What about the CENTURIES cinema still has to go through? Keep in mind that in comparison to all other art forms (music, literature, art) cinema is still relatively new, being slightly riper than 100. But if we’re going on the grounds of films up to today since cinema’s inception that will be remembered in 1000 years, I’d go with “Citizen Kane,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and “The Godfather,” strictly on terms of general popularity as well as cinematic significance. Plenty of other films will be remembered, but those three could be at the forefront of people’s minds.
Being a Russian, I’d definitely recommend Eisenstein’s “Battleship Potemkin” and “Ivan the Terrible Parts 1 and 2” if you’ve got an open mind, and not willing to bend to nationalist propaganda, because that’s what both films are.
Tarkovsky’s “Solaris” and “Stalker” are also brilliant, if obscure. However, if you watch those films right before you plan to go to sleep, you’ll have the craziest dreams, so that’s a plus.
I haven’t gotten around to seeing many foreign films from the decade, but here’s what I can muster:
1. The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)
2. King Kong (2005)
3. The Departed (2006)
4. Children of Men (2006)
5. Memento (2001)
6. Bowling for Columbine (2002)
7. The Pianist (2002)
8. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
9. Into the Wild (2007)
10. There Will Be Blood (2007)
Note: Of the foreign films I have seen, I loved Y Tu Mama Tambien, City of God, and The Lives of Others.
Other great films that just miss the cut for me are Adaptation, Letters from Iwo Jima, Crash, 21 Grams, Traffic, Ray, (despite its sentimentality) Cinderella Man
Traffic is truly a great film. Great ensemble, effective editing and cinematography, reflecting the idea that no matter how much we do to control drug trafficking, the problem can never be erased. It’s great that it covers the issue of drugs from so many perspectives: the politicians, the police, the users, the dealers.
The Ocean’s films were never meant to be masterpieces. They’re just meant for fluff. And in that sense, they’re great fluff.
I’d go with “2001: A Space Odyssey,” both the 1933 and the 2005 “King Kong”, all of the “Star Wars,” and especially “The Lord of the Rings” because of Gollum.
The great thing is that Sacha Baron Cohen exposes the flaws of American society through scathing comedy. We live in an age where people are so used to being exposed in front of a camera or other device like YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook, that Cohen just takes advantage of that and people’s honesty to reveal a true portrait of America. He claimed that he wanted to just see if the three act structure could work in the real world, but the truth is that he’s doing something far more important. And Bruno does look very very funny.
I had the misfortune of seeing “Transformers,” which the friends I saw it with loved. I don’t know what I was thinking. Awful script (same old rehashed story I’ve seen a thousand times), acting (0 character development, nor do I care about them), even the action scenes (which Michael Bay should be good at because they’re all he cares about) were messy. I couldn’t tell what was going on during those fight scenes. They complained that I didn’t grow up on Transformers (which I didn’t), so I didn’t like the movie. That was bull. It was really a bad movie. Luckily, I think more and more of my friends are starting to agree with me. Furthermore, I didn’t grow up reading The Lord of the Rings prior to seeing the first film, and I loved it.
Well if we’re on the grounds of convincing CGI, I’ll go as far as to say that I totally believed that both Gollum and Peter Jackson’s Kong were tangible creatures. The same would go for Jaws (even though he wasn’t digital) and any animal in “Jurassic Park.”
1. The Departed (Truth be told, it was my first Scorsese film, so the initial experience just blew me away)
2. Raging Bull
3. Taxi Driver
4. Mean Streets
5. The Aviator (Underrated. Great editing and performances, especially DiCaprio)
The boxed extended cuts of The Lord of the Rings are so incredibly in depth about the making of the film, from Tolkein, to screenplay, concept art, miniatures, set design, costumes and make-up, casting, fight choreography, cinematography, visual effects, sound, editing, and the films’ initial releases. Each section is at least 20-30 minutes long and new details are discussed about all of these processes for each film. Hours upon hours worth of footage. It really gives you the idea of what it is like to construct an enormous epic in the 21st century.
I’m going with Pan’s Labyrinth beating Children of Men for cinematography. By the way, Children of Men is a far superior film to The Queen, and should have kicked it out of the Best Picture race to get nominated. Too bad it was released by the end of the year so that none of the damn members of the Academy could see it. They’re probably kicking themselves now.
I think that the film might be slightly overrated, but by no means is it bad, nor even mediocre. In fact, in the long line of comic book and superhero films to be released in the last ten years, it certainly is at the top. The reason for why it has such extreme reactions from both the negative and positive front is because of the hyping, especially since Heath Ledger’s death. Again, financed by Hollywood studios, the film has no intention of being an artistic achievement, although in my opinion, it has its moments. Ledger’s performance is one that is immediately engrossing to watch from beginning to end. What is most important about the performance (and why it is so very good) is that just like the great cinematic villains (Darth Vader, Hannibal Lecter, The Wicked Witch) The Joker’s presence is felt in the film even when he is not on screen. In addition to the hyping of “The Dark Knight,” the film already had the groundwork from “Batman Begins” to be considered a great film in advance. The reason there was significantly less hyping for “Batman Begins” was because the film was coming out of a franchise with a poor reputation (Batman Forever, Batman and Robin), so it was able to creep up on its audiences. "The Dark Knight didn’t have that kind of benefit.
