https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/tester daily 0.75 2020-06-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1506791387019-GYZVR63D36EPJZ7QRPHT/13701228_756622536729_3272288274480716892_o.jpg About https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1579365369750-GWHJSIJOWCKAYPWW03DV/M%26ASneakpeek3.jpg About https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/contact daily 0.75 2020-05-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1504973176789-BSO6NEGAIKEBPIOS5Y2U/278308_536626380789_6448054_o.jpg Parodies https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/music-1 daily 0.75 2026-02-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1506791623855-VGTANA1IKNVS1YUXN58A/01.JPG Music https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/8295436d-b845-41c5-ae5f-6000ad02e0e5/TOP+OST+100.jpg Music - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1530666978048-H7MGN74L0YBJ51QRF8P2/B%2BA+Top+SNES+100.jpg Music https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1631027032314-3WA773M5I6AUGB6CZ12J/B%2BA+Top+SNES+100+B+Side+2.jpg Music - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1531978120474-P2A9NIF6ADAE0WV318H3/B%2BA+Top+NES+100.jpg Music https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1574817242962-VEJJ2KB0RP5PDVX12SME/B%2BA+NES+B-Sides.png Music https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings daily 0.75 2021-02-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1506791582725-YFZ216JCPGKXU7MRFBN0/Cottage.jpg TOP LISTS https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2021/2/8/allans-top-50-pc-games monthly 0.5 2021-03-03 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1613013926962-SKUDFCCYE94MHNDQ5KD7/PC+%2350+Boulder+Dash.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 50. Boulder Dash Man, I played the shit out of this game on my old PC Jr. It has a super simple premise of just trying to gather all the gems per stage, but as you move around the map digging the dirt, the boulders shift accordingly and can crush or trap you, leaving you vulnerable to enemies. The stages were massive and had it required a ton of strategy to get by. I still remember each stage loading - the screen would go all psycho and make this crazy noise. It drove me nuts. I loved it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834335189-9PK6NYM44KBO7Y8CW94E/PC+%2349+Diablo.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 49. Diablo You either like Seinfeld or Friends. You can’t like both. That's the case with ‘Diablo’ and ‘Baldur’s Gate’. You either like the slow paced RPG story build, or you like looting dungeons with insane action, death and enemies. I preferred ‘Baldur’s Gate’. ‘Diablo’ is a fantastic game with a solid story, but in high school I was into wizards and dragons, not so much hell and demons. I did actually enjoy it quite a bit in high school though, but I never really got too big into it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834362338-PMIFJYE9PWAR6D5PUBZ2/PC+%2348+Wolfenstein+3d.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 48. Wolfenstein 3D Holy smokes. Do you remember where you were when you first played this game on your shitty computer? ‘Wolfenstein 3D’ was a huge game changer for me. I grew up playing Zelda and Metroid on NES, and when I went over to my buddy Peter’s place to try out this game on his computer it made me want to throw my NES in the garbage. The 3D environment was mind blowing. Killing Nazi’s and battling your way through this depressing grey bunker was a great way to spend your afternoon. It was my introduction to how powerful and innovative PC gaming could be. I still smell Poland when I think of playing this game in Pete’s house. (He’s Polish) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834384847-3J3DPHTZAAB22PDAAILI/PC+%2347+Tomb+Raider.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 47. Tomb Raider My cousin gave me a burned copy of ‘Tomb Raider’ back in 1996 and once it got installed, me and all my friends played the shit outta this game. Controlling a dual pistol wielding girl with infinite bullets who’s busting out crazy acrobatic jumps and solving puzzles was something fresh and exciting. This was a game that showed how powerful the PC could be. The graphics absolutely blew my mind. I still remember the T-Rex coming out of the shadows, wow, what a moment that was. We flipped! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834420780-D08UBV4BL1GZFFXN7FN2/PC+%2346+Football+13.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 46. Football Manager 2013 From 2011 to 2013, I was living with my Irish buddy Mark Hendrick, and needless to say, he was obsessed with soccer. His passion rubbed off on me hard, and I was following the EPL and Newcastle with a vigorous tenacity. I’ve always been big into simulation games, and ‘Football Manager 2013’ is one of the best I’ve ever played. The depth and detail of this game is staggering. I became so invested in all my players and started learning about the Spanish League, MLS, and pretty much any and every player that could make my team better. This game is brutally addictive and tons of fun; plus I learned a ton about soccer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834441965-PVH251K4RDK2BKQ8R3IM/PC+%2345+Deadlock.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 45. Deadlock: Planetary Conquest Deadlock was part of a CD my cousin burned for me with 7 or 8 games on it. I had never heard of it before, but when I installed it and gave it a go, I fell in love with it. It’s a simulation game with city building, conquering, and a tiny bit of battling. There were a bunch of races you could choose from who all had different abilities and buildings which added a nice amount of variety to it. Your workers could become disgruntled and stop working. You needed to manage your cities population and resources. I love this city building and expanding shit. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834541066-626Q2R22HE2946IFFNAG/PC+%2344+Druidstone.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 44. Druidstone: The Secret of Menhir Forest This is the newest game on this list, and it’s one that I took a gamble on on the Steam store. My favourite PC genre is tactical strategy so when I saw that ‘Druidstone’ is a turn based, top down fantasy strategy game, I jumped all over it. It has some fun dialogue and decent story. You’re limited to the main story characters, but there’s just enough depth to all their abilities to keep it exciting. It got a tad repetitive after a while though, it needed more things to do. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834562562-4TX3K87R5TZ0477DUH3U/PC+%2343+Warcraft.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 43. Warcraft I’m a crazy ‘Command and Conquer’ fan, so ‘Warcraft’ will always be riding in the back seat when it comes to the best RTS games. But what made ‘Warcraft’ so friggin awesome was that units had abilities! You could make a Cleric who had the ability to Far See and Heal, or you had the Orcs who could train a Warlock and had badass spells like summoning spiders or a fireball. It’s one of the original RTS games ever made, and is exploding with charm. strategy and balance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1613013957105-6BN6J5UPQPZNJB5M8YYS/PC+%2342+KKND.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 42. KKND: Krush, Kill ‘N Destroy This game came out on the heels of ‘Command & Conquer’ and it’s sequel, ‘Red Alert’, and was actually really good. It traded in the war theme for a dystopian post-apocalyptic theme. The good guys had a crazy ass mini-gun tank, and the bad guys had a massive fucking war elephant and crab thingy. It was a real treat when you finally upgraded your base to unlock all the units available. It was just something new, fresh and exciting. The game play is definitely not as good as C&C, but if you like RTS (Real Time Strategy) games, this one is fantastic. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834603672-F0Z4P11E6LZD6ZU7IRJA/PC+%2341+They+Are+Billions.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 41. They Are Billions I found this game randomly on the Steam store and was very happy with my purchase. ‘They Are Billions’ plays exactly like ‘Starcraft’ or ‘Command and Conquer’ but instead of going to attack other bases, you’re trying to survive a zombie invasion. You explore, get resources, rescue teammates or recapture old bases all the while fending off relentless zombie attacks. It’s brutally addictive. It’s kinda scary actually. I would start a game around 8pm and the next thing I knew, it was 4am and I’m wired. Trying to defend a full screen worth of zombies is a fucking rush. You fail often, but it just makes your strategy that much better the next time you play it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834625220-5I2IS483SD6F2J9NS132/PC+%2340+Lode+Runner.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 40. Lode Runner Another PC Jr. game that I played the living shit out of. I was probably in grade 1 or 2 when I was going hard at this, so I’m not sure if I ever made any progress or finished the game, but the premise of it was fun. You’re trying to find a couple items to escape the stage while running for your life from enemies the entire time. You can burn the ground on your left or right and the enemy will fall into it making it a pathway. Super simple, yet very difficult to master. A fun little game! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834646266-WB7YFN3U9IYSISN1CE4W/PC+%2339+Math+Circus.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 39. Math Circus I’m sure most of you are wondering “What the fuck is Math Circus?” and I gotta say, it’s the most fun I’ve ever had learning in my life. Our grade school, Sir Winston Churchill, finally got a bunch of computers when I was in grade 6, and ‘Math Circus’ was installed on all of em. It had 12 mini games in it that challenged you to problem solve, but in a fun clever way. You had to dodge a wizards spell, move a car through traffic, lift 4 clowns up holding items at the same time, and tame a dragon. I absolutely adore this game. It made computer/math class so much fun I can’t even begin to describe it. I looked more forward to math class than I did gym. Insanity. