What are you people—on dope?!

The results of the OFC 100 Best Films survey are in. Overall, it’s a pretty good list, and it does what it set out to do—namely, recognize some cult and offbeat favorites that tend to get overlooked by the likes of the latest AFI list. It’s a noble ambition; one I’m proud and grateful to have participated in. Real film fans know, for example that "The Empire Strikes Back" is the best of all the "Star Wars" movies; we not only voted it onto the top 100 but ranked it above "Episode IV: A New Hope." Balance has been restored to The Force. Yet for all its iconoclastic intentions, the OFC list seems to have ended up, in some ways, as parochial as the AFI list.

While ironic, this is hardly unexpected. Any time you have a group of rag-tag outsiders trying to take on an established (and some might say elitist) entity, the outsiders invariably take on an elitist pall all their own. It’s simply the nature of an exercise like this. Even when the process is a result of backlash and outrage getting it on under the upturned nose of the AFI.

Nocturnal Omissions
Now, I know everyone is going to have his (or her) own little shit-storms of righteous indignation about things that didn’t make the list. But that’s one of the great things about blogging—whether it’s about films or quilting or whatever: you can participate in a discussion where, even if your opinion is in a statistically insignificant minority, your voice is still heard (if only by random blogosphere passers-by Googling the lyrics to drinking songs from movies). All that said, I can’t help but be appalled by the absence of films that deserve inclusion among the 500 greatest films ever made.

How is it possible to recognize "Silence of the Lambs," but not "Manhunter"? "Field of Dreams" but not "Bull Durham"? And how is it possible for "Die Hard" to finish at #30, but "A Room with a View" doesn't even rate a nomination?

Actually, I have a theory about that. The 502 nominees on the OFC list were compiled by about 50 Web site writers. Some are paid professional critics, but most are simply avid film enthusiast bloggers like me (with a few rather glaring differences in appreciation for the movies mentioned above). To be nominated, a film had to be included on at least three contributors’ lists. If you look at the list of contributors, it’s pretty easy to see how an Edwardian-era comedy of manners is not likely to get on the radar of two other mostly male movie watchers whose tastes apparently tend more toward, well, people punching each other (Raging Bull, Fight Club) and shit blowing up.

I guess what I’m saying is that I know—and truly appreciate—the genuine enthusiasm that everyone brought to the table, blind spots* and all. It really does make up (mostly) for the slights. And I long ago learned to live with the reality that The Right Stuff never seems to make the final 100.

Here’s my official ballot. One final note: because the final tally was based on the number of times a film was mentioned and how highly it was ranked, I tried to give some of my personal underdogs a boost. I don’t actually think that "Out of Sight" is objectively a better film than, say, "The Godfather." But "The Godfather" doesn't need any help topping the OFC list. Just like it did on the AFI list.

The Middlebrow OFC 100:

