Posted by Lúca Brasí on March 20, 2001 at 05:45:39:
Since you so nicely asked I will nicely oblige, and here's the rest of my personal top 20 for good measure. Cheers...
1. Leon
...a very touching story of the friendship between a young girl and a troubled assassin.
2. The Usual Suspects
...a thriller where all the fellas involved have no idea what's going on until the very end, and the speaking of the end, it's absolutely class.
3. The Shawshank Redemption
...a drama about the years of friendshp between a wrongfully convicted banker and an aged criminal.
4. Trainspotting
...a comedy/drama about the rise and fall of a cocky heroin addict.
5. Clerks
... the best comedy on earth, using no sight gags or cheap scatology; the humour is solely in the wit of the dialogue.
6. Face/Off
... an action movie that might seem implausible, but that willful suspension of disbelief allows you to LOVE this film.
7. Monty Python & The Holy Grail
... "we are the nights who say... NI'!" Need I say more.
8. Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels
... witty script, well-timed acting and a lovely setup make this a modern day "Italian Job", and it's destined to be a clasic... 'cause it's class!
9. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
... not a big fan of sci-fi films, OR sequels, so when a film like this comes along and destroys all expectations of futuristic android action films, it means something.
10. Reservoir Dogs
... a botched robbery, innocent people dead, cops on the trail and the only guys desperate for answers don't even know each other's names.
11. Braveheart
... the closest thing to an epic you'll get these days, and it's beter than "Gladiator"... that one didn't have a smartass Irishman, did it?
12. The Matrix
... like I need to convince anyone on THAT!
13. American History X
... Another one with a killer ending... and it's such a good capstone to the supremacist anarchy displayed before.
14. Shakespeare In Love
... I'm a big shakes fan, and it's hard not to love how well this film makes his world real. Weren't expecting that after AHX, now were ya?
15. Se7en
... a thriller about a killer that preys by the seven deadly sins. I dunno what's scarier, the fact that he does it or that each one of us is guilty of about half of them every day.
16. Pulp Fiction
... oh so smart. It suffers a bit from Tarantino's pretty atrocious handling, but the actors are so good and the script is so sharp you can't help but root for it.
17. Chasing Amy
... a cartoonist falls in love with a lesbian. That aside it's got the funniest black power speech in film history!
18. Fight Club
... oh, just go watch it, you'll be compelled to watch it at least four more times.
19. LA Confidential
... I love it when a plot comes together like this - LA cops investigating murder and coverup in the changing 50's. How bloody great is that!
20. The Princess Bride
... of all in my list this ALWAYS gets picked on. Why! It's fabulous! I dare anyone to find a better film about a heroic pirate coming back to rescue his former flame that is now betrothed to a deceptive prince with the help of a kindly giant and a drunken swordsman!
HONOURABLE MENTONS:
In The Name Of The Father, American Beauty, Ronin, the first two Godfathers, High Fidelity, True Romance, Goodfellas, Dazed & Confused, the 5th element, Batman, Three Kings, Chicken Run, Natural Born Killers, Top Secret, Die Hard 1 & 3, Taxi Driver, Raising Arizona, Full Metal Jacket, Being John Malkovich, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Blade, The Last Boy Scout, Blade,and The Iron Giant. Any thoughts?