ALL I WATCHED IN 2024
by The_Invisible_Dog | created - 3 months ago | updated - 1 day ago | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)
PG | 126 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
An account of Baron Munchausen's supposed travels and fantastical experiences across late 18th-century Europe with his band of misfits.
Director: Terry Gilliam | Stars: John Neville, Eric Idle, Sarah Polley, Oliver Reed
Votes: 56,887 | Gross: $8.08M
Only 5/10*? Plenty of style, spirit and visual flair but the over-riding experience is one of non-stop chaos and noise, it just doesn't take a moment to breathe. The dialogue itself is not great but made even worse by the constant explosions, shouting and screaming going on in every scene. The editing too, feels uneven and disconcerting: quick shots followed by over-long ones, action scenes jarring between left and right etc. I love Terry G and all the magic he represents but sadly, for me, much of his movies suffer from this same overbearing chaos at the expense of the story. Means well but it's messy. I longed for the opulent peace of the 1943 Baron Munchausen while watching this.
2. The Mirror Crack'd (1980)
PG | 105 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Miss Jane Marple comes to solve the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Angela Lansbury, Tony Curtis, Rock Hudson, Geraldine Chaplin
Votes: 9,440
Lansbury's Marple (after an early fall) is confined to the house and hardly features other than to solve the crime at the end, which is strange seeing as the 80s soft-glamour celebrity atmosphere (Taylor, Hudson, Curtis, Novak) makes this movie feel like an episode of 'Murder She Wrote'. Easy but not essential.
3. The Last Bus (2021)
86 min | Drama
After the death of his wife, an aging man travels across the UK by bus to fulfill his pledge to spread her ashes near their first home.
Director: Gillies MacKinnon | Stars: Timothy Spall, Phyllis Logan, Natalie Mitson, Ben Ewing
Votes: 3,936
Hampered by box-ticking (it is 2021 after all) but beyond that, it's a watchable road-movie meets tear-jerker with a quietly dignified and sincere turn from Spall.
4. Death on the Nile (1978)
PG | 140 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
As Hercule Poirot enjoys a luxurious cruise down the Nile, a newlywed heiress is found murdered on board. Can Poirot identify the killer before the ship reaches the end of its journey?
Director: John Guillermin | Stars: Peter Ustinov, Mia Farrow, Simon MacCorkindale, Jane Birkin
Votes: 39,859
Ustinov makes a splendid and subtly comical Poirot; the photography and colour palette of Jack Cardiff looks superb, especially in such a setting. Engaging throughout, great cast with plenty of joyfully acid wit from Bette Davis etc. Perhaps the best Agatha Christie adaptation.
5.
Sykes (1972–1979)
Episode:
Christmas Party
(1975)
29 min | Comedy
Eric and Hattie spend Christmas Day at Corky's and are unnerved by his family.
Director: Roger Race | Stars: Eric Sykes, Hattie Jacques, Deryck Guyler, Sheila Steafel
Votes: 27
Warm and silly as you'd expect. The creepy cousin playing awful piano. Sykes gasping for a drink. The ex-con and his girl turn up at the end, making for a fun twist.
6. Evil Under the Sun (1982)
PG | 117 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Trying to find how a millionaire wound up with a phony diamond brings Hercule Poirot to an exclusive island resort frequented by the rich and famous. When a murder is committed, everyone has an alibi.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Peter Ustinov, James Mason, Maggie Smith, Colin Blakely
Votes: 20,198 | Gross: $6.11M
As satisfying as 'Nile' but with perhaps a lighter touch (period detail not quite so accurate here) but all the pleasures of the setting and the stars. Audience friendly in it's presentation of solving the mystery, in a good way, dropping clues etc.
7. The Highwaymen (2019)
R | 132 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The untold true story of the legendary detectives who brought down Bonnie and Clyde.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Kevin Costner, Woody Harrelson, Kathy Bates, John Carroll Lynch
Votes: 103,610
Clever how Bonnie and Clyde's faces are not shown until the end, before then we see them rarely and at a distance, the movie's focus being squarely on the two rangers which works very well. Laid back tone but quietly gripping all the way, with quality and natural period detail. Much like a tracker Western, horses now cars etc. Out of retirement, like Unforgiven (even has a hog!) Costner and Harrelson are both on solid form. Worth a rewatch.
8. The Client (1994)
PG-13 | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A young boy who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to protect him when the District Attorney tries to use him to take down a mob family.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro, Mary-Louise Parker
Votes: 73,716 | Gross: $92.12M
Not the gut punch of 'a time to kill' but in the ball park. Tommy swings that accent to hell n back and it's probably Sarandon's best (for me). The kid is good too. Gripping and satisfying and thankfully nothing too disturbing to watch.
9. Wham! (2023)
TV-14 | 92 min | Documentary, Biography, Music
Through archival interviews and footage, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley relive the arc of their Wham career, from '70s best buds to '80s pop icons.
Director: Chris Smith | Stars: Bananarama, Bono, David Bowie, Boy George
Votes: 8,948
A good insight into the two boys, right from the day they met at school (George was called Yog) and the pop star world they created from dream to reality. Wham seemed like silly girls music at the time, but revisiting it now amid the seriousness of early 80s post-punk/new romantic, their unapologetic sunny bounce seems almost like an act of revolution, and more thoughtfully crafted than would appear.
10. Mountains of the Moon (1990)
R | 136 min | Adventure, Drama, History
The legendary true-story of Capt. Richard Francis Burton and Lt. John Hanning Speke's tumultuous expedition to find the source of the Nile river.
Director: Bob Rafelson | Stars: Patrick Bergin, Iain Glen, Richard E. Grant, Fiona Shaw
Votes: 4,255 | Gross: $4.01M
Epic adventure, biopic (of sorts). Depicts cultures that are rarely seen in movies and it all feels very authentic (eg - tribal actors). Few tough moments to look away from (injury detail, corpses etc) but it is a mature film overall. Absorbing, well made (Deakins photography) but their journey is exhausting, no rush to rewatch.
11. Creating Rem Lezar (1989 Video)
48 min | Family, Fantasy, Musical
Zack and Ashlee discover the meaning of true friendship when they create an imaginary friend, the superhero Rem Lezar.
Director: Scott Zakarin | Stars: Jack Mulcahy, Courtney Kernaghan, Jonathan Goch, Kathleen Gati
Votes: 447
Yess. 1* star being a compliment, a special rating for the best worst films. This is top ten material for that category. Very video, lots of wonderful ideas and unique execution that scores throughout. The park scene i already knew and loved but the rest of the film does not disappoint. Requires a few rewatches.
12. Bedelia (1946)
Approved | 83 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Bedelia, a newly remarried beautiful widow, is on honeymoon in Monte Carlo. A painter approaches her inquiring about her past. When she and her husband go back to England the artist will soon be there. Danger, crime and truth will follow.
