Das Experiment (2001)

There’s no better time to watch Das Experiment, what with the scene-for-scene Hollywood adaptation of it due to to be released this year. Based on the Stanford prison experiment, which saw a team of researchers create a prison simulation and study the actions of German civilians who were given roles of either guard or prisoner to see the psychological implications of being one of the other.

The controversial nature of the experiment is explored in the film, and the way in which the participants strongly reacted is well realised. The stark realism might shock you at times but that’s the intention – the group of actors give fierce, often strikingly emotional performances which gives Das Experiment some intense strength. Several scenes in the film were direct representations of the events that took place, which makes what happens all the more harrowing.

Das Experiment blows most Hollywood thrillers out of the water, and is definitely a film to be seen. If you need any more convincing, just look at who directed it: after Das Experiment, director Oliver Hirschbiegel went on to direct Downfall.

The Proposition (2005)

John Hillcoat’s Australian Outback westerner starring Guy Pearce as one of the infamous Burns brothers is a film that absolutely has to be seen. While lacking a little pace in the events that take place, the quality of the acting from the likes of Pearce, Ray Winstone and John Hurt is more than enough to compensate. On top of this, screenplay writer Nick Cave’s brutal depiction of the Outback plays with the standard conventions of the Western format.

Charlie Burns (Pearce) is captured by police after a shootout – the captain of police Morris Stanley (Winstone) tasks Charlie with killing his older, psychopath outlaw brother Arthur in exchange for the release of himself and his innocent younger brother Mikey. Charlie gets nine days to do so or Mikey will be killed – the moral choice plays out strongly as Charlie is torn between effectively choosing which brother lives. The big choice is what drives the film forward and several well-implemented plot twists keep you guessing.

Oldboy (2003)

Disturbing, original and impeccably well-made, Oldboy is a spectacular foreign film. Oldboy sees Oh Dae-Su kidnapped and placed in a prison for 15 years with no explanation. When released, Dae-Su is given money, clothes and a phone and told his kidnapper has further plans for him.

The series of events that take place while a vengeful Dae-Su tries to find his kidnapper are compelling: the twists and turns are so well choreographed & designed. It’s beyond strange this film, but if you can see past the big shocks you’ll see the technical masterpiece beneath.

Layer Cake (2004)

The British gangster film has fallen victim to monotony as of late – with the exception of Rock’n'Rolla and 44 Inch Chest, most of these films follow convention & stereotype too closely and suffer greatly because. Layer Cake is a film that is quite a conventional Brit mobster feature but the direction & subplot intertwining gives Layer Cake a much-needed sense of originality.

Daniel Craig, pre-Bond fame, stars as a cocaine distributor with the secret plan of retiring from the business. He’s tasked by his boss to find the daughter of one of his boss’ associates who ran away from a rehab centre as well as handle a large drug distribution deal. Craig’s character finds himself in a predicament as he finds himself in a tricky situation escalating beyond control.

This was Matthew Vaughn’s first directorial feature after producing a string of Brit gangster films, so his experience watching from the sidelines really shows – he definitely learnt what worked & what didn’t in the genre. Layer Cake is an exhibition of the best of the genre and while it perhaps doesn’t have the same charm as the likes of Snatch and Lock Stock, it’s a very entertaining film nonetheless.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)

Steve Martin and Michael Caine made a formidable partnership 22 years ago – Dirty Rotten Scoundrels oozes sophisticated humour and the contrast in comedy styles that Caine and Martin have creates a really satisfying comedy. Based on the 1964 film Bedtime Story, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels sees two con artists competing against each other whilst working a town on the French Riviera.

Martin plays the more inexperienced but plucky conman coming up against Caine’s suave experience artiste – both try to swindle a wealthy heiress in their own style. Whoever achieves this first gets to stay in the town & continue conning the naive inhabitants whilst the other has to leave and never return. The film’s plot is clever and the chemistry between Caine and Martin provides numerous laughs.

This may not be a film complex in structure or wholly original in plot but carried by two stellar performances and witty humour, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is more than satisfactory.

Never Seen It highlights films that you might not have heard of or watched but definitely should, the kind of films that aren’t as well-known as others and don’t attain the accreditation or accolade they perhaps deserve. The films noted may not be 5-star features but every one mentioned is a film worthy of your time…

Taken (2008)

Liam Neeson plays a former CIA paramilitary whose daughter gets kidnapped – needless to say, this doesn’t go down well. Neeson sets off to France to track her down and this gives writer Luc Besson the freedom to exert his film prowess on his home turf.

Not an Academy-Award winner but Neeson excels at times and gives a diverse performance with that scent of emotion needed to counter the guns blazing, all hell breaking loose approach to daughter rescuing.

In Bruges (2008)

Dark comedy doesn’t even begin to describe In Bruges, which gives Colin Farrell good reason to add comedic aptitude to his resumé. Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, are two hitmen laying low in Bruges on their boss’ order after Farrell’s character botches up an assassination.

The city serves as a book-like narrative setting and a place where both the hitmen can reflect on their lives. The comedic tone comes in the form of Farrell not liking Bruges (“If I grew up on a farm, and was retarded, Bruges might impress me but I didn’t, so it doesn’t.”) and the series of events that take place in Bruges – the dark undertone is far more apparent though as the film cuts deep and deals with vivid issues.

