The Room Review

I might as well start off this sentence by stating "it's the worst film I've ever seen in my life". So does that mean I hate this film? Not at all, because it's extremely entertaining. My definition of the term "worst" is just how bad it is made, not if I'm actually into the movie or not. Even if it was my favorite film of all time, that doesn't mean I would give this film 4 stars or 3 or 2 or not even 1. I watch this film over and over again constantly because it's so bad that it's hilarious. No this is not a comedy; even if Tommy Wiseau (the director/writer/producer and star of this film that completely fails at everything) advertised this as a black comedy, which wasn't his intension at all when making the film according to many sources. This film pretty much tries to be anything but comedy, but fails at that as well. That's how bad this film is. 


First off, the plot of this film is nothing original at all. It's mainly known to be a Tennessee Williams inspired story (according to the trailer for this film) about a banker named Johnny (Tommy Wiseau) who's engaged to a woman named Lisa (Juliette Danielle) that later turns into a "tragedy" when she has an affair with Johnny's best friend Mark (Greg Sestero). That's pretty much it. They do however try to throw in some other characters in supporting roles with their own subplots that later on all turn out completely pointless or abandoned at the end of the movie. 


You have Denny: an eighteen year old kid adopted by Johnny who loves to throw football, deal drugs and hit on Lisa. He sort of helps develop Johnny's character a bit, but nothing else after. You have Michelle: Lisa's best friend who knows Lisa's secret of her affair but does very little about it. There's Mike: boyfriend of Michelle's and does nothing but have sex with Michelle and refers to anything as a "tragedy" when something goes wrong for him. Then you have Peter: a therapist who gives good advice but later just disappears from the film without any explanation. There's finally Claudette: mother of Lisa who also knows Lisa's secret but does nothing except complains about how Johnny has money and is very secure for Lisa's future.


Looking at all those characters, it seems that not one of them could help move the story along at all; but is that all that's wrong with the movie? Of course not! What about the production? I'll try and sum it up for you quickly. The camera shots are out of focus, the editing is amateur at best, the sound effects are just plain awful, and the music could probably get a Razzie award for worst movie score of the year. No, that is not all an exaggeration. I'm dead serious. Wait, what about the acting? Well for the three leading actors... horrible! Some of the worst I've ever seen (Tommy Wiseau especially). I could probably say for all the other supporting actors, they're all really bad as well except for the actors who play Peter or Michelle. They could probably do well for themselves in the film business if they can this time find any movie with a better script than this film. 


Now I've already told you the plot to this, but that still doesn't sum up on how god awful the writing is. Most of the scenes in this film are just completely pointless and serve no purpose to the story at all. For example, there's this one scene set in an alley where Mike complains to Johnny about an underwear tragedy that happened to him, Denny then enters and they throw football. Mark then enters and lightly taps Mike which makes Mike fall over like a clumsy Ox and injures himself. Mike is then carried away by Mark and Johnny says to Denny "Let's go home, Denny." and they both exit. The rest of the movie goes on not having mentioned any of that scene at all. That is one perfect example on you could pretty much sum up this whole movie: pointless film that's entertaining to watch.


There's so much more I could talk about this film, but it's just better if you go see the movie. That's right, I am actually recommending you to see what I believe is the worst film ever made. Why? Well there is a couple reasons: it's cult following, entertaining as hell, and info on how NOT to make a movie. It's cult following never really started until a few years ago even though the movie came out almost a decade ago, but for anytime this film shows up in your theaters for a limited time, you want to be apart of the experience. Because this movie has become so much fun to quote and mock constantly, people show it off in theaters by wearing tuxedos, throwing plastic spoons at the screen and yelling out quotes from the movie. It's on the same level as Rocky Horror Picture Show, only it's more entertaining in my opinion.


If you haven't seen the movie yet, see it because you REALLY don't know what you're missing no matter how bad this movie is.


Zero Stars     

Top 10 Best Gangster Films

I've always been interested by this genre because it features characters you never see in ordinary everyday life. It's because they're always hiding their cards with everything they do in public. Whenever I watch a gangster film, I'm interested in EVERYTHING that goes on. You have stealing, gambling, trying to avoid being followed, messengers, heist jobs, engaging conversations and of course... gun action. It may be too violent for some audiences or too frightening depending on the movie, but for me I love them all. That's why I made this list of my personal Top 10 Best Gangster Films that I've ever seen. Enjoy.


1. Once Upon a Time in America

This may be a shock to some that either haven't seen it or are just Godfather and Goodfellas fanboys, but I don't think there could be any gangster film better than this. I do love everything Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese have done, but when it comes to the Best Gangster film of all time for me, Sergio Leone took the spot. It's time setting is perfect because it starts off with the main characters point of view back when they were kids at a time back when Al Capone wasn't even in charge yet. It tells their story all the way to 12 years later in the movie to where you see Robert De Niro and Jimmy Woods hit the screen. The movie is four hours long, but knowing it features everything that a gangster film has to offer like literally everything I listed above in my intro, this movie really only feels like 2 hours long. There's so much to explain about this movie that I can't really say anything else without either spoiling it or just confusing the hell out of you. All I can really say is that it's one of those films you must see before you pass away in life, because you really don't know what you're missing. I will warn you that it is really violent and features adult situations definitely not made for kids. So if you're a parent, make sure you watch this film before you let your kid under age see this. Other than that, this film is terrific and  pretty much defines what a gangster film should be.


2. Pulp Fiction

It may not seem anything like The Godfather, but what does prove itself to be a better gangster film than The Godfather are the characters. To me, Quentin Tarantino knew exactly what his characters should think and say for every situation they're in. At the beginning of the film, you see John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson doing a job by going to get back their bosses suitcase stolen by this guy, Brett. When they're gathering their weapons from the trunk, Samuel L. Jackson says "We should have fucking shotguns." when talking about how many people there could be in Brett's group. That's pretty much the stuff that characters from other gangster movies should be saying, but it never happens due to the focus on the job and lack of character development. Tarantino managed to perfect that with all his characters. He builds them up perfectly to where you know their thoughts instead of just focusing on the job they're doing. It's the dialogue that's top notch to making a great gangster film, and Tarantino builds it up perfectly like no other. 


