As promised, here is the annual comparison of just what the NBR has meant to Oscar over the past few years.  First off, the winner of the NBR’s Best Pic has gone on to be nominated every year for the past eight years.   You have to go back to Quills to find one that didn’t.  And even with the occasional film that doesn’t land in the top five their track record is pretty darned good.

A Best Pic chart after the jump.

NBR Best Pic | Oscar Best Pic

Top ten of 2007
No Country for Old Men*
The Assassination of Jesse James
Atonement
The Bourne Ultimatum
The Bucket List
Into the Wild
Juno
The Kite Runner
Lars and the Real Girl
Michael Clayton
Sweeney Todd

Top ten of 2006
Letters From Iwo Jima
Babel
Blood Diamond
The Departed*
The Devil Wears Prada
Flags Of Our Fathers
The History Boys
Little Miss Sunshine
Notes On A Scandal
The Painted Veil

Top ten films in 2005
Good Night, And Good Luck
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash*
A History of Violence
Match Point
Memoirs of a Geisha
Munich
Syriana
Walk the Line

Top ten in 2004
1. Finding Neverland
2. The Aviator
3. Closer
4. Million Dollar Baby*
5. Sideways
6. Kinsey
7. Vera Drake
8. Ray
9. Collateral
10. Hotel Rwanda

Top ten films in 2003:
Mystic River
The Last Samurai
The Station Agent
21 Grams
House of Sand and Fog
Lost in Translation
Cold Mountain
In America
Seabiscuit
Master and Commander

At least three of the eventual big five end up on their list and most of the time the winner is buried somewhere in there, very rarely do the two collide, as they did last year with No Country for Old Men.  The NBR has taken a lot of heat over the years, with accusations of this or that, but the plain truth of it is, for our purposes, none of that really matters; They are far more mainstream than most other voting bodies, except maybe the BFCA (Critics Choice) or the HFPA (Globes).

For the NBR, there should be a broad-ish sampling of the pics.  I like Frozen River for it and think it will make the list - it stands out this year because of the great reviews and that it is one of the very few films to be written and directed by a woman.  It stars Melissa Leo who, hands down, gave one of the best female performances of the year.  I also expect, even though they haven’t opened yet, Revolutionary Road and Gran Torino to be on there (unless they didn’t screen Gran Torino - but they love them some Eastwood so Changeling might be there instead).  Slumdog Millionaire will be there for sure, might even win.  I’m also liking Doubt, Milk and The Dark Knight for it, though they don’t really go for the big effects-driven films.  Perhaps Defiance, Australia, Frost/Nixon, The Reader — the real question is Benjamin Button - a film that is still a big question mark with critics.  My feeling is that the winner is either going to be Milk or Gran Torino.  But I’ve never accurately predicted the NBR, so take it with a grain of salt.

Our PREDICT THE NBR contest is here.

Sunday November 30

10:00 AM Twentieth Century (Hawks, 1934) - BW-91 mins. - I’ve gotten on a Carole Lombard kick lately and regret not watching or recording all, instead of just some, of the films TCM showed in October that aren’t available on DVD. Twentieth Century is actually both on DVD, unimpressively and from Sony in R1, and a film I’ve seen before. It’s the movie that really made Lombard a star, and she more than holds her own against John Barrymore’s relentless (and fun) hamming. Plus this is more evidence that Howard Hawks could direct most any kind of picture and make it his own.

8:00 PM The Runaway (Guzman, 1962) - BW-85 mins. - The monthly TCM guide informs me that this story of a delinquent Mexican boy who sneaks across into the U.S. and befriends a priest played by Cesar Romero was never released due to rights issues. It’s not been seen until now and isn’t on DVD. Anita Page, celebrated later in the week by the channel, plays a nun. Also of note, one of the cinematographers was Haskell Wexler, whose Oscar-winning work on Bound for Glory can be viewed immediately afterwards, at 9:30 PM.

Monday December 1

10:00 PM The Parallax View (Pakula, 1974) - C-102 mins. - One of the great conspiracy paranoia thrillers of the ’70s, possibly even the best, and it’s nearly impossible to find on DVD now. Warren Beatty appropriately sleepwalks through his starring role as a reporter who discovers something that runs deeper than anyone could possibly imagine. The montage sequence in this film is truly terrifying and brought to full life by having the viewer see it just as if he or she was the one being indoctrinated. A great counterpoint to the excessiveness of A Clockwork Orange in that sense. Four of director Alan J. Pakula’s films air tonight, starting with The Sterile Cuckoo which has never been on DVD. I’d like to see Warner Bros. dust up Klute, not on the schedule tonight, for a better edition too.

Tuesday December 2

6:30 AM Our Dancing Daughters (Beaumont, 1928) - BW-84 mins. - TCM is devoting the day to Anita Page, who died in September of this year (98 years old!). All three of the films listed here for today feature Page and there are several others, including the similarly titled Our Modern Maidens and Our Blushing Brides, that also show up on the schedule. Joan Crawford is the star and this film elevated her status even further. It’s a silent but also sort of a musical, which makes no sense on its face. Crawford and Page and Dorothy Sebastian are dancers looking to rope in husbands, including Johnny Mack Brown. The film received Oscar nominations for its cinematography and writing. Warner Bros. now controls the rights, but no DVD yet.

3:00 PM Gentleman’s Fate (LeRoy, 1931) - BW-93 mins. - A rare John Gilbert talking picture, again with Page in support. Both of the reviews at IMDb complain about how poor the film is, but it does have an 8.0 rating on that site. Gilbert plays an estranged son who takes over his dying father’s bootlegging business and ends up the worse for wear. Mervyn LeRoy directed this the same year he did Little Caesar. Made for MGM, Gentleman’s Fate is in Warner Bros.’ hands and hasn’t seen a DVD release.

4:45 PM Sidewalks of New York (Myers, White, 1931) - BW-74 mins. - Find out why Buster Keaton’s career died with the advent of sound by seeing the kind of thing he got forced into at MGM. He stars here in a gangster comedy that apparently did pretty good business at the time of its release. Anita Page co-stars. It’s not on DVD.

Wednesday December 3

12:00 AM Drums (Korda, 1938) - C (listed as BW at TCM site)-93 mins. - Valerie Hobson night at TCM. She’s not the star of this one, though, which is also known as The Drum. Sabu leads the cast as an Indian prince loyal to the British amid revolt. Raymond Massey and Roger Livesey add solid support. Made by Zoltan Korda for his brother Alexander’s company, but distributed in the U.S. by United Artists. Where does that put the DVD rights? Did Criterion acquire this title with the other Korda films they have? It’s not on DVD here or in the UK.

Thursday December 4

6:30 PM The Tall Stranger (Carr, 1957) - C-83 mins. - It could be my imagination, but TCM seems to be showing this western every other week lately. I was left with no other choice than to include it here. Joel McCrea stars in one of his later roles, in a story by Louis L’Amour. McCrea encounters rustlers who then shoot and leave him for dead. After a wagon train comes along and nurses McCrea back to health, he joins up with them but becomes suspicious of their intentions. Virginia Mayo is the female lead. Made on the cheap for Allied Artists, and now controlled by Warner Bros., the film isn’t on DVD.

