22-31 of the 98 movies I think everyone should see

22.
Drunken Master 2

Jackie Chan's finest fight work. The man is in his physical prime and the films plot isn't half bad for a movie that is clearly meant to piece together fight scenes. The last scene may come across as a little tasteless* but for the most part it doesn't ruing the film. Yes it is a sequel, but you do not need to see the first one to watch this one. If at all possible, please avoid the dubbed version called "Legend of Drunken Master"

23.
Empire of the Sun

Some people hate it but I find it a beautiful film. Well, as beautiful as a film set in WWII Japanese controlled China can be. Christian Bale (in one of his first performances) gives us a fascinating tale of war through the eyes of a child.

24.
Escape From New York

Snake Plissken? I thought you was dead? The concept is wacky (turn Manhattan into a prison? With the price of real estate?) but the execution was well done.

25.
Father Goose

A romantic comedy set in the South Pacific during WWII. It's a fun little movie that I watch often.

26.
A Fish Called Wanda

Brilliant Cast. Brilliant Execution. Brilliant Film.

27.
Free Enterprise

This movie is almost a little too biographical to me. Any scifi fan who hasn't seen this owes it to themselves to see us "fans" in a proper light. Plus, it's got William Shatner rapping Shakespeare. You seriously can't go wrong with that. Seriously, check it out:



28.
Gattaca

In a sea of crappy sci-fi it is a nice thing when you find a well produced, well scripted, film that doesn't treat its audience like idiots. A very enjoyable tale of a possible look at how humans could possibly force our own evolution and the evils therein. Plus, I don't even like Uma Thurman and I love this movie.

29.
God Of Cookery

When Martial Arts meets Iron Chef. For a good look at how chinese comedy is done, check this out. My only recommendation is you either eat well before, or plan on going out for noodles after the film.*

30.
Grosse Pointe Blank

Who doesn't love John Cusack? He once again dons the black suit that made him famous and gives us a fascinating dark comedy look at a hitman coming home to his 10 year high school reunion.

31.
Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle

If Bing Crosby and Bob Hope ever made a stoner film.** My favorite bit of watching this film is that when viewed appropriately, one can feel the magical power of a Hudson (my immortal buddy) story unfolding to you.


*Recommendation also stands if you view the film Tampopo.
**I guess Road to Rio could be one.

11-21 of the 98 movies I think everyone should see

11.
Captain Blood


My first ever pirate movie. Simply one of the best pirate films (and especially for when it was made) and an awesome 1st time performance of Errol Flynn. Without this film, Johnny Depp would have never swaggered his way across a ships deck.

12.13.14.15. 16.
You didn't think I could do this list without a little Bond did you? With 22 Bond films* out there it can be hard to navigate which ones are the best and worthy of a viewing. Luckily I have already listed this out! Click the titles for each to be taken to each entry for my previous series "the only 5 Bond films you need to see"

Casino Royale


Thunderball


On Her Majesty's Secret Service


The Living Daylights


For Your Eyes Only


17.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon


I have been a fan of martial arts films for years and the Wuxia style has always managed to be flashy and entertaining. While I usually prefer a more realistic martial arts film, a little wire work and fantasy can go a long way to being entertaining. CTHD managed to open the eyes of many U.S. viewers of this magnificent art form. Ang Lee managed to turn a decent story into a visual masterpiece. Also allowing more of the world to bask in the bad-assery of Chow Yun Fat and Michelle Yeoh is always a good thing to me.

18.
Dark City

A great little scifi tale. I am always a big fan of the "thrust a man/woman into a world where they appear to be pivotal but they have no idea what is going on" genre. This film manages to wrap that often used concept into a facsinating sci fi world. Excellent performances from all involved round out this almost unique film.**

19.
Die Hard

The perfect action film. Nothing has ever come close to beating it's perfection in the world of action. Great concept, great execution, some great one-liners and some massive property damage. And to think, the studio almost didn't want to go ahead with it since they didn't feel that Bruce Willis could carry a big actioner. Glad they took the gamble on that. For a timeless factor, just try to overlook the bits of the film that date it.

