My Top 20 animated movies: Part 3, #6-10

My Top 20 animated movies (continued)

You've seen the bottom 10 in my list of favorite animated movies. I love them all and it's difficult to place one above another, but the Top 10 do have something extra in my opinion.

Let's continue with the next five:

10. Monsters, Inc. (2001)

Directed by Pete Docter, David Silverman and Lee Unkrich

Starring the voices of Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and Mary Gibbs

Monsters, Inc. produces power for the city of Monstropolis by scaring kids and storing the energy produced in their screams. The two principals are Sulley (Goodman) and Mike (Crystal). Sulley is a giant furry beast with purple and blue fur and regularly tops the company standings as chief scarer. Mike is small, green and has one huge eye, and is Sulley’s assistant. They have doors with direct access to children’s bedrooms in the real world and get to work each night. Things are complicated by Randall Boggs (Buscemi), who is trying to cheat his way to the top of the standings. Direct physical contact with a human child is thought to be dangerous and possibly lethal, so a team stands by to sanitize any infected monsters. When Sulley inadvertently brings a little girl called Boo (Gibbs) to Monstropolis, he finds out the truth about human contact. With the help of Mike, Sulley tries to hide the little girl until they can get her home. The reason I love Monsters, Inc. so much is its heart. It’s a cute world and Boo is adorable. There’s a lot of clever humor throughout the movie and it lives up to Pixar’s high standards.

There’s nothing in the film that would scare children, so it’s a perfect family film. The Blu-ray presentation is strong in all areas. I could watch this film every few weeks and never get tired of it.

9. Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)

Directed by Steve Box and Nick Park

Starring the voices of Peter Sallis, Helena Bonham Carter and Ralph Fiennes

Here’s another claymation movie. It was good enough to win the Oscar for Best Animated Film, and it deserved the award. There were three short films in the series before this feature; all are funny and worth owning, but none match the quality of Were-Rabbit. For those new to the characters, Wallace (Sallis) is an inventor living in Northern England and Gromit is his faithful dog. The two run a service to protect people’s vegetables from the jaws of unwanted rabbits. They have a warning system similar to the one used in Thunderbirds and Wallace’s inventions are used to capture and store the rabbits. Gromit doesn’t speak, but says so much with his body language. He’s the source of most of the humor. There are jokes in almost every frame; both visual and verbal. The pair is hired by Lady Tottington (Bonham-Carter), who fears that her grounds are being overrun by rabbits. The expressions on the faces of the model rabbits are hilarious.

There’s no Blu-ray release as yet, but the first three shorts and a later fourth installment can be found on Wallace & Gromit: The Complete Collection Blu-ray. It isn’t actually complete because it’s missing this film, but it’s a must-own. Wallace & Gromit is funny, innocent and suitable for the whole family.

8. Bolt (2008)

Directed by Byron Howard and Chris Williams

Starring the voices of John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Mark Walton and Susie Essman

Are you fan of Pixar titles? If I didn’t know better, I’d swear that Pixar created Bolt. It looks and feels similar and has so much heart. Bolt (Travolta) is a dog who stars in a TV show in which he has superpowers. That would make a good movie in its own right, but it gets even better. Bolt escapes from the film studio by accident and is separated from Penny (Cyrus), his owner. He listens to the advice of a group of pigeons and enlists the help of a cat named Mittens (Essman), who claims she knows how he can get home. They eventually run into a hamster, Rhino (Walton), who thinks that Bolt has real powers. They make their way across America in search of the film studio and Penny. Bolt keeps me laughing. It mixes slapstick humor with clever comments and astute observations. Watch how Mittens teaches Bolt to act like a real dog and you’ll see what I mean.

The movie is a good choice for the whole family and the Blu-ray presentation is flawless. The picture quality is perfect throughout and check out the sound during the sequences in which Bolt starts in the TV show.

7. Up (2009)

Directed by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson

Starring the voices of Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai and Bob Peterson

Up is Pixar’s most adult-oriented release thus far, but it still contains enough fun and action to hold the attention of any child. There’s a silent montage near the start of the movie which tells the story of Ellie, who is the wife of balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen (Asner). The sequence takes us through their initial meeting as children and ends with Ellie’s death as an old woman. You’ll almost certainly cry or at least have to hold back tears. Carl and Ellie always planned to visit South America, but never got around to it. Carl decides to make the trip on his own by attaching balloons to his house so that it will fly. He finds Russell (Nagai) – a boy scout trapped on his porch – and the two make the trip together. They are joined by a weird bird and Dug (Peterson), who is a dog with the ability to talk using a device on his collar. The movie is very colorful and is full of action once the group is assembled. There are some other truly touching moments and I would urge anyone to see this film.

It’s suitable for people of all ages and has something for everybody. The humor is funny because it’s an accurate observation on the way people behave. Dug is the funniest character, but they all have their moments.

6. Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)

Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Starring the voices of Kirsten Dunst and Phil Hartman

Talking of heart, it’s time for some more Miyazaki. Kiki (Dunst) is a 13-year-old witch, and in her culture that means she has to spend a year on her own providing a service in another city. She’s just learning her craft and can barely fly her broom, but sets of with her cat, Jiji (Hartman). She finds a small town and helps the owner of a bakery by returning a baby’s pacifier to a customer who left it behind. The owner offers her a place to stay and suggests that she start a delivery service. It’s a delightful coming-of-age story in which Kiki learns to become independent and finds out about friendship and romance. She has great respect for her elders and quickly wins their approval. Jiji has almost all of the best lines and his sarcastic comments are genuinely funny. There are no villains, just situations and problems to overcome.

Kiki’s Delivery Service is charming and funny. It should entertain the whole family. There’s no Blu-ray release yet, but expect Disney to get around to it in a year or two. There are at least two DVD versions and the dubs are different. Be sure to research which one you want to own if you have previously seen the movie and have a preference.

For #16-20 on the list, click here. 

For #11-15 on the list, click here.

For #1-5 on the list, click here.

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My Top 20 Dramas: Part 4, #1-5

My Top 20 Dramas (final part)

5. American Beauty (1999)

Directed by Sam Mendes

Starring Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening and Thora Birch

American Beauty is the story of how Lester Burnham (Spacey) rebels against his boring lifestyle and acts to change it. He’s unhappy with his wife, Carolyn (Bening), while his daughter, Jane (Birch), barely acknowledges his existence. Mendes explores the difference between the image we present to other people and what actually goes on behind the scenes. There’s plenty of dark humor and this might just be Spacey’s best role. All three people make big changes and develop as characters throughout the film. It expresses feelings that a lot of people feel, but never do anything about.

My full review can be found here.

4. The Green Mile (1999)

Directed by Frank Darabont

Starring Tom Hanks, Michael Clarke Duncan and David Morse

The best Stephen King adaptations are directed by Frank Darabont. The Green Mile is set in a prison in the 1930s and all of the inmates are waiting to be executed in the electric chair. It’s not a traditional prison story as all of the prisoners have their own cell and don’t come into contact with each other. The warders, led by Paul Edgcomb, have their world turned upside down when John Coffey (Duncan) arrives on the scene. Edgcomb, now an old man, narrates the story and everything we see happened when he was a young man. Coffey is a giant of a man, but is exceptionally quiet and gentle. I won’t reveal how he shakes things up because it would ruin the surprise. It’s a wonderful drama and Darabont takes his time telling the story. Don’t be put off by the 189-minute running time because you’ll probably be sorry that it’s over when it ends. It also has the best performance by a mouse in the history of motion pictures.


Click here for my full review.

3. Pulp Fiction (1994)

Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Starring John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson and Bruce Willis

Reservoir Dogs was a promising debut and Pulp Fiction sees Tarantino take a step forward. His screenplay deservedly won the Oscar and it’s full of the realistic dialogue that’s found in all of his films. Vincent Vega (Travolta) and Jules Winnfield (Jackson) play two killers. The most interesting thing about them is their conversations and outlook on life. Bruce Willis is also in the mix, playing a boxer who is paid to fix a fight and goes on the run after failing to keep his promise. The film is full of interesting characters. Christopher Walken appears in just one scene, but you’ll never forget it. Uma Thurman hinted at the potential she would eventually realize in the Kill Bill movies. The non-linear plot is a sequence of bizarre events rather than a coherent story, but I wouldn’t change a thing. It’s hard to pick a favourite Tarantino movie, but this currently has the edge.

2. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Directed by Frank Darabont

Starring Morgan Freeman, Tim Robbins and Bob Gunton

Shawshank is another Stephen King story adapted by Frank Darabont and it’s also set in a prison. Andy Dufresne (Robbins) plays a man convicted of murdering his wife. Red (Freeman) befriends him and helps him adjust to prison life. The film has been criticized by some for manipulating our feelings, but don’t all movies aim do that? The pacing is slow, allowing us to feel the passage of time as Dufresne serves his long sentence. My favourite scene happens while several inmates are tarring a roof, but the film is full of memorable scenes. I doubt that Robbins or Freeman have ever delivered better performances. As with most Stephen King stories, there’s a real sense of justice by the conclusion. I’m not sure how many times I have seen Shawshank, but I know I’ll keep watching it on a regular basis.

1. Mulholland Dr. (2001)

Directed by David Lynch

Starring Naomi Watts. Laura Harring and Justin Theroux

David Lynch isn’t the easiest filmmaker to like. He doesn’t like explaining the meaning of anything and insists that you draw your own conclusions. Mulholland Dr. is particularly baffling on the first viewing. It’s unclear what’s happening and the whole film is turned on its head in the last 45 minutes. It makes the viewer question the validity of everything that has happened up to that point. Betty (Watts) plays a bright-eyed aspiring actress who befriends Rita (Harring); a woman suffering from amnesia following a car accident. Part of the story plays like a Nancy Drew mystery as the two try to find Rita’s true identity. In fact, the whole film is about identity. There’s an air of mystery throughout and numerous scenes filled with dark humor. It’s also actually quite frightening in places if you allow yourself to be drawn in. If it works for you, you’ll find yourself reading about the film and watching it again within a couple of days. If it fails, you’ll regret ever seeing it. I watched it two days running and have seen it many times since. This is the film that changed the way I think about cinema.

My full review can be found here.

 

See #16-20 on my list here.

See #11-15 on my list here.

See #6-10 on my list here.

I Hope that you enjoyed reading about my Top 20 dramas. Feel free to comment and add your own list.

Return to index of every review on the site.

Blow Out: Travolta excels in an early role

Blow Out (crime, drama, mystery)

Directed by Brian De Palma

Starring John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow and Dennis Franz

Criterion | 1981 | 108 min | Rated R | Released Apr 26, 2011

Video:

Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC

Video resolution: 1080p

Aspect ratio: 2.40:1

Audio:

English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0

Subtitles:

English SDH

Disc:

Single 50GB Blu-ray Disc

The Film 4.5/5

Jack Terry (Travolta) is a sound-effects man who works on B-movies for a Philadelphia-based studio. One night, he decides to go out to record some new effects. He captures the sound of leaves rustling in the wind, a frog croaking, an owl hooting and a couple’s conversation. They mention that someone is watching them from a nearby bridge.

Jack inadvertently records a car accident and a gunshot heard before it veers off the road into a creek. He runs over and leaps into the water, pulling a woman from the car, but too late to save the man she is with. The woman, Sally (Allen), survives the accident with no apparent injuries. The dead man turns out to be Governor McRyan, a potential presidential candidate.

The police write the crash off as an accident, but Jack knows what he heard and reconstructs the scene in his mind by listening to his recording. We find out that someone caught the crash on film and sold it to various publications. Jack matches the images to the sounds and is certain the crash was caused by a bullet hitting a tire. None of the authorities seem interested so he seeks Sally’s help to prove his theory.

De Palma builds suspense throughout and a plot to discredit the Governor is gradually revealed. Sally was working for Manny (Franz), a private eye, and they have a history of using her to ruin people’s public images with the help of a henchman known as Burke (Lithgow). Burke has an agenda of his own and exceeds his authority.

Nobody wants to admit that McRyan had a woman in the car and a full cover-up is set in motion. Burke is out to tie up any loose ends and silence the potential threat from Jack and Sally.

De Palma brings to mind Michelangelo Antonioni’s Blow Up as well as a number of Alfred Hitchcock’s movies. He confirms in the special features that the film was inspired by the JFK shooting and subsequent events.

The resulting mix is an intriguing mystery, filled with suspense and a little action. Will Jack be able to prove his theory and make it public, or will it be buried? The final shot is a memorable one and the film doesn’t have a traditional Hollywood ending. It works for me.

Video Quality 4/5

It’s difficult to grade Criterion’s newly-restored presentation because the quality varies. In brightly-lit scenes, detail is exceptional considering the age of the film. Some of the scenes are dark and filled with heavy grain. I didn’t notice any dirt or debris, but did see vertical lines on the screen a couple of times. Overall, I was pleased. Criterion does everything possible with its transfers and didn’t let me down here.

Sound Quality 5/5

Sound understandably plays an important part in the film and the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track delivers. Some scenes are made up of a multitude of different sounds, presumably to draw our attention to what we are hearing. It’s particularly evident when Jack is recording his sound-effects tape and captures the car’s crash. Dialogue is clear throughout and it’s hard to imagine a better quality track than this one.

Special Features 5/5

A 58-minute interview with De Palma conducted by Noah Baumback (1080p). De Palma talks about many technical aspects of the film including the split diopter and Steadicam, as well as some of the difficulties faced during filming. He also mentions Alfred Hitchcock and some of the things that influenced the story.

De Palma’s 1967 film, Murder a la Mod, appears here in full (81 minutes, 1080p).

Interview with Nancy Allen (26 minutes, 1080p).

Interview with Garrett Brown, inventor of the Steadicam (16 minutes, 1080p).

Louis Goldman photographs showing stills from Blow Out.

Trailer (2 minutes, 1080p)

34-page booklet

Criterion’s recent release does justice to an important film and is thoroughly worth the upgrade to Blu-ray. You’re actually getting two De Palma films in this package and Blow Out is one of Travolta’s best films. I wonder how influential his performance here was in convincing Quentin Tarantino (a huge De Palma fan) to cast him in Pulp Fiction? 

At the time of writing, the Blu-ray is available at the bargain price of $18.99 at Amazon.com.

Overall score 4.5/5 

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