370. La jetee/The Pier (1961)

Running Time: 28 minutes
Directed By: Chris Marker
Written By: Chris Marker
Main Cast: Jean Negroni, Helene Chatelain, Davos Hanich, Jacques Ledoux

SHORT AND SWEET

This movie has been floundering on my Netflix streaming queue for a good while now, so I figured I'd go ahead and give twenty-eight minutes and get it watched. It wasn't really that bad, but then again, it was a short film and there really wasn't a lot of time for error.

If you've ever seen the film "12 Monkeys" then you already know the premise of "La jetee". "La jetee" is told entirely by using still photographs and is about a post-apocalyptic world, following World War III. In the future, some scientists want to gather some human guinea pigs together to send into the future, citing that they need to "call past and future to the rescue the present". After some trouble finding humans who can withstand the shock of time travel they call forth a prisoner, based on the fact that he is obsessed with a childhood memory about a woman he saw and a murder he saw. He goes into the past and finds the woman, spending some time with her and forming a relationship with her. After being sent to the past, he is then sent to the future, where he encounters a group of people, who provide him with the power to regenerate his own, present society. After returning to present day, he learns that he is to be executed, but is then contacted by the future people, who offer to help him. He requests to be transfered to the past permanently, so that he can live with the girl in pre-war times. They oblige him and he is sent to the past where he plans to meet the girl on the same pier where he witnessed a murder as a small boy. When running to meet the girl on the pier, he is shot and realizes that the murder he witnessed as a child was his own.

I guess I just have a problem regarding short films as anything other than "good" or "not good". I have a harder time handing them the status of masterpiece. It just seems so ridiculous to me to deem a movie that is less than half an hour a masterpiece. Sure, "La jetee" is a good little movie and the photography is very nice. The ending is probably the most harrowing part of the film and the narrator's voice (dubbed in English in my version) was a powerful, good storytelling voice. Actually I've always been a big fan of "12 Monkeys" and seeing it first, I'd have to say I prefer it much more than this one. I'll have to say that Terry Gilliam did a pretty good job stretching twenty-eight minutes of story into two hours and the final product was really good, though much more complex than this. This was a simple, little sci-fi tale that served its purpose and got it's story across, so I'd say it's a success, but still...it's simply too short to really amount to anything more than a mild recommendation.

RATING: 5.5/10 That's a rating that rates "La jetee" on a short film scale and the "1001" scale. Good for a short film, but not significant enough to make it into this book.

MOVIES WATCHED: 198
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 803

November 21, 2010 10:00pm

805. Roger & Me (1989)

Running Time: 90 minutes
Directed By: Michael Moore
Written By: Michael Moore
Main Cast: Michael Moore, Roger Smith

MORE MOORE

After watching "Fahrenheit 9/11" earlier this week, I figured I'd might as well wrap up the Michael Moore films contained in the "1001" book and watch "Roger & Me" tonight, as I make my way a little bit closer to 201 films watched.

The 'Roger' in question is Roger Smith, CEO of General Motors. The film is set in Flint, Michigan and chronicles the hardships of the town following the closing of several auto plants, the towns primary source of employment for over 30,000 Flint citizens. The plants were closed, despite record profits being recorded by General Motors and plants were reopened in Mexico, where labor costs were cheaper. Michael Moore's main objective in "Roger & Me" is to get into contact with Roger Smith and ask him to accompany him back to Flint, Michigan, so that he can see some of the damage he has caused. Over the course of the documentary, Moore tries over and over to get some sit down time with Roger, but over and over he fails. When not trying to track down Smith, Moore interviews several citizens of Flint, including Sheriff Fred Ross, who has the unenviable task of evicting many Flint natives from their homes, due to inability to pay the rent. Moore continues to interview people from Flint, further driving home the realization of the hardships that befell the city and interviews some celebrities who grew up in Flint, like Bob Eubanks. Moore also interviews Miss Michigan, who when asked what she would like to say to the people of Flint, uses the time to remind the to keep their fingers crossed as she chased the Miss America crown.

