The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Steve46

With my 100 movies series now complete, any comments?

What did you like?

[Show spoiler]1. 12 Angry Men (4/5)
2. 127 Hours (4.5/5)
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey (4/5)
4. The 400 Blows (3.5/5-ish)
5. Alien (4/5 maybe 4.5/5)
6. Amelie (4/5)
7. American Beauty (4/5, rewatch pending)
8. As Good as It Gets (only seen parts of it)
9. Avatar (4/5, maybe 4.5/5 highest)
10. Babel (never seen)
11. Bambi (4/5)
12. Baraka (5/5, top favorite)
13. Being There (never seen)
14. Black Swan (4.5/5)
15. Blow Out (4/5)
16. The Bourne Trilogy (3.5/5 in general, not a fan)
17. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (3.5/5, not a fan)
18. The Bicycle Thief / Bicycle Thieves (4.5/5)
19. Cache (Hidden) (never seen)
20. Cast Away (4/5)
21. Chungking Express (never seen)
22. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (4.5/5)
23. Closer (never seen)
24. Control (3.5/5, maybe 4/5)
25. The Dark Knight (5/5, 4th favorite of all time!)
26. Dead Poets Society (never seen)
27. The Departed (4/5-ish)
28. Die Hard (4/5-ish)
29. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (4/5)
30. Dog Day Afternoon (4/5)
31. The Double Life of Veronique (4/5)
32. Doubt (4/5)
33. The Elephant Man (4.5/5)
34. El Norte (never seen)
35. Falling Down (4/5)
36. Fantastic Mr. Fox (4/5)
37. Fargo (4/5)
38. Field of Dreams (seen parts of it)
39. Fight Club (4.5/5)
40. Freedom Writers (seen parts of it)
41. Frost/Nixon (never seen)
42. Gran Torino (5/5)
43. Grave of the Fireflies (4/5 yeah I'm insensitive)
44. The Great Escape (4/5)
45. I Am Legend (4/5)
46. Jaws (4/5)
47. Juno (never seen)
48. Kes (never seen)
49. Kill Bill Vol. 1 (5/5, something like my 6th or 7th favorite of all time)
50. The King's Speech (3.5/5, not a fan)
51. Leon: The Professional (4/5)
52. The Lives of Others (3/5, not a fan; sorry)
53. Lolita (3.5/5)
54. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (5/5, top favorite)
55. Love Actually (4/5, good for what it is, still not a fan)
56. The Matrix (5/5, third favorite of all time!)
57. Memento (5/5, top favorite)
58. Midnight in Paris (never seen)
59. Million Dollar Baby (never seen)
60. The Mist (5/5)
61. Moneyball (never seen)
62. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (5/5, ni!)
63. Moon (4/5)
64. Mulholland Dr. (4/5, maybe more when it makes sense)
65. My Neighbor Totoro (never seen)
66. Once (never seen)
67. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (5/5)
68. Paris, Texas (never seen)
69. Pay It Forward (I seem to remember scoring this a 4/5)
70. Play Time (4/5)
71. The Prestige (4.5/5, maybe 5/5)
72. Psycho (4.5/5)
73. Pulp Fiction (4/5)
74. The Pursuit of Happyness (never seen)
75. Rabbit Hole (never seen)
76. Ratatouille (4/5, not a fan)
77. The Reader (never seen; I think my coworkers were just talking about this one though)
78. Revanche (never seen)
79. Seabiscuit (never seen)
80. The Shawshank Redemption (4/5)
81. The Shining (5/5, top favorite horror film)
82. The Silence of the Lambs (5/5, top favorite)
83. Spirited Away (4.5/5)
84. Stop Making Sense (never seen)
85. Sunshine Cleaning (never seen)
86. Taken (4/5)
87. Taxi Driver (4.5/5)
88. There Will Be Blood (3.5/5)
89. Three Colors Red (never seen)
90. Up in the Air (never seen)
91. Vertigo (4.5/5)
92. Wall Street (never seen)
93. The Warriors (never seen)
94. Wings of Desire (2/5 (sorry))
95. The World's Fastest Indian (never seen)
96. Bottle Rocket (never seen)
97. Apollo 13 (4/5 (probably the one and only film Ron Howard directed that I really liked))
98. The Descendants (never seen)
99. No Country for Old Men (4/5)
100. Broadcast News (never seen)

So I've seen 66/100
I haven't seen 34/100
I've rated 12/100 a perfect score
I own 54/100
I've disliked 4/100

Originally Posted by Steve46

Any unworthy inclusions or glaring omissions?

