i remember children of men being on itv a few months ago but i didn't really like the beginning so i turned over. still no movies that i've seen though :( hopefully you'll have some sad films to come cos that's all my top films seem to consist of..

You must literally have no heart if you hated Up. :/ Can you explain why it was boring at least? ):

 

It just didnt seem to go anywhere, I didn't find it funny either, and I found it quite depressing considering it was Disney.

 

Still like I said I haven't seen the entire film, mabye I'd like it better after the first half?

 

And I haven't seen the new 2 you have posted! I need to get watching some films!

I didn't really like Children of Men.

 

Really enoying the list though, that's the only one I haven't like/am not intrigued by.

Interesting you have put Shortbus on your list, it's been recommended to me so many times by friends and I've been told how good it was, and now it's 10 on your list. I have to see it. Amazon here I come :kink:

 

And Children of Men is a modern classic that was indeed shockingly overlooked at the Oscars and the awards season in general, but did it win any BAFTAs or anything? I'm pretty sure it won some technical awards and was nominated for best film, but I might just have a poor memory. Shows how lazy I am that I can't even be bothered to check wikipedia :D

Edited February 20, 201015 yr by Daniel Gleek

Thanks again for the comments everyone. <3 Surprised you don't like Children of Men Ashford, it's fantastic. ;o And I don't really have any sad movies on here JakeWild lawlz, if you're referring to movies like My Sister's Keeper at least which pretty much force the viewer into sobbing. Children of Men was quite devastating for me so I'm quite surprised you're not a fan.

 

08.

Oldboy

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_9lSuSo2PhTQ/R-pxig4q8sI/AAAAAAAAAAc/fPz7uJz78aY/s400/oldboy.jpg

2003

Park Chan-wook

 

A beautiful tale of revenge. It follows the story of Oh Dae-su, who is locked away for 15 years in a hotel room without any explanation, then released, and forced to figure out why he was imprisoned. A beautiful tale of revenge with an intense storyline and a GREAT plot twist. A must see, especially if you have yet to get into foreign films. This one is the one to see. Also, Oh Dae-su is badass.

 

 

07.

Requiem For a Dream

http://www.torrentfive.com/portadas/requiem_for_a_dream.jpg

2000

Darren Aronofsky

 

A beautifully done film about the effects of drugs and the different states of addiction. It's depressing. JakeWild, you said your films consisted mainly of sad films, well, this is one to see if you really think you like sad films. I felt like dying at the end of this. It's so hopeless and depressing, yet there is that cathardic element. It also has an absolutely stunning soundtrack and really solid directing and acting. The decision to include the story of Sara (Harry's mother) is beautiful as well, as it brings this film from a simple story about drug addiction to addiction in general. Sara isn't taking drugs to get high, she's obsessed with getting on tv and becoming thin.

 

Ultimately, their addictions become their demises. So powerful and moving.

 

Seriously, watch this trailer. Even the trailer is incredible.

 

Oldboy is one of the greatest films ever made. Absolutely phenomenal :wub:

YES. YES. YES :cheer: that's all that should be said about those two films. And that trailer for 'Requiem For a Dream' must be one of the best ever made.

Edited February 20, 201015 yr by Daniel Gleek

28 Days Later is amazing, and the sequel isn't as bad as it's made out to be either. I didn't see what was so memorable about The Descent, but that's pretty good too. Not on your list, but Quarantine isn't as bad as it's made out to be either, though [Rec] is definately better, but only just. Shortbus is wonderful. Using a dick as a microphone, having the US national anthem sung into your ass during a threesome? GENIUS. And there's some amazing lines too, like the ones mentioned and: "I wanna be welcomed into the secret society of women; i was never a brownie and i've never had an orgasm". Sung Tongs being part of the soundtrack bumps it up into my top 10 too.

wow you're right that trailer for requiem for a dream is amazing in itself! the ending of it was pretty creepy though! i'm definitely gonna get that on dvd it looks well good.