I'm gonna' TRY to keep this review short & sweet as well, because I know there are a great number of Moore detractors out there and I wouldn't want to turn any of them off. To me, this film is incredibly sad. There is one portion of the film that shows Sheriff Fred Ross evicting a family on Christmas Eve. Another scene shows an evicted family set to be put out on the street, with several small children. I can't imagine what life in Flint must have been like during this terrible time, because even if you weren't directly affected by the layoffs, the film makes note of the rising crime rate in the city and that must have been hell too. I guess if I were someone who believes what Moore says (I won't say whether I am or I am not), then I would probably be comparing Roger Smith to a part of the human anatomy that is primarily used for sitting.

Now, of course, you can make the argument that these Flint residents should've managed their money a little better and prepared for a rainy day and then maybe when the GM plants closed down they would've been a little bit more prepared and not have had to resort to beating rabbits over the head for sustenance. But doesn't a proper company give a little something to it's laid off employees, especially when they're recording record profits? Doesn't a proper company offer retraining programs? Doesn't a proper company give back to the employees who slaved for years and years, working on the assembly lines? I don't know, I'm just asking.

I guess, in the end, this movie really just makes me appreciate the fact that I have a stable job. So I better wrap up this review, because I'm due in at 8am.

RATING: 10/10 Probably right up there with "Bowling for Columbine" as far as best Moore movie I've seen. And hey, why isn't "BFC" in the book? My TOP 20 making job just got harder.

MOVIES WATCHED: 197
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 804

November 21, 2010 12:11am

955. Wo hu cang long/Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

Running Time: 120 minutes
Directed By: Ang Lee
Written By: Hui-Ling Wang, James Schamus, Kuo Jung Tsai, from book by Du Lu Wang
Main Cast: Chow Yun-fat, Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, Cheng Pei-pei, Sihung Lung

ANG LEE WEEK: STAGE 3

The third installment of "Ang Lee Week" comes in with "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", a movie that I've failed to see until now and that's not a decision I'm regretting too much at the moment.

Chow Yun-fat is Li Mu Bai, an accomplished Wudan swordsman. Li Mu Bai is good friends with Yu Shu Lien (Yeoh) and the two make plans to visit another friend, Sir Te (Lung) and deliver to him as a gift, the Green Destiny, a very powerful sword in the possession of Li Mu Bai. Once the sword is delivered to Sir Te by Yu Shu Lien, it is soon stolen and the main suspect is Jade Fox (Pei-pei), a warrior who killed the master of Li Mu Bai. When Li Mu Bai arrives at the palace of Sir Te, he and Yu Shu Lien begin to put together clues on where the sword may be. It is believed that the sword may lie in the palace of Governor Yu, possibly a potential setup to frame him. Governor Yu's daughter, Jen (Zhang) becomes infatuated with Yu Shu Lien and seems to envy her warrior lifestyle. Soon after it is revealed that the masked warrior who broke into Sir Te's palace and stole the sword was actually Jen and that her master is actually Jade Fox. Then they story jumps back in time a little bit to tell us about the relationship between Jen and Lo, who met when Lo stole Jen's comb during a desert raid. Jen chases Lo, trying to regain her property and ends up being held captive by Lo, until the two fall in love. Lo returns, in present day, and asks for Jen to return to him and be his lover. She tells him to leave. The Green Destiny is returned, but later recaptured by Jen and Jade Fox.

POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT!

Sorry if that plot synopsis was a bit shaky, I just didn't have the energy to put very much more thought into the happenings of this movie. I really didn't like this one at all and outside of the fighting scenes, it was a total loss, from a personal standpoint. Even the fighting scenes were unrealistic, with people flying through the air and waving swords at each other while standing on treetops and skipping across water. But the fight scenes at least provided a little bit of entertainment in an otherwise un-entertaining film. The entire plot hinges on the location of the sword and at times it's stolen and then it's back in the possession of its owners. Then we take a sidetrack and delve into this long story between Lo and Jen, which all starts because Lo steals Jen's comb and it all just gets very boring and very uninteresting as we make our way to the anticlimactic ending.

