Celluloid Heroes
A pupu platter of cinematic art
Once in a whle, it’s fun to fiddle while Rome burns. Probably because I like to offer movie suggestions that follow my post themes, I get a lot of mail and messages asking me what my favorite movies are. That’s like asking a gourmand what his favorite foods are. My library has well over 5,000 titles and my list of favorites depends on many factors, like genre, creativity, originality, timelessness, skill, and so on. I thought I would offer some of my favorites in different genres, and in no particular order or rank. Enjoy!
Mystery - Bad Day at Black Rock (1955): Directed by John Sturges, with a long filmography of great work, Spencer Tracey puts in a fantastic performance that deals with a part of American history no one wants to talk about—Japanese internment camps. It’s a tightly woven story with layers of interpretation to peel through. A hidden gem.
Psycho-Drama - Dead Ringers (1988): I love David Cronenberg’s films, and this is one of his finest. Jeremy Irons plays a pair of twin Ob-Gyn surgeons. Irons is amazing, imbuing each twin with distinct personalities, and the story is gripping and disturbing on so many levels. Geneviève Bujold is masterful as a strong female character with a bizarre secret insecurity that drives her character through a satisfying arc. All-around excellence.
Horror - Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922): I’m not a particular fan of horror in general, but when I’m in the mood, only the very old (usually silent) films get my attention. The fear in my head is far greater than any bloodfest on screen. The old Lon Chaney and Boris Karloff flicks will always be the best, and this one created the entire genre.
Thriller - Suspicion (1941): Nobody does it better than Hitchcock, and his series of films with Cary Grant were the best of the best. Joan Fontaine got an Oscar (when that meant something) for her performance as an heiress who convinces herself that her new husband is out to kill her. In the scene where Grant carries a glass of milk up the stairs, Hitch put a flashlight in the glass and the audience is riveted on it as he climbs the stairs. Is it poisoned? Great stuff.
Fantasy - Time Bandits (1981): Terry Gilliam is one of the greatest directors of all time, and cruelly shunned by Hollywood, as the greats usually are. This film is so nuanced and well crafted that as many times as I’ve watched it, I always find something new. Pay close attention to the toys on Kevin’s floor and drawings on his walls at the beginning. Hat tip to David Warner as Evil.
Whodunnit - Murder on the Orient Express (1974): Agatha Christie + Sidney Lumet = magic. There is so much great acting in this film that it nearly becomes overwhelming. Albert Finney is superb as Poirot, and Christie’s mastery of character development makes this definitive film version a tense and intriguing locked-door mystery.
Action - The Driver (1978): Writer/director Walter Hill is a master of action flicks, and this is one of his first and best. Ryan O’Neil is brilliant as The Driver, but Bruce Dern runs away with the movie with one of his greatest performance ever as The Detective (no one has names). This is an often-overlooked masterpiece of the genre.
Adventure - Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981): I’m not a Spielberg fan, but this film has it all in spades. Take every trope in the genre, perfect them, fire them at the audience in a relentless barrage, and you have an outstanding example of the genre. Add in quintessential performances by the entire cast and you have a timeless classic.
Western - Unforgiven (1992): The Western is America’s greatest contribution to global literature and cinema. The films are as legendary as the characters in them. When it comes to picking the absolute cream of the crop, I have to go with this one. By closing credits, I feel as if I’ve been transported to the Old West and gotten a good taste of life there. This is Eastwood’s finest directorial outing, and the performances are all at the pinnacle of the art, especially Gene Hackman.
War - The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957): David Lean was an amazing storyteller and drew out definitive performances from his actors. This film is by far one of the best in genre. Many reviews focus on William Holden’s character, but I have always been intrigued by the interplay between Alec Guinness and Sessue Hayakawa. The entire war is encapsulated in the interplay between these two actors. You’ll be whistling “The Colonel Bogey March” for weeks after watching this outstanding film.
Comedy - Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004): Dying is easy, comedy is hard. There are some great comedies out there, but this one consistently gets at least a couple of guffaws out of me every time. Vince Vaughn and Rip Torn are at the top of their game, though Ben Stiller is a bit over the top. The cast is fantastic, with clockwork timing, and the announcers are hysterical in the big match. A guilty pleasure for me.
Sci-Fi - Her (2013): Great sci-fi is social commentary, not a setting for another genre. This movie ticks all the boxes, being both touching and terrifying, and a very real possibility. Joaquin Phoenix is excellent as the lead, and nearly unrecognizable too. Written and directed by Spike Jonze, this is a tight, efficient story with interesting insights on society, culture and technology.
