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Editor's Note: Week in and week out our Pics, Flix and Other Diversions writers give you movie news and insights, but what do they know? This week we're taking a look at the 5 favorite films from our writers. Day 4 features the ksl.com movies guru. John Clyde is the Communities Director for ksl.com and manages the Pics, Flix and other Diversions section. John writes a bulk of the stories on the section and is a movie nerd. SALT LAKE CITY - I have been mulling over this for two weeks now, my five favorite films. Is that even possible? I started listing my favorites and soon I had a list of 25.
I realized I needed to shorten it up and after a few edits it was at 20. Not very helpful. I finally got it to eight and I've been debating that the last few days.
#poll
I'm not happy about only five, but rules are rules. So, here is the list of my five favorites right now, this may change as soon as tomorrow.
I'd like to note that these are films I find myself watching whenever they are on and choose to throw into my Blu Ray player every now and again on top of that.
In addition to that, these are also films that struck a chord with me. Immediately after viewing them they stuck with me for days. These films made me think and demanded multiple viewings.
So, without further adieu here are my five currently favorite films in no particular order.
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."
I probably shouldn't admit that I saw this movie when I was 12-years-old considering the intense language in it, but I did and it instantly became one of my all time favorites.
Everything in this film was brilliant. Bryan Singer's direction and pacing kept you entranced from start to finish and the acting was superb. Gabriel Byrne and Kevin Pollak gave knock out performances, but Kevin Spacey's turn as Verbal Kint is possibly one of the the most deserving Academy Award winning performances of the last couple of decades.
While all of that was amazing, it really pales in comparison to Christopher McQuarrie's script. This is the kind of movie writer's dream of penning. The dialogue, minus the language, is engrossing, the action and drama are spaced perfectly and the humor lands in just the right spots. But the most impressive thing about the script is possibly how obvious the in-your-face ending is and how it's so well hidden at the same time.
If what I just wrote makes no sense to you, watch the film and all will be clear.
JawsPG
"Jaws" is truly a movie that I've probably seen a thousand times and will likely watch a thousand more. I distinctly remember every time it came on TV as a kid my brother KC and I would watch it, without fail. In fact, my dad even rolled his eyes and sighed once when he walked in and said, "Really? You're watching this again?"
It was a valid annoyance considering it was probably the 12th time we'd watched it that month. But we didn't care. I'm sure we watched it several more times that month alone.
"Jaws" is truly a near perfect film. It didn't change the world or anything, well maybe the cinematic world, but it was entertaining, frightening, funny and heartfelt. One of the truly incredible things about this film was likely the most frustrating thing for Spielberg. The mechanical shark wouldn't work so they had to find a way around it.
Spielberg decided to take the route of not showing the shark and it ended making a good film a classic. What we didn't see scared the dickens out of us and that's exactly what keeps me coming back to it time and time again.
If there is one person I wanted to be as a child it was Marty McFly. He dressed super cool, had a hot girlfriend, played the guitar and traveled through time in a freaking DeLorean. What child born in the 80's doesn't want all that?
Granted, "Back to the Future" is a total nostalgia film for me, but it's actually an incredibly good film as well.
Robert Zemickis' time travel flick is the perfect summer film. It attracts all ages, it's funny, filled with action, well acted and has a great story. Sure some of the physics make absolutely no sense, but the film is constructed beautifully. There's a reason it's used as an example so often in film classes.
"Back to the Future" is literally a staple from my childhood and despite what my wife says, it'll be a staple in my kids' childhoods as well.
Let me be the first to say, I hate it when people say, "I love old movies." How can you throw out that blanket statement? If an old movie is good, then love it, but not all old movies are good.
With that said, you can know that I'm not just throwing on an old film to look "knowledgeable" about film, but because in my eyes it's an incredible movie.
I believe Alfred Hitchcock is one of the greatest directors of all time. He tried things no one dared and managed to pull them off in a near flawless way. One of these films is "Rear Window."
You have some of the classic overacting we've come to associate with films from the 40's and 50's but when it's coming from Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelly I just don't seem to care.
Hitchcock managed to shoot a 112 minute film full of suspense and intrigue all from the same spot. It's an amazing directorial effort to watch and just a great film to enjoy. I watch this all time and truth be told; as I'm writing this I really want to go watch it again.
InceptionPG-13
I have to make an admission, when I mentioned earlier that I cut my list down to 20 and then 15 and so forth, at one point every single Christopher Nolan film was on the list. I debated for a long while if I was going to leave "Memento" and "The Dark Knight" on the final list, but I decided to go with just one Nolan film and to me it's a no brainer, "Inception."
I know I will be hammered for that statement. I have sent more than one person into hysterics for saying I enjoyed "Inception" more than "The Dark Knight." Let me be clear, when I say one beats out the other it's by the slimmest of margins.
"Inception" is the most inventive, imaginative and original film I have ever seen. Nolan's script is so well thought out that there are virtually no holes in it, which is almost impossible. And if you'd like to argue that it's riddled with holes please email me and I will prove you wrong.
I saw "Inception" at the midnight premier and then twice more in three days. I have watched this movie at least a dozen times since and each viewing teaches me something new. Something subtle I had missed or some foreshadowing that gave away the ending that just seemed like smart dialogue the first time.
The film is paced brilliantly, shot beautifully and executed near perfectly. Nolan will forever be remembered as one of the greatest filmmakers of all time and the originality and depth of "Inception" may likely be his standard.
My wife jokes all the time that I could teach a college course on "Inception" and what's sad is she is right. So, for anyone who is confused about the end or any other part, let me know and I'll clear it up.
