Flounders On Film

In my obsessive need to list everything I love, I often return to the problem of favourite films, of course. Top 5 is not too much of a problem and I can generally build a top ten with some compromises – there’ll always be something that is unfairly missed out, or even worse, something that is really great but you can’t help thinking “That’s in my top ten films? Of all time? Really? That?”

But this is nothing compared to the horror of deciding on films when it gets to top 15’s or top 20’s. This can be best summed up by the ‘Raging Bull’ versus ‘Back to the Future’ theorem. You see ‘Raging Bull’ was a film I first saw taped off ITV (and so with adverts) late night, when I was about 15/16 I would guess. And I didn’t like it. It was bleak, plot-less and the only thing cool about it was its reputation. I wanted to like it, of course, because I had heard so many good things. And at that age I wanted to be the kind of film-fan who liked and appreciated masterpieces. Still do really (so apologies to The Deer Hunter, Blade Runner, Network and any others I’ve forgotten). But then it was re-released at the cinema (I’m guessing it would be for its 20th anniversary, so probably in 2000), I decided to go and my eyes were opened. Right from that slow-motion shadow-boxing opening (has there been a better use of music set to film?) to De Niro’s monologue to the mirror, I was hooked. I fell in love and for a long time it was a solid lock in my top ten, maybe even top five. I bought the VHS. Then I bought the Special Edition DVD. Then I bought the Definitive Edition DVD. Yes, that’s ridiculous, I agree.

Now so much time has past, ‘Raging Bull’ is not such a fixture in my top ten films. It’s a bit too bleak and unrelenting. It’s a film you can only experience every once in a while and so resides in that sub-section just underneath top-ten-ness. However, this is not a criticism. Even if it’s not quite one of my favourite films (it’s a gruelling experience and not one to indulge in regularly), it is still one of the best films I’ve ever seen – if not the best. It’s gorgeous to look at, for a start, but nothing else has unpeeled the stinking layers of a ‘bad’ person (simply put, that’s what he is) with such care and understanding. The film never panders to make him sympathetic. Jake is pitiable yes, but never redeemed. Scorsese and De Niro (along with many less-celebrated collaborators) here coalesce into one to make a masterpiece.

But then there’s ‘Back to the Future’ to consider. Not just any film, but one of those which made me fall in love with film itself, many years ago. I was too young to see it at the cinema, but really, I can’t remember a time without it in my life. It was a joyous experience to watch when I was younger and it still absolutely stands up now. It’s funny, fun, feel-good and the intricacies of the plot (and the imagined consequences of time travel) are so well thought-out (in an immaculate screenplay) and well-played by the cast that it stands as one of the great family films (that is in no way a criticism). I can quote it happily all day (‘better get used to these bars kid’…’is there a problem with the earth’s gravitational pull?’…’who the hell is John F Kennedy?’) and I’d sit down and watch it any day of the week. I can’t think of a single thing I would want change – Michael J Fox is superb as Marty, cool but insecure, and I do not believe there is an actor better suited to the role of Doc Brown than Christopher Lloyd. The only downside of the film becoming a franchise (both sequels are enjoyable) is that the original can become a bit devalued. It’s probably one of the films I’ve watched the most times in my life and that ending at the clock tower never fails to get my heart racing. And as soon as I had the ability to download songs, one of the first I got was “Earth Angel”.

So where to begin with judging which is highest in the pecking order? Do you go with best or favourite? And how do you judge which is which? Do you have to have a list with Oscar-winning types and one with badass action and fun? Where’s the satisfaction in that? I want a definitive list of my loves (and hates), not subsections and messing around. And therein lies the problem. I can make a rough top 50 (very rough, I probably forgot loads of films when I made it) but putting them in order was an impossibility. There’s probably no solution to this problem as there’s always the worry, when you’re past the obvious giants of the top 5, that you want a list that not only is good, but also looks good. So it has a suitable amount of ‘intelligent’ films that acknowledge your superior taste, but also shows your quirky side, your fun side and those films that you feel only you truly love. So, which goes first, ‘Rear Window’ or ‘Point Break’?

The top ten, for those who interested, looks something like this (it is pretty steady, but I can’t say how long it will stay exactly this way…):

1. Fight Club (“I look like you wanna look, I fuck like you wanna fuck. I am smart, capable and, most importantly, I am free in all the ways you are not.”)

2. Memento (“You know, I’ve had more rewarding friendships than this one. Although I do get to keep telling the same jokes.”)

3. Adaptation (“You are what you love, not what loves you.”)

4. The Godfather (“You’re taking this very personal. Tom, this is business and this man is taking it very, very personal.”)

5. Glengarry Glen Ross (“Because I don’t like you.”)

6. Jackie Brown (“My ass may be dumb, but I ain’t no dumbass.”)

7. The Prestige (“They’ll beg you and they’ll flatter you for the secret, but as soon as you give it up… you’ll be nothing to them.”)

8. LA Confidential (“Don’t start trying to do the right thing, boy-o. You haven’t the practice.”)

9. Donnie Brasco (“…’I aint runnin’ from nuttin’. The man I married was a college man.”)

10. Minority Report (“I just want him back so bad.”)