3. The Godfather Part II

What can I say; I love both Godfather movies. Why do I like this one more than the first? Was there anything I disliked about the first one? Nope. Is it mainly because De Niro is in this one? Not exactly. I just feel like I got to know the Corleone family from this one more than the first one. I became more invested in the characters in this one more than the last. It does show family history back to when Vito was a kid and when he started his business where De Niro does shine on screen. Like I said, De Niro's not the main reason why I love this movie, but one of many. I also saw from Michael's point of view on why he tried to avoid becoming head of the family from the first movie. It's like he knew what he would become and that he would have to make his own decisions/offers he couldn't refuse to make. I do know the story with Fredo came as much of a surprise to Michael as it did for the audience, but Michael knew what he had to do to keep the family business as what the audience probably never would've done. It shows that there's always another side of everyone that you never find out about until you see the sequel. This is a perfect example of that.


4. The Godfather

You may be a little surprised to see that it's not in the number 1 or 2 spot on my list, but be glad it made this list at all. This wasn't an easy one to make. Now what do I love about this film? Well you have the daughter's wedding, the restaurant shoot out, the toll-booth shoot scene, and of course the classic quote "I'm gonna make an offer he can't refuse". That's already enough right there to make the top 5 of my list. Now any criticisms on why it's at number 4 and not higher? Well as much as I love long movies, this one I thought dragged out a bit longer than it really needed to be. For example, I didn't think it needed to show a lot of Michael hiding out in Sicily. It had great cinematography, but it didn't need to show him falling in love with that woman we barely see any development from for about 30 minutes of the movie. Yes we did get to know Michael a bit more, but the same thing is done in the second movie only better because it's the business he's focused on and not some random chick who just pops up on screen. It's a minor complaint, but still worth mentioning. Overall GREAT movie, just drags out a bit.


5. Goodfellas

It is Scorsese at his best when it comes to gangster films. Not only that, it's actually based off a true story. It's narration tells the story so easily and in a good way. It (as like most gangster films) starts off all the way back to when the main character was a kid and how he learned the moves to work his way up the scale and blend in with the big boys. As cheesy and cliche that sounds, it doesn't look that way at all when being told by Scorsese. He pretty much takes us into the heart of what a Gangster movie should look like without making any mistakes with his characters (fiction or non-fiction). Plus you have Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci in this movie who are so entertaining with the characters they play that I could tell they were enjoying it. They have such great chemistry in this movie together that to me they sort of come off like evil gangster versions of Abbott and Costello. This is a film you do not wanna miss out on.


6. El Mariachi

Before director Robert Rodriguez made movies like Sin City and Spy Kids, this was his debut. Still his best today in my opinion. Does that mean his career has gone down since he made this movie? Not really. Some say he's made better films than this. I just think differently. Anyways, the reason why I believe this deserves my number 6 spot is mainly because it shows the point of view from someone who's not apart of "the business", but ends up getting mixed in it when he's mistaken for a killer that this crazy business boss wants dead. So it's interesting to call this a gangster film when you have the main character pretty much trying to escape that genre. That doesn't mean you don't see a lot of action, because you do. There's at least 5 well-shot chase scenes that are entertaining to watch as well as getting to know the main character himself, The Mariachi when he's hiding out in this woman's bar on the second floor. It has good enough character development to keep the story going till the very end without boredom at all. It's a small indie, it's all in Spanish and worth checking out.


7. The Departed

This film is at best when it comes to showing the equal amount of each character that's either a cop or a criminal. You don't have any conflict on asking about what's happening on the other side because you're looking at both sides. The even more interesting is that one gangster is undercover as a cop and vice versa. As great as it was built up and as sad as the way it ended, I couldn't think of a better conclusion to this 2 and a half hour Best Picture winner. Even though it's based off a three part series from Hong Kong, it really comes off better. It had what every gangster film should have, great characters. Once again, same characters but better developed. I give it the number 7 spot not only because it was done by Scorsese and featured a great cast, but also because it was a great remake. You know how most remakes today aren't as good as the original. Thankfully, this one made a difference.


8. The Firm

Now I know for some of those that have seen this film wouldn't really consider this a gangster film. I beg to differ. I consider it to be that genre because of the subject matter. The movie is about a young lawyer named Mitch Malloy (Tom Cruise) who joins a law firm, only to find out that the firm is associated with the mafia. He finds all of his house wire-tapped and tries to find a way to escape it without getting killed or having his identity erased by the FBI who want him to snitch about the firm's system. So you never see any deals going on, or gun fire happening. You still see plenty of action, and not just with all dialogue. There's a couple chase scenes here and there, plus all the performances are intense enough to make it as exciting as any other gangster film. Also, Dave Grusin's score in this is something you don't wanna miss out on. Much better movie than it may seem at first.


9. Hard-Boiled

This film probably influenced that Hong Kong film that was made 10 years after this, Infernal Affairs. It shows both cops/criminals and features one guy undercover. Only difference is that the story is shit and doesn't follow well, but the action scenes are THAT amazing that it makes up the movie almost completely. I'm not trying to sound like a Die Hard fanboy or anything, but it has some of the best shoot out scenes I've ever seen. It has great editing and direction throughout the scenes. My favorite one is a three minute long take which is set in a hospital that shows how great of a director John Woo really is when it comes to action choreography. So the action scenes may be the highlight of the film, but that doesn't mean the rest is boring. It still shows great representation of the subject matter when it comes to the gangster genre. If you're all about the story and don't care about action at all, this movie isn't for you. Thankfully I'm into both.
 

