pattiworld

I’m making a list of my all-time favorite movies.  I will add to it as I think of more until I reach 100, or more if I get on a roll.    For now, I’m keeping it to movies I have actually seen and can recommend.  As others come up with suggestions, I will check out as many as I can and add them to the list.  Most or all of these are available on DVD, or will be soon.  If you’ve seen them, leave a mini-review here.  If you haven’t, go check them out and come back and tell us what you thought.

• Almost Famous - This is my favorite movie right now.  It replaced Gone With the Wind.  I don’t love everything Cameron Crowe has done, but this is probably my favorite.  The music is great, the characters are memorable, funny, and will stay with you, and my favorite movie podcast, Filmspotting, keeps quoting it!  Update:  I heard another mention on The Movie Hour podcast from a couple months ago.  They compared it to the new limited-release movie Pirate Radio, and liked Almost Famous a lot better.
• WALL-e – I saw this with my kids, who are 9 and 7, and they were mesmerized.  I was too.
• Brick – This is a movie I have championed ever since I saw it a couple years ago.  The language is very stylized and it might take a few minutes to get used to it, but if you do, it’s well worth it.  To say it’s high scholl noir doesn’t do it justice.
• Star Wars 1-6 – If you haven’t seen any of these, first what’s wrong with you? Second, these are movies you can share with your kids, grandkids, or younger siblings.  There is some violence, but that’s what makes epic battles, right?
• Star Trek – I’m talking about the reimagining by J.J. Abrams this year, although several of the movies are rent-worthy.  This one blew me away in a summer where there wasn’t a whole lot to make me rejoice.
• Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid – An oldie but a goodie!  This is the ultimate buddy pic, and just a great movie.  Newman and Redford together?  I probably don’t need to say any more.
• Unforgiven – One actor I think of when I think of good westerns is Clint Eastwood.  Also known for the “spaghetti westerns,” this was the movie that kind of reinvented the genre again.
• Slumdog Millionaire – I’ve seen a couple of  director Danny Boyle’s other movies (28 Days Later, Sunshine) and I expected good things when I walked into the theater.  I was not disappointed.  The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences got this Best Picture winner right!
• Juno – I just saw this one last week.  I thought it would be too angsty and cute for me, but it was awesome!  It wasn’t too long either, and didn’t rely too much on narration, although what there was wasn’t that necessary, in my opinion.
• The Color Purple - All the talk about Precious reminded me of this movie from 1985.  This one takes place in the 20’s and 30’s in the rural South, but similar themes are there, with a semi-happy ending and a little comedy sprinkled throughout.

I’ll keep adding to the list.  In the meantime, if you have seen any of these, tell us why you like them.  What did you take with you?