20.
Donnie Darko

While I still go back and forth on whether I find this film to be actually valuable***, I do have to admit I was blown away by it the first time I saw it. I knew next to nothing about it but was told by many that it was great so the misses and I gave it a gander. I figured at least we got to see Drew Barrymore so it can't be all that bad. After watching we stayed up til about 3 am discussing it. It's rare that a film can make us talk that much about it.

21.
Blade Runner

Oh Blade Runner. How I love thee. If you know me, you know how much I love this film. If you don't know me, just accept that I consider it one of the best films ever made. Even as flawed as it is at technical points (seriously, they reused the same outdoor set SOOOOO much in that film. You would swear that every corner has a Dragon Noodle bar and those fat scrolly columns that the Bradbury does) it still mangaes to be a epic film. However to me, the original theatircal cut (with the beautiful voice over) is the only version. The others are ok, but take away the heart of the film.


*We do not speak of Never Say Never Again as a Bond film.

**That will be a discussion for another time

***Another discussion for the future. Just remember, Quantum Mechanics gives me a headache

MOVIE LIST: Top 98 movies* that I think everyone should see. Part 1

Today we begin a new series here at just another movie geek. The top 98 movies that I think everyone should see.

These films are merely some of my favorite films. Most of these won't appear on any major "top 100" movie list or anything. There is no rhyme no reason to them appearing on my list, but just films I feel offer a cinematic purpose to the greater cinematic world. Titles are listed in a rough alphabetic order with no one film taking greater importance than others.

1, 2 and 3:
A Better Tomorrow


Hard Boiled


The Killer


These three films (all directed by John Woo) represent to me the Heroic Bloodshed trilogy. Not only do these films cement Chow Yun Fat as an action powerhouse of asian cinema, they also breathed new life into the Hong Kong movie industry and led to Hollywood playing catch up for years. All three feature heavy violence, massive body counts and the infamous "bullet ballet." Not only are they great action films, they also have decent plots focusing on dedication and loyalty.

4. Big Trouble in Little China


John Carpenters greatest film. (other than EFNY and The Thing.) Kurt Russel gives a ham fisted (yet overly awesome performance) in this kung fu flick diving into the world of the Chinese Mafia in SF, Sorcery and chicks with Green eyes. This film is on my "must watch on a regular basis" list.

5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
These five represent to me Mel Brooks at his finest. When he actually made funny comedy that wasn't just dick and fart jokes* or recycling of old material. Each film stands on it's own as a great comedy, but as a whole they offer a unique perspective on the once genius of a great satirist. Endlessly quotable, these films can always make me laugh.

Blazing Saddles


The Producers


Young Frankenstein


History of the World part I


High Anxiety


*Yes I know he even had dick and fart jokes back then. But it wasn't ALL just that.

10.
The Blues Brothers


A perfect movie. There isn't much I can say about this film that hasn't been said already. What I can say is this was one of a small handfuls of films my parents educated me with at a young age that helped shape me into the movie geek I am today.


*Why 98 movies? Everyone does "top 100" movie lists. I have to be different.


Part two coming tomorrow!

Not only do I love movies, I also love scores and soundtracks to the films I love. Here is a complete list of every soundtrack I own listed by composer and then in chronological order:

Akihiko Matsumoto
2002-The Returner

Alan Silvestri
1984-Romancing the Stone
1985-Back to the Future
1986-Flight Of The Navigator
1987-Predator Soundtrack
1988-Who Framed Roger Rabbit
1989-Back to the Future Part II
1989-The Abyss
1990-Back To The Future III
1995-Judge Dredd
1997-Contact
1997-Contact-Complete Score

Alex North
1969-2001-The Legendary Original Score

Alexandre Desplat
2008-The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Andrew Powell
1985-Ladyhawke

Angelo Badalamenti
1995-The City of Lost Children

Arthur B. Rubinstein
1983-Blue Thunder

Basil Poledouris
1982-Conan The Barbarian
1987-Robocop
1989-Farewell To The King
1990-Quigley Down Under
1990-The Hunt for Red October

Bear McCreary
2005-Battlestar Galactica S1
2006-Battlestar Galactica S2
2007-Battlestar Galactica S3