10. The Lookout


Knowing that this was the same guy who wrote the movie Out of Sight directed this movie, I figured I was in for a treat. It did not disappoint. Scott Frank knows how to keep the audience interested when it comes to any gangster/thriller type flick. Great dialogue and great build up. You have our protagonist who starred in later movies like (500) Days of Summer and Inception play a guy with brain damage who's asked by friends of his to be a lookout while they rob the bank he works for. He says okay to it at first but then later as second thoughts about it, oh really? As dumb as the plot sounds, it's the build up that makes it believable. It manages to focus on each supporting character to create enough suspense for out main character which later leads to a terrific climax. I consider this to be a gangster film because the guys trying to rob the bank have done previous jobs like that before, only more than just rob banks. I would consider them gangsters. If it was just a heist movie, I would just put it up there with the Ocean's Eleven flicks which didn't make the list because gangsters want power, but with a low profile. You don't see Danny Ocean trying to take over Las Vegas with a gun. So yeah, this film on the other hand is great enough to make my number 10 spot. Hope you agree. 

That Thing You Do! Review

I've always thought of Tom Hanks to be the best actor of all time. He never fails to capture my expectations for any character he plays on screen. I've had those same thoughts about this actor since I was five years old after I saw movies of his like Big, Toy Story and Apollo 13. I was such a huge fan that my dad took me to see a film of his that he not only acted in, but also wrote and directed as well. I did not realize this at the time I saw this movie in theaters of course with me being five and all. I was happy to recognize his face on screen but unfortunately never got much out of the movie. A few years after, I was eight and decided to go back and watch that Tom Hanks film I saw in theaters a few years ago. Being thankful that my dad was a huge fan of this movie, I pulled this film out of his VHS collection, sat down and watched this film all the way through. I then pulled the tape out of the VCR and declared this the second best Tom Hanks film I ever saw, right under Forrest Gump. There was so much more I got out of this seeing it the second time, mainly cause I was eight instead of five. Why did I love this film so much? Here's my review:

The film is set in the mid 1960s focusing on this band called The Wonders who become famous after performing a hit song called "That Thing You Do!" at a talent show. They tour the road and eventually end up performing on a famous TV show, "The Hollywood Television Showcase". Now some of you are thinking that it sounds a lot like The Beatles with it being in the same time period and performing on a TV show similar to the Ed Sullivan Show; well it pretty much is intentionally. Tom Hanks was apparently a big enough Beatles fan to wanna create a film similar to A Hard Days Night using the time period and music, only it's more of a parody with the band being American instead of British. Not only that, the Beatles are actually mentioned a few times throughout the movie so The Wonders aren't exactly creating a whole new type of rock 'n' roll like The Beatles did.

I don't wanna give too much of the plot away because it's better (for those that haven't seen this yet) to get a fresh look at the story and characters instead of judging them by description. Trust me on this one. I will describe what this film has to offer and why I love this film because of it. If you're hoping to see what's mostly a comedy with a few dramatic elements, then you're on the right track so far into liking this film. You don't see anything over-the-top or somewhat dark just appear out of nowhere like some films do. Every situation with each character is explained perfectly through their behavior or any other type of development. It doesn't come off bland either mainly due to the pacing of the movie. To me, it's so interesting that I was totally sucked into it all the way through. Nothing bored me. 

It's really one of those films that you can either appreciate as a whole or not at all. It doesn't feature many sub plots except maybe one or two that are shown very briefly (unless you decide you wanna see The Director's Cut first). I love how it doesn't cut away to some pointless or unknown character that it decides to follow without explanation. It really shows class by having one of the main characters walk up to them to help develop the future supporting character. I doesn't really create any gaps that don't get filled until 30 minutes in like; once again, most other movies do. I will also say maybe couple things about the plot and characters to at least give a full idea if you're still debating on whether to see or recommend this film. If you love music, Tom Hanks, comedy, and well told background stories among each character or sub plot; I heavily recommend this. If you're in the mood for something more dark, serious or truly original like Inception or Pulp Fiction; then you won't get much from this film. 

Another thing to add: there are two versions of this film. The theatrical version is an hour and fifty minutes long that is well paced and well told. The Director's Cut is two hours and thirty minutes long that give better backgrounds among each character and have more scenes added to a couple subplots you only see in the theatrical version for only a few minutes. They're both great, but if you haven't seen this movie at all I would recommend the theatrical version first. It's not because I think The Director's Cut is too long as a whole, but because the scenes for each character's back story do drag out a tad long. I believe you would find the added scenes more enjoyable if you saw the theatrical version first. The Director's Cut is still not something to miss out on if you're a die hard fanboy of this movie like I am. 

Overall, I love this movie because it's funny, smart, and has a very satisfying ending. I could watch this movie over and over and not feel any different about it. 

****

The King's Speech Review

I wanted to make this film my first review for a couple of reasons. First off, it's because it won the Oscar for Best Picture that many people say is undeserving. Second is because I look at it as one of those made for TV movies you would see on HBO; so do I think it should be made for the big screen? Do I think it deserved the Oscars it got Best Picture and Best Director? Do I think it's a good movie. Here's my review:

The King's Speech is one of those movies that I've seen a million times. You have the main character who has a problem that the public obviously wants them to get under control. You have the first supporting character who's the teacher and can help the main character overcome his problem. Then you have the other supporting character that is either engaged to or just always with the main character to help calm any heavy emotions the main character has. Just add names to those characters and you'll pretty much have you're whole movie right there. Now I've given you the basics, so let me get to the specifics.

The funny thing is that it's based off a true story. That's right, the story of how King George VI (Colin Firth) was unable to speak until he overcame that, thanks to a man named Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush). Firth and Rush both give great performances mainly thanks to their charisma provided on screen. Firth deserved the winning Oscar he won for this film, though not because of this role he played but because of the career he's had over the years. Same for Rush in scoring a nomination as well. Sure he plays that same type of character who's always likable and has clever dialogue, but Rush did this one perfect compared to most movies I've seen. Helena Bonham Carter who plays the wife of King George VI was also good in the film as well, but in my opinion didn't live up to Firth and Rush.

