Cinema, TV and Anime

Classifying Movies

How does a movie become a classic? By the way, what is a classic movie? Many people classify an artwork as a "classic" because it was made by a well known artist or simply because it was created a reasonable time ago. Good artists can produce unexpressive works and time is a universal agent, making everything become old, doesn't matter if it is good or bad.

Movies that bring new concepts, the "pioneers", don't have their place assured as classics. Many movies where "the first of its kind", but were unable to survive through History. On the other hand, many movies that reused old concepts became classics. One thing is common to most classics, they are "well done". A careful production, based on a good idea, original or not, generally results a good movie. And among the few good movies that may be produced every year, there's a very small chance of one of them becoming a classic.

Beside the classic movies, there are the "cult movies". A cult is a production, not necessarily a classic, that gathers a specific group of fans. A famous example of cult movie/series is "Star Trek". It moves crowds of fans, the trekkers (the most "addicted" ones) and trekkies (the less affected by the "trek fever"), to conventions every year to talk about, to watch and even to drink "Star Trek" (there's a funny blue beverage brought by an alien civilization).

Thousands of movies are made every year, but it's far more difficult to find a good one than anyone could expect. Even reviewers and critics have misjudged many movies. They have classified some really bad movies as "art works" and simply ignored some outstanding productions.

I've seen no one saying anything bad about "Gone With The Wind", for example, which I consider one of the most boring movies ever made. The script is terrible and its pseudo-actors did their worst for it. If you have never seen that thing, believe me, you lost nothing (you won't really want to see someone promising to never be hungry again - ugh!)

I use to classify movies based mainly on their stories and then on their productions. A good story is far more important than a good production. A cheap production is very enjoyable if the story has a good plot, but a bad story can't survive even with the most expensive productions. Unfortunately, in the last few years, most movies are of the second type: no story and marvelous very-expensive super-ultra special visual effects (also known as "F.X." or "S.F.X."). To take an example, there is "Terminator 2", a movie that impressed most people by its SFX. But if you look just a little better, you will be able to find a completely careless direction and production behind (blame James Cameron). The story is terrible and was not supposed to happen: it is a sequel to "Terminator", in which a time-loop is created by a future killing machine that tries to eliminate its worst enemy sending a hunter to the past to "terminate" his mother. Due to this act, she prepares his son to be the worst enemy of the machine. The first movie alone is acceptable as other time-loop movies, but a sequel is too much, because a lot of questions are simply ignored, like why didn't the machine stop itself of sending the first hunter or why didn't it try again and again and so on, sending more and more hunters behind her (for it thought that was a good idea at first)?. Instead, the machine sends only one more terminator, a better one, but one, and only many years LATER, to kill its enemy while it is still a child (why not sending it to the time before the first, so she won't be warned againt the danger?) But even if you ignore the script (something that I cannot do - I swear I tried), you stumble in the terrible direction: the second terminator can change its shape and, dispite that feature, it appears almost ever with a face seen only in the first scenes, and ever as a human being (why not approaching the kid as a dog or something that seems harmless?) And if you are one of that people that goes to the theater to have fun, don't matter the story or the direction, just for the spectacle, you will find out the errors in the SFX (they are so obvious that most cannot notice them at first). Here are two: in the elevator scene, the T2 melts and you can see the elevator's floor reflected on its surface, BUT there is a missing element in it, the lamp, which is hanging from the ceiling. A second and worst error is found in the scene when the robot friend (yes, there is a robot friend, the same kind of the first movie, even with the same face, what is just ridiculous) starts to fire against the police cars using an air battle cannon: the empty capsules jump out of the weapon, wonderfully, but no one ENTERS! You can see the stream of bullets attached to it but they simply don't move. You can almost hear the director saying "Okay! Enough with the machine gun! Now drop it and use the assalt cannon..."

And it doesn't stop there. Some of those movies were based on good stories, which were completely destroyed by the production. "Jurassic Park" is one of such movies. It was slightly based on a book with the same name, written by Michael Crichton. The original story contained a very good idea and story. The movie has only part of the idea and even less of the story. And if you want to watch to it because of the F.X., forget it. Some scenes are relatively well done (mainly the ones made in the dark - you can't see the flaws), but most are not. The velociraptors (a kind of dinosaur) seem to disregard the "gravitation law" and inertia when they are jumping in the kitchen.

Another bad movie based on a good story is "Total Recall". It's based on the short story "We Can Remember It for You, Wholesale", by Philip K. Dick. Only the first minutes of the movie are based on the short story. The F.X. are terrible, most like a "trash movie" (the very low cost movies, generally with bad plots and pseudo-actors, classified by the studios as "B movies" once).

