Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

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The trick is not minding
While I disagree with Mr Minio, his literal claim wasn't necessarily that non-American cinema was better, but rather once you go for that wider pool of movies, he thinks there's a lot in there that is.


Maybe there was an implication there, but I will point out, one of the films on his list is American.
Pretty much this, and to further support Ash, Minio is a admirer of 2001, as it made his top 300 films edition last year, just outside his top 100 Somewhere.
So he isn’t so much as dismissing its accomplishments, but rather trying to draw attention to other more worthy ( in his opinion ) films from around the world.



Sorry if I'm rude but I'm right
Yeah, 2001 is a masterpiece and definitely worthy of the praise it gets. But I sincerely believe there are better films out there that do not get even one percent of the attention that 2001 is getting. And those better films are as important to the medium of film, as artful, and as worthy of the title of the greatest film ever made. Naturally, the best-ever title is subject to debate, as we can come up with a myriad of criteria as to which factors should decide that, and how important one factor is over another. But at the end of the day, if you think 2001 is the greatest film ever made, I only disagree on the grounds of subjectivity. It's a fair contender for the title. It's just that I believe that there are some "purer" and more impressive films out there.
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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.



“Sugar is the most important thing in my life…”
I can’t take it much longer! Have to know where you ranked Mandy! By god, for King Crimson alone!



Welcome to the human race...
#4. Blade Runner
(Ridley Scott, 1982)



"Wake up. Time to die."

As far as favourite sci-fi subgenres go, I think cyberpunk would have to be a major contender due to its emphasis on using dystopian settings defined by aggressively advanced technology and computers as a sleek yet dirty vehicle for examining everything from social ills to personal questions about the human condition and the crumbling world that surrounds it. Blade Runner is arguably the definitive cyberpunk film, one that creates a richly-detailed vision of the future where artificial beings known as "replicants" exist not simply for the sake of scientific endeavour but to create a whole new underclass to use as slave labour. What plot there is centres on a cat-and-mouse game between the "blade runner" (Harrison Ford) and the leader (Rutger Hauer) of the latest group of replicants to escape captivity, though this is far from a cut-and-dry tale of a hero cop hunting down dastardly robots. Instead, it explores the morally grey existentialism that complicates not just hunter and hunted but those who would get swept up as collateral damage (most obviously Sean Young as an unwitting replicant who is made to realise her true nature in a way that challenges not only her own sense of reality but also that of Ford's bloody-minded slave-catcher). In building on not just older sci-fi's previous attempts to address artificial life and dystopia but also the worn-down cynical aesthetics of film noir, Blade Runner does create something altogether new that aptly subverts expectations - not only is Ford playing a lacklustre excuse for a hero between bouts as Han Solo and Indiana Jones, but Hauer effectively steals the show as a Frankensteinian creature whose villainy is decidedly conditional and in service of his simple goal to just live a little longer. The methodical and subversive approach isn't going to be for everyone (like many a favourite, it left me cold on first viewing), but it reveals true merit in much the same way that the replicants Ford encounters make him reconsider not only their entire existence but his.

2005 ranking: #61
2013 ranking: #10
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I really just want you all angry and confused the whole time.
Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0



Victim of The Night
If I really had to make a list and figure out what my favorite movie of all time was, Blade Runner would probably end up on the short-list. Fun thing is that it has been since about 1983 or '84. But I keep rediscovering it.



Blade Runner is a masterpiece.
Well, it's pretty good, but compared to Alien, it falls kind of short, IMO.



The trick is not minding
Well, it's pretty good, but compared to Alien, it falls kind of short, IMO.
I’m actually in that rare monitory that doesn’t think Alien is “great”, and holds Blade Runner above it.

That doesn’t mean I don’t like it, of course. It’s achievements are undeniable.



I can’t take it much longer! Have to know where you ranked Mandy! By god, for King Crimson alone!
Must be the same reason you like Windows Vista then. For the music done by the guitarist.

You must also like Suspiria and Buffalo 66 as well. I never seen Buffalo, but I know you get both the pre-mentioned band and Yes.

#4. Blade Runner
"Wake up. Time to die."
2005 ranking: #61
2013 ranking: #10
Looking forward to knowing what the top three will be. I anticipated this for ages. I never even saw Mandy but know of Crimson being used the score.



