Rank: 80
Release Year: 1975
Genre: Comedy/Drama/Psychological
Plot
Summary: R.P. McMurphy is a mental patient who does not believe he
belongs in an institution. In rebellion, he rallies the other patients against
the oppressive head nurse.
What
Makes It Special: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest works on many levels.
It is in moments very funny, in others dramatically engaging, in others an
interesting look at the administration of treatment to mental health patients
and how society views and treats these people. At its heart however, the film
succeeds due to its fantastic characters, lead by R.P. McMurphy and Nurse
Ratched, played brilliantly by a great cast. Milos Forman is also unafraid to
approach the film from a rather brash place. He does not delicately navigate
the social stigma of metal health, instead taking it head on using McMurphy as
his in (is McMurphy a con exploiting the system or someone actually in need of
metal healthcare?). The result is a stunning, revealing look at mental
institutions.
Rank: 79
Release Year: 1973
Genre: Drama
Plot
Summary: Kit and Holly are infatuated with each other, but after Kit
murders Holly’s father for trying to keep them apart the two take off on a
killing spree across the American badlands.
What
Makes It Special: Badlands is based on the Starkweather-Fugate killing
spree when a fifteen-year-old girl and her twenty-five-year-old boyfriend
slaughtered several people including her entire family in 1958. It was
America’s first experience with this kind of homegrown carnage. Terrence
Malick’s film perfectly captures the country’s fascination with these killers –
their celebrity. The relationship between Kit and Holly is also very
interesting, as Holly seems to be both enchanted and terrified by Kit. The
performances from Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek are absolutely absorbing,
mixing innocence with sort of a primal evil. Aesthetically, the film is
engaging as well – particularly its photography. Badlands is in many ways the
quintessential American masterpiece.
Rank: 78
Release Year: 1957
Genre: Drama
Plot
Summary: J.J. Hunsecker is powerful but unethical New York City gossip
columnist. He is unhappy with his sister’s relationship with a jazz musician.
So, he coerces press agent Sidney Falco to break them up.
What
Makes It Special: Sweet Smell of Success plays like a film-noir
stylistically, as this is an underworld of sleazy people undertaking dirty
business at all costs to get what they want. There are no heroes in this world.
The narrative is built on the back-and-forth of the power struggles of its
characters, each manipulating those around them to come out on top. It is a
heartless world, and yet the shady treachery is wildly compelling. Burt
Lancaster and Tony Curtis are both wonderful as Hunsecker and Falco,
respectively, each giving one of their career best performances. This is a
forgotten film-noir masterpiece.
Rank: 77
Release Year: 1946
Genre: Mystery/Romance
Drama
Plot
Summary: Alicia Huberman flees America in shame after her father is accused
of being a Nazi sympathizer. On her way to South America, she is approached by
the CIA to spy on a group of Nazi working on a project in Rio de Janeiro.
What
Makes It Special: Notorious perfectly employs many of Alfred Hitchcock’s
narrative and stylistic devices, most notably the use of a McGuffin. The film
wonderfully mixes romance, suspense, espionage, and drama all set in the fresh
post-WWII world, with tensions still running high amidst hopeful optimism. Hitchcock’s
directing is on point throughout, with each scene building towards a
dynamically climatic conclusion. The performances are also fantastic. They are
nuanced, and yet utilize the best attributes of each actor’s star quality. Cary
Grant is ever charming, but here he has a darkly aggressive side, while Ingrid
Bergman just commands the screen. Claude Rains is brilliant as the villain –
playing his character as ultimately sympathetic. Notorious is maybe not a film
that Hitchcock fans immediately point to, as it is not flashy, but it is
secretly one of his best.
Rank: 76
Release Year: 1974
Genre: Drama
Plot
Summary: Mabel and Nick have a loving marriage, but Mabel’s fits of
madness prove to be a disruptive force, maybe too strong to overcome.
What
Makes It Special: A Woman Under the Influence is a demonstration of
powerhouse performances and phenomenal directing. Peter Falk and Gena Rowlands
run the full gambit of human in emotion over the course of the film, all staged
in a confined space. John Cassavetes cultivates such an emotional experience
that the film is rather jarring. It is a directors’ film for directors and an
actors’ film for actors. It is embodies the craft.
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