Rewatching My 100 Favorite Movies - Update 11

I decided to rewatch my 100 favorite movies of all-time. What those are, you can check HERE. I watch them in random order, there is no rhyme or reason there, just watching those movies I love so much.
 

37/ 100: Enemy (2013)
Jake Gyllenhaal plays a reclusive history teacher who notices his exact double when he watches an obscure movie on DVD. He goes in search of the extra, who turns out to live in Toronto just like him. A secretive thriller by director Denis Villenueve. The film intrigues, is beautifully filmed and effectively claustrophobic. The movie is one big mind-fuck, reminded me of David Lynch movies. Check out my full review HERE.
 

38/ 100: Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
When Mr. Fox learns that Mrs. Fox is pregnant, he must promise her to stop stealing. He keeps this promise for a while, but after a few years the wild beast in him resurfaces. Mr. Fox crawls out of his hole, goes to live above ground in a hollow tree and pays nightly visits to the storehouses of the mean farmers Boggis, Bunce and Bean. A beautiful stop-motion animated film by Wes Anderson, who transformed Roald Dahl’s childhood book into a dryly comic ode to whimsy. HERE you can read my full review.
 
Still to watch: 62

Top 10: Best Movies I Watched for My 2015 Challenge

I had a lot of fun with my movie challenge this year and I’m definitely going to start one in 2016. But first I’m going to share my ten favorite movies that I watched for my challenge. Please note them, because if you haven’t seen them yet, you must. Also check my honorable mentions, the movies that almost made my top 10 list.

10. Sicario

After “Enemy” and “Prisoners” I had high expectations for “Sicario”. And director Denis Villeneuve did it! “Sicario” is a terrific thriller, with Emily Blunt as the big star. She is amazing in this film.

 

9. My Neighbor Totoro

I love the movies by Hayao Miyazak. “Spirited Away” was already amazing, but “My Neighbor Totoro” I liked even more. Such a great animation, especially if you look at it with a creative and artistic perspective like me.

 

 

8. 12 Angry Men

A movie set in only one location and it keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire runtime. This a movie like no other, the don’t make ‘em like this anymore.

 

 

7. Short Term 12

A movie that felt so realistic and honest. I could feel it through my entire body. It’s not a movie for the people who want spectacle, but a small Indie film that touches you and makes you feel.

 

 

6. The Guard

“Hot Fuzz” meets “In Bruges”, what a great crime comedy “The Guard” is. And I loved Brendan Gleeson in this film. He could finally show what he’s made off. His unconventional character, who you should actually dislike, is really hard to hate.

 

 

5. Birdman

Unfolding across two hours of backstage theater drama that play as a single take, it’s an almost impossibly complex technical achievement. And then Michael Keaton’s big comeback as actor Riggan, who once played a superhero and is now aiming for something higher. A cinematographic masterpiece.

 

 

4. Enemy

“Enemy” was a complete mind fuck. What sounded like a standard thriller, is anything but that. The movies leaves you with a lot of questions and chills all over your body. And that final scene scared the bejesus out of me.

 

 

3. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

This movie was great for us movie lovers, because of all the pop culture references. But this is also a movie that comes straight from the heart and ends up in our hearts as well. Such an honest, real film that grabbed me and touched me.

 

 

2. Psycho

An instant classic that I was pretty ashamed of never seeing before 2015. And I can now understand why it’s such an amazing film. What a great horror film by mastermind Alfred Hitchcock. Movies like this are underappreciated nowadays. Not by movie nerds like me by the way.

 

 

1. Mad Max: Fury Road

When I saw “Mad Max: Fury Road” in theaters it totally took my breath away. More than 30 years after leaving Max in the wasteland, George Miller returns to his signature series. I didn’t expect much at first and I left the theater overwhelmed. “Mad Max: Fury Road” is an incredible cinematic experience. A ride everyone has to take at least once in their life.

 

 

Honorable Mentions: Frozen, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Big Hero 6, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Take Shelter, St. Vincent, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Deux Jours, Une Nuit, Mud, Jurassic World, Inside Out, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Gosford Park, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Funny Games, The Drop, The Conjuring, The Evil Dead, The Martian, Moon, The Lobster, Ex Machina

Movie Battle : Enemy Vs. Nightcrawler

This time I decided to go for two movies with Jake Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal is an actor who keeps making better movies. This guy is on a roll and has made so many great films recently. I decided to let two of his more recent ones fight it out in the movie battle. Let’s so who wins: “Enemy” Vs. “Nightcrawler”.

 

 

ACTORS

Enemy: Besides Jake Gyllenhaal we can see Mélanie Laurent, Sara Gadon and Isabella Rossellini. While Gyllenhaal is the star, all the ladies do a very solid job.

Nightcrawler: Rene Russo and Bill Paxton are performing opposite Jake Gyllenhaal. Again, Gyllenhaal is the star and he is at his most maniacal in “Nightcrawler”. What an amazingly overlooked performance by him.

STORY

Enemy: When you read the synopsis it all seems standard. A man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie. But what’s beneath is much more complicated. I didn’t understand the movie when I first saw it, it’s a movie with a lot of symbolism and layers. “Enemy” really makes you think and you want to find out the psychology behind it. And that ending freaked me out.

Nightcrawler: The story is a bit more straight forward than “Enemy”, but also more than meets the eye. Louis Bloom discovers working as a crime journalist and becomes obsessed with the job.

EFFECTS

Enemy: A very grim movie, well filmed. It all looks very creepy and there are some special effects here and there. But not more than needed.

