"My life, when it is written, will read better than it lived. Henry Fitz-Empress, first Plantagenet, a king at twenty-one, the ablest soldier of an able time. He led men well, he cared for justice when he could and ruled, for thirty years, a state as great as Charlemagne's. He married, out of love, a woman out of legend. Not in Alexandria or Rome or Camelot has there been such a queen. She bore him many children - but no sons. King Henry had no sons. He had three whiskered things but he disowned them. You're not mine. We're not connected. I deny you. None of you will get my crown. I leave you nothing and I wish you plague. May all your children breech and die...My boys are gone. I've lost my boys. You dare to damn me, do you? Well, I damn you back. God damn you. All my boys are gone. I've lost my boys. Oh, Jesus, all my boys." Peter O'Toole as Henry II, King of England in The Lion In Winter (68) written by James Goldman and directed by Anthony Harvey

Perhaps the most amazing thing about The Lion In Winter (68) is that it was filmed almost forty years ago, and it still feels as contemporary and fresh as any other film in release this year. The only difference is, they haven't made a film this good as, well, since The Lion In Winter (68). From now on when I refer to the title, I will be talking about the Peter O'Toole version, and not the dreadful remake from this year. Peter O'Toole did not win the Academy Award for his heart-breaking and legendary tour-de-force performance as Henry Fitz-Empress. No, the award went to Cliff Robertson for Charly (in a beautiful performance). This did not matter however, since anyone who has seen O'Toole's performance in The Lion In Winter will tell you, it is one of the most powerful and unforgettable performances in screen history. His Henry is a king, a husband, a father, a lover, bastard, a braggart, a thug, a schemer, a victim, a tyrant, and above all: a sad, lonely old man. The fact that Peter O'Toole was only 36 when he played him is nothing short of a miracle. O'Toole has been nominated 7 times for Academy Awards for Best Actor, and he has never won a single one competitively (a record he shares with deceased colleague Richard Burton). He finally recieved an honorary Oscar a couple of years ago, and as a wise man once said, "better late than never."

O'Toole is matched pound for pound by Katherine Hepburn in her Academy Award-winning role (her third win) as Eleanor of Aquitaine, wife to Henry and mother of "three whiskered things." Unlike some of the other films she's been in, Hepburn did not need to carry her co-stars in this one. When she and O'Toole are on screen together, picture that scene from Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief (55) when Grace Kelly and Cary Grant kiss and the fireworks go off overhead, and then pretend it's a nuclear explosion going off in the background. There has never been a screen pairing as dynamic and explosive as this one right here. However you'd like to imagine it, nothing compares to it. A feat made more impressive by the fact that Hepburn was 25 years O'Toole's senior, and that he could keep up with her and (in my opinion) surpass her. If you want to know why these performers are the best there ever was, start by seeing this once in a lifetime gathering of talent. Not a false note or misstep amongst the entire cast.

Anthony Hopkins is Richard, John Castle is Geoffrey, Nigel Terry (who later played King Arthur in John Boorman's Excalibur) is John. They are the "three whiskered things." A very young (and very good) Timothy Dalton is King Philip of France, Henry's young rival (but no match for the old man): Henry: "More brandywine?" Philip: "You recognize it?" Henry: "They were boiling it Ireland before the snakes left." Jane Merrow is Alais, Henry's young bride-to-be. In the beginning, he tells her: "Alais, in my time I've known contessas, milkmaids, courtesans and novices, whores, gypsies, jades and little boys, but nowhere in God's Western world have I found anyone to love but you." When she asks him about his "wife," the queen, he answers: "How many husbands do you know who dungeon up thier wives? I haven't kept the great bitch in the keep for ten years out of passionate attachment. Come. I've heard she's aging badly; let's go look." And perhaps the best line from the story that describes Henry is: Alais: "When can I believe you, Henry?" Henry: Always; even when I lie."

The other great stars of the film are of course composer, John Barry (007 theme, Out of Africa, 85) and cinematographer, Douglas Slocombe (The Blue Max, 66, Indiana Jones Trilogy). Their talents combine to create an overwhelming movie experience. Director Anthony Harvey, never really made another picture as good as this. I'd like to say that the actors didn't need any direction in a case like this, but I know that they rehearsed and prepared with their director the same as if they would be taking the picture on the road as a play. And speaking of plays, did I mention that The Lion in Winter is based on a play also written by the screenwriter, James Goldman? James Goldman (brother of William Goldman), to put it simply, has written some of the most incredible dialogue in the english language.

Alais: "Do you know what I should like for Christmas? I should like to see you suffer." Eleanor: (nodding): "Alais, just for you." - Eleanor: "I don't much care. In fact, I wonder, Henry, if I care for anything. I wonder if I'm hungry out of habit and if all my lusts, like passions in a poem, aren't really recollections." Henry: "I could listen to you lie for hours. So your lust is rusty. Gorgeous." - Henry: "I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - Eleanor: (picking up another elaborate necklace) "I'd hang you from the nipples but you'd shock the children." - Henry: (as they go) "You know, I hope we never die." Eleanor: I hope so, too." Henry: "You think there's any chance of it?"

Go out right now and watch it if you've never seen it before. If you have any interest at all in screen acting and the cinema as an art form, this is required viewing. I know it's hard to pick these things sometimes, but I think I can honestly say that The Lion In Winter is my favorite film. The emotions in it are so real, and it really does feel like you are looking back in time into the real lives of these people. In a modern cinema full of historical drama, The Lion In Winter is one of the best, and may just be the greatest there ever was.

Charlie Allnut: Well I ain't sorry for you no more, ya crazy, psalm-singing, skinny old maid!

Rose Sayer: Nature, Mr. Allnut, is what we are put in this world to rise above.

A dear freind just returned from a trip to sunny California bearing a gift. She brought me a copy of the script of John Huston's The African Queen (51). I'll admit, it has been some time since I've seen the film, and it was never one of my favorite Huston or Bogart films. But as I started reading it, it brought back incredible memories and I found myself thinking, "they don't make 'em like this anymore."

The African Queen, whether you like it or not, is one of the greatest films of all time. It's not neccessarily for any one reason. It's almost like debating the artistic relevance of a Picasso, in the end, it's still a Picasso. I still feel that the main players have all done better with other projects, but there's something about this material here. Sure everyone remembers the romance, but it's actually a war movie. It's written in that old world story-telling style, and it certainly is a film of it's era. But it's the way the actors interpret this stuff. It's almost as if they said, "boy, this is nothing new, but let's give it all we've got." The results are of course historic.

I've always considered this film to be a Bogart picture, especially since it was the only time he ever won an Academy Award (for Best Actor). The truth is, the film is Hepburn's (as so many of the films she's been in are). There is something almost breath-taking in the way she and Bogart connect in the film. I know, I know, I don't want to make this sound romantic, but they had chemistry, and this was all due to her amazing ability as an actress to heighten another co-star's performance. I believe that Bogart owes Ms. Hepburn (wherever they are in the Universe now) half of that statue. There's a reason Katherine Hepburn is the most Academy Award honored performer of all time, having won a staggering 4 Oscars in the lead actress category over her incredible life-span. She was (and remains) simply the greatest film performer there ever was. No bullshit.