Friday December 5

2:00 AM All Night Long (Dearden, 1961) - BW-95 mins. - A jazz version of Othello? I’ll take it! Starring Patrick McGoohan, who really impresses in the newly released Dr. Syn set from Disney, and also with Betsy Blair and Richard Attenborough, this film features several big time jazz performers as themselves, including Dave Brubeck and Charles Mingus. English director Basil Dearden had just made Victim and took on the odd challenge of transforming Shakespeare’s tragedy about intimate jealousy into the world of jazz. Blacklisted writer Paul Jarrico was later given co-credit for the screenplay. The film was made by the Rank Organisation, and isn’t on DVD in R1. It’s out in the UK though, currently from Network. There seems to also be a German release.

3:45 AM The Knack…And How to Get It (Lester, 1965) - BW-85 mins. - In a similar vein is this British rock and roll classic, which is on DVD in R1 and R2 from MGM. Richard Lester made the film right after A Hard Day’s Night and it won the Palme d’Or at Cannes. The plot is most certainly not the thing, but it involves a shy fellow’s pursuit of a girl with the help of a lady killer. It’s an essential for anyone interested in Lester’s odd career.

Whenever I hear of a new movie coming out based on a popular book or comic book or a sequel, I instantly hear naysayers complaining about a “lack of creativity in hollywood”. “Why not write something original” some will say. But I say thank goodness gifted screenwriters adapt novels into movies! As you can see from my list, some of the greatest movies in the history of film were adapted from books… films that I can’t even imagine what the world of film would look like today if they never came to be.

So I spent a couple of weeks putting together this list with three purposes in mind:

1) To highlight the important role books have played in the movie world

2) To draw attention to some fantastic movies that some of you may have never taken the time to watch before

3) To draw attention to the fact that these movies are indeed based on books, which may encourage you to try reading them (which I confess is a little hypocritical of me since I’ve only read a fraction of the books here.)

Now let me emphasize this next point very explicitly. THIS LIST IS NOT A LIST OF THE BEST BOOKS OR WHICH MOVIES DID THE BEST JOB ADAPTING FROM THE BOOK. It is a list of the best movies which happen to be BASED on books. Also, while I did not include Graphic Novels or Comic Books in this list, I do include short stories or novellas since they are usually a part of a single issue collection.

Like all movie lists, this one is subjective and in no way authoritative. The main purpose of which is to spark discussion and maybe interest in seeing some of these fantastic films again, or for the first time. So now I present to you The Movie Blog’s Top 100 Movies Based On Books:

#100 - THE JOY LUCK CLUB Rottem Tomatoes Rating - 90% Synopsis: Through a series of flashbacks, four young chinese women born in America and their respective mothers born in feudal China, explore their past. This search will help them understand their difficult mother/daughter relationship. John’s Thought: Yes, I am a heterosexual male… and I loved this movie.

#99 - THE MAMBO KINGS Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 78% Synopsis: Musician brothers Cesar and Nestor leave Cuba for America in the 1950s, hoping to hit the top of the Latin music scene. Cesar is the older brother, the business manager, and the ladies’ man. Nestor is the brooding songwriter, who cannot forget the woman in Cuba who broke his heart. John’s Thought: No Antonio! Too sexy! Too Sexy!

#98 - STARDUST Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 76% Synopsis: “Stardust,” based on the best-selling graphic novel by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess, takes audiences on an adventure that begins in a village in England and ends up in places that exist in an imaginary world. A young man named Tristan (Charlie Cox) tries to win the heart of Victoria (Sienna Miller), the beautiful but cold object of his desire, by going on a quest to retrieve a fallen star. His journey takes him to a mysterious and forbidden land beyond the walls of his village. On his odyssey, Tristan finds the star, which has transformed into a striking girl named Yvaine (Claire Danes). John’s Thought: Easily the single most underrated and under appreciated film of 2007

#97 - FRIED GREEN TOMATOES Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 82% Synopsis: A heartwarming tale of family, friendship and murder in rural Georgia. In a Southern nursing home, a feisty resident and old local fixture named Ninny Threadgoode (Tandy) befriends Evelyn Couch (Kathy Bates) a depressed housewife and stirs her to action with an inspirational tale. She tells the story of a transcendent friendship between two young women living in Georgia in the 1930s, Idgie Threadgoode (Mary Stuart Masterson) and Ruth (Mary Louise Parker), who forge a powerful bond after witnessing a terrible tragedy together. The two women open a cafe (where fried green tomatoes are a house specialty) together in their small Southern town of Whistle Stop and manage to survive the hardships of life, despite racism, prejudice and the pressures of trying to live their lives as individuals in a strict and close-minded Southern society. John’s Thought: Powerful cast, powerful story. An honestly moving film.

#96 - THE SHINING Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 86% Synopsis: A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from the past and of the future John’s Thought: Iconic film with some of the most quoted one liners from a horror film in history.

#95 - PATRIOT GAMES Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 80% Synopsis: Jack Ryan, the hero of Tom Clancy’s techno-thriller series, returns in the sequel to _The Hunt for Red October_. Ryan is on vacation in England when he spoils an assassination attempt on an important member of the Royal Family. Ryan gets drawn back into the CIA when the same splinter faction of the IRA targets him and his family. John’s Thought: Once again proving you CAN change actors and still make the franchise work. Ford in his prime and my introduction to the brilliance of Sean Bean.

#94 - WAG THE DOG Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 84% Synopsis: When a Firefly Girl accuses the president of sexual misconduct in the Oval Office less than two weeks before the upcoming election, White House official Winifred Ames (Anne Heche) is told to bring in Conrad Bream (Robert De Niro) to fix the situation and save the president’s chances for reelection. This mysterious “fixer” fabricates a conflict with Albania in an effort to detract attention from the sex scandal, bringing in legendary Hollywood producer Stanley Motss (Dustin Hoffman) to “produce” the war. When the CIA foils the initial plot, the creative team turns to a new story line, creating the saga of a U.S. soldier left behind enemy lines whom the president vows to find and return to American soil. John’s Thought: Especially funny watching this movie now after the events of the last 8 years. Hard to go wrong with Hoffman and DiNero before he started sucking.

#93 - CHARLOTTE’S WEB Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 74% Synopsis: Wilbur the pig is scared of the end of the season, because he knows that come that time, he will end up on the dinner table. He hatches a plan with Charlotte, a spider that lives in his pen, to ensure that this will never happen. John’s Thought: Loved this as a kid, still love it today and will leave it on whenever I stumble across it channel surfing. Much better than the Julia Roberts voiced one from a couple of years ago.

#92 - PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (1940) Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 88% Synopsis: From the classic novel by Jane Austen about the morals and mores of the class system in early Georgian England. The intelligent and spirited Elizabeth Bennet is one of 5 daughters — which, during that era, meant trouble: because women cannot inherit, upon her father’s death her family’s home will become the property of their nearest male relative. Only marriage, preferably to someone wealthy, can ensure her security. But the proud young lady instantly takes offense when Mr. Darcy, a promising newcomer in town, doesn’t seem quite admiring enough, and she spurns his advances. Slowly and painfully, Elizabeth realizes her error, but not before it seems she has lost him forever. John’s Thought: Easily the best adaptation of this book ever done. Not taking away from any of the other ones… but Olivier rules.

