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

[baumer]

Well, yes, you can still be envious of what they have but not agree with how they acquired it.  

[Avatree]

Well, yes, you can still be envious of what they have but not agree with how they acquired it.  

I don't think I communicated my thoughts very well as you don't understand what I mean, oh well lets not argue this any more.

[RobinHood26]

4 fantastic films in a row, you're on a roll. 

[Plain Old Tele]

Money itself is a "what's not to like" object, but the way it's presented in the film isn't. The 'wealth' they supposedly have is all stolen.

 

It's not stolen, it's (generally) legal within the framework of our capitalist system. (Actually, Wall Street insiders were supposedly amused by the title, because Belfort was such a minor player on Wall Street. The big boys ripped people off to a much, much bigger degree.)

 

Of course, whether capitalism is basically legalized theft is another, more philosophical question.

Edited March 5, 2015 by Telemachos

[baumer]

4 fantastic films in a row, you're on a roll. 

 

The reason I made the title the way I did is because a lot of the members here seem to think my taste in film is so bad.  So I had some fun with it.

 

As you guys can see, my list of top films isn't far off from many others.  I just don't like the Potters and a lot of the comic book movies all that much, at least when talking about the best of all time.

[baumer]

21) The Dark Knight (2008)

Christopher Nolan

 

If there is anyone who is was anti-Batman fan, it would have been me. While I thought Batman Begins was one of the best of 2005, I did not care all that much for the first four Batman films. I actually despised Batman Returns to the point that it is entrenched firmly on my top 50 worst films of all time. With that in mind, I began hearing all of the accolades this film was getting before it's release. How Heath Ledger had turned in a performance of a lifetime. How this was being called the Godfather of Comic Book films. How this film was being lauded as one of the best films in the last ten years and so on. By now, you've heard them all. And to be honest, I resented that and I believed that it was simply the scope of Heath's death that was causing this love fest with The Dark Knight. Never have I been so glad to be wrong. This is a film that moved me and reminded me why I fell in love with the art of film in the first place. Christopher Nolan and Heath Ledger and everyone involved should be proud that this film transcends comic book films, and it transcends the summer popcorn genre. It is a larger than life experience and it is one of the best films ever made, in my opinion.

 

As we all remember, the end of Batman Begins we were shown a new villain named the Joker that had been leaving his card at the scene of his crimes. This takes place shortly after that with the Joker and his henchmen robbing a bank that holds mob money. He steals a cool 68 million dollars in a well executed and highly improbable robbery. Soon he is crashing a mob meeting and introduces himself quite effectively with a disappearing pencil trick that gets everyone's attention. His thought process is that he knows the mob no longer has the respect they once did, and that is because of the Batman. He offers his services, to kill the Batman, but with a hefty price. When his prediction comes true later in the film, that the mobsters are not safe from Batman, they realize they do need him. Meanwhile, a new DA named Harvey Dent is keen on cleaning up the city in any way possible. When he realizes that Batman is actually good for the city, Bruce Wayne takes a liking to him and decides that Harvey will be his white knight. This may actually allow Bruce to live a normal life. But of course nothing goes as planned and when tragedy strikes Harvey and his loved one, all hell breaks loose in Gotham City and the Joker becomes more and more unstoppable. Soon of course we are headed down the inevitable mano a mano confrontation between Batman and The Joker, but in a way that has never been done before.

 

The Dark Knight explores socio-political issues usually reserved for a Michael Mann film. Take one exchange between the Joker and Batman, on paper it sounds good, but to see it on screen is mesmerizing: "Don't talk like one of them. You're not, even if you'd like to be. They need you right now. But when they don't, they'll cast you out...LIKE A LEPER. See their morals, their code...it's a bad joke...dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show ya, when the chips are down, these civilized people will EAT each other." Batman and The Joker are separated by a fine line. But that line is often crossed in the film and when the Joker puts Batman to the test, I think they switch personalities. The film works because it has iconic characters and wonderful performances no doubt, but it also works brilliantly because it treats the audience like they are smart and perceptive. 

It has to be mentioned of course that Heath Ledger gives a performance that has no equal. I've said before that there are about ten performances that transcend film,  This is obviously one of them. Heath is The Joker. You won't recognize him, you won't know that it is an actor, you will believe that there is a man named the Joker that is on screen and someone captured him on film. There is not a finer performance I can think of and if anyone wins best supporting actor this year besides him, it is their duty to thank the academy and then decline the award and give it to Heath. He is that good. The Joker is mesmerizing.

