Match Cut Presents: Four Top Fifties

[Idioteque Stalker]

Welcome to a new thread in which four Match Cut posters (Dukefrukem, Idioteque Stalker, transmogrifier, and Zac Efron) will each share individual top fifty movies lists. The starting point for these lists is traditional “all time favorite movies,” but we may have some surprises as well. Since we are real human people, we do not guarantee new posts daily. It’s quite possible you won’t see the end of our lists until 2021, while it’s also possible we will finish more quickly in an hallucinatory fit of concentrated film nerd energy. But don’t count on it. These are our most dearly loved films, after all. It will be our pleasure to present them to you over some time. We hope you enjoy it as well.

Click the spoilers to view the in-progress lists.

Dukefrukem
[

Show Spoiler

50. The Nightingale
49. Nothing But Trouble
48. Dragged Across Concrete
47. Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins
46. Rushmore
45. The Fugitive
44. A Serbian Film
43. Romancing the Stone
42. Stand By Me
41. The 'Burbs

]

Idioteque Stalker
[

Show Spoiler

50. Contempt
49. Paranoid Park
48. Duck Amuck, La Jetee, The Man Who Planted Trees, Pas De Deux, The Red Balloon, and World of Tomorrow
47. Enchanted
46. Exit Through the Gift Shop
45. Show Me Love
44. Eyes Wide Shut
43. Buffalo '66
42. Opening Night
41. The Wind In the Willows

]

transmogrifier
[

Show Spoiler

50. The Last Movie/James Cameron/A Tribe Called Quest
49. Seconds/Sam Peckinpah/Melvins
48. High and Low/Ron Shelton/The Breeders
47. The Conformist/Samuel Fuller/The Velvet Underground
46. Audition/Michael Haneke/Talking Heads
45. Les Diaboliques/Hayao Miyazaki/Future of the Left
44. United 93/Fritz Lang/Rage Against the Machine
43. Spirited Away/Kathryn Bigelow/Pulp
42. Once Upon a Time In America/Zhang Yimou/Faith No More
41. Twelve Monkeys/Robert Altman/Ween

]

Zac Efron
[

Show Spoiler

50. Jesus' Son
49. Run Lola Run
48. Laurel Canyon
47. My Dinner with Andre
46. Babe
45. Drive
44. Blade Runner 2049
43. The Neverending Story
42. Little Women
41. Private Parts

]

[Ezee E]

Nice. Look forward to this.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#50



The Nightingale (2018)

Starting off with a fresh one; Boy. Not a film you want to watch if you're a new parent. Sure at heart it's a core revenge film that may or may not end in the way you think it will, but the visceral tone of some of the shots, especially within the first act, are hard to stomach and forget. Does anyone else when watching films, feel their palms or feet to determine how impacted you are? What your stress level is? For me, it's a way to gauge a film's effectiveness. Am I really paying attention. Well watching this film I was, and it will surely have a long standing memory, taking up real estate in my brain.

[Idioteque Stalker]

#50



Contempt

As one might expect, Jean-Luc Godard’s hyper-referential masterpiece, Contempt, is rich with meta-textual layering. A work-in-progress adaptation of The Odyssey, which serves as a backdrop for the film’s events, provides a mirror in which we find leads Michel Piccoli and Brigitte Bardot. One might consider the debates between writer Piccoli and director Fritz Lang (playing himself) regarding Odysseus and Penelope’s feelings toward one another to be a heavy-handed reflection of Contempt’s tragic couple, but it’s one of Godard’s only generosities in a film so otherwise concerned with our inability, sometimes even our unwillingness, to communicate effectively.

In an extra sprinkle of cynicism, it is Jack Palance’s cocksure, money-obsessed producer who is maybe the film’s most eloquent speaker, always saying precisely what he means, even if it happens to come from the book of quotations he keeps in his pocket. Bardot and Piccoli, on the other hand, mostly speak to each other with vagueness, answering questions with other questions, rarely telling the other how they truly feel. Even when they show kindness and affection, Georges Delerue’s heartbreaking score assures us they are lying. This is not a film in which we wonder if the lead couple is going to make it through a tough time; its tender opening scene notwithstanding, this is a film where—like Greek tragedy—it’s clear from the onset there’s just one way this is going to go down, and only through sheer poeticism are we compelled to see it through.

