My top ten comic book movies

1. The Crow (1994)
2. The Dark Knight (2008)
3. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)
4. Batman (1989)
5. V for Vendetta (2006)
6. Sin City (2005)
7. X-Men 2 (2003)
8. Iron Man (2008)
9. Watchmen (2009)
10. Batman Returns (1992) OR Batman Begins (2005)

Other movies I enjoyed, but aren't my favourites:

300 (2007)
Batman Forever (1995)
From Hell (2001)
TMNT (2007)
X-Men (2000)
The Mask (1994)
Immortel (2004)
Alien Vs. Predator (2004)
Constantine (2005)
Ghost World (2001)
Hellboy (2004)
A History of Violence (2005)
Judge Dredd (1995)
The Punisher (2004)
The Rocketeer (1991)
The Shadow (1994)
Supergirl (1984)
Spiderman (2002)
Spiderman 2 (2004)
Spiderman 3 (2007)

He Was A Quiet Man review

Plot 100%

Most people don't have a f**king clue that this movie exists. Well, neither I. But first thing I noticed was the cover and I thought wtf is this?

Hmm, it's got a cover with a dude holding dynamite. And that dude is played by Christian Slater. I'm not a big fan of Christian Slater but he was in one classic movie that I liked called HEATHERS.

So I read the back to see what the plot is and have never heard of any movie like this before. Completely original plot. So I did not hesitate to buy it.

Script 100%

Well, after watching it I was completely BLOWN AWAY by how well developed the script is. The writing is total genius, so much subtlety and multiple layers. You will have to watch it more than once to pick up on everything in it.

To say the tone of this movie, would be a dark comedy/drama.

Acting 100%

Which leads to the acting. Christian Slater TOTALLY DISAPPEARS into the role of Bob Maconel. You cannot even imagine anyone else playing him. Perfect comic timing and delivery of dialogue.

Great support is given by William H. Macy (guy is a solid actor), Elisha Cuthbert who is not a dumb bimbo but plays a very mature and complex role and the rest of the cast who are also great.

Visuals 80%

This is more of an actor's movie than a visual masterpiece which is cool. Not every movie has to have great visuals as long as you can f**king see the thing.

Some people have bitched about the cgi. Well, the cgi isn't supposed to be realistic because it exists totally in the character's head as a fantasy so I can forgive the dodgy cgi (it isn't that bad, really).

Score 95%

The score is perfect for this movie, it has a great soundtrack of songs I've never heard before that fit perfectly.

Violence/Swearing/Gore/Nudity

Violence - low

Swearing - yes, quite a bit of swearing ("Those f**king bastards are dead")

Nudity - yes, some female nudity in this

Gore - none

Overall 97%

This movie has cult classic written all over it. It's way under-recognised for what it is - a low budget, independent movie. But it kicks ass and it's the most original movie I've seen in years. It's also one of the blackest comedy/drama I've ever seen. Besides another black comedy/drama classic called The Young Poisoner's Handbook (also check that out it's awesome). It's also got great entertainment value. A fun movie filled with good performances. And realistic in that you may be able to recognise many of the characters and situations (or even stereotypes maybe).

DO NOT watch the trailer btw. It makes it out to be a happy love story which it is definitely not. Probably trying to appeal to the "chick flick" demographic.

Paul Verhoeven - "Filmmaking is hell"

Favourite movies 1917 - 1947

1917 -
1918 -
1919 -
1920 - The Cabinet of Dr Caligari
1921 -
1922 - Nosferatu the Vampire
1923 -
1924 -
1925 - The Lost World, The Battleship Potemkin
1926 -
1927 - Metropolis
1928 - The Man Who Laughs (Joker!)
1929 -
1930 -
1931 - Frankenstein, Dracula
1932 - Freaks
1933 - King Kong, The Invisible Man
1934 -
1935 - Bride of Frakenstein, The 39 Steps, Triumph of the Will
1936 - Reefer Madness, Things to Come
1937 -
1938 -
1939 - The Wizard of Oz
1940 - Pinocchio
1941 - Dumbo, The Wolf Man
1942 - Bambi, The Cat People
1943 -
1944 - Lifeboat
1945 -
1946 - Great Expectations
1947 -

