# What's your all-time favorite movie, and why?



## Jon

Mine would have to be Schindler's List, for several reasons.

First and foremost, this movie is about human compassion. It tells the true story of a man who went against his party and saved the lives of thousands of people. The raw human emotion portrayed through the character of Oskar Schindler is captivating, and I still can't watch this movie without tearing up at the end. When Schindler breaks down and starts crying over the many other lives he could have saved, I can't help myself. Liam Neeson is perfection in this role, as are Sir Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes. Fiennes as Amon Goeth is, in my opinion, the best villain in movie history (yes, even better than Heath Ledger as The Joker). Goeth's complete disregard for human life is in direct constrast with Schindler's, and yet we still find a kink in Goeth's armor. He is attracted to a Jewish woman, in spite of his disgust for the Jewish race. Schindler and Goeth are able to coincide, in spite of their differences, and yet, Goeth is still a disgusting, vile monster.

This is by far Stephen Spielberg's crowning achievement. Forget E.T., Schindler's List is directoral perfection.

And, to top it all off, the montage at the end where the remaining Schindler Jews and the descendants of those who have passed is awe-inspiring. Even though there are no words spoken through the entire 10 minute sequence, I still watch it through until the end. I feel as if I owe it to those people to watch it through to the very end.


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## Modbert

_"I believe in America. America has made my fortune."_

And with those words, a saga of epic proportions began. The Godfather Part I is the best film in the saga and of all time for several reasons.

1.) This movie is relevant may it be a hundred years ago or a hundred years from now. A story of family, betrayal, greed, power, and revenge. A cinema masterpiece and classic that cannot be touched. From the beginning with the innocent yet eventful wedding of Connie Corleone to Carlo Rizzi to the end that will simply wanting you to watch it again. The movie is 175 min (3 hours practically) rollercoaster in which the audience sees The Corleone Family rise, fall and yet rise from the ashes once again.

2.) An all cast that gives no weak performances. From Marlon Brando giving one of the best performances of his career as Don Vito Corleone, Al Pacino as Michael Corleone; the mild-mannered son who wants nothing to do with his father's business but is conflicted once his father is nearly taken out. Along with James Caan as the Hot-Headed Sonny Corleone, Robert Duvall as the Irish Consigliere Tom Hagen, and of course the son who is always trying to earn his father's respect; Fredo Corleone played by John Cazale.

Talia Shire also plays as Connie Corleone Rizzi playing a role that rivals her one in the Rocky series. Along with great performances by Diane Keaton as Kay Adams and Richard Castellano as Peter Clemenza.

3.) Perhaps what can be considered Francis Ford Coppola's shining moment as a Director and of course a soundtrack that people who have never even seen the movie to this day know. The Godfather theme (Speak Softly Love without the lyrics) is one of the most tunes in cinema history.


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## Jon

Modbert said:


> Perhaps what can be considered Francis Ford Coppola's shining moment as a Director.



Are you gonna hate me if I say I prefer his direction in Bram Stoker's Dracula?


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## eots

a boy and his dog..one of don johnson first and best preformances why..not sure it just cool..disturbing..funny..a underground classic


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## eots

*hey ...they have the whole movie on youtube in 10 parts*

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toyw2l3-Xmc]YouTube - A Boy and his Dog pt.1[/ame]


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## Modbert

jsanders said:


> Are you gonna hate me if I say I prefer his direction in Bram Stoker's Dracula?



 no not hate you.

What exactly do you mean by direction though?


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## Jon

Modbert said:


> What exactly do you mean by direction though?



Anytime someone can get a good performance out of Keanu Reeves AND Winona Ryder in the same film, it's good direction.


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## Modbert

jsanders said:


> Anytime someone can get a good performance out of Keanu Reeves AND Winona Ryder in the same film, it's good direction.



 True I suppose.

Dracula was Francis's best non Godfather film I think.

Gary Oldman as Dracula was perfect too.

But I do think he was a better director for GF Part I and II. Part III he was by far a better director in Dracula. Francis personally screwed with Part III which I didn't like.


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## Luissa

jsanders said:


> Anytime someone can get a good performance out of Keanu Reeves AND Winona Ryder in the same film, it's good direction.


Getting a good performance out of Keanu deserves a nobel or something!
As for favorite as in ones I can watch over and over are probably Tombstone, Big Lebowski, Godfather 2,Pulp Fiction, and Vrigin Suicides. Best movie I have seen Schindler's List and Fargo!

