Baumer's ridiculous, uninformed, stupid list of MY BEST 105 FILMS EVER , FULL LIST PG 42

[Fancyarcher]

Groundhog's Day is great. A classic comedy.

 

Armageddon is alright. It's fine dumb fun.

Edited March 2, 2015 by Fancyarcher

[baumer]

Coming soon

Has anyone seen Michael Hunt? Phone call for Michael Hunt

Bourne, Sam Malone and a knockaround guy.

The Hamandas fucks with the wrong guy....wish....I wish u had more time.

Edited March 2, 2015 by baumer

[TalismanRing]

 

65) On Golden Pond (1981)

Mark Rydell

 

On Golden Pond reminded me a little of my relationship with my grandfather. It's not that we didn't get along because we did, but at times it was a little strained simply because of the age difference. But Billy, like I did with my grandfather, soon learns that Norman Thayer Jr. is not just an old man, but he is a guy that has a lot say and he can offer him so much and of course they become friends. So we all know how the movie is going to end up, but it is the execution that is the strength of the film. We watch as these two grow together. We sense that they are becoming more at ease with each other and when we finally see our two guys catch that guarantuan fish named Walter, by this time we are pretty much sure what they are going to do. And it's kind of funny to draw parallels between Walter the fish, and Norman the crusty old man. But both have been around the pond for years. Norman's life wouldn't be the same if his quest for the fish was never there. Perhaps the same with Walter, perhaps he has enjoyed alluding Norman for all these years. But now the game is up, but it doesn't have to be. Norman caught him, perhaps that's all that should matter. You can draw your own conclusions from that analogy. But I like the way it comes out.

On Golden Pond is a treasure. It is sweet, tender and honest. You will never see a performance better than the one Henry Fonda gives in this one. And this made me want to go out and see some of the films that the two screen legends were in before and I have to admit that their early work is impressive. But it is here that they shine like never before (imo). So my recommendation is this. If you are young and would never imagine seeing a film like this because it is about two old people spending time at a cottage, give it a chance.  The story, the script and the humour will transcend generations. 

And for those of you that have seen it, remember this line? "Wife's name is Ethel Thayer, thounds like I'm lithsping dothsn't it? " What a great film.

 

 

Trivia:  

 

This is the only film in which Henry Fonda and Jane Fonda appear together.

James Stewart had wanted to star in the movie, but Jane Fonda bought the rights to the play before he could.

As of 2014 this is the only film in which the two lead actors playing a married couple won a best actor and actress Oscar.

 

 

Surprising choice and a wonderful movie.

 

Trivia: 

 

1. Shockingly, Fonda and Hepburn for all their decades in Hollywood never met before this movie

2. It was second biggest movie at the U.S.  B.O. in 1981, behind Raiders and above Superman II.

[baumer]

OGP is just all kinds of brilliant.

I fell in love with it at a time Sly Arnold and Ford were my tempo.

Thats how good it is.

[Plain Old Tele]

I love ARMAGEDDON. (More accurately, I love the first hour and the ending, and I'm willing to ignore the rest.)

[TalismanRing]

Armageddon. Too loud, too long, too stupid and worst of all - Ben Animal Crackers Affleck.

 

Of the two "huge meteor about to hit the earth" movies that year I preferred Deep Impact which is OK. 

[The Stingray]

Man, I expected horror movies galore, and instead I get old folks movies with silly titles.

[chasmmi]

Coming soon

Has anyone seen Michael Hunt? Phone call for Michael Hunt

 

 

Didn't Basic Instinct just happen?

[bartonfink]

Armageddon aka blue collar's wet fantasy or Dirty Dozen in space. It's packed with outrageous aspects and I LOVE that. Ridiculously bold and fascinating yet even emotional thrill ride. 

[The Futurist]

To promote Armageddon, Bay kept throwing darts at Deep Impact saying the characters decisions in Deep Impact made the movie boring ... Which it kinda was.

Edited March 2, 2015 by A Grey Future

[baumer]

59) Less Than Zero (1987)

Marek Kanievska

 

Not my review, but this says it about as good as you can.

 

 

 

"Less Than Zero" is one of the seminal films of its era. Director Marek Kanievska and cinematographer Ed Lachman created a masterpiece of form and style, unlike any other film in the 1980s. "Less Than Zero" visual style was the first to blend the high style glossy fashion ad look of Los Angeles and Palm Springs with the first MTV generation energy of music videos.

For example, one of the establishing scenes of the movie is the intro credits with Clay, portrayed by Andrew McCarthy in his finest role, arriving home to sunny L.A during Christmas Vacation. A yellow filter is placed over the lens so that L.A. glows. There is no dialog, but only the booming singing of The Bangles' rock cover of Simon & Garfunkels "Hazy Shade of Winter". The palm trees go by as Clay's taxi floats into one of Beverly Hill's affluent neighborhoods. The music dies down as Clay enters his empty modern impersonal family home and plays the message machine, only to learn that both his parents could not be present to welcome him home.

The foreshadowing is all there in that establishing scene with the credits - the lack of familial love, the emptiness and detachment of the main character that matches the hollow environment.

The first party is a lavish F. Scott Fitzgerald "Great Gatsbyesqe" 1989 party filled with dozens of television playing video images timed to rock musics. There are theme winter wonderland rooms, where the fake snow on the floors represent the white cocaine being blown up the rich teen's noses.