I generally don't mention bad productions for nothing, because even the simplest comment about them is too much, but there is one that must be remarked, the one that I classify as the worst movie ever made, namely "Natural Born Killers" (I haven't yet seen "Plane 9 from Outer Space" - people say it is too terrible that becomes good). If you are a Quentin Tarantino fan, you may disagree, of course, but my aversion for it is not for free. It joins a good writer, Tarantino, a great director, Oliver Stone, an above average group of actors (some even very good actors), some excellent cinematographical scenes and... throws them all in the garbage. The script looks like some of the worst trash movies I have ever seen. In the middle of the movie I was already able to foresee the ending (of course, the killers of the title escape and leave a track of blood behind). By the way, the soundtrack is pure trash, too. People that like the movie argue that "it's a creative/different way to tell a simple story" or that "it tries to show how two addicted killers see the world" (complete with psychedelic fashioned images in VHS and other media). I thought about those and other alternatives, but none was satisfatory. The scenes do not match with the characters' points of view and there is nothing creative or different in two idiots shooting at will. Most that don't like the movie classify it as "gratuitous violence". I do not, because I saw no violence. The movie is so inexpressive that everything in it seems false. The complete lack of depth makes it even worst than "Gone With The Wind", although, fortunately, it is not so long. Well, but it is up to each one to like or hate it (as a friend of mine pointed, this is one of the few movies that doesn't allow people to more-or-less-like-it). And for one thing, many that have seen the movie have, at least, reflected about it enough to, at least, see cinema with different eyes...

I present here two lists of my favorite movies, one with the movies that I like most and another with good movies that should be seen.

Note: this Page is under construction. Links marked with an "!" are not yet available.

Warning! Some reviews contain summaries of the stories. If you don't want to read them, don't follow the links marked with an "*".

My Favourite Movies

: (!) This is an anime, an American and Japanese co-production that tells the story about a unicorn, the last of her kind. She starts a quest for the others, what takes her into a fairy tale...
: (*) A couple of lovers are cursed to live apart by an evil bishop. To fight him, they are helped by a smart boy...
: (*) Hinotori is a firebird goddess that helps the humankind to evolve. Two men antagonize one another, surviving in the ancient Japan, fighting against their own sins.
: (*) A cyberpunk adventure about a detective searching for escaping androids.
: (!) Flinn, an arcade game programmer, must invade a computer network to gather proofs against a thief, but he ends literally invading the computer, through a matter digitizer.
: (!) Classic science fiction about a very advanced alien civilization, mysteriously vanished from their home planet.