Blade Runner leaves me cold, but I still like the film quite a bit.
Yeah, I feel similarly; I mean it's a pretty good movie, and it had the potential to be a great one, but it was never going to be one for one aspect and one aspect alone; Deckard is such a uninteresting presence that he drags the rest of the movie down around him, even the stuff that should be more compelling, like Rachael's characterization for example. I mean, he's so dull to watch that she actually becomes less compelling just by association with him, and that's without even contrasting him with Roy; say what you will about 2049 as a whole, but at least I cared about K and his "girlfriend", even if they ultimately didn't matter that much in the grand scheme of the story
I’m actually in that rare monitory that doesn’t think Alien is “great”, and holds Blade Runner above it.

That doesn’t mean I don’t like it, of course. It’s achievements are undeniable.
Alien doesn't the same kind of missing "core" that BR does, though, since it doesn't focus as much on Ripley as a character, while also having her be utterly uncompelling to watch; it just focuses on pure tension and atmosphere, does amazingly with that, and ends up as a much better movie as a result.



Welcome to the human race...
I thought that lack of a quote-unquote compelling presence was the point - he's nominally an example of a human being who is inherently deserving of his rights and freedom (to say nothing of the privilege afforded to him as a blade runner - "if you ain't a cop, you're little people") even though he does nothing but take his empty life for granted. The replicants he encounters end up proving necessary foils to his narrow existence - that they are more compelling than him is by design.



Welcome to the human race...
#3. The Thing
(John Carpenter, 1982)



"Nobody trusts each other anymore...and we're all very tired."

A powerful sense of cynicism runs through the filmography of John Carpenter, always changing in tone but never far from what's unfolding on-screen. He would definitely get very caustic after the infamously cold reception to this film - arguably his masterpiece, regardless of how much his breakthrough slasher Halloween may have immediately redefined the entire horror genre - but even here he's willing to go much further in probing all manner of horrors. The tangible terror provided by the eponymous alien is bad enough as a formidable array of practical effects bring its constantly-changing body to life, but it's all in service of fuelling the characters' paranoia at realising that any one of them (potentially even themselves) could be an alien in disguise. A methodically-paced variation on the body-snatcher concept where the body count dwindles and the attempts to figure out who's who manage to get both smarter and more desperate. Having a murderer's row of character actors make memorable work out of seemingly flat archetypes really helps to make this intense interplay work, almost to the point where the film singling out Kurt Russell as obvious leading man MacReady arguably works against having a cast who could die or turn at any moment. In spite of this possible flaw, this ensemble is one of many elements that elevates The Thing above many other horrors of the same era - frequent Carpenter cinematographer Dean Cundey perfectly illuminates the icy exteriors and gory interiors, the legendary Ennio Morricone provides an uncanny variation on Carpenter's usual scores, and the infamous ending proves the best in a career defined by concluding films at the perfect moment.

2005 ranking: N/A
2013 ranking: #16



One of these days, I'm going to have to watch the non-theatrical cut of Blade Runner, partly because a lot of people say the theatrical version is the worst cut, but also just the curiosity of how does the movie play without voiceover (and therefore what would probably be very little dialogue).



Victim of The Night
I’m actually in that rare monitory that doesn’t think Alien is “great”, and holds Blade Runner above it.

That doesn’t mean I don’t like it, of course. It’s achievements are undeniable.
I do think Alien is great and I still hold Blade Runner above it.



The Thing is excellent. I loved it when I first watched it and my opinion has yet to change.

In regards to MacReady being the clear leading man, I actually prefer having someone you can trust and root for, as opposed to not being able to trust anyone. If it was the latter, it might've been harder to connect with anyone in the film, as the knowledge that any of them could be infected could leave you at arm's length from the characters. With something like Alien, the decision to not assign Ripley as the main character until the final act (putting aside how iconic her character is, of course) works really well as the "Who's infected?" question doesn't really exist for that film. With The Thing though, while I can understand why someone might be bothered by the handling of MacReady, I think Carpenter made the right decision.
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I'm taking a moment to reflect on I grew up with the 50's bodysnatchers and Carpenter's The Thing, but only hit the 70's bodysnatchers until pretty late as an adult. I wonder if I had the chronological experience of watching the 70's bodysnatchers first, how that would have impacted The Thing, because the thriller/paranoia aspect is pretty great in both.



Well, it's pretty good, but compared to Alien, it falls kind of short, IMO.
IMO, Gladiadior is Scott's best, then blade runner, then alien. Film buffs like to dis Gladiator, but I think it is one of the most memorable movies ever made: "what you do in life echoes in eternity" etc.



Victim of The Night
IMO, Gladiadior is Scott's best, then blade runner, then alien. Film buffs like to dis Gladiator, but I think it is one of the most memorable movies ever made: "what you do in life echoes in eternity" etc.
I don't know if I'm "a film buff" or not and I wouldn't "dis" Gladiator, but it wasn't a movie I loved.