What a delight to be able to welcome back the lovely Steph Spiro as a guest on the blog with her compilation of the best films about films.

If you love your movies be sure to pay a visit to Steph’s first guest post Top 10 Dream Films: Reality? Never!. You can find out more about Steph and connect with her on Twitter by way of the bio at the end of the post.

 I’m Ready For My Close-up: The Top 10 Films About Film

This season we’ve been lucky enough to experience an influx of beautiful films about films, from Hugo to The Artist to My Week With Marilyn, and beyond.  Not to mention the otherworldly film special effect of kids acting with humanity and grace in Super 8 (newly out on DVD).  

Hugo and The Artist are two of the very best. Hugo is Scorsese’s story of a young boy running the inner mechanism of a clock tower in a Parisian train station.  The lonely boy with the big blue eyes finds a message in an automaton that leads him on a path to fix a broken film director.  It’s utterly magical and immersive (best use of natural 3D ever) and it brings you inside the feeling of love: love of Paris, love of memory, love of movies, love of love. 

The cinematic world constructed in Hugo is astoundingly detailed and painstakingly crafted by master film-enthusiast Martin Scorsese.  You don’t just watch it; you fall in.  It becomes an entire world in depth, a realer than real labyrinth winding through the back walls of a train station the way celluloid winds through a projector.  The audience is bathed in projector light, — lit like moonlight, like magic.  Together, we dream.  

The Artist is a film about the Hollywood transition from silent to sound.  The entire film is silent and it’s absolutely bewitching. In one scene a girl mimics an embrace, snuggling up to an empty dinner jacket in one of the loveliest moments I’ve seen in contemporary film.  

Remember this feeling?  Sitting in the dark, totally enraptured?  

Considering the recent (and extraordinary) filmic love letters to film out now, I’ve started to think of my Top 10 films about films, and I’ve created my own personal list (in no particular order).  Let’s go to the movies!

1. Singin’ in the Rain

No film-about-film list is ever complete without Singin’ in the Rain.  It’s a classic.  And if you haven’t seen it, then log in to Netflix now and move it to the top of your queue immediately.  You’re missing out on a grand musical about the film industry shift from silent to sound (just like The Artist), with some of the most insanely choreographed numbers of all time.

2. Sunset Boulevard

We mustn’t underestimate faded old silent film actress Norma Desmond, or we may end up face down in a pool.  Sunset Boulevard begins with the voice-over of a dead screenwriter.  It’s a classic noir-meets-Hollywood film about an actress who is resolutely and undeniably ready for her close-up.

3. The Player

The Player is Robert Altman’s genius (and noir-ish/comedy) film about a sleazy Hollywood executive, stalked by an unidentified and perturbed screenwriter.

4. Cinema Paradiso

Cinema Paradiso is a swoony film about film and a child’s love affair with the movies… sans cinematic kisses.

5. Fellini’s 8 ½

8 ½ is a spectacular film about a director stepping through reality into dream and back again.  It’s one of the most amazing films about film because it turns the camera inward and projects, sending streams of light deep inside the movie house abyss of the human soul.

6. Sullivan’s Travels

Sullivan’s Travels is an ode to comedy, a film about a director of screwball gems like Hey Hey in the Hayloft, determined to make a serious, socially conscious film.  He goes on a quest to discover what it’s really like on the streets, and in the process he meets-cute with Veronica Lake and uncovers the real meaning of loss… and laughter (with a little sex in it).

7. The Stuntman

Peter O’Toole is Eli, the mysterious omniscient director.  After the death of his original stunt guy, Eli catches a fleeing convict, takes him through Alice’s magic mirror via “Eli’s killer crane,” and turns the skittish jailbird into a very confused stuntman.

8. Adaptation/Barton Fink

Ah, films about screenwriters!  Adaptation follows Charlie Kaufman and his fictional twin brother into the world of book-to-film adaptation, as Charlie struggles to adapt a “sprawling New Yorker” novel, The Orchid Thief, and instead writes himself and the author of the book (Susan Orlean) into the story.  Very meta-mesmerizing.  Barton Fink follows a playwright into an abandoned hotel as he attempts to write a Hollywood screenplay.  Arguably the best film ever by the Coen Brothers.

