Almost Famous (2000) - #97

Empire top 301: #97
IMDb top 250: -

Rating 9/10

Director: Cameron Crowe
Writers: Cameron Crowe
Starring: Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Anna Paquin, Kate Hudson, Patrick Fugit, Jason Lee & Philip Seymour Hoffman

"And you can tell Rolling Stone magazine that my last words were... I'm on drugs!"

William Miller (Fugit) is a 15 year old aspiring music journalist, who has a rebellious sister who gets him into rock music and a strict conservative mother who thinks rock music is the root of all evil which leads to drugs and promiscuous sex.  After writing a few well received articles William is contacted by the editor of Rolling Stone magazine to write a piece on up and coming band Stillwater, to travel on the road with them and get a story worthy of the front page. Whilst on tour with the band William gets to know head Band Aid (Groupie) Penny Lane (Hudson) and he falls in love with her. 

I have a huge love for music, not just the singers or groups but the songs, the sounds and the lyrics and this is what I get from this movie. Crowe has a love for the MUSIC. The film is a semi-autobiographical look at Crowe's younger years when he travelled with bands like The Who whilst writing for Rolling Stone magazine. Whilst I wasn't born in the 70's from the various documentaries I've seen and books I've read, to me, Crowe has got the feeling, look and sound of the 70's down. The soundtrack is awesome and has my favourite Elton John song "Tiny Dancer" slap bang in the middle of the movie during a great scene, but in every scene there is some amazing song playing in the background. 

The Oscar winning script is superb, it's funny and moving and joyous and sad. Most of the best lines belong to Frances McDormand's overbearing mother Elaine but everybody gets their time to shine with some great dialogue. Frances McDormand does kind of steal the show; her Oscar nominated performance is hilarious and very relatable to anybody who has parent(s) that won't just let them be who THEY want to be. This is not the case for me, but I have friends who have parents like this! 

Billy Crudup and Jason Lee, the central guys in the Stillwater band are both excellent and have some great scenes together, especially the turbulent flight scene which has an hilarious ending. Kate Hudson brings depth to what could have been a really floaty and limiting role, whilst Penny is mostly carefree Hudson brings a lot of vulnerability to it with her emotive eyes and facial expressions; she really does a beautiful job. I adore Fairuza Balk as Sapphire, she really gets that carefree, fun loving character. 

I haven't seen the movie in a while and it was fun to see how many people are in it who are now big stars; Anna Paquin, Jay Baruchel, Jimmy Fallon and Eric Stonestreet to name a few. Almost Famous is a great coming of age story written by someone who really gets music and how it can make you feel and the soundtrack really is AMAZING. 

Rushmore (1998) - #211

Empire top 301: #211
IMDb top 250: -

Rating 7/10

Director: Wes Anderson
Writers: Wes Anderson & Owen Wilson
Starring: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams, Luke Wilson, Seymour Cassel & Brian Cox

"War does funny things to men."

Max Fischer (Schwartzman) attends Rushmore school, a school he has always wanted to be a part of. He is both Rushmore's most extracurricular and least scholarly student, with his grades slipping due to extracurricular activities Rushmore's Headmaster informs Max that if his grades don't improve he will be expelled. Herman Blume (Murray) is a millionaire industrialist with two children he doesn't like and a wife who has no interest in him. Herman admires Max and the two become friends. Both Max and Herman fall in love with the first grade teacher at Rushmore, recently widowed Rosemary Cross (Williams) and the two fall out trying to win her heart. After Max tries to build an aquarium on the baseball diamond at Rushmore he is expelled and has to attend a public school.

I was really not expecting to enjoy this movie, I've always thought it was going to be one of those 'you have to be in on the joke, to get it' kind of movies. How wrong was I. Rushmore is really really funny. Owen Wilson and Wes Anderson and written some hilarious dialogue; the script is excellent. I particularly liked Magnus's (the scottish kid) dialogue and his put downs of Max were LOL funny. 

Jason Schwartzman is so funny, he delivers all of his lines in a complete deadpan way and this just makes the dialogue even funnier. The character of Max is completely inappropriate but hilarious - "we both have dead people in our families". Not so much now, but in this movie Jason could pass for a young Tom Cruise. Bill Murray is good, but it's a performance I've seen him give countless times before, he's a dab hand at the weathered kind of miserable man and could do it in his sleep. 

Luke Wilson has a short role as Rosemary's friend Pete and he's involved in the extremely funny dinner scene which has some great lines in it. Olivia Williams does widow well, see a well known M. Night Shyamalan film for further details. 

I definitely think this is one of those marmite type films that people will think is hilarious and really love or won't get it and think it's awful. I enjoyed it and it kept me entertained for it's 1hr33min running time, I thought the soundtrack was pretty cool too and I actually loved the stage sets for Max's plays; only wish my school plays had have been like that, people might have actually went to see them.  

