Treeroy's Quinquennial Quaesitum - a Quaint Queue of Quintessial Films | Quibble away...

[Ethan Hunt]

...

[Avatree]

Edited May 24, 2015 by tree - we're home

[Avatree]

37.

 

David O. Russell's

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK

 

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert de Niro

 

Box office: $132M

Rotten Tomatoes: 92%

 

"Can we get through one fucking conversation without you reminding me that my goddamn husband's dead?"

 

(Sorry for taking a bit of a... break... from this list. But I'm back now. Enjoy it while you can)

 

This is perhaps one of the least surprising movies to see on a list like this, given its widespread appeal and success, but it's here nonetheless. Before Silver Linings Playbook, I couldn't stand Bradley Cooper; I thought he was pretty awful. Although Jennifer Lawrence was the one to take home the Oscar, this is Cooper's film through and through. His performance is a stunningly convincing portrayal of someone trying to cope with their illness, and despite a clunky, cheesy script, both lead actors give us a charming and thoughtful film about the problems we all have, and it's due to these performances that the film works. Much like their ending dance, each character strides through the movie in parallel, allowing us to see two strikingly different ways of dealing with their problems and how they eventually lead down the same road. Its melancholic pace, its powerhouse performances, and its ability to politely and properly delve into stigmatised issues make Silver Linings Playbook rather irresistible. 

[Avatree]

36.

 

Marc Forster's

WORLD WAR Z

 

Starring: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, Daniella Kertesz, Pierfrancesco Favino

 

Box office: $202M

Rotten Tomatoes: 68%

 

"We just woke the dead. Please turn off all cellphones and pagers."

 

It went through a million production hurdles, passing through various writers and reshoots, and while the stitches haven't dissolved, the Hollywood machine didn't stop World War Z from being a surprisingly intelligent and articulate blockbuster, serving as a reminder that not all $200 million films have to beat you round the face with their clammy hands until you're as dumb as a rock. The source text - Max Brooks' provocative 2006 novel - would have been exceptionally difficult to successfully take direct to screen, so the film's structure doesn't much resemble anything that the book's fans would recognise. But the throughline of the novel - its heavy political subtext, and its wide array of apocalyptic ideas - remains, and it's what powers this steaming action romp - and it is full of well-directed action - at its core. Although the film charges from setpiece to setpiece at a startling place, it's philosophically and geopolitically light on its feet: it dips into ideas of how various cultures would respond to an apocalypse, and how in humanity's final hours, we must slow down and think in order to survive. Zombie entertainment throughout the past decade has mostly taken survival ideas literally; World War Z thinks bigger. And despite the popular claims that the film's final act is anticlimactic and out of place, frankly I couldn't want anything more.

[Ethan Hunt]

I love the last act of WWZ but it feels a little vit detached from the rest of the film.

[Joel M]

Silver Linings Playbook definately holds up as a rom com. It's far and away the best of O'Russells awards darling phase.

[Avatree]

35.

 

Steven Soderbergh's

CONTAGION

Starring: Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Kate Winslet, Jude Law

 

Box office: $76M

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

 

"Somewhere in the world, the wrong pig met up with the wrong bat."

 

Steven Soderbergh's movies can occasionally feel like a matter of style over substance, and Hollywood names over nuanced characters; but it's his films like Contagion which remind us that he's so much more. While it is brimming with A-listers, and it can feel a little over-grimy, the film utilises its talents to the best it can, showing us one of the most humane, down-to-earth portrayals of an apocalypse on screen for many years. Every character feels naturally written and grown, rather than pushed down the road of stereotyping which can so often ensnare movies like this. Soderbergh's brilliance lies in his ability to flesh out everything in his films and paying great attention to small detail, while also making the picture broad enough for a wide, mainstream audience to appreciate it, and Contagion is no different. Its deft sense of unforgiving scale on which the lethal HEV-1 virus spreads is genuinely scary and completely believable; by the end of the film, I was left both terrified and creeped out, and this is thanks to Scott Burns's intriguing script, Soderbergh's immaculate direction, and the performances of all the great central actors. In short, Contagion is just a well-made film - but that's a rare gem in a sea of impending-doom garbage.

Edited July 22, 2015 by Tree-5000

[4815162342]

Oh this is still a thing

[Avatree]

Oh this is still a thing

yes. You dont have to read it if you don't want to. But in the past few months I've been dealing with a lot of stuff so I just kinda forgot about this. I don't like leaving things unfinished so I will finish it properly, hopefully by the beginning of next week.

[Avatree]

34.

 

Edgar Wright's

THE WORLD'S END

 

Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost

 

Box office: $26M

Rotten Tomatoes: 89%

 

"Get back in your rocket and fuck off back to Legoland, you cunts"

 

Edgar Wright may seem like a niche, fan-centered filmmaker to those of you in the States, but here in the UK, Wright, Pegg and Frost - along with all of their collaborations - are major household names. And after nearly 15 years of work together, The World's End marks the end of an era for these beloved comedians. Balancing soul and action once again, the trio pull off a terrific final film in the Cornetto Trilogy. Like a certain Jake Blues, Pegg's lead character finds himself getting the band back together - trying to re-live his youth, only to discover his once-best-friends have since grown up. If Shaun of the Dead captured the feel of London culture, and Hot Fuzz was for country culture, then our final trip to the World's End lets us in to some British culture as a whole - drinking. As always, the small-scope film has plenty of heart, and dozens upon of dozens of brilliantly written lines that just make every fibre of my being jitter with laughter. The third-act action here is an improvement on its predecessor, making for a more well-rounded film, and ending up as perhaps my favourite summer movie from 2013. I'll miss the gang; just as I'm sure they will miss each other. With the conclusion of this partnership, the world will surely have lost a little innocent magic.

