100th Post: My Top 10 Favourite Films

Ever since I started The Cainage Critique just under two years ago in October 2013, I’ve been writing more than I ever have before. New ideas have come and gone and I’ve managed to spread my work to several different sites. Writing reviews and other opinion pieces on films and video games has been a much enjoyed hobby of mine for quite a while now, and to celebrate my 100^th post, it’s time to share my favourite films with you. Thanks for reading and here’s to the next 100 posts.

Honourable Mentions (Maybe I might put these and others into a top 20-11 list someday)

•          Downfall

Downfall is one of the greatest foreign films ever made; taking on a perspective that had never been done before in war films, Der Untergang as it’s known in Germany took us into the perspective of Hitler and chronicled his final days in World War Two. It’s incredibly absorbing stuff, with every single performer bringing to bear the break-down of the Nazi regime in detailed and emotive ways. At the film’s centre is Bruno Ganz who gives an exceptional performance as Adolf Hitler, creating a vivid picture of how and why he fell as a dictator. The film also delves into the lives of the German people, showing how they were caught in the middle of a besieged Berlin. Downfall offers a perspective on World War Two like no other and you should definitely take the time to watch it.

•          The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises

As far as superhero movies go, there’s plenty in terms of overall quality; but my favourites are The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. Christopher Nolan knew exactly what he was doing when he rebooted the Batman character in 2006 and things only got better as the series went along; the dark and brooding tone was a perfect fit for the Caped Crusader. I believe that The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises are just as good as each other. The Dark Knight was an incredible leap forward for the series, not to mention having a stand-out villain with Heath Ledger’s Joker, whilst The Dark Knight Rises featured some incredibly sombre moments and one of the best climaxes in any superhero film to date. Batman Begins is the odd one out in the trilogy, which is mostly down to the lacklustre editing of the action sequences and other idiosyncrasies which keep it from reaching the same level. It’s a shame that DC hasn’t quite been able to make movies of this calibre since the trilogy concluded in 2012, but I’ll remember The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises as films which took Batman to the next level on the big screen.

•          Predator

Directed by action veteran John McTiernan, Predator is one of my top picks for the best action film of the eighties. With all an all-star cast, awesome action scenes and sudden twists, Predator bestowed us with one of the most memorable movie monsters in history. The film’s foreboding and sinister soundtrack by Alan Silvestri is an outstanding compliment, rising and building as the stakes for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Major Dutch Schafer and his men rise with every passing minute. The creature designs and special effects are great; chock full of real-stunt work and grotesque looking creature designs. While the cast all does a fine job, showing the camaraderie and teamwork, the monster itself is the star of the show. It’s a fantastic design, with an interesting set of technology and a deadly motive that always keeps the viewer guessing.

•          Platoon

There have been several films based on the Vietnam War, but the one I always go back to is “Platoon”, directed by Oliver Stone. Stone, who was a US Infantryman in the Vietnam War himself, understands the nature of ground combat in the war better than any other filmmaker and it really shows in what could be considered one of his finest films. Platoon is a shocking, gritty and often brutal portrayal of the Vietnam War and it puts you right into the perspective of the soldiers who often lost their humanity in a war many had argued was not necessary. The main performances from Charlie Sheen, Willem Dafoe and Tom Berenger are all equally excellent, showing how they and the other soldiers cracked under the pressure. Then of course there’s the iconic use of Adagio for Strings which sets a sombre and lamentful tone that hangs over the film. The composition placed against the reflective speech from Charlie Sheen’s character in the film’s final moments still stands as one of the most memorable monologues in any film I’ve seen.

•          The Descent

What is the prime objective of a horror film? There’s a common misconception in modern audiences that a good horror movie is defined by how many times it made you jump out of your seat, but really that’s just lazy filmmaking. The best horror films employ an array of tactics to build the atmosphere and scare the viewer in gradual steps. The Descent is one such film; I don’t usually suffer sleepless nights from horror films, but this one scared me senseless. The film has so many things which send shivers down my spine; the idea of being trapped in a claustrophobic environment with no way out, the grim and bleak tone that persists throughout and of course, the utterly hideous creatures hunting you down at every turn. It’s a visceral and terrifying movie that shows modern horror films how it should be done.