There's a wonderful book about the making of the movie (written by Hepburn) called: The Making of the African Queen, or How I Went to Africa with Bogart, Bacall, and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind. It's essential reading. I hope this inspires you to see the film again (even if you've watched it a hundred times). It's not a perfect film. No Huston picture was ever "perfect." Bogart, though the character has become synonymous with him, is slightly wrong for the role, and the ending should have gone a little different (more on the darker side if you catch my drift). Don't prepare yourself to watch "one the greatest films of all time," it doesn't work like that. It's a small film, with an even smaller cast, that completely takes you by surprise - but only if you forget the rest of the world for it's 103 minutes. Unfortunately, it is not on DVD yet, but I like to think they've been doing something "special" with it all this time. There is something special about it. But don't take my word for it. See it (or read it!) for yourself.

The Fucking Acting Brilliance of William Shatner

People tend to forget that William Shatner had an acting career before Star Trek. In addition to a very fruitful singing career. Now that he's become a walking caricature of himself, let's just take a look back at just why this man has become a living legend. Okay, four words for you: The Wrath of Khan. Watch Nicolas Meyer's brilliant Star Trek II, back before Captain Kirk started putting on pounds and his hair texture began morphing. Shatner should have been nominated for an Oscar for his performance in the film. I'm serious. Even if Star Trek isn't your cup of tea, you still have to admit that the scene in II where Kirk laments the death of Spock, followed by one of the greatest film endings in the history of cinema, has earned it's place in our very consciouness. The send off of Spock's body under the strains of Amazing Grace on bagpipes (thank-you Jimmy Doohan) makes the hair on my arms stand up just thinking about it. This also sparked what became one of the most complex and exhilerating story arcs in modern movie-making: the Star Trek II/III/IV procession.

As far as Star Trek goes, the original series and first six films were always about one thing: the triumvirate of Kirk, Spock and McCoy. Their on-screen association was the sole reason for the continued length and success of the franchise. During the course of the three films in which enemies are faced, friendships are tested, lives are lost and finally regained again, we find our own selves changing in the process. This incredible story is as potent and powerful as anything in one of George Lucas' recycled mythologies. If you don't think that William Shatner is actually a good actor, than watch the scene where he falls apart over the death of his character's son, David, in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. We all know the line. We've quoted it a million times. It's one of the most famous movie lines in history. It's so famous that I don't need to write it here. Why do you suppose that is? Because Shatner's fucking brilliant!

Best Shatner film post Star Trek: Free Enterprise (98), Check out the link on this very page.

Wanted!

Where the hell is this on DVD:

92 in the Shade (75) written and directed by Thomas McGuane. Of all the Warren Oates films that have yet to be released (and there are plenty) this is the one I've been waiting for. And where is Sam Peckinpah's Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (74)? Huh? I would just like to know if anyone at the studios has even heard of these films. I wont even mention Dixie Dynamite (76), The Brink's Job (78) or China 9, Liberty 37 (78). Come on big studio Muckety-Mucks, I know he's not Brad Pitt, but have a heart...

In the meantime, I'll just have to watch my Special Limited Edition of The Hired Hand (71) and the excellent Anchor Bay edition of Monte Hellman's Cockfighter (74) featuring an awesome documentary on Oates. The interviews with Harry Dean Stanton strumming a guitar while remembering Oates are priceless.

Why was everybody always picking on poor, defenseless, Lee Marvin? Oh wait, despite the fact that Lee Marvin could wipe the floor with anybody in the room, he was actually a great actor. He proved his range in a variety of films, winning the Academy Award for a comedy, Cat Ballou (65, playing duel roles). He will always be remembered for playing the tough guy though, in Robert Aldrich's seminal action film, The Dirty Dozen (67), John Boorman's Point Blank (67), Don Siegel's The Killers (64), Richard Brooks' The Professionals (66) and Sam Fuller's The Big Red One (80). It was his many smaller supporting roles that won him acclaim, including: Hangman's Knot (52), The Big Heat (53), The Wild One (53), Bad Day At Black Rock (55), Shack Out on 101 (55), The Comancheros (61), The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (62), Donovan's Reef (63), Ship Of Fools (65), Gorky Park (83) and many other starring roles in smaller films like: Monte Walsh (70), Pocket Money (72) and Prime Cut (72) just to name some. His three best performances however can't really be described as action films.

The first, is the farthest thing from it. John Frankenheimer's rarely seen adaptation of Eugene O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh (73). It was produced for the American Film Theater project in the early seventies and remains the most affecting performance that Lee Marvin ever gave without throwing a punch. The role of Hickey is usually associated with Jason Robards, Jr, (and rightfully so) but in this version, Marvin conveys a depth and range unrivaled by most other "serious" actors of his day. The joke is of course that Marvin really was the most "serious" actor of them all. You can finally get Frankenheimer's Iceman on DVD, as well as the classic Robards version (which is equally brilliant) from the Broadway Theater Archive. Frankenheimer's is an actual movie however, as opposed to just being a filmed play. The great Robert Ryan gave a beautiful performance in this film that was unfortunately one of his last.

The next film is even more of an obscurity. Robert Aldrich's stunning Emperor of the North (73) with Keith Carradine and Ernest Borgnine. Marvin plays A no. 1, a notorious "hobo" who comes to blows with a savage train conductor played by Borgnine (in one of his best performances as well). Marvin is a true wonder in this very physical film. He retains a certain unspoken dignity and fierce nature throughout, and is matched by an amazing supporting cast. I cannot figure out why this film has never been made available to a wide audience. It has never been released on DVD and remains to this day, a true "lost classic." The unforgettable scene where Marvin forces a man (over and over) to bark like a dog, makes me wonder if this was the inspiration for Bill Murray and Karen Allen's "bark like a dog" scene in Scrooged (88). I am certain of one thing, Lee marvin's influence is not lost on anyone in the acting community.

Finally, my favorite of all his films. Boorman's Hell in the Pacific (68) co-starring perhaps the only other actor of his generation who could match him pound for pound, the incomparable Toshiro Mifune. This film defies all description. It simply is a work of minimalist art. The acting is all visceral, and the film is hands down, one of the top 5 films of all time on the nature of war. It stars only two men. It takes place on an island. The men are shipwrecked there and are mortal enemies, each from opposing sides of a war. It could be any two men on any island and during any war. That's why it's brilliant. Marvin crawling through the jungle floor trying to find fresh water to drink is unforgettable. The two men eventually come to realize that it's not they who hate each other, but their countries. In the middle of the Pacific Ocean on a deserted island, there isn't much use for "countries" anymore, but fate plays a dirty trick on them at the end. This one-of-a-kind film is available on DVD (with alternate ending) and belongs in any serious film collector's library. Marvin and Mifune each give tour-de-force performances. You will never see a teaming like this ever again.


Greatest Lee Marvin quote
J W Grant (Ralph Bellamy): "You bastard!"
Fardan (Marvin): "In my case an accident of birth, but you sir, are a self-made man."
The Professionals

Remembering a legend...















Of all the filmed versions of the story of Arthur, John Boorman's 1981 masterwork Excalibur, remains the most true to the myth. In terms of artistic vision, it may be one of the greatest works of fantasy storytelling the cinema has ever known. "A dream to some...a NIGHTMARE TO OTHERS!"

Must have DVD:



Daughters Of Darkness (71) directed by Harry Kumel. Available from Blue Underground.It's Last Year at Marienbad (61) meets The Hunger (83). Ilona (Andrea Rau, pictured at top) is an incredibly complex character. A very beautiful and unsettling film. Essential viewing.

