Top 20 Favorite Films

Throwing contemporary themes and jokes in with a period piece can be very hit or miss. To me, A Knight's Tale hit the mark just right. It combined its stylistic display of jousting with the atmosphere of a modern sporting event, which I felt meshed pretty well in its context. And with some good contemporary humor and an arena rock soundtrack thrown in the mix, A Knight's Tale made for a very fun movie.

This is one of the few films on this list that I've seen very recently. And if I'm calling it one of my favorites already, you know it had an impact on me. It's another hybrid, this time combining an Eastern story and themes with the Western style of Clint Eastwood's direction. These two factors seem to clash a lot in the film medium, but Letters from Iwo Jima bonds perfectly.

What stood out most to me was how genuinely human I found it to be. My first impression was that I would get annoyed by the subtitles and the young klutzy soldier, but it all fell at the wayside. He and the rest of his cast mates carried such emotion and back story through the battle sequences (I even thought he rivaled Ken Watanabe). And like we find in many American war films, the goal for so many of these soldiers is just to survive and get home (something I haven't really seen from the eyes of who America has called "the enemy."). Hat's off to you for this, Eastwood. Well done!

I was going to put Kingdom of Heaven at first, but I think Blade Runner sticks out to me just a bit more now. I first tried watching Blade Runner a few years ago, but it didn't quite sink in until I saw it again last fall. Now I see just how huge of an influence this has been for both the sci-fi and dystopian genres. Its setting is both vibrant yet dank, something that hadn't quite been seen at the time. Though it's plot is pretty convoluted, what ultimately sells Blade Runner is giving its machines-the replicants-a genuine humanity. It's a unique and clever oxymoron, and one that has stood the test of time. I've only ever seen the theatrical cut, but I look forward to seeing the others (especially the Final Cut).

Here's another one that I've only seen recently. I've gotten into Pink Floyd only recently, but their music came to me at a very ideal time in my life. The album of The Wall resonated with me very strongly, so naturally I was curious to see what the movie was like. Although it wasn't very cohesive, the point of The Wall was to visually illustrate the album. And with it's trippy visuals and animation alongside Bob Geldof's cryptic portrayal as Pink, it achieves just that. It's the longest music video ever made, and I very much enjoyed it.

Because of films like The Dark Knight and Inception, I had begun to greatly appreciate the works of Christopher Nolan. But before I could properly call him one of my favorite directors, I had to see more of his work. Memento was where it started, and man was this a hell of a start! From start to finish (or finish to start in this case...you get what I'm saying), its spliced-up story compels you and leaves you guessing up until the very end (hell, the ending still has me guessing!). The main character of Leonard is so nonchalantly conflicted (if you couldn't tell, I love these kind of oxymorons), and the motives of the other characters become completely polar as the film goes on. Memento was a complex idea that developed completely into what it needed to be. It wasn't his first film, but this was the one that declared that Chris Nolan had arrived!

Everybody has their nostalgic favorites, and Toy Story is definitely one of mine. This computer-animated feature was the first of it's kind, and it's vivid animation, colorful characters, and witty humor continues to capture me as it did in my childhood.

I had always been fascinated by space and our solar system as a kid, so just imagine how psyched I was to watch one of NASA's most (in)famous missions play out. Now that I've grown older, there's so much more that I have come to appreciate about this movie. From it's stellar cast, to what went into recreating the conditions of the mission, right down to the cinematography, it's one of those rare movies that I liked from the start and it just keeps getting better every time I watch it.

I have a weird habit wanting to see a movie because of its music (whether it's the actual score or a song they use to advertise it). But this was a very rare case where I wanted to see a movie because a music video was based off of it. I had read online that Linkin Park based their video for Shadow of the Day somewhat on Children of Men (they also based Leave Out All The Rest off of Sunshine). I thought I would check it out. I did. And I loved it!

This was the movie that really made me aware of the dystopian genre, one that has become a favorite of mine since. Its atmosphere and premise are unlike anything I had ever seen done before, the cast was fantastic, but most of all, the camera work was TOP NOTCH! Alfonso Cuaron both directed and acted as a chief cinematographer, utilizing several single-shot sequences throughout the movie. I had disliked him beforehand for how silly he made Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, but he definitely earned his props from me with this gem.

