TotallyOz Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 Roger Ebert posted his 2012 Greatest Films of all time. It is a great read: http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2012/04/the_greatest_films_of_all_time.html He decided: Aguirre, Wrath of God (Herzog) Apocalypse Now (Coppola) Citizen Kane (Welles) La Dolce Vita (Fellini) The General (Keaton) Raging Bull (Scorsese) 2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick) Tokyo Story (Ozu) The Tree of Life (Malick) Vertigo (Hitchcock) Those were his greatest of all time. Now, I know I am not as intellectual as most people but I must know, who liked The Tree of Life? It was one of the oddest movies I have ever seen. Yet, the critics loved it. Why? What did I miss? Quote
Guest EXPAT Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 "The Tree of Life" was the worst movie I've ever seen. Well one of the worst. It was the type of movie though that critics think they have to like to be part of the elite. . .I assume you know what I mean. These kind of lists are very hard to make and then agree to. It is very hard to have similar tastes to anyone. So I always take these kind of lists with a grain of salt because I know that there would never be a list that I would ever agree with 100%. But it always interesting to see what other people think. But I put no more value in their list as I would mine. They are all very personal views. Quote
TotallyOz Posted August 5, 2012 Author Posted August 5, 2012 I tend to agree Expat. For me, the list would be: The Godfather Rocky Heathers Gone with the Wind Raging Bull My Own Private Idaho King Kong Chariots of Fire Driving Mrs Daisy The Reader Quote
Guest hitoallusa Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 Gone with the wind is my favorite... I think I've seen it at least one hundred times... I love the documentary for Gone with the wind too. One thing I liked about Scarlette was that her strong will to live and survive. I was jealous though guys always surrounded her at parties. Quote
Members Theolover Posted August 5, 2012 Members Posted August 5, 2012 How is Wizard of Oz not on the list.. it would be for me anyway... Quote
Members seattlebottom Posted August 5, 2012 Members Posted August 5, 2012 King Kong is the perfect movie in my opinion. Citizen Kane was boring, it seemed like it had a "Genius at Work" sign in every scene. 2001 was OK, but the movie is too cold and sterile (and yes I do know that that was what Kubrick wanted). Vertigo I didn't like at first but it kind of grows on you. Quote
AdamSmith Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 I love that he put 2001 on there. He was the first major critic to get it. The brilliant but insufferable windbag Pauline Kael not to mention the rest of the rabble totally missed it first time around. But what else to expect from Ebert, given he was also the screenwriter for the incomparable Beyond the Valley of the Dolls? "You will drink the black sperm of my vengeance!" If I had to be anybody but myself, or Kubrick, or Clarke, I think I might choose Ebert. Jaw cancer and all. Just THE model of what to do with your consciousness, long as it endures. Quote
Members Lucky Posted August 5, 2012 Members Posted August 5, 2012 People who say they liked Tree of Life are just being pseudo intellectuals. They want us to think that only they could see the greatness in this movie mess. Two of my favorite movies are Old Yeller and Harold and Maude. I liked The Godfather too. Quote
Members JKane Posted August 5, 2012 Members Posted August 5, 2012 I really like and admire Roger, but you have to understand that they are often skewed on movies like Tree of Life not because they're all elitest arseholes, but becuase they see a thousand or more movies a year, in Roger's case for what, over 20 years straight? It gets to the point that a movie that goes unexpected directions or is odd for the sake of being odd will quickly become a standout with them because it'll be one of the few movies that surprised them, while the rest of the public is left confused and annoyed--half with the critic who recommended the movie. Once you understand reviews through this filter they can still be very useful and in Ebert's case even entertaining in their own right. In the end you have to decide for yourself what you like. Quote
Guest EXPAT Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 Oz made my point about lists being very different by person. I thought "Chariots of Fire" was also one of the worst movies I've ever seen. I was literally bored out of my mind when I saw that one. (sorry) It's hard to make a list of the best because I like movies for different reasons. But I loved "Moonstruck" mainly because the story was heartwarming and it was a breakout movie for Cher who proved that she could act and with an Oscar no less. I loved "Air Force One" a lot because I have seen it probably 20 times but I wouldn't put in the list of best movies of all time, but it is one that I have enjoyed over and over again. There are many more just as there are countless of movies that I hated. Quote
Members Buddy2 Posted August 5, 2012 Members Posted August 5, 2012 I agree about The Tree of Life, but the other films are standard critic favorites especially Vertigo and Citizen Kane Quote
Guest zipperzone Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 Not saying these qualify for a "best" list, but they are my top three favourites Roman Holiday Breakfast at Tiffany's Visconti's The Damned Quote
Guest Luv2play Posted August 5, 2012 Posted August 5, 2012 I'm no film critic or buff but I always was partial to Splendor in the Grass made, I believe, in 1962. (I could be wrong about that). To me it was the great American tragedy, of love denied, the failure of Wall Street (still resonates), and the resilience of the human spirit, as exemplified by the young Natalie Wood playing "Jeanie". I ended up crying at the end. Quote
AdamSmith Posted August 6, 2012 Posted August 6, 2012 Old Yeller Thank you for the memory jog! That and Mary Poppins are the first two movies I can remember my parents taking me to when I was little. I loved them, but even more remember being kind of awed to discover such a medium existed. The impact was so different from TV. I still really dislike watching good films on TV, even a big flat-screen with a good sound system. Barry Lyndon, 2001 (sorry for the Kubrick fixation but you do what you can with what you have ), Apocalypse Now, Aguirre, most any visually large-scale pic just annoys me to try and watch at home. But I will contradict myself. Something like Wild Strawberries, as I think about it, is sweet to stumble across on TV of a weekend afternoon. Suits the small screen. W.C. Fields does too. Ditto Marx bros. Also much noir-ish mental-type stuff in the vein of The Snake Pit or Lost Weekend (couple of you may here suppress two or three remarks). OK, I don't really have a point here! Quote
Members Lucky Posted August 6, 2012 Members Posted August 6, 2012 I saw it four times at the age of nine.(No, I had to have been ten.) The actor, Tommy Kirk, is now 70. He's on the right below: Quote
Guest epigonos Posted August 6, 2012 Posted August 6, 2012 I love films. Some of my favorites are in alphabetical order: Casablanca Chariots of Fire Godfather I Gone With the Wind Roman Holiday Room With a View Sound of Music Twelve Angry Men Wizard of Oz Quote
AdamSmith Posted August 6, 2012 Posted August 6, 2012 Wizard of Oz "...that soiten air of savoire-faire / In the merry old land of Oz"! The Lion (apart from the Wiz himself -- "This is absolutely the greatest exhibition ever assembled! -- ah ... Well, in any event" or whatever) got all the best lines. The highly self-aware vaudevillian writing was, to think of it, really superb all through. Just about every one of Margaret Hamilton's lines similarly had a high lapidary finish to them. How many among us, if melting into oblivion, would think to lament our "beautiful wickedness"? Quote