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834664595-WH6CBZKSN2T16Z2FNV6S/PC+%2338+Subspace.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 38. Subspace My buddy Peter showed me this game back in grade 8, and we spent hours, days, weeks, months playing this fucking thing. It’s an online game that held about 50 people in a map at a time. You had a choice of space ships to pick from the big Leviathan which was slow and shot heavy missiles to the balanced Warbird or the super fast Javelin. It had incredible thrust movement mechanics which really made the game so special. It’s the first ever massive online multiplayer games I’ve ever played. Peter and I took turns playing in his basement and just had a blast. I hated that he was better than me too. Ugh. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834682472-6NZ9D16MC8IEK5QBW51E/PC+%2337+Solitaire.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 37. Solitaire There’s not much to say about ‘Solitaire’ other than it’s a fantastic card game! When I got bored on my computer I would fire up a quick game of ‘Solitaire’ and always had fun trying to finish it. I never liked playing the 3 card draw thing though, so I would always change the settings to 1 card and only one time through. Expert level baby. I’d see a red ‘X’ when I got the end of the deck, and it always destroyed my soul. I refused to let this game beat me… it beat me all the time. Also, changing the art on the back of the cards was such a simple pleasure. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834700428-7HIA79U6ODH7BR8VO8XS/PC+%2336+Moto+Racer.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 36. Moto Racer I’m not big into motorcycles but ‘Moto Racer’ is a flawless racing game. It had beautiful stage design from ocean view to climbing ice mountains, great music and fabulous driving mechanics. The game is so smooth! I mean, probably not anymore, but this is up there as one of my favourite racing games of all time. All my friends would take turns playing this trying to beat the high score for months. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834839002-Q5FJY7OOE1PU0SJG0TY5/PC+%2335+Half+Life+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 35. Half-Life 2 I really don’t get all the hype for this game. It’s just another first person shooter with a cool story. I guess I needed to play it in 2004 to really appreciate how good it is. I mean, the story is pretty awesome. It doesn’t cater to kids and is willing to try something new and exciting by infusing an Orwellian feeling to the game. The controls are flawless and the graphics are amazing (Even playing it now in 2021, it’s incredible). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612834858383-1A36QF5KHMX167JN3TSX/PC+%2334+Kings+Quest+3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 34. King’s Quest III This was the first time ‘King’s Quest’ ventured outside of the Graham story, and instead went to something new and magical. It must have taken me two years to escape that stupid wizard at the top of the hill. Once you get into this game though, it really does shine. It has the typical fairy tale theme with wizards, oracles, and the three bears from Goldilocks. You got to teleport, cast magic spells from a book, and ride a boat to travel around. One of the best King’s Quests. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835451540-QUIQF16AEF3QX63M9LD0/PC+%2333+Magic+Carpet.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 33. Magic Carpet I wish I could remember how my brother Erik and I got this game. I feel like it came with a video card purchase or maybe Erik and our friend Todd were jacked about getting this game and grabbed it. Either way, it was absurd to play a game where you could go anywhere on the map, and also be flying while doing it! It was a liberating feeling to play ‘Magic Carpet’. You could gather magic spells, burn down villages, fight dragons, and gather up white and black orbs. I felt like there was no point to the game though. I don’t remember any story attached to it, and didn’t ever feel any sort of progression no matter how long I played it for. It didn’t matter though. I had a blast fucking around on that carpet. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835651226-U6ZPPPPQ9BPKTGL5YNSB/PC+%2332+Pinball.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 32. 3D Pinball Space Cadet How many memories flow through you when you see this picture? Anyone who owned a PC in the 90s played this game. This was my go-to PC game whenever I had a little extra time on my hands. I can’t remember if the high scores were saved, but I never really cared about that too much. I just enjoyed playing a game of pinball here and there. It had really cool sounds too! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835672099-UK4AU9Z9FEIPUKVBEG0P/PC+%2331+RISK.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 31. RISK If you know me, you know how competitive and serious I am about ‘RISK’. I play it at the cottage with my friends on a yearly basis and they’re always the highlight of the trip. I’m usually 1st or 2nd place whenever we play, and a lot of that skill (luck) comes from playing the living shit out of ‘RISK’ on PC when I was younger. I played this game for hours and hours. I’m starting to wonder how I did anything else in life considering how many PC games I played, but conquering the world in this adaption of ‘RISK’ was always a good time. ‘RISK’ usually takes about 5 hours to play a game, but this PC version was awesome. It moved along so quickly, and you could bang out a few games in an hour. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835698605-JCOF21SFZ9FHV04MGCI4/PC+%2330+Duke+Nukeem.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 30. Duke Nukem 3D Oh I remember where I was in 1996 when this beauty came out. I was downstairs in my buddy Peter’s basement and he showed me this crazy fuck game called ‘Duke Nukem 3D’. It was the only thing that mattered for a while. The graphics were so unbelievably amazing, and the protagonist was such a badass. Peter and I were big fans of the original ‘Duke Nukem’, which was a side-scroller game. So this was a big deal to see. One of the best 1st person shooters ever made. It combined action, comedy, fear and sex - we would giggle when we threw money at the dancers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835845459-EYJ9OZP5VKW7CXU0KK2B/PC+%2329+Dope+Wars.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 29. Dope Wars ‘Dope Wars’ is just a simple DOS/text game where you try to buy low and sell high. The rub is that you’re selling drugs, buying guns, and fighting cops. I don’t think my parents ever knew I played this game because I doubt they’d want me getting a high off selling heroin at a good price in Brooklyn. My friends and I would take turns trying to make a million dollars with the 1 month deadline you had (Something like that anyways) and the excitement of buying $50,000 worth of acid and then selling it for $200,000 a day later was addictively exhilarating. It’s simplicity is what made it so great. Hopefully they haven’t tried to add a bunch of features to it in its newer iterations. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835877233-ZOULPKUH41NSXDJXQ03D/PC+%2328+NHL2002.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 28. NHL 2002 I grabbed this game in 2001 and it was the first sports game I ever played on a PC - I would always be playing my sports stuff on Nintendo and Playstation. I was kinda blown away how much better the PC version was compared to the PS2 version. The graphics were 50% better, the game play was smoother, there was no menu lag, and it actually had extra features that the console version didn’t have. It still has one of the best soundtracks in a sports game ever, with songs like “I Hear You Calling” by GOB, “Fat Lip” by Sum 41, “Temptation” by Tea Party, “American Psycho” by Treble Charger. I mean, it was a punk infused rock fest. Some hockey players who had a 90 or above in certain categories were labelled on the ice: Marian Gaborik was a swift skate. Chris Pronger was a hammer. Mario Lemieux was a sniper. It was a great step forward for EA sports. I became completely and utterly obsessed with ‘NHL 2002’ to the point where my family was about to head up North to my cousin’s cottage for a week, and I honestly thought about faking an illness just so I wouldn’t have to go and I could stay in my room and play this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835939246-UOD3GPAMWYP7VYHVQW9W/PC+%2327+Heroes+of+might+magic.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 27. Heroes of Might and Magic I was visiting my cousin’s cottage up north when we went to a little town called Kincardine. We entered a computer shop and they had a bargain bin with a ton of games for $5-10. I looked through the pile of dog shit games and found this one called ‘Heroes of Might and Magic’ and thought it looks pretty cool! You could make Pikemen, Knights, Wizards, Goblins and hell, it was only $5! So I bought it with my allowance, and then the worst part: I had to wait till the vacation was over before installing it back home. I honestly don’t think I’ve been more excited to play a game before. The unknown was such a rush. Would this game suck shit? Or be as amazing as it looked? Anyways, I installed it and fell in love with the game. It was the first tactical strategy game I’ve played like that, and now it’s my go-to sub-genre for games. Building a base, building units, finding treasures, conquering other bases and leveling up heroes. It’s such a wicked game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835962262-5ZF3NCLAEZSDKYY1RWZ6/PC+%2326+Willy+Beamish.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 26. The Adventures of Willy Beamish I first played this game at my cousin Chris’ house. I would watch my brother Erik and Chris play the living hell out of this game. It’s a point and click adventure, and for my money, this is the best one ever made. You have a pet frog who helps you out while you’re dealing with mean parents, bad grades, video games and some other fun stuff. I remember the last time I played this game I got to a part where you have a vacuum and you’re trying to kill or avoid a vampire bat. Jesus Christ, I must have been at that part for a week straight. I just couldn’t figure out how to beat it - I haven’t played it since, so I guess I still gotta try and figure out how to get by that part. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612835980736-W566YDVR4SOHLV1PPKW5/PC+%2325+Kings+bounty.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 25. King’s Bounty: The Legend I found this game on the Steam store and saw that it had the exact same battles as ‘Heroes of Might and Magic’. I couldn’t have hit the purchase button any faster. This game is so awesome. There’s a pretty big difference in this game though, which is that you don’t have a base to build and units to create. Instead, you are a hero who wanders the three dimensional map and can acquire units as you go to strengthen your hero. Ultimately, it’s the same as ‘Heroes of Might and Magic’ but it’s just a graphical upgrade and some minor tweaks. Tons of add ons and sequels have some out, and they’re all just as fun to play. I can’t wait for ‘King’s Bounty II’. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836025532-YVFE0MVJL648CEGBKUBT/PC+%2324+WC2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 24. Warcraft 2 Talk about an upgrade over the original. This one had more units, better graphics, better balance, and some of the best voice work for units I’ve ever heard. This game was duking it out with ‘Starcraft’ for the best RTS game on the market, and honestly they were both unreal. But what made ‘Warcraft 2’ so much fun were the cartoony graphics. It was bright, bold and exciting to play. The only thing hurting it was that they still only had two races. Orcs and humans. They game desperately needed a 3rd faction to use. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836092458-FJC2YTQUCIGNLI0M9IOQ/PC+%2323+Doom.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 23. Doom ‘Doom’ came out a year after ‘Wolfenstein 3D’ exploded onto the scene, and it took everything that made ‘Wolfenstein 3D’ great and amped it up to a 100. ‘Doom’ featured a crushing metal sound track, a ground breaking map system, terrifying hellish enemies and stages loaded with depth and secrets. My buddy Peter and I took turns playing this gem in his basement till our parents would yell at us to come up for dinner. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836291677-5O50QAML5KSXGGQEDFYK/PC+%2322+Plants+vs+Zombies.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 22. Plants Vs. Zombies ‘Plants vs Zombies’ is one of the best strategy games I’ve ever played. It has tons of whacky plants to pick and unlock. It has phenomenal replay value which is evidenced by my Dad who has been playing this game for over 10 years now and has mastered the endless run to the point where he can go walk the dog, come back and not have a single plant eaten by zombies. It has a super fun comedic charm to it, and is a must play if you like strategy/tower defence games. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836149629-YYK1VWBUS0MUZDMEKKKI/PC+%2321+Carmageddon.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 21. Carmageddon I don’t think there was a game I played more in 1992 than ‘Carmageddon’. My cousin gave me a burnt copy of it and I was beyond obsessed with this game. I remember being home from school sick one day and Judge Judy was on television and I was sitting in my den playing this game on my Pentium 133 all day long. I would pick cool cars, upgrade them and start killing people to gain extra time and then smash the shit out of other cars till I was the last one standing. There was actually a racing element to the game which I pretty much ignored every single time. It flipped the racing genre on its head. They finally switched from realism to pure entertainment. What an absolute blast this game was. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836314716-NEOZA5AOGS9V18EC92JD/PC+%2320+Alone.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 20. Alone in the Dark I’ll admit I’ve never finished this game before, but ‘Alone in the Dark’ casts a dark scary shadow that I love in my video games. It’s the first 3D survival horror game ever made! From the opening scene of a monster breaking in through the window and a zombie coming up from the trap door, ‘Alone in the Dark’ keeps your heart pumping a million miles an hour. The story is cool too. You’re a private detective who goes to find out what’s really going on in this mansion or you play as the niece of the late owner of the mansion. It requires some great problem solving skills, and surviving is really frigging hard. It was such a ground breaking game. I love love love it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836403152-EPG28596GIBHUBAI8DIW/PC+%2319+DD.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 19. Darkest Dungeon I hesitated putting this one here because I’ve also finished it on the Nintendo Switch, so because of it’s cross-platform eligibility, it’s a little lower on this list. But ‘Darkest Dungeon’ is one of my favourite games ever made. It has a wonderful cast of characters you can hire and level up, a town that you can upgrade, tons of artifacts that you can equip your customizable characters with, and beautiful randomly generated missions you can go on that are littered with visually stunning backgrounds and enemies. This game is punishingly difficult and at times very frustrating, but it’s that challenge that makes every victory so rewarding. It’s a turn based strategy game and has now become the new standard for roguelike turn-based RPG games. A fucking 10 beller of a game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1613418508213-PK6F6CVXIXGEVX6U1H6I/PC+%2318+Sim+City+2000.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 18. Sim City 2000 I love the original ‘Sim City’ for SNES, but after you build an airport the game gets a little shallow. That’s where ‘Sim City 2000’ comes in. You are in charge of plumbing, electricity, reshaping the land, building bridges and tons of new options. The maps are gigantic, but not to the point of intimidation. It added tons of new mechanics which took your city to the next level. You could use a query tool to rename your buildings, find its land value and altitude if you’re into that kinda thing. You could adjust your tax levels for residential, commercial and industrial. It’s just a really well made simulation game. I have a weird tradition now where every year during the Super Bowl I bust out my laptop and play this game. Football is just that boring that I’d rather build a city. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836469937-QNWVZDLXUXQY7I37HJ0X/PC+%2317+HOMM%40.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 17. Heroes of Might and Magic II Oh man, I couldn’t fucking wait for this game to come out. I took a gamble on the first one at a random computer store in Kingcardine, and fell in love with this franchise. When I finally fired up ‘Heroes of Might and Magic II’ it was really everything I hoped for. The graphics had a nice and tight upgrade, trading in the super cartoony look for something a little more realistic. They introduced more factions to play with, more units to create, bigger maps, longer campaigns, and better battles. What really blew me away with this game is that there are six factions, and all of them are uniquely balanced against each other. No faction is better than the other. My favourite to play with was the Sorceress. I loved making the Grand Elves and Greater Druids to pummel from afar, and then fly in with my Phoenix army to clean up their archers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836490801-WYYGV1K812FIEUZZIKSF/PC+%2316+tapper.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 16. Tapper ‘Tapper’ was probably my most played game on the PC Jr. You’re a bartender serving the local drunks. Yep, that’s it. I would get so excited to move stages from the bar, to the sports complex, the college dorms, and then… space? What? Serving all these beers while collecting the empties before they fall is surprisingly really difficult. Anytime I see it at an old arcade I always give this some love and attention. A fun one to play with friends and take turns. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836527801-PPVLUFD99LLG5DFVGOWT/PC+%2315+red+alert.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 15. Command & Conquer: Red Alert Looking at the box art brings back so many emotions. Buying this game was one of happiest days of 1996. My buddy Peter and I were so fucking jacked to get this game. They had stages covered in snow, which I thought was so cool (The original didn’t have that). The Russian’s had a fucking tesla coil that could murder a tank in one hit. They moved the Mammoth Tank over to the NOD side. What the fuck!? Actually they changed GDI and NOD to Allies and Soviet. You could train dogs, battle cruisers, longbow helicopters, there was a Chronosphere that could teleport a bunch of units anywhere on the map and a Missile Silo that launched nuclear missiles. And thank fucking God Westwood Studios got my letters - walking your troops in the tiberium ore didn’t kill them anymore. They just remastered this game in 2020 so I’m playing it non-stop all over again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836559556-V2B0T2EITTYL81W8C2WH/PC+%2314+unreal+tournament.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 14. Unreal Tournament 2004 The best 1st person shooter ever made. You would enter a tournament and if you and your team won, you could collect money that you could use to recruit new members for your team. Sometimes after you win, you get a choice of a player to join your squad as well. You could see stats after every match and take the guy who best complimented your squad. You had to make your way up a tournament ladder while adjusting your strategy for each and every leg you entered. The controls were amazing, the guns were the best I’ve ever used in a 1st person shooter; overall it felt like I was playing a 1st person shooter RPG. I got really good at the multiplayer aspect of it too. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836580912-VPRYDS97D1TS0XSCUCI2/PC+%2313+the+sims.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 13. The Sims I’m a big fan of simulation games, and ‘The Sims’ is one of the best ever made. You got to pick a house in a neighbourhood and start a brand new life with your partner. It was exhilarating! You eventually would pick up a newspaper and then got to choose a fun career path, but you started off at the bottom. Man, did I spend months and months working on my house, my character’s happiness in pursuit of an extension on my home, a pool in the backyard or a promotion at work. It really did feel like I was living a 2nd life. All of mine and my brother’s friends would wanna play this game in our house, and I hated it - because I just wanted to play it forever and ever. That is one of the dangers of this game. I would fall deep into it and hours would melt by without me even knowing. Thankfully my Dad would yell at me to do some stupid chore and I’d have to take a break. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836799122-UFCURB93PR2N7F45T7AT/PC+%2312+icewind+dale.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 12. Icewind Dale Beamdog enhanced this game in 2014 to my delight. I snagged it on GOG.com for about $10 and after finishing it, I was reminded why I love this game so much. Unlike ‘Baldur’s Gate’ you got to create your entire party from scratch right off the bat. There are no NPC’s in the game. It’s a pretty divisive choice because half the fun of ‘Baldur’s Gate’ was choosing which companion you wanted to take with you on your journey. So instead you build this dream team with all your friends names, and set out into an identical gameplay of ‘Baldur’s Gate’. ‘Icewind Dale’ has a wicked Dungeons and Dragons story line that takes you down a dark and cold path in search of the truth in Kuldahar. What I didn’t remember though was how damn hard this game is. I lost two of my wizards in the first fight against shitty little goblins! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836831715-BEUH3L75ULY8R0TFNC3T/PC+%2311+XCOM2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 11. XCOM 2 I was at my buddy Guybrush’s house and he showed me this game he was playing on PS4 called ‘XCOM 2’. He had named all his troops, had custom colours and equipment, and then took them into battle against a swarm of aliens in turn based combat. I was salivating. I went home and bought it immediately and finished it twice. I loved it so much, I grabbed it on PC as well. The load time is about 80 seconds per map on PS4 and it’s about 5 seconds on PC. The graphics were cleaner, way less bugs, and ultimately just a better experience. If this was a PC exclusive, this would be probably even higher on this list. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836867437-JIDYP2U8H83WLJL9O7M3/PC+%2310+The+Movies.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 10. The Movies If you like ‘Sim City’ then you’ll love this game. You get to hire actors, directors, janitors, writers and then make movies with them! You eventually get star actors who pump up the quality of your films and all the while you’re building up your studio with new buildings, roads and decorations to improve your cachet. I remember buying this game and loving it so much that I brought it with me to my family’s yearly vacation to Chicago. I installed it on my Aunt Betty’s old ass computer and instead of hanging out with family, I was locked and loaded in the basement playing a 2nd run through of this. It’s wildly underrated and an absolute gem of a simulation game. I’d kill for a remaster of this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1613014533600-49USZD0F06UJ7IH4YR12/PC+%239+Baldur%27s+Gate.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 9. Baldur’s Gate I was in a mandatory shop class in grade 9 and I sat next to a dude named Zoltan Balla. We talked quite a bit because we were bored out of our minds and when we got to video games all I talked about was Nintendo and Playstation games. He was a computer geek and we got going on PC games when he brought up ‘Diablo’ and ‘Baldur’s Gate’. I had never heard of them before but I thought ‘Baldur’s Gate’ sounded a little cooler so he brought it into class the next day for me to borrow. Holy shit, it was a booklet full with 6 CDs and a gigantic map! I couldn’t believe it. When I installed it and started playing for the first time I felt like I unlocked a whole new world of gaming. Seriously. This game made me realize that PC gaming is the absolute best and that games can be so much more than just action. I fell in love with the NPC’s you could add to your army and because there are so many, all with different stories, I must have gone through this game 3 or 4 times trying to use everyone and then find my sweet spot. ‘Baldur’s Gate’ holds a very very very special place in my heart. Zoltan, wherever you are: THANK YOU! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836957766-XKSBGO53504PTOJDGM9U/PC+%238+DOTA2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 8. DOTA 2 My buddy Peter showed me this game Jan 2, 2014 and when I got to the character select screen of this game, my eyes lit up. Holy fuck. There were over a 100 characters to pick from, I couldn’t believe it. I ended up picking Bane because he looked like a Xenomorph from ‘Aliens’. Since that day, I ended up sinking 5 years of my life into this game. I would watch and follow major tournaments on Twitch, which once awarded the winner over $15,600,000, I researched and studied the game, and talked about it incessantly with my buddy Chiefy Poo and other friends who wanted to punch me in the face for never shutting up about it. I shudder to think how many hours have been spent playing ‘DOTA 2’ but in retrospect, they were (mostly) all enjoyed. It actually really bonded my friendship with Chiefy when we had our weekly hangouts with ‘DOTA 2’, rum and cokes and pizza at 203 Rushton Rd. I became addicted to this game like any other. I would start playing at 10pm and next thing I know I’m saying “Just one more game” around 4am. It was really bad to the point I had to force myself to uninstall it and stop - for real. I get why it’s so addictive though, because it’s a phenomenal game. The variety in it is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced - and what makes it even crazier is that the game is played on the same map every time. You think it’d get boring right? Nope. It just made you want to master it even harder. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612836997339-PD4TCYGM69ZG564L0KWJ/PC+%237+Kings+Quest.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 7. King’s Quest My cousin owned a PC Jr. when we were kids and ‘King’s Quest’ was the crown jewel of his collection. It’s probably the first computer game I ever played and probably one of the most influential games as well. First off, this game has a great simple story. You’re playing as Graham and a King has sent you out on a quest to find three treasures to help bring the kingdom back to prosperity. Secondly, what makes this game so special is that it’s actions are all text based. If you want to swim you need to type in: “Swim”. If you want to pick up an egg, you need to type in: ”Pick up egg”. What an amazing way for a kid to learn how to type while enjoying a fun fantasy video game. We had our PC Jr. set up in my brother’s room, and his old desk had a tiny drawer you could pull out, and on it was a piece of paper taped to it with all the shortcut words and sentences we figured out we could use in the game. “Give carrot to Goat” was later crossed off and replaced with “Show carrot to Goat.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837031553-61591SD3DRVEKAJB4CQH/PC+%236+Magic.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 6. Magic: The Gathering I got into Magic in 1996 when I was in grade 7. I saw this starter pack of Portal at a Coles book store and thought it looked cool so I grabbed it. Little did I know that that moment would not only change my life forever, but also tons of my friends; I got a bunch of my buddies into Magic and rekindled some old passions. I became addicted to Magic. Then a year later, Microprose released a Magic: The Gathering game and it just deepened my love for the card game. You could open packs and do drafts which was a ton of fun, but the soup de jour was a mode called Shandalar. It was a RPG version of Magic. You got to create a hero and could then battle random enemies all with unique decks, visit towns, buy food, do quests to get gems, cards, or mana links to increase your health, all while trying to defeat the 5 coloured castles who are sending out their minions to try and take over towns while trying to cast their ultimate spell and win the game. It helped me learn how to play the game better, and still to this day provides ton of fun. It’s an absolute flawless interpretation of the game. God I wish they remade this game with updated cards. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837055926-4O123QV3U71I0872YFN6/PC+%235+C%26C.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 5. Command & Conquer Oh man, grade 6 was the best year ever because my buddy Peter invited me over to play this game called ‘Command & Conquer’. It was the first time I ever played a Real Time Strategy game, and from that moment the RTS genre has become one of my favourites (As evidenced by my top 5 games here). Peter and I would sit in his basement and take turns playing missions over and over. We got so fucking excited when we made a Mammoth Tank with GDI. It felt like we were Gods. We could create this army at will. It’s such a perfectly made game. The GDI and NOD are well balanced, the music is fucking fantastic, and the cut scenes they made with real acting were pretty revolutionary at the time. On top of all of that, ‘Command & Conquer’ marks the first time I ever played against someone using a modem. Peter hooked into the web with the old dial-up 56k modem and we played against his cousin in Vancouver using a direct line. My mind was blown. We were playing live against someone in BC?! It was so nuts. When Peter’s sister or parents picked up the phone to call someone the game would stall and then crash. I can’t believe that used to be how the internet worked. But not only that, what impressed me even more was that you could change your colour! I would always pick green and just thought it was the cat’s ass. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837081530-PP23R3ALQRZXRKWYTBQ7/PC+%234+SC2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 4. Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty I played this game a lot. From 2010-2013, it was pretty much all I did - to the detriment of my relationships. I was also really good at it. I got to the highest rank you could get to at the time, and was eventually ranked in Canada. My name reflected one of my favourite movies and how I mercilessly destroyed my opponents - The Terminator. A funny story: I used to play online with a buddy named Jameson, and one day he was at a music show and ran into my brother. Somehow I came up in the conversation and Jameson had this crazy revelation and said in disbelief “Wait, you’re The Terminator’s brother?!” I had never felt so proud to waste my life playing a video game in my entire life. The idiots at Blizzard decided to release ‘Starcraft 2’ in 3 parts and waited years and years to get them all out. I eventually lost interest and haven’t played it since 2013. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837104815-MPZXU9Y7LSAJXURVW87W/PC+%233+HOMM3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 3. Heroes of Might and Magic III I bought the first ‘Heroes of Might and Magic’ on a whim at a computer store and loved it. I bought ‘Heroes of Might and Magic II’ and was blown away by its upgrades. When I played ‘Heroes of Might and Magic III’ at my buddies Peter’s place, for some reason I wasn’t that impressed. I thought there was too much going on. Too many factions, upgrades and units. Boy was I wrong. When I got over my pride of Peter getting this game before me, I realized that this is the pinnacle of turn-based strategy games. The wealth of options available to you in this game is enough to keep you entertained and challenged yet not crazy enough to turn a casual player away from it. The art direction is gorgeous, the music is something I listen to still to this day, and the campaigns are tons of fun (Although sometimes you’ll hit some pretty fucked up AI that can be frustrating, but it’s beatable. Just gotta be good). Every sequel after this one was a step down, unfortunately. ‘Heroes of Might and Magic III’ has taken my love for turn-based strategy into a lifelong search for games equal to this one’s quality. Spoiler alert: I’m still looking. My favourite faction is still the Knights. I love getting the Swordsmen, and upgraded Paladins. I’d argue they’re probably the weakest at the end game, but early on and mid game they’re deadly. Plus I like the challenge. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837131026-KMMV73BKZYHZ2WZYOQ7U/PC+%232+BroodWar.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 2. Starcraft: Brood War This counts as both ‘Starcraft’ and the expansion ‘Brood War’. I can say without a doubt that I’ve played ‘Starcraft: Brood War’ more than any other game in my life. From 1998 to about 2003, which is all of high school and the first year of University, I played this game to the point where I felt confident I could beat anyone in the world. I was really fucking good at this game. In high school I made a Street Fighter 2 clan with my buddies Tolga (Zangief), Peter (Blanka), Tiago (Vega), Chiefy Poo (Guile) and myself (Ken). We wreaked havoc on the ‘Starcraft’ servers. All my buddies would come over to my house (Which had two computers) and we would take turns playing 2v2 and strengthening our clan. Sometimes there’d be tons of trash talk and one of my friends would accept a 1v1 challenge, so then they would call me over and make me face them, just to make sure they smashed them. Zerg were my guys. Ah the good old days. I remember I broke my collarbone in grade 9 and I only had access to my right arm for about 3 months. I played this Use Map Setting (UMS) game called Builders and Fighters (Or something like that). There were no statistical gains or losses from it, so it was something I enjoyed playing, and it kept me sane during my recovery. Man, playing that game is a really good memory I have during a really shitty time in my life. This game is a big piece of happiness in my life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1612837158538-GKRZ3K4OXZCSJMLJJ8PR/PC+%231+Baldurs+Gate+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 PC GAMES 1. Baldur’s Gate II The best PC game ever made, and arguable the best game ever made. It has a great story, lively and exciting characters, tons of customization, gorgeous art, and amazing game mechanics. I love how you can pause the game, take a breath and figure out your strategy. You can’t just run head first into every battle or rely on the same magic and items to defeat every boss. You really need options available to take on all the challenges thrown at you. ‘Baldur’s Gate II’ really expanded on the original while staying true to what made it so great in the first place. Everything just got an enhancement. There’s a mission you can do in this game at the Docks with the Shadow Thieves, where after you beat it you become the leader of the guild and can assign assassins to go out and do missions for you. Each NPC character you meet would have a side quest you got to go on and your relationships would develop based on yours and your army’s good/evil alignment. You get whisked away into this beautiful land and each map you uncover holds a new and exciting secret. I’ve never been so enveloped in a world before quite like ‘Baldur’s Gate II’. I’m constantly pulled in and can spend days and days in there leveling up my characters. I come back to this game all the time, and find something new with it every single time. I still think there are tons of companions I’ve never used. I get so attached to Korgan, Edwin and Viconia. I gotta try some new ones! https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2020/8/4/allans-top-100-movies-100-51 monthly 0.5 2025-01-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608399371977-KEF6JKCH62GTEM2MAR50/%23100+Love+Actually.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I hadn’t seen this movie till my girlfriend at the time, Maria, forced me to watch it during the Christmas holidays. She said it’s amazing and trusted that I’d love it. I looked at the title, the actors, the idea of the movie, and I was like “Meh, I dunno”. But since she watched 10 of my movies in a row, I owed her one. ‘Love Actually’ completely caught me off guard. First of all, it’s rated R. A romantic holiday comedy is rated R? That’s how offbeat and unexpected this movie is. There’s a wonderful mosaic of sex, political debate, nudity, cheating, love, lust, comedy, pain, and intrigue to make this one of the more unique ensemble movies I’ve ever seen. With this being one of my wife’s favourite movies, I decided to get romantically creative and use it as my proposal! (Her other favourite movie is ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ but that didn’t feel like the romantic option out of the two). I secretly edited myself into the scene where Andrew Lincoln shows Keira Knightley the cards outside in the snow, and then we went to our friend Ann and Nikko’s place and watched my edited version while I had the ring hidden, waiting for the scene. Panic struck as she started to fall asleep about 20 minutes before the big scene, so all of us were making her drinks and pushing her to stay awake and alert. Finally the doorbell rang, Keira Knightley went to open it, and there I was. She watched the scene in complete shock, and my last cue card said “Will you marry me?” - I got down on one knee and she said yes. Phew! Whatever you’ve experienced in love, there’s a good chance this movie has a story that you can relate to. It doesn’t hold back any punches, and doesn’t glamourize love in it’s most Disney form. It’s a bunch of short stories that are beautifully acted and feel more real than any other romance I’ve watched. My favourite story is Colin Firth with Aurelia, the Portuguese helper. It’s a beautiful little story. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1601343746047-GX6NL41FOV7K55LRF31B/%2399+Annabelle+Creation.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Usually, sequels are pretty garbage; especially sequels to a horror movie spinoff, and even more especially when the first movie of that spinoff was a complete dumpster fire. So, I gotta say, I had pretty low expectations for this movie. When my wife and I went to see this, we made a decision about a year earlier that we can only see movies VIP now because we can’t handle the seat kicking, people talking, phones in our faces, and overall distractions throughout the film, but I really wanted to watch a horror movie and ‘Annabelle: Creation’ was the only horror out at the time, and it wasn’t classy enough to get the VIP treatment in Toronto, so we sucked it up, DBOX tickets, and made our way into the cavernous movie theatre jungle. Holy shit, the movie was sold out packed, and I’m pretty sure we were the oldest people there, clocking in at a solid 30 and 33 years old. We tried to turn off the people laughing and talking and just enjoy the movie. Holy shit, about 20 minutes into the movie, everyone shut the fuck up and was trying not to shit their pants. Maria and I were terrified. But you know what happens when people get really scared? They either look away and ignore it, or they start talking and making jokes to pretend they’re not scared. So the movie then became this blend of people screaming their heads off, and busting out some of the funniest things I’ve ever heard in a movie theater. There was a girl behind us, about 18 years old, and she at first was super annoying, saying things like “Oh my God, do NOT go in there!”, or “Uhhh uh! No girl, you gonna DIE!” it eventually started to add a bit to the creepy ambience of the movie, and between me wanting to punch her in the head, and laughing at her stupid ass comments. It ended up being one of the best movie experiences of my life. I’ll also mention there were people shouting at others to turn their phones off, turning around and saying “I’ll beat the shit out of you”, a fight broke out in the first couple rows of the theater and people were screaming and all trying to get a look. Aside from all that, this movie was legit and one of the most terrifying movies I’ve ever seen. In fact, it was so scary, I thought about grabbing Maria and leaving because I couldn’t handle the stress of the scares coming at me. This movie is done by David F. Sandberg who also did the surprise 2016 horror flick ‘Lights Out’ and I gotta say, he really upped his hollywood worth with this one. ‘The Conjuring’ universe is already becoming one of the most successful horror productions in the business, and ‘Annabelle: Creation’ is the creepiest installation to it yet. This movie has it’s obvious jump scares (Which I usually dislike), but its compounded with genuinely scary moments. After watching it a second time at home, I realized that this movie isn’t as scary as I remember it, but sometimes it depends on the mood your in and who you’re watching it with. I watched it originally with my scaredy cat wife and a 100 shit scared teens - well actually, you can make it 100 shit scared teens and 2 shit scared adults as well. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609090661349-8M9UG4LS1QKA6B481FNM/%2398+Greatest+Showman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) My brother-in-law Phi told me about this movie in 2018 and said it was his favourite movie of the year and that it brings him to tears of happiness and sadness with every viewing. He was obsessed with the soundtrack and played it every time we were around each other. He kept asking me to watch it with him, and I just refused to. All the characters were weird, I’m not big into musicals, the songs weren’t heavy metal, and the fact he loved it so much made me want to be different and not watch it. Then I went to the cottage for a weekend and when I got back, my wife came up to me and said “Allan, you have to watch ‘The Greatest Showman!” So I finally swallowed my pride and decided to watch this shitty musical. I cried like a bitch. I fell in love with every character, every dance move, and every song to the point where even I started to listen to the soundtrack on Spotify in my spare time. Maria and I drove back from the cottage later that year and we played the soundtrack over and over again for the entire 3.5 hour drive home. The danger of it is, is that my favourite song “From Now On” is super catchy, and I can’t get it out of my head so it ends up fucking up sleeps really badly. The songs in this movie aren’t your typical musical numbers, they sound and feel like legit songs you’re hear on the radio. There are 11 songs in the movie and I am in love with 10 of them. I don’t even like that many songs on a Dragonforce album, so we’re talking about an absolute killer soundtrack here. They’re all sung with such a voracious passion. It’s so powerful and beautiful. We became so obsessed with the movie that we jumped online and tried to find any behind the scenes/making of to delve even deeper into this movie and we found a wicked bit where Hugh Jackman is rehearsing “From Now On” with everyone while recovering from a nose cancer procedure. He isn’t supposed to sing, but he belts out the song with such passion that it sent shivers through my whole body. It’s been a while since I felt something as powerful as that. ‘The Greatest Showman’ is about the life of P.T. Barnum, who specialized in showing the odd and spectacular to his fans. I can relate, because my whole life I’ve always tried to entertain people. When I was a kid, my Mom said I would make a list of 10 things that my friends can choose to do when they came over to play - from tag, hide and seek, puzzles, video games, making a movie, playing hockey, or baseball, I would always try and entertain. This need to entertain would carry on with house parties and New Years Eve parties, which became legendary at the Hughes house and went on for 12 years straight. Now that I’m older, I can relate to P.T. Barnum in realizing that entertaining people isn’t the only thing that matters in life. There comes a time when you need to focus your family and take pride in entertaining them, rather than the masses. I mean, my career as a video editor in television will probably ensure that I continue to entertain the masses, so I’ll hopefully find a nice balance with work, friends and family. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609091455463-ALKJRQ4JT02MGJ0KEG3A/%2397+Arrival.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) My buddy Peter told me to watch a movie called 'Arrival' back in 2016. Peter doesn't watch too many movies, so when he tells me that I have to go see this movie, I take it seriously. I ended up going to see it with my wife at a little theatre on College St. in Toronto called 'The Royal' after it had left the big theatres. I gotta tell ya, seeing it in an old fashioned movie theatre with only 6 or 7 other people there with you is quite the treat. I had no idea what to expect when I saw it - I had yet to see a trailer or read a review. I knew there were aliens in it, so I was prepared for some solid action. To my surprise, I was blown away by its unpredicted theme: Language. Through language we can understand and unite. There's a line off the top of the movie where Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is quoted in her book saying: "Language is the foundation of civilization. It's the glue that holds the people together. It's the first weapon drawn in a conflict." to which Ian (Jeremy Renner) replies: "That's great, even if it's wrong ... the cornerstone of civilization isn't language, it's science." Trying to find the answer to questions like these are all a matter of opinion and expertise, and what ties everyone together, is that we are all in this thing together. All of us. We are stronger united, rather than as one. I have hope for the future when watching this movie. Partnered with Johan Johansson's beautifully haunting string score, it manages to enlighten my soul. I feel like things are going to be OK after I watch it. With 'Arrival' every shot seems to ease me. Canadian director Denis Villeneuve manages to bring deep detail and care into such simple shots. There's a wealth of depth with everything he does. He has absolutely nailed the 'epic' feel of his movies (With “Blade Runner 2049” also having that style). It's a fascinating movie. It's better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609090533016-RCYRGB2GP81ROSEMCQWP/%2396+Social+network.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Even though I hate Jesse Eisenberg, I still love this movie. But… I will say that Eisenberg is absolutely perfect for the role of Mark Zuckerberg. So now that I’ve got that out of the way, I can move on with how amazing this movie is. ‘The Social Network’ makes some bold creative choices, from Eisenberg talking with his girlfriend in the bar and you can barely hear what’s going on, and it feels like you’ve downloaded a terrible MPEG4 of the movie, only to find out later that it’s a stylistic approach by director David Fincher to make you feel more involved in the movie. He makes you feel like you’re in the bar with them. That’s really frustrating at first, but then incredibly genius afterwards. Then after he leaves and he’s running back to his dorm room to the somber beautiful melody of Trent Reznor’s sparse ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ feeling score, I was hooked. I think what makes me love this movie so much is that when Facebook first became a thing, I was right in the middle of it. I was going to school at Graceland University in Iowa, and I was accepting friend requests, writing on people’s walls, finding out if they were in a relationship or not, and it was honestly the coolest thing ever. I didn’t have to worry about going up to someone and chatting with them, or getting to know their name and make small talk - I just went online and added them as a friend. It wasn’t considered weird or creepy (as my wife now tells me it is) when I would just add someone as a friend and chat with them. It was, without knowing, the beginning of a whole new era in social media. While the personal feelings of Facebook are prevalent in my liking of this movie, it’s also just purely entertaining. There’s something fantastic about watching a genius go through the highs and lows of success, and knowing it’s based on a true story that I felt involved with somehow. It’s got my boy Justin Timberlake from N*SYNC in it who does an fabulous job manipulating Zuckerberg as Sean Parker. Brenda Song was so fantastic and psycho that she became an instant favourite of mine (In more ways than one, huh huh), and Andrew Garfield plays the role of his life as the tortured and beat-up friend. Combine all these killer acting roles with the writing styles of Aaron Sorkin and it’s no reason why this movie is so highly acclaimed. Thank God David Fincher (Who also did ‘Fight Club’ and ‘Seven’) directed this movie, because it could so easily have gone awry and just been this awful, weird documentary style movie. It turns out that you get tantalized by just about every aspect of this movie - music, directing, acting, writing, editing and sound. As Quentin Tarantino says in response to what film was the best in the 2010-20 decade: “It’s ‘The Social Network’ hands down… it’s number one because it’s the best, that’s all! It crushes all the competition”. Well, it’s good enough for 98 on ol’ Allan Hughes’ top 100 anyways. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089654148-ZCOWO6DRIVK4JJ54F9A0/%2395+Children+of+Men.