The Money Pit, if for no other reason than Hanks’ losing it on the landing after the staircase dies.
Roxanne with Steve Martin (since L.A. Story was already mentioned).
This thread has reminded me of sooo many movies I need to re-watch.
In keeping with the season, **A Christmas Carol **-- the George C. Scott version!
Undercover Blues
You’ve got Dennis Quaid and pre-blimped Kathleen Turner as a spy couple with a toddler, never breaking a sweat at any point. You’ve got two of the finest character actors alive, Stanley Tucci and Fiona Shaw, in outrageously over-the-top performances, chewing the scenery like it was made of meat and they were piranhas. What’s not to like about it (okay, apart from Tom Arnold but we don’t see much of him)?
Jane: You took our child into a knife fight?
Jeff: It was a fair fight. Two of them, two of us…
Lt. Theodore ‘Ted’ Sawyer: What just happened here?
Jeff Blue: I’d say it was a domestic disturbance.
Lt. Theodore ‘Ted’ Sawyer: A domestic disturbance?
Jeff Blue: Yeah like on the Honeymooners. You remember how Ralph used to fight with Alice.
Det. Sgt. Halsey: I don’t recollect Ralph using semi-automatic weapons.
Jane Blue: But Norton sometimes did. And Mrs. Manacotti on the third floor, wow what a temper.
Well, there is that great shot of naked Patrick Swayze from the back.
Also, he has one of the greatest places to live in all of filmdom. Sturdy walls, too.
I thought of starting a thread on characters’ residences in movies. Not mansions or anything, but those choice, impossibly perfect apartments on the water, rustic cabins, and arty little flats in funky neighborhoods… It was Swayze’s place in this movie that got me thinking.
The Long Kiss Goodnight-- An action movie where a woman gets to be the hero. She’s more action hero than Samuel L. Jackson, her sidekick, that’s how kick ass she is.
Fools Rush In-- a romcom with Selma Hayek and Matthew Perry. What’s not to love about this movie? Romance, comedy, racial insensitivity. . . what’s not to love? “Lucy, you got some ‘splainin’ to do!” and “The white people are melting!” With lines like that, how can I pass it up?
I agree, Tremors IS too good for this thread. So I will take it off the table and offer up: ‘With Six You Get Eggroll’, starring Doris Day and Brian Keith. Or even better, ‘Yours, Mine, and Ours’ starring Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. Both are rather dated, about big-blended-families, somewhat cringeworthy, with happy endings. But I always watch when they’re on.
Another vote for Twister - the music, the great quotes “Roll the maps - don’t fold the maps - roll the maps”, “Rabbit is good, rabbit is wise”, “Did you see my cows?” So hammy, terrible great special effects, but great great music.
“You’re in… the suck zone.” Edit: And yeah, I own the soundtrack on CD. (Well, it’s ripped into iTunes now, but still.)
Labyrinth!
David Bowie. In tight. Plus muppets and goblins.
That fact that you haven’t mentioned one of the greatest acting giants of all time who happened to me in this movie…disturbs me greatly.
Forgive him Mr. Ward. He is ignorant.
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! First saw it in high school when I was totally into D&D, and it enthralled me. Sex, swords, chivalry, shiny armor, beautiful lush scenery… wow. Saw it again a few years ago and it actually held up quite well. Nicol Williamson as Merlin is just terrific (“A dream… to some. A nightmare to others!”). Watch for Gabriel Byrne, Helen Mirren, Liam Neeson and Ciaran Hinds in early roles.
Maybe some of these movies are too good to be mentioned in this thread, but I’ll take that chance:
Buckaroo Banzai is sheer zany sf goodness. Watch out for the watermelon in the lab.
The Hidden is a great sf B-movie about a murderous alien fugitive hiding in L.A. The first reveal of the alien in the hospital room stuck with me for a long, long time.
True Lies is IMHO Ahnuld’s greatest film. “Did you… kill people, honey?” “Yes, but they were all bad.”
The Mummy is goofy and scary by turns. Loved it.
Dumb and Dumber is a riot. I practically wet my pants when I first saw them trying to tame the hot peppers in their mouths by drinking from the vertical streams of the restaurant ketchup and mustard bottles.
The Rock and Christopher Walken together made The Rundown a surprisingly good action flick. Shoulda done better in the theatres.
Deep Impact really worked for me. Morgan Freeman and Tea Leoni esp. rose to the occasion. Couldn’t they have come up with a better name for Robert Duvall’s character than “Spurgeon Tanner,” though? C’mon, guys - you’re not even trying!
Men in Black really hit my sweet spot. The interplay between Messrs. Jones and Smith is hilarious.
Pirates of the Caribbean (the first one) was just great - cast, dialogue, action sequences, sets, costumes, etc. A movie about a Disney ride can be good? Who knew?
Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid was Steve Martin’s wonderful spoof of noir films. Too bad he kept getting shot in the same spot. Rachel Ward has never been lovelier.
I got hooked on Time After Time when it was in heavy rotation in the early days of HBO. H.G. Wells (Malcolm McDowell) goes into the future to catch Jack the Ripper (David Warner). Good stuff.
Big fat ditto. Same with the Nanny McPhee movies.
Dittoes also for much of Elendil Heir’s list, especially Rundown, which we just saw last week. The Rock’s movies are surprisingly entertaining. I’ve seen him on talk shows – he’s smart and witty and doesn’t have a big head.
Forgot all about Men in Black, Tremors, The Mummy and The Hidden. I had that on VHS years ago – need to get the DVD.
Ward is terrific in Tremors. And very funny.
I was watching this (for what must have been the fourth time) one evening. San Diego, local station. They “trimmed” the movie “for time considerations” by shortening the coffee-pouring sequence down to about one second. Martin finished pouring the coffee almost as soon as he starts.
I howled in outrage.
.
I’ve rewatched Deep Impact a few times, too. Despite its many flaws it somehow works for me. Tea Leoni is excellent in it - her character could so easily have been shallow.
I’ve seen Eagle Eye maybe five times now. No idea why. Perhaps it’s because all the characters’ actions are so believable - they don’t suddenly turn into superheroes. Shia LaBlah is perfectly cast, for a change.
Isn’t it only objectifitying women properly if they appear only as sex objects? They all had proper personalities and were not obsessed with boys. It’s one of the few teen movies where one of the main characters (Dushku) is still single at the end and it’s not an issue at all.
How anyone could dislike a film with that opening cheer is beyond me, anyway. 
I don’t think this is regarded as a bad movie, it’s just that it’s in a genre that some people look down on.
It’s widely regarded as a brilliant kids’ film though. Ditto the Goonies.
Came in to mention this one…if it’s not considered too good for the thread. Two of the small pleasures of the movie are that it’s just a little bit outside-the-box for a western, and the action isn’t (always) telegraphed – some of the transitions introduce unexpected elements.
One of my favorite Christmas movie.
“Chefs do that”
Also from the same director and actress : Cutthroat Island
“Bad dog !”
The Sandlot for me.
Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael.