Ok, I know that all three of you out there are wondering how this list ends, like any good story things should look darkest just before the dawn (Act II climax) .... yadda, yadda, yadda.
So, here 'tis:
76) The Taking of Pelham, 1,2,3 -- No list of great films is complete without Walter Mattau.
77) Repo Man -- The strangest movie ever made about being an alpha-male
78) BASEketball -- This movie is just damn stupid and damn funny. cock!
79) Drunken Master II -- It was between this and Police Story II (Michelle Yeoh), but this is, by far, the best Jackie Chan movie I've seen.
80) Strange Days -- Marred only by a simplistic race-baiting climax, this is a fascinating film about passion, loyalty and the imperfection of memory.
81) Three Kings -- I'm a sucker for a good anti-war film. Every warmonger in America right now should re-watch this movie..
82) Midnight Run -- I got two words for you: Robert F$#King DeNiro.
83) Papilllon -- Franklin Schaffner will never be mentioned with the same reverential tones as Welles, Kubrick, Spielberg, Ford...etc, and, for the life of me, I can't understand why!
84) Signs -- M. Night's exploration of fear and imagination and how that relates to faith is just devestating. Mel Gibson is superb.
85) The Quick and the Dead -- Sam Raimi's nod to Sergio Leone is a hoot!
86) Shawshank Redemption -- A movie I wanted to hate, but just couldn't, and every time I catch it on TNT, it rises a little higher. Great Darabont script.
87) The Fifth Element -- The real Heavy Metal (the magazine) movie.
88) Face/Off -- The only movie where I stood up and clapped at the end of an action sequence (speedboat chase).
89) Chasing Amy -- Smith's best 'film.' Gets a great performance from Affleck.
90) All of Me -- Best of the Reiner/Martin collaborations.
91) The Conversation -- An amazing movie about obsession and the paranoia that comes from it. Hackman *bow*
92) Grosse Pointe Blank -- This is the role John Cusack was born to play. Unbelievably funny movie.
93) Secret of NIMH -- The old softie in me really enjoyed the hell out of this as a teenager, about 15 times.
94) The Color of Money -- The older I get, the more I dislike Scorcese's movies, but, here, it all works.
95) A Nightmare Before Christmas -- Brilliant animation, fantastic songs, great little story.
96) Life is Beautiful -- Devastating perspective on the cost of collectivism
97) Searching for Bobby Fischer -- Wonderful film about the pressures placed on children to acheive.
98) Sleuth -- Olivier and Caine in a great game of cat and mouse. Great script.
99) Big Trouble in Little China -- John Carpenter makes great b-movies. 15 years ahead of it's time and a brilliant Kurt Russell.
100) Courage Under Fire -- Who knew Meg Ryan could hold her own in a dramatic context. Great internalized performance by Denzel is the heart of this otherwise standard detective story.
That's it.
There are dozens of almost-made-it's and loved-but-forgotten's, and even more that fit into the category of guilty pleasures that really aren't any good in hindsight. A few of the ones on this list fit that description but some had to be included to be fair to the original intent (BASEketball, BTiLC, etc). And a few current films that are brilliant but too new for inclusion as of right now (Spidey II, The Incredibles).
I've already received one recommendation from a reader (Three Days of the Condor) and would love others. Movies are extremely important communication devices that can (and have) change the course of a person's life. Star Wars did that for me, and it's why it topped the list. In the end, all of the films in the Top 10 were life-changers to one degree or another (except for maybe South Park:BLU). That was the criteria there. After that, well, the reasons get murky. I hope you've enjoyed it, I certainly enjoyed putting it together. Comments, flames, and praise are certainly welcome, if not outright encouraged.
Ta,
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