good reason as the entire epic runs 288 minutes long and is subtitled in mandarin). This is a magnificent looking film with breathtaking visuals, a sweeping score, and an engaging story that is easy to overlook due to it's lengthy run time.

Thinking about Red Cliff tonight however had me wondering what else is there available on Blu Ray that has gone unseen by the masses due to it not following traditional commercial conventions. My hope is that there is a world of worthwhile films that folks can recommend in this thread providing me with many hours of entertainment outside of my normal viewing habits.

So.... recommend me some epics that I need to check out on Blu Ray folks! (and if possible tell me why you enjoy them.)

[Rich65]

I know some of my favorites the are considered epics are:

Lawrence of Arabia - Just a great movie, Acting, music, cinematography, direction. Just about perfect in all aspects.
The Big Country - A grand fun western directed by William Wyler a year before Ben-Hur. Big in scope and cast, Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, Burl Ives (Oscar winner for this), Chuck Connors, Charles Bickford and Jean Simmons and Carroll Baker at their loveliest. The score is awesome as well.

I have more but those are ones I wanted to mention first.

[shinobipopcorn]

Depends on your definition of "epic" I suppose. If you look at some of the films classified on Wikipedia as epics, you really have to shake your head. Maleficent? FF7 Advent Children? The Lion King remake that isn't even out yet?

Personally I find the following to be good:
Seven Samurai
House of Flying Daggers & Curse of the Golden Flower (neither are the length of a typical epic so maybe have a double feature?)
Alexander (there are a few versions of this one, I saw the "Alexander Revisited" edit): box office wasn't too good, but I didn't think it was a disaster. A little overt on the sexuality, but I guess they were being edgy.
The Right Stuff & Apollo 13: the latter is more of a historical drama than an epic, but the former definitely is (Apollo 13 is 140 mins, The Right Stuff is 192 mins), and they complement each other (with one exception-

[Show spoiler]you might grow attached to the Mercury Seven after watching The Right Stuff, but one of the Lovell children brings up the Apollo 1 fire which killed Grissom

). You may be confused when you see Ed Harris in both, but he's playing two separate characters.

[SuperFlyHighGuy]

Yeah, just saying "epic" is pretty broad. Haven't seen Red Cliff but I'd highly recommend Ran if you haven't seen it. It was the first Japanese film I saw subtitled when it came out, and was blown away by its "epic scope and scale".

Biblical epics? The Ten Commandments is pretty great. My parents watched it on tv every year when I was a kid, some parts freaked me out. But after getting the blu-ray a few years ago, I've really found a new appreciation for it. Beautiful disc.

Maybe try some early silent epics? Intolerance by Griffith is pretty crazy, and Lang's Metropolis is an amazing, epic-scale production that is a must-see film. Both should be watched with their historical perspective in mind, of course.

[TripleHBK]

I appreciate the suggestions folks, keep them coming! I intentionally didn't go into much detail with what I personally consider an epic as I didn't want to discourage others from sharing their own opinions and film suggestions. Generally speaking though, for me an epic is likely going to be shot in scope format, utilize breathtaking scenery in exotic locations with a very large cast/extras. It will also very likely utilize an orchestral score. For those truly curious I do have an "epic" category in my collection count with a few titles that I felt met my own personal criteria.

As for the recommendations thus far, I currently own House of Flying Daggers, Apollo 13 and The Ten Commandments. I've watched Metropolis within the last year or so and have been meaning to pick up Laurence of Arabia for years. I'd say you're all definitely on the right path for what my intent was when I created this thread.

Due to production budgets I feel it's rare for a film to truly have an epic scale and go straight to video (in the US at least) so that's another reason why the film Red Cliff is so interesting to me. I would suspect that it's not alone in this regard and so it makes me wonder what else is out there that I haven't heard of that has followed a similar path.

[shinobipopcorn]

If you haven't had a chance to see it, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is pretty good too. It kicked off the wuxia trend in the US, and it just got that 4K release so it's a worth addition to anyone's library.

Don't read the back of the case, though. I know at least one release spoiled the ending (not sure if they ever fixed that).

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by shinobipopcorn

If you haven't had a chance to see it, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is pretty good too. It kicked off the wuxia trend in the US, and it just got that 4K release so it's a worth addition to anyone's library.

Don't read the back of the case, though. I know at least one release spoiled the ending (not sure if they ever fixed that).