Now if you would of asked me when I was ten it would been Dirty Dancing,I have seen that movie more then any other!


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## Xenophon

It changes from time to time, but several I always watch, including:

Casablanca

The Sand pebbles

Duck Soup


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## roomy

I change my mind about my all time favourite movie depending upon my mod or indeed type of movie but the constant that I always come back to and watch again and again is, Once Upon A Time In America.I believe there are several different cuts of this movie, I have a version that lasts 220 mins and believe this is the longest available.

Beautifully acted by a stellar cast.
Beautiful score, it blows me away every time.
Fantastic attention to detail, the sets and costumes...wow.


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## strollingbones

yall are just newbies in movies...go back..way back....

white zombies...b/w classic

freaks...b/w classic

i really do not see how you can name just one movie.....

you got too many gendres


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## strollingbones

my all time favorite:  "m" fritz lang....introducing peter lorre


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## indago

strollingbones said:


> i really do not see how you can name just one movie.....  you got too many gendres



That's true, and some of those that have already been named are great movies.  Concerning The Godfather, Numbers 1 and 2 are combined and may still be available at the video stores.  I believe it's called Godfather: The Epic.  It takes 1 and 2 and puts them in proper sequence beginning at the beginning.  It is really long, but if you like The Godfather story, it is worth the sitthru.

Now, although there are several movies that I like, one that I would watch again several times is Of Late I Think Of Cliffordville.  It is an hour long story from The Twilight Zone, about an aging tycoon who is bored with "having" it, and longs for the times of "acquiring" it.  He makes a pact with the Devil to return to his youthful times in his hometown of Cliffordville to begin all over again, knowing what he knows now, and begins to "acquire", his favorite game; although, nothing goes quite as he plans.

Another is Open Range, a western about a cattle baron and retribution.  I also liked Outlaw Josey Wales, and First Blood.


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## editec

Yeah, a favorite ALL TIME films is asking a bit much.

There are so many brilliant films out there and some films resonnate with us at one period in our lives better than they do years later.

I can tell you some films that blew me away when I first saw them though.

_Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs -_ this was the first moving pictures I ever saw. Not just the first movie, the first moving picture. I saw this animated film before I ever saw television.

_Old Yellar_ - I wept like a baby as did every other kid in the theater.

_Ben Hur_ - I was exactly the right age for this movie...I was about 8 or nine when I saw it.

_Dr. Zhivago_ - A totally brilliant movie in every respect

_The Good, the Bad and the Ugly_ - This movie changed film and challenged just about everything that my generation ( a generation that grew up on Black hat white hat westerns) knew.

_Swept Away --_Warmuellars brilliant film about class and sex and politics. I think I probably took every GF I had in college to this film. I dumped girls who didn't understand it. That was most of them, BTW.

_Godfather I and II_ _(and III,_ but just to finish the story) Hey, it's a brilliant story done brilliantly.

_Dogma -_Okay, aside from being hilarious, it was actually a fairly deep movie. A tad tidied up at the end, I'll admit, but worthy of note, anyway...as was

_Clerks_ -- Maybe, you have to understand New Jersey and that period of time to really understand why this film also makes my list.   

Indie films -- There are just too damned many that are far too worthy to mention them all. Hell I can't remember then by name because I have a great memory but a passive memory, too. I just two movies, again, which are great examples:


...._Big Fish - _Which is an exploration of truth and fiction, father and son and is just one hell of a good tale

..._The Station Agent_ -- which explores how and possibly why people who deperate need oather people so often end up alone. 

I could probably wax poetic about hundreds of small films that I think make owning a VCR or DVD worth it, but as I said, my memory just doesn't really work that way.


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## Jon

strollingbones said:


> yall are just newbies in movies...go back..way back....
> 
> white zombies...b/w classic
> 
> freaks...b/w classic
> 
> i really do not see how you can name just one movie.....
> 
> you got too many gendres



Trust me, I've seen more older films that people two generations older than I. None compare to Schindler's List.

"M" is a great movie. But Metropolis is definitely Lang's best work.


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## Jon

editec said:


> _Big Fish - _Which is an exploration of truth and fiction, father and son and is just one hell of a good tale



One of my favorite movies from the last ten years. I've read the book, and Tim Burton made an amazing move to the screen with this movie.


