Possibly the greatest ending shot ever.

Paul and I watched the genius film The Third Man tonight, and we felt the need to share this incredible piece of filmmaking. This ending shot doesn't spoil much if anything and it's resonance and power is something that you can't pass up watching. No ifs, ands, or buts: this may be the most perfect ending shot ever.

Welcome to the worst movie of 2010.

I saw the trailer for the movie To Save a Life when I saw Fantastic Mr. Fox tonight (review forthcoming) and I just had to share it with everyone. The following trailer looks like the absolute most godawful piece of tripe ever committed to celluloid. Doing some extra digging brings up the fact that this is a movie with a strong Christian agenda and backing which, well, isn't surprising. From what I can tell, the basic story is everyone hates a highschool hot shot because he befriends a "lame" Asian kid, and then God is in there too, or something. I don't really know. It's unclear what the story is but everything is there for you to understand how miserable it would be to sit through this movie. It looks below even Lifetime channel standards.

Anyhow, feast your eyes on To Save a Life.

Phil Villarreal's Top 100 Movies (Which are as misguided as you'd expect)

How Phil Villarreal somehow tricked the Arizona Daily Star into thinking his opinions on film are valid will forever be a perplexing thing. Movies that take a bit of work to enjoy are of no use to him, he defends insipid movies because of that fact, and sheepishly gives four star reviews to movies that critics with actual clout give four star ratings to because he doesn't want to seem like a dolt.

And now, I have come across the worst best (or best worst?) list ever, Phil Villarreal's favorite 100 movies ever. It's filled with movies that have no place on best of lists, movies that again Phil feels the need to like, and movies that are actually quite good that he raises to biblical proportions (just wait till you get to his top 10. There are certainly some good movies in there, but top 10 ever?).  You get the impression from reading the list that Phil only likes movies that came out from the time he started reviewing movies, and anything else before is again something that Phil feels the need to like, which I only base on his taste from more recent movies. Not only is the main list itself offensive, but Phil very cheekily put in some dumb lists on the sidebar with such condescending titles such as "Good Films with Bad Titles" and "Movies to Use as Sleeping Pills," to show how much better he is than you.

So, without further ado, Phil Villarreal's Favorite 100 Movies of all Time.

"Don't you want to be a part of the experience?"

As I posted earlier, I watched Hannah and Her Sisters tonight, which is one of Woody Allen's finest films. I'd only seen it once before, and on this second viewing I was really blown away by it. One scene in particular is quite affecting, and I thought I'd share it with you all.

Be warned, this is a scene that happens almost at the end of the movie so it is a spoiler-heavy scene. I'd be wary of watching it if you intend on seeing the film (which I highly recommend you do), but if you have no intention to or have already seen it, relish in this wonderful scene that is one of the most life-affirming things ever set to film.

Holy Shit! Tauntaun Sleeping Bag!

Wow. The people over at ThinkGeek have crafted this amazing Tauntaun sleeping bag, which you'll obviously recognize as an homage to the warm intestines of one Tauntaun in The Empire Strikes Back. If this shit wasn't $100, I'd buy one like that.

A Few Great Quotes From A Great Movie

DO THE RIGHT THING (Dir. Spike Lee) (1989)

"If Mike Tyson beats my ass in a dream, he better wake up and apologize."

-Sweet Dick Willie

"Tina, you ain't got a forehead, you got an eighthead."

- Mookie

"The fuck is wrong with you? This ain't about money, I could give a fuck about money. You see this fucking place? I built this fucking place, with my bare fucking hands. Every light socket, every piece of tile, me, with these fucking hands."

- Sal

(More after the jump)

If you want to watch two Thanksgiving movies that don't suck...

After I eat unhealthy proportions of turkey, mashed potatoes, and an assortment of pies tonight, I'm going to head back to my house and watch these Thanksgiving movies that are actually worthwhile. Shocking that such things exist, I know. Personally, I'm waiting for a movie that is to Thanksgiving as Die Hard is to Christmas, but until then, these will do:

HANNAH AND HER SISTERS (Dir. Woody Allen)

THE ICE STORM (Dir. Ang Lee)

Great Musicals Can Be, Well...Great.

Whenever I think of musicals, I always think of those old, classic titles such as West Side Story, The Sound of Music, or Fiddler on the Roof. Not many great musicals come to mind that were made before 1970 or so. I think there's a reason for this: people aren't interested in a musical, let alone a good one, these days. And although I can't say that the musical is my favorite genre, or even close to my favorite, I can say that I do love to watch those time-honored classics every once in a while.

There's something enchanting about watching the main characters' wild expressions and movements during an upbeat number, or hearing their somber yet beautiful voices during a sad one. It's wonderful to see how an actor can capture a character's feelings in a song, whether they're joyous or doleful, and I can't help but admire just how much raw talent the actors have, not to mention how naturally attractive they tend to be.

I recently watched the musical Chicago, directed by Rob Marshall, for the first time in a few years, and I was reminded of just how much energy and charisma that movie has and how well it holds up to the classics. Chicago brought to mind the pure fun and entertainment a great musical can bring, and because of this, Marshall's first musical in seven years, entitled Nine is one of my most anticipated films of 2009. With Marhsall at the helm again and an absolutely spectacular cast including Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, and Marion Cotillard, this movie has some serious promise. Nine will be released on December 25th, and you can be sure I'll be one of the first in line to see it.

Zemeckis Thinks Motion Capture Deserves Own Oscar

Just saw this ridiculous article over at /Film (which is a great film blog that you should read if you don't already) and thought I'd share it's retardation with you all. It's about how once relevant and talented filmmaker Robert Zemeckis believes that a technology he has used for his past few movies deserves it's own Academy Award category.

The technology he refers to is motion capture, a technology he didn't even pioneer, but rather ran into the ground with his horrid films The Polar Express, Beowulf, and the recent A Christmas Carol. Zemeckis seems to think that what he's doing with motion capture isn't animation, nor is it live action, so because of that, it deserves it's own Academy Award. Since no one else in Hollywood is obsessed with motion capture like he is (maybe because all fully motion capture films look fucktarded?), his movies would be the only ones in the category. Sure, other live action movies use motion capture, but these are not what Zemeckis is referring to.

It basically boils down to this: Zemeckis doesn't want a special effects win, or an animation win, but would rather have a category tailored just for him and his dumb movies that no one else makes because no one else wants to waste their time. Your head has gotten quite big, Zemeckis.

Welcome.

This is a film blog. Essays, reviews, lists - anything I want to write pertaining to film will appear here. Welcome.

Evan