Some of My Favorite Movies

1. Bonnie & Clyde
There is a reason this film is thought about a classic. Not only is the cinematography & direction amazing you cannot get much better than the likes of Faye Dunaway & Warren Beatty. As you watch this film it is hard to keep in mind that the main characters are actually the bad guys. This film has it all: strong protaganists, a nice love story, & an ending that cannot be beat.
2. The Godfather
One time again, it becomes all simple to forget that the main characters in this story are actually the bad guys. This is the only nice "family" film I think I have ever seen. It is relatives in the sense that it is about a relatives, not that it is suitable for the whole relatives. The relationships & politics of The Godfather are among the most complex I have ever seen. An excellently written screenplay.
3. Schindler's List
A compelling look in to the horrors as well as the bravery present in the work of the Holocaust. My favourite scene is after Schindler has compiled his list of Jews to save & he is racked his brain all night thinking of names to save & in the finish when they sees the trains & trains of Jews being shipped away they still believes they could have done more. The raw hard work & bravery they used in saving as plenty of as they did was not for him. The film truly portrays him as a man of strong character.
4. Memento
Who would have ever thought of making a film backwards? Christopher Nolan truly shows his genius as a director in this film. Someone who has done any study on the making of films or has any involvement in films knows how incredibly difficult conceiving, filming & editing this film must have been. It is a contemporary day masterpiece.
5. Crash
This film does a amazing job of showing the intracacies of human relations. It brings up strong & forceful questions about the role of race & racism in America today. It shows how the way they treat others reflects more on us than on them. In the event you have not seen it, you must.
6. Monty Python & the Holy Grail
It is rare that a British comedy can do supremely well in the United States but this film definitely pulled it off. It's become a cult classic & cultural references abound. In my view it is the best Monty Python film that has been produced.
7. Citizen Kane
This film is on my list less for it is storytelling & more for it is cinematic merit. Orson Welles directed, starred, wrote, & produced this film & they did an excellent job. The moral of the story is a bit simplistic for me (in the event you take a kid from his relatives they won't grow up right) but the cinematography & the cinematic conventions used are outstanding.
8. American Beauty
A speedy look in to the dysfunctionality that is the American relatives of today. This film was perhaps the precursor of today's hit show Desperate Housewives. This film shows what can happen when a man is forced to live a life they hates & doesn't think in.
9. Psycho
This film changed the way people watched movies. Before this film people would buy a ticket for a film at any time irrespective of what time the film actually started. They would come in in the middle & then watch to the finish & stay for the first half of the next showing & then leave. Come & go, come & go. With this film, Hitchcock announced that someone dies in the first half hour so be there when it starts! This changed the way people went to the flicks. Apart from the way it changed the way people watched movies, it is a cinematic classic.
10. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Cinematography, make-up, & effects are what make this film. The acting comes & goes. The story is excellent, although the books are better which is usually the case with movies made from books. I would qualify this film as an epic & I think plenty of would agree. Other epics would include Ben-Hur & Gone with the Wind. This film is definitely on par with those.