Because Nobody Asked For It: The Panda's Top 250 Movies of All Time - COMPLETE

[The Panda]

Number 169

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

 

"They're coming to get you, Barbara, there's one of them now!"

 

Most Valuable Player: George A. Romera for his Direction, Editing, and Writing

Box Office: 5.8m (11.9m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 96%

Notable Awards: Becoming a cult classic that defined the Zombie genre

Critic Opinion: "It's hard to remember what sort of effect this movie might have had on you when you were six or seven. But try to remember. At that age, kids take the events on the screen seriously, and they identify fiercely with the hero. When the hero is killed, that's not an unhappy ending but a tragic one: Nobody got out alive. It's just over, that's all.

I felt real terror in that neighborhood theater last Saturday afternoon. I saw kids who had no resources they could draw upon to protect themselves from the dread and fear they felt." - Roger Ebert

User Opinion: None

Reasoning: Night of the Living Dead has become a cult classic since its release, and furthermore from that, it has become a movie that has completely shaped a genre.  You can thank this movie for the existence of movies from The Evil Dead to Zombieland to the Walking Dead TV Show, a truly impactful movie on the industry and horror genre.  Beyond that, Night of the Living Dead is also just a great and ingenious horror movie.  While it may seem a bit silly and dated as you age, it truly is horrifying to watch as a child, and there's still lots of enjoyment to be had in the film.  Not only that, but there's some great political and social commentary buried within the film as well.  Night of the Living Dead is one of the definitive movies of the horror genre.

Decade Count:  1930s: 5, 1940s: 6, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 6, 1980s: 17, 1990s: 12, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 9

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 168

National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)

 

 

"Here are your grade point avarages. Mr. Kroger: two C's, two D's and an F. That's a 1.2. Congratulations, Kroger. You're at the top of the Delta pledge class."

 

Most Valuable Player: Harold Ramis and Douglass Kenney for the Screenplay

Box Office: 120.1m (444m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 91%

Notable Awards: None

Synopsis: At a 1962 college, Dean Vernon Wormer is determined to expel the entire Delta Tau Chi Fraternity, but those trouble-makers have other plans for him.

Critic Opinion: "Beer barrels shatter windows, rock'n'roll blares out, havoc rules in this sharp, college-campus-of-'62 crack at American Graffiti. An unashamed sense of its own fantasy is coupled with classically mounted slapstick; nostalgia mixes with cynicism in seductive proportions; and John Belushi's central performance as brain-damaged slob-cum-Thief of Baghdad is wonderful." - Auty, Time Out

User Opinion: "One of the funniest movies ever. Belushi is great." - DAR

Reasoning: Another older comedy that really doesn't lose its humor with its age, in fact it still resonates hilarious in today's day and age.  John Landis is a master of comedy and Animal House is one of the best that he's made.  All of the sketches are laugh out loud funny, the performances from the cast all deliver perfectly, especially Belushi's.  There's plenty of great slapstick to be had throughout the film, especially with the finale at the end.  It's no wonder this movie turned into a massive hit in its time, and it's sad we don't get more straight comedies as great as this one.  ANIMAL HOUSE!

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 6, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 17, 1990s: 12, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 9

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 167

The Lady Eve (1941)

 

"You see, Hopsi, you don't know very much about girls. The best ones aren't as good as you probably think they are and the bad ones aren't as bad. Not nearly as bad."

 

Most Valuable Player: Barbara Stanwyck's Performance

Box Office: N/A

Tomatometer: 100%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar

Synopsis: A trio of classy card sharps targets the socially awkward heir to brewery millions for his money, until one of them falls in love with him.

Critic Opinion: "There's nothing more personal and unique than what somebody finds funny - not even what they find scary, maybe not even what they find sexy. The things that make us laugh are as specific to us as a fingerprint. And with that niceness out of the way, may I be so bold as to claim that The Lady Eve, the third film written and directed by the uncommonly great Preston Sturges (a writer-director in an era when those two jobs were jealously segregated) is objectively one of the funniest movies ever made, and that is that." - Brayton, Alternate Ending

User Opinion: None

Reasoning: Now for an even older comedy to add to my list, The Lady Eve is a movie that wasn't as fully appreciated as it ought to be in its time, and still isn't truly appreciated all that much today.  The movie is distinctly different from the typical movie to come out in the early-40s, and much of that is thanks to Preston Sturges work as a director.  The film boasts great performances from its stars, Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck, who both have electric chemistry on the screen.  The screenplay is rich in strong dialogue between its characters, and it stands as a classic comedy worthy of its name.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 17, 1990s: 12, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 9

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 166

Dances With Wolves (1990)

 

"My name is Dances with Wolves. I have nothing to say to you. You are not worth talking to."

