#'s 15-11

Let's keep it rollin'!


#15:

Die Hard might be a perfect action movie, but it can’t match the style of Shinichiro Watanabe’s anime epic. The ragtag crew of bounty hunters makes a perfect transition to the screen, bringing along their relationships, agendas and quirks, so well defined in the 26 episodes of the show. Following these weirdos around the galaxy is half the fun, as we watch them work together (but more often at odds) to stop a terrorist plot to end all life on Mars.

 Yeah, these are the cats I want protecting me from space terrorists...

As with Spirited Away, it’s the attention to detail that makes this movie such a spectacle. The fight scenes are kinetic and tactile, while the aerial dog-fights induce g-force reactions. The aesthetic engages as well, dragging us along from a Moroccan shopping district to a seedy arcade to a Halloween carnival of madness, all with the patience to let us soak in the atmosphere, often without music.

And, mercifully, without Keanu Reeves

And the music! Under Yoko Kanno’s direction, the Seatbelts reach new levels of funkiness, bringing us everything from rockin’ jazz fusion to potent, haunting melodies, capturing the emotion of a scene without flaw. I mean, just watch the intro if you don’t believe:

At the end of the day, however, it’s the “Heat”-like cat and mouse game between Spike and his mirror opposite, Vincent, that really elevates this movie. The slow reveal of Vincent’s history, Spike’s understanding of their parallels, and their inevitable confrontation are handled with the skill of the best live-action directors.

I feel like this is how Frank Miller wants to die

Best Moment: The opening...

 Pimp juice

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#14:

Not one for mind-fragging, soul-crushing, drug-induced descents into the heart of American madness? Better hit the romantic-comedies, then, because this movie is not for you. A completely unrepentant, incoherent nose-dive into the depths of human depravity, Fear and Loathing is not a film in the traditional sense, with no real plot or character development to speak of.

Ah, the sonnets...

Director Terry Gilliam has gone on record stating that he wanted the film to feel like an extended drug trip, and he succeeded admirably. The experience comes in waves, bringing you to the heights of ridiculous joy, the blinding brilliance of societal introspection and the crushing, terrifying grip of true fear, a horror of humanity from which there is no escape.

 Pictured: The romantic subplot

All this is great, but it wouldn’t work without Johnny Depp. The dude spent four months living with Hunter S. Thompson getting into character, wearing his actual clothes and driving his car around town. The commitment comes through perfectly, as the actor that we all know disappears, replaced by a man who would throw an orange at you in the bathtub. 

 Dear God, now they've got Spider-Man!

Best Moment: 

Feed your head

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#13: 

Looking at my list, I’m actually surprised that I don’t have any other outright comedies on my list after this one. I guess when you’ve got a flick like this, you’re not gonna get much better. A constant volley of jokes ranging from the asinine to the artistic, Airplane! never lets you forget that you’re there to have a good time. How do they achieve this? By playing the movie 100% straight the whole way through.

Well... ok, maybe 100% is an exaggeration.

The plot could be the next summer blockbuster, really: traumatized war hero, his personal life falling apart in the wake of a terrible mistake in combat, finds himself stuck on an airplane with no pilot. 

 And a drinking problem

Now, in the hands of anyone but the Zuckers this could be played in either direction too strongly, but here it’s a perfect blend of spoof and sincerity, filmed through the lens of a Warner Bros. cartoon. Can’t say much else without spoiling the jokes, so go check it out if you haven’t seen it, and go watch it again if you have. It holds up like whoa.

Best Moment:

 He is serious... and don't call him Shirley

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#12: 

I’ll admit a bias for this one. This is the movie that my fiancé, Julie, and I watched together on our very first (official) date, and I give complete and total credit to the symphony of joy that it is for her falling in love with me. I essentially tricked her, showing her the most perfect expression of Hollywood romance ever filmed, and intercutting images of me right next to her. It was subliminal, and now there is no escape.

 Aaaaaand... got her.

Despite my personal history with the movie, there’s no way one can discount the craft with which the mother of all romantic comedies is constructed: You’ve got nine (9!) plots connecting with each other in subtle and unexpected ways, following the many different kinds of love that people experience every day. 

 And there are many...

Even more than the incredibly skillful melding of the stories, this is what I appreciate most about the movie: It’s not just about romantic love, it’s just about love. Love between friends, family, strangers and couples. Some of the plots resolve in ways that are disarming and surprising (and in one case, tragically sad), but the climax of the film is a swirling miasma of happy endings that will move the hardest of hearts to cry like a Norwegian.

