The Bum’s Rush #14

The Best Stuff – Movies (part one)

Wow, okay, so I was wrong. This one’s got nothing to do with comics. Well, maybe just a little bit. But mostly it’s about my second great love – movies. I decided to run down my top five movies. Maybe not my top five favorite EVER because I have a difficult time nailing down specific lists like that. It’s just so hard when there are so many to choose from. So instead I’m running down the top five movies I can watch over and over again and never ever get tired of.

The Top Five

Heat – Probably one of the best cops and robbers movies I’ve ever seen. Heat, directed by Michael Mann, is the story of a professional thief (Robert DeNiro) and the cop that’s hot on his tail (Al Pacino). Not only does it offer up healthy doses of action, betrayal, revenge and romance, it also delves deeply into the personal lives of almost everyone involved, most especially the lives of DeNiro and Pacino. In the end it’s hard to tell which one you want to root for the most. The movie features, what I consider to be, the last truly great performances from both of the actors. And the historic cafÈ scene where the two characters (and actors) meet on screen for the first time is probably one of my favorite scenes in a movie ever. I could watch it over and over. If none of that does anything for you then perhaps you’ll want to watch just to see one the most truly amazing shootouts in film history.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan – When the original Star Trek: The Motion Picture failed to perform as well as the studio had expected they brought in producer Harve Bennett in an attempt to bring new blood to the franchise. Bennett in turn brought in director Nicholas Meyer, who was completely unfamiliar with Star Trek at the time. It was just what the doctor ordered. Meyer virtually reinvented the style of the franchise and in the process turned out my favorite Sci-Fi movie ever. Forget about being a Trekkie (which I’m not) or even a slight fan of the various shows (which I am). You don’t need to have ever even heard of Star Trek before. This movie drags you into what is essentially a great swashbuckling adventure in space with Captain Kirk as the intrepid Naval Officer (in the vein of Horatio Hornblower) and Khan, his nemesis, as the Captain Nemo-like renegade who will stop at nothing to find and kill his prey. Extremely memorable dialogue, epic space battles, heroic deeds, jarring twists and an exhilarating score make this a movie worth watching time and time again. Which I do. (Hell, I can pretty much quote the movie line for line, much to the chagrin of my father whenever he watches it with me.)

Superman – Sorry Spidey but when it comes to superhero films there isn’t anything better than the original Superman movie. This one got it right and got it right first. They got the origin down perfect with still plenty of time to tell a heroic, action-filled tale about the first great adventure of the world’s first great superhero. The casting was perfect, from Christopher Reeve as Superman (let’s face it, who do you picture when you think of Superman?), Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, Marlon Brando as Jor-El and even Ned Beatty as Otis. This movie also features some of the more powerful scenes you will find in a movie of this kind. The scene featuring Pa Kent's death and then funeral (“All my powers, all these things I can do, and it still wasn’t enough to save him”) is a favorite, as well as his response to the death of Lois, tender at first then quickly becoming terrifying. And the special effects, while choppy in places, still stand up, even in the face of today’s computer effects-laden market. Superman: The Movie, directed by Richard Donner, might just be single-handedly responsible for my love of all things Superman. It also contains my favorite movie quote of all time, delivered by Gene Hackman – “Everyone has their little faults Superman. Mine’s in California.”

Jaws – Okay, so it’s not Steven Spielberg’s best movie. Probably not close. But it is the one that I never tire of watching. It’s certainly the best movie ever made about a killer shark, but then that’s not really saying much. There are probably only two of those anyway. Good killer shark movies I mean. Really, though, the shark isn’t the reason I love watching Jaws. It’s the story, the characters, the interaction between those characters and the cinematography that gets me going. This movie, like the other movies on this list, has a perfect blend of story, character moments and dialogue and camera work. It is one of those perfect movies where everything works just right and there’s hardly a misstep to be found. Though for me the best parts of the movie happen in the last half. The boat trip out to sea with Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfus and the amazingly talented Robert Shaw. There’s tension, suspense, surprises and comedy, not to mention a stellar monologue by Shaw as he describes his own deadly encounter with sharks after his ship was sunk during World War II. And an ending so cool they used it twice. Seriously. Watch Jaws 4 if you don’t believe me. On second thought don’t.

The Thing – Since half these movies are genre favorites of mine I’ll go ahead and declare John Carpenter’s The Thing as my favorite horror movie. Trapped in the North Pole with a bunch of guys you’ve been around so long you’re starting to hate them, no rescue in sight and a killer alien on the loose that can assume any form it wishes. Can you imagine a more frightening situation? This movie is part of Carpenter’s unofficial End of The World Trilogy along with Prince of Darkness and In The Mouth of Madness. The whole point of these movies is to create a feeling of ultimate hopelessness. It’s one of the most effective ways to make a good horror movie. Give the cast, and the audience, the feeling that no matter what you’re in over your head in the most desperate and isolated situation possible. Then pump the paranoia up to 11. This is done to dazzling effect in The Thing. Add in one of the most frightening and grotesque movie monsters ever and there is no way you’ll want to watch this movie with the lights out.

Quick Bits

1. Rumors are swirling about the possibility of superstar Jim Lee returning to Wildcats in 2006 with Grant Morrison writing. That is a dream comic. Please, Comic Gods, let it happen!
2. Just finished the GLA mini-series by Dan Slott and Paul Pelletier and I’m pretty sure it’s going to get my nod for best mini-series when I do my year-end Best of 2005 column.
3. Seems that The Island sunk this weekend, raking in less than $15 million. Guess Stumblebum’s own Dana Place was dead-on with his review of the movie.
4. DC Solicitations for October 2005 right here!
5. And of course Marvel Solicitations for October 2005 too!
6. Stumblebum’s Kevin Steele just returned from San Diego where he was attending the SDCC where he managed to get Corey “The Rey” Lewis to sign my copy of Sharknife. Sweet!

NEXT WEEK: The best of the rest featuring the runner’s up that almost made the Top Five.

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