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Mysterio's Top Ten of 1999
You've already seen mine and Moriarty's... Now it's Mysterio's mysterious turn at things. So... without further ado... Here we go...
Well, here we are. Another year of films both good and bad has past by the wayside. The last couple of weeks have given me the time to reflect and gather my thoughts on the films of ’99. Plus with the holidays, the FX shop has been somewhat quiet around here lately, but not for long.
So is the time of TOP 10, and WORST 10 lists, Golden Globe® and upcoming Oscar® predictions. The first of which I bring to you, loyal AICN readers.
BUT, before I begin, let me list the 5 that were only just “slightly” edged out of my TOP TEN. Here goes…
“The SIXTH SENSE” – M. Night Shamaylan’s clever ghost story, with a twist. Extremely well made, with a surprising reserved and controlled performance by Willis. Not to mention the outstanding job by Hayley Joel Osment, which so much of this film relies upon. Clever, smart and chilling. A prime example of how good storytelling can overcome the ‘blood & gore’ horror flicks of past.
“EYES WIDE SHUT” – Kubrick’s final film. Not quite the masterpiece as Kubrick fans would have hoped, but a damn fine film nonetheless. Haunting images, stark lighting and photography help set the mood for Cruise & Kidman to bare the souls of a sexually troubled couple exploring their secret desires and fantasies during a low point in their marriage. Kidman owns this film. Her performance as Alice Harford to Cruise’s Bill, outshines him at every turn she’s onscreen. Sorry Tom, this one’s Nic’s (but you’ll soon have your chance to shine in the spotlight a bit later).
SIDENOTE: Warner Bros. Has just recently announced EWS for release on video in mid-march. Unfortunately they’ve also made note that it will be released in the same US (digitally edited) theatrical cut, but released elsewhere unedited. Warner Bros. This is inexcusable. It was before, but is so even more on video. Especially on DVD with no extras (a least the trailers, TV spots & music video wouldn’t hurt), a format that caters to film enthusiasts and purists. Shame on you Warners!
“The IRON GIANT” – A wonderful, heartfelt tale of a boy who befriends a strange alien, ‘Iron Giant’ of a robot. Misunderstood as a weapon of mass destruction, the film explores the relationship of the young boy as he attempts to protect his newly found friend from those bent on destroying what they fear rather than what they know. A well crafted piece of work with beautiful old time animation and a fantastic universal story to boot. This one’s for everyone.
“BEING JOHN MALKOVICH” – Fresh, wildly original and hugely entertaining (would have loved to been there for the pitch meeting in this one!). This film is one of those rare films that when it arrives not too many are sure what to make of it. It’s like a diamond in the ruff. The more you rub it, the more it shines, and it’s a gem. Oddly imaginative, it tells the story of a puppeteer and his girlfriend, who accidentally discover a strange portal, behind a filing cabinet, which leads the traveler to being John Malkovich for 15 minutes at a time at $200 a pop. Video whiz director, Spike Jonze has made an impressive film debut, but compared to his videos this film seems firmly restrained to capturing the performances and illustrating the story, rather than the kinetic camerawork and stylized editing associated with most of his video work. A wonderful little film.
“The MATRIX” – This film is so cool, it even makes Keanu look good! Total fun from start to finish. A complete surprise to me when I first saw it, since I really wasn’t expecting to like this film as much as I did. A film that boasts ground breaking visuals (I know, I know. I’m supposed to hate these being “old school”, but I’ll explain later), along with an intriguing storyline that borrows from “Through The Looking Glass”, with religious themes acting as a strong foundation for it’s story and characters, and Japanese anime for it’s visuals. And as for that last 45 minutes… “Whoa”. As the film’s hero, Neo remarks, “I know Kung-Fu”, I know this film kicks ass.
Now, on to the LIST!
10. “The FIGHT CLUB” – David Fincher’s dark and violently comedic (although not as violent as some say) film. This one was received well by most critics, but did poorly at the box-office. Expect its audience to find it on video this April, where it should eventually reach a cult status. A ‘90’s “CLOCKWORK ORANGE”.
09. “The BLAIR WITCH PROJECT” – Yes, I know. The film was over-hyped, which is kind of unfortunate, as it really doesn’t deserve all the backlash which it’s received. Like “The SIXTH SENSE”, this is a horror film that leaves the ax murderers and gore behind, and works off a clever premise instead. A film that at it’s core is more psychologically frightening and disturbing than most horror yarns of recent. Add to that the ingenious backstory and history surrounding the legend; along with the amateur faux-documentary visual look and feel to it, and this one’s a winner. Much better to have seen it before than after the marketing hype though.
08. “SOUTH PARK: Bigger, Longer & Uncut” – That’s right. This big-screen crossover had much doubt, but damn if Stone & Parker didn’t stick to their guns on this one. They turned this into an over-the-top, laugh out loud funny flick that takes no prisoners when offending everything from races, religion, politics, the MPAA, sexual innuendoes and Winona Ryder. Not to mention the brilliant “Disney-esque” songs cleverly incorporated throughout the film. The South Park boys shoot and score with this one, unlike their last film “BASKETball”.
07. “STAR WARS – Episode 1: The Phantom Menace” – No, it’s not the second coming of Christ, and if you didn’t perceive it as so, you’d enjoy this film for what it is – a friggin’ Star Wars film! Yeah, it’s got its faults, but what film doesn’t. Some may consider the story a bit flawed and week, but hey, there’s still two more to tell, and this one was just a set up for what will entail more promising installments in the series. Each frame is loaded with visuals that upon my first viewing my eyes and mind were on sensory overload. I’m still looking for Waldo hiding somewhere in the flick. The look and feel to this film, in its technological effects, production design, lavish costuming and action sequences keep in tradition of the past previous films. And that lightsabre duel. Just kicks ass each time I view it. Great combination of martial arts with traditional swordplay (kudos to you Mr. Park!). This film is just pure fun the way I remember Star Wars being.
06. “TOY STORY 2” – The toys’re back in this surprisingly delightful sequel. A sequel that’s equal if not better in some ways than it’s predecessor. A rare find in movies these days. The PIXAR gang has really made the most out of the computer animation that’s available today. They’ve pushed the limits, and in many ways refined their craft and it all shows onscreen. The digital presentation of this is just wonderful and accompanied with a great script and well-rounded characters (along with a few new additional characters) this movie is indeed a joy to behold! Now what’s the scoop on PIXAR’s “MONSTERS, INC.”?
05. “DOGMA” – Kevin Smith’s theological take on Catholicism raised a few eyebrows amongst its protesters, but this is a comedy with more than cheap laughs on its mind. A tough sell, Smith has laced an often difficult subject matter, with a spoonful of sugar, giving the viewer an entertaining look into religion without the feeling of being preached to. This film leaves one thinking more of the topic at hand, rather than the dick and fart jokes intermixed throughout (although they’re quite hysterical as well). Smart and funny, it’s Smith’s bravest and most personal work to date.
04. “The GREEN MILE” – Again, Frank Darabont demonstrates that he can just about re-write King better King can write himself. He seems to be the only writer/director in town of late that can do any film justice to King’s’ books. With a rich, well-constructed adaptation, and just near perfect casting, Darabont’s able to tell this wonderful tale with engaging characters with a rather deft hand. His actors are well directed, (lead by the always good Hanks with an amazing performance by Michael Duncan Clarke), and even at 3 hours this is a lean piece of filmmaking. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favor and see this film!
Now for the BIG “3”...
03. “The TALENTED MR. RIPLEY” – Another rich adaptation of only one of the five published “Ripley” novels. Matt Damon gives a career best here as Ripley, who is at best an extremely complex character at its core. Damon’s also wonderfully supported here by Jude Law, who plays Dickie, the new found friend whose life and company Ripley covets so much to the point that he’ll resort to horrific matters to keep it. Cate Blanchett also gives a delightful performance here as well, but the real scene-stealer here is Philip Seymour Hoffman, as Dickie’s suspicious friend, Freddie. The story is complex, and there are several twists and turns throughout, and I think that Anthony Minghella has just about pulled it off here. A good script, great actors, wonderful cinematography set against the backdrop of Italy in the late ‘50’s, it’s a rich piece, and I think Harry’s review near covers my feelings of this film (including the ending) as well.
02. “MAGNOLIA” – I think everyone knows my feelings on this movie, and I’m finding more and more that the people who are really coming down on this film stems from its long running time. It’s unfortunate but yes, its long but has so much going for it that it’s required. The only way to shorten it is to cut a character and their story, which is unnecessary and unfair in this case. Sure some may prefer another character or story to another, but as for myself, I enjoyed just about everything this film has going for it. It’s fresh, ballsy, and P.T. Anderson doesn’t always play it safe. He takes chances, and does so many times with this film in particular, and succeeds on many levels in doing so I think. This one was a tough call between my number one.
It was just about a flip of the coin but just got nudged out by...
