Visually this film is top notch with gorgeous and atmospheric art direction but it is a frustrated and angry film so may be one you resent if approached in a wrong state of mind. To speak plainly and truthfully there is a lot of ambiguity that a film so controversial could come from such a controversial director, after the details of Polanski's private life were revealed audiences could be shocked at what his intentions with this film were. It is often easier to seperate the artist from the film and not let those ideas bias your opinion of their work. - chambanzi

 

Noir is often a genre where people are shown to hide in the shadows. In Chinatown everything is bathed in brilliant sunlight, yet people still find places to hide their darkest secrets. Chinatown shows you a city where human nature is debased and corruption has set in at every level, from politics to the family. - rawlinson

 

An enjoyable noir, Jack Nicholson is awesome. - Rebel scum

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Pickup on South Street is my favourite Sam Fuller film. A former tabloid reporter, he always used grabby intros, and Pickup starts with a classic: a worldless subway sequence that sets up our story. Cocky pickpocket Richard Widmark lifts a purse from unwitting commies' mule Candy (Jean Peters), unaware he's nabbed a strip of microfiche containing state secrets. The commies want him. The feds want him. And him? Well, he wants 25 grand. Widmark is great, but it's Thelma Ritter who walks off with the film, delivering an unforgettable characterisation as a police informer whose sole ambition is to avoid a pauper's burial. This masterpiece mixes human drama with Cold War thriller and provides a vivid evocation of New York City, depicted here as a festering hellhole. It also teaches you how to read microfilm, which I've found very useful when looking at old newspapers. - rick_7

 

Both Richard Kiley (as the Communist agent) and Peters put in memorable performances, but this film belongs to both Widmark as the loner thief who rediscovers his sense of honour and the great Thelma Ritter as the world weary stool pigeon desperately scrabbling for dignity whilst eeking out an existence in the slums by selling information to anybody that will pay for it. - Harry Lime

 

A tough, suspensful noir with a great role for Thelma Ritter in support. - Beetlejuice!

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Superior to Coppola's other 74 offering, The Conversation has always been neglected in comparison. Gene Hackman stars as Harry Caul, a surveillance expert who takes an assignment to record a woman cheating on her husband, only to find he may have stumbled into a murder plot. As Caul finds himself drawn deeper into the case, his own paranoia begins to tear him apart. Made in the wake of Watergate, The Conversation could have simply been a film of its time, but intelligent scripting, some of Coppola's finest work as a director, and an astonishing performance from Hackman make The Conversation into one of the most powerful and rewarding films of the 70s. - rawlinson

 

I know it is regarded as a masterpiece but I just don't see it as that. It was one of those films that had me continuously checking the remaining time. - chambanzi

 

A solid film that seems to have got lost amongst Coppola's bigger '70s movies. I'd happily say this is Gene Hackman's finest performance which definitely says something. - Beetlejuice!

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Oliver Stone's film looking into the assassination of JFK is undoubtedly his best film. In fact, it's pretty much the best film of most of the people involved. Information overload is the order of the day here and it's fascinating. Fictionalised and inaccurate an awful lot may be, but it's still a great whodunit, and even if only 10% of what we hear is true, it's enough to get you thinking. The use of stock footage interspersed with recreations, black and white photography, newsreels, slow motion, flashbacks within flashbacks, recreating the assassination in Dealey Plaza etc, all help to add to the sense of paranoia, misdirection and confusion. John Williams score is perfect, the gargantuan cast sublime. Just a great film. - Gimli The Dwarf

 

Stone's masterpiece and I'm in agreement that it's not really that relevant how accurate it is. - matty_b

 

It should be watched mainly for the great courtroom scene at the end and for how it brought the video footage of the assassination to the public. I also found myself more interested with the story again after watching the film and was online for about 3 hours after watching it just reading through some of the theories. - TRM

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Grant's performance here plays a spin on his familiar screwball comedy persona, and in Hitchcock terms, it's far more in line with To Catch A Thief than the darker characters he played in their earlier collaborations. It's no great shock to discover that Grant is as effortlessly charming as ever in the lead and Eva Marie Saint is a perfect romantic interest. But the cast is perfect down the line, but then again, when you get James Mason in support then that's to be expected as well. North by Northwest is one of the most perfect examples of pure cinematic joy, as stylish and elegant as Grant himself, it's the kind of film that phrase 'they don't make them like they used to' was invented for. - rawlinson

