#fav7films

On Twitter today, one of the trending topics is #fav7films.  People in the Twittersphere would post their seven favorite movies of all-time.  The lists are very interesting to read, as they were incredibly diverse and unique.

When I think of my “favorite” movies, I think of the movies that I would watch if I were to watch seven movies over and over again for the rest of my life.  These aren’t the “best movies” or my all-time favorites (though most of this list is also on my All-Time list).  These are the movies that I just love to watch.

So here we go, my #fav7films.

7 – DIE HARD (John McTiernan, 1988)

The greatest action movie of all-time has struck a cord with me more than most movies.  Anybody who knows me on a personal level knows my undying love for Die Hard.  This movie is constant enjoyment from start to finish.  Bruce Willis has never been better as the right place-wrong time hero cop, John McClane, and Alan Rickman reinvented the villain with his smart, brilliant performance as Hans Gruber.  The action is relentless, the one-liners are quick, and the movie slaps on a smile your face that won’t leave.

6 – THE BIG LEBOWSKI (The Coen Brothers, 1998)

Deciding which Coen Brothers movie to put on this list was almost impossible, as I could watch any of their movies at any moment of any day.  O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000) almost cracked the list, but at the end of the day, The Dude abides.  The Big Lebowksi is everything you want in a movie.  The plot grabs you and never lets go, the characters are rich, and the movie is funny as hell.  Jeff Bridges as The Dude is as iconic as movie characters get and John Goodman nearly steals the entire movie as the short-tempered Walter.  The Coen’s have many classics, but this is my personal pick.

5 – WEDDING CRASHERS (David Dobkin, 2005)

As far as pure comedies go, Wedding Crashers is my all-time favorite.  When I saw this movie in theaters in 2005, I had never laughed so hard in a movie.  Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are at the top of their comedic games, with pitch perfect chemistry and timing.  The movie also perfectly balances the raunchy sex comedy with a sweet romantic comedy, rounding out the movie to make us feel for the characters and stay engaged in the story.  This is a hilarious, quotable, tender comedy classic.

4 – PULP FICTION (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)

Quentin Tarantino changed cinema forever with Pulp Fiction.  No movie had ever combined so many genres with blisteringly fast dialog, unique characters, all while in a non-linear structure.  Gangsters, drugs, boxers, shot-off heads, and Big Kahuna Burger.  Only a genius of Tarantino’s stature could make a movie with these things and have it make sense.  John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, and the rest of the cast are all excellent and give some of the best performances of their careers.  The screenplay is truly masterful and one I love just listening to.  You will never see another movie like Pulp Fiction in your life.

3 – PSYCHO (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)

A Hitchcock slasher thriller as one my favorite movies?  You’re damn right.  I can watch Psycho all day.  From it’s deliberate, twisty story, to its timeless scares, Psycho never lets up and holds up 50-plus years later.  Every time I watch this movie, I am thrown into a euphoric state, knowing that this is a master at the peak of his career.  I notice something new each viewing, whether it’s the stunning cinematography, a Hitchcock direction, or something with the astounding performances from Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins.  Hitchcock is a true master of cinema, and Psycho is his thrilling masterpiece.

2 – THE DARK KNIGHT (Christopher Nolan, 2008)

Talk about a game-changer.  The Dark Knight took everything that was great about the comic book genre and combined it with the best action-thrillers to make the best movie of the millennium.  Christopher Nolan took us deep into the mythos of Batman (Christian Bale), as he struggles with his identity as Bruce Wayne and Batman and his morals, as The Joker (Heath Ledger) pushes him to the absolute peak.  Nolan’s storytelling and expert filmmaking make the movie a pleasure to look at while keeping us captivated for the entire two and a half hours.  And you can’t talk about The Dark Knight without talking about Heath Ledger’s legendary performance as The Joker.  It is one of the greatest performances I have ever seen in one of the greatest movies I have ever seen.

1 – GOODFELLAS (Martin Scorsese, 1990)

Whenever Goodfellas is on, I watch it.  Doesn’t matter if the movie just started, or is right in the middle, whether it is censored or not, I will put it on and watch it until the end.  Martin Scorsese, my favorite filmmaker of all-time, made a true piece of art.  Diving into the heart of the mob with Henry Hill (Ray Liotta, at his career peak), we feel like we are part of the family and are on the journey with Hill.  The movie is violent, raw, darkly funny, and never boring.  The Copacabana scene is the greatest single scene I have ever seen put on film, and the defining shot of Scorsese’s career.  Goodfellas is the greatest movie of all-time and my favorite movie of all-time.

What are your #fav7films?  Comment below or hit me up on Twitter @kevflix or on Facebook!