Favourite movie moments.
We've all got our lists of favourite movies, those films that we love as a whole. But if you're like me, you also have a list of favourite scenes. To take a break from outright reviews, I decided to put together a few clips -- in no particular order -- that get the Angie seal of approval. Hope you enjoy!
Kill Bill is one of my favourite films. Probably not Top 30, but definitely Top 40 or 50. I love the mixture of spaghetti western, samurai/kung-fu chopsocky and Quentin's ever incredible dialogue and characters. The final confrontation between O-Ren Ishii and The Bride/Black Mamba/Beatrix Kiddo is a lovely piece of cinema; the cinematography is gorgeous and atmospheric, the contrasting colors and falling snow add a dream-like quality, the fight itself is wonderfully choreographed and dramatic, and I absolutely love the music Quentin chose for the scene. When O-Ren steps out of her sandals and takes that first step forward as Santa Esmerelda's "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" begins... That moment continues to send shivers of delight up and down my spine.
The Beatles are pretty much sunshine, rainbows, and psychedelic fabrics personified. Especially in their early days, and Help! is a wonderful example of their bouncy, wacky insanity. I love the entire film, but this segment always leave me with a warm and happy feeling. They look like they're having so much fun together, and I love that the director basically let them do whatever they wanted while the cameras were rolling. It's a fun song with four of the cutest, most talented men ever being epic goofballs. What's not to love? Also, I adore the tiny snippet where Ringo gets in an argument with his tiny snowdog and punches it. X^D
Dawn of the Dead (1978), zombie classic -- of course it's going to be on this list. I posted a Peter/Roger picspam the other day and mentioned the scene when the two are teasing each other over the CB radios. It's a miniscule scene (starting around the 5:00 mark in the above clip) that lasts all of 20 seconds, but it may very well be my favourite in the entire film. It shows us everything we need to know about the pair's relationship, and is such a sweet moment of bromance before some bad shit goes down. Also, at the beginning of the above clip you get to see zombies on escalators! and on an ice rink! and I really do believe a person's life isn't complete until they witness such hilarity.
Constantine may had dropped the ball in terms of being faithful to its source material, but HO MY GAWD, this film is gorgeous. I loooooove the visuals and special effects. Everything is so atmospheric and creepy and darkly beautiful. Also, Tilda Swinton is pretty much riveting as the angel Gabriel; I can't pull my eyes away when she's on screen. And then there's Peter Stromare as Lucifer and HOLY CRAP, could this film get any more perfect with the casting of the otherworldly characters? I had to include three scenes with Gabriel (the last features Lucifer, as well), because IT'S ALL TOO PRETTY AND AWESOME TO CHOOSE JUST ONE.
Hot Fuzz is one of the best comedies to come out in the past ten years. Which is to be expected since it's the second film by Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, and Nick Frost, the geniuses behind Spaced and Shaun of the Dead. There are a lot of laugh out loud moments I love, and the last twenty minutes -- which is basically an extended shoot out with the entire town -- are pure gold. However, I've found it extremely difficult to locate the precise moments in the final shoot out that I love (particular favourite: when Danny shoots the doctor and he and Nick tell him, "You're a doctor... deal with it. Yeeeeah, motherfucker!" X^D), and so I decided to go with this hilarious moment, where Pegg and Co. prove that there's nothing they won't do for a laugh. And lemme tell you, this had me laughing for about two minutes straight and about to fall out of my seat. It was even better because a trio of elderly grandmothers were sitting directly behind me and my friends and were laughing almost as hard. X^D
This film is one of the most underrated and amazing films I've ever seen. Stranger Than Fiction is not only funny and witty and quirky, with some grand acting and beautiful visuals/special effects, it's also got some grand messages about living life fully and loving without fear. And then there's the issue of art: how far should artists go in order to achieve something truly beautiful or noble? What are the limits that should be placed on the creative processes, if there are negative consequences? And I love that the film shows how consuming the artistic process can be -- that characters sometimes develop their own personalities and do things their creators wouldn't expect, and that the end may be something the writers never expected or planned. I love the ending of the film, because we get some of the most beautiful prose ever written, narrated by the amazing Emma Thompson, and the final montage always makes my soul sing while bringing tears to my eyes. ♥
Beauty and the Beast will always be my favourite fairy tale and Disney movie. It's French, it's got a kick-ass and intelligent heroine, and I think love stories where the couple learn to love each other despite outward appearances are just beautiful. This is probably my favourite part of the movie: we get to see porridge!faced Beast just before the song starts, then we get to hear the lovely singing voice of Robby Benson, see an adorable snowball fight, and it all culminates with the Beast giving her the library before they go on their amazing ballroom date. Ahhhh, fairy tale ♥!
