My Top 13 Favorite Movies

I’ve chose Top 13 because 13 has gotten a bad rap.  I, intended to prove that it really is a lucky number more lucky than 7 which is single digit and just dull.  So, 13 this is for you.

These lists are based on my personal taste.  You don’t have to agree, you don’t have to disagree.  I welcome your opinions but ask that you express your opinions with respect and give real reasons beyond, “I think your wrong,” “this film sucks,” or “lame,”  otherwise I won’t allow the comment to be posted.  Also, just because I post the comment doesn’t mean I agree or disagree.  

 13.  Dragonwyck

Tierney & Price

Dragonwyck is an almost obscure thriller starring Gene Tierney and Vincent Price.  The movie is based off the novel written by Anya Seton (according to Wikipedia).  It’s set in 1844, Connecticut.  Miranda Wells (Tierney) is invited by a distant cousin, Nicholas Van Ryn (Price) to be the governess to his young daughter, Katrine.  It’s not long before Mrs. Van Ryn dies, leaving Nicholas to woe and marry Miranda.  When I was a kid I was loved watching Miranda and Nicholas dancing around the ballroom.  It didn’t matter that Nicholas turned out to be crazy I loved him.  Now that I’m older and more educated I can appreciate the historical and literary relevance.  Historically you get an idea of what the social class system and economic system were like.  This film also depicts the life of a Governess in 1844.  Miranda seems to be modeled after Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre.   She is the stereo-type, Governess, she comes to teach, the lady of the house dies and the husband marries the Governess.  However, the twist is the suspicion and odd and frightening behavior of Nicholas that make this movie a thriller.  As a kid I loved watching this film with my mother when it came on the classic movie channel.  It took us years to find this film on DVD.  It was definitely worth the twenty dollars I spent to purchase it.         

12.  Pirate Radio

Movie Poster

Pirate Radio take places in 1960’s when Rock n’ Roll is banned from airwaves, however, Radio Rock, a pirate radio station in the middle of the North Sea defies the authorities playing music from Moody Blues, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, and Cream just to name a few.  While Kenneth Branagh works to shut down Radio Rock, Philip Seymour Hoffman, along with his fellow DJ’s, continue to entertain England.  I think the movie has a great balance between storyline, characters and music.  It’s definitely not a heavy movie; conflict is easily resolved and even when the ship and its crew are in peril you still know that everything will be okay.  Hoffman’s climatic scene is a little campy.  Pirate Radio never takes itself too seriously.

11.  Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes, when I first saw the trailer for this movie I had some serious inner conflict going on.  I love Robert Downey Jr., whatever his personal habits, past and present, he’s always done a stellar acting job making him entertaining to watch.  However, I wasn’t sure how I felt about them messing with a classic literary character like Sherlock Holmes.  I’ve read a few of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes novels and none of them had the main character fighting Bartitsu style, I would have remembered that.  I was sure this was going to end up some horrible adaptation that wasn’t really an adaptation as much as it was an idea with the name Sherlock Holmes slapped on it to make it seem more legitimate.  We’ve seen this before with the Coppola’s 1992 Dracula.  So I was pleasantly surprised at how much I actually liked it.  Downey captured the spirit of Holmes.  Jude Law played a great straight man (Dr. Watson) to Downey’s Holmes.  They had some awesome chemistry between them.  The sets were dark and gritty with a “Steam Punk” kind of feel to it but without the costumes.  The costumes were great and stayed really true to the era.  Sherlock Holmes turned out to be a great homage to the literary series. 

