January 2015 I did a facebook quiz that showed I had seen 168 of the top IMDB 250 films. I'm going to try and watch the last 82 of them.
From the 1st of January 2012 I was going to watch the TimeOut top 100 British films. That didn't get very far.
On the 1st January 2011 I started watching the IMDB top 100 films.
Well sir, I have a friend ...
Good. Not everybody can say that. Continue!
1943 Micheal Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Following events around General Clive Wynne-Candy told in chapters of his life from the Boer War at the turn of the 20th century to the Second World War in the 40's. An officer and a gentleman who believes there are rules to war and things must be done a certain way, the Germans are not playing by the rules this time.
Not a traditional war film at all, there are hardly any tanks and the biggest fight scene is probably in the restaurant where Candy bribes the orchestra the play Strauss because he knows it will annoy a German officer he knows.
A sombre sobering film with a very english under current of humour. Top Hole Old Boy.
Can't find an official trailer.
7/10
They've created a desert and have called it "peace"
1964 Peter Watkins
A made for TV film about the Battle of Culloden, the last battle to take place on British soil in 1746.
It was shot and narated as if TV cameras were present at the event. A strange viewing experience, starting this list I knew it would be different from the IMDB list, but this wouldn't have been on the radar. It's a British classic masterpiece that I wasn't expecting. the John Snow character behind the stone wall is great. I can see lots of inspiration for early Python and Pete and Dud material.
And I learnt a bit of history.
Find it, watch it.
8/10
1963 John Schlesinger
Adapted from the play by Keith Waterhouse, following the life of William Fisher.
Billy works in an undertakers office as a clerk but has aspirations of becoming a scriptwriter in London, he spends more time than is normal or healthy in a fantasy land called Ambrosia, where he can be whoever he wants to be. Can he grow up and have the nerve to actually make the trip to London?
Behind the story of Billy there is a glipse into what life was like in the early 60's in England, the work culture, the social and sex lives.
Good to see Leonard Rositer as Billy's boss, an early sight of what Rigsby was to become.
I have started slowly this year, nothing like the start I had in 2011.
Last year I had a load of avi files already from the list ready to go so I could jump right in, this year it's proving a bit more difficult already but I have watched a few and I'm already playing catchup with blogging them.
This years list is a bit more eclectic and not to everyones taste.
The fantastic new Versus Sexboat blog is making me think about the format of my blog posts.
The addition of another allotment plot, complete lack of winter weather and my TV supplier showing a premium HD Sport channel for free during January is holding me back. Let's hope February brings snow and frost so I can stay indoors and watch films without feeling I should be doing more digging.
Watching the films wasn't hard, apart from the Charlie Chaplin ones, it's easy enough to watch an average of 2 a week for a year. get off to a flyer in the winter and bank a few extra ones in case it slips during the summer.
The hardest part of this challenge was keeping the blog going, at one point I was 17 films behind, but I didn't lose heart or an internet connection and kept going, there was a time I was doing one post a day for a couple of weeks to catch up, next time I wont let it slip.
So what did I learn? Some films I had seen and knew were going to be good. City of God The Good The Bad &The Ugly Pulp Fiction
Many I have never seen before so it was always good to see what all the fuss is about, I made a point of not reading any reviews before watching.
The Challenge for 2012 is to watch the top 100 British films, but I'm still working out which list to use.
Other lists suggested have been top 100 70's porn films, top 100 sci-fi, top 100 apocolyptic, top 100 westerns. Others have already done the top 100 war films and it sounded hard because so many of them were shit and the list was out of date. So British films it is and I may learn something.
I don't feel I have to wipe everybody out, Tom. Just my enemies.
1974 Francis Ford Coppola
The epic saga continues as we see the Corleone family move into Cuba and Nevada during the 50's under the leadership of Micheal Corleone. We also get to see the early years of Vito Corleone in Sicily in the early 1900's to New York in the 1920's.
More bloodshed and betrayal as the business expands and the family implodes.
It's long, over 3 hours, but it doesn't seem it when watching the plot unfold.
It's just as good as the first one, with the noted absence of any sauce recipes but there is a disappearing cake that looks like it came from a Tom & Jerry cartoon. Al Pacino grows into the aging Micheal and Robert De Niro as the young Vito is worthy of his Acedemy Award for best supporting actor.
9/10
That's it. I have watched and blogged the IMDB Top 100 films.
The list was taken from 1st January 2011.
I have a new challenge for 2012, to watch the top 100 British movies, I will post the list soon.
A man that doesn't spend time with his family can never be a real man.
