Top 10 Most Memorable Movie Experiences Of My Life

Hello once again, dear reader!

Today's list is a bit on the biographical side - I recently decided to make a list of my all-time favorite movie experiences, which was meant to include the double screening of A Quiet Place (2018) and A Quiet Place: Part 2 (2020) in my local cinema, which I had planned to see last week. Due to a certain virus you might've heard of, the screening got delayed, but I was pretty far into making this list so I decided to release it this week anyways. The experiences range from the movie theater to various couch potato marathons, with the common denominator that they have all been magical and memorable in some way. No matter how good a movie is, this list won't include any films just for the sake of how good they were when watched the first time - to qualify for this list, the experience must have some real-life element that made watching said movies especially important.

Here are my honorable mentions: Ironically watching Jason X with my girlfriend; Marathoning all 3 Monty Python films; Seeing Gravity in 3D in the cinema; Watching 7 great movies in 7 days with my dad; Watching Shoplifters from a huge screen in a movie picnic event.

10. Halloween on Halloween

The first time I saw my second favorite horror movie of all time was with my father on the most appropriate day to watch it: October 31st. The overall creepiness of the movie was made much better by the overall creepiness of the day, and the film's imagery of jack-o'-lanterns and ominous weather coincided with how our surroundings looked (Halloween isn't that big in Finland, but our household always does a jack-o'-lantern and scary weather is quite default for Finnish autumn). Watching Halloween (1978) on the actual day was a truly memorable experience, and one that I recommend to all fans of horror cinema.

9. The Room / The Disaster Artist double feature

This was just a stroke of genius from me and two of my friends. For those not familiar with these films, The Room (2003) is a cult classic known as the Citizen Kane of bad movies; it's terrible on pretty much all fronts, yet beloved and iconic for being terrible in such an entertaining way. It also has a remarkable story behind it, as the eccentric and mysterious Tommy Wiseau wrote, directed and starred in the film with a vision to make a great movie, only to fail spectacularly. The Disaster Artist (2017) is a very good film that tells the true story behind The Room, where James Franco plays Tommy Wiseau and the process of making the bad movie is followed in depth. Watching these two films consecutively made for a marvelous experience, as all the scenes from The Room were freshly in memory as we saw the stories behind them in The Disaster Artist, and seeing such a good movie after such a bad one (while the subject matter stayed the same) felt very rewarding.

8. Ferris Bueller teaches me a lesson

If I had watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986) for the first time at any other time in my life, I'm sure I would've laughed a lot and thoroughly enjoyed the film well enough. But I happened to watch it at the best possible time: when I needed it the most. It was a period of unforeseen school stress for me, with new challenges and multiple deadlines really messing with my head and causing more stress than any studying should. And in the midst of all that, I decided one evening to watch this classic comedy film that I hadn't seen before - and oh boy, did it hit hard. In that state of mind, Ferris Bueller's Day Off served as a reminder for some of my core values that I had momentarily forgotten - school isn't everything, stuff like that shouldn't be taken too seriously, there's much more to life, et cetera. It's crazy how a comedy film from the 80's is one of the things that helped turned that situation for the better, but that's a perfect example of how big of an impact a movie can have on one's life.

7. Star Wars marathon

This one was just a blast! In the weeks before Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens came out in 2015, me and my good friend marathoned all six Star Wars movies that had been made at that time. To add to the overall epicness, we watched them in an unconventional order that I had heard of: not the chronological 1-6 order but also not the 4-6, 1-3 order in which they were made, but one that made for a cool dramatic arch: 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, 6. That way it starts out strong with the original movies, but after the cliffhanger of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) the prequels are shown as a lengthy backstory, and then it all comes together in Return Of The Jedi (1983). It was cool to see these films in rapid succession, and made the hype for The Force Awakens more real. Speaking of hype...

6. Avengers: Endgame after all that hype

I can safely say that I have never been as hyped for seeing a new movie than I was with Avengers: Endgame (2019). My love for the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been well-documented throughout this blog of mine, and this was where it all culminated. I had watched all the 20 films that came before Endgame, and had been very invested in the larger and smaller continuous storylines that had built up towards this film. Most of the MCU movies, especially in more recent years, I had seen in the cinema with a certain group of friends, and seeing Endgame with them made the experience all the more fitting. I loved the film and deemed it a perfect conclusion to the Avengers story, and seeing such a wonderful work in the theaters after looking forward to it for years felt amazing.