Believe it or not, that's one film I still have never got around to watching. Early on in Blu Ray's infancy I was very interested in Martial Arts films and ended up picking up a handful of titles... I had always intended to snag up that film but just never came across it for the right price. Jump to many years later and the new(er) 4K edition has hit the market and I still haven't snagged it. I really do need to pick this up sometime soon as it's a fairly large omission from my collection and the price is certainly fair these days.

[Al_The_Strange]

"Epic" in itself could extend to a few different genres of films. When I think of epics, these come to mind, and I do recommend the whole lot of them:

Favorite historic epics:
Apocalypto
Ben Hur (1959)
The Dead Lands
Exodus: Gods and Kings
Ivan the Terrible Parts 1 and 2
Spartacus (1960)

Favorite samurai/wuxia/Asian epics:
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
The Hidden Fortress
Legend of the Black Scorpion
Kagemusha
Ran
Seven Samurai
Touch of Zen
War of the Arrows

Favorite war movie epics:
Bridge on the River Kwai
Lawrence of Arabia

Epic...westerns?!
The Revenant

Also...

Gone with the Wind is worth seeing at least once.

1963's Cleopatra is pretty darn epic and lavish. Not really a favorite of mine, but it's admirable.

Andrei Rublev looks good (and is good imo), but will take some extreme patience to get through.

The New World is becoming a new favorite of mine, but it's very long and slow and barely has any epic-scale action or battles to it.

Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Blade is a two-part movie with the same length and scope as Red Cliff. Don't really remember much, other than it didn't strike me as being as action packed as RC, but it is a good-looking production. Been meaning to give it another viewing myself.

Some other favorite historic-era films of mine are First Knight, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and Rob Roy. Just wasn't sure if these were "epic" enough to mention.

Some other great Asian films worth seeing (but left off above since I wasn't sure if they're "epic" enough) would be Rashomon, Harakiri, Ninja Scroll, Painted Skin (both of them), Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal, Shinobi: Heart Under Blade, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo.

There's probably a number of dramas I could rattle off that have an epic scope to them too (The Godfather, Forrest Gump, Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Legends of the Fall), and they are worth seeing. Not sure if that's what you're looking for though.

EDIT:
I noticed you have some of the ones I mentioned, so I updated the post.

[evilive]

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World -Its a great swashbuckling action/adventure flick with some impressive battle sequences in the open sea.

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

"Epic" in itself could extend to a few different genres of films. When I think of epics, these come to mind, and I do recommend the whole lot of them:

Favorite historic epics:
Apocalypto
Ben Hur (1959)
Braveheart
The Dead Lands
Exodus: Gods and Kings
Gladiator
The Last Samurai
Kingdom of Heaven (director's cut preferred)
Ivan the Terrible Parts 1 and 2
Spartacus (1960)

Favorite samurai/wuxia/Asian epics:
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
The Hidden Fortress
Legend of the Black Scorpion
Kagemusha
Ran
Seven Samurai
Touch of Zen
War of the Arrows

Favorite epic fantasy films:
The Lord of the Rings trilogy
300

Favorite war movie epics:
Apocalypse Now!
Bridge on the River Kwai
Lawrence of Arabia

Epic...westerns?!
The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
The Revenant

Other favorite films with epic scope:
Titanic

Also...

Gone with the Wind is worth seeing at least once.

1963's Cleopatra is pretty darn epic and lavish. Not really a favorite of mine, but it's admirable.

Andrei Rublev looks good (and is good imo), but will take some extreme patience to get through.

Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Blade is a two-part movie with the same length and scope as Red Cliff. Don't really remember much, other than it didn't strike me as being as action packed as RC, but it is a good-looking production. Been meaning to give it another viewing myself.

Some other favorite historic-era films of mine are First Knight, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and Rob Roy. Just wasn't sure if these were "epic" enough to mention.

Some other great Asian films worth seeing (but left off above since I wasn't sure if they're "epic" enough) would be Rashomon, Harakiri, Ninja Scroll, Painted Skin (both of them), Samurai X: Trust and Betrayal, Shinobi: Heart Under Blade, Throne of Blood, and Yojimbo.

There's probably a number of dramas I could rattle off that have an epic scope to them too (The Godfather, Forrest Gump, Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Legends of the Fall), and they are worth seeing. Not sure if that's what you're looking for though.