The Dark Knight is a film for a generation of film lovers that has been begging for a better comic book film. This is that film. Even if you are not a big fan of these type of movies, it will win you over.

 

Trivia:  In preparation for his role as The Joker, Heath Ledger hid away in a motel room for about six weeks. During this extended stay of seclusion, Ledger delved deep into the psychology of the character. He devoted himself to developing The Joker's every tic, namely the voice and that sadistic-sounding laugh (for the voice, Ledger's goal was to create a tone that didn't echo the work Jack Nicholson did in his 1989 performance as the Joker). Ledger's interpretation of The Joker's appearance was primarily based on the chaotic, disheveled look of punk rocker Sid Vicious combined with the psychotic mannerisms of Malcolm McDowell's character, Alex De Large, from A Clockwork Orange(1971).

 

Heath Ledger's posthumous Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor as the Joker was coincidentally announced on the first anniversary of his death.

Edited March 6, 2015 by baumer

[baumer]

20) Star Wars (1977)

George Lucas

 

A classic story with a perfect cast, memorable score and dazzling special effects. Movies don't get any better than this. More space opera than true sci-fi, Star Wars takes you on a magical ride through a galaxy far, far away.

The first moment of genius comes right at the very start with a written crawl which gives a basic plot outline and without which all that immediately followed would be hard to place in context. After John Williams' now legendary opening theme we are thrust into the first of many thrilling space battles to come. Almost immediately we are introduced to one of the great movie villains of all time, Darth Vader who is voiced with true menace by James Earl Jones, and it becomes clear that this film is not quite like anything we have seen before.

 

Star Wars may seem to be your typical good versus evil swashbuckling adventure but there's a lot more going on here. The hero, Luke Skywalker, is your typical simple, clean-cut farm boy who will soon be thrust into the middle of a galactic war of as grand a scale as could be imagined. But he is not our only hero. Princess Leia, a leader of the rebellion against the evil Galactic Empire, is certainly not your typical helpless fairy-tale princess. She gives as good as she gets. Obi-Wan Kenobi is the older, wiser more seasoned hero and the mentor young Luke will desperately need. Han Solo is a space pirate in it only for the money, not for any revolution. Solo's first mate aboard his ship, the Milennium Falcon, is Chewbacca, a giant Wookiee who is remarkably adept at space flight for a creature which resembles a hairy two-legged dog. Also along for the ride to help our heroes are the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 who provide not only critical help for our heroes but some comic relief for the audience.

The performances in Star Wars are all first-rate. Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker plays the young, naive Skywalker very well and Hamill grows right along with the character throughout the film. Carrie Fisher brings the appropriate smarts, skills, sophistication and determination to Princess Leia. Without Fisher's quality performance it might be hard to believe that this young woman could play such a pivotal role in a rebellion of this magnitude. Alec Guinness is reliably brilliant as old Jedi master Kenobi. He is mysterious, quiet and reserved yet very strong indeed. Stealing the show is Harrison Ford as Han Solo. It seems Ford gets all the best lines and he makes the most of them. Luke Skywalker may be the nominal hero of the film but it is Ford as Solo from which Star Wars gets most of its personality.

 

George Lucas has crafted a true masterpiece here. The classic struggle of the underdog against the evil oppressor takes on many new twists here. The mysterious Force, the foreboding and menacing Darth Vader, alien creatures of all imaginable shapes and sizes, the epic nature of a battle which rages across an entire galaxy...in the end it all comes together to form something unique and truly wonderful. With action and adventure on a grand scale, fascinating characters on both sides of the fight, special effects that were revolutionary for the time and an ever-building sense of drama and excitement Star Wars is an absolute triumph.

 

Trivia:  Harrison Ford didn't learn his lines for the intercom conversation in the cell block so it would sound spontaneous.

 

Prior to the film's release, George Lucas showed an early cut of the film to a group of his film director friends. Most, including Lucas himself, felt the film would be a flop; Brian De Palma reportedly called it the 'worst movie ever'. The only dissenter was Steven Spielberg who correctly predicted the film would make millions of dollars.

 

Peter Mayhew worked as an orderly in a Yorkshire hospital prior to being cast in the movie. He won his role ten seconds after meeting George Lucas for the first time; all the 7'2" Mayhew had to do was stand up.

