Continuing the countdown of my 50 favorite movies ever!

Mean Girls (2004) | IMDb
Where to begin... this movie has so many good quotes for every day usage. Or maybe I'm just lame - who knows. Either way, this comedic look at High School girl drama is straight out hilarious. Even though it can be universally acknowledged that Lindsay Lohan sucks, Rachel McAdams, Tina Fey, Tim Meadows, and pretty much everyone else compensate more than enough. Oh, and for the record, I'm going to marry Lacey Chabert.


Reservoir Dogs (1992) | IMDb
Probably my biggest movie obsession during my younger days (and by "younger," I mean 5 or so years ago), this gangster flick about an undercover cop, a bank robbery, and concepts of how much to tip is great all around. The dialogue is amazing as well, which can only be expected from Tarantino.


Moulin Rouge! (2001) | IMDb
Not to hate on 'A Beautiful Mind' or 'Gosford Park,' but this was definitely my favorite when the 2002 Oscars came around. Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor make a perfect duo. The songs (with the exception of one) are all outstanding, the costumes are beautiful, and I adore the storyline.


How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003) | IMDb
Biggest guilty pleasure ever (or is it?). I'm pretty sure I've seen this movie more times than any other. Don't ever watch this movie with me because I'll be quoting every line as it happens verbatim and you'll get annoyed really fast. The combination of the city, the plot, the pretty lead actors, the cheap jokes, and the line "No, honey, it's just sleeping," when Kate Hudson says Matt McConaughey let their 'love fern' die make this movie perfect for me.


Clerks. (1994) | IMDb
Ok, so the recent sequel wasn't that good (but still not bad), but the original Clerks is a classic. This is another movie I've probably seen 20+ times where I laugh at the jokes before they even play out. Randal Graves is one of my favorite movie characters of all time, and after you watch this movie, it won't be hard to see why (that is, if you know me at all).

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Continuing the countdown of my 50 favorite movies ever!

About a Boy (2002) | IMDb
So, back to my whole Hugh Grant fetish... Just kidding. No, actually, I'm not kidding. Okay, anyway! Chris Weitz is a really great writer/director, and despite 'American Dreamz' failing terribly, this story about Hugh being a complete asshole is both hilarious and ultimately heartwarming.


The Graduate (1967) | IMDb
This movie is so funny, Dustin Hoffman is so awesome, and Katharine Ross is so pretty. That's all I'm going to say. If you haven't seen this movie, what's wrong with you?


Jerry MaGuire (1996) | IMDb
Even though "You had me at 'hello'" and "Show me the money!" have become extremely overused, the original source is still a great piece of cinema. I think this is Tom Cruise at his finest, and Cuba Gooding Jr. is great. Like I said before (for the Almost Famous notes), Cameron Crowe is a great writer. I just love the line, "No heart? No heart?! I'm all heart, motherfucker!"


Gone With the Wind (1939) | IMDb
The oldest movie on this list so far, and one that changed cinema in a lot of ways. Though the first 3 hours or so can drag on, they're still very watchable. The last 40 minutes of this movie is some of the best artwork out there. So breathtaking. Also, Vivien Leigh is extremely talented (and pretty). This movie should be watched at least once by everyone.


The Usual Suspects (1995) | IMDb
This movie is just... damn near perfect. Kevin Spacey is one of the best actors of this generation, and his character Verbal Kint is outstanding. Plus the writing is brilliant, and even after you've seen it through once, twice, three times, it's still great fun to watch over and over. This is probably one of my favorite non-gangster crime movies of all time.

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Continuing the countdown of my 50 favorite movies ever!

28 Days Later... (2002) | IMDb
What happens when one man wakes up in London, only to find that while he was passed out for a month the whole British population had pretty much died off? Well, one of the coolest zombie movies ever is made, that's what happens. I like this movie because of the sense of realism. I use realism loosely, because I don't usually see people's eyes turn blood red and witness them eating each other in my everyday life; however, I like how Cillian Murphy reacts to various situations, and that's why this movie is so good.


Schindler's List (1993) | IMDb
A very highly emotional movie, and one of the most significant productions ever made. The story of the change of heart by Oskar Schindler, and how he saved the lives of hundreds (or was it thousands?) of Jews is amazing. Just picturing his emotional breakdown towards the end of the movie is enough to get me all tingly inside.