(And yes, I admit strawberry tastes better than mint.)

[Avatree]

33.

 

Doug Liman's

EDGE OF TOMORROW

 

Starring: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brendan Gleeson

 

Box office: $100.2M

Rotten Tomatoes: 90%

 

"It's judgment day."

 

It wouldn't be a top movies list without something involving the Greatest Movie Star In The World himself, Tom Cruise. It may have been a financial mess but the product we're given is breathtaking, from the authentic central relationship between the two leads, to the sheer practical scale this film showcases. Edge of Tomorrow is a film which really surprised me; I went into the cinema with low expectations, thinking it would be another boring greyscale future war film, and while it does have a wide range of inspirations, it manages to differentiate itself thanks to a well-executed timeloop trope and some supreme editing which makes the film stylish, fun and intelligently crafted. Films like Starship Troopers are clear influences, with the film showing how poorly and cockily the military would deal with alien invasion, as well as its portrayals of both the soldiers, and the scale & size of a massive army. It's an impressive spectacle to behold, and thanks to its editing and direction, the action refuses to feel repetitive, despite some scenes being repeated dozens of times. Throughout the film, it's peppered with great black humour gags, as well as poking fun at the usually-invincible action hero that Cruise has been for the last 30 years. In this day and age, if you're given $200 million and told to produce a big action film that entertains its audience, then this is what you should do. It's self-aware, it's snazzy and it's satisfying. 

Edited July 23, 2015 by Tree-5000

[TServo2049]

Edge of Tomorrow has to be one of the most botched marketing campaigns I can recall. By the time I found out how good the movie was, I couldn't find a good showtime, and I had to wait until VOD to see how good it was.

[Avatree]

32.

 

Pete Travis's

DREDD

 

Starring: Karl Urban, Lena Headey, Olivia Thurlby

 

Box office: $13.4M

Rotten Tomatoes: 78%

 

"I am the law."

 

In 1995, Judge Dredd's first big-screen adaptation disappointed critics, general audiences and comic book fans alike, and paved the way for the result of this 2012 re-imagining. While bad memories of the previous movie slowed box office intake, the filmmakers of this Dredd clearly understood everything wrong with Danny Cannon's disaster, from the handling of the lead actor to the delicacy of the script. By casting a proven but relatively obscure actor in Karl Urban, Travis and Garland are able to work their magic on the juror himself without the nagging fear of having an audience forget the faceless character he is meant to be; the script has a subtle self-awareness that kept me engaged while refraining from throwing references and pride in my face. The dialogue - which I expected to be painful - works on several layers, and the characters feel as appropriately human (or inhuman) as they should. The action is confined to the space of one building, and is directed in a colourful, balletic manner. Travis goes all guns blazing, pushing an interesting 3D aesthetic and an authentic portrayal of the comic book. A lot of the time, superhero movies are compressed and slowed down to appeal to a wide audience, but here we have a case of an adaptation which draws intricately from the comic book without devolving to fandom, and creating a piece of art which works independent of its source material. Dredd proves that you can make a dedicated comic book movie and also make it work on its own - that you can have your cake and eat it. And while the Dredd 2 campaign isn't getting anywhere soon, maybe we should just remain happy that this iconic character got a respectful, inspired and genuinely fun motion picture.

[Avatree]

Okay, as you may or may not be able to tell, I did sort of give up on this a while ago. I find it hard to keep my concentration on one thing and as a result, I stopped doing this not long after starting it. But I don't want it to be left unfinished forever, so I am going to just rattle through the rest of this list, just naming the rest of my favourite films and not writing anything about them other than the odd line or two.

[Avatree]

31.

 

PROMETHEUS

 

Yeah, okay, it has plot holes the size of a small planet, but it engagingly explores ideas many times bigger than the majority of blockbusters will dare to in this day and age, and for that I must give it its due credit. Its visuals have purpose and its narrative has weight. Oh and Michael Fassbender is hugely enjoyable. 

[Avatree]

30.

 

NOAH

 

I absolutely loved Aronofsky's strange re-imagining of this ancient, iconic tale, which in many ways brings the story down to earth and considers how Noah's insane claims could actually be taken by those around him. And nothing will beat Ray Winstone yelling MAN UNITED ARE INVINCIBLE!

[Avatree]

29.

 

LOCKE

 

Rarely does a film rely so heavily on a single actor's performance, but Steven Knight's LOCKE is that film - and Tom Hardy manages to pull this astonishing feat off. He's on one road, going in one direction, and he can't stop what life - and the traffic - will bring to him.

[Avatree]

28.

 

TRANSCENDENCE

 

Probably the most 'controversial' choice on my list, but it was a total surprise to me too. Johnny Depp? Awful reviews? Crappy trailer? I expected the worst.

But this essay on the dangers of our exponentially-evolving technology, by Nolan's cinematographer Wally Pfister, is a genuinely fascinating film that isn't afraid to follow through on its provocative arguments. Naturally, it does look incredible on a cinematic, visual level as well.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Tree-5000

[Avatree]

27.

 

THE LOSERS

 

This is how to make an action B-movie! Some shocking imagery, a generic ex-military plot, a silly villain... but with a lighthearted tongue-in-cheek throughline. It's my idea of super fun, and I don't even particularly like action movies. (Or perhaps that's why...)

 

Chris Evans gives his best performance, too.

[Avatree]

26.

 

WHIPLASH

 

thrilling, spectacular, ear-crushingly overdramatic, and a wonderful - if physically draining - experience in the cinema.

 

one of the best war movies in a long time.