TOP 150 MOVIES

Greed is the catalyst for the bloody pursuit featured in No Country for Old Men, the Coen Brothers (The Big Lebowski) Oscar winning adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel of the same name.

Josh Brolin stars as a hunter who stumbles upon two million dollars in drug money, only for death to come calling in the form of tenacious hitman Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem). Tracking them both is Tommy Lee Jones as savvy sheriff Ed Tom Bell, who mourns the increasingly violent nature of the modern world.  

Excellent performances from all involved (especially a chilling Bardem) and on key filmmaking by the Coens makes No Country for Old Men a thrilling, violent, dark, and utterly unforgettable movie experience not for the faint hearted.

Have the sight of 1000 balloons ever looked so glorious? Is there a better montage than that found in this film’s heartbreaking opening scenes?

If there is one word to describe Up, it would be “risky”. Having an elderly widow and obese young boy as the protagonists in an animated adventure tale would require a large leap of faith for any movie studio.

Yet through Pixar greatness is achieved with these most unlikely of partnerships, giving way to a vibrant exploration of how life’s great adventures can come from griefs gloomy depths.

If cinema had saints, Paul Newman would be one of the first to be canonised. His performance as Luke in the southern prison movie Cool Hand Luke is a prime example as to why.

Cheeky, biting and with a rebellious streak as long as the chain-gang he is attached to, the character of Luke also represents one of the finer versions of the Christ figure in cinema, with sacrifice and redemption key themes throughout.

Filled with many great moments, the entertaining, haunting, and undeniably moving Cool Hand Luke deserves all its praise and then some.  

Turning the royal drama on its head, The King’s Speech doesn’t worry itself with aplomb and instead focuses on the friendship between two men who would change one another’s lives and the future of a country at the brink of war.

Colin Firth delivers a career best performance as King George VI, the stuttering royal who to overcome the public humiliation of his royal duties enlists the help of Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), whose unconventional methods results in real change.

Director Tom Hopper’s (Les Misérables) innovative and stylish visual approach combined with the top notch acting from the films two leads results in a rousing, heartfelt historical drama of the highest calibre.      

Deepwater Horizon potently puts a human face on the devastating 2010 man-made environmental disaster, repositioning Peter Berg (Lone Survivor) as a filmmaker of strong visceral and emotive skill.

When people think of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010, their first thought would be the blackened waters of the Gulf of Mexico that surrounded the drilling rig. Berg’s focus is on the 11 workers who died and the countless injured who survived the fiery results of a BP organisation motivated by greed and took unnecessary shortcuts resulting in a literal dead-end of an unintended yet foreseen (by some) tragedy.

That anger, sadness and frustration felt throughout Deepwater Horizon is matched by excellent craft and skill in re-enacting this man-made biopic-disaster-thriller with an immersive, absorbing pull that puts the audience in the oil stained, debris scattered, flame engulfed oilrig that stood alight as a symbol of corporate incompetence bordering on the sociopathic.

James Whale’s Frankenstein remains the definitive screen version of Mary Shelley’s story and one of the most influential horror films ever made.

Colin Clive plays Henry Frankenstein, a scientist driven to create life from the dead. When he succeeds, the result is a creature brought to the screen by Boris Karloff in a performance of remarkable physical control and quiet sadness. Karloff’s Monster is both frightening and strangely pitiable, a being who never asked to exist and is rejected by the world that made him.

Whale directs with a sharp sense of atmosphere and theatrical flair, particularly in the creation sequence. The film’s stark visuals and Karloff’s presence have defined the character for generations.

Visually arresting and unforgettable in every way, Fernando Meirelles’ City of God is a stunning exploration into the brutal, poverty-stricken crime underbelly in Brazil, where teenage hoods run drug enterprises and murder those who get in their way.   

With a cast mostly comprised of non-professional actors and filming taking place in the actual slums of Brazil, an authentic and gritty tone is set throughout City of God , enhancing the feeling of danger and the stakes at play in an environment where young sociopaths drunk on power live by an itchy trigger finger.

Along with Meirelles’ expert handle on the technical aspects of his craft, City of God is a film to be seen and to be applauded. 

Taking on one of the greatest books ever written is never an easy feat, yet Peter Jackson did just that and created cinematic history with The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

The first of three films to be based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic novel, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring focuses on a quest led by powerful wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellan), brave warrior Aragorn (Viggo Mortensen), and courageous hobbit Frodo (Elijah Wood) to destroy an all-powerful ring before it falls into the wrong hands.

Excellent choice of New Zealand location for the depiction of fantastical Middle Earth, top grade visual effects, and a truly enthralling story portrayed by a fantastic cast result in a swords and fantasy film of incredible technique and rousing spirit.

Although vampire films are essentially a genre of their own, the 1922 originator Nosferatu still stands as the creepiest, darkest and most innovative vampire movie to haunt the screen.

Based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula (legal reasons saw many a character name change) and directed by F.W. Murnau, Nosferatu is a silent film classic that proves a picture can deliver a thousand scares and features one of the great performances in Max Schreck’s monstrous Count Orlock.

Murnau’s use of shadow and framing gives the film a constant sense of unease, while Schreck’s stiff movements and gaunt appearance make Orlock feel less like a man and more like something that simply should not exist. The result is a work that still unsettles more than a century later.

The crime classic upon which The Departed was made, Infernal Affairs taught a lagging Hollywood a lesson in how to make a hard as nails yet entertaining gangster movie, incorporating a slick visual style to accompany its gripping story of two undercover operatives (Andy Lau and Tony Leung) working on opposing sides of the law.

A thrilling crime drama which is high on style and backed with depth and intelligence, Infernal Affairs features fluid direction from Andrew Lau and Alan Mak and an excellent screenplay filled with great characters and plot twists that will keep you on your feet.

Lau and Leung bring a quiet intensity to their roles, making the constant threat of discovery feel immediate and personal. Their performances, combined with the film’s sharp pacing and moral tension, turn what could have been a standard undercover story into something far more gripping.