the season of lists (and tsunamis) part two - movies part three
Mood:  caffeinated

yeah, something like 80,00 estimated dead now and we can't even blame terrorists. and, jerry orbach is dead, so let's all mourn the grating lenny briscoe and pretend he's a saint. cause, we all know it's downright evil to speak ill of the dead, don't we?

or maybe we could get ourselves a system more like from orson scott card's speaker for the dead and stop revering folks just because they happened to die finally. let's get an objective third party to speak on each death, to find the truth of people... problem there is, i'm probably the only person who really was never impressed by jerry orbach and never liked detective briscoe (his law & order character). just like a hell of a lot of people who couldn't even make it to reagan's funeral parade last summer wished they could make it, and i didn't care for the whole occasion and was disgusted by the public spectacle. reagan was no great man, orbach was no great actor. and, i really hope that after i die, those that couldn't be bothered to speak honestly about me while i was alive will get the fuck over it and speak the truth

and, if you genuinely will miss lenny briscoe, that's all fine and good too, but you can't expect everyone to feel the same way, and seriously, do we need to forbid negative words about the deceased? should we infringe our own freedom of speech (as opposed to our constitutionally provided freedom of speech) by lying about our feelings? hell, i'll piss a few more peple off right now with this: my first reaction on hearing jerry orbach had died was to be hopeful and glad that maybe that would mean law & order wouldn't be getting another spinoff this year. alas, disappointment came in an article about orbach dying; it said he would appear in the first few episodes of the new show as a secondary character, the implication being the show would go on without him. can't we have some respect for the dead and cancel the show for god's sake, for jerry's sake, for lenny's sake? i mean, can't we just have some respect and not spit on the man's grave by airing this damn show?