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## Shadow

My all time fave movie is *Forever Amber*.  I like the period it was set in,the costumes, and both main actors. Cornell Wilde and Linda Darnell.  It was also apparenly way before it's time, and considered quite racy.  I have the book also,but still have to read it.  It is very looong.

Another one I like is On A Clear Day,even though I can't stand Barbara Streisand.  I remember watching this as a child and being intrigued by the subject matter.

Others I really like and watch everytime they are on are:

Eldorado,Big Jake,Sons of Katie Elder and McClintock-John Wayne

My Fave Wife, both versions -James Garner/Cary Grant 

Leave Her to Heaven- Both versions Cornell Wilde,Patrick Duffy.

Sabrina- Both Versions Humphrey Bogart and Harrison ford.

The Man in the Iron Mask,The Aviator-Leonardo Dicapriio

The Three Musketeers -Disney version with Kiefer Sutherland and Charlie Sheen.


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## Dis

Silence of the Lambs
Kalifornia

Both have extremely hhigh creep factors that keep you glued to the screen.

Last Boyscout

It's funny as all hell.

Ok, so that's not "one".


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## Luissa

Dis said:


> Silence of the Lambs
> Kalifornia
> 
> Both have extremely hhigh creep factors that keep you glued to the screen.
> 
> Last Boyscout
> 
> It's funny as all hell.
> 
> Ok, so that's not "one".



I forgot about Silence of the Lambs, the rest of the movies were nothing compared to the first!


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## KittenKoder

Saw ... all of them. Why? Because ... so many ways to make you scream, it's poetry.


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## Luissa

KittenKoder said:


> Saw ... all of them. Why? Because ... so many ways to make you scream, it's poetry.


I have not gone to a scary movie in along time but I think I might have a few drinks and go see My Bloddy Valentine!


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## KittenKoder

Luissa said:


> I have not gone to a scary movie in along time but I think I might have a few drinks and go see My Bloddy Valentine!



I have seen so little about that one, but I may rent it one day or find it online. I am a HUGE horror fan, and the creepier the better. Been a big fan since I was 10 or 11, read Amityville Horror and scared the hell out of me, been trying to recapture that rush but keep failing. The closest was Jeepers Creepers ... it freaked me out but still nothing has scared me as much as that book. So I keep up with all the horror movies, seen almost all (just not the lame slashers like Jason, Friday the 13th). Saw though, it's just creative, and I love seeing creativity. I just hope they don't start reusing the same stories anytime soon like so many.


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## Jon

KittenKoder said:


> I have seen so little about that one, but I may rent it one day or find it online.



If you're gonna see it, go see it in theaters. It's in full 3-D, and 3-D just fails unless it's on a digital screen 100 times the size of your TV.


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## Luissa

jsanders said:


> If you're gonna see it, go see it in theaters. It's in full 3-D, and 3-D just fails unless it's on a digital screen 100 times the size of your TV.


that is why I am going to the theathre, I usually wait with horror movies until they come out on DVD so I scream at home!


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## strollingbones

jsanders said:


> Trust me, I've seen more older films that people two generations older than I. None compare to Schindler's List.
> 
> "M" is a great movie. But Metropolis is definitely Lang's best work.



i have never seen  schindler's list..its on the list of too much already said about it...like titanic etc...

i will totally disagree on metropolis being lang's best work.  i think "m" is far better..the social issues and the introduction of filming technics...

people 2 generations older than you are still young ...


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## strollingbones

KittenKoder said:


> Saw ... all of them. Why? Because ... so many ways to make you scream, it's poetry.



i never made it to saw 2...lol...the first one was enough


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## YWN666

I saw Schindler's List - I didn't think it was that funny.


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## indago

YWN666 said:


> I saw Schindler's List - I didn't think it was that funny.



Nobody here said it was funny...

There are so many great movies, it's hard to list them all.



-


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## YWN666

indago said:


> Nobody here said it was funny...



It was a joke.


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## RodISHI

My all time favorite is "China Cry" 137 minutes. True story of the faith and courage of Nora Lamb.


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## xsited1




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## Jon

strollingbones said:


> i have never seen  schindler's list..its on the list of too much already said about it...like titanic etc...
> 
> i will totally disagree on metropolis being lang's best work.  i think "m" is far better..the social issues and the introduction of filming technics...
> 
> people 2 generations older than you are still young ...