Army of Darkness (1992) | IMDb
Back before Sam Raimi directed the 'Spider-man' movies, yes, he existed, and yes, the movies weren't too bad. Army of Darkness is all about Bruce Campbell being a badass with a chainsaw for one hand and a shotgun in the other, sent back in time and on a quest to retrieve the Necronomicon. How much more awesome can a movie get?


Ghostbusters (1984) | IMDb
One of the best comedy movies ever. Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, and Harold Ramis are all hilarious. Even Rick Moranis is funny. This movie is just a series of great one-liners coupled with a plot so ridiculous that it can't help but to be loved. Just remember, don't cross the streams.


Chocolat (2000) | IMDb
It was hard for me to not put this movie much higher on the list, but 36 isn't bad at all. This is a story of Juliette Binoche (one of my favorite modern actresses) opening a chocolate shop in a French town, only to be shunned by the town's moral highground (and the concept of lent). A very great, very unique story of acceptance, and there's even a totally random Johnny Depp role where he plays a pirate.


Notes: See, this is where we see some discrepancy between 'best movies' and 'favorite movies.' Schindler's List is probably easily one of the top ten best movies ever made, and though it's really good, there's just plenty of movies I like more. Also, horror movies have been monopolizing the countdown, but I think there's significantly fewer in the upcoming posts - in case you were wondering.

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Continuing the countdown of my 50 favorite movies ever!

A Night at the Roxbury (1998) | IMDb
Ever since I saw this movie in theatres, one of my running jokes has been 'EMILIOOOOO!' Even though it's now common to see 'Roxbury' jokes online or hear two prepubescent kids talking about how funny it is after they saw it for the first time, this is still one of my favorite comedies, regardless of the jokes being beaten into the ground.


Mallrats (1995) | IMDb
One of Kevin Smith's earlier films, the jokes in this flick are spread evenly between cheap gags and witty humor. I don't think I'd like this movie half as much if Jason Lee wasn't the star, but he is, so this definitely makes the list.


The Shining (1980) | IMDb
The eeryness of isolation in the middle of nowhere makes this Kubrick horror film so great. That, and Jack Nicholson axe-ing the black guy in the chest (oops, that was a spoiler). The axe-ing moment has to be one of my top 5 movie moments ever. The whole movie isn't too bad either.


Love Actually (2003) | IMDb
Even though a lot of this movie is sappy, I'm just a sucker for all this feel-good happy ending nonsense. Some of the scenes in this movie are just too heartwarming, and no matter how bad I feel, somehow this movie always cheers me up. Hugh Grant is also one of my weaknesses, but let's not get into that.


Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) | IMDb
'Pink Panther' movies aside, Blake Edwards makes this Truman Capote novel come to life perfectly. Well, actually, I think it has more to do with Audrey Hepburn being her fabulously amazing self. Come on, who doesn't like Audrey Hepburn? No one, that's right.

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Alright kids, here it is. My 50 favorite movies of all time. See the post below for a few details. Without further ado, here we go!

Scream (1996) | IMDb
Wes Craven's mock horror film that is, in some ways, a parody of itself. With that in mind, there are also plenty of classic 'slasher' moments and a few great scenes of suspense. The sequels were terrible, but the original was very solid and whenever it's on HBO I can't change the channel.


Shakespeare in Love (1998) | IMDb
The Best Picture winner for the 1999 Oscars isn't the only reason for my love of this movie. It mainly has to do with Geoffrey Rush's great comedic performance and some very witty one-liners that make even Ben Affleck seem funny.


Almost Famous (2000) | IMDb
Cameron Crowe sure can write, even if his directing is only decent. This story of Patrick Fugit's High School character joining the band Stillwater on the road for an article in Rolling Stone Magazine is a great blend of comedy, drama, and music. Plus it has Jason Lee, so...


Dawn of the Dead (2004) | IMDb
This seemingly low budget remake of George A. Romero's classic zombie movie, in my opinion, turned out much better than one could've hoped. Nothing is held back, with kids eating adult's necks, spikes through heads, babies shot in the face, tons of blood and carnage, and even some great humor. If only all horror movies were this good.


My Cousin Vinny (1992) | IMDb
Joe Pesci plays the New York (I think) unknowledgeable lawyer who is sent to Alabama to help defend his cousin and his cousin's friend, who were wrongly accused of murder. Oh, but this is a comedy. A very funny one, where Joe Pesci actually learns stuff, despite having no clue how people operate down in the South.

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So here's the news. BIG news, in fact. So BIG I'm even bolding the word 'BIG' and putting it in all caps.