1. Right Stuff, The (Kaufman, 1983)
2. Young Frankenstein (Brooks, 1974)
3. Out of Sight (Soderbergh, 1998)
4. Casablanca (Curtiz, 1942)
5. Bridge on River Kwai, The (Lean, 1957)
6. Raising Arizona (Coen, 1987)
7. To Kill a Mockingbird (Mulligan, 1962)
8. Risky Business (Brickman, 1983)
9. Lone Star (Sayles, 1996)
10. Last of the Mohicans, The (Mann, 1992)
11. Princess Bride, The (Reiner, 1987)
12. Glengarry Glenn Ross (Foley, 1992)
13. Life of Brian (Jones, 1979)
14. Jackie Brown (Tarantino, 1997)
15. Alien (R. Scott, 1979)
16. It’s a Wonderful Life (Capra, 1946)
17. Boogie Nights (PT Anderson, 1997)
18. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (Hill, 1969)
19. L.A. Confidential (Hanson, 1997)
20. High Fidelity (Frears, 2000)
21. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (Kershner, 1980)
22. Sideways (Payne, 2004)
23. Day the Earth Stood Still, The (Wise, 1951)
24. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Kubrick, 1964)
25. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (Hughes, 1986)
26. Shawshank Redemption, The (Darabont, 1994)
27. Blade Runner (R. Scott, 1982)
28. Groundhog Day (Ramis, 1993)
29. Election (Payne, 1999)
30. Cinema Paradiso (Tornatore, 1988)
31. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Spielberg, 1981)
32. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (A Lee, 2000)
33. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (Spielberg, 1977)
34. Pulp Fiction (Tarantino, 1994)
35. Usual Suspects, The (Singer, 1995)
36. Shining, The (Kubrick, 1980)
37. Silence of the Lambs, The (Demme, 1991)
38. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (Lucas, 1977)
39. Annie Hall (W. Allen, 1977)
40. Graduate, The (Nichols, 1967)
41. Tootsie (Pollack, 1982)
42. Eternal Sunshine of theSpotless Mind (Gondry, 2004)
43. This is Spinal Tap (Reiner, 1984)
44. Aliens (Cameron, 1986)
45. Jaws (Spielberg, 1975)
46. Three Kings (Russell, 1999)
47. Incredibles, The (Bird, 2004)
48. Toy Story (Lasseter, 1995)
49. Monsters, Inc. (Docter/Silverman, 2001)
50. Office Space (Judge, 1999)
51. Untouchables, The (De Palma, 1987)
52. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (Heckerling, 1982)
53. Sullivan’s Travels (Sturges, 1941)
54. Fargo (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1996)
55. A Fish Called Wanda (Chrichton/Cleese, 1988)
56. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (Ritchie, 1998)
57. Fifth Element, The (Besson, 1997)
58. Godfather Part II, The (Coppola, 1974)
59. Godfather, The (Coppola, 1972)
60. Blow Out (De Palma, 1981)
61. Goodfellas (Scorsese, 1990)
62. Great Escape, The (Sturges, 1963)
63. Full Metal Jacket (Kubrick, 1987)
64. It Happened One Night (Capra, 1934)
65. Jurassic Park (Spielberg, 1993)
66. Lost in Translation (Coppola, 2003)
67. Field of Dreams (Robinson, 1989)
68. Double Indemnity (Wilder, 1944)
69. Casino Royale (Campbell, 2006)
70. Brother, Where Art Thou? (Coen, 2000)
71. Cool Hand Luke (Rosenburg, 1967)
72. Almost Famous (Crowe, 2000)
73. My Man Godfrey (La Cava, 1936)
74. Royal Tenenbaums, The (Anderson, 2001)
75. Amadeus (Forman, 1984)
76. Blazing Saddles (Brooks, 1974)
77. Apartment, The (Wilder, 1960)
78. Conversation, The (Coppola, 1974)
79. Back to the Future (Zemeckis, 1985
80. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Gilliam/Jones, 1975)
81. Bonnie & Clyde (Penn, 1967)
82. Departed, The (Scorsese, 2006)
83. Laura (Preminger, 1944)
84. Planet of the Apes (Schaffner, 1968)
85. Bourne Identity, The (Liman, 2002)
86. Die Hard (McTiernan, 1988)
87. Goldfinger (Hamilton, 1964)
88. His Girl Friday (Hawks, 1940)
89. In the Heat of the Night (Jewison, 1967)
90. Lady Eve, The (Sturges, 1941)
91. Lord of the Rings, The: The Fellowship of the Ring (Jackson, 2001)
92. Miller’s Crossing (Coen, 1990)
93. Notorious (Hitchcock, 1946)
94. Das Boot (W/ Petersen, 1981)
95. Once Upon a Time in the West (Leone, 1968)
96. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Verbinski, 2003)
97. Saving Private Ryan (Spielberg, 1998)
98. McCabe and Mrs. Miller (Altman, 1971)
99. Some Like it Hot (Wilder, 1959)
100. Terminator, The (Cameron, 1984)

*In the interests of full disclosure and a willingness to acknowledge my own blind spots, here’s dozen films that I’ve resolved to see with all possible speed:

All About Eve
Army of Darkness
Days of Heaven
Dog Day Afternoon
Point Blank
The Professionals
On the Waterfront
Ride the High Country
Stalag 17
The Wild Bunch
Something by Bergman
Something by Fellini

Got any recommendations for the last two? In the name of building/restoring goodwill with my fellow movie bloggers, I really would love to hear some suggestions.