2001 - A Space Odyssey (!): A research group finds an alien artifact in the Moon, leading them to Jupiter. Problems with the boarding computer may finish the secret mission of the spaceship Discovery to the giant planet.
84 Charing Cross Road (!): A woman writes to a bookstore, searching for some old books, and finds a friend.
Akira (!): In this anime, a boy discovers a powerful energy in his own fragile body, an energy that can destroy the world.
Alien (!): Following an S.O.S. signal, a group of "cryonauts" finds a strange and dangerous alien life form.
Back to The Future (!): Scientist builds a time machine in a car and a young friend goes back in time, risking to destroy his own history.
Bicentennial Man (!): In this wonderful adaptation of an Isaac Asimov story, a robot with the "Pinocchio syndrome" wants to be socially accepted by the human beings...
Black Widow (!): A woman kills her husbands and is investigated by another woman.
Blazing Saddles (!): A Mel Brooks comedy in the North-american "far west".
Brazil - The Movie (!): A man fights against "the system" to keep his individuality in a world ruled by bureaucracy.
Casablanca (!): A love story in the middle of World War II.
Cast a Deadly Spell (!): Parody of old detective stories in a world where magic is a "commonplace". This is not exactly an art piece, but can be very enjoyable.
Citizen Kane (!): Classic movie about the life of an important newspaper owner.
Conan - The Barbarian (!): This is the story of a man that grows in a dangerous place, surrounded by deadly wars and sorcery.
Contact (!): Adapted from a Carl Sagan's story, this movie presents the implications and powers moved by the first contact with an extraterrestrial society.
Cracking Up (!): A comedy made of interconnected scenes and short stories, written and played by Jerry Lewis.
"Crocodile" Dundee (!): A comedy about an Australian that comes into a big city.
The Day Earth Stood Still (!): Classical science fiction movie about an alien that tries to advise Earthen people about the dangers of nuclear weaponry.
Dead Men Don't Use Plaid (!): An excellent movie about a private investigator involved in a very confuse case of love, death, war and lots of classical artists (part of the fun, for the fans of cinema, is to name them!)
Dead Poets Society (!): The new literature teacher of a reputable college brings advanced concepts to change old-fashioned methods.
Doctor Strangelove (!): An excellent political satyr, with Peter Sellers performing several characters.
Duel (!): Pursued by a truck on desert roads, a man runs in his car to save his life.
The Fly (first version) (!): In this classic science fiction movie, a man creates a teleportation machine, but an accident risks him and his wife.
Gattaca (!): Imagine a world where no one is born with any disease, where people are stronger and smarter, better in all possible ways. But this is not a better world, despite everything. The body has changed, but not the mind. This world is Earth in the very near future...
Ghostbusters (!): Comedy about a group of ex-students that begins to hunt ghosts in a big city.
The Goonies (!): Following a pirate's map, children challenge a group of escaping thieves.
Groundhog Day (!): A weather reporter finds himself locked inside a strange time loop, forced to live the same day time after time. Wonderful movie with a comic view of the situation.
Hellraiser (!): There's a place where people pray to go to the stillness of hell...
High Anxiety (!): Parody of Alfred Hitchkock suspense movies.
Highlander (!): A man discovers he is immortal and has to live in a world of mortal people, challenging other immortals.
Irma La Dulce (!): A comedy about a honest police officer that falls in love for a prostitute and tries to take her away from that life.
Jaws (!): A giant white shark brings death to a little coast city.
Koyaanisqatsi (!): This movie has no speeches, but says many things with its fast images.
Logan's Run (!): In a search for the truth, a man must run away to stay alive. A classic science fiction.
The Matrix (!): A movie based on a "classical plot": the world is not what it seems to be...
M.I.B. - Men in Black (!): Do you believe that there are aliens from outer space living among us? M.I.B. is a special organization within all organizations, beyond all government, assigned to control the imigration and emigration of alien to and from Earth.
Modern Times (!): Classic comedy about the impact of the Industrial Revolution.
The NeverEnding Story (!): Fantasy movie about the human imagination. It has one of my favourite soundtracks.
Nightmares (!): Four stories, including one of my favourites, "The Bishop of Battle", about a boy and his obsession for an arcade game.
One, Two, Three (!): The head-man of a factory of a well known beverage has to deal with his young daughter, who has fallen in love for an idealist. This is a very fast comedy with a wonderful script and the perfect interpretation of James Cagney as the industrial. A black and white classical that must be seen (and, please, if some idiot colorizes it, turn off the colours of your TV while watching it...)
The Party (!): Peter Sellers is an Indian actor that is accidentally invited to a party.
Planes, Trains & Automobiles (!): Comedy about a man trying to go back home for the Thanks Giving Day.
Poltergeist (!): Classic ghost story about a haunted house.
Prince of Darkness (!): Terror/science fiction movie about a mysterious object, hidden from the world in the undergrounds of an ancient church.
The Purple Color (!): A woman survives in America, enduring all segregations.
Purple Rose of Cairo (!): The main character of a movie simply jumps out of the screen and joins a dreaming woman.
Raiders of The Lost Ark (!): The adventure of an archaeologist in search of a legendary object.
Robocop (!): A "cyberpunk" movie about a policeman that receives cybernetic implants from a giant corporation.
The Shining (!): Classic terror movie about a child that has strange dreams of a strange hotel.
Short Circuit (!): A robot is shot by a thunderbolt and begins to... live!
Silence of the Lambs (!): Running against time, a detective must trust a murderer to find another one.
Silent Movie (!): A Mel Brooks' silent movie...
Singin' in The Rain (!): One of the best musicals of all time. It tells the story about the transition from the silent to the sound movies.
Spaceballs (!): Parody of "Star Wars".
Soylent Green (!): An over-crowded near future society hides a secret.
Star Trek - The Motion Picture (!): An enormous "thing" is going to Earth. The crew of U.S.S. Enterprise must stop it.
Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan (!): Due to an accident, an old enemy of human kind is freed and wants a revenge.
Star Wars (!): A long time ago, in a far away galaxy, the Light had to fight the Darkness for the freedom of the Universe.
Superman (!): Survivor of an extinct civilization, he is now the only hope to save millions of people from death.
They Live (!): A man discovers aliens hidden among people and tries to save the world.
The Thing (!): Frozen for million years under the ices of the Antarctic Continent, a strange alien life form is now freed and must be stopped.
Time After Time (!): Many years ago, a cientist constructs a time machine, which is used by a murderer to escape to the future: our time. He decides to hunt him and to bring him back to be judged.
Top Secret! (!): A comedy about a rock'n' roll singer that goes to Germany during World War II and accidentally joins a resistance group.
Trading Places (!): A good comedy about two men, one rich and successful and the other a poor vagabond, whom have their places exchanged by two rich Wall Street investors.
The Untouchables (Brian de Palma version) (!): An action movie about Al Capone and the federal police group known as "The Untouchables".
War Games (!): A young boy accidentally invades the computer system of the U.S. Army and starts a game with an artificial intelligence computer that may end with the destruction of the world.
Whose Is Life Anyway? (!): A sculptor loses almost every movements of his body after a car accident and decides, against all medical and juridical opinion, to end his own life.
Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory (!): A fantasy musical about the factory of the best candies and chocolates of all world.
Young Frankenstein (!): A parody of the classical story "Frankenstein" about the scientist that brings a dead body to life using electricity.

International Links

Anyone can easily find almost anything in the Internet just going to the "search engines" available. Unfortunately, there are so many Pages about so many movies and others that has nothing to do with Cinema at all that a search is becoming a very tedious task. My suggestion is to go to Internet Movie Data Base, one of my favourite sites, very well organized and with a very large data base.

This Page is dedicated to Charles Chaplin. He still makes me laugh without saying a single word...

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Page last modified on 2000-November-12 Sunday.

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