Favourite movies 1948 - 1978

1948 -
1949 - Samson and Delilah, The Fountainhead, Mighty Joe Young
1950 -
1951 - Alice in Wonderland, The Day the Earth Stood Still
1952 - Singin' in the Rain
1953 - House of Wax, The War of the Worlds
1954 - Animal Farm, Creature from the Black Lagoon
1955 - Rebel Without A Cause, Tarantula
1956 - The Ten Commandments, Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers, Forbidden Planet, Invasion of the Body Snatchers
1957 - Bridge on the River Kwai
1958 - The Horror of Dracula, The Fly
1959 - Ben Hur, Some Like it Hot, North by Northwest, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Plan 9 from Outer Space
1960 - Psycho, Spartacus, The Time Machine
1961 - 101 Dalmations
1962 - Lawrence of Arabia, The Longest Day, Cape Fear
1963 - The Birds, Jason and the Argonauts, 7 Faces of Dr Lao
1964 -
1965 - Dr. Who and the Daleks
1966 - Batman, The Good The Bad & The Ugly
1967 - One Million Years B.C.
1968 - Night of the Living Dead, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Planet of the Apes, Rosemary's Baby
1969 -
1970 -
1971 - A Clockwork Orange, Dirty Harry, Play Misty for Me, THX 1138, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
1972 -
1973 - The Exorcist, American Grafitti, Live and Let Die, Sleeper, The Wicker Man
1974 - Texas Chainsaw Massacre
1975 - Jaws, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Dog Day Afternoon, Rocky Horror Picture Show, Death Race 2000, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Picnic at Hanging Rock
1976 - The Omen, Taxi Driver
1977 - Star Wars, Eraserhead
1978 - The Deer Hunter, Halloween, The Lord of the Rings

Favourite movies 1979-2009

These are my favourite movies by year, over the last 30 years. It's far from an exhaustive list, their may be some I have forgotten that I will later add to. They're not the only movies I like from that year, but these are just my absolute favourites:

1979 - Alien, Mad Max, Monty Python's Life of Brian, Time After Time
1980 - The Empire Strikes Back, The Shining, The Elephant Man, Altered States
1981 - Raiders of the Lost Ark, Time Bandits, Mad Max 2, An American Werewolf in London, Clash of the Titans, Excalibur
1982 - Tron, The Thing, Blade Runner
1983 - Return of the Jedi, Scarface
1984 - Ghostbusters, Dune, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Neverending Story, The Terminator
1985 - Brazil, Commando, Day of the Dead
1986 - Aliens, The Fly
1987 - Predator, The Running Man, Robocop, Full Metal Jacket
1988 - Beetlejuice, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, The Blob, Child's Play, Killer Klowns from Outer Space, They Live!, Willow, PIN
1989 - Society, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, Ghostbusters II
1990 - Home Alone, Ghost, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Total Recall, Arachnophobia, Edward Scissorhands, The Witches
1991 - Terminator 2, Hook, The Doors, What about Bob?, The Silence of the Lambs
1992 - Aladdin, Batman Returns, Alien 3, Bram Stoker's Dracula, The Crying Game
1993 - Jurassic Park, In the Line of Fire, The Fugitive, Mrs Doubtfire, Cliffhanger, Demolition Man, Falling Down, Fire in the Sky, Groundhog DAy
1994 - Forrest Gump, The Lion King, The Mask, The Crow, Leon, The Shawshank Redemption, Wes Craven's New Nightmare, Wolf
1995 - Batman Forever (when it was released I was a huge fan, now not so much), Jumanji, Se7en, The Young Poisoner's Handbook, Braveheart, La Cité des enfants perdus, Dead Man, A Goofy Movie (yeah I loved it back then and still remember it so sue me), Heat, In the Mouth of Madness, Judge Dredd, Powder, Rob Roy, Twelve Monkeys
1996 - Independence Day, Mars Attacks!, Star Trek: First Contact
1997 - The Fifth Element, Alien Resurrection, Cube, Event Horizon, The Game, Starship Troopers,
1998 - Dark City
1999 - The Matrix, Bicentennial Man, The Blair Witch Project, Existenz, End of Days, Fight Club, The Sixth Sense
2000 - Memento, Malena
2001 - LOTR: FOTR, Jurassic Park 3, A.I., Amelie, Black Hawk Down, Donnie Darko, Earth Vs. The Spider, Enemy at the Gates, From Hell, The Score
2002 - 28 Days Later, One Hour Photo, The Ring, S1m0ne, They
2003 - The Matrix Reloaded, The Dreamers, Willard
2004 - The Passion of the Christ, I, Robot, The Machinist, Saw
2005 - Revenge of the Sith, Batman Begins, The Brothers Grimm, Serenity, Sin City, Wolf Creek
2006 - V for Vendetta, Silent Hill, Pan's Labyrinth, A Scanner Darkly, United 93
2007 - 300, Bridge to Terabithia, 28 Weeks Later, Sunshine, The Mist, Earth (documentary)
2008 - The Dark Knight, Cloverfield, Rambo, Iron Man
2009 -