I can't really thin of much else to talk about this film specifically except the smooth dialogue and the music. David Seidler who wrote this film doesn't really develop the characters as well as I had hoped but the dialogue has its moments. Entertaining, but not engaging. Another highlight to the film is the score by Alexandre Desplat, my favorite aspect of the film. His part of the movie is what I find to be the only thing that draws me to the film. It defines the feel of the movie so perfectly that I got to know the characters through the music more than David Seidler's screenplay itself. It's that good that I wouldn't have minded at all if it beat The Social Network for Best Score at the Oscars. Desplat's overdue anyways. 

Now to think a film like this could win Best Picture nowadays when this same type of film has been for decades, really shows that the Academy goes for the most traditional films instead of new ones like Inception or The Social Network. I could sort of understand it's Best Picture win knowing it is based off a true story and it being a period piece. It winning Best Director was a MAJOR shock to me because I can't think of any reason at all why this film deserved the win. In all fairness, I do respect Tom Hooper for all the films he's made, even this one. I just didn't see how this film had better direction than once again, Inception or The Social Network. This film seemed to just stretch out in a straight line and doesn't provide any curves or criss-crosses. I saw nothing new and no creativeness put into it. It was a well-made film no doubt, but compared to other films that year it had no unique direction to earn the top spot for the Academy of Motion Picture ARTS and SCIENCES. Knowing Harvey Weinstein was one of the producers of this film, I will always think everyday that he bribed the Academy to vote for this film.

Overall, my disappointment in its Oscar wins doesn't mean at all that I think the film is bad. It really isn't at all actually. It may have gone that same route that most movies do with the story it had, but the people behind it did it right. The actors showed realism with the parts they played. It featured terrific written dialogue. It did have a great production that was well designed. The music  was the best part of the film. I thought this film was great, just not deserving for most of the Oscars it received.

***1/2  

Top 10 Best Game Shows

Now what I mean by game shows is where contestants are located in a studio or any interior surrounding that has multiple cameras rolling and are playing to win for money or prizes by whatever rules that show goes by. So you won't see any shows like Survivor or The Amazing Race on this list cause they are also considered game shows, just not under my definition. If they were, Survivor would be my number 1 pick. Too bad its not so enjoy my list on what I consider to be the best game shows I've ever seen.


1. Family Feud

Why is this show still going on today? The answer is because it's the perfect game show. There's absolutely nothing wrong or bad about this show, it's entertaining from start to finish. It's all great because it's made for all ages, every question asked is always interesting because you want to know what the top 5 or 6 answers are, and of course the answers themselves. Contestants have to answer the question so fast that you never know if they'll say something ridiculous or not, and it's like that all the way through an episode. The part I'm sure everyone loves the most is the final round "Fast Money" where to members of the winning family are chosen to play for the family to win $20,000 by trying to guess the number 1 answer to each of the five questions asked. If they won they would also get to come back again for the next episode to where they could play for another $20,000, of course every winning family can only come back five times maximum which is totally fair in my opinion. I can see why the show's lasted as long as it should have, fun rules, great hosts (Richard Karn was my favorite), reasonable amount of money at stake. Also I love whenever someone answers something idiotic that the family still claps for them and says "good answer!". I'm just waiting one day for some family member to say "That was a horrible answer! What were you thinking?!" that would still be as hilarious as it would sad and embarrassing. I will never get tired of watching this show as long as I live.


2. Greed

If I had to think of a better show than Who Wants to be a Millionaire that gave away a million dollars, it would be this one; "The Richest Most Dangerous Game Show In America". I'm not kidding that was their definition. Not only that, their top prize was not one but TWO million dollars. The way it was played was that there would be a team of five and one of them was a captain. One of the five would answer the first question and for whatever answer they put down it has to be accepted by the captain. If they made it to the questions worth $200,000 on up, they would be asked a question having to name 4 of the correct answers among the 6, 7 or 8 listed. Each one could name an answer in which power would go back to the captain to see if he or she wants to change any of the answers put. If they get the question right, they would split however much money they won. There is also a thing called the terminator to where whoever's panel flashes would get a chance to eliminate a player on their team by answering a question correctly on whoever buzzes in first and whoever wins would get their share of money. Also whoever is selected on the terminator gets $10,000 win or lose. It's entertaining non-stop and I wish it could've lasted a lot longer than just one season. It was the first show EVER to award a million dollars, not to one person but in general among all game shows. It was a great show that at one point even doubled its prize up to FOUR million dollars for only five episodes of what they called Super Greed. After that it got cancelled immediately, shame on you FOX! I've seen every episode of this show on GSN, but I still watch them again to this day cause it was THAT exciting. 


3. Who Wants to be a Millionaire 
   (with Regis Philbin hosting)

Yes I mean only Regis hosting, not the lady that does it today. I mean when it was on primetime ABC. That's when it was good (though I do respect the original UK one as well). Back in the late 90s, this was the show EVERYONE was talking about. It was so popular that it got spoofed in so many shows and movies, hell they even made a Best Picture winning movie based off this show. That's one hell of an influence this game show had. Not to mention one of the greatest hosts ever, Regis Philbin. The guy knew exactly what he was doing. He knew what to say to the contestants when ever they said something awkward or just plain idiotic, it was hilarious. Also the rules were pretty easy to figure out, just answer the correct question to win bigger amounts of money and if you answer all 15 correctly, you win a million dollars. You also had three lifelines 50/50, ask the audience or phone-a-friend (my favorite).  Usually most people would have used all those before they got to the $250,000 mark, but who would've thought the first million dollar winner could actually answer all 15 difficult questions without using any lifelines. Now for those who did see it and say he DID use one, well technically he did call up his father on the million dollar question but not to ask for help, only to tell him that he was going to win the million dollars. THAT is what I call clever. When I saw that moment on TV, I was only 9 years old and was literally jumping up and down when that happened cause I had never seen one person win a million dollars on TV before in the history of game shows. I will always worship this game, but only when Regis is involved.


