Starring: Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Jason Lee, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Zooey Deschanel
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
IMDB Rating: 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Throughout my lists I've mentioned movies that may not have been praised by the masses, but made me feel good. This is one of those movies. Based on Cameron Crowe's real life adventures as a teenage scribe for Rolling Stone magazine, there is a lot to like about this film. One of those things is a sweet, realistic performance from unknown Patrick Fugit. His wide-eyed (literally) wonder as he experiences everything helps the viewer get lost along with him. We feel what he feels (love, betrayal, anger) and experience all the push and pulls that go along with it. The movie becomes even more interesting when one has a little bit of knowledge on who the characters represent. For instance, the band being followed, Stillwater, is a bit of a combination of bands Crowe followed, but mostly based on Led Zeppelin, The Allman Brothers Band and The Who. I had a lot of fun watching this movie, and still do on subsequent viewings, which is, for me, the mark of a great film, even if it isn't perfect. It's right for me!
- Stillwater's songs were written by Peter Frampton, Cameron Crowe, and Crowe's wife Nancy Wilson of Heart. Frampton taught Billy Crudup how to play guitar for the concert scenes.
- Jason Lee's singing voice was provided by Marti Frederiksen, a well known writer/producer that has worked with Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, Carrie Underwood and Faith Hill.
Starring: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, Robin Wright
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
IMDB Rating: 7.2
Rotten Tomatoes: 68%
M. Night Shyamalan shot to stardom after his first film came out, "The Sixth Sense". That was a very good film, but I am always going to think "Unbreakable" is his best, especially since most of what he's involved with nowadays is total garbage. This movie, though, is anything but. It moves along very slowly, which I think put off some viewers. I found it's pacing perfect for the story; a man slowly realizes he possesses super-human abilities. It's a comic book story set in the real world. I love that idea. Bruce Willis plays the part very well, full of wonder and amazement and a kind of "why me?" attitude. His nemesis is introduced in the form of Samuel L. Jackson, a character with a horrible disease that makes his bones very brittle. I wanted so badly for a sequel to this film after the characters realize who and what they are. To me, this is brilliant storytelling and deserves to be viewed by everyone.
- The disease inflicting Elijah Price is called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, a real but very rare disease.
Starring: Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Geoffrey Rush
Directed by: Andrew Stanton, Lee Unkrich
IMDB Rating: 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes: 99%
I don't know how anyone could dislike this movie. I absolutely love it, from the first time I saw it and every subsequent viewing. Maybe, if I had a three year old that constantly yelled "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming" it would start to get on my nerves, but I don't, so I continue to love it. A fabulous story, great digital graphics and some of the best voice-over performance I've ever heard in a movie. The bar was set about a decade prior with Robin Williams in "Aladdin". Ellen DeGeneres moved that bar up; she was perfect as Dory. But even the smaller roles, the sharks, the turtles, and my favourite, the seagulls..."MINE?!". So much fun, great for all ages!
- Because of the incredible detail in the animation, a single frame, 1/24th of a second, would take up to four days render.
- The voice of Marlin was originally done by William H. Macy. After reviewing the movie, Michael Eisner said the film would not be a hit. Director Andrew Stanton decided to re-record the Marlin character with Albert Brooks.
Starring: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris
Directed by: Sofia Coppola
IMDB Rating: 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes: 95%
Trying to explain to customers in a video store why "Lost In Translation" is such a great movie kinda got, well, lost in translation. (See what I did there?). It's very hard to explain, but detractors have no problem spewing their hatred of the film. I guess part of it, for me, was seeing Bill Murray how I picture him being in real life. Traveling from town to town, promoting himself, making foreign commercials, being mostly bored and lonely. His character finds someone just like him in the form of Scarlett Johansson's character, recently married, but bored and lonely. They enjoy each other's company, but, in my eyes, it's never sexual. Maybe that's why some people didn't like the movie; they thought it was about a dirty old man. But the time they share together is infinitely more important than anything that can be construed as sexual. The last scene, even though we don't know what is said, is absolutely heartbreaking, but exhilarating at the same time. That's a very hard thing for actors and their director to convey, and it's done beautifully! Gorgeously shot and wonderfully acted, it remains one of my favourites.