 

and i'm into a mixture of sad films. i really like the note book and a walk to remember which are just both about love and are all soppy and stuff but then i like films like dancer in the dark and the orphanage which are sad in a different way. i'd say dancer in the dark is my best film of all time though. it had me crying from like half way through and if you've not seen it and like bjork then you'll love this cos it's kinda like a musical too. she just bursts into song at the most random moments. it's one of those film's that you'll just either really love or really hate.

Requiem For A Dream is such a devastating film, i don't like it :(

 

OMG Dancer In The Dark is BRILLIANT! I cried so hard in the end! Somebody's borrowed the DVD of it from me and hasn't returned it <_<

Edited February 20, 201015 yr by Ljósið

06.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_yVKWrkI1dmo/SkEakUbxecI/AAAAAAAAA2Y/tQkwKohcmsk/s400/404px-Eternal_sunshine_of_the_spotless_mind_ver3.jpg

2004

Michel Gondry

 

Human relationships are tricky things. Eternal Sunshine analyzes these interactions through his crazy wacky directing. But it all pulls together so wonderfully and beautifully. This movie is so lovingly wacky and fun with this intense emotion running throughout it. Our relationships, every one of them, is meaningful, whether they end up sour or we end up hating the person. Would you erase an ex boyfriend from your memory if you could?

 

Eternal Sunshine is all about questions like that. Memory, experiences, relationships. It's wonderfully human.

 

 

05.

Chicago

http://ak.buy.com/db_assets/large_images/941/40220941.jpg

2002

Rob Marshall

 

Chicago is a rompus. I've loved this movie since it came out back when I was in middle school, and I still adore it now. It's a wonderful musical filled with amazing numbers, great acting and characterization, and wonderfully dark and humorous plot (women murdering their husbands, ah <3). I can't really describe why I get into this film so much per se, it's just a spectacle that really has to be seen. Still haven't seen Nine, though.

 

Chicago! probably in my top 5 films ever too, I love it!

I love Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, it was in my top 10 of the decade. :D

 

(If you want to see that: http://thomasashford.tumblr.com/post/308056826/films )

06.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_yVKWrkI1dmo/SkEakUbxecI/AAAAAAAAA2Y/tQkwKohcmsk/s400/404px-Eternal_sunshine_of_the_spotless_mind_ver3.jpg

2004

Michel Gondry

 

Human relationships are tricky things. Eternal Sunshine analyzes these interactions through his crazy wacky directing. But it all pulls together so wonderfully and beautifully. This movie is so lovingly wacky and fun with this intense emotion running throughout it. Our relationships, every one of them, is meaningful, whether they end up sour or we end up hating the person. Would you erase an ex boyfriend from your memory if you could?

 

Eternal Sunshine is all about questions like that. Memory, experiences, relationships. It's wonderfully human.

 

 

05.

Chicago

http://ak.buy.com/db_assets/large_images/941/40220941.jpg

2002

Rob Marshall

 

Chicago is a rompus. I've loved this movie since it came out back when I was in middle school, and I still adore it now. It's a wonderful musical filled with amazing numbers, great acting and characterization, and wonderfully dark and humorous plot (women murdering their husbands, ah <3). I can't really describe why I get into this film so much per se, it's just a spectacle that really has to be seen. Still haven't seen Nine, though.

 

If I wasn't so tired I would type out a more detailed response as to why these are such great f***ing fantastic films, but all I will say for the moment is that I think I love you :wub:

 

'The descent' on your list at number 18 is amazing it is the only film ever to make me scream and genuinely scared :)

04.

Brokeback Mountain

http://www.moonbattery.com/archives/brokeback_mountain.jpg

2005

Ang Lee

 

I won't give the usual spiel about how I would love this movie even if it was not gay etcetc (I would). But I'm not going to lie, one of the reasons I do love this movie so much is because it's gay. Gays are incredibly unrepresented in film. Straight people really don't understand (some do, I'm not trying to generalize), but it can be depressing when EVERY time you go to see a film it is overwhelmingly heterosexual without a single mention of gay people / a gay character. I took a straight friend to see A Single Man with me, and even though he said he enjoyed it, he said he felt it was hard to connect with the movie as the main character was gay, and that he would have enjoyed it more had the main character been straight. He then paused and asked if this was how I felt when I watched pretty much any movie.