Ang Lee should've stuck to dealing with real people in real, everyday situations instead of delving into the mystical world of imaginary, treetop sword fighting. Although, when it boils down to it, I think this one just fell into the unfortunate category of, "not for me". The cinematography was nice, although that really only takes you so far and the score, despite it's Oscar win, wasn't anything to write home about either. And while we're on the subject of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" at the Oscars, I'm really not sure how this film managed to wrestle away even a Best Picture nomination from films like "Cast Away", "Almost Famous" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" which are all far superior to this. In fact, I'm not sure why "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" is even in the book, over any of those films. But I digress and I'll stop picking on this movie, which clearly just wasn't for me.

RATING: 3/10 Too bad, as Ang Lee was on a roll with me and this really put that roll to a halt. Next up: "Brokeback Mountain".

MOVIES WATCHED: 196
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 805

November 20, 2010 6:39pm

766. Broadcast News (1987)

Running Time: 127 minutes
Directed By: James L. Brooks
Written By: James L. Brooks
Main Cast: William Hurt, Albert Brooks, Holly Hunter, Robert Prosky, Joan Cusack

AND NOW FOR SOME NEWS

With "Broadcast News" leaving the streaming portion of Netflix tomorrow, I decided I'd go ahead and watch it, so that I could avoid adding it to my regular queue. I was kind of anticipating it, seeing as how I've been a William Hurt fan for quite sometime and recently discovering the talents of Holly Hunter.

Our three main leads are Jane (Hunter), Aaron (Brooks) and Tom (Hurt). Jane and Aaron work at the Washington bureau of a TV network and scramble to perfect their news pieces to get them on the air. Aaron is a reporter and Jane a producer, for the network. They're best friends and have a tendency to call each other up for even the most menial of reasons. When Tom Grunick arrives in town, he comes off as a not so smart, yet handsome man, who Jane asks to dinner following his appreciation for her speech at a news conference. They go to her room after dinner and he confesses his lack of talents, as he is a sportscaster who, on a fluke, got thrust behind the news desk and became an anchor. She disapproves of his tactics and later he tells her that he has been hired by her station. From that point on, realizing Jane is someone who will tell him like it is and not just what he wants to hear, Tom is head over heels for Jane, chasing her throughout the film and trying to win her affections. Aaron also begins to feel love for Jane and trying to win her heart, fails, as Jane, possibly not wanting to taint the friendship, will not return Aaron's love. The whole thing is a big one-sided love triangle mess, all set inside the confines of a broadcast newsroom.

POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT!

My biggest problem with "Broadcast News" was the characters. Jane wasn't a problem, as I thought Holly Hunter did great and I've actually known of a few girls like Jane, who are perfectionists and race around in frantic mode trying to meet deadlines and get things done. I thought Jane's daily cries were hilarious and provided a deeper insight into who Jane was, a character who could only take a minute out of her day to have for herself...and she chose to spend her minute crying. My character problems instead lied with the two main male leads, Let's take Aaron first. Was I supposed to sympathize with Aaron? We have this smart guy, who is nearly perfect at his job and is portrayed as an "I'm smarter than you" kinda' guy as a kid. He's funny yes, and for the most part he was the character that I wanted to get behind as the winner of Jane's heart. Then you have Tom, who is portrayed as kind of a dummy who gets thrust into the biggest news position that there is. Am I supposed to like a guy like that? I don't want to get behind the character who gets all of the things that he doesn't deserve. I guess they kind of lighten that up by having him admit the fact that he doesn't deserve it, but later he develops a bit of a cocky attitude, an "I'm better than you attitude" and yet he still seems to be the guy that the movie wants us to get behind.

Hell, maybe we're just supposed to like a little bit of everybody and get upset when things don't turn out perfectly for all of them, I don't know. Honestly, I was pretty much rooting for Aaron the whole time, as he was the funny guy who you kind of felt sorry for, despite the fact that he was a smart ass. Tom was just way too charming and snake-like for me to root for and like I said, I liked the character of Jane. The rest of the film was fine, really nothing good or bad, but leaning more toward the good side. The romance set inside a newsroom angle kind of worked for me, but not entirely and in the end I wasn't all that impressed. I did like the music, and on a side note, music has been something that I've really been picking up on in films lately, especially if it's really good or really bad.

