I have not seen Se7en or Forrest Gump, but the other three movies strike me as being too episodic and disjointed to be perfect movies, Lebowski especially. I like Lebowski, but it was all over the fucking place. Close Encounters … the Devil’s Mountain from mashed potatoes, yeah, inspired filmmaking all right. And Planes, Trains etc. was just boring. Shouldn’t even be on a list of good movies.
I was kinda rolling with you until that very last film. Groundhog Day? REALLY? Perfect? I found Murray to be annoying and the characters kind of tinny.
If the first two movies are, as I think they are, National Lampoon’s Vacation and Christmas Vacation, I have to point out that Chevy Chase was the lead in each case, disqualifying them from being perfect movies and throwing serious doubt on their goodness.
I thought it was a disgusting piece of antisex slime without a bit of honesty or heart to it. Why do you think it is perfect? Was it perfectly … awful?
Since I just saw it yesterday for the first time since last year, and cried again*, another vote for It’s a Wonderful Life.
*I’ve loved this movie for twenty years, but the older I get, the more emotionally powerful it is. I didn’t used to cry when I watched it.
I agree with a lot of the films presented. Would add “Betelgeuse” (not sure about the spelling) which has a pitch-perfect horror comedy tone from beginning to end, “Year One” which hilariously deconstructs Biblical epics, and “Silverado” which to my mind revitalized the Western, and is a pleasure to look at with your eyes.
Commando.
I can watch it a dozen times in a row, and there isn’t a single scene that doesn’t suck me in.
Salt, it was good from start to finish.
This is actually the first movie I thought of when I saw the thread title.
First off, it’s full of incredible music by some legenadary artists. If it had simply been a series of unrelated music videos*, it would have been highly entertaining already. Add just enough of a plot to hang the music on and give you something to root for, the just-right deadpan performances of Belushi and Aykroyd, the ever-escalating and hilariously over-the-top chase sequences leading to an absolutely perfect climax; everything makes perfect sense within the film’s skewed reality and it’s a hell of a satisfying ride from start to finish.
*This is essentially what *Blues Brothers 2000 *became, which is why I enjoyed it despite being a pale imitation of the original. The music still rocked.
No love for the Star Wars movies? The original, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi?
I expect the ewoks take ROTJ out of the running for most people. Hard to argue against the other two, though.
Raiders of the Lost Ark. Now there’s a perfect movie.
Aliens.
Game over, man, game over.
Ha! I watch it every single time it’s on. The perfect eighties movie.
For me, the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie is perfect. I have watched it over and over and it leaves me smiling every time. The music, the scenery, the pacing, the special effects, the actors all came together for a perfect popcorn movie-movie.
Second Aliens and The Road Warrior 2. They grab you by the shirt and don’t let go until the end.
I also have a category of movies that won’t win any Oscars or change your life, but do what they’re supposed to do with their limited ambitions. The prototype for this kind of movie is Dave.
:dubious: It was a great movie, case closed. Suspenseful, exciting, transgressive, darkly humorous…fantastic cast, colorful characters, interesting dialog…what else is there to say? How on earth was it “antisex”? You’ve said that about other movies too, like Hardcore with George C. Scott…why?
The Princess Bride
I’ll throw Dangerous Liaisons out there. The whole thing depends on everyone doing what they’re supposed to do right when they’re supposed to do it. It’s complicated without being confusing and the payoff at the end is fantastic.
Plus, John Malkovitch’s smirk.
Jurassic Park. Only the first one, though.
*Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory *(the Gene Wilder one)
Serenity is very tight and well put together.
Also Shawshank Redemption, Seven and Aliens as others have said.