01. “AMERICAN BEAUTY” – Fabulous piece of film this one is! Like the subject it deals with, this one is a spark of life into mainstream cinema. No doubt what should be an Oscar® winner for best screenplay, Alan Ball has constructed a terrific story of one man’s “awakening” and again taking the life and dreams he once had and making them a reality. Kevin Spacey just about owns this film and his portrayal of Lester in the film is so fun and fresh, that we can all just about sympathize to his situation and the characters around him. The dialogue here is dead on funny and razor sharp, and Dreamworks has just about the best Oscar® campaign going on in the recent trades on this one. Just like the smart campaign they did for slowly releasing this film so the audience could find the film rather than the film finding the audience that happens all too much today. This one will be talked about more and more come Oscar® time, and deserves to win as many awards as it can get. Sam Mendes makes an astonishing directorable debut and coming from a theatre background, his work is obvious. He spends a lot of time developing the characters and allowing his actors to grow with them onscreen. Adding to that Conrad Hall’s beautiful photography. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! A “beauty” of a film!
Ok, so there ya have it. It was a tough list to put together, but what I think most have in common is that we’re finally getting back to good scripts, with characters that are three-dimensional and storylines worth caring about. In most cases, the special effect films have either equally shared of taken a back seat to the above elements. A welcome change indeed! Let’s just hope the future to come warrants even more noteworthy films, as ’99 was indeed a solid year for some truly great films!
Oh, and why am I being a little less than judgmental on these damn computer visual effects? Well, it seems that Santa thought I wasn’t as bad as I thought I was, and left me a supercomputer of sorts that I’ve been playing with here at the underground studio for the past several weeks. Wonderful things these machines can do to enhance the artistic medium of special effects for films. Let’s just hope we, I mean they, don’t overuse them.
-Mysterio
E-mail @:
Mysterio_9999@yahoo.com
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Good list, not a lot else to say
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Swiss Toni... being top of a talk back is a lot like making love to a beautiful woman.... you have to get up early... you have to be able to connect quickly... and if you're lucky, you'll feel the joy of coming first.
Incidentally, folks, none of those top 3 are released in the UK yet. DAMN YOU DISTRBUTORS! Isn't life great? Has anyone laid any Oscar bets yet? I'm down for a triple on American beauty (best director and film) and Riply (best actor, Mat Damon) WITHOUT HAVING SEEN EITHER OF THEM. Harry, if I lose out, you owe me -
Unfortunately, as I live in Ireland, I have not seen the most of those films. SOO FRUSTRATING. However, I jst had to completely disagree with placing The Phantom Menace in your top 10. I am sick of people using the excuse that just because the film is a prequel, it is excused a weak storyling. A New Hope dealt with it. Visuals do not make a film. The acting was poor, the spirituality hackneyed, the sotry non-existent and apart from an excellent sabre-duel, no tension in the climax.
And before anyone says anything, i am a HUGE Star Wars fan. You could have picked so many other films eg 'Go', 'Election, 'Ruskmore'... oh well -
by the way, sorry for spelling the pahntom menace incoreectly
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I hope to travel someday. People here in Austin, Texas can be so immature. I hear that no one cares what age you smoke or drink in Europes.
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I really feel that the best movie of they year is a toss up between The Insider and American Beauty. Russell Crowe's performance was amazing, and I actually thought it was better than Kevin Spacey's. I think The Insider definitely deserves to be in the Top 10.
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That's too bad. This is quite a damn good film. Oh, well.
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Panty Menace? Man, I can just see the inventory of boogers you've been picking all year, for late night consumption.
Why pander to the geek masses by saying you liked a Jar Jar Binks film. Other than that, not bad picks.
Like Dallas Winston used to say in the Outsiders, "Hey Johnny, you got a cancer stick?" -
Jan 17, 2000 11:14:07 AM CST
I agree on AMERICAN BEAUTY, but what about MY SON THE FANATIC?
by stephen dedalus
AMERICAN BEAUTY was the best film of the year, but why has no one mentioned MY SON THE FANATIC? This was an enjoyable little movie about a Pakistani cab driver in London who struggles with his son when he decides to become an Islamic fundumentalist, and also with the budding relationship he has with a prostitute. It was a wonderful movie that played in small towns for only a small while.
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SW geek quote: "Before you say anything, I'm a HUGE SW fan, though I hate SW." Whatever. Mysterio, thanks for not caving into the totally bogus and incoherent criticisms of this most excellent of SW films, TPM. You rule man! Although, in my opinion it should have been number one (not that there weren't a lot of great movies this year). Weak PLOT?! Please, TPM had the most layered, dense, and sophisticated plot of any SW movie, which is why half the fans didn't like it. They're use to being spoonfed with stuff like The Empires Strikes Back.
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I do not like this movie. I'm sick of everyone showering it with praise. But the sad truth is, I just did not get it. The movie didn't do it for me. I'm not really that sad about it, but clearly I missed something fun there. Shit. Oh well, at least TPM made ONE top ten list. Even if it didn't develope its characters significantly(not enough, even for a first episode), even if it missed some wonderful emotive moments like Anakin climbing into that awesome Naboo fighter for the first time, or the family-like connection between the characters at the dinner table, even if it came so close to being a truly great epic, but was distracted by how Jar Jar's ears are interacting with his vest. Sorry for this rant, TPM had too much room for improvement, Lucas really was distracted by the spectacle. I hope he doesn't get destracted for E2. Still, I enjoyed TPM more than American Beauty. Bad, huh?
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While we're boosting our favorites, I'd like to continue my exhaustive campaign to share my favorite film of the year, Liberty Heights, Barry Levinson's fourth hilarious and touching Baltimore movie (following Diner, Tin Men, and Avalon) which the geniuses at Warner Brothers inexplicably killed by refusing to purchase ANY holiday media time whatsoever. Which is why, besides excellent revues (not to mention Harry's best-of '99 list), NOBODY has mentioned or seen it. But do yourself a favor. SEEK IT OUT! You will be so glad you did. Is there anyone out there who will back me up on this extraordinary little movie?
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Jan 17, 2000 11:56:22 AM CST
THIS HAS GOT TO BE THE MOST CONSERVATIVE PIECE OF BULLSHIT EVER!
by dark magus
The bastard even uses a registered trademark sign for Oscar and seems to have lifted all of his quotes from reviews by other critics. There's no opinion here, no personality.
This is a perfect lesson for
HOW NOT TO DO A TOP 10 LIST. Mysterio sounds like the goddam president of the Academy, Harry don't waste our time with this shit.
Oh yeah, FIGHT CLUB RULES!!!! -
I'll call you a liar to your face and punch your baby sister in the mouth if you can look me in the eye and tell me you didn't enjoy TPM if you saw it opening night. I waited a week to get those tickets, and enjoyed the company of my fellow Ana-kin as we rooted for the good guys, watched Obi-Wan open up on Darth Maul, applauded with gusto when Anakin won the pod race, watched with awe the city-planet of Coruscant, and cheered at the end. Was it the best Star Wars movie? Not by a long shot. But it was throughly enjoyable, and my minor quibbles (Jar Jar, anyone?) are far outweighed by the awesome visuals and the complex story. So get off your high horse, and enjoy TPM for what it is - one of the best Saturday matinee films of all time. I've loved Star Wars for 23 years now. At no point has it ever sucked. EVER.
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This is one of the best top 10s I have seen. Except for BWP I just didnt like that one. At least TPM finally got some recognition from you guys.
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Man, I loved THREE KINGS, in my opinion, one of the top five of the year. Such an excellent blend of comedy, coolness, drama, and action. Spike Jonze gives the most underrated performance of the year in his first acting role. Even though he was onscreen for only fifteen minutes (more than Judy Dench in Shakespeare) I think the Iraqi soldier torturing Mark Wahlberg deserves a best supporting actor knod. He was so awesome. laters
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Okay, this was one of the best years for movies EVER, so after thinking it over, there is no way I can put this list in order. No way. "Well, what if you had to give the Oscar?" Fuck Oscar! These films are all excellent, and deserve recognition without competition. Here goes...1.American Beauty. Wow, what a beautifully transcendant feeling this gives. Pretty much ANYTHING with Spacey gets extra oomph, but this film just worked all over. Gave me a new way to look at life, really. 2. Magnolia. So many hate it, but hey, art is often misundersttod in it's time. This one demands sooo much, but is so worth it the investment. 3.Dogma. Not a whole lot cinematically, but what writing and commentary. For me, ANTHING this smartly critical of organized religion should get some notice, and smith had some very important shit to say. Besides, I already worship Alanis, so it kinda worked out well. 4.Run Lola Run. If it ain't on your list, you haven't seen it. Absolute adrenalin on film, with great existentialist musings. Franka Potente is a friggin Goddess. 5.Matrix. Action movies (at least this one) are finally smart and not meant to sell toys and happy meals. As important to sci-fi as T2 was almost ten years ago, and the best since. Plus, it just flat out kicks ass. 6.Election. Not just for it's razor critique on what are really popularity contests, but for Reese's breakthrough. This little babe can seriously ACT, with a great character to run with. Watching Broderick slowly lose it all is a hoot, too. 7.Go. More Adrenalin, showing what kids are really
like, and just a whole lot of fun woth great writing. Gets extra points because it pissed off conservatives for actually showing people trying to score drugs!! Gasp, horror! That's reality, you Washington screws. 8.Talented Mr. Ripley. Um, confession. Haven't seen it yet. Loved the book, trust the opinions here, Minghella, Damon, etc. I'm pre-sold, seeing it this wekend. 9.Being John Malkovich. Because everyone need some surrealism, especially this smart. A complete mind-fuck from start to finish. Kudos to Malky himself for running with it, and I cannot wait for Jonze's next. 10.Fight Club. I am NOT going to turn this into another FC forum, just that it was so needed for it's subversiveness and it's balls to question typical American values. And for actually proving Brad Pitt can still act. HONORABLE MENTION: South Park. A lot of TV episodes were funnier, but this country SO needed the brutal critique this gave. Hilariously vulgar children show what a nation of uptight anti-speech assholes this is, threatening all of our liberties. Hitler would have banned it, and I'm sure our next President will....and now, the WORST movie of the year.....Phantom Menace. Yeah that's right. You heard me, and deep down you know it, too. I finally gave up my denial and realized not only how hollow and stupid this was, but for me it just showed what a talentless showman Lucas is. It was flat-out boring, the "characters" were empty, several tenets of SW mythology were ruined(Midichlorians MY ASS!!), fart and poo-poo jokes were SO out of place, and of course, if for nothing else...Jar Jar fucking Binks. Now, I do not even give two shits about episode two. Matrix 2&3 will be so much better, and prove that THAT trilogy is the one we should be worshipping. Fuck Lucas, fuck his greed, and fuck his lack of talent. Other than that, a great, great year. Peace Out. -
Though missing great movies like The Straight Story, Boys Don't Cry, Run Lola Run, and Election. But pretty solid picks. Topsy-Turvy and Sweet and Lowdown still haven't opened here in Atlanta but I'll be seeing them when they do.