10.8.04 is Colm Meaney Day

Actually, it's just Friday, but it should be Colm Meaney day. Everybody knows who he is, right? I thought so. For the not so wise, here's a quick look at the good stuff:
The Dead (87)
The Commitments (90)
Far and Away (92)
The Last of the Mohicans (92)
The Snapper (93)
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (95)
The Van (96)
Claire Dolan (98)
Monument Ave. (98)
This Is My Father (98)
Intermission (03)
Layer Cake (04)
...to name but a few. Perhaps he is best known as Chief Miles O'Brien on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He excels at playing those down-to-earth bluecollar Irish Dads, as well as employing his roguish charm whenever necessary. He played a real shit-head in the forgettable Con Air (97) and is now finally about to break through in two upcoming films. First, John Crowley's Intermission (shown above with stunt sheep) has him playing a cocky put-upon Dublin police detective who must contend with a documentary film crew following him on his latest assignment. He is not the star of this film (unfortunately) since it features several stories revolving around one another.

Second, in Guy Ritchie's upcoming film Layer Cake. I've already heard comparisons with this movie to John MacKenzie's The Long Good Friday (80). No small feat indeed. Again, this film belongs to the phenominal Daniel Craig in his first major starring role (it's about time) but Meaney will back him admirably I'm sure.


I'm always shocked to hear when people only consider Meaney to be that stereotypical "Irish guy," used for every movie. That's kind of like saying, Steve McQueen is just that stereotypical "cool guy" in everything he's in. Meaney's fucking Irish! Give me a break. Whether or not anyone sees Intermission (coming out on DVD this month) or Layer Cake (this film already has a built-in following) this is probably the most exposure that Colm Meaney has ever gotten. He's earned it.
Favorite Meaney moment: in The Snapper as he prepares an elaborate welcome home celebration for his young son, returning from the military, complete with cued "music", only to have his good intentions rained on by his son's disillusionment and embarrassment. Only Colm Meaney (and director Stephen Frears) could turn a sad moment like this into a hilarious achievement.

Damn, that sheep's good...

Film of the day:

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (74) directed by Joseph Sargent. Many people remember The French Connection (71) and The Seven Ups (73), but there are few who recall this gritty thriller of that same era starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. Matthau is the good guy, Shaw the bad guy. By the end of the film however, you get the feeling that both men share alot in common. It's just another day at the office for each.

Both men are trying not to let everything fall apart around them. Shaw, as Mr. Blue, is utterly riviting in yet another of his over-looked performances. His intensity is kept just beneath the collar, and by the grace of his sheer natural talent, you actually want to like his cold-blooded killer. This may be one of Matthau's best performances as well (along with The Fortune Cookie, 66 for which he won his only Academy Award, The Odd Couple, 68, Kotch, 71, and Charlie Varrick, 73, just to name a few). Both actors are in their individual elements in this film.

It's one of those movies that I refer to as, "so good it hurts." Basically, you know you're watching an important piece of film-making because everything about it just feels right. The supporting performances are heavenly: Martin Balsam (Mr. Green), Hector Elizondo (Mr. Gray), Earl Hindman (Mr. Brown) and of course, the under-rated James Broderick (father of Matthew) as Denny Doyle. The entire cast, including the walk-ons, are excellent. Sargent, mainly a television director, has worked on everything from Bonanza to Star Trek. But Pelham, is his masterpiece.

I remember the humor in the picture more than anything else. It's funny in the same way that real life can be funny during hard times. This film examines how people react under pressure and shows how they must continue to do their jobs, even when lives are at stake. You really do get the feeling that everything taking place is "real," and not make-believe. The way Matthau has to negotiate with not only Shaw's terrorist, but also with his own superiors is not only fascinating and entertaining, but also funny and terrifying all at the same time. That's when you realize just how good the movie is.

I get the feeling that this movie has really inspired alot of filmmakers. It's no coincidence that the use of colors as code-names for the subway hi-jackers reappears in Tarantino's epic Reservoir Dogs (92). But more than anything else, Pelham is a New York movie. I suppose that's what really makes it all so perfect. If it were set in any other city in the world, it just wouldn't be the same. See the film for the final shot. I wouldn't dare spoil it for you. It proves once and for all how good an actor Walter Matthau really was. They need to preserve his final expression in the National Archives. Pelham is one hell of a ride. Let's help keep it alive.

Film of the day:

Pennies From Heaven, 1981, directed by Herbert Ross and written by Dennis Potter. Even if you have never seen this film, you probably already know of at least one famous scene from it. Christopher Walken's soft-shoe number on a bar has become one of the most famous scenes in movie history, that no one has ever really seen. There's no reason to wait any longer. Warner has finally released this inspired little gem on DVD (to coinicide with the DVD release of the original BBC television film that it's based on starring Bob Hoskins) and it really must be seen if only for the scene above. Walkin's only in the film for his one big scene, and it's about 3/4 of the way into the movie, but it's worth the wait. The first time you see it, you may not know how to feel. You might just be sitting there with your mouth open. It comes out of nowhere and remains to this day one of the best choreographed dance numbers in film history. Thank you Danny Daniels (the choreographer). It's been said before, but I'll say it again: in Pennies, Walken "brings the house down."

Classic Walken

Next Stop, Greenwich Village (76)
Annie Hall (77)
Roseland (77) ****
The Deer Hunter (78) *****
Heaven's Gate (80) ***1/2
The Dog's of War (81) ****1/2
Pennies From Heaven (81) ****
Brainstorm (83)
The Dead Zone (83) ****
A View to a Kill (85)
At Close Range (86) ***1/2
The Milagro Beanfield War (88)
Biloxi Blues (88) ****
Communion (89)
King of New York (90) *****
Sarah, Plain and Tall (91)
Batman Returns (92)
True Romance (93) ****
Wayne's World 2 (93)
Pulp Fiction (94) *****
Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (95)
The Prophecy (95) ****1/2
The Addiction (95)
Basquiat (96)
The Funeral (96)
Mouse Hunt (97)
Illuminata (98)
Sleepy Hollow (99)
The Opportunists (00) ****1/2
Catch Me If You Can (02) ****

This list is not intended to represent all of Christopher Walken's film appearances, only my favorites. The one's that I ranked are simply the best film's that he's appeared in, and consequently the best performances that he's given.

Must see performance on DVD

In 1968, actor Tony Curtis defied critcs and fans by starring against type as Albert DeSalvo, in Richard Fleischer's masterpiece, The Boston Strangler. I was amazed to see how well the film appeared in it's original widescreen aspect ratio on the new Universal DVD. Having only seen it in pan and scan on TV over the years, it is truly a wonder to behold the full widescreen compositions that Fleischer and his cinematographer Richard H. Kline (Camelot, 67) employ here. Using a variety of visual tricks and split-screens, they manage to produce a film that's as visually appealing as it's story is engrossing. What a film. The amazing thing is, Curtis does not actually appear on screen until approximately the one hour mark! The build up is so intense that when we actually see him for the first time gaining entry into a woman's apartment, you actually may gasp out loud with fear. His performance is unforgettable. I'm serious. I know we're talking about Tony Curtis. Sure he could be funny (Some Like It Hot, 59) and he could be serious (The Defiant Ones, 58, The Sweet Smell Of Success, 57) as well as corny (The Vikings, 58 also directed by Fleischer, Spartacus, 60) but in this film, he truly gave the perfromance of a lifetime.