There could be hundreds, or none at all, depending on who you talk to. It's all subjective. On first glance, I think it's a strong list as it is, and wouldn't ask you to change it for anything.

Just my observation that it's mostly a mixture of mature, artistically-driven films, and a little light on fluffy blockbusters.

Originally Posted by Steve46

Have you ever read a list like this before?

Probably.

Originally Posted by Steve46

Doesn't it seem a little arrogant to believe that if you like something it should be seen by everyone?

It depends. I think it would be if I went around trying to shove something like "Twilight" down people's throats. But some films should be seen by all for its given message, theme, or overall craftsmanship.

I haven't even thought about making a "must see for all" list myself, but if I did, I know "Requiem for a Dream" would be somewhere towards the top. That's one example of a movie I think everybody should see; it'd probably scare lots of folks away from using drugs.

Originally Posted by Steve46

Think about it logically for a moment. Movies appeal to different people for different reasons. If you detest musicals, do you really want to watch The Sound of Music or The Wizard of Oz? If you don't like violence, will you enjoy Casino or Goodfellas? If you can't bear to watch a subtitled film, will you subject yourself to Das Boot or The Bicycle Thief?

Some people will never watch a black and white film. Others will avoid movies in which an animal dies or gets hurt.

Do you avoid movies with nudity, swearing, or extreme sadness? Can you sit down and watch something that runs for three or four hours, or will you only watch shorter movies?

Do you avoid certain genres or find yourself only watching comedy or action movies?

There is so much to consider when recommending a movie to other people. I regularly try to suggest titles to three or four different groups of friends. I want them to enjoy my selections, but I also want to wow them or broaden their horizons. It's enjoyable seeing friends react when they are watching a movie you have seen several times. Well, it's enjoyable if they end up liking it. It's not much fun knowing that you wasted two hours of someone's life. It doesn't matter how well you think you know a person, one tiny little scene can ruin the movie for them.

That's why at times I find it hard to recommend stuff. If I'm talking to a person face-to-face, I'd have to understand their tastes first before I go and recommend something (especially for oldies, foreign films, disturbing films, and other oddities).

Originally Posted by Steve46

How do you even judge which 100 should be on your list? Should you include movies that introduced ideas or techniques which changed the way movies were made? What about just listing your 100 favorites? Could you even determine your 100 favorites, or would your list have changed by the time you finished compiling it?

I posted a top 100 list some pages back, but even then it's not really right. It's hard to figure out if it should be a top 100 favorites, top 100 "best" (judging films by their craftsmanship rather than whether or not I liked it), top 100 of the most entertaining (disregarding craftsmanship or acclaim), or picking the 100 that have resonated with me the most.

For a top 100 "must see" list or everybody, the criteria could be way different.

At any rate, good job on the list! You've definitely put a lot of effort and time into it, and it looks more or less definitive.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Real Steel

[Show spoiler]
Robots fighting robots while Wolverine controls one and Kate Austen is, well she's there, and that's enough

I got what I wanted out of this one: fun.

The kid is really annoying at times, but tolerable the rest of the film.

Jackman has the obvious arc that you would expect a deadbeat dad to go through in this sort of film.

And did I mention it's all based around ROBOTS BOXING?

You want a great underdog story that is really heartfelt? Well go watch Rocky.

You want a lesser quality, more fun version of that with robots? Watch this.

Rating - 4/5

My thoughts exactly.

Still won't be getting it on disc. One viewing was good enough for me.

[surfdude12]

Corny and ordinary. Pan's Labyrinth got robbed of an Oscar.

heresy!

I can see corny, maybe, if the viewer isn't engaged by the characters, but ordinary? don't see that.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Finally got around to trying to create a definitive top 100 list of favorite films. I swear that this list seems to change all the time, but this time around, I grouped all my 5/5 movies in the top 66 or so, and everything else from there. Above all, I've ranked them according to personal resonance and replay value, rather than what's considered the best (I know some of you will hate some of these choices).

So here it is...

