45 - 41

Top 100 Film's I Can't Live Without

45. Terminator 2 (1991)
Directed by James Cameron

From start to finish Terminator 2 is one of the greatest action films of all-time. Outside of the stunning and epic action finale, Cameron has packed the film with several other terrific action beats as well. While there isn't much depth, there is at least an interesting play on the theme of fathers that keeps the whole film from lacking any thematic strength. Stocked with iconic characters (has anyone's run been more memorable than Robert Patrick's), quotes, and sequences, Terminator 2 is one I wouldn't want to do without.

44. Unforgiven (1992)
Directed by Clint Eastwood

Fully deserving of it's Oscar win, Unforgiven is the best western I've ever seen. Like many of Eastwood's films, Unforgiven deals squarely with the topic of violence and its consequences. The script is unusually smart and self-aware and the actors inhabit the characters completely. Though the film is stocked with many of the Western cliches, it simultaneously embraces and transcends them. By the time "the big shootout" comes around, we cheer (as the cliche typically brings), but also mourn for the shootout is a moment of sadness, tragedy, and insight. If you can only watch one Western film, make it Unforgiven.

43. Forrest Gump (1994)
Directed by Robert Zemeckis

Forrest Gump is one of those films you don't merely watch, but you experience. I've always enjoyed watching it, finding me and my friends quoting it incessantly. Forget the naysayers and critics on this film, it's not a whitewashing of history and it's not ignorant of history. It's the world through the eyes of a particularly optimistic character that allows the audience to see things in ways we might have never viewed them. Incredibly creative and entertaining, Forrest Gump is too great to live without.

42. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

The second straight film from 1994 is another epic drama (both with epic run times as well). Unlike Forrest Gump however, I discovered Shawshank Redemption years later on one of it's umpteenth showings on TBS or TNT. A great story about hope and perseverance; it never fails to comfort and inspire me greatly by the time it's finished. How can one deny the power when Andy finds his freedom from prison or when Red meets Andy on the beaches. Well I can't deny it, and it's why it is included here on the list.

41. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

Directed by Peter Wier

While it seemingly might not feature as much drama and insight as the previous films on my list, Master and Commander is actually a film of uncommon depth. The film explores and intertwines the themes of science and faith as well as authority and anarchy. While I truly enjoy those themes, its the fully immersive world of Master and Commander that truly brings the rewards this film has to offer. The visual effects, sound design, production design, costume design, score, performances and script all work together to transport me into a fascinating and thrilling world. Throw in incredible sea battles as well as one of Crowes finest performances and you see why this film made the list.

50 - 46

Breaking into the top 50, this almost becomes a whole new list. Since this list isn't a 'Best' or simply a 'Favorites', each spot takes on new significance. The list is "The Films I Can't Live Without" and so as each spot progresses one can say, "If I could only live with 50 films, which 50 would I have. If I could only live with 49 films, which 49 would I have, and so on". I know, it's a nerdy distinction, but it's important to me. Now I'm finally cracking the top 50. Enjoy.

50. Notorious (1946)

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

My personal favorite of Hitchcock's well known career. While the film can be accused of a certain slowness in the pacing (which Hitchcock film can't?), its still the most rewarding film experience of his career. Ingrid Bergman (better here than in Casablanca), Carey Grant, and Claude Rains give incredible performances. The love story between Bergman and Grant is fabulous and Grant's rescue of Bergman is the spy equivalent of a knight rescuing a damsal in distress. Beautifully shot and filled with suspense, if I could only live with one Hitchcock film (and I would), then this one would surely be it.

49. Duck Soup (1933)

Directed by Leo McCarey

The most critically acclaimed Marx Brothers film is my second favorite Marx brothers film (there is one more still on the list). Everything that is loved about the brothers can be found here in all its glorious absurdity. Everyone gets great moments, scenes, and one liners. Few comedians have ever crafted something as funny and timeless as this film. Unfortunately, some critics read an anti-war message into the film and try to give it some more social significance, don't be fooled, it doesn't feature any such message.

