September 21, 2013
Greg's Top Ten Movies I Never Tire of Watching
If I had a top ten list of movies I would always watch regardless of the amount of times I've seen it or what I'm doing at the moment it comes on TV, these would be they....
1. Die Hard - The single greatest American action movie of all time. It's the benchmark for which all other action movies are graded against. I can quote it almost scene for scene and would watch it any time, anywhere.
2. Heat - Three hours long and I couldn't care less. In fact, if it were six hours, I'd watch it. It's my all-time favorite movie in the suspense/thriller genre, it's star-studded, it's intense and it's incredibly well-acted. DeNiro and Pacino at the peak of their game and Val Kilmer in one of his last truly great screen performances before his career went down the tubes. Honestly, if you haven't seen it, get off your ass. You're gonna want to see it.
3. The Breakfast Club - I still remember the first time I saw it, many years after its initial release. What stands out for me the most is how I got goosebumps on my arms at the end of the film when Bender walks off the football field and raises his fist to the sky. I've seen probably over a hundred high school movies and I have yet to find one that impacts me quite like John Hughes' 80's classic.
4. Aliens - The first movie in the Alien series is a solid movie, but often bores me about a third of the way through. Aliens, on the other hand, grips me from front to finish with each viewing. It's a great example of a movie where the sequel might very well have surpassed the original.
5. The Hunt For Red October - This one should probably be higher given how often I pop it into my DVD player. Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin, Scott Glenn and Sam Neill were so damn good in this. I really can't believe it took me 10 years to view it for the first time. Once I did, I was hooked and can't stop watching it. While Das Boot might have set the bar for submarine movies, I think Red October is far more watchable on a repeated basis.
6. Sneakers - I'm always surprised, and pleased, to learn how many people have watched this one. It's such a damn good and ridiculously fun caper movie with a freaking awesome cast to boot! Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier, Dan Aykroyd, Ben Kingsley, River Phoenix and so many more. It's pure fun and was filmed locally here in the SF Bay Area, which adds another level of interest for me since it's my backyard.
7. & 8. Beverly Hills Cop 1 & 2 - I've seen each at least 100 times. Heck, I've probably seen them both about 200 times! :p It's such a shame Eddie Murphy's career took a massive dump after the 80s ended because when he was at his best, he was untouchable. Nobody, and I mean nobody, was as funny, charming, entertaining and interesting.
9. Predator - I could easily throw about five or six Schwarzenegger films into this thread (e.g. Total Recall, The Running Man, True Lies, The Terminator, T2, etc...) but there's no movie Arnold starred in that I love more than the jungle horror of Predator. And who doesn't love Jesse "The Body" Ventura stealing every scene he's in? My only complaint is that they (SPOILER ALERT) killed him off so quickly in the movie. Other than that, it's a flawless masterpiece from John McTiernan, the same director that brought us Die Hard and The Hunt For Red October.
10. Real Genius - Here's one 80s movie that I am baffled isn't more popular and more well known. However, for those of us that have seen it, it's absolutely beloved and cherished. Never was Val Kilmer more hilarious and more memorable, IMO. I know, Top Secret was extremely funny and so was Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, but I find his portrayal of genius college slacker, Chris Knight, to be his greatest character performance. It's filled with so many great lines and unforgettable sequences (house filled with popcorn, anyone?) that it's really shocking how few people out there have actually seen it. Rent it now and thank me later!