5. 2001 from a big screen on my birthday

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is an unmatched masterpiece - if I ever post a list of my all-time favorite films, I think it's safe to say that it would be in my top 5. While my first and second times watching it were incredible experiences, the one that made it to this list is actually the third time I saw it. At the time, I was in this program where civil servants are trained, and it was my 19th birthday. After discussing ideas how to celebrate with my fellow civil servants, our brainstorming started to collide with another idea we had talked about: watching 2001 together, as many of us hadn't seen it while many wanted to see it again. And so we went to one of the lecture spaces in the evening and hooked the film up to be shown from a big screen, and it was just perfect. Watching a movie I love so much on my birthday from that screen in that atmosphere was immensely satisfying, and a memory I'll always cherish.

4. Friday The 13th in the best possible setting

There was a time last year when morbid curiosity lead to me watching all of the Halloween, Nightmare On Elm Street and Friday The 13th films in a period of a few months. While this lead to many memorable experiences (I also watched one of the films in this franchise on the actual Friday the 13th!), my favorite was definitely this one. I was at my family's summer cabin when I realized that the next film on my itinerary was Friday The 13th: Part 4 (1984), which many consider to be the best of the franchise - if you're not aware, this franchise takes place in a series of cabins near a lake. And there I was, in a cabin near a lake.

There are so many little things that made this experience absolutely perfect. I was sleeping alone in an old attic room with creaky floorboards and all that - it's a beautiful place, really, but also pitch perfect for a horror movie setting if one uses their imagination. The room has a window with a view that at night looks like it's straight out the Friday the 13th franchise: another cabin, rustling trees, the lake in the background...watching the film there made the experience so much more real. Walking in the dark to the outhouse after the film was over felt like quite the feat of courage, but being slightly creeped out by these surroundings for a night was a small price to pay for such a cool movie experience.

3. Dead Poets Society before a big exam

Look, I'm not saying that my perfect score on the essay portion of the Finnish matriculation examination is thanks to watching an inspiring movie the night before - I'm just saying that I'd like to believe that it played a part in it, as did many other factors. In Finnish high schools, senior students take a series of matriculation exams, and I had made a tradition to watch a movie related to the subject on the night before each exam - Margin Call (2011) before social studies, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) before history, et cetera. That way I wouldn't rack my brain with last-minute studying but rather cool out before the actual test, while still keeping the subject matter in my mind on some level.

For Finnish, I decided that instead of watching a Finnish movie I'd watch something that had to do with literature - after all the subject is actually called "Finnish & literature", and it's quite similar to English classes in the USA but just with our own language. And so I stumbled upon Dead Poets Society (1989), which I had not seen before, and it immediately became one of my all-time favorite movies. The timing was perfect, too: I had known that it's supposed to be a good film, but I had no idea it would be that inspiring. I kept the feeling of inspiration from it in my mind on the next morning and during the exam, and maybe, just maybe, that was the extra push I needed to write the best essay of my high school career.

2. The Hobbit's midnight premiere

My brother and I are big fans of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit books, as well as Peter Jackson's film adaptations. This culminated with the midnight premiere of the final film of the franchise, The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies, in 2014. First of all, I know that the movie got a negative reception in general, but I really liked it and especially saw it as an extremely fitting ending despite having some flaws in it. Second of all, the experience. At the time, I didn't very often see movies at their premieres, let alone a special midnight premiere like this one. Seeing the final film of such a magnificent franchise in that setting with my brother was a truly memorable and unique experience, yet somehow it isn't even the best experience we've had with those movies! You see...

1. Middle Earth Marathon

If you know me as a person or just have read this blog, you may probably guess that I like making lists quite a lot. And the mother of all lists is my personal bucket list: a list of 11 important things I want to get done in my life, ranging from visiting places around the world to items of personal growth and whatnot. The only movie-related item on my bucket list was accomplished on 1.8.2015: marathoning all The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings movies (the extended editions, no less).

My brother and I woke up around 5 o'clock a.m. in the morning. We started with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), making our way through all six films in chronological order, culminating with The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King (2003). The extended edition of the final film runs at over 4 hours, and it came to an end around 2 o'clock at night. Our abundance of snacks, the epicness of the movies and the overall atmosphere of being so immersed in Tolkien's world for the whole day made for a magical and unforgettable experience.


Thank you for reading! Any and all e-mail subscriptions will be most appreciated. Tune in next week for my ranking of the eight TV shows in the Star Trek franchise!

Ranking All David Lynch Movies

"I have no idea where this will lead us, but I have a definite feeling it will be a place both wonderful and strange"
-Special Agent Dale Cooper, Twin Peaks

That quote by my favorite fictional character of all time sums up most of David Lynch's works. His masterpiece, the television series Twin Peaks, turns 30 years old next month. To celebrate this accomplishment, I'm sharing my list on his other great works: while Twin Peaks remains his greatest achievement, I'm also a huge fan of his cinematic works. So here is my ranking of all 10 feature length films directed by David Lynch!