Depends on what you consider a generation. My grandparents lived to be 75 and 80. My mom's 53. So, two generations older than me would be 75-80. 

But seriously, why the hell would you not see Schindler's List? Because there was a lot of talk about it? There was a lot of talk about it because it was freakin' GOOD.


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## KittenKoder

jsanders said:


> Depends on what you consider a generation. My grandparents lived to be 75 and 80. My mom's 53. So, two generations older than me would be 75-80.
> 
> But seriously, why the hell would you not see Schindler's List? Because there was a lot of talk about it? There was a lot of talk about it because it was freakin' GOOD.



I won't see it ... for one reason it's too long, the other it just pisses me off that my own bloodline fucked up so bad and hurt our own.


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## Toro

The Holy Grail
The Godfather


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## Jon

KittenKoder said:


> I won't see it ... for one reason it's too long



Watch it in parts.



> the other it just pisses me off that my own bloodline fucked up so bad and hurt our own.



Seriously, you're missing out.


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## Andrew2382

spaceballs


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## YWN666

Toro said:


> The Holy Grail
> The Godfather




The Holy Grail is my favorite.


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## PoliticalChic

Cheaper By the Dozen (1950)

This story is so close to my heart.  I love Clifton Webb as the father of the brood.


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## Kevin_Kennedy

Maybe not my all-time favorite, but A Clockwork Orange was the first thing that popped into my head.  I just wish Kubrick would have put Anthony Burgess' ending in the film.


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## Toro

What was the ending?


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## Jon

Burgess's final chapter was a bit hard to swallow. All of a sudden we're expected to believe that Alex sees the error of his ways and becomes a good guy? Don't buy it.


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## Paulie

xsited1 said:


>



I remember seeing this on late night basic cable when I was a kid.  

It might have been the first exposure I had to something relating to porn, albeit softcore.

The titties.  Man, I'll always remember the titties.


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## indago

Paulitics said:


> The titties.  Man, I'll always remember the titties.



Mmmm...  Yummo!


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## Cecilie1200

My favorite movie of all time is "Cyrano de Bergerac", 1950 version, starring Jose Ferrer.  Jose was an amazing actor who conveyed much more with his expressions and body language and tone of voice than was even remotely contained in the mere words, and provided a very textured, nuanced performance in what would otherwise be a rather simple and perhaps even silly story.

New Year's Eve, 1995, my future husband and I decided to stay home and show each other our favorite movies.  I showed him "Cyrano".  When we got to the balcony scene, I jokingly poked him and said, "How come you never say romantic stuff like that to me?"  He smiled and said, "Well, why don't YOU ever say romantic stuff like that to ME?"  I accepted the challenge, paused the movie, and went in the other room with my notebook and pen and wrote him a long letter, telling him how much I loved him and why.  He read it, looked up at me with tears in his eyes, then got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.  We were married a month later.  Every New Year's Eve since then, we've watched that movie together.

Two years ago, I wasn't able to be home for New Year's because I was working as an OTR truck driver.  I was really depressed about missing our tradition for the first time.  Joe stayed up all night, copying the movie from the DVD to his computer, then transferring the huge resulting file over the Internet to my laptop.  New Year's Day, he called me and we started the movie at the same time, and watched it together over the phone.  It remains one of the most wonderful, romantic gestures I've ever heard of.

Yeah, I think "Cyrano" will be my favorite movie for a long, long time.


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## indago

That was a beautiful story...


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## tigerbob

This may be unpopular, but since so many of my favorites have already been mentioned...

[youtube]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GcFuHGHfYwE&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GcFuHGHfYwE&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/youtube]

The subject matter will be abhorrent to some, disturbing to most.  But seen purely in cinematographic terms, Triumph of the Will is a work of genius that was decades, or arguably even half a century, ahead of its time.


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## pegwinn

I actually have a hands down favorite and two others that tie for second. Then the very honorable mentions.

Winner by a landslide is John Wayne in The Quiet Man. Greatest fight scene in hollywierd history. Best quotes in a movie. And I can sit thru it with my granddaughter.

Tied for number two are "Sands of Iwo Jima" and "Heartbreak Ridge". 

Sports flick that I watch over and over is "Remember the Titans" and "The Replacements".

Series Flicks are the Godfather, Rocky, and Star Trek. There may be no accounting for taste on my part but I like em.