48. Shrek 2 (2004)

Directed by Andrew Adamson

Breaking apart from most people, Shrek 2 is an all around superior film to the first one in my estimation. It's not more accomplished by featuring a deeper message or more epic story, it's just simply a better example of a thoroughly endearing and entertaining animated film. I had a blast watching this in the theatres (coming from someone who didn't initially enjoy the first Shrek film), and I still enjoy watching it again and again. The jokes are fast and furious, the characters iconic and several of the action sequences (particularly the final storming of the castle) are about as good as you'll find in animation. If you could only have one Shrek film, make it Shrek 2.

47. The Matrix (1999)

Directed by the Wachowski Brothers

I remember sneaking into this film (I was under 17) and being blown away by the whole thing. Although it wasn't a smash box office hit, it became a gigantic DVD phenom and has nestled itself into pop culture...and it deserved too. The Wachowski's not only crafted a thoroughly engaging and mind-bending story, but infused that story with such clear artistic vision that The Matrix became one of the most unique action/SciFi films of all-time. It inspired an entire genre of films after it and any film historian would note its influence on nearly all action films in its wake.

46. Toy Story 2 (1999)

Directed by John Lasseter

The second straight 1999 film is also another trilogy series (soon to be) where I enjoy the second entry the most. While the first Toy Story is a masterpiece in itself, I just find myself enjoying Toy Story 2 more. I feel its bigger, faster paced, more emotional, funnier, and has a better ending. I suppose that I just enjoy the whole airport ending more than Sid's backyard or the moving van. Besides, I just don't enjoy that the other toys don't treat Woody nicely at the end of the first Toy Story, it just feels uncomfortable to me.

45-41 Coming Soon!

Better Late than Never: 53-51

Many of you will remember that I set out on a rather ambitious project at the beginning of this year, posting one by one the Top 100 Films I Woulnd't Want to Live Without. I set out with the earnest intention of completing it, but have stalled out at #53. Taking on a full-time position at Mosaic Church this year and beginning a new interest in cooking has swallowed nearly all of my surplus energy. With that said, I'd like to try and finish out my top 100 at least in some form. So, I'm just going to post them all list style with the most minimal of comments. I've updated the sidebar for 2009 as well, so check that out. Thanks for all your patience and thanks for reading. Enjoy!

53. No Country for Old Men (2007)
Directed by the Coen Brothers

Winner of the Leaman Award for 'Best Picture' in 2007, No Country for Old Men is a interesting hybrid of films. It's a first rate thriller and chase film, but it's also an incredible drama filled with deep insight and philisophical musings. Together, No Country for Old Men makes for a rare enthralling thriller that engages your mind as well as your senses.


52. Gladiator (2000)
Directed by Ridley Scott

While not conveying the depth or artistry that No Country for Old Men does, Gladiator makes up for it in it's enjoyability. The drama is good (if not insightful), characters well drawn (Crowe is iconic as Maximus), Art Directon/Costumes/Effects all top notch, and the action is put together extremely well. Add a memorable score, some great lines, and you've got an incredibly entertainin film, and one that I would want with me.

51. A Christmas Story (1983)
Directed by Bob Clark

I came late to this film and now cherish the opportunities I have to watch it. It's really the best Christmas film out there (although there is one further down my list that isn't a true 'Christmas' movie), as it captures so perfectly the mentality of a kid during Christmas. It's iconic, hilarious, and I can watch it over and over again. What more should I ask?

In a following post, we will finally delve into the Top 50!

54. A Beautiful Mind

A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Directed by Ron Howard

“It's only in the mysterious equation of love that any logical reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You are the only reason I am... you are all my reasons.”- John Nash (played by Russell Crowe)

While others find the quote above sentimental and schmaltzy, I find it to be a powerfully moving line that sums the film up perfectly. For those that find it to be a bit much for them, I would ask them, “Does Nash earn that line?” For instance, it would be schmaltzy if Nash could legitimately explain the destination of his life without Alicia (his wife whom he was speaking too). In watching A Beautiful Mind, one goes on a journey with John Nash; through his discoveries, his triumphs, and his dark valley’s. It’s a hard journey and one that he clearly could not have made without his wife, Alicia. For that reason, not only does Nash earn the line, but also it’s truthful summation of the human experience. In an odd kind of way, it reminds me of James Cagney at the end of Yankee Doodle Dandy delivering his famous line to President Roosevelt, “My mother thanks you, my father thanks you, my sister thanks you, and I thank you”.