His choices are calculated and expert. His timing perfect. I truly must say that I haven't been this impressed by a single performance in a film for quite some time. It's no wonder that this film has been all but forgotten. It was too powerful for it's time and the actual events being portrayed in the film were still too fresh in the memory. It still may be too much for some viewers. I was stunned watching it. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. The fact is, Curtis never recieved any recognition for this achievement, a point he blatantly makes in an interview on the disc's documentary feature. It doesn't matter because now the film is available for a whole new generation to experience. The scenes where Curtis' DeSalvo is sitting with his wife and children are phenominal. He doesn't dare try and sanitize this character. He plays it as openly and honestly as any actor could ever dream of playing a role. What an experience. One of the true under-rated and neglected performances of all time. I give the film 4.5 stars out of 5. Curtis gets 10 out of 5. You must see it to believe it.

Directors Talking Dirty

Vincent Gallo on Romeo + Juliet:
"I hated Romeo + Juliet, especially one of the girl leads. That chick, Leonardo DiCaprio, I'm sick of her. And I hate that gay ethnic Leguizamo. He always sucks."


Kevin Smith on Magnolia:
"I found it to be a cinematic root canal."


David Gordon Green on Kevin Smith movies:
"He kind of created a Special Olympics for film. They just kind of lowered the standard. I'm sure their parents are proud; it's just nothing I care to buy a ticket for."


Spike Lee on The Patriot:
"Pure, blatant American Hollywood propaganda. A complete whitewashing of history, revisionist history."


Vincent Gallo on Skeet Ulrich movies:
"Just seeing a movie poster with Skeet Ulrich on it is more than enough to make me pass gas. In a perfect world, Skeet Ulrich would be stopped by the doorman."

Classic Scene of the Month


Francis Fratelli: "Kid, why don't you spill your guts, tell us everything..."

Chunk: "Everything?"

Francis Fratelli: "Everything."

Chunk: "Ok, I'll talk! In third grade, I cheated on my history exam. In fourth grade, I stole my uncle Max's toupee and I glued it on my face when I played Moses in my Hebrew School play. In fifth grade, I knocked my sister Edie down the stairs and I blamed it on the dog...When my mom sent me to the summer camp for fat kids and then they served lunch I got nuts and I pigged out and they kicked me out...But the worst thing I ever done - I mixed a pot of fake puke at home and then I went to this movie theater, hid the puke in my jacket, climbed up to the balcony and then, t-t-then, I made a noise like this: hua-hua-hua-huaaaaaaa - and then I dumped it over the side, all over the people in the audience. And then, this was horrible, all the people started getting sick and throwing up all over each other. I never felt so bad in my entire life."

Jake Fratelli: "I'm beginning to like this kid, Ma."

The Goonies, 1985

Dangerous Business

Okay, time to set the record straight. I will try to be brief. In 1987, Elaine May wrote and directed a very funny movie starring Academy Award winners Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty. The film was about a pair of lonely songwriters filled with delusions that their songs would one day reach a wide audience and bring them great fame. They embark on a dangerous trip to the Moroccan desert to perform at a run-down hotel and lounge for American tourists in order to pay their rent. Once they arrive in North Africa however, they are soon embroiled in a deadly race to save a precious artifact and prevent a holy war that could potentially inflame the whole Middle East. All the while they are being chased by assassins, various government agencies bent on killing them (including their own government) and they each fall in love with the same beautiful woman, who is actually a freedom fighter who will use them both to save her people. Along the way, they fight, make-up, fight again, get shot at, run for their lives, get shot at some more, buy a blind camel with a bad tooth, get lost in the desert in the middle of a sand storm, nearly escape death by a group of illegal arms dealers, dodge an armed helicopter from the ground, and manage to write some of the best "worst" songs in the history of the world.

Okay, there it is. Now, if you absolutely hate this movie, you probably haven't seen it. Most people like to jump on that band-wagon about Ishtar being the worst film of all time. I understand this to a certain degree. If we must agree that Citizen Kane is the greatest film of all time (which it isn't - but it is agreed upon) than there has to be the worst one as well. Choosing Ishtar for this is not what bothers me. What bothers me is that it is actually a very tender and extremely, extraordinarily funny film. I don't care that some of the people involved in the production have now disowned it (composer Paul Williams) since what they have created now belongs to the world. If they had a problem with it, they should have had their names removed or bowed out at any stage in the game. Dustin Hoffman has only said encouraging things about it in interviews. He actually lists it among his favorite films that he's been a part of. Makes sense. He's a brilliant actor. The performances are wonderful. Lyle Rogers and Chuck "The Hawk" Clarke (Beatty and Hoffman respectively) make a truly endearing pair of nit-wits, and some of their verbal exchanges have now become legendary in some circles. Hawk: "Lyle, Dangerous Business is as good as Bridge Over Troubled Water any day of the week." Hawk (to Isabelle Adjani upon realizing that she's not a young boy after she flashes her breasts to him): "Look, look what you have..." The songs are absolutely stunning. Try and sit down and come up with 15 to 20 of the worst songs you can write while still making them sound as if someone put their heart and soul into every line and every note. You probably can't do it. Nobody else could have done it but Elaine May.

Elaine May is one of the most under-rated writer/directors of all time. She's a brilliant comedienne, and she is known more among the inner Hollywood circle than by the general public. See her brilliant comedic performance in Woody Allen's Small Time Crooks (00) and you'll understand about half of how talented she is. See Ishtar, and you'll get the rest. The film is not yet available on DVD. There were rumors that it was to be released years ago, but so far nothing solid has been announced. I believe that the film now has more than just a cult following. I'm not looking to convert anyone by writing this. As I said, if you're one of those people who hate it - then you probably need to go out and actually see it. If you have actually seen it, and you still think it is positively the worst film of all time, than so be it. If something needs to be, than I can rest easy knowing that it's Ishtar. But you should probably just forget that you actually saw it in the first place since there are enough of us out there now who champion the film. While you detest it, the rest of us are remembering it, quoting it, singing it, watching it and having the time of our fucking lives.

I'm not a pig...

With the recent releases of Roman Polanski's The Fearless Vampire Killers or: Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck (67) and the magnificent Tess (79) (available for the first time on video in the correct widescreen aspect ratio of 2.35:1) on DVD this month, where the hell is his masterpiece Repulsion (65) in the restored Special Edition that's been available in region 2 for over a year? As well as the vastly under-rated Cul-de-sac (66)? And of course the infamous Pirates (86) with the late, great Walter Matthau as Captain Thomas Bartholomew Red? Criterion did an excellent job with Polanski's breakthough film Knife In the Water (62), even if Polanski insisted that chapter breaks (scene selections) be removed from the disc. Can anyone say: David Lynch? (Lynch demands that all of his films be shown in their entirity on any format, without the use of scene selections) The Criterion 2-disc special edition of Knife In the Water still contains some of Polanski's short films, including the internationally lauded Two Men and a Wardrobe (58).

Okay, but back to Pirates. This movie is craptastic. For those of you unfamiliar with this term, craptastic is an adjective that can basically be described as "so bad it's good." However, in the case of Pirates, it actually verges on being just plain good. I would never recommend this movie to anyone, simply because I know that it's an acquired taste, but Matthau is great in it. Everytime he calls his companion, Jean-Baptiste, "The Frog," I can't help but break out in uncontrollable laughter. It's not what he says, it's the way he says it. There's an old saying, that laughter is the best medicine. I'm not going to criticize a movie that makes me laugh uncontrollably. You may watch it all the way through with a straight face, but then again, you could think that Kevin Smith's Jersey Girl was a funny movie. Either way, the production design, costumes, set design, cinematography and music in Pirates are all top notch. I'm not exactly sure why the movie was such a wopping failure in this country. It's possible that it has a very European sensibility (it is Polanski after all) and the script has holes in it bigger than the pock marks on Robert Davi's face. But who cares. It's told with conviction and it looks as if everyone involved in it had a blast making it. Matthau was so good (as he was in everything he did) that he should have gotten an Academy Award nomination for Red.

