MY FAVOURITE FILM

Actually, I don’t have one! But then it’s more than likely that you don’t either? Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy a good film, which more often than not is a quality production with good acting, along with a thought provoking screenplay and last but by no means least an excellent music score. However, from time to time I also love watching what are considered to be low budget B-movies or maybe even a film that never made the cinema and was made for cable or TV. The thing about choosing your most favourite film or films of all time is that it is more than likely to be influenced by your own circumstances and will often change depending on your mood or taste. Friends have often asked me for recommendations, but the advice or tips I’ve offered have probably also been influenced by circumstances at the time of asking.

Casablanca or Gone With The Wind were voted “the best film ever” in recent film polls, but who voted? Because ask any young adult in 2005 what they think and the chances are the majority have never even seen them! Also, I don’t think a bad film has ever won an Oscar, but at the same time its almost common knowledge these days that the best film doesn’t always actually win the Oscar! - In the same year that Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan (WW2 drama set in Europe) swept the board at the Oscar’s, Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line (WW2 drama set in the Pacific) with a staggering 7 Oscar nominations (including best film, best director and best adapted screenplay) went home almost empty handed; yet most people who have seen both films will claim that Malick’s film was by far superior.
It’s all about opinions I suppose?

I started going to the cinema for the first time as a kid during the 60’s, in most cases to watch a movie that was never to be seen again, or until it was eligible for a TV viewing which was at least a full 5 years after its original cinematic release (colour television didn’t become the norm until well into the 70’s so this actually often resulted in disappointment). It was also long before the present day option of catching a movie when it comes out on video only a few months later! This was also a time when a cinema usually only had one screen (as far as I am aware the word multiplex wasn’t even used in Europe until the 90’s), and therefore usually only one film was shown each week. So if you really enjoyed a particular film you only had one option but to go back to the cinema to watch it again.






My Favourite Films…
As it turns out a lot of my favourite films are from the 60s & 70’s, but this may actually have more to do with the impact of viewing a film for the first time in the cinema as opposed to a TV screen! One thing that I am prepared to state as fact is that the cinema will always have a certain appeal and influence that no wide screen, plasma, digital, top of the range home entertainment system will ever be able to offer when watching a movie for the first time. “Where’s the evidence?” I hear you ask. Well all you have to do is ask yourself what your own favourite film(s) of all time are? – Then try to remember where you saw them for the very first time?

If we look at all the movies which were made, in my opinion the best crime thrillers were made In the 70’s (The Godfather, Serpico, Marathon Man and The French Connection are head and shoulders above anything made in the past 20 odd years!), Sean Connery is still by far the best Bond ever, the classic sci-fi film Planet of The Apes and Shaft should never have been re-made to name just a few, Ben Hur will always remain superior to Gladiator, and why does the hottest film maker of the past 10 years (Quentin Tarantino) choose to make films that are for the most part influenced by films from the 60’s & 70’s? However, on saying that, plenty of excellent films have also been made since the 70’s …

Everyone’s taste varies, and to try and compile a list and offer to anyone who in future asks me “So what’s your favourite film?” remains a difficult choice, so I’ve gone for around the Top 20+ films (in no particular order) along with a few more recommendations that impressed me enough to want to either watch more than once, or own… of which some (see #) will probably always remain in my Top 10 films of all time …



THE LAST EMPEROR – 1987 (John Lone, Peter O’ Toole & Ryuichi Sakamoto)
Brilliant film by Bernardo Bertolucci portraying life in Imperial China and the Forbidden City, moving all the way through WW2, and then the eventual introduction to socialism by the 50’s. Winner of several Oscar’s including Best Film, this is an epic drama with fantastic performances by the entire cast. An absolute must see film!

ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST – 1968 (Claudia Cardinale, Charles Bronson & Henry Fonda) #
Sergio Leone’s ultimate spaghetti western and one of the most influential movies ever to be made …Wealth & poverty, greed, hope & despair, honour, love & hate, humour, deception and something to do with death … Although not immediately apparent, Leone’s most important character in this film had to be female, as every other role portrayed, no matter how important within their own male dominated environment, all eventually realise that they are just men and that their actions will probably lead to certain death. A true classic! – The script was written by Leone, Bernardo (The Last Emperor) Bertolucci & Dario Argento, and has an unforgettable music score by Ennio Morricone.
I first saw this film out of pure curiosity. A cinema I happened to walk past during the 70’s displayed an old bleached poster with the added announcement “77th week” (and this was a re-release!). To this day, it’s one of the most impressive films I’ve ever seen. - There is a cinema in Paris where it still runs today almost 40 years after its initial release!


ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA – 1984 (Robert De Niro & James Woods) #
Sergio Leone’s last ever film and considered by many to be the ultimate gangster epic. Leone had even turned down The Godfather to make this film! But if you decide to watch it make sure it’s the 227-minute version. This film was cut heavily upon its initial release by American distributors in their attempt to get more screenings. As a result the film was not a commercial success, and it wasn’t until the late 80’s that it was eventually re-released in its fully intended version, resulting in worldwide critical acclaim, but by then the director Sergio Leone had sadly died. This film has another award winning music score by Ennio Morricone which should have won the oscar that year for best soundtrack.


THE UNTOUCHABLES – 1987 (Kevin Costner, Sean Connery & Robert De Niro)
This Brian de Palma film is described by critics as a must see masterpiece, a crime drama set in Al Capone’s Chicago during the Prohibition-era, has a great cast (including an Oscar winning performance by Sean Connery) and an absolutely brilliant music score by Ennio Morricone.


LAWRENCE OF ARABIA - 1962 #
To many people the greatest film ever made! Peter O`Toole stars in this classic film by David Lean that won a record amount of oscars in 1963. For more info in the Dutch language go to: http://www.moviemeter.nl/film/1049


SERPICO – 1973 (Al Pacino)
Based on the true story of a New York policeman who discovers corruption within his own department; this breathtaking suspense thriller by Sidney Lumet is a fascinating character study, with Pacino giving one of his best ever performances.





THE THIN RED LINE – 1999 (Sean Penn, John Cusack, Nick Nolte, Woody Harrelson, Ben Chaplin & George Clooney)
A powerful WW2 war drama set in the Pacific campaign, nominated for 7 Oscars, winner of the prestigious Golden Bear (best film) and based on the best seller by the same name, this film along with Coppola’s Apocalypse Now is one of the best anti-war films ever made.


THE FALCON & THE SNOWMAN – 1984 (Timothy Hutton & Sean Penn)
Intelligent, provocative and disturbing. A dramatic true story spy thriller, that blows the lid off the modern day American dream. Filmmaker John Schlesinger (Marathon Man & Midnight Cowboy) is in top form with excellent performances by the entire cast.


THE BIG BLUE (version longue) – 1988 (Jean Reno & Rosanna Arquette)
This is an absolutely stunning film by the cult French filmmaker Luc Besson. I’ve lost count of the times I’ve watched it! – But the version to watch is 163 minutes.

JFK – 1991 (Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Kevin Bacon & Sissy Spacek)
Oliver Stone’s controversial yet highly powerful and provocative multi Oscar winning film about the John F Kennedy assassination that helps show that Lee Harvey Oswald could never have acted alone. So was there a conspiracy?!?

THE NINTH CONFIGURATION – 1980 (Stacy Keach & Scott Wilson)
A cult classic by William Blatty, the creator of The Exorcist, about “the dividing line between sanity and madness and the realization that man leads a purposeless existence in a Godless universe!”






THE FRENCH CONNECTION – 1971 (Gene Hackman & Roy Scheider)
Top draw crime thriller by William Friedkin that won the Oscar for Best Film. The film also features what is considered to be the best car chase scene in the history of cinema (maybe because during filming Friedkin forgot to tell both the public and his stunt drivers that he was actually making a film!


MARATHON MAN – 1976 (Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier & Roy Scheider) #
This is probably the best and most realistic thriller ever made! John Schlesinger turned William Goldman’s bestseller into a brilliant film. The question “Is it safe?” will haunt you forever!

PULP FICTION – 1995 (John Travolta, Bruce Willis, Uma Thurman & Samuel L Jackson)
One of the best films of the 90’s that remains a cult classic today – A fascinating and gripping crime drama “pieced together” by cult director Quentin Tarantino.


MONTY PYTHON & THE HOLY GRAIL – 1974 (Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin & John Cleese)
A timeless comedy classic from the BBC’s Monty Python team, who ended up making 4 feature films. The majority of people I know seem to prefer Life Of Brian, but this tale about King Arthur and medieval Britain does it for me every time! Absolutely hilarious!


THE WIND & THE LION – 1975 (Sean Connery)
A fact based adventure set in Morocco around 1904 - Probably the best movie you've never seen! *
Written and directed by John Milius (who later wrote Apocalypse Now) this is an epic and compelling adventure film with a great cast and one of Connery’s best ever performances. The film also has an excellent music score by Jerry Goldsmith.
* Due to legal issues this film is no longer available. It was finally released on DVD region 1 for North America only.


THE GODFATHER 1 & 2 – 1972 & 1974 (Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert De Niro & Diane Keaton)
Francis Ford Coppola’s Oscar winning films based on the bestseller by Mario Puzo about a New York crime family in the 50’s. Both films won the Oscar for Best Film (the first time a sequel ever won the best film award)


TRAINSPOTTING – 1996 (Ewan McGregor & Robert Carlyle)
By far the best British film of the 90’s, based on the bestseller by Irvine Walsh. A very dark yet at times extremely witty look at life in modern day Edinburgh, but be prepared at times to be shocked. A must see film!