Ben Foster & Murray Gold
2008-Torchwood

Bill Conti
1981-For Your Eyes Only
1999-The Thomas Crown Affair

Brad Fiedel
1984-The Terminator
1991-Terminator 2 Judgement Day
1994-True Lies

Brian May
1980-Mad Max
1981-The Road Warrior-Mad Max 2

Brian Tyler
2003-Children Of Dune

Bruce Broughton
1985-Silverado
1993-Tombstone

Carl Zittrer & Paul Zaza
1983-A Christmas Story

Carter Burwell
1990-Miller's Crossing
1999-Mystery, Alaska

Chan Kwong Wing
2002-Wu Jian Dao

Chris Boardman
1999-Payback

Christopher Franke
1994-Babylon 5-Vol.1-Signs And Portents
1995-Babylon 5-Vol. 2 Messages From Earth
1996-Babylon 5-310-Severed Dreams
1996-Babylon 5-313-Late Delivery from Avalon
1996-Babylon 5-315-Interludes And Examinations
1996-Babylon 5-316-War Without End Part 1
1996-Babylon 5-317-War Without End Part 2
1996-Babylon 5-321-Shadow Dancing
1996-Babylon 5-322-Z'ha Dum
1996-Babylon 5-402-Whatever Happened To Mr. Garibaldi
1996-Babylon 5-404-Falling Towards Apotheosis
1996-Tenchi Muyo! The Movie:Tenchi Muyo! in Love
1997-Babylon 5-405-The Long Night
1997-Babylon 5-406- Into The Fire
1997-Babylon 5-409.5-Thirdspace
1997-Babylon 5-411-Lines Of Communication
1997-Babylon 5-415-No Surrender, No Retreat
1997-Babylon 5-417-The Face of the Enemy
1997-Babylon 5-420-Endgame
1998-Babylon 5 In The Beginning
1998-Babylon 5-522-Objects at Rest
1998-Babylon 5-523-Sleeping In Light



Clint Mansell
2000-Requiem For A Dream
2006-The Fountain

Craig Safan
1984-The Last Starfighter (Extended Version)
1985-Remo Williams The Adventure Begins

Danny Elfman
1986-Back to School
1988-Midnight Run
1989-Batman
2002-Spider Man

David Arnold
1994-Stargate The Deluxe Edition
1997-Tomorrow Never Dies
2006-Casino Royale
2008-Quantum Of Solace

David Julyan
2002-Insomnia
2006-The Prestige

David Newman
1996-The Phantom
1999-Galaxy Quest

David Shire
1986-Short Circuit
2007-Zodiac

David Whitaker
1982-The Sword And The Sorcerer

Edward Shearmur
2004-Sky Captain And The World Of Tomorrow

Elliot Goldenthal
1993-Demolition Man

Elmer Bernstein
1971-Big Jake
1984-Ghostbusters

Ennio Morricone
1966-Il Buono, Il Brutto, Il Cattivo
1969-Once Upon A Time In The West
1986-The Mission
1987-Secret of the Sahara
1998-La Leggenda Del Pianista Sull' Oceano

Eric Serra
1994-Léon
1995-Goldeneye
1998-The Fifth Element

Erich Wolfgang Korngold
1936-Captain Blood (limited album)
1938-The Adventures Of Robin Hood

Geinoh Yamashirogumi
1991-Akira

George Fenton
2002-The Blue Planet
2007-Planet Earth

George Martin
1973-Live and Let Die

Graeme Revell
1994-The Crow
1997-The Saint
2000-Pitch Black
2001-Dune

Greg Edmonson
2005-Firefly

Guy Gross
2000-Farscape
2000-Farscape Classics Volume 1
2000-Farscape Classics Volume 2
2000-Farscape Classics Volume 3
2004-Farscape The Peacekeeper Wars

Hajime Mizoguchi
2000-JIN-ROH

Hans Zimmer
1995-Crimson Tide
1998-Backdraft

Harry Gregson-Williams
2005-Kingdom of Heaven

Howard Shore
1999-Dogma
2001-LOTR-The Fellowship of the Ring-The Complete Recordings
2002-LOTR-The Two Towers-The Complete Recordings
2003-LOTR-The Return of the King-The Complete Recordings

Hugo Montenegro & His Orchestra
1967-The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