- Sofia Coppola has said she wrote the lead role specifically with Bill Murray in mind. She has said if Murray didn't sign on, she may well have never made the movie at all.
- The inspiration of having Bill Murray's character do a commercial for Suntory Whiskey came from Sofia Coppola's father, Francis Ford Coppola, doing a real Suntory commercial with Akira Kurosawa in the 70's.
Starring: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Lucy Liu, Daryl Hannah, Vivica A. Fox, Michael Madsen, Sonny Chiba, Gordon Liu
Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
IMDB Rating: 8.1
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%
Have I mentioned yet how much fun Tarantino movies are? Well, if I haven't, they are! And this is probably the most fun I've had in a theatre in a long, long time. Tarantino does his take on the kung-fu genre, taking many elements from the 1970's and expanding on them. (Getting Sonny Chiba to play an important role was absolutely genius!). Who knew Uma Thurman could kick such ass?!? Yeah, it's incredibly bloody. Was it all needed? Absolutely! You can't have a send up of a very violent genre without being incredibly violent. But then the stories mesh so beautifully. The camera moves and flows with such apparent ease. The characters are cartoonish, exactly how they needed to be. Speaking of cartoons, that great Anime flashback? C'mon! By the end of the film I was all a flutter knowing Volume 2 was right around the corner. I'll be talking about that one next.
- Quentin Tarantino wrote the role of The Bride specifically for Uma Thurman. The idea of the story started between the two of them while they filmed "Pulp Fiction".
- Warren Beatty was Tarantino's first choice to play Bill. After Beatty turned it down, he suggested David Carradine.
Starring: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Michael Madsen, Daryl Hannah, Vivica A. Fox, Lucy Liu
Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
IMDB Rating: 8.0
Rotten Tomatoes: 84%
Not a sequel to "Kill Bill: Vol. 1" but a continuation, and, as such, just as much fun as the first. Although the pace of the movie is a bit slower, I feel it needed to be because we have to draw out the resolution. But what's great about the conclusion is that it doesn't take forever, as movies like this have demonstrated in the past. We get to see a little background in the "making" of Beatrix Kiddo, which is straight out of kung-fu movies from 30 years prior...a fantastic homage. The fight scene between Uma and Daryl in the small confines of the trailer is fabulous as well, and a little disgusting. With Volume 1 I couldn't wait to see the continuation. With Volume 2 I was more than satisfied how it ended.
- At it's first test screening in Austin, Texas, the film received a five minute standing ovation at it's conclusion.
- Michael Jai White, famous for his role in "Black Dynamite", filmed scenes with Bill, David Carradine, but were cut from the movie due to pacing concerns.
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Mark Ruffalo, Jada Pinkett Smith, Peter Berg
Directed by: Michael Mann
IMDB Rating: 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes: 86%
Michael Mann is a very stylized director. He can find the beauty in something, or usually somewhere, where there is seemingly no beauty at all. He has normally done this with Los Angeles. This time he makes the L.A. at night look absolutely beautiful. He also gets what I consider the best performance of Tom Cruise's career. He plays a no-nonsense hit man, a guy you know you're gonna hate right away, but can't stop watching him. He "rents" Jamie Foxx and his cab as transportation for the night, stopping occasionally to cold-bloodily kill someone. Speaking of Foxx, this was the first time I saw him really lose himself in a role, rather than being that goofy guy on "In Living Color". (Yes, he was good in "Any Given Sunday" but it was not the hardest role to play!). There are some scenes in this film that had me saying to myself "would that really happen?", but I quickly forgot about those because I was totally rapt in what was going on. A very underrated film in my opinion, and should be viewed at least once. (By the way, watched this a few days ago and it's still good!).
- Michael Mann created backstories for all of the characters in the movie, right down to supplying the actors pictures of their characters' home towns.
