It originally had asked for 15 movies that "made you think" or made an impression of some sort and while I could've easily pulled an extra 10 outta my tail I think forcing myself to be concise is a good thing. What I'm gonna share is some of the reasons why these films affected me. Or f#cked me up for life. Whichever.
1. The Empire Strikes Back (Yeah. Star Wars broke the mold. We all saw it. We all bought the toys. Got freaked out. It was great. But there was this feeling...that ANOTHER one was coming out. And there was a secret. A big reveal. And almost nobody knew what it was until they saw it. And since everyone and their cat was at the UA theatre in Brooklyn Center there was no hope of being spoiled ahead of time. I remember hearing a rumor in 1980 that someone at an early showing actually THREW UP in the theatre when they saw what Darth Vader REALLY looked like. I remember the line that snaked around the building. Just. Wow. And I was 6 years old)
2. Mississippi Burning (I watch this once a year. And you should too. And it makes me sick to my stomach. And it's an incredible, incredible story. )
3. Requiem for a Dream (Pretty much started the kick of "Great Films I'll Never Watch Again". If you can make it through Ellen Burstyn's monologue- And if you've seen it, you know the monologue- without crying? I admire you being able to function with what clearly is a piece of tin foil and ammonia in lieu of a heart)
4. Happiness (The protagonist...is...a pedophile. Who, Gods help us...we root for. See above for reasons to never give this film a second viewing. Solondz is really, really great at making these movies. And thank you for that. Now I need to go bleach out my eyes)
5. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (Hey. Big spoiler. Spock dies. And having been Trekkily influenced as a kid, seeing a favorite lead character pass made me more scared of death than when Obi-Wan was struck down. And yeah. The eulogy and the bagpipes. Ugh)
6. The Passion of the Christ (Knee jerk, knee jerk, knee jerk. So good old Nutty Mel makes this snuff film. And it didn't leave my mind for days. My friend and I who saw this needed to go to Houlihan's afterward for a drink- probably not the most Christian thing, mind. But she was bawling her eyes out. And. Jesus. Exposed rib cage shot?)
7. Mulholland Drive (Right. So admittedly I was buzzed when I saw this at a couple friends house on their big ass TV with booming surround sound. And they laughed and asked "Any questions?" when they saw my face. I was genuinely freaked out when the homeless person jumped out after the diner scene. Stomach churning and surreal. Makes you feel stoned)
8. Inglorious Basterds (I threw this on because it's still pretty fresh, and will probably go into it more when you get to #11- But like Ralph Fiennes in "SL" Hans Landa is the most despicable villain in the last 10 years. Period. And fills you with menace every. Single. Scene. Even when eating a pastry)
9. Jaws (Thank you. Thank you, Peter Benchley. I know now, as an adult, that they are amazing creatures of nature. And yet, even in a river? A lake? A gawdamn man-made pond in Maple Grove? There are gawdamn beasties down there. Waiting)
10. The Fox and the Hound (Disney at it's most miserable. Almost 10 years away from their Mermaid/Beast/Aladdin'ed renaissance. We'd watched reel to reels of Bambi and the rest, but for my money this one cracked my little child soul in two. It was a time when Disney truly had no mama. Clearly brought on by their hatred of Star Wars and 20th Century Fox, no doubt)
11. Schindler's List (Right. Let me start by saying the same thing I say to one of my besties who see's a ton of shit in the theatre. When I asked him if he saw this, he said he and his cousin...his cousin who lives over an hour away...saw it at Har Mar and didn't speak the entire trip back. Then asked me to see it and not talk about it. Well I made a special trip up to the local Hollywood Video and rented this 2 tape bad boy- and watched it with my dad. And we didn't speak for nearly three hours. Even at the intermission when we both took turns in the bathroom. And then it went in the rewinder when it was over, and we went to our rooms, and never said another word. And that, friends, is my opinion of a powerful film)
12. Braveheart (An old friend said it best- "It made what little Scottish I have in my heritage want to jump out of my body and shout".)
13. The Matrix (Did not want. My friend ran to the front of the video store with it and I told him the day I sit through a movie with "Bill and Ted" dude was not going to happen. Instead, we sat in his apartment watching on his little toaster sized TV and I proceeded to have my mind blown. And then 4 years later watch a sequel that taught me new ways to be disappointed)
14. Ghostbusters (Take a comedy class. Wait. On second thought, don't waste your time. Don't. Watch this film. When I first saw this as a kid, my mom and I went when my big brother was on a fishing trip with my dad. And I screamed like a girl during the first ten minutes, then figured out what being funny was in the last 110. And it still holds up)
15. The Mist (Well. Hollywood. Thank you for having the balls to have one of the bleakest endings of any film in 20 odd years. Jesus)
(Honorable mentions)
"The Cell" (And alternatively "The Fall". Tarsem is an artist, no doubt. Trip. Pee.)
"The Pianist" (The piano playing scene-where he can't even touch the keys...broke my heart)
"A Time to Kill" (It's no Mississippi Burning. And kind of a flawed film. But it stuck)
"Saving Private Ryan" (C'mon dude. On second thought, no. I'm like the rest of the world on this one. The first 10 minutes. Hard. To. Stomach.)
"The Dark Knight" (More Hollywood balls. Not to sucker down and make another "cartoony" villain. Having a "please, please, please don't shoot the kid" ending. Wow)
"The Lord of the Rings" (Because homeslice please- PLEASE! I can't even think of a film where we were waiting in pants shitting impatience for the next one to come out- and then how we were going to live after it had left the theaters)