10. Locke

Locke is an obscure gem indeed; it’s one of the simplest plots I’ve ever seen in a movie. One man in a car driving home down the motorway, talking to his various acquaintances; yet this man has a lot to him, both good and bad. We learn everything there is to know about Ivan Locke over the film’s 84 minute running time; his work, family and darkest secrets all come to light. A vast majority of the film’s performances come through voice work, resulting in some standout moments; you believe in every single character that partakes in the drama as well as the situations they are involved in. Rounding off the film is Tom Hardy as Ivan Locke, whose detailed facial expressions go a long way towards conveying the stress and pressure that mounts throughout the film. It’s a very slow paced film, but if you enjoy dramas which put characters and their real life struggles first, Locke will not disappoint you.

9. Saving Private Ryan

Stephen Spielberg is one of the best directors ever to grace the Hollywood scene and while I did enjoy the Jurassic Park series as a child, the film that really showed me just how powerful Spielberg’s films can be was Saving Private Ryan. The film is an absolute assault on the senses, putting the audience in the thick of World War Two battles better than perhaps any other war film ever made; the action sequences are framed so authentically and with a visceral quality that puts across the frightful nature of the combat. Both the Omaha Beach landings on D-Day and the final battle in a crumbling town are so impactful, so hard-hitting in their violence and tension, that it’s said real war veterans refrain from watching them because they bring back traumatic memories of the battles they fought. Saving Private Ryan is a masterfully executed and full-bodied war film; it gives a vivid picture of war while managing to make violence frightful and disturbing in its portrayal.

8. Cast Away

Of all the films I’ve seen, Cast Away starring Tom Hanks is the only one which can claim to hit me in the heart and bring a tear to my eye just about every time I see it. It’s probably the most emotional and heart-wrenching film I’ve ever seen. Cast Away follows Chuck Noland, a deliveryman for FedEx; on a seemingly routine flight, the plane crashes in an uncharted area of the ocean leaving him the only survivor. From here Chuck is all on his own, forced to survive with no other people for company. It’s held together by an outstanding central performance by Tom Hanks and one of the most heartfelt themes I’ve ever listened to. There’s a genuinely powerful sense of pathos that hangs over the entire film, which gradually draws the viewer in and gets them more and more invested in Chuck’s struggle and the film’s final act is filled to burst with powerful, hopeful moments. Robert Zemeckis may be best known for the Back to the Future series and Forrest Gump, but Cast Away comes pretty close to matching them in terms of overall quality. (And don't watch the trailer if you haven't seen the film yet, it's loaded with spoilers!)

7. The Pianist

There have been several films based on the Holocaust and while some believe Schindler’s List to be the best of these, I personally enjoyed The Pianist a lot more. It tells a moving tale of one man’s struggle during the most terrible genocide in human history. It follows Władysław Szpilman, a pianist, who like many Jewish people was forced to live in the Warsaw Ghetto with his family. After some truly horrifying scenes in the Warsaw Ghetto in the early years of the Nazi occupation, the perspective switches entirely to Szpilman’s perspective as the lone survivor. You become incredibly invested in his story all the way through, the kinds of things he had to do to survive and the sheer amount of luck that kept him from the fates that awaited thousands upon thousands of other Jews. Adrien Brody gives an outstanding main performance; it really is one of the most believable characterisations ever put to a World War Two film. It’s often a ghostly, eerie film which brings even more poignancy, particularly at the point where Szpilman wanders through the deserted ghetto, in tears at the loss of everyone he knew and held dear. The most hard-hitting image for me though is Spzilman stumbling back through the devastated ruins of Warsaw; it’s a perfect summation of the utter destruction caused by World War Two.

6. Tarzan

While I watched some Disney films several times in my youth, the one that stole the show for me is Tarzan; it’s easy to take a quick look at the movie and nit-pick certain details such as the villain from an adult perspective, but ultimately the film has everything I’d want in a story about the vine-swinging ape-man. Fast paced and action packed moments, plenty of heart and a riveting soundtrack from Phil Collins all come together to produce my favourite film from the mega-corporation. It ended up being the last of the Disney Renaissance series, yet I see it as fully capable of standing on the same level of the other popular Disney classics.

