#164 Life of Brian (1979)

Maybe this isn't fair of me, but I can't help but to compare Life of Brian with The Holy Grail since they are both done by Monty Python. With that being said, The Holy Grail is one of my favorite movies of all time so it would be hard for Life of Brian to compete. I will say that it held its own, and maybe me laugh with some solid unexpected jokes. I was laughing like I laughed in The Holy Grail, but just not nearly as often. This is a story about Brian, the boy that was born in the next stable over from Jesus. It is worth a watch if you want some good laughs and you are in a silly mood.
I also think, like the Holy Grail, this is a movie that makes you laugh more each time you watch it.

Perhaps my favorite exchange is found in this video. It is about two minutes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3n3LL338aGA

Brian: "You have to be different!"

The crowd says in unison: "Yes, we are all different!"

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#42 North by Northwest (1959)

I was really looking forward to watching this movie because of the limited Hitchcock movies that I have seen, I like them. I still like Psycho better, but I guess that is why North by Northwest is lower on the list. There was suspense. A pretty good story, and decent acting (all the acting in old movies seem overdone). Quick question for anyone alive in the 50s. Did people really wear coat and ties that much? Everywhere I looked in these old films people are wearing suits.
Overall, if you are just looking for a good movie to watch with an iconic Mt. Rushmore chase scene, check this movie out, and watch how fast the movie goes from climax to ending credits.
Favorite quote: "I've got a job, a secretary, a mother, two ex-wives and several bartenders that depend upon me, and I don't intend to disappoint them all by getting myself "slightly" killed."

"That's funny, that plane's dustin' crops where there ain't no crops."

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#94 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Let me preface my thoughts on this movie by once again saying that I don't think I can fully appreciate this film without living through the 60s. Some movies are timeless classics that can be appreciated in any era (Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, 12 Angry Men, Psycho); some movies you need to understand what was going on in that era, and know how film was developing at the time.
The movie was boring. It was slow. It was incoherent.
I realize this came out a full decade before Star Wars, and a full year before we even landed on the moon. This movie was probably groundbreaking and unbelievable to watch with minds running wild to what the future held (it is less vector based than the movie would have you believe). The idea of having nearly no talking  must have also been huge. It makes you experience the film from a visual level. I found it stupid. With paintings, I appreciate trying something different to elicit emotion, but there is only so far you can go with art until it just gets stupid. When I was in New York, inside one of the museums was a grocery cart filled with trash bags and it was called art. That's stupid. 2001: A Space Odyssey is a grocery cart full of trash bags.
The beginning was 3 minutes of a black screen with music followed by people dressed in monkey suits hammering on for 20 minutes till a large slab of granite shows up. Then they would just show you shots of spaceships and space stations for the longest time. The only interesting part of the movie was Hal, the famous self-aware computer. Too bad they spent more time with monkeys. I have always been fascinated with us over teaching a computer to our own demise, which is why I loved the Terminator series. So far, all we have is Siri. I feel confident we are safe for now. I don't want to give away the ending, but I will say this. It is dumb. No, like really dumb. Like, the worst ending I have ever watched. Watch this movie just so you can understand how terrible of an ending it was. I get that the movie wants to leave us with more questions than answers, but the movie should leave me with more than just one question: "Huh?"
I think people are more obsessed with loving movies from famous directors like Kubrick, but then again, I really think it has a lot to do with not growing up in the 60s.
Side note about Kubrick, I had no idea who he was until this movie, and then I see two out of the last three movies I watched were by him as well. Weird.

"I am sorry, Dave. I am afraid I can't do that."

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#65 A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Let me start off by saying that I thought Silence of the Lambs would be the most shocking movie I would watch, but I was wrong. Although Silence of the Lambs is more twisted than this movie, this certainly is more shocking.
I can't help but look at these movies I am watching through a historical lense, and I would have to believe this must have been one of the most shocking movies to ever hit theaters. This movie was made in 1971, and it is the most shocking I have ever watched. A part of me is very unimpressed because to get a rise out of me just through shocking behavior rather than clever writing does not work for me. Then again, you have to look at this movie when it was released. This movie has probably had a profound influence on motion pictures, and broke through a barrier to allow other movies to do what they wanted. I can only imagine that this movie, which was widely received in America, would not have been too successful prior to the late 1960s.  The director even self-banned this movie in England (where he was from) because of all the noise this movie was creating. It was finally released after his death in 1999.
The movie's shocking features gave it an overall raw appearance, and sucked you into the movie to appreciate what the protagonist was going through. There is also a lot about trying to control the mind and how government is becoming too overbearing. That should be obvious for this time period as well. To me, I think the most interesting quote of the movie was,