[Show spoiler]Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
The Matrix
The Dark Knight
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Akira
Kill Bill
Casino Royale 2006
Star Trek
The Passion of the Christ
Lawrence of Arabia
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
A Clockwork Orange
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Minority Report
Monty Python's Life of Brian
Braveheart
Apocalypse Now!
Hero
Children of Men
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
X2: X-Men United
Dune
Back to the Future
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Wanted
Inception
True Lies
Red Cliff
The Devil's Backbone
Silence of the Lambs
Metropolis
Memento
Requiem for a Dream
The Shining
The Mist
American History X
North By Northwest
Gladiator
Wall-E
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
The Seven Samurai
Evangelion 2.0: You Can (Not) Advance
Sucker Punch
Antichrist
The Abyss
The Matrix Reloaded
The Matrix Revolutions
Ghostbusters
Airplane!
Lord of War
Scarface
Blade Runner
King Kong
Batman Begins
Sleepy Hollow
Gran Torino
Beauty and the Beast
It's a Wonderful Life!
Bram Stoker's Dracula
Downfall
Ip Man
Chocolate
Aliens
Full Metal Jacket
The Planet of the Apes
Transformers
Total Recall
GoldenEye
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Iron Man
Independence Day
The Incredibles
Kingdom of Heaven
Air Force One
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Christine
Sin City
RoboCop
The Ninja Scroll
The Fifth Element
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Event Horizon
Big Trouble in Little China
Starship Troopers
Batman Returns
Donnie Darko
Planet Terror
The Thing
Underworld
The Rock
Black Hawk Down
The Mummy

I think that covers it for now.

The ones in bold are things that I own.

Things that I have seen and don't need to own are:

All Indiana Jones
A Clockwork Orange
Braveheart
X2
Meatballs
Requiem for a Dream (sorry)
Sucker Punch
Transformers
Kingdom of Heaven
Big Trouble in Little China (used to like it)
Black Hawk Down

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Steve46

The ones in bold are things that I own.

Things that I have seen and don't need to own are:

All Indiana Jones
A Clockwork Orange
Braveheart
X2
Meatballs
Requiem for a Dream (sorry)
Sucker Punch
Transformers
Kingdom of Heaven
Big Trouble in Little China (used to like it)
Black Hawk Down

We got a fair amount of agreement there.

It's the bottom 50 of my list that often changes a lot. The top 50 is pretty solid though.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

We got a fair amount of agreement there.

It's the bottom 50 of my list that often changes a lot. The top 50 is pretty solid though.

I will be interested in looking at my list in five or ten years time if I am still alive.

Half the things on this latest one are things I had never seen five years ago. Maybe more than half.

Some are things that I totally discounted on first viewing, but my taste has change because I'm older (2001 and Broadcast News for example).

[surfdude12]

my top 100:

[Show spoiler]
1 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
2 Mulholland Drive (2001)
3 Tree of Life (2011)
4 Apocalypse Now (1979)
5 Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
6 Gone With The Wind (1939)
7 Lives of Others (2006)
8 Last Year at Marienbad (1961)
9 Playtime (1967)
10 Memento (2000)
11 The Fountain (2006)
12 The Shining (1980)
13 Black Narcissus (1947)
14 Howards End (1992)
15 Citizen Kane (1941)
16 The New World (2005)
17 Triangle (2009)
18 Alien (1979)
19 Baraka (1992)
20 Wings of Desire (1987)
21 Revanche (2008)
22 A Clockwork Orange (1971)
23 The Third Man (1949)
24 Barry Lyndon (1975)
25 28 Up (1984)
26 Dark City - Director's Cut (1998)
27 Psycho (1960)
28 Babel (2006)
29 The 400 Blows (1959)
30 The Orphanage (2008)
31 The Wizard of Oz (1939)
32 Godfather 2 (1974)
33 Godfather 1 (1972)
34 Dawn of the Dead (1978)
35 Halloween (1978)
36 Magnolia (1999)
37 El Norte (1983)
38 Fish Tank (2009)
39 Rear Window (1954)
40 Casino (1995)
41 Requiem for a Dream (2000)
42 Monty Python and Holy Grail (1975)
43 Seven Samurai (1954)
44 The Thin Red Line (1998)
45 Pan's Labrynth (2006)
46 Fargo (1996)
47 The Ring (2002)
48 There Will Be Blood (2007)
49 Taxi Driver (1976)
50 The Seventh Seal (1957)
51 Big Fish (2003)
52 Vanilla Sky (2001)
53 Kingdom of Heaven - Director's Cut (2005)
54 Vertigo (1958)
55 The Double Life of Veronique (1991)
56 The Others (2001)
57 Braveheart (1995)
58 Gladiator (2000)
59 The Buttefly Effect (2004)
60 Becket (1964)
61 Cinderella Man (2005)
62 The Notebook (2004)
63 Repulsion (1965)
64 The Descent (2005)
65 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
66 It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
67 Schindler's List (1993)
68 Karate Kid (1984)
69 The Fall (2006)
70 City of God (2002)
71 Sweeney Todd (2007)
72 The Blair Witch Project (1999)
73 Black Swan (2010)
74 The Passion of the Christ (2004)
75 The English Patient (1996)
76 The Leopard (1963)
77 King Kong (2005)
78 Terminator 2 (1991)
79 Tell No One (2006)
80 Coraline (2009)
81 Casablanca (1942)
82 Jaws (1975)
83 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
84 Beauty & The Beast (1946)
85 Gandhi (1982)
86 8 1/2 (1963)
87 Insomnia (2002)
88 Groundhog Day (1993)
89 Yojimbo (1961)
90 The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
91 The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
92 Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
93 Dances With Wolves (1990)
94 Amadeus (1984)
95 The Mill & The Cross (2011)
96 Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
97 Everlasting Moments (2008)
98 127 Hours (2010)
99 LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
100 Cast Away (2000)

