Tele's List of 100 Lesser-Known or Under-Appreciated Films Everyone Should See (THE LIST IS COMPLETE! p26)

[Dementeleus]

50. Red Rock West (1993)

written by: John Dahl, Rick Dahl

directed by: John Dahl

starring: Nicolas Cage, Dennis Hopper, Lara Flynn Boyle, J.T. Walsh

 

Synopsis: 

Mike, a drifter from Texas, drives to Wyoming for a promised job. But when he arrives, a local businessman mistakes him for the hitman he hired to kill his unfaithful wife.

 

A clever little western noir. These was the glory days of Nicolas Cage; he’d been on an up-and-down career up to this point, but he was about to go on a nice little run of acclaimed indie movies before transitioning to big-budget action. He’s teamed up with a well-cast Dennis Hopper and a slew of great character actors, led by the incomparable J.T. Walsh.

 

 

 

[The Stingray]

YES YES YES! I HAVE ACTUALLY SEEN RED ROCK WEST! SCREW YOU, TELE!!!
 

 

[La Binoche]

Yesss Red Rock West is so good! I have no idea why or how I've seen it but I have. Nic Cage has quite a few gems, despite all the shit he gets. 

[RandomCat]

The Hidden seems like my kind of movie.

 

was that the FBI guy from Twin Peaks???

[Jake Gittes]

38 minutes ago, RandomJC said:

The Hidden seems like my kind of movie.

 

was that the FBI guy from Twin Peaks???

 

[RandomCat]

18 minutes ago, Jake Gittes said:

 

[Ezen Baklattan]

13 hours ago, Baumer said:

I feel like hen shit on a pump handle....useless....I don't know any of these films you have listed on the last two pages, Tele.

I imagine that it would be a good thing - you getting to discover something new seems to be the point of this list!

[chasmmi]

I am going to pretend that the reason I know none of these films is because Tele's tastes are too generic and mainstream for my tastes  

[Dementeleus]

49. Mountains of the Moon (1990)

written by: William Harrison & Bob Rafelson (based on Harrison's novel)
directed by: Bob Rafelson
starring: Patrick Bergin, Iain Glen

 

Synopsis:
The story of Captain Richard Francis Burton and Lt. John Hanning Speke's expedition to find the source of the Nile river in the name of Queen Victoria's British Empire. The film tells the story of their meeting, their friendship emerging amidst hardship, and then dissolving after their journey.

 

This is a character study between two famous English explorers, set against the epic backdrop of inner Africa. Richard Burton is probably the more famous of the two, but Speke was a renowned explorer in his own right. The two men were total opposites and competitive with each other, and throughout their journey to discover the source of the Nile, they also are very much in conflict with each other.

 

For you GAME OF THRONES fans, it's none other than Ser Jorah Mormont playing Lieutenant Speke.

 

 

[Dementeleus]

48. Thief (1981)

written and directed by: Michael Mann (based on the novel by Frank Hohimer)
starring: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Willie Nelson, James Belushi, Robert Prosky

 

Synopsis:
Becoming closer to his dream of leading a normal life, a professional safecracker agrees to do a job for the mafia, who have other plans for him.

 

This is Michael Mann's first feature film (he had written for TV and directed a TV movie before THIEF). From the beginning, the themes that've interested Mann throughout his career are on display here: the interplay between law enforcement and criminals, between criminals themselves, how these men define themselves (and their morality) by their professions, and the struggle between their "normal" lives and their professional ones. When I first saw this, I was expecting more of an action thriller, and so I was mildly disappointed. When I revisited it years later, I realized it was a rich and involving character study (that happens to have bouts of violent action occasionally). Highly recommended.

 

 

 

[John Marston]

32 minutes ago, Telemachos said:

48. Thief (1981)

written and directed by: Michael Mann (based on the novel by Frank Hohimer)
starring: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Willie Nelson, James Belushi, Robert Prosky

 

Synopsis:
Becoming closer to his dream of leading a normal life, a professional safecracker agrees to do a job for the mafia, who have other plans for him.