10. Dune (1984)

I actually enjoyed this generally disliked adaptation of Frank Herbert's 1965 book quite a bit. Many parts of it are great: Kyle MacLachlan is perfection at protagonist Paul Atreides, the Toto soundtrack is atmospheric and epic, and many of the book's strange and psychedelic elements are translated to the screen with strokes of genius. That being said, the film is deeply flawed and easily at the bottom of the pack when it comes to Lynch; my biggest issue was that the budget of the film and visual effects of the time were not enough to bring the world of Arrakis to life. The film often looks clumsy and doesn't do its source material justice there. Also many very crucial story elements are left out, making the film seem more shallow than the book it is based on. Dune is a mixed bag for me, because parts of it are so good yet it isn't the epic adaptation that Herbert's masterpiece deserves - here's hoping Denis Villeneuve's ambitious attempt this year does a better job.

9. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992)

Much like with Lynch's Dune, I have mixed feelings about this movie sequel to the two original seasons of Twin Peaks. From a glass-half-empty standpoint, the film simply isn't as good as the series. While many of the characters and stylistic elements of the show are present, it fails to feel quite as magical and powerful as the world of the two seasons before it (as well as 2017's Twin Peaks: The Return, which I am a massive fan of). From a glass-half-full point of view, however, this still is Twin Peaks. It may not be quite on the level of the series, but that's like comparing a thoroughly decent rock band to The Beatles; I love the Twin Peaks series so much that I can't really fault this film for not being on the same absolute level of perfection. The movie still has much of the show's great elements pushing it forward, and I especially enjoy the prequel format and how it allows Sheryl Lee to play a wonderful role as a pre-murdered Laura Palmer.

8. Wild At Heart (1990)

The story in Wild At Heart is that of a woman who runs away with her ex-convict husband, while the woman's mother sends a variety of strange characters to kill the man. Add to that some staples of the road trip and crime comedy genres, an unhinged villain played by Willem Dafoe, and random supernatural elements and witch sequences throughout the film. And of course David Lynch's strange directorial style to spice things up. And did I mention the main characters are called Lula and Sailor, and they're played by Laura Dern and Nicolas Cage?

Simply put, Wild At Heart is a bizarre, extremely entertaining one-of-a-kind movie that manages to be absurd and fun while also being surprisingly artistic and emotional at times - how many times has a Nicolas Cage crime comedy won the Palme d'Or at Cannes? I highly recommend this underrated gem to any and all fans of weird cinema.

7. Inland Empire (2006)

While I pray that the 74-year-old Lynch has one more film left in him, I do admit that if he never makes another movie, Inland Empire serves as quite the appropriate final work. With a 3-hour runtime and a smashing performance by Lynch's go-to leading lady Laura Dern, this film is a celebration of all things Lynchian; the surreal atmosphere, the unconventional narratives and the strange cryptic dialogue are all on full display. In addition to these classics, Lynch finds whole new ways of making strange and creative cinema: the out-of-this-world rabbit narrative (it's a whole thing) and the blurring of lines between what is real and what is being filmed into the film within the film make for a movie that's psychedelic and hard to follow even by Lynch standards. It also features one of the most mind-blowing plot twists I have ever seen in any movie!

6. Lost Highway (1997)

Lynch's Lost Highway is one of the hardest-to-follow films I have ever seen. But after seeing it and processing it, I have come to realize just how genius it is. While there are multiple interpretations to what actually happens in the film and what it all means, one point of view keeps coming back in all conversation: Lost Highway is more or less a cinematic version of a dream. This does not necessarily mean that the viewer is literally watching the main character's dream (although that is very possible to some degree), but rather that this movie's story proceeds in a dream-like fashion and watching it feels like being in a dream. That explains the confusingly shifting narratives, changes in characters and multiple inexplicable occurrences throughout the movie. Filled with haunting and nightmarish imagery and memorable sequences, Lost Highway is a cinematic piece of art if I ever saw one.

5. Mulholland Drive (2001)

Many fans consider this one to be Lynch's magnum opus. The funny thing is; I more or less agree, even though there are four films ahead of it on this list. The man simply has so many great movies, that a few of them barely edge out this one in my book. That being said, Mulholland Drive deserves all the praise it has gotten, and is one of the greatest mystery films ever made. While many of Lynch's movies delve into mysteries, no others feel quite as much like a puzzle box as this one. With so many carefully built elements crafting the strange story, lead by a mesmerizing Naomi Watts performance, this film is one to truly immerse the viewer in its multiple questions. The dialogue is wonderfully bizarre and so many of the individual scenes are pure cinematic gold.