4. Double Dare

This is no doubt at all the messiest game show ever, and I LOVE IT. There were even other versions of this game besides just Double Dare. There was Super Sloppy Double Dare, Family Double Dare and Double Dare 2000. For over a decade and a half, people like myself couldn't get enough of this show. You had fun questions, messy challenges and of course the best part of the show, the Slopstacle Course. It first started off with two people on each of the two teams but then later came to four when Family Double Dare came around (the most popular one among all). They would first start off with a messy physical challenge and whichever team won first would be the ones to start off with the first question. They would be allowed to skip the question and pass it on to the other team by saying "Dare" and if the other team didn't know it, they would say "Double Dare" to pass it back to them and they could either answer it to get double the money on the question or take a physical challenge to win the same amount. Everyone wanted to see the physical challenges cause they were so bizarre, messy and of course entertaining. At the end of the final round, whichever team had the most money earned at the end would get to take part in the Slopstacle Course which was the main highlight of the show. One member would go through the first among 8 parts of the course and grab the flag and pass it off to another member to do the second part of the course and so on. They would win a prize for each part of the course they completed which got bigger the further along they got among the 60 seconds they would have to complete the whole course. It was a great game show that was more about the fun people had than it was about winning the actual money. It also had a great host named Marc Summers and Jason Harris who hosted Double Dare 2000. So much of this show is great to talk abut, but I'll end it here. If you want to find out more about the show, just YouTube it or check out this video the Nostalgia Critic made about the show: http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/nostalgia-critic/34-nostalgia-critic/692-double-dare  


5. Wheel of Fortune

When it comes to classic game shows, THIS is what I'm talking about. I'm amazed that it still goes on today knowing most game shows don't make it past 1 to 5 seasons. This has gone on for almost 40 seasons and boy is it as entertaining as it was when Chuck Woolery was hosting all the way back in 1975. Of course it isn't really Wheel of Fortune without Pat Sajak and Vanna White for todays audience, knowing they've gone the longest hosting the same game show for almost 30 years now. I'm surprised they both haven't asked for replacements yet, though I hope not. This show is so famous that I don't even have to say the rules of the game, but if you still don't know them look it up online because I'm sure they'll be somewhere NOT hard to find. Great show, great hosts, and great gameplay.


6. Finders Keepers

Now I know this was just a game show for elementary students where  kids would just search for the missing item on the board to answer the questions, and then search random rooms for the missing item in the set of a giant house depending on how many questions they got right to win cash and money. It had no intelligent involvement in any way and mainly made the list because I watched this all the time when I was a kid. On the other hand... it was fun as hell to watch! Kid or no kid, this show was and still is entertaining by watching old reruns of this. How often do you get to make a room as messy as possible just to find a missing item to win money? Not on any other game show I've seen. Even if you're past 30 or middle aged, I would still recommend you have a look at this show on YouTube or some website that has old episodes of this, because you many not know exactly what you've missed out on.


7. Starcade

I couldn't decide wether this or Nick Arcade should be on the list, but I chose this because it came first before other arcade game shows. It was a nice and simple one as well, answer questions to play arcade games, and play arcade games to win prizes. The fun part was that anyone at any age could participate to play in the show. That's what made it interesting, seeing two contestants answer questions about video games and the player who got that question right would choose the arcade game they want to play against the other contestant in for more points. After three rounds, the one with the most points would then compete for a bonus prize by playing the game they chose to play and get the average score among 20 professionals that have played the game before. If they did it, they would win the grand prize which consisted of either their own arcade game, a home entertainment robot, a jukebox, or even a vacation. Shows like this make me miss the 80s a lot, even if I never existed during that decade. 


8. Cash Cab

Okay, this is one of those examples where I still consider it a game show even if it's not in a studio but instead in a cab, with multiple cameras rolling. Why is it in a cab? Here's the interesting part; random people hail for a cab in New York City and believe they're literally just in a regular cab, but what they don't know is that the cab driver is a game show host named Ben Bailey who hosts the show right in the cab they're sitting in by asking them random trivia questions while driving them to they're destination. If they make it to their destination without getting questions wrong three times, they win money depending on how many questions they answered correctly. If they strike out three times, they literally get dropped off wherever they are and lose their ride. It's great because contestants don't have to go through any audition process to get on the show. They just step in and have the chance to win money. Great host, great game show.


9. 1 vs. 100 (with Bob Saget hosting)

I must say, Bob Saget is one of the greatest game show hosts of all time, even if he only did this one for a short amount of time. He did so well with interacting with the contestants and the mob. I'm not saying he's the only reason why I watched this show, but he was the main highlight. For the show itself, it had a good premise to it. One contestant would try to outguess a hundred mob members on the same question and if the contestant got it right we would then see how many mob members got it wrong, and depending on how many got it wrong that contestant would earn a certain amount of money and the mob members who got it wrong would be eliminated. The goal of the game is to try and eliminate all 100 mob members to win a million dollars but if eventually if that contestant got the question wrong, the remaining mob contestants would split the money the contestant won. It was pretty awesome cause somebody would always win on that show, either the contestant or the mob. The cooler thing is that the mob featured a quite a few random celebrities as well who could be actors, sports stars, and of course previous game show winners. It was fun entertainment that only lasted a couple years which GSN decided to rip-off and change the top prize to $100,000 which isn't even close to as much as the last one. Either way, it was fun to watch when you had Bob Saget as the host. 


10. Press Your Luck

I do love the literal meaning of the title. You press a button hoping it would land on money for you to win. As simple as that sounds, it's a lot harder than most game shows. You still have to answer questions to earn spins (more numbers of times to press the button to win money), but the harder part is actually pressing the button hoping it won't land on a whammy. That's right, these little red dudes that will take away every dollar you've earned and you would have to start all over again. But if that's not enough; if you land on a whammy 3 times, you're out of the game. It's a cruel game that's so much fun to watch. Just seeing the contestants about to press a button in the most dramatic way screaming "Big money! No whammies!" is such a delight. I do miss this show, but its still fun to remember. 