[Idioteque Stalker]

Whoa! Cool list idea. And a film I'm very interested in seeing. Looking forward to the rest.

[transmogrifier]

For me, I'm doing three Top 50 lists for the price of one!


1. Top 50 movies that I have logged a viewing of since 2004 (that’s when I started keeping the viewing log). Thus, some films I watched a long time ago and loved do not make the list (e.g., Paths of Glory) - honestly, I don’t really remember much about them anyway. Recent!
2. Top 50 directors. Ordered purely by their average score from my viewing log (minimum 3 films). Thus, some of my very favorites with large filmographies who have made some pretty bad films do not make it (e.g., Spike Lee and Woody Allen), and other directors who I don’t really care about do (TBA). Objective!
3. Top 50 musical artists. Ordered purely by the number of plays I have logged on LastFM since 2007. Funnily enough, this turns out to be very close to my actual sentiments when it comes to these artists. Turns out that I tend to listen more to the bands/artists I like more. Weird!

Just be aware that I probably will be the one slowing down this list.

50.

Movie: The Last Movie (1971)
Director: Dennis Hopper
Commentary: If only the fiascoes of our current movie generation held up so well. Works best as a doc-hybrid, kind of recreating itself as it goes along, a sharp, blackly comic look at the mentality of movie-making in general, both studio mimicry and devotion to making movies for the sake of making movies (how else to read the villagers blindly copying the 'artistry' of someone else with little interest in understanding the actual mechanics of how it all works) and counter-culture, indie movies, where those with "ideas" simply must document them on film, without having a clue about cinema as an art form (the hilarious almost-final scene at the campfire - "Just tell me, you know how to find gold? "I know just as much as I knew before, maybe more because you told me about the mercury...", not to mention the hippie dream of dropping out of the rat-race to the countryside being constantly corrupted by simple human nature)

The final 15 minutes or so eats itself, and it's terrific, as the fourth wall is not just broken, it's shattered. Sure, there is a sense throughout that this is all just a happy accident, found footage thrown together by a film-maker strung out on drugs, but that too only reinforces its strange, primal alchemy.
Key Quote: "You know, wait a minute fellas, I don't even have my fucking scar"
Best Moment: As above, the last 15 minutes, with a special shout out to the camera made from sticks.



Director: James Cameron
Films Seen: 7
Average: 68.57/100
Commentary: Technically beyond reproach, his dialogue can be a little on the tin-eared side, and he tends to favor big, broad, easy to digest themes - but he he is one of the best kinetic directors around. Just don't ask him to try to write about marriage when he is going though a bitter divorce - that is how you get dreck like True Lies.
Best Film: Aliens
Worst Film: True Lies
Best Quote: "What are you going to do, talk the alien to death?"



Musical Artist: A Tribe Called Quest
Commentary: I wouldn't call myself an ATCQ fan as such, in that I do not really have a favorite album or song - instead, I have all of their albums in my library and I love to throw one on a random and be instantly transported into a very particular headspace. Super consistent throughout their career, they even managed to nail the dreaded comeback album.

[DFA1979]

The last list I made was a list of the 100 worst films I had ever seen. I'll be reading.

[Skitch]

I made a top 100. Had to include 50 honorable mentions lol

[Idioteque Stalker]

Already two cool-looking movies I haven't seen. Excellent. And Tribe Called Quest love is always welcome.

James Cameron nearly bumped off the list after trans' disastrous True Lies viewing haha.

[Dukefrukem]

Haha when did he say that quote? "What are you going to do, talk the alien to death" ?

[transmogrifier]

Haha when did he say that quote? "What are you going to do, talk the alien to death" ?

I believe he said it to Sigourney Weaver when she complained about the overuse of guns in Aliens?

[Morris Schæffer]

I believe he said it to Sigourney Weaver when she complained about the overuse of guns in Aliens?

