Top 15 Films of the 2010s (so far)

Top 15 Films of the 2010s (so far)

Apparently we are over halfway through the 2010s. And every time a decade is over, it's a big time for movies, it's time to look back on the best of the last decade, and compare the decade to others in terms of film. Even though it isn't the end of the decade, it is half way done. A good milestone to look back on what is the best so far (as per my opinion) for this decade.

And this list idea comes from brilliant Alex Withrow, the author behind the phenomenal blog And so it Begins. So special thanks to him, go check out his blog.

2014 Oscar Predictions

Oscar Predictions

In here I'll go through the oscar nominations and select which one I think will win. I've seen almost everything, but I haven't seen quite everything for the performances, so part of the selection is just word of mouth and what I've read on them. This post also includes what I like to call my "Pretty Please" list. Every year I like to make two lists, my actual Oscar predictions and a list for what I want to win. Often times, they aren't remotely similar, which is a little saddening, but what are you going to do. So this list is both my actual predictions and the Pretty Please list.

Top 10 Favorite Films of 2014

Top 10 Favorite Films of 2014

2014 was a great year for film. It was really my first year to fully explore the films of the year and be allowed to. Since I turned 17, I  allowed to go to the theaters and watch R-rated movies I previously would have needed an adult to get me in. And I gotta say, I enjoyed this year in film, a good one to start and not be hindered by restrictions (I also got a car! I can drive to the theaters as well!). Below are my 10 favorites movies of last year. Not a lot of blockbusters, but again I was free to explore other types of films that previously just wasn't possible.

Top 5 Movie Inside Jokes

5 Movie Inside jokes

So, I think inside joke is the proper term here. These are five moments that made me laugh at how genius they are. They all involve something carrying over from one film to another. If you haven't seen both it's almost impossible to understand, but when you do find and get one, it's a awesome feeling. And, real quick, there is a TV show entry on here. I couldn't resist, seeing as it is my favorite show and one of my favorite movies that have the inside joke, so forgive me.

Top 10 Tarantino Characters

Top 10 Quentin Tarantino Characters

I cannot think of another writer who every character they write is perfect, besides Quentin Tarantino. I truly believe Tarantino has never made a bad character. That being said this was an extremely hard list to create, I mean I had so many characters to choose from. These are the ten that Tarantino has both written and directed that I believe are his best writing and directing examples. So sorry Natural Born Killers you are out of this.

10 Movie Masterpieces made in the last 14 Years

10 Movie Masterpieces made in the last 14 Years

Masterpiece is a word I do not like to throw around a lot when talking about movies. The more one uses it the less of an impact it has. But it was a few days ago, I had a discussion with a buddy of mine, and he was saying basically that there are no more movie masterpieces made anymore. It was a rather lengthy conversation in which a lot of different films were brought up. When talking the films never really went before 2000 from what we were talking about. So, that got me thinking that I should do a blog post on 10 films which I consider to be masterpieces made from 2000-2014. They are ranked in as good of an order as I have been able to get them into. I have switched a number around a few times and think I have the proper order finally. Saying that, I know my friend does not consider all these films "masterpieces" and neither will probably anyone who views this, but I do. And, for anyone who has not seen some movies on this list, I highly recommend all of them.

Top 10 Uses of Classical Music in Movies

The 10 Uses of Classical Music in Movies

Classical Music in movies can be a real gamble, if done right it can fully capture and elevate the mood of the scene and the movie as a whole, if it doesn't fit it feels like a failed experiment in movie making and takes you out of the movie. The classical music moments below are my favorite. All that are below are powerful and dramatic uses of some of the best classical music ever created (of course in my opinion).  These are some of the times the gamble of putting classical music in a movie works for me. Quick note I will attach the youtube video for each piece and if I can find one with the movie in it I will use that, but some are just the song without the film, so I am sorry ahead of time. But no more waiting, let's get to the music.

Top 10 Movie Shootouts

Top 10 Movie Shootouts

May contain some spoilers!

Let's be honest, who doesn't love a good gunfight in the movies. Movie shootouts are some of the most fun parts of lots of movies. And when executed properly they can be a work of art. This list is devoted to my top 10 best movie shootouts. No rules as long as all sides have guns it goes, no time limits or entity limits, nothing. Let the bullets fly!

Top 5 Jon Voight Performances

Jon Voight has been in movies for a long time now. He has given some amazing performances, and then some not so amazing. Regardless he is a man to be celebrated for his contributions to film. Jon Voight can go from quiet to really loud and crazy, and he does it well.

Jon Voight has that instantly recognizable face which makes lots of people go "Oh, it's him!" but they do not know his name. Which is a real shame because even though he has been in some really bad movies (I'm looking at you Transformers), his great movies do not get enough love with audiences nowadays. In a small attempt to change that (at least among some of my friends) here are his 5 best performances.

The Top 5 Steve Buscemi Performances

Top 5 Steve Buscemi Performances

Warning: May have some Spoilers

Steve Buscemi is one of those odd actors who play the quirky weird characters in movies. Even though this is the case, he can dominate the screen whenever on it. This doesn't happen often so the need to celebrate it when it does happen is high. 

Steve Buscemi never gets enough love, only 1 Golden Globe, and not even an Oscar nomination. That in it of itself should be worth jail time, okay not really. All I am trying to say is that steve Buscemi has definitely earned at least one in my mind, his characters are always easy to remember and often the best of the films. So without further ado, the top 5 Steve Buscemi performances.

Top 10 Favorite Best Actor Oscar Winners of All Time

Top 10 Favorite Best Actor Oscar Winners

When reading this post keep in mind that these are my personal favorite Best Actor Oscar Winners, not necessarily the best. If it were a best list it would probably be a little different. Also I haven't quite seen all movies to which the academy gave a Best Actor award, for instance, I haven't seen On the Waterfront. So Marlon Brando from that movie will not be on here. Anyway these are my favorite, if you have some favorites that I missed or needed let me know.

Top 5 Jodie Foster Performances

Top 5 Jodie Foster Performances

Jodie Foster is one of those very selective actresses. She always seems to take a lot of time with her roles and choosing which ones to do. Unfortunately this is rather rare in Hollywood today. Not only is she selective, but she prepares for them and is willing to commit just about anything to her roles. In the fairly recent movie, Elysium, she was originally going to speak for the whole movie in French. In general movies with lots of subtitles, even a little, do not do as good at the box office in America. Even with that Jodie Foster was going to do it, although it ended up that the producers didn't think that was a very good idea so they shot that down. Anyway, Jodie Foster is one of the most talented and best actresses alive today, I figured she would be the perfect person to start the Top 5 performances lists.