It’s a fantastic film that shouldn’t work but really does.

Rules of Engagement (2000)

Samuel L Jackson plays Marine Colonel Terry Childers who orders his soldiers to fire on civilians during an incident at a US embassy in Yemen. He is court-martialed in America and the film unravels what happened and whether there was just cause for the decision.

Tommy Lee Jones plays Hayes Hodges, an attorney and long-time friend of Childers who takes the case but doubts the legitimacy of the order. The unravelling of the story and the strong performances carry this film through – its serious tone is very serious so don’t expect many laughs, if any.

This is a powerful war film, one that doesn’t display true camaraderie or epic battle sequences and carries a higher level of sophistication.

Boondock Saints (1999)

Awesome film.

Connor and Murphy MacManus are devout Catholic Irish brothers living in Boston who take it upon themselves to rid the world of evil by killing members of the Mafia after receiving a message from God. Pursuing them is homosexual FBI Agent Paul Smecker, played by Willem Dafoe.

Boondock Saints isn’t a comedy but has comedic timing surpassing most genuine comedies: the back-and-forth dialogue and witty scripting (“Name one thing you’re gonna need this stupid fucking rope for”) compliments the gun-toting & firefights as well as the cat and mouse chase taking place supremely.

City Hunter (1993)

More people probably know the Street Fighter scene that the actual film… This is a pre-Hollywood film for Jackie Chan that sees his private eye Ryu Saeba tracking a runaway daughter of a wealthy businessman.

Ryu finds himself on a cruise ship that has been commandeered by American criminals in the process. Ryu has to stop the Americans and find the daughter – the combination of cheesy and clever humour mixed with kung-fu kickassery make this highly entertaining.

It’s in Cantonese with subtitles but that doesn’t take anything away from the enjoyment; it probably strengthens the film because the slapstick comedy and running gag of Ryu being hungry and wanting a hamburger is very Japanese in appearance.

Erasing David (2010)

It’s more of a documentary from a film-maker than an actual film, falling into the same category as Supersize Me and Fahrenheit 9/11, but I’ve included it because not only is it something that few will have seen, but it is also feature-length and is very much worth an hour and a half of your time.

David Bond is a film-maker who is wondering whether it is possible to disappear off the face of the earth for a month. Hiring private investigative company Cerberus, he assigns them the task of finding him when he disappears. What makes this film really engaging is that slight element of the dramatic – it’s evidently a documentary film but the chase and the switches between the hunters and the hunted, along with pre-disappearance footage of David & his family gives Erasing David a real cinematic edge that few documentaries like it have.

The added bonus here is that it really does make you think, something that any good documentary exploring a particular subject should: Erasing David does perhaps delve a little unnecessarily into conspiracy territory but thankfully when that happens it’s due to David Bond’s genuine fear which plays strongly to the aforementioned drama element.

District 13 (2004)

This French film is a little gem: whilst some will criticise it for being a glorified promotion of parkour, if you can appreciate the psychology and the deeper meanings of the film the reward will be more significant than you would expect – Luc Besson as producer perhaps gave the film more purpose than a showcase of athleticism.

The film is set in a future where the poorer suburbs of Paris have become so socially problematic that the French government has decided to cordon it off from the rest of France and thus create a District, calling it District 13. Street gangs within the district appear and District 13 becomes a ungoverned, poverty-stricken place where crime is unpoliced and its citizens are uncared for.

The parkour elements come in the form of two main characters who choose to progress through the story by throwing themselves off rooftops and buildings as a means of transport. The slightly unusual nature of it and the parkour being the central advertised theme but not necessarily the planned epicentre of the film gives the action element of the film a lot of flair – mix this in with what I presume is the main intention of the film, to show the diversity and stark differences between the rich & the poor in France and what the future may hold if it continues ignored, and you’ve got yourself an intelligent flair, something most action films fail to achieve.

It’s worth noting that District 13 has one of the best choreographed openings of any film I’ve seen – it kicks the film into motion excellently.

.REC (2007)

I don’t like horror films, but I absolutely loved .REC. I don’t know whether it was the faux-documentary style or the clinically perfect suspense building, but .REC hit all the right buttons.

.REC is a Spanish film about a reporter making a documentary about Barcelona’s fire stations. When the station she is at gets a call about a woman trapped in an apartment, she goes with the firemen to the apartment building and her along with the firemen, police called to the scene and several civilians find themselves trapped in the building also when the area is quarantined off.

This sets the film up excellently for some close-quarters, narrow corridor horror, the kind that really makes the audience scared. Cue shaky camerawork, slow realisations and jumpy moments, all surprisingly well executed – none of .REC feels tacky or archetypal, which I suppose is why I enjoyed the film so much.

.REC is a horror film with originality, something you rarely find nowadays.

Planet Terror (2007)

Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino got together and made themselves a double feature in tribute of the 70s film genre ‘grindhouse’. Whilst Tarantino was off letting Kurt Russell kill women in a car, Rodriguez was busy making a wacky action horror film that has all the calling cards of a B-movie and all the entertainment value of a good one.

Planet Terror features multiple plot lines all connected by a zombie outbreak which causes the band of plots to weave together, throwing a bunch of characters together who fight off the zombie onslaught. There’s a lot of gore, lots of zombies, some weirdly brilliant cameos and some rewarding ‘what the f*ck’ moments.