Top 10 Movies with the Best Cinematography

All right to clarify the meaning of the title, I don't mean just the prettiest to look at cinematography from a movie. I also mean the way it's done, how the shot's planned out and what creativeness is put into it. So if you see any films on this list that makes you question why it should be known best for its cinematography, (if you've seen it) try to also think about how it's shot and how much work was put into it to get it done right, not just by how cool it looks. If you haven't seen the movie that you're questioning on this list, I recommend you see it. Now you'll still see explanations for each one on why I put it on the list but still think about what I said a few sentences ago. Also if you want to read the list from numbers 10 to 1, start at the bottom, I could list it the other way but I believe whatever's listed on top should stay on top. Anyways, enjoy the list!


1. Children of Men
Cinematographer: Emmanuel Lubezki

This film is pretty much flawless when it comes to creative shots. The way they film certain scenes (especially the long takes) is literally indescribable. I mean I'm amazed with the movie itself no doubt, but the cinematography is the main highlight of the whole film. That and directing are reasons why you should see this film if you're interested in those areas of filmmaking. I can see why Cuaron wanted most of Lubezki's shots handheld, because it matches the exact feeling on what's going on in that scene. Judging by the pic I put up above, I know for my number 1 choice it doesn't look like much but it shows how much is put into the film and not just by how cool the picture itself can look on film.


2. Dr. Zhivago
Cinematographer: Freddie Young

I must say, Freddie Young has done impressive work throughout his life and you think that I would believe Lawrence of Arabia to be his best work, but for me I disagree. THIS is his best work because he captures a whole lot more than just a desert and a beach shore from Lawrence of Arabia. He captures the whole surrounding of Russia (where the film is set obviously). This is the best shot I could find on google images, and I must say it's hard to think of a better one from the movie. Now even though it's mainly a love story where you think you would catch more zoom-in on the characters instead of tying to show cool shots to try and oust Terrence Malick's vision, but it works in this film because it shows what the main characters are surrounded by. It puts more depth and meaning in the characters with shots like this, of course you have to hear the dialogue in the movie first so you can get the meaning of the characters. Still after you do, you'll be more than amazed with this grade A work from Freddie Young.


3. Days of Heaven
Cinematographer: Néstor Almendros

I actually did find my favorite shot of this movie on the internet which isn't the one you're seeing above. No my favorite shot is of a train going over a bridge, but it doesn't look like much from the image itself. It looks a whole lot better when you see it moving. Also thankfully there's still A LOT of this movie to see with incredible photography. I mean I wouldn't be surprised knowing it's a Terrence Malick film. If you haven't seen any of his films, please do so now cause ALL his films have great cinematography and yes I mean that literally. Among all the rest of his films like Badlands, The Thin Red Line, and The New World, this I believe is his best piece of work. So if you plan to start watching his films, start off with this one first unless you want to save the best for last.


4. Apocalypse Now
Cinematographer: Vittorio Storaro

This is my favorite shot from this movie you're looking at. Even if you haven't seen this movie, you'll understand when I say this defines nearly the whole movie itself and the quote that Frances Ford Coppola said himself when he screened this at the Cannes Film Fest in 1979: "My film is not about Vietnam, my film is Vietnam." You couldn't have said it any better. The cool thing is that, it's not just the cinematography that's the highlight of this movie, it's nearly every area of filmmaking that does its job right. I can see why critics like Roger Ebert and many others call this one of the most flawless films of all time. I will agree as well and call this Frances Ford Coppola's best film he ever made, and not just because of what he went through in making this film. So yes, even better than The Godfather Parts I and II, this is his best film with the 4th best cinematography I've ever seen.


5. Barry Lyndon
Cinematographer: John Alcott

The thing I love about Barry Lyndon is that Stanley Kubrick managed to bring all those paintings from the 16th century and bring them to life, and I mean that literally. The movie even acts like an old painting as well, just quiet, subtle and tells the story right from its image which is why you don't hear a lot of dialogue in this 3 hour film. I can see why the audience never went for this movie like the critics did, but thankfully I did and look where it ended up on this list. Also an interesting fact, this is the most underrated Stanley Kubrick among all his and yet this won the most Oscars among all his including Best Cinematography. Glad Alcott got his Oscar and of course deserved it nonetheless. 


6. Searching for Bobby Fischer
Cinematographer: Conrad L. Hall

Now this film may not seem much like at first to get the number 6 spot on my list, but that would be like judging a book by its cover. Read the book first, see the effort that was put into it. AKA: see this movie cause this film takes chess to a whole new level, particularly with its cinematography. It's the close-ups of the chessboard that really do it for the film. The camera angles in this film that Conrad L. Hall managed to capture is incredible, and I wouldn't be lying if I said this film makes any chessboard look like the grid in the TRON movies because it's THAT good.


7. The Assassination of Jesse James 
   by the Coward Robert Ford
Cinematographer: Roger Deakins

I can see why the Coen Brothers hire this guy Deakins for all their films, because this film shows how good the guy really is. Now FYI this film that did make this list is not a Coen Brothers film, but I wish it was cause then this film would have much more interesting dialogue and not just be silent throughout half the movie without any symbolism. Luckily Deakins cinematography makes up for why this movie is still good. I mean among all Westerns, this one captures the true vision to what a Western should look like, yes even more than True Grit (2010) which is ironically a Coen Brothers film which Deakins also did the cinematography for. I don't know how much you'd like this film as a whole, but if you're interested in it for the cinematography mainly, I'm sure you won't be disappointed with this.


8. Once Upon a Time in America
Cinematographer: Tonino Delli Colli

The shots in this film capture the perfect image of all gangster movies. Not only does it look cool, it tells the story so well with the shots Sergio Leone uses. In my opinion, it's the best gangster movie I've ever seen. That's right, better than the Godfather films, Pulp Fiction, Goodfellas, you name it, nothing better than this. Now if you have yet to see this film, make sure you have 4 hours on your time because it's a LONG film but great build up for a great ending nonetheless. If you don't see this film, you'll be missing out on more than you think.


