What is your favorite movie?

Many people protested against this film. They said it was sexist in nature. However, I still cannot see where they’re coming from. True Lies is a great thrill-ride of a film. James Cameron gives us such a bombardment of comedy with his patented style of action that it’s hard not to love this film.

I’ll be willing to bet that co-stars, Jamie Lee Curtis and Tom Arnold hold this film as their finest moment. They should. Tom Arnold is at his best as Harry Tasker’s comedy sidekick. Jamie is perfect in this comical and yet, very real, very dramatic role as the wife of this secret super agent, Tasker (Arnold Schwartzenegger). When she drops that Uzi down the stairs, that’s movie magic if I’ve ever seen it. It’s hard to believe. It’s hard not to love.

Truly a comedy masterpiece with just the right amount of action to keep the adrenaline going.

One of the dumbest things I’ve ever heard in a review of this film is that it may be too much of a good thing. How can you possibly have too much of a good thing??

I know it might not count of a film is great in its special director’s edition version, but this should be an exception. The Abyss: Special Edition is one of the truly greatest science fiction films ever made. It’s sad that James Cameron had to cut this film to be released in theaters.

Still, what we saw on the big screen was hardly amateurish or bad. It had its strong points and its weak points as all films do. But the original breathtaking ending that Cameron had created is sorely missing.

This is a sci-fi masterpiece. I think it should be given a little more respect.

With the exception of James Cameron’s own Terminator 2, science fiction has only gone down hill since. Forget The Matrix Trilogy. I dare say, forget the Lord of The Rings Trilogy. And, give me a break, forget the recent amateur 2nd Star Wars Trilogy. Aliens is one of the few best films for great science fiction.

Filmmaking at its finest. I wouldn’t change a thing… not even the screenplay.

It’s No. 1 on my list, but I’m hoping the AFI folks will place it high on their list…. possibly in the top ten?

Go Titanic! Go James Cameron!

Tora,Tora,Tora, Blast From The Past, Color Purple, Guadalcanal Diary, Objective Burma, Merrills Marauders, Das Boot, The Bridge.

To many greats to choose from both past and present.

Ah, Yellow Submarine. True, Spirited Away has eclipsed this film as the greatest animated film ever, and, yes, many years later I understood the multiple drug references (Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds is Not, as John claimed, about a freaking dog ) but this film will always be a staple of my childhood. It combines the genius of the greatest rock band that has been or will ever be with great, drug-inspired animation.

Where, oh where has all of Hollywoods creativity vanished to? Well, at least there’s Tim Burton and his fantastic ability to create quirky-but-loveable characters, not to mention beautiful imagery. With Edward Scissorhands, he takes the story of Beauty and the Beast and puts it in modern day Burbank. In a role that’s 90% physical/facial and only 10% verbal, Johnny Depp portrays Edward, a young boy with, well, scissor hands. Winona Ryder plays the young love interest, whose love/understanding of Edward doesn’t waiver, even when it turns out his disability can do harm as well as good.

What makes a movie patriotic? Is it a film that sucks up to the current administration? Or is it a film that looks at the way things are and says “we can and should do better!” In my own humble opinion, it’s the latter, and that is what “All the Presidents Men” (the book and the movie) did. Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein (Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman) risked everything they had to expose the liars, cheaters and thieves that populated the Nixon administration

Just he best. Peter O’ Toole’s performance was short of a miracle.

Betty Davis and Joan Crawford are amazing together in this film. I am totally captivated during the entire movie, as if I were the one imprisoned. I just want to jump into the picture and rescue Blanch. It is an extreme exaggeration of sibling rivalry, but they manage to make it all seem so believable. Although it has been years since I last saw it, I can recall the scenes with great clarity, as if it were only yesterday.

May the schwartz be with you. This movie cracks me up every time I watch it. I don’t think it gets as much appreciation as it should. It not only belongs up there with The Producers, Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein, it also parodies Star Wars and pop culture in general in the most fun and zany way. Mel Brooks is the last parody genius.

This movie depicts some of what happened to me during World War II.
It portrays life in the Anti Aircraft Artillery Officer Candidate School at Camp Davis, NC during 1943.
I graduated as a 2nd Lt on 21 January 1943 from this very same school. I was 21 years of age at that time.

