Top 100 Films of the 20th Century – Part 2: 100-96

Introduction

Rank: 100

Title: Rushmore

Release Year: 1998

Genre: Comedy

Director: Wes Anderson

Cast: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, and Olivia Williams

Plot Summary: Max Fischer loves his school Rushmore. He is the president of dozens of school clubs, but that does not leave much time for his schoolwork. Additionally, he develops a crush on one of the school’s teachers Rosemary Cross and a friendship with one of the school’s benefactors Herman Blume. Max’s world starts to collapse around him, however, when he is expelled trying to impress Mrs. Cross, and to make matters worse Blume also has a crush on her, putting Max and Blume at odds.

What Makes It Special: Wes Anderson introduced himself to the world with Bottle Rocket, but that film did not wholly exhibit his unique style and gift for aesthetics. With Rushmore, Anderson changed American independent cinema, influencing almost every indie dramedy made since by young filmmakers (Anderson himself is heavily influenced by past filmmakers as well – most notably those of the French New Wave). In addition to being a one of the most important films in the rebirth of both American independent film in the 1990s and American auteurism, Rushmore is simply a very funny movie featuring wonderful performances from Schwartzman (launching his career) and especially Murray (serving as his comeback performance in many regards).

Trailer: Here

Available on: Blu-ray

Rank: 99

Title: Ghostbusters

Release Year: 1984

Genre: Comedy/Supernatural Adventure

Director: Ivan Reitman

Cast: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Sigourney Weaver

Plot Summary: After being kicked out of grad school for doing seemingly bogus research, three unemployed parapsychology professors decide to go into business for themselves setting up a ghost-removal service.

What Makes It Special: While George Lucas and Steven Spielberg invented the blockbuster (with films such as Jaws – the first true summer blockbuster – Star Wars, and Raiders of the Lost Ark), Ghostbusters infused the developing genre with comedy (and great special effects) while still maintaining all the adventure and fantasy aspects. Blockbusters have since strived to be big, fun, entertaining, and family friendly with equal portions of laughs and action. Ghostbusters is an essential piece of cinema in the study of how to make a brilliant summer movie (and a big part of many childhoods – mine included), influencing every filmmaker who approaches the genre today.

Trailer: Here

Available on: Blu-ray and Streaming

Rank: 98

Title: The Big Lebowski

Release Year: 1998

Genre: Comedy/Detective Mystery

Director: The Coen Brothers

Cast: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, and Steve Buscemi

Plot Summary: Deadbeat Jeffrey Lebowski, who goes by The Dude, is pulled into a kidnapping mystery when he is mistaken for a millionaire of the same name. Seeking restitution for a ruined rug, The Dude tries his hand at being a private detective, hoping to get a new rug and maybe some money out of it.

What Makes It Special: When The Big Lebowski first came out, many did not know what to make of it and it mostly went unnoticed. However, it has since become a cult classic and a staple of modern pop-culture. Auteur writer-directors The Coen Brothers have taken the hardboiled detective genre and molded it into a farce of sorts on early 1990s Gulf War Era America, resulting in a hilarious and endlessly quotable film (that seems to never deteriorate in quality with each additional viewing).

Trailer: Here

Available on: Blu-ray and Streaming

Rank: 97

Title: The Wages of Fear

Release Year: 1953

Genre: Thriller

Director: Henri-George Clouzot

Cast: Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Folco Lulli, Peter van Eyck, and Vera Clouzot

Plot Summary: Hoping for a better life, many foreigners traveled to South America, only to find nothing but famine and hopelessness. Now marooned in one such decrepit village, some of these foreigners jump at the chance to escape – the problem is that to earn the money to buy their freedom they must transport an urgent shipment of nitroglycerine (which is highly unstable) many miles in unsafe equipment. It is a suicide mission, but that is how desperate four men are to get out.

What Makes It Special: With The Wages of Fear, Henri-George Clouzot has made one of the most psychologically engaging thrillers in cinema history. It is unflinching in its ability to keep its viewers very nervous while watching it. However, what makes it all the more interesting is Clouzot’s study of his characters. The best and worst of humanity are beautifully explored in the film. It is also interesting to see the other side of imperialism as many foreigners are reduced to stranded beggars, unable to find work or afford transport home (something also very present in John Huston’s Treasure of the Sierra Madre).

Trailer: Here

Available on: Blu-ray and Streaming

Rank: 96

Title: Roman Holiday

Release Year: 1953

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Director: William Wyler

Cast: Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, and Eddie Albert

Plot Summary: Princess Ann is bored of being trapped in her very structured and restrictive life. So, while on an official tour through Europe, she decides to escape for a night to experience the world as a commoner. Newspaper man Joe Bradley comes across her and at first sees it has his big break – an exclusive story about the Princess in Rome – but as he spends time with her he begins to fall in love.

What Makes It Special: William Wyler is maybe Hollywood’s greatest filmmaker, with the ability to make wonderful films in any genre and on any scale. Roman Holiday is maybe the best romantic comedy ever made, building off the great screwball comedies of the 1930s and 1940s but adding more emotional depth. After all, this is not a romantic comedy that sees its leads end up together in the end (as much as we want them to). The film also launched the career of one of the great actresses: Audrey Hepburn.

Trailer: Here

Available on: DVD and Streaming

95-91

Movie of the Week – Ghostbusters

This week’s movie is Ghostbusters (1984).