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Jan 17, 2000 1:01:24 PM CST
Dirty Bird's Dirty TOP 5 movies of THE MILLENIUM! er...1999
by dirty_bird
5. AUSTIN POWERS 2! (But I'm pretty sick of hearing "Oh behave") 4. END OF DAYS! (Ah-nuld rulesss agaon!) 3. ARMAGEDDON! Oh, wait. That was '97 wasn't it. uhhhhh...Ill just say Episode 1 2. ANY GIVEN SUNDAY! (Varsity Blues sux! AGS rules!) AND FINALLY!! 1. THE MATRIX!
Boy O Boy! I can't wait to get ripped for this list! -
I re-viewed this exhilarating movie the other day and am amazed that this early candidate for hands-down best film of '99 has been largely forgotten. It's an incredible year, but Three Kings is still a thrilling, ground-breaking film. And I absolutely agree about the wonderful performance of the Iraqi soldier. His name is Said Taghmoui (sp?) and he also gave an even better, incredibly charismatic performance this year in another film I loved, Hideous Kinky. This is an actor to watch like a hawk.
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Where's Moriarty's next installment on his 90's thing? He got through '93 but that was like 2 weeks ago, wasn't it?
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The Blair Witch Project!!! One of the worst and most over-hyped movies of the year.
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Being a huge fan of Barry Levinson's impressive work, particularly his BALTIMORE pictures, I can't hardly wait to see LIBERTY HEIGHTS. But as I live in Germany, I have to, unfortunately until fall!
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10.Mystery Men
This is the best live action super hero movie ever made even though it was a spoof. I love this movie.
9.The Blair Witch Project
An original idea and a lot of fun, but probably the worst movie ever made when it comes to technical problems. They break every rule in filmmaking in this movie, but they do it well.
8.Bringing Out The Dead
This movie was incredibly overlooked. This is Scorsese at his best. He pulls us into this hellish world with amazing performances and haunting scenes. I hope this movie catches on when it comes out on DVD. It is his best work since Good Fellas.
7.Toy Story 2
This movie surprised the hell out of me. Fun for kids and adults and amazing animation. (I haven't seen Iron Giant and that's why it's not on the list I'd bet)
6.Being John Malkovich
The weirdest movie I've ever seen. Cameron Diaz manages to be unatractive and John Cusack is disturbing. Yet, somehow this is one of the best movies either of them have done
5.The Matrix
I don't think I need to say how cool this movie is.
4.The Insider
Another overlooked amazing movie. Outstanding acting and a riveting story.
3.The Green Mile
I really didn't think Darabont could outdo his Shawshank Redemption, but somehow he has. A masterpiece.
2.Man On The Moon
This is another one that is being overlooked. This is the best performance of Jim Carrey's career and a beautiful movie about a beautiful person.
1.American Beauty
The qintessential movie of the 90's. It should be put in a time capsule for people to see what life was like. I see this movie as a sequel to The Graduate.
For more movie reviews and other writing of mine, go to http://members.xoom.com/table30 -
Actually, I believe you when you say WWW was perhaps the worst, along with Blair Witch, Austin Powers 2, and so on. However, I did not see WWW, because everything about it reeked like shit, and I hear my assumptions were correct. Formula Summer shite all the way. PM, to me, is the worst because of what was expected of it. It's like Box office: If a film makes 60, but only cost 20, it's a good sized hit. Like wise, a movie can make 150, but if it COST 135, it ain't so great. Well, I expected NOTHING of www, so there. SW on the other hand, was the biggest letdown EVER, and my expectations were not as high as you may expect. It just showed itself to be a true piece of coldly calculated demographic marketing and merchandising, with no love or care for itself whatsoever.
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Andrei Tarkovsky one said that we go to films to enhance our experience- "Stars, *story-lines* (emphasis mine) and entertainment have nothing to do with it." Film is a visual medium- its primary impact lies with images and movement. THE PHANTOM MENACE had excellent atmosphere and the story, though flawed, was certainly adequate for a Buck Rogers redux (which is what the STAR WARS saga basically is.)
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That I have not yet seen The Insider, Iron Giant, Topsy-Turvy, or Boys Don't Cry. I'm sure those may upend some on my list.
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How "conservative" can a top 10 list be if it includes FIGHT CLUB? Didn't Michael Medved give that flick zero stars.
And I disagree with mechanimal about THE PHANTOM MENACE being especially bad because of our expectations. I'm a firm believer in formalism- when you go to a movie, leave all expectations and preconceptions at the door. Judge the work strictly on its own merits. -
This was a great top ten list! Even the 5 runners-up were intelligent. For me, it's a battle between Star Wars (which was the unfortunate victim of being attacked by the same media that was so willing to hype it in the first place and then attack it for not living up to that same hype), and Magnolia. PT Anderson (not the one who gifted us Event Horizon, by the way) has now moved to the forefront. Combine Altman's insight into characters with Scorcese's stunning visual ability and out comes Magnolia. And I'm not even sure those two great directors would have the balls to depict a Biblical plague in a contemporary setting.
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I did judge PM on it's own merits, and it still sucked donkey balls. I only used that to show that when considering a worst, certain stuff doesn't even need consideration.
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no way. I'm not doing this because frankly who cares?? I just have to say about this top 10. Blair Bitch Project(wasn't that the name of it or did I miss something?) and The Phantom Menace (though great popcorn entertainment) doesn't belong on a top 10 list. So for those who actually cares I have a top three of the year and in my book a top 10 should belong to movies that shows us something new. That's why my no.1 is Jane Campion's "Holy Smoke" (I know I love Jane Campion. She's a genious). No.2 is "Fight Club" (what can I say other than David Fincher... wauw) and No.3 is "The Matrix" (yes I think it's really great and it's not like most of the no-brainer summer blockbuster flicks). Have to say though that I haven't seen "American Beauty" but I expect it to go, if not in top 3, then in top 5. And just a quick info for all of you. I have a summer-surprise coming up and I will promote it on the net. It's basicly a political satire with a spring picnic going horrible wrong. It's called "The Tony Blair Project"!!!
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Okay, so let me get this straight, Mysterio:
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I know why some just keep defending Phantom Menace. It's a lot like religion. Most of us, myself included, grew up worshipping SW and all things pertaining to it. It was perfect and infallible. Many people regard the bible the same way, perfect and infallible. Then, when sceince and logic so clearly point out what a jole it is, people just cannot give up what they have believed for so long. Same with Phantom. after worshipping SW for so long, how could many people possibly accept that something SW, put out by Lucas himself even, would be so bad? Some just cannot accept that, so they just keep on believing. It's not a perfect analogy, but I think you can see what I mean.
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As Obi-wan would say
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I can agree with just about everyone on any film,good and bad....so I may not have the best atse but I was thorougly entertained by these ten...and fucking disgusted by my bottom ten!
American Beauty
Magnolia
South Park:Bigger,Longer & Uncut
Election
Go
Exitenz
The Iron Giant
Boys Don't Cry
Being John Malkovich
WORST:
Wild,Wild West
The Generals Daughter
Instinct
Inspector Gadget
The Running Bride
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Thanks for sharing! Nice to hear from a Levinson fan. He's my favorite director. I hope Liberty Heights makes it theatrically to Germany. It's barely breathing here (I luckily live in New York). Anyway, I hope you like it. It's really a kind of hybrid of all three previous Baltimore films. He even references each of them in specific ways. Anyway, you'll see. Good luck!
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I know who Harry is. He's the guy with the tounge sticking out at me. I know who Moriarty is. He's an evil bastard. But who the hell is Mysterio, and why does he get his top ten posted!?
BTW, anyone who rates Blair Witch Project over The Matrix is OUT OF THEIR FUCKING MINDS!!! -
Ever had to sit through a Tarkovsky film? I know that many have called him a genius, but I personally think he's the absolute king of tedium. As for top 10s, this has been such a great year for movies that it would be silly to make a top ten. I would want to tie about 5-10 movies for 1st place then round out the next group with about 30 other films.
