#92 Dangerous Liasons (1988)

I thought I had seen this movie back in the 80's but I think I would have remembered this. Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer and Uma Therman in the 1700s in France. Lots of psychological game playing, seduction and deceit. Brilliant acting and a very young Keanu Reeves.


Favorite Quote: When it comes to marriage, one man is as good as the next. And even the least accommodating is less trouble than a mother.
Trivia: Alan Rickman, who played Vicomte de Valmont in the Broadway version, was offered to reprise the role for the film, but turned it down to make Die Hard, which was released a year later.
Awards: 3 Oscars
Would Jessica Like This Movie? Period pieces kinda bug her.

Next Movie: Melvin And Howard

#93 Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

I'd probably seen this movie a dozen or so times since high school but I never realized, until this viewing, that Ferris is kind of a jerk. He claimes he just wanted to Cameron an awesome day but I think the truth is he wanted to hang out with Sloan and he needed a driver. Still it's always fun watching this classic and Edie McClurg steals every scene she's in.

Favorite Quote: Oh, he's very popular Ed. The sportos, the motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, wastoids, dweebies, dickheads - they all adore him. They think he's a righteous dude.
Favorite Scene: The parade
Trivia: John Hughes told Ben Stein, who had a degree in Economics, to present an actual Economics lecture in his scenes. Hence nothing Ben Stein says (aside from the roll call) is scripted.
Awards: Nominated for Golden Globe
Would Jessica Like This Movie? She loves it

Next Movie: Dangerous Liasons

#94 Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)

Been awhile since my last post. Since then Jess and I got married and are currently in escrow for a beautiful house here in Salida, CA. I haven't had too much time to watch movies but, during one of her longer naps, I was able to watch Mad Max 2.

Biko and I had a lot of fun watching this one. I don't think I'd seen it since it came out so it was almost like seeing it for the first time. I did recall the car and the hairy, grunting kid however.

The move takes place in post-apocalyptic Australia where the desert is filled with nomads and gangs riding around looking for gas so they can drive around and look for more gas. All the girls have 80's hair styles and all the gang members have ass-less chaps. Don't be eating when you watch it.

Favorite Quote:  Greetings from The Humungus! The Lord Humungus! The Warrior of the Wasteland! The Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla!
Favorite Scene: Tanker truck battle
Trivia: The black Interceptor driven by Mel Gibson is a 1973 Ford Falcon XB GT Coupe, a car exclusive to Australia. A limited number of these cars were exported by Ford to New Zealand and the United Kingdom, but never to North America. Since only 949 of that particular model Falcon were ever produced, they have become highly sought after by car collectors on six continents; there are over 100 of them that have been brought over to the United States so far, primarily by importing/replica car companies like www.madmaxcars.com (The largest importer and builder of mad max replicas in the USA) along with several Interceptor replicas assembled from "non-GT" & "GT" Falcon coupes.
Awards: Saturn Award for Best International Film
Would Jessica Like This Movie? Too violent for Jessica. She was napping anyway.
Next Movie: Ferris Bueller's Day Off

#95 The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)

At this point there doesn't really seem to be much left to say about this one. If you don't feel it's blasphemous you probably see it as brilliant. If you feel it is blasphemous you probably didn't finish it. I will say this; Martin Scorsese speaks very, very fast. His commentary was almost too fast to keep up with. Easy on the caffeine there Marty.

One other thing I would like to mention; Willem Dafoe's brother performed my father's kidney transplant. I always thought that was kinda cool.

Next Movie: Mad Max: Road Warrior

#96 Mona Lisa (1986)

This was the first movie on the list that I had never heard of or knew anything about. Bob Hoskins has such a sharp accent I actually had to turn on the subtitles.
Me "What's that fool sayin'?"
Biko "Hellifyno."
Anyway, Mona Lisa has to great performances, one by Hoskins and the other by Michael Caine. It also has lots of hookers. Lots and lots of hookers. In fact, I think every female, speaking role is a hooker except for Hoskin's daughter and ex-wife. His ex-wife comes close.