 

Most Valuable Player: Kevin Costner for Directing and his Leading Performance

Box Office: 184.2m (378m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 82%

Notable Awards: Won 8 Oscars, including Best Picture

Synopsis: Lt. John Dunbar, exiled to a remote western Civil War outpost, befriends wolves and Indians, making him an intolerable aberration in the military.

Critic Opinion: "Our Flick of the Week is Kevin Costner`s American Indian epic ``Dances With Wolves,`` a three-hour delight in which Costner plays an open-hearted Civil War officer who embraces the Indian lifestyle after being stationed at a deserted fort. Having been told that all Indians are beggars and thieves, Costner`s character grows to appreciate the Indian culture as fun-loving, mystical and kind." - Gene Siskel

User Opinion: "I've always had a soft spot for this film and now thinking back to the first time i watched it(probably I was only 9 or 10), I greatly enjoyed it. Having watched it since then I have come to appreciate this film even more, from the performances, to the scenery, to the buffalo chase scene and the sorrowful part where the cowboys decide to kill the wolf for no reason(the scene still chokes me up everytime I watch it). I have unfortunately never been able to watch the 4 hour unedited version, but if I have the chance I certainly will. Costner showed overwhelming potential here, something that he hasn't been able to replicate since then. But I will always remember him for this movie and not all of his failures. Furthermore I feel cinema has been at a great loss due to the lack of genuine westerns in the last two decades(Cowboys & Aliens doesn't count) because since this movie we've really only had two greats, Unforgiven and True Grit(a great remake, but a remake nonetheless)." - tommycruise

Reasoning: A grand epic that stands as Costner's best by quite a long shot.  Epic's are tough, as if you don't get them right, then they are dreadfully long and boring, however Costner definitely gets it right with Dances With Wolves.  The movie is quite long, but it's worth it.  Everything from the relationships between the characters, to the major set pieces, to the ending, works wonderfully.  The film is sweeping and portrays struggles of the time period and it's a rare modern success of a lengthy historical epic really managing to strike the right chord and ring true.  And yes, Avatar is simply a worse version of this movie in space.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 17, 1990s: 13, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 9

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 165

Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn (1987)

 

"Workshed."

 

Most Valuable Player: Sam Raimi for Writing and Directing

Box Office: 5.9m (13.1m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 98%

Notable Awards: Lol.

Synopsis: The lone survivor of an onslaught of flesh-possessing spirits holes up in a cabin with a group of strangers while the demons continue their attack.

Critic Opinion: "Fledgling director Sam Raimi was given one piece of advice when he began his film career: Buckets of blood sell tickets. The resulting film was 1982's classic low-budget shocker Evil Dead, a nearly non-stop Grand Guignol that introduced the world to Raimi's demented method of filmmaking. His quick cuts, odd camera angles, and, of course, wild points of view—most notably a Steadicam perversion dubbed "The Shakycam," in which two cameramen run around with the camera mounted on a board—have since become benchmarks by which many quirky films are measured. The first Evil Dead is a straight horror film; 1987's sequel, however, is something else. Evil Dead 2: Dead By Dawn, essentially a remake of the first film, owes as much to The Three Stooges as it does to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The plot, what little there is of it, is appropriately ridiculous: Bruce Campbell unwittingly unleashes an ancient forest demon that terrorizes him and a handful of demon fodder in a secluded mountain cabin. Raimi is one of the most deliriously kinetic directors around, and this new widescreen edition amply shows off his dizzying style." - Klein, AV Club

User Opinion: "This and DEAD ALIVE are the pinnacle of splat-stick horror." - Telemachos

Reasoning: Take everything that made The Evil Dead such an effective horror movie, amplify it and add in slap-stick comedy and you get Evil Dead 2, a sequel that manages to be better than already strong original film.  The special effects are a notch up from the original and work well at still being a creepy sight to watch today, Raimi's direction is fun and sporadic, Evil Dead 2 is plain inventive frights and fun.  This is one of the most inventive and entertaining horror movies ever made.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 18, 1990s: 13, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 9

 

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 164

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

 

"Sell me this pen!"