#91 - THE NOTEBOOK Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 51% Synopsis: The movie focuses on an old man reading a story to an old woman in a nursing home. The story he reads follows two young lovers named Allie Hamilton and Noah Calhoun, who meet one evening at a carnival. But they are separated by Allie’s parents who dissaprove of Noah’s unwealthy family, and move Allie away. After waiting for Noah to write her for several years, Allie meets and gets engaged to a handsome young soldier named Lon. Allie, then, with her love for Noah still alive, stops by Noah’s 200-year-old home that he restored for her, “to see if he’s okay”. It is evident that they still have feelings for each other, and Allie has to choose between her fiancé and her first love. John’s Thought: I avoided seeing this for a couple of years because it had “chick flick” written all over it. My loss… turned out it’s an exceptional film.

#90 - FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 82% Synopsis: A straight arrow coach leads his team to the 1988 Texas state semifinals in the west Texas city of Odessa, where high school football is king. Expectations of classmates, coaches, family, and community members exact a toll on the athletes central to the story. Economic and racial undertones pervade this adaptation of H.G. Bissinger’s book by the same name. John’s Thought: My first thought is that we’ve seen this movie 100 times already. Wrong. This is a special film, and a reminder that despite taking a lot of junk roles, Billy Bob Thornton can act his ass off sometimes.

#89 - BRIDGET JONES’ DIARY Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 80% Synopsis: Bridget Jones is an average woman struggling against her age, her weight, her job, her lack of a man, and her many imperfections. As a New Year’s Resolution, Bridget decides to take control of her life, starting by keeping a diary in which she will always tell the complete truth. The fireworks begin when her charming though disreputable boss takes an interest in the quirky Miss Jones. Thrown into the mix are Bridget’s band of slightly eccentric friends and a rather disagreeable acquaintance who Bridget cannot seem to stop running into or help finding quietly attractive. John’s Thought: I’ve yet to meet a woman who hasn’t seen this flick… and there’s a reason for that.

#88 - THE COLOR OF MONEY Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 91% Synopsis: Eddie “Fast Eddy” Felson, a former pool player forced into retirement by gangsters (as seen in “The Hustler”,) finds himself, self-respect, and finally, redemption when he enters a relationship with young pool player Tom Cruise very similar to his own early career. As they travel together, Fast Eddy realizes how much he had lost, and can see the inevitable finale of their relationship as history begins to repeat itself. In an effort to avert tragedy, Eddy severs their relationship, and returns to his first love, pool. Finally, in a big Atlantic City tournament, Cruise returns the favor, and teaches Eddy the final lesson that allows him to finish his quest of re-discovery. John’s Thought: Hey, remember back when Tom Cruise wasn’t a raving lunatic? Yeah, those were good days.

#87 - MINORITY REPORT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 92% Synopsis: Based on a Philip K. Dick short story, Minority Report is about a cop in the future working in a division of the police department that arrests killers before they commit the crimes courtesy of some future viewing technology. John Anderton has the tables turned on him when he is accused of a future crime and must find out what brought it about and stop it before it can happen. John’s Thought: Spielberg and Curise are an unlikely couple, but man it worked well for this flick.

#86 - APOLLO 13 Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 95% Synopsis: A movie based on what was to be the third lunar-landing mission. This film shows the trials and tribulations of the Apollo 13 crew, mission control, and families after a near-fatal accident cripples the space vehicle. A mission that couldn’t get TV airtime because space flights had become routine to the American public suddenly grabbed the national spotlight. This is a tale of averted tragedy, heroism and shows a testament to the creativity of the scientists who ran the early space missions. John’s Thought: A solid cast highlighting yet another brilliant performance by Tom Hanks.

#85 - CAPOTE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 91% Synopsis: In 1959, Truman Capote, a popular writer for The New Yorker, learns about the horrific and senseless murder of a family of four in Holcomb, Kansas. Inspired by the story material, Capote and his partner, Harper Lee, travel to the town to research for an article. However, as Capote digs deeper into the story, he is inspired to expand the project into what would be his greatest work, In Cold Blood. To that end, he arranges extensive interviews with the prisoners, especially with Perry Smith, a quiet and articulate man with a troubled history. As he works on his book, Capote feels some compassion for Perry which in part prompts him to help the prisoners to some degree. However, that feeling deeply conflicts with his need for closure for his book which only an execution can provide. That conflict and the mixed motives for both interviewer and subject make for a troubling experience that would produce an literary account that would redefine modern non-fiction. John’s Thought: Most avid film fans already knew Philip Seymour Hoffman was stupidly gifted… this film just sort of introduced him as an “A” lister to the rest of the world.

#84 - ACCIDENTAL TOURIST Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 84% Synopsis: After the death of his son, Macon Leary, a travel writer, seems to be sleep walking through life. Macon’s wife, seems to be having trouble too, and thinks it would be best if the two would just split up. After the break up, Macon meets a strange outgoing woman, who seems to bring him back down to earth. After starting a relationship with the outgoing woman, Macon’s wife seems to think that their marriage is still worth a try. Macon is then forced to deal many decisions. John’s Thought: Nominated for best picture and best screenplay. Geena Davis actually won best supporting actress for this one.

#83 - TRAINSPOTTING Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 88% Synopsis: A wild, freeform, Rabelaisian trip through the darkest recesses of Edinburgh low-life, focusing on Mark Renton and his attempt to give up his heroin habit, and how the latter affects his relationship with family and friends: Sean Connery wannabe Sick Boy, dimbulb Spud, psycho Begbie, 14-year-old girlfriend Diane, and clean-cut athlete Tommy, who’s never touched drugs but can’t help being curious about them. John’s Thought: I still think this is Danny Boyle’s best film

#82 - THE VERDICT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 96% Synopsis: Frank Galvin is a down-on-his luck lawyer, reduced to drinking and ambulance chasing. Former associate Mickey Morrissey reminds him of his obligations in a medical malpractice suit that he himself served to Galvin on a silver platter: all parties willing to settle out of court. Blundering his way through the preliminaries, he suddenly realizes that perhaps after all the case should go to court: to punish the guilty, to get a decent settlement for his clients, and to restore his standing as a lawyer. John’s Thought: One of the best courtroom dramas I’ve ever seen.

#81 - REMO WILLIAMS THE ADVENTURE BEGINS Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 55% Synopsis: An NYPD cop is ‘killed’ in an accident. The death is faked, and he is inducted into the organization CURE, dedicated to preserving the constitution by working outside of it. Remo is to become the enforcement wing (assassin) of CURE, and learns an ancient Korean martial art from Chiun, the Master of Sinanju. Based on the popular pulp series “The Destroyer,” by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy. John’s Thought: Chiun is still one of my all time favorite supporting characters in any movie I’ve ever seen. His lines are some of the most quotable and hilarious I’ve ever heard. Probably only second to Bruce Campbell’s as Ash.

#80 - DRUGSTORE COWBOY Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 100% Synopsis: Matt Dillon and Kelly Lynch play a heroin-driven Bonnie and Clyde, knocking over drugstores in the Pacific Northwest. Ultimately, they must dispose of the body of one of their crew, sneaking it out from a motel where a sheriffs’ convention is being held. John’s Thought: Remember back when Matt Dillon was relevant? I still don’t think he gets enough credit for how good he can be.

