Best of the Letter "J:" Jaws (1975)

For my previous full review of Jaws click here.

By any account, Jaws is a monster movie, a horror film that tries to scare the audience.  I fully believed it should not be a good movie.  And then I watched it.  Jaws is great.  Sure, there's a monster shark, but this is not a brainless film by any stretch.  It's a character drama as well, a tightly written and witty script that provides wonderful commentary on human fear, honor, and stupid politics.

Give Jaws a try.  You'll love it.

This is a great cast.  They are looking at a rather big fish.

Best moment: "You're gonna need a bigger boat."

Entertainment: 10/10
Artistic Value: 6/10
Technical Merit: 8/10

Overall: 8/10

Runners up for the letter "J:"

• Jurassic Park
• The Jerk (I guess?  You come up with good runners up for "J.")

Best of the Letter "I:" Inception (2010)

I've already reviewed Inception at some length.  You can find that review here.  Read the review; I had tons of fun discussing how this movie made me ponder reality, our ability to perceive reality, and such.  I'll include my favorite line here: "In no other movie will you find the main characters involved in an alpine shootout, floating weightless in a hotel elevator, plunging off a bridge in a van, and flying across the ocean in a jet, all at the same time!" 

Granted, looking back I may have been a tad over enthusiastic about Inception.  It's still a great film, and certainly the best of the letter "I," but I think anymore I'd probably tone it down to about a 8/10.  After all, there are some rather far-fetched concepts to accept for the plot to work at all.  But if you will simply accept the film as presented you'll have a grand time and get to think a lot to boot.  Thumbs up.

Runners up for the letter I:

• I Confess
• In the Heat of the Night
• The Incredibles 
• It's a Wonderful Life

The Best Christmas Movies Ever

Hollywood has long had a love affair with Christmas.  The "Christmas Movie" is a well-established genre, with more and more of these films running marathons and specials on tv every year, with more in theaters every year as well.  

What follows is my list of the best Christmas movies ever.  To qualify, a movie has to be: 1) about Christmas, or 2) involve Christmas as a major plot element or theme.  There are plenty of others, and many of them are great.  But these are the best, according to my opinionated (and thereby treated as correct in this forum) point of view.

#8: It's a Wonderful Life

Who can resist Jimmy Stewart at Christmas?  "Merry Christmas you old building and loan!"  Overall, not the best movie ever.  But certainly one of the most cheerful and sweetest.  

#7: A Christmas Story

Ralphie and his quest for a Red Rider BB gun are now legendary.  This is one of a very small selection of films that really gets little boys, and how they think, right.  "You'll shoot your eye out, kid."


#6:  Elf

Honestly, this is a modern classic.  This one is all about Will Ferrell, who proves he can carry a movie on his elfish optimism.  A great supporting cast and screenplay certainly also help.  "Buddy the elf, what's your favorite color?"


Hit the jump for the top 5.

Best of the Letter "H:" High Noon (1952)

We're going to get this out of the way right now: you will get utterly sick of the "High Noon Ballad (Do Not Forsake Me, O My Darling)".  This tune plays nearly incessantly throughout the full movie.  On top of being a bit dated, the tune is also rather out of date by today's standards, rating on the "cool song, bro" scale somewhere between "Buffalo Gals Won't You Come Out Tonight" and "The Ballad of Davy Crockett."

Aside from that song, this is a thoroughly wonderful, amazing, spectacular movie.  Few have been as influential on how we think of westerns, with the concept of the lone hero facing off with the gang of misanthropes at (you guessed it) High Noon.

Gary Cooper does his dead level best, starring as well as anyone could as Marshal Will Kane.  He grows increasingly distressed by how the town he protects refuses to help either him or themselves, and his fury is seen, yet remains below the surface.  This is also Grace Kelly's (that is princess Grace of Monaco to you) first starring role in a movie, and it becomes quite evident why she hit the big time after this one.

The themes established are poignant: pacifism vs protecting those you love; honor vs revenge; justice vs injustice; doing what is right even when everyone deserts you.  The themes are laid out, teased out, and the suspense builds.  By the time Frank Miller comes to town the suspense is high and the time is noon.  And then the classic showdown, well-planned action, and perfect denouement play out.

Westerns don't get much more classic or iconic than this, making High Noon the best film you can watch that begins with "H."

Entertainment: 8/10
Artistic Value: 10/10
Technical Merit: 9/10

Overall: 8/10

Runners Up for the Letter "H:"

• Harvey
• Hoosiers
• The Hunt for Red October
• Hotel Rwanda