Okay, so here's the list of my 100 favorite movies as of March 2016. This list is grouped in five sections, with the top section being the can't-live-without-them movies, and the favorites-but-I-don't-need-to-watch-constantly at the bottom. The movies are alphabetically listed within each section, cuz trying to rank them any other way was impossible.
1. 13th Warrior, The (1999)
2. 20,000 Leagues under the Sea (1954)
3. Aliens (1986)
4. Avatar (2009
5. Avengers, The (2012)
6. Battle of the Five Armies, The (2014)
7. Big Jake (1971)
8. Dirty Dozen, The (1967)
9. Empire Strikes Back, The (1980)
10. Fellowship of the Ring, The (2001)
11. Flight of the Phoenix, The (1965)
12. Force Awakens, The (2015)
13. Full Monty, The (1997)
14. Galaxy Quest (1999)
15. How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)
16. Hunt for Red October, The (1990)
17. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
18. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
19. Lone Ranger, The (2013)
20. Lonely are the Brave (1962)
21. Mask of Zorro, The (1998)
22. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
23. Untouchables, The (1987)
24. Wild Bunch, The (1969)
25. Wind and The Lion, The (1975)
26. 3:10 to Yuma (1957)
27. Adventures of Tin-Tin, The (2011)
28. Ben-Hur (1959)
29. Big Hero 6 (2014)
30. Casino Royale (2006)
31. Cat Ballou (1965)
32. Cowboys and Aliens (2011)
33. Crossed Swords (1977)
34. Dead Again (1991)
35. Desolation of Smaug, The (2013)
36. Diamonds are Forever (1971)
37. Die Hard (1988)
38. Epic (2013)
39. Fifth Element, The (1997)
40. For Greater Glory (2012)
41. Great Escape, The (1963)
42. It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963)
43. Man from UNCLE, The (2015)
44. Postman (1997)
45. Rango (2011)
46. Shadow, The (1994)
47. Skyfall (2012)
48. Sons of Katie Elder, The (1965)
49. South Pacific (1958)
50. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
51. Dances with Wolves (1990)
52. Frisco Kid, The (1979)
53. Hercules (2014)
54. Horse Soldiers, The (1959)
55. Hour of the Gun (1967)
56. Island at the Top of the World (1974)
57. Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
58. LA Confidential (1997)
59. Open Range (2003)
60. Our Man Flint (1966)
61. Paint Your Wagon (1969)
62. Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
63. Thunderball (1965)
64. Time After Time (1979)
65. Wyatt Earp (1994)
66. Alamo, The (1960)
67. Alvarez Kelly (1966)
68. Black Rain (1989)
69. Brassed Off (1996)
70. Dragonslayer (1981)
71. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
72. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
73. Jungle Book (1994)
74. Jurassic Park (1993)
75. Ladyhawke (1985)
76. Lockout (2012)
77. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
78. Return of the Jedi (1983)
79. Revenge of the Sith (2005)
80. Ride Lonesome (1959)
81. Road to Bali, The (1952)
82. Road to Rio, The (1947)
83. Rocketeer, The (1991)
84. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)
85. Seven Percent Solution, The (1976)
86. Silverado (1985)
87. Star Wars (1977)
88. Vikings, The (1958)
89. Von Ryan's Express (1965)
90. Where Eagles Dare (1968)
91. Evita (1996)
92. Expendables 3 (2014)
93. Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959)
94. San Francisco (1936)
95. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
96. Sunshine (2007)
97. Terminator (1984)
98. Time Machine (1960)
99. Titanic (1997)
100. Without a Clue (1988)
Friday, March 25, 2016
Thursday, March 24, 2016
100 Favorite Movies - breakdown
So, after Hamlette posted her list (s) and breakdown of her 100 favorite movies, I thought I'd copycat. Between work and puppy there's not time for much else right now.
I had created a 100 favorite movie list in 2014. So, I sat down last week and, without looking at the old list, wrote down a new one. Then I compared the two. 70 movies were the same on both lists, so obviously, those went on the new 2016 list. Then I had basically 60 other movie choices from both lists to review and see which ones would make the final list for this year. It wasn't easy, because every one of these films is in the I Love This Movie category. I love the 30 I left off the list as much as the 30 that made it on the list. The only difference is mood. If I wasn't in the mood to watch the movie Right This Second, I left it off. Probably not the best way to do it, but I needed some extra criteria to fall back on, and that was easiest. I've read through my list multiple times, and at the moment, it stands.
I'm going to post the breakdowns first, then post the list of movies tomorrow.
Actors with the most movies on my list:
10 - Harrison Ford
6 - Kevin Costner
4 - Andy Garcia
4 - Daniel Craig
4 - James Coburn
4 - John Wayne
4 - Orlando Bloom
3 - Antonio Banderas
3 - Johnny Depp
3 - Kirk Douglas
3 - Lee Marvin
3 - Sam Neill
3 - Sean Connery
3 - William Holden
No surprise that Harrison Ford tops the list. Between the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies alone, he'd make top spot, but he's also made other movies I love. Also no shock that Kevin Costner is so high up either, because I love Costner, and he has a particularly good set of movies he's made. I was a wee bit surprised to see James Coburn up there. But that surprise only lasted about 30 seconds, because he's also one of my favorite actors, though he tends to get taken for granted like all the actors who have been part of my movie-going experience since day one, and he's been in some great movies. He actually had 5 movies here for awhile, but I sadly had to drop one off.
