Fun with Film Lists!

[Mercurius]

The Tenet post made me want to nerd out with film lists. There are no rules, just make any list you want of any length, genre, subject, criteria, etc. It can be MCU films, Michael Moore docs, fantasy, rom-coms, etc. In fact, do it all!

Better yet, include five-star rankings. You can decide on your own criteria, but if you want something to follow, I'll come up with something. I'm consider two general factors: entertainment value and meaning/emotional resonance, and weighing them both for the ranking. Quality of film-making is obviously important, but this is meant to be entirely subjective: don't go by what you think is supposed to be great (you don't have to give Citizen Kane 5 stars), but what you think is great (or good, etc).

5 stars: A truly great film, one of your favorites. Both very entertaining and very meaningful/resonant (to you). In your "Hall of Fame."​

4 stars: An excellent film. Should be both very entertaining and at least somewhat meaningful, or vice versa, but lacks the fullness of your 5-star films.​

3 stars: A good film. Could be really fun but forgettable, or really meaningful but not very fun.​

2 stars: A meh film, but not horrible. The type of film you watch if you are empty inside, or simply have nothing else to do. It could be meaningful but really boring, or somewhat entertaining but totally empty of soul or depth.​

1 star: A bad film. Why did you watch the whole thing? What is wrong with you?!​

Again, whatever you feel inclined to list. You could also do worst films, most annoying, most titillating, best (or worst) Schwarzenegger films, worst films by ex-girlfriends of Ben Affleck, most British from an American perspective, favorite disaster films, all Star Wars and Star Trek ranked together (that would be fun), etc...whatever butters your toast.

Have fun!

(I'll post some in replies)

 

[Mercurius]

I couldn't resist this one...

All Star Wars/Trek Films

1. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan 5 stars
2. Star Wars IV: A New Hope 4.5 stars
3. Stare Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back 4.5 stars
4. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home 4.5 stars
5. Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi 4 stars
6. Star Trek: First Contact 4 stars
7. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country 3.5 stars
8. Star Trek III: Search for Spock 3.5 stars
9. Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens 3.5 stars
10. Star Trek 3.5 stars
11. Star Wars: Rogue One 3 stars
12. Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith 3 stars
13. Star Wars: Solo 3 stars
14. Star Trek Beyond 3 stars
15. Star Trek: Generations 3 stars
16. Star Trek: The Motion Picture 3 stars
17. Star Trek: Nemesis 3 stars
18. Star Trek Into Darkness 3 stars
19. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier 2.5 stars
20. Star Trek: Insurrection 2.5 stars
21. Star Wars VIII: The Last Jedi 2.5 stars
22. Star Wars IX: The Rise of Skywalker 2.5 stars
23. Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones 2.5 stars
24. Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace 2.5 stars

I might fiddle with it, but that's my first pass at it.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

The greatest Cronenberg Movies, Ranked.

HA! There can be no list, as all of them are 5-star masterpieces. However, here is the order in which someone might rank them, if it was possible.

1. Naked Lunch. How do you film an unfilmable book?
2. Crash. No, not the terrible movie that won the Oscar.
3. Videodrome. "A Clockwrok Orange of the 80s" - Andy Warhol.
4. Dead Ringers. Who is worse? Jeremy Irons, or Jeremy Irons?
5. ExistenZ. Probably the most accessible movie in my top 5. Hmmmm.
6. Eastern Promises. Aragorn? Really?
7. A History of Violence. Aragorn, really.
8. Spider. A movie that might break you.
9. The Fly. So, what is body horror, exactly?
10. The Dead Zone. There is the Shining, and this movie. Those are the two King adaptations you need.
11. Rabid. Oh, body horror.
12. A Dangerous Method. Come for the cast, stay for the Cronenberg.
13. Cosmopolis. Chilliest Cronenberg.
14. Shivers. More of the 70s scare.
15. The Brood. See shivers.
16. Scanners. See the Brood.
...... From this point, optional viewing.
17. Maps to the Stars. Eh.
18. Fast Company. It's like Crash, but if a generic Canadian director and not Cronenberg had directed it.
19. Crimes of the Future. See Stereo.
20. Stereo. He began somewhere. For Cronenberg completists.
21. M. Butterfly. No.

 

[payn]

The greatest Cronenberg Movies, Ranked.

HA! There can be no list, as all of them are 5-star masterpieces. However, here is the order in which someone might rank them, if it was possible.

1. Naked Lunch. How do you film an unfilmable book?
2. Crash. No, not the terrible movie that won the Oscar.
3. Videodrome. "A Clockwrok Orange of the 80s" - Andy Warhol.
4. Dead Ringers. Who is worse? Jeremy Irons, or Jeremy Irons?
5. ExistenZ. Probably the most accessible movie in my top 5. Hmmmm.
6. Eastern Promises. Aragorn? Really?
7. A History of Violence. Aragorn, really.
8. Spider. A movie that might break you.
9. The Fly. So, what is body horror, exactly?
10. The Dead Zone. There is the Shining, and this movie. Those are the two King adaptations you need.
11. Rabid. Oh, body horror.
12. A Dangerous Method. Come for the cast, stay for the Cronenberg.
13. Cosmopolis. Chilliest Cronenberg.
14. Shivers. More of the 70s scare.
15. The Brood. See shivers.
16. Scanners. See the Brood.
...... From this point, optional viewing.
17. Maps to the Stars. Eh.
18. Fast Company. It's like Crash, but if a generic Canadian director and not Cronenberg had directed it.
19. Crimes of the Future. See Stereo.
20. Stereo. He began somewhere. For Cronenberg completists.
21. M. Butterfly. No.