 

Most Valued Player: Leonardo DiCaprio's Lead Performance

Box Office: 116.9m (126.2m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 77%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 5 Oscars, Including Best Picture

Synopsis: Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stock-broker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.

Critic Opinion: "From the first-person narration to the exquisitely clever soundtrack to the overall rags-to-riches-to-indictment story arc, The Wolf of Wall Street is clearly intended to be the prodigal son (and, yes, it is definitely a boy) of Scorsese’s Goodfellas. Belfort claws his working-class way into a manicured life, creates his own (non-homicidal) mini-mob family of criminal loyalists, and is ultimately undone by his appetites and vanity. Does Wolf have the heft or depth of Goodfellas? Of course not. The stakes are lower, the tone breezier, the excesses vastly more excessive. But you know what they say: second time, farce.  The Wolf of Wall Street is not a subtle movie, or a thoughtful movie, or a particularly innovative movie. But for those susceptible to its vulgar charms, Scorsese’s latest is a great—no, a fucking great—movie movie." - Orr, The Atlantic

User Opinion: "This is the best comedy I've seen in years, the craziest major studio release I've seen in forever, and even in a year with Hanks and Ejiofor, DiCaprio gives what is without a doubt my favorite performance of the year and probably the best of his lifetime. That's a lot of hyperbole right there but my ultimate point is that Scorsese just did the cinematic equivalent of dropping the mic. A goddamn masterpiece. " - Gopher

Reasoning: A modern crime epic.  The Wolf of Wall Street is an excessive drive of drugs and adrenaline that leaves you gut laughing and somewhat uncomfortable the entire way.  The ensemble is in perfect sync with each other, and Leonardo DiCaprio drives this movie home with one of the strongest performances of his career in a hilarious and very physical way.  The movie is incredibly excessive, but perhaps that's the point, it gives you too much, it goes on too long, it oversells everything, and that's part of what makes it such a phenomenal work by Scorsese.  Maybe it's not the most thoughtful or provocative movie about Wall Street, or living in excess, but it sure does pack a punch and leave you wickedly entertained and unsettled while doing so.  Watching the rise and tragically hilarious fall of man never tasted so debaucherous.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 18, 1990s: 13, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 10

 

 

 

Edited March 3, 2017 by The Panda

[The Panda]

Number 163

Boogie Nights (1997)

 

"I like simple pleasures, like butter in my ass, lollipops in my mouth. That's just me. That's just something that I enjoy."

 

Most Valuable Player: Paul Thomas Anderson's Direction and Writing

Box Office: 26.4m (50m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 92%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 3 Oscars

Synopsis: The story of a young man's adventures in the Californian pornography industry of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Critic Opinion: "Paul Thomas Anderson’s epic tale of porn, pleasure, and excess, offers a purer hit of exhilaration than any movie this year. Anderson traces the rise and fall of Eddie Adams (Mark Wahlberg), a 17-year-old San Fernando Valley busboy who becomes Dirk Diggler, the hottest name in the adult-film business. Dirk’s fortunes parallel the shifts in the porn industry, from the bedazzled hedonism of the late ’70s to the capitalist narcissism of the ’80s. For all its bravura, the most shocking aspect of Boogie Nights is its tenderness. Anderson sees the humanity of everyone on screen. At the climax, he stages the most hypnotic scene of the decade, as Dirk and his buddies attempt to rip off a rich, drugged-out jerk. It’s a vision of how pleasure itself became our ultimate addiction."

User Opinion: "I love this movie. It was so brilliant. Acting is fantastic the screenplay is great and same with the direction. I am surprised Mark could perform such a good performance." - Dexter of Suburbia

Reasoning: Following up the last movie, about excess and pleasure, with another movie about excessive pleasure.  Boogie Nights stands as one of Paul Thomas Anderson's best works.  There is so much that works in this movie, from Wahlberg's performance (shocking), to the long take, to the climatic ending.  The first scene of the movie grabs your attention and then it never lets your eyes go away from the screen afterwards.  Boogie Nights is another crime epic that works creatively and it manages to push the boundaries and your expectations for what to watch on screen.  Boogie Nights offers thoughtful truth to be had in its content, and it leaves you entranced while doing do.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 18, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 10

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 162

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

 

"KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNN!"

