LU's Favourite Movie - 2015 Edition

[Red Bear]

I liked memento

 

[perverse]

The Sixth Sense, like Memento, is one of those films that loses a lot when you consider it beyond its gimmick. Take away the reverse storyline or the now standard M Night Shymalanadingdong plot twist, and the movies aren't quite as strong.

Rewatching Sixth Sense isn't nearly as enjoyable when you consider that its entire premise is essentially building towards a twist you already know.

Yeah I mean that's probably true... but why would you consider it beyond it's gimmick? The whole movie is a setup for that reveal, and it's really well executed. Ditto Memento... the story is what it is... but the technique in the film-making elevates it beyond an average flick.

You say gimmick... but I think that cheapens both of those films. What does The Green Mile offer beyond any of said films? Nothing really exciting there except for Tom Hanks' internal monologue regarding how much his piss burns.

Not that I'm trying to defend the Academy... Shakespeare in Love beat Saving Private Ryan. Now... I like both movies... but one's a movie worthy of winning best picture, the other has Gwyneth Paltrow in man-drag for much of the film.

 

[alien]

so when are we getting the next 10 movies???

 

[Tommy Smith]

I would how many Top 15s Fury Road would have made had this poll opened two weeks later?

An instant classic.

 

[alien]

I would how many Top 15s Fury Road would have made had this poll opened two weeks later?

An instant classic.

alot of people will probably have it in their top 15 next year then

 

[T.S Quint]

You're a tough marker when The Sixth Sense isn't a particularly well made film in your book. It's a real shame M Night Shammywhatshisface hasn't been able to replicate his success with that movie. I actually thought one of his recent movies - Devil - was an interesting little flick. It wasn't The Sixth Sense good... but it was watchable.

To be honest, I enjoyed The Green Mile... but it didn't stick with me like American Beauty and The Sixth Sense did. All I remember about The Green Mile is Tom Hanks' particularly nasty UTI, and how it gets cured.

He didn't direct or write that one.
Just served as a producer.

I'm a big fan of Unbreakable, and Signs was very good - it had a weak ending, but it wasn't bad enough to ruin the whole movie for me.
I even thought The Village wasn't that bad.

Since then though he's been on a massive downward spiral. I'm going to check out the TV series he's created (Wayward Pines) to see if he's returned to form.

 

[T.S Quint]

Yeah I mean that's probably true... but why would you consider it beyond it's gimmick? The whole movie is a setup for that reveal, and it's really well executed. Ditto Memento... the story is what it is... but the technique in the film-making elevates it beyond an average flick.

You say gimmick... but I think that cheapens both of those films. What does The Green Mile offer beyond any of said films? Nothing really exciting there except for Tom Hanks' internal monologue regarding how much his piss burns.

Not that I'm trying to defend the Academy... Shakespeare in Love beat Saving Private Ryan. Now... I like both movies... but one's a movie worthy of winning best picture, the other has Gwyneth Paltrow in man-drag for much of the film.

Totally agree.
The way a film is made is a huge part of whether it is any good or not. The Memento story is pretty bland, but the way it was made bumps it up into 'great' territory.

 

[alien]

Signs was very good - it had a weak ending, but it wasn't bad enough to ruin the whole movie for me.
I even thought The Village wasn't that bad.

i liked signs. i put that in my top 15, just. the village is probably the movie that i hate the most out of all movies that i have seen at a cinema, and i have seen heaps

 

[Misanthrope]

#50 - 46

#50 - Dirty Dancing (1987) - 74 points from three voters

Starring: Jennifer Grey & Patrick Swayze.
Director: Emile Arolino.
Writer: Eleanour Bergstein.
Awards: Academy Award for Best Original Song.

This is what happen when girls get in the mix. We get a god damned movie about dancing and rebellious, over-sexed teens in the top fifty. Shame on you! Shame. On. You.

It's no classic, but Dirty Dancing does perhaps warrant inclusion for its contribution to pop culture. It remains a regularly referenced film nearly thirty years after its release, and marked perhaps the highest point in both Swayze and Grey's careers.

#49 - Monty Python & The Holy Grail (1975) - 75 points from four voters

Starring: Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin.
Director: Terry Gilliam & Terry Jones
Writer: Monty Python
Awards: N/A

One of the most enduring and well regarded comedies of all time, Monty Python's parody of the Arthurian epic is their sole featuring in this year's count-down and a justified inclusion in the top fifty. Infinitely quotable and full of some of the most zany, over the top characters the team have ever created, it remains a fond favourite some forty years after its release.

=#47 - Big Hero 6 (2014) - 78 points from three voters

Starring: Ryan Potter, Scott Adsit, TJ Miller, Jamie Chung, Damon Wayans Jr, Genesis Rodriguez, Maya Rudolph, Alan Tudyk, and James Cromwell.
Director: Don Hall & Chris Williams.
Writers: Jordan Roberts, Dan Gerson, and Robert Baird. Based on the graphic novel by Steven T Seagle & Duncan Rouleau.
Awards: Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.

Again proving that everything Marvel touches turns to gold, this Disney helmed adaptation of the popular comic received critical acclaim for its style, its humour, and its heart. With its messages of camaraderie, brotherly love, and fulfilling one's potential - it has become a fast favourite and that love is evident by its place in the top fifty.