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

my top 100:

[Show spoiler]
1 2001: A Space Odyssey
2 Mulholland Drive
3 Tree of Life
4 Apocalypse Now Redux
5 Eyes Wide Shut
6 Gone With The Wind
7 Lives of Others
8 Last Year at Marienbad
9 Playtime
10 Memento
11 The Fountain
12 There Will be Blood
13 Black Narcissus
14 Howards End
15 Citizen Kane
16 The Thin Red Line
17 Triangle
18 Barry Lyndon
19 Baraka
20 Wings of Desire
21 Revanche
22 A Clockwork Orange
23 The Third Man
24 The Shining
25 28 Up
26 Dark City
27 Psycho
28 Amadeus
29 The 400 Blows
30 The Orphanage
31 The Wizard of Oz
32 Godfather 2
33 Godfather 1
34 Dawn of the Dead (78)
35 Halloween (78)
36 Magnolia
37 El Norte
38 Fish Tank
39 Rear Window
40 Casino
41 The Leopard
42 Monty Python and Holy Grail
43 Seven Samurai
44 Walkabout
45 Pan's Labrynth
46 Black Swan
47 The Ring
48 Casablanca
49 Babel
50 The Seventh Seal
51 Big Fish
52 Vanilla Sky
53 Kingdom of Heaven
54 Vertigo
55 28 Days Later
56 The Others
57 Braveheart
58 Gladiator
59 Unforgiven
60 Cast Away
61 Cinderella Man
62 Corpse Bride
63 Dances With Wolves
64 The Descent
65 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
66 It’s A Wonderful Life
67 Schindler's List
68 Karate Kid
69 The Fall
70 City of God
71 The New World
72 The Blair Witch Project
73 Fargo
74 The Passion of the Christ
75 Requiem for a Dream
76 Summer Hours
77 The Shawshank Redemption
78 The Silence of the Lambs
79 Tell No One
80 Coraline
81 Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
82 Jaws
83 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
84 Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf
85 Gandhi
86 8 1/2
87 Insomnia
88 Groundhog Day
89 Terminator 1
90 Terminator 2
91 LOTR: A Fellowship of the Ring
92 The Last Emperor
93 Sweeney Todd
94 Taxi Driver
95 Paris Texas
96 Bram Stoker's Dracula
97 Everlasting Moments
98 127 Hours
99 King Kong (2005)
100 Repulsion

Bolded the ones I own 59/100.

Seen 78/100.