but, i digress

54. mad max - i swear i've yet to see an australian film i didn't like (or at least enjoy, as that young einstein film was in no way good, while it was certainly watchable) and this one that helped make mel gibson a star is no different. a near future but not yet the wasteland of the sequels, this film clings desperately (as does the titular character) to the last vestiges of civilization, until the chilling climax, the running down of his wife and son, and that's where the madness comes in, oddly enough so close to the end of the film, it's almost an afterthought to what is satisfying little film
55. mad max beyond thunderdome - though, in many ways, a rehash of the second film in the mad max trilogy (which will be on this list later), there's something so damn watchable and a little intoxicating in the people of bartertown or those creepy plan crash surviving kids (who could have been played so much easier for more cuteness)
56. magnolia - an ensemble cast, a dozen or more characters, their plots twisting into and out of one another's, their lives spinning into an ending that, even on second and third viewing, is still a bit of a shock. i love the sprawling cast and the tangentially related plotlines and this movies does them spectacularly
57. matrix, the - though there are some spectacular visuals in the second and third entries in this trilogy, only the first one makes my list cause it's philosophy and logic is internally consistent and it stands alone as a complete story. my only real complaint about this one is, when trinity first does her slow motion kick thing, why are we at her speed? aren't we still stuck in the "real" world of it, shouldn't we see her moving at high speed and surprising us like she's surprising the cops (a little, like when neo fights the 100 agents in the second film, there's no need for slow motion moments since by then we are at the same speed as both the agents and neo and should be seeing everything in their real time; it's little logic bits in these films that bug me almost as much as the inconsistent philosophy does)?
58. memento - a narrative experiment that works, the scenes in reverse order, the plot building itself backward, a murder mystery and a character study of a guy who barely has the personality he thinks he has
59. monsters, inc. - pixar does it again. a brilliantly realized world with the little details to make it real, a simple plot, and real emotion that is lacking in so many "kids" films
60. moulin rouge! - piecing together a bunch of lyrics from pop songs, mixing in some original lyrics, putting together a story that seems almost entirely composed of surface details and you'd think it wouldn't work (and a lot of you probably think it doesn't) but there's a strange depth to even the most blatantly surface bits, new ways of looking at familiar lyrics and romantic ideas and a tragic love affair on a par with romeo and juliet
61. natural born killers - whether it's because of what oliver stone made of it or tarantino's script, this film turns in a superb exploration into modern american violent culture and those we choose to idolize and demonize at the same time
62. night of the living dead - the simplest and maybe still the best zombie film, not to mention the folks-locked-in-and-ambushed-by-evil subgenre
63. north by northwest - hitchcock at his best, with a good enough plot but really making its impact because of memorable visuals, the cropduster, mount rushmore
64. one flew over the cuckoo?s nest - see it again and again, you still gotta wonder if nicholson's character is crazy or not, if he's nicholson crazy or seriously insane. and, that nurse--she didn't make that top movie villains list a couple years back for nothing. not to mention great supporting turns from brad dourif and danny devito
65. one hour photo - obsession can make for horrible or brilliant subjectmatter. this one makes the latter list, as once again robin williams gives a performance that shows how truly great an actor he is
66. outsiders, the - a straightforward adaptation of the classic hinton novel, made all the more real and resonant in its extra violent climax, not to mention the cast of folks who would become big names after
67. pentagon wars, the - a satire about the bradley fighting vehicle, which began its life as a lightly armored, fast moving troop transport and became one of the most heavily armored tanks our military has ever had, with cary elwes and kelsey grammar squaring off against each other with performances that really have no right to be as funny as they are--though it gets the laughs, mostly the individual scenes are not actually played for laughs, which is, of course, what makes great satire
68. pi - unlike good will hunting, which already made this list, pi actually bothers to be about the math. well, in between being about insanity and being about an obsessive's breakdown, not to mention religion (notably the jewish torah)
69. pink floyd the wall - one of the greats as far as concept albums go, translated to the screen with strong visuals and some evocative animation
70. player, the - a film about film that's actually about film and not only as a metaphor. a wonderful look beneath the surface of hollywood that doesn't sink into self parody and takes itself completely serious even in the brilliantly funny "hollywood ending" bit
71. princess bride, the - oft quoted, and for good reason. the script is brilliant, with nary a false note to be found, a fantastical love story with memorable characters and setpieces abounding
72. pulp fiction - i think i've already mentioned this one in talking about my list, and here it is, a collection of loosely connected short stories, tied together by their "pulpy" themes, and tangentially linked through certain characters, and with brilliant dialogue... and, why isn't clerks on my list? who the hell deleted that one? i should sic jules and vincent on whoever it was, except vincent is dead and jules is probably still walking the earth
73. punch-drunk love - weird colorful divider plates aside, this tale of a seriously fucked up man has got no flaws (contrary to my wife's opinion, as well). adam sandler playing more crazy than ever but also more serious and real than ever, plus emily watson as his love interest and some seriously jarring scenes and tonal changes. this is one of those movies that can fuck with you, but it can also make you appreciate that fucking afterward
74. raiders of the lost ark - the greatest adventure film ever. i dare anyone to find anything wrong with this one
75. rear window - hitchcock talking about film without talking about film, i wrote a paper on this one in college, on the framing of windows and scenes, the various stories in the windows playing like their own, disparate flms, tied together only by proximity and our own voyeurism
76. reservoir dogs - tarantino again, pulling the primary plot out of the aftermath of a heist, skipping over the heist except in some integral flashbacks. the centerpiece here is the relatively quiet aftermath, and tim roth's performance (and his pain) is stunning
77. ring, the - takes the interesting concept of the japanese original and makes it better, cause the american film industry, the horror part of it anyway, is good at nothing if not creepy visuals, and this one needs them and uses them left and right and they don't stop being creepy, don't stop grabbing you and making you want to keep watching. not to mention the whole commentary on our tv obsessed culture
78. road warrior, the - the greatest action film ever. the post apocalyptic wasteland to define the genre to come, and the most spectacular chase/battle scene ever
79. rob roy - not as flashy as braveheart but possibly a greater film, with great performances from neeson and roth and all the supporting actors, a wonderful drama, rich in history and breathtaking visuals (as most any film set in scotland (see highlander or braveheart) tends to be)

and, let's save the last quarter of the list for tomorrow. i've got other writing to do, and probably some other people to piss off, and more dead people to insult