My Top Ten List

Movies Category

er..hmm.. how should i arrange this category?


Right. let's just go with this:

Movies I'm Crazy About At the Moment

The Godfather - Cult movie. Just happened to fall into it. Y'know.. it's inevitable I'd happen along this movie and get all googly-eyed about the mafia. I really liked the movie because it was and this is the perfect word for it, classy. I loved the way that I knew almost each and every scene because it's been alluded to in movies and books so many times. And, the funny thing is, it was because of another movie that I liked this movie even more. 'Knockaround Guys', a modern-day mafia movie which I just watched right after godfather, and I couldnt help comparing it since I just watched it. Of course, modern day mafia just didn't hold a candle to it.. and even just the script and everything. Knockaround Guys had the word 'f***' every five seconds, and had a supposedly brutal scene at the starting about making a twelve year old kid shoot someone. But... The Godfather, just the way they acted, it was just so much more.. vicious and ruthless, even if they didn't have the cursing and brutality. In fact, I think it's just even more brutal because they made the characters so human and compassionate. My favourite character was of course.. the Godfather himself, Marlon Brando.. and I don't know whether it's just my own stubborn need to rebel, but I didn't identify with the so-called hearthrob of the movie, Al Pacino/ Micheal. I actually preferred the brother... the hot-headed one because he just embraced the 'mob' and was so naturally..um.. mafia.



The Funny Ones
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back - yet another kevin smith one.. funny!!!

Liar Liar- For some reason, Jim Carrey maybe, this movie has always stuck in my head and i always laugh whenever i think of that part in the movie where the son says something like 'But our teacher always says that beauty is in the eye of the beholder' and then jim's char goes 'Oh..no.. that's just what ugly people say'

Dogma - gah.. i just love this and most of Kevin Smith's movies.. but this is my fave one. excellent script... definately recommend it to people who love witty satirical stuff, however, if you're sensitive about religion, especially Christianity.. you should probably pass this movie.

Pirates of the Carribean-
first off.. is it 'cuh-re-bee-yan' or 'car-rah-bee-yan' ? just always wondered that. next, the thing i've been telling everyone. this was an excellent movie mostly because i didn't expect it to be good at all in the first place. it had more plot than i had hoped for and the lines were very funny. and johnny depp, not only did he outshine elfboy and provided as eye-candy but his character... his effeminate walking!! i fell in love with that. great plot, two great eye-candies, one extremely attractive character, jack sparrow, pirate extraordinaire, and hilarious lines, yeap.. that's good enough for me. god, i sound like a movie reviewer..

Classic/Shakespeare/Arty-Farty Movies
Shakespeare in Love - I really do like this movie, and not just because it makes me look intellectual that i understand shakespeare. it's funny and i love all the references to shakespeare in it.

Midsummer Night's Dream - oh yeah.. this was like a pretty movie.. enjoyed the sparkles and effects and stuff.. i liked the book as well.

Romeo and Juliet - yes, the modernized one with Leo and Claire Danes. I liked the mood Baz Luhrman set.. very romanticized.. the music was excellent, as with most of his movies.

Great Expectations - hmm.. maybe i'm a fan of Gwenyeth Paltrow or something... er.. did i even spell her name right? but yeah.. loved this movie, more visually than plot-wise. it was again, a very pretty movie. and ethan hawke was so broody...*grins*

The Royal Tenenbaums - huh.. paltrow is in this one as well... maybe i am a fan...heh.. or just that she always takes up roles in all the movies i tend to like. funny script and great plot! very twisted.. i like!

Thought Provoking
Princess Mononoke - one of my all time favourites. Japanese animation flick... really good animation and plot. I don't really know how to describe it but i would recommend this to anyone. must've watched this about 10 times.

What Dreams May Come - i also really liked this one.. at first i was just pulled in by the visual effects, which are really good, but then after watching it several times, i got into the plot as well.

Cheaters - a HBO movie..quite unknown.. it has Jena Malone in it though.. i liked the whole concept :) maybe it's just the rebellious teen in me. but yeah, the movie sorta justifies cheating and stuff like that. good plot.

Dogma- it's up at the top there too but i wanted to mention it here as well.

Boiler Room - ah... essentially wanted to watch this at first just cause of Vin Diesel.. heh.. but turned out that the plot was quite interesting as well! i like movies where they're not all PC and insist everything is black and white.

Brokedown Palace - !!! i can't believe i forgot to add this to my top 10 list. this was a good movie though i heard a lot of negative reviews about it. i liked the fact that i hated the ending..heh.. i mean like, they didn't attempt the tie up all the loose ends and create a perfect happy ending. a very, very good story about friendship.