1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die seems to be a pretty logical source. There might be a few selections I disagree with, but another great thing is that a brief essay accompanies each film from one of dozens of cinema scholars. As far as locating the films, I’ve used Netflix, and my local libraries have a surprising wealth of films, both American and foreign.
Well, IMDB is based off of what their users think are great films, and pretty much a reflection of what the general public thinks about film. 1,001 definitely has an eclectic grouping of films, and I would say that at least 60% of the films catalogued are foreign.
Last movie you saw and rate it about 3 years ago
Last film seen for the first time
The Royal Tenanbaums: 8/10
Last film actually seen
Children of Men: 10/10
Go to Comment
It's Year 3009 - What 3 Films Survived Through A Millenium of History? about 3 years ago
What about the CENTURIES cinema still has to go through? Keep in mind that in comparison to all other art forms (music, literature, art) cinema is still relatively new, being slightly riper than 100. But if we’re going on the grounds of films up to today since cinema’s inception that will be remembered in 1000 years, I’d go with “Citizen Kane,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and “The Godfather,” strictly on terms of general popularity as well as cinematic significance. Plenty of other films will be remembered, but those three could be at the forefront of people’s minds.
Go to Comment
When I say "A Perfect Film", What One Film Pops Into Your Head First? about 3 years ago
“Memento.” But I could easily substitute it with several more. There’s just nothing I would change about that film.
Go to Comment
Orson Welles, your recommendations about 3 years ago
There’s this one movie he did a while back, its got some guy and a sled…
Go to Comment
Orson Welles, your recommendations about 3 years ago
“Touch of Evil” is a good one though, as long as you don’t put your faith in Charleton Heston playing a Mexican.
Go to Comment
Russian Film about 3 years ago
Being a Russian, I’d definitely recommend Eisenstein’s “Battleship Potemkin” and “Ivan the Terrible Parts 1 and 2” if you’ve got an open mind, and not willing to bend to nationalist propaganda, because that’s what both films are.
Tarkovsky’s “Solaris” and “Stalker” are also brilliant, if obscure. However, if you watch those films right before you plan to go to sleep, you’ll have the craziest dreams, so that’s a plus.
Go to Comment
Russian Film about 3 years ago
“Stalker”^
Go to Comment
TOP TEN 2000 - 2008 about 3 years ago
I haven’t gotten around to seeing many foreign films from the decade, but here’s what I can muster:
1. The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)
2. King Kong (2005)
3. The Departed (2006)
4. Children of Men (2006)
5. Memento (2001)
6. Bowling for Columbine (2002)
7. The Pianist (2002)
8. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
9. Into the Wild (2007)
10. There Will Be Blood (2007)
Note: Of the foreign films I have seen, I loved Y Tu Mama Tambien, City of God, and The Lives of Others.
Go to Comment
TOP TEN 2000 - 2008 about 3 years ago
Other great films that just miss the cut for me are Adaptation, Letters from Iwo Jima, Crash, 21 Grams, Traffic, Ray, (despite its sentimentality) Cinderella Man
and Borat
Go to Comment
Whats your favourite actor,and what actor is so bad you cant look at him about 3 years ago
Favorites: Brando, Sean Penn, DiCaprio, De Niro, Viggo Mortensen
Hate: Too many to count but I’ll go with Vin Diesel, Adam Sandler, Keaunu Reeves
Go to Comment
How many movies did you watch in a row? about 3 years ago
I sat through all six Star Wars in pretty much one sitting with some friends. Great stuff.
Go to Comment
What are your thoughts on Steven Soderbergh? about 3 years ago
Traffic is truly a great film. Great ensemble, effective editing and cinematography, reflecting the idea that no matter how much we do to control drug trafficking, the problem can never be erased. It’s great that it covers the issue of drugs from so many perspectives: the politicians, the police, the users, the dealers.
The Ocean’s films were never meant to be masterpieces. They’re just meant for fluff. And in that sense, they’re great fluff.
Go to Comment
what's your favorite special effects movie about 3 years ago
I’d go with “2001: A Space Odyssey,” both the 1933 and the 2005 “King Kong”, all of the “Star Wars,” and especially “The Lord of the Rings” because of Gollum.
Go to Comment
Bruno about 3 years ago
The great thing is that Sacha Baron Cohen exposes the flaws of American society through scathing comedy. We live in an age where people are so used to being exposed in front of a camera or other device like YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook, that Cohen just takes advantage of that and people’s honesty to reveal a true portrait of America. He claimed that he wanted to just see if the three act structure could work in the real world, but the truth is that he’s doing something far more important. And Bruno does look very very funny.