Unlike Cagney’s big and athletic performance as George Cohan, Crowe’s John Nash is a performance built on mannerisms, expressions, and incredible voice work. While others find it a bit over the top, I think this is one of Crowe’s career best performances (in a career full of them) and the one that should have won him an Oscar. Jennifer Connelly did manage to win an Oscar for her deserving supporting role as Alicia. Ron Howard and James Horner also deliver wonderful work here, as they successfully meld professional craftsmanship with just enough creativity to deliver a unique experience out of what could’ve been a traditional biopic.

In the end, A Beautiful Mind is one my favorite films because it not only takes us through the journey of a man’s life, but it dares to speak strong truths about the lessons learned on that journey. The message resonates with me in a way that few films do, and its for that reason that I wouldn’t want to do without it.

56. Casino Royale

Casino Royale (2006)
Directed by Martin Campbell

Casino Royale not only rebooted the Bond series in 2006, but saved it from irrelevancy in a post Bourne action world. With a fresh reboot came changes; a fresh face in the Bond role (from Pierce Brosnan to Daniel Craig), an old face to the director’s chair (Martin Campbell directed Goldeneye), and some pedigree to the script crew (Oscar winner Paul Haggis helped to write). Tinkering with the Bond formula and adapting it to new times could’ve easily led to disaster just like Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns from the same year. Fortunately for Bond fans, Casino Royale is a great success and for my money, it’s the best Bond film of them all.

The seeds for a reboot were sown in 2002 when Die Another Day, the most recent Bond film, was released to good box office returns but strong negative reaction. Besides the negative reception, there began a shift in action styles that can be traced to the 2002 release of The Bourne Identity. Although Identity wasn’t initially received as influential (like The Matrix was within months of its release), the quick and practical style of action was adopted gradually over the years until it became the standard for serious action films. Identity’s follow-up, 2004’s Bourne Supremacy, cemented Bourne’s influence on action films.

By the time the Bond producers were able to move forward with another film, the tastes of audiences, which had been changing since 2002, had become permanent and a reboot was necessary. The change in tone is noticeable right from the beginning. Where Die Another Day opened with a grandiose hovercraft chase in North Korea, Casino Royale opens with a stark black and white sequence where our new Bond earns his “007” status through two brutal murders. It’s brilliant sequence that leads directly into a superlative chase through a construction site.

Breathlessly shot with an incredible eye for coherence, it’s an awesome mixture of the brute and practical action of the Bourne series, but with the grandiose set pieces of the Bond series. Throw in a helping of parkour (urban free running) and Bond is no longer a relic of a bygone era, but he’s current and he’s setting new standards. From here the action and pace barely let up as Bond whisks away to Miami for another intense and suspenseful chase scene. In fact, for nearly the first hour or so, the movie never lets up; its one of the most enjoyable and brutal hours in all of cinema.

After Miami, Casino Royale settles in for its second act, spent mostly in a beautiful hotel playing poker and it’s here that the movie puts plot and character development into high gear. Vesper Lind, played by a gorgeous Eva Green, is a great match for Bond and their relationship, while still retaining the Bond jokiness, is quite intelligent and layered. How the filmmakers approached Bond and Vesper’s relationship is typical of how they handled all the other Bond elements as well.

The usual formula is retained, but they are grounded in a reasonable environment and treated as realistic. Thus, we get a villain who has blood come from his tear ducts, but is still every bit as believable as a villain in a typical crime drama. Bonds' puns and one-liners are present, but they are kept to a minimum and generally feel like a natural part of the scene.

Probably the biggest and best change to the series was an actual desire to examine Bond as a character. Casino Royale examines Bond in much in the same way that Batman Begins examines the literal as well as the thematic and motivational beginnings of the Batman character. We witness Bond gain his ‘007’ status, as well as discover how he develops his cold personality towards women. It’s not until the very end of the film that we have witnessed a fully developed ‘James Bond’, and it’s not until then that the audience is allowed the catch phrase, “Bond. James Bond”. Excellent.

I do have a few nitpicks about the film. The pacing of the film is a major problem for me. While the first hour really is excellent, it also creates unevenness to the whole movie. For after watching an entire hour of action, we don't get another real action set piece until the final scene of the film, almost a whole hour and fifteen minutes later. The second gripe is that the action finale is nowhere near as exciting or accomplished as anything seen in the first act and it makes it a little anti-climactic for me. Outside of that, Casino Royale is an action masterpiece and an essential addition to my collection.

