MY FAVORITE MOVIES OF ALL TIME (so far)

In no particular order: 

*la Belle et le Bete (Cocteau)

*V for Vendetta

Fight Club

*Raising Arizona

Titus (1999)
Shakespeare in Love
Wings of Desire
Dangerous Liaisons
Tombstone
Jackie Brown

*Amelie

*Manchurian Candidate 1962
*The Dark Knight

Grosse Pointe Blank

El Mariachi
Trollhunter

American Beauty

*Unbreakable

An Ideal Husband

the Grifters

Some Kind of Wonderful

Exodus

Rebecca

American History X

The Big Chill

Gunfight at the OK Corral

Gentle Persuasion

Pulp Fiction

Kill Bill 1
Kill Bill 2

Pollock

*Moonstruck

The Departed

Sin City

Tampopo

Ironman

*Rear Window
North by Northwest

Picnic at Hanging Rock

*Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Pulp Fiction

Ran

The Long Kiss Goodnight

It’s a Wonderful Life

Ronin

The Hidden Fortress

Blade Runner

Star Wars: 4,5,6

Pride and Prejudice 2006 version

* indicates favorite favorites

Horror's Head Honcho

I am embarrassed to say I did not even know Mr. Blum's name. but I did know his movies. This is entertaining. My list of favorite horror movies of all time will follow later this week. I  love Halloween (the pop culture version, no real affinity for the historical Halloween).

Horror's Head Honcho

Grandmaster: Never Enough Ip Man

**** of 5 stars. Beautiful cinematography, soundtrack unusual and powerful, fight scenes esoteric-not wuxia at all, Leung is perfect, though Ziyi Zhang almost steals the show. 

Growing up hurts: MUD ****

Slowing moving and gorgeous, MUD was as good as I hoped it would be. Ellis and Neckbone serve as the pure center of the film with a host of damaged, sinful adults around them who are alternately inspired and shamed by the faith of the innocent boys. And me? I was holding my breath, hoping against hope that nothing would rob either of them of their belief in love, and the river, and each other.

They navigate the parallel worlds of the the town and the river just as they ride their bikes between what passes for family and the outliers who invade the town with their own vengeful conflicts.  Every character was finely drawn regardless of their time onscreen. Michael Shannon as  Neck's Uncle Galen, and Ray McKinnon as Ellis' father were my favorites.  McConaughey dazzles, because he plays Mud as a foil to the two boys. It was a good strategy. A coming of age story must be about the individual who will become a man, not the corrupt man who creates the conflict. Ellis does his best given the models around him: his father, Mud, Mud's father (Sam Shepard), Galen, King, Carver. None of them is much good. Ellis and Neck must find their own way.

And they do.

Because it’s a work of art, not a polemic

That's John Hodgman, talking about Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket. I was not aware that some have judged FMJ as a lesser film in Kubrick's canon. So far from the truth! So here is one of the best breakdowns I have ever read about Kubrick and this movie in particular. I have seen it only twice, and it is art, it is perfect, and it is not about VietNam.

http://thedissolve.com/features/the-last-great-movie-i-saw/15-the-last-great-movie-i-saw-john-hodgman-on-full-me/

need to think about this

http://kateoplis.tumblr.com/post/53776794104/earlier-this-month-at-a-symposium-at-the