Had fun participating in the ongoing History of Film series on Movie Mezzanine, this one being about the Best Movies of the 1960s. It’s just a series of lists from different critics. Reading through everyone else’s, I now think, DOH, Repulsion, how could I leave that one off?? But whatever, it’s a list. I stand by my choices, all of them! No way am I gonna put together a list for the 1960s and not include an Elvis film. I wrote a review of Live a Little Love a Little as a guest post on Jeremy Richey’s wonderful site.
Anyway, Movie Mezzanine is a great site. I got to meet and hang out with Sam Fragoso at Ebertfest, it was great to put a face to the name. The lists are fun because you can see everyone else’s choices, and interesting discussions usually result.
Oh do I love these lists! I have to go back now and look and the lists from earlier decades. These are always fun to read and give me great ideas, while also making me feel a little bad for reminding me of how many truly great movies I sill need to see! Here is my 60s list:
1. Battle of Algiers
2. Z
3. Seconds (Thanks Sheila that was your rec! I think Cruise in the remake is the role he was born to play.)
4. Jules and Jim
5. 2001: A Space Odyssey
6. Dr. Strangelove
7. Lawrence of Arabia
8. Playtime
9. The Great Escape
10. Fail Safe
These are all great, too! It’s fun to see the ones that pop up repeatedly – like Playtime – yay! – and then the outliers, the ones not on every list.
Dr. Strangelove was just playing at the Film Forum but I missed it. Love that movie so much.
and hmmm – was I the one who turned you on to Seconds? I don’t think it was me – it’s not ringing a bell!
Yeah, you mentioned Seconds in a post about Rock Hudson, not sure you specifically reccomended it to me but you were the one who made me aware of it.
Dr. Strangelove is amazing, Sellers gets all the attention but George C. Scott’s cheerful disposition throughout is what makes it for me.
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President Merkin Muffley: You’re talking about mass murder, General, not war!
General “Buck” Turgidson: Mr. President, I’m not saying we wouldn’t get our hair mussed. But I do say no more than ten to twenty million killed, tops. Uh, depending on the breaks.
Oh! Okay – yes, that checks out – I love Rock Hudson, and do love that movie.
And George C. Scott. I KNOW. the lunacy!
The Umbrellas of Cherbourg shows up a lot. Wow. All I know is I went to see it 4 days in a row the week it came out. Therefore, enjoyed it = understatement.
ha – understatement!
It is a purely magical film – I love that you saw it 4 days in a row. I’ve never had that experience before!! I am glad I’ve seen Umbrellas on the big screen – huge impact.
All that Playtime and Kubrick makes me so happy!
Me too! Playtime is such a riot. I showed it recently to a friend of mine and she literally fell off the couch at one point she was laughing so hard.
I was NOT prepared for Playtime. I had put it on as a background movie because my friend made me promise to watch it. Suuuuuuuure I’ll watch it I said. I think I was tidying or polishing at the time. Hands slowed….dropped. Nothing got done. It is outrageously good.
Instead of catching up on SPN, I watched Playtime last night. I got my daughter to watch most of it with me, we were supplying our own dialog during the Apartment section….
I had never seen it before, what a wonderful, happy, funny, beautiful movie!
Oh I’m so excited you saw it. Isn’t it so wonderful?? There’s really nothing else like it.