Planet Terror may make hardly any sense and display some less than Oscar-worthy individual performances, but you don’t really mind – when you watch this film you know what you’re letting yourself in for. Planet Terror is the ultimate popcorn flick – scepticism & cynicism are pointless feelings to have when watching this because its faults are either deliberate or unintentionally funny. I hate to the use the word but it is very apt: Planet Terror is very much banterous.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (1990)

Adapted from a play by the person who wrote it, Rosencrantz & Guildernstern are Dead plays out surprisingly different from its origins – doesn’t mean that’s a bad thing though.

The story is based on two minor characters from Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, who in this story are contemplating the meaning of existence amongst other things whilst travelling to where the King of Denmark is. The two characters are played by Gary Oldman and Tim Roth, and their performances alone are what makes this film so good – you may not like what the film is about but the way these two play off each other is worthy of watching.

The source material probably shouldn’t have been adapted for the silver screen and whilst the film does fall a little flat in the plot department, the dialogue and playful back-and-forths between both Oldman and Roth subdue that problem. Is a film worth watching for just one element of it? I’d say so on this occasion – both leads shine here.

Russian Ark (2002)

This film is nothing less than a masterpiece. Intricately crafted, expertly acted and efficiently filmed, Alexander Sokurov’s incredibly ambitious 90 minute feature couldn’t have been more impressive.

His aim was to make an entire film using a sequence shot – the entire film is made in one take. That may not sound like much but in reality the achievement is monumental. Sokurov used a 2,000 strong cast and, acting as the unseen narrator, placed his cast of actors all over the Russian State Hermitage Museum in a variety of costumes and scenarios from different eras of history before filming one, entire fluid sequence of events which is almost curated by ‘The European’ – he accompanies the narrator through a journey through and around time.

The idea itself is quite simple but its underlying themes are intricate – however, it’s purely the monumental nature of the film and how it is made & filmed that makes it so breathtaking. If you appreciate your films, this is one that will be far and away the most amazing cinematic experience you will witness. Understand why Russian Ark is so extraordinary and you’ll sit in awe watching it.

Ca$h (2010)

Not as monumental as Russian Ark but worth your time is a very recent film from director Stephen Milburn Anderson. The “independent film in a world of Avatars”, Ca$h is meant to be a psychological thriller that sees Pyke Kubic, a calculating and cool criminal, trying to track down some money that his now incarcerated brother stole but lost. Turns out broke couple Sam & Leslie found the money – all half a million dollars of it – and decided it would ease their financial woes.

Pyke doesn’t particularly agree with letting them off the hook by taking what’s left and decides he wants them to get back every single penny they spent, any way they can.

The director does think the psychological aspect of itself is the driving force of the film but even though it isn’t, thankfully the thriller element along with Sean Bean’s veteran acting credentials carry the film along nicely. Ca$h has a strange charm about it – it doesn’t look fantastic, it isn’t the best film you’ll see but it carries a sort of persona that is affable enough to keep you watching. It’s a neat little film, the one that will inevitably be good value for money when its independent nature knocks the price of the DVD down sharply.

Here’s our full review.

Crank (2006)

Different thriller now – this one’s an all-out action affair that is pure crazy. Jason Statham plays Chev Chelios, a hitman who gets poisoned and must keep the adrenaline in his body pumping in order to stay alive long enough to take revenge on the people who poisoned him.

As you’d expect with a film that relies on constant adrenaline, Crank is full of it. It’s ridiculous and wild, and full of action that gives you the cheap thrills. It’s not a masterfully crafted, deep film – it’s probably the opposite. But Crank provides entertainment and then some and if you don’t finish the film with a silly smile on your face, you weren’t watching it intently enough. The culmination of the film is something out of a video game – I guess the plot of the film wouldn’t be too amiss from a game either…

There’s even a sequel: not as good, but just as wacky.

Tsotsi (2005)

This is a great little independent film. Adapted from a novel of the same name, Tsotsi is a South-African film by a South-African director, Gavin Hood, that sees a young leader of a gang in the slums of Johannesburg steal a car without realising a baby is in the back.

He’s not a compassionate kid, but the baby makes him open up and become a better person. The story’s a bit sappy (the tagline being “Hope set him free” for the film) but it holds strong throughout, mainly in part to some excellent solo performances. Tsotsi has an excellent soundtrack and aesthetic to boot. It’s a powerful film above anything else – the film has three different endings and all three have the desired impact effect, much like the rest of the film has.

Naked Gun (1988)

People who know me will know that I adore this film – I held it back from Never Seen It for as long as I could, but it’s time to put it in. A lot of people will have seen it, but I reckon more (especially this generation) won’t have seen it.

Naked Gun, much like Airplane!, is a slapstick comedy film that uses puns, innuendo and gags more frequently than anything else in existence. However, you never feel choked by the number of gags and gaffs – pretty much every joke is spot on. The criticism of the jokes will lie in their familiarity: Naked Gun was made 22 years ago so from then until now you’ll have seen some of the jokes and puns in other films that took inspiration from it.

The trio of creators, Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams and David Zucker (who also made Airplane!), clearly had a hell of a lot of fun making this. Watching the film with their director commentary brings a lot of laughs. But it’s Leslie Nielsen who shines as Frank Drebin, the head of Police Squad. The plot’s almost irrelevant: let’s just say the Queen’s in the US, there’s a baseball game, a villain and some wonderfully woven jokes and one-liners.

