thehefner | Meme: 5 favorite movies/13 films that deserve more attention and love

Gacked from disc_sophist; I love these memes, even if no one ever comments or sees any of the movies I reccomend. Seriously, guys, you really should see at least a couple of the films on this list. If people don't see them, they'll be forgotten.

Total number of films I own on DVD/VHS:
DVD: 85, more or less. Curse you cheap DVD section of Best Buy! You’re the reason why I’m overdrawn!
VHS: I’m gonna make a rough estimate here: 30.

The last film I bought:
Uhh, I bought a shitload last time. Which one to choose? L.A. CONFIDENTIAL. Yeah, that addition was long coming. Brilliant film.

The last film I watched from start to finish:
Titus. Liam hadn’t seen it yet, and he loves it. Yee-ha, another convert.

Five films I watch a lot, or mean a lot to me:
1) RAVENOUS: My personal cult movie. Nearly everyone I show it to loves it, and even those who don’t still find themselves thinking about it for days to come. This movie has been a sort of right of initiation for anybody who becomes my friend. If I’ve shown this to you, or at least tried to, consider that my way of saying you’re important to me.

2) THE NINTH CONFIGURATION: No one will ever see or even hear about this movie unless I show it to them. The true sequel to THE EXORCIST, William Peter Blatty’s directorial debut is truly unlike anything you’ve ever seen, and it’s weird and bizarre in ways you can’t even predict. Dave says this is the movie the Joker would make to drive Batman insane. Personally, I think MARAT/SADE takes that award, but it’s still an apt way to describe this film. Worth seeing just to see, even if you don’t like it, in which case I really won’t blame you.

3) ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST: Although much of its power and charm has worn off after about twenty viewings, I still think this Sergio Leone masterpiece, which has more heart, charm, and art than even THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY (my previous favorite movie), is my favorite film of all time. Some may say it’s too slow, and for most people, yeah, it probably is, but for people like me for whom atmosphere, mood, and music mean so much, it’s just enthralling. Cap that off with Bernard Knox’s amazing spaghetti western dialogue and the greatest cinematic villain of all time in Henry Fonda, this is not one I’d show to just anyone but it’s still one of the greats.

4) 12 ANGRY MEN: A perfect play? A perfect movie? For me, it may be up there. No one wants to watch this movie with me, probably because it looks stodgy and old, which always make me feel sad because few can deny the sheer moving power of this story. A little bit Arthur Miller, a little bit Rod Serling, this movie is everything ugly and beautiful about humanity, trapped in one claustrophobic, sweaty room. There are so many moments that just move me beyond words, but my favorite is probably where Ed Begley is ranting and raving, and everyone else, one by ones, stands and turns away, until E.G. Marshall, the only one left, simply says: “Now sit down and don’t open your mouth again.” Astounding.

5) SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE: Another one I can’t get anyone to watch with me. Another one that no one is going to see of their own volition, unless they take Jason’s American Musical course. A beautiful, funny, heartbreaking film of Sondheim’s Pulitizer-willing play/musical/operetta about George Seurat, starring Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, and Brent Spiner.

~~Ten~~ Thirteen good films which have been wrongly trashed, ignored or forgotten (not counting the ones I listed above, nearly all of which fall into this category and deserve your attention)

1.) EXORCIST III: There’s so much against this movie. First, it has the stigma of not only being a sequel to a movie generally regarded as a masterpiece, but it’s also part III, following “2: The Heretic,” which many consider one of the worst movies of all time. So who would want to watch this movie? Answer: EVERYONE. Even though the studios came in and reamed through Exorcist-author-and-writer-director William Peter Blatty’s film with an unnecessary exorcist subplot and added fore, this film is one of the single greatest horror movies I have ever seen. This film is all atmosphere and mood, no soundtrack but a low growl, understated acting, the right amount of humor, the sheer mastery of Brad Dourif, and my single favorite movie scare of all time. If you see it, you’ll know which one I’m talking about. Like Dave said, the way it’s handled, it’s like fine sex. I think the book LEGION, on which this film was adapted, and even the studio-changed film itself, are better than the overrated original EXORCIST.

2.) PSYCHO II: Just thinking about the stigma of sequels, this movie came to mind. I don’t think anybody would pop this movie in and expect anything great. Well who would have guessed it? Sure, it’s not Hitchcock, but what it is is a darn good movie for all that. Norman Bates is “cured” and released, and the murders start up again. Yeah, yeah, we all know how this goes. Or do we? The writers take some fascinating chances with Norman, developing him beyond what Bloch and even Hitchcock did, making him deeply sympathetic and fascinating, a poor crazy schmuck caught up in something much bigger than he is and surrounded by monsters, imaginary and real. And lord love that ending. This film deserves a watch, seriously.

3.) THE STRAIGHT STORY: It’s David Lynch doing a G-rated Disney film. Get beyond the sheer curiosity gimmick of that premise, and you will discover a tender, loving, beautiful little film about family and redemption. Some will grossly misread Alvin Straight as a schmaltzy figure in the way he meets people and dispenses tidbits of wisdom; the only reason he’s learned so much is because he’s fucked it all up in his life already. This movie is everything ethereal about David Lynch without the disturbing stuff, and is the first G-rated ADULT movie I’ve ever seen.

4.) THE ICEMAN COMETH: Not the Lee Marvin version, the 60’s televised production directed by Sidney Lumet and starring the legendary Jason Robards and a young-as-balls Robert Redford (dreamy!). This is the next best thing to a film of Kevin Spacey’s production, and maybe it’s even better; anyone who watches this will understand why Spacey worships at the altar of Robards. My favorite American play, fully realized.

