I was stunned when I first saw Saving Private Ryan on opening day, 24 July, 1998. I had never seen war depicted so realistically, so heart-breaking, graphic, and impactful. I held onto the names of Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks like a mantra through the film, to guide me through it, to make everything be…
Tag: best director
Sunset Boulevard (1950) – Billy Wilder
As I return to the films of yesteryear, thanks to DK Canada’s The Movie Book, I settled in for a film that I’ve never been sure I wanted to watch, Sunset Boulevard. I just never imagined it would be my thing, but it does have a great pedigree including a cast that includes Gloria Swanson…
The Pianist (2002) – Roman Polanski
The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Schindler’s List is this film, based on the autobiography of Wladyslaw Spillman. The film sees Adrien Brody taking on the role, and going home with the Oscar for Best Actor because of it. Too right too, considering his…
Schindler’s List (1993) – Steven Spielberg
The next title on the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film as I return to the historical section of the book is Spielberg’s heart-wrenching, anguish filled look at the Holocaust through an adaptation of a true story. Over the course of three hours, this black and white film, with only significant and poignant uses…
The Sound of Music (1965) – Robert Wise
My return to the Musical chapter of the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book sees me settling into Robert Wise’s multi-Oscar winning (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Sound, Best Editing and Best Music) adaptation of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, The Sound of Music. Starring Julie Andrews (in an Oscar nominated performance) and…
Platoon (1986) – Oliver Stone
Walking away with Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Editing, and Best Sound, Platoon is the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film following my screening of Apocalypse Now. The film serves as a commentary on the horrors of war, even as two sergeants seem to be fighting for the…
The Deer Hunter (1978) – Micheal Cimino
Micheal Cimino’s examination of the effects of war, framed around the Vietnam conflict and a small industrial town in Pennsylvania is the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Apocalypse Now. Laying out the scars, physical, mental and unseen that affected those who fought in it,…
Little Women (1933) – George Cukor
The next big title in DK Canada’s The Movie Book is the Civil War epic Gone With the Wind, which I had previously reviewed, so, once again, I moved onto the always educational What Else to Watch list to delve into other titles. That brought me to Cukor’s adaptation of Little Women from 1933. Despite,…
Apocalypse Now (1979) – Francis Ford Coppola
The brilliant, Vietnam epic, an update on the Joseph Conrad novel Heart of Darkness, is the next stop in the War genre as I continue my cinematic journey with the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book. The story behind the film is almost as incredible as the film itself. Boasting a cast that…
Unforgiven (1992) – Clint Eastwood
The next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of The Wild Bunch, is my all-time favourite western, Eastwood’s multi-Oscar winning film (Best Director, Best Picture, Best Editing, and Best Supporting Actor for Gene Hackman). An ageing gunfighter, William Munny (Eastwood) wants to tend to his tiny parcel…
The Mind Reels 