The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

100. Fantasia (Walt Disney & Dozens, 1940)/Allegro non troppo (Bruno Bozzeto, 1976)
http://home.pacific.net.hk/~shung/fa...s/fantasia.jpg http://www.claudiocolombo.net/FotoDV...nontroppo2.jpg
Two of the greatest cartoons are still alive enough to comment on the brilliance of each other. :cool:

99. Kind Hearts and Coronets (Robert Hamer, 1949)

http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0...CLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

Alec Guinness dies eight times so you can laugh all the more...

98. Stop Making Sense (Jonathan Demme, 1984)

http://images.greencine.com/images/a...stop-sense.jpg


My vote for the greatest concert film ever.

97. Hail the Conquering Hero (Preston Sturges, 1944)

http://www.ciakhollywood.com/biograf...ng%20Hero2.jpg

One of the most genuine films ever; it's a satire, a comedy, a drama, a love story and a paean to WWII America :)

96. Jesus of Montreal (Denys Arcand, 1989)

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/...thaire-001.jpg

Taken from Movie Tab II, July 2, 2010:

Beautiful, thought-provoking, irreverent, haunting, funny, sexy and deeply moving are all words I use to describe what I consider the greatest Jesus film ever made, Jesus of Montreal. It's set in present-day Montreal where a group of actors get together to put on an updated version of the Passion on the grounds of a Catholic church. The troupe's ostensible leader, Daniel (the incredible Lothaire Bluteau), who is to play Jesus, begins the film recruiting his apostles and before long it becomes apparent that almost everything which is happening in real life is a mirror of the Passion Play and the Gospels, often in strikingly original ways. Director/writer Arcand looks at things from many perspectives so you can never be sure what his personal agenda is, but one thing is for sure and that's if you're a believer, you should be able to put Jesus's life into a more-modern and personal context. If you hate "religious" movies, you will quickly see that this is not a religious film at all, yet it doesn't shy away from showing a powerful Jesus (both Biblical and "actor") who is totally capable of performing miracles which affect people's lives in the here and now. It's a wonderful film which seems to accomplish the impossible by presenting a potentially-polarizing subject in a very inclusive way. I think it can only disappoint the most-fundamentalist of churchgoers, but it will reward those with open hearts and minds. Besides that, it's damn entertaining. Two of my fave scenes are the low-budget special effects presentation of the beginning and ending of the world and the hilarious scene of dubbing a porno movie. However, it's the night-time Passion Play itself, which is so hypnotic and causes Daniel and his followers to get in trouble with the Catholic Church even though it's critically acclaimed and loved by the audiences.

95. One-Eyed Jacks (Marlon Brando, 1961)

http://www.tv4u.com/one_eyed_jacks/i...Eyed_Jacks.jpg

Probably the greatest revenge western ever. Watch it!

94. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c7...venSamurai.jpg

The Master knows when to change up on you.

93. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1943)

http://www.celtoslavica.de/chiaroscu...blimp_r2_4.jpg

Awesome duelling technique of the old school.

92. Night and Fog (Alain Resnais, 1955)

http://www.israelnewsagency.com/holo...lyadveshem.jpg

Probably the most powerful film about the Holocaust ever made.

91. The Iron Giant (Brad Bird, 1999)
http://i.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs...32__iron_l.jpg

Brad Bird begins to define his humanist sensibilities within traditional animation.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

90. People Will Talk (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1951)

http://www.anatomyofaclassic.com/wp-...lewilltalk.jpg

This film is so unique, in so many ways, that to spoil even a moment would be a sin.

89.Friendly Persuasion (William Wyler, 1956)

http://www.movieactors.com/freezefra...uasion123.jpeg http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_F5-Lk_PJjM...uasion+(9).jpg

A simple family saga about the Civil War becomes a humorous and powerful film about the War Between the States.

88. Horse Feathers (Norman Z. McLeod, 1932)

The Marx Bros. go college and incredibly ridiculous.

http://static.guim.co.uk/Guardian/fi...rs630-6334.jpg

Mr. Huxley U. Himself.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Lots of older films so far - looking forward to see the full thing

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

87. Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1927)

http://www.sfu.ca/~jtoal/robot/pics/Metropolis.jpg

Unbelieveable Silent Footage

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

You convinced me. I'm a Dick for trying. :cool:

Or maybe NOT...

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

86. Barbarosa (Fred Scepisi, 1982)

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...0L._AA240_.jpg

This is one of my fave films. Very simple. Williie Nelson and Gary Busey give tremendous performances and the film turns itself inside out to become a movie about everyone you know.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Later, gators. :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

By the way, these aren't My "top" or even "Favorite" Movies, but I do believe everyone who loves movies should watch 'em. See you tomorrow.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Every time an Ealing Comedy gets posted on a MoFo 100 somebody tells Sean Penn to lighten up. A bit like It's A Wonderful Life.

Only more so.

Just out of interest, if these aren't your 'top' or 'favourite' movies, what criteria do you use when choosing them?

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I haven't seen any of these...

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

That was a pretty silly thing I said, but I was very tired. I was trying to get at the fact that I made up a list of about 200 films, all of which probably deserve to be on a "Top 100" List. I'm picking my top films from that list, and on a different day, I could probably have 50 different titles on my list.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

85. Wild Strawberries (Ingmar Bergman, 1957)

http://matthewsalomon.files.wordpres...ries-small.png

An awesome dream opening gives way to a meditation on how the young and old are forever intertwined.

84. The Caine Mutiny (Edward Dmytryk, 1954)

http://media.monstersandcritics.com/...ges/caine2.jpg

Bogart is electrifying as Captain Queeg, but the rest of the cast almost matches him and the direction is muscularly authentic.

83. Romeo and Juliet (Franco Zefirrelli, 1968)

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=84690&rendTypeId=4

Another authentic-looking film with very good performances; probably the most entertaining Shakespeare film ever.

82. The Three Musketeers (1973)/The Four Musketeers (1974) (Richard Lester)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_03_img1411.jpg

THE Swashbuckler par excellence.

81. Red River (Howard Hawks, 1948)

http://www.thecinematheque.com/poster_redriver1.jpg http://www.craigerscinemacorner.com/...ed%20river.jpg

Spectacular western epic about the first cattle drive along the Chisholm Trail is actually a thinly-veiled retelling of Mutiny on the Bounty. But years earlier, Thomas Dunson (John Wayne) breaks free from a wagon train with his longtime friend Groot (Walter Brennan), a wagon, a bull and some horses. Dunson tells his fiancee (Colleen Gray) to continue on with the train and that he'll send for her when he's ready. By the time the two men make it to the Red River in Texas, they realize that the wagons have been attacked by Indians. After the Indians attack them at night, young Matt arrives at their camp with a cow but he's half-crazy having witnessed the Indian attack on the wagon train before escaping. Years later, after the Civil War, Matt (played by Montgomery Clift as an adult) returns to help Dunson and Groot drive the herd of almost 10,000 cattle west to Missouri, although there are rumors that there's a railroad in Abilene, Kansas, which would eliminate the danger of Missouri raiders stealing the herd and killing the men. Dunson wants to take them to Missouri though and becomes despotic on the drive, causing many of the men to grumble and question his authority. Eventually, there is a mutiny and Dunson is left behind injured and embarrassed while Matt leads the herd to Abilene. Dunson vows to kill Matt once he recuperates and comes after him.

Red River is full of action, male bonding, Indian attacks, gunfights, fistfights and the recreation of a full-fledged cattle drive where all the principal actors actually are involved in transporting a huge herd. It's also a character study of a bitter man who hasn't reconciled himself to a new postwar world where he needs more help than he ever has before but is too proud to ask for it since it will make him seem weak. I'm not going to go into the details about the films ending which has been discussed here recently, except to say that it makes total sense to me and is the only ending I can think of which does in the light of the way the two main characters have been presented for over two hours of screen time. If you want to see a father kill his son in a western, go watch The Big Country where it makes sense, but don't ask an epic western about the founding of a great cattle empire to end with one of the founders dead over a stubborn old man's misplaced sense of pride.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I've been looking forward to this list. There's already plenty of films listed that I need to seek out.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Love The Caine Mutiny and The original Musketeers!
Great stuff!

