Let’s Go Catch a Movie
Like most seasoned couch potatoes like me (cue the self-depreciating humor) , we all enjoy a good movie. Unfortunately, you have to weed out the good from the bad. I feel that a list is needed to help my fellow taters.
I started making a list of great movies to see a while back. Hey, somebody had to do it…
In no particular order…
Hooper-Burt Reynolds and Sally Fields flick that I actually paid to see 4-5 times at the cinema. I even dreamed of becoming a stunt man. When “The Fall Guy” with Lee Majors was on the tube, I never missed a show. The Palomino Club fight scene with Terry Bradshaw was awesome.
3 Days of the Condor and Jerimiah Johnson-Great spy thriller with Robert Redford as a CIA analyst trying to stay alive after his office is shot up by CIA hitmen. Faye Dunaway plays his hostage and then later, confidant who helps him stay alive and find out who is trying to take him out. Max von Sydow plays an international gun for hire trying to snuff out Robert Redford.
Jeremiah Johnson caused me to think if I could be a mountain man. Not sure if I could emulate Will Geer huntin’ for “grizz” …..
The Godfather Trilogy-I could write an entire paper on this. The third is not near as great as the first two, but still pretty damn good. I like Robert De Niro’s role as a young Vito Corleone the best. Marlon Brando is very good De Niro plays it to a “t”. James Caan as the hot-headed Sonny and Robert Duval as Tom Hagen are spot on. Richard Castellano plays a great Clemenza as well. Who can forget his epic line “Leave the gun, take the cannoli.” Clemenza even taught us how to make marinara sauce.
Animal House-With an R rating, I had to sneak in to see this show at age 16. Always the rebel…
Both Animal House and Blazing Saddles probably produced more quoted references than any two movies. Who didn’t try to quote Bluto’s lines back then? Same with D-Day and Flounder.
Bluto’s classic “Sorry.” after he smash’s the folk singing minstrel’s guitar is epic. “Was it over when the German’s bombed Pearl Harbor?” There’s a ton of them.
Blazing Saddles-Another stealth, underage sneak in of mine. I worked with a guy who told me his room-mates and him would watch Blazing Saddles with the sound turned off and everyone in the room would take turn reciting the dialogue. Genious…
Slim Pickens should have got an Oscar for his Sheriff Taggart role. Alex Karras should have gotten a nod for Mongo, but Mongo only pawn in game of life…
Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and Casino-I just love the gangster and mafia shoot ‘em ups. I am enthralled with organized crime and the mafia. Robert De Niro is so believable along with
Joe Pesci. I like how the little guy is the bad-ass. In Taxi Driver, De Niro is warped.
Think of, “You talkin’ to me? Well I’m the only one here.” Classic. I still have a hard time understanding why Jody Foster’s parents let her play Iris the not-even-teenage hooker.
Pulp Fiction- Don’t you love to hear Samuel L. Jackson cuss? He can say “damn” and I fall down laughing. The way all of the storylines intertwined is perfect. I even learned what a Big Mac is called in France, which makes this an educational film too. Travolta and Uma Thurman cut a rug big time at Jack Rabbit Slim’s. So many good lines; Bruce Willis saying “It’s a chopper baby.” and “Zed’s dead baby. Zed’s dead.” are but a few. I can watch this another 100 times and catch something new.
Arthur-One of the flat-out funniest movies ever done. Dudley Moore and John Gielgud were perfectly cast and Liza Minelli is actually pretty funny. Geraldine Fitzgerald as Arthur’s grandmother is priceless.
Nothing with Leonardo DiCaprio- Sorry Matt Damon and Jack Nicholson (The Departed), but I can’t stand this prick. He over-acts, he is arrogant and I just don’t like him. Sorry Leo…
Anything with Henry Fonda-Spencer’s Mountain and On Golden Pond are two of my favorites. The Rounders with Glenn Ford is another good one. Hard to believe Jane is his daughter…
Marathon Man- This one probably made more people afraid of the dentist than anything. My parents don’t like telemarketers and let all calls go to voice mail. Whenever I call them I always ask “Is it safe?” in an awful German accent. Dustin Hoffman plays a graduate student whose father committed suicide when he was a child. He is still haunted by this and trains for marathons to keep himself sane.
Serpico-Another good with Al Pacino. True story of Frank Serpico who testified about New York City police corruption in the 60s and 70’s.
French Connection I and II-For the longest time I thought this was a true story, but not as it turns out. Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider are New York detectives who stumble on to a heroin smuggling ring from France and try to stop it in the first one. In number II, Gene Hackman goes to France to catch the “Frog” and take him down.
Just about anything from John Wayne- “The Quiet Man” is my all- time fave. The fight between Sean Thornton and Squire Danaher from the farm to town is the best. “The Cowboys” is another good one. Can’t help but shed a tear at the end. “North To Alaska” and “McClintock” show the comedian in him. His only crapper was when he played Genghis Khan
in “The Conqueror”. John Wayne with a Fu Manchu. What was he thinking???
The Hundred Foot Journey-Being a wanna be cook makes this drama work for me. An Indian family moves to France and opens an Indian restaurant across the street from a Michelin starred French restaurant run by Helen Mirren. I found the recipe for the omelet that was in the story and cooked it. Food nerd…
“Finding Nemo”, “Shrek”, “Puss In Boots” and “Monster’s Inc.”- I needed a cartoon section. Plus, these are full of vaguely veiled adult humor and I gut laugh at all of them.
MASH-I think I watched the TV series before I ever saw the movie. Don’t miss this one when it shows on TCM.
Red and Red 2-Once again Helen Mirren. Coincidence? I think not. John Malkovich is funny as hell and Bruce Willis is his usual cool self.
Goodbye Mr. Chips-A bit of a tear jerker at the end, but pretty good stuff. I’ve never seen the 1930’s version, only the late 60’s film. Peter O’Toole and Petula Clark were cast perfectly.
The Big Lebowski-Perfect example of a cult film. Jeff Bridges is good, but John Goodman is even better. Another one to quote from; “Yeah, well, that’s just like your opinion, man.” and “Forget it Donnie. You’re out of your element.”
Clint Eastwood-Last one but certainly not last. Dirty Harry says it all. “A man’s got to know his limitations.” and “This is a 44 magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and can blow your head clean off.” and “You got to be wondering, did he fire 6 shots or only 5?”
The Unforgiven and Bronco Billy are pretty awesome too. Who thought Clint Eastwood could sing?
