The MoFo Top 100 Neo-noir Countdown

Master of None

03-21-24

Originally Posted by PHOENIX74

70. Basic Instinct - I think the success of Basic Instinct led to a whole slew of sexually charged thrillers in the 90s (not that it invented the formula or anything.) It's another one of those thrillers whose title is a seemingly random adjective followed by a random noun. Rabid Interest - I got that from a random adjective and noun generator, and it'll be coming out in 2025, but it could serve as the title of this film just as well.

I would say Fatal Attraction is the one to "thank" for that (see? adjective noun!) I mean, it made a lot of money, and on top of that got a handful of Academy Award nominations, which proved that this "erotic thriller" formula could "work", whatever that means. But yeah, Basic Instinct is probably the epitome of that sub-genre which gave Michael Douglas a career during that decade.

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Iroquois

Welcome to the human race...

03-21-24

no votes. only seen basic instinct once and didn't care for it, but i have been meaning to revisit it (and considering how i've already managed to rewatch decidedly inferior erotic thrillers from the same era like fatal attraction or indecent proposal, i really have no excuse not to). body double is one of my few remaining de palma blind spots so i'll save it for a special occasion. maybe i should double bill these two.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

Wooley

Victim of The Night

03-21-24

This is my obligatory "I thought _______ would be higher" post.

In this case, Body Double.

Guess I shoulda voted.

stillmellow

Basic Non-B

03-21-24

It's funny, I've seen 16 out of 32 neo-noirs, but if you're following the regular Noir list, I'm one of the people who have seen 0 of the 32 so far.

I swear I watch classic Noir. But I have a distinct feeling I've only seen the well known ones.

Siddon

Registered User

03-21-24

Originally Posted by stillmellow

Neo-Noir has had so many different movements over the years it's not surprising. For Classic Noir I think once 40 comes along you would likely have seen everything

03-21-24

3lists57points

Mystic River

Director

Clint Eastwood, 2003

Starring

Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Laurence Fishburne

03-21-24

5lists57points

Mother

Director

Bong Joon-ho, 2009

Starring

Kim Hye-ja, Won Bin, Jin Goo, Yoon Je-moon

Thief

Master of None

03-21-24

TRAILERS

Mystic River - Three childhood friends in Boston are reunited when the 19 y/o daughter of one of them is tragically murdered. But their friendship is put to the test as their involvement in it comes to the surface.

Mother - A mother desperately tries to prove the innocence of her mentally challenged son, when he is pointed out as the main suspect of the murder of a young girl.

Thief

Master of None

03-21-24

Mystic River is pretty good. One of those films that's a bit of a hard watch for how depressing it is, but it is very well done and well acted. That said, I really didn't think of it as neo-noir, and even if I had, I don't think I would've voted for it.

Mother is excellent, though, and I had it at #22. It is either my favorite Bong film, or it is very close with Parasite for the top spot. It is bleak, twisty, and well acted. Also, as I was preparing the reveals, I realized all the connections it has with Mystic River, which I thought was interesting. Anyway, this one's most definitely worth a watch.

SEEN: 19/34
MY BALLOT: 4/25

My ballot

Sedai

A system of cells interlinked

03-21-24

Stunned that something like Mystic River is out ahead of a well-liked neo like Body Double, but whatever. Mystic River is a straight up crime thriller.

Anyway, 1/1 on seen with these last two and no votes from me today!

22/34 seen

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Iroquois

Welcome to the human race...

03-21-24

no votes. saw mystic river once but remember not liking it (and that's about the only thing i remember about it). also saw mother once and have been meaning to rewatch it among other bong films but we'll see if/when i get to that.

Thief

Master of None

03-21-24

Originally Posted by Sedai

Stunned that something like Mystic River is out ahead of a well-liked neo like Body Double, but whatever. Mystic River is a straight up crime thriller.

Well, technically, they're tied so not that far "ahead".

John W Constantine

Alias: John Utah

03-21-24

Madeo (Mother) was my #10. I made a spot for it on my T100 a few years ago. Still thinking about some pieces of it so I guess I liked it very much.

Mystic River didn't make my ballot but I enjoyed it very much when I revisited it again for the 2000/s countdown.

Holden Pike

One Ornery Sumbitch

03-21-24

Mother was #97 on the MoFo Top 100 of the 2000s. Mystic River was #65 on that list as well as #99 on the rebooted MoFo Top 100.

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stillmellow

Basic Non-B

03-21-24

OOF! That's a depressing double whammy.

I haven't seen Mystic River, but I know what happens in it. I saw Mother once and although it's good, I haven't been inclined to watch it again.

Both are a bit too depressing to make my list.

ScarletLion

Wales, Europe

03-21-24

I watched Mystic River the other day and it was watchable but I was very undwerhelmed. I don't really get on with Clint Eastwood films. Then I found out that Sean Penn grabbed a major acting award that year - while Bruno Ganz had nothing at the same event for his unbelievable portrayal of Adolf Hitler in Downfall. And that made me even more sad and bitter.

Mother is very good, in Bong's top 4 perhaps.

beelzebubble