The origin of modern day slapstick begun with Abrahams and the Zuckers and Naked Gun is the ultimate exhibition.

Snatch (2000)

This is a fantastic British film. Starring the likes of Jason Statham, Benicio Del Toro, Vinnie Jones and Brad Pitt as a boxing “pikey”, the quick wit, snappy British dialogue and multiple narrative weaving made Snatch a brilliantly entertaining film. It was Guy Ritchie’s second film but I personally think it’s his best.

Snatch is narrated by Statham’s boxing promoter character Turkish, and him along with his partner-in-crime Tommy (Stephen Graham) find themselves caught up a lot more than you could expect. Guy Ritchie throws luck, irony and chance in as plot mechanics and the outcome is far better than I expected.

Vinnie Jones is excellent in it, as is the rest of the supporting cast and I’d say this was down to Guy Ritchie’s direction more than anything else. Snatch is a film that shows directorial influence more than any: every actor is on the top of their game.

Snatch is a film that’s ten years old now but to this day is just as good.

The Ron Clark Story (2006)

Yes, The Ron Clark Story is a TNT television-film, and yes the film was sponsored by lotion makers Johnson & Johnson, but that doesn’t stop this film from being a powerful true-story feature. Matthew Perry stars as Ron Clark, a creative & ambitious teacher who moves to New York City to teach a class at a public school. The kids there are practically living in poverty and crime and Ron takes it upon himself to change their lives for the better.

As you’d expect, The Ron Clark Story is deliberately a heart-warming, inspiration and perseverance story so it does play to some expectations. However, I watched it four years ago when it was first released and I still remember it. Matthew Perry’s role is a world away from the likes Chandler, Oz and Matt Albie but his performance is nothing less than excellent. Perry got nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe because of it.

If you’ve seen the film Coach Carter and Remember the Titans, it has that same kind of inspirational teacher figure who helps a bunch of kids to be the best (albeit with less basketball and racism). I really liked both of those films too.

Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Comedy kung-fu action films may not be a thriving genre but if it was Kung Fu Hustle would still be the cream of the crop. It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen – it’s got all the characteristics of kung-fu films but it’s humour and flair is very much Western. It’s an intriguing mixture but its implementation pays off big time.

Stephen Chow’s imagination is let loose with Kung Fu Hustle as the film bounces along happily, aware of its own incredulity. While most kung-fu films don’t seem to be self-aware of the fact that the martial arts shown wouldn’t be doable without ropes and pulley systems, Kung Fu Hustle knows this and it’s this self-awareness of the genre it parks itself in awkwardly that gives the film strength and surprising entertainment value. It makes jokes with the subtitles, it has brilliant narration, the martial arts is both impressive and intentionally incredulous (particularly the musical instrument bit) and the special effects are really well-used.

I reckon out of the five films in this Never Seen It, Kung Fu Hustle has been seen by the most people but I’ve included it because it’s one that those who haven’t seen it absolutely have to – even if you don’t like kung-fu films, much like Kung Fu Panda it’s the film’s self-awareness of its context that makes it so appealing and worthwhile to watch.

Le Donk & Scor-Zay-Zee (2009)

I wrote a review of this a while back but I thought I should include it into one of these articles anyway since it is one that few will have seen. Shane Meadow’s mockumentary should really have been a television series but it still makes a bloody good film. It’s the partnership between Meadows and actor Paddy Considine that the film gets its strength from: in the same way that Dead Man’s Shoes their movie partnership and their creativeness is the foundation of the film.

Le Donk was their creation and it took a while for them to realise their ideas. Le Donk is a washed-up roadie looking for a big break into the music industry – the film uses real-life rapper Scor-Zay-Zee as the opportunity for Le Donk to realise his dream. He “signs up” Scor-Zay-Zee and uses him to try and perform in front of a massive crowd as a warm-up act for, as Le Donk calls them, the Arctical Monkeys.

The sometimes cringeworthy, realistic comedy improvisations are very funny and the film really is a personal victory for Meadows and Considine. Filmed in just a week for £50,000, they realised their idea onto the big screen and it was every bit as rewarding as hoped.

Cashback (2004)

Now this is a film that deserves to be in Never Seen It. Cashback is an 18 minute short film about Ben, a teenager who works in the British supermarket Sainsbury’s and has insomnia. His imagination runs wild and the film is an exhibition of this: a teenage mind in overdrive. The director Sean Ellis does a fantastic job of creating geniunely realistic characters in a realistic setting.

Cashback for the most part a unique realising of the mundane but the film’s entertainment comes from Ben’s weird fantasies – he has broken up with his girlfriend and his dull life contrasts his stark and creative imagination. He wants to take an art degree at university and is working to raise the money. Ben uses his monotonous job as a means for creating rhythm in time – what makes this film more than just a small film project is the palette of creativity that Cashback exudes in such as short amount of time.

It’s the idea of seeing beauty in everything, to see the amazing in the not-so. It’s artistic and what makes it even more so is that it isn’t boring artsy… Cashback has a relatable artistic quality that I’ve never seen before. It’s a mini masterpiece.

Oh, and there are naked women in it.

EDIT: Apparently there is a full-length feature version of the film – it is an expanded version of the short which supposedly has the whole of the short within it. I’d watch that.