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All these lists I've been reading are so different in their reasoning and judgement of the movies on them. I think that's a wonderful testament to the world of cinema when you see such passion towards film.***Unfortunately, when you put these lists out, you expose yourself to harsher criticism than the movie itself received. I recently read Ebert's Answer Man column on the 'net and saw one reader harshly criticizing him for including "Birth of a Nation" in his list of most influencial films of the century. It's a complicated film and just as complicated to explain why, despite its glorifying of the KKK and the overt racism, this film is the reason we see the mastery of directors like Hitchcock, Kubrick and Scorcesse today and can witness the daring tries of Fincher, Spike Jonze, Anderson and others. May we see 100's of years more of great film.
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Star Wars one of the top ten? This should be an automatic credibility-killer. We can all argue that these are just lists, but we have to expect something from someone who gets to have his own list printed as if it matters. According to this reviewer, killer visuals and a good fight scene more than make up for a poor storyline, carboard characters. His entire review of the film sounded more like a rationalization of why The Phantom Menace wasn't a bad film rather than why it was one of the seven best. "Just a set up of what will entail more promising installments in the series." So basically, he's agreeing that it was a big let down and the other two will be better. I'm sick of these hardcore Star Wars fans that force themselves to like the film just because they've hyped it up for themselves so much, and don't want to look like idiots.
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myself to like SW. I saw it 5 times - I think I fucking know that I loved it. Is it the best in the series? No, ESB is by far. But it was still great. Ep I didn't make my top ten list, but it's the film I saw the most this year. Why? Because it's fucking Star Wars! I had quibbles, but they were just that - quibbles. If I wanted Grand Guignol I'd read Macbeth, which IN LATER EPISODES SW will wind up being like. I don't have to defend the fact that I loved Episode I - I loved Magnolia, too and thought that was the best film of the year, over Fight Club. But Episode I did exactly what I paid for it to do. And I had by far the best movie experience I ever had at the opening night show. So, to sum up, give an idiot a megaphone, and lo and behold, they're still an idiot. (Albeit a loud one.) Fuck the haters, and watch 'em bleed.
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Episode I still made the top 15 in the AICN polls, so, again, haters, fuck off. People who are coming to this site are voting for it. Did I mention fuck off?
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Sounds like someone is WAAAYYY too defensive of Lucas' Magnum Crapus. Will be like MacBeth? Sir, have you even read Shakespeare? Probably not, too busy reading the Young Jedi series or something. If you enjoyed it, fine. After all, some people enjoy eating feces for sexual pleasure. Now, put on your Jar Jar jammies and off to bed with you.
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Name one well-developed character in the Phantom Menace. And prove it. To the guy who said visuals are the only thing that matter (Ophelius or something), go to an art museum. Films are not purely visual. The medium is a combination of photography, music, and literature! To say that its purely visual storytelling is completely ignorant. Anyway, back to the challenge. I'm waiting for your responses.
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Read Macbeth? Well, yeah. King turns to evil to consolidate his power? Hmmm...sort of like...Anakin? I'm so sorry that your Hooked on Phonics hasn't shown up in the mail for you to be able to read it, but there's hope for you yet, if you JUST LEAVE THE BASEMENT! Go into the light....by the way, it's Ewok jammies, motherfucker. A guy's gotta have taste.
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Yeah, just like Anakin. Further proof Lucas doesn't have one original idea in that fucking head of his.
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I personally thouht Obi-Wan was well-rounded. Jedi in training, headstrong, learns to take responsibility afer his master dies...oh wait! THIS STORY JUST STARTED! I guess he won't be fully rounded until he, well, DIES!!!! Palpatine was also a brilliant character, quietly manipulating behind the scenes for power. Done so subtly you won't be able to see it until later. I'll admit, the Anakin I had in my head doesn't jell with the Anakin shown in TPM, but so what? I've never met any truly evil 8 year olds. I have met lots of misguided teens, though. As Anakin no doubt will be.
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Interesting blanket condemnation of those who dared find merit in PHANTOM MENACE. There's no right or wrong here, people, that's why it's art.
My arguments:
1. Atmosphere. THE PHANTOM MENACE takes place in a "more civilized age" than the classic trilogy, and this is aptly conveyed through the technology and behavior of the people. The dialogue is formal because this is a formal time. Someone like Queen Amidala or Senator Palpatine or even the Jedi- who are sent on this mission as negotiators- would naturally speak in the cultured tongue of the Old Republic. The look of the film is very elegant, except on the backwater world of Tatooine, where life is tough. On the whole, environments like the Gungan underwater city, Theed Palace, and the Coruscant Senate are vividly realized and thoroughly believable.
2. Characters. For the most part (I'll deal with Jar Jar later), the characters are just as strong archetypes as those in A NEW HOPE. Obi-Wan is, at this time, naive but learning. He has a Jedi's calm most of the time, but also an impulsiveness that belies his inexperience. Qui-Gonn is the wise mentor, forever adapting to adversity. Amidala is strong of will almost to a fault, the Resistance Leader. Anakin is a kid to which things happen. He is not aware of what he truly is, but the Force is strong with him and as such he does extraordinary things. Darth Maul's lack of screentime and dialogue has been criticized, but this misses the point; he's an apprentice, and a silent killer. Like an animal, he waits patiently before striking. It's Darth Sidious who pulls the strings. I have to squeeze in a good word for Ian McDarmid here- his Palpatine reprise is wonderful.
3. Plot. Roughly- First act ends with the characters' arrival on Tatooine. Second begins at Watto's junkyard, ends when Anakin wins the podrace. Third act begins with the arrival at Coruscant, ends with the battle. A fairly solid structure, and no real plot holes. Sidious is using the Trade Federation in a power ploy- he expects their invasion to be defeated, and uses the defeat to become Chancellor. He's perfectly willing to sacrifice his apprentice Maul if he can get to Anakin. An entire planet is being slowly destroyed- why is this not big enough a story? (For the record, Lucas's first draft of THE STAR WARS revolved around one planet as well.)
Concessions:
Jar Jar. I think I'm immune to bad comedy sidekicks. He grated on me once or twice, but most of the time my reaction was "eh, I wonder what everyone else is doing." Didn't really detract from my enjoyment.
Lag on Tatooine. The time between the arrival and the podrace isn't particularly exciting, and Lucas could have stood to trim a scene or two.
Er, that's about it, really. I think I've made my point; there are sufficient reasons for someone to like THE PHANTOM MENACE, just as there are sufficient reasons for someone to dislike it. I ain't in denial.
To conclude, that animated graphic of Harry sticking his tongue out disturbs me. -
True, Matrix was made up of Ingredients from other sources. Any good chef will tell you that excellent, exciting new dishes can be made from sampling other recipes. That is precisely what the Matrix was. Phantom Menace, on the other hand, was not even a new concoction, and was about as tasty as leftover microwave Hungry Man Dinner.
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you forgot about 3 scoops of Alice in Wonderland. The recipe you gave was for Johnny Mneumonic.
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Your post reminded me about the characterization in the original trilogy. Specifically, the progression from Luke being the spoiled brat to the full-fledged Jedi. It was a process that took three films to complete. So maybe I shouldn't be so hard on Episode 1's lack of characterization. My biggest beef was the heartless way the film dealt with Qui-gon. His death hardly made an impact on the opening-night audience I saw it with. BTW, I liked your Macbeth analogy, and hopefully thats how the next films will play out. Lucas had so many literary and film references for his first three films, it seemed like he was on his own and clueless for the first one.
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Jan 17, 2000 5:46:39 PM CST
Niiiice (yes, i have nothing better to do, but I'm off today, so
by nordling
In a way, I wish Lucas would retitle the Original Trilogy 7, 8, and 9, because, in my opinion he has far more ground to cover with this first trilogy. The OT had a rag tag fleet of rebels overthrowing an Empire that was about, oh 30 years old. This first deals with the fall of a government that is over 1000 years old. Qui-Gon's death should have affected me more, but I had read so many damn spoilers (will try to avoid that this time...yeah, right) that it didn't faze me all that much, which is a shame. Shit, maybe they should have concentrated the first film solely on Qui-Gon meeting Obi-Wan, and waited to introduce Anakin until the second film. I don't know. Don't get the idea that I'm changing my mind about TPM - I'm not. But I really think this is a case of the movie in our heads just not being as good as the movie that Lucas decided to show to us. Now, if he keeps it in kiddie mode for the next one, i really will be pissed. But in now way will I not see it. I grew up with this - it'd be like saying fuck you to a family member.
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It just depends if you've seen EVERYTHING. I mentioned I had not yet seen Insider, Boys Don't Cry, etc. and they could very well place. It just occured to me because last night I caught American History X for the first time on cable, just by coincidence. Two minutes in, and I was fucking hooked. If I had seen this the year it came out, it EASILY would have placed on my list. And Ed Norton...damn. Always admired him, but had NO IDEA of his range. Anyhoo, I just really dug it. Oh yeah, and Phantom Menace still sucks.
