(Non-bookish) Some of my favourite movies, part 1

Doing something a little bit different today. Book aren’t the only things I’m passionate about, I also really, really love movies. Over my 20 years of being alive, I’ve watched a whole damn lot of films. You’ll probably notice that a lot of these movies aren’t particularly modern, and that’s because my mum is a big movie nerd too and had me watching some of the crime, thriller and horror classics from a really young age.

This is part 1 of a two part post. In this post I will be talking about all the well known films that I really love, in the second I will focus on more niche, or less popular films.

The cliche favourites

The Shining, 1980

If you’ve been following my blog for a while now, you’ll know just how much I love horror. Whether it’s books, movies or TV shows, anything that gets me scared is a big YES in my book. The Shining is one of my favourite movies because it actually gives me goosebumps. I first watched it when I was 11 and it scared me then, and it still scares me today, 9 years on. Jack Nicholson’s performance in this film is out of this world. ”Wendy? Darling? Light, of my life. I’m not gonna hurt ya. You didn’t let me finish my sentence. I said, I’m not gonna hurt ya. I’m just going to bash your brains in! Gonna bash ’em right the fuck in!”

I’m very aware this isn’t anything like the book and Stephen King didn’t even like Kuberick’s effort, but Kuberick completely makes this his own story and his directing is phenomenal as always. If you really feel like getting head-fucked one day, watch The Shining.

 

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, 1986

Ugh, this film is such a feel good film. It tackles all kinds of topics and it’s downright hilarious. This film takes me through all the emotions and the scene with Cameron often makes me cry, “I am not going to sit on my ass as the events that affect me unfold to determine the course of my life. I’m going to take a stand. I’m going to defend it. Right or wrong, I’m going to defend it.”

All actors performances in this are superb and the filming quality is great. Some of the camera shots are amazing. One of the best scenes of cinema comes from Cameron staring into A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. (I don’t know if you can tell, but Cameron is my favourite in this film. Ferris is good, Cameron is better).

 

Fight Club, 1999

Now this isn’t just on my favourite list because it contains two absolute hotties, it’s on here because it blows my mind every time. The first time I watched this, I had managed to avoid any kind of spoiler as to the ending so (if you know the ending) you can imagine how mind-fucked I was.

I think this movie has a load of great messages to take away with you, but it’s also hilarious. “You’re not your job. You’re not how much money you have in the bank. You’re not the car you drive. You’re not the contents of your wallet. You’re not your fucking khakis. You’re the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world.” And the performances given by Pitt, Norton and Bonham Carter are so one-of-a-kind. They couldn’t have casted this film any better.

 

Se7en,  1995

DAMN. Just thinking about this film gives me the shivers. I think I love this film because it’s so unique to anything else out there. The motivation for the gruesome killings is crazy and the way it intertwines Pitt’s (well, his characters) personal life is amazing.

Kevin Spacey gives on of the best performances of his career in this movie, he is so beyond terrifying. “Wanting people to listen, you can’t just tap them on the shoulder anymore. You have to hit them with a sledgehammer, and then you’ll notice you’ve got their strict attention.” I’m obviously not going to give away the ending… but… holy shit.

 

Kill Bill, 2003

This is such a kick-ass movie. Not only does it have the coolest and most bad-ass female leads of any movie ever, “Those of you lucky enough to have your lives, take them with you. However, leave the limbs you’ve lost. They belong to me now,” it’s also a really beautiful. What I have in mind is the scene with Thurman and Liu out in the snow. Just because it’s a brutal fight scene, doesn’t mean it has to be gritty and disgusting! The entire scene is like watching ballet, it’s so graceful.

Another thing I love so much about this film is that Tarantino and Thurman came up with it whilst drinking at a bar. How fucking awesome is that?

 

Donnie Darko, 2001

This is the kind of movie that leaves you a bit stumped. You sit there and think “what just happened?” and the more you think about it, the more you want to watch the entire thing again.

This is certainly one of the most melancholic and upsetting films on the list, “I hope that when the world comes to an end, I can breathe a sigh of relief, because there will be so much to look forward to,” but even so, it’s still one of those movies you just need to watch. It brings up so many different emotions in you and is such a moving piece of film. Gyllenhaal is at his best in this.

 

The Usual Suspects, 1995

The casting, the plot, the twist… all some of the best. I love how this film is funny, thrilling, sad and shocking. I actually had a discussions with my family the other day about “best movies twists” and all of us said this one. It still gets me every time! “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist.”

Del Toro is just fantastic in this. He completely made Fenster his own and I can’t imagine there could have been a better actor to play him, he’s just so naturally funny! Another movie on the list for Spacey! I just love him so much as an actor, he’s really done some superb films.

 

10 Things I Hate About You, 1999

We obviously needed a soppy film for the list! I might seem heartless, but I promise I’m not. I love this film for all its naïve outlooks on life. Everything in this film is just so simple and works out so well and even though I hate that because it can’t ever be real, I also love it.

Julia Stiles is one of my all-time faves, I really don’t think she gets enough credit, she’s so awesome in this movie. Everyone knows the heart-breaking poem in this, but just incase you don’t and want to be a little broken inside, here it is: (this bloody thing makes me tear up every time)

“I hate the way you talk to me, and the way you cut your hair.

I hate the way you drive my car. I hate it when you stare.

I hate your big dumb combat boots, and the way you read my mind.

I hate you so much it makes me sick; it even makes me rhyme.

I hate it, I hate the way you’re always right. I hate it when you lie.

I hate it when you make me laugh, even worse when you make me cry.

I hate it when you’re not around, and the fact that you didn’t call.

But mostly I hate the way I don’t hate you.

Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.”

 

Inception, 2010

This is such a cliché, probably the biggest on the list, but this film is mind-bending and damn fantastic! Thinking about this film still confuses me, in a good way, and makes me focus way too hard on everything around me. How someone came up with this story line amazes me, it’s so intricate and deep!

The casting in this film is out of this world, and that’s coming from someone who doesn’t particularly like Ellen Page. This was the first film where I fell in love with Joseph-Gordon Levitt AND Tom Hardy, “You mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling.”

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Those are just some of my all time favourite films! Let me know in the comments if you like any of these films or if I’ve convinced you to watch any of them!

I will have my part 2 of this post up soon, so look out for that!