9. Punch-Drunk Love
Cinematographer: Robert Elswit

Director Paul Thomas Anderson does no wrong when trying to capture true love on screen, and cinematographer Robert Elswit does no wrong when using great depth of field to capture true love on screen. Now here's the interesting part, that's Adam Sandler in the photo kissing that woman. I'm not joking. He gives a great performance than what most people give him credit for, of course it's those same people haven't seen this movie yet. You could do so differently. Anyways, this is my favorite shot of the movie. It may look cool, but it comes off better when you've been watching the movie and understanding the characters so deeply in their situations. Overall, in my opinion this comes off as a satisfying experience and the shots in this film are like the icing on the cake. Just perfect. 


10. The Last Emperor
Cinematographer: Vittorio Storaro

Everything you see in this film feels like a dream, and I mean that in a good way. It's mainly because of the lighting in this film, it just looks too perfect which is why it feels like I'm in a dream when I watch this film. I'm also amazed that Bernardo Bertolucci actually managed to get the rights to film inside every part of the Forbidden City (which I imagine wasn't cheap either). Even with the big budget this movie had, it got the recognition it deserved with a good box office and going home with 9 Oscars including Best Picture, Director and of course the most deserving in my opinion, Cinematography. As long as the film is, it never gets tiring if you're into the cinematography cause this film offers plenty of that no doubt.


List of other great cinematographers that I wish could've made the list:

• Janusz Kaminski (Saving Private Ryan, Artificial Intelligence)
• Wally Pfister (Inception, The Dark Knight)
• John Toll (The Thin Red Line, Legends of the Fall)
• Robert Richardson (Inglourious Basterds, The Aviator)
• Anthony Dod Mantle (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours)
• Allen Daviau (Empire of the Sun, E.T: The Extra Terrestrial)
• Caleb Deschanel (Being There, The Patriot) 
• Vilmos Zsigmond (The Deer Hunter, Close Encounters of the Third Kind)
• Dean Semler (Dances with Wolves, Apocalypto)

RTL Awards 2010

Best Picture

Inception

127 Hours

Rabbit Hole

The Social Network [winner]

Toy Story 3

Like I said in my top 10 of this year, The Social Network was the best film of 2010. I was debating at first wether I should give this award to Inception, but because this film tells a more direct story with snappy dialogue and terrific acting, it goes to The Social Network.

Best Popcorn Flick

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Hot Tub Time Machine

Inception [winner]

Kick-Ass

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Toy Story 3

No question here, Inception is DEFINITELY the Popcorn Flick of 2010 and so far a contender for this decade as well. I don't think I've ever been more excited in a theater for any other action movie I've seen cause I was really into it from start, and knowing it's a 2 and a half hour film it really didn't feel that long. That's what I call good pacing. Fantastic job, Nolan.  

Best Animated Film

How to Train Your Dragon

Tangled

Toy Story 3 [winner]

Easy call, Toy Story 3 was a movie I had high hopes for, and it delivered perfectly. Now I will admit, I'm a little hesitant for their next film, Cars 2. I kind of understand why Toy Story needed sequels, but why Cars? Why not The Incredibles? Either way, I'm interested to figure out their logic with sequels and can only hope that they'll all be as good as Toy Story 3.

Best Director

Inception (Christopher Nolan) [winner]

127 Hours (Danny Boyle)

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (Edgar Wright)

The Social Network (David Fincher)

Teenage Paparazzo (Adrien Grenier)

Once again, here's another no brainer. After I saw Inception twice in one day which was opening day, I really thought Nolan was going to get his Oscar finally or at least a directors nomination from the Academy. I never thought that he would end up getting NEITHER! Damn you, Academy! Well thank God that me and a bunch of other blogging movie buffs are making up our own awards and giving Nolan the true recognition he deserves. Also, seeing that the unknown film Teenage Paparazzo got the nomination for Best Director gives an even bigger reason to go see it. It's that good. Just thought I'd put that out there.

Best Actor

The King’s Speech (Colin Firth)

127 Hours (James Franco) [winner]

Rabbit Hole (Aaron Eckhart)

Shutter Island (Leonardo DiCaprio)

The Social Network (Jesse Eisenberg)

People may say that Colin Firth deserved the Oscar, but I say James Franco is the true winner. To give a one-man performance for 90 minutes isn't easy, only Tom Hanks has been able to do better with Cast Away, but Franco was trapped in one small area which is still as challenging. Even with the flashbacks and premonitions in-between the film, it's still Franco that leads the story. Also I wish Leo DiCaprio could've been nominated this year cause his performance in Shutter Island was unforgettable. And props as well to Eisenberg and Eckhart. All five give fantastic performances.

Best Actress

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Noomi Rapace)

The Kids Are All Right (Annette Bening)

The Kids Are All Right (Julianne Moore)

Rabbit Hole (Nicole Kidman) [winner]

Winter’s Bone (Jennifer Lawrence)

This was a pretty weak year for female leads, but at least the Academy recognized Kidman for the critically acclaimed Rabbit Hole. She was the only one that played a totally believable character out of the ones nominated and I mean all respect to the other ones nominated, they were good as well but I never saw much of their character as I did Kidman's. You're also probably wondering why Natalie Portman isn't on here, well in my personal opinion I thought she only gave a one note performance in Black Swan. Her dancing was great but she acted like just a regular twenty-something-year old you'd see in a Friday the 13th horror flick. I still think Portman's a great actress, just not great in Black Swan, sorry.

Best Supporting Actor

The Fighter (Christian Bale)

Hot Tub Time Machine (Rob Corddry)

The Social Network (Andrew Garfield) [winner]

The Social Network (Armie Hammer)

The Town (Jeremy Renner)

I'm surprised Garfield didn't get recognized by the Academy. Did they really think John Hawkes was better? Well I digress, cause I really thought Garfield nailed the character perfectly, same thing goes for Hammer who had the right note and voice for the Winklevoss twins. I can't ignore Christian Bale or Jeremy Renner either for nailing their Boston character's accents perfectly. I'm glad Jeremy Renner already got his second nomination cause I was hoping The Hurt Locker wouldn't be his only one hit wonder. I did have Bill Murray in this list originally for Get Low, but after watching Hot Tub Time Machine I realized Rob Corddry put a lot of effort into his performance than most people give him credit for.