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Blade Runner rewrote the rulebook on how sci-fi movies looked forever offering a unique view of the dystopian future. This is undoubtedly one of the most influential sci fi films of all times and I love it. Its also kept the world guessing until relatively recently whether Deckard was in fact a replicant or not. A visual feast and a classic. My second favourite Ridley Scott film. - shool

 

It's just a brilliant film. Don't think much of the version that was released theatrically though. - Harry Tuttle

 

I get why Blade Runner is such a revered film, but I always found hard to get through. - MonsterCat

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

It's essentially a backstage drama, and as melodramatic as you'd expect of that genre, but it's one reimagined into a Polanski style study of mental breakdown, with a touch of Cronenbergian body horror thrown in for good measure. It takes the best aspects of those directors and crafts an intense, haunting and hallucinatory work. - rawlinson

 

Still pretty 'meh' for me I'm afraid. - elab49

 

What a fantastic film. I've seen it a few times now and it has just remained consistently excellent. Natalie Portman really outdoes herself with an outstanding performance and Aronofsky runs proceedings with a tightly structured psychological trip through hell. Amazing. - Beetlejuice!

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

I watched all the sequels for the first time last year, and I kind of love them all, warts and all. But this first film is a bonafide stone cold classic. It has an unbelievably cool soundtrack, a great lead, and a fair few classic lines. It epitomises 70s American cinema, and captured the zeitgeist at the time when the killer who inspired the film was still running around the city. I have a lot of love for serial killer stories - I think that makes me a little bit crazy - and this story in particular is fascinating. - homersimpson_esq

 

The best of the lot. - matty_b

 

Iconic role for Eastwood in this gritty crime film. - Beetlejuice!

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

This was for many the film that really broke South Korean cinema into the mainstream. It's a bitter and cruel revenge thriller, one that takes glee in its sadism and is willing to take the viewer into a very bleak world. It could have been too much, if it wasn't for the performance of Choi Min-sik, who manages to help the film stay grounded even in its most excessive moments. - rawlinson

 

Bloody hell talk about grim. Don't get me wrong it's a brilliant film but fuck me was I depressed at the end. Much like Requiem for a Dream, it'll be one of the best films I never want to watch again. It got a bit frustrating when Oh Dae-Su wouldn't take any of the clear chances he had to kill Woo-jin but that's by the by. Mental, brutal, disturbing and brilliant in equal measures. - Harry Tuttle

 

Greatest thriller of the decade surely, this bonkers film is endlessly watchable and a true original. - Beetlejuice!

 

 

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

I find it hard to describe why I love The Maltese Falcon as much as I do, but the most likely reason is that I'm a sucker for a protagonist with a healthy air of cynicism about him. Bogart always brings an impression that his character has seen it all, and that nothing really surprises him anymore, most obvious in this film when he laconically points out for the first time (of many) that the film's resident femme fatale is lying to him. While in other noirs this would be greeted with a big emotional speech, here Bogart's Sam Spade praises her lying skills and suggests ways of improvement. That is just cool. - Rebel scum

 

Bogarts best ever role outside of The Big Sleep(Chandler, scripted by Faulkner). The film that defined film noir. Huston's first ever movie. What shines through especially is Spade's(Bogart) loyalty to his dead work friend. Spade's ability to see through femme fatales and intellectual sophisticates(Greenstreet). The beautiful maguffin of the maltese falcon with all it's back history.Also the great underlying humour. - john.sharman27

 

Classic Bogart. A film not to be missed. - mingusman

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

A chilling story and ending, great performances all round - especially from Anthony Perkins - and, as Empire stated, that classic shower sequence. Also, Hitchcock's camera work is brilliant, a step ahead of everyone else at the time. The slow ascent of the stairs towards Bate's mothers room is a prime example. Not to be missed. - Whistler

 

The best Hichcock movie ever ,that has become the bench mark by which most horror movies are now judged,Perkins will forever be rembered as Norman Bates,with a truly stand out preformance that has you feeling sorry for the killer,when he's finaly revealed.Great set pieces and brillant score are just the icing on this CLASSIC of all time.- evil bill

 

This is one of the best horror films ever made. Anthony Perkins delivers an terrific peformance as pycho killer Norman Bates. However it never manages to be as good as the book. - solid snake

