Top Ten and Desert Island flicks...

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Hmm, all the movie talk lately got me thinking about my own top ten list of flicks. Of course the trouble with top ten "lists" is that they constantly change. But most of us I guess are happy to play the "desert island" game, i.e. what three movies would you grab as you ran out the door to exile on a desert island? You have 2 seconds to make up your mind...

A top ten list is bloody hard, but my desert island three-some was relatively easy:

Blow Up - my all time favourite film: Michaelangelo Antonioni's masterpiece look at London in the swinging 60s. Totally, utterly engrossing. First saw this as a kid and and am constantly blown away by this every time I see it (which is every few months).

Jour de Fete - my favourite of all the brilliant Jacques Tati movies. This has charm and wit and is as engaging a movie as any I've seen. Tati captures the essence of rural France so well. I love it to bits. And like Blow Up, withstands repeated viewing. Again, I've seen this dozens of times, and it stands up well with each viewing.

The Matrix - whilst I couldn't say this was the best sci-fi movie ever made, it's one of the most original and does stand up to repeated viewing, hence its inclusion. And I genuinely do love it. And I watch it often.

The other seven films on my current top ten list then would be:

Four Weddings and a Funeral - hugely funny. Classic comedy.
Alien - Brilliant sci-fi. A stand-out amongst the genre.
Blade Runner - (The Director's Cut). More Ridley Scott. Stunning.
Casablanca - Classic film on so many levels.
Blues Brothers - Car chase meets R&B meets Princess Leia !!!
Monty Python & The Holy Grail - The best thing the MP crew did.
Ground Zero - Little-known Aussie film. Nuclear thriller. Grabs me every time.

The sad part is of course the films you leave off the list. But ask me again in a month's time, and that list will have changed a bit. Although it takes a lot to get on my desert island list - that may not change for quite some time.

OK that's me done. Who else has got what??

[Ana]

Good choices MLCM,
Here mines for my desert island:

1.- Star Wars
2.- When Harry met Sally
3.- Il ultimo Bacio
4.- American Beauty
5.- Baisers volés (Truffaut)
6.- The Matrix (of course)
7.- Gone with the wind
8.- Some like it hot
9.-Jean de Florette and Manon des Sources
10.-Citizen Kane

... with a pint of Guinness, of course

[Sweder]

I'll rustle up a current Top10 in a mo . . . just wanted to share with you a most unexpectedly enjoyable movie experience I just had on the BA flight to Istanbul.

This was hardly going to be classic Sweder fare;
Hugh (I can barely bring myself to say it) G G G G Grant and Drew Barrymore in a (blushes profusely) Romantic Comedy! Now before you all start baying, slapping your thighs and wiping away tears of laughter, this was a main cabin screening. OK I had the option to connect headphones and thereby join in or not, and I did, so it's a fair cop. But there was no alternative effortless entertainment, and that's what I want on a flight.

The trouble is Music and Lyrics is a bloody good film.
There, I've said it . . . the sky hasn't fallen in, the ground hasn't cracked open and no demonic beast has yet dragged me gibbering and screaming into the bowels of hell . . . I'll continue.

Grant plays a 1980's Pop Music hasbeen. His band, brilliantly named . . . er . . . Pop, are/ were very much modeled on the muscial spongecake that we knew as Wham! Grant's character was the Andrew Ridgely, talent dubious, fame post-Pop fleeting, currently playing one-man revival shows to menopausal housewives at Knottsberry Farm and other such family-oriented venues. With such groundbreaking classics as 'Pop! Went My Heart' to fall back on you have to wonder why he need drag his sorry arse around the MILF circuit but there you are.

It's a Rom Com, and it does exactly what it says on the tin.
Hugh Grant out-HughGrants himself in the way that Jack Nicholson is wont to do. The trouble is he's bloody good at it. He makes a fabulous effort as a hip-wiggling, pelvis-thrusting former popstar (probably cast in this role after his excellent parody of Tony Blair in Love Actually - who can forget the scene of Grant cavorting suggestively through the corridors of No. 10 to Jump! For My Love?) Frankly I cackled out loud enough to upset the large lady of colour planted next to me. There's a fabulous cast, too. Barrymore is excellent, understated, funny and not a little alluring as the plant-lady-turned-lyricist and obligatory love interest. Brad Garrett, best known as the unfeasably tall fellow in Everybody Loves Raymond, a popular Sienfeld-lite from the US of A, is again understated as Grant's weary agent - 'pull this off and I can get you on at the Magic Kingdom!'

