the season of lists (and dishonesty) part two - movies part four
Mood:  irritated

i wrote an essay a few years back supporting hitler, arguing he was just a politician not a mass murderer. just last week, i wrote a blog entry here calling santa claus a pedophile. and, it takes me posting about jerry orbach on messages boards for people to freak out. well, to be fair, some of my essays shortly after that whole september 11, 2001 situation (particularly my duckspeak patriotism one) got some people angry at me, calling me unamerican, calling for me to be at the center of the next attack. today, the line to dance on my grave has begun. i've been called a prick and an asshole and i'm fairly sure i don't care

i choose not to revere the dead simply because they are dead, because they've left behind family and friends or tv audience members who liked them. even if i am the only exception, the only one who will say something bad when it's "inappropriate" i think i will have to continue to do so for as long as i can. we have enough blatant dishonesty in this country and this world already. we enough people pretending to care for total strangers many miles away (just because they happen to make headlines) yet couldn't care less about their next door neighbors or the local homeless population or kids with diseases or the victims of that damn tsunami who don't happen to have been american or related to americans or who didn't capture dramatic video of the incident. billions of people on the planet and we can't be bothered to care about more than a few at a time. and, to be fair, that would be fine if it didn't mean we could be so uncaring about the rest... of course, this from the guy who suggested we let starving children die for the good of the rest of us. you'd think that would fall into line with the logic of the iraq war or the war on terror... well, you'd think that if you were a simple minded fool, anyway. and, sure, plenty of you are simple minded fools, but i'm fairly sure i'm not talking to you lot. i'm talking to the smarter ones, the ones who are sick of sitting idly by while people get more shallow and more separate and more uncaring, except for those isolated headline incidents, cause as long as they can grieve openly from time to time, they don't have to fucking grieve all the damn time like we depressive atheists who are sick of politicians and sick of wars and sick of the media, regardless of which wing you happen to think controls it

-insert deep breath here-

i am blunt. i am honest. i am sarcastic. i am cynical and pessimistic. i am crude and rude and obnoxious and i don't like most people. i don't like most television, though i absolutely love the medium. i don't like most films, though i absolutely love that medium as well. i don't like politicians and generally think anyone who would bother to run for president is not qualified simply because he's arrogant enough to think he is. that being said, i am arrogant. i do not believe in any god and i am tired of people who do. i don't think that people deserve respect just because they are dead. i don't think that something i could have said two days ago (taking the specific, recent example of jerry orbach again) to little fanfare should suddenly be anathema because he died before i had the chance to say it

but, what the fuck do i know, right? i am nobody, just a lone voice on the liberal side of things who doesn't even like most liberals, just a guy who will, despite that old saying that "if you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all" will not only say something that isn't nice but jump at the opportunity to do so. funny thing is, just because i'm still alive, people can tell me to go to hell, call me a prick and an asshole, when what i said to start the whole mess wasn't even that bad: basically, i said that i wouldn't miss lenny briscoe and jerry orbach wasn't that great an actor and had a grating voice.

