Three favorite films, and why?

**Bobl** · September-19-10, 08:05 PM

Interested in learning the choices made by forum members.

My list would include: Casablanca, Apocalypse Now, The Wizard Of Oz.
Why? Just because I liked them, and continue to view them from time to time. I'm an unsophisticated person.

**Meddle** · September-19-10, 08:36 PM

The Final Countdown

Not necessarily a great flick, but some interesting scenes including a dogfight between F14 Tomcats and Japanese Zeros.

I'll have to think about the others.

**Brock7** · September-19-10, 10:35 PM

I couldn't pick just three. How about the first three that come to mind that aren't available on a region 1 DVD but that I acquired copies of anyway - "Hobson's Choice", "Blithe Spirit" and "Bigger than Life". Paramount's "Alice in Wonderland" from 1933 would've been first on the list a few months ago, but TMC finally got off the pot on that one.

**ronaldj** · September-19-10, 10:39 PM

More than three:

Somtimes a Great Notion, Catch 22: Great movies. Shadow of a shadow of great novels.

Slaughterhouse Five.

Nosferatu: Max Schreck in the twenties and Klaus Kinski.

**Gistok** · September-20-10, 01:14 AM

Alfred Hitchcock's first American made film... the Gothic thriller "Rebecca" [[and to think Joan Fontaine is still alive along with her older sister Olivia de Havilland)... leading film character Mrs. Danvers just gives me the willies...

"Young Frankenstein"... favorite Mel Brookes movie.

"1941"... the one movie that Steven Spielberg never wants to talk about... but it was a hilarious comedy and had so many stars... portraying the histeria after Pearl Harbor.

"Last of the Mohicans" the 1990s version with Daniel Day Lewis... music and scenery... breathtaking.

**Meddle** · September-20-10, 01:46 AM

1941's OK, but it's a bit like National Lampoon meets The Three Stooges for a Mad Magazine sketch on Saturday Night Live with guest stars from SCTV

Funny, but over the top and somewhat overdone.

Killer cast though.

lilpup · September-20-10, 06:27 AM

hmmm, just three?

Au Revoir Les Enfants - so many little things we do have effects - good and bad - we don't anticipate

Gigi - because it's fun and I can be a sentimental sap - ah, yes, I remember it well

What would be #3...Cabaret, Cinema Paradiso, Casablanca, Lawrence of Arabia, Some Came Running...so many possibilities...probably Cabaret right at this moment...

**rb336** · September-20-10, 08:27 AM

HEAD - total deconstruction of the 60s and corporate media
The Deer Hunter - The movie hit me like a gut shot.
Citizen Kane - as much for the snarkiness as the great film making

**MizMotown** · September-20-10, 09:05 AM

Grease [[because it's fun and I fell in love with John Travolta at age 12 and know every line by heart)

Mr. Skeffington, Now, Voyager, Dark Victory and every Bette Davis movie. She's my girl :-)

Kill Bill Vol I & II [[Uma is my other girl.)

Big Fish [[they've called this movie a modern day Wizard of Oz) I think it's a great movie about life in general.

Shawshank Redemption [[just a great movie i've watched several times)

**MizMotown** · September-20-10, 09:07 AM

Oh and I'm gonna add The Color Purple.

**gazhekwe** · September-20-10, 09:54 AM

Witness, Powwow Highway, The Gods Must Be Crazy

**Ray1936** · September-20-10, 11:13 AM

Yeah, Casablanca has to be on anyone's list, I think. And if I was Rick, it would have been me on that plane with Ilsa instead of Victor.

The Pink Panther series always stops my channel surfing when I come upon one. Peter Sellers' early death was a big loss; he was pure genius.

Finally, even though it's been panned as bad acting and a stupid plot that's been done too many times, I absolutely love Rio Bravo, with the Duke, Dean, and Rick Nelson.

**blackmath** · September-20-10, 02:39 PM

The Shawshank Redemption, Saving Private Ryan and Dr Strangelove. All of these films are somewhat historical pieces about human drama and people finding something good in a horrible situation. Dr Strangelove is perhaps the gutsiest film ever made. Watch that movie and remember it was made at the height of the Cold War and all the xenophobia that was surrounding it.

Honorable mention to Casino, Pulp Fiction, American History X and The Usual Suspects.

**Gistok** · September-20-10, 04:26 PM

Originally Posted by Meddle

1941's OK, but it's a bit like National Lampoon meets The Three Stooges for a Mad Magazine sketch on Saturday Night Live with guest stars from SCTV

Funny, but over the top and somewhat overdone.

Killer cast though.

Meddle... spot on with your analysis... except you forgot to add the Marx Brothers to the mix... but I agree... it's way over the top....