Metropolis (1927)

This movie is a true classic silent film, just watch this clip - I can't believe the kind of ambience and atmosphere it generates.



I haven't seen it in a proper version yet but since this is supposedly from the dvd it looks good and the new soundtrack sounds awesome too.

What makes a great movie

I have finally determined exactly what makes a great movie.

Movies are made of very disparate elements. All of these elements are planned down to the last detail. Acting, set design, cinematography, editing, sound design, score, special effects, etc..

All of these elements have to come together as if totally seamless, all encompassing a unique vision. So they all must work, if one doesn't then the hole film just falls apart like a house of cards.

It's when you watch a movie and it flows so naturally as if there were no planning at all put into it, like it was some kind of act of God, then you know you have a great film.

Leon (The Professional) review

Plot 100%

Basically it's about 3 central characters, Leon who is hitman who lives alone. Mathilda, a 12 year old girl living in a horrible family situation and Stansfield who is a psychotic, corrupt DEA cop.The film centres on the relationship between Leon and Mathilda, after the latter's family gets killed by Stansfield and his cronies.The plot moves along beautifully, as it explores these characters. It is kind of a poetic film in many ways.

VFX 100%

This film just looks awesome despite being shot in 1993/4. Every print I have seen is crisp and clear looking. The visuals have realism to them, probably from being shot mostly at daytime, and it really gives a great sense of New York. The cinematography is flawless, every shot is perfect. Editing is great and perfectly paces the film.

SFX 100%

Eric Serra is an awesome composer and he can do it all - tense action music, emotional music, etc. It kind of has a french feel to it which makes it unique from other action scores.

Acting 100%

Jean Reno - a great actor, he really underplays the role which I liked.

Natalie Portman - really amazing how good she was considering she was only 12 years old.

Gary Oldman - holy...... greatest villain ever.

Violence

It has great action scenes that are just badass. No gore though for you gore-hounds.

Overall 100%

I can't find any flaws in this film. The director's cut is even better - the extended international version. I've seen this movie dozens I've times and it's great every time.

Btw, anybody who says this movie has anything to do with pedophilia is dumb and ignorant. *looks towards certain users of IMDB*

The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008) review

Plot 65%

A remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). Basically the same, it just updates it a little. They added one subplot, and it's kind of pointless, and the resolution is a little cheesy.

VFX 75%

The nanobot swarm is the coolest effects sequence in the movie, but everything else is just the same old cgi stuff you've seen in countless other movies.Gort is cool, but when he arrives I wasn't thinking "f**king awesome, badass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", instead I was thinking "oh, there's Gort, nice cgi, hmmmmm".

SFX 50%

I can't even remember the musical score and the sound FX were nothing special. Average.