Aw, even the bug-eyed kid got some. Good for him.

And of course, mention must be made of the cast, which boasts a who's who of British actors that put Harry Potter to shame. From Shakespearean masters to Oscar winners, from never-heard-ofs to ridiculous cameos...

Quick! Which one's on Mad Men?

... you can't go wrong. 

Pirates of the what-now?

Best Moment: 

I don't... really need to explain why, do I?

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#11:

A lot of movies have a hard time figuring out what kind of movie they want to be, leaving the final product disjointed and tonally jarring. It’s a bit of a revelation, then, when a flick comes along that not only knows what it is, but absolutely commits to its’ premise, no matter how ridiculous it may be.

 And make no mistake...

Who Framed Roger Rabbit works so well because it is a fantastic, hard-boiled noir mystery that just happens to have cartoons running around. Expanding on the conceit of many early Bugs Bunny cartoons (namely, that the titular characters were real, merely acting in their films like any other actor), this movie hits a perfect balance between the ludicrous and the serious by embracing this premise and merely asking what the world would be like if this were the case. 

 That, and advocating the harboring of fugitives

Another cartoon that never panders to its audience, Roger Rabbit has all of the elements necessary to construct a great detective story; a hero with a dark past, an innocent man framed, a morally ambiguous femme fatale and a nastier than nasty villain. 

 Yeah... this was hard to process at 8

Then again, so was this...

The real miracle here is that they managed to tell a story featuring cartoon characters without compromising on any of the content. Violence, sex and betrayal run rampant in this world, just like in ours, and we learn that Toons are just as horribly human as we are. A one-of-a-kind classic.

Best Moment: 

Brain... melting...

Hey look, we're in the Top 10! Come back next time for another exciting installment!

#'s 19-16

Man, I don't wanna write a super long review for all 20 of these. LET'S SPEED THIS UP!

#19:

 

The second greatest super hero film ever made. The combination of a realistic family dynamic, slicker than slick 60’s esthetic, bombastic action and genuine pathos (Mr. Incredible’s reaction to his family’s death, for instance) makes this a movie that satisfies both kids and adults.

 ... Jesus?

But has anybody noticed the similarities between this story and Watchmen? Seriously: Superheroes forced into retirement come back when an old ally returns as an enemy planning to manipulate the public through the use of a giant monster? A few more cold war analogies and a rape or two and they’d be identical!

 Not Pictured: Rorschach

Best Moment: 

 Flaming Baby always wins.

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#18: 

It’s actually hard to describe why I love this movie so much, but I kinda feel like that’s Hayao Miyazaki’s MO at this point. It’s never about what’s actually happening in the story (although it’s often incredible), but rather what’s happening on the screen. The attention to detail, the sense of atmosphere and the patience that he brings to each of his films draws you into his stories like nothing else. Each tiny moment (the time it takes for Chihiro to take her shoes off before going to work, for example) makes us feel like this is a real event that we’re watching, in a way that animation rarely can. Silly as it sounds, you can feel the love he puts into every frame.

 GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!

Choosing only one Miyazaki movie for this list was tough (apologies to Castle of Cagliostro and My Neighbor Totoro), but when it comes to creating a world that is simultaneously magically fantastical and terrifyingly real, there is no other choice. If you haven’t seen it, do yourself a favor.

Best Moment: 

Because we've all been there.

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#17: 

Man, comedy’s easy these days, isn’t it? A couple transvestite hookers, excessive drinking and Will Ferrell yelling will pretty much guarantee you a big opening weekend (well… maybe not the Will Ferrell part). Sometimes it’s nice to look back at a time when comedians gave everything they had to bring you a laugh, showcasing more talent in their mustache than most performers have in their entire bodies. 

Does Paul Rudd even own a banjo?

I’m almost exhausted after watching a Marx Brothers movie, mostly from laughter but also from the breakneck speed with which the genius flies out of the screen. Seemlessly gliding from one-liners to hilarious portmanteaus to the greatest slapstick in history to political satire to sexual innuendo in the blink of an eye, Groucho and the gang never leave a frame unused and never leave an audience with dry undies.

Can we award retroactive Oscars? Somebody get on that.

Again, choosing just one was tough, but Duck Soup automatically wins for the pajamas scene. If you don’t know what that means, fix it.

 Now.

Best Moment: 

 I said now, dammit!