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Completely inventive, this is a genuinely perplexing and at times disturbing film running in reverse chronological order. A great piece of film making and writing unpicking what memory is and how it defines us. - shool

 

Memento blew me away when I first saw it. I must have watched it at least 5 times within the first few days I had it because I basically made everyone I know watch it. Amazing. - Harry Tuttle

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

The Usual Suspects is a genuine cult classic. After seeing it the first time and buying the VHS on the day it came out (didn't have one of those new fangled DVD player thingies at the time, too expensive) I must have played it to everyone I could, friends, family, workmates and I used to love seeing their reaction at the end. I also got into the habbit of watching the film and never taking my eyes off Spacey. If you've not done so before please do this, just watch him & forget everything else, it's a brilliant experience, you suddenly notice all these brief facial tics, smirks, rolls of eyes etc that let you know he's spinning a yarn the whole time (but that you never spotted the first time you watched) it's a masterclass in film acting. - Discodez

 

Rarely has "head-scratching" and "cool" been proper adjectives for a movie, but both are certainly a lock for me when reviewing The Usual Suspects. Twisting, funny, thrilling; it is a key movie in the crime-renaissance of the 90's that should be watched by anyone. Hell, even my mum loves it! - Dantes Inferno

 

I still love this – the story of five criminals (Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Steven Baldwin, Kevin Pollack, and Benicio del Toro) who come together by "coincidence" and decide to take on a job together, but end up on a twisting road towards almost certain death - a lot, no matter how many mistakes there are in it. Sure, there are moments of hamminess in the acting, the script doesn't always hold up under the pressure of clichés, and Singer's input – although impressive – is clearly that of a debutant. But, I have to say, this is still one of the most entertaining crime films ever made. But what sets it apart is that it also has something going on upstairs. It's winding plot and clever characterisation makes "the Usual Suspects" worth watching again and again and again, and the little moments that you may have missed the first time all come clear on the second. The acting is still sublime, particularly from Kevin Spacey, whose mysterious, smart, and smarmy Verbal Kint is one of the greatest cinematic creations that America produced in the 1990s. Benicio del Toro puts in solid work in a character that was clearly only ever created to die, and the rest of the suspects – Pollack, Byrne, Baldwin – put in what are either career bests or very close to that. Also look out for Pete Postlethwaite, who has never been better than as the stoic faced lawyer Kobayashi. But what's best is the twist, which holds up time and time again. Even if I have seen this film over ten times, I still find the goose bumps appearing in the final montage, and watching it with friends who have never seen it before (like the person I watched it with tonight) is a thoroughly rewarding and pleasing experience. One of the very best film of the last twenty years. - Piles

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

This is the work of a master filmmaker out to show what he can do, and does it brilliantly. Moments like the famous dolly zoom, the sharks POV shots, the opening death in which the camera just observes her desperate struggles, the reveal of the shark done almost casually-these are all classic moments which entered the cultural sphere and never left. It's the first blockbuster film, and also one of the best. - Rebel scum

 

Quite obviously brilliant. - matty_b

 

Possibly one of the best films of all time. - chambanzi

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

The acting is first-rate, Wright is superb as young Charlie, but it's Cotton that steals the film. Cast against type, he turns in a skilful performance in the complex role of Uncle Charlie. The actor would have many fine roles in many iconic films, but I don't think he ever stretched his acting skills as much as he did here. It's yet another entry in The Academy's Hall of Shame that Shadow of a Doubt got a writing nomination and nothing else. - rawlinson

 

Very good, but again, I prefer a lot of other Hitchcock's. - matty_b

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

This film made Lorre's career, and deservedly so. He brings depth and even sympathy to a character many others would have played as simply a monster. It's a troubling, brilliant, innovative and thought-provoking film. Lang would never better it. - rawlinson

 

Ahead of its time melodrama that must have been fairly controversial in its time. The subject matter holds up well today and Peter Lorre gives an excellent performance. - Beetlejuice!