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

80. The Empire Strikes Back (Irvin Kershner, 1980)

http://www.moviesoddity.com/wp-conte...rikes-back.jpg

The Plot thickens as new relationships are formed and revealed.

79. Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)

http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/protectedi...on/psycho3.jpg


Hitch's twisty masterpiece of suspense is also a great black comedy.

78. Hobson's Choice (David Lean, 1954)

http://www.stayviolation.com/images/..._choice_01.jpg http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t...sonschoice.jpg

Charles Laughton is a riot as the tyrannical bootshop owner Hobson, but his daughter Brenda De Banzie and employee John Mills turn the tables on him.

77. The Professionals (Richard Brooks, 1966)

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t...fessionals.jpg

Riproaring western entertainment with a terrific cast and a simple, yet action-packed story with witty dialogue.

76. The Guns of Navarone (J. Lee Thompson, 1961)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_03_img1251.jpg
http://www.productsifter.com/images/.../navarone5.jpg

Another rousing adventure, based on Alistair Maclean's best seller, involving an impossible mission during WWII.

75. The Nun's Story (Fred Zinnemann, 1959)

http://www.hollywood-north.net/nuns.jpg

Audrey Hepburn's performance is the centerpiece of this powerful and suspenseful tale of a young woman's voyage of self-discovery and sacrifice between the World Wars.

74. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974)

http://www.film.org.pl/images2/frank...nkenstein5.jpg

Laugh riot is not only a loving homage to the Universal Frankenstein series, but a legitimate sequel of the same.

73. Straw Dogs (Sam Peckinpah, 1971)

http://www.thehighhat.com/Nitrate/002/straw_dogs1.jpg
http://www.cinemastrikesback.com/new.../strawdogs.jpg

Controversial film packs a cinematic and sociological wallop, culminating in the final third which is the most-expertly orchestrated of any of Peckinpah's violent set pieces.

72. The Maltese Falcon (John Huston, 1941)

http://www.sfgate.com/c/pictures/200..._hammett02.jpg

It's kind of hard to go wrong when you have a perfect cast and script, and you're not going to screw that up while directing your first film.

71. The Bridge on the River Kwai (David Lean, 1957)

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/im...ai-Posters.jpg http://www.oldmovies.net.au/userimag...1150342300.gif

A cross between a POW film and an impossible mission flick. The pyrotechnics at the end are impressive, but the heart of the film is Alec Guinness' flawed, yet moving character who can elicit tears from a quiet, contemplative scene where he ruminates on what his life has added up to.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

79!? Blasphemy! Nah, just kidding. Still in my top 10

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Excellent! :D

My advice to you, good sir, is to can this thread quick and get working on MoFo's first Top 200. We could get this website even more famous than it is now - the home of the most massive lists on the internet!

Oh, and I loved The Guns of Navarone so much as a kid I was bought the talking book along with my first walkman. ;)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I love reading your list so far Mark. Nice job. :)
I haven't seen The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, People Will Talk or Hobson's Choice. You've given me more movies to look for. :)

MoFo's first Top 200?

Dave...Whatchu talkin' 'bout?
Yes...I'm a tad out of touch with things :modest:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

70. Poltergeist (Tobe Hooper, 1982)/E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (Steven Spielberg, 1982)

Spielberg's 1-2 Punch for 1982. Poltergeist tanked and E.T. became a phenomenon.
http://www.hauntedhouses.com/photos-...ergeist87.jpeg http://www.cinematical.com/media/2006/05/lg_et82.jpg

To me, Poltergeist is Raiders of the Lost Ark in a haunted house. People seem to forget that E.T. was a low-budget flick with almost no FX. I'll admit that the second half where ET gets sick does go on far too long, but the first half of the film is cinematic magic on every level, from the acting of the kids to the homage of The Quiet Man.

69. Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959)/Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1982)/Victor/Victoria (Blake Edwards, 1982)

http://www.moviecritic.com.au/images...lyn-monroe.jpg http://home.hiwaay.net/~oliver/jltootsie2.jpg http://whatsontv.co.uk/blogs/movieta...victoria-2.jpg
http://radio.weblogs.com/0001015/ima...victorFull.jpg

The three best cross-dressing romantic comedies are all basically hilarious farces, yet they comment significally on sexual politics.

68. Tom Jones (Tony Richardson, 1963)

http://twi-ny.com/leadingthecharge1.jpg

The filmmakers were afraid they had a mess, so they decided to throw in every technique they could think of. It helped, but what really pushed it over was the awesome cast and SEX!

67. The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939)

http://students.ou.edu/M/Kathleen.W....y-1/wizard.jpg

Of all the movies so far, I've probably UNDERrated, this one the most. This film lives with me and has ever since I was old enough to remember watching it. This film may have more indelible images than any I've ever seen.

66. Full Metal Jacket (Stanley Kubrick, 1987)

http://thisdistractedglobe.com/wp-co...talJacket2.jpg

A couple of anecdotes: When I first saw this film, I got physically ill. I don't know if the film caused it or not, but I vote yes, and it's the most-affected I've been by a film in the 20 years since. I also believe that people misunderstand the film. True, the first 40 minutes may well be the greatest first 40 minutes I've ever seen, but the film is in THREE acts. Once in Viet Nam, there is a random series of events which are fully documented by the war, but the Third Act is the part where the Americans learn that they can kill, but they cannot defeat the "home team", even if it's made up of teenage girls. To me, that's the most powerful thing in the film, along with the fact that the American soldiers still look up to Mickey Mouse at the end. :cool:

65. GoodFellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)

http://rubyfilmz.net/wp-content/uplo...goodfellas.jpg

Scorsese's masterpiece covers almost everything significant he's tried to convey through cinema. You can watch many other of his films, but I'd start with this one and branch off from there.

64. Patton (Franklin J. Schaffner, 1970)

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/im...tt-Posters.jpghttp://www.tvguide.com/movies/dbpix/images/10342a.jpg

If any actor has been as possessed by a character as George C. Scott was for George S. Patton, I'd be hard-pressed to agree.

63. SE7EN (David Fincher, 1995)

http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/the...iefreakcom.jpg http://jet0425.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/seven.jpg

Terrific script, terrific acting, and direction beyond terrific makes this film better than any "train wreck" you've ever seen.

62. Heaven Can Wait (Ernst Lubitsch, 1943)

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=90617&rendTypeId=4

Perhaps the most romantic American film ever made, it's certainly one of the wittiest and most colorful (yes, it's a color film, often garrishly so, thank God.)

61. The Godfather Part II (Francis Coppola, 1974)

http://www.eljinetepalido.es/wp-cont.../padrino-2.jpg

Highly-cinematic continuation of The Godfather. However, it has almost no significance outside the context of the first film.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

60. 2001:A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968)

http://carriedaway.blogs.com/photos/...ce_station.jpg

The film which covers the greatest span of time of any film and does it very artistically. The people of 1968 bought more tickets to this film than any other, but if you're smarter than they were... cancel that; it's not a possibility. :)

59. The Wanderers (Philip Kaufman, 1979)

http://www.movieposter.com/posters/a...ain/8/MPW-4288

Awesome, surreal, violent, hilarious film about gang warfare, romance and the way families destroy each other.

58. The Outlaw Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood, 1976)

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...eytenbears.jpg http://members.gcronline.com/kneal/josey.jpg

Eastwood's movie is one of the greatest to find peace with the Native American, at least this side of Little Big Man.

57. Planet of the Apes (Franklin J Schaffner, 1968)

http://abagond.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/linda40.jpg

Probably my fave sci-fi film which uses its brains!

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Love, love, love! The Wanderers

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Just floating an idea, Annie. :)

Great work so far Mark. ;)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Looks good, Mark. Lots of films I've never heard of! Keep 'em coming...