It's a film you'd normally have to drug me (a la Mr T - fool!) or trick me into seeing . . . that or, er, strap a 767 to by backside for the best part of four hours and give me nothing else to do. Yet for light relief, sharp, humorous (if not too challenging) writing and no small amount of pathos I heartily recommend it. Chick flick? Undoubtedly, but one the boys will chuckle along with, and may even find they have something in their eye towards the end. I'm not saying get advanced orders on at Amazon, but if it pops up on your tellybox give it a spin; you'll have a ball.

[Ana]

What a coincidence! I have also seen this film in my flight back home. (This is not extrange if we take into consideration that I have taken 4 differents planes in two days in order to return, so too much time in planes, but this is another history...)

For the first time in my life, I must disagree with Sweder.

I love Hugh a lot and I believes that he's a great actor, but this film..... I don't know. Love history was too much evident...

Well, let's decide it by yourself.

Anyway, of the all the films that I have seen in all my planes I absolutly recommends: The Pursuit of Happyness (hard and sad history but but excelent interpretation of both Smiths), The Painted Veil, and Ms Potter (alredy recommended by Sweder).

[Sweder]

That's cool and the gang, Ana.
As I say, I don't recommend a stampede to your local Blockbusters, but it's good fun nonetheless.

I actually quite like Grant - About A Boy was a joy, he played his part well in Love Actually - I have to say I only really enjoyed the parts with Colin Firth and the gorgeous Portuguese girl - and I confess to approving of Notting Hill and Four Weddings.

He does tend to rely on . . . being Hugh Grant quite a lot. Which is why I enjoyed About A Boy so much - he was quite different in that.

[Ana]

Then, you are right.

I also loved him in About A Boy. Specially when he sings "killing me softly" so painlich Another good film in the same style is The Kid, with Bruce Willis.

For me, Love Actually is one of the best and funniest films I have ever seen.

This is because I am a romantic. So, in the opposite, I am really expecting to know where are SP's top ten films

[Seafront Plodder]

Well I'm really no big film buff - but I know what I like. Films that I can watch more than once and still get something from them. So, in no particular order...

Blazing Saddles - Best of Genre
Way out West - Laurel & Hardy at their best
Blues Brothers - superb musical, and then some
Shawshank Redemption - bit of a cliche, but....
Pulp Fiction - Best of Quentin, when the style was ground-breaking...
Airplane - Probably all time fave if I had to pick. The original.
Aliens - Thought this was better than first (after this it went downhill)...
The Usual Suspects - That ending! Cop out or genius?
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - Best thing Nicholson's done.
Papillion - Enthralling
Life of Brian - Best of Python IMO*
The Deer Hunter - Beast of a film.
Twins - Ok only joking...

*afficianado's of Python might be jealous to know that "The Seventh Python", Carol Cleveland, (Mrs Gregory in Life of Brian amongst other characters - Google her) is my son's drama teacher.

[Sweder]

Y'know this is tougher than it looks, but here's mine, again in no essential sequence;

Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistle Stop Cafe - Tandy and Bates pre-fame; great story-telling, a couple of cracking gags and a perceptive view on American history as is rarely seen in modern cinema
Bladerunner - Excellent translation of PK Dick; visionary perception from Scott, career-defining performance from Harrison Ford . . . and the last time Sean Young showed up in front of a camera sober
Alien - OK, OK, no shock here. Made and broke the mould for realism in Sci Fi; Giger, Weaver, Hurt, Skewritt, Stanton, Kotto, Cartwright, Holm, Scott . . . it's all there on the screen people. Still not usurped IMHO as the greatest Sci Fi flick filmed
The Hunger - Deneuve, Sarandon, Bowie . . .that music and one of the most breathtaking, truly erotic scenes in modern cinema
Raging Bull - Ultimate method acting; De Nitro unleashed, Peschi the calming influence; huge human story impact and all true
The Blues Brothers - Into Belushi and Ayckroyd back in the Saturday Night Live days; will always love this movie for that influence alone
Sense and Sensibilities - Ang Lee shows us how period drama should be done, and it stars Hugh Grant!
Wild At Heart - Cage and Dern, Harry Dean Stanton; Lynch adds the BBQ sauce
Apocalypse Now - Coppolla, The Doors, Hopper, Brando outta whack, The Horror, The Horror
The Fly - Cronenberg remake with Goldblum and Davies; horror, pathos and plum strangeness . . . horror as it should be, with interest

Ask me again tomorrow . . .