 9. Boogie Nights/Ed Wood

I grouped Boogie Nights and Ed Wood together because they’re both about B movies. They range from the glittery roller-clad depths of a 70s porn industry disco lair to the black-and-white backlit world of the maniacal Depp grin.  Both films are essential and beautifully shot (directed by Paul Thomas Anderson and Tim Burton, respectively) about darker niche filmmaking, using richly interwoven narrative, and in the case of Ed Wood, a heartbreakingly faded Bela Lugosi.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

10. The Five Obstructions

I suppose this last pick is a bit of a dark horse, but anyone who loves the creative process will thoroughly enjoy this beautiful documentary.  Director Lars Von Trier challenges his mentor, Jorgen Leth (suffering from a creative block), to remake his 1967 film, The Perfect Human, five different times, each time with newly introduced “rules” for recreating the film.  The result is unexpectedly touching and wildly innovative.

Click here to view the embedded video.

**Honorable Mention:

Afterlife

Afterlife seems like an unlikely pick, but it’s actually one of the most beautiful films I’ve ever seen about the lasting visual power of a memory.  Our chosen stories are very cinematic.  We’re all stars of our own movies, and our life narrative is the strongest and most affective film of all.  In Afterlife, when people die, they’re allowed to pick one memory to take with them to the afterlife.  That memory is reconstructed and acted out in a theatrical setting and immortalized on film, strapped to the soul of the dying person as the last bit of their life that is extracted and kept forever.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Chaplin

Chaplin is a moving and underrated biopic about Charlie Chaplin, featuring a masterful performance by Robert Downey Jr. as the silent film star.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Get Shorty

It’s impossible not to fall in love with this sharp mobster-meets-Hollywood hybrid!  In Get Shorty, Travolta’s mobster, Chili Palmer, decides he’d rather be in the movie ‘biz when he finds himself in La La Land to collect a debt.   

Click here to view the embedded video.

Venice/Venice & Day for Night

Venice/Venice is a classic and shamefully little-seen film about “love, romance… and the movies.”  Enough said.  Day for Night is Truffaut’s love letter to film, about a director finishing a film.  Both are excellent, Netflix-worthy queue-toppers.    

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Mulholland Drive

Mulholland drive is tough to pin down as specifically ‘a film about film’ (which is why it didn’t make the actual list).  It’s a film that kind of writhes wildly in a Hollywood setting, and who can forget the Naomi Watts audition scene?  It’s epic and that scene alone is worth the honorable mention.  This film transports the viewer to a dark place of pure feeling the way only the best films can.  

Click here to view the embedded video.

Living In Oblivion

The only reason Living In Oblivion is listed as an honorable mention is because I listed it in my last Top10 blog as one of the 10 best dream films.  In fact, this is one of the most versatile and extraordinary films about independent cinema ever.  It unfolds in three parts: the first two episodes/acts are anxiety dreams about the making of a film, and the third and final act is a film about an anxiety dream.  Just watching Katherine Keener read her lines repeatedly, slightly tweaking them every time, take after take, is worth the add to your Netflix queue.  

Click here to view the embedded video.

Bowfinger

Alright, I know.  But give Bowfinger another shot.  Steve Martin’s film about the making of an alien invasion movie called Chubby Rain (that’s right… aliens invade the atmosphere disguised as chubby raindrops) starring a ragtag crew of misfits is terribly clever and wildly underrated.  And Eddie Murphy’s performance(s) are comic genius.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Inside Daisy Clover

Inside Daisy Clover, about a waif-turned-Hollywood sensation  (played expertly and with such precocity and sadness by young Natalie Wood) is strangely beguiling.  It’s also the first time we see Natalie Wood and Robert Redford together onscreen.  


Click here to view the embedded video.

And lastly, a finale: a couple of magnificent movie scenes (about movies):

The Purple Rose of Cairo 

Click here to view the embedded video.

And Sherlock Jr

Click here to view the embedded video.

Many thanks go to Steph for such an amazingly comprehensive post. Do you have any favourites of your own that you think should be included? If you would like to connect with Steph please click on the bio below.

Many thanks for visiting The Top 10 Blog, if you have enjoyed this post please share it with the world. If you would like to see more like this then you can Subscribe, Follow, Like and Add to your Circles using the options in the Sidebar.

I am grateful to Josh Lucht aka ‘Resident Film Snob‘ for his seasonal compilation of movies to watch on Halloween.

You can find out more about Josh, previously a guest with Top 10 Movie Bad Guys You Root For, by connecting on Twitter @resfilmsnob.

Yes, I know everybody watches “Halloween” on Halloween, (or maybe another modern-day slasher) but here are 10 films, most of which are a bit off the beaten path that will give you the scares and the fun of my favorite holiday.

Just click on the heading to learn more at IMDb.