Acting 52%

The two leads are both popular and charismatic people, but they're are not as good acting-wise as the actors in the original movie. The little kid is annoying, he doesn't really have a purpose (just some plot device, but the payoff is a little cheesy like I said above). There are no real "characters" in this movie as the people are just there to move forward the plot, and that's it.

Violence 0%

I think it would be cooler if they made it R. Would have more impact.

Overall 50%

It's watchable, but average. You will only see it once.

The Good

*Klaatu mentions we are only one of a few planets in the Universe able to support life. I thought that was cool.

*The nanobots eating everything in their path was a cool sequence.

*Gort kept the same design as the original, but he was bigger and meaner.

*"Klaatu barada nikto" (though you only hear it briefly)

*John Cleese.

The Bad

*It was kind of boring.

*The original was better - it had a better script, better score, better pacing, etc.

*Original Gort seemed more badass to me, even for the 50s, he made a far more spectacular entrance (yes, cgi cannot equal good filmmaking).

*We never got to find out more about the aliens. That sucked. *Micheal Rennie pwns Keanu Reeves (Reeves just acts like a robot)*Why did we not see inside the spaceship? Even the original showed us that.*Plotholes - why do aliens need to kill humans, surely there must be a better solution? In the original, they wanted to kill us because we'd become a threat to galactic peace because we keep blowing the shit out of eachother (ie Cold War).I wouldn't waste your money at the cinema. Rent it on dvd, it's a pretty dull movie.

Full Metal Jacket review

Plot 85%

The plot at it's surface is about a bunch of recruits (in particular one named "Private Joker" played by Matthew Modine) as they go from basic training to armed combat in the USMC. The war they are fighting is the Vietnam War, and it is set in this time period.

It is divided into two parts, first it details how these men go through basic training and the second part is about their experiences in Vietnam.

The basic training follows the recruits are they disciplined and turned from ordinary civilians to potential killers by the rigorous routine and abuse by the Drill Sergeants. The Drill Seargant's job as he explains is weed out those who do not conform and to turn a bunch of men into "weapons of war".

The way he does is through beatings, harassment and psychological torture. For example, when "Private Pyle" sneaks in a jelly donut into his foot locker and it is discovered, he is not punished but instead the Drill Seargeant punishes the entire platoon. This ostrasizes him from the group in a kind of collective hatred directed towards him. This comes to a climax when the platoon organises amongst themselves to beat him with bars of soap while he sleeps, each taking turns to hit him (even Private Joker, his only friend up to that point). This is a reflection on society in my view, where those that don't conform are severely brutalised and punished by the system.

Pyle eventually becomes like the rest, beaten into submission and his individuality completely drained. He is now an empty shell, with the complete mindset of a soldier and a killer. Unfortunately he cannot come to terms with the change, and in the final scene of this first act, he kills the Drill Sergeant and himself, with Private Joker watching on in horror.

The second part goes to Vietnam, and is not as interesting (IMHO), though shows the hypocrisy of war quite well. The end scene is very revelatory for the main character, however.

VFX 80%

The camerawork is flawless as usual, with Kubrick's usual flair. The production does look extremely authentic from the boot camp to the section in Vietnam, though not as visually striking as some earlier films set in that time period, because of the choice to film in England instead of more authentic locations. Therefore, it is nowhere near as striking as such films like Apocalypse Now.

SFX

A great, moody and low-key soundtrack that gives an emotional catharsis for the viewer. The sound effects are also nicely done.

Acting 93%

Matthew Modine and Vincent D´Onofrio turn in good performances. But it's R Lee. Ermey who gives the greatest performance of his career. This is because he is not acting. He had trained as an actual Drill Instructor. And this makes the movie much more authentic and real.

Violence 95%

Very disturbing and graphic with people getting shot and a suicide scene that is incredibly bloody and realistic.

Overall 90%

Another brilliant movie by the late Stanley Kubrick. Anti-war to it's core, but without being preachy, what this does is show the reality of war, and the process of dehumanisation that goes with it.