Who can ever forget the amusement park scenes where the wooden dummy is the first to spot the Japanese sub.... favorite line was spoken by the man on the Ferris Wheel to the kid down below... "turn off those lights you little asshole"... and... "Horrywooood".....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GL3X_...eature=related

**Patrick** · September-20-10, 05:17 PM

American Splendor--For some reason, I can relate to Harvey Pekar in many respects and it was just a well made movie. Great music, and amazing acting.

Trainspotting--Again, another movie with great acting but the book sucked. It was too hard to decipher the "Scot" English

Ferris Bueller's Day Off--Maybe not a fave at this point in my life but it still holds a special place as do a lot of John Hughes films.

**qweek** · September-20-10, 06:37 PM

The Big Lebowski

I know my rights.

Full Metal Jacket

Think about my brother, and his brothers.

Caddyshack,

Just because it makes me smile.

**Jimaz** · September-20-10, 07:04 PM

I can't think of just three but Being John Malkovich is right up there for being so unique. It's hard to imagine another film that strange.

BEING JOHN MALKOVICH trailer

Malkovich in Malkovich

**elegirl** · September-20-10, 11:23 PM

Somewhere in Time
Breakfast at Tiffanys
Love is a Many Splendored Thing
On the Beach
Amelie

Why? Why not?

**maxx** · September-21-10, 08:42 AM

Lawrence of Arabia, Freida, Dr. Strangelove - great stories, characters, music

**canuck** · September-21-10, 01:38 PM

Paper Moon USA Peter Bogdonovich 1973
As far as storytelling goes in a somewhat conventional fashion, it is hard to beat this highly evocative film from a talented director. The acting is superb, the locations are amazing around St Joseph Missouri, and photography by Laszlo Kovacs is a plus. I feel the same sense of awe watching this as I do poring over WPA writer James Agee's Let Us Now Praise Famous Men
which was an accompaniment to not illustrated by Walker Evans' photos of poor southern sharecroppers and country folk in Appalachia.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest USA 1975 Milos Forman
Just a gem.

Ma Vie en Rose France/Alain Berliner 1997 not to be confused with La Vie en Rose the biopic about Edith Piaf.
A great story about a young boy who feels he should be a girl and crossdresses in spite of his parents and neighbors' objections. Great storytelling, beautifully written and admirably played.

Tatie Danielle France Étienne Chatilliez 1990
A hard edged comedy about an old lady, who lost her husband eons ago, and is taken in by a kindly niece and her family. They outdo themselves to welcome her and she is incredibly mean and deprecating towards them. The family goes on vacation and hires a live-in caretaker. The old lady meets her match. Very funny and almost hard to watch.

Apocalypse Now USA FFord Coppola 1979
A perfect blend of reality and fantasy to describe the horror and the depravity of war. His Godfather films are also amazing in their ability to convey a story without abusing clichés. He has created a world we knew existed but before him, never as many details were present in such exacting measure. Great cinematography, and art direction. The wedding sequence like the Deer Hunter's sequence on the same theme is perfectly expressed.

The French Connection USA Billy Friedkin 1971
I love the atmosphere of this movie, the scene where Popey Doyle, The Gene Hackman character
waits outside a fancy restaurant spying on the french criminals eating. His hatred for these guys compounded by his impatience, the freezing cold and his drinking a lousy coffee out of a paper cup.
A number of years ago, I worked on the movie Heist, a David Mamet movie where Hackman was one of the leads, and I couldnt help complimenting him on his work. He is a very modest, shy fellow. The first day of shooting a scene set in cool weather, it was a very hot day in july, the hottest really, and he was dressed with woollen pants, shirts and hunting jacket, woolcap, boots. I was in shorts and t-shirt and sweating it out. Couldnt believe how patient and cool the guy was between takes, never taking off his costume etc...

**Bigb23** · September-22-10, 10:17 AM

Zulu 1964 - Because after reading the actual battle diary, I realized that for once, the movie makers didn't fudge the facts.

Hamburger Hill 1987 - Again, a true battle story.

Master and Commander : The Far side of the world. 2003 - It was fascinating how cramped the fighting conditions were back in the early 1800's.

**Jimaz** · September-22-10, 07:02 PM

Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is starting just now on AMC here.

Stosh · September-22-10, 09:55 PM

My 3 Favorites are:

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Godfather 1

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

**MickeyMac** · September-23-10, 04:36 PM

Beyond The Valley of the Dolls-My all time favorite film. You will never see anything like it is all I can say.

The T.A.M.I. Show-The ultimate concert film. James Brown steals the show

Network-not one bad performance from any actor in this. A must see.