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Finally woke up enough to finish reading your list... which is excellent... I love Patton and almost added it to my list.... Can't wait to see what else you add... :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

56. A Matter of Life and Death (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1946)

http://www.brightlightsfilm.com/48/4...eath2shot1.jpg http://www.tragsnart.co.uk/filmhub/100best/matter2.jpg

A British pilot jumps out of his burning plane without a parachute, survives, and immediately meets the American woman who fell in love with his voice just before he jumped. Ecstatic romance ensues, but how did he survive, and does he have a serious illness or is Heaven still trying to collect him? Gorgeously-photographed-and-designed film crams in a ton of The Archers' love of cinematic invention.

55. The Pawnbroker (Sidney Lumet, 1965)

http://www.conelrad.com/daisy/images..._and_fritz.jpg http://www.buzzine.com/wp-content/up...pawnbroker.jpg

Rod Steiger gives his greatest performance as a Harlem pawnbroker who survived the Holocaust while his wife and children were killed. Sol Nazerman tries to keep himself emotionless, but his young assistant (Jaime Sanchez) forces him to deal more directly with the living. Great location work from Lumet and a mind-blowing performance from Juano Hernandez add to the power.

54. One, Two, Three (Billy Wilder, 1961)

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...netwothree.jpg

Taken from Movie Tab II, July 2, 2010:

Machine-gun-paced Cold War comedy covers just about everything one could think of, not just what was happening in the divided city of Berlin at the time. James Cagney is a marvel as a Coca-Cola executive who has to "babysit" his boss's teenage daughter (Pamela Tiffin) and gets several headaches when she marries a young "Bolshevik" (Horst Buchholz) from East Berlin. The young woman's family is also on the way to Berlin to pick up their daughter, so Cagney has little time to straighten things out. There is also the usual high quota of sex jokes from scripters I.A.L. Diamond and Billy Wilder and a smart musical score which incorporates Khatchaturyan's "Sabre Dance". It's almost impossible to describe how fast the dialogue flies by as everyone speaks as quickly as possible and the plot twists come at such a frantic pace. Don't expect to go to the kitchen or the bathroom with the movie playing because you'll miss about 20 visual or verbal jokes a minute. Of course, the better-versed you are in the world history and popular culture of 1961, the more fun you'll have watching this terrific comedy, but it's also a great way to learn some of those things in between all the laughs.

53. Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1954)

http://thisdistractedglobe.com/wp-co...%20pic%201.jpg

It's hard to believe that James Stewart needs to spend so much time looking out his window at all his neighbors when he's got Grace Kelly lounging in his room, but, thankfully for the audience, he's just nosey enough to turn this into a classic suspense mystery with techinique and wit to burn.

52. Singin' in the Rain (Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly, 1952)

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=93438&rendTypeId=4 http://images.greencine.com/images/a...icals-rain.jpg

Hollywood's greatest original musical comes packed with song and dance numbers up the wazoo, and still remains the ultimate satire of how silent movies turned into talkies.

51. Gone With the Wind (Victor Fleming, several others, 1939) - Way UNDERRATED in this list

http://i.cnn.net/v5cache/TCM/Images/...1320061636.gif http://www.foxnews.com/images/264327...lark_gable.jpg

Classic filmmaking and storytelling on a grand scale. You may think it's only a racist soap opera (wrong), but whatever you think, it contains iconic performances from Vivien Leigh, Clark Gable, Hattie McDaniel and Olivia de Havilland. The only flaw I find with it is that it shoehorns too much tragedy into the last hour by rushing through it.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

50. The Shawshank Redemption (Frank Darabont, 1994)

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t.../shawshank.jpg

This is one of those films that always makes me cry and feel good. Sure, it's obvious that it's manipulative, but I'd rather be manipulated by Morgan Freeman's voice than just about anybody's. Plus Tim Robbins' performance ain't too shabby either.

49. Forrest Gump (Robert Zemeckis, 1994)

http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/i...est_gump_l.jpghttp://www.filminamerica.com/Movies/...ump/gump02.jpg

After these last three picks, Holden must be spinnin' in his "grave" (he's a vampire, didn't ya know?), BUT... I enjoy Forrest Gump. I realize that it's a CliffsNotes tour of the last half of the 20th century, but there's something about the tone and Hanks' performance that I find appealing. I certainly don't cry during it, but I do laugh a lot. I especially love Lt. Dan.

48. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962)

http://msnbcmedia2.msn.com/j/msnbc/C..._3p.hlarge.jpg

The film and locations are mesmerizing. You just get engulfed in it and let it take you where it does. Hopefully, you will be rewarded with a cinematic experience unlike any other. In that way, Lawrence of Arabia reminds me of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The desert seems almost as huge as outer space.

47. L.A. Confidential (Curtis Hanson, 1997)

http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/i...idential_l.jpg http://img.listal.com/image/545024/5...screenshot.jpg

This is a super-charged blast through early 1950s L.A., covering cops, hits, Hollywood stars, gossip columnists, TV, racism, and especially sex and violence. This movie has NO BOREDOM! Besides introducing mainstream America to Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, it gave several stars incredibly-juicy roles.

46. Excalibur (John Boorman, 1981)

http://movie-poster.ws/movies/wallpa.../excalibur.jpg

Certainly one of the most-breathtaking visual extravaganzas ever. This King Arthur movie is suffused with sci-fi, action and sex. Then, at the end, it turns into a horror film. World class filmmaking of the highest order.

45. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (John Huston, 1948)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_01_img0503.jpg http://www.utexas.edu/features/2007/...cs/cinema3.jpg

Gritty adventure of down-on-their-luck Americans prospecting for gold in 1920s Mexico. It's a terrific adventure, filled with colorful characters. Fred C. Dobbs gets to deal with somebody who doesn't have to show him "any stinking badges". My vote for Bogart's and Walter Huston's greatest performances.

44. A Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick, 1971)

http://www-tc.pbs.org/wgbh/culturesh..._big.jpg?mii=1

Scathing social satire, filled with sex and ultraviolence, uses Beethoven's music brilliantly. The story and character arcs are painted with poison-pen precision. This film, made almost 40 years ago, would never be financed or even allowed to be made (probably) in our wonderful PC times.

43. Next Stop, Greenwich Village (Paul Mazursky, 1976)

https://www.movieposter.com/posters/...n/22/A70-11496

A truly special and spectacular autobiographical comedy-drama about a New York actor trying to make the big time. The entire cast is tremendous, but kudos to young Lenny Baker who turns in a seemingly-effortless brilliant performance in the lead role. R.I.P.

42. Diner (Barry Levinson, 1982)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_03_img1317.jpg

What Greenwich Village in 1953 did for the last film, Baltimore in 1959 does for this one. The time, place and characters are so perfectly realized in these particular coming-of-age films that I just wish that I could be involved in one personally. I almost gave Brenda a movie quiz before our wedding (inspired by this flick), but I was never serious about it, although I had her going there for a minute. :cool: (Now you can see why my coming-of-age movies usually involve the "immature sex".)

41. Rosemary's Baby (Roman Polanski, 1968)

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=90687&rendTypeId=4

Probably the greatest Hitchcock film which Hitch didn't direct. This film is scary as hell, but all the more so because you can believe that it could happen. Maybe Satan did spawn the baby or maybe these crazy Satan-worshippers want it for their own. You tell me. Which is scarier? Rosemary does put up a good fight though.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Oh yay... Excalibur! I love that movie... hate Gone With the Wind but love Excalibur.... ;) :D

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Really interesting notes on all these films, nice work.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I fully expect some backlash on GWTW, but if I get anyone to rewatch it or even check it out for the first time, that's all I'm trying to do. Did anybody notice that I placed it in the middle of my list? :cool:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I've tried re-watching GWTW a couple of times and still dislike it... immensely... but I'm cool with the fact others do like it... 'tis what makes us all individuals... and yes, I noticed it was in the middle of your list... and that it is also losing ground on the all the "official" Best Movie lists every year.... :D

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Man this is good stuff mark! Love Excalibur! And Forrest Gump (obviously) and I have been putting off seeing GWTW and now I think I'm a lot closer to seeing it.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Oh man... I need to spend some time in this thread... which I will do as soon as it isn't Friday night... ;)

"A dream to some... a nightmare to others!!!"

