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By the way: I'm also going to do my Top 20 Favorite games, but that's later on.
20: Insaniac: This is one that I'm sure only the Indie people know about, if even that. That's mainly because it's an Indie movie. The premise itself is quite interesting: a psych patient with amnesia delves through her subconscious to find the source of her amnesia. Her subconscious, a seven floored building plus a basement, has several horrifying images, including a suicide victim that went a little overboard. Even though some of the acting is really bad, and the filming is very Indie, the plot is well written and more than makes up for it.
19: The Mighty: Growing up, the book The Mighty (a.k.a. Freak the Mighty) was one of my favorite books (as well as one my entire family seemed to have loved). The movie adaptation seemed to have had a shadow over it mainly because... well, when did they ever work right? Surprisingly, "The Mighty" was one of the few movies based on a book that did work right. When an hour and a half movie can make you tear up as much as a book, and still not feel like you missed the point, consider it a success.
18: The City of Lost Children: I mentioned this on a Top Ten from Hell, but despite what I said, this movie is fantastic. It's the original Fairy Tale for Adults, and down right bizarre at that. The story involves a mad scientist who cannot dream, so he tries to steal the dreams of little kids. His minions kidnap the little brother of the strongman, One (played by Ron Perlman), who goes after them, eventually teaming up with a little girl thief named Miette. This is only skimming the surface of the story, but instead of me telling you about it, find this movie and watch it. You'll be glad you did.
17: Hellraiser: I know... what's a horror movie doing on this list? Well, surprisingly, I like horror movies. Just... most of them don't do horror right. "Hellraiser", based on the novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker is one that does. Instead of being a slasher, it gets under your skin, and crawls. Toward the end of the movie, when you see Pinhead for the first time, you know the shit hit the fan. But, at the same time, you can't help but be drawn into the game he weaves. That is what horror should be, not a gore and sex fest, but something that makes you want to turn your head, but draws you to far in to allow you to do so. And "Hellraiser" does just that.
16: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: I wanted to hate this movie. I really did, but surprisingly, I loved it. Even more surprisingly, one of my favorite directors, Terry Gilliam, directed it. As soon as you start watching, you feel like you were thrown into someone's drug trip... and it only gets weirder from there. Oddly enough, though, it seems to portray drugs in a negative light, which is surprising when you take into account what Hunter S. Thompson is most famous for. But, by far, the best part of this movie is Johnny Depp's acting. He doesn't play Thompson, he (for lack of cliche) becomes Thompson, and to hilarious effect. If you haven't seen this movie, do so... NOW!
15: The Exorcism of Emily Rose: This may be one of the most controversial titles on this list, but I still think this is a fantastic movie. The effects aren't particularly amazing, and some of the acting is off putting, but the story of a girl who's possessed by several demons does seem to come to life more in this movie than in any other movie with a similar storyline.
14: End of Days: Yes, a Schwazenegger movie... but one that is made of apocalyptic win. Arnie fights the devil, played amazingly by Gabriel Byrne, as he tries to impregnate Robin Tunny on New Year's Day of 1999. Oddly enough, this isn't Ahnold in Ahnold mode, this is Ahnold in acting mode. And it works eerily well (even if you still know its the Governater).
13: The Boondock Saints: Critics will pan my blog for this, but damn it, I love this movie. Its a tongue in cheek action movie about two brothers (twin Irishmen in Boston) killing mafioso. On their trail is Willem Dafoe as a self-hating, homosexual FBI agent. Told in mainly flashbacks of what happened, The Boondock Saints tells the tale that has been told with almost any vigilante movie, but with characters doing it out of a sense of (albeit, skewed) justice and faith. Yes, it is creepy that they think killing is God's work, but it doesn't mean this movie is bad at all. In fact, it just makes it all the more a guilty pleasure. Just remember your rope.
12: Taken: Why? This badass line, and that's just the surface. Liam Nesson plays the dad that every girl would hate, due to him being over protective. Of course, he's also a retired spy, meaning when his daughter is kidnapped in France, Liam goes to badass mode and looks for his daughter before its too late. It's a newer action thriller that remembers both the action and thriller part instead of CGI stunts. Oh, did I mention that it has a better plot than "Kill Everything! GET TO THE CHOPPAH!"?
11: Good Morning Vietnam: Robin Williams is a maniac in this movie, and I mean that in every good way possible. He plays Airforce Radio Show Host Adrian Cronauer, who nearly gets shut down by the Army because his show is too raunchy for troops deployed in Vietnam. Being deployed for a year in Iraq myself (back in the day), I can safely say that his radio show wasn't too raunchy, but just what troops in that situation would need on their time off (what precious little they had). The message of the movie isn't the traditional, "You can achieve your dreams" schlock, but a message that people in a stressful situation deserve to relax every once in a while, why censor what relief they can get? On top of that, it isn't straight comedy, and the drama is done very well. I just have to remember not to answer my phone like he does...
Interesting fact: The real life Adrian Cronauer is a member of MENSA. Here's a clip from his show and an interesting speech about the movie from him.
I will have part 2 up shortly, bear with me, please.
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