[jvince]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

my top 100:

[Show spoiler]
1 2001: A Space Odyssey
2 Mulholland Drive
3 Tree of Life
4 Apocalypse Now Redux
5 Eyes Wide Shut
6 Gone With The Wind
7 Lives of Others
8 Last Year at Marienbad
9 Playtime
10 Memento
11 The Fountain
12 There Will be Blood
13 Black Narcissus
14 Howards End
15 Citizen Kane
16 The Thin Red Line
17 Triangle
18 Barry Lyndon
19 Baraka
20 Wings of Desire
21 Revanche
22 A Clockwork Orange
23 The Third Man
24 The Shining
25 28 Up
26 Dark City
27 Psycho
28 Amadeus
29 The 400 Blows
30 The Orphanage
31 The Wizard of Oz
32 Godfather 2
33 Godfather 1
34 Dawn of the Dead (78)
35 Halloween (78)
36 Magnolia
37 El Norte
38 Fish Tank
39 Rear Window
40 Casino
41 The Leopard
42 Monty Python and Holy Grail
43 Seven Samurai
44 Walkabout
45 Pan's Labrynth
46 Black Swan
47 The Ring
48 Casablanca
49 Babel
50 The Seventh Seal
51 Big Fish
52 Vanilla Sky
53 Kingdom of Heaven
54 Vertigo
55 28 Days Later
56 The Others
57 Braveheart
58 Gladiator
59 Unforgiven
60 Cast Away
61 Cinderella Man
62 Corpse Bride
63 Dances With Wolves
64 The Descent
65 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
66 It’s A Wonderful Life
67 Schindler's List
68 Karate Kid
69 The Fall
70 City of God
71 The New World
72 The Blair Witch Project
73 Fargo
74 The Passion of the Christ
75 Requiem for a Dream
76 Summer Hours
77 The Shawshank Redemption
78 The Silence of the Lambs
79 Tell No One
80 Coraline
81 Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
82 Jaws
83 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
84 Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf
85 Gandhi
86 8 1/2
87 Insomnia
88 Groundhog Day
89 Terminator 1
90 Terminator 2
91 LOTR: A Fellowship of the Ring
92 The Last Emperor
93 Sweeney Todd
94 Taxi Driver
95 Paris Texas
96 Bram Stoker's Dracula
97 Everlasting Moments
98 127 Hours
99 King Kong (2005)
100 Repulsion

I've seen 60 out of your 100, and I love 25 of them, especially Mulholland Dr., Last Year at Marienbad, Memento, Baraka, The Shining, Pan's Labyrinth, Big Fish, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Silence of the Lambs, Coraline, The Empire Strikes Back, and 127 Hours. Those films are just absolutely works, imo. The only ones I really dislike are The New World and of course, The Lives of Others. Awesome list though, Surf.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Steve46

With my 100 movies series now complete, any comments?

What did you like?

Any unworthy inclusions or glaring omissions?

Here's the full list with my rationale:

Below is an ongoing alphabetical list of movies covered in my 100 movies to see before you die. Each title links to the review. For an explanation of how these titles were picked, please scroll down.

