When it comes to favorite movies, it’s all personal
While I share my opinions of movies in the paper each week in
the
”
Movie Lines
”
column, my editorial staff coworkers and I often share thoughts
about films, old and new, in the newsroom. We talk about the movies
we love and the movies we hate. We debate about what movies
deserved best picture awards and what movies were overrated. We
talk about movies that are classics and ones we never want to watch
again.
Here we each share our five personal favorites, and believe us,
it was hard to choose just five
– after all even the Academy Awards took the easy route this
year and nominated 10 best pictures.
When it comes to favorite movies, it’s all personal
While I share my opinions of movies in the paper each week in the “Movie Lines” column, my editorial staff coworkers and I often share thoughts about films, old and new, in the newsroom. We talk about the movies we love and the movies we hate. We debate about what movies deserved best picture awards and what movies were overrated. We talk about movies that are classics and ones we never want to watch again.
Here we each share our five personal favorites, and believe us, it was hard to choose just five – after all even the Academy Awards took the easy route this year and nominated 10 best pictures.
Melissa Flores’ Top 5
5. Say Anything (1989): Director/writer Cameron Crowe has a way with teen movies and love stories. This film is both. There is something about Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) that makes me melt a little every time I watch the film.
4. My Sassy Girl (2001): Do not confuse the Korean version with the 2008 knock off made in the U.S. The movie is a little off-the-wall, but totally worth the watch as an aimless college student suddenly finds himself falling for a girl who draws him in and then keeps him at arm’s length.
3. Leon the Professional (1994): This movie makes the list because Jean Reno, who plays Leon, makes a professional hitman sympathetic. Leon reluctantly takes his 12-year-old neighbor Mathilda (Natalie Portman) under his wing after her family is murdered. Portman and Reno have a chemistry in the film that most acting pairs can only wish for.
2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004): This story is heart-breaking as bickering couple Joel (Jim Carrey) and Clementine (Kate Winslet) take the drastic step to erase each other from each other’s memories with a radical procedure. But what really makes it is director Michel Gondry and writer Charlie Kaufman’s commitment to the idea, with scenes that show Joel’s memories of Clementine literally falling apart.
1. Reality Bites (1994): This movie has been on my list of favorites for so long that I owned it on VHS before I owned it on DVD. The movie tells the story of a group of Gen X college graduates who are a bit at a loss of what to do with their lives and who work really hard not to sell out. Plus, Ethan Hawke was really cute as philosophy major Troy Dyer and it has a cool soundtrack.
Adam Breen’s Top 5
5. Patton (1970): George C. Scott’s portrayal as the gruff, stubborn and war-loving general is a masterpiece in character development. Scott’s performance shows Patton to be alternately over-confident and desirous of acceptance.
4. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971): No movie makes me want to eat like this one does. From the river of chocolate to the fizzy lifting drink to the everlasting gobstopper, I get cavities just watching this flick. Catchy and memorable tunes and great characters make this movie sweet in various ways.
3. The Wizard of Oz (1939): Another all-timer, I looked forward to its annual appearance on TV when I was a kid in the 1970s and 80s. From the cinematically creative shift between black-and-white and color to the catchy tunes to the flying monkeys, its timeless appeal is the definition of classic.
2. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968): Light years ahead of its time special-effects wise, this Stanley Kubrick flick is not just visually appealing, but its story of human-computer interaction mixed with the Genesis-like angle of the obelisk is fascinating. The movie is so good that it got me to read the entire Arthur C. Clarke book series that inspired it.
1. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946): I watch the ubiquitous holiday classic every year when it runs on NBC, and every year the tale of love, redemption and community spirit chokes me up and leaves me feeling better about the world.
Kollin Kosmicki’s Top 5
5. Bottle Rocket (1996): Wes Anderson’s first and best movie among many good ones, he wrote it with Owen Wilson and it pretty much led to success for both.
4. American Movie (1999): My favorite documentary, and one of the funniest movies ever made, follows Mark Borchardt as he tries to make really bad horror films in my native state of Wisconsin.
3. Wonder Boys (2000): This is also one of my favorite books, by Michael Chabon. It has Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire and Robert Downey Jr.
2. Beautiful Girls (1996): There’s no better dialogue for me and there are several fascinating characters in it.
1. North by Northwest (1959): Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece starred Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint. I love the photography, suspense and acting, and the classic crop duster scene is a favorite.
Connor Ramey’s Top 5
5. The Dark Knight (2008): It is the perfect comic book movie. No other movie based on the medium has been able to portray its anti-hero in such a glorious way. Also there is Heath Ledger’s Joker.
4. Pulp Fiction (1994): This is Quentin Tarantino at his best and wonderfully weird. By the way what is in that briefcase?
3. The Matrix (1999): The first time I saw “bullet time” it blew me away. The way the action slowed down to show the bullets flying through the sky was a brilliant way to use an old storytelling device. It’s too bad the sequels were terrible.
2. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004): This is the only Jim Carrey movie I can stand because Jim Carrey isn’t his usual self. Instead, he actually shows some acting range in a wonderful, engaging and brilliant film.
1. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001): Wes Anderson is a different guy. All of his movies are absolutely his and they can’t be confused with another director’s work. But all of his movies have a strong heart. And despite some of the terrible things his characters do – you always find yourself rooting for them. This is his magnum opus.
Andrew Matheson’s Top 5
5. Pulp Fiction (1994): The fifth choice in Top 5 lists always tends to be the wild card or some artsy movie you’ve never heard of, but I’m going with perhaps the greatest movie made in my lifetime. It’s ranked No. 5 because ranking it No. 1 would be too easy.
If you know nothing of Pulp Fiction, it has great dialogue, violence, one of those non-linear storytelling sequences, and the very underrated Eric Stoltz. Enjoy.
4. Children of Men (2006): After all these comedies, I felt it was time for an end-of-the-world drama. I’m not much of a sci-fi fan, but this movie, which is about a world in which humans can no longer procreate, sets itself apart with really fantastic cinematography. I’m serious. Randall “Tex” Cobb is not in it, but you should see it, nonetheless.
3. Kung Fu Hustle (2004): If you take your kung fu seriously, this movie is not for you. It has a Looney Tunes-like quality, mixed with Crouching Tiger-like special effects, so right away it’s brilliant. I just heard they’re making a Kung Fu Hustle 2, though, which both pains me and excites me.
2. Raising Arizona (1987): By far the best Coen brothers movie. It has Nicolas Cage, whose exceptionally bad acting fits into comedic roles perfectly, and, again, Randall “Tex” Cobb. Do you see a theme here? Also, it’s highly quotable, and offers a line that I use almost everyday: “Son, you got a panty on your head.”
1. Diggstown (1992): Quite possibly the worst movie on this list or any list. But I’m nostalgic. I watched this movie for the first time when I was 11 or 12, and I claimed then that is was my favorite movie, so I’m sticking to it. It’s got boxing, gambling, and the very underrated Randall “Tex” Cobb. In other words, a Tour de Force.
Nick Lovejoy’s Top 5
Nick Lovejoy was out on vacation when we set the deadline for staff members to submit their Top 5 lists, so he submitted his list before he left but did not have time to explain his choices. Come to your own conclusions.
5. Step into Liquid (2003)
4. RAD (1986)
3. Big Lebowski (1998)
2. Good Fellas (1990)
1. Coming to America (1988)
Melissa Flores can be reached at
mf*****@pi**********.com
. She writes a blog at http://melissa-movielines.blogspot.com, where she will share some of the movies that didn’t quite make the list.