1. Rosemary’s Baby

This is the ultimate Satanic thriller.  The story envelops you so deeply that you’re genuinely shocked along with Rosemary as she learns who her child is.  This is not just one of the greatest, chilliest final scenes in horror film history.  It ranks among the best film endings period.

2. The Devil’s Rejects

Yes, it’s a sequel that’s superior to its original in every way.  When you find yourself rooting for people who are this sadistic and evil, you end up frightening yourself.

3. Evil Dead 2

This is slapstick comedy and gratuitous gore.  One of my favorite horror films.

4. In the Mouth of Madness

Most people agree “The Thing” or “Halloween” are John Carpenter’s best films.  But for my money, it doesn’t get any better than this unpredictable psychological thriller where the scares come at you from everywhere you’re not looking from them.

5. 2,000 Maniacs

There are no more gleefully sadistic killers on celluloid than these Southern gentlemen and belles.  The unapologetically bloody update, “2001 Maniacs,” is also very much worth checking out.

6. Nightmare Before Christmas

Hey, this is a children’s holiday after all.  Who says everything you watch has to be scary?  This is a celebration of the Halloween spirit at its finest.

7. Inside

This film is simply terrifying.  A woman covets a pregnant woman’s child and will stop at nothing to get what she wants.  She picks off person after person who would come to her victim’s aid and every kill is wonderfully memorable.

8. May

This is an update of Frankenstein.  A lonely girl decides to make her own perfect friend out of the perfect parts of people she meets.  Quirky and genuinely menacing in places.

9. The Rocky Horror Picture Show

For the fun, campy Halloween parties.  Everybody can sing along.

10. Funny Games

People who say a film has to be grounded in reality to be genuinely frightening have no imagination.  Discuss. At any rate, for those of you who need “true-to-life” scares, I give you this one.  Psychotic rich kids are terrifying.

P.S. – For those of you who have your heart set on zombies, (they seem to be very fashionable these days) may I recommend George Romero’s “Dawn of the Dead” or “Day of the Dead?”
They have both been remade very effectively, but these classics are required viewing for aficionados of the undead.

Many thanks to Josh for his compilation – please let us know of any of your favourites which you think should be a Halloween must watch movie!

For more great Halloween tips try 30 Top Halloween Songs, Party Games and Make-up Tips.

Thanks for visiting The Top 10 Blog. If you have enjoyed this post please share it with the world. If you would like to see more like this you can Subscribe, Follow, Like and Add to your Circles using the options in the Sidebar.

*Image Credits

Halloween Bat – nuttakit / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Flat screen televisions are becoming more and more common in households as they come to more thoroughly dominate the market in electronics stores. Many people are simply waiting for the right reason or time to go out to the Marks & Spencer electronics section and upgrade for themselves, at which point they will never turn back to smaller or lower quality televisions.

Odds are, if you are considering getting a flat screen television, you have had your eyes on movies and programming that you like to watch on your new screen. With that in mind ‚ before you go out and purchase movies to watch on your new TV here is a brief rundown of the top 10 film disappointments of 2011 so far.

10. Cowboys & Aliens

This movie can be bashed too much because it provided exactly what it said it would. However, despite a good bit of fun and some humor here and there, it just didn’t have a lot to offer in the end.

9. Contagion

Contagion is a good film. But with its dynamite cast and intriguing/haunting subject matter, most people expected great. In the end it opens up more storylines than it can handle, and it suffers a bit for it.

8. Kung Fu Panda 2

This one is painful to admit, because the original was just so fresh and lovable. But the sequel simply lacked the novelty and charm, no more than a worse version of the original.

7. Unknown

Many got excited for this film because it looked like Liam Neeson would be bringing back the fury he had in Taken. However, Unknown was largely uninteresting, and not as fast or clever as it seemed to try to be.

6. Drive

If you’re interested in films in which the protagonist has about twenty lines and can fall in love with a woman without speaking to her, this one’s for you. But the intentionally lifeless performance of Ryan Gosling just didn’t hold the appeal it needed to. It’s not altogether bad, but you’ll wish for more.

5. Apollo 18

This is the worst film on this list, but because less was expected of it to begin with, it comes in at 5. If nothing else fans expected some fun from this one, and it delivered nothing but raw stupidity. It’s hard to watch.

4. Jack & Jill

Much like Apollo 18, this is one of the worst films of the year, but didn’t have high expectations anyway. Once a comedian starts doing the man-and-woman-in-the-same-movie gig, it’s time to stop. Sorry, Adam Sandler.