5.) DAY OF THE DEAD: This movie was a critical and commercial bomb when it came out in 1985. Romero fans hated it? The reasons? There are several possibilities. One is the fact that there are almost no likeable characters, except for Bub. In fact, Capt. Rhodes may well be the biggest King Dick of any horror movie ever. Honestly, with age and repeated viewings, I’ve come to consider this Romero’s masterpiece, better than NIGHT or even DAWN. It’s a far more human, grounded story, the special effects by Tom Savini are unsurpassed (save for his previous work in THE THING… scariest movie ever!), and plus, it has Bub! The greatest character in the trilogy! This film is only now finally being appreciated.

6.) DEAD MAN: Jim Jarmusch’s bizarre art-house western needs to be seen for a number of reasons. First and foremost, I always feel snarky whenever I see Johnny Depp fangirls squeal all over him, yet have never heard of this movie or ED WOOD. Secondly, what a cast! IMDB this bad boy for yourself. Sure, the film may be arty and pretentious, but it’s got enough of a sense of humor to make it fun, plus that awesome Neil Young soundtrack. See this, and then see GHOST DOG: THE WAY OF THE SAMURAI.

7.) MY FIRST MISTER: Sort of Harold and Maude redux, but that is hardly an accurate assessment of the movie. Leelee Sobieski (imagine a well-fed and superior Helen Hunt) is a death obsessed goth chick who meets a neurotic middle-aged conservative clothing store owner played by Albert Brooks (one of the most underrated comedians of our time), and they fall in (platonic) love with one another. A much better movie than it sounds, this film surprised the hell out of me and is a must-show to everyone I love. It’s got its flaws, sure (like the lazy stereotype-written hippie father), and is schmaltzy as hell, but boy oh boy do I cry like a baby at the end.

8.) PATTI ROCKS! Oh yeah, you’ve never heard of this one. A small, largely improvised movie between three actors, two of them playing a pair of mysoginsts who, over the course of the film, spout off such disgustingly, hatefully sexist rhetoric, the film nearly received an NC-17 rating for language alone. Hard to find, and even harder is the prequel, LOOSE ENDS, which even I haven’t seen, but well worth it. Chris Mulkey (from Twin Peaks and Radio) is the man.

9.) ROMEO IS BLEEDING: My favorite Gary Oldman movie, one of my favorite crime movies, and pure, hard-boiled film noir. Oldman as the crooked cop playing all the angles, only to find himself getting very screwed, very fast. Lena Olin as a sexy and psyyyyyyychooo assassin. Roy Scheider as a mob boss. Dennis Farina, Ron Perelman, and James Cromwell in cameos. And Juliette Lewis playing her own wonderful vapid skank self once again.

10.) FINAL: You will almost certainly never discover this movie on your own. The cover is boring and anonymous. The title is instantly forgettable. So why should you see this? Three words: Denis Leary tearjerker. In this tiny, play-like movie directed by Campbell Scott, Denis Leary wakes up in a hospital to nurse Hope Davis, and he begins ranting about how he’s been cryogenically frozen and how he knows she’s there to administer a lethal injection for him. Even that is revealing too much about the film, but I do so with the hope that you’ll see this little gem. Leary is understated and powerful, and I’d love to see what he could do in an even better movie. I’d have seriously re-edited much of the film, revealing certain things earlier on so they don’t feel quite so out-of-left-field, but it’s still well worth the rent.

11.) SCARFACE: The original version, not the insipid, overblown, and disgustingly overrated Al Pacino version (seriously, how anybody even likes that piece of shit is beyond me, it’s pure lazy, stupid, Hollywood Brian De Palma dreck that isn’t fit to lick the shit off Scorcese and Coppola’s bootsoles). Paul Muni, Boris Karloff, and George Raft as the first coin-flipping gangster. It’s tricky to find, but well, well worth it.

12.) AGUIRRE, WRATH OF GOD: Joseph Conrad meets Edgar Allen Poe, starring Richard III. That doesn’t even begin to cover how evil and insane this movie is. If you happen to know Klaus Kinski (Nastassya’s Daddy) and/or Werner Herzog, chances are you know them from FITZCARRELDO or the remake of NOSFERATU (if you’ve never seen Kinski, all I need to tell you is that when he played Orlock they didn’t need to give him *that much* makeup. Remember that face Alan makes? Yeah, like that, but normal). This movie is some fucked-up shit.

13.) THE LIMEY: Steven Soderberg’s best movie that no one’s ever seen. This movie reunites the stars of the 60’s, the new age of cinema where daring young actors were emerging on both sides of the pond, two of the most important being Terrence Stamp (a star in England, but known to Yanks as Superman’s General Zod) and Peter Fonda. Driven by an excellent 60’s soundtrack, Terrence Stamp plays a cockney fresh out of jail who travels to LA to avenge is estranged daughter’s murder at the hands of a slick movie producer and drug dealer played by Fonda. Some of the film’s more excellent features include interspersing footage from an obscure old Stamp film, so when they have flashbacks, we get to see actual young Terrange Stamp in prison. So cool. But of course this film is more than its gimmicks. Soderberg takes a relatively small, simple story and masterfully edits them together into something moving, powerful, and special. Plus, it has one of the coolest fucking posters ever.

Honorable mention! Bob Hoskins Double Feature!
MONA LISA/THE LONG GOOD FRIDAY: The former is usually overshadowed by the latter, which in England is considered right up there with THE GODFATHER, but both are pretty damn excellent, let me tell you. Hoskins is the man, and don’t let anyone ever fucking tell you otherwise. Yes, he’s Smee, and he is the greatest Smee ever, but he is more than Smee and Eddie Valiant. See him for yourself.