#79 - FULL METAL JACKET Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 96% Synopsis: Full Metal Jacket begins by following the trials and tribulations of a platoon of fresh Marine Corps recruits focusing on the relationship between Gunnery Sergeant Hartman and Privates Pyle and Joker. We see Pyle grow into an instrument of death as Hartman has forseen of all of his recruits. Through Pyle’s torment and Joker’s unwillingness to stand up against it the climax of part one is achieved with all three main characters deciding their fates by their action or inaction. The second chapter of Full Metal Jacket delves into Joker’s psyche and the repeated referal to the fact that he joined the Corps to become a killer. When his mostly behind the scenes job as a combat correspondant is interfered with by the Tet offensive he is thrust into real combat and ultimately must choose if he really is a killer. John’s Thought: Not many people agree with me, but I think this was easily Stanley Kubrick’s best movie.

#78 - 9 1/2 WEEKS Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 62% Synopsis: An erotic story about a woman, the assistant of an art gallery, who gets into an impersonal affaire with a man. She barely knows about his life, only about the sex games they play, so the relationship begins to complicate. John’s Thought: As hard as it is to believe now, there was a time when Mikey Rourke was once considered a very handsome man.

#77 - RAGTIME Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 90% Synopsis: The story runs in the 1910’s New York. Coalhouse Walker Jr. is a black piano player. He has won fame and fortune playing with a jazz band. Some white men do not like this situation, and one day they assault him and spoil his brand new car. Walker tries by all means to get justice, without an answer. John’s Thought: The strength of the film is in its characters that feel so authentic you can’t help but feel a part of this period piece that was a forerunner for the slew of social change movies that followed in.

#76 - BABE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 98% Synopsis: Babe is a little pig who doesn’t quite know his place in the world. With a bunch of odd friends, like Ferdinand the duck who thinks he is a rooster and Fly the dog he calls mom, Babe realizes that he has the makings to become the greatest sheep pig of all time, and Farmer Hogget Knows it. With the help of the sheep dogs Babe learns that a pig can be anything that he wants to be. John’s Thought: Whoopie, a movie about a talking pig. We’ve seen it before. I don’t care… this movie is frigging beautiful.

#75 - FORREST GUMP Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 72% Synopsis: Forrest, Forrest Gump is a simple man with little brain activity but good intentions. He struggles through childhood with his best and only friend Jenny. His ‘mama’ teaches him the ways of life and leaves him to choose his destiny. Forrest joins the army for service in Vietnam, finding new friends called Dan and Bubba, he wins medals, starts a table tennis craze, creates a famous shrimp fishing fleet, inspires people to jog, create the smiley, write bumper stickers and songs, donating to people and meeting the president several times. However this is all irrelevant to Forrest who can only think of his childhood sweetheart Jenny. Who has messed up her life. Although in the end all he wants to prove is that anyone can love anyone John’s Thought: A movie of a less than ordinary person who lives an extraordinary life. Great film, but no way in hell it should have beat out Shawshank Redemption for best picture that year.

#74 - DIGGSTOWN Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 50% Synopsis: Gabriel Caine has just been released from prison when he sets up a bet with a business man. The business man owns most of a boxing-mad town called Diggstown. The bet is that Gabe can find a boxer that will knock out 10 Diggstown men, in a boxing ring, within 24 hours. “Honey” Roy Palmer is that man - although at 48, many say he is too old. A sub plot is thrown in about Charles Macum Diggs - the heavyweight champion that gave the town its name - and who is now confined to a wheel-chair. John’s Thought: One of the best “I never saw that coming” endings to a movie of all time.

#73 - FIELD OF DREAMS Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 91% Synopsis: Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella hears a voice in his corn field tell him, “If you build it, he will come.” He interprets this message as an instruction to build a baseball field on his farm, upon which appear the ghosts of Shoeless Joe Jackson and the other seven Chicago White Sox players banned from the game for throwing the 1919 World Series. When the voices continue, Ray seeks out a reclusive author to help him understand the meaning of the messages and the purpose for his field. John’s Thought: Listening to James Earl Jones talk about baseball in this film reminds me of why sports are so magical better than any other sports themed monologue in a movie I’ve ever heard.

#72 - PSYCHO Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 97% Synopsis: Phoenix officeworker Marion Crane is fed up with the way life has treated her. She has to meet her lover Sam in lunch breaks and they cannot get married because Sam has to give most of his money away in alimony. One Friday Marion is trusted to bank $40,000 by her employer. Seeing the opportunity to take the money and start a new life, Marion leaves town and heads towards Sam’s California store. Tired after the long drive and caught in a storm, she gets off the main highway and pulls into The Bates Motel. The motel is managed by a quiet young man called Norman who seems to be dominated by his mother. John’s Thought: I’ve never felt totally comfortable taking showers in hotels ever since.

#71 - THE FIRM Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 76% Synopsis: Mitch McDeere is a young man with a promising future in Law. About to sit his Bar exam, he is approached by ‘The Firm’ and made an offer he doesn’t refuse. Seduced by the money and gifts showered on him, he is totally oblivious to the more sinister side of his company. Then, two Associates are murdered. The FBI contact him, asking him for information and suddenly his life is ruined. He has a choice - work with the FBI, or stay with the Firm. Either way he will lose his life as he knows it. Mitch figures the only way out is to follow his own plan. John’s Thought: Wow, there’s a lot of Tom Cruise on this list

#70 - CASINO Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 83% Synopsis: Sam ‘Ace’ Rothstein, a mob-connected casino operator in Las Vegas, attempts a civilized lifestyle with his money-conditional wife, Ginger. Nicky Santoro, a boyhood friend of Ace and now a Made-Man of the Mafia, arrives in town with an ambitious agenda of his own that soon disrupts Ace’s life. Before long, Ginger and her long-time leeching lover Lester, along with Nicky’s mistakes, causing problems. John’s Thought: Sexy, violent and just plain cool

#69 - BLADE RUNNER Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 91% Synopsis: Los Angeles, 2019: Rick Deckard of the LAPD’s Blade Runner unit prowls the steel & micro-chip jungle of the 21st century for assumed humanoids known as ‘replicants’. Replicants were declared illegal after a bloody mutiny on an Off-World Colony, and are to be terminated upon detection. Man’s obsession with creating a being equal to himself has back-fired. John’s Thought: I don’t like this nearly as much as most people, but there is no denying its place in Sci-Fi history

#68 - THE ENGLISH PATIENT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 84% Synopsis: A burn victim, a nurse, a thief, and a sapper find themselves in each others company in an old Italian villa close to the end of World War II. Through flashbacks, we see the life of the burn victim, whose passionate love of a woman and choices he made for her ultimately change the lives of one other person in the villa. Not only is this film a search for the identity of the English patient, but a search for the identities of all the people in the quiet old villa. John’s Thought: A lot of people found this dry and slow, but I thought it hit every note perfectly.

#67 - A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 78% Synopsis: A true story about two boys, Norman and Paul, growing up in Montana. One is rebellious of his father, Rev. Maclean, while the other has his feet on the ground. The one love they both have is fly fishing. John’s Thought: Who knew a movie about a love of Fly Fishing would be so good. To me, my favorite performance by Tom Skerritt of his career.

