1990-1999 Best Movies Draft
03-20-2011
, 09:58 AM
Coens are tied as my favorite directors and I also don't put lebowski in my top 5 of theirs, although I love it
also, no such thing as drafting too many Coen movies
also, no such thing as drafting too many Coen movies
03-20-2011
, 10:02 AM
Naked (Mike Leigh - 1993)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plgqL...eature=related
Relentlessly bleak but frequently hilarious, Naked is the story of Johnny, serial rapist and general misanthrope, who in the beginning of the film flees Manchester for London fearing repercussions for his latest back-alley exploits. He briefly shacks up with his ex-girlfriend (and her flat-mate), who he antagonizes with great fervor, and winds up back on the streets soon enough. With wry wit and a belly full of rage he wanders aimlessly, "spending much of his time ranting at strangers", to quote the imdb-summary. One of these strangers is played by Ewen Bremner, who delivers an inspired, memorable turn (scene of which is in the youtube clip) in a small role preceding his breakthrough in Trainspotting.
Naked is, as mentioned, in many ways a depressing film; the places are generally ****holes and the people are generally in need of a bath and a purpose. Not much happens in a traditional sense, and it could easily have become too much of a downer, were it not for David Thewlis' incredible central performance. His energetic, smart portrayal of Johnny makes this aggressively nihilistic, often cruel character somehow deeply fascinating, even likable, and is almost hypnotizing in his exchanges with the strangers he encounters. It is possibly the very best performance of the 90s in my opinion.
Naked is a many-layered masterpiece, rich on atmosphere, interesting ideas and great dialogue.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plgqL...eature=related
Relentlessly bleak but frequently hilarious, Naked is the story of Johnny, serial rapist and general misanthrope, who in the beginning of the film flees Manchester for London fearing repercussions for his latest back-alley exploits. He briefly shacks up with his ex-girlfriend (and her flat-mate), who he antagonizes with great fervor, and winds up back on the streets soon enough. With wry wit and a belly full of rage he wanders aimlessly, "spending much of his time ranting at strangers", to quote the imdb-summary. One of these strangers is played by Ewen Bremner, who delivers an inspired, memorable turn (scene of which is in the youtube clip) in a small role preceding his breakthrough in Trainspotting.
Naked is, as mentioned, in many ways a depressing film; the places are generally ****holes and the people are generally in need of a bath and a purpose. Not much happens in a traditional sense, and it could easily have become too much of a downer, were it not for David Thewlis' incredible central performance. His energetic, smart portrayal of Johnny makes this aggressively nihilistic, often cruel character somehow deeply fascinating, even likable, and is almost hypnotizing in his exchanges with the strangers he encounters. It is possibly the very best performance of the 90s in my opinion.
Naked is a many-layered masterpiece, rich on atmosphere, interesting ideas and great dialogue.
03-20-2011
, 12:03 PM
03-20-2011
, 12:09 PM
Fight Club i love!
03-20-2011
, 02:52 PM
03-20-2011
, 05:36 PM
03-20-2011
, 05:39 PM
03-20-2011
, 05:39 PM
03-20-2011
, 06:37 PM
Ok was just about to start a movie so no writeup
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
03-20-2011
, 06:50 PM
03-20-2011
, 07:05 PM
Round 1, Pick 9 (Pick 24)
The Sweet Hereafter, Atom Egoyan, 1997
This film is a masterpiece, imo. Objectively, it's better than my first pick, Leaving Las Vegas. Egoyan's directing is excellent. He has another film I might pick. The acting is extraordinary, particularly Ian Holm and Sarah Polley (but the entire cast is great, too). All the characters are complex and multifaceted, and the story is weaved nonlinearly and perfectly. The film doesn't make arguments; rather, it just raises issues and leaves them there for us to ponder and question. It's such a complex film yet it's so subtle.
If you haven't seen it, I urge you to do so. It's excellent.
**********************************
Leaving Las Vegas
The Sweet Hereafter
The Sweet Hereafter, Atom Egoyan, 1997
This film is a masterpiece, imo. Objectively, it's better than my first pick, Leaving Las Vegas. Egoyan's directing is excellent. He has another film I might pick. The acting is extraordinary, particularly Ian Holm and Sarah Polley (but the entire cast is great, too). All the characters are complex and multifaceted, and the story is weaved nonlinearly and perfectly. The film doesn't make arguments; rather, it just raises issues and leaves them there for us to ponder and question. It's such a complex film yet it's so subtle.
If you haven't seen it, I urge you to do so. It's excellent.
**********************************
Leaving Las Vegas
The Sweet Hereafter
Last edited by fds; 03-20-2011 at 07:14 PM.
03-20-2011
, 07:19 PM
My round two write-up:
Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino, 1992
I'm a huge Tarantino fan. And while his subsequent are technically "better" than his first, I still love this movie. It has an economy of style that suited its low budget perfectly. The cast is dynamite. The broken time narrative incredibly effective.
My favorite thing about the movie is the story points Tarantino chooses to show the audience in lieu of others. Anyone else making this movie is going to show the BIG SCENE, right? The bank robbery! He doesn't. Instead, we see a flashback while Tim Roth's character is regaling his criminal buddies with the story of how he almost got caught holding the bag in a public restroom with three cops and a police dog in it. Except, it never happened! It's just a story, a lie Mr. Orange tells the others in order to be more believable as a hood. But Tarantino shows us this obviously false tale.
So basically, it's a heist movie without the heist
In this moment, the movie become less about the jewelry store robbery and more about the nature of truth and character and loyalty and who we really are.
Great movie, and one I can watch over and over.
BONUS POINTS to anyone who can figure out who shoots Chris Penn's character at the end.
Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino, 1992
I'm a huge Tarantino fan. And while his subsequent are technically "better" than his first, I still love this movie. It has an economy of style that suited its low budget perfectly. The cast is dynamite. The broken time narrative incredibly effective.
My favorite thing about the movie is the story points Tarantino chooses to show the audience in lieu of others. Anyone else making this movie is going to show the BIG SCENE, right? The bank robbery! He doesn't. Instead, we see a flashback while Tim Roth's character is regaling his criminal buddies with the story of how he almost got caught holding the bag in a public restroom with three cops and a police dog in it. Except, it never happened! It's just a story, a lie Mr. Orange tells the others in order to be more believable as a hood. But Tarantino shows us this obviously false tale.
So basically, it's a heist movie without the heist
In this moment, the movie become less about the jewelry store robbery and more about the nature of truth and character and loyalty and who we really are.
Great movie, and one I can watch over and over.
BONUS POINTS to anyone who can figure out who shoots Chris Penn's character at the end.
Nice pick, tho