FilmMattic

Raging Bull Or is it the fact that my head feels like a Bull just rammed it, as I tried to fastidiously figure this one out.      This is going to be a long one. "R" ushered in one of the most spirited competitions yet. Fortunately, I could immediately eliminate one of my favorites. There will be no Raider of the Lost Ark. I already sneaked that one in (check "I"). However, there's still a dozen other great "R" films that I'm considering. My head is about ready to explode (thank you Bull).        There's Hitchcock's Rear Window, one of his finest masterpieces of suspense, and then there's Rebecca; not only is it one of the most thrilling psychological tales ever to be witnessed, but it's an illustrious remnant of the Golden Age. The competition does not lesson in intensity from here because I have to consider Howard Hawk's extraordinary western, Rio Bravo (Tarantino's favorite film), which is Hawk's and John Wayne...

Quiz Show        It's too bad that The African Queen isn't just called Queen because Humphrey Bogart gives one of his best performances alongside Katharine Hepburn in John Huston's beautiful film....but alas, let's move on to a good film that is a "Q" qualifier, and with reason. Since I was a little harsh to The Sundance Kid with my "O" post, I decided to make amends by selecting Robert Redford's historical drama, Quiz Show. "Q" is like the red-headed stepchild of film letters, but Redford's film is no walkover. I'll keep this review fairly short, not out of deference to Redford, who'd probably not want to read a long review. Instead, we all know "Q's" are only good when they're preceded by Susie. And, unless your playing "Words With Friends," who has any real use for "Q?" I don't know one person that has an affinity for Q-tips, and the rapper Q-Tip kind of faded into celebrity-ob...

Pulp Fiction       I've referenced Quentin Tarantino so many times before that I feel like he's already been awarded his own Great Alphabet of films. His extraordinary breadth of influence—or more explicitly, those who have inspired him—permeates most of my broadest cinematic affections. I guess this is why, perhaps perfectly fitting, that I'm moving from a discussion of a Sergio Leone film (whom Tarantino adores for his staggering stylization) to, in my opinion, Tarantino's best film. 

Stylish Blogger Award       Modesty goes out the window with this newest announcement. Thanks to the lovely and talented Nicole @ Electric Daze , I am now the grandiloquent owner of the "Stylish Blogging Award." I've always considered myself a trendy fella. I mean why else do most of my friends ferret out my incomparable advice when deciding which gear to rock on a Saturday Night. My buddy James used to come to my house with four different shirts—and this was before Jersey Shore turned t-shirt time into the newest, hippest, and most superficially-based, college-aged trend since....well, starter jackets, baggy jeans, and every other Hip-Hop fashion fad of my youth. 

Once Upon a Time in the West       As a Scorsese loyalist, much like any made man, I can never pay respect to a film that robbed a Best Director Oscar ( 1980 Academy Awards ) from Marty for his tremendous work on Raging Bull. The criminality of the Academy's heinous decision wreaks of the sordid criminality present in Henry Hill's breach of omertá in Goodfellas . The mafia doesn't look too kindly on Ordinary People . I'm sorry Robert Redford. As much as I love your work, especially in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, I can't grant you my "O" spot. Kurt Russell's performance in Overboard is priceless, but the film is far from flawless. For the record, I'm a big fan of Steven Soderbergh's Ocean's films (especially the first), but they don't garner placement either. So that leaves us with a double whammy of Once Upon a Times from Sergio Leone— Once Upon a Time in the West and Once Upon a Time in America— the irreverent One Flew Over...

North by Northwest       I would love to include a Coen brothers film in my Alphabet. No Country for Old Men is a tremendous contemporary film, but North by Northwest is one of the greatest films, period. Not to mention, Fargo is their best film, but Fight Club won that close contest (Sorry Coens). I also love The Natural (who doesn't love Roy Hobbs!?) and National Lampoons: Animal House (the father of the "gross-out genre") is one of the greatest comedies of all-time—my buddies and I even hosted a Toga party in honor of Blutarsky (played by the sorely missed, John Belushi). Network (the recently deceased Sidney Lumet) provides one of the most powerful scenes in the history of cinema, complements of the immortal Peter Finch, and his rousing " Mad As Hell " monologue. Lest we even forget, the 1927 film, Napoleon (Abel Gance), a landmark silent French film for its use of handheld cameras and editing. As you can clearly see, every letter presents a unique chall...

I'm About as Versatile as...Johnny Depp (Just kidding! Depp dwarfs me in that department. I mean the guy's done every conceivable role: Jack Sparrow, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, Willy Wonka, Gilbert Grape, Donnie Brasco, Raoul Duke, George Jung, John Dillinger etc. etc...He's a damn good chameleon).