Favorite Movies
Some of my favorite movies. The list is a work in progress and in this case, the order is inconsequential, as it would be almost impossible to actually rank them.
I don't know if I'll get around to writing even short reviews for each movie... we'll see. Most of them don't require a review or description anyway.
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- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsMarlon BrandoAl PacinoJames CaanThe aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.The definitive mafia flick and one of the most revered movies of the 20th century. Simply legendary.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsAl PacinoRobert De NiroRobert DuvallThe early life and career of Vito Corleone in 1920s New York City is portrayed, while his son, Michael, expands and tightens his grip on the family crime syndicate.Possibly the greatest sequel of all time, this movie makes the Godfather-saga come full circle. Part 3 isn't quite as bad as many say in my opinion, but they might as well have ended it with this one.
- DirectorRon HowardStarsTom HanksBill PaxtonKevin BaconNASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.An immensely entertaining and remarkably accurate portrayal of one of the most fascinating true stories I've ever heard. My favorite movie about manned spaceflight, it somehow manages to be both lighthearted and nerve-wracking all at once.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsBrad PittEdward NortonMeat LoafAn insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more.
- DirectorTerry GilliamStarsJohnny DeppBenicio Del ToroTobey MaguireAn oddball journalist and his psychopathic lawyer travel to Las Vegas for a series of psychedelic escapades.A movie like an LSD-trip, with laughs and screams and plenty of chaos and some insight into the lifestyle of an entire generation. A bizarre, hilarious perversion of the American Dream.
- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsEwan McGregorEwen BremnerJonny Lee MillerRenton, deeply immersed in the Edinburgh drug scene, tries to clean up and get out despite the allure of drugs and the influence of friends.Another iconic drug-related movie with a fantastic soundtrack and the most famous toilet scene ever.
- DirectorMichael MannStarsAl PacinoRobert De NiroVal KilmerA group of high-end professional thieves start to feel the heat from the LAPD when they unknowingly leave a verbal clue at their latest heist.My favorite heist movie, unusually deep for an action movie/gangster story and oozing with style.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsEric BanaDaniel CraigMarie-Josée CrozeAfter the Black September capture and massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, five men are chosen to eliminate the people responsible for that fateful day.A great, very dark story about terrorism, revenge and the gruesome, neverending spiral of violence and its effects on victims and perpetrators alike, based on historical occurrences.
- DirectorJoel CoenEthan CoenStarsGabriel ByrneAlbert FinneyJohn TurturroTom Reagan, an advisor to a Prohibition-era crime boss, tries to keep the peace between warring mobs but gets caught in divided loyalties.My personal favorite among the Coen brothers' movies, an intriguing, funny and positively gorgeous looking take on the mafia genre.
- DirectorTomas AlfredsonStarsGary OldmanColin FirthTom HardyIn the bleak days of the Cold War, espionage veteran George Smiley is forced from semi-retirement to uncover a Soviet Agent within MI6.Highly atmospheric and wonderfully dense espionage drama and detective story set in Cold War England. I don't mind the slow pace at all, but it could have been longer to introduce and flesh out some of the characters and other suspects a little more.
- DirectorGuy RitchieStarsJason FlemyngDexter FletcherNick MoranEddy persuades his three pals to pool money for a vital poker game against a powerful local mobster, Hatchet Harry. Eddy loses, after which Harry gives him a week to pay back 500,000 pounds.With an incredibly low budget, Guy Ritchie's first movie isn't just the template for most of his later works, but perhaps still his best. Immensely entertaining, wonderfully chaotic and absolutely hilarious!
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsJürgen ProchnowHerbert GrönemeyerKlaus WennemannA German U-boat stalks the frigid waters of the North Atlantic as its young crew experience the sheer terror and claustrophobic life of a submariner in World War II.The best German movie I know, one of my all-time favorite war movies and certainly by far the best submarine movie ever. I recommend the director's cut (3.5h) or the mini-series version, which has a runtime of almost 5h.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsJosh HartnettEwan McGregorTom SizemoreThe story of 160 elite U.S. soldiers who dropped into Mogadishu in October 1993 to capture two top lieutenants of a renegade warlord, but found themselves in a desperate battle with a large force of heavily armed Somalis.One of the most intense war movies I know. Black Hawk Down takes about half an hour to introduce the characters and the scenario, but once the bullets start flying, it never lets up. The experience is made all the more harrowing by the realization that these events actually took place and the stunning realism they're portrayed with.