RATING: 6/10 Nothing to really write home about here. The actors do a fine job, it's the characters who are hit and miss with me.

MOVIES WATCHED: 195
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 806

November 20, 2010 1:10pm

COMING SOON: Countdown to the TOP 20 Edition

With only seven movies to go before I hit 201 movies watched for the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die" book, I figured I'd pop in and put up a quick "Coming Soon" post and let you guys know the goings on and plans for the blog in the upcoming days.

First of all, I see no reason why I shouldn't be ready to make my TOP 20 list (Yes, Top 20...more on that in a minute) by Monday night. I had today off and am off tomorrow too and am also off on Monday, so that should give me ample time to watch seven movies. The seven movies will be:

1. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000 - Ang Lee)
2. Brokeback Mountain (2005 - Ang Lee)
3. Roger & Me (1989 - Michael Moore)
4. Broadcast News (1987 - James L. Brooks)
5. unknown
6. unknown
7. unknown

While those three movies are unknown, I can tell you that they'll more than likely come from movies that are currently streaming on Netflix. I'd like to squeeze in some older movies, as I've been mainly lingering in the 1980s and beyond recently, but we'll see what happens.

Before I get into the subject of the TOP 20 list, I want to quickly mention that I am no longer being adamant about updating my Facebook status, so for those of you who are friends of mine on there, enjoy the pictures, as that is probably all that I'll be using it for. For those of you who yearn for my rambling updates, feel free to follow me on Twitter @adduvall84, where I ALWAYS tweet when I watch a list movie or any movie for that matter. If you're still interested in joining me on Facebook, feel free to send out a friend request. You can find me with the e-mail address of: 1001movieman@gmail.com As mentioned above, I will only be using the Facebook page to chronicle pictures of actors, actresses and directors that I discover or rediscover from watching "1001" movies.

Now then...the TOP 20...

For those of you who are long time followers of me, you may remember my original plan of making lists. Let me refresh your memory and enlighten the people who may not know about my original plan.

The original plan was to make a TOP 20 list once I watched 101 movies from the book, which I did (and will repost prior to my new TOP 20). Following the first TOP 20, I intended to make a TOP 40 following my watching of 201 movies, a TOP 60 following my watching of 301 movies and subsequently adding 20 films to the TOP list for every 100 films. I got to thinking about that plan and realized that eventually might tend to forget those early films I watched and thus the newly watched films would dominate my memory and the TOP lists. The new plan is to continue to make a TOP list after every 100 films, but instead of adding 20 films every time, to keep it at just a TOP 20 and rate & rank only the previous 100 films that I've watched. Confused yet? Hope not. So basically, with the TOP 20 that is coming up, I'll only be ranking the 100 films I've watched since my original TOP 20. Got it? Good.

I'll make sure to post a list of the 100 films that I've watched since that original TOP 20, so that you guys can get a refresher on the films that I will be choosing from when making my TOP 20. What are the top candidates so far for the new TOP 20? Glad you asked...Here is a list of films that leap out at me as top candidates for the upcoming TOP 20. This was a quickly made list and I didn't obsess over this too much. Trust me though, I will obsess over the TOP 20 list, so that I can make sure to bring you an accurate list of my TOP 20 favorite movies from #102 - #201. Here's the list...

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Olympia (1938), Stella Dallas (1937), Bringing Up Baby (1938), Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939), Le jour se leve (1939), Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Citizen Kane (1940), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), The Pianist (2002), The Heiress (1949), My Left Foot (1989), Brief Encounter (1946), Dangerous Liaisons (1988), Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), 8 1/2 (1963), Juliet of the Spirits (1965), Raising Arizona (1987), Shadow of a Doubt (1943), The Big Chill (1983), Strangers on a Train (1951), Rear Window (1954), Edward Scissorhands (1990), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), Being There (1979), The Piano (1993), Halloween (1978), Toy Story (1995), White Heat (1949), The Birds (1963), Frenzy (1972), Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004), The Wedding Banquet (1993), Sideways (2004), The Ice Storm (1997)

There are still seven movies to go though, so lets not get ahead of ourselves.