 

This is Michael Mann's first feature film (he had written for TV and directed a TV movie before THIEF). From the beginning, the themes that've interested Mann throughout his career are on display here: the interplay between law enforcement and criminals, between criminals themselves, how these men define themselves (and their morality) by their professions, and the struggle between their "normal" lives and their professional ones. When I first saw this, I was expecting more of an action thriller, and so I was mildly disappointed. When I revisited it years later, I realized it was a rich and involving character study (that happens to have bouts of violent action occasionally). Highly recommended.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lol, I got this movie from the library a few weeks ago. Didbt get around to watching it though 

[Jake Gittes]

Finally another movie I've seen. Thief is the shit.

[Dementeleus]

47. The Last Detail (1973)

written by: Robert Towne (from the novel by Darryl Ponicsan)
directed by: Hal Ashby
starring: Jack Nicholson, Otis Young, Randy Quaid

 

Synopsis:
Two Navy men are ordered to bring a young offender to prison but decide to show him one last good time along the way.

 

Before he wrote CHINATOWN, Robert Towne adapted this character study about two Navy shore patrol officers and their efforts to show a young prisoner -- dishonorably discharged from the Navy -- a good time before he goes to jail. This was one of the movies that really established Nicholson as one of the top American actors of the 1970s, and he makes the most of his role. If you've only seen Nicholson from his later roles in the 90s and beyond, the 70s were a time when he was a lot more nuanced with his performances (much like Pacino, come to think of it).

 

 

[La Binoche]

THE HIDDEN looks like fun. I'll have to check that out. 

[Fancyarcher]

Thief is such a cool movie. Dig that score by Tangerine Dream too.

[Chaz]

If I weren't so lazy I'd do a list like this too and you can bet your sweet ass that Cats Don't Dance would be on it.

[Chaz]

On 6/14/2016 at 0:30 PM, Telemachos said:

 

Could this be a pic of the elusive Tele in the 1970s?

 

#daddy

[John Marston]

1 hour ago, Telemachos said:

48. Thief (1981)

written and directed by: Michael Mann (based on the novel by Frank Hohimer)
starring: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Willie Nelson, James Belushi, Robert Prosky

 

Synopsis:
Becoming closer to his dream of leading a normal life, a professional safecracker agrees to do a job for the mafia, who have other plans for him.

 

This is Michael Mann's first feature film (he had written for TV and directed a TV movie before THIEF). From the beginning, the themes that've interested Mann throughout his career are on display here: the interplay between law enforcement and criminals, between criminals themselves, how these men define themselves (and their morality) by their professions, and the struggle between their "normal" lives and their professional ones. When I first saw this, I was expecting more of an action thriller, and so I was mildly disappointed. When I revisited it years later, I realized it was a rich and involving character study (that happens to have bouts of violent action occasionally). Highly recommended.

 

 

 

 

 

also another thing I noticed about this movie is that it was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer

[RandomCat]

I'm watching The Hidden right now.

 

Does that give me street cred?

[Dementeleus]

46. Runaway Train (1985)

written by: Djordje Milicevic & Paul Zindel & Edward Bunker (based on a screenplay by Akira Kurosawa)
directed by: Andrey Konchalovskiy
starring: Jon Voight, Eric Roberts, Rebecca De Mornay, John P. Ryan

 

Synopsis:
Two escaped convicts and a female railway worker find themselves trapped on a train with no brakes and nobody driving.

 

One of the best thrillers of the 1980s, RUNAWAY TRAIN has a fascinating pedigree. The source material was created by none other than Kurosawa, and director Konchalovskiy began his career working as a writer and collaborator with famed Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky. The story itself is simple (the synopsis above says it all), but the movie ultimately becomes much more of a meditation on how one should live life, and the choices we make (between safety and danger) through our existence here on earth.

 

Rather surprisingly (given the genre), both Jon Voight and Eric Roberts got nominated for Oscars, and deservedly so -- they're both fantastic in it. Voight in particular gives a towering performance. And aside from the great acting, this has great location cinematography and a very gritty, realistic feel. The stunts and action are all small scale, but that just hammers home the realism -- these aren't superheroes or actors working with safety lines and green screens, these are men desperately trying to control the raw machinery that's hurtling them towards their deaths.

 

Random tidbit of trivia: this is the movie that launched Danny Trejo's career. He was brought onto the production to train Eric Roberts in boxing, and ended up being his sparring partner in the ring during the boxing match at the prison.