Would love to see it or get a copy of it.

OCS was pretty tough and I’d like to share it with friends and family.

Thanks much

Don Condrill

703 818 3307

dcondrill@cox.net

It may not be the best movie ever, but it is definitely one of the top 100 of all-time. The screenplay that was written by Stephen King is absolutely brilliant. This movie gives you an insight on what prison life actually could be like, not to mention all the positive messages of hope and redemption. The acting of the whole supporting cast was great, and it has the greatest ending of all-time.

One of the great underappreciated gems of 80s MTV-influenced cinema. Yes, the premise is absurd. But, then, so is the premise of JAWS. And like JAWS, RAZORBACK rises above its B-movie premise with skillful filmmaking. Director Russel Mulcahy uses editing and sound to make you believe that a ferocious razorback is raising hell, when, in fact, you rarely get more than a glimpse of the beast. And like JAWS, RAZORBACK is weakest when it lingers too long and explicitly on its fake monster.

The story of this three women is very well presented and performed. I love this movie, it shows the so much life, passion and love. I enjoyed the direction, the music, everything.

I know what you are saying, how can THIS be your favorite movie? I think I chose CASINO ROYALE because I have been a James Bond fan all my life and I, like so many others, watched his legend dwindle as he relied more on catchy one-liners and gadgets like invisible cars and laser watches. This film captures the true essence of what we all love about James Bond, but it also humanizes him in a way that the other films never had. He bleeds, he gets scarred, he makes mistakes, he sheds tears and he saves the day. I have never connected so much with the character that has been one of my all-time heroes since I was a boy. Daniel Craig was not my first choice when I heard about the switch, but now I wish that he had been doing it all along.

Not only did he breathe new life and a new energy into James Bond, but the film making and chase scenes are so intense and surprising that I was literally on the edge of my seat. In this day and age of sequels, movies created from television shows, and thin storylines, CASINO ROYALE delivered on every single front imaginable. This is the Bond that Ian Fleming envisioned…the tough and rugged powerhouse who took down the villian with a wink and a smile.

It was one of the most well-crafted Bond films ever, one of the most picturesque, and reinvigorated a franchise that was on its last legs. I can’t wait to see what else Bond has in store for us!

The first time I saw this film, I couldn’t quite wrap my head around why the policemen were being so mean to Virgil Tibbs. At that time in my life, I didn’t really understand what racism was. Sidney Poiter absolutely captivated my attention as Virgil Tibbs, the intellectual Philadelphia homicide detective who just happened to be at the right place in the wrong time. This film was a poignant view on racism and just how stupid it is to judge anyone on the color of their skin. Virgil Tibbs was one of the first great black film characters to ever grace the screen, acted to absolute perfection by Mr. Poiter. Rod Steiger gives the performance of a lifetime as the racist police cheif who is forced into using Virgil to help solve a murder case in his small town. The acting is flawless and the character arcs are true to the human condition.

Not only was the directing, cinematography, acting, screenplay, and editing flawless, this movie showed more insight and courage on the part of the director, cast, and crew than any film in recent history, perhaps ever. The subject matter was challenging for everyone, and under the gentle guidance of Ang Lee, and the incredible story upon which it was based, this movie managed to deal with two outsiders in a way that made their story universal. The emotional and cultural bridges that this movie built makes it an historic event as well as a beautiful piece of cinema. This love story rises to the level of any Greek tragedy and is something of which Shakespear would have been proud. History will prove this to be one of the most groudbreaking and phenominal movies in the history of film. Already the number of parodies, articles, web sites, e-groups, and uses of the movie’s quotes are unprecedented for such a recent film, and the language of the film has already become a part of world-wide culture and language. Men who understand the closet from every community in the nation sat in a the dark in theaters across the nation and watched this movie and wept to see their stories finally told with love, sensitivity, truth, and compassion. That the Academy did not award Brokeback Mountain the Best Picture Oscar will be a source of amazement forever, and those who voted it down will be exposed for the visionless and perochial cowards and that they are.