1. 12 Angry Men - uh yeah... i think we know my thoughts on this one
2. 127 Hours - loved it, but after three viewings, don't know when i'll ever watch it again.
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey - one of the best films, period.
4. The 400 Blows if i did see this (can't remember): ehh
5. Alien - classic sci-fi / horror masterpiece. a shame what came after it.
6. Amelie - only watched it twice, but a fantastic film. and one i may watch tonight just to lift my spirits. a wonderful film!
7. American Beauty - sometimes i REALLY love it, other times i just love it. either way, a damn good film
8. As Good as It Gets - NSI (Never Seen It)
9. Avatar NO!!!!!
10. Babel - great film.
11. Bambi - NSI
12. Baraka - NSI
13. Being There - NSI
14. Black Swan an okay film.
15. Blow Out meh.
16. The Bourne Trilogy - one of the strongest trilogies "of all time"
17. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - NSI
18. The Bicycle Thief / Bicycle Thieves - decent
19. Cache (Hidden) - NSI
20. Cast Away -pretty good
21. Chungking Express - NSI
22. Close Encounters of the Third Kind really good. love the childlike atmosphere the film has
23. Closer - one of the most underrated films of any genre, any decade
24. Control - NSI
25. The Dark Knight - fun flick
26. Dead Poets Society - NSI
27. The Departed - entertaining but empty
28. Die Hard - action classic but not a favorite since, "that's not my genre man"
29. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - really disliked it
30. Dog Day Afternoon - fantastic performance and film. but one i never feel like watching
31. The Double Life of Veronique - just didn't click for me
32. Doubt - NSI
33. The Elephant Man - NSI
34. El Norte - NSI
35. Falling Down - NSI
36. Fantastic Mr. Fox - instant classic. seen this well over, 30 times, one of my absolute favorites as well
37. Fargo - incredibly funny and a great film
38. Field of Dreams - NSI
39. Fight Club - one of my favorites
40. Freedom Writers - NSI
41. Frost/Nixon - NSI
42. Gran Torino - decent
43. Grave of the Fireflies - NSI
44. The Great Escape - NSI
45. I Am Legend decent
46. Jaws - NSI
47. Juno - NSI
48. Kes - NSI
49. Kill Bill Vol. 1 pretty good
50. The King's Speech - NSI
51. Leon: The Professional - NSI
52. The Lives of Others - one of the greatest and most important films of all time. love it.
53. Lolita - definitely not a fan
54. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring - most definitely not a fan
55. Love Actually - terrific. need to buy this soon
56. The Matrix - pretty neat but after one viewing i'm good
57. Memento - NSI
58. Midnight in Paris not a fan
59. Million Dollar Baby - it was okay
60. The Mist - love it
61. Moneyball - NSI
62. Monty Python and the Holy Grail - very funny
63. Moon - great, great film
64. Mulholland Dr. - mindblowing greatness
65. My Neighbor Totoro - NSI
66. Once - NSI
67. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - NSI
68. Paris, Texas - blah. hated it.
69. Pay It Forward - NSI
70. Play Time - NSI
71. The Prestige - NSI
72. Psycho - lived up to all i heard about it. i think Diesel would agree
73. Pulp Fiction - used to love it. now i just love the dialogue and first hour.
74. The Pursuit of Happyness - NSI
75. Rabbit Hole - NSI
76. Ratatouille - one of Pixar's "worst"
77. The Reader - NSI
78. Revanche - great film that gets better with repeat viewings
79. Seabiscuit - NSI
80. The Shawshank Redemption - decent
81. The Shining - decent
82. The Silence of the Lambs - pretty good
83. Spirited Away - NSI
84. Stop Making Sense - NSI
85. Sunshine Cleaning - NSI
86. Taken - pretty good. fun film
87. Taxi Driver - something always seems to be JUST missing for me with this film
88. There Will Be Blood - one of the greatest films of the last 15 years
89. Three Colors Red - NSI
90. Up in the Air - great film
91. Vertigo - NSI
92. Wall Street - NSI
93. The Warriors - NSI
94. Wings of Desire - NSI
95. The World's Fastest Indian - NSI

As I was working through my initial list of 100 movies, I found that five titles were no longer as good as I remembered them. For that reason, the final five entries were added after the initial list was exhausted and will not appear in alphabetical order.

96. Bottle Rocket - not nearly as good as The Royal Tenenbaums
97. Apollo 13 - NSI
98. The Descendants - NSI
99. No Country for Old Men - decent film where i always forget how good it is until i watch it again. then it becomes "really good"
100. Broadcast News - NSI

[Show spoiler]Have you ever read a list like this before?

Doesn't it seem a little arrogant to believe that if you like something it should be seen by everyone?

Think about it logically for a moment. Movies appeal to different people for different reasons. If you detest musicals, do you really want to watch The Sound of Music or The Wizard of Oz? If you don't like violence, will you enjoy Casino or Goodfellas? If you can't bear to watch a subtitled film, will you subject yourself to Das Boot or The Bicycle Thief?

Some people will never watch a black and white film. Others will avoid movies in which an animal dies or gets hurt.

Do you avoid movies with nudity, swearing, or extreme sadness? Can you sit down and watch something that runs for three or four hours, or will you only watch shorter movies?

Do you avoid certain genres or find yourself only watching comedy or action movies?

There is so much to consider when recommending a movie to other people. I regularly try to suggest titles to three or four different groups of friends. I want them to enjoy my selections, but I also want to wow them or broaden their horizons. It's enjoyable seeing friends react when they are watching a movie you have seen several times. Well, it's enjoyable if they end up liking it. It's not much fun knowing that you wasted two hours of someone's life. It doesn't matter how well you think you know a person, one tiny little scene can ruin the movie for them.

With all that in mind, it's clearly impossible to make a sweeping statement such as, "Here are 100 movies you must see before you die." That list differs depending on your audience.

How do you even judge which 100 should be on your list? Should you include movies that introduced ideas or techniques which changed the way movies were made? What about just listing your 100 favorites? Could you even determine your 100 favorites, or would your list have changed by the time you finished compiling it?

