List Of Films I Need To See Before October

Right, so my charms and wiley ways were enough to b(l)ag myself an offer from Southampton for BA Film & English, so I guess I better start watching some films. Here be a checklist of films, modern and classic, that I reckon I will need to have seen.

Citizen Kane   My diagnosis: Well that's the big one done. I don't think theres anything I could possibly say that hasn't already been said, so I won't even try.

2001: A Space Odessey My diagnosis: Momentous

Godfathers I & II My diagnosis: Will probably need re-watching (read: overrated?)

Schindler's List My diagnosis: Schindler's List makes you feel pretty awful about the holocaust jokes that you've no doubt cracked at some point. The images are haunting; the realisation that it is not snow falling from the sky, but human ash, and the girl in the red dress - powerful moment in a film with plenty.

Psycho
Vertigo  
My diagnosis: Why this is so highly feted I have no idea. The characters are insipid; the plot reasonably complex but no more so than that; the double-peak narrative is clumsy. Yes the vertigo effect is pretty neat, but this is not a good film, and certainly no where near to being one of the greatest ever. In other news, only three to go!

Die Hard  My diagnosis: It's easy to see why Die Hard is such an enduring favourite. The action is great, but I was surprised by the relationship between McClane and the cop; the dynamic was certainly interesting. Sadly it dipped into typical Hollywood schlock too often: the 'million-dollar deal man' was ill-judged, as was the random appearance at the end by Karl. The man was clearly dead. There is no way you survive being hanged for an hour.

Up My diagnosis: The best thing about this film is the 10-minute introduction that sets up Carl. It is perfect: it gives Carl the essential vulnerability and back-story that would otherwise have been difficult to cram in. The rest of the film takes this initial expository and keeps it as its beating heart. Pixar can do no wrong.

Pulp Fiction My diagnosis: Bad-ass, muthafuka.

Jackie Brown My diagnosis: Far from being the Tarantino classic that it is regularly billed as, Jackie Brown falls short of Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs thanks to re-hashed characters (did Tarantino really expect to get away with casting S.L.J. yet again as a smack-talking hard-ass, albeit this time devoid of any class?) and, frankly, a boring plot.

Silence of the Lambs
My diagnosis: Worthy of its reputation, likewise for the performance of Anthony Hopkins. Foster was less convincing, but still very good.

Harry Brown My diagnosis: Loses out to Gran Torino (see below) in the OAP-Vigilante tussle. Harry Brown himself is an excellent character, but the scumbags he kills are so far from being rational humans it is like watching an angry old man killing a load of angry animals.

Raging Bull My diagnosis: My oh my, Robert de Niro can really act.

Rocky

Moon My diagnosis: Bowie's in space!

Battleship Potemkin My diagnosis: Russian women were properly ugly. Good film though.

Trainspotting My diagnosis: The toilet scene is the most disgusting thing I've ever seen. Doesn't quite live up to it status as Brit classic.

 Amelie

Enter The Dragon My diagnosis: I expected a rubbish story, but even the fight scenes were lame. At no point did I think, "Wow, that was cool", it was just boring, poorly acted, obviously scripted fights. The only redeeming feature is when I found afterwards that Bruce Lee kicked a guy so hard in the chest he broke his sternum and the arms of the guys behind that caught him. That's undeniably awesome, but even that didn't look particularly noteworthy while I was watching it.

Full Metal Jacket My diagnosis: Follows the The Deer Hunter format of a before/during Vietnam, but no after. Without this final segment the two parts seem isolated with little cohesion other than a few characters. Both parts by themselves, however, are entertaining stuff.

Casablanca
Dr. Strangelove  My diagnosis: Somehow funnier in theory than execution. It's clever - there are plenty of moments where you think 'I can see what they've done there' - but they just don't necesarily translate to laughs.

Taxi Driver Mr diagnosis: asuykdhjbfadya

Goodfellers
My diagnosis: Everything is great about this movie except the ending. What a let down.

Spinal Tap My diagnosis: As a satire of the hard-rock lifestyle it is note perfect, but as a comedy it simply isn't funny after the New Originals bit. Big dissapointment, this one.

Snatch My diagnosis: Propah fakkin' cockney like.

Gran Torino My diagnosis: Poignant, human, and Clint Eastwood