- Adam Sandler was originally going to play the role of Max, the cab driver, and Russell Crowe was set to play the role of Vincent, the assassin. Sandler decided not to take the role and Crowe dropped out after constant production delays.
Starring: Wallace & Gromit, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter
Directed by: Steve Box & Nick Park
IMDB Rating: 7.6
Rotten Tomatoes: 95%
Here is another movie that, if I was six years old when I first watched it, would be one of my all-time favourites. I had never seen any of the claymation short films starring Wallace & Gromit. They were award winners, everybody loved them. I thought, what the heck, I'll watch the film that kids were going ga-ga over. Holy man! I was ga-ga watching it! So funny, so cute, so endearing...and a lot of jokes that would fly over any kids' head. The characters are fleshed out so well and with such loving care that you can't not love each and every one of them. But the real joy was watching the genius but silent dog, Gromit. He is what great animation is all about; a character that needs not speak a word and still conveys and elicits every emotion imaginable. If you have small children you need to do you and your kids a favour and watch this movie!
- The claymation process is a long and arduous one. A single line of dialogue containing just a few words would take any entire day to film. The film took five years to make.
- An estimated 2.8 tons of Plasticine was used, in 42 different colours.
Starring: Lee Pace, Catinca Untaru, Justine Waddell, Leo Bill, Jeetu Verma
Directed by: Tarsem Singh
IMDB Rating: 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes: 59%
Boy oh boy. If you read some of the reviews on rottentomatoes.com, there is no way you'd ever want to see this film, and that would be a travesty! Words like "slow" and "dull" are thrown around, but I feel those descriptions could not be further from the truth. First of all, the look of the film is like no other I have seen before or since. Gorgeous photography, impossibly beautiful set design, it's remarkable what they were able to do without any digital enhancement. The story itself is wonderfully drawn out by an injured soldier (Pace) and his little girl companion (Untaru). He begins to tell a fairy tale in order to have the girl steal pain meds for him. The story he weaves is reminiscent of "The Princess Bride", but the relationship he strikes up with the girl is fabulous. And this little girl...you can't take your eyes off of her every time she appears on screen. She wasn't acting, she was playing, caught up in the story being told. Please, give this movie a chance. I don't think you'll be disappointed!
- The hospital scenes took six weeks to film and needed to be filmed in chronological order as Catinca Untaru was growing and constantly improving her English.
- The film was shot over four years in 28 different countries.
Starring: Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova
Directed by: John Carney
IMDB Rating: 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
One of the sweetest, most romantic, most heartfelt movies I have ever seen! I know, that's saying a lot, but it's so true. My heart absolutely soared as I watched these two unknown actors/musicians create music together. The story simply revolves around a street busker and a lonely woman who find an immediate chemistry in the music they make. The main song in the film, "Falling Slowly", became a huge hit and ultimately won an Oscar for Best Song. I suppose it was the realism of the story, the dialogue, the singing that got to me. Apparently, the leads were an actual couple when this was filmed, making their performance so much more intense. Such a glorious film, one of those great low-budget treats that only come around once in a long while...see, I used the word "once" there...see what I did?
- Glen Hansard is the lead singer of a band called The Frames. Director John Carney was once a member of that band.
- Bob Dylan was a huge fan of the film and had Hansard and Irglova open for him on part of his world tour.
Starring: Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman, Danai Gurira, Richard Kind
Directed by: Thomas McCarthy
IMDB Rating: 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes: 89%
A lonely college professor travels to Manhattan for a conference. He has an apartment there, but when he goes to it he's surprised to learn there is an immigrant couple living in there. The couple were part of a scam, but they have no place to go. The professor lets them stay until they can find another place to go. So begins a wonderful story, a coming-of-age film for a sixty year old man. Who is the visitor? Is it the foreign couple in a foreign land, or is it the professor, a visitor in his own world. Richard Jenkins is simply remarkable as the professor. He has that phenomenal ability to create both empathy and sympathy for his character, mostly conveyed in his sad eyes. The supporting players are very good as well, but make no mistake, this is Jenkins' film! Sad, touching, uplifting and romantic, a definite must see!