For the first time in history (of my blog), I will be posting a list of my 50 favorite movies of all time. That's right, 'favorite.' Not the 'best' movies, because we don't need to see another list with The Godfather and Casablanca topping off the chart. It's been that way for years and it gets old fast (though, granted, it's true).

So be prepared, because this will be where you see me dispose of all my shame and post up some guilty pleasures of mine. There's lots of representation from all genres (drama, comedy, horror, animated), and it seems fairly balanced at a first glance. It was definitely hard to chop my many cinematic joys down to just 50, but believe me, this will be a sweet list.

If you haven't seen any of the movies on the list, you should view them ASAP. Seriously. I'll begin posting numbers 50-46 tomorrow, and 5 a day until it's done. That way it'll be like a TV countdown, you see? Except I have, you know, like 3 regular readers. Any by 'regular,' I mean they'll probably check it two weeks from now (when they remember I have a blog) and see the whole countdown done already.

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Allow me to give a brief lesson in gas station etiquette.

Today I had to take a long drive down a long stretch of interstate, and inevitably I needed to stop for gas, so I pulled off a the nearest exit.

This was in the middle of nowhere. There were hand painted signs advertising Florida oranges and t-shirts at the amazing price of 2 for $7.00.

The first gas station I pulled up to didn't have the option to pay at the pump with a credit/debit card and required going inside first. Being annoyed at the lack of technology, bundled with my previous annoyance at an obvious lack of cleanliness and civilization, pushed me to go to a different gas station. I don't believe in paying first because I have no idea how much it costs to fill up my tank. Sure, I could estimate, but F that.

So I go to the gas station next door, which to my delight has a pay-at-pump option. It was fairly crowded with idiots from Iowa, and they were all on the right side of the pumps (because apparently most cars fill up on the left side). I drive around in a circle and begin to pull forward in the opposite direction, only to see a "One Way" sign. So the logic for this place was that it doesn't matter that there is a line for the only four pumps available to the majority of the population, if you're not in the minority of the car gas tank placement demographic, you are unable to utilize the other 4 empty, working pumps, because that would make too much sense.

To top it off, the idiots from Iowa, who were all driving beat up pickup trucks and worn out minivans, looked like typical southern inbred hicks (which didn't make sense since they were from Iowa). Even the old grandpa was walking around with his beer belly and shirt off (until he put on a tank top filled with holes to be allowed inside). Normally I have nothing against people like this, but when they start filling their house on wheels up with gas, leave halfway through to go inside and shop, then come out, fill up the tank some more, go inside, pay, then come out and tell their kids to go inside to use the bathroom, I get very annoyed.

I hate people.

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Clerks II (2006)

If you haven't seen the original 'Clerks,' or any other Kevin Smith movies, you're in for a big surprise, and quite possibly won't like this flick. However, I think 'Clerks 2' was a big step for Kevin Smith as a writer/director, and a drastic improvement from his most recent 'Jersey Girl' and 'Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.' It's weird seeing Dante and Randal go from a basic free-form minimum plot style (which also prevailed in the animated series. Yeah, I'm a junkie.) to a recognizable heartfelt plot. Let's face it, though, there's plenty of crude jokes and lots of laughs to be had throughout the flick, and like the original, Randal (Jeff Anderson) has nearly all the good lines. I would never think of saying this one was as good as the original, but it was a solid tribute to the cult classic, and if you liked the first one, you won't be disappointed.

Rating: 8.5/10

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Back in the day, when racial prejudice was a subject no one would touch with a 10 foot pole, William Rose wrote this story of a white woman (Katharine Houghton) bringing home a black fiance (a brilliant Sidney Poitier) to meet her typical, rich, white middle-class family (played by Spencer Tracy and the always amazing Kate Hepburn). With so much acting talent, the script comes to life like this story was happening right in your own house. Even though it's nearly 40 years later and movies with racial themes are a dime a dozen, this movie is so well played out that it still feels relative by today's standards - and it is. Definitely a classic, and I think pretty much everybody should be made to watch this movie.

Rating: 8.75/10

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

James Stewart (Mr. Smith) is always amazing, and in this pre-'It's a Wonderful Life' collaboration with director legend Frank Capra, we see just how great and emotional movies can be. It's hard not to follow Stewart's emotional rollercoaster as he goes back and forth from the extremes of sorrow and bliss, and the ending is a major tear-jerker. Damn you, Frank Capra, and your sentimental movies. Oh, what's this movie about? Jimmy Stewart is a semi-smalltown young man who gets to fill a seat in the Senate, only to stumble upon lies and deceit, and ultimately to have to stand alone, against what seems like a whole country, for what he believes (and is) right. This is a spectacular movie for any time, whether you're feeling patriotic at the moment or not.