November 19, 2010 10:46pm

918. The Ice Storm (1997)

Running Time: 114 minutes
Directed By: Ang Lee
Written By: James Schamus, from novel by Rick Moody
Main Cast: Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Christina Ricci, Tobey Maguire

ANG LEE WEEK: STAGE 2

Ang Lee Week continues on with "The Ice Storm", a film that I saw once, several years ago and totally forgot that a portion of it was set during Thanksgiving, which is less than a week away. I didn't remember the film as being anything particularly special and once again my memory did me a great disservice.

The film is set in New Canaan, Connecticut, in the 1970s and follows two families throughout, primarily the Hood Family. The Hood Family is headed up by the father, Benjamin (Kline), a very dissatisfied father, both with his marriage and his career, who turns to suburban seductress Janey (Weaver) to have an affair with. Ben and his wife Elena (Allen) have given up on couples therapy, despite the fact that the roses have not returned to their relationship. While Elena suspects Ben of infidelity, she can never coax a confession out of him, despite her bad moods and short temper with him. The Hood's have two children, 14-year old Wendy and 16-year old Paul. Wendy is a curious young teenager who is interested in sex and Watergate, possibly trying to act more adult and Paul is the most level-headed character of the film, lusting after schoolmate Libbets Casey (Katie Holmes) and reading Fantastic Four comics. The other central family in "The Ice Storm" is the Carver Family, headed up by father Jim (Jamey Sheridan), his wife Janey Carver (Weaver) and their two sons, Mikey (Elijah Wood) and Sandy (Adam Hann-Byrd). As the two families tail-spin out of control and deeper and deeper into loneliness and infidelity, it all comes to a head on the night of the big ice storm.

The film is a depressing one, unlike my previous "1001" Lee experience, "The Wedding Banquet", which ended with the theme of happiness. This film goes for the depressing effect and the pale color of the film, with the backdrop of a winter ice storm, hammers home that mood. An amazing cast was assembled to bring author Rick Moody's tale to life, with great performances from Kevin Kline, Joan Allen and Christina Ricci. No one on the cast does a bad job and all the actors play a vital, yet sometimes small, role in the story. The music is phenomenal too and I am realizing the greatness that is Mychael Danna, the film's composer.

While the entire mood of the movie is dark and dreary, it's still a mood that appeals to me, as I'm always interested in the downfall of humans. This film is about that downfall and while I haven't yet figured out the relevance of the actual ice storm, I'm sure it somehow correlates to the behavior of the characters. There are some key scenes here that I feel compelled to mention, which include a scene where Ben catches Wendy experimenting sexually with Mikey Carver. When they walk home, he tells her that he's really not that mad and that he just wants her to make the right choices. He asks her if her toes are cold and when she nods in agreement to his question, he offers to carry her the rest of the way home. A very sweet scene, that felt a bit rushed and had me really feeling for these poor, pitiful characters. The ending is, of course, a great scene and I'll hesitate from ruining it for people who have yet to see it, but it is a very powerful ending. I don't know what else to say about "The Ice Storm". It's a really good film, that uses mood, atmosphere and interesting, yet sometimes unlikable characters, to give it that greatness and make it a definite for the "1001" book.

RATING: 8/10 Ang Lee is two films in, with two films remaining and with a '10' and an '8' rating, he's off to a great start. Next up: "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".

MOVIES WATCHED: 194
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 807

November 19, 2010 9:55pm

981. Sideways (2004)

Running Time: 116 minutes
Directed By: Alexander Payne
Written By: Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor, from the novel Sideways by Rex Pickett
Main Cast: Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Sandra Oh

ON MY JOURNEY I TRAVELED THROUGH WINE COUNTRY

With only nine movies to go before another "Top 20" was in order, I decided to throw a little monkey wrench into the list and watch an old favorite of mine, "Sideways". I thought it'd be interesting to see how an old favorite fit in with all of the new discoveries and where it placed on the list.

