Krysanthemum's Top 10 Favourite Movies!
1.I'll start with the best. I know few people agree with me about this, but I think Contact is the greatest movie ever made!! How can you go wrong? Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, and loads of other wonderful people, then you have this great storyline, which actually is INTERESTING, which is a wonder for this day and age of special effects movies, and *horror of horrors* a happy ending!!! How can you not like this movie? OK, so nobody dies horribly, except David Drumlin, and you don't actually see him die, but do we REALLY need violence in a movie to make it good? If you answered "YES" to that question, go away.PLUS there's a fantastic book! If you liked the movie, and you haven't read the book by Carl Sagan, DO! It's very different (FIVE people ride the machine, plus Ellie has very little to do with Palmer Joss at all, she's actually with this Russian guy), but it's VERY GOOD. Anyway, all in all, it's a fantastic movie, and if you haven't seen it, you're either lazy, insane, or all of the above. And if you HAVE seen it and didn't like it, drop dead. That's all I have to say on the matter!!
Except for this ANNOUNCEMENT: Jodie Foster had her baby! A little boy, by the name of Charles. The father is still unknown, but that's none of your business. YAY, Jodie!
Go see my Contact Worship Page.
And there's actually a storyline! It's not as good as the books (again, READ THEM!) and I think that Anne Rice is a genius (well, before Memnoch she was). Thankfully, she's continuing the Vampire series with her new book, Pandora. I haven't read it yet, but I've heard it's much better than her last few books, which were tripe (sorry, Anne).(Update: reading Pandora now, it's fantastic!).
Some people seem to have a problem with the semi-homosexuality of the vampires, but for god's sake, get over it! They're not male or female, they're vampires. Think of them as a sex of their own. And anyway, some of us would think that Antonio Banderas was gorgeous whether he was male, female, or a gorilla. That's just Tonio for you.
Anyway, enough drooling. I know it's not the most intellectual movie of all time, and it's not Lawrence of Arabia or anything, but when a movie has THAT many gorgeous men in it, and is so beautifully costumed and set, you've got to love it!
IWTV trivia for you. They changed the end of the movie! In the book, the interviewer, who's name is actually Daniel, ISN'T sucked by Lestat. Instead, Daniel goes off and finds Armand, hangs around with him, and in the 3rd book, becomes a vampire himself.
Go to Krysanthemum's Interview with the Vampire Page.
I have only one big gripe about this movie. ALIENS HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH BUILDING THE PYRAMIDS, OK? When I create my Ancient Egypt page I'm going to have a really big rave on that subject. Something to look forward to!
All the crap aside, it's a good, stupid movie. A no-brainer for a rainy day.
And for a change, I've chosen a movie that seems semi-popular. It's like Braveheart, only better! William Wallace didn't live 500 years! But anyway, fantastic movie, with a really great soundtrack. Queen's "Who Wants to Live Forever" is one of the greatest songs ever. But that's just my opinion, I suppose. But isn't this entire page?? Anyway, this movie should be compulsory viewing for everybody. However: THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ONLY ONE!
Then there's the whole Christ metaphor, which is really clever. What I want to know is: How are they going to keep that going with the sequels which are coming up? I think they've covered everything in the Christ story, all the way up to the resurrection! What's next? I think they're going to have to get REALLY creative next.
Basically, just VERY cool. Nobody doesn't like this movie. How could you?
It's not a serious movie, it's actually a fantasy/romance. (Notice how none of these movies actually deal with real life, they're all fantasy? Who can spell "escapism"???) But it's so much fun! And it's got these really lovely unicorns! It's pretty silly, and gets boring in some parts, but it's a really good movie.
And lastly, a bit of trivia for all the Star Trek:Voyager fans out there. Legend has a character called Meg, an incredibly ugly, green woman who lives in a swamp. Take a close look at the credits, and you notice that it's actually Robert Picardo, the holographic doctor! Having a bad year were we, Robert??
City of Angels is actually based on a 1985 German movie called "Wings of Desire". Everything I read about it said that Wings of Desire was much better than City of Angels. I DON'T THINK SO! It was deep-and-meaningful rubbish! It took an hour and a half to get to any sort of storyline, and even then they stuffed it! And it had Columbo in it! AND they didn't kill off the woman. Which you would think would make me happy, but it didn't! Back to City of Angels. It's American tripe, and completely soppy, but if you feel like a good sob, watch it.
And another piece of trivia. "Wings of Desire" actually had a sequel, called "Faraway, So Close". In this movie, Cassiel, Seth's angel friend, also falls. But that's all I know about it, because I haven't seen it yet. I'm not sure I'm going to bother.Again, if anybody knows where there's a full poster of this, E-mail me please!
But for the most way-out storyline of all time, this one takes the cake. Well, I may be wrong, but it's my favourite. I grew up with this movie, so it's deeply ingrained into my psyche (which may explain something). Ignore the Muppets, try this piece of Henson magic. And while you're at it, look at Labyrinth too. It didn't make my top 10, but it's close! You just have to see David Bowie in his Tina Turner wig.
