Top 100 movies of all time: 05 - 01

Merry Christmas! Well, here we are. End of the road, so to speak. I hope you've enjoyed this little countdown and hope to see you again in the new year. The list might be over, but the blog is just getting started. Who knows, maybe there is a surprise in the wings (could be, I actually don't know). Either way, see you in 2011!

PS: things might be a little short today as well. Not a good trend, I know. But there is Christmas to be enjoyed and Disney cartoons to see.

NR. 05:

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981)

Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen and Paul Freeman



Archeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the US government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis.

WHY IT MADE MY TOP 5

The ultimate adventure movie inspired by the adventure serials of the 20's and 30's. Harrison Ford embodies the role of Henry 'Indiana' Jones Jr. so well it is hard (and rather scary) to imagine the role almost went to Tom Selleck. Due to Harrison's charm and crooked smile, the hat wearing, whip cracking archeologist became a world famous icon. What Raiders does so well is mix the fast paced adventure genre with the supernatural seamlessly, which until then was truly unique (and still stands the test of time). If you like adventure then look no further then to the raiders of the lost ark. It doesn't get any better then this.



NR. 04:

THE SHINING (1980)

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall and Danny Lloyd



A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from the past and of the future.

WHY IT MADE MY TOP 5

The shining is, to me at least, the scariest movie ever made. Kubrick never did anything half way and when adapting the Stephen King novel he spared no expense on the creep factor. From the dead twins to Jack's (masterful performance by Jack Nicholson. A role he was born to play)descent into madness all fills the film with a sense of dread and foreboding from the very first scene onward.



NR. 3:

STAR WARS
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980)

Directed by: Irvin Kershner
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher



While Luke takes advanced Jedi training from Yoda, his friends are relentlessly pursued by Darth Vader as part of his plan to capture Luke.

WHY IT MADE MY TOP 5

The second movie in a trilogy seems to be the dark one. Indiana Jones had its Temple of Doom. Back to the future's part 2 got pretty dire and The Dark Knight was just that; dark.. But the grand pappy of them all has to be The Empire strikes back. A movie that took all the optimism and sense of hope that Star Wars introduced and trampled it into the snow with a barrage of AT-AT's. Regarded by many (including me, obviously) as the best Star Wars movie and this is in no small part due to the gravity of the situation presented in the movie. The theme? Hopelessness and the struggle to survive when the entire galaxy is hostile. Well written (since it was not written by Lucas)and introduces you to a wider galaxy filled with wonder and adventure.



NR. 2:

DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)

Directed by: George A. Romero
Starring: David Emge, Ken Foree and Scott H. Reiniger



Following an ever-growing epidemic of zombies that have risen from the dead, two Philadelphia SWAT team members, a traffic reporter, and his television-executive girlfriend seek refuge in a secluded shopping mall.

WHY IT MADE MY TOP 5

When there is no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth. As a huge zombie fanatic there should be no surprise that Dawn of the dead (almost) tops the charts. They don't make zombie movies like this anymore. There is a sense of dread in Dawn that you can not shake off. Perhaps its the low budget that makes everything feel more real and gritty and lends almost a historical gravitas to everything. The dead walk the earth and no matter what you do, you will end up joining their ranks. Now or later. It is this sense of never ending horror that makes Dawn of the dead the best zombie movie ever made. Slow and unrelenting, just like the dead. Pure brilliance.



Well, here we are. The grand finale, the moment we have been building towards for 24 days now. For some of you this will be no surprise at all. For the rest of you I present my number one movie of all time:

*drum roll*



NR. 01!

JAWS (1975)

Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss



When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and grizzled fisherman set out to stop it.

WHY ITS NUMBER 1

Jaws. One of the earliest blockbuster movies ever made and still one of the greatest. It is my ultimate summer movie and one I can watch over and over without getting tired of it. The mash up of a idyllic summer paradise and an unrelenting great white shark with a great appetite for human flesh is enough to make an entire generation afraid of the water. The shark may look rather fake by today's standard, but even that is not nearly enough to take away from the suspense of Jaws. The fact that you seldom actually see the shark itself, but just shadows and parts makes it all the more terrifying. And when you do see it, only one phrase comes to mind: We're gonna need a bigger boat.



Well, that's it. End. Finito. Hope you had a good time and that you still have a very merry Christmas and a fantastical new year. See you at the movies!