The circle is now complete.

You might have heard about a Best of the Blogosphere poll that’s going around. It’s kind of a response to the most recent AFI 100 Best Films. As I was compiling my nominees, a thought occurred to me (or recurred, really) about how all the great movies are connected somehow. Like George Clooney is in Steven Soderberg films and Coen Brothers films. And the Coens used Barry Sonnenfeld as a DP before he started directing. And Barry Sonnenfeld directed an Elmore Leonard adaptation, as did Soderberg. And on like that.

So here are 100 of my favorite movies, starting with my favorite, The Right Stuff, arranged such that each film has something in common with those that precede and follow it. A director, a star, a writer, a featured player, a composer. Of course, 100 connects back to number one. In some cases, the connection is pretty remote or fuzzy, though they're mostly all legit. Some of the them are downright inspired, if I say so myself. I tried not to have the connection be the same for more than two movies in a row. Yes, there are some glaring omissions, as well as some filler. Or what I like to call “mortar.” I’d much rather have gotten Ferris Bueller’s Day Off on the list than Test Pilot, for example. But Clark Gable, Myrna Loy and Spencer Tracy weren’t around when John Hughes started making movies. I can honestly say that there are no two “mortar” movies in a row. And these are all movies that I genuinely enjoy watching again and again.

Anyway, take a look and see if you can guess the connections. I’ve posted the leftovers at the end. If you can figure out how to work them in, I’m all ears.

The Middlebrow 100, Zen Edition:

1. The Right Stuff
2. Aliens
3. Working Girl
4. Three Kings
5. Out of Sight
6. Defending Your Life
7. Men In Black
8. Full Metal Jacket
9. Dr. Strangelove
10. Blazing Saddles
11. Young Frankenstein
12. Tootsie
13. Close Encounters of the Third Kind
14. Star Wars
15. The Bridge on the River Kwai
16. The Great Escape
17. Once Upon a Time in the West
18. The Lady Eve
19. Sullivan’s Travels
20. Oh Brother Where Art Thou?
21. Raising Arizona
22. Moonstruck
23. In the Heat of the Night
24. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
25. The Lion in Winter
26. The Silence of the Lambs
27. Manhunter
28. The Last of the Mohicans (Mann)
29. A Room with a View
30. Raiders of the Lost Ark
31. Lord of the Rings
32. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
33. Collateral
34. Risky Business
35. Jerry Maguire
36. High Fidelity
37. Bull Durham
38. The Shawshank Redemption
39. Stand By Me
40. This is Spinal Tap
41. A Few Good Men
42. The Princess Bride
43. The Incredibles
44. Jurassic Park
45. Get Shorty
46. Blowout
47. The Untouchables
48. Goldfinger
49. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
50. Casino Royale (2007)
51. Shakespeare in Love
52. The Royal Tennenbaums
53. Groundhog Day
54. Lost in Translation
55. The Godfather
56. To Kill a Mockingbird
57. The Godfather, Part II
58. Goodfellas
59. Jackie Brown
60. The Fifth Element
61. Pulp Fiction
62. So I Married an Axe Murderer
63. Glengarry Glen Ross
64. Mr. Roberts
65. My Man Godfrey
66. The Thin Man
67. Test Pilot
68. It’s a Wonderful Life
69. It Happened One Night
70. Run Silent, Run Deep
71. The Day the Earth Stood Still
72. Hud
73. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
74. The Graduate
75. Jaws
76. Marathon Man
77. Rebecca
78. The Jungle Book (1967)
79. Night Shift
80. Cars
81. Cool Hand Luke
82. The Hudsucker Proxy
83. His Girl Friday
84. The Awful Truth
85. Notorious
86. Casablanca
87. The Usual Suspects
88. L.A. Confidential
89. Eight Men Out
90. Lone Star
91. The Bourne Identity
92. Ocean’s 11 (Soderberg)
93. The Limey
94. Boogie Nights
95. Fargo
96. Miller’s Crossing
97. Monsters Inc.
98. The Empire Strikes Back
99. Blade Runner
100. Alien
     