#66 - ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 93% Synopsis: Epic, episodic, tale of the lives of a small group of New York City Jewish gangsters spanning over 40 years. Told mostly in flashbacks and flash-forwards, the movie centers on small-time hood David ‘Noodles’ Aaronson and his lifelong partners in crime; Max, Cockeye and Patsy and their friends from growing up in the rough Jewish neighborhood of New York’s Lower East Side in the 1920s, to the last years of Prohibition in the early 1930s, and then to the late 1960s where an elderly Noodles returns to New York after many years in hiding to look into the past. John’s Thought: If I ask you to name a gangster movie with Robert DiNero, would this one even be in the first 3 you’d name?

#65 - THE FLY Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 91% Synopsis: Seth Brundle is a scientist working on teleportation. Just when he thinks he’s ironed out the last bug in his system, the intervention of a common house fly turns Seth into a 6 foot insect. The transformation from man to fly is gradual but horrific, and is witnessed by Veronica; a reporter documenting Seth’s story. Seth has some time to try to find a cure, but is there enough time…? John’s Thought: Just watched this movie again recently. So honestly freaky and yet really funny at some points too.

#64 - MUNICH Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 77% Synopsis: During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, eleven Israeli athletes are taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September. In retaliation, the Israeli government recruits a group of Mossad agents to track down and execute those responsible for the attack. John’s Thought: If there was ever any question that Eric Bana possessed the tools to be a top notch A List movie start, this project settled those questions in my opinion.

#63 - THE NATURAL Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 83% Synopsis: An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league in this magical sports fantasy. With the aid of a bat cut from a lightning struck tree, Hobbs lives the fame he should have had earlier when, as a rising pitcher, he is inexplicably shot by a young woman. John’s Thought: The scene near the end of the home run set to that incredible music with the sparks flying still gives me goose bumps.

#62 - TERMS OF ENDEARMENT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 89% Synopsis: Aurora and Emma are mother and daughter who march to different drummers. Beginning with Emma’s marriage, Aurora shows how difficult and loving she can be. The movie covers several years of their lives as each finds different reasons to go on living and find joy. Aurora’s interludes with Garrett Breedlove, retired astronaut and next door neighbor are quite striking. In the end, different people show their love in very different ways. John’s Thought: A fantastic balance between funny and sad.

#61 - Dr. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 100% Synopsis: U.S. Air Force General Jack Ripper goes completely and utterly mad, and sends his bomber wing to destroy the U.S.S.R. He suspects that the communists are conspiring to pollute the “precious bodily fluids” of the American people. The U.S. president meets with his advisors, where the Soviet ambassador tells him that if the U.S.S.R. is hit by nuclear weapons, it will trigger a “Doomsday Machine” which will destroy all plant and animal life on Earth. Peter Sellers portrays the three men who might avert this tragedy: British Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, the only person with access to the demented Gen. Ripper; U.S. President Merkin Muffley, whose best attempts to divert disaster depend on placating a drunken Soviet Premier and the former Nazi genius Dr. Strangelove, who concludes that “such a device would not be a practical deterrent for reasons which at this moment must be all too obvious”. Will the bombers be stopped in time, or will General Jack Ripper succeed in destroying the world ? John’s Thought: Hailed as one of the funniest films ever made… and yet the book didn’t really have any comedy elements in it at all.

#60 - THE GREEN MILE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 78% Synopsis: Paul Edgecomb is a slightly cynical veteran prison guard on Death row in the 1930’s. His faith, and sanity, deteriorated by watching men live and die, Edgecomb is about to have a complete turn around in attitude. Enter John Coffey, He’s eight feet tall. He has hands the size of waffle irons. He’s been accused of the murder of two children… and he’s afraid to sleep in a cell without a night-light. And Edgecomb, as well as the other prison guards - Brutus, a sympathetic guard, and Percy, a stuck up, perverse, and violent person, are in for a strange experience that involves intelligent mice, brutal executions, and the revelation about Coffey’s innocence and his true identity. John’s Thought: My second favorite Darabont movie behind another film on this list higher up and a performance of a lifetime for Michael Clarke Duncan that he’ll probably never equal.

#59 - GIRL INTERRUPTED Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 52% Synopsis: Susanna is depressed and directionless after finishing high school in the late 1960’s. A suicide attempt lands her in Claymore, a mental institution. She befriends the band of troubled women in her ward (Georgina the pathological liar, the sexually abused Daisy, the burn victim Polly) but falls under the hypnotic sway of Lisa, the wildest and most hardened of the bunch. Will Susanna “drop anchor” at Claymore and perpetually act out like Lisa, or will she finally pull her mind together and leave institutional life behind? John’s Thought: I still don’t rationally know why I like this movie so much… but I do.

#58 - QUIZ SHOW Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 96 Synopsis: An idealistic young lawyer (Rob Morrow) working for a Congressional subcommittee in the late 1950s discovers that TV quiz shows are being fixed. His investigation focusses on two contestants on the show “Twenty-One”: Herbert Stempel (John Turturro), a brash working-class Jew from Queens, and Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes), the patrician scion of one of America’s leading literary families. Based on a true story. John’s Thought: Ralph Fiennes and John Turturro just rock the hell out of this movie. Far more intense and exciting than you’d think a movie about a game show would be.

#57 - ROMANCING THE STONE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 85% Synopsis: The writer of romantic novels Joan Wilder travels to south America to look for and rescue her kidnapped sister. She finds herself stranded in the jungles and finds help in the form of the soldier of fortune Jack Colton. The two go through a number of adventures, deal with the bad villains Ralph and company, and end up falling in love. John’s Thought: One of those great films that was just fine as it was they never should have made a sequel to.

#56 - THE COLOR PURPLE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 84% Synopsis: This film follows the life of Celie, a young black girl growing up in the early 1900’s. The first time we see Celie, she is 14 - and pregnant - by her father. We stay with her for the next 30 years of her tough life. John’s Thought: One more reason why Steven Spielberg is simply the best director in the business in our lifetime.

#55 - THE DEAD ZONE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 89% Synopsis: Johnny Smith is a young schoolteacher with his whole life ahead of him. Unfortunately, after leaving his fiancee’s home one night, he is involved in a wreck with an 18-wheel tractor-trailer and is in a coma for 5 years. When he wakes up from it, he discovers he has an ability to see into other people’s lives, past, present and future, by coming into physical contact. But the visions he has are often frightening, and even apocalyptic. John’s Thought: This is the first movie I ever saw Christopher Walken in (hey, I was 11 years old) and to this day I still get a little freaked out when I see him on screen.

#54 - FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 81% Synopsis: Follows a group of high school students growing up in southern California, based on the real-life adventures chronicled by Cameron Crowe. Stacy Hamilton and Mark Ratner are looking for a love interest, and are helped along by their older classmates, Linda Barrett and Mike Damone, respectively. The center of the film is held by Jeff Spicoli, a perpetually stoned surfer dude who faces off with the resolute Mr. Hand, who is convinced that everyone is on dope. John’s Thought: One of those movies I love now for totally different reasons then why I loved it as a kid. Back then it was just because of boobs and sex… today it’s because… oh wait… same reasons.

#53 - THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 75% Synopsis: Based on the 2nd in the series of books by ‘CS Lewis’ , “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” the film tells the story of 4 children who go to live with an old professor during the war. One day, while playing hide and seek, Lucy, the youngest of the children, finds a wardrobe which leads to a magical land called Narnia. However Narnia is being ruled by the evil White Witch who has made it snow for 100 years and according to an old prophecy, Edmund, Lucy, Peter and Susan are the “chosen ones” who will defeat the Witch. They are assisted by the true ruler of Narnia, the lion, Aslan. With the good Narnians on their side all 4 children must now defeat the witch using all their strength and fulfill their destinies to become the new kings and queens of Narnia. John’s Thought: Loved this movie! Perfectly captured the sense of magic and wonder like a master storyteller around a campfire. Too bad the sequel was such a let down.