While I don't consider any of Lynch's works to be pretentious, I do admit that he often delves into randomness for the sake of randomness, at least as an extra spice. It's interesting how that's not the case in this film compared to most of his others: everything in Mulholland Drive seems to have a sharp focus and clear reason, even if the exact nature of said reason is left open to interpretation. Just strange enough to satisfy art house fans and not quite too strange for the mainstream as many Lynch films are, this movie became his big hit in Hollywood and it truly lives up to its reputation.

4. The Elephant Man (1980)

There is one extremely strange element in this film: it's not a very strange film. And for David Lynch, that's pretty much the most bizarre and out-of-the-box thing you can do. With a cohesive story, easy-to-follow dialogue, a down-to-earth-setting and a complete lack of mysterious beautiful women singing in front of red curtains before some lucid jazz psychedelia goes down, The Elephant Man is easily the most normal Lynch movie to date. If you're wondering why it's so high on my list although I clearly appreciate the strangeness of his other works, it's simply because this is such a magnificent piece of cinema. While not a typical Lynch movie, this is a film that I absolutely love, from its strong leading performances by Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt to its emotionally powerful story and impressive cinematography.

3. Eraserhead (1977)

1977 was an amazing year for film. While George Lucas's Star Wars conquered the mainstream movie world as a game-changing masterpiece, David Lynch conquered the underground world of cult movies with his wonderful debut. Eraserhead is probably the strangest film I have ever watched. If you asked me to explain its plot to you, I'd have a hard time describing anything that actually happens in the movie. But taken as a piece of visual art, a complex metaphor or a work of underground horror cinema, or all three at once, watching Eraserhead is an unforgettable and magnificent experience.

As disturbing as the film is to watch, it is also beautiful in some strange way: the camera work and carefully crafted imagery stick to your mind in powerful ways and make you feel emotions you didn't even know to exist. Jack Nance is also pitch perfect in the lead role as the disturbed and distressed Henry, beginning the long-term partnership between Lynch and Nance. All in all, this surreal fever dream was a truly great way for Lynch to introduce himself to the world.

2. The Straight Story (1999)

While definitely more down-to-earth than most Lynch works, The Straight Story does have an endearing strangeness to it. This is thanks largely to the incredible true story that it's based on; the story of terminally ill 73-year-old Alvin Straight who, upon wanting to make amends to his estranged brother but not being able to drive, drove a lawnmower from Iowa to Wisconsin in a many-week journey. Lynch was the perfect director to capture this tale: its unique and bizarre nature as well as the heartwarming human story driving the strange events are adapted to the screen with majestic grace. This is Lynch' most beautiful film, driven by its emotional story, heartfelt soundtrack and an Oscar-nominated lead performance by the great Richard Farnsworth.

In addition to telling the mere story of a man driving a lawnmower to see his brother as we all do from time to time, The Straight Story also works as an intriguing exploration of rural American life. Many of the film's scenes are simply of the main character running into interesting characters along his journey and talking to them. Through this, the movie paints a beautiful picture of the world the people of this culture live in, and the stories they have to tell.

1. Blue Velvet (1986)

The opening shot of Blue Velvet, with the red roses in front of a white fence to the backdrop of a bright blue sky, is hands-down the most beautiful piece of imagery I have seen in any piece of cinema. And much of why this film is one of my favorites ever made has to do with beauty: just like with Twin Peaks, Lynch creates a perfect balance between disturbing elements and a beautiful undertone of magical proportions. The more humane and optimistic sides of this film feel so much stronger because the story is filled with horrible and violent moments, which make the subtly placed goodness of the movie feel surprising and earned. The trademark strangeness and psychological horror of David Lynch is definitely present, with a wonderfully over-the-top villain performance by Dennis Hopper and a plot where the discovery of a human ear leads down a rabbit hole of crime and violence. But contrary to films like Eraserhead, there's a strong theme of hope and good overcoming evil in this film, making it a rare occurrence of a David Lynch film feeling quite uplifting to watch.

Blue Velvet also has the greatest ensemble cast of any Lynch film: in addition to Hopper, the film features Isabella Rossellini and Laura Dern in amazing supporting roles, as well as one of my all-time favorite acting performances by Kyle MacLachlan as protagonist Jeffrey Beaumont. No director-actor combo that I have witnessed, from Scorsese-De Niro to Tarantino-Jackson, has worked quite as flawlessly as Lynch and MacLachlan. While they tested the waters with Dune and later continued their seamless teamwork in Twin Peaks, this is the film where their pairing proved to be a magical thing. MacLachlan's acting is not typical, but is absolutely perfect for Lynch's strange directing style. His character is eccentric, yet has a pure innocence to him that coincides so well with the film's overarching themes of hope. With its stunning imagery, stellar cast, exciting plot and Lynchian madness, Blue Velvet is nothing short of a cinematic masterpiece.


Thank you for reading! Any and all e-mail subscriptions from the text box below would be very appreciated. Tune in next Thursday for a list of the top 10 movie experiences of my life!

Top 10 Modern Movie Directors

Welcome back, dear reader!

Today I shall be looking at the art of directing, and more specifically my favorite movie directors of the modern era. I have no exact line to what time period is considered "modern" - basically this is a list of my all-time favorites, but I haven't seen enough films from the likes of Charlie Chaplin, Frank Capra etc. to compare them to these directors, and it wouldn't have felt fair to call this a list of the all-time greatest directors without any filmmakers from the 1920-1960 era or so being included. This is a list on directing and not overall filmmaking, so the ranking doesn't quite add up to whose films I enjoy the most, but there is an obvious correlation between the two as skillful directors tend to make good movies.

Here are my honorable mentions: Denis Villeneuve, Francis Ford Coppola, J.J. Abrams, Spike Lee, Wes Craven

10. David Fincher

Fincher is one of those directors who doesn't so much have a signature style but rather has multiple different styles he can switch between, so that his directing fits many different kinds of scripts. Take the down-to-earth biographical drama of The Social Network, where Fincher tells a very intimate human story, and compare it to his work on Fight Club, where everything is surreal and up for interpretation. With movies like Se7en falling somewhere in between these styles, the range of Fincher's directing is quite impressive and all the films I've seen from him are meticulously built and unique.

9. James Cameron

With 1984's The Terminator, he created one of the best action movies of all time. With 1986's Aliens, he transformed a horror-based franchise into a successful action blockbuster without jumping the shark. And with 1991's Terminator: Judgement Day, he somehow managed to outdo the first Terminator film by doing an even better job at directing the action and also making it a better piece of conventional cinema with its sharp dialogue and well-built story. Then, in 1997, James Cameron took a hard turn from his renowned action work to make the ambitious pseudo-historical drama Titanic, which resulted in a film deserving of the 11 Academy Awards it won. While Cameron's action work is enough to put him on this list, it's the extremely impressive directing he performed with Titanic that truly cements his position as one of my favorites.

8. Alfonso Cuarón

This Mexican mastermind first caught my attention with his work on Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban; I was way too young to really understand what good directing in a movie means when I saw it, yet I noticed that the film had a unique style and atmosphere compared to the other Harry Potter movies and that it was made by a different guy - might these two facts be related? Re-watching the Potter movies in more recent years has made it clear that it is indeed Cuarón's genius way of directing that makes the third installment of that franchise so special. Every Cuarón film I've seen afterwards has only cemented his position as one of my top 10 favorites; his two Best Director Oscar wins for the meticulously crafted Gravity and the aesthetically stunning Roma were very much deserved.

7. Steven Spielberg

If there's one director whose filmography one could grow up with, it's Steven Spielberg. As a child you can immerse yourself in his magical family-friendly productions like E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, during your youth you would then move on to adventurous flicks like Jurassic Park and the Indiana Jones series, and upon reaching a mature enough age, immerse yourself in serious films such as Saving Private Ryan and Schindler's List. If you hadn't realized that this spectrum of films are all from the same director, just let that sink in for a moment. Oh, and throw the horror classic Jaws in the mix just to prove that Spielberg can truly do anything.

6. Peter Jackson

Most of the people on this list are here due to having such a wide range of different kind of movies in their filmography. Peter Jackson is here, in all honesty, because of the Lord Of The Rings trilogy. Of course his thoroughly decent work in films like 2005's King Kong helps, but mainly it's The Lord Of The Rings - quite possibly the most impressive directorial feat in cinematic history. His near-impossible job of bringing Tolkien's Middle Earth to life with massive set pieces, groundbreaking visuals, amazing set design and other parts is nothing short of mesmerizing - of course the end product is thanks to a lot of different departments, but Jackson was the man with the vision who put it all together.