P.S. The promotional material for this film is some of my favorite. Below is the excellent teaser trailer and "You Know My Name" is my all-time favorite Bond song and opening sequence as well

57. Finding Neverland

Finding Neverland (2004)
Directed by Marc Forster

Finding Neverland is a creative and heartwarming ode to the imagination. Charges of the film being ‘saccharine’ and ‘schmaltzy’ are not without cause, but Finding Neverland seems to be able to overcome its inherent sentimentality to become (like In America) a magical film experience for me.

There are times when the ideas of ‘Neverland’ are a bit juvenile (“You can visit your mom in Neverland any time you like”), but there are also some scenes that perfectly deliver childhood imagination and wonder through the lens of a grownup. I take particular joy in director Marc Forster’s use of his camera and special effects to create these sequences. Forster takes possible mundane sequences like flying a kite in the park, dancing with a dog, and playing pirates, and with a restrained flair creates sequences that even Michel Gondry would be proud of.

My favorite sequence, because it encapsulates everything this film has to offer, is when Peter watches the “To die would be an awfully big adventure” sequence during the Peter Pan play. Forsters’ flying camera through the playhouse that ends on Peter’s startled face gets to me every time.

There are many other pleasures to be had in the film (including all-around great performances and art direction), but one of the most distinguished is the musical score. Parts whimsical, magical, and fantastical, but still grounded in a somewhat conventional film score. It’s not the deepest of films and it’s a film that is quite easy to nitpick apart; however, it’s also a film that never fails to reach inside and move me. For that, I have found Finding Neverland to be one of the films I just can’t live without.

58. Sideways

Sideways (2004)
Directed by Alexander Payne

An incredibly rich and character driven film, Sideways has been one of my favorite films from the first time I watched it. There is a lot of insight in contrasting and comparing the two different personalities of Paul Giamatti’s uptight Miles and Thomas Haden Church’s carefree Jack. Giamatti and Church (who have great chemistry here) imbue their characters (which are already rather complex) with such great subtlety and idiosyncrasies that is hard not to root for the both of them.

However, Payne’s adaptation is unsparing on both of our lead characters. These are not great guys who do one or two wrong things; these are people with major flaws and issues. It’s refreshing to see a film deal honestly with characters that are layered with pros and cons. In fact, half the fun of the film is to watch the interplay of these two performances and the insight that comes from it.


Speaking of insight, Sideways employs several wine metaphors to deepen and illustrate our characters as well. There is an absolutely magic scene near the middle of the film where Miles and Maya (played by Virginia Madsen) discuss why they love wine so much; it’s worth the price of admission alone (and it nearly won Madsen an Oscar).

Have I mentioned that this is also one heck of a comedy? It really is. With the exception of a scene near the end of the film where Miles finds himself running away from a naked fat guy, all of the jokes are spot on. There is also some incredible music and editing work here that rounds out the film as a whole. If it wasn’t for that oddly gratuitous scene with the naked fat guy (and also his wife), this film might’ve found itself in my top 50, but its just such a big misstep that I can’t look past it. Beyond that, this film is pitch perfect and required viewing for me.

60. The Prestige

The Prestige (2006)
Directed by Christopher Nolan

A twisty-turny (sp?) tale of dueling magicians in the late 19th century is ironic film for me. Despite its dark atmospheres, tragic twists, and cautionary tale underpinnings, The Prestige is an absolute fun time at the movies for me. I wasn't too sure about the film after my first viewing, but after repeated viewings and much thought, my enjoyment of the film has only enriched greatly.

I say it's a cautionary tale (much like Zodiac and The Descent) because it tells the tragic tale of a man consumed by his obsessions. I don't mind the fake "magic" science ending at all, and I think it actually deepens the moral of the story. It allows our characters the ability to take their obsessions to depths beyond the real realm and comments on what they could potentially be possible of. Great performances by Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and Rebecca Hall really top off an already great film.

The Prestige isn't a groundbreaking film, but its one of my favorite stories and it's extremely well told. Add to that, thanks to my friend (whose name I will protect here), this was the first real movie set that I have ever stepped foot on. It was a good experience and one that connects me to the film just that little bit more.