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I wasn’t really prepared for what I was about to watch when I first saw ‘Children of Men’. This is about as gritty as a film can get. The whole world has become infertile, and a newborn child hasn’t graced the Earth in over 18 years. Then, when a woman miraculously becomes pregnant in England, it’s up to a small group of activists to bring her to a safe haven. From the opening scene of a bomb exploding in a coffee shop, it’s a real depressing yet provocative thriller that kinda just gets crazier and crazier as it goes along. Alfonso Cuaron is a dark themed filmmaker from Mexico who just came off of making ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’, and really ups his shock value with this one. It’s got a lovely cast with Michael Caine stealing the show every time he’s on camera by portraying the hippy journalist with a great “Pull my finger” sense of humour, and thank god he’s in this movie because without it, it would just be unrelentingly intense. After watching it for a 3rd time in 2020, I noticed new themes emerged, camera and directing styles adding to story, and the way music and sound was used in this movie. The scene when the war stops and they make their way through the rubble is one of my all-time favourite scenes ever. Sometimes, the more you watch a movie, the more you get bored of it, and start to notice imperfections with it, but with ‘Children of Men’ it just keeps getting better and better the more I watch and think about it. Even during a 3rd viewing, I was still holding my breath, and cringing my teeth during some scenes. It’s wildly unpredictable, and brutally entertaining. ‘Children of Men’ also offers up a great in-depth study into dystopian future. While I don’t feel like writing an essay on the message Cuaron is trying to relate with a story of no more children, or a black woman being the only pregnant woman alive, or how centralized government controls its people, or an uprising against the government, or the other 50 ways you could dive deep into this movie, it’s definitely worth discussing with a friend, because there is a ton to unpack. But it’s a not a movie to be fearful to watch either. It doesn’t require a ton of unpacking or questioning if you don’t feel like thinking too hard to watch a movie. It’s a perfect balance of entertainment, education, and brilliance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609090444326-FKE6KCQDYYUGJ1XTC7WN/%2394+Looper.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I have a thing for time travel movies. So when I saw 'Looper' in theaters back in 2012, I blew my load. The idea of criminals from the future, sending their victims back in time for people called Loopers to kill and dispose of them, thus erasing them from the future, is so friggin cool. Trying to explain time travel in movies is always complicated, and sometimes it gets a little lost in itself, but 'Looper' manages to take a complex idea, and really narrow it down to it's core to keep it focused, but still incredibly thought provoking. During a breakfast scene with Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Old Joe (Bruce Willis), Old Joe actually says to his younger self, "I don't wanna talk about time travel shit, because if we start talkin' about it, we're gonna be here all day ... making diagrams with straws." While this could be seen as just a lazy excuse to not fully explain the complexity of what's going on, it serves an important function to me: shut up and enjoy the movie. I can look at the flaws of any movie, and let that ruin it for me, so this is writer/director, Rian Johnson's way of saying not to over think this. I mean, what Old Joe is saying really is true. What the hell do any of us know about time travel? It doesn't exist, so the entire concept is theoretical, and I'm sure the majority of the population's knowledge on the subject is based off of 'Hot Tub Time Machine' and 'The Terminator'. So really, there's no point getting too in depth with a movie that's meant to entertain you. In typical Johnson fashion, there's a brutal violence to 'Looper' but he sneaks in a good amount of comedy to keep it from dragging you through the blood in this dystopian thriller; and to help bring this thriller to life, is a fucking outstanding performance by Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Emily Blunt. I was new to Blunt when I saw this, but she really puts herself on the map with this one. There's a fierceness, yet terrifying fragility to her character that she manages to act perfectly together - when you watch it, you’ll know what I mean. Bruce Willis just always kinda does his thing, so I'm used to it. Gordon-Levitt nails a younger version of Willis and carries the movie to a whole new echelon of greatness. He was on a serious hot streak after making 'Inception', and 'The Dark Knight Rises', and then 'Looper' to finish off a fantastic run. Although I still can’t shake the image of that long haired kid from ‘3rd Rock From the Sun’. I've always wondered what I would say to myself if I could go back 10 or 15 years, and as this movie alludes to, it wouldn't be related to money, work, or pride, it would be to focus on love, family and happiness - or to better develop my change up so I could be a pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089569132-NCSWUJDU2MV4CP7KW242/%2393+Rounders.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I watched this movie when I was in University in Iowa, around 2005, and that’s when poker exploded into the mainstream. Everyone was watching the World Series of Poker and Doyle Brunson facing off against Phil Hellmuth, Phil Ivey, and Daniel Negranau, and everyone realized how amazing Texas Hold’em really is. I had been playing poker my whole life. I learned off a NES game called Casino Kid, and my Dad and I would always play poker together at the cottage. From there I would play with some of my friends, but they all really sucked, so it wasn’t the best experience. In high school, I started playing with my brother and his friends Keith, Ben and Pasic, who were on par with my skills, so it made for some fun poker - and always a great pizza night. So by the time I watched this movie in University, I already had a very strong base, and passion for the game. ‘Rounders’ has an incredibly strong cast from Matt Damon, Edward Norton to John Malkovich and John Turturro. But it’s not the acting that makes this movie great, what makes this movie is that it plays the game the proper way – it’s not Hollywoodized – and has a great story behind it as well. This movie fuelled my passion for a great game, and helped me get through University by winning quite a bit of money, and having the best weekends ever. Seriously, we played a crazy amount of poker at Graceland University in Iowa. At least every weekend we would head over to the ‘American House’ where all my baseball buddies would be there ready to win. All of us were shit fuck broke, so the $10-$20 buy in was more than just a fun time - we really needed to win! We took this shit so seriously that our starting CF Cali, made a geocities website at the time to keep track of how much we’ve all won. There were always at least 10 of us, but most of the time we had so many players we needed two tables and had to turn some people away. We usually had about 15-18 every weekend. We played for fame, money, and it was a great excuse to get drunk with all our buddies at University. Then, that’s also when the online poker started. Holy shit, did we get into that. Some of my buddies were on Pokerstars and they were doing actual money bets. When someone raised $50, it was actually $50! Some pots were at $500 pre-flop and ended up going to pretty crazy numbers. Let me remind you - we were broke students! Shit got pretty serious with a bunch of us. Online poker was a huge wakeup call for me and my anger issues as well. I remember junior year, I was playing in my room at ‘The Embassy’ and I lost a bad hand. I was so pissed off, that I grabbed the nearest thing I could find and launched it at my wall. It turned out to be a handful of DVD’s and CD’s. A bunch of them shattered and broke, and some of them were actually pretty important or expensive. From that point on, I made a vow, and have never played online poker again. Poker is so infuriating! Which is why I’ll never be a pro player (Not that I ever was going to be or planned to) You need to have patience, and understanding to play a game where you lose more often than you win. But all that aside, God I love poker and God I love this movie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089453355-VYKDFV1IFM8NXWPN4FWU/%2392+A+Nightmare+On+Elm+Street.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) To me, this is the movie that started the new wave of ‘classic’ horror movies – ‘Halloween’, ‘Friday the 13th’ , ‘Child’s Play’, villains that are now synonymous with the best and most memorable of the horror genre. I know ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ isn’t the trend setter of these horror movies, but it was the first one I saw as a kid, so it’s my original horror movie. Watching through all seven ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’s, it’s pretty obvious that the first one is the scariest, and the best - by far. They get pretty ridiculous as the series goes on, and even start to turn into horror/comedies, but the 1984 Nightmare holds up as one of the best ever made. But, It’s not about holding up, because when I watched this as a kid, it freaked the shit out of me. I didn’t understand that he attacked you in your sleep as a kid, all I was scared of was a dude with a fried melting face and freaky ass daggers for a hand. There was blood exploding from a bed, screeching claws dragged over metal surfaces, and stupid adults that refused to believe the truth! But what makes Freddy Krueger so scary is the obvious - he attacks you in your dreams. What a brilliant idea for a horror movie. We all sleep, we all dream, and we’re all completely and utterly helpless when we doze off into lala land. I used the music composed by Charles Berstein in “Nightmare on Elm Street” for just about every single horror movie I made growing up. I would film a shitty horror on my little digital VHS camcorder and then find a scene in ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ with freaky music and overdub that in my movies. It has quite a chilling soundtrack that if you want to hear, just head over to my old movies and watch any of the https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089485164-QJG77B5IA64DFZQQLFCJ/%2391+Hook.