Ike Yoshihiro
2007-FLAG

Ilan Eshkeri
2007-Stardust

J. Peter Robinson
1985-Police Story

Jack Nitzsche
1984-Starman

James Horner
1982-Star Trek II The Wrath Of Khan Expanded Score (SFX)
1982-Star Trek II-The Wrath of Khan
1984-Star Trek III The Search For Spock Expanded Score (SFX)
1986-Aliens
1989-Field Of Dreams
1989-Glory-Expanded Score
1991-The Rocketeer OST
1992-Sneakers
1992-Thunderheart
1995-Braveheart

James Newton Howard
1993-Dave
1993-The Fugitive
1999-The Sixth Sense
2000-Unbreakable
2005-Batman Begins
2005-Batman Begins Expanded Score
2008-Defiance
2008-The Dark Knight

Javier Navarrete
2006-El Labertino del Fauno

Jeff Beal
2007-Music From The HBO Series Rome

Jerry Goldsmith
1975-The Wind and the Lion
1976-Logan's Run
1979-Star Trek I Bonus Tracks
1979-Star Trek I Expanded Score
1979-Star Trek I The Motion Picture
1981-Outland
1982-Secret of Nimh
1984-Runaway
1985-King Solomon's Mines
1990-Total Recall
1992-Mr. Baseball
1994-The Shadow
2001-The Last Castle

Joe Boyd Vigil
2001-Toonami: Deep Space Bass

Joe Hisaishi
1983-Genesis Climber Mospeada
1986-Laputa-Castle in the Sky
1987-Robot Carnival

Joel Goldsmith
1997-Stargate SG-1-Children of the Gods
1997-Stargate SG-1-Season One
2005-Stargate Atlantis-Rising
2008-Stargate SG-1-Continuum
2008-Stargate SG-1-The Ark of Truth

John Barry
1963-From Russia With Love
1965-Thunderball
1969-On Her Majesty's Secret Service
1974-The Man With The Golden Gun OST
1979-The Black Hole
1979-The Black Hole-Expanded Score
1987-The Living Daylights (Deluxe Edition)
1990-Dances With Wolves-Expanded Score

John Carpenter & Alan Howarth
1988-They Live-20th Anniversary Edition
1986-Big Trouble In Little China

John Carpenter
1981-Escape from New York-OST

John Corigliano
1998-The Red Violin

John Debney
1995-Cutthroat Island
1996-Doctor Who The Movie

John Morris
1974-Blazing Saddles

John Murphy
2007-Sunshine (Private Bootleg)
2007-Sunshine (SFX)

John Ottman
2005-Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

John Powell
2002-The Bourne Identity
2004-The Bourne Supremacy
2007-The Bourne Ultimatum
2008-Hancock

John Scott
1980-The Final Countdown

John Williams
1977-Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
1977-Close Encounters Of The Third Kind-Collector's Edition
1977-Star Wars
1977-Star Wars SE
1978-Superman
1980-Star Wars-The Empire Strikes Back SE
1981-Raiders of the Lost Ark-Complete Score
1981-Raiders of the Lost Ark-Expanded Score
1983-Return of the Jedi
1983-Star Wars-Return of the Jedi SE
1984-Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom-Complete Score
1984-Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom-Expanded Score
1987-Empire of the Sun
1993-Jurassic Park

Joseph Koo
1986-A Better Tomorrow I-II

Kasamatsu Kouji
2005-Gankutsuou

Kawai Kenji
1995-Ghost in the Shell
2001-Avalon
2008-Sound Of The Sky Crawlers

Kelly Bailey
1999-Half-Life

Kenji Kawai
2005-Seven Swords

Kenji Yamamoto
2003-Metroid Prime
2005-Metroid Prime 2 Echoes
2007-Metroid Prime 3 Corruption

Kevin Kilner
1999-Wing Commander

Kim Won Il
2004-Wonderful Days

Klaus Badelt
2002-Equilibrium
2003-Pirates of the Caribbean Complete Score (SFX)
2003-Pirates of the Caribbean-The Curse of the Black Pearl

Kodo
1995-The Hunted

Kou Ohtani
1995-Gundam W Operation 1
1995-Gundam W Operation 2

Kristopher Carter
2000-Batman Beyond Return of the Joker

Kugimiya Rie
2008-Mnemosyne

Kuniaki Haishima
2004-Macross Zero OST
2004-Macross Zero Ost 2

Lalo Schifrin
1971-THX 1138

Lee Jae Jin
2003-Natural City

Lisa Gerrard
2001-Gladiator

Marc Shaiman
1991-City Slickers

Marco Beltrami
2004-Hellboy
2007-310 to Yuma

Mark Isham
1991-Point Break

Marvin Hamlisch
1977-The Spy Who Loved Me

Maurice Jarre
1983-Dreamscape
1985-Enemy Mine
1985-Witness
1990-Jacob's Ladder

Michael Boddicker
1984-The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension

Michael Convertino
1987-The Hidden

Michael Giacchino
2004-The Incredibles
2005-Lost Season 1
2006-Lost Season 2
2008-Lost Season 3
2008-Speed Racer

Michael Gibbs
1993-Hard-Boiled

Michael Kamen & Orbital
1997-Event Horizon

Michael Kamen
1985-Highlander
1988-Die Hard
1989-Licence To Kill
1991-Hudson Hawk
1993-Brazil
1993-The Three Musketeers
1999-The Iron Giant

Michael Land
1996-The Dig
1996-The Dig Expanded Score

Michael Nyman
1997-Gattaca

Micheal Land
1997-Curse Of Monkey Island

Michio Mamiya
1988-Hotaru no Haka-Grave of the Fireflies

Murray Gold
2007-Doctor Who Series 1-2
2007-Doctor Who Series 1-Expanded Score
2008-Doctor Who Series 3
2008-Doctor Who Series 4

Nakaido Reichi
1998-Serial Experiments Lain
1998-lain Bootleg
1999-lain Bootleg Vol 2

Nick Glennie-Smith
1996-The Rock

Patrick Doyle
1989-Henry V

Peter Gabriel
1989-Passion Outtakes

Peter McConnell
1998-Grim Fandango

Philip Glass
1983-Koyaanisqatsi
1988-Powaqqatsi
2002-Naqoyqatsi
2006-Roving Mars
2006-The Illusionist

Queen
1980-Flash Gordon

Ramin Djawadi
2008-Iron Man

Randy Edelman
1996-Dragonheart

Raymond Wong
2001-Shaolin Soccer
2005-Kung Fu Hustle

Richard Gibbs
2004-Battlestar Galactica Mini Series

Richard Marvin
2000-U-571

Richard Rodgers
1952-Victory at Sea

Roger Bellon
1992-Highlander The Series
1992-Highlander The Series Volume II

Roy Budd
1971-Get Carter
1974-The Black Windmill

Shirley Walker
1989-Black Rain
1990-The Flash
1992-Memoirs of an Invisible Man
1993-Batman-Mask of the Phantasm

Shiro Sagisu
Our Last Day-Casshern OST D2

Stephen Fry
2005-The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (SLATFATF song and DVD Rip of Guide entries only)

Steve Jablonsky
2004-Steamboy

Stu Phillips
1978-The Stu Phillips Anthology Battlestar Galactica
1979-Buck Rogers In The 25th Century

Susumu Hirasawa
2005-Paranoia Agent
2006-Paprika

Tan Dun
2002-Hero

Tangerine Dream
1985-Legend (SFX)
1987-Three O'Clock High

Taro Iwashiro
2008-Red Cliff

The Thrill
2000-Blue Submarine No6 OST1
2000-Blue Submarine No6 OST2

Thomas Newman
1994-The Shawshank Redemption
2008-Wall-E

Tomoyasu Hotei
1998-Samurai Fiction

Toshihiko Sahashi
2001-The Big-O Sound Score
2003-The Big-O Sound Score II

Toto
1984-Dune
1984-Dune-Complete Score

Trevor Jones
1981-Excalibur
1982-The Dark Crystal
1992-Last Of The Mohicans
1998-Dark City
1998-Dark City Complete Score
2001-From Hell

Trevor Rabin & Harry Gregson-Williams
1998-Enemy Of The State

Tsuneo Imahori
1997-Trigun OST1-The First Donuts
1998-Trigun OST2-The Second Donuts Happy Pack
2001-Trigun OST3-Trigun Spicy Stewed Donut

