In a break from my usual current reviews, here is part one of my all time* top 500 films, as of April 2013.
* This list excludes any silent films, shorts or movies that did not get a UK cinema release.
500 The Hill (1965 / Sidney Lumet )
The first of a number of entries for my favourite American director who brings out great performances from Ian Bannen and Harry Andrews, in a tough.drama set in a British disciplinary camp in Libya.during World War 2. This is raw and.emotional stuff.
The Hill [DVD] [1965] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
499 White Ribbon (2009 / Michael Hänake)
Master Austrian filmmaker, Hanake presents an enigmatic tale of a group of children in a German village between the wars. There seems to be a link between the kids and a serious of mysterious events happening in the village, but don’t expect any easy answers or the loose ends to be tied!
The White Ribbon [DVD] [2009]
498 Raise the Red Lantern (1991 / Yimou Zhang)
Beautifully snot by Lun Yang and Fei Zhao, this was lauded on it’s release but seems almost forgotten now. Set in China in the 1920s, the story concerns a teenage girl who has to become the fourth wife of a much older man when her father dies. She is understandably reluctant but finds that his 3 other wives are fiercely competitive and each of them are plotting to enable them to spend more time with the powerful man…
Raise the Red Lantern [DVD] [1991] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
497 Out of the Clouds (1955 / Basil Dearden)
I wouldn’t expect to see this on many other lists but it a personal favourite. Set in one day at London airport, a number of intertwined stories are told. This really captures the feel of 1950s Britain and air travel at that time in particular. Stuffed with familiar faces (including James Robertson Justice, Bernard Lee and Esma Cannon) this is perfect rainy Sunday afternoon fun.
Out of the Clouds [DVD]
496 Kagemusha (1980 / Akira Kurosawa)
The film that put Kurosawa back on the film making map at a time when most people thought that his best days were behind him. The story was far from original – a poor man is hired to act as a double for a powerful warlord, and eventually has to take his place completely – but the impressive scale and performances meant that this felt fresh and original.
Kagemusha [1980] [DVD]
495 Crossplot (1969 / Alvin Rakoff)
Another unconventional choice, this is my favourite film starring Roger Moore who plays a businessman who becomes unwittingly involved in an assassination plot. A thriller with a lot of amusing moments and a good representation of London in the late 60s.
Crossplot [DVD]
494 Holiday Inn (1942 / Mark Sandrich)
You won’t find many musicals on this list, but most that are here star the incomparable Fred Astaire. Here he stars with Bing Crosby as friends who set up an Inn that is only open at holiday times. The songs include White Christmas and Easter Parade. The partial remake White Christmas is better known but I think that this is the better film.
Holiday Inn (Special Edition) [1942] [DVD]
493 From Here to Eternity (1953 / Fred Zinnemann)
Known mostly for its iconic image of Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr kissing in the surf, this romantic drama is focused on a military outfit based in Hawaii in the lead up to Pearl Harbour.
Saying that this is about the lives and loves of the soldiers at the base makes it sound soapy but an intelligent script and a stand out performance by Montgomery Clift means that it is much better than that. 2001’s Pearl Harbour tried to cover similar ground but with disastrous results!!
From Here to Eternity [DVD]
492 Year of the Dragon (1985 / Michael Cimino)
Despite almost bankrupting a major studio with Heaven’s Gate 5 years previously, Cimino was thankfully able to direct this messy, violent but compelling crime thriller. The Chinese mafia and a cop, played by Mickey Rourke, clash in New York. Oliver Stone wrote the script, so it is not surprisingly short on political correctness, this is Cimino’s best film after The Deer Hunter
Year Of The Dragon [DVD]
491 Five Easy Pieces (1970 / Bob Rafelson)
Made back when Jack Nicholson was a great actor rather than a caricature, he stars as a man from a rich background who drops out to work on oil rigs and live with a waitress but returns to his family when his father falls ill. A scathing black comedy that addresses many of the issues facing America and Americans in the 1970s.
Five Easy Pieces [DVD]
490 To The Ends of the Earth (1948 / Robert Stevenson)
Dick Powell stars as a narcotics agent pursuing drug traffickers across the world. Based on government files, this film has a documentary like feel, heightened by the use of a voiceover by Powell. A rattling good thriller with a surprise ending, this movie is well overdue a DVD release.
489 Warning Shot (1967 / Buzz Kulik)
Made for TV in America, this qualifies for my list as it was shown in cinemas in the UK. The cast is full of great character actors (including Ed Begley, Walter Pidgeon, Lilian Gish and Sam Wanamaker) but the star is David Janssen best known for his TV work. Here he plays a cop trying to clear his name after he kills a suspect at a stakeout. A twisty thriller very much in the vein of the Paul Newman Harper films or Frank Sinatra Tony Rome movies.
Warning Shot [DVD] [1967] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
488 Videodrome (1983 / David Cronenberg)
For a while in the 80s, James Woods was arguably the best actor working in films. Here he brings his brand of intensity to a role of a television executive who comes across a new style of programming that causing his life to spiral out of control. A typical nightmarish vision from Cronenberg with a great supporting turn from Deborah Harry.
Videodrome [DVD] [1983]
487 Green Zone (2010 / Paul Greengrass)
There haven’t been many outstanding films about the Iraq conflict but this is one of the few of those. Directed in typical handheld, frenetic style by Greengrass, the complex story of the search for WMDs by the US army, and a sceptical officer played by Matt Damon, is both intelligent and very tense.
Green Zone [DVD]
486 Apocalypse Now (1979 / Francis Ford Coppola)
A film I admire more than like. Martin Sheen leads a hellish search for a rogue colonel, played by Marlon Brando. Noisy, violent and over the top, it is a film that has to be seen at least once, although many will find the documentary about the making of the film (Heart of Darkness) more interesting.
Apocalypse Now [1979] [DVD]
485 Cool Hand Luke (1967 / Stuart Rosenberg)
One of Paul Newman’s iconic roles as a prisoner on a chain gang in rural America. His constant attempts to escape make him popular with his fellow inmates but not the authorities. Also featuring the great George Kennedy and the famous hard boiled egg eating scene.
Cool Hand Luke (Deluxe Edition) [DVD] [1967]
484 Papillon (1973 / Franklin J Schaffner)
A Christmas staple of the telly when I was a kid. The epic story of 2 criminals on a prison island, and one man’s attempts to escape. Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman were rarely better, and the leper colony scenes will stick in your mind for a long time afterwards.
Papillon [DVD]
483 The Last of Sheila (1973 / Herbert Ross)
A great cast, including James Coburn and James Mason, star in a slick whodunit. A group of friends take part in a murder mystery game which soon turns all to real. This seems to have fallen into obscurity now, despite the cast and a well crated script from the unlikely pairing of Anthony Perkins and Stephen Sondheim.
Last of Sheila [DVD] [Region 1] [US Import] [NTSC]
482 Red River (1948 / Howard Hawks and Arthur Rosson)
The first western on my list, fittingly starring John Wayne. A father and son feud whilst on a cattle drive. Another great performance by Montgomery Clift makes the dramatic sequences feel believable and the action is handled well by Hawks.
Red River [DVD] [1949]
481 Scott of the Antarctic (1948 / Charles Frend)
The best dramatised telling of the ill fated Robert Scott mission. The cast, headed by John Mills and Kenneth More is on top form, and the film is superbly shot. Many liberties are taken with the truth but this is a moving account nonetheless.
Scott of the Antarctic [DVD]