Rating: 9.5/10

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I really hate Paris Hilton. There's numerous reasons for this, but one of the most lingering is how full of herself she is. Here's an example:

“I think every decade has an iconic blonde — like Marilyn Monroe or Princess Diana — and right now, I’m that icon.” Link

You've got to be kidding me. Marilyn Monroe worked her way up to stardom. Marilyn Monroe was sexy. Marilyn Monroe was an icon, could actually act (towards the end of her career), and was an innovator (with her image). Paris Hilton is a narcissistic bitch who was born with $34987539846379679 and the only thing she does is go around promoting herself.

It's tragic that both Marilyn and Princess Di had their lives ended before their time was up - and maybe I'll go to Hell for saying this - but hopefully Paris follows them sometime soon, in one way or another.

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I will never understand movie producers, or the general public opinion on movies. How does some of the stuff that's come out even get green lighted, much less made and released widely in theaters? I'm not even talking about 'John Tucker Must Die' or 'My Super Ex-Girlfriend'-bad, because at least those movies have some appeal. I'm talking about 'Little Man,' 'Garfield 2,' and 'Scary Movie 9823498792'-bad - movies which would only be seen by people no smarter than the popcorn they're munching on.

It's so stupid how if you go to Blockbuster they may not have any copies of 'All About Eve' or 'Sunset Boulevard,' two amazing older pieces of cinema, but they'll have 30 DVDs of 'White Chicks.'

Then there's the people whose thought process goes something like this:

"Oh my God, 'Fantastic Four' was the best movie EVER! Jessica Alba is SO HOT! 'Chinatown?' Who the hell is Roman Polanski? 'A Streetcar Named Desire?' Black and white movies are soooo boring! I can't wait until they make a 'Fast and the Furious 4' because the other 3 were so fucking cool."

Not that I'm some movie guru or anything, but I wish the masses could at realize that they are picking up the trash that's being peddled to them, which leads to more trash being produced, because it's easy money for the studios. I know a lot of movie judgment is based on opinion, and I like my fair share of movies that are barely "decent," but sometimes you have to be a true dunce to like, or even pay to see, some of the crap that comes out. Yes, I'm talking about you, people who saw 'You Got Served.'

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Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - IMDb

Disney's return to the extremely successful franchise of 'Pirates' will make many people very rich, since everybody and their mother saw this movie opening weekend (setting many new box office records, pulling $132 million over 3 days). But that's fairly obvious and I knew that was going to happen from the moment the sequel was announced, because, again, everybody and their mother saw and liked the original. I have to admit, while I liked the first one, it wasn't particularly my cup of tea, and while enjoyable, I stayed away from most of the hype for part 2.

With all that said, 'Pirates' is an aftermath story of Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and his quest to find the Dead Man's Chest in order to save himself - which coincidentally Elizabeth Swann (Kiera Knightley) and Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) are after as well, plus numerous other characters that I don't feel like listing.

To start with the bad... apparently Disney didn't hire an editor for this movie, because the 150 minute runtime is ridiciulous. It could've been worse, as there were no parts that I was actually falling asleep, but I could easily pick out a few scenes that needed to be chopped down or eliminated completely, making a more powerful, shorter movie (2 hours would've been perfect). The comedy wasn't as fresh as in the original, and while they tried to tie in a few jokes to the first movie (a few jokes about rum come to mind), usually the punchline was foreseeable much earlier than intended (especially for the new jokes).

Contrariwise, Johnny Depp, yet again, steals the movie with his portrayal of Jack. He had the best lines in the movie and got the most laughs, if only from seeing his way of walking/running like you'd expect a stereotypical gay man to walk/run... but of course, Johnny Depp is dressed like a pirate and priceless in his role, so it's pure comedy.

The concept of filming two movies at once is bittersweet. On one hand, it's nice that there will be definite consistency between the movies because they were filmed together. Also, if you like the franchise, it's good to know you have more ahead; however, it's a total bitch being left on a cliffhanger ending and having to wait another year. I didn't care too much about this cliffhanger though, because like I said before, I'm not a die-hard 'Pirates' fanatic and to me it was just another movie I wanted to see.