Story of Us - well.. it's not so much thought provoking but i thought it had a very real script and i loved this movie. It's not your typical romance movie because it's not much of a comedy but it's a lot more romantic than those type of movies.. i don't know.. it's just so much more real i suppose.

Bowling For Columbine - um.. i still think this movie is screaming 'contreversial' but because the director wanted it to, not because he wanted to prove a point, which dropped a few points.. it was as if he purposely intended to shock people, not that he wanted to show the movie for the sake of just showing the movie. but the shooting/war scenes were quite jarring.. of course, they were real so that's probably why.

The Truman Show - I don't know why but I love the concept of this movie. Though it did provoke thoughts of paranoia, I thought Jim Carrey played it well. Made me think...

Er.. Blockbusters? Is that the word?
as in, big-assed big-budget movies that were destined to make an impact
Moulin Rouge - yayyy.. one of my all time faves! i think i've watched this more than 10 times on DVD. music, costumes, script, actors, plot.. love it all. though the ending was a bit weak, i have to admit. but the songs more than made up for it!

LOTR LOTR LOTR - grah.. evil....... i love the book, i love the movie, i am OBSESSED with the freakin' DVD with its behind-the-scenes and actor's commentary... i feel in love simultaneously with the characters of the lotr book as well as the actors who played them.

AI - okay i know this wasn't popular but it was big-budget... i liked the idea of the story plus the visual effects.

Queen of The Damned - er.. okay.. wasn't popular as well but it did get a lot of hype. First.. *wipes drool away* Stuart Townsend...yum. i was pretty obsessed with this movie as well. but purely musically and visually cause they cut out a lot of stuff from the book. Interview with a vampire was better, plot-wise.

Pretty Whimsical Romanticized Movies
Practical Magic - Another all-time fave. I liked the book as well but they're entirely different, which for some reason, complements each other. the movie is a more lighter, whimsical look at it, and it's a great movie for when i'm all light-hearted and happy and stuff.

Spirited Away - aah! i'm so glad they won the oscars instead of lilo and stitch or ice age or whatever. this is like a really good movie, in my opinion, not as good as princess mononoke but lots of other people seem to think otherwise. as someone put it.. i can't remember who, i think it was my cuz or she read it from somewhere, and i think this summarizes the movie very well, 'it's like a japanese alice in wonderland but even better!'

Serendipity - even by the name, you can tell it's a romantic comedy. i liked it though, very warm and fuzzy feel-good movie.

Amelie - French movie.. very.. visually satisfying. I love the detail and colours, it's as if everything was set with a golden hue... everyday ordinary life but with a cleaner and more romanticized view. Especially liked the photobooth pictures. The plot is alright too, nonsensical type which I happen to like.

Simply Irresistable - er.. okay.. i don't know why.. maybe it's the food. again, purely visual. the plot is just nonexistent.. but it's great to look at.. food.. sean patrick flannery.. yum!

Show-offy Look-Good Flicks ie. Eye Candy
Hackers - ooh.. one of my early faves.. er.. don't know how to describe this much since the title says it all.. just for the rebel in me *smirks*

Fast and the Furious - um..heh.. well..er.. Vin Diesel.... plus.. fast cars... *points to above rebellious streak*

The Uncategorizable
yeah yeah i know that's not a word

Mists of Avalon - read the book, that's why i wanted to watch it and i liked that it followed the book closely and it really helped me to imagine the stuff in the book

Pandora's Box: Chinese Odyssey - chances are, you will not have heard of this movie. first off, because it's a chinese movie. and second, it wasn't very popular. but yeah, i don't know.. i really loved this movie. it's a love story sorta-ish.. and again, the fact that ending wasn't perfect and polished made me like it even more. it wasn't a sad ending but it just didn't bother to put everything nicely and tie all the loose ends up, which i hate because love isn't perfect all the time! anyways, good love story. the end.


The Abyss
Oooh.. an oldie! but like, it definately left an impact on me because i think i watched it when i was 11 or something and then like years later.. er.. not... which would be well, 6 years later, i thought of it again and there was this one scene in it that was captured in my head so i had to hunt up the videotape and watch it again.


(u}The One-Scene-Stealer
these movies might not have been particularly good, plotwise usually or visual-wise.. but somehow during that moment in time, with my mood or the atmosphere or current events, one particular scene catches my attention that makes me struggle to find good things about that particular movie. but usually, the movie's not that good but i just happen to love a scene or two from it.