[Ethan Hunt]

I prefer Eckhart's performance in TDK to Ledger's

[baumer]

19) Scream (1996)

Wes Craven

 

" I want you to go down to the McKenzies house and call the police. " Laurie Strode, from Halloween, Casey's mom, from Scream.

 

As I have said in my various reviews of horror flicks, I grew up loving horror movies. Everything from the great ones like Halloween, Nightmare 1 and the early Fridays, to even the stupid quirky flicks like The Prey or Sleepaway Camp. There is just something sinister yet fun about an unseen force that tries to kill you for no apparent reason except that you are on his turf. I think Kevin Williamson watched the same films as I did and similarly appreciated them. Because what he has done here is write a film that is an homage to all the great horror films of the my youth. He treats all of us fans to great memories of films of years past and he assumes that he has an intelligent audience. There are so many horror movie references here that even I don't quite get all of them, and believe me I have seen a lot of horror films. But not only is the script entertaining, funny and witty, the film is scary. Not as scary as some of the films that it tries to pay homage to, but that's okay. Because you will have so much fun trying to pick out references to your faves that the scare factor is just a bonus. One of the most brilliant parts in the movie is when Randy pauses Halloween and explains the rules of surviving a horror movie if you are a character in it. Not only is it funny, but it so honest and sharp that when you listen to what he says, you realize that he is so right. And that is one of the great pleasures of the film.

Wes Craven is the perfect director for this film. I wonder if Williamson ever pitched this to Cunningham or Miner or Carpenter before going to Craven? I guess I am glad that he didn't because I think Craven adds some nice touches to the film. The cast is also brilliant. We all know the major one's involved here but I want to call attention to Mathew Lilliard. His portrayal of Stu is so amazing. He honestly should of received a nomination for best supporting actor. He took his character and added his own twist to him. And because of his tiny idiosyncrasies, he adds so much to the film. A subtle use of the tongue, the facade of hurt just by one of his expressions, a triumphant thrust of the arms, his laugh. They are all forever imprinted in my head as a great character study.

This film started a whole genre on it's own, made a name for Lilliard and most everyone else involved, revitalized Craven's career, made Williamson a millionaire, made horror movies popular again and gave me hours of viewing enjoyment. Not just from this one and its sequel, but it made me go back and watch all the older films that I liked so much.

 

Trivia:  When you see the janitor, you can see a reference to Freddy Krueger. He's wearing a red and green shirt, just like Freddy, and the Principal calls him Fred.

 

The boyfriend in Psycho (1960) is named Samuel Loomis. Samuel Loomis was the doctor in Halloween (1978). In Scream, the teens are watching Halloween. In Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998), the teens are watching Scream 2 (1997).

 

When the phone slips out of Billy's hand and hits Stu's head, it was completely unintentional. Wes Craven kept it in because of Stu's realistic reaction.

[baumer]

I prefer Eckhart's performance in TDK to Ledger's

 

You must be the only one.

[Ethan Hunt]

You must be the only one.

Actually someone else on here, I believe it was Blankments, agreed with me in that regard.

[Ozymandias]

21) The Dark Knight (2008)

Christopher Nolan

 

If there is anyone who is was anti-Batman fan, it would have been me. While I thought Batman Begins was one of the best of 2005, I did not care all that much for the first four Batman films. I actually despised Batman Returns to the point that it is entrenched firmly on my top 50 worst films of all time. With that in mind, I began hearing all of the accolades this film was getting before it's release. How Heath Ledger had turned in a performance of a lifetime. How this was being called the Godfather of Comic Book films. How this film was being lauded as one of the best films in the last ten years and so on. By now, you've heard them all. And to be honest, I resented that and I believed that it was simply the scope of Heath's death that was causing this love fest with The Dark Knight. Never have I been so glad to be wrong. This is a film that moved me and reminded me why I fell in love with the art of film in the first place. Christopher Nolan and Heath Ledger and everyone involved should be proud that this film transcends comic book films, and it transcends the summer popcorn genre. It is a larger than life experience and it is one of the best films ever made, in my opinion.