It angers me that they chose to nominate Johnny Depp for Pirates Of the Caribbean (03) for basically stealing Matthau's performance from this film. Why on earth was Depp not nominated for his remarkable performances in Ed Wood (94) and Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas (98)? But see Pirates for yourself (if you can find it). Time has chosen to forsake this gem of an adventure comedy, but you never know. One day it may just slip out on DVD in the middle of the night, and when it does, I will be the first in line to grab it. Is Pirates the best pirate movie of all time? Possibly. Was Walter Matthau the best pirate on screen since Robert Newton as Captain Long John Silver in Disney's Treasure Island (50)? Without a bloody doubt.

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Movies
The next Academy Award winner for Best Actor. You read it here first. Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles in Taylor Hackford's new bio-pic, Ray (04). Is this a case of art imitating life or life, well you know...

Foxx should have been nominated for his amazing portrayl of Drew "Bundini" Brown in Michael Mann's under-rated Ali (01). Out of a film crammed full of amazing supporting performances including: Mario Van Peebles as Malcolm X , Ron Silver as Angelo Dundee, Jeffrey Wright as Howard Bingham, Mykelti Williamson as Don King, Paul Rodriguez as Dr. Ferdie Pacheo, Giancarlo Esposito as Cassius Clay, Sr., a wonderful Charles Shufford as George Foreman, as well as LeVar Burton as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mann regulars Bruce McGill and Ted Levine in small but effective roles as well as many others, who does the Academy choose to nominate for Supporting Actor? Jon Voight, under 30 pounds of prosthetics, playing Howard Cosell. I am convinced that the Academy was paying tribute to Cosell (and his celebrated relationship with Ali) and not to the actor who was portraying him. Don't get me wrong - I love Jon Voight, but as always, the Academy is always a little late when it comes to honoring actors for the right performances. Voight (a multiple nominee in the past and Best Actor Oscar winner for Hal Ashby's Coming Home, 78, - one of my favorite films of all time) truly deserved Supporting Actor nominations for Rosewood (97)(as shown below) and the Rainmaker (97) which the Academy seemed to over-look. He was also memorable in a small role in Mann's Heat (95).


Foxx, although in a relatively smaller role compared to Voight's in Ali, was tremendous in his transformation and I feel that he was simply not "famous" enough at the time to recieve the nomination. His may be the best performance (next to the towering Will Smith as Ali) in the entire film. In any case, with this years Ray and a knockout performance in Mann's Collateral (04), this is truly the year of the Foxx - and rightfully so.

Was Rodney Dangerfield the W.C. Fields of our generation? No. I believe he was a better comedian, a stronger actor and infintely more talented. I was overwhelmed with a tremendous sadness when I read of his passing. I grew up watching his films and I will never forget some of his more memorable characterizations: Al Czervick in Caddyshack (80), Monty Capuletti in Easy Money (83), Thornton Melon in the under-rated Back to School (86) and his unforgettable appearance in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers (94) as "Mallory's Dad." Even the straight performance he gave in his little-seen first feature, The Projectionist (71) remains one of his only non-comedic performances. Meet Wally Sparks (97) actually has it's moments too. Yes, it's true that Rodney made alot of bad pictures in his lifetime, but the films listed above more than compensate for any lesser projects. At the very least, he was always the best thing about an awful film. If they gave awards for that type of thing, than Rodney should have recieved the Lifetime Achievement Statue. It's a little like when John Candy passed on. We don't like it when our clowns desert us. I will always remember how gentle Rodney's spirit was on film, even when he was acting rude or insincere. It was only an act, for his true nature always shined through. There are so many lines from those classic films that I will always cherish, like: "Who stepped on a duck?" "Now I know why tigers eat their young," "Ya buy this hat and they give ya a free bowl of soup...oh, but it looks good on you though," "Rose, there's a Messerschmitt (pronounced: mess-a-shit) in the kitchen, can ya clean it up?" "Cheer up Jason, you're a Melon!" but perhaps the line that best sums up how he should be remembered, comes from Caddyshack: "So what? So let's dance!"
Rodney Dangerfield was 82 when he passed away on October 5, 2004.

Last Kiss

No, this is not a jedi. It's a picture of Chistophe Lambert from the Luc Besson film Subway (85). While I do not believe that this is Besson's masterpiece (that would probably still be Leon (The Professional, 94) or La Femme Nikita (90) it nevertheless remains my favorite of all his films and a true lost classic. Why, do you say? Well, first off, it's by far the best thing that Lambert has ever done. Most people will recognize him as "Christopher" Lambert from the original Highlander (86) film which was his immediate follow-up to Subway. That's a good movie, but it's no Subway. Besson's film has this sort of magical, innocent charm about it that's quite absent from his major work following it. Even the enigmatic Le Grand bleu (The Big Blue, 88) does not come near the playfulness or artistic vision that Besson employs here in his send-up of the suspense/film noir genre. I can't explain the plot of Subway to you. It would be alot like trying to make sense of Howard Hawks' notoriously cryptic The Big Sleep (46) with Humphrey Bogart. But who watches The Big Sleep for anything other than Bogart? This can also be said of Subway: Lambert's raffishly charming Fred (as shown above) with his spiky white platinum hair is sort of a late twentieth century Cary Grant meets Sid Vicious.

While we are introduced to Fred as he is stealing a car (the opening scene is an exhilarating car chase that may be one of the best ever filmed post Bullitt, 68, and The French Connection, 71) we are led to believe that the dashing young punk is something of a "professional." Then it becomes apparent as he enters into the labyrinthine underworld of the Parisian Metro, being chased by gangsters and eventually the local gendarme, that he is nothing short of homeless and living hand-to-mouth. He never loses his dignity however and remains something of a Puckish gentleman throughout the course of this highly stylized trip complete with nods to not only Godard, Melville and Chabrol, but also to Ben Hecht, the writer of some of the greatest genre films of all time (including Scarface, 32, Hitchcock's Notorious, 46, and Kiss of Death, 47). Part of the joy of experiencing this film is in digesting those references and allowing yourself to actually be entertained. Besson is very good at "dumbing down" certain aspects of story and characterization for his audience, but anything more serious in a film like this would have set it off balance. I know critics that condemn the film for being "all style and no substance," but that could be said of Baz Luhrmann's pretentious Moulin Rouge (01) as well, and how many top ten lists did that show up on a couple years ago? Subway came out during a time when French films were not well recieved outside of Europe. It inevitably got labeled an "MTV-like film" (due in no part to it's fast pace and rebellious spirit) which couldn't be more inaccurate. Those critics and audiences seemed to miss the very heart of the film. It's more than just a chase film. It's a neon-lit boy meets girl love story. Yes, it's a postmodern fairytale. Yes, it's steeped in eighties "New Wave" culture. But it's soul comes from a differnt era, and that's why no one at the time could see beyond it's smoke and mirrors.

