A list of the top ten best movies of all time is a silly thing to do, as a critic I understand that ranking films in such a way is impossible (I’m sure you understand that as well, I’m not trying to belittle you!). So when I was asked to do one for this here website I was anxious, and who wants to see a list comprised of the same old answers that we normally get (Citizen Kane, The Godfather and a token Hitchcock film). So I decided to write this
*CALLUMS TOP TEN FAVOURATE MOVIES THAT HE HAS EVER SEEN, AT THIS MOMENT IN TIME!
Not a very catchy title but I felt the need to be precise when writing it. These films are MY favourites and not the best and there is a difference, some of these films might be enjoyable crap and that will be why I like them. You won’t see Howard the Duck on here but boy in my mind it’s a great pile of crap. Plus I haven’t seen all the films ever, in fact there are many worthy films I have never watched (Citizen Kane, Gone With The Wind, Apocalypse Now etc) and yes this is something I’m ashamed of. I am though only a humble 21 year old manchild, who writes all his reviews in crayons. This means a majority if not all the films will be from the last 30 years or so as this is the stuff I was brought up on.
Any way without further ado let’s get started on the list that all the cool kids are calling.
C.T.T.F.M.T.H.H.E.S.A.T.M.I.T.
Back to the future
My love of this film started one rainy Sunday afternoon on ITV. I remember asking if I would be able to eat my roast on the living room carpet, as I was so engrossed in the film I couldn’t pull myself away from the telly. The next weekend a boring trip to the garden centre became a worthwhile trip when my sister and I found a VHS in a bargain bin. We would watch the video when home and wait for the next weekend’s trip to the garden centre so we could grab the next instalment. This was the first film I remember falling in love with.
Back to the Future is simply among the most perfect, crowd-pleasing films of all time. It’s an easy fact to forget, mind. Sure, pretty much everyone who’s seen it will remember that it’s great, but it’s not until seeing it back in a theatrical environment, removed from most people’s usual context of catching two-thirds of it while slumped, bloated on a Boxing Day sofa, that it becomes apparent just how expertly crafted it is. It’s in possession of one of those scripts that simply does not waste a line. Strikingly, it’s career-best work for everybody. No, literally everybody onscreen, one of those wonderfully rare examples of a film so good you know everyone’s having to raise their game just to stay on terms. The film’s also practically a textbook lesson in the art of the set piece. We know them all by heart, but it doesn’t make each one any less thrilling. Johnny Be Goode remains an utter joy, the clock tower finale is still nail-biting, and nearly three decades on, Crispin Glover’s triumphant punch can still move an auditorium to cheers.
Irrespective of its status as a family blockbuster, or as a ‘genre’ film, it’s not overstating it to say that Back to the Future is simply a masterpiece of cinema, full stop.
And every time I watch it, wherever I may be, I can have swear I’m sitting on my living room floor letting my roast go cold as I stare at the screen in pure unadulterated joy.
Shaun of the Dead
Stay with me for this one, I have a massive favour to pay this film.
Shaun of the Dead is not only a pitch perfect horror comedy, blending laughs and scares in a slightly uneven but completely satisfying way, but its also the film that introduced me to a new genre. Horror was something completely foreign to my 13 year old brain so when a comedy film referenced Carpenter, Landis and Raimi I felt a need to research them and it opened my eyes to shlock, gore and tension.
So for that reason alone Shaun of the Dead can go on the list. It also seems rude not to mention how great a film it is. Rather than a spoof or a parody Shaun is a love letter to George A. Romero. A well crafted funny, scary and at points quite moving love letter.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
This film is painful for me to watch and although it’s a clever well made mind twisting semi sci-fi, I still find it hard to watch for emotional reasons. This is why the film works, under all its Kaufman style there is a true story that beats. This is the inception for hipsters and so much more.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is not about Ferris, It’s a film about his friend Cameron, its a film about moving on.