Which in turn may have led to the real, in-movie reply: "Man, what are we supposed to use? Harsh language?" when they're deep inside the nuclear processor.

[Mal]

49. RUN LOLA RUN (1999)
“The ball is round, a game lasts 90 minutes, everything else is pure theory.”

At a brisk 80 minutes, Director Tom Tykwer’s 1999 non-stop adrenaline rush of a film feels like a perfectly tuned picture to cap-off a decade defined by style. It has that quintessentially era-specific feature of pulse-pounding frenetic editing - MTV-style as it used to be known - that keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat and their eyes challenged but always satisfied by bright, saturated imagery. Franka Potente’s lead performance as Lola is hungry, driven, terrified - we experience this runaway journey and its layers along with her, each minute more frenetic than the last, while she tries to save the day for her partner Manny.
Whether he’s the right man for her or not isn’t the question - she’s truly running for herself, running to make things right the only way she thinks she can. Sprinting on her feet, accepting consequences that lay in front of her. There is so much in the way of chaos, yet Tykwer is generous enough to give us a few chances to get a better glimpse of what’s happening while our heroine picks up the pace on her feet, as well as some intimate red-lit bedroom chats between Lola and her boyfriend to discuss their relationship. These moments feel a bit invasive, yet it fills in the blanks for their history and emotional connection, slowing down the world to breathe and get personal. Tykwer also gives us brief glimpses at how the brief encounters Lola has while running in public affects others around her- these aren’t the most interesting parts of the film at all, though they play along with the entire fate construct of the story.

Run Lola Run is a movie, for me, that serves up joyful entertainment every single time I watch it. It’s fascinating to me how it didn’t yield too many imitators, despite its unique pacing and design. And Tykwer himself didn’t necessarily follow up the film with a series of other stories based in action and chaos. He teamed up with Franka Potente again with 2000’s The Princess And The Warrior - a fable set in present time where a life of crime fascinates the Princess in question as she falls for the troubled Warrior. While its a bit more calm and dreamy as pictures go, its still in his wheelhouse of fate and hope in a broken world, where victory comes not just from success, but from the relationships we sow. The things that matter and make us human beyond money, power, and conflict in the world.

(Available via digital rental on most platforms)

[Skitch]

Love RLR and Tykwer!

[Mal]

48. LAUREL CANYON (2003)
“I can't control my heart... I wouldn't want to, even if I could.”

I struggled with trying to decide where to rank Laurel Canyon. This is not a particularly great, groundbreaking, nor epic film. It doesn’t have any significant storytelling nor impactful material. But what it does have is a good cast - Christian Bale’s Sam and Kate Beckinsale’s Alex are a cute-yet-uptight studious American couple who are looking to spend some vacation time at the home of Sam’s mother Jane before their upcoming nuptials. Off they fly to California, for some relaxation in mom’s allegedly empty home. But what they find instead is an occupied homestead, including Jane herself (Frances McDormand). She’s a legendary record producer who drives Sam crazy because his mom is just so… wacky (i.e. not conservative).

What makes this an enjoyable film, despite its sort of lackadaisical scripting and motivations, is its commitment to fuck around, smoke a joint or cigarette, and get drunk. It’s a hangout movie that, at first, doesn’t really want to be one- and that’s where the Sam and Alex push/pull comes in. Fittingly, the film starts out with the two of them having a coitus session interrupted by Jane leaving a voicemail on their answering machine. And by the end of the film, Jane has, effectively, taken over their lives and the characters have learned to succumb to their emerging free-wheeling desires (sex stuff) that they normally would suppress in other settings, as well as make peace with the disrupted road ahead of them. Sam discovers he has urges to be with another woman, while Alex becomes seduced by Jane and her Rock ’N Roll aura.
On top of all of that conflict for the viewer, there’s the music. Oh, the music. The opening credits of the film features text flowing over the lovely Los Angeles canyons of the story, set to a dreamy track called “In a Funny Way” by the band Mercury Rev. This ushers in a fluttery, mystical mood regarding the musical history and creations of a time now past - the history that Jane was part of and is still trying to continue in her in-home record studio. This throwback feeling is all around them in the present- and thankfully also embodied within Jane’s partner Ian (Alessandro Nivola, who isn’t British but it doesn’t matter- the man is sex on legs). He’s somewhat of a catalyst for the behavioral changes in the leads, while also adding needed color as he croons in the studio during creative collaborations with Jane and his band. Overall, while Laurel Canyon isn’t as artistically lush a picture as the storied musical history that came before it, the attempt to evoke a certain mood is often quite successful, so much that I can’t help but watch it over and over, always wanting it to be better, yet still enjoying what is available as a feeling and experience.