The supporting performances are very good, especially Michel Galabru, Jean-Hughes Anglade, Jean Reno and especially Richard Bohringer (see Jean-Jacques Beineix's Diva, 81, for him at all costs!). And that brings me to Helene, who is played by the incomparable Isabelle Adjani (as shown above with revolver). She's absolutely stunning in just about everything she's ever done. She adds just the right element of Grace Kelly to the film that no other actress of this generation could have pulled off. A truly beautiful woman and a great performance. The scene where Fred and Helene dance to a (perfect) song on the boombox is one of the greatest romantic scenes of all time. Just how all this plays out is better left a surprise, but the last act of the film, when Fred becomes "leader" of a group of sensitive street musicians, is so unexpected and emotionally rewarding, that it's an utter disgrace that time has failed to accept this truly original and daring work of art. But hey, don't take my word for it. See it with an open mind and watch it in the original French language track if at all possible. Columbia Tristar finally released Subway on DVD in the proper aspect ratio (2.35:1) and original French language track with English subtitles. Perhaps it's time that a new generation of film-lovers experience this movie all over again. It's one hell of a ride, from first chase to last kiss.

The immortal Janet Leigh (shown here as the lovely but unscrupulous Marion Crane) will always be remembered for this scene from Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 masterwork, Psycho. Of all the haunting images from this landmark film, the shower scene has to go down in history as the greatest moment of pure horror ever put on film. When Norman Bates drew that shower curtain back on Marion, it was the same as Hitchcock pulling it back on us. After that, our lives were never the same. Something changed about the way we saw movies. They weren't just harmless ways to spend a Saturday afternoon anymore. After Psycho, anything could happen. Hitchcock took away our naivete, and replaced it with something far more valuable. He gave us the truth. It was his way of saying these things happen in the real world - not because some people are bad, but because they're only human. We're all only human. Psycho gave birth to the modern horror film, and for that, it will always remain immortal. Janet Leigh was 77 when she passed away on October 3, 2004.

365 of the World's Greatest Directors and their Greatest Films
(in no particular order)