A good friend of mine first brought this movie up to me a few years ago. From how he described it (and how narrow my taste was back then), I thought it would be a too gothic and weird for my taste. I finally watched it for the first time last year, and boy was I wrong. I mean, it is a gothic movie, but in a literary sense (I was expecting the modern stereotype, but it was more so that early 90's edge, which I enjoyed).

The story and some of the acting may weigh it down, but it's the atmosphere that made this movie what it is. The themes were dark and gritty, the score was cryptic yet angelic, but what was such a home run for this movie were its visuals. Darkness (particularly pitch blackness) is such a difficult thing to manipulate in film, and The Crow does this perfectly. Some may argue that it lacks substance, but it makes up for it in essence, which to me is a very redeeming factor.

Like with Christopher Nolan, I began watching more of Darren Aronofsky's movies after seeing Requiem for a Dream. This was my first one, and it's another movie that makes up for a weaker plot line with its essence (and a powerful one this has).

It features Hugh Jackman in three separate roles-separated by five centuries each-who all are striving towards the goal of conquering death. Of course this goal is unattainable (a theme seen in every one of Aronofsky's movies thus far), but what drives each of them is a companion (portrayed by Rachel Weisz) on the verge of death herself. Though The Fountain's non-linear plot is convoluted and not quite cohesive, its redeeming qualities include its visuals, Hugh and Rachel's portrayal of this touching (and down to earth!) love story, and its morals on death and acceptance. Hugh Jackman said in an interview that "unless it touches your heart, than it's not a very good story." I do believe that is necessary, and as someone who struggles with letting things go, it definitely hit home for me.

Oh yeah, and the score is probably the most beautiful I've ever heard! Go to Youtube right now and check it out!!(Death Is The Road To Awe in particular)!

It took me a few years to finally watch it all the way through, but even so, I don't think there was a part in Forrest Gump that I didn't like. It's a movie that redefined the term "American Classic," and it's another one that just gets better and better every time I watch it. Maybe it has something to do with Tom Hanks why these movies do, I don't know. But nevertheless, it's a grand story about a simple man, and his take on the world is worth taking a look into for yourself.

(Note: I meant to put the whole trilogy, but I only have The Return of the King on here because A, I couldn't figure out how to get all three movies under one item on the list because there isn't a page for the whole trilogy [yeah, I'm new to the site], and B, because I'm going to discuss events of the story's conclusion most prominently. So anyway-)

This trilogy stands as a colossus among films. The production is still one of the largest (if not still THE largest) in history, it assembled the widest variety of an ensemble cast a movie could ask for, it's easily one of the best blends of CGI and special effects we've seen, it illustrates epic tones of good vs evil with the most epic of scores, and in so many more ways than one does it achieve the impossible, both within the story and without. People said The Lord of the Rings couldn't be filmed, the people of Middle-earth thought Sauron was unbeatable, and they thought that taking the Ring into Mordor was a suicide mission, let alone that a Hobbit could do it. But you know what?

The films were spectacular, setting records and standing as one of the very few trilogies that got better from start to finish. The Men of Middle-earth could unite under one banner to combat the will of Sauron. The Ring made it into Mordor and was destroyed. By the will of two (and a half, if you count Gollum) Hobbits, nonetheless! And all of this was accomplished while maintaining and following up on its moral. Galadriel said in The Fellowship of the Ring that even the smallest person can change the course of the future. When Aragorn and the people of Middle-earth bow down to the four Hobbits at his coronation in Return of the King, that gesture rings out louder and truer than words ever could. You see just how far these four Hobbits have come and just how much they have done. A monumental picture and success, The Lord of the Rings set the bar for the rank of masterpiece in epic fantasy, both in literature and in film.

Here's another Disney favorite, but this one isn't just nostalgic. The Lion King ranks so far up on my list because of how deeply this movie resonates with me now. You see Simba go from a happy childhood, to mourning a family tragedy, to pushing it all out with the philosophy of Hakuna Matata, to sinking into depression and denial of who he really is in his adolescence, to finally coming to terms with things in order to face the truth, all to finally grow into an adult and who he is meant to be. It's a coming of age story that reflects a lot that had happened in my own life. I can tell just by how strongly The Lion King resonates with me, along with its dazzling animation and memorable songs, that this is a film I will carry very near and dear to my heart for the rest of my life.