DANCE WITH WOLVES was the first non-animated movie I ever recall seeing as a child. This film reminds me of lazy Saturday afternoons when I would curl up on the couch with my father and watch it with him; (it was his favorite too and we watched it a lot). To me this film is amazing on so many levels; not only does the audience get an intimate acquaintance with the Sioux tribe and their daily culture, (a first for film portrayals of Native Americans), but there is also the powerful character transformation of John Dunbar, who becomes his true self, Dances With Wolves. “As I heard my Sioux name called out over and over, I knew who I really was.”

This film also has AMAZING cinematography, capturing the beauty of our country and the magnanimous nature of our great plains, and it featured a REMARKABLE one-time take of a Bison Hunt with real bison and real horsemen, (props to Kevin for getting back on the horse after his fall). Plus, as a woman, I appreciate the dynamic love story between Dances With Wolves and Stands With A First.

Costner and author Michael Blake did an amazing job combining their efforts to create this masterpiece.

It’s almost impossible to choose one film, but with that said, The Fountain is easily one of the most amazing experiences. It is what amazing films are supposed to be, life experiences not just pictures on a screen. THE FOUNTAIN leaves you with magnificent scenes flashing in your mind, tears in your eyes, and one of the most beautiful scores in film history (if not the most) playing in your head. I’d love to go on about this masterpiece, but I could type for hours and words will never begin to express the awe of this film.

Peace and love
-Mike

THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION is one of the greatest love storys ever told. Not the love between a man and a women, but the love between two friends. The message of this movie is amazing. ” Fear can hold you prisoner, Hope can set you free.” I saw this movie when I was 11, yes way too young, but I love this movie and I have it many times since then. When I need to feel good, I just put on Shawshank and I forget about everything. The Shawshank Redemption is my favorite movie of all time.

Esta es sin duda la mejor pelicula drama-romance que he visto en mi vida. Algunas de las escenas de esta joya del cine norteamericano quedaran por siempre gravadas en mi memoria. No se que piensan ustedes , pero yo pienso que esta pelicula deberia estar ,sin falta,en la prestigiosa lista de las 100 mejores peliculas norteamericanas de todos los tiempos.

As well as being the most moving love story I have ever seen BBM is a powerful but subtle manifesto for tolerance and acceptance of difference. It illustrates more dramatically than any political campaign could the true pain and suffering inflicted by prejudice and discrimination. It is a universal story of love and the need for respect of everyone’s human rights.

Orson Welles as you never saw him before. He plays a tap dancing magician with the title of the movie as his main teaching in life. To be a great magician you have to “Get to Know Your Rabbit”. This is an off the wall hilarious romp directed by a young Brian De Palma before he started imitating Hitchcock with a cast that includes Tom Smothers as a jaded successful advertising executive, John Austin as his unoriginal but supremely funny boss and Katherine Ross before she fell for Dustin Hoffman’s Graduate. All in all an undiscovered romp.

THE GRADUATE is one of the movies that opened up my eyes to the power of filmmaking. Dustin Hoffman (my favorite actor) and Anne Bancroft gave amazing performances in the film. Director Mike Nichols shots are so experimental and a perfect representation of Benjamin Braddock’s crossroads as a character. Simon and Garfunkel’s score also fits the mood with such songs as The Sound of Silence and the classic Mrs. Robinson.

No other movie I have ever seen has affected me like Brokeback. It is the one and only to treat the subject of love between 2 men with dignity and respect, and in no way suggest that it is any less real, less valid, or less intense than the love between a man and a woman. I can only describe its overall tone as understated elegance and its one of the few movies where things unsaid are equally powerful as things said. I will be always thankful for this great gift from Annie Proulx, Ang Lee, and Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.
Joel H

This is a movie you can watch over and over until you’ve worn out half a dozen DVDs, and still see aspects you’ve never seen before. Overwhelmingly beautiful and moving.

As a 16-year-old film scholar (if I can be classified so), LAWRENCE OF ARABIA was the one movie that opened me up to the world of cinema. It was the first film that showed me what a group of people can do with a camera and some ambition. From the surreal shots of the desolate (or “sterile” as Lawrence would say) desert plains to the fervent script written by Robert Bolt to David Lean’s seminal screen direction and to, of course, the phenomenal acting, LAWRENCE OF ARABIA will forever be remebered as the premiere film epic.

The acting is outstanding, the story was long overdue, and it’s impact on the audience was astounding to watch. I felt as if I had just watched a masterpiece of filmmaking.