14. Edward Scissorhands (1990) - delightful and whimsical, this is Tim Burton at his best. Though he doesn't get much time to speak, Johnny Depp is marvelous in the title role and wonderfully backed up by Diane Wiest, Wynona Ryder, and Alan Arkin. Though parts get a tad out of hand near the very end, the final scene so perfectly ties the opening together that it's forgivable.
13. Chinatown (1974) - what starts off rather sluggishly develops into an explosive labyrinthine masterpiece. Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway are excellent and Roman Polanski's direction and the script are nothing short of perfection.
12. The Silence of the Lambs (1991) - One of the most armrest-clenching, gasp inducing conclusions I've ever seen. Top notch work all around. That's funny, now I have a strange craving for fava beans.....
11. LA Confidential (1997) - The "Chinatown" of the neo-noir era. The entire cast is brilliant and the film is constantly gripping as the mystery gets deeper and deeper with all its little twists and turns.
10. Big Fish (2003) - Edward Scissorhands may be more iconic Burton, but as a whole I find Big Fish somewhat more satisfying. Even though the film is adapted from a novel, Burton never loses his signature touches, and he brilliantly blends them into the context of the film to create a story of life, love, death, and humor.
9. Network (1976) - what makes Network so brilliant is how it's just as (if not more) relevant today than it was back in '76. The best satire on the American media ever put on the silver screen; sharp observation, humor, and the right touches of the over-the-top.
8. Pulp Fiction (1994) - one of the most iconic movies of all time, and deservedly so. Despite running close to 3 hrs, the film is constantly engrossing. Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary's script is pure brilliance, especially in the inane little exchanges between Travolta and Jackson's characters. Some of the best dialogue (as well as some of the best swearing) in history. And of course, there's that trademark Tarantino style of telling things out of order, put to good (if not entirely necessary) effect.
7. Moulin Rouge! (2001) - proof that it's not necessarily how good your story is, but how well you tell something that's been done to death. One of the definitive love/hate movies of all time, this makes me love it even more. From the gorgeous production values, to the fantastic incorporation of modern music into turn-of-the-century Paris, this is one acid trip of a musical. Two of my favorite moments of brilliance: 1) Ewan McGregor's "Elephant Love Medley" which seamlessly fuses together lyrics from over a dozen famous love songs into a new melody and 2) El Tango De Roxanne, a latin infused reworking of the song by The Police; absolutely haunting.
6. To Die For (1995) - a spectacular satire on ambition run amok. The entire cast is great, but ultimately, it's Nicole Kidman's movie, and she's flat out brilliant. The little facial expressions, the line delivery, and the utter shallowness of Suzanne Stone are all there all the time. The script (based loosely on a true story) is so beyond perfect; no words are wasted, especially on Kidman's character. Because of this, Kidman is completely imersed in her character 100% of the time, with no room for "lazy lines" of dialogue. But what's really brilliant about her performance, is the way she makes Suzanne a mystery: is she really smart, or is she just dumb with lots of ambition? Or is she just self absorbed and self advancing? It's a good thing Kidman nails this so perfectly because she practically is the movie; there are no other leads in sight. However, in the end it's not a lead, but a supporting character who ties the whole film together in the film's final, poetic scene.
5. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001 - 2003) - one of the most sweeping, masterful achievements in all of cinema. Good acting, stunning production values, and one hell of an adaptation help JRR Tolkien's literary masterpiece spring vividly to life in one of the greatest stories ever told. But what's really impressive about Peter Jackson's film trilogy, is how it is so many things at once: an movie that's accessible to the average movie goer, a great epic, a strong drama, a fantasy, the list goes on.
4. Citizen Kane (1941) - cliche, I know, but hell, I can't help it if I thought it lived up to the hype. Anyway, what makes CK such a great movie is that despite how old it is, it's so ahead of its time that with a few tweaks it would feel like a mystery/drama that would come out in modern times. Few "classics" (I'm looking at you "Godfather") age this gracefully.
3. American Beauty (1999) - though AB was Sam Mendes' directorial debut, it feels like the work of an accomplished master director. So perfectly executed with the right mix of mystery, emotional suspense, and dark comedy, as well as visually stunning (the scenes with the rose petals), it's a modern classic. The entire cast turns in great performances even down to the smallest role (Allison Janney, so incredibly bleak). Few movies grab me within the first five minutes, and this is one of them.
2. Life is Beautiful (La Vita E Bella) (1998) - Sorry Schindler's List, but this is the best Holocaust movie ever made. Instead of skipping straight to the usual "it was grim" method, LIB takes a different route. It's first half is one of the most charming romances ever made, brilliantly infused with slap-stick humor. Seeing such love and beauty makes it that much more affecting when the central family is taken off to a Nazi work camp, where the father tries to convince his son that the whole situation is nothing more than a gigantic game. What helps the film be even more affecting is Nicola Piovani's score, the BEST FILM MUSIC IN HISTORY. Heartbreaking, romantic, and unspeakably beautiful, the music is a key part of the film itself that helps it succeed even more in telling a Holocaust story in a different (and risky) way.
1. Amadeus (1984) - the greatest movie about music and its creation ever made. Though it seems like an odd thing to do, director Milos Forman's (One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest) decision to have the characters speak in a decidedly American way helps provide a sharp observation into the lives of composes like Mozart and Beethoven: that they were very much the rock stars of their time. F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce (who, quite hilariously, turns Mozart into a complete ass) give fantastic performances. Abraham's Salieri is a respectful man who wants nothing more than to write great music, but can't quite keep up with Mozart, who despite being a boor, has "God's gift". One scene demonstrates this as it flips between Salieri working hard on a piece of music as Mozart does nothing more than try on various powdered wigs and giggle. The operas are also done justice by the amazing set design (the best is easily the Queen of the Night scene) . The film's depiction of the relationship between Salieri and Mozart may be somewhat untrue, but that doesn't stop the film from telling a great story.
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