I am not going to see Marly and Me since Old Yeller gets my quota of tears everytime and I've lived thru two wonderful dogs passing on.


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## tigerbob

pegwinn said:


> I actually have a hands down favorite and two others that tie for second. Then the very honorable mentions.
> 
> Winner by a landslide is John Wayne in The Quiet Man. Greatest fight scene in hollywierd history. Best quotes in a movie. And I can sit thru it with my granddaughter.
> 
> Tied for number two are "Sands of Iwo Jima" and "Heartbreak Ridge".
> 
> Sports flick that I watch over and over is "Remember the Titans" and "The Replacements".
> 
> Series Flicks are the Godfather, Rocky, and Star Trek. There may be no accounting for taste on my part but I like em.
> 
> I am not going to see Marly and Me since Old Yeller gets my quota of tears everytime and I've lived thru two wonderful dogs passing on.



I love Heartbreak Ridge.

"I eat concertina wire and piss napalm, and I can put a round through a fly's ass at 500 yards.  So why don't you go hump somebody else's leg mutt face, before I push yours in?"


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## Gem

The Quiet Man is a staple in my Irish household!

For me, "The Shawshank Redemption" is a modern classic that people will be watching for years to come.  Stunning performances and one of the best King "short story to screen" adaptations.


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## Kevin_Kennedy

jsanders said:


> Burgess's final chapter was a bit hard to swallow. All of a sudden we're expected to believe that Alex sees the error of his ways and becomes a good guy? Don't buy it.



I personally thought it was good.  Alex doesn't just suddenly see the error of his ways, he's growing up and maturing.  It also emphasizes the point that one cannot be forced to be moral or be a good person, it has to be natural or it's still wrong.


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## Paulie

Kevin_Kennedy said:


> I personally thought it was good.  Alex doesn't just suddenly see the error of his ways, he's growing up and maturing.  It also emphasizes the point that one cannot be forced to be moral or be a good person, it has to be natural or it's still wrong.



What are you talking about?  We can bomb the hate right out of the terrorists and MAKE them love!


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## Svante

*i am cybernetic organism liiving tissue over metall endoskelton*


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## Truthmatters

Everything is Illuminated

Its a great movie about a young American Jew who goes back to his grandfathers country (the Urikrane) to find out about the Woman who saved his GFs life when the Nazi came.

I think it is a great lesson in why history is important and why TRUTH is what will save this world. Its also a very Funny movie.


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## Truthmatters

MTV MUSIC - Gogol Bordello - Start Wearing Purple


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## mightypeon

Monty Phython and the Holy Grail (frankly, monty Phython is the holy grail)
Life of Brian
Spaceballs
Solaris (the old Soviet version)


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## sitarro

mightypeon said:


> Monty Phython and the Holy Grail (frankly, monty Phython is the holy grail)
> Life of Brian
> Spaceballs
> Solaris (the old Soviet version)



[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V7zbWNznbs]YouTube - French Taunting - Monty Python and the Holy Grail[/ame]


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## Jon

Gem said:


> The Quiet Man is a staple in my Irish household!
> 
> For me, "The Shawshank Redemption" is a modern classic that people will be watching for years to come.  Stunning performances and one of the best King "short story to screen" adaptations.



Great choice. I would say Shawshank is my second favorite movie. When Red and Andy are reunited in the end, I get pretty teary-eyed. I always thought only love stories could do that to me.

And yes, it's one of the better adaptations of King's stories. "The Green Mile" and "Storm of the Century" are also great.


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## WillowTree

jsanders said:


> Mine would have to be Schindler's List, for several reasons.
> 
> First and foremost, this movie is about human compassion. It tells the true story of a man who went against his party and saved the lives of thousands of people. The raw human emotion portrayed through the character of Oskar Schindler is captivating, and I still can't watch this movie without tearing up at the end. When Schindler breaks down and starts crying over the many other lives he could have saved, I can't help myself. Liam Neeson is perfection in this role, as are Sir Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes. Fiennes as Amon Goeth is, in my opinion, the best villain in movie history (yes, even better than Heath Ledger as The Joker). Goeth's complete disregard for human life is in direct constrast with Schindler's, and yet we still find a kink in Goeth's armor. He is attracted to a Jewish woman, in spite of his disgust for the Jewish race. Schindler and Goeth are able to coincide, in spite of their differences, and yet, Goeth is still a disgusting, vile monster.
> 
> This is by far Stephen Spielberg's crowning achievement. Forget E.T., Schindler's List is directoral perfection.
> 
> And, to top it all off, the montage at the end where the remaining Schindler Jews and the descendants of those who have passed is awe-inspiring. Even though there are no words spoken through the entire 10 minute sequence, I still watch it through until the end. I feel as if I owe it to those people to watch it through to the very end.