The Next Best Thing
staring *shudder* madonna and rupert everett. i tend to have a fear of musicians acting ever since watching ' a walk to remember' and glimpses of 'crossroads'. anyways, the movie was alright, i suppose... rupert everett..yay.. but wasn't particularly romantic or interesting plot-wise.. except for this one scene where they were in the courtroom (in a nutshell, the story is about madonna and rupert who are best friends..rupert's gay... well, i mean the character is but i can't remember the character names, and while they were drunk one night, they slept together and madonna got pregnant. soo, blah blah story, they decide ro raise the kid together but then madonna meets a man she loves and wants to move away to another country with him and her kid but rupert has become really attached to the kid so there's this court thing on who gets parental rights over him) yes well.. courtroom and madonna's lawyer is questioning rupert about his sexual habits, and just totally going at him and attacking him and i found it sad because madonna was looking really ashamed that the lawyer was dragging out her best friend's sexual history all out in the courtroom and she just screams for him to stop. yeah, for some reason, found that touching.


The Lioness Roars
ah, this is yet another chinese movie. there are a rare few gems of good chinese movies but i love them all the same. i actually liked this movie a lot as well but plotwise, there were a lot of holes so i couldn't put it in the 'completely like' section. so this movie is set in traditional times in china, where two important points; one, the emperor is almost like 'god' and whatever he says is the law and must be true. two, no female equality yet, men were constantly having mistresses and being monogamous but it wasn't frowned upon and was considered to be a way of life still. i like the way the movie makes this point seem logical. anyways, there's this woman, this uncompromising, stubborn and having too much strength for her own good woman who always gets into fights and arguments. her brother is trying to find someone for her to marry so that he can 'tame' her or make her settle down or whatever. anyways, she meets this guy, a sweet, somewhat cowardly, sensitive poet and falls in love and vice versa. they get married. whirlwind romance. but then as i said, during those times, men were prone to being unfaithful, it wasn't considered wrong so the husband goes out with his married friends and visits brothel houses and those places but his wife doesn't approve. she hates it in fact. and she, being quite intimidating, 'convinces' her husband to stay at home. be a faithful husband, love her and her only, never cheat or lie to her, always take her side, make her happy when she's side.. and a long list of other things. which does seem a little unfair. the man has no choice but to oblige, being the 'sensitive' type, he is scared of his wife and all. but he does love her and she loves him too, he just has to stop going out and see other women, and that makes her case sound logical again. in the movie, i was really switching sides back at forth, i didn't know which to choose. anyways, moving on, one night, when the wife is away helping her brother with some work, the husband gets a visit from this girl, who uses this really elaborate ploy about being a ghost and him having to sleep with her for her soul to be released. so they slept together. next day, he found out it was a trick. the girl was actually the princess, the emperor's sister, and she resorted to this trick because she knew he was married and in love.
the wife returns, finds out, is very, very well.. angry.. but sad even more so. blah blah story, the emperor finds out and tries to make amends. problem is, the princess is in love with the guy and since they already slept together, a marriage is the most logical thing. the emperor declares that his sister will marry the guy, but she will take place only as the second mistress, meaning that the wife will have full control over her and she has to follow whatever she says as the first wife, which is giving a lot because the princess is 'royal blood' and all. however, the condition is that, the wife has no say in it. she can't make her husband decline. (obviously there are a few holes in the story because it doesn't matter what she or the husband wants since whatever the emperor says, goes) so anyways, the tradition for these is usually for the second wife to pour tea for the first wife and the princess does this but she knocks it aside. okay, after all that rambling, this is the scene which i really loved. the woman faces off to the emperor, and she gives a speech saying she doesn't accept it. why was it that a woman has to be faithful to one man and one man only while a husband is allowed to have as many wives as possible? she rages on about how marriage is supposed to be for two people in love and being faithful to each other. so yeah, this is my favourite part, i probably didn't explain it very well but just wanted to make a point of saying that the husband and wife really did love each other, the husband was intimidated by the wife but he willingly got married with her and loved her.

anyways, it was a sorta interesting ending as well because the husband wanted a divorce from her but not because he didn't love her but because of loving him, she had gotten into a lot of trouble with the emperor and then another solution was offered. there was this 'love potion' the once drunk, the person would forget their true love entirely, their memory wiped clean of the person. they wouldn't remember the person at all. so the wife accepted the potion the erase the pain of all that happened. but yeah predictably and ironically, the moment she drank it and forgot everything, the husband regretted and thought of all the moments they had together. so he had to re-win her love all over again. ah well... at least it's imaginative.


A Knight's Tale:
Eeh, well.. average plot. The one and only scene I really liked was the dance scene between Heath Ledger and that lead actress whose name I've forgotten. I really loved the costumes she wore throughout the whole movie and especially the one at the dance scene.. the green and gold dress and her eye make up was fantastic!