Tuomas Kantelinen
2008-Mongol

Tyler Bates
2007-300

VA-1969-Paint Your Wagon
VA-1979-The Muppet Movie
VA-1981-The Music of Cosmos
VA-1982-Blade Runner The Audio Cut
VA-1982-Los Angeles-November 2019
VA-1983-Southern Cross
VA-1984-The Neverending Story
VA-1985-Real Genius
VA-1986-Little Shop of Horrors
VA-1993-Quantum Leap
VA-1995-12 Monkees
VA-1995-Casshern Themes
VA-1995-Desperado
VA-1995-Wipeout
VA-1996-due South Volume 1
VA-1997-due South Volume 2
VA-1998-Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels
VA-1999-Batman Beyond
VA-1999-Cowboy Bebop Remixes-Music For Freelance
VA-2000-Memento
VA-2001-Morricone RMX 2001
VA-2001-Ocean's Eleven
VA-2002-For a Few Guitars More
VA-2002-The Best of Bond
VA-2003-Ennio Morricone Remixes Vol 1
VA-2003-Master And Commander The Far Side Of The World
VA-2003-Serial Experiments Lain Cyberia Mix
VA-2004-2046
VA-2004-Appleseed
VA-2004-Ennio Morricone Remixes Vol 2
VA-2004-GHOST IN THE SHELL TRIBUTE
VA-2004-Last Exile OST 1
VA-2004-Last Exile OST 2
VA-2004-Layer Cake
VA-2004-Our Last Day-Casshern OST D1
VA-2004-Samurai Champloo
VA-2005-Danny the Dog
VA-2005-Reefer Madness The Musical
VA-2005-Sin City
VA-2005-Zipang
VA-2006-Arrested Development
VA-2006-Black Lagoon
VA-2006-Children of Men
VA-2006-Renaissance
VA-2007-Appleseed Ex Machina
VA-2007-Hot Fuzz
VA-2007-Life on Mars
VA-2008-Ashes To Ashes

Vangelis
1982-Blade Runner Gongo Edition
1982-Blade Runner Trilogy
1982-Blade Runner-Deck Definitive Edition
1982-Blade Runner-Esper Edition
1982-Blade Runner-MR3 Alternates Edition
1982-Blade Runner-Off World Music Edition
1984-The Bounty

Victor Young
1952-The Quiet Man

Wai Lap Wu
1994-Drunken Master II

Wendy Carlos
1982-TRON

Yoko Kanno
1994-Macross Plus OST
Macross Plus OST 2
Macross Plus OST-For Fans Only
The Cream P.U.F
Cowboy Bebop OST 1
Cowboy Bebop OST 2-No Disc
Cowboy Bebop OST 3-BLUE
Cowboy Bebop OST-Vitaminless
Ask DNA (single)
CowBoy Bebop OST-Future Blues

Youichirou Yoshikawa
1994-Iria Zeiram

Yuji Ohno
1979-Castle of Cagliostro

Yuki Kajiura
2001-Noir

Just a friendly reminder that the Kentucky Fried Movie is an excellent source of entertainment.

Waterworld

Spur of the moment decision got us to watch Waterworld on Saturday.

Myself, my wife and my awesome friend J got together for a nice dinner followed by a screening of this film.

It being all about liquid substances, we decided to play the Waterworld Drinking Game

I do think it made the film viewable, but good lord did we get schnockered.

Thoughts on the actual film (spoilers filled, but its a 13 year old movie so no complaining.)

I had actually never seen it. After doing so, I am not quite sure I needed to see it. It was a terrible terrible film. And I like bad movies. It was very disjointed and horribly acted* I think it was only released to help recoup the loss. It was basically The Road Warrior (i.e. Mad Max 2) on water. However, The Road Warrior was an awesome piece of scifi action, Waterworld was a bloated boring mess.

I know it's "just a movie" but when you base your whole premise on some unbelievable science, I find it hard to swallow. Lets pick a few nits shall we?

-So the bad guys operate out of the Exxon Valdez (regardless of the fact that in the real world that ship was sold and renamed after its incident) and have a finite supply of crude. HOW THE HELL DID THEY REFINE IT? Even if they had the ability to refine it... if this is supposed to be so far in the future, who would have the knowledge to do so?

-If paper is such a valuable resource, why do the bad guys constantly smoke cigarettes (which again, would be very very old)?

-If the dead people at the end of the movie are supposed to be the kids parents, how they hell did she leave the land?

