Lord of the Rings was stupendous... And that's the first time I've ever heard Tomb Raider called by its real name... I find people recognize it more easily if you refer to it as "Boob Raider." I liked Vanilla Sky, but it wouldn't have been my #1. To be honest, I agree with pued. But hey, that's what movie rankings are for... to get people talking about movies .
Yeah, I can't honestly say that I thought Vanilla Sky was anywhere within 1000 miles of a movie I could possibly enjoy.
Some selections I feel are pants and some are dead on. Out of all 116 though, Vanilla Sky at number one is the most interesting pick, higher than the spot I gave it but not any less deserving. The mind games alone put it in my top 10, but after I returned twice more, the film improved on each visit. Minor details became major, characters traits oozed out, it is such a dense film. Now most of the hatred that has been spewed at this was mainly because of the ever flowing plot. Which in itself is unbelieveable, does the viewing public really want more generic movies? Of course, these are the same people that made Tomb Raider and The Mummy Returns blockbusters. Also, did you leave off Brothehood of the Wolf because with its limited release you haven't been able to see it?
It's not that I didn't like the involving plot of the movie, it's just that I never got the impression that Tom Cruise's character was real. I couldn't imagine a person like that, and it didn't make it real. I also didn't like the ending, which was to me the equivalent of saying, "Oh, by the way, all that **** you just saw was basically a dream. But thanks for paying to sit through it anyway."
Dude you have a few movies in your top 20 that make some people's worst of the year list, especially Moulin Rogue and Vanilla Sky. I can't believe how low you ranked Amelie. And seriously look at what you ranked in front of LOTR and Memento. O? Angel Eyes? Kiss of the Dragon? Friggin Heartbreakers? Oh man... I don't know how much time you spent on the list but c'mon no way is Hearbreakers better than Memento even if you're in love with JLH and think Memento is overrated. Nice long list though, it's probably pretty tough to slot movies by memory without thinking pretty hard about it.
I just can't ever agree with anybody who would put Moulin Rouge at #2 - and LOTR way down there... Now I understand.
Out of those 116 films, I only saw 14 and only 7 in the theaters. I saw 3 of your top 20 (The Score, Legally Blonde and Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back).
Holy Schmoly, I only saw 4 of these movies in the theatre and another 5 or so on video.... Where have I been?
From the list: 8. Monster's Inc. - Not as funny as I imagined it would be, but its innovativeness more than made up for it. Sweet as molasses too! Okay, I just saw Monster's Inc. last this Saturday and I was a bit disappointed. Like you, I didn't find it as funny as I imagined it would be. It was also way way way too predictable, even for a children's movie. I was hoping (and expecting) a Toy Story/Toy Story 2 movie and it was more of a traditional Disney children's flick. I still enjoyed it, but I was disappointed. But the main question I had was how its innovateiveness made up for it? This is, after all, the 4th Pixar film so the computer animation is no longer groundbreaking. In what way is Monster's Inc. innovative?
I've said this many times, but I only use one criteria when I rate/rank movies, whether or not I enjoyed them. I don't rate them relative to what they are, I just want to have a good time at the movies. That's what makes me unique when compared to other movie reviewers. A movie doesn't have to send a message, make me think, or anything else other than entertain me. I didn't have a good time at Memento, I thought it was too gimmicky, especially since I didn't think that the story, when told normally, was that good a story. I didn't like LOTR, but I am going to give it a second chance. I liked The One better than both of those movies. I left it feeling I had just seen a cheesy action movie. I had a better time at the theatre seeing that movie than I did seeing the previous ones. Any of the top 20 could've easily been in my top 10. I had a really hard time with those, and Timing, <I>Amelie</I> is definitely a great movie...I wholeheartedly agree with your sentiments. However, I have seen Moulin Rouge on many top 10 lists, and I wouldn't be surprised if it got nominated for Best Picture. dylan, I felt the same way as you for most of the movie, but the door scene at the end was very clever, and alone made up for it's shortcomings. DEAN, I'm saving Brotherhood for my 2002 list. According to Yahoo.com, it wasn't released in the U.S. until January 11th, even though it was released overseas. I am definitely excited about seeing it. Thanks for reading guys!
BTW I totally agree about Memento, I just saw that movie last week and I could not believe how bad it was. After reading all of the good comments about it, I was positive it wouldn't suck, but it was horrible. It's just a movie that relies almost entirely on a gimmick...
I imagine Vanilla Sky comes from a great book and perhaps the Spanish movie (original I believe) is better adapted, but the current movie one was poor and very dissappointing IMO. The movie took too long to develop, didn't build to any real suspense concerning the curveball thrown, and just didn't develop the themes in an impactful way. Granted they are different kind of films and different subject matter, but even the reality/fatasy blur created by such movies as Total Recall or Matrix reflected far more innovative filmaking. Likewise, The Others, or an even better movie, The Sixth Sense, developed their suspense around their curveballs in far more clever and drammatic ways. There was another movie a little in the VS vein where a guy goes back in time to stop a lady he falls for from getting hit by a car in NY that I liked better than VS also. I did think Moulin Rouge was interesting and well done, and LOR was excellent. Just my 2 cents.