Well, I think that's plenty for now. Expect another entry of favourite scenes to follow up.
And how about you? What are some of your favourite cinematic moments? :D
Click to viewKill Bill is one of my favourite films. Probably not Top 30, but definitely Top 40 or 50. I love the mixture of spaghetti western, samurai/kung-fu chopsocky and Quentin's ever incredible dialogue and characters. The final confrontation between O-Ren Ishii and The Bride/Black Mamba/Beatrix Kiddo is a lovely piece of cinema; the cinematography is gorgeous and atmospheric, the contrasting colors and falling snow add a dream-like quality, the fight itself is wonderfully choreographed and dramatic, and I absolutely love the music Quentin chose for the scene. When O-Ren steps out of her sandals and takes that first step forward as Santa Esmerelda's "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" begins... That moment continues to send shivers of delight up and down my spine.
The Beatles are pretty much sunshine, rainbows, and psychedelic fabrics personified. Especially in their early days, and Help! is a wonderful example of their bouncy, wacky insanity. I love the entire film, but this segment always leave me with a warm and happy feeling. They look like they're having so much fun together, and I love that the director basically let them do whatever they wanted while the cameras were rolling. It's a fun song with four of the cutest, most talented men ever being epic goofballs. What's not to love? Also, I adore the tiny snippet where Ringo gets in an argument with his tiny snowdog and punches it. X^D
Dawn of the Dead (1978), zombie classic -- of course it's going to be on this list. I posted a Peter/Roger picspam the other day and mentioned the scene when the two are teasing each other over the CB radios. It's a miniscule scene (starting around the 5:00 mark in the above clip) that lasts all of 20 seconds, but it may very well be my favourite in the entire film. It shows us everything we need to know about the pair's relationship, and is such a sweet moment of bromance before some bad shit goes down. Also, at the beginning of the above clip you get to see zombies on escalators! and on an ice rink! and I really do believe a person's life isn't complete until they witness such hilarity.
Constantine may had dropped the ball in terms of being faithful to its source material, but HO MY GAWD, this film is gorgeous. I loooooove the visuals and special effects. Everything is so atmospheric and creepy and darkly beautiful. Also, Tilda Swinton is pretty much riveting as the angel Gabriel; I can't pull my eyes away when she's on screen. And then there's Peter Stromare as Lucifer and HOLY CRAP, could this film get any more perfect with the casting of the otherworldly characters? I had to include three scenes with Gabriel (the last features Lucifer, as well), because IT'S ALL TOO PRETTY AND AWESOME TO CHOOSE JUST ONE.
Hot Fuzz is one of the best comedies to come out in the past ten years. Which is to be expected since it's the second film by Simon Pegg, Edgar Wright, and Nick Frost, the geniuses behind Spaced and Shaun of the Dead. There are a lot of laugh out loud moments I love, and the last twenty minutes -- which is basically an extended shoot out with the entire town -- are pure gold. However, I've found it extremely difficult to locate the precise moments in the final shoot out that I love (particular favourite: when Danny shoots the doctor and he and Nick tell him, "You're a doctor... deal with it. Yeeeeah, motherfucker!" X^D), and so I decided to go with this hilarious moment, where Pegg and Co. prove that there's nothing they won't do for a laugh. And lemme tell you, this had me laughing for about two minutes straight and about to fall out of my seat. It was even better because a trio of elderly grandmothers were sitting directly behind me and my friends and were laughing almost as hard. X^D
This film is one of the most underrated and amazing films I've ever seen. Stranger Than Fiction is not only funny and witty and quirky, with some grand acting and beautiful visuals/special effects, it's also got some grand messages about living life fully and loving without fear. And then there's the issue of art: how far should artists go in order to achieve something truly beautiful or noble? What are the limits that should be placed on the creative processes, if there are negative consequences? And I love that the film shows how consuming the artistic process can be -- that characters sometimes develop their own personalities and do things their creators wouldn't expect, and that the end may be something the writers never expected or planned. I love the ending of the film, because we get some of the most beautiful prose ever written, narrated by the amazing Emma Thompson, and the final montage always makes my soul sing while bringing tears to my eyes. ♥
Beauty and the Beast will always be my favourite fairy tale and Disney movie. It's French, it's got a kick-ass and intelligent heroine, and I think love stories where the couple learn to love each other despite outward appearances are just beautiful. This is probably my favourite part of the movie: we get to see porridge!faced Beast just before the song starts, then we get to hear the lovely singing voice of Robby Benson, see an adorable snowball fight, and it all culminates with the Beast giving her the library before they go on their amazing ballroom date. Ahhhh, fairy tale ♥!
Well, I think that's plenty for now. Expect another entry of favourite scenes to follow up.
And how about you? What are some of your favourite cinematic moments? :D