 

It's not, really. I can totally enjoy movies with straight couples (in fact one is coming up, though a bit twisted). I've learned to do so. But it's kind of sad that gay people are put in this position of having to 'connect' with nearly every mainstream film when straight people can just say that the reason there are so little gay films is because they can't connect with them. Give it a shot, seriously. It's incredible considering how many gay actors / actresses there are that Hollywood is still overwhelmingly homophobic.

 

Anyway, so yeah, I love this film because it's gay. It's a really f***ing GOOD gay film, of which there are like...10 lawlz. Gay cinema is always so disappointing. But enough ranting, this movie is just heartbreaking and gorgeous. A forbidden love. If you're into that sort of thing (Romeo and Juliette styled movies) and you STILL have not seen this film, give it a shot. It's gay, but you'll forget about that in the end because the story is so goddamn good.

 

 

03.

The Dreamers

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_WkKZJVG5wTk/R8-TF0lxcaI/AAAAAAAA49c/h0lfxYjjNU4/s400/dreamers_poster.jpg

2003

Bernardo Bertolucci

 

Dirty, french, naughty: let's not beat about the bush, this film is about a threesome, two of whom are siblings. It's not really what the film is about, more like a natural way for this very unrealistic friendship / relationship to progress. The point of this movie is that these three characters are dreamers, lost in their own world without rules or boundaries. And for the short time their together, they go to see movies (heightening the whole dreaming aspect of the movie), f***, watch each other masturbate, etc. It's delightfully naughty. And then it all comes to an abrubt end due to war, a sharp move back into the real, out of their dreams.

 

Really f***ing good, basically.

 

 

02.

Harold and Maude

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TVvbrfelY_o/SfPPXtAa3BI/AAAAAAAACXg/6IAlEw_10KI/s400/harold_and_maude_ver3.jpg

1971

Hal Ashby

 

This was my dad's favorite movie, so I obviously hold fond memories of it. But beyond that, this film just moves me. It's hilarious. It's still fresh, 40 years later. It clearly has influenced literally every indie comedy film since. Juno, Little Miss Sunshine, etcetc. They all take from Harold and Maude. And with good reason, because this film is so unbelievably hilarious and heartwarming that everyone should see it. Though I like that it's almost like a best kept secret.

 

It's about a 19 year old falling in love with an 80 year old woman. And I'll honestly leave it at that. Curious? Disgusted? Give it a shot, I think you'll be amazed by how much you'll fall in love with this movie.

 

 

01.

Spirited Away

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qhk2zePMjGE/SMwuignO_VI/AAAAAAAADQU/AVy9rpf3iY0/s400/spirited_away.jpg

2001

Hayao Miyazaki

 

I told you coming of age stories were my favorite genre of movie. Spirited Away is literally the king/queen of all coming of age stories, as far as I'm concerned.

 

A) This film just LOOKS beautiful. People so often discredit animated films because they're animated. This should have won an Oscar for Best Picture I don't give a damn what film won that year. The coloring, the style, it's all just tied together so wonderfully. And to know it was nearly all hand done? Dear god.

 

B) It's storyline is crazy and fresh. A really nice take on the Alice in Wonderland concept. A young Chihiro goes through a tunnel with her parents and ends up in this crazy world in which her parents are turned into pigs and she has to work in a bathhouse to get her parents changed back / return home.

 

C) The soundtrack is gorgeous. Seriously.

 

D) It's universal. I think one thing that's so absolutely wonderful about this film is that anyone of any age can see it and relate it someway. A young child will marvel at its wonder, an elderly person can reflect on childhood and their life. I'm not saying the best films have to be universal, but I don't know, there's just something wonderful when a film is. It's not about love, some people never fall in love and fims about it often can seem quite alienating to me. This is a film about life.

 

E) It's heartwarming. You will leave this movie feeling wonderful.

 

F) It's my favorite movie of all time. For all of the reasons above and for some reason I just can't form into words. I think everyone gets that feeling watching their favorite movie / listening to their favorite album. There's this sort of indescribable experience / feeling they get where you just KNOW this film is affecting you. I get that with Spirited Away.