3. Your Highness

This movie looked stupid, but many expected James Franco and company to deliver. Unfortunately it was hard to laugh at this movie even if you tried to.

2. Larry Crowne

How can two of Hollywood’s best and brightest stars deliver a lifeless, inexplicably uninteresting performance? Watch this film if you want to find out. Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts are the best in the business but they still have to try, and it’s not clear that they did this time.

1. Super 8

The first 45 minutes of this movie are spectacular, and build a good deal of intrigue. The rest, however is bland and expected and totally lacks any originality. If Spielberg’s name weren’t on this project it would have been hammered by reviewers. As it is it was just a letdown.

Have you had any major movie disappointments this year? Please do let us know!

This post has been brought to you by Marks and Spencer.

Many thanks for visiting The Top 10 Blog today. If you would like to see more posts like this you can Subscribe, Follow, Like and Add to your Circles using the options at the top of the the sidebar.

*Image Credits

Movie Frame – Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Hit Miss Maybe – Sean MacEntee Flickr

Dislike – Sean MacEntee Flickr

If you, like so many others, have expanded your cable package or discovered the benefits of Family Satellite TV, you are no doubt used to the range of fantastic shows and movies available to you.

In particular, modern television packages are extremely beneficial to film fans as movies are moving from the big screen to your television more quickly than ever before. With this in mind, here is this writers brief countdown of the top 10 mainstream movies of 2011 so far.

10. Thor

Featuring the debut of sure-to-be star Chris Hemsworth, Thor is pure fun for fans of action and adventure. As long as you go into it understanding that it includes supernatural characters and light bridges between worlds, you should be able to let go and be thoroughly entertained.

9. The Adjustment Bureau

Though this movie was not extremely well-received by most critics  and despite the fact that its love conquers all theory is a bit overdone Matt Damon’s charisma alone makes it an interesting watch.

8. Friends With Benefits

This light comedy featuring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis defines the concept of a feel good movie. While many avoided it because its previews made it seem like a dull romantic comedy with a tired premise, the movie itself is surprisingly funny, and should certainly leave you smiling.

7. Fast Five

By far the best-reviewed of the Fast & Furious series, Fast Five was not only a very satisfying link in the story for fans of the franchise, but also a surprisingly well done action film. It is, of course, ridiculous at times, but it would be difficult to watch this movie without having fun.

6. The Hangover II

Many criticized this film because it was so similar to its predecessor. I’d ask, is that such a bad thing? The same characters conducting similar shenanigans in a different setting is a recipe thats good for plenty of laughs. After all, we all wanted more after part I.

5. X-Men First Class

The best superhero movie of the summer, X-Men First Class was a solid film even to people who are not fans of the franchise. This is a very satisfying prequel to the entire X-Men experience.

4. Source Code

One of the biggest surprises of the year, Source Code is an intriguing sci-fi film with a very original idea. It should be fun for anyone who was a fan of the Matrix, or anyone who enjoys fast pace and suspense in general.

3. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes

A shockingly entertaining prequel to the famous story of the Planet of the Apes, this film left almost nothing to be desired. Do not dismiss it as a 2 hour battle between apes and mankind  this movie is much more than that, and is well worth seeing again and again.

2. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, Part II

A visually and emotionally satisfying end to the worldwide phenomenon of Harry Potter, it’s exactly as good as you’d hope and expect. Little more needs to be said than this: this is just one more piece of brilliance from the mind of J.K. Rowling.

1. Midnight In Paris

A charming and intellectual ride through Paris and the arts over the course of the last century, this Woody Allen film is impossible not to enjoy. You won’t just be smiling when you leave the theater, you’ll be smiling all the way through.

Which are your favorites so far in 2011?

*This post has been brought to you by Satellitetvfamily.com

If you have enjoyed this post I hope you will share it with the world. If you would like to see more like this you can Subscribe, Follow, Like and Add to your Circles using the options in the sidebar.

Many thanks for visiting The Top 10 Blog.

*Image Credits

Pellicola/Number Frame – Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Film – renjith krishnan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

It is a pleasure to welcome back Josh Lucht as a guest on the blog with his thoughts on the mistakes made by the Academy with their recent awards.

Why not pay a visit to Josh’s first guest appearance while you are here? Top 10 Movie Bad Guys You Root For.  If you would like to find out more about Josh you can connect with him on Twitter @resfilmsnob and at his Resident Film Snob blog.