    

10.  Clerks

Anderson & O'Halloran

Clerks, was Kevin Smith’s first major movie was shot for around $27,000 and ended up making about $3 million dollars.  To save money the film was shot in black and white and after hours in the convenience store Smith worked in.  The film shows the day in the lives of Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran) and his best friend Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson).  At times you can tell that Smith was a new director and that this is a low budget film.  During a scene where Dante and Randal are having a debate, Randal slightly flubs his line, not enough to ruin the scene but it’s still there.  Some argue that it makes the film more authentic, by bringing the views deeper in because in real life we do flub in our speech, so okay.  There’s also a shot of the actors’ feet.  The film focuses on their feet for about thirty seconds while the actors’ continue to deliver the lines to each other.  I still don’t know why we’re looking at their shoes.  However, it’s the dialogue that makes this movie shine.  I love the dialogue between Dante and Randal.  They have the type of conversations that people actually have with their friends and I love it.  Randal is a cornucopia of useless movie references.  Jaws,

      “Duh duh... duh duh... duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh duh... Salsa shark!We're gonna need a bigger boat! Man goes into cage, cage goes into salsa. Shark's in the salsa.  Our shark.”

It’s a small scene but it always makes me smile.  If you’ve ever worked in a convenience store or even a dollar store you’ll understand these two characters.  Viewers can identify with Dante, the responsible one who only thinks what he’d like to say and do to customers while Randal actually says and does the things we want. 

 9.  American Beauty

American Beauty also released in 1999 is another one of those movies that makes you think.  What I love about this film is that it’s timeless.  What I mean is that it’s a film you can watch over time and find something new to understand and take away with you into your life.  When I was twenty-four I completely identified with character of Jane (Thora Birch) the daughter.  She was the teenage daughter of Lester (Kevin Spacey) and Carolyn (Annette Bening) a set of parents who seemed more focused on themselves.  At the time I didn’t understand the importance of the couch to the mother and I was equally grossed out by the father’s attraction to the best friend, Angela (Mena Suvari).  However, I recently watched the film again through more experienced eyes and I now understand the parents’ motivations so much more clearly than I did when I was ten years younger.  I can still feel for Jane but I also understand the parents/adults in this film.  The film mixes sarcasm and sorrow together well making you laugh and cry, mostly at the same time. 

  8.  Psycho (the original, not the remake)

Perkin in last scene of Psycho

Psycho, okay I fucking love this movie!  Next to Citizen Kane I think it’s one of the best uses of black and white film and lighting.  The various angles Hitchcock uses to capture the scenes are amazing.  When you first meet Anthony Perkins playing Norman Bates you feel sorry for the guy.  He’s a nervous socially awkward guy and you can’t help but wish that Marion (Janet Leigh) would give him a pity screw.  By the end of the movie, the last scene when he’s complete psychotic mode you’re completely creeped out.  He just sits there with this crazy smile plastered on his face with the female voice over going.  It sends chills up and down your spine. 

  7.  Magnolia

The first time I saw Magnolia my immediate response was to ask, “What the fuck did I just watch?”  Released in 1999 Magnolia was written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, writer/director of Boogie Nights so it’s not too surprising that a lot of the same talented actors and actresses such as Julianna Moore, William H. Macy, John C. Reilly and Philip Seymour Hoffman star in the film along with Tom Cruise and Jason Robards, in his last cinematic role.  By connecting characters that seemingly have nothing in common, the film questions what is chance and what is faith.  Magnolia makes you rethink why you dislike people by exposing the flaws and showing you the reasons behind those flaws.  At times, the humor is so dark you feel ashamed that you’re laughing, but you just can’t stop yourself.  If you want a movie that will make you think I highly recommend you check Magnolia out.           

  6.  Rope

I love Alfred Hitchcock’s films which is probably why I’ve got three of his films on my list.  He is the king of suspense.  The first time I saw Rope was actually a stage production at a community theater I volunteered as a stage hand for.  I didn’t get to see much of the show and I spent more time backstage talking with its stars than I did watching them perform.  However, that experience is probably why I’ve held a special place in my heart for the movie.  Rope like Psycho lets you know within the first thirty minutes who’s dead and who the murderer is.  Once that’s done the real suspense begins.  Hitchcock keeps the audience glued to the edge of their seats building on the anticipation, making you wonder when the criminals will be caught.  One of my favorite scenes is also one of the most macabre scenes of Rope.  I won’t give too much away but I will say that the victim’s family and friends are served dinner in the same room as the body.  Though it’s not one of Hitchcock’s best known films I still love it.  Jimmy Stewart leads a stellar cast in this game of cat and mouse.   

