"The Deer Hunter" (1978)

Rank on the AFI List: #53

WHAT I ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THE MOVIE:
Just one thing: it stars Robert De Niro.

LET ME EXPLAIN...
As a general big picture, I get the idea of what this movie is saying: the Vietnam War forever and drastically altered the lives of both those who fought in it and their loved ones back home.

But if you ask me to explain some of the more minor ideas, symbolisms, and themes in "The Deer Hunter", I couldn't tell you what they were.  In fact, there were countless moments, lines, and shots in this film where I thought, "hmm, that's really saying something significant...and I have no idea what that is..."  Because of this, I found myself somewhat frustrated and bored.

Random Note: I didn't realize that so much of this film is centered around Russian Roulette.  I can definitely see how playing this "game" could make a person lose their mind.

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
I'm starting to think that a lot of the films on the AFI List are there because they illustrate significant times in American history.  I have to think "The Deer Hunter" is one of them, even though I wasn't overly impressed with it from a movie-making standpoint.  But in terms of how the Vietnam War changed those who fought in it and challenged the bonds of friendship, this movie is a good portrayal.  It also won 5 Academy Awards, including Best Picture in 1978.

Complaints:
This film lacks a sense of what "relevent footage" means.  It's just over three hours long, and so much of it is filled with seemingly pointless footage and extended scenes that have no reason to be extended.  Yet the scenes that move the story along seem cut short and disconnected.

LET ME SUM UP...
While "The Deer Hunter" has an overarching theme about the Vietnam War, all of the smaller themes were lost on me.  On top of that, this movie could have easily been better and closer to two hours instead of three if they would have cut out all the pointless footage and replaced some of it with story-connecting scenes.  I'm not a fan of this film.

MY RATING: 3/10

TOTAL # OF FILMS WATCHED: 68

"The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957)

Rank on the AFI List: #36

WHAT I ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THIS MOVIE:
Only that it's some sort of war movie.

LET ME EXPLAIN...
Let me just start out by saying that I really like the plot for this movie: British POWs in a WWII Japanese prison camp are forced to build a bridge for the Japanese, and the captured British colonel is dedicated to building it to perfection.  Meanwhile, an American POW who escapes the prison camp must return on a mission to sabotage the very same bridge.

That's a unique and very interesting plot, if you ask me.

As for the movie itself, I can break it down into two parts: the first hour and 40 minutes, and the last hour.

The first hour and 40 minutes just seemed OK.  It really felt like they were taking the time to set up the last hour of the movie (which they did), but by itself, I didn't think the first half was all that impressive.

The last hour of the film, on the other hand, was great.  The plot really seemed to start moving along to the inevitably climactic ending, and I thought it began to take itself more seriously, which is what I was expecting from a war movie.  By the end, I was a fan.

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
I didn't come up with an answer to this question until after the movie ended.  My wife asked me why I thought this was a Top 100 movie, and my first response was "I don't know why."  Then we started talking about the ending and particular characters, and I realized how thought-provoking the film is.  We sat there discussing the movie for quite awhile before I said, "maybe this is why it's considered such a great movie.  There's so much to analyze."  This film also won 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture, and Best Actor for Alec "Obi-Wan" Guinness, who was particularly good in his role.

Complaint:
The soundtrack!  Oh my gosh it was bugging me!  I was prepared to get into a war-movie mood (serious, somber, etc.), and the somewhat cheesy army marching music and whistling seemed very counter-intuitive.  And yet, this film won an Academy Award for "Best Music, Scoring," so I don't know how I feel about that.  In fact, the only time I liked the music was at the very end because the lighthearted happiness of it seemed SO contradictory to what was happening that it was "inappropriately appropriate", if that makes sense.

LET ME SUM UP...
This film has a great plot.  And while I felt underwhelmed with the first 100 minutes - and irritated by the soundtrack - the final hour was great.  The ending was particularly good and begs to be analyzed because so much happens, and depending on which character you focus on, the happenings are different.  The intricacies of the ending make this a movie that should probably be watched more than once.

MY RATING: 6.5/10

TOTAL # OF FILMS WATCHED: 67

"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939) - RE-WATCH

Rank on the AFI List: #26

Synopsis (according to AFI):
Appointed to the US Senate because the power brokers believe they've got a hayseed on their hands, Jefferson Smith surprises everyone with his honesty and gravitas.  Framed by the political machine that cleverly twists the truth, Smith almost waves a white flag, but Clarissa Saunders gives him a fast lesson in civics.  Filibuster!!!

LET ME EXPLAIN...
I saw this movie a few years ago and really liked it.  I like Jimmy Stewart, and I like the director Frank Capra (who also directed It's a Wonderful Life, #20 on the AFI List).  From my viewing experience, Capra films include a little cheese and a lot of human spirit triumph.

"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" has both the cheese and the triumph, but if you ask me, the cheese is a little too thick.  There's a bit too much fanfare throughout the film (in contrast, "It's a Wonderful Life" thankfully and appropriately saves it all for the very end).  There were also more corny moments than I remembered the first time I watched it.  Nevertheless, it's still a neat movie to watch and sadly amazing to see how politics 70 years ago were just as corrupt and meddlesome as they are today.