63. Meet the Parents

Meet the Parents (2000)
Directed by Jay Roach

A film that seems mighty odd to come right after such a dramatic heavyweight like Road to Perdition, but Meet the Parents is one of my absolute favorite comedies. I tuly loathe the sequel, Meet the Fockers, but this original comedy finds exactly the right tone to really tickle my funnybone. Stiller gives his typical nice guy in bad situation shtick here, but Robert DeNiro gives the standout performance here. His comedic tough guy performance might seem cliché by now, but it was at its peak during this film. It's a crowd pleasing film and it always finds a way to make me laugh. Give me 63 films and there is no doubt that I wouldn't want to do without it.

P.S. My favorite sequence is the pool party over Owen Wilson's pad

64. Road to Perdition

Road to Perdition (2002)
Directed by Sam Mendes

Another excellent film from a stellar 2002 and it's one that I've been off and on with over the last few years. My initial reaction to the film was one of disappointment and frustration. Sure, I had heard that Tom Hanks played a 'bad guy' in the film but I wasn't expecting to watch what was basically a 'good guy' just making bad decisions. So by the end of the film, although I really enjoyed it, how could I love a film in which characters make frustratingly wrong choices?

Over time I have come to appreciate films and narratives that may present us with fallible and tragic characters, but also provide us with insight and wisdom; this is main reason that I truly appreciate Road to Perdition. It combines two story threads, one of revenge and one of the relationships between fathers and sons, and wrings out every irony, conflict, and truths that those threads can deliver. I am still fustrated by the tragic choices in the film, but I am right to be fustrated. These characters have a story to tell and their wrong choices teach me as much, if not more, than had they chosen a different path.

Outside of that, this one of the finest looking films ever shot. Much like, but vastly superior to, Sam Mendes and Conrad Hall's previous film American Beauty, Road to Perdition is strikingly beautiful and measured. Hall and Mendes deliver some stunning images, but also create a couple of incredible suspenseful sequences between Hanks and Jude Laws' assassin. All in all, Road to Perdition is a challenging film that has a slew of rewards for its audience.

P.S. Those rewards also include a great Paul Newman performance and a fantastic musical score

Here is the trailer, a really good one

65. Toy Story

Toy Story (1995)
Directed by John Lasseter

The first feature length computer animated film is still one of the greatest computer animated films of all-time. In stark contrast to Disney's other animated film of the year, Pocohontas, Toy Story is an excellent story featuring extremely strong performances and not a single broadway musical number. It's a classic film that's packed with rewards for a viewer of any age. While not the best Pixar film to date, Toy Story is an indispensable animated film in anyone's collection. I'll take the characters of Woody and Buzz Lightyear over 99% of the characters that come out today. They are complex and well-developed characters that boast some career defining vocal performances by Tim Allen and Tom Hanks.

66. In America

In America (2003)
Directed by Jim Sheridan

A small family drama from 2003 clocks in at #66 on my list because its a magical film to watch. Telling the story of an Irish family's immigration to somewhat modern day New York City after a family tragedy, In America is in parts joyful to watch as well as heartbreaking. It's hard to talk about this film as it really is a hard one to sum up. If my calling it a small family drama has possibly turned you off of the film, then let me tell you that it's a triumphant human story that anyone can relate to. Does that sound better?

P.S. For you Peter, "Say goodbye to Frankie Daddy"

67. Office Space

Office Space (1999)
Directed by Mike Judge

Has there ever been a film that so effectively lampoons the modern office job experience? Office Space is one of those films that would never even make a blip on the screen of any Oscar chart, but is a completely indispensable part of my movie collection.

The situations and the characters are beyond funny, they are iconic to me. Bill Lumberg (played absolutely brilliantly by the always underrated Gary Cole) is one of the best antagonists of all-time. The two Bill's are not very far behind him either. This film simply makes me laugh...and cringe because some of its moments are truly relatable (I don't know how often the birthday cake singing sequence has happened to me). Perhaps this film might not appeal to someone who has never worked a day in their life, but for the rest of us, this is essential viewing.

