After the American Film Institute did their initial Top 100 in 1998 (countered twice on this blog, and I’m only linking to one because only one of those projects is non-embarrassing) and their Top 50 movie stars (countered on this blog), they started to move towards genre lists. In 2000, 2001, and 2002 they listed… Read More Better than AFI’s 100 Passions: Introduction and Index
July 1st Pompeii (2014, dir. Paul W.S. Anderson) Soylent Green (1973, dir. Richard Fleischer) The place I want to start with Pompeii is its budget, because it’s a blockbuster/spectacle movie and, cynically, I have a hard time starting anywhere else with those. The numbers vary, but let’s call it $90 million in 2014 dollars. My… Read More Movie Diary 2023 (7/1-7/5): Please Stop Making Me Watch Clips from High Society
Okay, two sentences each, let’s make this happen, ready, hike. Force of Evil, 1948, dir. Abraham Polonsky / America’s commitment to leftist filmmaking runs shallower than you’d find in many other countries, but that’s not Polonsky’s fault. His first feature (made not long before he was blacklisted) puts everyman John Garfield in a decent suit,… Read More Movie Diary 2023 (6/1-6/30): Great Caesar’s Ghost I Still Have a Lot of These Left
Two sentences per movie. The last time I did a retro movie diary, I had three weeks to catch up on. Now I have…more than that. No sweat! Seabiscuit, 2003, dir. Gary Ross / I wasn’t prepared to enjoy this as much as I did, but, ahem, never count out the power of an ornery… Read More Movie Diary 2023 (4/6-5/31): Let’s Just Get Through May to Start
The actor: Heath Ledger The character: Ennis Del Mar The film: Brokeback Mountain The line: “If you can’t fix it, Jack, you gotta stand it.” “Who knows if we shall ever see them again?” Morrel said, wiping away a tear. “My dearest,” said Valentine, “has the count not just told us that all human wisdom… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #1
The actor: Michael Stuhlbarg The character: Larry Gopnik The film: A Serious Man The line: “Sy Ableman?” At some time in his life, each man is going to have to answer some important questions which will go on to define who he is for decades to come. Am I leaving a mark on the world… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #2
The actor: Michael B. Jordan The character: Killmonger The film: Black Panther The line: “Is this your king?” Google “best mcu villains” and you’ll get the usual suspects (Collider, Empire, Nerdist, Mashable, etc.) listing the usual suspects. The top three on these sort of lists are nearly invariable. Thanos gets one of those spots because… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #3
The actor: LaKeith Stanfield The character: Andre King The film: Get Out The line: “Get out! Get out!” I’m old enough to remember when you could find a YouTube video that was so marvelously researched and cut together, like this one…as opposed to YouTube now, where if it has research it may as well get… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #4
The actor: Amy Adams The character: Peggy Dodd The film: The Master The line: “This is something you do for a billion years or not at all.” It’s interesting how much more potent “a billion years” is than “forever.” In practical terms, it’s basically the same thing. I’ll put it this way. If I had… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #5
The actor: Javier Bardem The character: Anton Chigurh The film: No Country for Old Men The line: “If the rule you followed brought you to this, of what use was the rule?” You’re counting right. Three quotes from No Country for Old Men, which makes it, by this measure, the “most quotable” American movie of… Read More Top 100 American Movie Quotes of the 21st Century: #6