(Available via digital rental on most platforms)

[Mal]

I found doing a list of 50 movies in this current climate extremely daunting. During times of COVID, I'm finding myself able to watch at least one movie a day guaranteed. I've got a number of streaming services teasing me with emails of recently added films, stuff I'll never watch or films I'm suddenly desperate to watch. And then there's the numerous sites- including MC and Twitter- talking about new stuff all the time that I'm suddenly excited to see. Film critics, some I even know personally, who see and review new things that sound fantastic, so I've gotta see it as soon as I can, right? My life as a film watcher has been constant, but ever evolving.
Back in the 90s as a kid, I watched Siskel and Ebert, and read my newspaper for the occasional arts section movie review. AT TOPS I learned of maybe 7 films a week? Life was so simple then! When I was 13, I got a job at a video store. It was still simple despite always having thousands of movies to pick from without cost to me. Nowadays, I'm truly overwhelmed, though always extremely grateful for the different ways we can all share and learn about movies.

But a list. 50 movies? I've seen thousands since I was a kid. 50 movies I like? I like a lot of things. I have movies on disc all over the house, more on digital and files on a number of hard drives. Its a lot, yet I welcome the feeling of always having film clutter, because it means I always have something to watch. Stories new and old, it really doesn't matter. All that matters is that I get something out of the 90-120 minutes (or whatever), and can move on to the next one without fail.

This is where I find myself right now: 50 movies that have been either some kind of personal favorite or something unforgettable that decided to stay in my mind for a long time. Maybe this helps you all understand me a little better? It's not the goal, though I feel like this list says something about me, where I've come from, what I've learned, etc. in the 35 years I've been around.






50. JESUS’ SON (2000)

Billy Crudup’s lead performance paints the portrait of a man drifting through the 70s who unfortunately leans into his odd, bad instincts at every turn. He finds himself given the name Fuckhead- a name that seems to stick regardless of his intentions. He falls for Michelle (Samantha Morton) a volatile presence who we know- like some of the characters we meet as the film rolls along- may run out of gas due to their drug use. The film embraces the varied experiences of its short-story roots through the script, bringing to light different facets of feeling and personality to Fuckhead though shifting moments of insanity, sadness, and empathy.

Director Alison Maclean takes us along the road with Fuckhead, changing scenarios with ease, often without much explanation. Fuckhead at one point gets a job in a hospital, despite being a messed-up addict. And remarkably he seems to be OK at what he’s tasked to do. This keeps the tone of the film fairly light- despite its darkness- able to give its lead character a chance for change in different settings. In my opinion, he’s never truly unlikable despite what these stories and characters may say about him. He discovers camaraderie, beauty, and his own path to redemption in an honest manner. Jesus’ Son may come off as one of those 90s-ish indie drug pictures that feels low budget and sprinkles poetic notions throughout. I find the film, regardless of setting and conflict, endearing as Fuckhead fucks up, meets a new friend, fucks up again. The formula may not work for some, but the way the film is about it definitely works for me.

