Best Third Rock From The Sun Actor Movies

it's not hard to see how i came to this one... Hesher (which i talked about this week) stars joseph gordon-levitt. jgl was in Third Rock From the Sun. this week's list, 'best Third Rock From the Sun actor movies' ... did it in three steps (and that's without using kevin bacon!)

1: Leaving Las Vegas (french stewart)

2: Brick (joseph gordon-levitt)

3: Austin Powers: the spy who shagged me (kristen johnson)

4: 500 Days Of Summer (joseph gordon-levitt)

5: Dick (french stewart)

6: Terms Of Endearment (john lithgow)

7: Shrek (john lithgow)

8: I Love You Man (jane curtain)

9: Inception (joseph gordon-levitt)

10: Footloose (john lithgow)

Best Political Movies

"political" films can mean many things to many people. so, for the sake of this list lets quality it by saying films that deal with politics and/or the world of politics directly... as opposed to films with or about a "political" agenda or point of view of comment.

1: Dr Strangelove

given how much i love this film i have a feeling it is going to be on many lists (this is number two already)

2: The War Room

a great documentary about the 1992 clinton campaign.

3: All The Presidents Men

4: Wag The Dog

5: Election

6: Dick

7: JFK

8: Nixon

9: The Ides Of March

10: Mr Smith Goes To Washington

we all know the system is corrupt and that politicians care about the people they represent as nothing more than votes to keep them in power. but, when jimmy stewart give that famous filibuster speech, the cynic in all of us can't help but be at least a little moved.

Worst Sequels

very few film series' are without problem films. even the good ones often have one, or maybe even two films that aren't as great as the rest. with that being said i decided to focus attention on those awful part IIs and IIIs and IVs, etc. so, here goes....

1: Beverly Hills Cop III

just thinking about this movie again was made me a little sick to my stomach.

2: Terminator: Salvation

i'm one of the few who liked the third film in this series. but this fourth one was really awful!

3: Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

none of the Transformers films were good. but this second one stands out as bad in a series of not good movies.

4: The Exorcist: The Beginning

the studio didn't like what paul shrader did with the prequel, so they brought in renny harlin and made the movie all over again. and that is the one they released to theatres. IDIOTS!!

5: Final Destination III & IV

given they are all the same film i probably could have just as easily thrown number II and V in there also. the films are all a bit of a crappy blur, but i guess III and IV stood out as even crappier since they are the ones that i thought of first.

6: The Fast & The Furious II & IV

you can check out my discussion of the entire Fast & Furious series to see where these come in below the rest.

7: Rocky IV

there are some good and one great film in this series. Rocky IV is not one of them.

8: James Bond: Quantum Of Solace

i really hope the next bond movie can wash the bad taste of Quantum Of Solace from my mouth

9: Batman & Robin

it's no surprise that joel schumacher directed this piece of junk. he also brought us the third film, which was only semi-saved by jim carrey.

10: Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace

i don't hate the three prequel Star Wars films as much as many people did. in fact i kinda liked the second one and the third is one of the top three of the whole series. but that first one, Phantom Menace, was pretty bad.

11: The French Connection II

the first film is a classic. number two features a stand-out performance from gene hackman, but the film... not so much

Best Memory/Amnesia Movies

there was a reason i decided this week's list would be about memory/amnesia, but i forget what it was.... yup, i said it. the bad joke was there waiting for me and i didn't hesitate! but seriously folks. watching Wrecked for this week's podcast got me thinking about other films with an amnesia theme, which expanded into memory in general and became the list you now see before you.

1: MEMENTO

2: ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND

3: RASHOMON

4: THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE

5: OLDBOY

6: DARK CITY

7: THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT

8: THE BOURNE TRILOGY

9: GROUNDHOG DAY

10: FINDING NEMO

Best Improvised Movies

did you know that the "are you talking to me?" line from Taxi Driver was improvised? so was the "you know how i know you are gay?" conversation in The 40-Year-Old Virgin. as was "heeeeeeres johnny!!!" in The Shining. and i could go on and on.... but what about when it's more than a line or a scene? what about when it is the entire film (or at least most/much of it)? here is my list of the best improvised movies...

1: Dr Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb

i almost didn't include this one because most of the film wasn't improvised. but, i have read that peter sellers is sometimes considered an uncredited co-writer on the film because he did so much improving with his three characters creating many lines that were later added to the script. so, with that in mind i decided it could be on the list. and once that decision was made, it, of course (given it is one of the greatest comedies/movies ever made), had to be at number one!

2: Humpday

number three on my list of the best films of 2009

3: Borat

sacha baron cohen brilliantly creates and inhabits the character (as he also does as ali g and bruno) to the point where the real him completely disappears and you wonder if he will be able to find him again. it's also very, very funny!

4: Waiting For Guffman

the first one i saw and my favorite film from christopher guest and company

5: The Puffy Chair

part of the mumblecore movement (of which Humpday is as well), this was a great little film from the duplass brothers.

6: Best In Show

another one from guest and friends

7: The Girlfriend Experience

one of soderbergh little experimental, semi-improved things he does between bigger projects

8: The Trip

coogan and brydon are so much fun to watch and listen to

Best Woody Allen Movies

talking about Midnight In Paris this week it seemed like an obvious list would be The Best Woody Allen Movies. this is a tough one, because he has made so many great movies and i have seen so many of them. i mean, when i'm leaving films like, Broadway Danny Rose, Radio Days, Bullets Over Broadway, Alice and Midnight In Paris off of the list you know you are picking from a very deep pool of great films...

