February 5, a new top 250 comparison

It's been one month since I've started this blog and thus it's a perfect moment to check on how my list fares against the top 250 of IMDB at this moment. I'll only be comparing the movies I've seen/reviewed because of the obvious reasons.

First, new movies in the top 250:

• The Truman Show (#249)
• Les quatre cents coups (#243)

Secondly, movies I've seen as listed on February 5, 2010:

• Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (#234)
• Tonari no Totoro (#239)
• Anatomy of a Murder (#241)
• Monsters, Inc. (#242)
• Toy Story 2 (#244)
• His Girl Friday (#245)
• Brazil (#246)
• Arsenic and Old Lace (#247)
• Mou Gaan Dou (#248)
• The Day the Earth Stood Still (#250)

Third, my list as on February 5, 2010:

1. Brazil (1985)
2. Mou Gaan Dou (2002)
3. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
4. Casino Royale (2006)
5. Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
6. Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
7. Tonari no Totoro (1988) 
8. Monsters, Inc (2001)
9. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
10. Blood Diamond (2006) 
11. His Girl Friday (1940)
12. Toy Story 2 (1999)

Casino Royal fell out of the Top 250, which I regret. Unlike Blood Diamond, which shouldn't have been on the Top 250 to begin with.

My top 3 also ranks pretty low of the 12 I've seen so far, but I guess that's because of they aren't that well known with the mainstream crowd.

The only positive link I can see in the two lists is the order of the three animation movies I've seen so far.

In other news, I've been unable to watch some movies for the past couple of days, but I will continue with my viewings later this week, so keep tuned and interested!

239. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf

• Year of release: 1966
• Director: Mike Nichols
• Genre: Drama
• IMDB Page

Drama. That's all what this movie is about.

The story can be boiled down to this: a middle aged couple invites a younger couple and they argue throughout the night. During these fights or to put it better, battle of sarcastic wits, we learn of a few truths that the characters were hiding. To emphasize the conversations and the interactions of the characters, this movie only has a setting or two and it works splendidly.

As it is described above, it is obvious that this movie revolves around its characters, thus you need to have interesting characters and good actors. Two things this movie obviously has. The actors are splendid and the dialogues are both hilarious and dramatic. The characters are interesting, one could argue that "Honey" isn't an interesting character, but the truth is: she is less interesting than the others. Not not interesting.

One of the best things about this movie is its wit in the dialogue. I laughed at a few conversations while the conversations were seriously bitter. There's a lot to say about the acting of Ms. Taylor and Mr. Burton and that's the acting is superb and worthy of some prizes.

"I'm not sure how to tell you this... But, you see... I'm a better actor than you are."

The conclusion of this movie is highly confusing. Is what the middle-aged couple said all true or fiction? And if it is fiction, how much of it is true? The mindgames they played throughout the evening all boil down to the last five minutes. I had to sit down for a moment of two and think about what the issue at hand really was about. 

The only negative remark I have is its pacing at the beginning. I was very bored for the first half hour, but once past the 20-30 minute mark the movie became good.

Buy It