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
This film is worth watching just to get an inside look at how the U.S. Senate and our government system works.  I would argue that this is why "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" is considered one of the best in American film history.  I just don't think it's put together all that well from a strictly movie-making standpoint, so it must be the content that merits the honor of it being the 26th best American film ever.

Complaints:
I already mentioned the cheese factor.  On top of that, I felt this movie was missing a very important scene.  I really believe it needed to better illustrate just how much Claude Rains' character wanted to become President and how his whole life was dedicated to that achievement.  This would have made the ending much more powerful.

LET ME SUM UP...
This is truly a "Patriotic" film.  It's a great look into Congress and how our political system works.  However, it's a bit cheesy and lacking one very important scene, in my opinion.  Nevertheless, if you're an American, it's a movie worth watching at least once in your life.

MY RATING: 6/10 (2 lower from my previous rating)

"The Silence of the Lambs" (1991) - RE-WATCH

Rank on the AFI List: #74

Synopsis (according to AFI):
"I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti," hisses Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant serial killer engaged by Foster's FBI agent in an effort to capture another killer on the loose.

LET ME EXPLAIN...
I've always been one who, for some reason, enjoys creepy movies.  I watched a lot of horror films that I probably shouldn't have when I was younger, and I was looking forward to watching "The Silence of the Lambs" again.

Maybe I'm getting older, or maybe my movie palate is changing, but I really didn't enjoy it this time.  The content is just too disturbing and uncomfortable because you're essentially spending two hours inside the mind of a serial killer.  And unlike Psycho, this film doesn't leave the horror to the imagination; all the gruesomeness is shown to the audience throughout.

There was really only one scene I enjoyed and wasn't uncomfortable watching, and that's where you find out why this movie is called "The Silence of the Lambs".  In my opinion, that's the best scene because of how it brings about a comparison between the mind of a madman and the mind of a good person with a traumatic past.

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?
Despite the disturbing content, this film is very well done all around.  It won 5 Academy Awards in 1991, including Best Picture (Anthony Hopkins and Jodie Foster both won Lead Acting Oscars as well).  However, I'm not sure why it's considered one of the best films ever made.  From reading some of the review quotes on the cover, it seems like there may have been a lull in thrillers for several years before this movie, so maybe "The Silence of the Lambs" is credited with bringing the genre back into the American mainstream.

Complaints:
I already mentioned this, but the content was really uncomfortable and disturbing.

LET ME SUM UP...
While this is a well-done film with great acting (especially by Anthony Hopkins) the content is really disturbing and uncomfortable to watch.  I appreciated the talent that went into making "The Silence of the Lambs", but I did not enjoy it and have no desire to ever watch it again.

MY RATING: 4/10 (3 lower from my previous rating)

"Psycho" (1960)

Rank on the AFI List: #14

WHAT I ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THE MOVIE:
I knew quite a bit: Norman Bates, psycho "mother", famous shower scene...

LET ME EXPLAIN...
Even though I pretty much knew the story and "twists" in this movie well before I ever watched it, I really enjoyed it. This is a seriously creepy movie with virtually non-stop suspense. My wife and I loved it, especially since we watched it right before Halloween.

The shower scene, while being one of the most famous and well known scenes in movie history, still felt new and cringe-worthy when it came up. And in the production notes on the DVD, the lead actress Janet Leigh points out that the scene doesn't actually show any of the violence, leaving the horror of what's happening completely up to the audience's own imagination (horror movies nowadays show as much gore and violence as they can, taking away all the imagination. I'll take "Psycho" over those movies any day).

What makes this a "Top 100" Movie?

It's a classic horror flick, and unlike most horror films, it is extremely well done.  Great cinematography, great acting (Janet Leigh was nominated for an Oscar, and Anthony Perkins became an international star after playing Norman Bates), and like I said earlier, great suspense.  This is probably considered the greatest horror movie of all time, and the AFI List needs to have that genre represented.

Complaints:
These are very minor, but when the psychiatrist is basically explaining the entire plot at the end, it seemed a little forced.  It felt like Hitchcock thought "we need to answer all the audience's questions at the end, so let's have an omniscient psychiatrist come in and explain everything in one scene."  I thought that was a bit cheap.  Another complaint was the staircase scene with the detective.  It's hard to explain unless you've seen the film, but all I have to say is it made an otherwise scary and gruesome scene somewhat silly.

LET ME SUM UP...
I've seen my share of horror movies, and "Psycho" is by far one of the best.  Unlike most horror flicks, it didn't rely on being gruesome, or coming up with the most creative way for characters to die.  It simply did a terrific job at building and carrying suspense, and it was very creepy without being gory or gratuitous.  There were only a couple scenes that distracted me from the story, but they were very minor.

MY RATING: 9/10

TOTAL # OF FILMS WATCHED: 66