Before I moved to University and away from home, Ferris Bullers Day Off was just a fun slice of silly 80’s joy. Nothing more. Once I moved to university and left my home and my friends, the film took on a different tone. It became about change and it still affects me to this day. The joy of the film is that most people see it simply as that 80’s classic, where he sings twist and shout or where the car go’s out of the window and although it is that film, there is an extra layer to the film that can be read if you want to find it.
In recent weeks Ferris Bueller’s Day Off has taken on more brevity as I prepare to leave University and enter the real world.
Evil Dead 2
I talked earlier about Shaun of the Dead and how it was vital in introducing me to classic horror films. Evil Dead 2 and the following three films were all introduced to me by Shaun.
Evil Dead 2 is a kind of sequel of The Evil Dead, starring the same cast and following the first films plot. It is all most a comedy slap stick remake of the first film. imagine if Tex Avery made a Dario Argento film.
The Thing
John Carpenter’s classic horror film is still a real treat. It’s a feat of physical making and to this day will prove how a model or a puppet is more atmospheric and creepy than any CGi pixel monster has ever been.
The Thing is a taught and tense examination of men in confined spaces specifically how does testosterone deal with this kind of terror. The movie takes its time setting up the rules of the creature living amongst our heroes, while more importantly establishing each character – from Windows to MacReady to MacReady’s beard – as people we actually worry about this. Such attention to character and pacing is a lost art in the current horror climate. And this is why The Thing is on this list.
Dawn Of The Dead
George Romero practically created the zombie movie genre single-handedly in 1968 with Night of the Living Dead. Ten years later he refined the formula with Dawn of the Dead. Far bigger, gorier, and funnier than its predecessor, Dawn of the Dead remains Romero’s definitive work.
Whereas Night… featured a small cast of survivors holed up in a remote farm-house, Dawn opens with a glimpse of a major metropolitan area falling into chaos during the zombie outbreak. It isn’t long before four heroes are forced to leave town and barricade themselves inside a shopping mall. But as it turns out, the undead hordes still retain enough of their old selves to feel the need to shop and consume.
The true brilliance of Dawn… is how it combined straight-up zombie carnage with a healthy dose of satire and social commentary. At the end of the day, are modern Americans really so different from the shambling undead? They crave warm flesh; we crave iPods. It’s a message that was somewhat lost in the enjoyable but inferior 2004 remake.
An American Werewolf in London
An American Werewolf was one of several iconic werewolf movies that hit theatres in 1981. Of the trio, American Werewolf remains the most popular and well-loved.
The film follows two backpackers travelling the English countryside. When only
one survives an attack by a vicious wolf, he becomes convinced he’s been
infected by the werewolf’s curse. And it wouldn’t be much of a werewolf movie
if he turned out to be wrong.
An American Werewolf in London stood out at the time thanks to its amazing makeup and special effects work. Never had the werewolf transformation seemed so convincing. The humour didn’t hurt either, particularly with the brilliantly demented nightmare sequences. But American Werewolf… was ultimately a tragic horror film, and one certainly deserving of remembrance today.
Scott Pilgrim Vs the World
The most recent film on the list, split people (not literally) and I can really see why. Edgar Wright adapts Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Comic Book series, a half comic book movie, half video game film and half hipster flick. It’s a strange and enjoyable mix that I personally think matched both the comic’s style and sensibility while treading its own path.
It could have been a noisy, flashy mess of a film but luckily it’s has heart as well, which makes it feel fun and unique, and more like a lo-fi, endearing indie film instead of a big Michel Bay effect-a-thon it could have turned in to in the wrong hands.
Raiders of the Lost Ark
I mean do I need to explain. It’s Indiana Jones!
No!
So there you go, you have managed to make it though the list (that or you have scrolled straight to the bottom, skipping all my hard work!). Cheers for reading, sorry if it took you long, and I should now get back to my essay!
Callum Stewart