1.Alfred Hitchcock..............Vertigo (58)
2.Orson Welles..................Citizien Kane (41)
3.John Ford.....................The Searchers (56)
4.Howard Hawks..................Red River (48)
5.Frank Capra...................It's A Wonderful Life (46)
6.Akira Kurosawa................Seven Samurai (54)
7.Ingmar Bergman................Cries and Whispers (72)
8.Federico Fellini..............8 1/2 (63)
9.Jean Renior...................Rules of the Game (39)
10.John Huston..................The Treasure Of the Sierra Madre (48)
11.Luis Bunuel..................The Discreet Charm Of the Bourgeoisie (72)
12.David Lean...................Lawrence Of Arabia (62)
13.Stanley Kubrick..............Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (64)
14.Francois Truffaut............The 400 Blows (Les Quatre Cents Coups) (59)
15.Luchino Visconti.............The Leopard (63)
16.Satyajit Ray.................Pather Panchali (65)
17.Preston Sturges..............Sullivan's Travels (41)
18.Yasujiro Ozu.................Tokyo Story (53)
19.Andrzej Wajda................Ashes and Diamonds (58)
20.Michael Curtiz...............Casablanca (42)
21.Vittorio De Sica.............Shoe Shine (48)
22.Jean-Luc Godard..............Breathless (A bout de souffle) (60)
23.Ernst Lubitsch...............Trouble In Paradise (32)
24.George Cukor.................The Philadelphia Story (40)
25.Andrei Tarkovsky.............Andrei Rublev (69)
26.Michael Powell
and Emeric Pressburger.......The Red Shoes (48)
27.Michaelangelo Antonioni......Blow Up (66)
28.Fritz Lang...................M (31)
29.Pier Paolo Pasolini..........The Gospel According To St. Matthew (64)
30.Elia Kazan...................On the Waterfront (54)
31.William Wyler................The Best Years Of Our Lives (46)
32.Rainer Werner Fassbinder.....Berlin Alexanderplatz (80)
33.Fred Zinnemann...............A Man For All Seasons (66)
34.Carl Theodor Dreyer..........The Passion Of Joan Of Arc (28)
35.Billy Wilder.................Some Like It Hot (59)
36.F.W. Murnau..................Sunrise (27)
37.Sergei Eisenstein............The Battleship Potemkin (25)
38.Charles Chaplin..............City Lights (31)
39.Sergio Leone.................Once Upon A Time In the West (68)
40.Otto Preminger...............Laura (44)
41.Jean Cocteau.................Orpheus (49)
42.Douglas Sirk.................Written On the Wind (56)
43.George Stevens...............Shane (53)
44.Stanley Donen
and Gene Kelly...............Singin' In the Rain (52)
45.Woody Allen..................Annie Hall (77)
46.Sam Peckinpah................The Wild Bunch (69)
47.Roman Polanski...............Repulsion (65)
48.Bernardo Bertolucci..........The Conformist (70)
49.Alain Resnais................Hiroshima, Mon Amour (59)
50.Robert Altman................Nashville (75)
51.John Cassavettes.............Faces (68)
52.Robert Wise
and Jerome Robbins...........West Side Story (61)
53.Vincente Minnelli............The Bad and the Beautiful (52)
54.Steven Spielberg.............Close Encounters Of the Third Kind (77)
55.Abbas Kiarostami.............Close Up (90)
56.Martin Scorsese..............Raging Bull (80)
57.Francesco Rosi...............Christ Stopped At Eboli (79)
58.Werner Herzog................Every Man For Himself and God Against All (The Enigma Of Kaspar Hauser) (74)
59.Sidney Lumet.................The Pawnbroker (64)
60.Francis Ford Coppola.........Apocalypse Now (79)
61.Joseph Losey.................The Servant (63)
62.Victor Fleming...............Gone With the Wind (39)
63.Kenji Mizoguchi..............Sansho the Baliff (54)
64.Martin Ritt..................Hud (63)
65.Hal Ashby....................Coming Home (78)
66.John Sturges.................Bad Day At Black Rock (55)
67.Robert Aldrich...............The Dirty Dozen (67)
68.Stanley Kramer...............Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (67)
69.John Schlesinger.............Midnight Cowboy (69)
70.Richard Brooks...............In Cold Blood (67)
71.Jacques Tati.................Mr. Hulot's Holiday (54)
72.David Lynch..................Eraserhead (77)
73.Anthony Mann.................Winchester '73 (50)
74.John Frankenheimer...........The Manchurian Candidate (62)
75.Krzysztof Kieslowski.........The Decalogue (87)
76.Robert Mulligan..............To Kill a Mockingbird (62)
77.Alan J. Pakula...............All the President's Men (76)
78.Oliver Stone.................Platoon (86)
79.John Boorman.................Deliverance (72)
80.Mike Nichols.................The Graduate (67)
81.Terry Gilliam................Brazil (85)
82.Arthur Penn..................Bonnie and Clyde (67)
83.Ridley Scott.................Blade Runner (82)
84.William Friedkin.............The French Connection (71)
85.Milos Foreman................One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (75)
86.Raoul Walsh..................High Sierra (41)
87.Spike Lee....................Do the Right Thing (89)
88.Peter Weir...................Gallipoli (81)
89.James Ivory..................A Room With a View (85)
90.David Cronenberg.............Dead Ringers (88)
91.Zhang Yimou..................Raise the Red Lantern (91)
92.Mel Brooks...................Young Frankenstein (74)
93.Lina Wertmuller..............Seven Beauties (76)
94.Mike Leigh...................Naked (93)
95.Jules Dassin.................Rififi (55)
96.Wong Kar Wai.................In the Mood For Love (00)
97.Robert Bresson...............A Man Escaped (56)
98.Brian De Palma...............The Untouchables (87)
99.Terrence Malick..............Badlands (73)
100.Hayao Miyazaki..............Spirited Away (01)
101.Henri-Georges Clouzot.......Wages Of Fear (53)
102.Louis Malle.................Au revoir les enfants (87)
103.Jean-Pierre Melville........Le Samourai (67)
104.Roberto Rossellini..........Open City (Roma, citta aperta) (45)
105.Lindsay Anderson............If .... (68)
106.Franco Zeffirelli...........Romeo and Juliet (68)
107.Joseph L. Mankiewicz........All About Eve (50)
108.William Wellman.............The Ox-Bow Incident (43)
109.Clint Eastwood..............Unforgiven (92)
110.Ken Loach...................Land and Freedom (95)
111.Max Ophuls..................The Earrings Of Madame de... (53)
112.Nicholas Ray................In a Lonely Place (50)
113.Claude Chabrol..............Le Beau Serge (58)
114.Erich von Stroheim..........Greed (24)
115.Buster Keaton...............The General (27)
116.Josef von Sternberg.........The Blue Angel (30)
117.Costa-Gavras................Z (69)
118.Blake Edwards...............A Shot In the Dark (64)
119.Herbert Ross................Pennies From Heaven (81)
120.Don Siegel..................Dirty Harry (71)
121.Rene Clair..................Le Million (31)
122.Samuel Fuller...............The Big Red One (80)
123.Bob Fosse...................All That Jazz (79)
124.Marcel Carne................Children Of Paradise (Les enfants du paradis) (45)
125.Peter Bogdanovich...........The Last Picture Show (71)
126.Abel Gance..................Napoleon (27)
127.John Sayles.................Lone Star (96)
128.Barry Levinson..............Rain Man (88)
129.Nagisa Oshima...............Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (83)
130.Bertrand Tavernier..........Life and Nothing But (89)
131.Michael Mann................The Insider (99)
132.Tim Burton..................Ed Wood (94)
133.Lawrence Kasden.............The Big Chill (83)
134.Sidney Pollack..............They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (69)
135.Robert Benton...............Kramer vs. Kramer (79)
136.Bob Rafelson................Five Easy Pieces (70)
137.Istvan Szabo................Mephisto (81)
138.Rene Clement................Forbidden Games (52)
139.Jacques Rivette.............La Belle noiseuse (91)
140.Laurence Olivier............Henry V (44)
141.Theo Angelopoulis...........Eternity and a Day (98)
142.Lasse Hallstrom.............My Life as a Dog (85)
143.Lars von Trier..............Breaking the Waves (96)
144.George Melies...............A Trip to the Moon (1902)
145.Phillippe de Broca..........The King Of Hearts (66)
146.Henry Hathaway..............Kiss Of Death (47)
147.Michael Cacoyannis..........Zorba the Greek (64)
148.Volker Schlondorff..........The Tin Drum (79)
149.Pedro Almodovar.............Women On the Verge Of a Nervous
Breakdown (88)
150.Ang Lee.....................Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (00)
151.Robert Zemeckis.............Forrest Gump (94)
152.Atom Egoyan.................The Sweet Hereafter (97)
153.D.W. Griffith...............The Birth Of a Nation (15)
154.Emir Kusturica..............Underground (95)
155.Jacques Demy................The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies
de Cherbourg) (64)
156.Richard Lester..............A Hard Day's Night (64)
157.Leo McCarey.................The Awful Truth (37)
158.Hector Babanco..............Pixote (81)
159.Lewis Milestone.............All Quiet On the Western Front (30)
160.Bill Forsyth................Local Hero (83)
161.Frank Lloyd.................Mutiny On the Bounty (35)
162.Thorold Dickinson...........Gaslight (40)
163.King Vidor..................Duel In the Sun (46)
164.Jim Sheridan................My Left Foot (89)
165.Mario Bava..................Black Sunday (60)
166.Wolfgang Peterson...........Das Boot (81)
167.Warren Beatty...............Reds (81)
168.Hugh Hudson.................Chariots Of Fire (81)
169.Claude Berri................Jean de Florette (86)
170.Anatole Litvak..............The Snake Pit (48)
171.Sergei Bondarchuk...........War and Peace (68)
172.Sam Wood....................Goodbye, Mr. Chips (39)
173.Clarence Brown..............The Yearling (46)
174.W.S. Van Dyke...............The Thin Man (34)
175.Robert Stevenson............Mary Poppins (64)
176.Joshua Logan................Sayonara (57)
177.Jack Clayton................The Innocents (61)
178.Delbert Mann................Marty (55)
179.William Dieterle............The Devil and Daniel Webster (41)
180.Paul Cox....................Lonely Hearts (82)
181.Jane Campion................An Angel At My Table (90)
182.Budd Boetticher.............Comanche Station (60)
183.Andre De Toth...............House Of Wax (53)