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

First off, excuse my overuse of the word "awesome", but when it fits the best, I'm sorta stuck with it. :D

40. Beauty and the Beast (Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise, 1991)

http://www.thearchetypalconnection.c...DancingLow.JPG

Disney's greatest traditional animation since the 1950s has gorgeous artwork, a wonderful score and plenty of action, humor, and suspense.

39. An American Werewolf in London (John Landis, 1981)

http://www.cult-cinema.ru/pictures/s...in_london7.jpg http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...anWerewolf.jpg[

Truly horrific tale which just happens to be incredibly sexy and witty. Really, it's a once-in-a-lifetime flick since none of the newer attempts at such a thing are nearly as successful or complex.

38. Chinatown (Roman Polanski, 1974)

http://skyjude.users.btopenworld.com...hinatown04.jpg

Polanski is a master, but screenwriter Robert Towne has to take a bow for his great original script. Nicholson and Dunaway are terrific, but bringing in John Huston (The Maltese Falcon) was a stroke of genius.

37. Deliverance (John Boorman, 1972)

http://www.destgulch.com/movies/deliver/deliv03.jpg http://blogs.citypages.com/amadzine/...iverance2a.JPG

Awesome film about man's interaction with nature seems to have passed into some psycho folklore full of snide jokes. Even if you think there's something "funny" about this film, it's very serious, exciting, scary, beautifully-photographed and strangely poetic. Wonderful use of "Dueling Banjos" at the beginning to set the mood.

36. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Milos Forman, 1975)

http://billsmovieemporium.files.word.../ep_cuckoo.jpg

Hilarious, uplifting, disturbing and tragic reinvention of Ken Kesey's novel. I LOVE Jack Nicholson, and this may well be his greatest performance. Just him, sitting in front of a turned-off TV set, giving play-by-play of the World Series, is enough for someone to fall in love with the movies.

35. American Graffiti (George Lucas, 1973)

http://movie-poster.ws/movies/wallpa...n_graffiti.jpg

My favorite coming-of-age film, with just about the coolest use of a soundtrack, and a wonderful collection of characters and performances.

34. The Manchurian Candidate (John Frankenheimer, 1962)

http://richeyrich.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/mmk.jpg

Damn, what a great movie! The Chinese kidnap and brainwash American soldiers during the Korean War to have one ticking time bomb do their bidding when required. An awesome combo of political satire, suspense and dark comedy which has never remotely been duplicated, unless you count Dr. Strangelove. This one has Angela Lansbury though. :cool:

33. The Innocents (Jack Clayton, 1961)
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I've discussed this film many places around the site, including its own thread twice, so maybe this is overkill to mention it again, but I just watched it with someone who has never seen it, so I'll try to post something new and thoughtful, if I can. The bottom line for me is that this is the creepiest, scariest, most-unsettling horror film I've ever seen. The Innocents is so frightening because it's open to so many interpretations, and no matter which way you interpret it, it's just as disturbing as possible. It's based on Henry James' The Turn of the Screw which tells the story of a new governess, Miss Giddens (Deborah Kerr), and her effect on two angelic children who seem to be far more mature than their ages would allow. The boy Miles (Martin Stephens) is sent home from school for being "an injury" to the other boys, and the girl Flora (Pamela Franklin) seems to realize that Miles is coming home before anyone else does. This is only the beginning of many incidents which seem to possibly have more than one explanation, and as the film progresses, it becomes more-difficult to decide what the truth of the situation is.

The photography is spectacular and the sound design awesomely conveys what could either be Miss Giddens' deepening madness or a presence of unspeakable evil which threatens to possess and corrupt the children in the form of two dead servants who formally helped to raise the children while freely carrying on an open S&M sexual relationship in front of them. Since the film was made in 1961, you have to pay attention to pick up all the plot nuances and possibilities, but all you have to have are eyes and ears to be transfixed and lost in another world of a large house full of rooms of whispers and scary "games" of hide-and-seek. Make sure you watch this one after it gets dark.

32. Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942)

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Bogart, at the center of WWII, deciding who lives and who dies. Is he the ultimate Anti-Hero or just a plain old romantic? Does he stick his neck out for anybody or not? Is Ingrid Bergman gorgeous beyond belief? Are the cast and script the most perfectly-oiled machine ever conceived by classic Hollywood?


31. Richard Pryor Live in Concert (Jeff Margolis, 1979)

http://www.richardpryorliveinconcert.com/pryor4.jpghttp://www.somewhereville.com/blogim...chardpryor.jpg http://www.brightlightsfilm.com/56/5...inconcert2.jpg



First off, Richard Pryor released a few concert films; or at least, people trying to make money off his talent did. This review is only concerning the very first film, and it's called exactly this title. This will always be my "go-to" film when I need to just laugh and feel a bit better about life. I've talked to many people of many ages, and they all have their fave stand-up comics, but I find it hard to believe that a truthful person could watch this film and not tell me that Pryor is the funniest, most-honest person on the face of the Earth here. If you deny that, then tell me somebody who can remotely perform so many human and animal characters on stage. The man pours his entire soul out in this wonderful movie, and I feel privileged to relive it two or three times a year with my friends and family. R.I.P.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

There are quite a few of my favorite movies in this bunch, Mark.

About The Pawnbroker, my husband said it was the first film he saw in film analysis class way back in college. He didn't care for it then, but we'll watch it together soon since I haven't seen it. We'll see if he feels the same way.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Awesome job Mark.... :D I love One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and American Graffiti.... can't wait to see the rest....

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I thought it was an awesome (sorry had to be done :p) choice to have Richard Pryor on your list. That is the one where he does most of his talking about some of his drug experiences yes? The Heart attack in particular I think. I seem to remember that I saw this maybe 5 or 6 years ago and had been sober for a little while at that time. I was completely blown away by his honesty. I wish he was still with us.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

More great movies and more great reccomendations. Good job, mark. It's good to see Rosemary's Baby and American Werewolf in your list.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

The Pawnbroker is certainly an unusual film, from the plot to the cast to the technique. It's probably about the furthest thing from "entertainment" on my list, but I find it to be powerfully moving and love the editing. I'd be interested in seeing Slug's comments. :cool:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

30. Pygmalion (Anthony Asquith & Leslie Howard, 1938)/My Fair Lady (George Cukor, 1964)

http://galenfrysinger.org/movies/pygmaliona.JPG http://dryden.eastmanhouse.org/media/pygmalion.jpg
http://movies.lovetoknow.com/wiki/im...dypubstill.jpg http://www.infoplease.com/images/movrf33.gif

George Bernard Shaw's peerless romantic comedy is just as good, whether it has songs or not. I actually prefer the performances of Leslie Howard and Wendy Hiller and the cool technique in the original film, but the songs are so much fun and no expense was spared on the later production. When Rex Harrison goes into another one of his soliloquies, and Audrey Hepburn responds by wishing him grisly deaths in various ways, it has to bring smiles. :) My only disappointment is that they dubbed Marni Nixon's voice in for Audrey Hepburn. (Audrey does a good job of singing in the Extra Features they have on the My Fair Lady DVD.) I obviously recommend both films, but for potential haters, the older one is in B&W and the newer one is a musical. Yikes! What are you supposed to do? Sit back and enjoy them both. :cool:

29. Saving Private Ryan (Steven Spielberg, 1998)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_03_img1119.jpg

I'm a big fan of the film, obviously. The opening scenes at Normandy draw you in immediately. The closing battle is even more intense and action-packed. In between are a number of scenes and characters who illuminate the insanity and heartbreak of war. I find all the central characters to be very flawed humans, but together, they create a truly thought-provoking, yet highly-visceral experience. I understand that some people have a distaste for the bookends, and although I'd just as soon see them excised, I don't feel they detract and are an appropriate tribute to WWII veterans.

