Top 5 Films of All Time

5 out of many in no particular order

As I put some thought into the films I would select to be in my top five, the first one that automatically came to mind was John Hughes's The Breakfast Club (1985). The Breakfast Club, in my opinion this film does an excellent job in expressing issues that universally exist, making it easy to relate to. From beginning to end, the characters and plot develop eventually leading up to a moral message that no matter who you are or where you come from, something as simple as reaching out can help you see past people and how others stereotypically view them. Although this may seem a bit cliche, it is true and by choosing this cast supports it due to how they are characterized. What I enjoyed most about this film are the characters and how the storyline overall develops. The diversity of this group gives viewers an opportunity to see things from each of their perspectives and demonstrates how their actions are what motivate the plot.






Normally I don't fully consider a movie to fall under the genre of action if there are a couple of fighting scenes and the majority is dialogue, unless those scenes are unforgettable. For me to enjoy and action film, there should be back to back action incorporating the usual elements; fighting, punching, blood, explosions, you know, manly stuff. The film Olympus Has Fallen was a great action film that, once reaches the central conflict, involves back to back action scenes that kept me on the edge of my seat. Not only does this film have lots of punching, fighting, shooting and explosions but also incorporates a suspense and unexpected plot twists. The protagonist is a highly intelligent man who is constantly thinking on the spot and strategizing different ways to save the president. Additionally this film, focuses on the political aspects of today's world and economy, which involve the ongoing feuding with different countries, giving the movie a more socio-cultural perspective.     




As a big Marvel series fan, I without a doubt had to choose a film that involves my all time favorite superhero which is The Amazing Spider-Man also known as Peter Parker. Although I can go on and on about Spider-Man I'll break down the essential parts on why I specifically enjoyed this film more than the trilogy that came out prior to this film. Aside from all the action and web slinging, I admired how this film was created and based on the actual comic series, rather than doing a slight spinoff of it. Don't get me wrong I did in fact enjoy the trilogy but just happen to enjoy the more recent one. This is so because of the different aspects such as the original storyline and especially the characters. Peter Parker is someone many people can relate to as a normal teenager and a school student. He undergoes many emotional and life dilemmas which, reminds audience members that Peter Parker is in fact a real human being with real life problems. This is something I highly admire because he isn't characterized as this invincible, manly superhero figure who has very little emotions.




What I enjoy about Alexander Payne's The Descendants (2011) is that the genre, which is comedy drama, is noticeable and is highly manifested within the film. Although the plot is mainly focused on a family tragedy, there are various instances and pieces of dialogues that reminds us it is a comedy and make us laugh. Also, the protagonist, Matt King, narrates throughout the film to give the viewers some context on different scenes of the plot to place the setting. The movie's storyline is mainly focused on Matt King's internal and external conflict making him the central focus. By doing this the the story is mainly coming from his perspective and take on the whole situation that revolves around the plot.

Personally, if there is a trending piece of news that is mainly focused on one specific individual, I really enjoy learning about that person, their success and the story of how they became to be who they are today. Let's look at David Fincher's The Social Network (2010). The aspect of learning about a person's story and what it took for them to get where they are today highly intrigues me. As we may all know, Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook, did whatever it took to become what he is today, the youngest billionaire. However, he didn't do all this by just creating a simple website that is designed to communicate with others on. Throughout the story, I admired how the film takes place in different locations and times. This way audience members are able to see his transformation throughout the years and what he went through whether good or bad. Casting an individual to play one specific person is probably the most significant detail in creating a film like this. However the casting crew did a phenomenal job in selecting Jesse Eisenberg to play the role of Mark Zuckerberg.   

What Makes a Great Film?

Blog posts..... Let's get it.

Although there are uncountable ideas on what makes a great film, there are three that stand out to me.   

In my opinion it seems to me that the number one thing audience members look for in a movie is an engaging storyline, the one and most important element that connects and holds the entire film together. Although at times the storyline of a film seems jumpy and confusing, if well made, there is always that one aspect or moment within the movie that creates a compelling plot. This essential attribute in a film is what keeps viewers interested in wanting to always know more like what will be the protagonist's or even the antagonist's next move, who will succeed or who will fail or if there will there be a plot twist. One example of a film with an engaging storyline would be Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino (2008). As if he already didn't have enough to deal with, having his family constantly trying to drive him away for their benefit, Korean war veteran Walt Kowalski is living in a crime-ridden Detroit neighborhood forced to confront his own sense of prejudice when a troubled Hmong teenager who lives just one house down attempts to steal his most prized possession. Knowing the main character, Walt Kowalski, the storyline becomes even more interesting as the plot progresses, due to his shocking change of heart. However, the film does come with a rather sad yet satisfying conclusion.

Another significant component is making a great film would be the characters. Of course characters are physically the most important element you need in a film, who they are and their personalities, traits and qualities are what makes them so crucial to the general idea and concept of a film. As a movie gradually moves along in the story, we are able to interpret by a character's actions and words who they are and weather we choose to either like them, dislike them, empathize with or just flat out ignore them no matter how trivial or major they are. Characters are a way of setting the tone for a film and are what the plot mainly revolves around. For example in Fernando Meirelles and Katia Lund's Cidade de Dues aka City of God (2002), there are many characters that have different backgrounds and come from different worlds but are all completely essential to the entire plot and how it develops. Theire past, present and future can highly influence the films direction.

Lastly the third attribute in making a great film is production value/mis en scene. A high production value can help set the tone, emotion and meaning of a shot or scene. Although not many audience members pay full attention to the production value of different scenes, it is very crucial to a film. Different elements, major or trivial, that make up the production of a scene or sequence are extremely important depending on what type of scene is taking place. The detail that goes into creating production value is what makes these films so worthy of appreciation, that is to those who notice it. For example in Michael Bay's Transformers (2007), the production value is extremely high, due to the obvious fact of numerous back to back explosions of buildings, cars you name it. These type of elements are what makes a films production value skyrocket.