 

hey let me start off by saying how much i've enjoyed this thread. i love movies and especially discovering new ones which i've never heard of before and now i've got 25 to get watching! i rarely ever watch big box office movies which are usually only as successful as they are because of how well promoted and marketed they've been and because of the mega stars that are in them so it's good to see that most of yours like i say weren't that big because the small independent films or ones that have become cult movies seem to be the best in my opinion. i'm definitely gonna give most of the films you've recommended a watch. ones that look particularly good judging by their trailers are brick, american beauty, the driving bell and the butterfly, oldboy, requiem for a dream, hardol and maude and spirited away.

 

just like clockwork orange, the trailer for harold and maude reminded me of dali'ss un chien andalou with it's weirdness, especially the part where he just chops his arm off.. it looks like a wicked film though!

 

and i really didn't expect spirited away to be your #1. i've never seen it but i've heard of it and i had the preconception that it was for kids and was just some cheesy film like mulan or something. but after watching the trailer i can kind of understand where you're coming from. it does seem completely different than i imagined and i'm definitely gonna rent it and give it a watch.

 

i really wanna make my own thread to share with you my own top 25 movies but i don't have as good a way with words as you do and i don't even know how to put a video into my posts never mind a photograph! plus i can't see anyone following it like they did with yours so i'll just tell you my top ten here off the top of my head and give them a bit of a description or something..

 

right well i've worked out how to put a link into a title so each title will be linked to a trailer of it in case you wanna have a look or haven't seen it..

 

1. dancer in the dark - easily my best film of all time. i was crying for at least the last half an hour and was teary for the rest. it's just one of those films that takes over your emotions and you can't even decide not to cry, you simply can't help it. also it's probably best if you like bjork's music because then you'll enjoy it 10x more than you would if you didn't. it's also very strange in that it's a musical and she just starts singing during a really heartbreaking scene but it just somehow works.

 

2. the orphanage - a spanish film about this boy who's adopted by a couple and then goes missing after become friends with an imaginary friend. the trailer makes it look like it's more or a horror film but it's really not. it's more of a thriller. obviously it's scary but i cried at the end so it's also very heartwarming.

 

3.

- even though you just know the ending by the first few minutes or so it's one of those films that is more about building up the story throughout the whole film in order to have more of an impact by the ending. and it definitely worked because i ended up crying for at least the last half an hour like i did with dancer in the dark but this one more so. my throat was killing after watching this i was that choked up! :P

 

4.

- this is one of the first films that properly made me cry and i think that it's because of this film that i love films like that so much. i realised that just because a film's not hugely popular then it doesn't mean it's good, it just means that not a lot of people have been told how damn good it is.

 

5.

- i think this is probably gonna be the only horror film in my top 10. i don't usually think much of horror films after seeing them because i usually just forget about them. they're much more of a forgettable genre in my opinion than a lot of other. but this one has stuck in my mind since the day i saw it. it's probably due to the cinematography of it and how calm the atmosphere is throughout the film which contrasts with the chases and also because of the way the intruders look. the only 2 films that still scare me from when i watched them as a kid are halloween and a nightmare on elm street and that's because of how scary i found the killers. it's the same with this now. whenever i hear a noise in my house i think of someone wearing the kind of mask that the man wears. that's probably why i enjoyed it so much because it had such an impact on me rather than me just enjoying it, leaving the cinema and then never thinking about it again, it still plays on my mind. also this is where i first heard of joanna newsom (at least i think that's her name..?) because her song was playing during one of the scenes on an old record player and again, this film has now made me creeped out by any other song of hers that i hear because i always relate it back to that scene. her song's actually in the trailer too. i probably just sound mentally damaged but seriously it creeped me out this film! :P

 

6.

- a very sad film about all sorts of things like racist, sexist, poverty etc which made me appreciate whoopi goldberg much more than i initially did. it's one of the most uplifting films in the weirdest wa but it really is.

 

7.

- the trailer gives it absolutely no justice at all. actually its probably one of the worst trailers i've ever seen. i'd probably be put off watching it if i was you but trust me it's a wicked film. very sad at the end and the whole film builds up to it beautifully.

 

8.

- just a wicked movie. made me laugh throughout and cry at the end and i personally think it's tim burton's best.