Suspense - Sleuth (1972): Olivier and Caine go head-to-head, with Joseph L. Mankiewicz at the helm. This is cinematic art reduced to its most crucial elements—one set, two actors, a great story. This is one of the most theatrical movies out there, and if you like plot twists, it will make you dizzy with them. If you haven’t seen it, you are deprived.
Bizarre - Liquid Sky (1982): There are some monumentally weird films out there—”The Room,” anything by John Waters, soft-core porn with Adam West (you can’t unsee this)—but this is my all-time favorite weirdness. Co-writer Anne Carlisle plays a dual role as both a male and female model in the 1980s punk fashion world (yeah, it was a thing). The soundtrack is unique and haunting, the makeup is wild, and the story is just out of hand. Goes great with a stormy afternoon.
Satire - Repo Man (1984): This could almost be in the bizarre category, but the writing is too good, with some very quotable lines, and some fantastic acting—Harry Dean Stanton and Tracey Walter are stand-outs. Writer/director Alex Cox brings a unique vision to the story, and the setting reminds me a lot of living in Albuquerque in that era.
Drama - The Dresser (1983): This is by far one of my all-time favorites in any genre. Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay are brilliant as the leads, and it’s hard to have more tension than performing Shakespeare during the London Blitz (“Where was the STORM!”). Ronald Harwood brings a masterful script as good as Amadeus, and Peter Yates delivers the look and feel of the period. The fun part for me is I’ve lived with these characters and it all feels so authentic.
RomCom - French Kiss (1995): I hate romcoms, but if you threatened to cover me in honey and tie me to an ant mound, I would confess that this is my favorite. I’m a big fan of Kevin Kline, and he has great chemistry with Meg Ryan. Director Lawrence Kasdan (wrote Raiders) brings a lot to the table, and the story is engaging with interesting characters. Funny, touching and well-done, I even watch it alone.
Caper - A Fish Called Wanda (1988): Though this one could play as a romcom too, I consider it more of a caper flick, and it’s brilliant! The comedy is spot on, the tension is sufficiently built up, the characters are a unique rogues’ gallery, and the stakes are big without going to the absurd. There’s also a touching story behind the scenes with director Charles Crichton’s and John Cleese’s collaboration.
Historical Drama - Amadeus (1984): I know this is an easy target, but this is one of the best films ever made, with one of the best scripts ever written, and one of the best soundtracks ever recorded. Every performance is beat perfect. The direction, settings and editing are spot on. This is the summit of cinematic art about one of the greatest artists who ever lived. Forget the “director’s cut,” though.
Superhero - RoboCop (1987): A Gothic tragedy in sci-fi clothing. In my opinion, the superhero genre peaked in the 1980s, with this and Burton’s Batman. Paul Verhoeven’s work is immediately identifiable, as with all great directors. On paper, this is a pretty average script, but with Verhoeven’s satirical eye and great timing, Peter Weller’s outstanding performance, and the operatic score, this film becomes a modern Frankenstein tale of corporate greed and out-of-control technology. I got to work on the sequel, but it never rose to the level of perfection that this film set.
Musical - Paint Your Wagon (1969): Musicals are half-assed operas, in my opinion, and I despise most of them. So to pick one to recommend is like pulling my own teeth with rusty pliers. This one is about as manly as they get, and you can hear Clint Eastwood and Lee Marvin, um…sing. It’s fun and funny, with hummable tunes, and well worth a view.
Documentary - Evidence of Revision: The Assassination of America (2006): This is a tough choice, but I’m going with the event that started the descent—JFK’s assassination. This 10-hour documentary has almost no narration. It’s just hours of actual news footage showing the evolution of the story practically in real time. You can see the conspiracy wheels turn and the Machine manipulate reality in a way no other film can show. It’s worth every minute of viewing time.
Mockumentary - Best in Show (2000): Let’s end this on an upbeat note. This is a fall-down funny mockumentary written, directed and starring Christopher Guest (Nigel in This is Spinal Tap). It is done absolutely straight, which makes it all the more hysterical. I believe the commentators at the finals were the model for Dodgeball four years later. The characters are authentic, the settings are true to form, and the story is so far out of most people’s daily lives that you actually learn a thing or two. You’ll forget there’s a larger world out there for an hour and a half, and that’s pure gold.
That’s a wrap. I hope this was a fun diversion from the collapse of civilization as we know it. I could do a Top 10 in each category, but that’s not what we’re about around here. It is relaxing, though, to take a blue highway once in a while.
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Unforgiven is a masterpiece, but I am a western fan. May I also make a few of my humble suggestions?
Open Range
Big Jake
The Wild Bunch
The Ghost and the Darkness
Great list Mr. Far Side
Mockumentary. The Rutles! And thank you for the movie suggestions.