28. Mary Poppins (Robert Stevenson, 1964)

http://www.greatmovietour.co.uk/reso...ppins-mv03.jpg

I can hear it now... what's wrong with mark throwing in musicals and Spielberg flix (just wait), but I don't get hung up on musicals or Americans with "lousy English accents". What kind of movie do you expect Mary Poppins to be? A docudrama? I expected it to be a joyous, funny celebration of the power of the imagination to help people of all ages to improve their life. I expected Julie Andrews to do a magnificent job. I expected to enjoy the animated scenes and to feel good while watching the movie. I expected a cinematic treat. All my expectations were met and surpassed, and they continue to be to this very day.

27. The Graduate (Mike Nichols, 1967)

http://www.filminamerica.com/Movies/...graduate13.jpghttp://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-imag...raduate460.jpg

A social satire about the upper class in 1960s California, the film struck a nerve with the public who related to Benjamin's (Dustin Hoffman's) dilemma of having finished college at a young age and having no idea whatsoever to do with his life. His affair with Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft) leads to some great verbal and visual wit, but it's his growing love for her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross), who he sees as his only way of saving what's left of his future, which propels the film's second half. Simon and Garfunkel's song score adds a lot, and the film builds to a frenzied finale as Benjamin tries to get to the church on time to stop Elaine's marriage. It may not be as completely fresh as it once was, but it's still better than any similar-themed films.

26. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Steven Spielberg, 1977)

http://www.empireonline.com/images/f...ictures/40.jpg http://mmimagessmall.moviemail-onlin...Encounters.jpg

Richard Dreyfuss gives his greatest performance as visionary power lineman Roy Neary, caught in an enigma he cannot understand but refuses to ignore, even at the expense of losing his family. Spielberg tells the story impressionistically with a series of striking scenes which he never really explains and leaves it up to the audience to tie the thing together. In that way, we experience the film the same way as Neary and his family do. There is also a scientific team, led by François Truffaut, trying to figure out what's going on, but rest assured, things come to a beautifully-moving conclusion. In fact, the final 45 minutes is almost like a mini-movie opera all by itself, but one which is suffused in warm light and hope with no tragedy.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I don't know what's more impressive, your great taste in films or these incredible screenshots!

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Danka, sire.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Sorry i just found this thread :blush: Great stuff Marky :yup: so many movies i love too :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

25. Braveheart (Mel Gibson, 1995)

http://www.kiltmen.com/braveheart2.jpg http://lonestartimes.com/images/braveheart.jpg

I find Braveheart to be a well-crafted homage to Hollywood epic storytelling. It begins as a horror film, then turns quickly into a romance. Gorgeous photography and music surround you until tragedy strikes again. Then, it becomes a revenge action adventure crossed with an underdog theme. I certainly didn't believe that Gibson had it in him to make such an entertaining film, but I'm happy that I was mistaken. The script and direction also exhibit a wicked sense of dark humor, which I always find to be a plus.

24. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)

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For me, this is easily Tarantino's best film, and no matter where he drew his "inspiration", it's crammed with quirky, interesting characters and witty dialogue. Just thinking about many of the minor characters makes me smile; people like Steve Buscemi's Buddy Holly, Eric Stoltz's Lance, and Christopher Walken's Captain Koons. Much has been made of the film's non-linear structure, but I find it to be not that significant, at least while watching it. It adds something more to discuss after it's over, but while watching it, I mainly think about how great Samuel L. Jackson and Harvey Keitel are.

23. Paths of Glory (Stanley Kubrick, 1957)

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Kubrick's powerful, sensitive study of not so much an impossible mission by the French during WWI, but an insane plan passed down by the Joint Chiefs of Staff to somehow appease the media and the public. When the mission turns out to be the preordained failure it always was, then some of the men who weren't cut to bits in the attack are put on trial for cowardice. Of course, the trial has no formal charges and no written record kept of it, but Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas), the man who both led the troops on the mission and is now serving as the scapegoats' defense attorney, tries his best, again, to save his men from death. This is only a cursory recap of all the complex details and scathing scenes found in this 86-minute masterpiece, which remains the most humanistic condemnation of war ever depicted.

22. West Side Story (Robert Wise & Jerome Robbins, 1961)

http://img5.allocine.fr/acmedia/medi...6/18629180.jpg http://img5.allocine.fr/acmedia/medi...6/18610505.jpg

Exhilarating transfer of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet to 1950s New York City contains inventive direction by Robert Wise, awesome choreography by co-director Jerome Robbins, and powerfully-immortal music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Besides having the traditional plot of gang warfare and love trying to rise above it, there is the added dimension of racism, since the Jets are White and the Sharks are Puerto Rican. The opening scenes high above NYC have become iconic, and they're followed by a long stretch with no dialogue or singing at all, just whistling, other sound effects and some stylized dancing to quickly get you involved in the tenseness of the situation. Of all the songs, my faves would be the hilarious "Gee, Officer Krupke" (which is mostly about kinky sex, child abuse and drug use) and the double-edged sword "America" (which delineates how our country is both full of promise and disappointment).

21. Room at the Top (Jack Clayton, 1959)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_01_img0422.jpg http://www.safariunderground.net/mov...at-the-top.jpg

Almost 50 years ago, this realistic British film shattered a few barriers in the depiction of love on screen. No, it's not that it showed a lot of skin or anything like that. It's just that the emotional intensity of being in love hadn't really been depicted so intimately-honest before. Young Joe Lampton (Laurence Harvey), with insecurities about his lower-class upbringing, comes to work at a new business in a bigger city and determines to make his way in career and life by marrying a rich girl. Along the way, he meets and begins an affair with an older French woman (Simone Signoret) who's trapped in a loveless marriage. Joe has to decide what to do when the boss's daughter (Heather Sears) begins to show him some attention. The film still retains its frankness, and it's blessed with a witty script by Neil Paterson, adapted from John Braine's novel, and superb direction by Jack Clayton (The Innocents). Highly recommended to all.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Well you won't get backlash from me. I love Gone With the Wind.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

20. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (George Roy Hill, 1969)

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t...chsundance.jpg

This stylish western is filled with wonderful technique. I especially like the way it begins with a silent movie playing over the titles, and turns sepia to introduce the leading characters in highly-stylized scenes. William Goldman's script is a showpiece to exhibit the charm and wit of Paul Newman and Robert Redford. Even with all the wonderful comic and action highlights, the heart of the film is the long trek trying to escape the posse doggedly on their trail. After all is said and done, I still believe my fave part is the shootout ending in Bolivia with its pumped-up sound and editing.

19. The Quiet Man (John Ford, 1952)

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Wonderful comedy-romance, set in Ireland about "quiet, peace-loving" Sean Thornton (John Wayne) from America, who returns to his homestead, harboring a secret, and is thrust in the midst of some of the craziest, yet lovable, characters imaginable. He sets his sites immediately on beautiful Mary Kate (Maureen O'Hara), but her cantakerious brother, Squire Will Daneher (the hilarious Victor McLaglen) blocks him at every turn. A few of the other characters maneuver to get the couple together, but Mary Kate is just as strong-willed as her brother, so things come to a boil in a conclusion where an extended fistfight between Sean and the Squire occurs throughout the town and countryside. Barry Fitzgerald, Ward Bond, Arthur Shields (Barry's brother), Mildred Natwick and Jack MacGowran lend rib-tickling support.

18. Z (Costa-Gavras, 1969)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...staGavrasZ.jpghttp://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_01_img0548.jpg

Tense, satirical political mystery-thriller, based on a true story, which details the events leading up to the military takeover of Greece in the 1960s. The military and police don't want a popular leftist politician (Yves Montand) to speak at a rally, so the officials connive to stop it and a tragic "accident" results. The government investigator (Jean-Louis Trintignant) on the case uncovers far too many coincidences and lies to believe that it was only an accident, especially as he digs deeper into who exactly was involved. Although the film has a lot of intelligent, witty dialogue, it's mostly propelled by the hypnotic, suspenseful atmosphere and a riveting Mikis Theodorakis musical score.