Director: Lance Comfort | Stars: Margaret Lockwood, Ian Hunter, Barry K. Barnes, Anne Crawford
Votes: 448
Lockwood continues her run as dazzling femme fatale, there's mystery and intrigue, the story and the truth about her both unfold at a pleasing rate that is always engaging. What i thought would be a monte carlo movie throughout was in fact mostly set in rural England, in a large but cosy house, christmas setting, lots of snow (which was a perfect surprise seeing as it snowed for real that day). More drama than melodrama. Noir-ish arc but doesn't feel like a noir. The male leads were decent but a little unremarkable, unlike Lockwood whose presence and style were unique during this period, and what about those liquid eyes?
13. Hear My Song (1991)
R | 104 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
The owner of a failing club seeks infamous Irish singer Josef Locke in order to bring business and success to his club.
Director: Peter Chelsom | Stars: Ned Beatty, Adrian Dunbar, Brian Flanagan, Constance Cowley
Votes: 1,930 | Gross: $4.31M
Drama comic lite with a feel typical of the late 80s/early 90s. Friendly Irish music maintains the tone. Begins in the club, act 2 is a road movie, then back to the club for a finale that was so glorious it nudged my rating into a 7. Ned Beatty is clearly having fun. And you get to hear dear Shirley Anne Field say the f word. Bless.
14. Sherlock Jr. (1924)
Passed | 45 min | Action, Comedy, Romance
A film projectionist longs to be a detective, and puts his meagre skills to work when he is framed by a rival for stealing his girlfriend's father's pocketwatch.
Director: Buster Keaton | Stars: Buster Keaton, Kathryn McGuire, Joe Keaton, Erwin Connelly
Votes: 57,050 | Gross: $0.98M
His most fantasy picture? Like a Looney Tunes cartoon meets James Bond. And waay ahead of both. His projectionist character falls asleep and, dreaming, enters the picture. Highly inventive, the way the background switches around him is like, say, Duck Amuck; then comes his suave wannabe detective persona, complete with gadgetry (car becomes boat) - all great fun and top level Keaton.
15. Garden of Evil (1954)
Not Rated | 100 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A trio of American adventurers marooned in rural Mexico are recruited by a beautiful woman to rescue her husband trapped in a cave in Apache territory.
Director: Henry Hathaway | Stars: Gary Cooper, Susan Hayward, Richard Widmark, Hugh Marlowe
Votes: 3,984
Hayward offers big money to rescue her husband from a mine, a small group of strangers band together for the task - Cooper, Widmark etc. Magnificent country unfolds (in cinemascope) as does the mystery of Hayward. Widmark the mouthy card-shark and wise-owl Cooper all curious. It's intriguing until they get to the mine, meet the husband and then direction drags (Hathaway), indian conflict then develops into a mountain stand-off and a pleasing 'twist' to finish.
16. California Split (1974)
R | 108 min | Comedy, Drama
When a casual gambler (George Segal as Bill) befriends a professional one (Elliott Gould as Charlie), he begins to mirror his life, sending both deeper into the sleazy gambling world where the stakes keep getting bigger.
Director: Robert Altman | Stars: George Segal, Elliott Gould, Ann Prentiss, Gwen Welles
Votes: 8,418 | Gross: $10.90M
Even better on 2nd viewing. Altman's 'natural audio background' style is best suited to this picture. The clearly improvised banter mixed with the low key feel make for some classic 70s viewing. A great downbeat midnite movie that somehow leaves you feeling with the satisfaction of a blockbuster.
17. Woman They Almost Lynched (1953)
Approved | 90 min | Western
Laying on the Missouri-Arkansas border, the neutral Border City, its female mayor and city council take no side in the ongoing Civil War and they're prepared to hang any troublemaker, Yankee or Confederate, who stirs the townsfolk up.
Director: Allan Dwan | Stars: John Lund, Brian Donlevy, Audrey Totter, Joan Leslie
Votes: 453
Quirky, campy. Good girl v bad girl moments (inc saloon fight and a showdown), matriarchal town mayor. The men hold their own among it all. My heart sank when early on we encounter a young puppy Jesse James but thankfully he didn't feature much in this megamix of James, Younger, Quantrill, Yanks, Rebs and all; setting being an Ozark border town which is literally half north/half south. More fun than expected.
18. The 3 Worlds of Gulliver (1960)
Not Rated | 99 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
After being shipwrecked, a man finds himself on an island inhabited by tiny people, who soon make plans for him.
Director: Jack Sher | Stars: Kerwin Mathews, Jo Morrow, June Thorburn, Lee Patterson
Votes: 3,082
Watched first half on TV, 2nd on projector which much improved the experience (of course), really comes alive when seen big, as intended. Has a childrens tv pace yet the whole adventure takes place under the dominating arch of ignorant authoritarianism (both big and small worlds). Colourful classic fantasy. I forgot there was not just scale techniques from Harryhausen but also stop animation - the crocodile fight (Luke and Rancor?) and (laugh out loud timing) the squirrel which snatches Gulliver the second he declares to his girl 'we have nothing to worry about'.
19. Cadillac Records (2008)
R | 109 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Chronicles the rise of Chess Records and its recording artists.
Director: Darnell Martin | Stars: Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Beyoncé, Columbus Short
Votes: 23,137 | Gross: $8.20M
Solid biopic focusing soley on the main Chess 'players' (!) ie - Muddy, Walter, Etta, Wolf and at the centre - Len Chess, played well by Brody. It doesn't have the emotional weight of, say, Ray - but it's the better for not attempting that, there's a lot to cover and its playful touch celebrates the good times, the music, the cadillacs and the buzz of success happening for these people who came from nothing and banded like a family. Respectful time is given for the music and the period, which in turn makes the emotional aspects feel genuine and sincere.
20. Princess Caraboo (1994)
PG | 97 min | Comedy, Drama, History
A mysterious young woman speaking a strange language shows up in an English village, where she is taken in by aristocrats who assume she is a foreign princess
Director: Michael Austin | Stars: Phoebe Cates, Jim Broadbent, Wendy Hughes, Kevin Kline
Votes: 2,981 | Gross: $3.02M
A true story, the film is colourful and easy, behind the seeming lite touch is a decent social satire, kept comically afloat by Broadbent on form and Kevin Kline having fun as the Greek butler. Lots of famous faces inc. John Lithgow doing a good English accent (Alistair Sim style). An engaging mystery - i had no idea what the truth was, which is the best way to watch this first time.
21. Wings of the Morning (1937)
Approved | 87 min | Drama, Music, Romance
First Technicolor movie shot in the British Isles, features Gypsies, horse racing, singing and romance.
Directors: Harold D. Schuster, Glenn Tryon | Stars: Annabella, Henry Fonda, Leslie Banks, Stewart Rome
Votes: 367
Odd mix: a rom-com story arc, am-dram acting and lots of uneven editing choices (almost comical). Foremost though, is the joy this film takes in colour, being the first technicolor film shot in UK, thankfully we have Jack Cardiff on board. The whole thing is quaint in that 30s way, perhaps a little too much of the lead female dressed as a male duke but overall it's pleasing enough, albeit hard to feel emotionally involved through the thicket of all those accents (irish, spanish etc).