What is the purpose of such a list anyway? Are you trying to show people that you have a vast amount of film knowledge? Or are you brave enough to list personal favorites that you know will be ridiculed by some of your audience?

Is the list for you, or is it for your audience?

In my case, I have decided to include 100 movies which are important to me in some way. I admire everything on the list, but the reasons for choosing each title vary. I have also decided not to just list 100 movies I love. I'm a fan of certain directors and actors, but including everything they have produced serves very little purpose.

One of the aims of this exercise is to introduce you to new movies. The best way I can think of to do that is to suggest other titles you may like if you like one of the 100 on my list. So, for each movie, I will include suggestions for similar films.

You have probably noticed that if I do that I'll have considerably more films than 100. Not only that, you'll realize that if you don't like 50 of the films on my list, there's very little point in investigating suggestions related to those particular titles. That's the idea.

I hope that my ramblings so far make some kind of sense and that you see what I am trying for here. I'm not an authority on film like Roger Ebert. He's been around a long time and has been reviewing films for a living for over 40 years.

I'm passionate about film and have been around a while too, but I wasn't always the person I am now. The importance of film is still quite a new realization to me and exploring the medium has only been a big part of my life for the past five years.

If I omit one of your favorites, it may mean that I simply haven't seen it. Or it could mean that it's just not my kind of film. Many on the following list will be loved by some of you and despised by others. There probably aren't two people on earth who would list exactly the same 100 films on a list like this.

Now that you know my reasoning, intent and (lack of) qualifications, I'll start the list. It will be in alphabetical order and I'll add to it when I have the time and inspiration.

my thoughts on each one, above...

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I am 70 for 81. I have the desire and intent to see 14 of the 19 that I havent yet seen.

The REDS= didnt like.

wh... how.... WTF!
how in the hell did you not LOVE Fantastic Mr. Fox?! i mean, i know you're old and senile (), but still, you seem to still be pretty "with it". and the humor seems right up your alley. what gives?!?!

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

my thoughts on each one, above...

Thanks. Enjoy Amelie if you watch it.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

wh... how.... WTF!
how in the hell did you not LOVE Fantastic Mr. Fox?! i mean, i know you're old and senile (), but still, you seem to still be pretty "with it". and the humor seems right up your alley. what gives?!?!

The scenic route is much prettier...and it's actually a little shorter.

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Steve46

With my 100 movies series now complete, any comments?

What did you like?

Any unworthy inclusions or glaring omissions?

[Show spoiler]Here's the full list with my rationale:

Below is an ongoing alphabetical list of movies covered in my 100 movies to see before you die. Each title links to the review. For an explanation of how these titles were picked, please scroll down.

1. 12 Angry Men
2. 127 Hours
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey
4. The 400 Blows
5. Alien
6. Amelie
7. American Beauty
8. As Good as It Gets
9. Avatar
10. Babel
11. Bambi
12. Baraka
13. Being There
14. Black Swan
15. Blow Out
16. The Bourne Trilogy
17. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
18. The Bicycle Thief / Bicycle Thieves
19. Cache (Hidden)
20. Cast Away
21. Chungking Express
22. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
23. Closer
24. Control
25. The Dark Knight
26. Dead Poets Society
27. The Departed
28. Die Hard
29. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
30. Dog Day Afternoon
31. The Double Life of Veronique
32. Doubt
33. The Elephant Man
34. El Norte
35. Falling Down
36. Fantastic Mr. Fox
37. Fargo
38. Field of Dreams
39. Fight Club
40. Freedom Writers
41. Frost/Nixon
42. Gran Torino
43. Grave of the Fireflies
44. The Great Escape
45. I Am Legend
46. Jaws
47. Juno
48. Kes
49. Kill Bill Vol. 1
50. The King's Speech
51. Leon: The Professional
52. The Lives of Others
53. Lolita
54. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
55. Love Actually
56. The Matrix
57. Memento
58. Midnight in Paris
59. Million Dollar Baby
60. The Mist
61. Moneyball
62. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
63. Moon
64. Mulholland Dr.
65. My Neighbor Totoro
66. Once
67. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
68. Paris, Texas
69. Pay It Forward
70. Play Time
71. The Prestige
72. Psycho
73. Pulp Fiction
74. The Pursuit of Happyness
75. Rabbit Hole
76. Ratatouille
77. The Reader
78. Revanche
79. Seabiscuit
80. The Shawshank Redemption
81. The Shining
82. The Silence of the Lambs
83. Spirited Away
84. Stop Making Sense
85. Sunshine Cleaning
86. Taken
87. Taxi Driver
88. There Will Be Blood
89. Three Colors Red
90. Up in the Air
91. Vertigo
92. Wall Street
93. The Warriors
94. Wings of Desire
95. The World's Fastest Indian

As I was working through my initial list of 100 movies, I found that five titles were no longer as good as I remembered them. For that reason, the final five entries were added after the initial list was exhausted and will not appear in alphabetical order.

