No reason was given, though Kubrick Hobbs warned, “Don’t go analyzing yourself to death over this half-remembered list.
When the “2001” director was first asked his opinion of his favorite films in 1963 by the periodical “Cinema,” Kubrick expressed his affection for a diverse group of films including foreign fare such as Fellini’s “I Vitelloni” and Antonioni’s “La Notte” as well as American flicks such as William Wellman’s “Roxie Hart” and John Huston’s “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.” But decades later after he had passed, his daughter Katharina Kubrick Hobbs gave an update that may have provided some some minor surprises with mentions of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “The Silence of the Lambs,” but left many scratching heads with the inclusion of the 1992 Wesley Snipes-Woody Harrelson basketball comedy.
It wasn’t such a surprise for audience members aware of Hitchcock’s populist taste in general, his daughter saying in an interview before the screening, “He made his films for the audience and for entertainment – not for the critics or for self-pleasure.” To drive the point home, the other movie she namedropped as a favorite of the late director that night? “Benji.” It was after a screening of “Psycho” honoring the Master of Suspense at USC in November 2000 when Hitchcock’s daughter Patricia confirmed what some had heard offhand – that Hitch’s favorite movie was the massively popular but critically unbeloved 1977 Burt Reynolds backwoods chase flick. Here are a handful who have more eclectic taste than most moviegoers would imagine:Īlfred Hitchcock – “Smokey and the Bandit” Although most directors like David Fincher and Akira Kurosawa can be relied upon to list widely accepted classics as their favorites, every once in awhile a filmmaker is outed as having a favorite film that would seem to be in direct contrast to the ones they make. Although Nolan’s the one known for innovation, Hathaway can be heard saying between Fallon’s howls of disbelief that the director thought of a specific scene without saying which one and would say, “I can’t believe no one thought of that.” The “MacGruber” madness begins at 3:18 in this clip:Įven though Hathaway sheepishly admits, “He’s probably going to hate that I mentioned this,” Nolan’s hardly the first famed auteur to have his guilty or not-so-guilty pleasure revealed to the public. Hausu or Killer of Sheep.A night after many thought David Letterman let slip a major spoiler about “The Dark Knight Rises” during Anne Hathaway’s visit to the “Late Show,” the actress dropped a bigger bombshell about the film’s director Christopher Nolan on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” when she revealed the mere thought of “MacGruber” gave him the giggles. All movies considered for this list needed to have a Tomatometer (after 5 reviews) and have been made during the decade, even if it didn’t get a major release until later, e.g. Low-budget exploitation ( The Last House on the Left, Mad Max), and a few things a willing warped mind can get off on ( The Man Who Fell to Earth, The Holy Mountain).
There are the horror hallmarks ( Alien, Halloween) including international ( Suspiria, Deep Red), and box office game changers ( Star Wars, Jaws). You’ll find stories of lone men ( Taxi Driver, Dog Day Afternoon) and women ( Wanda, Norma Rae) against the system, and paranoid political thrillers ( All the President’s Men, Three Days of the Condor).
The two moods we aimed to capture in this countdown: The wilting of ’60s flower power optimism under the harsh light of urban reality and decay meanwhile the destruction of the musty Hays Code - a musty ruleset that dictated what could be depicted on-screen for decades - suddenly allowing directors to pursue more personal expressions in film, often violent and sexual. Welcome to the 140 essential movies of the ’70s. Welcome to the days of disco and dirty deeds as we plunge into a new wave of movies: raw and renewed, unfiltered, while laying the groundwork for blockbuster era to come.