My 15(or so) Favorite Movies

This is one of those posts were, I'd like to show you something new or give you some updates. But I've got nothing, so I figured I'd a do a fun post about myself. Cheers.

-K

My 15(give or take) Favorite movies


If you can't tell, this isn't the 15 movies I consider the best, it's the 15 movies I go back to, the ones I have fond memories of, the type of movie I will not stop watching if I stumble upon it on TV. Also, some of these are in pairs. It's my list, my rules.

15) Garden State/ The Last Kiss















I always felt that The Last Kiss was the thematic continuation of Garden State. Garden State dealt with people in their early twenties trying to figure out what they want, while The Last Kiss is about people in their late twenties trying to figure if what they have is actually what they want.

14) Training Day

Denzel Washington is fucking boring.Except when he is Alonzo Harris. Then, I can watch him all day, all night, and whenever TNT is showing Training Day ad nauseum. Alonzo Harris is an asshole, a prick, and someone you wish wouldn't get shot up by the Russians.




















13) Before Sunset
You know what you never see? A perfect sequel to a charming indie flick 9 years after the first, that exceeds the original. A honest portrayal of people and relationships, and one movie I quote all the time.






















12) Half Nelson
The best, most engrossing movie to ever focus on a crack addicted teacher and one of his students. Brings heart to a fucked up friendship.













11) Hellboy/Hellboy II
 Guillermo del Toro was and is the perfect director to bring Mignola's world to life. Ron Perlman is perfect as Hellboy, and the monster effects in both movies are great, physical, effects. A guilty pleasure for me, especially since F/X always seem to be playing Hellboy.
























10)A Clockwork Orange
Gloriously fucked up and amazing, my favorite Kubrick movie ever, and something I always put in when I realize a friend or room-mate has never seen it. We can all uses a bit of the ultra violence, yeah?




























9) Chasing Amy
 I'm not a huge fan of Kevin Smith. Clerks did nothing for me, Dogma was meh, Jay & Silent Bob was forgettable, but Chasing Amy? Pitch perfect, with fantastic casting, and hilarious moments coming from Jason Lee and Dwight Ewell. Plus, come on, Ben Affleck with facial hair. Perfect.


























8) The Dark Knight/Watchmen

  The two most perfect comic book labors of love. The Dark Knight was Nolan's vision come to life, his Batman in all it's glory. Watchmen was Zach Snyder trying his damnedest to be as faithful to Alan Moore's masterpiece as possible. Both films have flaws, both films failed at parts, but both are the best comic book moves ever. 






















7)Gladiator
Are you kidding me? Come on, it's Gladiator!
































6) Heat
Pacino and DeNiro on screen together for the first time, in one of the best crime movies ever. Beside sthe big two, this movie is loaded from top to bottom in the casting. Natalie Portman, Jon Voight, Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, etc.


























5) Wall-E

Heart-breakingly lovely. I went to see this as a midnight showing, and it exceed all of my expectations. 




























4)28 Days Later/28 Weeks Later



The best horror movies ever, at least in my eyes. The stark stillness at the beginning of 28 Days Later always gave me chills, and then when the first of the infected you see is a priest? Perfect. The relationship between the four surviors, especially Jim/Selena, was far and beyond what you'd usually get from a "zombie" movie. Christopher Eccleston as the crazed Major was top notch too, and when things finally went to hell...man, they went to hell?
28 Weeks Later had an uphill battle, trying to be a sequel to 28 Days Later, but it succeeded. While it doesn't quite match 28 Days Later, it hits some perfect notes. Specifically the total breakdown of society when shit goes real bad, and how people would act in a situation such as this. 28 Weeks Later has such a frantic, crazy opening, that I love. And Jeremy Renner gave a lot to a character that could've been two dimensional. 


3)Shaun of the Dead/Hot Fuzz



 I'm seen both movie over 500 times, and each time I die laughing. And each time I find something I didn't notice beforehand that is clever. I remember watching both movies with my best friend, discussing what we'd do in case of z-day or repeating Hot Fuzz quotes as they happened on screen. Both movies are instant "You haven't seen this? Then we are watching it right now!" Classic.

2) Jurassic Park

 This was the first movie I looked forward to. Before Jurassic Park, yeah, I saw movies, but I was never looking forward to the day i would see them. This movie changed that. I honestly remember clearly, 7 years old, doing math homework at the dining room table while my mom watched Entertainment Tonight. They were doing a preview of Jurassic Park, and I remember being enthralled when I saw the Apatosaurus in the preview. When I was 7, I lived and breathed dinosaurs. I had every book on  them, and memorized everything about them. My favorite has always been Stegosaurus, by the way. Jurassic Park was the first film that showed me what I could get out of movies, which is something I always wanted: real life dinosaurs. The movie, while great, is second to the impact it had on me.  

1)Pan's Labyrinth

 It just so happens to be my favorite movie, ever, and there are not enough words or sentences for me to explain. It took my breath away the first time I saw it, and it does it everytime I see it. In my eyes, a perfect movie.