 

As we all remember, the end of Batman Begins we were shown a new villain named the Joker that had been leaving his card at the scene of his crimes. This takes place shortly after that with the Joker and his henchmen robbing a bank that holds mob money. He steals a cool 68 million dollars in a well executed and highly improbable robbery. Soon he is crashing a mob meeting and introduces himself quite effectively with a disappearing pencil trick that gets everyone's attention. His thought process is that he knows the mob no longer has the respect they once did, and that is because of the Batman. He offers his services, to kill the Batman, but with a hefty price. When his prediction comes true later in the film, that the mobsters are not safe from Batman, they realize they do need him. Meanwhile, a new DA named Harvey Dent is keen on cleaning up the city in any way possible. When he realizes that Batman is actually good for the city, Bruce Wayne takes a liking to him and decides that Harvey will be his white knight. This may actually allow Bruce to live a normal life. But of course nothing goes as planned and when tragedy strikes Harvey and his loved one, all hell breaks loose in Gotham City and the Joker becomes more and more unstoppable. Soon of course we are headed down the inevitable mano a mano confrontation between Batman and The Joker, but in a way that has never been done before.

 

The Dark Knight explores socio-political issues usually reserved for a Michael Mann film. Take one exchange between the Joker and Batman, on paper it sounds good, but to see it on screen is mesmerizing: "Don't talk like one of them. You're not, even if you'd like to be. They need you right now. But when they don't, they'll cast you out...LIKE A LEPER. See their morals, their code...it's a bad joke...dropped at the first sign of trouble. They're only as good as the world allows them to be. I'll show ya, when the chips are down, these civilized people will EAT each other." Batman and The Joker are separated by a fine line. But that line is often crossed in the film and when the Joker puts Batman to the test, I think they switch personalities. The film works because it has iconic characters and wonderful performances no doubt, but it also works brilliantly because it treats the audience like they are smart and perceptive. 

It has to be mentioned of course that Heath Ledger gives a performance that has no equal. I've said before that there are about ten performances that transcend film,  This is obviously one of them. Heath is The Joker. You won't recognize him, you won't know that it is an actor, you will believe that there is a man named the Joker that is on screen and someone captured him on film. There is not a finer performance I can think of and if anyone wins best supporting actor this year besides him, it is their duty to thank the academy and then decline the award and give it to Heath. He is that good. The Joker is mesmerizing.

The Dark Knight is a film for a generation of film lovers that has been begging for a better comic book film. This is that film. Even if you are not a big fan of these type of movies, it will win you over.

 

Trivia:  In preparation for his role as The Joker, Heath Ledger hid away in a motel room for about six weeks. During this extended stay of seclusion, Ledger delved deep into the psychology of the character. He devoted himself to developing The Joker's every tic, namely the voice and that sadistic-sounding laugh (for the voice, Ledger's goal was to create a tone that didn't echo the work Jack Nicholson did in his 1989 performance as the Joker). Ledger's interpretation of The Joker's appearance was primarily based on the chaotic, disheveled look of punk rocker Sid Vicious combined with the psychotic mannerisms of Malcolm McDowell's character, Alex De Large, from A Clockwork Orange(1971).

 

Heath Ledger's posthumous Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor as the Joker was coincidentally announced on the first anniversary of his death.

 

How about a magic trick?  I'm gonna make this pencil disappear.

 

 

Edited March 6, 2015 by Ozymandias

[baumer]

18) Angel Heart 

Alan Parker

Produced by Mario Kassar and Andrew Vajna

 

 

I have often said that horror is the most difficult to master. I believe this to be true because although it seems any moron with a camera can stalk a would be victim and try to psyche the audience out by shaking a few trees, then flagitiously embellish the film with blood instead of atmosphere, true fear is difficult to capture on film. I think we have all seen films that lay it on pretty thick but ultimately fail. I truly believe you can hire someone to make a dummy and stuff it with blood and even some rudimentary designs of intestines and hearts and various other functioning organs that have the ability to make the squeamish cover their eyes. But if you remember some of the greats, some of the icons of the trade, you will see that a good horror film is more about minacious shadows, the vicissitudes of lights, the ominous and foreboding music and finally the brilliant sagaciousness of the story. I think many people overlook the relevance of a story in the horror movie genre. Many inferior films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Idle Hands and such will present us with a half-assed story and then try to build on it by bombastically insulting us with the banalities of gore and other not so shocking elements. But what they forget is most horror films that either succeed or develop a cult following are films that somewhere along the way hit a nerve in the collective mindset of their viewers. Friday the 13th's attack the very foundation of one of adolescent's unadulterated joys, that being camping. Halloween invaded our trick or treaters and Nightmare On Elm Street surreptitiously alienated our dreams. In short, we were not safe from these abominations on any front. Angel Heart follows that trend.