I went to the holocaust museum in Jerusalem, dedicated to all the millions of Jewish children killed. There is a beautiful tree planted there called Schindler's tree.


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## Missourian

I've seen so many movies it's nearly impossible to come up with an "all-time favorite" because invariably as soon as I name one 10 others come to mind.

So tonight I'll list some westerns that comes to mind.

One is the made-for-television mini-series "Lonesome Dove" with Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall.


[youtube]jYzZPiqjqww&feature=related[/youtube]​



Jeremiah Johnson

[youtube]mcpqTWHsCHU&feature=related[/youtube]​




Tombstone

[youtube]E1vsmpGfB9Q&feature=related[/youtube]​




Man...I can't even do this.

Every time I list one I think of three more.

The outlaw Josey Wales,  Red River,  The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance,  Serenity (it may be sci-fi but it's a western),  Support Your Local Sheriff,  Unforgiven,  Last of the Mohicans,  Stagecoach,  Maverick,  They Die With Their Boots On,  Rio Grande,  Rio Bravo,  Winchester '73,  The Magnificent Seven,  Shane,  How the West Was Won,  High Plains Drifter,  The War Wagon,  The Cowboys,  A Fist Full of Dollars,  Pale Rider,  Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...and that's just off the top of my head.


Hard to pick one out of that short list of the western genre,  much less out of all the movies I've seen.


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## Jon

You forgot The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly...and Treasures of the Sierra Madre. I'm disappointed. But also, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly is on TV right now and I have it on in the background.


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## HelloDollyLlama

Best over all, Spartacus: not only is it well-written and well-acted, but behind the scenes, Kirk Douglas used the movie to (a) deliver a hammer blow to the studio system, and (b) delivered a death blow to McCarthys blacklist, by openly hiring blacklisted actors and telling Congress to go pound sand. Ill take this over Hestons stuff in Ben Hur and Ten Commandments any day. 

Amazing writing: the Godfather, Casablanca, and also Silence of the Lambs. And of course Young Frankenstein. 

Branaghs Henry V. The tracking scene after the battle is a masterpiece. 

Some obvious stuff: All the Presidents Men, The Apartment, Goodfellas, The Caine Mutiny, Twelve Angry Men, Cyrano (I played third mandolin from the left years ago), Its a Wonderful Life, Judgment at Nuremberg, Round Midnight. 

If you want to learn about Republican political paranoia and insanity, you can learn the whole thing in two bits: the fearmongering of Trouble with a Capital T from Music Man, and General Rippers explanation for nuking the Russians because the Communist plot to fluoridate our water made him impotent. 

Big Country: a western that manages to tell a great story and avoid all the stupid western cliches; the female characters are fully drawn, good writing, good acting, the avoided making the pistol duel too cheesy  really nice job. 

Lord of the Rings, simply because it was so much better than that Ralph Bakshi crap from 30 years ago. 

Old stuff: McKellens Richard III, Oliviers Lear and OToole in Lion in Winter, because I played the lead roles in all three plays; Man For All Seasons and Philadelphia Story because I directed them. Its like visiting home again. Also, the Christine Baranski version of Midsummer Nights Dream in Central Park  a classic. Also Becket, although I never got to do it. 

The first half hour of Amadeus before it sinks under its own weight. 

Guilty pleasures: Shes the Man, an incredibly silly teen comedy, completely redeemed by Amanda Bynes who is an absolute scream (a similar breakout role was Natalie Portman, trading scenes with a funny/scary Gary Oldman in The Professional, aka Leon). And recently, Mamma Mia, just to watch Pierce Brosnan pounding away through those songs (and he wasnt all that bad). 

Sneakers, just for the blind guy driving the truck. 

Best musical, West Side Story. 

Pleasant surprise: Julie Taymors staggering Titus, all the more stunning because the original script is one of Shakespeares rare duds. 