96. Bottle Rocket
97. Apollo 13
98. The Descendants
99. No Country for Old Men
100. Broadcast News

I've only seen 32/100 of the films on your list. If it makes it sound any better, I've only outright disliked roughly 6 of them.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by KilloWertz

I've only seen 32/100 of the films on your list. If it makes it sound any better, I've only outright disliked roughly 6 of them.

Wow, I guess some of my favorites are a bit out there.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Steve46

Wow, I guess some of my favorites are a bit out there.

I've seen 48 of them but I don't really go after the more classic or obscure films so I wouldn't read too much into that. Film viewing/tastes is completely subjective from person to person after all.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by Darth Anakin

I've seen 48 of them but I don't really go after the more classic or obscure films so I wouldn't read too much into that. Film viewing/tastes is completely subjective from person to person after all.

Yes. Five years ago I had only seen 46 of my 100. Some hadn't been released and others were things I just hadn't seen.

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Steve46

Wow, I guess some of my favorites are a bit out there.

Probably not quite as much as you would think. There are A LOT of films I have never seen, especially classic films. If I never got into Blu-ray back in 2008, the number I would have seen from your list would have been far less. Obviously if I never got into Blu-ray, I would have never read your list, but that's beside the point.

[Foggy]

Here we go, my 100 films everyone needs to see

[Show spoiler]1. (500) Days of Summer
2. 127 Hours
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey
4. A Clockwork Orange
5. Alien
6. Aliens
7. American History X
8. Anchorman
9. Apocalypse Now
10. Battle Royale
11. Big Trouble in Little China
12. Black Dynamite
13. Black Swan
14. Blade Runner
15. Brazil
16. Brick
17. Buried
18. Casino Royale
19. Children of Men
20. Citizen Kane
21. City of God
22. Dark City
23. Dead Alive
24. Dead Man's Shoes
25. Die Hard
26. Dirty Harry
27. District 9
28. Dollar Trilogy
29. Donnie Darko
30. Drive
31. Enter the Dragon
32. E.T
33. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
34. Evil Dead 2
35. Exit Through The Gift Shop
36. Fantastic Mr. Fox
37. Fargo
38. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
39. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
40. Fight Club
41. Forrest Gump
42. Four Lions
43. Garden State
44. Goldfinger
45. Goodfellas
46. Gran Torino
47. [Insert any Harry Potter film here] - My choice being Chamber of Secrets
48. Hot Fuzz
49. Hunger
50. In Bruges
51. Inception
52. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
53. Kes
54. Kick-Ass
55. Kill Bill Vol 1
56. Let the Right One In
57. Life is Beautiful
58. Limitless
59. Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
60. Memento
61. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
62. Moon
63. Mulholland Drive
64. No Country for Old Men
65. Oldboy
66. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
67. Pan's Labyrinth
68. Rango
69. [REC]
70. Requiem for a Dream
71. Reservoir Dogs
72. Schindler's List
73. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
74. Se7en
75. Sin City
76. Snatch
77. Son of Rambow
78. Submarine
79. Super 8
80. Superbad
81. Taxi Driver
82. Team America: World Police
83. The Artist
84. The Big Lebowski
85. The Descent
86. The Godfather
87. The Goonies
88. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
89. The Room
90. The Shining
91. The Silence of the Lambs
92. The Social Network
93. The Thing
94. The Usual Suspects
95. Tinker Tailor Solider Spy
96. Total Recall
97. Toy Story
98. True Romance
99. Wall.e
100. Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Quite a few wildcards in there thrown in for odd reasons, slate it all you like

[Diesel]

You guys must have Bearcat itching to make another list

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

1. 12 Angry Men - uh yeah... i think we know my thoughts on this one