=#47 - Amelie (2001) - 78 points from three voters

Starring: Audrey Tatou, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Yolande Moreau.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet.
Writer: Guillaume Laurant.
Awards: None. Nominated for five Academy Awards.

The highest placed foreign language film on the list, the surrealist French romantic comedy took the world by storm in 2001. Its quirky plot and characters were instantly endearing to a jaded Hollywood fed audience, and it remains one of French cinemas most popular films.

#46 - 500 Days of Summer (2009) - 84 points from three voters

Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel.
Director: Marc Webb.
Writers: Scott Neustadter & Michael H Weber.
Awards: Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay.

A romantic comedy for boys and girls alike, Tom Hansen's relationship with the infectiously appealing (and titular) Summer was praised by critics for its emotional honesty, its sense of humour, and refreshing take on the romantic comedy genre.

Descanel is the prototypical manic pixie dream girl and Gordon-Levitt is one of the most appealing, honest, and plausible romantic foils that we've seen from the genre.
​

 

[Dutchy]

Oh good, all of mine must be top 45.

 

[God-King Dean]

Same lol

 

[veggiepatch1959]

I would how many Top 15s Fury Road would have made had this poll opened two weeks later?

An instant classic.

Mad Max: Fury Road is currently No. 3 on the IMDB ratings after 21000 votes with a score of 9.0/10.

Only The Shawshank Redemption and The Godfather are in front of it.

 

[God-King Dean]

I wondered the same thing Tommy.

Probably best to see if it stands the test of time though, rather then hastily putting it in the top 15 of all time favourites.

Going to see it tonight. Pumped.

 

[veggiepatch1959]

I'm eager for the next instalment of the Top 100.

Doing my usual LU vs IMDB comparison as I type.

 

[veggiepatch1959]

Out of the 54 movies listed by Misanthrope so far, only 33 are in the IMDB's Top 1000 movies of all time.

The highest ranked IMDB movie in LU's list is The Godfather 2 which comes in at No. 3.

LU forumers rated it at equal No. 78.

 

[T.S Quint]

Holy Grail was on my list.

 

[veggiepatch1959]

Mad Max: Fury Road is currently No. 3 on the IMDB ratings after 21000 votes with a score of 9.0/10.

Only The Shawshank Redemption and The Godfather are in front of it.

Took a huge nosedive in the past few days - now rated at No. 23.

I've heard mixed reviews, especially about the content of CGI.

From those who have seen it, is it infected with copious amounts of CGI or not?

The trailers I've seen say it is a CGI fest.

 

[perverse]

He didn't direct or write that one.
Just served as a producer.

I'm a big fan of Unbreakable, and Signs was very good - it had a weak ending, but it wasn't bad enough to ruin the whole movie for me.
I even thought The Village wasn't that bad.

Since then though he's been on a massive downward spiral. I'm going to check out the TV series he's created (Wayward Pines) to see if he's returned to form.

Yeah, I enjoyed Unbreakable and Signs too. Signs was actually fantastic up until the point we're meant to believe the aliens - from their point of view - invaded a planet almost entirely covered in acid... with all the sentient life on the planet also being comprised of, predominantly, acid. Didn't War of the Worlds (2005) have a similarly geniused ending? Like the aliens were destroyed by bacteria on our planet or something? Apparently these aliens that have mastered travel through the cosmos are too geniused to check for basic chemical and microbial threats to their existence prior to full-scale invasion.

Haven't seen the Village, but I might check it out. Didn't even know about WAyward Pines, so it might have to go on my list too.

 

[T.S Quint]

Yeah, I enjoyed Unbreakable and Signs too. Signs was actually fantastic up until the point we're meant to believe the aliens - from their point of view - invaded a planet almost entirely covered in acid... with all the sentient life on the planet also being comprised of, predominantly, acid. Didn't War of the Worlds (2005) have a similarly geniused ending? Like the aliens were destroyed by bacteria on our planet or something? Apparently these aliens that have mastered travel through the cosmos are too geniused to check for basic chemical and microbial threats to their existence prior to full-scale invasion.

Haven't seen the Village, but I might check it out. Didn't even know about WAyward Pines, so it might have to go on my list too.

Yeah, that's how War of the Worlds ended. It was straight from the book (which was written in 1898) and I didn't mind it. Was a different ending to just blowing them up or something.

Be warned about The Village. I'm in the extreme minority on that film, and I actually haven't seen it in quite a few years.

 

[Misanthrope]

Took a huge nosedive in the past few days - now rated at No. 23.

I've heard mixed reviews, especially about the content of CGI.

From those who have seen it, is it infected with copious amounts of CGI or not?

The trailers I've seen say it is a CGI fest.

It's more practical effects than CGI. I think the complaint might be over the quality of the CGI when it is used, which isn't world class by any stretch.

Yeah, that's how War of the Worlds ended. It was straight from the book (which was written in 1898) and I didn't mind it. Was a different ending to just blowing them up or something.

Be warned about The Village. I'm in the extreme minority on that film, and I actually haven't seen it in quite a few years.

I absolutely loved The Village right up until the arbitrary twist. It was atmospheric, well acted, and thoroughly engaging. The outrage tends to be because the twist cheapened what had come before it.

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I'll do the next five this evening. Studying for my law final atm.