The adventure comedy is about three scientists who decide to open up a ghost-catching business in New York, the first of its kind – little do they know, business is booming because it is the end of the world. In its original conception, the film was much different – taking place in the future with time travel, and it was written as a vehicle for Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi (but Belushi died). The script by Aykroyd and co-star Harold Ramis was reworked with director Ivan Reitman and star Bill Murray coming on board – Reitman coming off the comedy hits Meatballs and Stripes, both with Murray starring. Murray agreed to take the role if Columbia also made his passion project The Razor’s Edge (a film that I think is very underrated). Another change from the original plan was that John Candy was to feature in the supporting role that went to Rick Moranis (who is great in it) but could not due to scheduling conflicts. The rest of the cast is great with Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts, William Atherton, and Ernie Hudson. The film has an excellent crew with composer Elmer Bernstein (whose score is one of my favorites, if not my favorite), cinematographer Laszlo Kovacs and production designer John DeCuir. What I love about the film is how good a film it really is, and how well it has stood the test of time. Many of the films of my childhood (this chief among them) are not nearly as good now as they were then. But, this is not the case for Ghostbusters. The jokes are still very funny (Bill Murray’s dry zaniness is timeless). The story is tight. The aesthetics, directing and performances are all wonderful. Plus, the film champions New York City and is clearly a NYC film (despite all the interiors being shot in a studio in LA). This is one of those films that everyone should see – cinematic entertainment at its best. Check out the trailer.

Available on Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming, and to Rent

No Strings Attached (2011) – Review

No Strings Attached is really funny, yet disconnected and sort of a depressing assessment of modern relationships. Ultimately, it is an entertaining and enjoyable film – thanks primarily to the witty joke writing and comical (if not zany) performances from many of the cast members. Director Ivan Reitman seems, however, to want to tell a number of different stories with the same narrative. There is a lot stuffed into the film (much like life, I guess), but the format of a sub two-hour romantic comedy does not lend itself well to tackle all the narrative issues convincingly in the allotted time (had this been stretched to a season of television, it may well have worked a lot better and felt more complete, not to mention that the narrative idea felt a bit like a television sit-com pilot). As is, it is disjointed and superficially satisfying. Sure, the audience laughs (a lot) but the deeper emotions are not there. Not due to poor performances, but more so to the out-there, exaggerated nature of the comedy and hollow characters. The most difficult relationship to feel anything for was Adam’s with his father. The father character is not real, or at least does not feel that way at all. He oozes with forced humor intentions, while being completely awful to his son – resulting in a character and scenes that are neither funny nor illicit emotional connection/development. When, he does find his heart and reconnects with his son, no one cares because the relationship was meaningless to the audience from the beginning. Reitman also does something quite interesting (whether on purpose or not) in his juxtaposing the silly humor against the sad state that modern relationships are in. The ‘real’ love examples the audience are given play out mostly off screen, while the highly problematic relationships are forced upon the audience (one of them being Adam and Emma’s – while they do like each other on some level, it does not feel like they will make it, the ending having a slight awkward The Graduate feeling to it, though not nearly as poignant). Whether or not relationships in the film (primarily the one of the main characters) accurately mirror the current state of dating or not is secondary to their comparison to those of romantic comedies past (a genre that in recent years has faltered for the most part). Watching this film leaves an overall feeling of sadness while romantic comedies generally leave the audience feeling good. And so, while it is an interesting approach for Reitman and writer Elizabeth Meriwther to take (plus, in a world of remakes trying original concepts is greatly welcomed); it seems to ultimately leave the film feeling disconnected. The narrative is depressing for the most part, and yet the audience is told to laugh (and does so) throughout creating the disconnection from the deeper emotional turmoil the film is addressing. Thus, the narrative does not succeed (however, for those reading deeper into the film, Reitman does create a clashing of emotions akin to taking uppers and downers). The other issue is with the character of Adam. He really has no character. He is in a sense the ultimate straight-man allowing all those around him to be crazy. But, this is really his film and thus his character needed more. The audience only relates to him through projection of their own experiences and feelings. No Strings Attached is difficult to completely peg – it is very funny at times (though certainly geared towards a younger audience) and in being so entertaining and likable, but for those wanting more, like a complete narrative with real characters, it falls short.

Technical and acting achievements: Ivan Reitman has had a tough go of it in the last decade or so, directing mostly terrible films. Thus, it is good to see that the director who made many of my favorite childhood comedies (Ghost Busters being one of my top five favorites of all-time) actually make an entertaining film again. John Debney’s score and Rogier Stoffers’s cinematography were adequate for the type of film that this was (nothing special, but really not needing to be). However, Ida Random’s production design and sets/locations were aesthetically interesting. The cast is what really elevated this film (which is true really with any romantic comedy). Lake Bell, Chris Bridges, Olivia Thirlby, and Mindy Kaling provide good supporting work and some very funny moments. However, very good actors Cary Elwes and Kevin Kline were underused (and seemingly pointless to have an actor of his caliber in the role) and just not good respectively. Greta Gerwig and Jake M. Johnson were fantastic in their supporting roles. Both had some of the best and funniest moments; Gerwig stealing most of the scenes she was in. Ashton Kutcher plays the straight-man almost to the extent of being interchangeable with any other good looking late 20s early 30s male (though it is not completely his fault, his character was written hollowly without much emotional connection to the audience). Natalie Portman is good in the film (serving also as an executive producer), both powerful in the dramatic scenes while having great timing in the comedic ones.

No Strings Attached is probably the most entertaining and funny film to have a narrative that does not really work at all. 6/10