1972 Francis Ford Coppola
The story starts in the mid 40's following the fortunes and misfortunes of a New York mafia family as the power struggle for control of the emerging narcotics market takes place as the family head Don Vito Corleone finds his position as Godfather less respected by the other mafia bosses.
I'm amazed there is anyone left alive in America, after watching 99 of these 'top 100' it seems the common theme in the American films is murder and war, they should lighten up a bit, it doesn't have to be Disney or Death.
I couldn't help noticing in the garden death scene that the tomatoes needed watering and onions were missing from Calmenza's sauce recipe.
I can't believe I have never seen this before, it's a classic. Stand out performances by Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. Last film is Godfather part 2 tonight, looking forward to how this story continues.
9/10
1966 Sergio Leone
Blondie and Tuco have a fragile partnership, Tuco is a wanted outlaw, Blondie a gun slinger who takes him in and claims the bounty then, as Tuco is about to be hanged, rescues him. When Blondie decides to go his own way Tuco hunts him down. They come across a army wagon full of dead bodies with only one survivor, Bill Carson, he knows the location of a pile of gold but only tells one part of it to each of them, the partnership is back on to find the gold. Angel Eyes is a mean bounty hunter who knows of Bill Carsons gold but not where it is hidden. Blondie and Tuco are sought after men. It doesn't take long to work out who is the Good, the Bad or the Ugly.
I think this is only the second western in the top 100, there should be more like this. Although Treasure of the Sierra Madre was an unexpected treasure
This is great, it has everything a western needs. Guns, horses, hanging, betrayal, mistrust, hats, gold, dynamite and the added bonus of canons.
I can't claim to be an expert on the western genre, I haven't watched many, I'm not keen on the mistrust element and the way you could be shot so easily back then. But this is brilliantly filmed with great tension and a dash of humour.
It was also filmed in Almeria, Spain. Where my good friends Karen and Trevor live and I go walking each year so it was an added bonus to be watching the scenery to see if I had walked on that mountain or that path. If you ever go to Spain, visit Mini Hollywood in Almeria.
Gun slinging 9/10
What is your malfunction, you fat barrel of monkey spunk?
1994 Frank Darabont
The story starts in 1947, Andy Dufresne is a young banker given 2 life sentences for murdering his wife and her lover and continues for the duration of his time in Shawshank Prison. He strikes up a friendship with 'Red', the go-to man, also serving a life sentence for murder. Andy's skills with money and the banking system get him involved with laundering for the Warden which gives him certain privileges.
There's the usual bunch of characters, bullying inmates, evil warden, pshycotic guard. There's an unexpected twist near the end but the ending itself is a bit tame. I found the narration by Morgan annoying, maybe because it kept reminding me of an advert that is on telly, but really the film maker should have done more with the film itself so the constant talking over the top would be less necessary.
It's still a very watchable film but I don't think it is the best film ever.
I hadn't seen Shawshank before this challenge, and didn't want to leave till last just because the list said it was number 1. So I did watch it a couple of weeks ago with Jamie while the girls were watching XFactor, but we had been drinking all afternoon and carried on through the evening, by the end of the film we had almost finished a bottle of rum and more Stellas. Over the next few days I thought hard about the film but couldn't rememeber anything, I knew it was a prison film with Morgan Freeman and that was it. Watching it again I really hadn't seen it, none of it was familiar.
It's worth 8/10
1946 Frank Capra
George Bailey had dreams of seeing the world, but when his father dies and his brother is in service, he has to take the helm of the family business, a community based building and loans company. This and many other local businesses are always under threat from the miserly Mr Potter. On christmas eve Georges uncle loses the company's $8000 deposit and George becomes desperate and thinks of ending his life. In steps Clarance, his guardian angel and shows him what life would be like if he had never been born.
A sentimental hopeful tale that shows the optimism and idealism of the American nation after the war where society would look after each other and had morals.
Despite this being an American christmas favourite it seems that American society went down the Pottersville route.
I first saw this in new York christmas 1997, I was holed up in a bedsit dive waiting for Kim to finish work having just found out we were going to be parents, don't remember too much about it other than it took four hours to show because of the adverts every ten minutes.
It was good to watch it yesterday afternoon after putting up the christmas tree and having a family roast with the inlaws.
Because it's christmas 8/10
1977 George Lucas
The story starts at episode 4, I don't think I knew that when I was 10.
Luke Skywalker is a young man yet to discover his destiny, to fight with the Rebel force against the Empire trying to rule the universe. A swashbuckling space adventure with strange creatures and aliens and spaceships and lasers and strange powers like magic and, of course, light sabers. A sword made of light, that in the 70's make every boy put down his cowboy 6 shooter and run around the playground going 'vvooooommmm'.