Spoilers Ahead... if you have not seen this film, do not read from here on out.

The basic premise of Angel Heart is a detective story at heart. This is a 40's style film noir complete with rain soaked streets, seedy detectives and lots of questionable characters. We meet Harry Angel ( Roarke) as he is taking a phone call from a stranger. This stranger is from the law firm Winesap and MacIntosh ( any similarities here? think about it). They would like to meet with him as they have a client that is familiar with his work. The client's name is Monsieur Louis Cypher.

"Is your client foreign? Is he a foreign gentleman?"

Harry then travels to a church ( strange enough place to meet a client who wants to hire a detective) where he enters the room and is first greeted by Winesap (who looks a lot like Stephen Tobolwolski), and then he sees his client. But what we see first is long, perfectly manicured finger nails, a strange cane, a ring that has either the star of David in the middle of it or a strange cult like pointed symbol, you decide. Also, the client's hair is put up in a bun and the man dressed impeccably. The man does not rise to shake Harry's hand. But he smiles with a diabolical, factitious grin that seems warm and inviting but reeks with deceit.

Harry then gets the facts of the case and is told that he will be searching for a crooner that owed Louis some money but disappeared during the war. So in essence, all Louis wants from Harry is to find out if this crooner is alive or dead. Cypher offers him a lot of money to find the guy and so Harry accepts.

"You must want this guy pretty bad," Harry says with a chuckle.

"I don't like messy accounts," Cypher replies dead-seriously.

And then just before the meeting concludes, Louis says to Harry,

"I've got a funny feeling we've met before." Harry has no recollection of ever meeting the man, and he would remember seeing how Cypher sticks out like a sore thumb.

From here Harry goes on a labyrinthine journey to find out what happened to this crooner. It takes him from Coney Island to New Orleans. And along the way, dead bodies begin to show up. First he interviews a doctor that had something to do with the case. He shows up dead in the next scene. Next we see an old guitar player named Toot Sweet and then he shows up dead, "strangled with a part of the body meant for pissing with." Now Harry is a suspect in two murders and it just keeps getting worse.

 

Every 20 minutes Louis Cypher shows up to check on his progress. And every time he does, more strange religion seems to get introduced to the plot. This French gentleman is obviously a fanatical, devout, religious iconoclast. He is not just seeking this missing person for personal accounts, it seems more like a reckoning. And the further Harry gets into the mystery, the more liable he is to be implicated in things that he had nothing to do with. To make matters worse, Cypher tells him that he has old fashioned and bucolic ideas about justice, "You know, an eye for an eye, that sort of thing." Finally Harry, in desperation, asks him in one of their sittings, "Who the @^&* are you Cypher?" Cypher's reply, "Watch your language, this is a church."

By now the film has us both intrigued with it's eccentric and neurotic characters, and confused in some ways by the abstruse manner in which the story is unfolding. This apparent confusion is by design, because this film takes pride in laying the foundation out for us but not the glue. We have to use our heads to figure things out and that is rare in many films, especially the horror genre. That may sound contradictory to what we are all lead to believe about most horror, but it is true. Horror, true horror has gone the way of the do-do bird. It is all but extinct. Angel Heart however, is more of a heterodoxy than one might think. It takes all that is good with the genre and makes it even better. Every scene in this film seems to quietly show us another piece to the puzzle. Every twist and turn seems to unravel the story like the layers of an onion. Without giving away the plot and the secrets to the film, here are a few scenes to digest and think about.

Take for instance the not so subliminal use fans in the film. Every time Louis Cypher is in the room, fans are first shown. This is relevant in some scenes because of the heat, but what about on a cold blustery day in the Bronx?

Also examine some of the intriguing lines that slither out of DeNiro's mouth. Lines like, "They say there is just enough religion in the world to make man hate one another, but not enough to make them love." Or: "Would you like an egg Mr. Angel?" After Harry says no, Cypher replies, "you know, they say the egg represents the soul." He then bites into the egg and chews it with perfect equanimity. You can never tell if Cypher is mad or satisfied. All we know is this man is here to find a missing person. Some of the time he cracks a smile but what he is really smiling about is just somewhere underneath the surface.

