Ten Movies in the Making of Ali

 

Back to the future

I simply cannot get enough of all three BTTF movies. My dad and I even have a game where we quote a line and the other person has to quote the next line. I once saw a replica of the Delorean and I wept like a little baby.

Aliens

Alien is awesome, too, but Aliens is where the whole weird Mother metaphor comes into play. Plus all those amazing lines! “Game over man, Game over!” Plus Lance Hendriksen. Plus Michael Biehn.
The Quick and the Dead

Yeah, it’s a cheesefest directed by Sam Raimi. But it is beautiful in its photography, and the main character is a complex, independent woman who kicks ass. Plus young Leo diCaprio.

Dredd

My newest favorite. Dark, disturbing, with fantastic acting. Really brings the desolation of Mega-City One to life in the creepiest of ways. Yeah, it’s violent, but the story is interesting, too. And it really has a surprising number of complex women. And Lena Headey!

Fifty First Dates

The only rom-com that gets me every time. Omg, waffles, the beach boys, murals in the garage! And when she wakes up on the boat…it’s too much. 

Defending Your Life

Albert Brooks brand of nebbishism really becomes endearing in the face of Meryl Streep’s awesomeness. Set in an after-death waiting area-city of sorts, it is a really fun look at what an afterworld might look like. (Fun? Yes!)

The Godfather

Debates rage on which is the best, but I like the first one. Watching Michael devolve (or evolve?) into his father’s son is fascinating and scary, but you root for him. And oh, Apollonia! Oh! 😦

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Such a real, heartbreaking, and hilarious look at a break-up (or two, or three.) And this gem: “When life gives you lemons, I say FUCK the lemons and BAIL!”

Friends With Money

A quiet movie about people, but it is subtly funny. Everyone is complex and no one makes perfect choices, yet you like everyone. Joan Cusack is wonderful.

The Matrix

Blew my mind as a high-school senior. Still gets to me.