The Island of Misfit Films:

1. Fast Times at Ridgemont High
2. Clueless
3. Blast from the Past
4. Annie Hall

5. Breaker Morant
6. Black Robe

7. Sideways
8. Election
9. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
10. Amadeus

11. A Fish Called Wanda
12. Monty Python’s Life of Brian
13. Time Bandits

14. Toy Story

15. Laura

89% Pure Junk

Anyone who knows me knows I love lists. I love movies. And I love a good trivia challenge. So what he have here is one of those trifecta moments that I simply can’t resist.



I got 89% right. A pretty solid B+; maybe an A-, depending on generous you want to make the curve. I had a nice long unbroken streak between 91 and 67, and finished strong down the homestretch from 29 to 1. Plus, I didn’t miss two in a row. Not too shabby, right?

Of the eleven I didn’t get, I had seen only one (99). There were a few I guessed at based on actors (47, 48, 33, 34) or the setting and context of the scene (89), and a couple that I needed a little help from the IMDb. But I think 89 is pretty respectable.

I had #11 from the moment I saw it. But it really couldn’t have been anything else—if you’re even remotely aware of movie ephemera, you know what it is just by the number. Of course, I was giddy at 91.

Three cheers for "Agent Mosley." The complete answer key is here. My scorecard is below.






100: Night of the Living Dead
99:
98: Dead Poets Society
97: Blade Runner
96:
95: Ocean’s 11 (2001)
94: Star Wars
93: Midnight Run
92:
91: The Right Stuff
90: The Fugitive
89: The French Connection (?)
88: Back to the Future
87: Cast Away
86: Quiz Show
85: The Silence of the Lambs
84: Titanic
83: The Magnificent Seven
82: Rain Man
81: Galaxy Quest
80: Harold and Maude
79: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
78: The Day the Earth Stood Still(?)
77: The Apartment
76: The Great Escape
75: The Hustler (?)
74: Ed Wood
73: The Jerk
72: Raiders of the Lost Ark
71: When Harry Met Sally
70: Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
69: M*A*S*H
68: The Breakfast Club
67: The King and I
66:
65: The Princess Bride
64:
63: Network
62: Mr. Roberts
61: Singles
60: Gone with the Wind
59: His Girl Friday
58: Goldfinger
57:
56: It’s a Wonderful Life
55: The Blues Brothers
54:
53: Midnight Express
52: Waking Ned Devine
51: Roman Holiday
50: Cool Hand Luke
49: The Taking of Pelham 123
48: The Adventures of Robin Hood (?)
47: The Big Sleep (?)
46:
45: The Hudsucker Proxy
44: Magnum Force
43: Monty Python
42: Finding Nemo
41:
40: Superman: The Movie
39: The 39 Steps (a gimmie!)
38: Aliens
37: Men In Black
36: Clerks
35: Harvey
34: Marty (?)
33: The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
32:
31: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
30:
29: Young Frankenstein (It’s pronounced “Fronk-en-steen”)
28: The Bridge on the River Kwai
27: The Usual Suspects
26: North By Northwest
25: Sunset Boulevard
24: Escape From New York
23: The Wizard of Oz
22: Casablanca
21: The Lion in Winter
20: Boogie Nights
19: The Shawshank Redemption
18: Almost Famous
17: The Maltese Falcon
16: The Natural
15: Being John Malkovich
14: The Professionals (IMdB)
13: Lawrence of Arabia
12: Ghostbusters
11: This is Spinal Tap
10: Citizen Kane (?)
9: 12 Angry Men (?)
8: Office Space
7: To Kill a Mockingbird
6: Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (Chill, Winston!)
5: The Godfather
4: Fargo
3: L.A. Confidential
2: Once Upon a Time in the West
1: The Lord of the Rings


So, how'd you do?