 

The first Lang film i've seen, and it seems like a good place to start. The film features a great central performance from Peter Lorre and some really tense scenes as the criminals try to catch the child murderer. - TRM

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

As far as psychological crime thrillers go, Se7en is nigh on unbeatable. Fincher's care in its' direction and always-intriguing premise ensure that this is an uncomfortable and shocking viewing experience that it's impossible to tear your eyes away from. David Fincher does what he does so well, Morgan Freeman is, as always, absolutely excellent, and Brad Pitt simply shines in a role that feels perfect for him, and is also the perfect antidote for those who saw him in his Tyler-guise in the also excellent Fight Club. Se7en is though, for my money, the absolute last word in crime thrillers, and has a twist that revels in its' own simplicity, and yet, is every bit as shocking as you could expect it to be. Enthralling stuff. - blaud

 

What an amazing film! Really classic one! - The Great Danton

 

Seven (or Se7en) is one of the best psychological thrillers ever made in my opinon, there I've said it. The film is very gruesome however and should not be watched by the easily nauseated or offended, because seven doesn't let slip any of the gory details. If, like me, you thought after the first gut wrenching murder scene, things couldn't possible get any worse, could they? Well you thought wrong because the death of 'Gluttony' is not a scratch on what comes later, starvation, rape and bloodletting to name but a few, seven truly is a horrific, but strangely enjoyable experience. - scottpilgrim95

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

One of the most perfect movies ever made. - Professor Moriarty

 

Short but infinitely engrossing, Bad Day at Black Rock is a film that takes the simplest of concepts - a man arrives in a backwater town to find another man, only to meet hostility from the town's residents - and makes it an enthralling tale that leaves you hooked to your seat and guessing up until the final minutes. It's entertainment at its purest, with fantastic performances - Spencer Tracey as the crippled war vet stepping into a suspicious town is magnificent - great writing, and oodles of tension. Add on to that the surprisingly confrontational central theme of the idiocy and danger of discrimination, especially in the name of patriotism, and you have a brilliant film indeed. - Pigeon Army

 

Tracey is great. - Rhubarb

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Elements of the film may have dated, and Rear Window may not have the reputation of being Hitchcock's most perfect film in the way that something like Vertigo does. But for me it shows the great man at the height of his powers and is not only a great Hitchcock film, but an example of cinema at its finest. - rawlinson

 

It’s a masterclass in suspense, and one of Hitch’s greatest moments in a career filled with them. - Rebel scum

 

James Stewart is fantastic, Grace Kelly is Grace Kelly and Thelma Ritter is as always a scene stealing goddess. - impqueen

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

I still zone out when Tommy Lee Jones starts talking about his dreams so I don't know what the ending is about, but this is still one of the Coens best. - paul_ie86

 

My favourite of the Coens. - Rebel scum

 

The greatest ever Coens. - ElephantBoy

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

I've seen quite a few criticisms of Goodfellas over the years, where it's essentially labelled as too slick and superficial for its own good, but surely that's the point? The lifestyle of the gangsters as reported by both Henry and Karen Hill is attractive to them because of its slickness and the superficial rewards that it offers them. If anything, Scorsese should be lauded for keeping his nerve and not letting the film turn into a "crime is bad, mmkay?" lesson by the end, when everything unravels for them. His control of the material is marvellous with several amazing bits - the shooting of Spider, most of Tommy's scenes, the freezeframes - and spot-on performances throughout. It's mammothly entertaining. - matty_b

 

Goodfellas was an instant classic and is the most revered of Scorsese’s films about organised crime. Everything is top notch, the performances, the setting, the script and the style. That long tracking shot through the bar is surely one of cinema’s most famous and who could forget the infamous ‘How am I funny?’ scene. - chambanzi

 

Definately not my favourite Scorsese, but so watchable. - MovieAddict247

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Winner of the Palme D'or, and it should have won the Oscar, Taxi Driver is an intensely graphic and frighteningly plausible story of the way a man can be pushed over the edge by loneliness, by awkwardness and by a destructive environment. A true masterpiece. - rawlinson

 

Definitely a good film, but not exactly one of fave Scorsese flicks. - MonsterCat

 

Undoubtedly a classic film but it left me cold. - shool

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

 

 

Wow! Almodovar madness, completely bonkers but absolutely mesmerizing. Banderas gives the best performance of his career. - Beetlejuice!

 

Deeply disturbing, but also exciting thriller with a fine twist on a old horror theme and expertly handled twist. Maybe the directors finest film ever. - ElephantBoy

 

Not as good on second viewing, yet it's still Almodovar's best in years - possibly even his best. - Qwerty Norris

 

Banderas returns to the Almodovar fold and makes his first decent film in about a decade. - elab49

 

Last year's best film. - paul_ie86

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)

 

(in reply to Beetlejuice!)