The Big Sleep (1946)

I don't mean to be an ass but I have yet to see a movie that I really feel like I've missed out in life for not seeing (Annie Hall does not count). The Big Sleep (aka the movie that put me to sleep TWICE) is NO exception. Now while I have not adored some of the other movies I've seen, I have been able to follow the story line in all of them. The Big Sleep is THE exception. You have to have a major in English to understand wtf they are talking about! Oh wait! I HAVE A MAJOR IN ENGLISH. Maybe you need a PhD to understand. I think my Brecht classes made more sense and Brecht's not even supposed to make sense.

So there's this Detective working for this guy with 2 daughters who are wild childs. The detective is hired to figure out...that's where I stopped understanding the plot line (so I basically understood half of the opening scene). This is one of those films where:

A) The dialogue is spoken so quickly and I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be witty and raunchy, but I didn't get it. For me it was just painful and murky.

B) There are about 20 characters that people talk about but you never actually see the character so you have to keep up with all of this names in your head and frankly I need a FACE...and a DEAD BODY doesn't count.

C) The detective kills people! I'm pretty sure he's not supposed to do that....??

I started watching this movie with Rachel and at 9:30 it had literally put me to the big sleep. Never have I rested so well.

A WEEK LATER I finally decided to finish the rest, and there were about 3 times I wanted to go to bed but I knew that I had to finish.

Anyways I recommend this film if you have bouts of insomnia.

The Best Years of our Lives (1946)

So I have to retract my 'I'm an awesome guesser' statement (see entry below). I assumed from the title that this movie would be a wishy washy 'It's a Wonderful Life' type but I was pretty wrong. I didn't read the sleeve of the movie beforehand so I just put it in the DVD player and was hoping I'd be entertained for the next few hours, and I was...smiley face.

This movie follows 3 men returning from WWII. This is not a war movie. It's a post-war movie. One man is pretty much an alcoholic. One man comes home to his slutty/materialistic wife. The other lost both of this hands in the war and is a real sweet heart. All 3 men have to adjust to coming back home and dealing with the fact that pretty much everyone in their town has no idea what the war experience was actually like.

It's a very easy to follow movie and the characters are pretty much all very likable. I think it's a realistic portrayal of what being a war veteran must have been like in those days. I definitely recommend it just for seeing the psychology of these men. Some of the story lines are silly but you can just fast forward through them (the main one I'm referring to is the annoying daughter of the Sargent's love for the married Captain). I didn't actually fast forward through anything but I just want to give you a heads up.

Ben-Hur (1959)

Yikes, another two discer. Won't lie, wasn't looking forward to it. I don't know anything about the Ben-Hur plot. I was guessing it was going to be 'Ten Commandments-y.' I'm a pretty awesome guesser.

The story coincides with the life and death of Christ. Judea Ben-Hur is a Hercules-like hero who overcomes all sort of obstacles to be reunited with his mother and sister. Although so many things happen in the movie and the story is pretty complex the viewer never has that sense of 'what the hell is going on? who is that guy? wait is that the good guy or bad guy? wait is that a guy?' I like action/adventure movies like that!!

The movie beautifully depicts the early days of Christianity and what real Christianity is all about: forgiving and loving your enemies, being good in this life so you are rewarded in death, do not fear death, etc. These parts of the movies I really enjoyed because it reminded me of bible stories my grannie Annie used to read to me.

Ben-Hur won 11 Academy awards which doesn't surprise me because the story is huge, the production is huge, everything is gargantuan! I would recommend it for someone who wants to catch a glimpse of the extravagant Roman empire.

Apocalypse Now (1979)

I was not too excited to watch this movie. First I knew it was another war movie. I had my dose of men dying after All Quiet. Second it came on 2 discs. I don't have the patience for 2 discs. I don't have the patience for 1 commercial.

Everyone I spoke to had already seen this movie. Even my roommate Rachel who owns 'Notting Hill' (bleh). What's wrong with me? I've never even heard of this movie.

I held onto the disc for 4 days wondering when I would be ready to make the commitment. On Saturday I started playing it but the opening credits with The Door's 'The End' was just way too obnoxious and hoakey for me so I had to stop. Monday I felt more ready. I fast forwarded through the opening credits and let this leg of my idiot's quest begin.

I recognized the leading actor to be Martin Sheen. He was pretty good looking in his hey day. It's those pretty green eyes!

I'm happy to say that I actually really enjoyed the first disc (Act I). Vietnam is a really scary place. Like a haunted mystical jungle of death. Add a war and you have officially entered Hell.

The journey into Cambodia where Colonel Kurtz is hiding is the story line for this Act (the movie parallels with Josephy Conrad's Heart of Darkness). It's really interesting to see Sheen try to pick at the brain of Colonel Kurtz and understand how this man eventually went insane.

I planned on going to bed on Monday around 10 but I got sucked into Act 1. I started Act II but I started losing interest when Sheen reaches a French plantation.

The next night I got back to Act II. I can immediately tell that this french hoe is going to seduce Sheen so I had to fast foward through most of those parts because it didn't seem important to the story. I guess director Francis had to get some boobs in there somehow. Yawn.