"Doesn't anybody fucking knock?!"*

Last week, the Onion A.V. Club, my go-to source for pop-culture insight and commentary, did one of their Inventory features: 15 Pop Songs Owned by Movie Scenes. As the name suggests, it’s a handful of pop songs not originally written for a movie with which the song has become inextricably linked in the collective consciousness. Follow the link to see theirs—along with some fun suggestions in the comments section. But first, check out mine and share yours below.

“Puttin’ on the Ritz” from Young Frankenstein bends the rules a bit since, while it is a pop song in the best sense of the word, it’s actually being performed by characters in the movie, not being played over the scene. Still, if the definition of “owning” the song is “scene that comes to mind when you hear the song,” then this is the reference standard, at least for me. Frankly, (or is it pronounced ‘fronkly?’) anyone who can hear "Puttin' on the Ritz" and not think of YF is clearly not of this earth. "Oooh-pah doo-pah!"

This one actually came to me out of the ether—before I had seen the OAVC feature: Nina Simone's "Sinnerman" from the latter-day Thomas Crown Affair. Probably a knock on the limits of my musical experience, but whatever. A great song that really elevates an okay movie.

Speaking of Pierce Brosnan...time will tell if it can claim permanent ownership, but the way The Matador uses “It’s Not Unusual” proves the old saying about possession being nine-tenths of the law.

The Isley Bros.’ "It's Your Thing" is currently in the possession of Out of Sight, especially the blue-filtered Detroit cruising montage. Even though it, along with the redoubtable Robert Forster, wasn’t enough to save the doomed “Karen Sisco” TV spin-off that used it as a theme song.

Risky Business is of course the sole and irrevocable holder of Bob Seger’s “Old-Time Rock and Roll.” But for me, personally (and maybe this betrays how musically sheltered I was at the time I saw it) the pure, libidinous, harmonica-and-guitar grind of Muddy Waters’ “Mannish Boy” will always bring to mind Joel’s “I concentrated on sales” montage. “You know what he said, afterwards? He said the lady had knowledge. And he was glad to get that knowledge. Because college girls can smell ignorance—like dog shit.”

I know I’m stuck in the ‘80s here, but I have to give credit to Reckless for introducing me to Romeo Void’s “Never Say Never.” For those scoring along at home in their lucky souvenir programs, this is also the movie that I came out of, smitten with the leggy blonde lead and, after trying to crib her identity from the one sheet, declared, “That Aidan Quinn is hot!” ‘Cause, seriously, who the hell names a girl Daryl? For that matter, who names a boy Aidan? Remember, these were the early ‘80s and I was still quite the naïf.

Finally, just for fun and under the heading of classical adaptations/appropriations version, I must include "Ode to Joy" (Beethoven's 9th) from Raising Arizona. Among classical tunes yodeled, whistled and rendered on banjo, it has no equal. “Or my name ain't Nathan Arizona!”

*This is of course the denouement line from the scene in Fast Times at Ridgemont High that proves the concept of song "ownership." At least if you're a heterosexual man. It's not the Cars’ “Moving in Stereo.” Oh, no. That song belongs 100% to sweet Phoebe.

McSweeney's passed. Whatchagondo?

FOOD-BASED
TROPES CONSIDERED,
BUT ULTIMATELY REJECTED,
BY MAYOR RAY NAGIN TO
DESCRIBE WHAT THE CULTURE
OF POST-KATRINA NEW ORLEANS
WILL ONCE AGAIN BE.

A Marzipan Metropolis

A Velveeta Village

A Twinkie Town

An Apple-Dumpling Gang

A Bacon-Cheddar Borough

A Crazy-Delicious Lower 9th Ward

A Petit-Four Parish

A Nutella Neighborhood

A Matzo-Ball Municipality

A Jelly Roll Morton