United 93 (2006) - #DidntMakeTheListButShouldHave

Empire top 301: -

IMDb top 250: -

Rating 10/10

Director: Paul Greengrass

Writers: Paul Greengrass

Starring: Cheyenne Jackson, Corey Johnson & David Alan Basche

"This is a suicide mission. We have to do something. They are not gonna land this plane." 

United 93 is the story of the fourth plane hijacked on September 11th 2001 during the terrorist attacks against America. United 93 was the only plane hijacked on the day that did not reach it's target. The movie tells from the moment United 93 takes off right through to it's conclusion and also about the other hijacked planes.   

United 93 was one of the films on the list that I was most excited about watching, I'd been threatening to watch it for years and have heard great things but I always put it off. Perhaps it was the subject matter and the fact I knew it was going to be difficult to watch. I am so glad I've finally watched it now, to say I loved it would be an understatement. This movie is superb!!! Paul Greengrass is a master at building up tension and suspense and my heart was pounding throughout and I actually was on the edge of my seat. 

I found myself shocked, sad, terrified, baying for blood during the last forty minutes and ultimately spent when the film finished. It drained me but I loved every minute of it. The events of 9/11 are so shocking and awful it still has the power to sadden me, whenever I see something 9/11 related it takes me back to the day when I saw it happen on the television, it was shocking then, it's still shocking now. 

The acting is exceptional, from everyone! The film is quick paced and frantic and every actor does an outstanding job. During the control room scenes it's hard to believe they're actually actors, they're so good and convincing. The way the movie is filmed also makes it feel very realistic and this really heightens your emotions. The scenes were the passengers phone their loved ones broke me and a few tears were shed, the fact this actually happened only made it worse, it must've have been truly awful. The movie is unflinching and hard to watch but it should be watched, by everyone! 

I cannot recommend this film enough it is outstanding!!! How it never made the top 301 I'll never know!!

The Wizard Of Oz (1939) - #123

Empire top 301: #123

IMDb top 250: #167

Rating 8/10

Director: Victor Fleming

Writers: Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson & Edgar Allan Woolf

Starring: Judy Garland, Margaret Hamilton, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley & Billie Burke

“A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others.”

The Wizard of Oz tells the story of Dorothy Gale (Garland) who is lives with her Uncle Henry and Aunty Em on their farm in Kansas. Dorothy is in trouble with her neighbour Miss Gulch (Hamilton) after her dog Toto gets into her garden, chases her cat and bites her. Miss Gulch arrives at the farm with an order from the town Sheriff to collect Toto so he can be put down. Dorothy runs away with Toto but is convinced to return to the farm after a fortune teller says her Aunty Em is sick. On her return to the farm Dorothy is caught in a tornado, and unable to get inside the storm shelter with the others, she and her house are carried off to the World of Oz where it lands in Munchkin Land and crushes the Wicked Witch of The East. After obtaining her Ruby Slippers Dorothy travels to see The Wizard of Oz in the hopes of returning home and escaping the clutches of The Wicked Witch of The West. 

I watched The Wizard of Oz with my 3 year old, easily distracted Goddaughter and she was mesmorized, such is the power of this movie. From the sepia tone and beautiful Somewhere Over The Rainbow beginning to the technicolor Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead and dancing Munchkins, how could you not be mesmorized? I’ve seen the movie countless times and the shift from sepia to technicolor still amazes me, it’s seemless and still looks amazing.

The movie is dated now and it’s obvious that it was shot on a soundstage and the background is all painted, something I never picked up on when I was younger. But this doesn’t affect the enjoyment of this classic. The songs are absolutely brilliant and I found myself singing along much to the amusement of my Goddaughter. My favourite song is Optimistic Voices, which has a tune that will be stuck in your head for days – “you’re out the woods, you're out
of the dark, you're out of the night”. Somewhere Over The Rainbow has been covered to death, but noone does it like Judy and it’s still the standout of the whole picture.

Judy’s voice is great throughout each number she performs and her acting performance is pretty good too. The performances of each of the cast are very of the time, and quite melodramatic. Margaret Hamilton is perfect as The Wicked Witch of The West, it is a bit of a pantomime performance but it still has the power to frighten as my goddaughter will agree. That shrill voice, terrifying cackle, green face and threats to Dorothy and Toto make for a great and memorable villain. The supporting cast are also excellent especially Ray Bolger as The Scarecrow, Bert Lahr as The Cowardley Lion and Jack Haley as The Tin Man, who sound great on the numbers they perform.

The Wizard of Oz is a classic loved by many, including me and now my Goddaughter!!