-The kid can't swim? YOU LIVE IN A WORLD COVERED BY WATER. NOT KNOWING HOW TO SWIM IS NOT POSSIBLE. Fear of the water or not, that just seems a bit too out there.

-I do believe that even if all of the polar ice melted, it would not cover the entire land mass of the earth. Drastically change it? Sure.

-Oars on the Valdeez? I do believe that the displacement of such a huge vessel would negate any force produced by rowing.






*Kudos must be given to Dennis Hopper who is always good no matter the role (ex. Speed) and the little girl in the film. But when your 10 year old actress is the shining beacon of a good performance in the film you know you are in trouble.

What I watched on my vacation

With the snow we got here in Seattle my 2 weeks off at christmas turned into almost 3 weeks. Not being able to leave the house much (and it being too cold in the wood shop to do much of anything) we watched a fair amount of entertainment. Full reviews for most will be coming shortly but for now here is a list of what we watched with some brief commentary.

Farscape
We watched the entire run in a scant few weeks. All 88 episodes of the show and the 2 part finale mini series. I had forgotten how awesome this show truly was. It is a shame SciFi decided to be dicks and cancel the show prematurely.

Hancock
I enjoyed it alot more than I thought I would. A very acceptable entry into the whole Superhero genre.

Brokeback Mountain
Finally saw this. A great film but honestly, I couldn't understand Heath half the time and that kinda bugged me.

Natural City
Korean SciFi film. Basically a remake of Blade Runner (which usually I would be all pissy about) but they managed to create a believable world and society and make a compelling case. I can highly recommend this film.

Speed Racer
I would have to say this is quite honestly one of the greatest (if not the only) film taken from an anime. It pretty much gets everything about Speed Racer right. And it is quite gorgeous as well. I didn't think it would be this good (and I honestly expected to hate it) but this one got it right. I highly recommend it.

The Road to Wellville
I hadn't seen this film since I originally saw it when it came out. I remember enjoying it then and never understood the backlash the film got. Viewing it again I have determined that it is a cinematic masterpiece and should be required viewing. Or as a wise man once told me "it's the best possible movie you could make about colonic irrigation"

Tropic Thunder
I knew it was going to be funny but I had no idea how awesome it was. Words can't describe how awesome I found this film.

Legend of 1900
Can't believe I forgot this one. Great great great film. Tim Roth (who automatically equals awesome) stars as a man who was born, lives and never gets off a trans-atlantic passenger ship. A wonderful film that I highly recommend.

Christmas films!

The snow here in Seattle has been sucking my will to live so I haven't had the desire to do much of anything at all. The misses reminded me that I wanted to do a "my favorite christmas films" list so here we go.

These films are what I consider quintesential and required films to view during the holidays. There is no "It's a Wonderful life" on this list. No "Miracle on 34th St" Nor even "How the Grinch Stole.." These are just the films that I take great joy in viewing during xmas time.

1. Die Hard
Not only is it one of the finest action films ever crafted, it also happens to be a great xmas movie! Family getting together through adversity! Foiling international Thieves! And jolly christmas tunes! (yes, Run DMC is jolly) Ok, I fully admit this only gets on the list because it takes place during christmas.

Favorite Line: Between the two FBI Agents riding in the gunship helicoptor:

Agent 1: This is just like Saigon eh Slick?
Agent 2: I was in Junior High dickhead.


2. A Christmas Story
Sure, this one is a little cliche and does get overplayed to death on TV but how can you not love this movie.

Favorite Line: oooooooooooh Fudge

3. Hogfather
This is a new addition to the list. A british production of an adaptation of the Terry Pratchett novel. Death himself takes over for the "Hogfather" (pretty much Santa) when he goes dissapearing on Hogswatch night (xmas eve) I can't do it justice here but I highly recommend it.

4. Scrooged
Yes, its just a modern take on "A Christmas Carol" but Bill Murray gives a great performance.

Favorite line: The bitch hit me with a toaster

5. The Ref
One of my all time favorite holiday films. A jewel thief hijacks a dysfunctional family while hiding out from the law. Great performances by Kevin Spacey and Denis Leary.

Favorite line: After eating the baby Jesus from a Ginger Bread Nativity scene: ugh...Jesus.

As it is the christmas season, it's time to watch films appropriate to the season. Later on I will be posting my list of "must see" christmas movies but for now I would like to focus on one of my favorites:

Die Hard.