Miles (Giamatti) is an 8th grade English teacher and failed writer living in San Diego. His best friend and old college roommate is Jack (Haden Church), who is going to be married in one weeks time. As a wedding present Miles is taking Jack on a trip into Northern California and through wine country, a place that Miles knows a thing or two about, being an amateur wine connoisseur. The film is broken up by a series of title cards showing us the days of the week, as we take the trip with Miles and Jack. On the first night of the trip, Miles and Jack dine at The Hitching Post and Jack eyeballs a pretty waitress named Maya (Madsen), whom Miles already knows from previous visits. Jack promises to get Miles into the sack with a woman before the week is over and is determined to cheat on his fiance, as a way of cutting loose on one last wild weekend before the big marriage. Jack eventually meets Stephanie (Oh) and the two hit it off, as Jack tries desperately to help Miles advance things with Maya. Miles, only wanting to play it cool for the weekend with some golf and some wine tasting, gives off an almost jealous vibe as the women invade his time with his buddy Jack. But soon Miles warms up to the idea of having Maya around and the depressed, mid-life crisis ridden Miles begins to show signs of life.

POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT!

No wonder this is a personal favorite of mine, it is such a great film and right up my alley. I love life movies where we just get to follow some real life characters around and watch how they interact in their personal and public relationships. The character of Miles will always be a favorite film character of mine, as I'm so fascinated with the guy and really want the best for him. Paul Giamatti does an excellent job of turning Miles into a real life man, with real emotions, desires and flaws. The rest of the main cast is really great too, even Thomas Haden Church, who turned "Sideways" into a breakout performance for himself. Madsen and Oh are great too, but especially Madsen who delivers her dialogue with such passion that she almost puts me to tears.

In fact there is one scene in particular that always brings me extremely close to crying and I'm always surprised by it myself. The scene is with Miles and Maya, as they chit chat on the back porch. Maya asks Miles why he is so into Pinot and he responds:

Uh, I don't know, I don't know. Um, it's a hard grape to grow, as you know. Right? It's uh, it's thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It's, you know, it's not a survivor like Cabernet, which can just grow anywhere and uh, thrive even when it's neglected. No, Pinot needs constant care and attention. You know? And in fact it can only grow in these really specific, little, tucked away corners of the world. And, and only the most patient and nurturing of growers can do it, really. Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they're just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and... ancient on the planet.

Perhaps this description of Miles love for Pinot wine is a description on how he wishes his life was. Perhaps he's eluding to the fact that he wishes he could find a "grower" (lover) who had the patience and nurturing to put up with him and still love him. Perhaps he's trying to tell Maya that he's not an easy man to put up with, but, in his opinion, the payoff could be big. Miles then asks Maya why she's so into wine and she responds:

How it's a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing; how the sun was shining; if it rained. I like to think about all the people who tended and picked the grapes. And if it's an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I like how wine continues to evolve, like if I opened a bottle of wine today it would taste different than if I'd opened it on any other day, because a bottle of wine is actually alive. And it's constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks, like your '61. And then it begins its steady, inevitable decline.

This speech always gets to me. This is near perfect writing right here from Payne and Taylor. It's also perfect acting. If you watch Miles' face in this scene, as Maya tells him why she likes wine, it's the subtle expressions on his face and his barely there smile that help move the scene further. And if you watch his face, I believe it's one of the few scenes ever where the character becomes as real as possible and we can actually witness a movie character falling in love. His face says it all and combined with her words and the music, it's a perfect scene and while I don't cry when watching it, I come very close...every single time.

I guess I've spent the majority of this review focusing in on one scene, instead of the film as a whole. The character development is off the charts and it's that scene that really makes you smile along with Miles as he listens to Maya. Everything about this film is perfect...for me anyway. Maybe it's just one of those personal favorites that I can find great things in where others can't, although the film is quite heralded as being great. For me, everything clicks and there's no parts of it that I could do without. I love this movie and actually got excited when I put it into my DVD player today and saw the characters for the first time again. I got excited that I was going to get to spend yet another two hours re-living this wild trip through wine country with Miles and Jack. That's the sign of a great film: a movie that literally gets you excited when re-watching it.

RATING: 10/10 Did you really expect any other rating after all that gushing? It's going to make the "Top 20" even more difficult to make.

MOVIES WATCHED: 193
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 808

November 19, 2010 3:06pm