5. Martin Scorsese

Martin Scorsese does have a type: slick-looking, charismatic and foul-mouthed mafia movies such as Goodfellas, Casino and The Irishman are the kind of movies he is best known for. The camera work and overall look of these films make them quite unique, and among the best in the genre. He also has a knack for biopics outside the mafia genre: films like Raging Bull, The Aviator and The Wolf Of Wall Street are compelling looks at some remarkable real-life people. While many of Scorsese's works fall into one of these categories, he has also proved to be capable outside them in a wide variety of settings: just look at the family-friendly style in Hugo or the psychological horror in Shutter Island for proof. Then there's the masterfully crafted The Departed for which he finally won the Oscar for best directing!

4. Christopher Nolan

If this list were called "Top 10 modern movie filmmakers", Nolan would definitely be in first place; no other director has such a track record with making films that I like. However, when looking specifically at how good the directing in one's films are, there are three who narrowly beat him out (keep in mind that Nolan still is in the fourth-highest place out of all modern directors, so his directing is by no means bad even if it isn't the #1 strongest element in his movies).

Nolan's strength as a director lies especially in worldbuilding; whether it's the dark and vibrant depiction of Gotham City in the Dark Knight trilogy, the fantastic dream-worlds in Inception or the mesmerizing planets and dimensions of Interstellar, the places in his films have an incredibly one-of-a-kind atmosphere to them. The dark-ish-blue color theme in most of his films makes for somewhat of a signature look, yet his directorial skills have a wide range to them depending on the genre of the movie. While primarily known as a sci-fi and/or crime director, he also proved to have a handle on period pieces with The Prestige, before also bringing World War II to life in a mesmerizing fashion with Dunkirk.

3. Stanley Kubrick

While filmmakers like Fincher and Nolan have made awesome films in multiple genres, Kubrick might be the only director to have been among the world's absolute best in so many genres; this one person has made my favorite sci-fi movie of all time, my favorite horror movie of all time, and one of my top 5 favorite war movies of all time. But it's not just the fact that he makes great films belonging to these genres: Kubrick's true genius is in how his films are never typical members of a genre but rather a whole new way of making certain kinds of films. 2001: A Space Odyssey is a sci-fi film unlike any other, with its classical soundtrack, artistic cinematography and unconventional narrative. The Shining creates horror in a very unusual way, as I described in last week's post of my favorite horror movies. And Full Metal Jacket does the same to war films, focusing very much on the dark psychological consequences of war on the soldiers.

In addition, Kubrick is simply one of the most skillful people to work behind a camera and create a unique look to a film. Works like Dr. Strangelove and A Clockwork Orange have so many memorable and iconic shots, with the camera angles often being very unconventional and wonderful, making Kubrick's films true works of art. His vision was often extremely thorough and perfectionist, leading to many actors saying afterwards that he was a very unpleasant man to work with - but damn it if his films aren't among the best-looking ones ever made.

2. Quentin Tarantino

Watching any Tarantino interview, one gets the impression that he has probably seen more movies in his life than anyone else and also has an absolutely unmatched passion for cinema. And oh boy, does it show in his movies. While there are many things that make Tarantino's films great - his impeccable technical skill with stunt coordination, sharply crafted dialogue and having a hand in the soundtrack and production design departments in order to make the films thoroughly feel like his vision, to name a few - my favorite thing about his films is the ridiculous amount of entertainment and lack of seriousness. As he himself has described, the audience never forgets that they're watching "just a movie" no matter how serious or realistic it is, so why bother trying? Tarantino's way of making things entertaining and self-aware even when the setting is World War II in Inglorious Basterds or post-slavery America in Django Unchained, is quite amazing.

The thing most associated with Tarantino is probably violence, and that is also a part of his charm - he is one of the greatest action directors of all time. Just look at the incredibly choreographed final fight sequence of Kill Bill: Vol. 1 or the car chase scene in Death Proof for evidence. If you're more interested in my thoughts on Tarantino, here is my ranking of his films!

1. David Lynch

I can hardly find the words for the larger-than-life feeling I often get from the films of this strange, strange man. Lynch directs (and also writes) a movie like absolutely no one else, with his visionary style often drawing inspiration from the strangest places. A good example is Lost Highway, a movie that tries to feel as much as it can like an actual dream - something another director might do through strange visuals and fantasy elements, but he does by actually changing the characters and narrative elements in inexplicable ways so that the story doesn't make logical sense in a fashion similar to dreams. Then there are mystery films like Mulholland Drive, where he hides layers upon layers of secret meanings and symbols everywhere while not handing any answers to the viewer on a silver platter.