True Romance (1993)

With one of the strongest group of actors I’ve ever seen in any film, Hans Zimmer creating the score & Top Gun director Tony Scott in the director’s seat with Quentin Tarantino writing the screenplay, True Romance on paper had all the makings of brilliance. It meets this expectation and then some. I only watched True Romance on the recommendation of a friend, not knowing anything about it whatsoever. How it had managed to stay hidden from me is a mystery as it’s absolutely fantastic from pretty much every angle.

Christian Slater stars as Clarence Worley, a simple film lover who works in a comic book shop. After meeting Alabama (Patricia Arquette) whilst celebrating his birthday alone in a cinema, they end up falling in love and getting married. The film takes them through their mission to sell a stash of stolen cocaine stolen from Alabama’s ex-pimp Drexl (Gary Oldman) to a Hollywood director with gangster Vincenzo Coccotti (Christopher Walken) and his men hot on their heels looking to get back the cocaine that was originally theirs.

It’s hard for me to describe why True Romance is so good: maybe because of the originality, the perfect acting, the excellent twisting narrative, the touches of Tarantino that add to the entertainment, the unconventional love story… perhaps it is all of these things put together that creates the ultimate cinematic package.

True Romance is very comfortably in my top ten films. Almost 17 years old now and probably deserving the title of cult classic, True Romance has to be seen. I implore you to watch it, at least to admire the abundance of grade-A actors who all play off each other amazingly.

Planet Terror (2007)

Robert Rodriguez is a great director. He’s brought us the likes of the Mariachi “Pulp Western” trilogy, From Dusk Til Dawn and Sin City (and Spy Kids for the youngsters) and his style of direction is not too dissimilar to Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino himself was guest director for Sin City, he co-directed with Rodriguez the 1995 comedy Four Rooms and he starred in From Dusk Til Dawn and Desperado).

Fitting that they should partner up and create a film project that incorporates “all the exploitation genres”. Both directors take elements from these genres when making their films and they collabarated to exploit this, so to speak. Grindhouse was born and it consisted of two films: Death Proof and Planet Terror.

Rodriguez’s zombie/action/comedy/thriller/horror/sci-fi genre mix featured Rose McGowan (Charmed) as a pole-dancer who gets caught up in a mini zombie apocalyse and has to team up with the likes of ex-boyfriend El Rey (Freddy Rodriguez), restaurant owner JT (Jeff Fahey) and Sheriff Hague (Michael Biehn) to fend off the attack.

Planet Terror has multiple interweaving narratives, with Bruce Willis leading one of them as a demented Lieutenant of a military base whilst Josh Brolin heads up another as sinister doctor Will Block. The narratives arch all over the place, twisting around each other… but it works. Planet Terror shouldn’t work but it does – it gets away with inconsistencies and flaws purely because of what its intentions are.

It’s not a serious film (Rose McGowan gets a gun for a leg at one point) and it’s definitely meant to be taken lightly and with a smile on your face. You’ll get that because Planet Terror provides enough fun and excitement to keep your entertained throughout. It’s silly but very aware of this and this makes for a great albeit unusual popcorn flick.

Quick note: watch for Tarantino’s cameo in Planet Terror and the Danny Trejo-fueled trailer at the beginning. This trailer was a spoof but is now going to be made into a film (and rightly so).

Dirty Pretty Things (2002)

Perhaps only considered a small film on a global scale, Dirty Pretty Things takes a very gritty, realistic and dirty look at life in London for illegal immigrants. Audrey Tautou plays a Turkish immigrant named Senay who works as a maid at a hotel. Living with her and working with her at the hotel is a Nigerian, Okwe (Chiwetel Ejiofor). The hotel manager runs an operation in the hotel where illegal immigrants sell their organs for documents & passports – Okwe and Senay get unwillingly tied up in this.

Dirty Pretty Things may be a little melodramatic and politically driven below the surface but it’s still a powerful, interesting and well directed film. It’s not a big-budget film and I think because of this it can be more vivid and brutal with what it portrays. Simply it’s a great film that does a lot with a little.

Chopper (2000)

I love this film. I first remember watching this film by accident a few years ago at 1am on a weekday morning whilst channel surfing. I don’t know why I was awake then but I’m very much glad I was or I won’t have found this Australian gem. Chopper is based on a true story stars a nearly unrecognisable young Eric Bana as extortionist Mark “Chopper” Read. The real life man is actually a national celebrity who has wrote a series of autobiographies which the film takes pages from.

The film is much like Dirty Pretty Things in how it presents the narrative: it’s gritty and sometimes brutal. However the brutality is laced with dark humour and this gives the film an edge that is compelling to witness. Bana is electric as Chopper (I’d go as far as saying it’s one of the defining performances of, at the very least, his career if not any actor in the last 20 years) and it’s his performance that drives the film forward and gives it its quirky nature that’s so utterly engaging.

Get over the fact that it’s a low budget Australian film: that’s irrelevant and Bana more than anything else makes that so. Chopper’s brilliant and just like True Romance it is comfortably one of my favourite films. Not in my top ten (there’s just too many films in existence) but it’s right up there and rightly so.