1: Crimes And Misdemeanors

2: Annie Hall

3: Mighty Aphrodite

4: Sleeper

5: Manhattan

6: Vicky Christina Barcelona

7: Zelig

8: Deconstructing Harry

9: Hannah And Her sisters

10: Manhattan Murder Mystery

11: Purple Rose Of Cairo

12: Husbands And Wives

Best Spanish-Language Movies

this list came about because i discussed King Of The Hill on the podcast and it got me to thinking about other spanish-language films i have seen and how great some of them have been. so my list goes as follows...

1: The Secret In Their Eyes

2: Y Tu Maman Tembien

3: Amorres Perros

4: Nine Queens

5: Matador

6: Traffic

7: Our Lady Of The Assassins

8: Maria Full Of Grace

9: Pan's Labyrinth

10: Live Flesh

11: Rudo Y Cursi

12: King Of The Hill

Best Movies With The Title "The R...."

on the podcast this week i discussed two really not good movies: The Resident and The Roommate. besides both sucking, the other thing these films had in common was that their titles both started with "The R..." so, with that in mind i decided that this weeks list would look at good movies with "The R..." titles. and here it is... ya, i know that both films are also suspense/thrillers, but i liked the idea of the "The R..." list better.

1: The Rules Of Attraction

2: The Return Of The King

this third part in the Lord Of The Rings trilogy used the "sub-heading" loophole to make it on to this list

3: The Remains Of The Day

anthony hopkins and emma thompson give fantastic performances in this - my favorite merchant/ivory production

4: The Rock

michael bay has made a lot of crap, but this one i liked

5: The Rainmaker

one of, if not the, best films based on a john grisham novel. and people forget that coppola directed this one.

6: The Return Of The Pink Panther

how can a podcast on a network that got its name from the Pink Panther movies (the lugashi diamond) not have this film on the list? and regardless, it is one of the best of the series.

Best And Worst Movies With Fast & Furious Actors

watching The Fast And The Furious series for the podcast this week, i kept thinking about the stars of the films and other movies they had been in both good and bad. and from there it turned into this list of the best and the worst movies starring actors/actresses from the Fast And Furious franchise.

there are a lot of actors that show up throughout the series, but i narrowed it down somewhat to these guys and gals (vin diesel, paul walker, michelle rodriguez, chris 'ludacris' bridges, tyrese gibson & dwayne johnson).

now, obviously i haven't seen every movie these guys and girls have been in. i mean, i have a feeling that The Pacifier would have made the "worst" list, but that is one movie i just haven't got around to seeing yet. so, the list i came up with is as follows...

BEST/WORST

1: Pleasantville (paul walker)/ Transformers II (tyrese gibson)

2: Saving Private Ryan (vin diesel)/2 Fast 2 Furious (paul walker, tyrese gibson)

3: Crash (chris 'ludacris' bridges)/Transformers (tyrese gibson)

4: Boiler Room (vin diesel)/Be Cool (dwayne johnson)

5: Hustle & Flow (chris 'ludacris' bridges)/Fast And Furious (all of them)

6: Girlfight (michelle rodriguez)/Gamer (chris 'ludacris' bridges)

7: The Other Guys (dwayne johnson)/Tokyo Drift (vin diesel (uncredited))

8: Fast Five (all of them)/Avatar (michelle rodriguez)

9: Death Race (tyrese gibson)

Best Superhero Movies

i think the title of this list is pretty self-explanatory. so, check it out... oh, and i have linked the ones that have longer discussions on the Filmed But Not Forgotten blog.

1: Unbreakable

this one is M. Night's masterpiece

2: The Dark Knight/Batman

while i have said that tim burton's first Batman holds a special place in my movie heart and is still my favorite of all the batman films ever made, The Dark Night is sooooooo close behind that they deserve to be together on this list.

3: The Incredibles

great script, great animation. might still be my favorite pixar film.

4: Spider-Man II

Easily the best of the three films

5: Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

original, visually stimulating, funny and one of the best films of 2010

6: The Mask Of Zorro

this is one you might not have thought of. but it's a good flick and lots of fun

7: X-Men II

bryan singer left the franchise after this one. he got out on a high note (too bad he hit a low note later with Superman Returns)

8: Kick-Ass/Defendor

two different takes on the "everyman" superhero thing

9: Superman 3

okay, this is gonna be the controversial one. while most people would put Superman I and/or II on a list like this if they were to put any of the Superman films on, i have to say that number three is actually my favorite of the Superman movies (ya, this surprised me too when i recently rewatched all four films). and if i ever get around to doing a podcast episode about the series i can discuss this in more depth, but quickly.....

the whole bit about superman fighting his dark side ("bad superman") is a really interesting idea. the film examines the superman character and the struggles of a hero. it doesn't get explored to the extent i would have liked, but still... and i even liked richard pryor's character. that's not to say there aren't any problems with the film (cause there definitely are), but that is for a longer discussion

The Best Boxing Movies

having recently watched the entire Rocky series and with The Fighter getting a lot of attention this past awards season, i got to thinking about the best boxing movies i have ever seen. that list goes as follows...

1: Raging Bull

can anything else really be at the top of this list?

2: When We Were Kings

this is one of my favorite documentaries. you can read the full discussion i wrote for the site a few years back.

3: Million Dollar Baby

clint eastwood's oscar winning film (and deservedly so among the five nominees)

4: Rocky

not only the best of the series, the first Rocky film was great in its own right. although, some of the poor sequels may have diminished it's perception to some.

5: The Great White Hype

a very under appreciated comedy that takes direct, and very funny, aim at the sport/business of boxing.

6: Ali

a michael mann film with will smith knocking it out of the park as Ali

7: The Fighter

david o. russell brings his own style to the boxing movie

8: Rocky Balboa

after some lesser films in the series, stallone comes back 16 years after the last film and ends the rocky saga on a high note, capturing his iconic character later in life.