While Lynch colors his films with darkness like Nolan, violence like Tarantino and disturbing elements like Kubrick, there is also an incredible element of underlying beauty always present. Most of his films feature themes of many different worlds and realities within (or beyond) our own, and there is always a ray of hope in these ideas, beneath all the levels of darkness. This is especially present in the gripping yet ultimately uplifting Blue Velvet, as well as Lynch's iconic TV series Twin Peaks. The balance of darkness and light is often visible in the color schemes, camera angles and visual settings in his films. But if you want to get the true meaning of a David Lynch film, a lot of interpretation and analysis is required - nothing is quite as it first seems at first glance, and this complexity is one of his greatest assets, in addition to the visual artistry and unmatched creativity of his films. No other director has had such an impact on my life or broadened my horizons as a movie buff as much as Lynch.

Two paragraphs is not nearly enough to profess my love for David Lynch's work, so I'll follow up next week with a ranking of his 10 feature films! Stay tuned and subscribe by email via the text box below if you please! :)

Top 10 Greatest Horror Movies Of All Time

Hello, dear reader!

Many great horror films have been released in the last few years, and the future of the genre looks exciting; the highly anticipated A Quiet Place: Part II hits theaters this month, the superhero genre gets a horror twist with The New Mutants in April, and the rest of the year will include Edgar Wright's Last Night In Soho and a Halloween sequel. I will look at my favorite horror movies of all time on today's list; I have excluded certain psychological horror films such as The Lighthouse (2019), Eraserhead (1977) and Shutter Island (2010), for their brand of horror is too difficult to compare with the more conventional wing of the genre. Honorable mentions for today include: A Quiet Place (2018), Alien (1979), Jaws (1975), The Blair Witch Project (1999) and The Exorcist (1973).

Now let's see about that list!

10. Godzilla (1954)

Ishiro Honda's classic monster flick started a cult movie franchise spanning several decades and an insane amount of sequels, reboots and crossovers centering around the titular Godzilla and other creatures of the Kaiju lore. While these films may be known for big monster vs. monster fights and cities being destroyed, the original Godzilla is actually a very smart and thought-provoking film. It criticized nuclear weapons and the destructive nature of humanity through its story of a monster created through reckless nuclear bomb tests, and the metaphor is quite powerful. In addition to the movie's philosophy and debates, there is also time for intense scenes of the monster making its way towards Tokyo, and the practical effects have held up marvelously well - not many 1950's monster movies can still look formidable and terrifying today, but Godzilla manages to do just that.

9. Saw (2004)

James Wan's low-budget horror experiment Saw became a gigantic hit, redefining the modern horror genre and (in typical horror fashion) spawning countless sequels. A majority of the film is spent in a room where protagonists Adam (Leigh Whannell) and Lawrence (Cary Elwes) find themselves trapped - there's also an entertaining police subplot and multiple flashbacks throughout the movie. Saw is like seeing an escape room game on steroids, with the traps and twists being violent and brutal. The mysterious Jigsaw makes for a great villain, and the viewer becomes very invested in the main characters' attempts to get out of the strange room. The film also features a fantastic score by Charlie Clouser, as well as a magnificent twist ending, making for an awesome modern horror classic.

8. Scream (1996)

One of the many Wes Craven works to appear on this list, Scream is a strange and wonderful production. It's a very specific kind of parody of slasher horror: it isn't a downright comedy like Scary Movie, but it still does make fun of the genre through plentiful meta commentary. And here's the amazing part: Scream works both as a hilarious parody and as a legitimate horror film. Even with all the meta jokes, it still is a story with scary parts, decent directing, an interesting villain and characters the viewer cares about. The parody element is always subtle enough, being very present in the dialogue but never being too slapstick or distracting.

7. Get Out (2017)

Jordan Peele's debut film is truly one of a kind - just like one needs to be in order to win the Oscar for best screenwriting for a horror film. This extremely rare honor was very much deserved, as is the rest of the plentiful acclaim that Get Out has gotten. On one hand, it's a horror movie with a creepy soundtrack, scary sequences and edge-of-your-seat thrills. On the other, it's a masterfully crafted social allegory, taking a strong stance against racism and exploring various forms of racial tensions and injustice. And in addition to these elements, Get Out somehow manages to be wonderfully entertaining and even hilarious at times with its well-timed humorous side. Scary while not being cliché horror, poignant while not being obviously preachy, and funny while not being a comedy, this film does an expert job in balancing these very different sides in order to build a unique and amazing work of horror and societal criticism.

6. Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994)

Before Wes Craven made meta horror mainstream with Scream, he tested the waters with this severely underrated Nightmare On Elm Street reboot. The premise in genius: whereas previous Elm Street films followed the demonic Freddy Krueger killing teenagers in their dreams, this one takes place beyond the 4th wall and in 'real life'. The main character is Heather Langenkamp, who played protagonist Nancy in the original Nightmare On Elm Street, and is here played by herself. Craven himself appears, as do many of the franchise's actors and crew members, in this pseudo-sequel where Freddy Krueger turns out to be a real entity who begins to haunt the people who worked on the Elm Street movies in their real lives. This may be the creepiest horror film I've ever seen, and that is largely thanks to its blurring of lines between what's real and what's behind the screen: the idea of Krueger following the real people into their lives is a stroke of genius from Craven, making for a film that uses its meta concept not for humor like Scream, but rather for a creepy, dark and unique story.

5.  It (2017)

Stephen King's It (1986) is one of the greatest books I have ever read. It was adapted into a miniseries in 1990, and while that version follows the concrete plot events of the book very faithfully, it fails to capture the atmosphere and themes of the book (this is just my view on the subject). Andy Muschietti's smash hit from 2017 does the opposite: there are multiple glaring changes from the source material, yet the film feels incredibly much like the book. It's Nightmare On Elm Street meeting Stand By Me, as intense horror sequences are balanced by a powerful and uplifting coming-of-age story about a lovable group of children. The child actors are perfect for their roles, as is Bill Skarsgård as the horrific Pennywise the clown. It is a violent and creepy movie, yet it is also remarkably beautiful, and a deserving adaption for King's novel.

4. Psycho (1960)

The most legendary horror movie of all time is sitting comfortably at fourth place on my list. The reasons for this being one of the best horror films of all time are quite obvious, as it is such an extraordinary cinematic production on all fronts. The cast is great, with original scream queen Janet Leigh and the delightfully creepy Anthony Perkins being especially impressive in their roles. The score by Bernard Herrmann adds a lot to the film's impact, especially the beyond-iconic string piece in the famous shower scene. The black-and-white cinematography and the unconventional plot are also great, yet the element truly behind this film's greatness is Alfred Hitchcock's impeccable directing. His ability to build tension and shock throughout the movie is one of a kind, cementing Psycho as a true horror classic.

3. A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

A Nightmare On Elm Street is a horror movie for everyone. If you're into graphic and violent horror, the film has quite a bit of that. If you're sick of typical slashers and want to watch a quality movie, the film has an exceptional cast (Heather Langenkamp and a young Johnny Depp knock it out of the park) and a well-written, original plot. If entertainment is what you're looking for, the film has you covered with its riveting and engaging style. And if you're into strange, different and groundbreaking films, Nightmare is definitely the movie for you with its crazy and wild aesthetics and bizarre dream-worlds created from the brilliant mind of (once again) Wes Craven. A Nightmare On Elm Street is so good in so many ways, being one of the scariest films I've ever seen with its brilliant use of horror on both a jump-scare level but also in the underlying dark creepiness of its lore, but also just being a great movie with an awesome cast of characters and an unforgettable villain. The sheer creativity of the film's premise and style is what especially gets me every time.

2. Halloween (1978)

The Citizen Kane of the slasher genre, Halloween is an absolute horror masterpiece. In a world increasingly filled with violent, gore-based horror, John Carpenter creates one of the creepiest movies of all time where most of the horror is just based on masterful suspense-building from the directing and editing departments. Simple shots of villain Michael Myers hiding in the bushes, lurking in the street and being visible for a very short amount of time in key moments are so perfectly executed that it somehow feels even scarier than anything else in the horror cinema of the time. In addition, Halloween profits from having a dynamic main cast including Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence, a rich backstory to its intriguing villain, a climactic final act that leaves things deliciously open for sequels, and one of my all-time favorite movie soundtracks. All in all, I salute John Carpenter for creating so much with so little.

1. The Shining (1980)

Stanley Kubrick's horror masterpiece transcends the horror genre itself with its groundbreaking way of creating an uncomfortable atmosphere. The simple act of playing with continuity (Kubrick often removed certain objects from the background between shots or moved them slightly) creates such an unconsciously uneasy feeling: for the duration of the film, the Overlook Hotel may not seem conventionally scary, but it scares the viewer on a deeper and darker level. There just seems to be something so fundamentally wrong with that place.

But the amazing continuity tricks and set design of the film are only a part of its greatness: much more comes from Jack Nicholson's sledgehammer performance as father-gone-mad Jack Torrance, as well as Shelley Duvall and child actor Danny Lloyd being great supporting castmembers. And then there are just so very many iconic and well-built scenes, from the creepy long take of Danny riding his tricycle and the blood flowing out of the elevator, to the mind-bending hedge maze transition and Nicholson's legendary delivery of the "HERE'S JOHNNY!" line. I hold The Shining as the gold standard of the horror genre, and thus it thoroughly deserves the #1 spot on this list.

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