17. Alfie (Lewis Gilbert, 1966)

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Star-making performance by Michael Caine as the womanizing Alfie is just the topper of a truly memorable film, overflowing with memorable situations, dialogue and characters. Caine talks to the camera and it has never worked better before or since. Director Lewis Gilbert was a veteran, but he seems to be caught up in some interesting filmmaking techniques inspired by the Swingin' Sixties which all add to the humor and pathos of this sparkling adaptation of Bill Naughton's play. Alfie's putdowns of females in general are both hateful and hilarious, but just as happened to Archie Bunker in the 1970s, he is exposed for what he is. Oops! I almost forgot the cool Sonny Rollins jazz score.

16. Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985)

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Marvelous mainstream entertainment, which is so creative, scriptwise and visually, that it is difficult to conceive of improving upon it. Teenager Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is thrust from 1985 back to 1955 through a series of events involving "mad scientist" Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) and his time-traveling DeLorean. The only way Marty can get "back to the future" is to find the younger Doc Brown and enlist his help. However, Marty has also ended up at the time where his parents meet, and if he doesn't do something to help out, it looks like his parents will never get together. One of the funniest films ever made is also a real feel-good crowd pleaser.

Doc Brown: "Tell me, Future Boy, who's President in 1985?"
Marty: "Ronald Reagan."
Doc Brown: "Ronald Reagan? The Actor? Then who's Vice President? Jerry Lewis?"

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Love your list... :) I don't think I have ever seen the original Alfie... but own the remake which was pretty good...

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I too am well and truly loving your list, Mark.

That's an interesting way to look at it. I personally don't like Braveheart, but then if I did, these lists wouldn't be so interesting.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I've noticed several members, over the time I've been here, mention that they don't like Braveheart... but it keeps popping up on various members favorite lists (including my own)... so, I think it might be interesting to start a discussion about that one.... in another thread of course... and sorry for the semi-hijacking of this one...

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Brrrrrrrrrrrr !

Lots of films with really bad pacing - 2001 and close encounters take the cake though.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Glad to see One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, even if I would have placed it much higher.

:up:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

15. Alice in Wonderland (Clyde Geronimi, Wifred Jackson, Hamilton Luske, 1951)

http://www.elisanet.fi/mlang/kuvat/alicedis-5.jpg

Disney's greatest traditional animated film is still just about the most surreal movie ever made (take that, Buñuel :cool: ). It's also Disney's funniest, even though the humor is incredibly dark. There are so many crazy characters to choose from: the White Rabbit, the Doorknob, the Walrus, the Carpenter, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Bill (my fave, "Well, there goes Bill!"), the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, the Caterpillar, the Cheshire Cat, the Queen and King of Hearts, etc. The animators let their minds run wild and created a trip of a movie, that's for sure.

http://www.alice-in-wonderland.net/a...ire-cat-13.jpg

14. War and Peace (Sergei Bondarchuk, 1967)

http://alsolikelife.com/images/image...andpeace03.jpg

This is a true rarity: a film which tells a gargantuan story, based on a nation's most-popular/important novel, which expands the envelope of cinema on several levels. As enormous as much of the film is, it never strays too far from the story of its three central characters: Natasha (Lyudmila Savelyeva), a young, highly-emotional girl who feels strongly for her first love; Prince Andrei (Vyacheslav Tikhonov) who proposes to her but reneges when she acts foolishly; and Pierre (director Bondarchuk), her married cousin, who has always loved her and wishes to correct a mistake. Forty years ago, the entire Soviet Union government contributed $100 million to make this awesome film, thus making it in today's dollars the most expensive film ever made. Even so, the film is mind-boggling and a totally-personal triumph for the director. The battle scenes have probably never been equaled, and the camerawork is creatively-luxuriant and bends to the stories' necessities. It truly is among the most spectacular films ever made, but Bondarchuk can even turn a simple scene into an emotional apocalypse through subtle photography, sound design and music. In fact, there are so many folk songs sung by many of the characters that it occasionally seems to be a haunting musical. This film may well be vastly underrated by me, but if you get a chance to watch it, try to see the Russian DVD (Ruscico); the rest of those on the market greatly reduce its power.

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_01_img0527.jpg

13. The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)

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Unlike most here, this is my easy pick for Coppola's best film. It's a totally stand alone, audacious, suspenseful tale of the Mob (or Family), told in a traditional story arc. The beginning, middle and end are perfect. The acting is uniformly terrific, and the cast is easily the greatest of The Godfather movies. I have come to appreciate how superb Part II is, when blended with the original, but it took me a while to accept it as almost as great. If the two films had been edited together originally, I still wouldn't think it was much better than the awesome War and Peace. Maybe this film is a tad more melodramatic than the second one, but even though Brando should have won Best Supporting Actor here (well, maybe not, Joel Grey, anyone?) and Pacino should have been nominated Best Actor (vice versa of the way they actually were), Brando dominates this film in his few scenes. It's just that the film is so rich in all its characters that distinctions among importance are irrelevant. After all, this guy is pretty damn impressive too.

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/m...g_1202573i.jpg

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Excellent choices, too bad you do not have more color by number films for Wad to enjoy. Seriously though, nice mix of films thus far :up:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I had no idea they had made a movie from War and Peace. Now I'm curious and want to see what it's all about.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Can't wait for your next installment :yup:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

12. Schindler's List (Steven Spielberg, 1993)

http://www.filmreference.com/images/sjff_01_img0438.jpghttp://www.knowdrama.com/images/creative4/list.jpg

Harrowing true story of the Holocaust told through the life of businessman Oskar Schindler (a towering Liam Neeson) who joins the Nazi Party when he sees a way to make some money off the horrors of war. Along the way to acquiring his influence and fortune, he is a witness to the killings of several of his Jewish workers at his ammunitions factory and the German liquidation of the Krakow ghetto. These experiences leave him a changed man. Gradually, under the guidance of his office manager/conscience Stern (the deeply moving Ben Kingsley), Schindler arranges to "buy" many Jews who go to work in the comparative safety of his enamelworks. However, he still finds himself at the whims of malicious camp commandant Amon Goethe (the frightening Ralph Fiennes) and the Nazis' desire for the Final Solution concerning the Jews.

I find the film to be told in almost an entirely fresh way, as the story builds, from a series of brief scenes about people who we don't know at all, into a world of flesh-and-blood characters who are just trying to survive a horrible situation. The editing and Janusz Kaminski's brilliant chiaroscuro photography especially come into play as the ghetto is filled in two parts and one side is subsequently liquidated. The remaining half go to labor camps and eventually to extermination. Even in the darkest moments, there are several glimpses of humor in Steven Zaillian's script. There would be no way to survive in such an unthinkable world without keeping one's humanity through humor, dark as it may be.


http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t...lerfiennes.jpg

I could go on for pages here, but I'm going to stop now. I'll just say that if you haven't seen Schindler's List, be warned that it truly contains shocking atrocities, and it's a hard R-rated film which most will find deeply disturbing. However, there is a light at the end of the long tunnel. I have had discussions with some people who have told me that they were personally offended because the film had a "happy ending", and that Spielberg should have chosen a darker story instead of this "Oscar bait". I respect their opinions, but I have to disagree. Of course, I don't know of any relatives of mine who were killed during the Holocaust, and if I did, it might change my perspective. However, even then, I would have a difficult time denying the cinematic power of this film.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Do you disagree with them on the "happy ending" front? I'm not sure what movie they saw but I sure don't remember any happy ending during that film. A truly important film and really only a taste of what a terrible atrocity that whole holocaust was really about. Certainly a very moving ending but what's wrong with that? If Speilberg was comfortable with it who am I to judge?