It's A Wonderful Life (1946) - #40

Empire top 301: #40
IMDb top 250: #27

Rating 10/10

Director: Frank Capra
Writers: Frank Capra, Albert Hackett, Frances Goodrich, Jo Swerling & Philip Van Doren Stern
Starring: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Travers & Thomas Mitchell

"Every time you hear a bell ring, it means that some angel's just got his wings."

In Bedford Falls one Christmas Eve George Bailey (Stewart) has hit rock bottom and contemplating suicide. His family and friends who he has helped all his life, leaving his own dreams behind to do so, pray for him to be ok and for God to look after him. These prayers reach Heaven and George's guardian angel Clarence (Travers) is sent to Earth to save George and in the process earn his wings. Before Clarence is able to help George he must first know his life and head angels Franklin and Joseph show Clarence how George has become the man he has. 

It's a Wonderful Life is the ultimate Christmas movie. It'll make you laugh and cry and just make you feel really happy. It's a story we can all relate to when we're feeling down and don't think our life is what it should be and by the end you start to think how lucky you are, to have what you have! It's a beautifully written movie with great characters you'll love and hate. 

James Stewart gives a superb performance as George, it's probably my favourite performance of his closely followed by Rear Window. The character of George is seen as unlikeable by some people but I don't think that, at times he can be a bit brattish but ultimately Stewart's performance keeps him as our hero and has you rooting for him. Donna Reed is absolutely stunning and I love her in this movie. Lionel Barrymore is excellent as the evil Mr Potter, who'll stop at nothing to destroy George Bailey and even though it's a lovely Christmas movie it's great that he stays completely wicked throughout. 

I watched the black and white Blu Ray version of the movie and it looks gorgeous, it's so well filmed and the transfer is great. If you can, definitely watch it on this format. It's a Wonderful Life is just a wonderful movie and one I try to watch every Christmas. Highly recommend. 

The Untouchables (1987) - #230

Empire top 301: #230

IMDb top 250: -

Rating 6/10

Director: Brian De Palma

Writers: David Mamet

Starring: Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro, Sean Connery, Andy Garcia, Charles Martin Smith & Patricia Clarkson

“You just fulfilled the first rule of law enforcement: make sure when your shift is over you go home alive. Here endeth the lesson.”

*****SPOILERS*****

Set in Chicago during 1930’s prohibition Al Capone (De Niro) has the city and the police force under his control running an illegal alcohol operation, offering bribes to officials and using extreme violence against anyone who gets in his way. Treasury Official Eliot Ness (Costner) has been summoned to Chicago in an attempt to stop Capone and put him away. Eliot puts together a team, enlisting Irish-American Officer Jim Malone (Connery), Police Academy trainee George Stone (Garcia) and Accountant Oscar Wallace (Smith) in his mission to bring Capone’s rule of Chicago to an end.

Whilst I did mostly enjoy The Untouchables, I did have some serious issues with it. Firstly the music was a complete distraction and really silly at times; every single emotional moment was ruined by awful Lifetime Special, incidental music; and then there was the obnoxious swing music kicking in every now and then, with trumpets and horns bellowing out that really didn’t fit the tone of the film; and then during the raid on the liquor shipment in Canada it’s music that wouldn’t be out of place in a Wild West movie, it just didn’t work for me. Secondly, why would you hire an actor of De Niro’s calibre to play a really interesting and juicy role and then criminally underuse him. Capone was probably the most interest character in this story and yet he gets hardly any screen time. Lastly, the whole scene where Malone is shot with enough bullets to bring down an elephant, yet still manages to crawl all the way from his front door to his living room and then still hang on until Ness arrives so he can give him a piece of crucial information is absolutely ridiculous.

The Untouchables isn’t a complete dud, it does have some good things going for it. The subject matter is very interesting and once the film had finished I was eager to know more about that time period and the people involved. The writing is good, although some scenes are a little cringey; “eskimo nose, butterfly kiss” – No!! Gorgio Armani’s costumes are gorgeous and the sets & locations look spot on. Brian De Palma’s direction is pretty good and the final shoot out scene is done really well, it’s filled with plenty of tension and killings.

Kevin Costner is Kevin Costner again, not bad but not great either. Robert De Niro is good but he really doesn’t have enough to do, it’s such a massive shame as I think the character of Capone is very interesting and with the right material De Niro could have done something special with it. Charles Martin Smith is a hoot, he has a great scene during the raid on the borders of Canada which made me laugh out loud.

This is Sean Connery’s Academy Award winning performance; in my opinion this is not an Oscar winning performance, it may be Connery’s best work but it’s not award worthy. However, Malone is a great character and Connery does give a good performance.

The Untouchables is a good film but it could’ve have been great.