Caché (2005)

A film for the critics, Caché is the work of director Michael Haneke and it plays a tune that hits all the right notes for that niche market. Average Joe cinema-goer, please disregard Hidden as a film you should go out of your way to watch because it’s not for you. I think Caché is excellent because of how it is filmed – if it weren’t for the film-making side of things Caché probably wouldn’t have had the same effect as it did.

I must stress that you shouldn’t watch Caché if you’re a fan of familiarity. The plot follows literary television host Georges Laurent and his family as they try to find out who has been posting them weird, cryptic drawings through their letterbox that link to the past. Caché is a success also due to how you are shown the story – the story itself isn’t  fantastic, it’s the story-telling that is.

I’m not trying to take anything away from Caché though as it is an excellent film. It’s well-acted, well-directed and the narrative has the twists that make for great viewing. The cinematography is the piece de resistance though – certain scenes are shot in such a way that would make even the most talented directors envious.

I guess I’ve included Caché onto this list more because you quite literally won’t have seen it more than because you should. That being said, if you appreciate how films are made give this one a look even if you come away thinking it was pretentious and boring.

Talladega Nights (2006)

Adam Mckay struck comic gold with Anchorman in 2004 and he followed suit with a surprisngly hilarious film starring Will Ferrell as a NASCAR jackman who gets the chance to do what he was born to do – “go fast”. Partnering up with him is John C Reilly, who compliments Ferrell like they were twins. Step Brothers followed Talladega Nights two years later and it’s the chemistry that makes both of them films work.

Ferrell and Reilly are comically perfect together, playing off each other with brilliant one-liners and crazily funny scenes throughout. To help boost the laughs even more is Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat, Bruno) along with several other excellent comedic actors, the likes of Gary Cole, Jane Lynch, David Koechner, Jack McBrayer and Michael Clarke Duncan helping out.

While the film grossed over $150 million and could be classed more as a “never seen it” film, I’ve included it because the premise of the film is solely on American soil and I found it in a bargain bin for £3 the other day and felt compelled to buy it even though I’ve seen it multiple times.

It’s a brilliant silly film that plays to Will Ferrell’s comedic strengths and with John C Reilly playing off him superbly? It’s not as funny as Anchorman but it’s pretty damn close and it really comes into its own at times.

Dr Strangelove (1964)

Stanley Kubrick was told he couldn’t do funny, so it came as some surprise when Dr Strangelove was released and could be regarded as one of the funniest films made to date. It may not have the same reaction now, as it dates back 46 years and even Kubrick can’t keep audiences laughing off their seats almost a decade later, but Peter Sellers in particular makes this film a riot, playing three individually delightful characters.

The premise of this black comedy film is that a crazy US Air Force general orders a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union and the US government have to do everything they can to stop the attack from happening as it would trigger Russia’s Doomsday device which is destroy everyone on Earth.

Full of ingeniuty and brilliantly witty scripting, Dr Strangelove is a clinically funny film that mocks several cultures throughout but gets away with it on sheer hilarity and balls. Sellers is on stellar form as all three of his characters and is complimented by an array of great performances. The ending of the film is a strange but compelling finale which goes into the hallmarks of film moments and it’s the same with several moments within the film.

It’s a shame that the film was released so long ago because I’d bet this generation won’t appreciate Kubrick’s comedy as much as it deserves. Dr Strangelove is a fantastic comedy, plain and simple.

Naked Gun (1988)

Another golden oldie in the comedy genre, Naked Gun stands as one of my all-time favourite films for one reason more than any: anything Leslie Nielsen says is comic gold and Naked Gun has a script that plays to this strength. A Zucker-Abrahams comedy, Naked Gun sees Nielsen star as a policeman who along with his Police Squad stumbles across a plot to assassinate the Queen of England. Determined to stop it from happening by any means necessary, Frank Drebin (Nielsen) sets out to find the perpetrator and save the Queen.

Nielsen is meant for slapstick humor but the slightly “innocent” way he goes about it is brilliant. There’s more laughs to be had in Naked Gun than pretty much every film ever made save for maybe Airplane! (which coincidentally has Nielsen in) and if I had it my way it would be far more well-known than it is in today’s society. It may be at times nonsensical or ridiculous but that’s where it excels because it plays with your expectations. It also does something that pretty much all spoof films fail to achieve: when it is predictable, it’s still incredibly funny.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

Matthew Broderick has done a fair few films (Godzilla, The Cable Guy, The Producers, Inspector Gadget, War Games) but Ferris Bueller’s Day Off remains my favourite. It’s a silly but funny take on the “rebel without a cause” stereotype that doesn’t take things seriously but doesn’t have to. It’s almost as if the script was written by a daydreaming teenager who wished he was Ferris Bueller, but a very well-educated and witty teenager at that.

Ferris Bueller doesn’t like school. He decides to take a day off, convincing his parents that he is ill. He hatches an elaborate plan to make the day off as worthwhile as possible and with the help of his best friend Cameron (Alan Ruck) and girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) he goes on a trip to Chicago that’s full of fun and good times (for the most part).

It’s not a complex comedy this film but it really does work. It tries to be different but thankfully it doesn’t try too hard – the little things work really well in keeping with the film’s pace and direction. Things like breaking the fourth wall and narrating certain parts as well as giving bit-part extras a little side story to create a dual narrative are excellent touches. For the 80s teen audience, it was no doubt a film to idolise. Now, probably not so much. But it’s still a film worth watching, if only for the iconic moments that have been referenced in many different media products since 86.