Genres
23 Action
8 Comedy
15 Drama
10 Fantasy
5 Musical
15 SciFi
4 War
20 Western
This breakdown seems right on par with what I like. Deciding on a genre is a bit arbitrary, particularly as fantasy, SciFi, War, and Western are really all action films. (I did not put animated movies in an "animated" category, by the way, but ranked them in a genre as if they were a live action movie.)
Movies by Decade
2 from the 1930s
1 from the 1940s
12 from the 1950s
18 from the 1960s
9 from the 1970s
15 from the 1980s
18 from the 1990s
7 from the 2000s
18 from the 2010s
This is probably the most surprising breakdown, because there are sooooooo many movies from the '40s that I love... but they're just not on my current radar, so I had to drop them off the list for now. Yes, my favorites are fickle It's all dependent on my mood! I'm also a bit surprised how many films I have from just the last 5 years. Wow. And I know the 2000s were the doldrums, but so interesting to see how that reflects in favorite movies.
And since Hamlette had the movie MPAA ratings, here's how that rolls out:
23 NR (not rated)
6 G
28 PG
28 PG-13
15 R
I had created a 100 favorite movie list in 2014. So, I sat down last week and, without looking at the old list, wrote down a new one. Then I compared the two. 70 movies were the same on both lists, so obviously, those went on the new 2016 list. Then I had basically 60 other movie choices from both lists to review and see which ones would make the final list for this year. It wasn't easy, because every one of these films is in the I Love This Movie category. I love the 30 I left off the list as much as the 30 that made it on the list. The only difference is mood. If I wasn't in the mood to watch the movie Right This Second, I left it off. Probably not the best way to do it, but I needed some extra criteria to fall back on, and that was easiest. I've read through my list multiple times, and at the moment, it stands.
I'm going to post the breakdowns first, then post the list of movies tomorrow.
Actors with the most movies on my list:
10 - Harrison Ford
6 - Kevin Costner
4 - Andy Garcia
4 - Daniel Craig
4 - James Coburn
4 - John Wayne
4 - Orlando Bloom
3 - Antonio Banderas
3 - Johnny Depp
3 - Kirk Douglas
3 - Lee Marvin
3 - Sam Neill
3 - Sean Connery
3 - William Holden
No surprise that Harrison Ford tops the list. Between the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies alone, he'd make top spot, but he's also made other movies I love. Also no shock that Kevin Costner is so high up either, because I love Costner, and he has a particularly good set of movies he's made. I was a wee bit surprised to see James Coburn up there. But that surprise only lasted about 30 seconds, because he's also one of my favorite actors, though he tends to get taken for granted like all the actors who have been part of my movie-going experience since day one, and he's been in some great movies. He actually had 5 movies here for awhile, but I sadly had to drop one off.
Genres
23 Action
8 Comedy
15 Drama
10 Fantasy
5 Musical
15 SciFi
4 War
20 Western
This breakdown seems right on par with what I like. Deciding on a genre is a bit arbitrary, particularly as fantasy, SciFi, War, and Western are really all action films. (I did not put animated movies in an "animated" category, by the way, but ranked them in a genre as if they were a live action movie.)
Movies by Decade
2 from the 1930s
1 from the 1940s
12 from the 1950s
18 from the 1960s
9 from the 1970s
15 from the 1980s
18 from the 1990s
7 from the 2000s
18 from the 2010s
This is probably the most surprising breakdown, because there are sooooooo many movies from the '40s that I love... but they're just not on my current radar, so I had to drop them off the list for now. Yes, my favorites are fickle It's all dependent on my mood! I'm also a bit surprised how many films I have from just the last 5 years. Wow. And I know the 2000s were the doldrums, but so interesting to see how that reflects in favorite movies.
And since Hamlette had the movie MPAA ratings, here's how that rolls out:
23 NR (not rated)
6 G
28 PG
28 PG-13
15 R
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
I thought I'd call him Silver
This is Silver, my new Husky pup. His fur is dark, but tipped with silver. He glows in the sunlight, it's so cool. He's seven weeks old and has already won my heart. He's quiet, calm, affectionate, playful, and wants to be wherever I am. Preferably on me, as you can tell from the above picture. He thinks he's a lap dog. The cats are like oh, one of these creatures again. LOL.
So, in addition to movie reviews, there are now liable to be regular puppy reports. Hope no one minds!
Friday, March 11, 2016
Grady (2006-2016)
(a picture from happier times)
I held him on my shoulders one last time tonight as I said goodbye and he purred in my ear. I miss him so much, and my house feels utterly empty, but it was time. Be at peace, my dear, dear Grady.
