Cobpyth's Top 101 Favorite Feature Films

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It's sometimes hallucinating to see what some people consider to be boring.
I too thought Notorious was a bit boring, especially the first 30 minutes or so. While I like it, I'd still say it's probably Hitchcock's least exciting movie out of those that I've seen. I suppose we're going to see a lot more from him in this list.



I suppose we're going to see a lot more from him in this list.
Well, not really actually. Notorious is genuinly one of my very favorite films of his. Around 15 of Hitchcock's films were close to making this list, but most of them were slain at the final cut. Hithcock is without a doubt one of my top 5 directors and I enjoy almost all of his films immensely, but there are only a select group that I consider absolute favorites of mine.
His TRUE masterpieces (according to me) still have to appear of course, but don't expect that many Hithcock films anymore (at least for a while).

I can't believe so many people are calling Notorious boring, by the way. There's practically constant suspense and mystery in that film and it's full of great camera work and atmospheric filmmaking, while the story is also extremely interesting. What can a director do more to please an audience?
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Cobpyth's Movie Log ~ 2019



76. Oldboy (2003)





This badass and mindbending Korean flick blowed my mind the first time I watched it. Like many other people, I love it when films are able to mislead and ultimately surprise me with a good twist. This film is one of the most shockingly effective ones in that area.
However, films that solely rely on a plot twist are often not really that much fun anymore once you've watched them for the first time and know the twist ending. This is one of those really good twisty films, though. It has much more to offer than just a shocking ending.

What really attracted me to this film, was its oddness. This film contains some really strange and over the top scenes and most of them, if not all of them, work very well! I love it when risky moments in films succeed and I think risk is the source of some of the best film moments of all time. The clearest example in this film is of course the octopus eating scene. It's memorable, it's odd, but it somehow fits the tone of the film and even elevates the overall experience.

I also love how Oldboy is able to hold a sincere emotional core throughout all its weirdness. The plot is extremely improbable, but the film handles everything with enough style, seriousness and emotion to make everything engaging and entertaining.
The film also looks remarkably beautiful and truly shows how visuals can be a very important added value in terms of connection between a story and an audience. This story would feel rather silly and extremely over the top on paper, but with the right visual treatment it somehow unfolds into something great.

Oldboy is deservedly considered as one of the most popular and entertaining foreign films of our times.



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Love Oldboy and agree with everything in your write up, it's so much more than the twist
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Yeah, there's no body mutilation in it



What did you think of Park Chan-wook's other films?
Somehow I haven't watched any of his other films yet. :s

I have Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance and Lady Vengeance ready to watch, though. I kind of forgot about them, I think. While writing this write up, I suddenly remembered that I still urgently have to watch those.
Do you like any of his other films better than Oldboy?



When the octopi come for us--and make no mistake, that day is fast approaching--they will call all of us to account for this horror. And they will not be merciful to those of us who witnessed and did nothing.

By their terrible reckoning, we all have ink on our hands.



Somehow I haven't watched any of his other films yet. :s

I have Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance and Lady Vengeance ready to watch, though. I kind of forgot about them, I think. While writing this write up, I suddenly remembered that I still urgently have to watch those.
Do you like any of his other films better than Oldboy?
Honestly Oldboy is my least favorite of his movies haha, though he's one of my favorite directors so that doesn't really mean anything in terms of ratings. I suppose it's because Oldboy feels like a reactionary step for him rather than a pensive one, and I just happen to slightly prefer his tone otherwise. Either way, you probably won't feel this way, but I think you'll at least find consistency in his filmography (except Stoker, which is the writer's fault).



Never seen Old boy. I saw Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and didn't like it.
I didnt either. I liked both Oldboy and Lady Vengeance though.
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Letterboxd



75. Casino (1995)





I never loved this film as much as I love Goodfellas, because I think Casino is a little less cohesive and perfectly flowing than Scorsese's 1990 crime masterpiece, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this still is one of the coolest and most enjoyable flicks I've ever seen.

Casino is full of Scorsese's trademark vibrant camerawork. Some scenes are absolutely breathtaking and Robert DeNiro (almost) never looked more boss.
I'm also a big fan of films about gambling and the casino world. It's something that interests me and this movie showed me the darker early days of that world when the mob was still in charge of everything.

I will be the first person that acknowledges some of this film's flaws (especially the pace is sometimes inconsistent), but when this film works, it truly hits the target for me. There are many scenes that I like to revisit once in a while, because they're technically so well done and physically so extremely cool to look at. It's really one of the most deliciously stylized films I've witnessed.
I'm also a big Sharon Stone fan and that also helps enjoying this film more, as one of the main criticisms often is that her character is sometimes annoying in this film. I didn't have that problem. I actually thought her character was a very tragic and meaningful addition to this film. The film shows the possibilities of money, but it also shows what materialism can't do. It can't buy you love or happiness.

I think most Scorsese fans pretty much share my opinion about this film. It's no Goodfellas, but it's still one of Scorsese's best films.





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