 

Most Valued Player: Leonard Nimoy as Spock

Box Office: 78.9m (232.2m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 88%

Notable Awards: A remake/carbon copy made in its honor called Into Darkness

Critic Opinion: "The peculiar thing about Spock is that, being half human and half Vulcan and therefore possessing about half the usual quota of human emotions, he consistently, if dispassionately, behaves as if he possessed very heroic human emotions indeed. He makes a choice in “Star Trek II” that would be made only by a hero, a fool, or a Vulcan. And when he makes his decision, the movie rises to one of its best scenes, because the "Star Trek" stories have always been best when they centered around their characters. Although I liked the special effects in the first movie, they were probably not the point; fans of the TV series wanted to see their favorite characters again, and “Trek II” understood that desire and acted on it. " - Roger Ebert

User Opinion: "The real Kobayashi Maru test is trying to make a Trek movie better than this. It's impossible. This has everything a great sci-fi flick needs. Intriguing story, awesome villain, pretty damn good performances, kick-ass score, effects that hold up surprisingly well and of course a superb emotional ending." - CoolioD1

Reasoning: While Star Trek (2009) may give it a run for its money, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is still best of the Trek movies, and it's the closest to not only match the spirit of the original TV show that made it so great, but to have a good story to tell along with it.  The characters are back in action in bigger moral dilemmas than ever, and the film is just a blast to watch from start to finish.  On top of that, the emotional hook near the end is pretty gut-wrenching, especially if you've spent hundreds of hours with these characters through the TV shows prior to this.  Khan also manages to rank himself as one of the top blockbuster villains of all-time in this film.  Wrath of Khan offers everything that a Star Trek fan could possibly want, and it's easy to see why so many regard it as the best of the Trek films.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 19, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 10

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Last one for today, and I'll be dead and gone!

 

Number 161

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

 

"I'm tired. I thought I just needed a night's sleep but it's more than that."

 

Most Valuable Player: The Folk Soundtrack

Box Office: 13.2m (14.2m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 94%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 2 Oscars

Synopsis: A week in the life of a young singer as he navigates the Greenwich Village folk scene of 1961.

Critic Opinion: "Llewyn Davis is a good-but-not-great folk singer knocking around New York in the winter of 1961, talented enough to make the scene but not to influence it.  He’s also selfish, unhappy and deeply irresponsible. “Inside Llewyn Davis” follows him for a week of his life.  Why would anyone want to make that journey? Because, in the hands of Joel and Ethan Coen, even a miserable character is worth following around, and Davis, played with great unhappiness by Oscar Isaac, is no exception. All the performances are good, and all are weird, yet at the same time genuine (no easy feat). And layered atop this unhappy existence is a thick coating of humor (an even tougher feat). That mix, of a skewed look at the world coupled with dark humor, puts us comfortably — if that’s the word — in Coen brothers territory." - Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic

User Opinion: "Great movie; there's that great morbid dark Coen humor flowing throughout, and they're not afraid to have Llewyn be a complete asshole most of the time. And it's got a real insight into the struggle for greatness that everyone with a creative dream faces, along with the stark realization that (for most) that struggle will fail.
 
This makes it sound bleak and depressing beyond belief, but it isn't at all. It's full of life."

Reasoning: This is turning out to be one of the Coen Brothers most overlooked works, and it deserves a lot more attention than it has gotten.  The film is melancholic and honest as it follows a week in the life of Oscar Isaac's title character.  There is a cold and monotonous struggle to the whole affair, and everything all ends up exactly where it started, in a full circle.  There is a lot of poetry in the structure of the film and the struggle and failure of Davis as he continually tries to pave out a career as a folk singer.  There's plenty of humor to be had in the film, the cinematography is absolutely gorgeous and the soundtrack is one of the most memorable ones to come out of a film this decade.  There's a lot of ideas buried within the film, and it's all executed so well, definitely check this movie out.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 19, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 11

 

 

 

 

 

[chasmmi]

Just 80 more entries or so before the Kung Fu Panda Franchise makes its entrance I think... 