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

The gist of the conversations revolved around the fact that people were saved by non-Jews, while all the millions died. Apparently, whatever film he should have made would have involved just people who died. Also, although Spielberg is Jewish, the implication was that he was "cashing in" on the Holocaust, which apparently means that this novel should never be allowed to be filmed; at least not by a Jew.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Isn't it great that no matter what happens in this lovely little world of ours, there will always be someone that will come up behind someone that just did something and just cut that person down at the knees and dismiss whatever the message or meaning was supposed to be? Anyway great pick and I'll stop hijacking your thread now.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

11. The Incredibles (Brad Bird, 2004)

http://www.news.com/i/ne/p/2004/family_650x267.jpg

I love everything about this movie. I realize that, first off, most people think of it as just a Pixar film or an animated film or a super hero film, but I think those tags for it miss the point of what I believe the film to be. It certainly tells a good story, not only in the context of a "family film" or the greatest James Bond film never made, but also in its overall creative presentation. The Incredibles displays sparkling wit and invention on almost every level: character animation, vocal expression, art direction/set design, the yummy musical score which sounds like it's from a '60s spy movie, only much cooler, and the use of both old-style "newsreels" and modern technology to make the plot more-complex and put the entire thing into larger satirical focus. This doesn't even mention the incredibly fast pace of both the editing and the verbal/visual humor.

A normal movie about super heroes wouldn't dig this deep into all the hassles inherent in being a super hero inside when the world won't allow you to express it on the outside. It also presents a family dynamic which is realistic in that it is so full of contradictions. The males in the Incredible family really want to express their super powers, while mom (Holly Hunter) knows it's better for the family (in more ways than one) to stifle them, just as the legal system and government have deemed necessary. The daughter is at the age where she's getting interested in boys but is very shy about this normal process and is able to use her power to help her get through it. The son just wants to be able to show off in sports once in awhile. The baby, well, we don't know about the baby...

Before I start sounding too serious and pompous about what I consider one of the most exhilaratingly FUN movies ever made, let me mention the "Incredible" supporting characters. Mr. Incredible's (Craig T. Nelson's) best friend Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) is one bad mutha, Jason Lee is a riot as a science/tech geek who wants to be Mr. Incredible's sidekick, and perhaps best of all, director/screenwriter Brad Bird plays Edna E. Mode, the costime designer to the super heroes, as a sort of cross between Edith Head and Linda Hunt.

All the gibberish above can just be ignored if you like, while I cut to the heart and soul of how I feel when watching The Incredibles. I feel like the giddy kid I was in the 1960s who fell in love with movies and cartoons. The main difference today is that I can love this film because it reminds me of so many other terrific films which are a part of me, yet it feels newer and more intense than almost all of them. Another thing I think about when I'm watching this movie is that it's a great FILM. I certainly don't think I'm watching a cartoon because these characters are real to me. I'm just glad that the technology is available so that a film classicist of the stature of Brad Bird can share this story with all of us.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I have never seen The Incredibles ... but it looks like I need to add it to my to see list.... great job Mark... :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

So agree with you. I've only just caught up with your list and you know I asked last night if we could have docus and concerts on our top 100s? well this is the one I wanted to include too. First got this on an LP in the late 70s and it's long been a favourite in our house with loads of quotes been passed down to my kids too. I listen to this on my ipod when having a crap day at work, you soon cheer up :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

10. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Mike Nichols, 1966)

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...whosafraid.jpg

Elizabeth Taylor (Martha) and Richard Burton (George) give two of the greatest performances in screen history in Mike Nichols' brilliant film debut. I consider Edward Albee's awesome play to be the culmination of everything Tennessee Willaims accomplished. Williams trailblazed the eccentric, yet totally-honest characters which are present in this amazing film, which is also of a higher-cinematic quality than all of its forebears. The younger couple, played by Sandy Dennis and George Segal, get trapped in the older couple's web soon enough and find it difficult not to try to add to the situation while trying to extricate themselves.

This film pushed the envelope for frankness and language in American films, and thus was semi-responsible for the MPAA. Yet, the MPAA is better than the Hays Code, so it shouldn't be attacked for that. Most of my films, at the higher echelon of my list, are pretty damn unique, and they either created a new world for films to be made in or, at least, appreciated. Even when that's not true, they are so far away from what's considered normal films nowadays, that they should all get your attention.

http://www.filmsquish.com/guts/files.../0712-0035.jpghttp://www.filmsquish.com/guts/files/images/lizzie4.JPG

Most of the film is shot on one set, but once again, what somebody might consider uncinematic is turned into a major asset by Nichols and his cast. Many of the greatest surprises in the film involve the camera moving away, if only for a few seconds, and when it returns, it completely blows your mind. The brutal honesty of two couples' relationships has rarely been brought out into the open before or since. In that way, when the film almost turns fantastic at the end, it actually deepens the tragedy and significance of everything which has come before. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Probably every normal, loving human being should be, but that still means that no one can afford to miss all of this film's truths and humor.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

It has been so long since I have even thought about Virginia Wolf :eek: now i want to see it again :yup:

This is the first list that i have seen every movie............. so far :yup:

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Is that good or bad?

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i love the list.. i wish and hope to see those someday..bump for you mr.mark f...this a great list..

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Good, of course, silly :kiss:

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Mark - the fact that you like The Incredibles so much makes me wonder - ever thought of reading Watchmen? Incredibles is pretty much the family movie version of that.

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I've got Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? on deck as soon as I get back to attacking the lists now I think I may have to do that a little sooner.

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9. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)

http://budz.files.wordpress.com/2007...trangelove.jpg

Dr. Strangelove was made at the height of the Cold War, and it turned the ultra-seriousness of something like Fail-Safe into a black comedy. Even so, I know a few people, who while watching this hilarious film, want me to "point out the funny parts". The thing about this film is that, even if you don't get a single joke, it's so damned suspenseful, and occasionally, realistic, that you would have to think it's almost a documentary. The characters' names should be a dead giveaway that you're dealing with a comedy, but I guess some people don't have a sense of humor, or maybe it's limited to fart jokes. The characters' roll call: Dr. Strangelove, Buck Turgidson, Jack D. Ripper, King Kong, Bat Guano, Premier Kissoff, Lothar Zogg, etc.

http://wodumedia.com/wp-content/uplo...nt-528x359.jpg

True, Dr. Strangelove is full of humor, jokes and utter ridiculousness; even enough to rival a Monty Python film, but some people can't get through Kubrick's realism to see the humor. This film contains some truly great action/suspense scenes. The Army has to attack Burpleson Air Force Base to try to stop General Ripper, and that scene is almost like watching documentary Viet Nam war footage. The realism gets to you. Even better, when the Soviet missile hones in on Major Kong's bomber, trying to blow it out of the sky, the scene is played out in real time and is nail-bitingly suspenseful. As I mentioned earlier in this thread, the only film which can compare to this dark comedy crossed with extreme suspense is The Manchurian Candidate.

http://blog.ctnews.com/meyers/files/...e1-600x450.jpg

Ultimately, this film leaves one thinking about the end of the world. It could very well happen in the blink of an eye, caused by a madman, even if he's NOT an American. This should give everyone pause to consider Dr. Strangelove as a clarion call (yes, even to this day) because it really doesn't take that much for the check and double check system to collapse. It won't go down as hilariously as it does here (if it does), but it will go down just as easily, or perhaps even easier if nobody even understands what this film is about or why it's so flippin' awesome.

Some know, but others don't. Peter Sellers is in all three photos. :cool:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

What a great list, can't wait to see the rest :yup:

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That's weird. I don't get how anyone couldn't laugh at Peter Sellers in this hilarious phone call...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWP_rEWG2xk

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i'm gona go out on a limb here and predict that the next movies in the list will be

1. Jaws 2. Elmer Gantry 3. Midnight Cowboy 4. Star Wars 5. Little Big Man 6. Raiders of the Lost Ark 7. Cabaret 8. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Soooooo, and your point is! :p

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I think this article summed up the humour of Dr. Strangelove quite well in one sentence...

That's been my experience of Strangelove. I get the jokes and understand that this is how the humour of the film is supposed to be, but I always thought it would be a stretch to call Dr. Strangelove a "comedy".

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

His point is, as it always is, "Pay attention to meeeeeeeee...":D

Oh, and I like this list, mark!

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Don't you mean - nice prediction meatwad ?

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Nope. I meant what I said and said what I meant. Now let's let Mark finish up his list and enjoy. :D

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If you liked the camera work you might want to check out a documentary that's currently playing OnDemand. It's called, Who Needs Sleep, and it's about the film industries workplace environment. It's shot and directed by the director of photography that did, Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf? I don't think the camera work's amazing in the doc, but the DP is kind of interesting. He's a wise old man with some interesting tails.