184.Peter Jackson...............Heavenly Creatures (94)
185.Gillian Armstrong...........My Brilliant Career (79)
186.Michael Winterbottom........The Claim (00)
187.Daniel Mann.................Come Back, Little Sheba (52)
188.Tran Anh Hung...............Cyclo (95)
189.Monte Hellman...............Two-Lane Blacktop (71)
190.Nikita Mikhalov.............Burnt By the Sun (94)
191.Peter Yates.................Breaking Away (79)
192.Mel Gibson..................Braveheart (95)
193.James L. Brooks.............Terms Of Endearment (83)
194.Paul Thomas Anderson........Boogie Nights (97)
195.Ulu Grosbard................Straight Time (78)
196.John G. Avildsen............Rocky (76)
197.Zoltan Korda................Cry, the Beloved Country (51)
198.George Pal..................The Time Machine (60)
199.Edward Dmytryk..............Crossfire (47)
200.Philip Kaufman..............The Right Stuff (83)
201.Cecil B. DeMille............The King Of Kings (27)
202.Giuseppe Tornatore..........Cinema Paradiso (89)
203.Henry King..................Twelve O'Clock High (49)
204.Frankin J. Schaffner........Patton (70)
205.Robert Rossen...............All the King's Men (49)
206.Mark Robson.................Champion (49)
207.Gene Saks...................The Odd Couple (68)
208.Michael Cimino..............The Deer Hunter (78)
209.Alan Parker.................Midnight Express (78)
210.Richard Donner..............The Omen (76)
211.Bertrand Blier..............Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (78)
212.Norman Jewison..............In the Heat Of the Night (67)
213.Anthony Asquith.............The Browning Version (51)
214.Paolo Taviani
and Vittorio Taviani........Night Of the Shooting Stars (82)
215.Delmer Daves................3:10 To Yuma (57)
216.Karel Reisz.................Who'll Stop the Rain (78)
217.Tony Richardson.............Tom Jones (63)
218.George Roy Hill.............Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (69)
219.Michael Ritchie.............The Candidate (72)
220.Peter Medak.................The Ruling Class (72)
221.Baz Luhrmann................Moulin Rouge (01)
222.Tod Browning................Freaks (32)
223.Gus Van Sant................Drugstore Cowboy (89)
224.Paul Schrader...............Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters (85)
225.Jonathan Demme..............Melvin and Howard (80)
226.Richard Fliescher...........Compulsion (59)
227.Eric Rohmer.................Claire's Knee (70)
228.Roland Joffe................The Killing Fields (84)
229.James Whale.................Bride Of Frankenstein (35)
230.Barbet Schroeder............Reversal Of Fortune (90)
231.John Woo....................Face/Off (97)
232.Robert Redford..............Ordinary People (80)
233.Paul Mazursky...............An Unmarried Woman (78)
234.Wim Wenders.................Wings Of Desire (87)
235.Takeshi Kitano..............Fireworks (Hana-bi) (97)
236.John Mackenzie..............The Long Good Friday (80)
237.Luc Besson..................Leon (The Professional) (94)
238.Derek Jarman................Edward II (91)
239.Jerry Lewis.................The Nutty Professor (63)
240.Arthur Hiller...............Love Story (70)
241.J. Lee Thompson.............The Guns Of Navarone (61)
242.Ronald Neame................The Horse's Mouth (58)
243.Jean-Jacques Annaud.........The Name Of the Rose (86)
244.Paul Verhoeven..............Soldier Of Orange (77)
245.Terence Fisher..............The Horror Of Dracula (Dracula) (58)
246.Ron Howard..................Apollo 13 (95)
247.Stuart Rosenberg............Cool Hand Luke (67)
248.Ken Russell.................Women In Love (69)
249.Alan Rudolph................The Secret Lives Of Dentists (02)
250.Roger Corman................The Fall Of the House Of Usher (60)
251.Jerry Schatzberg............Scarecrow (73)
252.Anthony Harvey..............The Lion In Winter (68)
253.Charles Crichton............The Lavender Hill Mob (51)
254.Phillip Noyce...............Rabbit-Proof Fence (02)
255.Agnieszka Holland...........Europa, Europa (90)
256.Mike Figgis.................Leaving Las Vegas (95)
257.Patrice Leconte.............The Girl On the Bridge (99)
258.Stephen Frears..............My Beautiful Laundrette (85)
259.Jim Jarmusch................Stranger Than Paradise (83)
260.Joel Coen...................Raising Arizona (87)
261.Neil Jordan.................Mona Lisa (86)
262.George Lucas................Star Wars (77)
263.Walter Hill.................The Warriors (79)
264.John Milius.................The Wind and the Lion (75)
265.Rob Reiner..................This Is Spinal Tap (84)
266.Wes Anderson................Rushmore (98)
267.Steven Soderbergh...........Sex, Lies, and Videotape (89)
268.Bruce Beresford.............Breaker Morant (80)
269.Michael Apted...............Coal Miner's Daughter (80)
270.Kenneth Branagh.............Henry V (89)
271.James Toback................Fingers (78)
272.Abel Ferrara................King Of New York (90)
273.John Landis.................Animal House (78)
274.James Cameron...............The Abyss (89)
275.Agnes Varda.................Vagabond (85)
276.Charles Walters.............The Barkleys Of Broadway (49)
277.Quentin Tarantino...........Pulp Fiction (94)
278.John Carpenter..............Halloween (78)
279.Herbert J. Biberman.........Salt Of the Earth (54)
280.Alfonso Cuaron..............Y Tu Mama Tambien (01)
281.John Waters.................Pink Flamingos (72)
282.George A. Romero............Dawn Of the Dead (78)
283.Dario Argento...............Suspiria (77)
284.Anthony Minghella...........The English Patient (96)
285.Russ Meyer..................Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (65)
286.Sam Mendes..................Road To Perdition (02)
287.Alejandro Inarritu..........Amores Perros (00)
288.Albert Brooks...............Modern Romance (81)
289.Harold Becker...............The Onion Field (79)
290.Fred Schepisi...............The Chant Of Jimmie Blacksmith (78)
291.John McTiernan..............The Hunt For Red October (90)
292.Billie August...............Pelle the Conquerer (87)
293.Carl Reiner.................Where's Poppa? (70)
294.Tony Scott..................The Hunger (83)
295.Kevin Reynolds..............Fandango (85)
296.Tobe Hooper.................The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (74)
297.Guillermo Del Toro..........The Devil's Backbone (01)
298.Katherine Bigelow...........Near Dark (87)
299.Keith Gordon................Mother Night (96)
300.Sam Raimi...................Evil Dead II (Dead By Dawn) (87)
301.William Castle..............The House On Haunted Hill (59)
302.Alex Cox....................Sid and Nancy (86)
303.George Miller...............The Road Warrior (Mad Max 2) (81)
304.Francis Veber...............The Dinner Game (98)
305.Nicholas Meyer..............Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan (82)
306.John Hughes.................Ferris Bueller's Day Off (86)
307.Larry Cohen.................Q (The Winged Serpent) (82)
308.Cameron Crowe...............Say Anything ... (89)
309.Alexander Mackendrick.......Sweet Smell Of Success (57)
310.Penny Marshall..............Big (88)
311.John Badham.................Whose Life Is It Anyway? (81)
312.Fernando Meirelles..........City Of God (02)
313.Godfrey Reggio..............Koyaanisqatsi (83)
314.Mark Rydell.................On Golden Pond (81)
315.Phil Alden Robinson.........Field Of Dreams (89)
316.Robert Rodriguez............From Dusk Till Dawn (96)
317.Errol Morris................The Thin Blue Line (88)
318.Henry Jaglom................Tracks (76)
319.Carl Franklin...............One False Move (92)
320.Kevin Costner...............Dances With Wolves (90)
321.Hal Hartley.................Simple Men (92)
322.Spike Jonze.................Being John Malkovich (99)
323.Merian C. Cooper
and Ernest B. Schoedsack....King Kong (33)
324.Amy Heckerling..............Fast Times At Ridgemont High (82)
325.Edward Zwick................Glory (89)
326.Frank Darabont..............The Shawshank Redemption (94)
327.Sean Penn...................The Indian Runner (91)
328.Peter Brook.................Lord Of the Flies (63)
329.Richard Linklater...........Slacker (91)
330.Joel Schumacher.............Tigerland (00)
331.Richard Attenborough........Gandhi (82)
332.Jean Vigo...................L'Atalante (34)
333.Leni Riefenstahl............Triumph Of the Will (34)
334.Peter Greenaway.............The Draughtsman's Contract (82)
335.Nicolas Roeg................Don't Look Now (73)
336.Carol Reed..................The Third Man (49)
337.Edmund Goulding.............The Razor's Edge (46)
338.Denys Arcand................Jesus Of Montreal (89)
339.Robert J. Flaherty..........Nanook Of the North (22)
340.Jacques Tourneur............Out Of the Past (47)
341.Darren Aronofsky............Requiem For a Dream (00)
342.James Foley.................Glengarry Glen Ross (92)
343.Gillo Pontecorvo............Battle Of Algiers (65)
344.Todd Haynes.................Far From Heaven (02)
345.Albert Maysles
and David Maysles...........Salesman (69)
346.Stan Brakhage...............Dog Star Man (62)
347.Victor Sjostrom.............The Phantom Carriage (21)
348.Frank Perry.................Diary Of a Mad Housewife (70)
349.David Mamet.................House Of Games (87)
350.G.W. Pabst..................Pandora's Box (29)
351.D.A. Pennebaker.............Don't Look Back (67)
352.Kenneth Anger...............Scorpio Rising (64)
353.Sergei Paradjanov...........Shadows Of Our Forgotten Ancestors (64)
354.Im Kwon Taek................Chihwaseon (Painted Fire) (02)
355.Shohei Imamura..............Vengeance Is Mine (79)
356.Dennis Hopper...............Easy Rider (69)
357.George Seaton...............The Country Girl (54)
358.Ermanno Olmi................The Tree Of Wooden Clogs (78)
359.Kinji Fukasaku..............Battle Royale (00)
360.Ishiro Honda................Godzilla vs. Mothra (64)
361.Larry Peerce................Goodbye, Columbus (69)
362.Jiri Trnka..................The Hand (Ruka) (65)
363.Michael Moore...............Roger and Me (89)
364.Kevin Smith.................Chasing Amy (97)
365.Mervyn LeRoy................I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (32)

Compiled by Dan Dorman 2004