- Richard Jenkins was nominated 15 times for his role at various festivals and award ceremonies.
Starring: Ben Burtt, Elissa Knight, Jeff Garlin, Fred Willard, John Ratzenberger
Directed by: Andrew Stanton
IMDB Rating: 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
Well, Pixar does it again! Why are all the best movies in recent years being made by an animation company?? "Wall-E" is probably the best of them. Forget about the message it's trying to convey, that's pretty in-your-face. It's the remarkable animation, the emotion conveyed in a robot's eyes and tiny voice. Every scene that Wall-E is in makes your heart swell! And then the adventure begins. He falls for another robot and goes to the end of the universe to find her. This is truly an amazing accomplishment in animated filmmaking. Not just the way it looks, which is fantastic, but the way this movie makes you feel. I'm pretty sure I had a smile on my face for the entire film. Another one of those films thats great for kids, but means so much more for the adults that watch it, too.
- Ben Burtt recorder over 2500 different sounds for the film. When director Andrew Stanton first met with him he told Burtt he needed to be about 80% of his cast.
- The Pixar team would regularly watch all the Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton movies and shorts to inspire them with the possibilities of purely visual storytelling.
Starring: Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, Delroy Lindo, John Ratzenberger
Directed by: Pete Docter & Bob Peterson
IMDB Rating: 8.3
Rotten Tomatoes: 98%
Pixar, you're killing me!! I was literally bawling my eyes out just eleven minutes into this movie! I couldn't believe it...I started to laugh at myself with the thought of an animated film making me feel this way, and so early into the film. If you've seen this movie, you know what I'm talking about, and if you've seen this movie and don't know what I'm taking about, visit your doctor immediately, you may not have a heart! Beyond that first eleven minutes is another great adventure from the greatest animation studio around. Big, bright colours fill the screen, contrasting the grouch as the lead character. Fabulous entertainment, again, for all kids and adults. Oh, and the "talking" dog was a stroke of brilliance!
- Someone figured out that if Carl's house was 1600 square feet it would take approximately 12,658,392 balloons to lift it.
- First feature film to be nominated for both Best Picture and Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards.
Starring: George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson
Directed by: Wes Anderson
IMDB Rating: 7.7
Rotten Tomatoes: 93%
Another animated film! This time it's directed by the weirdly creative Wes Anderson, the man behind "Rushmore" and "The Royal Tenenbaums". The film definitely has a unique look to it, sort of stop-motion claymation mixed with puppetry mixed with traditional animation techniques. It looks great! But the story is what really carries the film. It's filled with quirky characters, hilariously funny situations, and some high drama thrown in. You know exactly who the villains are, who the heroes are and can pretty much determine how the story will end...but it is super fun getting to that point. Another one of those great films that's good for all ages and should be viewed by everyone.
- The actors recorded their voice roles in natural setting rather than a studio. They recorded in a forest, in an attic, even underground.
- Mr. Fox's wardrobe was based on Wes Anderson's brown corduroy suits.
Starring: Jay Baruchel, Saul Rubinek, Michael Murphy, Emily Hampshire, Colm Feore, Genevieve Bujold
Directed by: Jacob Tierney
IMDB Rating: 6.7
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
I fell in love with this movie immediately! It's a great, Canadian comedy that is spot-on with all the performances within. A high school student thinks he is the second coming of Leon Trotsky. He is forced to go to a public school for the first time in his life. While there, he decides to create a real "student union" for better rights in relation to the oppressing teachers and principals. In lesser hands, this movie could have fallen on it's face. But it's incredibly smart, very believable and, most importantly, funny and sweet. Even though there are a lot of movies on this list for the 2000's, there are few I enjoyed more than "The Trotsky".
- Director Jacob Tierney had a childhood fascination with Leon Trotsky.