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this is getting a bit ugly. But you know what. If you loved Phantom. Great. If you loved Blair Witch. Great. If you loved The Matrix. Great. At the end of the day almost all movies are borrowing or even stealing from movies that has come before them. You mentioned some to compare The Matrix with. Well, what about Blair Witch then? Cannibal Holocaust and The Last Broadcast are two films that has a disturbing similar story to Blair Witch. So isn't Blair original? Of course, it is. In the way it was shot and in the way it was promoted. And even though he story has been seen before Blair Witch will always stand as something new and groundbreaking in film history. Like it or not. Just as Star Wars did those 20 years back. It had so many new things but the story was far from original. A Kurosawa film by the name Hidden Fortres rings a bell!! so all this shit about you suck, you're a fucking idiot is so damn low. Try to respect each others opinions and say "I like this film because..." or "ok, but I don't like this film because...". I believe we're all here for one reason. And that is because we all love movies. Don't fucking patronize each other just because some guy has another opinion than you have. When we all do that then we can have an intelligent discussion.
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You're right, but still, a healthy fuck you buddy is good for us sometimes. Hiiden Fortress is the shit, by the way, and do yourselves a huge favor and check out the Samurai trilogy. Niiiice, Toshiro Mifune takes a journey not unlike Luke in the Holy Trilogy. After seeing the first one, I wished Lucas had paid closer attention to how to begin a story. TPM worked for me, but man, if it was thematically based in the first Samurai movie it would have been the best in the series.
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The Matrix, granted, is a good film with stunning visuals, kickass heros and bad guys, and great fight scenes that call for a system with good sound. BUT...I've had this argument with my boyfriend that it is NOT an original premise (your world is not what it seems, they're controlling you, the breakthrough of the human spirit) and it did not "blow my mind" and make me question reality. There are other movies that have done that before and do it BETTER. "The Truman Show" is the one that comes to mind right now, but I'm sure others can add to the list (and so can I when I have time to think it through). I know there are movies WAY back into the silent era that have done it, too (though I haven't seen them, just studied written accounts). BTW, visuals alone do not make a movie great...it's how you use them.
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WAS real. I swear. I know, people thought the sam about Blair, but no way in hell was something so low-budge, with no decent actors, no film quality, etc etc all of a sudden look SO credible when that carnage at the end began. No way. same with the "actors" that were so lame all the way through, then when they realize what is about to happen to them....well, they shoulda all got fucking Oscars, because I believed their terror just a bit too much. This film was banned all over the world because it can not be dtermined if it really is snuff. As compared to blair Witch, which looked like what it cost. Seriously, when the eating began...Savini and Winston coulda harly made it look more real.
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i think the film should have ended with kevin spacey setting there looking at the photograph of his family. his character had come full circle and i think the ending would have been better. while im not saying that i dont like the film because they kill his character at the end, i just think its kind of cheap. i know that you would have to take all that stuf out with the guns and death(and the part about seeing you entire life after you die, i thought that part was reaaly good)but you would know that lester was happy, the daughter was happy because she was leaving and mena was happy because she was reassured she wasnt normal. annete benning character was the only one not hapopy, but thats okay because she was a fucked up character ing the first place. e mail me your thoughts
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Now that you touched on it, I've been thinking that with all the modern technology, we could use a serious samurai flick. I mean, those Kurosawa films had everything, and after the anime-like photography seen in the Matrix, the sword fighting can look incredible.
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Dark City (how could I forget?!), Tron and Total Recall...there's three more to the list that do it better than Matrix.
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Wow. Feelings about Matrix aside here, comparing ANYHTING with (choke vomit) Puff Daddy is HARSH. Never in any field of entertainment has there been a bigger hack and charlatan. Even carrot Top deserves more respect. Here's hoping Johnny "Satan" Cochran blows it and Puffy gets put away for many many years, if for no reason other than to spare the world of his fecal stained dreck. Hate that fucking guy...pray they never let him anywhere near a movie. Oh wait!!! Didn't you hear about Any Given Sunday?? Apparently, Puff was supposed to be in the Jamie Foxx role, but(and I am serious here) Oliver Stone is rumoured to have had him dismissed from the film because he "throws a football like a girl". Isn't that great? One of my favorite stories this year. Ok, gotta go smoke some more boo boo now.
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Mechanimal: Cannibal Holocaust is NOT real in any way. The lead actor Robert Kerman has, according to the IMDB, made a good 70 films in the 20 years since CH (interestingly a lot of them have been porno), a pretty difficult thing to do if you've been eaten by savages in 1979. He's also present (if I'm not mistaken) on the Cannibal Holocaust laserdisc commentary track. There has NEVER, EVER been any evidence that snuff films exist; anything that has been suspected has, under close scrutiny, been proven conclusively to be a hoax. Perhaps deep down in the dusty vaults of someone's private collection there may exist some horrific little piece of footage, but certainly nothing you'd be able to get at your local video shop...
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Is a melting pot of influences. DARK CITY, TRON, cyberpunk, Hong Kong action films, I HAVE NO MOUTH AND I MUST SCREAM, THE LAWNMOWER MAN (which I didn't particularly like but what the heck), and so on. But it synthesizes them into something that stands up quite well on its own. It is, so far, the most mainstream film to deal with subjective reality, not to mention virtual reality, which previously was associated with such flops as VIRTUOSITY and JOHNNY MNEMONIC (also featuring Keanu "Whoa" Reeves.) Dramatically, it builds up quite well to the marble-destroying, bullet-dodging action climax, and manages to balance action and philosophy rather steadily. Not one of my best of '99 picks (for the record, neither is TPM), but still most enjoyable.
Oh, and also for the record, my picks: 1. Magnolia, 2. Being John Malkovich, 3. Fight Club, 4. Eyes Wide Shut, 5. American Beauty, 6. eXistenZ, 7. The Iron Giant, 8. All About My Mother, 9. South Park, 10. Man on the Moon. -
Finally caught all of the candidates, so now I can make an educated list: 1)Fight Club 2) Magnolia 3) The Talented Mr. Ripley 4) American Beauty 5) Eyes Wide Shut 6) Three Kings 7) Run Lola Run 8) The Matrix 9) Go 10) Being John Malkovich.
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I'm sure you are right that it was not real. It just sure to fucked freaked me out BAD. Mind you, I was on Acid at the time, but still.
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of films that got some kind of theatrical release in 1999: AMERICAN BEAUTY*BEING JOHN MALKOVICH*PRINCESS MONONOKE*TOY STORY 2*THE MATRIX*THE SIXTH SENSE*FIGHT CLUB*MYSTERY MEN (I'm sorry, but this movie ruled.)*Stephen Chow's KING OF COMEDY (Not the Scorsese one.)* Oh, wait, that's only 9!
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If I buy Harry a box of cookies can I get my Top 10 on here too? What the hell is this? At least Harry's list was backed up (mostly) by some insightful comments. Does Mysterio think he's at the end of a local newscast? It's bad enough having to trudge through everyone else's Talk Back Top 10, and now I have to read this? Are Harry and Father Geek even reading these things before they put them up? Jesus...this website needs an editor, a "shit filter". Nothing in the above article made me feel that Mysterio's opinion was worthy of the attention of everyone on here. Harry runs the site, that's fine. Moriarty is a proven writer who is respected widely on here. But how many more guest star Top 10's are we going to see? Who do I make the check payable to? As for Mysterio's quote on the Phantom Menace (a film I loved) "It has its flaws, but what film doesn't?" Well, films in a Top 10 probably shouldn't have too many. Especially in a great year like this.
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I am sad to hear that. In my top 10 list of 1999, THE IRON GIANT takes up the top 9 places. What is number 10 you wonder????? I cannot deside what to put there, I think it might go to THE IRON GIANT, not sure yet.
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well anyone who lists Blair Witch Project on a top ten list other than biggest waste of Celluloid has lost all credibility as far as I am concerned.
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This is one of the best top ten lists I have read all year. It deserves to be read so do yourself a favor and read it!
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Alrighty- I guess I'm pretty much a fan of the top ten list. Rather than pick apart each choice, I might as well post my top ten list, which (incidently) is the greatest top ten of them all. Just try and compile a better list- c'mon I dare you, bitch!
Anyway, here it is (with comments, when neccesary)
Close Calls: Dick, Iron Giant, South Park, Tunbleweeds
10 THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT
-as JM would say, Just Shut The Fuck Up. This was SUPREME entertainment.
9 ELECTION
8 GO
7 ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER
6 RUN LOLA RUN
5 BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
4 SLEEPY HOLLOW
-Just a wonderful, enjoyable movie. It totally accomplished what it set out to do- entertain.
3 TITUS
2 AMERICAN BEAUTY
1 MAGNOLIA
-the best movie. EVER. Seen it four times already. Everyone in it is perfect. Julianne. Melora. Reilly. Philip Baker Hall. EVERYone. WONDERUL!
and some other little shits....
fav. actress- Reese in Election
close second... Janet McTeer in Tubleweeds
fav. actor- Kevin Spacey in American Beauty
close second... Jim Carrey
fav. supporting actress- Julianne Moore in Mags
close secon... Sarah Polly in Go/Anejlina
fav. supporting Actor- Tom Cruise
close second... Dan Hedya in Dick
and worst peice of shit I saw all year: American Pie. Load of crap.
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Sorry Harry, but I don't most of us care about Mysterio's top 10 list. And Mysterio, when you do a top 10 list...the point is to list 10 movies, not 15. Next time just do a top 15 list if you feel the need to list 15 movies. Hopefully, there won't be a next time.