Prison Chaplain: Choice! The boy has not a real choice, has he? Self-interest, the fear of physical pain drove him to that grotesque act of self-abasement. The insincerity was clear to be seen. He ceases to be a wrongdoer. He ceases also to be a creature capable of moral choice.
Minister: Padre, there are subtleties! We are not concerned with motives, with the higher ethics. We are concerned only with cutting down crime and with relieving the ghastly congestion in our prisons. He will be your true Christian, ready to turn the other cheek, ready to be crucified rather than crucify, sick to the heart at the thought of killing a fly. Reclamation! Joy before the angels of God! The point is that it works.

Although always doing the right thing may be nice, but without choice, can someone be moral? Someone can only truly be a good person, not by their actions, but by their choices. That is a solid message from this movie, and the government looking just to control people is no life at all. Life is the choices you make.

"My brothers."

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#26 The Usual Suspects (1995)

I will always remember this as the movie that +Josh Blackman told me to watch. I think he rented it from some library and watched it. Anyways, he told me it was a great movie and it was worth watching. I never got around to it till today. Every time I heard the title, I knew I had to watch it. Who knew it would just take me a decade to do it. It is clever movie that will keep you guessing, and when you think you figured it out, you probably didn't. I will admit that I guessed luckily and right. Even when they tried to throw me off, I stuck with my guess! Anyways, it is worth your time, and deserves to be in the top 50.
Now two out of the last three movies I've watched starred Kevin Spacey! I think I just have two more with him (Se7en, L.A. Confidential).
I have really enjoyed watching all of these movies in rapid succession, but unfortunately school is calling me again. I should be able to pick up a lot more of these is one week.

"I just can't believe we're going to walk into certain death." -Verbal

Until then...
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#38 Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Since the last movie I looked at had some overtones of the feeling of America in the movie, this was a great follow up. This is a 1960s movie and you can tell. It is all concerned with nuclear war and the end of the world. These sorts of ideas do not resonate with me very well because I did not grow up in that era. I feel that is why I really did not get into this movie very much. It felt dull and unoriginal, but then again that may be because this movie was such a trend setter. I do not know.
Apparently this movie was supposed to be satirical. I got that it was silly, but I guess I didn't see too much fun being poked at anyone. I wish I would've known this before watching it. I probably would've appreciated it more. This movie did have two great quotes.
"Make me a drink of grain alcohol and rainwater, and you help yourself to whatever you like." and...

"Gentlemen, you can't fight in here; this is a war room." -President Merkin Muffle

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#55 American Beauty (1999)

I remember when this film came out. It got such rave reviews. I just never got around to watching it. Immediately when I watched this film, I couldn't help but think of Fight Club (#10). The plot lines and the cinematography are completely different, but the main male character essentially comes from the same place. He has what many would say is the perfect life, but in reality he is completely frustrated and can't keep living a lie.  Both even quit their job and blackmail their bosses. After he casts off all societal norms, he begins to feel normal and alive. This movie came out the same year as Fight Club (1999). What was the so bad about the 90s that I don't remember? I think the most interesting thing is probably what these movies reflect about what America was thinking during this time. My best guess is there was a complete dissatisfaction with the American dream.  People were told the American dream is what everyone should strive for, and they would be happy. You know, the white picket fence, beautiful wife, house in the suburbs, and when people got all of that they realized they were still unhappy. There was something missing. I think American Beauty and Fight Club help explore this question. I will keep my eyes open for any other late 90s movies to see if there is a similar connection. Ultimately, I have two words for this movie: different; intriguing. It is a dark look into modern suburbia.

Carolyn Burnham: "Uh, whose car is that out front?"

Lester Burnham: "Mine. 1970 Pontiac Firebird. The car I've always wanted and now I have it. I rule!"

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