Nightcrawler: Night time Los Angeles is the background of the film and the city of angels is filmed beautifully. The film has a gripping atmosphere and this décor adds something extra to that.

WINNER

Tough choice, I loved both movies. But I think “Nightcrawler” surprised and overwhelmed me more.

Top 5 Thursday: Movies I Watched for My Challenge (March 2015)

I didn’t see that many new movies this month, I rewatched a lot of films. But I could still make a top 5, so here are the best first views of the month of March.

5. Kingsman: The Secret Service

When I first saw the trailer I wasn’t interested at all. When I saw and read all those amazing reviews about “Kingsman: The Secret Service” I got curious. So I decided to check it out for myself. It was one hell of a good time.

 

 

4. Take Shelter

A very dark and gloomy film, with great acting. Slow, but very good. I really loved Jessica Chastain and Michael Shannon.

 

 

3. St. Vincent

You can always trust Bill Murray. His role is magnificent and I enjoyed his performances. I liked seeing Melissa McCarthy in a more serious role, she did a good job. And Naomi Watts was also fantastic.

 

 

2. Enemy

What a mindfuck! This movie left me thinking for days and it really freaked me out. This is a cinematic masterpiece. For the fans, please check out this video of Chris Stuckmann, where he explains the movie. It really helped me understand it more.

 

 

1. Psycho

This is one of the best movies ever made, I just love Alfred Hitchcock movies. What were they thinking making a new version of it? “Psycho” is a movie everyone should see!

 

 

They Almost Made the Top 5: The Ice Harvest, An American in Paris

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 39: Enemy

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Genre: Thriller

Runtime: 90 minutes

Year: 2013

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mélanie Laurent, Sarah Gadon, Isabella Rossellini

Description: A man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie.

Review: That there is a person on this planet that looks exactly like you, is an intriguing idea. Director Denis Villeneuve used it as a theme for the movie “Enemy”. It’s loosely based on the novel “The Double” by José Saramago. In the lead Villeneuve choose Jake Gyllenhaal.

The university of Toronto is the work place for professor Adam Bell. His days are dull and filled with giving lectures and pleasing his girlfriend Mary. When a colleague recommends him a movie, Adam decides to rent it. In that movie he spots a man that looks just like him. He can’t get him out of his head and wants to find the man.

If you’re a fan of Villeneuve’s movie “Prisoners”, be prepared for “Enemy”. It’s not as mainstream and probably not as known. Be ready for an abstract movie, with images that will haunt you for a long time.

The unexpected process makes it interesting and your attention never fades. The sinister music gives it a worrying and disturbing atmosphere.

Jake Gyllenhaal does a fantastic job by playing both Adam and Anthony. His great performance makes it easy to separate the two character, although looking identical. It’s in the little details. You hardly notice the transition between the two characters in the first half hour, but it’s clear you’re dealing with two different men.

The movie might make you feel uncomfortable and especially that ending is something you won’t forget very easily. It’s one of the scariest endings I have seen in a long time, because it’s so unexpectedly and it messes with your mind. This movie will stay with you for a long time, you want to unravel every little detail of it. It’s complex, so not a movie for just any viewer, but for us movie fans it’s a cinematic masterpiece.

Rating: 5/ 5

Movie Trailer Sunday (127)

Here are this weeks trailers.

 

Locke

Description: Ivan Locke (Tom Hardy) has the perfect family, his dream job, and tomorrow should be the crowning moment of his career. But one phone call will force him to make a decision that will put it all on the line.

Director: Steven Knight

Starring: Tom Hardy, Ruth Wilson, Andrew Scott, Olivia Colman, Tom Holland, Ben Daniels, Danny Webb, Alice Lowe, Bill Milner, Lee Ross, Silas Carson, Kirsty Dillon

Trailer: Trailer "Locke"

Comment: They got my attention!

Frankie & Alice

Description: The story of a go-go dancer (Halle Berry) with multiple personalities struggling to remain her true self while fighting against two very unique alter egos: a seven-year-old child named Genius and a Southern white racist woman named Alice. In order to stop the multiple voices in her head, Frankie works together with a psychotherapist to uncover and overcome the mystery of the inner ghosts that haunt her.

Director: Geoffrey Sax,

Starring: Halle Berry, Stellan Skarsgård, Phylicia Rashad, Chandra Wilson

Trailer: Trailer "Frankie & Alice"

Comment: I'm always a bit indifferent about Halle Berry.

Enemy

Description:

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Melanie Laurent, Sarah Gadon, Isabella Rossellini

Trailer: Trailer "Enemy"

Comment: If it's any good as "Prisoner"....

Guardians of the Galaxy

Description: In the far reaches of space, an American pilot named Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the object of a manhunt after stealing an orb coveted by the villainous Ronan (Lee Pace).

Director: James Gunn

Starring: Chris Pratt, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Davu Bautista, Vin Diesel, Lee Pace, Michael Rooker, Glen Close, Djimon Hounsou, John, C. Reilly, Benicio Del Toro

Trailer: Trailer "Guardians of the Galaxy"

Comment: Rocket Racoon is already my favorite character!!

Authors Anonymous

Description: When a dysfunctional group of unpublished writers accept Hannah into their fold, the last thing they expect is her overnight success. Can these lovable misfits achieve their artistic dreams and avoid killing one another in the process?

Director: Ellie Kanner

Starring: Kaley Cuoco, Chris Klein, Tricia Helfer, Jonathan Banks, Teri Polo, Dennis Farina

Trailer: Trailer "Authors Anonymous""

Comment: Looks funny.