#52 - OUT OF SIGHT Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 92% Synopsis: A career bank robber busts out of jail (Clooney) with the help of his buddy (Rhames) and kidnaps a US Marshal (Lopez) in the process. When the two cons head for Detroit to pull off their final big scam, the Marshal is put on their case but she finds she is attracted to one of them and has second thoughts about bringing them in. John’s Thought: Maybe it’s just because of the great cast and fantastic story surounding her… but J-Lo actually didn’t completely suck in this movie. Guess you gotta get lucky at least once right?

#51 - FIRST BLOOD Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 85% Synopsis: Ex-Green Beret John Rambo wanders up north in search of a friend. Rambo was awarded with the medal of honor for his service in Vietnam but has not found solace in the States thereafter. And he certainly does escape prejudice when a small town’s tough, idealistic sheriff spots him entering. The sheriff believes Rambo would be something of a light disturbance to the town and tries to keep him out. When Rambo rebels and then escapes into the cold misty forests, the force embarks on a massive manhunt to subdue him flanked by his former superior officer Colonel Trautman who knows the odds and ends of Rambo’s cunning. John’s Thought: This film was more than just the brainless blow-em-up action movie that the rest of the franchise became. It was actually a character film, and a damn good one at that.

#50 - IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 95% Synopsis: Based on the true story of Gerry Conlon, a Belfast youth who - along with family members and friends - was wrongly convicted of bombing two pubs outside of London. A story about the relationship between a father and his son who fought for justice to clear his father’s name. John’s Thought: This movie was basically a memo to mankind letting us know Lewis is one of the greatest actors alive.

#49 - MYSTIC RIVER Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 87% Synopsis: During a summer in 1975, Dave Boyle and two friends, Jimmy and Sean, are playing on a sidewalk in Boston when Dave is abducted by two men and subjected to sexual abuse over a period of several days. Eventually escaping, but haunted into adulthood by his trauma, Dave becomes a primary suspect when Jimmy’s daughter, Katie, is found murdered. Sean, assigned to investigate the crime, finds himself facing both demons from the past and demons in the present as the circumstances surrounding Katie’s death are uncovered. John’s Thought: This movie flat out haunted me for a while after I watched it. Tragic and poetic ending. Intense personal, moral and violent conflict. I basically laugh at people who dis on Eastwood as a director.

#48 - SOPHIE’S CHOICE Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 84% Synopsis: Sophie is the survivor of Nazi concentration camps, who has found a reason to live in Nathan, a sparkling if unsteady American Jew obsessed with the Holocaust. They befriend Stingo, the movie’s narrator, a young American writer new to New York City. But the happiness of Sophie and Nathan is endangered by her ghosts and his obsessions. John’s Thought: First movie I ever saw Meryl Streep in. I still think she’s never been better (and that’s not a bad thing)

#47 - LORD OF THE FLIES (1963) Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 100% Synopsis: A group of boys are marooned on an island after their plane crashes. With no adult survivors, they create their own “micro-society”. Ralph is elected “chief”, and he organises shelter and fire. Jack, the head of the choir takes his boys hunting for food (wild pigs). A bitter rivalry develops between Jack and Ralph as both want to be in charge. The “hunters” become savage and primal, under Jack’s rule, while Ralph tries to keep his group civilised. The growing hostility between them leads to a bloody and frighting climax. John’s Thought: When watching the film “Doomsday” earlier this year I was struck by how much of a rip off it was (in basic theme) of this film. Except this film did it… you know… in a not sucky way.

#46 - KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 88% Synopsis: Luis Molina and Valentin Arregui are cell mates in a South American prison. Luis, a homosexual, is found guilty of immoral behaviour and Valentin is a political prisoner. To escape reality Luis invents romantic movies, while Valentin tries to keep his mind on the situation he’s in. During the time they spend together, the two men come to understand and respect one another. John’s Thought: Have I ever mentioned that William Hurt just absolutely rules?

#45 - WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 90% Synopsis: The world is astounded when Willy Wonka, for years a recluse in his factory, announces that five lucky people will be given a tour of the factory, shown all the secrets of his amazing candy, and one will win a lifetime supply of Wonka chocolate. Nobody wants the prize more than young Charlie, but as his family is so poor that buying even one bar of chocolate is a treat, buying enough bars to find one of the five golden tickets is unlikely in the extreme. But in movieland, magic can happen. Charlie, along with four somewhat odious other children, get the chance of a lifetime and a tour of the factory. Along the way, mild disasters befall each of the odious children, but can Charlie beat the odds and grab the brass ring? John’s Thought: Unlike most people, I almost liked the Tim Burton version of this story as much as the original. ALMOST.

#44 - KISS KISS, BANG BANG Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 83% Synopsis: A noir send-up. A narrator introduces himself at a Hollywood party: he’s Harry Lockhart, a thief from New York, in L.A. for a screen test. He meets Gay Perry, a glitzy private eye who’s to school him for his role; there’s Harmony Lane, a wannabe actress whose time has passed; the host is an aging actor who starred in detective movies, plus his daughter, with starlet looks and a choppy past. The next day, Gay and Harry stake out a house where Gay is to take surreptitious photographs for a client - what they find is a corpse. From there, twists and connections abound and bodies pile up. Who’s double-crossing whom? And, has Harry found Harmony too late to save himself from misery? John’s Thought: This movie ranks right up there with Bubba Ho-Tep where the fact that it never got a wide release should be considered a crime against humanity. Robert Downey Jr. and Val Kilmer were both just amazing in this flick

#43 - OF MICE AND MEN Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 100% Synopsis: Based on John Steinbeck’s 1937 classic tale of two travelling companions, George and Lennie, who wander the country during the Depression, dreaming of a better life for themselves. Then, just as heaven is within their grasp, it is inevitably yanked away. The film follows Steinbeck’s novel closely, exploring questions of strength, weakness, usefulness, reality and utopia, bringing Steinbeck’s California vividly to life. John’s Thought: So beautifully and tragically crafted. I’m always saddened by how many people have never watched this movie.