[baumer]

I will comment on this awesome list of films that you have here later on this weekend when I have more time. I'm really enjoying everything so far but I just have to point out one thing and that is that Full Metal Jacket did not come out in 1983. Without looking it up I'm pretty sure it was 1987. It was definitely after Platoon.

[The Panda]

37 minutes ago, baumer said:

I will comment on this awesome list of films that you have here later on this weekend when I have more time. I'm really enjoying everything so far but I just have to point out one thing and that is that Full Metal Jacket did not come out in 1983. Without looking it up I'm pretty sure it was 1987. It was definitely after Platoon.

 

Ooh oops, I may have made a typo there

[Plain Old Tele]

Yes, it was 1987.

[baumer]

Wolf of Fucking Wall Street!

 

Fuck YEA!

[The Panda]

Number 160

Blue Velvet (1986)

 

"I have a part of you with me. You put your disease in me. It helps me. It makes me strong."

 

Most Valuable Player: David Lynch's Direction

Box Office: 8.6m (19.9m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 94%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar

Synopsis: The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.

Critic Opinion: "Erotic, neurotic, euphoric and at all times unutterably twisted and bizarre, David Lynch’s Blue Velvet is back in cinemas, 30 years after its original release: an intensely 80s movie with an intensely 40s noir template: a baffling and unique palimpsest of styles and associations. From the dreamy, disquietingly intense vision of picket-fence America, a macabre drama emerges. Clean-cut Jeffrey (Kyle MacLachlan) is walking home when he discovers a severed ear on the ground: does that ear stand for the director’s own hyper-sensitive perception of underground stirrings, the secret life of underground America? I continue to wonder, incidentally, about how Jeffrey comes to be walking anywhere, given that we later see him at the wheel of a gorgeous red convertible." - Bradshaw, The Guardian

User Opinion: "Just saw that no one has reviewed this yet - come on, that's counted as a classic; at least it's among Lynch's best. (I like it a bit better than Mulholland Drive, but Lynch's one real masterpiece that will stay with us is "The Straight Story")"Blue Velvet" starts slow, but once it picks up speed it's hard not to be fascinated with what's unfolding on the screen. Isabella Rosselini and Dennis Hopper deliver captivating and painful performances, Dennis Hopper really going over the top here. Laura Dern's character comes over as rather weak; she has to carry a worried or concerned look throughout the film - for her, "Wild at Heart" was a much better film. Kyle MacLachlan - I never understood what Lynch saw in him, maybe he liked the undecipherable face but MacLachlan can't carry a film.Highly recommended if you like the "small town with underlying dark secrets"-theme; also reminds me of the psychothrillers en vogue in the 80s which seem to have become nearly extinct. The story is simple but the performances are so captivating that this has also some rewatch value." - IndustriousAngel

Reasoning: I really don't have many words for this film, other than it's really something else and that it's some really potent directing done by David Lynch.  This is a subtle thriller that really manages to make itself something else.  It's rather boldly original, yet it's also surprisingly fairly simple.  Maybe it's late, and I just don't have much of my brain working right now to be able to describe what makes this film work so well, but it's intense and sucks you into the screen.  A spectacular cult classic sex thriller that should be seen by everyone wanting to be artistically challenged.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 20, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 159

Heathers (1988)

 

"If you were happy every day of your life you wouldn't be a human being. You'd be a game-show host."

 

Most Valuable Player: Daniel Waters' Screenplay

Box Office: 1.1m (2.4m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 95%

Notable Awards: Later getting a hit Broadway musical adaption?

Synopsis: In order to get out of the snobby clique that is destroying her good-girl reputation, an intelligent teen teams up with a dark sociopath in a plot to kill the cool kids.

Critic Opinion: "Nineteen years after its 1989 release, "Heathers" stands up as well as its fans expected it would. At the time, a particularly astute young critic writing for The San Francisco Chronicle described the film as having not a skewed vision of reality but simply an honest one - "wide-eyed, deadpan and without excuses." Two decades later, "Heathers" is so on the money, with its vague but unmistakable parallels to several school shootings, that it could never be made today. This deep, dark black comedy tells the story of a high school girl (Winona Ryder) who becomes involved with a young rebel (Christian Slater) and, almost by happenstance, finds herself murdering some of her more obnoxious (and popular) friends. Screenwriter Daniel Waters has gone on to write some idiosyncratic bombs ("The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" and "Hudson Hawk") and a smart, unappreciated action film ("Demolition Man"), but "Heathers," for which he devised his own slang, remains his masterpiece. The film, directed by Michael Lehmann, is one of the signature motion pictures of its decade. The new edition comes with filmmaker commentaries and a second disc containing two featurettes, with cast and crew interviews. Missing from both, alas, is Kim Walker, who was terrific as the top Heather, Heather Chandler, and spoke the famous line, "What, did you have a brain tumor for breakfast?" Ironically and tragically, Walker died of a brain tumor in 2001, after a two-year illness. " - LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

User Opinion: "Interesting movie, I watched this blindly and I thought it was going to be more like Mean Girls and Clueless and the movie is much darker film.  Over all I liked the movie and I would be will to seen it again. The acting was good and the characters were interesting." - Dexter of Suburbia

Reasoning: A dark, unsettling and hilariously truthful comedy/drama of a pair of teenagers that begin to become involved in school shootings.  The film is quite sinister actually in plot, but Waters' screenplay really makes the movie a blast to watch through, while also bringing up excellent commentary of mental health and high school shootings, it's almost as if Waters was able to see the future in how he wrote the characters.  There's so much wit within the screenplay, it's a shame Waters' wasn't even able to get an Oscar nomination, let alone a win for it.  This movie really is something else, it's most definitely not your typical John Hughes coming of age film, in fact it manages to really make itself something more than that.  The characterization is excellent, and Winona Ryder and Christian Slater completely own their characters.  I'd recommend giving this cult hit a try, even if you don't like high school flicks, no especially if you don't like high school flicks, because Heathers is still convention breaking when it comes to coming of age movies.

Decade Count: 1930s: 5, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 21, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 11

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 158

The Informer (1935)

 

"Oh dear, oh dear. I have a queer feelin' there's going to be a strange face in heaven in the mornin'."

 

Most Valuable Player: John Ford's Direction

Box Office: N/A

Tomatometer: 91%

Notable Awards: Won 4 Oscars, was also nominated for Best Picture

Synopsis: In 1922, an Irish rebel informs on his friend, then feels doom closing in.

Critic Opinion: "With The Informer (1935) John Ford won his first of four Best Director Oscars. Likewise, Victor McLaughlin won Best Actor as Gypo Nolan, a down-on-his-luck Irish hood who turns in his best friend for a 20-pound reward.  The film's gorgeous black-and-white cinematography -- with its streams of fog and sparkling cobblestones -- gave audiences a new glimpse as to the potential artistry of cinema. After seeing this film, Jean Renoir reportedly once said, "I learned so much today ... I learned how to not move my camera."" - Anderson, Combustible Celluloid

User Opinion: None

Reasoning: This is an old classic film that really gets lost in history, and it's a shame, as not only was it John Ford's first Best Director win at the Oscars, it was also a movie that really was groundbreakingly beautiful in the way it was shot versus other films that came out around that time period.  Maybe it's not the most exciting of films to watch anymore, but I do think it's something a true filmlover would be able to watch and appreciate for much of the ingenuity that went into the making of it.  The film also boasts a great score by Steiner.  Honestly though, take a look at The Informer, you'll find a lot to really appreciate in this old gem.

Decade Count: 1930s: 6, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 21, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 13, 2010s: 11

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Number 157

Magnolia (1999)

 

"This happens. This is something that happens."

 

Most Valuable Player: Writing and Direction by Paul Thomas Anderson

Box Office: 22.5m (36.1m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 84%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 3 Oscars

Synopsis: An epic mosaic of interrelated characters in search of love, forgiveness, and meaning in the San Fernando Valley.

Critic Opinion: "You barely have a chance to get comfortable in your seat before the wild ride begins in Magnolia. With equal measures of deadpan cool and breathless impatience, writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights) zips through three unconnected and vaguely unsettling tales of chance. There are no happy endings, no inspiring morals. Instead, the vignettes percolate with unforgiving ironies and darkly comical coincidences, all the better to underscore what quickly emerges as the movie’s underlying theme: The things of life are furiously random and capricious, and yet – sometimes tragically, sometimes wondrously -- patterns appear, if only by accident. Ultimately, everything is inevitable only because it goes to the trouble of happening." - Leydon, The Moving Picture Show

User Opinion: "This is an astonishing piece of filmmaking. Fucking phenomenal performances all around. I think the writing on the female characters is unfortunately weak, but in a monumental movie like this it's a small complaint.  During the Wise Up scene I was trembling and holding back tears. One of the most beautiful scenes I've seen." - Jack Nevada

Reasoning: This isn't a film for everyone, and it's a bit polarizing, so I don't necessarily expect everyone to like it as much as I did (and I don't even like it as much as some other people do).  However, Magnolia is another top notch work from Paul Thomas Anderson, and it's incredibly creative, gut-wrenching, and tear-jerking.  All of the characters are all fully well realized and performed, and the various plotlines all work, despite not really being all that connected.  It's long, ambitious, and it arguably has a number of missed moments, but it's easy to overlook those when everything else in the movie hits so well.  It's a film full of ideas and full of emotion.  Great modern film.

Decade Count: 1930s: 6, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 21, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 14, 2010s: 11

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Last one for tonight

 

Number 156

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

 

"I am Groot."

 

Most Valuable Player: The Ensemble and the Awesome Mix Vol 1

Box Office: 333.2m (356.2m Adjusted)

Tomatometer: 91%

Notable Awards: Nominated for 2 Oscars

Synopsis: A group of intergalactic criminals are forced to work together to stop a fanatical warrior from taking control of the universe.

Critic Opinion: "In fact, Guardians of the Galaxy makes the case that a hero’s individual strength amounts to merely a culturally acceptable form of pigheadedness. Take the movie’s portrayal of Drax, a conflicted vigilante with only one thing on his mind—avenging his murdered wife and child. It’s a generic motivation, and another movie might try to use him to bring us to tears. But here he nearly dies in the attempt for revenge, thus endangering the greater mission, to make money. “We’ve all got dead people!” his compatriot Rocket Raccoon scoffs. And for one moment of wonderful lucidity a Marvel movie makes sport of Marvel’s big, profitable trope: the prolonged mourning of buff guys in tights." - Kilkenny, The Atlantic

User Opinion: "You could say that the groundwork is fairly derivative of other Space operas and even some of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but Gunn just makes the movie dance (pun sorta intended) across the entire runtime. His clear stamp is all over the movie, with its witty humor and surprisingly rich and heartfelt relationships among the five heroes, something we almost never get in most blockbusters. There's just enough fun world building and character growth to keep things in this world interesting, and even from the beginning, the film knows how to balance all of the right elements well, creating such a harmonious mix of action, humor, heart, and sheer fun that never lets go for the entire film." - Sphaghetti

Reasoning: Yeah, I probably put this movie above a lot of movies that are technically better films, but I can't get over the fact how much fun this movie is to watch, and how much replay value it manages to have.  As the third of four "superhero" movies to make my list, Guardians of the Galaxy succeeds in a rather generic genre by simply completely owning and realizing what it is.  It offers the action spectacle when needed, the shallow heartstring tugs at sections, and the best comedy in a MCU movie by a mile (as well as simply being the best MCU movie by a longshot).  The film boasts creative characters, wild action sequences and a barrage of quotable one-liners.  Also, you can't forget the creative soundtrack that really elevates the film and helps make it feel like a breath of fresh air.  Guardians of the Galaxy created an energetic, pulpy, space opera universe and is an absolute blast of a film.

Decade Count: 1930s: 6, 1940s: 7, 1950s: 4, 1960s: 7, 1970s: 7, 1980s: 21, 1990s: 14, 2000s: 14, 2010s: 12

 

 

 

 

[The Panda]

Here's some hints of films coming up, are they good enough to guess the movie?

 

152: Barry "Bee" Benson asks, "Ya like Jazz?"

150: A successful and rather recent indie film you probably don't remember

149: One of Tele's favorites

144: A Holiday Classic!

143: The Last Comic Book/Superhero Movie on my list

140: A film that's made almost entirely by the composer