Edit:
TALES, not TAILS

Thanks Emir, for making me look like a fool! ;D

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I'll see if I can see Who Needs Sleep and Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf. Haskell Wexler is interesting. You might be interested in the Wexler directed film, Medium Cool, Pimp. I don't think it's amazing but it has an interesting story about news cameramen and a large part of the movie was shot during and in the Chaos of the 1968 DNC in Chicago.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Are you sure you didn't mean that meatwadsprite is the champion is what you meant to say but said didn't mean what I said that means meatwad (meatwadsprite) that you said : nope.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

There is also a documentary made by Haskell Wexler's son about his father. Tell Them Who You Are. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0420952/

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To tell you the truth, I feel no need to post anymore about my movies, but I'll try.

8. The Lord of the Rings (Peter Jackson, 2001-2003)

http://www.wallpaperbase.com/wallpap...he_rings_2.jpg

This series is easy enough to combine up. Even if I appreciated it differently with each movie, I still find it to be one gargantuan movie, so for this list, I say, let's go for it! I would have put the movies in my list somewhere, so it's OK for me to post them together. I loved the intro of The Fellowship of the Ring. Ian McKellen probably gives his greatest performance, and the sets, locations, cast and F/X are set up for the entire trilogy.

The Two Towers introduces my favorite character, Gollum, and turns most of the film into a medieval battle, and then accentuates that battle up the yin-yang. I find a special love for The Return of the King because, besides bringing everything to a close, they finally found ways to show thngs using CGI which they could never show before.

I have to admit that one of the main things I love about the trilogy is that it showed things which no one has ever been able to show before. It has been over two years since I've watched these films, but they carry deep memories for me, almost every single day.

http://upload.moldova.org/movie/movi...the_king_3.jpg

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Don't let the bastards grind you down. You've still got 7 more posts to make here.

At least. ;)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Return of the King is an amazing film - easily my favorite of every movie so far in this list.

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I've just recently been watching the extended versions of all three films, and I have to say, despite of giving you and extra 40 minutes in Middle earth, they ultimately detract from the overall experience quite a bit. Maybe I'm just too attached to the original versions, but every single added scene felt absolutely redundant, to the point where I wondered why anybody in their right mind would have written them, let alone included them in the film...

As far as fantasy films are concerned, LOTR represent the pinnacle and I don't see anything surpassing it any time in the near future (despite its shortcomings, which weren't that few to be honest, the most notable being Liz Tyler and her character).

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I haven't even seen the original versions - aside from fellowship of the ring : which i saw in the theatre

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I agree with Tacitus. Please finish your list Mark. You've put alot of time and effort into making your wonderful list. It would be a shame if you stopped when you're so close to the finish line.

You've been a great read. Please finish. :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

Come on keep em coming

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Yeah, even if we already know what's coming (hint: user profile... favorite movies...) I've enjoyed reading each of the entries in this thread so far so I want you to finish. Maybe take some time off, do a little dance, make a little love, then come back and boogie down with the rest of your top ten :).

(I kind of wish there was a more menacing smile. Like with a cleft chin and a missing tooth or something. Oh well, guess you'll have to settle for ol' yellowy)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I've really enjoyed reading your film list. It's not the simple naming of films that's interesting it's why you chose them and what is personal to you so even if we know what your top ten is, we still need to know why! So keep em coming :)

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

7. Cabaret (Bob Fosse, 1972)

Liza Minnelli follows in her mom's (Judy Garland's) footsteps by giving one of the greatest female performances ever in my vote for the greatest movie musical. The film tackles family relationships, the rise of Naziism in early 1930s Germany, sexuality, self-delusion, transplanted people having a difficult time in their new environment, Bob Fosse choreography, whether a woman can stand up to pee, the joys/dangers of a ménage à trois, the comparison/contrast between Jews and Nazis, the idea that a musical can be a totally honest, believeble film, etc.

http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/i.../cabaret_l.jpg-http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/3...baret_150a.jpg
Except for one chilling scene, all the musical numbers take place in the cabaret, so this is a film which won't let you criticize it for somehow being unrealistic. All the songs in the cabaret, comment, often shatteringly, about what's going on in 1931 Germany and what kind of moral climate could possibly propulgate it. The song sung outside the cabaret is the show-stopping Nazi hymn, "Tomorrow Belongs to Me", sung at an outdoor hofbräuhaus where the citizens get a little... shall we say... carried away with their nationalism.

Director/choreographer Bob Fosse comes up with so many incredible images that your jaw should be in a constant state of dropitis, plus he elicits incredible performances by Liza, the masterfully-hateful-yet-cool M.C. (Joel Grey), the vulnerable English teacher (Michael York), the doomed, yet somehow hilarious couple (Marisa Berenson and Fritz Wepper), and the wealthy married man (Helmut Griem) who can afford to dally with multiple lovers. They all add to the power and entertainment of Cabaret, a truly mature, hilarious and moving movie musical. I will guarantee you that you will be surprised by it.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I feel sooo lame for having never seen Cabaret. I'm fast tracking it to the top of my Netflix.

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I :love: Cabaret :yup:

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See, this is why you should continue. I did not know Judy was Liza's mother. I can't believe I didn't know that.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

I am really, really enjoying your list. A great variety of time frames, subject matter and genres. Looking forward to the last few. :)


The fact that my own child did not know Judy Garland was Liza's mother leaves me speechless. Musical lover that I am, how did I so neglect your education???? :eek:

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

It really is pretty pathetic isn't it? :eek:

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6. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Steven Spielberg, 1981)

http://fiktionogkultur.files.wordpre...e-lost-ark.jpg http://www.legalmoviesdownloads.com/...Lost_Ark_8.jpg

Spielberg, George Lucas and scripter Philip Kaufman combine to create an homage to Saturday matinee serials which pumps up the creativity and the wit (both verbal and visual) to levels which would have never really been seen in the 1930s/40s. First, they create a perfect hero, team him up with some sidekicks, introduce a suave bad guy (Belloq, Paul Freeman), throw in a historical nemesis in the Nazis, and then to top it off, they throw in a sacred artifact of the Jews.

Raiders of the Lost Ark crams in so much action into one movie that the only one I can compare it to is its prequel, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984). I love that film as much as Raiders, except that I can accept that Raiders was first, but even so, the intro and finale of Temple of Doom actually have more action included in it than the former film. I understand that some people hate Kate Capshaw's character, but I find her to be a sarcastic match for Indy, and this second film seems more attuned to the horror comic films (aka graphic novels) which recently seem to be flooding the movie marketplace.

http://www.thefilmjournal.com/images/temple.jpg

At the same time, I'd be remiss not to mention Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). I know many people who love it the most, and I certainly do love it too. The intro with a young Indy (River Phoenix) has special meaning to me because I saw the film just after vacationing in Utah (and Arches National Park specifically) where it was filmed. Plus, I find Sean Connery's performance as Indy's pop the crowning achievement of his acting career, and the father/son teaming easily the greatest character relationships in the series. Still, although it's a terrific movie, it comes in third for me in the Indy sweepstakes. (That means that I give it .)

http://www.thejay.com/wp-content/ind...astcrusade.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...f_Coronado.jpg

Not much more to say about these wonderful films. Yes, I'm a huge fan boy, and I would have made three separate entries in the Top 30, let alone the Top 100, but that would make my list even more predictable.

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

YEEEAAHH!! I love that you gave props to every film in the trilogy (soon to be quadrilogy). They were my favorite movies to watch growing up. I used to even enjoy them more than Star Wars!

And is everyone else privy to the fact that Temple of Doom is a prequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark? I had no idea whatsoever. And how did you know mark?

Re: The mafo's MoFo 100 List
 

:yup: :laugh:

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I agree 100%. Along with Blues Brothers, I loved watching the Indiana Jones movies. I even saw Raiders again the other day (for what must be the 50th time) and it's still great.

Raiders takes place in 1936. Temple takes place in 1935. They're in the subtitles after the credits I think.