#42 - HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIREr Rotten Tomatoes Rating - 90% Synopsis: Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts for his fourth year, where the Trizwizard tournament is becoming ready to ]]> Fri, 21 Nov 2008 09:11:37 +0000 based film world film doomsday world war film history rottem tomatoes tomatoes synopsis Top 100 Movies Based On Books http://cinemaratty.com/article/131ed8fab5a98ddd10de8811e45174d8 http://cinemaratty.com/article/131ed8fab5a98ddd10de8811e45174d8 The Dark Knight - It's rare that a film lives up to all the hype, but in the hands of director Christopher Nolan and a brilliant cast, this one does. One year after the events of Batman Begins, Batman (Christian Bale), honest cop Lt. James Gordon (Gary Oldman), and District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) are putting the squeeze on Gotham City's crime bosses. Just when it appears that they may be winning the war on organized crime, a sociopathic agent of chaos called the Joker (Heath Ledger) begins to terrorize the city with his own twisted propaganda of the deed. Director Christopher Nolan (Memento, Batman Begins, The Prestige) proved with the previous film that he could craft intense action scenes and intense performances without skipping a beat. In his second journey into the shadows of Gotham City, Nolan turns the intensity dial up to 11 to deliver what may be the best superhero film ever made. It's certainly the darkest one, and despite the PG-13 rating in the US, one of the most violent. It's not a perfect film, but it comes close. Screenwriters Nolan, his brother Jonathan Nolan (Memento, The Prestige), and David S. Goyer (Blade, Batman Begins) take the conflict between a dark hero and an even darker villain to almost Shakespearean heights. By not providing a definitive origin for the Joker or explaining his madness, they create a character who remains a frightening enigma. This is the Joker the way he should be, the twisted opposite of an emotionally scarred hero. Cinematographer Wally Pfister (Memento, Batman Begins, The Prestige), production designer Nathan Crowley (Batman Begins, The Prestige), and costume designer Lindy Hemming (Batman Begins, Casino Royale) render an environment that seems part of our real world while also suggesting the twisted emotional terrain that gave birth to both Batman and the Joker. Reflecting the main character's war on crime, Gotham City looks cleaner and more prosperous than in the previous film. The musical score by James Newton Howard (Batman Begins, King Kong) and Hans Zimmer (Batman Begins, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest) is a dark, swirling mass of sound that captures the contradictions of Gotham City and its Dark Knight. Bale once again brings substance to his portrayal of socialite Bruce Wayne and his obsessed vigilante alter ego, remaining the definitive Batman of film or television. What can one really say about the late Ledger's performance as the Joker except that it's brilliant. His Joker creates an indelible impression upon the screen. This isn't Cesar Romero or Jack Nicholson. This is a raw, messy, stark raving mad tour de force of a performance, to the point where Ledger ceases to exist and only the Joker remains. Eckhart gives a strong performance as the idealistic Harvey Dent, Gotham City's Light Knight to Batman's Dark Knight and Bruce Wayne's romantic rival, and his performance only gets better after he's victimized by the Joker's campaign of terror. The rest of the cast is strong across the board, including Michael Caine as Bruce Wayne's butler Alfred, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Assistant District Attorney Rachel Dawes (played by Katie Holmes in Batman Begins), Oldman as Lt. Gordon, Morgan Freeman as Wayne Enterprises CEO Lucius Fox, Monique Gabriela Curnen as Detective Anna Ramirez, Chin Han as crime gang accountant Lau, Nestor Carbonell as Gotham City's Mayor, Eric Roberts as crime boss Sal Maroni, Anthony Michael Hall as reporter Mike Engel, Keith Szarabajka as Detective Gerard Stephens, Colin McFarlane as Police Commissioner Loeb, Melinda McGraw and Nathan Gamble as Gordon's wife and son, Doug Ballard as a businessman and Tiny Lister as a prison inmate who have key roles in stopping one of the Joker's plans, and Cillian Murphy briefly reprising his role as the Scarecrow. The Dark Knight is a masterpiece in a genre where action and visuals are too often stronger than writing or acting. Everything about this film is high quality, and it serves as an enduring testament to the talent of the late Heath Ledger. Highly recommended. [5 out of 5 stars]]]> Tue, 14 Oct 2008 11:45:00 +0000 batman begins batman dark dark knight begins gotham city city film previous film Review: The Dark Knight http://cinemaratty.com/article/10b80ebd5c0dde74a98f3361faf59137 http://cinemaratty.com/article/10b80ebd5c0dde74a98f3361faf59137 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCaghjocJwU The performance of her career, declares the Guardian, of Scott Thomas’ work in I’ve Loved You For So Long.  Jeff Wells at HE has been banging this gong for a while now and has predicted Scott Thomas will likely win for this.  Peter Bradford of the Guardian writes: The presence of Kristin Scott Thomas in this literate French movie by Philippe Claudel is so powerfully distinctive that it’s as if Claudel has not merely written the lead role for her, but extrapolated his film’s entire narrative structure from Scott Thomas’s personality. Her formidable bilingual presence, her beauty - elegant and drawn in early middle age - her air of hypersensitive awareness of all the tiny absurdities and indignities with which she is surrounded, coupled with a drolly lenient reticence: it all creates an intelligent, observant drama about dislocation, fragility and the inner pain of unshakeable memories. Scott Thomas is on screen for almost every minute of the film, often in close-up and her face is at once eloquent and deeply withdrawn. And he closes his review this way: My only quarrel with this drama is that the final revelation, when it comes, is a little strained. It turns on the discovery of a photo and certain details on the back of a handwritten poem, but these details, as well as not being spelled out, do not appear to offer us much more knowledge than we, by this stage, have already gleaned. Scott Thomas’s performance, easily the best of her career, countermands any such qualms: the centre of a deeply involving, beautifully acted and expertly constructed human drama by and for grown-ups. Scott Thomas, funnily enough, acted in another French movie this year, the glorious and odd Cesar winner, Tell No One where she played a lesbian.  Talk about your overdue Oscar contender.  If this, indeed, the best performance of her career she very well could be the winner. ]]> Tue, 30 Sep 2008 13:13:40 +0000 scott thomas kristin scott thomas scott thomass performance human drama drama performance winner presence french movie Speaking of Kristen Scott Thomas http://cinemaratty.com/article/dd7465e2b43dbb0f4b6364e2498eb0cf http://cinemaratty.com/article/dd7465e2b43dbb0f4b6364e2498eb0cf By Mateo Latosa Library Music John's original intent was to score THB with library music, as he didn't have a composer. Once Cesar and I came on board, he dropped that idea and used our music exclusively (except for the occasional trailer). By the time THB 2.0 rolled around, John not only had all my new cues to use, but had our entire set of cues from season one to use as library music. That is one reason why our credit remained the same in season two. Cesar's contributions to season one were ever-present in season two. In fact some cues recorded for season one went unused there, until finally being placed in season two. Also, we'd made a decision early on to credit all our THB compositions as Gallegos/Latosa. This decision continued into season two, with all THB cues copyrighted to both of us. Into the Black As THB 2.0 aired, it became increasingly difficult to schedule studio time that worked for all three of us. John became worried that I wouldn't have time to compose and record the music for the final scene--the consumption of the house (by dark matter) until all that's left is a single room with the remaining characters crowded in the doorway looking out into the black. He was right to worry. That last recording session never took place. But, unbelievably, I had recorded an extra piece that I called, "Into Darkness and Awareness," that I had sent to John weeks before. He had downloaded it, unzipped it, filed it and forgotten about it--UNHEARD! When I told him that the final session wasn't going to happen, he was bummed out to say the least. Then I mentioned that, for the Into the Black sequence, I had planned to do a longer version of "Into Darkness and Awareness". He didn't remember that piece and asked its exact length. It took a few minutes, but he found it and heard it for the first time...and