The bottom line is that this proves, again, that usually when you stick with the same director for sequels, they turn out better than if you switch - except counting the 'Matrix' movies, because both those sequels sucked - but that's not the point.

Rating: 8/10

Other recent watches that I don't feel like writing reviews for:

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - 7.5/10
Vertigo - 9.5/10
Rear Window - 9/10
Seven Year Itch - 6.5/10
It's a Wonderful Life - 10/10

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At work earlier today a girl who looked about 25 walked by. She was normally dressed and very ordinary, except she had a small piercing in her left eyebrow. No tattoos or excessive piercings or anything like that, just an everyday girl with a pierced eyebrow.

So the girl walked away, then some old lady behind her came up and started rambling, saying something like, "Can you believe that? Kids these days. If God wanted holes in our body, he would've put them there." That's a direct quote.

I shrugged it off, since I really don't care what people ramble about while I'm at work. Then a second later I looked at her ears, and as expected, she had some enormous earrings on. Well, 'enormous' by my standards. About the size of a quarter.

Some people need to think a little more about how they go around preaching, especially when they're doing the exact same thing they're looking down on.

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Today at about 10:00 in the morning my Dad called, and I was sleeping so I didn't answer, but he left a very serious voicemail about being safe this 4th of July weekend (well, "weekend"). It was a bit odd. My Mom called around 11:30 and told me some tragic news.

Friday night Allison Angerman died in a driving accident to a drunk driver. I'm not very religious anymore, but her father, Ray, was one of the head Pastors at the church I went to. He helped me in lots of ways, both in and out of church. Allison was his daughter, same age as me, and we went to school together.

Apparently Allison was just sitting at a red light at 11:00 at night and some drunk 44 year-old was trying to evade the cops, driving about 70 MPH, and after hitting another car, ran into Allison's stopped vehicle.

She was very intelligent, always caring, and certainly had a great future ahead of her. I can't imagine how her family feels. My heart goes out to them, and I'll be doing everything I can to be at her ceremony.

Obituary

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Today I was eating lunch at Panera with a friend, and we were sitting down at a table in the middle of the place. From the moment we sat down until about 20 minutes later there was this girl, probably twelve years old, with a hideous half jean, half camo skirt, running back and forth, getting refills for what most likely seemed like a 20 person family, fetching napkins, doing all these stupid things that involved repeatedly walking into my line of sight and behind my chair.

So being the jerk I am, I started saying stuff like, "If that girl doesn't sit the fuck down I'm going to knock her over." (something to that extent)

Once we left, my friend said to me, "You know that girl you were checking out sitting behind us?" So I say, "The one in the black shirt?" (Because there was indeed some girl in a black shirt who I was 'checking out' when she walked by, though I didn't know she was sitting behind us [behind me].)

"Yeah, her," she says.

"What about her?"

"When you were talking about knocking over that little girl, she overheard us and was laughing too."

So that's one of my goals in life, to be able to please strangers when they overhear my conversations about being insensitive and knocking down little kids. Well, and also I thought I was being pretty discreet while looking at that girl. Oh well, I'm a guy and I can't help it.

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The Devil Wears Prada

It's been a long time since I've been pleased by a movie in theaters, so I don't know where to start. First, one critic, quoted in the previews, says, "Meryl Streep has never been better." That person has obviously never seen 'Sophie's Choice,' but that's not too relevant. This movie shows, yet again, why Meryl Streep is easily the best (still) working actress these days. Hands down. No one else is close. I've been saying it for years, and finally people are catching on.

I'm a big fan of the cynical, sarcastic, sadist humor, and this movie had a steady run of it all the way through, not faltering after the first half hour like a lot of flicks these days. The clashing of Miranda (Streep) and Andrea (Anne Hathaway) is pretty sweet on screen, but Anne Hathaway's was one of the weaker performances in this movie. Emily Blunt, playing the character 'Emily,' was perfect for the 'I would do anything for my job, I'm better than you' role, and the way she would dress and over-do her wardrobe was perfect for the part, making it completely believable. But seriously, Meryl Streep will most likely be looking at yet another Oscar nod.

Pointed out by the person I saw the movie with, there was a definite 'Sex and the City' vibe going on, which makes sense since David Frankel, the director, also directed six SatC episodes. That's not a bad thing by any means.

I'm going to use the "It's 2:22 in the morning and I'm tired" cop-out. I just wanted to rave about Meryl Streep, and also point out that I was glad to see no leaning towards the 'happy ending' and the movie ended how it should've.

Rating: 8.5/10

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