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Okay, so I'm drunk. Big deal. I drink alot. I'm not a fucking choirboy, I drink. Sometimes I get so drunk, I throw up all over my computer keyboard. Here's my top 10:
1. Magnolia.
2. Bringing Out the Dead (Stop overlooking this sincere beautiful film, ass-fucks).
3. American Beauty.
4. The Insider.
5. Being John Malkovich.
6. The Straight Story.
7. Eyes Wide Shut (Waaaaah, Nicole Kidman talks slow in a scene, it doesn't look like NYC '99, its slow - shut up and die).
8. The Matrix.
9. Fight Club.
10.Election.
Biggest disappointment: Dogma (as far as expectations:results ratio, I equate this to bliss:vivisection, maybe I just grew up and got sick of immature bullshit). -
Hooooooly FUCK did that movie suck shit! WHAT story??? Half of it didnt make any fucking sense, and everything else was just a set up for some speacial effect. And Jar-Jar?
Would Han Solo and Chewie been half as cool if chewie was doing prat falls? Would the approuching walkers been half as freaking if the rebles were acting like Roger Rabbit? Would the fight against the death star as it cleard the moon for a shot been half as intense if some 9 year old boy just fluked out and blew the fucking place up by accident?
It was a hack movie. I could swear that it was directed by Spielberg.
And Kevin Smith sucks shit too. -
Jan 18, 2000 2:15:25 AM CST
Aturd in a Bottle...President of the Blair Witch Fan Club.
by darth siskel
"Ok, Darth Siskel thinks The Matrix is great and Blair Witch sucks." Very true. "Alrighty, let's see, one is a great piece of eye candy, the other low budget." True. But there is alot more to The Matrix than just eye candy. If I wanted to watch a bad movie with great eye candy, I'd watch Armageddon or Dragonheart again. There is also more to Blair Witch than the fact that it was low budget. It was piss poorly done.
"He will maintain that there was no story in Blair Witch" I will maintain? I never made such a statement, so how can I maintain it? I will maintain that the story was a joke. Blair Witch had a good premise. The movie itself was stupid. Ever heard of suspension of disbelief? It was impossible when watching Blair Witch to suspend your disbelief. They followed stupid scenes with even dumber ones. I have met some stupid people in my time, and there are a few on this talkback, but I will never believe someone would be lost in the woods and kick their only map into the river. A fucking down syndrom mental retard wouldn't do that even by accident. I also can't buy people lost for days, yet they spend most of their time standing around shooting footage of eachother as they argue, awaiting yet another nightfall. It's night time, some unknown voodoo bastards are messing with them, putting voodoo rocks and shit around their tents, but they don't stay in the tent, or run & hide. They light up the cameras! Is that the first thing you would do when you're scared of the unknown!? TURN ON A FUCKING BRIGHT LIGHT AND TRAVEL TOWARDS IT !??!? EVEN AFTER YOUR FRIEND DISAPEARED, PULL OUT THE BRIGHT LIGHTS AND RUN TOWARDS THE SCREAMING!? If you smelled gas in your house, would you light a match to see if there's a leak? I cannot enjoy a movie that shows no intelligence whatsoever in it's script & structure, and has no creative flair at all! It was a movie that I expected 13 year old girls to get into. And for the most part, those are the people that didn't hate the movie. "But no matter how fun Matrix was, it was simply a color by the numbers film, nothing in it that was new, even the special effects were just a rehash of several commercials of late." You stupid ass. The bullettime was never used in a movie before, and The Matrix used the effect extremely well making those scenes more exciting. Where do I start when you say something idiotic like "nothing in it that was new" ? I don't even want to waste my time anymore responding to this. The Wachowskis brought a comicbook/anime world to life. No one had done that as well as they did. They created a movie with strong characters that you could root for, a story that kept you interested and waiting for the answers, and a style of action/editing/effects mix that was truely NEW, and totally kickass cool. I just feel sorry for people like you that don't see how good it is, yet love one of the worst movies of all time. -
10. Ham & Cheese Heroes, 9. Hot Dogs with relish, 8. Chocolate Shake from McDonalds, 7. 99 cent BigMac deal(3 does the job), 6. Yellow Hostess Cupcakes, 5. Taco Bell Santa Fe Gorditas, 4. General Tso's Chicken combination plate, 3. Fruity Pebbles, 2. Beer, 1. AICN groupie pussy! Fame has it's advantages!
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Alright. I see that my list has sparked somewhat of a heated debate specifically attacking my opinions on what "I" thought were the best flicks in '99. Geez, you guys don't give a evil guy an inch here do ya? As far as my picks go, I picked them based on my own feelings for what I expected from the film and what it accomplished. Were I to break it down into catagories of what I liked, what deserves academy nods and such, it would be a different list. But alas, it's not. It's the list I chose, for my own personal reasons. Some may agree with my picks, and some obviously not. But to childishly name call and attempt to slam someone with your pithy remarks just because one voices his opinions on the films, is just damn silly (yeah maybe as silly as my list, but still silly nonetheless). Those who have or wish to take the time to respond with their agreements and/or objections to my list can do so through my e-mail, to which I'd be more than happy to discuss, provided one can hold and voice their views in a constructive, intelligent matter. To the one who responded with "who is this Mysterio guy?" - Gee pal, that's the point! "Mysterio" -- mysterious. Get it? Good. And to those who "don't give a damn what this guy thinks", my reponse to that is obviously you do, so much in fact that you not only read my list, but took the time to react and respond to it. Lists are basically one's opinions that are viewed more for curiousity than anything else. There's no right or wrong picks in what I choose or what another chooses. Films are a personal medium and such people take different things from different films and make them something of their own. And to the individual who suggested I paid Harry off with a box of cookies to get my list up, you're wrong. It was a carrot cake!
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the Sixth Sense was not great. i guessed the "twist" from the very first scene. they should have been more creative with it. the part with the boy seeing ghosts was good though. those that did not see the "twist" coming seem to like this movie a lot. i watched the whole film laughing at how weak their attempt to be clever was. Fight Club was a LOT better than Blair Witch Project and Dogma. i have not seen Mr Ripley, but i know it cannot be as good as Fight Club. does this guy just like Matt Damon or something? ugh.
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I have to agree with Artaud In Bottle here; I'd seen the effect now called "Bullet-Time" used before The Matrix. There were at least two music videos from around 1995 that played around with it, a Rolling Stones vid (the one with Patricia Arquette) and a Sting video. They were a bit more crude in execution, but the effect WAS being used before The Matrix (though if you want to be a pedant, yes, the Matrix was the first FILM to utilize the effect).
And before anyone jumps on me, I LIKE the Matrix, okay? -
Once again, my comments are a day late and a dollar short -- but I do have a job, so thyat's my excuse. By the way, there is a 'Ripley' spoiler down below -- if you ain't seen the movie, you might skip this tirade.
I'm not gonna add to the utter chaos that has overtaken the 'Phantom Menace' discussion we have going - if you enjoyed the film, great. I had alot of problems with character (a million Gungan could have died and I still couldn't have cared),plot (Anakin accidently blowing up the battlecruiser, for one thing. I mean, are we supposed to be impressed that a ten year old wins a battle purely by accident? If he had done it with skill, maybe...)and infantile comedy. That said, alot of people enjoyed it and I myself saw it three times, so what the hell do I know. I give every tomp ten list a 'personal favorite', a pick that is there because the reviewer fell in love with it. Phantom Menace would be many people's 'personal'.
That said, my biggest beef with this list is the 'Untalented Mr Ripley'. For the love of God, nothing happens for the first 45 minutes in this film. Sure, Ripley lies about who he is and insinuates himself into the lives of really annoying rich kids. But then what? They fucking hang out for almost an hour. I got no sense Ripley was a threat until he beat Dickie over the head with and oar! THere's no tension if our characters are in no danger and until Dickie tells Ripley to bugger off, there is no threat. THe only reason I knew Thomas Ripley was 'dangerous' is because the hype around this movie mentioned he was 'an ingenious seriel killer'. The movie was long and beautiful shots of Italy, interrupted by annoying snobs (oh God, I wanted Ripley to kill most of them, especially Cate Blanchett's vapid idiot of a character)and the occasional bludgeoning. THe end was good, but by the time I got there, I really couldn't have cared less. Matt Damon did a good job, the movie looked good, but I have no idea what has enamored so many of this film. I wonder what the book is like...
My only other query/possible problem with the list is -- Blair Witch. Now don't get me wrong, I loved it for the most part. Sure, my friends were nauseaus from the jittering camera. And yeah, it helped to have the backstory from the Sci-Fi special and website. But my two problems that remain are - why wasn't the background in the movie? Why did we spend two minutes on the Blair Witch myth and move on? What did that do for those who never saw the website and it's background? And why the fuck did Mike kick the fucking map in the fucking river? Hmm, which is scarier - a ghost or spirit stole the map and is confusing the trio into staying lost? Or one of the characters tosses the map away, dooming them all? People, this is why you shoot a movie with a script, or at least an outline. The movie was scary, well 'acted' and fun. I liked it. But, as an aspiring writer and filmaker (that should open up the floodgates for you people to rip me a new asshole) it is seriously flawed in many ways. So where it would go on my list is still unresolved.
