8. Rear Window (1954)
The best motion picture of the 1950s (argued by some as the decade to produce the greatest films), Rear Window is a deep and entertaining classic with many strengths. A fine suspense story is combined with romantic tension. There are numerous sub-plots, some funny; some moving, all with many psychological overtones. The characterizations are flawless and three-dimensional. Jimmy Stewart (though perhaps a tad too old) is completely believable and Grace Kelly does what she does best…looks and acts perfect. The simple setting of a Greenwich Village apartment complex is developed into a world filled with intriguing and sometimes unsettling possibilities. This confined world comes to life with a wealth of lavish visual detail and interesting minor characters. Unlike far too many movies these days, the director assumes his audience will pay close enough attention to appreciate the many subtleties with which he has filled the movie. It rewards both careful attention and repeated viewings, since there is much more here than merely a suspenseful plot (as good as that story is in itself).
The dialogue is filled with clever, subtle, humorous meanings. And what the main characters see in the lives of others is an interesting reflection of the tensions and possibilities in their own present and future.
But this is also a film about films. We are sucked into this story much as Jimmy Stewart (who may as well be sitting next to us as we watch the events) acts out our voyeuristic predilections. When, finally, Mr. Thorwald looks up and discovers he is being watched, it is chilling not just because our hero is now in danger, but because he actually looks at us – and we feel guilty for having peeped in on his life too.
7. Lola Rennt (Run Lola Run) (1998)
This post-modern film presents the same story three times at rapid-fire pace. From the opening titles, we are swept into the life of Lola – a young woman who has a very important task to accomplish very very quickly. There is so much happening every split-second, it’s impossible to catch it all during the first one or two viewings.
Every trick of film-making employed here: jump-cuts, fast-motion, slow-motion, animation, overlapping dialogue, oblique angles, non-linear story-telling and split-screen, among others.
The plot itself is based upon a simple concept: how do tiny actions affect eventual outcomes. As we see the story unfold repeated times, we become aware of the minute changes in the outsets that result in big finales. It is, essentially, a study in chaos theory – the Butterfly effect. But unlike so many other movies that explore this effect, Lola Rennt doesn’t just extrapolate on how tiny changes alter the course of the main plot; it continually takes us off on fast-paced tangents that show how Lola’s course changes in turn alter the entire life courses of those with whom she comes into contact.
Try not to blink if you watch this flick, especially those scenes that show three things happening at once. If you do, rewind it to catch what you missed.
6. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
“Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking” (a line from the film, and one of the truest statements ever captured on celluloid).
Here, by a small margin, is the oldest motion picture on my list. Like Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music and Babe, I realize it’s not a “guy movie”. But I hate to use gender-bias in ranking a movie. Like those other three, I have to rank The Wizard of Oz in my top fifty because, well, there’s nothing wrong with it.
For one thing, it’s the best musical ever, hands down. The story is actually enhanced by the often silly, but always clever, songs. That’s a rarity in itself. But add to that a believable performance by all & you’ve got a very good movie. The story is compelling, and the “bookends” at the outset and conclusion of the film only serve to enhance the story, characterizations and emotions of the main story (quite the opposite of The Princess Bride, in which the “bookends” bog down and detract from the main story). And on the subject of cinematography, hardly any movie has ever made such good use of color. And that’s saying something for a movie that is so old.
The Wizard of Oz is enjoyable on many levels. As a kid, my family and I watched it during its traditional yearly televised showing. Later, I watched it after being told about its gay undertones (“Of course, some people do go both ways”). Then I read about the numerous gaffes and continuity errors (e.g., Dorothy’s ever-changing hair lengths) and watched it in an attempt to spot the flaws. Like the storm trooper that hits his head on the doorway in Star Wars, and the blind guy wearing a wristwatch in The Ten Commandments, the many tiny mistakes in Oz just make the flick that much more enduring, and fun. And then there’s the Pink Floyd connection. My wife and I went to a friend’s home one evening with the sole purpose of queuing up Dark Side of the Moon with Oz. And, for like the tenth time, I rediscovered the wonder of that movie (and the album). There are certainly movies that I’ve seen more often, but there are none that I’ve viewed from so many different perspectives.
I suppose I enjoy this fairy tale as much as I enjoy The Princess Bride. Only this movie doesn’t have Fred Savage, so I have to rank it higher.