I never thought I would see the day that a Western could be so badass. But Sergio Leone, Ennio Morricone, and Clint Eastwood with his fellow cast mates effortlessly proved to me that I was DEAD wrong! The Good, the Bad and the Ugly still stands as one of the most badass films I've ever seen. It's got extreme close-ups, it's got build-up tension, it has not so corny yet awesome one-liners, it has a haunting score, it has one of the greatest trios of main characters I've ever seen (one of them being one of THE best villains, in my opinion), but most of all, it has one of THE most epic climactic final showdowns that I feel defines the term "badassery." Need I say anymore?

Here's another movie that defines the term "baddassery." Thought the plot is convoluted (even if all three stories make their connections in some ways), it's a fun thrill ride of a movie. The characters are unique, the dialogue is witty and realistic, the violence has a style to it, the outlandish scenarios keep you on the edge of your seat, the soundtrack is a great collaborative collection of surf rock tunes, and...and...I don't know, maybe it's just how many times they say "motherf#@ker" or Samuel L. Jackson just being the ultimate badass, it's just...BADASS, and makes for a very fun movie! End of story!

I didn't expect much from Fight Club beforehand. Probably because the only thing I had heard about it was that the first two rules are you're not supposed to talk about it. I had obviously been hearing about it from the wrong people, because this movie just about changed my life. It's a social satire that's so sarcastically witty-delivered so well for the most part by Edward Norton's narration-I just love it. It opened my eyes to a lot about America's obsession with material possessions. I mean, I'm not about to take the whole Project Mayhem route, but I don't want to end up living a lifestyle I hate to buy stuff I'm not going to need. This is your life, and it's ending one minute at a time. So why spend it trying to uphold some ridiculous standards we just made up, right?

I've put a lot of movies on this list that were more than meets the eye for me, as well as those with a clever oxymoron. If ever there were a movie that upheld both of those factors, it was A Clockwork Orange. I didn't know what to expect going into this. All I had to go on was that I thought the main guy looked pretty weird and I had heard there were a few rape scenes. And so I sat down and I got pulled in by this psychedelic trip of a movie. It was vivid, it was no hold-barred, it was truly unique and absolutely witty. But amongst all the ultra-violence, believe it or not, is a great moral.

Though I could see it more so when I read the book, I saw just what a testament this story was to individuality (something I've come to believe in very strongly). You wouldn't think this could ever happen, but you have the most vile and heinous character imaginable and you end up pitying him as the story progresses. You see the system strip Alex of his individuality and forced him to act in a way that they see as good. He has no real choice in the matter and can no longer make any genuine choice, hence making him a clockwork orange. If anything, it shows that appealing to what people see as the norm isn't always what's best. But if it is, it's still something that needs to be genuinely chosen, not rammed down your throat. You think therefore you are, but when a man cannot think (or choose as the story puts it), he ceases to be a man.

I remember seeing this trailer in the theater and initially thinking, "Ok, this is either going to be really weird or really cool." By the end, I determined that it looked cool, and I went to go see it I left in such a sense of awe (at least I would have if some dumbass behind me didn't say "They need to make a second oooone!" the moment I got out of my seat. But I digress.). Inception has been compared to The Matrix and James Bond, and although I feel they served as building blocks for itself, there's still nothing quite like it when all is said and done.

Inception takes these simple ideas and concepts-from dreams to ideas themselves, all things we can relate to-and it ramps them up into this spectacle of a thrill ride. The best part of this movie is that you experience it alongside Ellen Page's character Ariadne, and you both share that fresh sense of discovery and wonder. Even after you watch it again and again, you discover something new and find yourself right back in that place. Inception was Christopher Nolan's baby that he worked on for nearly a decade. Even after seeing The Dark Knight, it wasn't until seeing that really made me think, "Ok, this guy is onto something great!"

After seeing just how powerful of a movie this is, I'm kind of ashamed that I had only heard of this through the re-orchestration they used for The Two Towers trailers. But even so, I kept hearing that this was great and saw some wonderful imagery from it. It was enough to get me invested, but when I finally sat down to watch it, I had no idea that I had strapped myself into a psychological roller coaster. For utilizing so much with so little, this...film...was.......spectacular. It's a blunt and harsh urban fable of not just addiction, but something that just about everybody takes for granted. And that's that there's a very fine line between chasing a dream and chasing a delusion.