There are also a few times when Harry catches a glimpse of himself in the mirror but he sees two images of himself, the mirror is cracked or split or mangled in some way. And he always looks pensive and confused when he looks into the mirror as though he sees something.... but then forgets it.

We are also privy to scenes that are ripe with contradictions. Bullets are stored in a Bible, a nun is cleaning blood off the wall, a priest wants to drive in a Rolls Royce, a heart is cut out, almost like a butcher did it and took pride in his work and a few other images that confuse yet enlighten you at the same time. Angel Heart is the true working of a paradox in progress.

The climax of Angel Heart is one that will have you shell shocked. I wasn't prepared for it when I saw this film as a 17 year-old and even now when I am pushing 30 and have seen the film over 100 times, I am still in awe when I watch Harry and Louis banter about as Louis tells him of his ultimate fate.

"Alas. How terrible is wisdom when it brings no profit to the wise Johnny."

"My name's not Johnny."

"I know who I am. Cypher I know who I am!"

When all is about to be revealed, Louis tells Johnny to take a good look in the mirror because no matter how cleverly you sneak up on a mirror, you reflection always looks you straight in the eye. And when he does, all that we didn't know but may have suspected, is now revealed to us.

Angel Heart is not the type of horror film that will scare you every five minutes with ghosts that bounce balls down stairs or with pumpkin candles that flicker coyly enough to see a shadow float across the ceiling. But what it will do is turn your insides upside down with the promise that something pernicious and final is about to take place. Angel Heart is opulent with undertones of doom and sumptuous with forbidden overtones. Just as Blair Witch attacked us with what could be there, Angel Heart admonishes us to stay away from things that should not be there. Harry Angel has entered into an inchoate project and it is one that he will wish he never sought out in the first place.  This is unquestionably a film that should be seen by everyone.

 

 

Trivia:  Alan Parker claims that Robert De Niro's performance as Louis Cypher was so eerie and realistic that he generally avoided him during his scenes, letting him just direct himself.

 

Robert De Niro's performance is an impersonation of Martin Scorsese.

The line "How terrible is wisdom when it brings no profit to the wise" is drawn fromSophocles' "Oedipus The King".

Alan Parker offered the role of Harry Angel to Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson and Robert De Niro himself before Mickey Rourke was cast.

 

[baumer]

I won't be so long winded for every films.  Sorry.

[baumer]

17) Back To The Future (1985)

Robert Zemekis

 

Michael J.Fox is perfectly cast as Marty Mcfly, a teenager who's family is dysfunctional to say the least. His mother Lorraine (Lea Thonpson) is an heavy drinker and his father George (Crispin Glover) is a complete loser who is still been stepped on by Biff Tannen (Thomas F.Wilson) the same guy who's been bullying him since high school. These things are the least of Marty's problems though when he is accidentally sent back to 1955 in his friend Doc Brown's (Christopher Lloyd) plutonium powered Delorean time machine, and jeopardises his own existence when he inadvertently interferes with his parents first meeting.

The movie is huge fun. The cast is great. Fox and Lloyd are superb in their roles, as are the rest of the cast, and the plot itself is storytelling at it's finest. Not one single wasted moment. Every moment advances plot and character. Throwaway lines or minor moments usually have an important part to play in the story later on. 

It's hard to think of another movie that successfully blends so many genres together, if at all. Sci-fi, Comedy, Action, Romance, this has it all and it's great entertainment from start to finish.

Many things about the movie have become iconic, from the Delorean, the quotes, and of course, Fox performing Johnny B.Goode. It's full of wit and clever ideas, and has aged superbly like fine wine.

It has something for people of all ages, whether you're 5 or 85 it's a charming movie that has a lot to offer.

 

Trivia:  According to Bob Gale, on October 26th, 1985, a group of people showed up at the mall used to film the Twin Pines Mall location to see if Marty would arrive in the DeLorean. He, of course, did not.

 

Thomas F. Wilson almost had his collarbone broken in the scene where Marty and Biff are about to fight in the cafeteria, as Eric Stoltz roughed up Tom for real, take after take, despite repeated requests from Tom to tone down the aggression. Tom later said he was about to return the favor during filming of the car park scene outside the dance, but Eric was fired before that confrontation could take place.