amazingly the piece fit perfectly. And with that bit of luck, my work for THB 2.0 was finished. From The House Between to Under the Eagle and Back Again! During the scoring of THB 2.0, I was asked to score some transitions between scene changes for the London engagement of the "Under the Eagle," the new work from playwright, Andrew Cartmel. I chose to expand upon a short theme I'd written for THB 2.0 called "Evil Bill". It was a cue that was just begging for development. I recorded three new versions: one with synth and piano, one with just synth, and one with just acoustic guitar. I sent these to London, but due to their late arrival they went unused. So I sent them to John for use in THB 2.0. Full circle! FINAL NOTE: The Long-Distance Crew Members Cesar and I are often asked what it was like to be on the crew of The House Between. The question usually implies that we know the actors and other crewmembers. Sadly, we really don't. We have never been on the set--or in North Carolina for that matter! Someday we hope to meet everyone who was involved in this unique, dare I say brazen, production. It's been an honor and a lot of fun. See you in THB 3.0! ]]> Wed, 24 Sep 2008 05:51:00 +0000 score thb thb music thb compositions thb cues time thb music exclusively library music season Music from the Studio at the End of the Universe, Part Two http://cinemaratty.com/article/077724a215c230f066fd7532eaefb7f2 http://cinemaratty.com/article/077724a215c230f066fd7532eaefb7f2 Unlike Todd Brown, my editor at Twitch, I just can't crank out two or three reviews a day during a festival. Not out-of-town on a laptop. Not countering humidity and cat allergies. Not while I'm prepping for interviews and schmoozing with old and new friends. Not in the journalistic maelstrom known as the Sutton Place press lounge. Not when I'm tempted at every hour by yet another film. As it stands, I caught 33 films out of the TIFF08 lineup and interviewed 10 directors; my most productive film festival yet! But at Twitch, like at The Greencine Daily, everyone's wrapping up their Toronto coverage just as I'm kicking into gear. I'm far from finished writing about the films I've seen; but, to satisfy Todd's request, here are my top ten favorite films and my five least favorite, both in descending order. Top Ten Sugar—Most folks caught this film at Sundance and it's a testament to the film's merits that it was included in the TIFF World Cinema lineup. It was—hands down—my favorite film for being so full of heart. Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden are compassionate filmmakers who capture the dignity of marginalized communities. Their work is genuine. JCVD—I've dismissed Jean-Claude Van Damme's career without having seen a single one of his movies, which is perhaps why I was so surprised and thoroughly entertained by this accomplished self-reverie. It reveals a depth and vulnerability between the macho veneer that I would never have suspected. One can only hope that Van Damme is allowed the chance to flex an ability to act heretofore ignored. JCVD's upset of expectations and mediated fantasies was masterful. L'Heure d'été (Summer Hours)—Eschewing his recent pretenses at genre films, Olivier Assayas has returned to French roots to offer a nuanced family portrait and a philosophic rumination on the contrasting role of art in personal and public spheres. As a collector of art myself and the executor of two estates, I was quite moved by concerns I've rarely seen articulated in film. Un Barrage Contre le Pacifique (The Sea Wall)—By merely lifting an eyebrow Isabelle Huppert can make you feel 75 different conflicting emotions. Rithy Panh's political consciousness is in direct service to Marguerite Duras' anti-colonial narrative of a courageous woman resisting the inevitable waves of unjust colonization. By complicating the dynamic of inequitable power hierarchies, Panh reaffirms the value of unexpected cross-class solidarities and communal perseverance. Waltz With Bashir—Dazzling animation serves to help distance the viewer from horrific events. The shadow of the Holocaust slants across repressed memories and haunts survivors by way of unrelenting guilt. If history—by necessity—must be engaging to demand attention, cinema affords the opportunity to remember our human failings so that we need not—hopefully—repeat them. Tokyo Sonata—Stretching his grasp of alterities to include laugh outloud humor and a whimsical score, Kiyoshi Kurosawa successfully reveals the hope beneath apocalyptic collapse. He has broadened his range with this family melodrama and emphasized the fragility of everyday constructions. Nothing is more horrifying. Les Plages d'Agnès (The Beaches of Agnès)—A biographical documentary as remarkable as this one underscores how remarkable a personality is Agnès Varda. Imaginative, fearless, creative, she opens herself up to reveal sandy terrains of memory. Playfully walking backwards in time while glancing askew in wind-tossed mirrors, she reminds of the reverse footage of Jean Cocteau who rendered memory and dream as a means of in-camera editing. Memory is, afterall, the best of special effects. Revanche—This film starts as a slow burn, shifts from the urban to the rural, and becomes a psychological thriller of revenge held in abeyance. Negotiating by way of secrets, rage and grief are barely tempered. Violence smolders like sexuality beneath the skin and retribution is only one cruelty away. 35 Rhums (35 Shots of Rum)—Another exercise in abeyance and enthrallment, Claire Denis presents a straightforward and simple treatment of Ozu's Late Spring. Shades more accessible than L'Intrus, this is not her best work but it's compelling nonetheless, punctuated here and there by poetic rapture. Che—Again, another example of cinema in service to the history lesson, essential in today's amnesiatic classroom. The first film is inspiring; the second defeating. They remind of the human qualities that make all ideologies fallible, especially revolutionary ones, which are so contingent upon the human and limited ideals they orbit. Bottom Five Flame & Citron—The heroism of the Danish Resistance is grafted onto these two individuals but on such a one-note basis that it's hard to feel much not being from Denmark. The film feels imitative, as if it is trying to accomplish what has already been accomplished by the cinematic treatments of Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid and Bonnie & Clyde. Two-Legged Horse—Though there were some truly poetic moments in this film, the filmmakers forgot the most important element of poetry: economy. By turning children into metaphors of political processes, they forfeited all feeling. The repeated cruelty becomes intolerable and is never resolved. By film's end I despised both children for their half-witted co-dependency. Under the Tree—As a board member of the Global Film Initiative, who has helped produce and distribute Garin Nugroho's last two films—Love and Eggs and Opera Jawa—I was hoping for a notable return on our investment. Instead, I find a lateral move rendered in a shockingly dull palette and a convoluted, braided narrative. The press book was much more colorful and intelligible than the film. Martyrs—After all the hoopla that's been made about this film on Twitch, I am reminded yet again that a little genre goes a long ways. What a boring, pretentious piece of crap. I want my two hours back. Once again, a filmmaker thinks he is pushing the envelope by amping up the blood tactics. Truth is, all of this has been done before in paintings depicting Christian martyrs flayed alive. Nothing new here. Move along. Adam Resurrected—There's no question that surviving the Holocaust—however one must—is a commendable feat. However, directing Jeff Goldblum to channel Cesar Romero's Joker hardly intrigues and barely suffices. Schrader should bury this film in the back yard with the other dog bones. I have enough barking dogs on Bernal Heights, thank you. Cross-published on Twitch.]]> Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:00:00 +0000 film starts film productive film festival global film initiative film feels imitative films love films twitch genre films TIFF08My Twitch Roundup http://cinemaratty.com/article/54f01ac44eff6faf9164f28ca438ce7b http://cinemaratty.com/article/54f01ac44eff6faf9164f28ca438ce7b By Mateo Latosa Scoring the The House Between 2.0 was a very different experience to scoring season one. In great part that was because I was working without Cesar Gallegos, co-composer and friend from THB 1.0. I really missed the musical give and take that created a situation of alchemy during our recording sessions. Many pieces from 2.0 were recorded in multiple versions, new permutations, at different recording sessions because ideas occurred to me only I got home and listened to them. On 1.0, Cesar and I would generally work out the kinks of a piece before we recorded it. I don’t have his insight for music (I have mine, but not his) so I fe