I feel that anyone who watches Requiem can appeal to at least one of the characters. For me, it's Harry Goldfarb, Jared Leto's character. You have this young man who takes so much for granted to achieve what he wants in life. He wants to live a happy life with his girlfriend, Marion (played by the lovely Jennifer Connelly). However, he pushes everything at the wayside to attain it (things that he actually may need to attain it practically). He neglects his decaying relationship with his widowed mother, he disregards the dangers of being a heroin dealer (as well as a user), but mostly, as their lives begin to take a plunge, Harry even compromises Marion's take on the situation for granted as well. He doesn't see just how hooked she is on her own addictions and how she's becoming more in love with them than she is with Harry. Eventually, this leads to desperation, and ultimately the demise of Harry's hopes of having that happy life with her (or a happy life at all, for that matter).

Drug use aside, I see a lot of myself in Harry Goldfarb. I myself am a huge dreamer, and I often let that get in the way of the reality that's right in front of me. But more so now, I see so many parallels in how my longest lasting relationship ended. And though it was very tough to watch, it opened my eyes to just how poorly we both had handled the situation. You know, it kind of pisses me off when people refer to Requiem for a Dream as just a drug movie. As you can see from what I was able to take away from it, it really isn't. Requiem works on such an intimate level with a subtle yet cryptic message on what we pursue as dreams. It's the anti-Cinderella, and though it brings back painful memories for me now (not going to lie, I've never cried so hard because of a movie), I still love just how blatantly honest this film is and it tugs on my heartstrings harder than anything else I've seen (not to mention the fact that it proves that Marlon Wayans can legitimately act). Darren Aronofsky, your masterpiece has left me in awe of what you are capable of as a filmmaker. My respect is yours, sir. However...my number one favorite carries something with it that Requiem does not.

You know, even amongst the hype and the trailers, I still could not have anticipated just what was in store for me when I went to go see The Dark Knight. And you know what? I mean no disrespect to Heath Ledger for saying this, but hype over his death be damned, this picture was monumental! The Dark Knight takes just about everything that I love to see in movies and it puts it all in one package. It's set in a modern realistic setting with just a touch of sci-fi (being in Wayne Enterprise's technology). It incorporates yet another beautiful oxymoron through Heath Ledger's Joker, a madman with an interesting satirical philosophy about him (my favorite line from him being, "Do I really look like a guy with a plan?"). It shows tragedy, both through what happens in Gotham as well as Harvey Dent's fall from grace as he transforms into Two-Face. It shows escalation and what it takes to make a moral choice, as well as a corrupt one. But what I get most out of this movie comes from the Dark Knight himself.

I know that Christian Bale's portrayal of Batman isn't exactly the greatest (the voice, as we all know, is a bit too much-though his Bruce Wayne I feel is fantastic), but it's more so the character that Christopher Nolan adapted that I appreciate. I think what Nolan was trying to accomplish with his take on Batman was to show the depth of what Batman's made of. In the previous film, we see Bruce strive to conquer fear so that he may redirect it onto those who prey on the fearful. In this one, we see him do everything he can to stay incorruptible, as the Joker so adequately put, and what it takes to do just that. We see him watch as the Joker runs rampant and unhinges all that he helped put in place. We see as the citizens of Gotham, who once praised his deeds, turn on him and demand that he turn himself in at the expense of more madness brought on by the Joker. We see him refuse to simply kill the Joker on multiple occasions for the sake of retaining his "one rule," at the expense of more chaos. We see him lose Rachel, someone who he thought was waiting for him to finish the job as Batman. And in the end, we see him take the fall for Harvey's murders in order to retain his image as a legitimate public defender. If that doesn't show somebody sticking to their guns, I don't know what will.

Chris Nolan's Batman shows just how far one man will devote himself to his ideal of saving his city. But not just that. Batman can't have limits, and neither could Bruce. So on the grand scale of the whole trilogy now, I feel this Batman goes to show that there really is no extent to human potential (even for the fact that he's a superhero). In fact, I feel that human potential, if anything, is Batman's true superpower. And I'm not going to lie, this has even inspired me in my life to push my own limits and attain all that I can. He's the hero that not only Gotham deserves, but we the fans do as well. Mr. Nolan, for inspiring me with both your work and the character you adapted, I salute you!

(By the way, DARK KNIGHT RISES SPOILER, but who else got a kick out of seeing Cillian Murphy again as Crane? :P)