68. Minority Report

Minority Report (2002)
Directed by Steven Spielberg

Outside of two films that will remain unnamed, I would say this is Spielberg's greatest directing achievement of his career. From the first frame to the last frame, every sequence is crammed full of creative genius. Speaking of 'frames', I think this is also Spielberg's visual masterpiece. His camera is constantly moving, but it's never erratic. It reveals exactly what it needs to without seeming obvious. This is a stunning achievement.

It's a miracle that Minority Report works as well as it does given that it straddles so many genres (science fiction, crime, mystery, noir, action) and attempts to deliver not only a complicated narrative, but knock-out action sequences, and a deeply satisfying philosophical discussion on free will and justice. Costume design and set design enrich the entire template and create a completely convincing future (one of the most practical and foretelling ever on film).

There are numerous sequences that I could reference as my favorite, but if I boiled it down, the entire eye replacement sequence is one of my favorites. From the creepy doctors to the cringe inducing eye scanners spiders, Spielberg was clearly having fun directing all of this. Add on top of that an incredible action sequence featuring jet packs and a car factory of the future and this film is an embarrassment of riches. If you've somehow overlooked it or haven't seen it in a while, I urge you to give it another look.

69. Pulp Fiction

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino is an odd director for a christian viewer. His films are typically filled with vulgar langauge, odd sexual themes, and explicit violence. A few years ago, before I had seen Pulp Fiction, I was extremely wary of watching Tarantino, despite the great things that I had always heard about the film. The fact that this film is included on this list should tell you what my viewing of the film yielded.

Fresh, inventive, and bold are just a few terms I would use to describe the experience of watching this film. The editing, performances, and dialogue all still feel fresh to me when I watch the film today. Pulp Fiction's influence on countless films of the 90s and 2000s is a testament to just how great this film is. Talking about it's greatness would really just sound like a shopping list of the great scenes and dialogue, so I'll keep my words to a minimum.

I will say this regarding the potential conflict between the content of Tarantino's films and being a Christian viewer. Should a Christian be 'okay' with watching this film? Without getting into any long drawn out discussion, I believe that Pulp Fiction is not only an 'okay' film for a Christian to watch, but that the film actually has a lot to offer the Christian viewer. This is in no way an endorsement of wanton violence, vulgar language, or sexual themes. What I am saying is that althought these things are present to an extent in this film, they are (for the most part) in the service of very mature and adult messages and themes. This is not a film for young children nor is it really for young teens either, but to a mature young adult or older, there is a lot of good stuff present. That it happens to be crisp, creative and entertaining as well, is what makes it truly essential for me.

70. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Directed by Michel Gondry

In somewhat of a defeat I am going to try and speed this whole list up by keeping all of my comments on the films to a minimum. There is no way I can keep up with writing these and make them the length I was originally shooting for. So if the commentary is only a paragraph long or even a couple of sentences, don't think it represents the film, just that I am trying to get this list finished. It may seem a little scattershot, but at least it will get finished!

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a great adult dramedy that contains some great insight into relationships and love. That insight is wrapped up into an unconventional narrative that is filled with fun surprises and performances. It's my second favorite Charlie Kaufman film and I think it's Jim Carey's best dramatic/comedic role. With the exception of a few faults, this is one heck of a film, and also one romantic comedy that would appeal to all people.

71. Kramer vs. Kramer

Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Directed by Robert Benton

I don't have a lot of life experience when it comes to divorce and family issues, but this film has always been my favorite on the subject. Kramer vs. Kramer is part dissection of divorce and part father-son bonding film, but it's altogether a great film. Despite my lack of familiarity with the subject, the relationship between Hoffman and Streep rings true to me and is higlighted by several standout scenes (Streep won the first of her two Oscars with this role) I don't know much else to say except that if you haven't seen it, I think its a definate must watch. Below is the trailer as well as one of my favorite scenes from the film. Enjoy!

72. Fist of Legend

Fist of Legend (1994)
Directed by Gordon Chan

Fist of Legend is Jet Li’s greatest film (I've seen over 26 of his films). While featuring several of his best fight sequences of all-time, Fist of Legend also features a serviceable plot (which is all a good martial arts film needs) and an excellent theme (which counts as bonus points). I saw this film for the first time less than a year ago and I wrote a review for it then. CLICK HERE for that review.

So how did this film so quickly make its way into my Top 100? With repeated viewings of Fist of Legend, my fondness for the film has grown. The last year I have been watching martial arts films of all stripes (I’ve watched around 60 or so by now), and Fist of Legend is easily one of the best entries into the martial arts genre, by Jet Li or by anyone.