Easily it is one of the greatest action films ever made. It spawned its own franchise and a plethora of immitators but still today it still stands up well as great film and isn't really dated all that much....except for a few small details.

I now present: Signs your movie is stuck in the '80s.

Fact 1:
John McClane carries a gun (loaded too no doubt since he never goes for a checked bag) on a plane.


Fact 2:
Smoking... in an airport!


Fact 3:
A supporting "yuppie" character does cocaine:

I will admit this is a stretch since coke never really went away as opposed to other "period" drugs like ludes. Fuckin ludes man.

Fact 4:
Gas is 77 cents a gallon. Regular gas is still sold:

What I have been watching lately

Just a random update as to what I have had in my queue lately. Upcoming series of "The 100 Films I think everyone should see" and "I can't believe I have never seen this" will begin soon.

What I have been watching lately:

I have recently began pulling films from my youth to watch. Films I have not seen in forever and want to see if they still hold up today or if they are better left in my memory. This experiment has given us three films so far:

-Cloak and Dagger:


A boy with serious abandonment issues (after losing his mother and having a father who is a workaholic) and lives in a "secret agent" fantasy world stumbles upon a real life encounter of espionage and murder. Not a half bad little film but definitely belongs in my memory. The kid from ET pulls off a decent performance and Dabney Coleman pulls double duty as his father and his make believe Secret Agent friend. The film pulls off the story well enough but it does have a certain '80s quality to it that sets it firmly in its decade.

-Outland:


Sean Connery IN SPACE!!!!! Really that's all I needed to know to see this. Sean Connery plays a new Marshall sent to maintain law and order on a mining colony on one of Jupiter's Moons. A great cast that pulls of some decent performances if one can just ignore a bit of false science in this scifi yarn. One can really tell of the influence laid by Silent Running and Alien in this film that gives us an underrated adult scifi tale. I didn't actually remember much of this film from my youth so it was a treat for me. In the end, it turned out to just be High Noon in Space but nonetheless, it was an enjoyable film.

-The Final Countdown:


Cheesy scifi film from the early 80s. A freak electrical storm sends a modern day aircraft carrier back in time to December 6th 1941 right outside of Pearl Harbor. The crew must wrestle with the decision to use their superior firepower to stop the Japanese from attacking and alter history. A decent "what if" premise but unfortunately not executed very well. What could have been something really interesting turned into a movie length commercial for the US Navy. Only about 30 minutes of this thing was the actual story and the film. The rest was copious amounts of shots of life aboard an aircraft carrier and showing every small detail of what goes on there.


ANIME:

The misses and I have gotten back in to our love of Anime with two interesting series:

Zipang:


While the execution left us a little bored, the concept given to us in "The Final Countdown" was still intriguing. While watching that film I wondered what the same story would be like from the Japanese perspective. Little did I know something like this already existed. Enter this 26 episode series: Zipang. A modern day Aegis Class Cruiser from the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force is transported in time back to the day before the battle of Midway. While we are only a quarter of the way through the series right now it looks to be a very interesting take on the concept. Modern day Japanese sailors having to contend with the war around them and the differences between their modern day view of imperialistic ways and their own desire to survive. It definitely looks like this series is going down the "change history" path but it remains an interesting take so far.

Here is the opening to this interesting series:



FLAG
This one really was something unique and interesting. Set in the near future, a south western fictional Asian country (think along the silk road) is in the midst of a civil war. UN forces have come to help stop the civil war and a single flag is used as a rally point for peace. 2 weeks before the final peace negations the flag is stolen by rebels and the UN sends in a special task force to recover the flag. Using a specialized mobile armored vehicle that transforms into a realistic mecha the team struggles to find acceptance in this war torn nation. What is truly interesting about this anime is that the whole show is "shot" from the perspective of a journalist hired to document the teams exploits. Using a modern super DLSR/HD Video combo camera the look of the show is 90% through the viewfinder so it looks like this:



At first the view finder aspect (cross hairs, battery info, etc..) one sees through a camera seemed to bug me, but as the show progressed it became an integral aspect to the show and in someways the lens became a character in itself.

At only 13 episodes the story was short but was very deep and laid out well. Here is the opening that helps convey the feeling of the show: