"You talking to me?" THE 70s COUNTDOWN IS DONE!

[cannastop]

#46 (tie)

The Omen

37 points, 10 lists, 1 top 10

A scene from the film appeared at #16 on Bravo's The 100 Scariest Movie Moments.

Quote

Bernhard claims Gregory Peck had been the choice to portray Ambassador Thorn from the beginning. Peck got involved with the project through his agent, who was friends with producer Harvey Bernhard. After reading the script, Peck reportedly liked the idea that it was more of a psychological thriller rather than a horror film and agreed to star in it.[4][6]

 

Despite Bernhard's claim,[4] William Holden was also considered for the role. Holden turned it down, claiming he didn’t want to star in a film about the devil. Holden later would portray Thorn's brother, Richard, in the sequel, Damien: Omen II (1978).[7] A firm offer was made to Charlton Heston on July 19, 1975. He turned the part down on July 27, not wanting to spend an entire winter alone in Europe and also concerned that the film might have an exploitative feel if not handled carefully.[8] Roy Scheider and Dick Van Dyke were also considered for the role of Robert Thorn.[9] Charles Bronson was also offered the role.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Omen

[cannastop]

#46 (tie)

Mad Max (1979)

37 points, 10 lists, 1 top 5

Rotten Tomatoes:

Average Rating: 7.74/10
Total Count: 61
Fresh: 55 Rotten: 6

Quote

Casting director Mitch Mathews invited for Mad Max a class of recent National Institute of Dramatic Art graduates, specifically asking a NIDA teacher for "spunky young guys". Among these actors was Mel Gibson, whose audition impressed Miller and Matthews and earned him the role of Max. An apocryphal tale stated that Gibson went to auditions with a beat-up face following a fight, but this has been denied by both Matthews and Miller. Gibson's friend and classmate Steve Bisley, who worked with him in his only screen role, 1976's Summer City, became Max's partner Jim Goose. A classmate of both, Judy Davis, was said to have auditioned and to have been passed over,[10] but Miller has declared she was only in Matthews' studio to accompany Gibson and Bisley.[5]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mad_Max

[cannastop]

Didn't know that story about Gibson being beat up was fake.

[Jake Gittes]

Now I wish Judy Davis had been a part of the Mad Max universe that would have rocked. 

[cannastop]

Fuck it, I'm finishing this as soon as possible. The only write-up that I know of is from @Porthos, This might be done before Saturday comes.

[cannastop]

#44 (tie)

Days of Heaven (1978)

38 points, 7 lists, 1 top 5, 2 top 10

2012 Sight & Sound 14 Critics, 5 directors

Quote

Production began in the late summer of 1976.[13] Although the film was set in Texas, the exteriors were shot in Whiskey Gap, Alberta, a ghost town, and a final scene was shot on the grounds of Heritage Park Historical Village, Calgary.[14]

Jack Fisk designed and built the mansion from plywood in the wheat fields and the smaller houses where the workers lived. The mansion was not a facade, as was normally the custom, but authentically recreated inside and out with period colors: brown, mahogany and dark wood for the interiors.[12] Patricia Norris designed and made the period costumes from used fabrics and old clothes to avoid the artificial look of studio-made costumes.[12]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Days_of_Heaven

[cannastop]

#44

Breaking Away (1979)

38 points, 7 lists, 1 top 5, 2 top 10.

AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers #8.

Quote

The abandoned limestone quarry where Dave and his friends swam is on private property in Perry Township south of Bloomington. It is located at the end of East Empire Mill Road off old State Road 37 and is illegal for visitors to trespass. Rooftop Quarry, as it is referred to locally, was originally known as Sanders Quarry or The Long Hole. Access to the quarry has been made difficult by its owners, Indiana Limestone Company, to discourage people from swimming and jumping into the quarry citing safety concerns.[12]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaking_Away

[Fancyarcher]

Hey @cannastop I sent you a message about the list. I've got a write-up for you!

Edited October 11, 2019 by Fancyarcher

[cannastop]

#43

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

38 points, 9 lists, 1 top 5, 1 top 10

2012 Sight & Sound: 5 critics

Quote

Principal photography for Dawn of the Living Dead (its working title at the time) began on November 13, 1977, at the Monroeville Mall in Monroeville, Pennsylvania. Use of an actual, open shopping mall during the Christmas shopping season caused numerous time constraints. Filming began nightly once the mall closed, starting at 11 PM and ending at 7 AM, when automated music came on. As December arrived, the production decided against having the crew remove and replace the Christmas decorations—a task that had proved to be too time consuming. Filming was shut down during the last three weeks of the year to avoid the possible continuity difficulties and lost shooting time. Production would resume on January 3, 1978. During the break in filming, Romero took the opportunity to begin editing his existing footage.[12]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dawn_of_the_Dead_(1978_film)

[Fancyarcher]

Dagnabbit. That's one of the films I had a write-up planned for. Absolutely love Dawn of The Dead. 

[TalismanRing]

21 minutes ago, cannastop said:

#44

Breaking Away (1979)

38 points, 7 lists, 1 top 5, 2 top 10.

AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers #8.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaking_Away

Love this movie - so happy to see it rank so high and I think if more people saw it it would rank even higher.

 

[Plain Old Tele]

4 minutes ago, TalismanRing said:

Love this movie - so happy to see it rank so high and I think if more people saw it it would rank even higher.

 

It’s such a great movie. One of my faves. 

[cannastop]

And a slight pause as @Fancyarcher writes a few write-ups for the next 10 movies in the countdown, which I told him about.

[Fancyarcher]

27 minutes ago, Plain Old Tele said:

It’s such a great movie. One of my faves. 

Breaking Away is terrific. That was an absolutely pleasant surprise the first time I watched it. Great little coming of age story, some terrific performances too (I'm amazed Dennis Christopher didn't go on to be a bigger star). Also as a filmmaker Peter Yates doesn't get enough love. 

[Cap]

38 minutes ago, Fancyarcher said:

Dagnabbit. That's one of the films I had a write-up planned for. Absolutely love Dawn of The Dead. 

Post it anywaaaay

 

[Fancyarcher]

12 minutes ago, captainwondyful said:

Post it anywaaaay

 

Alright (out of likes unfortunately).

 

 

"Aside from hair fashions and some red blood (which was a stylish choice from Romero, but looks fake as all hell), Dawn of the Dead, George Romero’s masterpiece second film in his lauded series, Dawn of The Dead holds up remarkably well. While it’s not subtle about its suburban themes, the movie is masterclass of setting tone, and then turning it upside down, as our characters find themselves, in a world of turmoil and war between the zombies in a shopping mall. 

 

Funny, inventive, and wickedly gorey. Dawn of The Dead is the perfect horror movie, and even forty years later has not lost one ounce of its power. Just as Peter in the film says, "When, there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth."

Edited October 11, 2019 by Fancyarcher

[cannastop]

#42

Deliverance (1972)

38 points, 10 lists, 1 top 10

2012 Sight & Sound: 1 critic, 1 director

Quote

During the filming of the canoe scene, author James Dickey showed up inebriated and entered into a bitter argument with producer-director John Boorman, who had rewritten Dickey's script. They allegedly had a brief fistfight in which Boorman, a much smaller man than Dickey, suffered a broken nose and four shattered teeth.[4] Dickey was thrown off the set, but no charges were filed against him. The two reconciled and became good friends, and Boorman gave Dickey a cameo role as the sheriff at the end of the film.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deliverance

[cannastop]

#41

The Aristocats (1970)

39 points, 8 lists, 1 top 5

#10 at the domestic box office for 1970.

Quote

In 1966, Disney assigned Ken Anderson to determine whether Aristocats would be suitable for an animated feature. With occasional guidance from Reitherman, Anderson worked from scratch and simplified the two stories into a story that focused more on the cats.[6] Disney saw the preliminary sketches and approved the project shortly before his death.[8] After The Jungle Book was completed, the animation department began work on Aristocats.[6] Hibler was eventually replaced by Reitherman,[3] who would abandon the more emotional story of Duchess's obsession to find adopters befitting of her kittens' talents initially favored by Disney suggesting instead the film be conceived as an adventure comedy in the vein of One Hundred and One Dalmatians. Furthermore, the character Elmira, the maid, who was intended to be voiced by Elsa Lanchester, was removed from the story placing Edgar as the central villain in order to better simplify the storyline.[7]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Aristocats

[cannastop]

#40

Robin Hood (1973)

40 points, 8 lists, 1 #1, 1 top 10

Created Furries

@Fancyarcher

Quote

"Disney’s Robin Hood is a movie that admittedly recycles a lot of animation (Little John is literally Baloo same voice actor and everything), and like most of their films from the 1970s has a very dry and stiff look to its, but it’s a movie that is very dear to my heart. A delightful “animal take” on the classic Sherwood story, with some great humor. I particularly love the great Peter Ustinov as the conniving but bumbling Prince John, and Roger Miller’s Ooo-de-lally has been stuck in my brain since I was a child. The movie continues to charm me to this very day. I do still like seeing Little John and Robin Hood walking through the forest!"

 

[cannastop]

#39

Saturday Night Fever (1977)

42 points, 12 lists

John Travolta was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar

Quote

When the film premiered on network television, on ABC in 1980, a new milder version was created to conform with network broadcast standards. To maintain runtime, a few deleted scenes were restored (including Tony dancing with Doreen to "Disco Duck", Tony running his finger along the cables of the Verrazzano–Narrows Bridge, and Tony's father getting his job back). The last two deleted scenes were included in the 2017 director's cut.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday_Night_Fever