Best animated: Yellow Submarine, by a mile. Most kids miss the brilliant dialogue. Although watching Ellen DeGeneres try to talk to a whale in Finding Nemo is up there too. 

No, I dont like Hello Dolly. Im straight.


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## Cecilie1200

HelloDollyLlama said:


> Best over all, Spartacus: not only is it well-written and well-acted, but behind the scenes, Kirk Douglas used the movie to (a) deliver a hammer blow to the studio system, and (b) delivered a death blow to McCarthys blacklist, by openly hiring blacklisted actors and telling Congress to go pound sand. Ill take this over Hestons stuff in Ben Hur and Ten Commandments any day.



Um, genius, McCarthy never had any "blacklist".  I'm glad you liked "Spartacus".  I did too.  But you should make some sort of effort to like it for . . . you know, REAL reasons.



HelloDollyLlama said:


> If you want to learn about Republican political paranoia and insanity, you can learn the whole thing in two bits: the fearmongering of Trouble with a Capital T from Music Man, and General Rippers explanation for nuking the Russians because the Communist plot to fluoridate our water made him impotent.



If you're "learning" about history and politics from Hollywood movies, you're an insufferable twit who shouldn't be allowed out without a babysitter.  Get an education and learn to separate entertainment from information.


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## Jon

Bump for Amanda.


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## tigerbob

jsanders said:


> Bump for Amanda.



Bump for Amanda?  Who's in it?  Sounds like porn to me.......


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## Jon

tigerbob said:


> jsanders said:
> 
> 
> 
> Bump for Amanda.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Bump for Amanda?  Who's in it?  Sounds like porn to me.......
Click to expand...




Amanda asked me to make a thread like this, but I already did months ago.


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## CrimsonWhite

Bull Durham. Baseball, humor, and sex. Great combo. Should have won the Academy Award for best movie ever made.



			
				Nuke LaLoosh said:
			
		

> A good friend of mine used to say, "This is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you catch the ball, you hit the ball. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains." Think about that for a while.


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## Truthmatters

The Princess Bride


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## Kalam

Because it's awesome.


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## Phate

The Matrix trilogy because I am fascinated with the idea of artificial intelligence and am completely paranoid robots will take over the future.


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## Amanda

Thanks J, I just spotted it. 

I get in trouble for talking about "Bump for Amanda" so let's let that just go. 

I've been thinking about this since I brought it up in that other thread... it's hard to pick a fav.

It's probably a tie between Fight Club and What Dreams May Come.

Both very diff movies, and I like them for diff reasons, but I think those have to be my picks.

Fight Club is such an interesting character study. And I love all (both?) of the characters. And Brad Pitt is so f'n hot. But Edward Norton has a sort of weird appeal because he's trying so hard to be tough with his cynicism, but is actually pretty vulnerable. Brad Pitt is just pure lust. I won't elaborate or the thread will get locked. And I love Marla. I sees some of myself in her. 

What Dreams May Come is such a wonderful spiritual movie. I cry so much when I watch that film. I can understand and sympathize with all the characters SO much. It's one of Robin Williams best performances, IMO. And Max what's his name, the guide that takes them to hell is awesome. Cuba is so good too. The daughter (sorry don't know her name) makes me just cry and cry for the misunderstood hurt she carries. 

Other movies I love are...

Pan's Labyrinth 

Cidade de Deus (City of God)

American History X

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Donnie Darko

The Sixth Sense

Crash

Magnolia

I guess that would be my top 10. There's probably more. Some movies will have just small parts I think are incredible buried in an otherwise mediocre movie. Pieces of April is like that.


Oh damn, I forgot Requiem For A Dream. What a kick ass movie! I probably forgot 10 more.


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## CrimsonWhite

Oh, and Good Will Hunting. Great character study.


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## manu1959

i am torn between blackhawk down .... gladiator and 300


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## Dis

Last Boy Scout - Funny as all hell
Tango & Cash - Love the "good cop/bad cop" routine
Silence of the Lambs - Creepy - Jack Nicholson is awesome
Titanic - Sappy chick flick you just HAVE to love - ultimate snuggle movie.

Can't do just one...


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## manu1959

jsanders said:


> Bump for Amanda.



is that the one about the olde dude and the teanage girl......


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## Dis

manu1959 said:


> jsanders said:
> 
> 
> 
> Bump for Amanda.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> is that the one about the olde dude and the teanage girl......
Click to expand...