Tuesday, March 08, 2016
Of cats and journals
I used to write much more frequently about my life on this journal, and not just post a movie review now and again. This blog started out as a writing blog, I have no real idea when, because I have twice deleted every single post I had here and started over, but I used to write a lot about things happening in my life. Somewhere along the way, I stopped opening up, and I'm sorry for that. I'm much more personable than I'm sure I come across, but I have trust issues.
But I used to write posts like this one. I'm glad I wrote that one, because I can't remember dates to save my life. I rarely remember when birthdays are, even birthdays of people I care about (and my best intentions at writing things like that down are usually a failure). And that post tells me Grady entered my life on Aug 4th of 2006, and I wouldn't have known that otherwise.
It's now March 2016, and Grady is dying. His kidneys are failing, something I'm familiar with in cats, as I lost my beloved Sidney to kidney failure as well. Sidney was quick and unexpected. I still have some time left with Grady. Not that long I suspect, but he's still doing well enough that I can spend long hours holding him on my lap or shoulders or sitting outside in the sun with him, when he's not still prowling around the backyard searching for lizards. He's on my lap right now as I write this, needing to be close as much as I need him close.
There's only been a few years of my life where I haven't had cats (the college years, cuz dorms don't allow cats, of course.) I got my first cat when I was eight months old. Moxie was eight weeks old. We grew up together, and she slept with me every night (except for when my sister and I got hamsters and the cage was in my room, and Moxie gave me the cold shoulder and flat out ignored me for two weeks, which completely devastated me) until I lost her to cancer when she and I were 13. She wasn't our only cat. We've always had at least two others at any given time, but Moxie had claimed me the day she came home with us, and we were inseparable at night, and she will always have that special place of "first."
There have been many cats since, because life without being surrounded by cats isn't worth living. I've got a carved stone on my wall that says "This house owned and operated solely for the comfort and convenience of the cats." Couldn't be more true. If I run out of food, I just go hungry. If I run out of cat food, I'm on my way to the store immediately.
I have three others right now too, all girls, all rescues: Rosie and Elanor (mom and daughter), and Madera. They're all lovely, but there's always an undeniable favorite, and since I lost Kit, that's been Grady. Grady's special. I will enjoy every minute of these last weeks or days together with him.
A couple weeks ago, I also lost a good friend unexpectedly. The memorial was this past weekend. It was a good memorial, celebrating her life, but she was a musician, and the flute choir she participated in played a few selections. Which one did they end on? The theme from Legends of the Fall. By James Horner. Which undid me instantly, in a way the speeches and photos couldn't. Still hard to believe she's gone.
I'm watching movies (mostly Oscar Isaac movies right now), but if the choice is writing up a review, or curling up on the couch with my cat... Grady wins. So, I'm around, but my heart's not in posting much at the moment.
But I used to write posts like this one. I'm glad I wrote that one, because I can't remember dates to save my life. I rarely remember when birthdays are, even birthdays of people I care about (and my best intentions at writing things like that down are usually a failure). And that post tells me Grady entered my life on Aug 4th of 2006, and I wouldn't have known that otherwise.
It's now March 2016, and Grady is dying. His kidneys are failing, something I'm familiar with in cats, as I lost my beloved Sidney to kidney failure as well. Sidney was quick and unexpected. I still have some time left with Grady. Not that long I suspect, but he's still doing well enough that I can spend long hours holding him on my lap or shoulders or sitting outside in the sun with him, when he's not still prowling around the backyard searching for lizards. He's on my lap right now as I write this, needing to be close as much as I need him close.
There's only been a few years of my life where I haven't had cats (the college years, cuz dorms don't allow cats, of course.) I got my first cat when I was eight months old. Moxie was eight weeks old. We grew up together, and she slept with me every night (except for when my sister and I got hamsters and the cage was in my room, and Moxie gave me the cold shoulder and flat out ignored me for two weeks, which completely devastated me) until I lost her to cancer when she and I were 13. She wasn't our only cat. We've always had at least two others at any given time, but Moxie had claimed me the day she came home with us, and we were inseparable at night, and she will always have that special place of "first."
There have been many cats since, because life without being surrounded by cats isn't worth living. I've got a carved stone on my wall that says "This house owned and operated solely for the comfort and convenience of the cats." Couldn't be more true. If I run out of food, I just go hungry. If I run out of cat food, I'm on my way to the store immediately.
I have three others right now too, all girls, all rescues: Rosie and Elanor (mom and daughter), and Madera. They're all lovely, but there's always an undeniable favorite, and since I lost Kit, that's been Grady. Grady's special. I will enjoy every minute of these last weeks or days together with him.
A couple weeks ago, I also lost a good friend unexpectedly. The memorial was this past weekend. It was a good memorial, celebrating her life, but she was a musician, and the flute choir she participated in played a few selections. Which one did they end on? The theme from Legends of the Fall. By James Horner. Which undid me instantly, in a way the speeches and photos couldn't. Still hard to believe she's gone.
I'm watching movies (mostly Oscar Isaac movies right now), but if the choice is writing up a review, or curling up on the couch with my cat... Grady wins. So, I'm around, but my heart's not in posting much at the moment.