Favorite Quote: You can't find plastic spaghetti just anywhere.
Favorite Scene: Michale Caine discusses being "happy"
Trivia: Director, Neil Jordan, used real prostitutes in the film.
Awards: Bob Hoskins nominated for Best Actor
Would Jessica Like This Movie? The accents would annoy her.
Next Movie: The Last Temptation Of Christ

#97 Fatal Attraction (1987)

This movie was responsible for more men staying faithful to their wives than any other movie, song or sermon ever could have. Oh sure she seems naughty and fun at first but then things get bad very, very fast. Holy crap I forgot how freaky this movie was. Glenn Close had never really been thought of as "sexy" before this role ( or since, really) but no one could have been so convincingly bat shite crazy as she was.
Another thing to watch for here is the performance of Ellen Hamilton Latzen as Michael Douglas's daughter. All she wanted was a bunny to call her own... we all know how that went.

Favorite Quote: I'm not gonna be ignored, Dan.
Favorite Scene: The ending will have you rooting for the cheater.
Trivia: Glenn Close still has the knife she used in the movie hanging in her kitchen. Do not request hasenpfeffer for dinner.
Awards: Nominated for 6 Oscars
Would Jessica Like This Movie? Jessica no likey scary movies. No no no.
Next Movie: Mona Lisa
One Final Thought... Ann Archer was WAY hotter than Glenn Close.

Movie News

Ridley Scott to Direct New 'Blade Runner'

But is this a sequel or a prequel? A reboot or a remake? What?

Posted by Kate Erbland Thursday, August 18, 2011 10:26:00 AM

We’ve known since March that Warner Bros.’ financing and production company Alcon Entertainment was working on securing a rights package (one that included rights specifically for prequels and sequels, not remakes) for Ridley Scott’s iconic sci-fi thriller “Blade Runner,” but news has been quiet since then. Not so today. Deadline reports that the film’s original director, Ridley Scott, is set to direct and produce a new “Blade Runner” film that “advances [the] seminal and groundbreaking science fiction film.”

The exclusive news doesn’t come with many details – it’s unknown if this next film will be a sequel or a prequel, whether any of the original cast will be involved, and how much it will reach back to the film’s source material, Philip K. Dick’s novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Considering that the first film was only very loosely based on that work, it’s safe to say that we probably won’t get too much more Dick in this new film. The only thing we do know is that it will not be a remake, at least as far as Alcon’s rights package guarantees that.

The original “Blade Runner” was released by Warner Bros. in 1982, and the Harrison Ford-starring film was adapted by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards (Best Visual Effects, and Best Art Direction). It also routinely tops "best of" lists and was, in 2007, "was named the 2nd most visually influential film of all time by the Visual Effects Society." As Deadline notes, the film was not a blockbuster at the time of its release, but it has clearly gained a huge amount of respect in the intervening thirty years.

Scott has lately seen a bit of a career resurgence by returning to his classic films that established his fame and skills. Next up is “Prometheus,” a film that was once billed as prequel to Scott’s 1979 “Alien,” but which is now seen as a “cousin” to the original film. Scott’s latest films, such as “Robin Hood,” “Body of Lies,” and “American Gangster,” while all promising, didn’t quite live up to the director’s previous successes. If getting back into films like “Alien” and “Blade Runner” herald Scott’s return to groundbreaking sci-fi and visuals, I’m all in.

What do you think of this news? Would you prefer to see a “Blade Runner” sequel or prequel? Or would you prefer to see nothing new from the “Blade Runner” universe?