- DirectorFrank MillerQuentin TarantinoRobert RodriguezStarsMickey RourkeClive OwenBruce WillisAn exploration of the dark and miserable Basin City and three of its residents, all of whom are caught up in violent corruption.Now this is what I call a great comic book movie, not the dozens of superhero-bores. It's the most stylish movie I know, it looks absolutely awesome and it tells a couple of wonderfully over-the-top stories based on a bunch of terrific, mean and gritty characters. The sequel is not quite as good, but still enjoyable.
- DirectorRoger DonaldsonStarsKevin CostnerBruce GreenwoodShawn DriscollIn October 1962, the Kennedy administration struggles to contain the Cuban Missile Crisis.Pretty good political thriller about the most dangerous period of the Cold War. Fairly accurate too, as far as I know, except for the main character. But that's a liberty I can live with.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsKevin SpaceyRussell CroweGuy PearceAs corruption grows in 1950s Los Angeles, three policemen - one strait-laced, one brutal, and one sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.Film-Noir type crime story about cops, the mafia and corruption including a femme fatale and three very different protagonists in 1950s L.A. One of those underrated gems, in my opinion.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsLiam NeesonRalph FiennesBen KingsleyIn German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.Movies don't usually make me cry, but this one did. More than a classic, this is outright educational. Not something for many repeated viewings though, since it's truly horrifying in its merciless realism.
- DirectorRoman PolanskiStarsJack NicholsonFaye DunawayJohn HustonA private detective hired to expose an adulterer in 1930s Los Angeles finds himself caught up in a web of deceit, corruption, and murder.The best detective story I know, a classic Noir and one of the best endings ever. "It's chinatown, Jake."
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsJohn TravoltaUma ThurmanSamuel L. JacksonThe lives of two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.Tarantino's best movie is not just one of the most entertaining gangster flicks ever but a piece of popular culture.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroRay LiottaJoe PesciThe story of Henry Hill and his life in the mafia, covering his relationship with his wife Karen and his mob partners Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsChoi Min-sikYoo Ji-taeKang Hye-jeongAfter being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.
- DirectorKathryn BigelowStarsJessica ChastainJoel EdgertonChris PrattA chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L.s Team 6 in May 2011.An almost documentary-like account of the CIA's efforts of hunting Bin Laden after 9/11 and the chain of events that led to his eventual killing. A highly controversial movie because of several torture scenes that aren't easy to watch, but for me, they are neither the core of the story nor the "main attraction".
- DirectorPeter WeirStarsRussell CrowePaul BettanyBilly BoydDuring the Napoleonic Wars, a brash British captain pushes his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a formidable French war vessel around South America.Another underappreciated movie and a wonderful adventure, with tales of duty, courage, and friendship as well as the hardships and deprivations a voyage around half the globe aboard a sailing ship in the early 19th century entails. It doesn't lack a certain romance, though. Beautiful music, too.
Too bad the originally intended trilogy or series of movies based upon the books never materialized, which could have really been something special. - DirectorChristopher NolanStarsChristian BaleHugh JackmanScarlett JohanssonAfter a tragic accident, two stage magicians in 1890s London engage in a battle to create the ultimate illusion while sacrificing everything they have to outwit each other.For my money, this is the best Nolan - right along with Memento. Everything about this movie is top notch - atmosphere, setting, story, suspense, characters. It's simply a special 2+ hours we're getting treated to here. Words can hardly do it justice.
- DirectorFrank DarabontStarsTim RobbinsMorgan FreemanBob GuntonOver the course of several years, two convicts form a friendship, seeking consolation and, eventually, redemption through basic compassion.