I collected the cards that came out, and remeber swapping them in the playground and having far too many c3po's and not enough Darth Vaders. Watching it again the scenes remind me of each of the cards.
The only film I ever queued round the block to see, I think it was with Jon Foster and his mum.
Good to see it again.
8/10
1993 Steven Speilberg
Based on the true story of Oskar Schindler, a german businessman who's factory became a sanctury from persecution for the jews during WWII.
The subject matter is not an easy one, as I have said before, I don't like the Nazis, they scare me. Speilberg doesn't shy away from the brutality as you might expect but it isn't as in your face as other films in this Top 100 that I have seen.
Not sure if I liked it or not, not sure if I want to watch it again to find out. It just doesn't have enough ooomph.
6/10
I'm sorry I ruined your New Year's Eve party, Lieutenant Dan. She tasted like cigarettes.
1994 Robert Zemekis
Literally the life story of a man who is 'different' and just happened to be at some of America's moments of history, told to people sitting next to him at a bus stop. I reckon I would have lasted about 1 minute before I made my excuses, chocolate or not.
It's a nice enough story, a bit too nice, with some sad moments and some funny bits. A good all round American family movie, oh and there is a love interest.
Don't make me watch it ever again.
5/10
1931 Charles Chaplin
A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind girl. Her family is poor. The tramp has a wierd on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man and uses his money to help her.
To me, it's like any other Chaplin movie I have seen, it rolls along to a formula with the same gags and same music and pretty much the same characters as the rest of them.
Not a fan.
2/10
I've no plans to call on you, Clarice. The world is more interesting with you in it.
1991 Jonathan Demme
Jody
Foster plays Clarice Starling, a new FBI agent assigned to help find
the serial killer who skins young women. To do this she asks for the
help of a convicted serial killer Hannibal 'The Cannibal' Lecter, played
brilliantly by Anthony Hopkins.
A modern classic chiller bringing mutilation to the masses with a tense finale.
8/10
1999 Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Computer
programmer by day, hacker by night, Thomas A Anderson has a decision to
make when the authorities catch up with him, but they are not the only
ones who have been followng his activities.
It turns out that the
'real world' isn't real and is a computer program called the Matrix.
Well at least I think that is what this is about.
Neo as he is known is 'the one' who will change/save everything/everyone.
I
had avoided this film for years, someone even lent me the VHS about 8
years ago and it's still on the shelf unwatched, I did eventually circum
last year and watched it with the kids, they loved it. I have now seen
it twice and maybe it grows on you, it seems quite dated now, some of
the CGI tricks have been copied and improved so many times.
For
some this is a classic, for me, it's ok. I just can't take Keano
seriously because Bill and Ted keep coming to mind. Awesome!
7.5/10
2000 Darren Aronofsky
Following
the lives of four drug addicts, some prescription meds others herion
and cocaine, and the spiral downwards and sideways and upside down all
the time thinking it's under control.
It's a pretty good study of adiction and is sometimes painful to watch, but I didn't like it. I don't need to see this again.
6/10
There's no way they'd line five felons in the same room, no way.
1995 Bryan Singer
A story of five random felons brought together for a line-up for a crime none of them comitted. While in custody they hatch a plan to get get revenge on the police. Their activities come to the attention of Keyser Soze, a notorious criminal mastermind, who legend would have it, is the devil incarnate. They are recruited by his right hand man Kobyashi (Pete Postlethwaite). All is not as it seems.
A brilliant film that keeps you gripped and guessing right to the end. Deffinately needs two viewings to take it all in.
8.5/10
1959 Alfred Hitchcock
Classic Hitchcock suspense thriller staring the the super cool Cary Grant.
New York advertising executive Roger Thornhill is mistaken for a government agent by a gang of spies and is chased across America by both groups. Crammed with classic scenes and quotes. "Now you listen to me, I'm an advertising man, not a red herring. I've
got a job, a secretary, a mother, two ex-wives and several bartenders
that depend upon me, and I don't intend to disappoint them all by
getting myself "slightly" killed"
The James Bond films of the 60s must have used this film as their template.
7/10
2008 Andrew Stanton
Several hundred years in the future man has filled earth with trash and has had to move into space leaving behind robots to tidy up the mess. Probes are sent from the mothership back to earth to find life.
The classic Disney money making machine does it again, cute robot characters that will sell loads of toys and a moral story for the parents to nod approvingly at and part with their cash.
There are some funny moments and it moves along at a pace that keeps you watching.
It's a kids film. 6/10