but, again, i digress. it's what i do

80. rumble fish - i think i liked this hinton novel better than the outsiders and this monochromatic take on it (with flashes of color) makes the characters (and the actors (including mickey rourke before he got weird)) stand out. the staging and the direction pull you in much like hinton's original, relatively simple narrative does. as far as coppola goes, i'd put this film above even the original godfather
81. say anything - gotta love the main character who doesn't want to buy anything, sell anything or process anything for a living, a romantic who knows exactly who he is and what he wants, and is actually able to go after it. a classic teen film that holds up over time much better than almost every other one
82. schindler?s list - sure the subject itself is a powerful one full of images that can haunt you and yank on those cliched heartstrings, but the film itself is a grand example of cinema, the climax of spielberg's otherwise great directing career, with wonderful performances all around but notably liam neeson, ben kingsley and ralph fiennes. one of those films that really sticks with you after it's over
83. se7en - and a completely different kind of film that also sticks with you after it's over. this take a serial killer lets you know from the start that this is not some buddy cop film, not even your run-of-the-mill serial killer film but something far darker and far less benign, a creepy, memorable romp into sin and the darkness of the soul, so to speak
84. shakespeare in love - and then there's lighter fare like this, a brilliant take on shakespeare and writing and star-crossed lovers
85. shawshank redemption, the - a prison-set film about hope and freedom and redemption, based on stephen king's novella and starring the wonderful tim robbins and morgan freeman
86. short cuts - intertwined stories and lives, a large ensemble cast
87. signs - get over that stupid argument that aliens who can't handle water wouldn't come to earth. the film ends with a big shout out to god and spirituality and i still like it. great performances, great direction, and some chilling moments
88. sixth sense, the - and then there's shyamalan's first (as far as fame goes anyway) film. whether you could guess the end or not, whether you've already seen it and know the end and rewatch it or not, the structure holds up, tricking you so easily you don't even notice. osment is great, and collette and willis hold their own pretty damn well. hell, donnie walhberg does with one scene more than some actors can do with whole films
89. spitfire grill, the - it's got some cheesiness, sure, but i think the tragedy of it, the tragic tone of the whole, makes it work. the one fault in this one that bugs me is we don't get enough of the backstory as to "johhny b" even in the end, when a more detailed explanation as to his situation could have been inserted easily. alison elliot is great, as our the supporting cast: burstyn, harden and patton
90. stand by me - stephen king again, the epitome of coming of age films, with a great cast all around (not always the case with such young casts), with comedic beats and sad beats and everything in between
91. star wars a new hope - there's much going on behind the scenes in this one, almost so much that it seems like lucas didn't even understand the politics of it until now, hence the new, shinier episodes
92. star wars return of the jedi - i never had a problem with the ewoks. i'm one of the crazy few who actually appreciated the cute little guys and their part in things (though, for fun, you gotta read about the endor holocaust sometime), and this film made for a great conclusion to the trilogy
93. star wars the empire strikes back - arguably the best of the star wars films, and i'd contend that's because it's the most real in its tone, less a mythic tale than lucas probably even intended and more a serious story involving great characters and fantastic situations
94. sweet hereafter, the - atom egoyan again, though this time adapted from a novel by russell banks. one of those out of order narratives that works because the pieces build together nicely into a whole, rather than the whole thing just seeming like a gimmick (a la later episodes of boomtown)
95. swingers - you may not like the characters but you gotta admit they are well drawn for what they are, and the meandering plot works well
96. taxi driver - decay, both mental and societal, robert de niro in a pivotal moment in his early career. good stuff
97. terms of endearment - and, i'm getting more and more brief with these comments as i near the end, getting a little tired of the list thing actually. this one has a great cast (winger, maclaine, nicholson, daniels) and a great script about a mother and daughter whose lives insist on being connected despite their differences
98. texas chainsaw massacre - raw and scary in ways too many horror films since have tried and failed to be
99. toy story - pixar turns ensemble writing into something fine, putting extra meaning and/or jokes into even the smallest of details
100. toy story 2 - and this sequel actually surpassed the original, the emotional life of the toys being forgotten playing stronger than buzz's realization that he isn't "real" in the first film
101. truman show, the - i still contend this film, without the audience bits and without any foreknowledge of what's going on, would be one of the greatest viewing experiences ever. alas, it comes close, oh so very close, but can't be the best, as it is, cause we don't get to experience the confusion that truman does, but it still works
102. twelve monkeys - a convoluted plot, time travel, some of the best production design in any recent science fiction film and great performances from willis and stowe, not to mention brad pitt's award winning role
103. unbreakable - though the village won't make my list (despite some damn good set up in the early scenes), i go against the usual flow and put this shyamalan film up there with the sixth sense and signs. even the abrupt ending works if you look at the film from the right perspective, say, as the first part of an incomplete story, the first issue of the comic book, the first chapter in a longer story we will never get to and never need to see
104. usual suspects, the - a brilliant screenplay and a great ensemble make for a wonderful film here, something that, like the sixth sense or fight club, plays very differently on second view
105. zero effect - it's this and adaptation. that vie constantly for the title of my favorite film. this one, with all its clever twists and turns, and superb characters... if only the tv series take on this would have had a chance... well, it probably would have been cancelled or watered down, though i'd still love a film sequel cause darryl zero is as brilliant a character as he is a detective

and, that's it. watched garden state last night and while i'm not sure if it's worthy of the list, it was certainly good and a better film, objectively speaking, than a few that did make the list. and, there were other notable absences (the return of the king and clerks (and once i get around to rewatching dogma, it could probably make it) for example)

as for my rank of prick, if you don't like me, you can get in on dancing on my grave once i am gone. if you want in, just go post here