Best Supporting Actress

The Fighter (Amy Adams)

The Fighter (Melissa Leo)

Kick-Ass (Chloe Moretz)

Rabbit Hole (Dianne Wiest) [winner]

True Grit (Hailee Steinfeld)

I am kind of sad Dianne Wiest's performance was over-looked. I mean I know she has two Oscars but it's not really easy to play a mother helping her daughter get over the death of her son while still being haunted by the death of her own son. So many layers to her character bring out the best in Wiest. I must also say I was really impressed with Moretz as Hit-Girl, as weird as this sounds it's also not easy to be 11 years old and make themselves cursing sound so believable to an audience. That's not the highlight to her character from my perspective, but it did add easier development to her character that most movies tend to avoid.

Best Original Screenplay

The Fighter

Get Low

Hereafter

Hot Tub Time Machine

Inception [winner]

When I first heard the plot to this film, I thought it was a joke. After I saw the film, I declared it to be one of the best original concepts ever created. A good enough reason to give it this award if it manages to turn my thoughts in a whole other direction. Also, Hot Tub Time Machine is better than most time traveling movies you see know today, it deserves a nomination.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Kick-Ass

127 Hours

Rabbit Hole

The Social Network [winner]

Toy Story 3

I am so glad Aaron Sorkin FINALLY got the recognition he deserved since 1992 when he wrote A Few Good Men. Didn't think it would take 18 years to 1-UP to another level where it meets the Academy's vote. I must say, I love all these scripts, but The Social Network is at the highest level compared to the rest. I will always be pulling for you Aaron Sorkin! 

Technical Categories

Cinematography: The American

Art Direction: Inception

Costume: The King’s Speech

Film Editing: Inception

Sound: Inception

Visual Effects: Inception

Makeup: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

        Part 1

Score: Inception

Song: “Coming Home” (Country Strong)

Now even if you don't like the film The American, I wouldn't be dissing it's cinematography, it's THAT good. Inception was an easy call for Best Art Direction especially if more than half the movie is in a dream sequence. The King's Speech had a nice enough production to where I knew it had to earn something and luckily it picked up Best Costume. Inception was that great of an effects film to where you know it would have to pick up editing, sound, and effects though I still don't know why it never got the Oscar nomination for Best Editing, I'm convinced the Academy was on drugs that year. Makeup isn't as big of a deal to me as it is to most people but I believe Harry Potter deserved at least one award. Inception's score wasn't just epic but original, I like that in most scores so take a bow Mr. Zimmer. Now since I judge by song details and not just wether it matched up with the movie, I thought the song "Coming Home" was the best conducted among all others and therefore I give it's award it deserves.     

Best Ensemble

The Fighter

Hot Tub Time Machine

Inception

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

The Social Network [winner]

I don't think there was a single actor throughout this whole film that did a bad job with their role. Every character was well performed and had more than one dimension. I am very happy for newcomers Garfield and Hammer getting roles for future projects. I am now very interested in seeing the Spiderman reboot knowing it will be Garfield behind the mask.

Best Film Debut

Teenage Paparazzo [winner]

Toy Story 3

TRON: Legacy

Adrien Grenier showed how big of a brain he really had when he made Teenage Paparazzo. And to think he was just a not-so-bright TV star judging by his role in Entourage... THINK AGAIN.

Most Overrated/Underrated

Overrated: Black Swan

Underrated: Teenage Paparazzo

All right, Black Swan wasn't a bad movie. It was still well-shot, but it seems like the writers mixed up the movies Mulholland Dr. and The Turning Point into a blender, it still came out well, but I wasn't blown away by ANY twist throughout the movie because I totally saw it all coming. Now for Teenage Paparazzo... hell it actually talks about something new. Something I'm surprised wasn't brought up 5 to 10 years before this film was made. Thank you Adrien for finally shooting something that actually needed getting out in the open.

Best Hero/Villain

Hero: Aron Ralston (127 Hours)

Villain: Mark Zuckerberg (The Social Network)

It is kind of interesting that my top hero and villain for this year are both real life people, but hey if their characters are portrayed on screen by actors for the public to see, they count. Ralston was a no brainer for my hero pick. The way James Franco portrays him is so intriguing, a climber who gets his arm caught in a boulder and makes all the right decisions by using his brain on what to do and tries to make the best of it by having a good attitude. We sympathize with his character so deeply. Now for Mark Zuckerberg, it's a little different. He's not exactly portrayed like he is in real life, but the character that Eisenberg played was who I consider to be a villain. Most audiences would call him an asshole or a tragic hero, but I consider him a villain by his actions, by what he did to get where he sits at the end of the movie. Unnecessary actions that he could've avoided if he just listened to "who were" his friends instead of getting carried away with himself. Another reason would be his court scenes with the Winklevoss twin. He addresses to his associate that he doesn't hate anybody (which I do believe is true about his character), but he doesn't like to be around people that say he's wrong or a liar like that one scene where you see his most villainous where he tells the Winklevoss' lawyer that he only has part of of his attention and the rest of it lays at a place where his clients have no business being because they're incapable of it. That's a villain in my book, and trust me it comes off better in the movie. 

Best Scene

Inception (Rotating Hall Fight) [winner]

Inception (The Vault Climax)

Kick-Ass (The Jet Pack Scene)

The Social Network (Creating Facemash)

Toy Story 3 (Goodbye Ending)

I do love all these scenes, every one of them I could watch a million times and still have the same feeling, but the rotating hall fight from Inception is one of the best scenes ever created in the history of modern filmmaking. That's enough right there to be the winner. A scene like that should be studied in film schools everywhere because I never would've guessed they used a real rotating room and tied to actors on invisible ropes. The way its choreographed and shot plays out so well that I have watched this scene over and over on TV, mini DVD player, YouTube, and am just still amazed how its done no matter what quality its in.

Best Quote

Cobb: Dreams feel real while we’re in them. It’s only when we wake up that we realize things are actually strange. 

(Inception)

I love this quote because it's a science fiction film addressing what we feel in reality. It makes you feel like you're literally in the movie. I'm so glad Nolan thinks these things out so well.