  5.  Rear Window

Stewart, Kelly & Ritter

Rear Window, another Hitchcock classic, stars Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly.  One of my favorite things about this movie is the set design.  Stewart confined to a wheelchair because of a broken leg entertains himself by watching his neighbors.  The view from Stewart’s apartment is like looking into live dioramas.  You feel as though you’re a voyeur and you’re even a little annoyed when you’re pulled away from the view to see Stewart.  As compensation you’re given the treat of Grace Kelly and Thelma Ritter.  Kelly plays Liza, Stewart’s beautiful love interested while Ritter plays his wisecracking nurse.  Rear Window is another “cat and mouse” game where you know who the bad guy is and are just waiting for him to be caught.   

  4.  Love Actually

Love Actually starts several weeks before Christmas and tracks the stories of eight couples/individuals, as they move towards the Holiday in London.  This isn’t your normal Christmas movie.  Like the song in the movie, “Christmas is all around us,” the holiday is the backdrop and helps to propel the characters forward but it’s not about Christmas.  It’s about love; first love, found love, lost love, unrequited love, parental love…you name it.  When I ask people about this move they all say they love it.  They each have their favorite story lines.  Some love watching Collin Firth fall in love with the maid despite the language barrier.  Other’s love that good looking Hugh Grant falls for his “chubby” assistant.  Everyone loves Liam Neeson as the stepfather to a boy who falls in love for the first time with his American classmate.  Of all the characters everyone loves Bill Nighy’s character Billy Mack, the old rocker desperately trying to make a comeback including performing naked on live television.  I highly recommend making this one of your Christmas classics.   

  3.  Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner stars Spenser Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, Sidney Poitier and Hepburn’s niece Katharine Houghton.  What I love about this movie is that I can easily imagine this movie being put on a stage and performed in front of an audience.  Not only does this movie address 1967 thoughts and feelings about interracial marriages but also redefines the duties for parents to children.  My favorite scene is the argument/discussion between Poitier and his father.  It’s one of the most compelling and thought provoking scene in the film.

  2.  Charade

Charade starring Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn stays true to its name.  Everyone is playing games and no one is who they appear to be including the dead husband but they all want one thing, stolen money.  What I love about this is the Hitchcock-esque quality.  I also love the chemistry between Grant and Hepburn.  They have a way of balancing their flirtation and humor making you smile every time they’re in a scene together.  The supporting cast is classic.  Even though they’re playing the stereotypical bad guys they take their parts seriously making them just as entertaining to watch.  I love that no matter how many times I’ve seen it I’m always entertained.  

  1.  Citizen Kane

Welles

Citizen Kane, there’s a reason this has been number 1 on AFI’s 100 Best Movies List.  Orson Welles created an epic without going over 119 minutes which is seems unheard of nowadays.  Epics seem to take three to four hours and, at least, three movies.  Citizen Kane is about a man, who is born poor but becomes one of the richest and most powerful men.  It shows how he rises to the top of the newspaper business, enters politics and his fall from popularity and into seclusion until his death, where he utters the trademark, “Rosebud.”  For those who haven’t seen it I won’t tell you what Rosebud is.  Welles took advantage of lights and shadows of black and white film to create the overall mood of the movie.  I’ve always felt that if this film had been done in color it would have lost the dark, mystery of the world.  He played with angles and images as well.  One of my favorite scenes is when Kane (Orson Welles) walks past what I can only describe as a tunnel of mirrors.  If you haven’t taken the time to see it, you really need to check out, Citizen Kane.