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#16: 

What can I say about Die Hard that hasn’t already been said about two girls making out? The only movie that somehow manages to be a Christmas movie with no children and a buddy cop movie without having the buddies meet until the end. Not much left to say, really, but when an action movie is this perfect, with surprisingly resonant characters, over-the-top action and a villain that’s just as much fun to root for as the hero, how can you leave it off the list?

Damn. I thought he'd make it.

Best Moment: When Reginald Veljohnson's cop character--

N-no, not that one...

... or that one.

Theeere he is.

When he and Bruce meet for the first time at the end of the movie. Tears. No joke.

C'mon back here real soon for 15-11!

#20

Ok gang, here we go. My Top 20 movies of all time.
One quick note: I'm limiting myself to one film per franchise, mostly to avoid repetition. And with that caveat, let's start this thing off right:

The charming tale of a d-bag record geek losing his girlfriend and learning all the wrong lessons (and a few of the right ones) while trying to win her back.

Adapting a movie from a book can be really tough, especially when that book takes place in another country, and ESPECIALLY when the book is entirely narrated in the first person. But somehow, some way the creators behind High Fidelity managed to produce a hilarious, touching and passionate movie that makes you forget that it’s a romantic comedy.

And so, because this is my first review and we have a long way to go, I present you with this cop-out: My Desert Island, All-Time Top 5 Reasons that High Fidelity Works!

5. Chicago - It would have been very easy for the filmmakers to simply discard the strong sense of atmosphere and place in Hornby’s London-based novel. Instead, the writers of the screenplay took inspiration not from the featured city itself, but rather the spirit behind the idea. Make your location a character. As such, without ever shoving it in our faces, every shot and every location feels real and unique, like real people living in a real city that lives and breathes with them.

4. Jack Black – Listen. A lot of people are sick of Jack Black. And with good reason.

 Yeah... Hmm...

But here, as a small part of another person’s story, Barry’s manic mannerisms, ridiculous scenery chewing and passionate geekiness really work because, let’s be honest, we all know this guy. The guy who’s waaaaaaay too into a thing, doesn’t care if everyone knows it and spits on you for not knowing as much as him. Top it all with a highly redemptive and cathartic final tune and he’s the perfect friend you love to hate to love.

3. It’s Paced Like A Book – Most movies have a pretty predictable structure, what with the struggle and the learning and the climax and the victory and the end. High Fidelity kinda sweeps those contrivances to the side in favor of a dash of realism. Rob doesn’t win his girlfriend back by interrupting her wedding or reciting a poem or (say) holding up a boombox on her lawn. It just kind of happens. And even after the plot is wrapped up we get fifteen more minutes of movie, showing us that Rob has changed a bit and that life just kind of continues. It’s disarming because it’s how shit really works.

2. Rob – Rob is a fucking asshole. 

Hey, your words...

He whines about his life constantly, he takes his friends and lovers for granted, he blithely ignores the wants and needs of others as he tries to figure out why the world has it in for him. And yet, through the events of the movie, his romantic reflections and the help of his friends, Rob blossoms into… less of an asshole.

I simply love that, by the end of this movie, Rob hasn’t shed all of his character flaws, but instead has realized how to begin to work toward improving himself. He doesn’t come out the other side as Tom Hanks, but he does finally takes responsibility for his actions and his mistakes, working to grow up a bit. None of us have ever had an epiphany that’s changed us into The Perfect Man, but we have all had wake-up calls that let us know that it’s time to take stock and make some changes. This is where Rob winds up, and because we can identify with him we leave the movie feeling hopeful rather than pandered to.

1. The Boss -

Bruce Springsteen shows up, Kenobi style, to advise our hero in the ways of love. 

Ultimate movie victory.

Favorite Moment: 

 

"WHAT... FUCKING... IAN-GUY?!?!"

And Lo, There Came A Ridiculous List....

What's up, folks? Casey Thomasson, here, starting up the patent pending McGuffin and MacGuffin blog, named after the (unreleased) podcast that Nate Adams and I record from time to time. Hey, maybe we'll even publish them here for your listening pleasure (pleasure not guaranteed)!

Hopefully this will become a place where you can read (or hear!) Nate and I expound on any and all topics that we find interesting, from geeky stuff to... well, let's be honest, that'll probably be most of it.

My first undertaking in this grand experiment will be a challenge that I've posed to myself: Naming, ranking and justifying my Top 20 Movies of All Times! No real reason, just a bit of fun for me and, hopefully, you!

So check back in the next day or two for my #20 pick, and feel free to tell me how wrong I am for including/omitting whatever movie that you revile/adore. Huzzah!