#98 Out Of Africa (1985)

Number 98 on The 100 Greatest Movies Of The Eighties. Out Of Africa is the epic chick flick with Meryl Streep as the strong, fighter type and Robert Redford living the dream until she convinces him to chuck it all and be her man. It doesn't end well for him. The movie itself, however, is beautifully filmed. Africa looks stunning and the cinematography is spectacular.
Also, while watching this movie on Saturday my tooth started hurting something fierce. By Saturday night I was writhing in pain and by Sunday I was a zombie. The tooth has since been extracted but this movie will forever be connected to the dentist for me. Now it's tome for my vicoden.
Stolen from Wikipedia:Out of Africa is a 1985 adventure drama film directed and produced by Sydney Pollack, and starring Robert Redford and Meryl Streep.The story based loosely on the autobiographical book Out of Africa written by Isak Dinesen (the pseudonym of the author Karen Blixen), which was published in 1937, with additional material from Dinesen's book Shadows on the Grass and other sources.


Favorite Quote: "Perhaps he knew, as I did not, that the Earth was made round so that we would not see too far down the road."
Favorite Scene: Monkeys and a gramophone
Awards:Won 7 Oscars including Best Picture and Best Actress for Meryl Streep
Would Jessica like this movie? She watched a little of it but it's a long movie.
Next Movie: Fatal Attraction
This week we are preparing for our wedding coming up this weekend so I may not get to watch the movie till next week.

#99 Stand By Me (1986)

Stephen King really knows how to create characters. In Stand By Me his characters come to life under Rob Reiner's direction and once the movie is over you feel like you've taken the journey with them. I was actually surprised that this movie wasn't in the top 20. This one is worth owning, which I will once payday comes and watching over and over. The soundtrack is great, the cinematography is beautiful and the kids are awesome.
Stolen from IMDB: "Based on Stephen King's Short story "The Body", "Stand By Me" tells the tale of Gordie Lachance, a writer who looks back on his preteen days when he and three close friends went on their own adventure to find the body of a kid their age who had gone missing and presumed dead. The stakes are upped when the bad kids in town are closely tailing - and it becomes a race to see who'll be able to recover the body first."
Excellent movie.


Favorite Quote: "Geez, Gordie. Why couldn't you have gotten breakfast stuff? Like Twinkies and Pez and Root Beer?"
Favorite Scene: Chris talks about the teacher who stole from him.

Awards:Nominated for an Oscar for Best Writing and Screenplay. Many others
Would Jessica like this movie? She would have loved it but she went to bed early.
Next Movie: Out Of Africa

#100 Lost In America (1985)

I just finished the first movie on the list, Lost In America, and I've decided i really need to see more Albert Brooks movies. Very funny movie and a great way to kick things off.

Synopsis Stolen From Bing Movies: Bored with their cushy suburban existence, yuppie David (Albert Brooks) talks his wife Linda (Julie Hagerty) into selling everything they own and hitting the road to "see America." As a starting-over gesture, David and Linda are romantically remarried in Las Vegas -- which, ironically, proves to be the beginning of the end of their idyll. In short order, Linda loses their life's savings, the couple nearly self-destructs at Hoover Dam, they take blue-collar jobs in a go-nowhere Arizona town, and....Well, if you know your Albert Brooks, be prepared for a steady stream of manic social satire.

Favorite Quote: "I've seen the future and it's a bald headed man from New York"
Favorite Scene: David loses it at Hoover Dam
Awards: The film's script won the National Society of Film Critics award for Best Screenplay.
Would Jessica like this movie? I doubt it. She's more into the Breakfast Club type of 80's movie.

Lights, Camera...

It's the beginning of another movie list. This time it's The 100 Greatest Movies Of The 80's. Every weekend, or so, I'll be watching the next one on the list and then the following week I'll be doing trivia from that movie and giving away lots of stuff. Make sure you listen every morning and follow along here.
The first movie on the list is Lost In America. After I watch it I'll post my review and start with the prizes.
Also, I'm going to be pretty straight forward through this whole thing and leave all the clever writing to those who write cleverly. Here, we're just gonna watch a lot of great movies, eat a lot of nachos and have some fun.
On a personal note, I am getting married soon so I'll be adding Jessica's thoughts to whichever movies she decided to watch with me.
You can find the list at digitaldreamdoor.com
Now, on with the show...