Whoa, that's nuts I was just thinking about doing a Cronenberg list.

In order I have seen them;
The Fly 3 Stars. Saw this at probably too young an age. At first, I thought being a scientist was freakin awesome. You run around acting nuts, live in a cool warehouse space, and invent amazing stuff. One little mistake, and now you are in world of s#$t and eventually become a complete monster. Strikes "scientist" from list of things to be when I grow up.

Naked Lunch 4 Stars. This made about as much sense to me as the novel did when I read it. Weird, odd, disconcerting, and its got Peter Weller!

Scanners 3 Stars. 70's scare indeed. Cronenberg took the horror and social commentary elements that Romero and Carpenter used and split the difference. New age beatniks meet cold hard capitalist pharmaceuticals.

Existenz 4 Stars. This was a fantastic sci-fi film that is criminally underrated. Its odd, visual, and has a great twist. You cant beat the line up. Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law, Willem Dafoe, Ian Holm.

A History of Violence 4 Stars. A nice take for Cronenberg down Cohen brothers street. This film has some interesting character development, an odd sense of humor, and a great cast. Viggo, Bello, Harris, Hurt.

Eastern Promises 3 Stars. A more serious drama with no typical Cronenberg edge on mob crime and violence. Nothing outstanding in writing, but some excellently crafted scenes like the Banya (russian bath). Viggo and Watts.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Naked Lunch 4 Stars. This made about as much sense to me as the novel did when I read it. Weird, odd, disconcerting, and its got Peter Weller!

Peter Weller is absolutely perfect in this role. I can't even imagine another actor playing the role.

"You know how Americans are, Kiki. They all love to travel, and then they only want to meet other Americans and talk about how hard it is to get a decent hamburger."

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Love that movie and the book it's based on. Howard Shore's soundtrack is just impeccable. It, as much as the movie, sells the surreal world of car crash fetishists, creating an atmosphere that just soaks the film.

If I had to compare his work here with the latter Lord of the Rings - it's that both sets of works create sonic cultures. You can hear the overpass at night in his music, just as you can hear the timeless regal beauty of Lothlorien, the pastoral peace and comfort of The Shire.

2. Crash. No, not the terrible movie that won the Oscar.

For me, since I'm on the subject, I'll go with my Top 5 Movie Soundtracks:

1 - Conan the Barbarian, Basil Poledouris
2 - Crash, Howard Shore
3 - The Fellowship of the Ring, Howard Shore
4 - Alexander Nevsky, Prokofiev
5 - Mad Max Fury Road, Junkie XL

I didn't include John Williams' Star Wars, because, really, saying that that's one of the greatest soundtracks of all time is like saying water is wet.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Love that movie and the book it's based on. Howard Shore's soundtrack is just impeccable. It, as much as the movie, sells the surreal world of car crash fetishists, creating an atmosphere that just soaks the film.

Howard Shore is amazing. But I'd like to give a special shout-out to his soundtrack to Naked Lunch; I saw the movie when it came out, and that was my real introduction to free jazz (in the sense that I had to get the soundtrack, and then had to search out the music).

I'm not sure I would have gotten into Ornette Coleman without it, and without that introduction, there would have been so much great music I missed out on.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

Definitely. The chaotic jazz soundtrack manages to evoke both the era Burroughs started writing in and the cut-up method he used.

Howard Shore is amazing. But I'd like to give a special shout-out to his soundtrack to Naked Lunch; I saw the movie when it came out, and that was my real introduction to free jazz (in the sense that I had to get the soundtrack, and then had to search out the music).

I'm not sure I would have gotten into Ornette Coleman without it, and without that introduction, there would have been so much great music I missed out on.

 

[TheAlkaizer]

Love that movie and the book it's based on. Howard Shore's soundtrack is just impeccable. It, as much as the movie, sells the surreal world of car crash fetishists, creating an atmosphere that just soaks the film.

If I had to compare his work here with the latter Lord of the Rings - it's that both sets of works create sonic cultures. You can hear the overpass at night in his music, just as you can hear the timeless regal beauty of Lothlorien, the pastoral peace and comfort of The Shire.



For me, since I'm on the subject, I'll go with my Top 5 Movie Soundtracks:

1 - Conan the Barbarian, Basil Poledouris
2 - Crash, Howard Shore
3 - The Fellowship of the Ring, Howard Shore
4 - Alexander Nevsky, Prokofiev
5 - Mad Max Fury Road, Junkie XL

I didn't include John Williams' Star Wars, because, really, saying that that's one of the greatest soundtracks of all time is like saying water is wet.

I agree so much with your number 1. The Conan movie hasn't aged really well, many bits are pretty cringe nowadays, but it's still one of my favorite movie. I like to say that it's objectively a very average movie but that it had a huge influence on me. But one aspect of it that I always defend is its soundtrack. It's absolutely amazing.

 

[Ralif Redhammer]

I love that movie, though it absolutely has plenty of problematic parts. The way the soundtrack works to tell the story, it's an opera pretending to be an action movie. The soundtrack and the visuals tell the story. If you removed all the dialog, you could still understand the story perfectly.

I agree so much with your number 1. The Conan movie hasn't aged really well, many bits are pretty cringe nowadays, but it's still one of my favorite movie. I like to say that it's objectively a very average movie but that it had a huge influence on me. But one aspect of it that I always defend is its soundtrack. It's absolutely amazing.