Writing a throwback post about Up made me remember this thing that made its rounds on social media last year: people were asked to list fifteen films we've seen that will always stick with us (It's pretty similar to the list of 10 books that I put up months ago.) I decided to share my list of films here:
1. The Original Star Wars Trilogy
I consider the original Star Wars Trilogy - IV A New Hope, V Empire Strikes Back, and VI Return of the Jedi - to be one movie split into three parts. I have watched all three many, many times over the decades. I bought the VHS tapes more than a decade ago and I now have the DVDs. If I had to pick one of these three as my favorite, it will have to be Return of the Jedi. Maybe because it was the first one of the three that I saw and it influenced me greatly as a kid. While I will agree with most critics that Empire Strikes Back is technically the best film in the series (this is also where Yoda is introduced), I just love how the underdogs overcame the odds to triumph in Return of the Jedi: Luke over the Emperor and Darth Vader, the Endor Strike Team and the Ewoks over the Storm and Scout Troopers and their AT-ST walkers, the Admiral Ackbar-led rebellion ("It's a trap!") over the Galactic Empire and the ominous Death Star, and heck even Princess Leia over Jabba the Hutt. To this day, I can still recite more lines from Return of the Jedi than I can from any other movie.
2. Himala
I have written about my utter admiration of Himala before and I'm happy that decades after it was released in 1982, people are still talking about it and it continues to be featured in international film festivals today. Three legends of the Philippine film industry combined to make this movie: Nora Aunor, director Ishmael Bernal, and writer Ricky Lee. Himala is truly one of my all-time favorites. It tackles of lot of social issues that were relevant then and are still relevant now, and it depicts these in a way that reflects life as it is without being preachy or condescending. Nora also cemented herself as arguably the best actor the Philippines has ever seen with her incredible portrayal of Elsa. The line from her speech at the end of the film - "Walang himala" - is still one of the most iconic movie quotes in local cinema.
3. The Silence of the Lambs
This was the first psychological thriller of its kind that I watched, one that made use of behavioral analysis and psychological profiling to dissect the mind of a criminal and aid law enforcement to take down that criminal. It's quite normal to see these kinds of films and TV shows now but back then, it was mystifying to get a glimpse of how a serial killer's mind works (I love that clue from Lecter: "You covet what you see"). Unlike many horror and slasher movies that highlight gore, The Silence of the Lambs doesn't put the brutal deaths of its victims on display, allowing the viewers to focus more on the story and the psychology. The dark cinematography also gives the film an even eerier and more ominous feel to it. This movie was nominated for the 5 biggest Oscar trophies - Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor and Actress - and it won them all. The interesting thing was that Anthony Hopkins put in such a thrilling performance of Hannibal Lecter that despite having only 16 minutes of screen time, his presence is felt for much more than that. It may be one of the shortest air times that a Best Actor awardee has ever had.
4. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
It's not very often that a coming-of-age film strikes such a powerful chord with me. Then again, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is not your typical coming-of-age film. It veers away from the stereotypical storyline of young adults starting to come out of their (often oppressive) parents' shadows and do crazy things to make them feel alive. However, as I have written before, it does share many of the same themes presented by other movies in that genre: friendship, family, acceptance, and love. It shows us how desperately we all need to feel that we belong and to be accepted for who we truly are. It shows us how this kind of acceptance is extremely rare but when we find it, it is life-changing and beautiful. I have written in the past how The acting from the entire cast, especially Logan Lerman, is tremendous and that final revelation shook me to my core. I remember watching this movie multiple times on DVD shortly after seeing it the first time, and even watching it with the director's and the actor's commentaries.
5. Hot Fuzz
I had to think about whether Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz, both of which starred Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and comprise the first two installments of the Cornetto trilogy, was more memorable to me. I ended up selecting the latter because I found it just a tad more enjoyable to watch. Maybe because I'm a bit more familiar with action films than with the zombie genre so I could relate more to the movies that Hot Fuzz was paying homage to. I think it also helped that I watched Hot Fuzz while I was in Sweden, making it just a bit more memorable. I've written about why I love Hot Fuzz in the past but to summarize, it's smart, funny, well-written, silly, and entertaining all at the same time. I also love the fact that it actually respects the films it parodies. It is my favorite comedy film to date.
(Read part 2 here and part 3 here.)