APOCALYPSE NOW – 1979 (Martin Sheen & Marlon Brando)
Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam War movie … probably the most gripping and realistic anti-war movie ever made!


MY NAME IS NOBODY – 1973 (Terence Hill & Henry Fonda) #
A classic (comedy) spaghetti western produced by Sergio Leone with a unique music score by Ennio Morricone. Upon its initial release it ran in cinemas across Europe for over a year and ended up grossing more than Leone’s first 3 westerns (A Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More and The Good, The Bad & The Ugly) combined! A hidden gem - I went to see it 5 times in the 70’s in the days when nobody had video!

THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY – 1967 (Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef & Eli Wallach)
This is Sergio Leone’s most famous film and probably Morricone’s most famous title theme (a tune that made it to number 1 in most record buying countries across the world). I actually prefer Leone’s Once Upon A Time In The West and My Name Is Nobody, but I suppose this film has one of the greatest finales ever filmed in the history of cinema! In fact, it is seen as being that good that cult director Quentin Tarantino decided against making his own western – “What’s the point in making a western when I could never better that scene!”


ALL THE PRESIDENT`S MEN – 1976 (Robert Redford & Dustin Hoffman)
Was described as the most devastating detective story of the century. Based on the true story of the Watergate scandal in the early 70s, Redford and Hoffman star as the two reporters in this cinematic masterpiece. For more info in the Dutch language go to: http://www.moviemeter.nl/film/1097


THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING – 1975 (Sean Connery & Michael Caine)
One of the best adventure films ever made based on the classic story by Rudyard Kipling. They rarely make them like this anymore – but they should!




Also recommended:





CHARIOTS OF FIRE (1981)
Set during the 1924 Olympic games in Paris, this is a fascinating and beautiful film based on the true story that went on to win 4 Oscars, including Best Film, and Best Music for Vangelis, involving 2 British athletes (Eric Liddell; a Scot and son of a missionary and Harold Abrahams; who was studying at Cambridge University), who both ended up winning gold under different circumstances. Liddell was a committed Christian and he refused to race on Sunday, with the consequence that he was forced to withdraw from the Men's 100 metres, his best event. Instead Liddell ran in the 400 meters and against the odds won gold! (Although not featured in the film, during those Olympic Games, Liddell also ran the 200 meter race, for which he received the bronze medal, beating Harold Abrahams, who finished in sixth place.)


GIU’ LA TESTA (a.k.a. DUCK YOU SUCKER or ONCE UPON A TIME IN A REVOLUTION or A FISTFUL OF DYNAMITE) – 1972
Sergio Leone’s forgotten classic set during the Mexican revolution, starring Rod Steiger and James Coburn, features amazing cinematography and yet another brilliant musical score by Ennio Morricone, this film has to be seen in wide screen! I’ve found that this film just gets better and better with each viewing.


2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi masterpiece from the 60's.


FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE (1963)
Sean Connery as James Bond and also starring Robert Shaw in the 2nd Ian Fleming novel to be filmed, which has since become a classic spy adventure of which the screenplay remains the most loyal to any of the Ian Fleming books and the most realistic Bond film so far.


ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE (1969)
George Lazenby as James Bond and also starring Diana Rigg and Telly Savalas this was the 6th Bond adventure to be filmed and considered today by many fans to be the best Bond film ever made! Also boasts one of John Barry’s best musical scores.


BRAVEHEART (1995)
Mel Gibson & Sophie Marceau star in this epic multi Oscar winning account of how the Scots drove the English out of Scotland in the early 1300’s. Excellent!


ALL THAT JAZZ (1973)
Roy Scheider stars in this film by multi academy award winner Bob Fosse, which is actually a semi-autobiographical account of the director’s life in the world of music and dance. Part tragic part comic, this is the story about the perils of pushing yourself too hard. Winner of 4 Oscar’s including Best Music.


THE ONION FIELD (1979)
James Woods in probably his best ever role as a cop killer in this true story about how the law was changed in America as a result of this kidnap incident involving 2 police officers. Also starts John Savage and Ted Danson. For more info in the Dutch language go to: http://www.moviemeter.nl/film/12236


GRAND CANYON (1991)
Kevin Kline & Danny Glover star in this excellent modern day drama by Lawrence Kasdan …
“It’s hard to come together in a world that’s falling apart”.


THE HILL (1965)
Set in a British Military Prison in Africa during WW2, Sean Connery gives an excellent performance in what is one of Sidney Lumet`s best ever films. For more info in the Dutch language go to: http://www.moviemeter.nl/film/2455



There are also FILM reviews in the Dutch language & TOP 10 FILMS by TerryA on the moviemeter.nl website - > HERE







ENNIO MORRICONE







© TerryA – Summer 2005