Then again, who really cares? -
in all honesty, how can someone with somewhat discriminating tastes such as yourself even think of puting a shitty film like "star wars: the phantom menace" on your top 10 list. a film as flawed as this doesn't even deserve the distinction of being mentioned on the top 10 worst films of 1999. it should be forgotten right along with "the minus man" and "the mod squad."
let me back myself up here. granted, i am not a die-hard balls-to-the-wall do-or-die star wars fanatic. i like the series. i think that they are good quality sci-fi films. of course "empire" is the best, but nothing would have happened without the first one. the initial triliogy were wonderful, they were done with imagination and quality campy acting as only a good b-movie cast can bring to a quality campy sci-fi film. the primary reason why lucas was able to get his imagination onto the screen in such a fun and wonderful ways and have it look and actually feel fun while watching it is because he was able to be inventive. he was on a tight budget, and when people have to work with tight budgets they get inventive beyond all belief. if you want an example of this look no further than "blair witch."
when lucas was able to put hundrids of millions of dollars behind a sci-fi film it looses all of it soul. i firmly believe that this would happen to any sci-fi film with a swelled budget. look at "independance day"--a terrible movie. the reason for this is simple, i belive. follow this example: you start out with an okay script, you get a bunch of actors and if after that you have a budget left you could make a good film because everything around you can become part of the film. everything that you find in the garbage can become part of the future (a la "hardware", if you will). if however you are able to get a-list actors and still be able to fund a hundred "blair witch projects" with the rest of your budget you loose sight of the little things around you. you would throw away the very things that would make the movie interesting. take the hollywood version of "dracula" and the spanish version of "dracula." filmed at the same time, on the same set, and yet the spanish film is more innovative and interesting overall because they had to use what the hollywood version was finished with, what they discarded.
also with a huge budget people tend to go with computer effects instead of in camera effects which ruins a film if those very effects are the main plot or at the very least the film's crutch, as in "star wars." not only are computer effects so obtrusive, they're flat as hell. at least with the claymation and matte work you get some sort of depth; and even if you are aware that the effects are effects, they're at least more believable because one might be able to actually TOUCH what one saw on the screen.
now back to "star wars" specifically. a perfect example of how lucas fucked up can be seen in the reissues of the original trilogy. none of those special effects were needed for those films to be any better. the added scenes were terrible, jabba was ruined as a character and the whole epiloge at the end of "jedi" was such sugar-coated shit that i almost got up and walked out (and i have never walked out of a film)! If he wanted the money he should have just re-releaed them. he would have gotten pretty much the same results.
now on to "phantom." what makes a person think that just becuase a character doesn't look human and is a computer effect and that the character is in a time where equality is for the most part universal that he can make these characters caricatures and racist stereotypes? jar-jar was one of the most offensive characters that i have ever had the displeasure to see. where lucas thought that he was being "politically correct" he was going in the direct opposite direction. "star wars: the pahntom menace" is one of the most racist films that i have ever seen. at least w.d. griffith had a political agenda.
i could go on for pages more showing the faults and errors of this film but i won't as this much is enough for it not to be even mentioned on your top 10 list. if you didn't include "the sixth sense" which was almost a perfect film (i didn't either in my top 10 because there were at least 10 better films this year) in terms of story and execution why even think about the fiasco that is "star wars?"
oh yeah, and about "fight club," thank you so much for mentioning it. i think you're right on for putting it in. no one that i've read has. i'm glad people havn't been to scared shitless by it to put it on. but if you were able to sit through that and put it at #10 then give "star wars" a better rating you've bats in your bellfry. if you sat through "fight club" you also missed it's point since you obviously endorse senseless violence and racism and classism and all -isms by endorsing "star wars."
"star wars" is what is wrong with this country. -
The shift key is your friend. As for racism, in brief- Jar Jar's goofiness is not linked to his being a Gungan. He's not even a representative of his own race, so how can he be made to represent African Americans? The Neimodian accent is predominantly Asian but incorporates French and even Arabic affectations- their appearance similarly does not derive from any racial caricature. All red eyes, no teeth- you got me. Watto, like Jar Jar, does not represent his own race, much less one that exists on Earth.
Oh, and to clear up the whole "bullet time" thing- it was indeed introduced in THE MATRIX. Around 1998 we started seeing a similar technique in which the camera panned around a 3-D still picture, but THE MATRIX introduced motion into the equation, making things a bit more complex. This required new programs and systems, such as an "interpolation" technique by which a computer creates the frames in between the still cameras (which have to go off in sequence, also rather tricky.) THE MATRIX's FX were indeed new. -
Yeah, fair enough, motion was a new element in the equation, but it was still an extension of existing effects technology and not some wowie-zowie thing that no one had ever seen the likes of before.
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Not one film on that Top Ten list has been shunned more than Star Wars Episode I. It is a film that with a big budget, pissed off the audience with "ah meesa Jar Jar Binks"
If the film was truly great, then it would have broken Titanic's record. People avoided the film because they heard bad things about it (I saw it opening night).
The Sixth Sense did so good because people heard that it was very good. Take a poll of the one film that should be off of the list and it would be The Phantom Menace. -
I'm curious. Am I the only one here who read the columns on
the late Edward Margulies on
MrShowbiz along with the columns of Jeffrey Wells at Reel.com and David Poland at RoughCut's
The Hot Button? I've heard a lot
of people complain about this list and why it's even on the site and just wanted to say there are other
people who do this stuff and are hried to do it because of their ability and judgement. Not that
I hated the list. Kind of liked it but missed the inclusion of
The Straight Story, one of
the year's best films. Very good hopefully Lynch's film will win
accolades during awards time and
Lynch will be able to get Mulholland Drive on ABC as
a regular prime-time series and
not as a mini-series like how ABC plans to show it as.
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Rubinato- "Take a poll of what film should be off the list"- so what? Consensus means NOTHING. Film is an art form, therefore film quality is subjective. Mysterio is entitled to say that THE PHANTOM MENACE is a good film, and he's just as right as someone who says it's bad.
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So what you guessed the ending of Sixth Sense big f*cking deal!!! The film was much more then just a plot twist. The movie had great acting all around, some spooky scenes and it is hardly "laughable" I admit the film fooled me but it was much more then a one trick pony. Ok I have to say this, WTF was so great about Jim carrey in MOTM??? I thought that he was merely doing an impression of Kaufman and not a real performance. Plus half the film is just recreations of stuff we have seen on tv already. It was a very shallow biopic that didn't offer us anything new and it should have because Kaufman was fascinating. Where's the Hurricane in the top 10? I thought it was great and Denzel better win the oscar hes incredible.
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I never used the effects as an argument that The Matrix was a good film. As far as bullet-time being used before The Matrix, so what!? It was never used the same way as it was in The Matrix. Not even close. Why do you keep bringing it up? (don't answer that) There is nothing to proove right or wrong here. I told you why I liked the Matrix, and I told you why I hated Blair Witch. You were able to enjoy Blair Witch, and found it all believable. I saw it as totally unbelievable, poorly planned and executed, and found that none of the improv was very good. But hey, maybe those three kids will make it on the Hart file in ten years. Maybe I can order a burger from that annoying girl some day. And stop pulling accusations out of your ass. Half the stars in Hollywood had overnight success. 90% of the product out there is crap. (although '99 was damn good) I expect talentless hacks to make it big. It happens every year. As for this year's hacks, I paid attention to Blair Witch from start to finish.(thank god I snuck in and that's all I paid). I didn't miss anything in the movie. Believe me, there wasn't much to it. This was not a layered film. There was nothing subtle or anything that made you think in this crap. It didn't flow from scene to scene. The endless whining pretty much killed any suspense, and their situation barely changed in the middle hour of the movie! It was basically a countdown to their deaths. And it wasn't scary whatsoever. I was rooting for the kids to be killed. Did you root for Newt or Ripley to be killed in ALiens? I don't think so. Almost everything in Blair Witch didn't work. In one of the few scenes that was actually scripted, they mention how the Blair Witch would make the kids face the wall while the others were killed. This was in the first ten minutes of the movie and I figured out that we'd see that same imagery at the end of the movie with the 3 lost idiots. I predicted the ending in the first ten mins because any bit of actual story stood out from all the useless scenes and bad improv.
That's it. I'm not replying anymore. If you want to argue further, just keep re-reading this post and do your best impression of the whiny bitch from the movie.
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I give that movie one tounge up....with a big wad of flem at the tip.
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I know movies are subjective and your opinion is as valid as mine...BUT.... Southpark better than Iron Giant? Dogma better than Matrix or 6th sense? BWP better than all those you missed off the top ten?.
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The nominees are:1)Morpheus vs. Neo, in The Matrix...2)"Stoned Cold" Nicole Kidman vs. Tom Cruise, in Eyes Wide Shut...3) Darth Maul vs. ANYBODY, in Star Wars: the "Unjustly Blasted by People who Saw it 10 Times" Phantom Menace...4) George Clooney and co. vs. the Iroqois (oops) I mean Iraqi Army, in Three Kings...5) Ed Norton vs. Ed Norton, in Fight Club. And the winner is...Ed Norton vs. Ed Norton, Fight Club! Thank you to all the voters, which as of right now is just me. However, you too can vote or even nominate movies for the D-VIATE awards (Darth Vegas' Instant Award for Theatrical Excellence) by submitting your opinions at darthvegas69@hotmail.com. Thank you for your support.