 

9.

- such a great idea for a film that has never been done before so you will never have seen a film ike it. it's so funny and it's one of the few films that i can watch over and over again.

 

10.

- this film is so uplifting, sad and funny a the same time and it also had one of the best film soundtracks of all time!

 

for some reason i don't have any comedies in my top 10 but i really like drop dead fred and mrs. doubtfire so they get honourable mentions too :) oh and so does before the rains. it seems like a movie that you'd definitely like seeing as though you mention how you like the cinematography of some of your films. that's one of the main reasons i like it because of the cinematography and ho beautiful it looks.

 

and i've just realised that i cried at the majority of my list. i think this probably harps back to the reason why i justify liking art which is to provoke a feeling or a reaction. for example a film making me cry like dancer in the dark or scaring me to death like the strangers. i think that like art, films that provoke a reason stick in your memory and have much more of an impact than big box office films like i said earlier where the experience only really lasts for like an hour and a half or however long the film's on for rather than ones that stick in your memory and make you think about them long after you've left the cinema.

 

anyway i could go on but i'm literally boring myself so i'd best stop. anyway thanks again for this list. lots of films for me to watch soon :)

Oh I love this thread.

 

Okay, I haven't seen these films: Dr Strangelove (have no desire to), The Wackness (maybe... I'm not sure about the trailer), A Clockwork Orange (it looks bizarre and not something I'd enjoy), The Descent (horror films scare me a ridiculous amount, so much that it's hard to shut my eyes at night so I don't think I'll be watching that..), Milk (didn't watch the trailer and it didn't really appeal), Dazed & Confused (undecided as to what I think), Shortbus (it does look like a porno haha), Old Boy (again, undecided), Brokeback Mountain (this was brought for me a long time ago and I have still yet to see it...), The Dreamers (it looks quite interesting but the incest is weird. I guess that's what makes the film what it is!), Harold & Maude (okay, him kissing her freaked me right out so I'm not sure if I could ever watch it).

 

I've seen Almost Famous (a while back though), 28 Days Later (and I really didn't like it so I never want to see it again), American Beauty (it's a good film but I never got the hype surrounding it), Kill Bill (I've seen bits of it, in between falling asleep. Seems pretty gross in parts), Up (it was good but I didn't cry or feel sad though the robot sat next to me did feel something so I guess individual choice. I saw it in 3D which was pretty awesome), Requiem for a Dream (I saw this when I was in Germany so didn't really understand much of it and it's not something that struck me as omg must see in English. Hmmm.), Eternal Sunshine (definitely one of my favourite films of all time. I just adore it!), Chicago (pretty good but I have to be in the mood for a musical), Spirited Away (I started watching it with Ryan and then fell asleep :lol: It felt so surreal when I was drifting in and out of sleep and I had the oddest dreams. I wasn't overwhelmed with it but maybe I should give it another go).

 

After this thread, I want to see A Single Man (the kinda movie I like!), Wendy & Lucy (I love all these tales of loss), Brick (I love murder mysteries and Joseph is :wub:), The Diving Bell & The Butterfly (I've been meaning to see this for a while), Children of Men (the 3rd Potter film has always been my favourite & this looks really interesting).

 

I think I shall have to buy them now!

Yay, you finally finished it :cheer: :P

 

And oh my, you pretty much said exactly how I feel about Brokeback Mountain. Spot on :heart: And it's my 4th favourite film as well funny enough. Three and two I've never heard off, but I will definitely be checking them out especially Harold and Maude, which looks just like my type of fim. And oh my, Spirited Away - I've heard such good things about this film and I know Hayao Miyazaki is supposed to be like the Japanese version of Pixar. And after seeing the trailer and your review I have ordered it off Amazon :P Really looking to forawrd to finally watching this.

 

Thanks so much for this thread, was a really fun read (I'm a sucker for a good countdown :P), and for the sheer hell of it, I will do my own list in due time, but you have such great taste :)

 

And JakeWild Death Becomes Her and The Strangers are such great films, I still really need to watch the Notebook. Another film I've heard nothing but good things about.

Edited March 21, 201015 yr by Daniel Gleek