Blazing Saddles (1974)

Where would satirical comedy be without Mel Brooks? An influential comedic genius, Mel Brooks makes not one of his best comedy films (that honour goes to either The Producers or Spaceballs) but his most enjoyable comedy film with Blazing Saddles that features Gene Wilder at the height of his career and Cleavon Little in probably his most memorable role.

To ruin a western town and make a load of money for himself by building a railroad where it once would have been, a corrupt politician appoints a black sheriff called Bart (Little) to run the town after his mercenaries kill several townspeople in an attempt to make the town not livable in. While at first being despised by the entire town, Bart gains their trust with the help of local drunkard but Jim (Wilder) who is renowned for being a crack shot with a gun. Together they create a plan to help to save the town from destruction.

Little and Wilder are excellent and have a brilliant chemistry throughout but the star of the show isn’t an actor: it’s the ending, which remains to this day probably my favourite ending out of any film. Ever. Literally breaking the fourth wall, Mel Brooks goes into new territory with Blazing Saddles and the ending is the epitomy of this. The whole film is fantastic though. If it was made any later it would be rife with controversy over its approach to portraying American racism and some people may take offense to the way it does it but there’s absolutely no question in my mind: Blazing Saddles is a must watch and it’s a highlight of both Mel Brooks’ career and the film industry as a whole.

Dead Man’s Shoes (2004)

Shane Meadows and Paddy Considine collaborated to make Dead Man’s Shoes which stars Considine as an ex-paratrooper returning to his home town to settle a score with the men who tormented his mentally challenged brother. Motivated by his belief that God will forgive these men and let them into heaven, he sets out to stop that from happening by any means necessary.

Dead Man’s Shoes is a brilliant British film and its dark undertones compliment the dark narrative excellently. The plot twists are surprising and welcome and particular scenes are incredibly well directed.

The Truman Show (1998)

One of my favourite Jim Carrey films, The Truman Show digs deep into the darker side of reality television, but from a comical standpoint. Ed Harris stars as a God-like “creator” who is commissioned by a television studio to make a reality television show that chronicles, 24-7, the entire life of Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) from birth. The creator makes an entire mini world which Truman lives in and does everything he can to keep him there, making him develop a fear of water and add people to his life to change up the show.

Jim Carrey is bang on form as he strives to live a life of travelling and when he stumbles across unusual things going on in his town he tries to escape and get away from his life, unaware of the real underlying secret. The film culminates in an absolutely fantastic finale but the whole film is excellent throughout. The Truman Show is a real gem.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

Shane Black’s directorial debut takes a different approach to your typical crime film, mixing dark humour with a film noir style and a tongue in cheek approach to a narrative structure. Starring Robert Downey Jr as a thief who gets lucky and winds up getting the part in a Hollywood film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang tells his story and how he gets caught up in a muder mystery with his high-school crush (Michelle Monaghan) which plays out very much like the books of their childhood did.

It’s an unconventional crime film, as several scenes play out much against your expectations and the story progression and dual narrative structures blend together and mix-and-match to create a very much engaging plot which compliments the film’s subtle humour and dark undertones beautifully. Downey Jr is on top form and his chemistry with Val Kilmer who plays a gay private detective is excellent. Downey Jr’s arrogant style plays out excellently with the script and is one-liners are both pitch-perfect and quotable.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a clever film that plays with you, mixing different styles of film and making its own genre in a superb way. Really worth a watch.

Full Metal Jacket (1987)

In my opinion there are too many war films in the film industry and many are underwhelming or try too hard to be emphatic. Thankfully that’s not the case with Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket, which takes a gritty look at both the US Army’s training methods and the ugly and dark side of the Vietnam War.

Focusing on several soldiers going through training before being shipped out toVietnam, Kubrick tries his hand at depicting the war and he pulls it off with brutal conviction. It’s a harrowing take on the war, but the use of perhaps lesser known actors and some real life soldiers aswell creates a better sense of realism and the intense action sequences that lack in special effects but focus more on the mentality of the soldiers and the man against man scenarios are more impactual, more engrossing. Full Metal Jacket isn’t your ordinary war film and it’s more bare-bones, gritty approach to war depiction works on greater levels than you’d expect.

He Was A Quiet Man (2007)

In a similar vein to Office Space but from a darker viewpoint, He Was A Quiet Man is an unconventional look at office life, as Christian Slater stars as a man who’s bored of his dead-end job, tired of living day by day as an unappreciated, over-worked office worker. One particularly bad day after weeks of debating he decides to end it all in an office-shootout, where he wants to kill the people who make his life a misery. However, someone beats him to the punch and Bob (Slater) becomes the accidental hero who saves the day by taking out a fellow disgruntled worker.

After saving the day, Bob becomes a public hero, but things get complicated as a fellow office worker Vanessa (Elisha Cuthbert) was made paralyzed after getting shot by the disgruntled worker and Bob takes it upon himself to take care of her. Vanessa is the only person Bob cares about in the world but she blames him for saving her life and not letting her get killed. William H Macy also stars as another complication. Macy plays Bob’s boss who promotes him to vice-president of Creative Thinking but is more closely involved in his life than it first seems.