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I'm surprised. Reading a list like this I'm surprised and almost want to wake up from this strange dream in which everybody is complaining about how Fight Club, Blair Witch Project, The Matrix, and Episode 1 are on the list but nobody has yet to complain the inclusion of Eyes Wide Shut in the list of the best movie of 1999,
according to this person.
Hey, it's Mysterio's opinion. When Sarah Bunting wrote her lengthy negative critique of Kubrick's works, I didn't go and e-mail her about how she was stupdi for hating such films, but instead praised her on being a good film critic. Plus, she does like Tim Burton movies, as do I.
Sure Edward Margulies hated the notion of Spielberg making AI because he believes Kubrick has never made a good film in years, but hey unlike other people who wrote to MrShowbiz, I didn't write him nasty letters about how he sucked and eventually incuring his wrath. Instead, I wrote him a thank-you note for talking about how he was doing a good column
at MrShowbiz and for discussing
the good news of Mulholland Drive,
and for having the guts to announce Man on the Moon was
a turkey.
But anyway, back to my subject.
I'm surprised a film which bombed
because of word of mouth from bored angry filmgoers (it's sexist, boring, dumb, old) and generally panned by most major film critics and the public has now been selected from thousands
of other films which have gotten
praise and huge box office as one
of 1999's best.
Now, I didn't hate the film outright as most people did.
It's okay...the film's problem stems from both Kubrick's desire to have a hit (the casting of Tom and Nic) and the source material (which he was forever trying to find some way to film in a way that would still have whatever attracted him to the original novel) plus the fact is Kubrick as a filmmaker lacks the sensuality and passionate lust needed to make such a story as EWS work (this was also present in his Lolita film. It lacks the love of the original
Nabokov story and comes off as a frustrating film which comes off as an odd combination of comedy and drama which doesn't always make the film work as a whole.
I certainly don't think it's
a masterpiece).
Desson Howe one of the few people who liked EWS put it best when he said, "It's a genre of it's own, a clam-cold film about a journey into a world of possibilites"
It earns a C+ from me and to those who say it's the worst Kubrick ever made...I say to you true awful unbearable hell on Earth from Kubrick can be found in Clockwork Orange (my candidate for most over-rated movie of all-time) and Killer's Kiss (amateur hour).
By the way, is it just me or has the often-said "Kubrick died of shame/embarrasement after he showed the cast his final cut of EWS" has become the equivalent of the joke about asking "Mrs.Lincoln other than the shooting of your husband, did she enjoy the play?"
Both jokes are funny, I agree.
By the way, back once again to the original subject. To all those who hated Phantom Menace, why did you
go see the film over and over and over again?
A movie like TPM doesn't make that much money because of one viewing by each person. It takes repeated box office by people and word of mouth, so, I'd say TPM
was a hit. I know I think it delievered. The Washington DC Uptown screening on opening day upon which I first saw the film had people cheering and applauding at the end, I even heard somebody say "George Lucas is God!" Proving that Lucas still has The Force.
As for Blair Witch, it was very good but got blown out of proportion by film critics which said how it was oh so great and "scary as hell, the greatest horror movie ever!" The praise
and buzz worked against it.
Just as the pre-release praise
for EWS ("Kubrick's haunting final masterpiece" says TIME Magazine)
and all those sexy ads and hype
worked against it. Not too sexy
was EWS and not to the real audience was EWS a masterpiece.
Same for Green Mile. Everybody
said how great it was going to be
and how it was unlike anything
on the movie screens this year
and would win all the Oscars.
In the end, it was good but
an ordinary prison story that could have been filmed in the 30's or 50's. That's not to say it wasn't good. Just not the powerful emotional drama film along the lines of Citizen Kane, and Chinatown it was said to be.
As The Matrix, everybody thought it would bomb and be a flop. Lo and behold, Keanu Reeves is great in the movie and it's a sleeper hit, forms cult following and is brand as masterpiece but does not stand up to the test (good yes, but not the best).
As for Fight Club. Mixed reviews,
poor box office doomed it. Gained cult following and only time will tell, whether the film's fate will be that of masterwork or nothing
very important. Unlike EWS or
Episode 1 or Blair Witch Project
or The Matrix, I haven't seen
Fight Club yet. But I will when it comes to video.
Also what do you folks think of The Cider House Rules which has gotten a lot of Oscar buzz and seen as a really good movie. Haven't heard much discussion about that around here.
Also what's your take on
Any Given Sunday. Do you think Oliver Stone has hit pay dirt or has he lost the big game?
And did you see the restored
version of Greed on TNT a few months back in September/October?
I know somebody here said they saw
a print of Clockwork Orange which
was re-released in Britian but
did anybody here in the States see
the newly restored version of
Rear Window now playing?
I've looked everywhere for
a movie theater that's showing the movie and can't find one.
Also, what about Fantasia 2000,
I've heard little praise and buzz
about it? Is the film a faliure
as some people have said it is?
If you want to give your answers to my questions, please e-mail me
and have a nice day.
I have final exam at school and
no final exams to take tomorrow
in school, so that means I have
the day off! Hooray! Sadly, this
means I have to take two exams on Friday. One is my 3rd Math class, and the other is English class.
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Hehe. Yep I'm wrong. The Blair Witch Project was a marvelous achievement. The most original movie in years. The scariest movie..ever! Now on DVD!
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Currently, The Matrix is winning the vote with 2000+ people saying it's their favorite of the year. It's neck/neck with American Beauty. What's this?! Blair Witch isn't even on the list? I can't believe more people didn't like that incredibly well made film! What an oversight. Shame.
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Glad you brought up Eyes Wide Shut again, Kubrick. And I quote your post "Kubrick's desire to have a hit (the casting of Tom and Nic)" Are you kidding? Or do you actually have no clue about the man whose name you use to sign your messages? If Stanley was that preoccupied with box office he would make a lot more films. What does he have to gain? He already has complete creative control. Just because takes an active role in the marketing of the film does not mean his choices during casting or production are influenced by anything but his artistic instinct. That is an insult to the man. I'm sure he used Tom and Nicole because (A) They are married in real life (B) They represent an "All American Couple" (although a wealthy one) and (C) They both are good actors (how good is open to debate, but let's say as good as Matthew Modine or Shelley Duvall). Your next quote: "Kubrick as a filmmaker lacks the sensuality and passionate lust needed to make such a story as EWS work" Well I won't argue with you that Kubrick doesn't have "sensuality" (I don't think Orson Welles did either), but you, like many other foolish critics and filmgoers, are wrong about what this film was studying/reflecting on. What film of Kubrick's from 2001 onward operated on any kind of direct, emotional level anyway? They have all aimed deeper into the psyche, sensuality not a prerequisite here. It wasn't about passion, anyone paying attention can figure that out, and it wasn't about sex either. That's maybe why the "orgy" scene didn't live up to the fantasies of the average American. The film was dealing with the concept of marriage, of trust and mental connections between spouses, and other themes far subtler than what most were looking for. Again I will forward anyone interested in a superior commentary on Eyes Wide Shut to Jonathan Rosenberg's review on the Chicago Reader website (www.chicagoreader.com, in the film section, in the review archive). Rosenberg also chose EWS as one of the Top 10 of 1999, and The 90's. His comments on the 1999 article are insightful as well, including his thoughts on other critics bashing of the film. Kubrick (the poster), I do agree with your statements on Lolita. I do think Nabokov is partially to blame for the screenplay, but I also take issue with the black comedy take on the material, which was much more successful in Dr. Strangelove. I thought Adrian Lyne's remake of Lolita was the heartbreaking tender treatment that the story deserved. As for Clockwork Orange being the most overrated film ever, I originally thought that when viewing it, but over time (like many Kubrick critics) I have "Learned to Stop Worrying and Loved" the film for what it accomplished. A middle finger in the face of convention and decency? Perhaps, but I think much more so. That's for a whole other talkback. For its small flaws (Kubrick often continued editing his films AFTER they were released) Eyes Wide Shut still contains more moments of cinematic brilliance than 99% of the films released this year, and probably the decade.
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1)Boy's Don't Cry-One of the most emotional and moving movie experiences I've had in years.
2)Being John Malcovich-Extremely funny movie about slightly screwy and screwed up people.
3)The Sixth Sense-Even with the hype of the ending still a wonderful movie experience.
4)The Talented Mr. Ripley-Even after Goodwill Hunting I never knew Matt Damon could act this well.
5)South Park:Bigger Louder and Uncut-The funniest comedy of the year.
6)American Beauty-Another wonderful Kevin Spacey performance.
7)Toy Story 2- This even topped the first Toy Story.
8)Go- The best Pulp Fiction clone since Fargo.
9)Election- This movie even makes Matthew Broderick look good.
10)Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace- Not as good as it should have been (Jar Jar) but better than most critics said the lightsaber duel rocked.
The Matrix,American Pie,The Green Mile,Sleepy Hollow,Tarzan and Man in the Moon were also pretty good.
Wild Wild West joins the list of Godzilla,Batman&Robin,Speed 2 and the Lost World as some of the worst movies ever made.
Even with the costumes let's wait and judge the X-men movie until it comes out if the emotion and action is right the movie could be great.
Until next time. -
TPM was definitely the worst and the dumbest Star Wars movie. I just couldn't stand Natalie Portman. Though I had a crush on her after The Professional. By the way I think The Fifth Element was much better than TPM.
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