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## xsited1

A cult classic!


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## Xenophon

It's changed again, right now it's:

Goodfellas

Gone with the Wind

Forbidden Planent.


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## Jon

Dis said:


> Silence of the Lambs - Creepy - *Jack Nicholson* is awesome


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## KittenKoder

jsanders said:


> Dis said:
> 
> 
> 
> Silence of the Lambs - Creepy - *Jack Nicholson* is awesome
Click to expand...


You got a problem with Jack?


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## Jon

KittenKoder said:


> jsanders said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Dis said:
> 
> 
> 
> Silence of the Lambs - Creepy - *Jack Nicholson* is awesome
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> You got a problem with Jack?
Click to expand...


Not at all. It's just...he wasn't IN Silence of the Lambs.


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## KittenKoder

jsanders said:


> KittenKoder said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> jsanders said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> You got a problem with Jack?
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> Not at all. It's just...he wasn't IN Silence of the Lambs.
Click to expand...


Oh ... that part ... LOL ... that is kinda funny, Anthony is good to though ...


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## Amanda

xsited1 said:


> A cult classic!
> 
> View attachment 7262



That was a pretty good movie too. Lots of good quotes. "It's what plants crave..."


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## Toome

All-time favorite that has stood the test of time for me is Casablanca.  Pretty sophisticated movie for its time.  Has a little bit of everything:  suspense, action, comedy, romance and patriotism blended in at the right amounts without going overboard or being heavy-handed.  The dialog is still far superior to anything put out by Hollywood since.  The brilliance is in what's NOT said, and the subtlety of what IS said.  Nowadays, Hollywood figures it has to dumb down the dialog and spell it all out for us.

Claude Rains is my favorite character as Captain Renault.  There are too many great lines, but my favorite is when Rick has the gun and reminds Renault, "And remember, this gun is pointed at your heart."  And Renault replies, "That is my least vulnerable spot." 

Also, "Major Strasser has been shot.  Round up the usual suspects!"

Too many great lines!


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## YWN666

Xenophon said:


> It's changed again, right now it's:
> 
> Goodfellas
> 
> Gone with the Wind
> 
> Forbidden Planent.



Forbidden Planet was one of my all time favorites.  Warner Brothers is developing it or a remake.  I'm not sure that is a good idea.


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## Xenophon

YWN666 said:


> Forbidden Planet was one of my all time favorites.  Warner Brothers is developing it or a remake.  I'm not sure that is a good idea.


I have a letterbox & normal view version of it, the letterbox really adds so much to the movie, the sets had incredible detail for a 1950s sci-fi movie.


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## YWN666

Xenophon said:


> YWN666 said:
> 
> 
> 
> Forbidden Planet was one of my all time favorites.  Warner Brothers is developing it or a remake.  I'm not sure that is a good idea.
> 
> 
> 
> I have a letterbox & normal view version of it, the letterbox really adds so much to the movie, the sets had incredible detail for a 1950s sci-fi movie.
Click to expand...


I remember watching it as a kid and being terrified. The effects were quite good for a 1950's sci-fi movie.  The sound effects also spooked me.


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## YWN666

I just saw The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and it was excellent.


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## Xenophon

YWN666 said:


> I remember watching it as a kid and being terrified. The effects were quite good for a 1950's sci-fi movie.  The sound effects also spooked me.


The 'krell' music used throughout the film is outstanding, I think it's what sets the movie apart, it's downright creepy.

So much sci fi owes it's current form to this film, it is a true breakthrough type of movie, despite some 1950s morality thrown in (all male crew, guys hitting on anything in skirts, ect).

Morbius' reaction at the end, when he realizes what he has done is one of the best film endings of all, he takes responsibilty for it, and morns his own weaknesses.


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## Phoenix

The Edge - deals with survival and moral decisions in circumstances that you could literally get away with murder.  And Anthony Hopkins is just an outstanding actor, of course.

Ravenous - ancient belief that drinking an enemy's blood/cannibalism will let you gather that other person's strength

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein - outstandingly done, gives the "monster" a brain and a personality - not just a zombified mess of tissue

Dracula 2000 - vampire movie (yay), but not just run-of-the-mill vamp flick.  

Hot Shots - Hot Shots Part Deux (nobody was better than LLoyd Bridges) - just classic

Blazing Saddles - ... how to describe the utter genius of this movie?


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