A piece of Dark Crystal trivia. The movie was originally shot using a completely made-up language, with subtitles. Advance audiences hated it, so they shot it in English. Bizarre.
The only work you can really use about this movie is "silly". It's so ridiculous! But it's got a great soundtrack, lots of action, and the all-important fantasy/science-fiction bit. But if you want GOOD science-fiction, look elsewhere. This is another no-brainer.
Trivia again. Luc Besson, the director of The Fifth Element, is now working on a movie version of "Joan of Arc", with Milla being Joan (hopefully with normal hair). Apparently, during Fifth the two formed a little attachment (that's what you get for portraying her as the ultimate being in the universe). Could be interesting.
Music aside, it's a truly beautiful story about some really awful people. Ada's a bit of a bitch, and stubborn as hell, her husband is a complete jerk, her daughter needs her butt whacked, and her lover, Baines, is just a dirty old man. But somehow, it all works! Holly Hunter is a fantastic actress, and completely deserved the Academy Award she got for The Piano. You just have to ignore Harvey Keitel and his butt. You get to see more of him than you ever wanted to. You just learn to close your eyes.
You have to watch this movie, even if only for the music. It's got no action, it's very quiet in most parts, and is, for the most part, completely realistic! Completely out of character for me, but there's an exception to every rule, and The Piano is mine.
2.OK, I know I just gave a diatribe about movies not needing violence, but Interview with the Vampire is the exception to the rule. Again, I know few people like this movie much, and when I recommend it to people I usually get really nasty looks, but I LOVE IT! I mean, lookit, you have Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Chriatian Slater and Antonio Banderas ALL IN THE ONE MOVIE! Which is fine for us girls, and there's all the blood-sucking violence for the guys. SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE!!
3.Again, nobody seems to like Stargate, but SOMEBODY does, because they made a TV show. A crap TV show, but that's beside the point. The movie is fantasic, and seriously encouraged my obsession with Ancient Egypt. I'll admit, the storyline's completely implausible, and as a budding Egyptologist I have to be offended at the massacre of the Egyptian language, but ALL THAT ASIDE, it's a really fun movie. Jaye Davidson as Ra is completely evil, while at the same time, looks like a girl, but that aside, he's great! Ignore the Crying Game. And while you're at it, ignore Kurt Russell.
4.And then there's Highlander. Note: I only mean the first movie. The other two SUCK! And again I seem to have contradicted myself, because this is another movie almost purely about violence. And romance. Interesting combination, isn't it? But you've got to love Christopher Lambert's funny accent, and Sean Connery's even funnier one (you know, he's supposed to be Spanish in this movie?? Huh?) They made a TV series about this one too, but I haven't seen any of it, because I haven't got cable *sob*.
5. Yes, yes, I know, EVERYONE loves this movie, so why shouldn't I? This is the coolest movie made in years. And again, I've picked a totally fantasy, pretty-boy movie! Keanu, yum! But besides my favourite pretty boy, it is an incredibly cool movie. What girl doesn't want to be Trinity? Besides the fact that she gets Keanu, she gets to wear skin-tight leather outfits, and look great in them.
6. Very few people have even heard of Legend. It was one of Tom Cruise's first movies, and he looks YOUNG! And if you want to be really freaked out you've got to see Tim Curry decked out in bright red body paint, horns, and a loincloth. There's a mental picture for you! But he's so evil, in the most wonderful way.
7.And if you want sheer crap, try City of Angels. I loved this movie, it made me cry! But what doesn't? It's yet another Meg Ryan romantic-comedy. But this one has a twist (and if you haven't seen the movie, look away now). Imagine you're describing this movie to someone: "Angel falls in love with human, becomes human so they can be together, then human gets hit by semi-trailer". Come on! What kind of storyline is that!?! Depressing, that's what! That's why I like Contact, it had a happy ending!
8.The Dark Crystal is the most fantastical movie of all time. I think Jim Henson may have been on acid at the time! But you haven't lived until you've seen this movie. It's gorgeous. Unfortunately, there aren't any stunning men to perv at, because all the actors are puppets, and some of them are really ugly! (Skeksis, anyone?)
9.I'm a little embarrassed about this one. I like a Bruce Willis movie?? God help me! But him aside, The Fifth Element is a really fun, stupid, implausible movie. And it's got Gary Oldman, with the most awful southern accent you've ever heard! AND it's got Milla Jovovich's hair! I want my hair to be that color! Erk.
10.The Piano is the only non-fantasy movie that made it into my list. This one's actually a little depressing, but the music, written by Micahel Nyman, is THE most beautiful soundtrack of any movie EVER! It's a little bizarre, but if you happen to play piano (I do, badly), it's the best music to play!
Well, that pretty much sums it all up. I think we can see a pattern here, can't you? Silly, fantasy/science-fiction movies, that nobody else takes seriously. Oh well, I like them! Any comments, suggestions, criticisms, hate mail, etc. should be sent to: seahag_linda@yahoo.com Thanks for reading all this rubbish. If you actually made it to the end, you should probably get a reward or something. How about the joy of knowing my opinion? OK, perhaps not. I'm rambling now. BYE!
Back to Krysanthemum's Home Patch!