Go to Comment
So what's the film that your friends loved and you thought was rubbish. about 3 years ago
I had the misfortune of seeing “Transformers,” which the friends I saw it with loved. I don’t know what I was thinking. Awful script (same old rehashed story I’ve seen a thousand times), acting (0 character development, nor do I care about them), even the action scenes (which Michael Bay should be good at because they’re all he cares about) were messy. I couldn’t tell what was going on during those fight scenes. They complained that I didn’t grow up on Transformers (which I didn’t), so I didn’t like the movie. That was bull. It was really a bad movie. Luckily, I think more and more of my friends are starting to agree with me. Furthermore, I didn’t grow up reading The Lord of the Rings prior to seeing the first film, and I loved it.
Go to Comment
what's your favorite special effects movie about 3 years ago
Well if we’re on the grounds of convincing CGI, I’ll go as far as to say that I totally believed that both Gollum and Peter Jackson’s Kong were tangible creatures. The same would go for Jaws (even though he wasn’t digital) and any animal in “Jurassic Park.”
Go to Comment
Top Scorsese about 3 years ago
1. The Departed (Truth be told, it was my first Scorsese film, so the initial experience just blew me away)
2. Raging Bull
3. Taxi Driver
4. Mean Streets
5. The Aviator (Underrated. Great editing and performances, especially DiCaprio)
Go to Comment
Best biographical movies about 3 years ago
Raging Bull, Lawrence of Arabia, Milk, Ray
Go to Comment
DVD'S YOU MUST OWN about 3 years ago
The boxed extended cuts of The Lord of the Rings are so incredibly in depth about the making of the film, from Tolkein, to screenplay, concept art, miniatures, set design, costumes and make-up, casting, fight choreography, cinematography, visual effects, sound, editing, and the films’ initial releases. Each section is at least 20-30 minutes long and new details are discussed about all of these processes for each film. Hours upon hours worth of footage. It really gives you the idea of what it is like to construct an enormous epic in the 21st century.
Go to Comment
Film quotes you love about 3 years ago
“Ben.”
“Mr. McGuire.”
“Ben.”
“….Mr. McGuire.”
- The Graduate
Go to Comment
So what's the film that your friends loved and you thought was rubbish. about 3 years ago
Oh, and (I could get flack for this…) The Big Lebowski.
On a similar note, Napoleon Dynamite. Both films are absolutely plotless.
Go to Comment
K.U.B.R.I.C.K. about 3 years ago
1. Dr. Strangelove
2. 2001: A Space Odyssey
3. Paths of Glory
I have yet to see Barry Lyndon, Lolita, Eyes Wide Shut, and Killer’s Kiss.
Go to Comment
most overrated oscar performances or robberies about 3 years ago
I’m going with Pan’s Labyrinth beating Children of Men for cinematography. By the way, Children of Men is a far superior film to The Queen, and should have kicked it out of the Best Picture race to get nominated. Too bad it was released by the end of the year so that none of the damn members of the Academy could see it. They’re probably kicking themselves now.
Go to Comment
Ewan McGregor's career about 3 years ago
Nicolas Cage has derailed his career too. His last great film role was in “Adaptation.”
Go to Comment
Anybody else hate the Dark Knight? about 3 years ago
I think that the film might be slightly overrated, but by no means is it bad, nor even mediocre. In fact, in the long line of comic book and superhero films to be released in the last ten years, it certainly is at the top. The reason for why it has such extreme reactions from both the negative and positive front is because of the hyping, especially since Heath Ledger’s death. Again, financed by Hollywood studios, the film has no intention of being an artistic achievement, although in my opinion, it has its moments. Ledger’s performance is one that is immediately engrossing to watch from beginning to end. What is most important about the performance (and why it is so very good) is that just like the great cinematic villains (Darth Vader, Hannibal Lecter, The Wicked Witch) The Joker’s presence is felt in the film even when he is not on screen. In addition to the hyping of “The Dark Knight,” the film already had the groundwork from “Batman Begins” to be considered a great film in advance. The reason there was significantly less hyping for “Batman Begins” was because the film was coming out of a franchise with a poor reputation (Batman Forever, Batman and Robin), so it was able to creep up on its audiences. "The Dark Knight didn’t have that kind of benefit.
Go to Comment
Last movie you saw and rate it about 3 years ago
Au Revoir, Les Enfants 8/10
Amores Perros 10/10
Go to Comment
How do you choose what to watch? about 3 years ago
1,001 Movies You Must See Before You Die seems to be a pretty logical source. There might be a few selections I disagree with, but another great thing is that a brief essay accompanies each film from one of dozens of cinema scholars. As far as locating the films, I’ve used Netflix, and my local libraries have a surprising wealth of films, both American and foreign.
Go to Comment
what actors do you consider creepy? about 3 years ago
Peter Lorre is The Maltese Falcon, M, even in Casablanca
Anthony Perkins in Psycho
Go to Comment
How do you choose what to watch? about 3 years ago
Well, IMDB is based off of what their users think are great films, and pretty much a reflection of what the general public thinks about film. 1,001 definitely has an eclectic grouping of films, and I would say that at least 60% of the films catalogued are foreign.
Go to Comment
British film comedy is dead, isn't it? about 3 years ago
British film comedy might be in a lull, but Ricky Gervais is one of the hottest comedians around right now.
Go to Comment