In creating this list, I ranked each film by asking myself not only how much do I enjoy it, but would I want to live without it. Since I have a special love for action and martial arts films (Hong Kong action flms at that), this film easily made it into the top 100. Put me on a deserted island with just 100 DVDs and I guarantee you that this one will find itself into the DVD player very often.

Here is the trailer for the film

73. Jaws

Jaws (1975)
Directed by Steven Spielberg

Its odd to say I view Jaws in the same way that I view Emperor’s New Groove and Wallace and Gromit, but like those films, Jaws is a simple story populated with well rounded and interesting characters, and its just pure fun to watch it. It’s just that instead of being animated, Jaws is a thriller…and features a gigantic shark that savagely eats people.

I recently re-watched Jaws and was surprised by just how enjoyable the film is. The characters that inhabit this film are all memorable and delightful, including a surly Quint played by Robert Shaw and an avid scientist played by Richard Dreyfuss. The setting is perfectly captured and the story is a classic mix of thriller and horror.

A special mention has to go to all the shark sequences, especially the opening one. Every scene makes great use of the camera (who can forget those underwater perspective shots?) and great use of the musical score. Honestly, the sea sequences are so well shot and staged that I could swear I feel the sun on my face, salt on my lips, and the palpable terror of an animal that is stalking me. Who would want to live in a world without that?

Enjoy the original 1975 Trailer

74. Crash

Crash (2005)
Directed by Paul Haggis

Sitting at #74 is the controversial 2005 Best Picture winner, Crash. Ironically, this film about racism and hatred really has engendered quite a bit of hatred. In fact, the negativity and vitriol of Crash’s critics led me to give this film another viewing before I ranked it in this list, and that re-watch resulted in re-confirming my initial reaction; that Crash is an intense ensemble drama about race relations that may sometimes be over the top, but is a powerful argument for better understanding racism and ultimately our own humanity.

What Crash does best is to turn upside down many of the viewer’s expectations and presuppositions. By doing so, we are able to empathize and understand the underlying subtext for every character. Several characters that we initially identify as racists or just jerks are later given sequences of humanity and redemption. On the flip side, characters that we initially identify as nice and even-tempered are later given sequences that lead us to question our initial impressions.

This technique produces some truly well rounded characters and in doing so makes its first insight into race relations – racial problems don’t stem from the “Race” of the person. In painting all our characters with gray brushes we quickly understand that not one race is the “nice” one and the other is the “angry” one. So where then does the film claim racial problems come from?

The second insight into racial relations that I gleaned from Crash would be that most racial problems most often come from misunderstandings that lead to frustrations. It’s then easy and simple to blame those frustrations on race. However, more often than not, those misunderstandings arise due to language barriers, pride, quick tempers, bureaucratic roundabouts, legitimate fears for personal safety, and desires to please our loved ones.

In other words, the roots of racism are the roots of every problem that plagues mankind. We can be selfish, prideful, impatient, fearful, quick to anger, uncaring beings and instead of tackling these root issues we take the simple route and blame it on the race of others (which is another root issue). This message resonates so deeply with me because it is deeply confirming of my Christian convictions. I understand that we are all prone to selfish natures and it’s gonna require all of us to be people of forgiveness, patience, peace, love, faith, confidence, and unselfishness if we are to ever cure the problems of racism.

It’s a fantastic message that plays itself out in an intense fashion with a handful of incredibly powerful scenes. My absolute favorite sequence is when Matt Dillon’s police officer comes upon a crash scene (no pun intended). Without thought toward the race of the victims, he naturally attempts to rescue the injured. Of course, the injured woman inside is a black woman whom he took advantage of and molested in an earlier scene. It’s a scene of pure emotion, irony, and ultimately humanity.

The scene implies that in the end, not only is it possible that we can move beyond our self-issues, but that it’s imperative, for our own sake that we do. These aren’t subtle messages and the film definitely deserves its share of criticism for being a little heavy-handed. However, I think that the human drama and underlying messages more than make up for any of its faults. This is a film that not only gives us an engaging human drama, but also calls for its audience to better racial issues by first bettering ourselves.

Here is the trailer for the film