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloe Grace Moretz, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
IMDB Rating: 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes: 77%
Here's another movie that reminds us why we go to the movies. "Kick-Ass" is total fun from beginning to end. The villains overact, the heroes are able to do ridiculous, unexplained things, but the movie never apologizes for it. Take it as it is or don't, your choice. My choice was to have a blast, and I did! The introduction of Chloe Grace Morentz as Hit Girl really made this film for me. So young, but commands every scene she's in, and she can really kick ass! This is not a movie for kids. It's a fantasy for adults and it works on every level. I haven't seen the sequel that came out last year, and I probably won't. I don't want anything to sully my love for the original.
- Nicolas Cage based his voice and mannerisms from the original Batman, Adam West. Knowing this, and then watching the film, it's amazing to see how accurate he is!
- Christopher Mintz-Plasse, who plays Red Mist, originally auditioned for the role of Kick Ass.
Starring: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Neil Peart
Directed by: Sam Dunn & Scott McFadyen
IMDB Rating: 7.8
Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
I was always a fan of Rush's music, just never a die-hard fan, like I am with Van Halen or the Beastie Boys. My love for the band increased ten-fold after watching this documentary. I had no idea how respected Rush is within the music community. There are interviews with many respected artists who are huge fans of the group. The film takes it's time in tracing the lore of the band, starting by taking them back to where they grew up, right here in the big T-dot O-dot. We witness there rise from pumping out Top-40 rock hits, then changing directions to become a true prog-rock band, and back again. What really comes out of this documentary, though, is not only the incredible musicianship of these three men, but the incredible bond they have created in nearly 40 years of playing together. You don't have to be a fan of Rush to enjoy this film, the mark of a great documentary, but if you have even the smallest interest in them, you need to watch this!
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Don Rickles, Ned Beatty, Michael Keaton, John Ratzenberger
Directed by: Lee Unkrich
IMDB Rating: 8.4
Rotten Tomatoes: 99%
Ok, I promise this is the last animated film on my list (until Finding Nemo 2 comes out, possibly). It's always hard to create a sequel to a movie that is as beloved as the original. It's so much harder to make a third in a series and still make it something people should see. "Toy Story 3" not only achieved this, it's quite possibly the best of the three films! What happens to toys when the kids that loved them grow up? It's a great, unexplored question and it is the perfect ending to a series of films that upped the ante for all that come after them. I cried, CRIED, like a baby, twice, while watching this movie, so much so that I was embarrassed by it. But there are hysterically funny scenes as well. After three of these films I felt like these were my toys, like I was a kid myself. I absolutely loved this movie and would gladly watch it numerous times...whenever I need a good cry!
- The final shot of the film, white clouds on a blue sky, resembles the first shot of the "Toy Story" trilogy, white clouds on a blue sky on Andy's wallpaper.
- There are 302 different characters in the movie.
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
IMDB Rating: 8.8
Rotten Tomatoes: 86%
Christopher Nolan has made many great movies, from "Following" to "Memento" to "The Dark Knight". For my money "Inception" is his best. Yes, I can understand when people say there is too much going on, that it becomes confusing. I say, watch it again. First of all, I didn't find it confusing. I was interested in every single scene. Second, the look of the movie is remarkable. The computer graphics are groundbreaking, but what really made my jaw drop were the fight scenes in the hotel with Gordon-Levitt. And knowing that those scenes contained no CGI makes them even more fabulous. (All the "floating" was done with wires!). I loved the story, I loved the adventure and I love...love...LOVED the ending! Truly a magnificent achievement in filmmaking.
- In the city scenes, in the first level of the dream state, the license plates contain a state motto that reads "The Alternate State".
- Take the first letters of all the main characters, Dom, Robert, Eames, Arthur, Mal and Saito, you get DREAMS.
Ok. That's it. I will not list any movies that I still want to see that were released between 2000 and 2013 because there are far too many. I hope you liked this series...my next post will be a wrap-up of all eight posts, plus a little added extra...those films that were rated as a 9 out of 10, just missing that perfect score. Thanks for reading!
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