5. King Kong (2005)

I saw the 2005 remake of King Kong, quite fittingly in New York City with my family; I had been looking forward to the film for most of the year and when it finally came to watching it, I was blown away and then some. The film is, as Roger Ebert put it, “a flowering of all the possibilities in the original classic film”. Combine both natural progression of the plot and characters alongside updated tech and the result is one amazing film. The only real gripe most people have with King Kong 2005 is its length; Peter Jackson has always loved to make really long films and while this hasn’t worked too well in The Hobbit Trilogy, here I feel that it really works to build and expand on the source material of the original film. Everything from the slow-burn of the Venture, to the deadly plunge into Skull Island, all the way up to the final conclusion kept me invested the whole way through. King Kong is more than just a sweeping and emotional epic; it can also be considered one of the best remakes ever made.

4. The Alien trilogy

While the Alien series hasn’t frightened me as much as The Descent, I’m nonetheless a huge fan of the series for its deep characterisation, detailed worlds and memorable villain. The Alien franchise had a massive influence on both horror and action films and still stands to this day as one of the most popular sci-franchises ever made. The characters are some of the most memorable in sci-fi history; leading the series is Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Ripley, one of the strongest and most detailed heroines in any film. The first film was an incredibly claustrophobic and imaginative movie with a stand-out cast and nail-biting suspense, not to mention a fascinating depiction of space travel and the alien planet. The second film was a brilliant sequel, expanding the series into the action genre, while also building on top more layers of character development and the Alien creature itself. Whilst Alien 3 was a step down from the first two, I still consider it a worthy close to the trilogy in the way it brings both Ellen Ripley and the Alien’s story to an end in a thoughtful way. I don’t rate Alien Resurrection or indeed any of the other films in the series outside of Prometheus; they all abandoned the serious tone the franchise once prided itself and ended up laying to waste most of the traits that defined the series.

3. The Toy Story trilogy

Of all the animated movies I saw as a child, none have come close to matching Toy Story and the trilogy only got better as I grew up, noticing all kinds of little details and even relating to Andy on some levels. The first film utterly dazzled me when I was three or four years old and the second film further expanded my enjoyment of the trilogy. The third came out at just the right time, allowing for a different perspective in my teenage years. The series has done so much right, so much to change the space of animated films. It has also provided us with so many memorable moments and likeable characters that I’m finding it hard to get excited for a supposed new trilogy. The first three films are perfect on their own and many other people, as well as myself will no doubt continue to watch them time and time again.

2. The Departed

The Departed is my all time-favourite crime film and Scorsese’s absolute best effort in the modern age of filmmaking. While its roots lie in the 2002 Hong Kong film Internal Affairs, Martin Scorsese puts his own spin on it and in doing so, claimed his first Oscars for both best picture and best director in 2006. The film is both entertaining and tense from start to finish with Leonardo Di Caprio and Matt Damon playing two informants in the police and criminal gangs who must find each other before their own cover is blown. It’s a deadly game of cat and mouse which just keeps on building over the course of the film, making for one of the most unpredictable plots I’ve ever seen in a movie. But it doesn’t stop there; the supporting cast is massive, varied and all equally excellent and the soundtrack perfectly ties in with the rough and gritty nature of the film. The 2006 Oscars didn’t get it wrong; The Departed really is an excellent film from beginning to end, nothing less from the master of the crime drama.

1. Avatar

My favourite film of all time is Avatar; there is not one thing in this movie which I don’t like or detracts from my overall enjoyment. First conceived in 1994, but delayed time and time again due to technical limitations, Avatar more than lived up to expectations, becoming the highest grossing film of all time. First you take the classic story of Pocahontas, inject a beautiful and futuristic world with two distinctive factions, mix in a set of thoughtful themes that juxtapose technology and nature, and finally push the boundaries with ground-breaking 3D visuals that aren’t there just to rake in money, but instead significantly up the audience’s immersion in the world the film creates. Avatar is the ultimate film for me, something so awe-inspiring, absorbing and incredible that it makes almost every other film out there look tame by comparison. It’s also further proof that James Cameron remains one of the best and most influential directors in the Hollywood scene. I’m eagerly awaiting the upcoming sequels from 2016 through to 2018.

(All film trailers used are the property of their respective owners)