[Nick]

Nothing very highbrow here. This does it for me:

1) Once upon a time in the west
2) Gladiator
3) The Godfather
4) Pulp Fiction
5) Life of Brian
6) Rocky 2
7) Saving Private Ryan
8) Toy Story
9) Moulin Rouge
10) Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Checked through my DVD's and have purchased all of these except no. 10
10)

[Sweder]

See now there you go . . . at least half of those would get in my TT on any given day.
Ten is never enough

. . . not to mention my all-time favorite animation, The Incredibles
How could I have missed that out

This might be easier by genre . . .

[glaconman]

10 is impossible!

Here's 20. In no particular order:

1. Babel
2. The Constant Gardener
3. Billy Liar
4. Withnail & I
5. The Big Lebowski
6. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
7. Don't Look Now
8. Pulp Fiction
9. Chariots Of Fire
10. Donnie Darko
11. Cool Hand Luke
12. Crash
13. Amores Perros
14. The Adventures Of Robin Hood
15. Duck Soup
16. Trainspotting
17. Manhattan
18. City Of God
19. Great Expectations
20. Brassed Off

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Soooooooo many good movies turned up there ... I'd completely overlooked such brilliant films as:

Trainspotting (every kid should see this)
Withnail & I (oh yes)
Saving Private Ryan (which reminded me of Welcome to Sarajevo, which I made a point of taking my eldest teenage son to see - I think it changed his life, as it did mine.)
The Godfather (and parts II and III)
Apocalypse Now (Redux is brilliant)
Fried Green Tomatoes (wow!)
Pulp Fiction (of course... a great desert island film and Tarantino's best effort - not to mention Travolta's!)
Donnie Darko (brilliant brilliant brilliant)
One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest ... which reminded me of A Few Good men , which is, I think, one of Nicholson's finest performances, and certainly Tom Cruises' best film IMO.

et al.

Keep 'em coming. I'm writing a big fat list of movies to see or see again.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

How about having a go at your desert island flicks - restrict yourself to just three - the first three favourite movies you think of.

Tricky, but honest. You lay yourself bare with that selection.

[Sweder]

How about having a go at your desert island flicks

Sod off MLCMan
Ten was tough enough . . .


. . . but if I had to . . .


Castaway
Jurassic Park
Robinson Crusoe

[El Gordo]

As others have said, ask me again tomorrow, and I'd come up with a different 10. Or certainly at least 5 changes. But today's selection (in no order):

12 Angry Men
Jean de Florette/ Manons des Source
Pulp Fiction
Shawshank Redemption
Withnail & I
The Vanishing (the original Dutch version rather than the mediocre US remake)
Stand By Me
Donnie Darko
American Beauty
The Railway Children

If I had to choose 3 desert island films, they's be:
Shawshank Redemption
Pulp Fiction
Withnal & I

The first 2 would always be there, in any list.

[Ana]

10 is impossible!

Here's 20.

Hey! I want 20 also!

What about?

- Highlander (only the first)
- Dangerous Liasons
- Cyrano de Bergerac
- Everything you always wanted to know about sex (but were afraid to ask)
- La vita e bella
- Philadelphia
- The Truman Show
- Shreck 1
- My Fair Lady
- Cabaret

[Moyleman]

As far as I can see, nobody's included.

The Lord of the Rings - The whole trilogy, would have to be right up there for me.

Sheer majestic breadth of filmmaking par excellence.

Will think of a few others in a minute.

[Moyleman]

Sideways
Angel Heart - Mickey Rourke in fine form
Rain man
Terminator
Sexy Beast
Taxi Driver
Manhunter - first H. Lecter film
Schindler's list
Training Day
Croupier
Irreversible
Bourne series

Classy no brainers - Transporter series & Crank, Con Air.

More to follow.

[El Gordo]

Yeah, Taxi Driver should perhaps have been in my list. I did think about the Truman Show too.

Oh yes, I maybe should have had Groundhog Day in there too.

Perhaps it should be genre-based. After all, what about White Christmas, Singin In The Rain and Guys and Dolls?

And think of all the great British movies -- My Name is Joe, Life is Sweet, Secrets and Lies...

And of course, no one's mentioned Citizen Kane.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Oh yes, I maybe should have had Groundhog Day in there too.
...

And of course, no one's mentioned Citizen Kane.

Oh yes, Groundhog Day is forcing itself onto my top 10, and Citizen Kane was only grudgingly left out of the first ten.

Trainspotting would be on my 'B' list too.