1. The Original Star Wars Trilogy
photo courtesy of movies.com
I consider the original Star Wars Trilogy - IV A New Hope, V Empire Strikes Back, and VI Return of the Jedi - to be one movie split into three parts. I have watched all three many, many times over the decades. I bought the VHS tapes more than a decade ago and I now have the DVDs. If I had to pick one of these three as my favorite, it will have to be Return of the Jedi. Maybe because it was the first one of the three that I saw and it influenced me greatly as a kid. While I will agree with most critics that Empire Strikes Back is technically the best film in the series (this is also where Yoda is introduced), I just love how the underdogs overcame the odds to triumph in Return of the Jedi: Luke over the Emperor and Darth Vader, the Endor Strike Team and the Ewoks over the Storm and Scout Troopers and their AT-ST walkers, the Admiral Ackbar-led rebellion ("It's a trap!") over the Galactic Empire and the ominous Death Star, and heck even Princess Leia over Jabba the Hutt. To this day, I can still recite more lines from Return of the Jedi than I can from any other movie.
2. Himala
photo courtesy of en.wikipedia.org
I have written about my utter admiration of Himala before and I'm happy that decades after it was released in 1982, people are still talking about it and it continues to be featured in international film festivals today. Three legends of the Philippine film industry combined to make this movie: Nora Aunor, director Ishmael Bernal, and writer Ricky Lee. Himala is truly one of my all-time favorites. It tackles of lot of social issues that were relevant then and are still relevant now, and it depicts these in a way that reflects life as it is without being preachy or condescending. Nora also cemented herself as arguably the best actor the Philippines has ever seen with her incredible portrayal of Elsa. The line from her speech at the end of the film - "Walang himala" - is still one of the most iconic movie quotes in local cinema.
3. The Silence of the Lambs
photo courtesy of en.wikipedia.org
This was the first psychological thriller of its kind that I watched, one that made use of behavioral analysis and psychological profiling to dissect the mind of a criminal and aid law enforcement to take down that criminal. It's quite normal to see these kinds of films and TV shows now but back then, it was mystifying to get a glimpse of how a serial killer's mind works (I love that clue from Lecter: "You covet what you see"). Unlike many horror and slasher movies that highlight gore, The Silence of the Lambs doesn't put the brutal deaths of its victims on display, allowing the viewers to focus more on the story and the psychology. The dark cinematography also gives the film an even eerier and more ominous feel to it. This movie was nominated for the 5 biggest Oscar trophies - Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor and Actress - and it won them all. The interesting thing was that Anthony Hopkins put in such a thrilling performance of Hannibal Lecter that despite having only 16 minutes of screen time, his presence is felt for much more than that. It may be one of the shortest air times that a Best Actor awardee has ever had.
4. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
photo courtesy of en.wikipedia.org
It's not very often that a coming-of-age film strikes such a powerful chord with me. Then again, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is not your typical coming-of-age film. It veers away from the stereotypical storyline of young adults starting to come out of their (often oppressive) parents' shadows and do crazy things to make them feel alive. However, as I have written before, it does share many of the same themes presented by other movies in that genre: friendship, family, acceptance, and love. It shows us how desperately we all need to feel that we belong and to be accepted for who we truly are. It shows us how this kind of acceptance is extremely rare but when we find it, it is life-changing and beautiful. I have written in the past how The acting from the entire cast, especially Logan Lerman, is tremendous and that final revelation shook me to my core. I remember watching this movie multiple times on DVD shortly after seeing it the first time, and even watching it with the director's and the actor's commentaries.
5. Hot Fuzz
photo courtesy of www.rottentomatoes.com/
I had to think about whether Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz, both of which starred Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and comprise the first two installments of the Cornetto trilogy, was more memorable to me. I ended up selecting the latter because I found it just a tad more enjoyable to watch. Maybe because I'm a bit more familiar with action films than with the zombie genre so I could relate more to the movies that Hot Fuzz was paying homage to. I think it also helped that I watched Hot Fuzz while I was in Sweden, making it just a bit more memorable. I've written about why I love Hot Fuzz in the past but to summarize, it's smart, funny, well-written, silly, and entertaining all at the same time. I also love the fact that it actually respects the films it parodies. It is my favorite comedy film to date.
(Read part 2 here and part 3 here.)
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