(no current streaming option, available on torrents)

[Ezee E]

Nice intro ZF! Haven't seen that movie either and now I'm curious

[Mal]

Nice intro ZF! Haven't seen that movie either and now I'm curious

Thanks! I just realized this isn't streaming anywhere- back some years ago, it was on netflix, though not anymore, poo. I'm gonna start noting where you can watch my selected movies in the bottom of the post.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#49



Nothing But Trouble (1991)

It was during the SNL glory days. VHS and Blockbuster video was a thing of beauty. And reading the box at the rental store, if you told 10 year old me that Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, John Candy made a movie together, written and directed by Dan Aykroyd? I would say, "yes of course I will rent this movie every weekend for the next 37 weeks please!" I fell in love with this movie.. it would take decades for me to realize how much of a shit show the production was. Look at Dan Aykroyd's face in the screenshot above! He has a penis for a nose! No matter. 10 year old me never saw that. I only saw the things that mattered. Weird death roller coaster. A short appearance from 2Pac. Loony Toons ending. An old mansion that these people had to escape. (also keep in mind 10 year old me had just played Resident Evil so I was a little bit obsessed with old mansions at the moment). All of these things mashed together and formed some kind of creepy soft spot for this film that I just happened to rewatch recently with my wife. She didn't share the same appreciation as I do for this movie.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#48



Dragged Across Concrete (2018)

Another fresh one. This film does not care about your feelings. It is completely non-forgiving, but there's just one scene that stands out as a gut punch, especially with new parents or soon to be come parents. It feels like a complete non sequitur when the scene begins. A woman, Jennifer Carpenter, who has postpartum depression, is about to go back to work for the first time in months after giving birth. The love for her baby is completely drawn out and they even show a shot of the husband holding the baby as mom is going to work... at a bank. What hits hard about what comes next is the complete misdirection from an advertising point of view. Jennifer Carpenter is on the freakin' poster, 5th billed. If anyone knows the slightest thing about one sheets and screen time there is probably a good chance that Jennifer Carpenter becomes a hostage at the bank. Whelp, I won't spoil it here. Watch it and get back to me or just take my word for it.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#47



Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)

As a kid, I used to believe the tile was part of a trilogy. I was knee deep in trilogies at this point in time when I saw it (a few will be referenced later in this list) and I just assumed every successful movie had it's own trilogy. Plus how misleading: "The Adventure Begins". Where's the Adventure Strikes Back and the Last Adventure? But this was the VHS age and I'll be damned if I'm not going to memorize every line in this movie. There's something about the campyness of the tone, the secret agent parts and the kung-fu parts that made this stand out. It's probably more of a guilty pleasure at this point, but it had a huge impact on sub-genre films. Fred Ward also gets the credit for introducing me to Tremors.

[Skitch]

Man I have got to watch this damn Remo movie. My whole life I've heard people talk about it and I've never seen a frame.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#46



Rushmore (1998)

My introduction to Wes Anderson as a high school 14 year old. A friend of mine's brother had a very extensive DVD collection this year, which to everyone else on the planet, means they were super rich since DVD didn't break through into mainstream until several years later. This movie blew me away. I had never been exposed to movies like this before. Wes Anderson, Coen Brothers and to some extend Quentin Tarantino were all introduced to me by my friends' older brother. It was the first time I realized that "comedies" outside of American Pie could be funny. It changed the way I looked at comedy, from slapstick Hot Shots Part Deux , Ace Ventura and the Naked Gun... to black comedies like Fargo and Rushmore. Irony finally made sense! But it was this moment that made me seek out others like it. I'm grateful I was exposed to this so early in life.

[Dukefrukem]

Duke's Top 50 Most Influential Movies Throughout Life
The movies I've seen from age 10-35 that have had ANY (small or large) impact on my personal viewpoint on life, lived by myself, or the perceived perspective of someone else's life.
#45



The Fugitive (1993)

The definitive 'chase' and 'wrongfully accused' movie. No one runs better than Ford. No one tracks down their man better than TLJ. Is Ford the the best franchise actors (Indiana Jones, Jack Ryan, Star Wars (and Blade Runner I guess?)), as well as able to think of him exclusive to his solo work? I.e. this film. How was he able to overcome the trope or the type cast? Believe it or not it was this movie, not Star Wars or Indiana Jones, that made me look at things like Patriot Gams and Clear and Present Danger. As a kid, never thought of the franchise stuff being the GOOD Harrison Ford. This is probably his best film from star to finish.

[Idioteque Stalker]

Please tell me that thing doesn't flare out when he sniffs.