10) Best Animated Feature –

You guys gave the Best Animated Feature to “Toy Story 3.”  Yes, Andy went off to college and everybody cried.  I get it.

But one of my best movie memories of the year will be watching “The Illusionist” with my daughter and having her turn to me and whisper, “Daddy, this girl is awesome!  She stopped that clown from hanging himself and why isn’t anybody talking?”

Now THAT’S a magical movie.

9) Best Supporting Actress –

Melissa Leo certainly gave the one of the most attention-grabbing performance of the year, but obvious does not always equal good.

Shrill is the only word I can think of to describe Leo’s performance.  “The Fighter” was a fantastic film and Leo’s performance was the one weak link, so it’s odd that she won an Oscar.

Actually, the prize should have gone to Jackie Weaver for her turn as the creepy, syrupy-sweet Smurf, the matriarch of the crime family in “Animal Kingdom.”  She was kind of an adorable lady who made me want to go “Blech!”

8) Recognizing the Wrong Indie Favorite –

As long as we’re on the topic of “Animal Kingdom,” if the Academy was going to pick one Sundance darling to throw a few token nominations to, this impacting crime drama was substantially more deserving than the admittedly descent but overrated “Winter’s Bone.”

I know there is a brilliant 80 minute film buried inside this mediocre 100 minute movie.

But years from now, when people are talking about the best crime dramas ever, “Animal Kingdom” is going to be brought up along with films like Kubrick’s “The Killing,” Lumet’s “Dog Day Afternoon” and Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs.”

7) Lots of Nominations: One Boring Movie –

“The Social Network.”  The last time you guys lavished so much attention on a truly bad movie was 1999’s “Cider House Rules.”  But hey, if you want me to be a glass-is-half-full kind of guy, you haven’t sucked this bad for more than a decade.

And by the way viewing public, “The Social Network” was a box-office smash, so you all suck, too.  I’m sorry to say it, but tough love and all that.  (They don’t call me The Resident Film Snob for nothing.)

6) Disrespecting Film Editors -

Best Editing is not a consolation prize for the movie that didn’t get best picture.  It’s for the best edited film of the year.  I can’t believe I have to point this out to you.  Was “The Social Network” really the best edited film of the year?  The major awards shook out pretty much as predicted, but this was the biggest surprise of the night.  I was pretty sure “Black Swan” was going to take this one.

Or better yet, you could have given it to “Blue Valentine,” which was unquestionably the best edited film of the year.  But you didn’t nominate it.  Which would be another thing you guys got wrong, but I’m rolling it into this one because this ain’t a top 11 list.

5) Right Actor, Wrong Movie –

You nominated James Franco for his role as trapped hiker Aron Ralston in “127 Hours” instead of his dead-on Allen Ginsberg in the best film I saw in 2010: “Howl.”

As your Resident Film Snob, I command you all to go and catch this movie now.  Go on.  You all have NetFlix or something like that.  Get moving.

4) Foreign Language Film –

You didn’t give the Best Foreign Language Film to “Dogtooth.”  You have a father who controls his by children by faking deaths of imaginary siblings, covering himself with the blood of small animals and making his daughters mortally terrified of cats?

And that is just the beginning of the crazy!

This film is a psychotic treasure!  What’s not to love?

And I’d like to repeat my command from the end of #5.

3) Best Actor Category Mistake #1 –

You guys nominated Jesse Eisenberg for best actor for “The Social Network?”  Really?  Let’s forget what I thought of the film itself.  Eisenberg’s performance was not the stuff little gold men are made of.

Eisenberg had me thinking maybe Mark Zuckerberg was really bored the whole time was creating Facebook, then I realized Eisenberg was probably just bored making this movie.  I half-expected him to come out wearing a T-shirt that said, “I wish I was still killing zombies with Woody Harrelson.”

2) Best Actor Category Mistake #2 –

Not giving Ryan Gosling recognition for his half of the troubled and hopeful couple in “Blue Valentine.”  His performance broke my heart and as a jaded, hardened, middle-aged film critic, that’s no small feat.  You nominated Michelle Williams, but it takes two to make film magic & misery.

1) You ignored “Never Let Me Go” entirely -

This should have been the Oscar film of the year.

Not even nominating “Never Let Me Go,” the most elegant science fiction film in decades.  It was a beautiful, heartbreaking adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s groundbreaking novel and it deserved to lead the nominations and sweep the awards.

Many thanks to Josh for sharing his thoughts.  Do you agree? Did you think the Academy got it right or do you have your own views? Please do let us know.

* Image credits

Number Frame – Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net