Favourites

While establishing my profile on the dreaded Facebook the other day I was on the entertainment section where I was asked to list my favourite films, I was aghast at such a concept, my BPD kicked in and I panicked at having to choose from the thousand of films I have watched and enjoyed over the years, what next? I thought, picking a favourite out of my children.

After the intial shock subsided I decided to man up and actually try and come up with some top picks from my movie going history, but one favourite wasnt possible, I had to do it by genre and even then it was going to be tough, anyway so here I go and forgive me for prevaricating on some sections, its just a very hard ask.

Historical Drama: Gladiator, this roman drama is very watchable without being lightweight. the subject matter has action and drama written all over it and the characters have some depth without becoming a melodrama. The first battle is awesome and gritty while the scenes in Rome are beautifuly done without ever becoming indulgent.

Crime/Gangster : The Godfather 1 & 2, I dont really see these as two films just a truncated long one, the third isnt really included but has to be aknowledged as existing, even if its just to say how dissapointing it was. The story of the Corleone family, from Vito’s childhood in Sicily up to Michaels trancendents to the throne of power is told with a craft that is never again matched in this genre, the characters are never given any semblence of legitimacy, they have a code but its not societys norms that they conform to. I love the pathos of the life they lead where death, usually violent death, is considered a par for the course and revenge is the only medium that can contain this.

Teen : Ferris buellers day off, I seperate the teen element from other catergories such as comdey and drama as they appealed to me at a specific time and shouldnt be held up along side other movies for quality etc as they were very much targeted at the demographic they were set within. Ferris bueller is the ultimte teen hero, cocky, cool and very fortunate without any arrogance or predjudices. His day off is a whimsical trip through a single adventure where he displays both cunning and recklessness in equal measure whilst always being one step ahead of his protaginists, the easily relatable school principal and the jealous big sister, and he manages to bring something to his friends lives in the process. the humour is predictable but still funny and of all the great John Hughes films, any of which could have been top in this genre, its the sheer disregard for adult conventions that Ferris displays that wins it for me, and the guys tearing around Chicago in the red Ferrari still kills me.

Western: Unforgiven, It had to be an Eastwood film didnt it? well yes it did. I could have gone for any of his westerns and been comfortable defending my position but this one is remarkable, its almost an anti western in its subject matter. An old killer setting out to earn blood money from a group of prostitutes, a young idealist who wants to be a gunslinger and a dollop of racism all in the mix. The fact this was directed by Eastwood does add to the gravitas but the film as whole is quality throughout, the cast, the settings and the cinematography all make this a classic, and the academy awards dont hurt.

Sci Fi: Aliens: I was stumped here as this is probably one of the strongest areas for me, I’m a borderline fanboy and not picking a Starwars film was tough, as was the Terminator movies but the 2nd instalment in the Alien franchise is just too good to leave out. This was the film that introduced us to realistic future soldiers, and the reality is that todays combatants arent a million miles from this. The tension is always on the money and the horror aspect is just enough without being silly, you like the marines and when they start to get picked off it hurts a bit but you watch the next one go and move on.

Comedy: Superbad, I knows it quite a modern film, and may even be classified by some as a teen movie but I wasnt a teen when I saw it and i really loved it. the characters are excellent, from the goofy teens trying to get alcohol and pussy to the crazy cops who ferry McLovin around town, they all hit the mark. It makes me smile just thinking about McLovin, the name itself conjures up his geeky persona, the audacity to have that as his name, let alone as a single name is mental and hilarious in the extreme. there were loads of films i could have gone for but today this is the comedy for me.

Fantasy: Return of the king, Lord of the rings is an easy pick, some might say lazy but it is just the best fantasy franchise there is, Harry potter may appeal to others but I never went down that road and this last installment is too good to be beaten, the battles , the drama and the amazing imagery all set this apart from even its first two instalments. Unlike the Godfather films which I have lumped together as one I didnt feel the same rules applied here, in many respect they are one very long film, all being filmed together but there were elements of the others I didnt like, so I set the Return of the King apart.

War/ Conflict: The Boys in company C, this Vietnam film centres around the titular unit and there tour of duty, the divergent set of characters bond as they go through their tribulations and it is as much a story of camraderie as war but the action is good, as a young boy Vietnam seemed to be cool war thanks to the many films about it but this one was more honest and whilst lauding the courage of the young american soldiers it doesnt attempt to glorify the conflict.

Horror : The Thing, I’m not big horror fan, probably because I dont frighten too easily but I do have a few exceptions that are just quality films regardless of their genre and The Thing is one of them. The premise is great, a desolate outpost with no one to call for help, an aggressive and terrifying monster with a multitude of appearences some of which are mind boggling, the spider head is still one of my favourites. and the sense of suspicion and intrigue as you have no way of knowing who is going to change next, what were the russians up to, is it something to do with them, all the old american fears of the eighties tied into an alien adventure.

Espionage : Casino Royale, this fairly recent film is my favourite because it does what I always wanted, turned Bond into a realsitic man. Daniel Craig was controversial a choice but one that paid off in spades, with the Bourne trilogy showing us how Americans would have done it Bond had to step up his game and boy did he do just that, the idea of a card game being the ultimate feild of conflict sounds awful but the events before, around and especially after are excellent with Bond actually having a genuine love interest that you can believe in and therefore a personal reason to fight on, in a genre with constant upgrades in science and techniques this stays with nthe game without losing its historical gravitas.

Animated: Beowulf, this was a tough pick again as I have seen pretty much every kids film going, from the early eighties onwards and they nhave been improving over the years and some are truly great but I’m trying to appear mature here so I went for Beowulf. Its not animated in the classic sense but insofar as its not real actors one screen I think it counts. Its one of my favourite stories from childhood told with style and features Ray winstone, and he had to appear somewhere in my list, I am londoner after all.

There were inumerable films that I didnt consider because the years of constant medicating have shortened my memory and they came to mind while i was writing and I would have been at it all day if I tried to fit them in, the myriad of films that vied for top spot and never made it could form the basis of a huge list but I had to draw the line somewhere, didnt I?