22. The Footloose Goose (1975 TV Movie)
47 min | Family
A pinioned trout-farm goose takes a wild gander for her mate. But when he's blown off course in a storm, and then winged, he's going to have to make his way back to her on foot, past ... See full summary »
Stars: Andrew Duggan, Brett Hadley, Paul Preston, Judy Bement
Votes: 12
Short, sweet animal adventure movie (lets hope not an animal welfare nightmare) about Canada geese: duke's wing is disabled and he walks/swims the long journey back home to his duchess (and babies), encountering wild animals along the way. The goosekeeper man has a great straw hat.
23. Ocean Waves (1993 TV Movie)
PG-13 | 76 min | Animation, Drama, Romance
As a young man returns home after his first year away at college he recalls his senior year of high school and the iron-willed, big city girl that turned his world upside down.
Director: Tomomi Mochizuki | Stars: Nobuo Tobita, Toshihiko Seki, Yoko Sakamoto, Yuri Amano
Votes: 20,432
Beautifully drawn details of everyday life enrobe this story of young love where relatively little happens, yet outbursts of strong emotion occur. In many ways this is delightfully boring stuff, the formality of relationships and moral code appear quaint and unusual to Western palettes, hence this is perhaps the only Ghibli film not dubbed into English; as such, it is also perhaps the most authentically Japanese of all them all. A pleasing cultural insight with a slow pace that allows time to be taken to enjoy the artwork.
24. Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)
PG-13 | 103 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Peggy Sue faints at a high school reunion. When she wakes up, she finds herself in her own past, just before she finished school.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Kathleen Turner, Nicolas Cage, Barry Miller, Catherine Hicks
Votes: 40,834 | Gross: $41.38M
Better than expected. Unlike BTTF, which is about the mission, this takes more time to feel what it would be like to return to the past and explore it, making for a more human picture than action/adventure. For all the fantasy, nostalgia and daffy elements (Cage, in good comic form) it comes up as quietly moving. Authentic mason hand signals etc too, allegedly.
25. Fat City (1972)
PG | 96 min | Drama, Sport
Two men, working as professional boxers, come to blows when their careers each begin to take different directions.
Director: John Huston | Stars: Stacy Keach, Jeff Bridges, Susan Tyrrell, Candy Clark
Votes: 10,380
Last seen on VHS 20 years ago and never forgotten. Still every bit the downbeat classic i had remembered, Stacey Keach especially in surely his best role? One of the essential 70s movies.
26. Melvin and Howard (1980)
R | 95 min | Comedy, Drama
The story of hard-luck Melvin E. Dummar, who claimed to have received a will naming him an heir to the fortune of Howard Hughes.
Director: Jonathan Demme | Stars: Paul Le Mat, Jason Robards, Elizabeth Cheshire, Mary Steenburgen
Votes: 5,307 | Gross: $4.31M
Or more accurately - 'Melvin' (Howard makes the story what it is, but he barely appears). Felt like 6/10* but i think that was more my mood at the time. Refreshing how untypical the male actor is for such a lead but he is a little lite. Mary Steenburgen is bubbly but shallow (as usual). The movie in general just kind of drifts through but brings its own quiet type of off-beat comic edge. It's another 'in the gutter, looking at the stars' type of affair but having just seen Fat City (which does downbeat in a totally gritty and stylish way), this aspect felt a little sanitised here by comparison, though it still had low-key pleasures, particularly in that Nevada location and the natural delights of era in which it was filmed. Didn't know it was a true story though.
27. Charley Varrick (1973)
PG | 111 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A man, his wife and their friend stage a bloody bank robbery without realizing they are stealing from the Mob.
Director: Don Siegel | Stars: Walter Matthau, Joe Don Baker, Felicia Farr, Andrew Robinson
Votes: 14,125
2nd viewing and even better than before. One of the best crime movies of the 70s. Great direction, blending a laid back feel with tension and surprise. Interesting and memorable characters. Engaging throughout, I already want to see it again.
28. Poet's Pub (1949)
Not Rated | 79 min | Comedy, Thriller
A struggling young poet in love manages a country inn, and thwarts a kidnapping attempt.
Director: Frederick Wilson | Stars: Derek Bond, Rona Anderson, James Robertson Justice, John McLaren
Votes: 137
Poet gets given a pub/hotel, clashes with JRJ then falls for his daughter, a light crime plot ensues (lost jewels), Leslie Dwyer behind the bar, Joyce Grenfell in fawning horsey form. All you'd expect from a 1949 UK comedy, except for Sid James in a bow tie and hat. Cosy viewing.
29. The Terror of Tiny Town (1938)
Approved | 62 min | Family, Western
An evil gunslinging midget comes to terrorize the good little people of Tiny Town. The townspeople organize to defeat him, and zany antics ensue.
Director: Sam Newfield | Stars: Billy Curtis, Yvonne Moray, 'Little Billy' Rhodes, Billy Platt
Votes: 1,945
Beyond the novelty factor (including riding tiny ponies and walking under saloon doors) this is much like many other 1930s Westerns - creaky cattle rustler plot with weak romance and crap songs. Meh.
30. Black Angel (1946)
Passed | 81 min | Adventure, Crime, Film-Noir
When Kirk Bennett is convicted of a singer's murder, his wife tries to prove him innocent...aided by the victim's ex-husband.
Director: Roy William Neill | Stars: Dan Duryea, June Vincent, Peter Lorre, Broderick Crawford
Votes: 3,955
It's noir, it's a crime mystery, there are also songs. Wife of wrongly convicted murderer joins with Dan Duryea to solve the crime. The truth becomes clear after some striking psych visuals depicting drunken haze. Peter Lorre is there. Decent cast and good noir, but somehow not one I'd say I loved.
31. Ride Lonesome (1959)
Approved | 73 min | Western
A bounty hunter (Randolph Scott) escorts a killer (James Best) to be tried for murder, but allows the man's outlaw brother (Lee Van Cleef) to catch up with them to have a showdown over a previous shocking murder.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, Karen Steele, Pernell Roberts, James Best
Votes: 6,607
8th? Viewing. A pure joy, hard boiled to nearly camp levels, Scott's figure almost religious, the hanging tree his cross to bear and burn. As lean and splendid as Westerns, nay films, get.
32. Comanche Station (1960)
Approved | 73 min | Drama, Western
A man saves a woman who had been kidnapped by Comanches, then struggles to get both of them home alive.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, Nancy Gates, Claude Akins, Skip Homeier
Votes: 4,427
2nd viewing and interesting to compare straight after 'Ride Lonesome' where the hero was called Ben - but here the villain is so named; the hanging tree re-appears in one shot, this time submerged in water - interesting after it's fiery end in the previous film. Religious again, but here it's Scott as preacher converting for the good, subtly so, living by example.
33. Buchanan Rides Alone (1958)
Approved | 80 min | Drama, Western
Texan Tom Buchanan is heading back home with enough money to start his own ranch, but when he stops in the crooked town of Agry, he's robbed and framed for murder.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, Craig Stevens, Barry Kelley, Tol Avery
Votes: 3,230
3rd viewing and enjoyed even more, esp after seeing the previous two movies where Scott was stone serious, almost mythic and seen solely amid the landscape, whereas here he enters town, smiling and friendly in bizarre contrast. Yet we soon see the toughness beneath. He becomes embroiled in a murder, the trial and eventually a town and family both rife with corruption. Ends on a great main-street shoot-out, over a saddlebag of ransom money.
34. Design for Living (1933)
Passed | 91 min | Comedy, Mystery, Romance
A woman cannot decide between two men who love her, and the trio agree to try living together in a platonic friendly relationship.
Director: Ernst Lubitsch | Stars: Fredric March, Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins, Edward Everett Horton
Votes: 7,763
Seems slick for 1932, yet somehow a beat was missing. The script is very Noel C, sparkling wit etc and the main 3 actors do a good job (Hopkins especially) but their personalities seemed confined by the script rather than letting loose a performance. The overall sense is of a play well delivered, rather than a movie to be felt. * As a fun aside, we imagined if it were filmed around 1980 then you'd have Tom Selleck, Billy Crystal and Toni Garr instead of Cooper/March/Hopkins.
35. One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942)
Not Rated | 82 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
During a raid on Germany a British bomber crew is forced to bail out after their plane is damaged. They land in Holland and are aided by Dutch civilians.
Directors: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger | Stars: Godfrey Tearle, Eric Portman, Hugh Williams, Bernard Miles
Votes: 2,530
Hard not to compare to their '49th Parallel', both have a propagandist element (as you'd expect) and both being road movies featuring a band soldiers moving secretly through foreign territory. Here it's a crew of airmen, bailed out after a raid and moving through the occupied Netherlands. Thus encountering Dutch resistance to aid their journey. The early scenes of the men interacting on board the plane during a raid are quite outstanding, putting you very close to the reality of that life, almost documentary like. This then establishes the humanity and quiet drama that is to unfold as the movie progresses.
36. Decision at Sundown (1957)
Approved | 77 min | Western
Bart Allison and sidekick Sam arrive in the town of Sundown on the wedding day of town boss Tate Kimbrough, whom Allison blames for his wife's death years earlier.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, John Carroll, Karen Steele, Valerie French
Votes: 3,474
2nd viewing. Surely the oddest of the Ranown cycle. The unflappable stone figure of Scott seeks revenge but is here forced to face uncomfortable truths about his sainted wife (deceased). He unravels, shouting in near tears as his friend is unfairly shot. His sidekick is like a jovial Walter Mattau lite, the last kind of guy you'd expect to see with Scott in, say, Ride Lonesome. And instead of the lone figure of the open country in those pictures, here Scott spends 90% of the movie walled up in the stables at the thin-end of a town shoot-out. Interesting how both hero and villain are so un-polarised. Curious drama, much more than an oater but flow is a little stodgy at times.
37. Mighty Joe Young (1949)
Approved | 94 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
A young woman who has raised a giant gorilla from an infant brings him to Hollywood years later seeking her fortune.
Director: Ernest B. Schoedsack | Stars: Terry Moore, Ben Johnson, Robert Armstrong, Mr. Joseph Young
Votes: 5,786
Compared to King Kong (how can you not?) this is less aggressive, more playful and family friendly in a good way. Full of unique, fun moments throughout (such as Joe lifting Jill and her piano in the nightclub), always engaging and with a high octane action/crime/chase finale. The special effects are excellent, really smooth, well rounded and with perfect lighting that ties them in seamlessly with the real life action; lots of inventive ideas also with camera angles that bring you close into the action, even during animated sequences. A little exhausting but it goes for it, looks ahead of its time and deserves better recognition than it currently has.
38. The Miniaturist (2017)
60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
A young woman moves to 17th century Amsterdam and hires a mysterious local miniaturist to furnish the dollhouse she received from her merchant husband as a present, but the lifelike miniatures somehow start eerily foreshadowing her fate.
Stars: Anya Taylor-Joy, Romola Garai, Hayley Squires, Alex Hassell
Votes: 6,180
The rich Dutch period setting is unusual and pleasing to see but beyond that this is essentially the shallow but stressful emotional drive of soaps like Eastenders. There are details and a sense of mystery that are both overly confected and the truth of events, when finally revealed, is ridiculous. And my god, do they bang on about selling that sugar? The predictable modern box-ticking seals its fate as one to not bother seeing again or recommending to others.
39. Park Row (1952)
Approved | 83 min | Drama, Thriller
The Globe is a small, but visionary newspaper started by Phineas Mitchell, an editor recently fired by The Star. The two newspapers become enemies, and the Star's ruthless heiress Charity Hackett decides to eliminate the competition.
Director: Samuel Fuller | Stars: Bela Kovacs, Herbert Heyes, Tina Pine, George O'Hanlon
Votes: 2,015
Interesting companion to so many Westerns set at the same time period. While it was tough out west, it was cutthroat back east too in this equally violent world with every man (and certainly woman) for themselves. Only through taking such brutality to its extremes does resolution come. A gritty newspaper noir. Unique, probably important, but not a film to love, as such.
40. Zelig (1983)
PG | 79 min | Comedy
"Documentary" about a man who can look and act like whoever he's around, and meets various famous people.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Patrick Horgan, John Buckwalter
Votes: 44,193 | Gross: $11.80M
Movie feels like an overlong sketch from say, The Marty Feldman Show, a 'what if' scenario. A lot of effort made to achieve a lukewarm level of amusement. I've tried to watch it a few times and always checked out. Finally saw it all and meh.
41. Dinner with Friends (2001 TV Movie)
R | 94 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Two married couples have their twelve-year bond of friendship put to the test when one couple reveals that they are splitting up.
Director: Norman Jewison | Stars: Dennis Quaid, Andie MacDowell, Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette
Votes: 3,335
Recommended on Neil's YT channel in his tribute to Norman Jewison. A quality, mature drama, relatable and realistic 4-hander. The performances are bang-on, the situation intriguing, right up to the last i was curious and unsure how it would all turn out. Small yet big, almost like an American Mike Leigh film.
42. The Tall T (1957)
Approved | 78 min | Western
An independent former ranch foreman is kidnapped along with an heiress, who is being held for ransom by trio of ruthless outlaws.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, Richard Boone, Maureen O'Sullivan, Arthur Hunnicutt
Votes: 6,158
5th viewing. I'm always fooled by this movie. It starts with an apple-pie world (the 'Shane' family element, Scott's bull-ride clowning etc) then flips when met with jarring brutality. Not mention dimensions of character and a mocking of machismo that is rarely seen in Westerns. Best of all - Boone is perhaps the most watchable and intriguing of all villains in any Westerns. Lean, thoughtful thriller out west, great location, almost mythical quality to the cave they are held in.
43. Best in Show (2000)
PG-13 | 90 min | Comedy
A behind-the-scenes look into the highly competitive and cut-throat world of dog shows through the eyes of a group of ruthless dog owners.
Director: Christopher Guest | Stars: Fred Willard, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Jennifer Coolidge
Votes: 66,963 | Gross: $18.72M
A softer comedy compared to Spinal Tap, with less depth (and less laughs), certain characters could do with more development - eg the Chicago couple. Still, it is a lovely world to be in. Best of all (for me) is how much Christopher Guest is enjoying wallowing in that North Carolina drawl followed by his wonderfully ridiculous ventriloquist/cowboy to finish.
44. Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)
Not Rated | 70 min | Action, Comedy, Drama
The effete son of a cantankerous riverboat captain comes to join his father's crew.
Directors: Charles Reisner, Buster Keaton | Stars: Buster Keaton, Tom McGuire, Ernest Torrence, Tom Lewis
Votes: 16,194
Pleasing riverboat world. Keaton (as Bostonian fop) reunited with rough, steamer father (and romances his rivals daughter). Lots of falls, funny when it's funny, the storm at the end is quite impressive - buildings collapse while Buster remains stony and untouched. Not top 5 Keaton for me, but good all the same.
45. 7 Men from Now (1956)
Approved | 78 min | Western
A former sheriff blames himself for his wife's death during a Wells Fargo robbery and vows to track down and kill the seven men responsible.
Director: Budd Boetticher | Stars: Randolph Scott, Gail Russell, Lee Marvin, Walter Reed
Votes: 5,998
4th viewing and i'm surprised how much i'd forgotten. Plot twists and truths revealed at an intriguing pace. Lee Marvin's villain pushes buttons, his modern acting (Brando school) makes this movie feel more like a 70s revisionist western, thus making it like a bridge between old school and new Westerns. There are themes that recur in the Ranown cycle (Scott's widow, for eg) but this feels different from the others: more of an adventure/voyage, the music is also richer, more cinematic. Everyone is perfect in their role. Movie is solid throughout, right up until the final stand-off which rivals 'The Good, the Bad & the Ugly' for classic tension. Improves with every viewing, definitely one of the best Westerns of the 50s. Budd B's best picture? A man could say that.
46. The Aurora Encounter (1986)
PG | 90 min | Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi
In 1897, residents of a small Texas town are visited by a benevolent extraterrestrial being whose presence divides the community.
Director: Jim McCullough Sr. | Stars: Jack Elam, Peter Brown, Carol Bagdasarian, Dottie West
Votes: 349
How many Westerns feature a dog in a UFO? Here's one! This is one of the most off-beat Westerns of all time. It's not a 'so bad it's good' movie, just a little off. It plays like a kids film/tv episode except for Jack Elam calling the alien 'a little sh1t' (!). I wasn't sure if exploitation was at play with the alien being played by a small teen with that ageing disease, but i was heartened to hear his role was granted as a result of the 'make a wish' foundation where his dream was to play a role in a Hollywood movie (sadly he died aged 20 in 1992). There is something beautiful about his soul and so i'm glad to hear others feel the same about him... As a movie though - it's a weird old plot and set-up, (spoiler alert), the alien does very little - he just arrives, cheats Elam at checkers (the best scenes), understands phrases such as 'you're pulling my leg', he steals a dog then swaps it for Elam's hat (why?). Later some girls find an ancient tomb of sorts under the aliens landing spot (nothing more comes of this). The town then beckon him back with crystals, he returns and meets his end. Somehow, I felt strangely moved at the end, probably because the actor seemed so gentle and enjoyed his role. A true one-off.
47. Odds Against Tomorrow (1959)
Approved | 96 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
In need of quick money, a fallen former cop recruits a hard-bitten ex-con and a debt-ridden nightclub singer to pull off a bank job. But as the animosity between them boils over, the entire plan threatens to implode.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, Gloria Grahame, Shelley Winters
Votes: 5,565
48. Holiday Affair (1949)
Approved | 87 min | Comedy, Drama, Family
A young widow is torn between a boring attorney and a romantic ne'er-do-well.
Director: Don Hartman | Stars: Robert Mitchum, Janet Leigh, Wendell Corey, Gordon Gebert
Votes: 7,049
49. Devil's Doorway (1950)
Approved | 84 min | Western
After the Civil War, a highly decorated Shoshone Indian veteran plans to raise cattle in Wyoming but white farmers plan to grab fertile tribal lands by pitting the whites against the Indians.
Director: Anthony Mann | Stars: Robert Taylor, Louis Calhern, Paula Raymond, Marshall Thompson
Votes: 1,855
50. Irma la Douce (1963)
Approved | 147 min | Comedy, Romance
When a policeman falls in love with a prostitute, he doesn't want her to see other men, so he creates an alter-ego who will be her only customer.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Lou Jacobi, Bruce Yarnell
Votes: 21,416 | Gross: $25.25M
51. The Lonely Guy (1984)
R | 90 min | Comedy, Romance
A writer for a greeting card company discovers the struggles and tribulations of living alone after breaking up with his unfaithful girlfriend.
Director: Arthur Hiller | Stars: Steve Martin, Charles Grodin, Judith Ivey, Steve Lawrence
Votes: 7,735 | Gross: $5.72M
52. The Moon and the Sledgehammer (1971)
65 min | Documentary
Mr. Page and his two sons and two daughters live a primitive life in the woods in southern England with traction engines.
Director: Philip Trevelyan
Votes: 145
53. Canadian Pacific (1949)
Passed | 95 min | Western
A surveyor for the Canadian Pacific Railroad must fight fur trappers who oppose the building of the railroad by stirring up Indian rebellion.
Director: Edwin L. Marin | Stars: Randolph Scott, Jane Wyatt, J. Carrol Naish, Victor Jory
Votes: 925
54. Lover Come Back (1961)
Approved | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A series of misunderstandings leaves an advertising executive with a campaign for a product which has not yet been invented, while he romances his rival in the guise of its inventor.
Director: Delbert Mann | Stars: Rock Hudson, Doris Day, Tony Randall, Edie Adams
Votes: 8,767 | Gross: $16.94M
55. Calamity Jane (1953)
Passed | 101 min | Musical, Romance, Western
The story of Calamity Jane, her saloon, and her romance with Wild Bill Hickok.
Director: David Butler | Stars: Doris Day, Howard Keel, Allyn Ann McLerie, Philip Carey
Votes: 10,851
56. The Disaster Artist (2017)
R | 104 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
When aspiring actor Greg Sestero meets the weird and mysterious Tommy Wiseau in an acting class, they form a unique friendship and travel to Hollywood to make their dreams come true.
Director: James Franco | Stars: James Franco, Dave Franco, Ari Graynor, Seth Rogen
Votes: 164,310 | Gross: $21.12M
57. Police Academy 6: City Under Siege (1989)
PG | 84 min | Comedy, Crime
Those bumbling cadets take to the streets when three inept goons successfully orchestrate a metropolitan crime wave.
Director: Peter Bonerz | Stars: Bubba Smith, David Graf, Michael Winslow, Leslie Easterbrook
Votes: 33,193 | Gross: $11.57M
58. Chances Are (1989)
PG | 108 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
A reincarnated man unknowingly falls in love with his own daughter from his previous life. Once he realizes this, he tries to end their relationship before angels erase his memory.
Director: Emile Ardolino | Stars: Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey Jr., Ryan O'Neal, Mary Stuart Masterson
Votes: 13,849 | Gross: $16.28M
59. Places in the Heart (1984)
PG | 111 min | Drama
In central Texas in the 1930s, a widow with two small children tries to save her small 40-acre farm with the help of a blind boarder and an itinerant black handyman.
Director: Robert Benton | Stars: Sally Field, Lindsay Crouse, Ed Harris, Amy Madigan
Votes: 13,597 | Gross: $34.90M
60. They Came to a City (1944)
Not Rated | 78 min | Drama, Fantasy
Adapted from a J.B. Priestley play with many of the original actors. The tale of various people who have come to live in an "ideal" city and their hopes and reasons for doing so.
Director: Basil Dearden | Stars: John Clements, Googie Withers, Raymond Huntley, Renee Gadd
Votes: 293
61. Greaser's Palace (1972)
TV-MA | 91 min | Comedy, Western
A strange man named Jesse who can revive life and walk on water comes into a surreal and cruel western town.
Director: Robert Downey Sr. | Stars: Albert Henderson, Michael Sullivan, Luana Anders, George Morgan
Votes: 1,211
62. Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
R | 139 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A middle-aged Chinese immigrant is swept up into an insane adventure in which she alone can save existence by exploring other universes and connecting with the lives she could have led.
Directors: Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert | Stars: Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ke Huy Quan
Votes: 533,499 | Gross: $72.86M
A woman in the midst of everyday drama (business, family, relationship and personal). Add to that the concept of alternate realities and let the roller-coaster begin. Multiple timelines are depicted, interacting and interrelating, ultimately helping to solve the aforesaid everyday dramas. Such an ambitious movie could easily overshoot and disappear up itself. However this, for all it's wildness, manages to make sense, mainly due to the love at it's heart and the sheer joy it takes in bringing it all to life. It's as philosophical as, say Groundhog Day, as visually creative as say, The Thief and the Cobbler, and as fresh as any of the great Sci-Fi movies were on first release. What is reality and what are dreams? What matters? Anything? It's own sense of nihilism is mocked, tested and ultimately meaning is found. Life-affirming stuff. It's glorious all the way to it's final 'punchline' which is (spoiler alert) that she may just be day-dreaming during a boring conversation one day at the tax office.
63. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)
R | 104 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Four armed men hijack a New York City subway car and demand a ransom for the passengers. The city's police are faced with a conundrum: Even if it's paid, how could they get away?
Director: Joseph Sargent | Stars: Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo
Votes: 35,837 | Gross: $2.49M
64. Animalympics (1980)
Not Rated | 78 min | Animation, Comedy, Family
The animal kingdom stages its own olympic games.
Director: Steven Lisberger | Stars: Gilda Radner, Billy Crystal, Harry Shearer, Michael Fremer
Votes: 2,308
65.
Screen Two (1985–1998)
Episode:
East of Ipswich
(1987)
TV-14 | Drama
Seventeen-year-old Richard and his parents take their annual seaside holiday in a guesthouse on England's east coast in the 1950s. Julia, a teenage girl holidaying with her parents in a ... See full summary »
Director: Tristram Powell | Stars: John Nettleton, Pat Heywood, Edward Rawle-Hicks, Allan Cuthbertson
Votes: 238
66. The Last Emperor (1987)
PG-13 | 163 min | Biography, Drama, History
Bernardo Bertolucci's Oscar-winning dramatisation of the life story of China's last emperor, Pu Yi.
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci | Stars: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Ruocheng Ying
Votes: 111,543 | Gross: $43.98M
67. My Father's Glory (1990)
G | 105 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
At the end of the nineteenth century, little Marcel lives with his parents in the Provence countryside. During his holiday, Marcel meets Lili, a local boy who knows all the secrets of the hills, and the two become fast friends.
Director: Yves Robert | Stars: Philippe Caubère, Nathalie Roussel, Didier Pain, Thérèse Liotard
Votes: 7,053 | Gross: $1.71M
68. The Defiant Ones (1958)
Approved | 96 min | Crime, Drama
Two chained-together escaped convicts, White and Black, must learn to get along in order to elude capture.
Director: Stanley Kramer | Stars: Tony Curtis, Sidney Poitier, Cara Williams, Theodore Bikel
Votes: 17,854
69. California Suite (1978)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Misadventures of four groups of guests at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
Director: Herbert Ross | Stars: Jane Fonda, Alan Alda, Maggie Smith, Michael Caine
Votes: 8,112
70. City Slickers II: The Legend of Curly's Gold (1994)
PG-13 | 116 min | Comedy, Western
One year after their first adventure, Mitch Robbins and his friends discover a treasure map that belonged to their late trail guide Curly and they set out to discover its secrets.
Director: Paul Weiland | Stars: Billy Crystal, Jack Palance, Daniel Stern, Jon Lovitz
Votes: 20,770 | Gross: $43.62M
71. The Sunchaser (1996)
R | 122 min | Crime, Drama
A prestigious oncologist learns a valuable lesson in humility and is forced to reexamine his relationship with medicine and his life in general when Brandon, a young patient and convicted for murder, kidnaps him at gunpoint.
Director: Michael Cimino | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Jon Seda, Anne Bancroft, Alexandra Tydings
Votes: 5,210 | Gross: $0.02M
5.5. Recalls Cimino's Thunderbolt and Lightfoot being an outlaws road odyssey through Western landscapes. But this doesn't have the humour. Made in the 70s it would have been better, it reaches for the same moon but fails on a few fronts: the two leads are stereotypical - woody's uptight doctor (keeps tie on) and especially da hoodlum wiv a dream, but despite their background story there just wasn't enough soul to sustain them for 2hrs viewing. The movie wants to be epic and had its characters and moments along the way for sure, but no matter how much stirring Western music gets pumped into it (plus some fine landscape shots) it still doesn't satisfy beyond the thrills of a so-so straight to video release. Mystical ending was a pleasing note to finish on though.
72. Runaway Jury (2003)
PG-13 | 127 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A juror on the inside and a woman on the outside manipulate a court trial involving a major gun manufacturer.
Director: Gary Fleder | Stars: John Cusack, Rachel Weisz, Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman
Votes: 104,631 | Gross: $49.44M
73. The Puppetoon Movie (1987)
G | 79 min | Animation, Family
Salute to the revolutionary Oscar winning stop motion animated Puppetoons created by sci-fi fantasy film legend George Pal. Gumby, Pokey and Arnie the Dinosaur host 12 of Pal's milestone ... See full summary »
Director: Arnold Leibovit | Stars: Paul Frees, Dal McKennon, Art Clokey, Dick Beals
Votes: 289
74. Petey Wheatstraw (1977)
R | 100 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
After being murdered by his rivals, Petey Wheatstraw is resurrected, in exchange for marrying the devil's daughter, the world's ugliest woman.
Director: Cliff Roquemore | Stars: Rudy Ray Moore, Jimmy Lynch, Leroy Daniels, Ernest Mayhand
Votes: 1,553
75. The Children of Green Knowe (1986)
100 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
A young boy goes to live with his great-grandmother. While she tells him stories of his ancestors, he begins to see the spirits of children who lived in the house during the reign of Charles II.
Stars: Alec Christie, Daphne Oxenford, George Malpas, Heather Ramsay
Votes: 199
76. Starbird and Sweet William (1973)
G | 90 min | Western, Adventure
A plane crash survivor draws upon the sensibilities of his Native American ancestry in order to stay alive in a rugged outland.
Director: Jack Hively | Stars: A Martinez, Louise Lewis, Don Haggerty, Ancel Cook
Votes: 47
77. Dolemite (1975)
R | 90 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
After he is released from jail, a pimp takes on the criminals and corrupt police officers who framed him in the first place.
Director: D'Urville Martin | Stars: Rudy Ray Moore, D'Urville Martin, Jerry Jones, Lady Reed
Votes: 6,855 | Gross: $0.24M
78. Knives Out (2019)
PG-13 | 130 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A detective investigates the death of the patriarch of an eccentric, combative family.
Director: Rian Johnson | Stars: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis
Votes: 774,168 | Gross: $165.36M
79. 24 Hour Party People (2002)
R | 117 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
In 1976, Tony Wilson sets up Factory Records and brings Manchester's music to the world.
Director: Michael Winterbottom | Stars: Steve Coogan, Lennie James, John Thomson, Paul Popplewell
Votes: 39,711 | Gross: $1.13M
80. Children of Paradise (1945)
Not Rated | 189 min | Drama, Romance
The theatrical life of a beautiful courtesan in 1830s Paris and the four men who love her.
Director: Marcel Carné | Stars: Arletty, Jean-Louis Barrault, Pierre Brasseur, Pierre Renoir
Votes: 21,173
A vibrant, street-level, Dickensian world that is equally as opulent and quietly magical. It is also very French, celebrating a grand range of characters from common thieves to counts. At the hub is a lady and the four men who love her, set mostly around the theatre, the story and film themselves being like a play, the camera glides on and off stage and from street to bedroom, from ballroom to bar. In two halves, the first is more innocent and playful, the second more introspective and darker, aged by the years between. Lots of great dialogue, passion and style. Above all, it celebrates France and French-ness which, at the time of Nazi occupation under which it was made, is surely more potent and positive than direct propaganda. As Salman Rushdie said 'the opposite of terrorism - is dancing'.
81. Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979)
PG | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Charles is a bored civil servant struggling through a harsh Utah winter. He spends most of his time reflecting on his romance with Laura, a coworker who left him to return to her husband, an A-Frame salesman.
Director: Joan Micklin Silver | Stars: John Heard, Mary Beth Hurt, Peter Riegert, Kenneth McMillan
Votes: 1,655
Surely an influence on Albert Brooks' Modern Romance. This is a look (breakdown?) of a man in love, painfully honest at times and also genuinely funny in a natural way: his quips (eg - with Griffin Dunne) and relationship with his step-dad being highlights. A great awkward, off-beat comedy of it's time that is also timeless in many ways. Look forward to a rewatch already.
82. Paradise Lagoon (1957)
Approved | 94 min | Adventure, Comedy, Romance
In 1905, Lord Henry Loam and his family and servants are shipwrecked on a deserted island where the survival of the fittest renders the rigid class system irrelevant.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Kenneth More, Diane Cilento, Cecil Parker, Sally Ann Howes
Votes: 1,989
The set-up, the actors and the class divide comedy are all a treat. The film and colours also look great. The love triangle aspects are a little less enjoyable, all clamouring for the rather dry Kenneth More feels unnatural. Still, it's a film with a decent message and snapshot of it's time and as UK films go, it has a quality of it's own. I kept expecting a giant crab or something to show up and attack them, but i'll save that for Mysterious Island.
83. Running Fence (1977)
Not Rated | 58 min | Documentary
An engrossing document of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's efforts to build a 24 1/2-mile-long, 18-foot-high fence of white fabric across the hills of northern California. The artists' struggle ... See full summary »
Directors: Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin | Stars: Christo, Jeanne-Claude
Votes: 156
84. Fedora (1978)
PG | 114 min | Drama, Romance
Down-on-his-luck Hollywood producer Barry 'Dutch' Detweiler attempts to lure Fedora, a famous but reclusive film actress, out of retirement only to discover the horrible truth behind her success.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: William Holden, Marthe Keller, Hildegard Knef, José Ferrer
Votes: 5,187 | Gross: $2.20M
85. Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022)
PG | 97 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
Thirty years after their popular television show ended, chipmunks Chip and Dale live very different lives. When a cast member from the original series mysteriously disappears, the pair must reunite to save their friend.
Director: Akiva Schaffer | Stars: Andy Samberg, John Mulaney, KiKi Layne, Will Arnett
Votes: 47,000
86. My Uncle (1958)
Not Rated | 116 min | Comedy
Monsieur Hulot visits the technology-driven world of his sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, but he can't quite fit into the surroundings.
Director: Jacques Tati | Stars: Jacques Tati, Jean-Pierre Zola, Adrienne Servantie, Lucien Frégis
Votes: 24,260
Ooh i'm torn on how to rate this film overall. I love the shot compositions which, combined with the slow-burn comedy, are like watching photographs moving in miniature, twinkling like automata. I love how the movie satires the emptiness of modern living and thereby champions more natural and innocent ways. Hulot breezes into their world, fails to meet the new modern standard but becomes a Shane-like figure, an Iron John, to their son (his nephew). Gentle chaos ensues, some wonderful shots of dogs running around in the intro/outro, and the music is one of my favourite all-time soundtracks. . So what is wrong? While the ideas and execution are sublime, there is often too much slowness and repetition. Some scenes go on for way too long. And as for that buzzer going off every few minutes. I know the joke is 'it's meant to show how annoying such things are'. True. But hearing it that repeatedly becomes itself annoying. Towards the end, i found it was wasting time on the same jokes, so i watched it on double-speed (enough to read the subtitles) which made it better, not worse. But it's so full of style and good heart that my jury remains out until i watch it again, knowing what to expect.
87. Into the Badlands (1991 TV Movie)
R | 89 min | Horror, Western
A bounty hunter searches the west for a wanted outlaw named Red Roundtree.
Director: Sam Pillsbury | Stars: Bruce Dern, Mariel Hemingway, Helen Hunt, Dylan McDermott
Votes: 389
88. Pom Poko (1994)
PG | 119 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A community of magical shape-shifting raccoon dogs struggle to prevent their forest home from being destroyed by urban development.
Director: Isao Takahata | Stars: Shinchô Kokontei, Makoto Nonomura, Yuriko Ishida, Norihei Miki
Votes: 34,613
89. The Quest: The Longest Drive (1976 TV Movie)
PG | 89 min | Drama, Western
To save an old friend's ranch, the Beaudine brothers round up a gang of misfits to drive a huge herd to market. Join the epic action when a stableman, a retired gunslinger, a dried-out drunk and two sneaky rustlers, hit the dusty trail.