Fantastic stuff and all noted. Everything mentioned, including many of your epic dramas I already own and have categorized as Epics myself so we are definitely on the same page with our line of thinking. I appreciate the variety in your suggestions as well... lots of great genres to explore here depending on the mood I'm in. I'm happy to say I already own...

Braveheart, Gladiator, The Last Samurai, Kingdom of Heaven, LOTR trilogy, 300, Apocalypse Now, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, Titanic, Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, The Godfather, Forest Gump, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button from your lists.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by TripleHBK

Fantastic stuff and all noted. Everything mentioned, including many of your epic dramas I already own and have categorized as Epics myself so we are definitely on the same page with our line of thinking. I appreciate the variety in your suggestions as well... lots of great genres to explore here depending on the mood I'm in.

Awesome! Glad I could be of service.

I initially just posted the ones that are genuinely good, but if we get into guilty-pleasure territory, I've also got a soft spots for: Noah, Pathfinder, The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc, and The Forbidden Kingdom. I think these have some awesome scenes, but you'd definitely want to try before buying.

I also forgot to mention the Attila miniseries (from 2001). I loved it when it came out--haven't really touched it in years though. Same with 1998's Merlin.

[stobbart]

Came up with some not so obvious ones. Ones that you probably wouldn't find with a quick google search. Big setpieces and big runtimes


And finally a little known epic drama

[Bates_Motel]

It's not on blu-ray, unfortunately, but Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India is a fantastic epic. I think the finale is an hour long cricket match. It's Bollywood at it's finest. Sholay is another great Indian epic, but also not on blu-ray.

[edwn1220]

Aside from the ones already mentioned, I would like to share the epic movies I enjoy watching through the years:

Dances with Wolves
Saving Private Ryan
The Patriot
The Mummy (1999)
Troy
The Hobbit trilogy
The Last Emperor
The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
Patton
Seven Years in Tibet
The Sound of Music

You may have noticed that most of the suggestions by the members are period films and were either an Oscar winner or nominee. Also common to all of them are the unforgettable nostalgic music which one easily associates with these movies.

[Talal86]

I never heard of Red Cliff, it looks good

Originally Posted by shinobipopcorn

Don't read the back of the case, though. I know at least one release spoiled the ending (not sure if they ever fixed that).

what does it say?

[Phobics]

Great lists so far and I watch many of them every so often. I can't think of any to add actually.

[shinobipopcorn]

Originally Posted by Talal86

what does it say?

[Show spoiler]I think it had a picture of Jen jumping off the bridge at the end, or from that scene.

It's a minor spoiler I guess, but it could bother some people.

[Ben_C]

From the blus I have I'd say (apologies for any already mentioned):

Biblical/swords & sandles:
Ben Hur
Spartacus
Cleopatra
The Agony and the Ecstasy
The Bible: In the Beginning
The Ten Commandments
Gladiator
Kingdom of Heaven

War:
The Great Escape
A Bridge Too Far
The Battle of Britain
The Longest Day
The Bridge on the River Kwai
The Sand Pebbles
55 Days in Peking
The Thin Red Line
Apocalypse Now

Western:
Once Upon a Time in the West
How the West was Won
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
The Big Country

Asian:
A Touch of Zen
Red Cliff
The Seven Samurai
The Human Condition trilogy
Ran
Profound Desires of the Gods
Princess Mononoke

Silent:
Birth of a Nation
Intolerance
Die Nibelungen
Metropolis

Other dramas/misc:
Lawrence of Arabia
Lord of the Rings trilogy
Doctor Zhivago
Gone with the Wind
Towering Inferno
The Big Blue
Heat
Hard to be a God
King Kong (2005)
Scarface
Pulp Fiction
Interstellar
2001

[TripleHBK]

Originally Posted by stobbart

Came up with some not so obvious ones. Ones that you probably wouldn't find with a quick google search. Big setpieces and big runtimes
[/URL]

How is this? The trailer for it was at the beginning of my Red Cliff Blu Rays and I love Jet Li so it looked interesting. The price is right too, ringing in at just over $6 on ebay. Worth owning?

[ajburke]

Zulu is a 19th century war film and one of Michael Caine's first roles.
Heaven's Gate is a bewilderingly grandiose western by Michael Cimino.
Barry Lyndon is a British costume drama and one of Kubrick's best