He Was A Quiet Man is a twisted film to put it bluntly but it’s a great watch because it tries something new. The special effects are maybe unnecessary and the film can be a little slow at times but Slater’s stellar performance makes up for this alone.

Jackie Brown (1994)

Probably Quentin Tarantino’s least known film, it explores blaxpoitation and combines an excellent class with a ironically well-structured non-linear narrative and a very much inventive script which plays just right with the tone of the film. Pam Grier stars as Jackie Brown, the strong-minded middle aged woman who’s not taking any shit from nobody, not even Samuel L Jackson’s gun-runner Ordell Robbie who wants to take out Jackie to cover his own ass and prevent the ATF from tracing his sales back to him.

Jackie serves as his money smuggler as she works as an air-hostess for a Mexican airline and when things go awry and the ATF try to use Jackie to take down Ordell she devises a plan to walk away from jail and with 1/2 million dollars of Ordell’s money, with the help of bail bondsman Max Cherry (Robert Forster).

With Robert De Niro, Bridget Fonda, a young Chris Tucker and Michael Keaton supporting the main cast there’s a real sense of energy from the film, and the pacing is spot on. It seems that Jackie Brown gave Tarantino the taste for using a female as the main protagonist, as Kill Bill followed six years later.

It may not be as good as Pulp Fiction or Reservoir Dogs, but Jackie Brown holds its own and it’s well worth a watch if only for Pam Grier’s stellar performance and the fantastically-directed main scene.

Desperado (1995)

One of my favourite sleeper hits, Desperado is the second in Robert Rodriguez’  “Pulp Western” trilogy and in my opinion it’s the best. After El Mariachi, Rodriguez boosted the cast, secured more money and handed the lead role of El Mariachi to Antonio Banderas and in my opinion he gives his best performance of any film he’s been in as the guitar-playing, gun toting mariachi who is seeking revenge for the death of his lover.

It’s an exquisitely directed film with a lot of Mexican flair and led by Banderas, every individual in the cast come into their own throughout the film. Special mentions to Steve Buscemi as El Mariachi’s friend who puts the fear into Cheech Marin, and Joaquim de Almeida as the drug lord Bucho who is more closely connected to El Mariachi than it first seems.

While Once Upon A Time in Mexico was a great film in its own right, Desperado is Rodriguez’ best alongside From Dusk Till Dawn, mixing pitch-perfect dialogue with explosive action sequences and a compelling story to tie everything together. The highlight of the film goes to Buscemi’s story telling where you are first introduced to El Mariachi but there are multiple scenes in Desperado that are masterpieces.

wmd – The Inside Story (2008)

I’ll doubt anyone who reads this will have heard of this film because of its British independent cinema background and its minimal release and despite it seeming to be bare-bones and politically driven it’s as good as modern day thrillers get.

Based on the decision to invade Iraq, it focuses on an MI6 desk officer who stumbles across the falsification of documents supporting the decision from the American and British government and his self-set task to try and uncover the secrets behind it. While you may think that the film is something Michael Moore may have written it doesn’t play out like that and there’s no real element of documentary here.

The film is shot entirely using CCTV and hidden cameras to create the element of Simon Lenagan’s character being constantly watched. It’s an impressively designed film and when it’s over you really feel inclined to believe everything the film wants you to believe. wmd. was based on evidence which actually exists, with a fictional narrative based around it. In my opinion it’s a modern-day Hitchcock thriller which plays with your expectations and doesn’t include more than needed. It’s very much an unknown film but if you can find the film, you’ll be rewarded for watching it.

Adaptation (2003)

Probably Spike Jonze’s lesser known film, Adaptation is almost a sequel to Being John Malkovich, but from a different, real-life perspective, that of the writer Charlie Kaufman. The film tells the true story of how he was tasked with writing a film about a book based on flowers entitled The Orchid Thief but after much struggling settled on writing a script about himself trying to write the flower film.

Charlie Kaufman adapted the script for Adaptation to include a fictional brother and a more dramatic series of events but the film is highly enjoyable within its uniqueness. The bizarre elements work much in the same way Being John Malkovich does and while you don’t have anyone entering their own mind you have Nicolas Cage playing Kaufman and his fictional brother. His performances are brilliant throughout and with the help of Meryl Streep playing the journalist writing up an article about orchid poacher John LaRoche but falling in love with him and writing The Orchid Thief, Adaptation flows really well despite its complexity in the structure and the slow pacing.

Dogma (1999)

Very much a cult classic, Kevin Smith’s comedy of biblical proportions stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck as the fallen angels Loki and Bartleby who find a way of getting back into heaven through a loophole which if successfully used would prove God was not infallible and would undo all creation. The Voice of God sends prophets to stop Loki and Bartleby from getting back into Heaven and save humanity.

Much in the same vein as Clerks and Jay & Silent Bob, Dogma has a very select humor and its slightly no-holds-barred satirical approach to Christianity may not hit the right notes for some people but for the right people Dogma is a highly enjoyable and unique twist on religion which plays with the conventions of typical religion-based films.

Featuring Alan Rickman, Chris Rock, Alanis Morrissette as God and Salma Hayek, the obscure cast mix surprisingly works with the obscure plot. Dogma may not be one of the best films ever made and it certainly isn’t without controversy but it’s a well-constructed film that, much like Wayne’s World, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Jay & Silent Bob and Dumb and Dumber, is a firm favourite in a select few’s film collections.