Sheen finally gets to Colonel Kurtz and I really was surprised by the messed up colony Kurtz had set up. The whole thing is just so freaking creepy. The best part is when Kurtz throws one of Sheen's crew member's head onto Sheen's lap. It's all very grotesque and sort of silly.

Other than that I didn't really find Act II all that interesting. I thought it was just way too out there. The characters from the beginning were more my cup of tea (they pretty much all die in Act II). Kurtz for me is unrealistic as a character but then again I've never spent time in a jungle so I really don't know what that situation can do to you.

Annie Hall (1977)

So I am super lucky because after a crap film like An American in Paris I get to see one of my all-time favorite movies Annie Hall. I've seen this movie around 6 times and from the first time I saw it it became a very special film for me. The story takes place in New York and after living in Manhattan for 2 years it takes an even greater meaning.

EVERYONE SHOULD SEE THIS FILM! It's a master piece. I don't really want to write about it because I don't feel like boring you. I'll just share some of my favorite lines from the movie:

"A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies. And I think what we got on our hands is a dead shark."

"Don't you see the rest of the country looks upon New York like we're left-wing, communist, Jewish, homosexual pornographers? I think of us that way sometimes and I live here."

Annie Hall: Alvy, you're incapable of enjoying life, you know that? I mean you're like New York City. You're just this person. You're like this island unto yourself.
Alvy Singer: I can't enjoy anything unless everybody is. If one guy is starving someplace, that puts a crimp in my evening.

Annie Hall: You're what Grammy Hall would call a real Jew.
Alvy Singer: Oh. Thank you.

Robin: There's Henry Drucker. He has a chair in history at Princeton. Oh, and the short man is Hershel Kaminsky. He has a chair in philosophy at Cornell.
Alvy Singer: Yeah? Two more chairs they got a dining room set.

Allison: I'm in the midst of doing my thesis.

Alvy Singer: On what?

Allison: Political commitment in twentieth century literature.

Alvy Singer: You, you, you're like New York, Jewish, left-wing, liberal, intellectual, Central Park West, Brandeis University, the socialist summer camps and the, the father with the Ben Shahn drawings, right, and the really, y'know, strike-oriented kind of, red diaper, stop me before I make a complete imbecile of myself.

Allison: No, that was wonderful. I love being reduced to a cultural stereotype.

''After that it got pretty late, and we both had to go, but it was great seeing Annie again. I... I realized what a terrific person she was, and... and how much fun it was just knowing her; and I... I, I thought of that old joke, y'know, the, this... this guy goes to a psychiatrist and says, "Doc, uh, my brother's crazy; he thinks he's a chicken." And, uh, the doctor says, "Well, why don't you turn him in?" The guy says, "I would, but I need the eggs." Well, I guess that's pretty much now how I feel about relationships; y'know, they're totally irrational, and crazy, and absurd, and... but, uh, I guess we keep goin' through it because, uh, most of us... need the eggs."

SEE THIS MOVIE! It'll make you laugh, cry, cringe.........it's life!

An American in Paris (1951)

So it was bound to happen. I didn't think it would happen so early on, but that's life. I saw a movie I did not like.

I sat down to watch An American in Paris with a half-paying attention Rachel. The NetFlix sleeves said this film won 7 Academy Awards, so I'm under the pretense that I'm in for a fun night.

Yes, the scenery is gorgeous (I mean it's Paris, so you can't really go wrong). Yes, Gene Kelly is very charming (my wiki of him didn't turn up any dirt about alcoholism or child abuse so points there), but OH MY GOD what a silly movie. The last 'dance/daydream' scene literally felt like it lasted for an hour. I mean who daydreams in DANCE??? Especially what STRAIGHT MAN daydreams in DANCE???

Also who falls in love in like 4 seconds?? The whole thing just made me pissy. There are basically 2 story lines going on, Gene's love for this annoying french girl and this rich skanks love of Gene's stupid art. In the last scene (which lasts for about 2 seconds) Gene gets the girl (BIG SURPRISE THERE). And the semi-interesting story line of the art skank never follows through. The movie just ends. Thank god though because I don't think I could have handled any more tap dancing or day dream dancing.

UGH!

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

Wow, okay so I can't really be cute with this one.

The movie does a superb job of taking the book and illustrating the horrors of war for this group of young Germans. I read the book in high school and remembered really liking it even though sadly I do know know many details about WWI. I regret taking World History courses by correspondence because I really have little knowledge on the subject (Alex's wisdom for kids: History is worth taking with a real live teacher!!)

I remember from reading the book that any character you became attached to would be killed in the next few pages. Same goes for the movie. It by no means paints a pretty picture of what war is like.

I think the hardest part of the movie is seeing these men realize what they've gotten themselves into. It's just heart breaking to watch the soldiers lose their minds, limbs, lives, etc. because they were convinced to fight in a war they really didn't know anything about.

Of the few Top 100 movies I've seen I will definitely reccommend this one to everyone. If you don't have a lot of knowledge about war and you want to catch a glimpse of just how truly awful it is definitely check this one out.