Director: Bernard McEveety | Stars: Kurt Russell, Tim Matheson, Dan O'Herlihy, Keenan Wynn
Votes: 231
90. The Railway Station Man (1992)
96 min | Drama, Romance
A Northern Irish artist, widowed by an IRA bomb, embarks on a new life on the coast with her teenaged son. Romance slowly blossoms when she meets a mysterious American, but then her son gets involved with a violent political group.
Director: Michael Whyte | Stars: Julie Christie, Donald Sutherland, John Lynch, Frank McCusker
Votes: 315
91. The Bodyguard (1992)
R | 129 min | Action, Drama, Music
A former Secret Service agent takes on the job of bodyguard to an R&B singer, whose lifestyle is most unlike a President's.
Director: Mick Jackson | Stars: Kevin Costner, Whitney Houston, Gary Kemp, Bill Cobbs
Votes: 147,737 | Gross: $121.95M
92. Tuck Everlasting (2002)
PG | 90 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
A young woman meets and falls in love with a young man who is part of a family of immortals.
Director: Jay Russell | Stars: Alexis Bledel, Jonathan Jackson, Sissy Spacek, William Hurt
Votes: 25,359 | Gross: $19.16M
Western-ish, set in rural town 1913 with a family living in wilderness like outlaws (they sipped a magic spring which gave them eternal life), now being pursued by bounty hunter of sorts (Ben Kingsley in yellow suit and what's that accent? ). What too are the belfast/cork/scottish/hillbilly accents of Hurt and Spacek? The whole thing looks pleasing, interiors and exteriors, but something misses, can't quite tell what, maybe the feeling wasn't quite as well expressed as intended. Reasonable sunday morning period fantasy.
93. Poor Things (2023)
R | 141 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
An account of the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter, a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter.
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos | Stars: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef
Votes: 252,726
The simple fact that this is about a baby (animated in a dead woman's body) who is obsessed with sex and violence makes this truly one of the most deplorable movies ever made, no matter how cool or original the visuals may be. The fact it gains so much praise, especially at academy level, makes it even more disturbing.
94. Sun Valley Serenade (1941)
Passed | 86 min | Comedy
After Phil Corey's band arrives at the Idaho ski resort, its pianist Ted Scott is smitten with a Norwegian refugee he has sponsored, Karen Benson. Later, soloist Vivian Dawn quits and Karen stages an ice show as a substitute.
Director: H. Bruce Humberstone | Stars: Sonja Henie, John Payne, Glenn Miller, Milton Berle
Votes: 1,951
Flimsy but cheery rom-com with lots of Glenn Miller and his band performing classics. The ski chases etc were fine but I checked out quite a bit during them. Not a lot of depth to the relationships (hallo, i am from norway, i marry you ja?) but with USA only months away from entering WW2, it's the kind of escapism needed at the time.
95. Convoy (1978)
PG | 110 min | Action, Drama
Truckers form a mile-long "convoy" in support of a trucker's vendetta with an abusive sheriff - Based on the country song of the same title by C.W. McCall.
Director: Sam Peckinpah | Stars: Kris Kristofferson, Ali MacGraw, Ernest Borgnine, Burt Young
Votes: 18,616 | Gross: $45.00M
Socio-political Western on wheels. "The living embodiment of the american cowboy tradition" claims the senator cashing in on the phenomena of Rubber Duck (Kris K as the lead trucker). It's a movie based on a novelty song, deep in the midst of the CB/southern revival phase of the late '70s. On the surface this is just a bit of pleasing trash, but Sam Peckinpah brings extra qualities; the shots, flow and editing are lean, machismo is celebrated (as well as the robin hood effect) and it satisfies as a spirited action flick, even balletic at times - trucks in the dust to classical music. Decent cast too. And a fine ending.
96. Christine (1983)
R | 110 min | Horror, Thriller
A nerdish boy buys a strange car with an evil mind of its own and his nature starts to change to reflect it.
Director: John Carpenter | Stars: Keith Gordon, John Stockwell, Alexandra Paul, Robert Prosky
Votes: 92,489 | Gross: $21.20M
97. 500 Days of Summer (2009)
PG-13 | 95 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
After being dumped by the girl he believes to be his soulmate, hopeless romantic Tom Hansen reflects on their relationship to try and figure out where things went wrong and how he can win her back.
Director: Marc Webb | Stars: Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Geoffrey Arend, Chloë Grace Moretz
Votes: 558,264 | Gross: $32.39M
98. Neulovimye mstiteli (1967)
78 min | Action, Adventure, Western
Teenagers take revenge on cruel chieftains during the civil war. Soviet blockbuster in the best traditions of the western
Director: Edmond Keosayan | Stars: Vasiliy Vasilev, Viktor Kosykh, Valentina Kurdyukova, Mikhail Metyolkin
Votes: 1,988
aka 'The Elusive Avengers'.
Red Western. Four horseman shadowed against the giant red sun opens and sets the scene. Stagecoach attacks, horseback chases, steam train gunfights, bar-rooms, open plains, rural town and Western music to match. Robin Hood element. Mysterious resistance fighters are a band of kids. They are likeable and different. It works, like some beefed-up soviet CFF movie.
It is also very Russian. Set during the civil war with typically russian humour, folk music and that mix of lightness one minute/unflinching brutality the next. The overall tone is of comedy action-adventure heroics with a quirky element. Easy to look past the propaganda and enjoy a good, fun ride.
99. Popstar Private Eye (2007)
Not Rated | 90 min | Comedy
Teen pop sensation Sexina is also a private detective that fights evil in the music industry. When she finds out a missing scientist has been forced to create a robot boy band for "The Boss" of Glitz records, all hell breaks loose!
Director: Erik Sharkey | Stars: Adam West, Annie Golden, Lauren D'Avella, Luis Jose Lopez
Votes: 166
Eeeeee. Yeah it's bad but in an almost accidental 'Kath n Kim' way, as if Kim made (or dreamt of) a movie. The scientist is called Van Bunsen who is kidnapped by the evil CEO of Glitz records and forced to make a robot boy-band. Yup. But pop star PI Sexina (think Britney) is on the case. It's all in there - the henchman, the high school mean girls, her boss with a moustache, dildo jokes, Sexina's batman backstory - Adam West even shows up! But man - only watch it if you are (like i was) up for some strictly guilty-pleasure trash.
100. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)
R | 133 min | Comedy, Drama, Musical
Six tales of life and violence in the Old West, following a singing gunslinger, a bank robber, a traveling impresario, an elderly prospector, a wagon train, and a perverse pair of bounty hunters.
Directors: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen | Stars: Tim Blake Nelson, Willie Watson, Clancy Brown, Danny McCarthy
Votes: 168,278
A portmanteau of Western comic-horror tales, Creepshow out west. Not scary horror but pulpy macabre, like 'Scream' comic or such. What Grim Prairie Tales should have been. Six tales: Buster Scruggs 6, Hanging Man 7, Travelling show 6, Gold Prospector 6, Wagon Train 7, Stagecoach 6. Overall it works, self-conscious and violence-happy but tongue-in-cheek and full of pleasing detail. Tendency to drag at times but generally spirited (in more ways than one).
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