Today’s portion of the list is the _6’s. That means that by the end of this post you’ll know half of my top 100! Hooray! Today brings 3 sci-fi movies, 3 dystopias, 3 tragedies, 2 movies by one director, back to back, and only three from before I was born! New Things! Enjoy.
96. Minority Report (2005)
Directed by Steven Spielberg. Starring Tom Cruise and Samantha Morton
I’m sorry John, but you’re going to have to run again.
Spielberg has three periods of his career. This film is the best example of his latest period. He’s still got the goods when it comes to action and a slick visual style, but for some reason people don’t appreciate these films as much. Minority Report is a great action movie and a bit of a thinker, it can’t be all bad.
86. A Serious Man (2009)
Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Starring Michael Stuhlbarg and Richard Kind
The Uncertainty Principle. It proves we can’t ever really know… what’s going on. So it shouldn’t bother you. Not being able to figure anything out. Although you will be responsible for this on the mid-term.
The Coens make smart movies about people doing dumb things. In A Serious Man their main character has a lot of bad things happen to him and he can’t figure out why. It’s a semi-modern retelling of the story of Job, except funny. The ending is ambiguous as they like to do, but it fits in with the rest of the story.
76. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
Directed by David Yates. Starring Daniel Radcliffe and Imelda Staunton
Look at it this way: every great wizard in history has started out as nothing more than we are now – students. If they can do it, why not us?
Now that the Harry Potter series is complete, I can safely call this one the best of the bunch. The first in David Yates’ tenure at the helm, this movie has one of the best on screen villains in Imelda Staunton’s Dolores Umbridge. She’s the epitome of mundane evil, a person who doesn’t stomp around and kill people but is still clearly villainous. And then throw in the first big magic battle and you’ve got a great film.
66. Brazil (1984)
Directed by Terry Gilliam. Starring Jonathan Pryce and Kim Greist
I assure you, Mrs. Buttle, the Ministry is very scrupulous about following up and eradicating any error. If you have any complaints which you’d like to make, I’d be more than happy to send you the appropriate forms.
It makes sense that a former member of Monty Python would make such a crazy movie. It also makes sense that a person whose job is making movies would be familiar with bureaucracy. What doesn’t make sense, at least on first sight, is that it would be such a funny and beautiful film. Brazil is satire of the highest order, a dystopian vision of a future run on paperwork. And plastic surgery to the extreme.
56. Children of Men (2006)
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Starring Clive Owen and Clare-Hope Ashitey
A hundred years from now there won’t be one sad fuck to look at any of this. What keeps you going?
What happens when there’s no hope in the world. Children of Men subtly realizes this through overheard news reports and glimpses of graffiti. Everything is messed up. Impeccably directed and full of strong performances, the action scenes are among the best of the decade.
46. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)
Directed by Julian Schnabel. Starring Mathieu Amalric and Emmanuelle Seigner
Hold fast to the human inside of you and you’ll survive.
Movies are often kinetic, movie from one place to another as quickly as a cut can be. But this one stays mostly confined to one space and, at times, one point of view. Amalric’s character is paralyzed except for one eye, and the movie covers the way he deals with the situation and the beginnings of his book (which eventually turned into the movie). It’s a gorgeous film, heartbreaking and inspiring.
36. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Harvey Keitel and Tim Roth
I don’t wanna kill anybody. But if I gotta get out that door, and you’re standing in my way, one way or the other, you’re gettin’ outta my way.
Here’s another angry men locked in a room yelling at each other movie. This one has the benefit of a great script and great performances. But when I rewatched it recently what stood out most to me was the sure-handed direction. It must be one of the best debut films I’ve seen.
26. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Brad Pitt and Mélanie Laurent
We have all our rotten eggs in one basket. The objective of the operation: blow up the basket.
Some people complain that Tarantino is only able to rip off other movies and that he never does anything with his “homages”. Inglourious Basterds is proof that he’s got a lot more going on than just taking scenes from movies nobody else has seen. A treatise on the power of film to rile up the audience, IB deftly shows us Nazis cheering at the death of American soldiers only to have us cheer at the death of powerful Nazis. With clever dialogue scenes and bang up action scenes, this one has it all.
16. Three Comrades (1938)
Directed by Frank Borzage. Starring Margaret Sullavan and Robert Taylor
May I drink to that please? To nice weather for drifters!
A love story of the highest order. The only screenwriting credit for F. Scott Fitzgerald. Margaret Sullavan. Frank Borzage. A beautiful story beautifully told. Check this review.
6. The Shining (1980)
Directed by Stanley Kubrick. Starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall
No sir, you are the caretaker. You’ve always been the caretaker. I ought to know: I’ve always been here.
The scariest movie of all time. The story of a family deteriorating with ghosts and elevators full of blood. It’s the little touches that make this movie tick, like the shot of the man in the dog/bear suit as Jack is chasing Wendy. It’s different from the book, but different in a good way.
Benefits of a Classical Education 
I love the weird syncronicity in this list. You’ve got a few sci-fi, and a whole bunch that are very much allegories for how our society functions and the flaws within it.
Also, thanks for the link.
Yeah, I guess I dig that. That’s why I like this way of presenting the list, it gets at some of the things in a bit of a different way.
And it’s my pleasure. It’s a great review.
Lots of awesome, and then there QT. 😛
Love seeing OotP and A Serious Man in particular.
The Shining is also one of my personal favorites as well.
Oh yea, and Brazil!
Don’t beat yourself up for not having immaculate taste like me. Not everybody can be perfect.
Also, thanks.
I’ll almost forgive you the QT’s for having Brazil on there. 🙂 (Also, clearly, I need to watch some Borzage.)
EVERYBODY needs to watch some Borzage.
I guess I understand that not everybody likes QT, but I really think IB should be kind of universal.
You’re missing 666.
You’re out of the cult.
Number 666 on the list is End of Days.
I think what generally holds together this set of films is the fact that they are all visually stunning, though I haven’t seen Three Comrades.
Three Comrades is beautiful as well. You should see it.
i must watch three comrades.
It was on youtube in full a while ago. I don’t know if it’s still there.