 

Biff's catchphrases "make like a tree and get outta here" and "butthead" were improvised by Thomas F. Wilson.

 

Michael J. Fox was allowed by the producer of Family Ties (1982) to film this movie on the condition that he kept his full schedule on the TV show - meaning no write-outs or missing episodes - and filmed most of the movie at night. He was not allowed to go onBack to the Future (1985) promotional tours.

[Ethan Hunt]

I went through a Back to the Future phase when I was 7. Still love it but not as much.

[RobinHood26]

Back to the Future and TDK are both top 25 movies for me as well. Love Scream, never seen Angel Heart though. Adding it to my list. 

[Kalo]

20) Star Wars (1977)

George Lucas

 

A classic story with a perfect cast, memorable score and dazzling special effects. Movies don't get any better than this. More space opera than true sci-fi, Star Wars takes you on a magical ride through a galaxy far, far away.

The first moment of genius comes right at the very start with a written crawl which gives a basic plot outline and without which all that immediately followed would be hard to place in context. After John Williams' now legendary opening theme we are thrust into the first of many thrilling space battles to come. Almost immediately we are introduced to one of the great movie villains of all time, Darth Vader who is voiced with true menace by James Earl Jones, and it becomes clear that this film is not quite like anything we have seen before.

 

Star Wars may seem to be your typical good versus evil swashbuckling adventure but there's a lot more going on here. The hero, Luke Skywalker, is your typical simple, clean-cut farm boy who will soon be thrust into the middle of a galactic war of as grand a scale as could be imagined. But he is not our only hero. Princess Leia, a leader of the rebellion against the evil Galactic Empire, is certainly not your typical helpless fairy-tale princess. She gives as good as she gets. Obi-Wan Kenobi is the older, wiser more seasoned hero and the mentor young Luke will desperately need. Han Solo is a space pirate in it only for the money, not for any revolution. Solo's first mate aboard his ship, the Milennium Falcon, is Chewbacca, a giant Wookiee who is remarkably adept at space flight for a creature which resembles a hairy two-legged dog. Also along for the ride to help our heroes are the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 who provide not only critical help for our heroes but some comic relief for the audience.

The performances in Star Wars are all first-rate. Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker plays the young, naive Skywalker very well and Hamill grows right along with the character throughout the film. Carrie Fisher brings the appropriate smarts, skills, sophistication and determination to Princess Leia. Without Fisher's quality performance it might be hard to believe that this young woman could play such a pivotal role in a rebellion of this magnitude. Alec Guinness is reliably brilliant as old Jedi master Kenobi. He is mysterious, quiet and reserved yet very strong indeed. Stealing the show is Harrison Ford as Han Solo. It seems Ford gets all the best lines and he makes the most of them. Luke Skywalker may be the nominal hero of the film but it is Ford as Solo from which Star Wars gets most of its personality.

 

George Lucas has crafted a true masterpiece here. The classic struggle of the underdog against the evil oppressor takes on many new twists here. The mysterious Force, the foreboding and menacing Darth Vader, alien creatures of all imaginable shapes and sizes, the epic nature of a battle which rages across an entire galaxy...in the end it all comes together to form something unique and truly wonderful. With action and adventure on a grand scale, fascinating characters on both sides of the fight, special effects that were revolutionary for the time and an ever-building sense of drama and excitement Star Wars is an absolute triumph.

 

Trivia:  Harrison Ford didn't learn his lines for the intercom conversation in the cell block so it would sound spontaneous.

 

Prior to the film's release, George Lucas showed an early cut of the film to a group of his film director friends. Most, including Lucas himself, felt the film would be a flop; Brian De Palma reportedly called it the 'worst movie ever'. The only dissenter was Steven Spielberg who correctly predicted the film would make millions of dollars.

 

Peter Mayhew worked as an orderly in a Yorkshire hospital prior to being cast in the movie. He won his role ten seconds after meeting George Lucas for the first time; all the 7'2" Mayhew had to do was stand up.

This Star Wars movie would actually be in almost exactly the same placement for me. 

Edited March 6, 2015 by Kalo

[Empire]

Back to the Future! Glad to see it so high on your list! It is my #3 all-time favorite film!

[Fancyarcher]

The Dark Knight at 21, Star Wars at 20, and Back to The Future at 17, is awesome! Your list has a lot of great movies Baumer.

Edited March 6, 2015 by Fancyarcher