The plot of the film is loosely based on the brilliant first novel by Bret Easton Ellis. Mr. Ellis' novel stands as one of the most significant literary works of the late 20th Century.

Many amateur "film" critics have criticized the film for not doing justice to Mr. Ellis' literary creation. Fortunately, I do not suffer from the misconception that a film must be judged by how exact it matches its literary inspiration, rather than judging the film on its own merit.

Screenwriter Harley Peyton, who was rumored to produce a first draft closely following the novel, modified his script into a lean script that could be transformed into a brilliant motion picture. The essence of isolation, friendship, drug-addition, and lost youth remains. I would argue that a closer adaptation of Mr. Ellis' novel would not have made a good film, because rarely on screen is it successful to portray a main character without emotion. Mr. Peyton needed to create character arcs, where the characters start one place and over the course of the film has some change, whether positive or negative. 

Robert Downey Jr. gives the performance of his life (literally) portraying the drug addict that he was to become and which almost ruined his career.

One of my favorite shots in film is the second to last shot. Andrew McCarthy, Robert Downey Jr. and Jami Gertz sit mourning in Clay's classic Corvette which sits on a lonely road in the middle of the desert surrounded by Joshua trees. A flyover shot of the desert closes in for a close-up on the Corvette and the devastated main characters. The shot is breathtaking.

Taken in context of film history of the 1980s, this is a clearly darker take on youth, than the John Hughe's stories of the time, like "Pretty in Pink" (1984) and "The Breakfast Club" (1985). "Less Than Zero" - the film and the novel should be a must see film and must read novel for every serious film viewer and reader.

 

***And who knew that 30 years later Iron Man would be looking for some payback to Ultron for making him do blowjobs to pay off his drug debt?  

 

Trivia:

 

According to the the 'Robert Downey Jr Film Guide' web-site, "supposedly, the director ['Marek Kanievska'] suggested Robert Downey Jr. and Andrew McCarthy should go out and party to 'get into character' which ended with Downey in the middle of Santa Monica Boulevard, howling at the moon, and McCarthy had to bail him out of jail".

 

Cinematographer Edward Lachman has said that the completed picture was originally a lot edgier and the 20th Century Fox studio, who felt the property was too edgy anyway and had limited the film's cost budget, wanted to tone down the movie and make it more commercial audience friendly, and did this by taking the film away from director Marek Kanievska in post-production.

 

[baumer]

To promote Armageddon, Bay kept throwing darts at Deep Impact saying the characters decisions in Deep Impact made the movie boring ... Which he kinda was.

 

Deep Impact is a terrific film.  But it is not on the same level as Armageddon, imo.

[The Futurist]

Deep Impact is a terrific film.  But it is not on the same level as Armageddon, imo.

Deep Impact is a terrific film.  But it is not on the same level as Armageddon, imo.

I liked Deep Impact too, the emotionnal beats worked well but next to Armageddon crazy action, it was kinda boring.

Morgan Freeman was POTUS in Deep Impact, right ?

[baumer]

58) Mystic River (2003)

Clint Eastwood

 

 

Clint Eastwood's Mystic River is a movie of sadness and loss of a daughter that reunites a group of old friends again. The movie stars Sean Penn as that man who loses his daughter and goes through that midlife crisis with the law and to trying to find the man who murdered his daughter. The movie also has a great supporting cast such as Marcia Gay Harden, Tim Robbins, Laura Linney, Laurence Fishburne, and Kevin Bacon. Director Clint Eastwood has crafted a haunting film and it features a great by Brian Helgeland, and stellar photography by Tom Stern. This movie truly touched me in all the correct emotional and I also felt bad for Sean Penn's character in the film as we all should because of what he went through emotionally.  That doesn't change the fact that he isn't a good man, but good or bad, I still felt for him.  And I must mention that I think this should have been the film that Kevin Bacon should of been nominated for.  A truly outstanding performance in an outstanding film.

 

 

Trivia:

 

Michael Keaton was originally cast as Sean Devine. He had done several script readings with the rest of the principal cast, and he had been doing research for the role with the Massachusetts State Police Department, and living in Boston for several weeks. A month before principal photography was to start, Keaton and director Clint Eastwood got into a huge argument, and Keaton left the project. A week later, Kevin Bacon was cast in the role.

 

For the scene where Jimmy wails and thrashes in anguish at the discovery of Katie's body, Sean Penn requested that a tank of oxygen be standing by after he finished the take.

[bartonfink]

Clint Eastwood's one of the greatest achievements. His directorial works in 2000s are overwhelmingly phenomenal.

[The Futurist]

Clint Eastwood's one of the greatest achievements. His directorial works in 2000s are overwhelmingly phenomenal.

Million Dollar Baby still had a Lifetime vibe to me, the story really felt like a telenovella, but the movie worked miraculously and the ending was devastating.

[Plain Old Tele]

The action in ARMAGEDDON is not particularly good (or interesting). What makes the movie entertaining are the fun characters.

[baumer]

I pretty much hated M $ B.

[Kalo]

I pretty much hated M $ B.

Me too. it was one of the most depressing movies I've ever seen.

[#ED]

Armageddon was a 10/10?

...