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) This movie is just so much fun and the more I watch it as an adult, the more I appreciate it – especially Captain Hook’s motives and performance. As a kid, I saw this movie as kids having fun, flying and living in a magical place and Captain Hook was the evil villain who Peter Pan has to slay. In University, I watched this movie and thought how gorgeous the set designs were, the popping colours, the character development of Robin Williams from angry father to joyful Neverland kid, and how hot Julia Roberts was. Now as I watch it, I think of what an absent father Robin Williams is, and how Hook only wants the war he was promised; a chance for glory. I understand his distaste for clocks, and the crocodile at the end, how Wendy was in love with Peter from the beginning, and he left to see about a girl. There are so many nuisances in this movie that I always overlook each decade I watch it. The one thing I can agree on throughout the years, is that this movie is pure joy. Something about always puts me in a good mood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089382391-M2S5RDPCP6L13COX4Z6E/%2390+Austin+Powers.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I was in grade 9, going to school at Turner Fenton in Brampton, Ontario when this movie came out. I was always a pretty responsible student, I'd never skip class or anything, but when 'Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery' came out I just had to see it. I was with some friends in my drama class (Lianne is the only one I remember because I was trying to impress her and make her my girlfriend) and we decided to all skip 5th period drama class and go watch it at 'The Grande'. It was definitely one of the best decisions I made in my high school life. We laughed our asses off. Maybe it was the danger of skipping class and seeing a movie where the hero’s middle name is “Danger” that made it even better, because our adrenaline was pumping. The comedy of 'Austin Powers' just really jammed with me. Not to mention, I developed a huge crush on Elizabeth Hurley after the movie. But when we left the theatre with tears streaming down our faces from laughing so hard, there was the one person I didn't want to see. It was our Drama teacher, Ms. Ross, whose class we just skipped 2 hours ago. What were the odds?! There were 6 of us there but of course she singles me out and asks why I wasn't in class. I was bumbling around like an idiot trying to think of something to say. Ugh. Just the worst. All the comedy in this movie was genius for its time. Sharks with laser beams, getting a gun upstairs and just killing him now, getting the car stuck in the hallway, Allotta Vagina, the long peeing in the beginning, the big cock and balls in the shape of Big Boy, it's just all so good. Making a parody out of James Bond was easy pickings and long overdue. The silliness of it actually encouraged me to make a bunch of little parodies myself, which have become a staple of my filming hobby. I'd also become the star of the family that year in Chicago for Thanksgiving by constantly doing Austin Power jumps and impressions. I have a ton of great memories with this movie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609091752124-B2GSHGCTYSEQY8E7F4AZ/%2389+Resrvoir+Dogs.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) My good buddy Haris had a poster of this movie in his dorm room at UofT and absolutely adored it. It was Haris' love for 'Reservoir Dogs' that really helped push this into my top 100. I was super impressionable during high school and found pleasure in the simplest of things. When I saw a cast of badass characters who all had cool colour coded names, I thought this movie was just so cool. It has a wonderful cast of characters including Chris Penn, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Harvey Keitel, and Steve Buscemi who all masterfully deliver what would become signature Quentin Tarantino dialogue - plentiful, conversational, and character developing. Technically, it's a great movie, but that's not really why I like it. This movie has style. The music, mixed with the dialogue in such a static environment manages to open up possibilities of how easy it could be to make a movie. All you need are some friends, good music, and something to argue over. This is obviously pretty insulting to say because this movie is masterful in every aspect, but watching it gave me this feeling of potential. There's a torture scene in it with "Stuck in the Middle With You" playing while Madsen is dancing and doing pretty fucked up shit to a prisoner, and it debunked everything I thought I knew about scary scenes. I grew up expecting scary music to scary scenes, but this flipped everything on it's head and it made me realize that films can be artistic. There's no formula to making a great movie. The only restriction to greatness is imagination. I'm sure there are other examples of juxtapositions in film, but this one was the first that really opened my eyes, and it was through music! ‘Reservoir Dogs’ inspired me to shoot short films and listen to my voice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089278144-Z06NYA1302MVT0Z0GLX4/%2388+Groundhog+Day.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Every Christmas I watch 'A Christmas Story', every Halloween I watch 'A Nightmare on Elm Street', and every February 2nd, I watch 'Groundhog Day' on whatever of the 50 channels that are playing it that day. 'Groundhog Day' is a chance for the great Bill Murray to really let himself loose. I feel like it's based on his true life story and 'Groundhog Day' is his biography. That's either how amazing his acting is or how honest his character Phil Conners feels. He starts off as a self loathing weatherman who is reliving the same day over and over, and the only way he can move forward with his life is to find love and betterment in himself. I've had a couple conversations with friends about how long Phil is stuck in the same day. He masters ice sculpting, the piano, throwing cards, wooing Rita (Andy McDowell) and seems to have a grasp on the French language. Which would make one think that he's reliving Feb 2nd for probably between 7-10 years. That's both terrifying and the coolest thing ever. To be immortal and not have time affect your age, health or anything, is a dream. But what's the point of being immortal and omniscient if there's never anyone to share it with? Director Harold Ramis (Who co-starred with Bill Murray in 'Ghostbusters') reminds us that the most beautiful thing on this planet is the connection we can have with others. The scene with Phil and the homeless man gets me every time. Sharing in people's lives, making friends and being with loved ones is what fills me with purpose. As a kid watching this, I always thought the plot was so cool. Reliving the same day over and over is like something out of an X-Men comic. It had a ton of funny scenes and all the stuff he mastered was wicked. But watching it now as an adult, I can sympathize with how much he hates doing crappy jobs, being surrounded by idiots, and bothered when he just wants to be left alone. Then I realize that life is a state of mind, and everything can change with a simple reframing of positive energy and courtesy. But man, it'd be tough to get by Ned Ryerson everyday trying to sell me insurance. What a God damned beaut. 'Groundhog Day' is Bill Murray's best movie (Sorry 'Ghostbusters' fans). It's got romance, comedy, heartfelt drama and some good life lessons. I always think of his wise words when some asshole cuts me off as I'm driving, "Don't drive angry! Don't drive angry!". https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609089210530-WV8FWYKBMKN6E0KXJOP5/%2387+Evil+Dead+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) This is a weird story. The first time I saw this movie, I was at my friend Kevin Pacheco's house for lunch back in Grade 6, and we only had about 45 minutes to eat lunch and then head back to school at Sir Winston Churchill. For some reason, he decided to throw on the VHS version of Evil Dead 2 (What other version I guess?) and he fast forwarded to halfway through the movie when Bobby Joe and the hick enter the movie, and there is Kevin, laughing his ass off. I had no idea what this movie was about but there was blood, beheading, killing, corpses, and some pretty fucked up and scary shit going on; but watching it with Kevin, it was without a doubt, a comedy. We didn't come close to finishing the movie because we only had 40 minutes for lunch time so I was left completely and utterly confused by what we watched. I thought we'd watch 'Pinky and the Brain', 'Fresh Prince of Bel Air' or 'The Simpsons', so getting thrown into this insane blood bath of a movie, I was just floored - in the best way possible. It wasn't for another 10 years or so when I would watch the Evil Dead trilogy and realize what Kevin had exposed me to as a child. 'Evil Dead 2' is right up my alley. Horror comedy done to perfection. The fact that a kid in grade 6 could watch it and laugh more than be scared is proof that this movie finds a nice balance of genres. I mean, we probably shouldn't have been watching it in grade 6, but still. What I love most about 'Evil Dead 2' is that it doesn't take itself to seriously and it's made on a shoestring budget. This movie gave hope to so many would-be filmmakers out there that success can be achieved no matter your budget or talent. The special effects and the acting in this movie are not Oscar worthy, but because it embraces that fact, it's allowed to succeed by just being wildly entertaining. Since watching this movie, I've gone on to love the iPad app game of 'Evil Dead', I've watched the television show of it called 'Ash vs Evil Dead' and I've even gone to see a live musical play of it twice, at the Randolph Theater in Toronto called ‘Evil Dead: The Musical’ (Which is absolutely fan-fucking-tastic by the way) 'Evil Dead 2' has brought me tons of happiness and motivation that I even made my own short film called 'The Dead Body' which was a horror/comedy. I can faithfully say, it's not as easy as it looks and I give full props to director Sam Raimi, and actor Bruce Campbell for their kick ass movie. (Side note: Bruce Campbell has an autobiography called 'If Chins Could Kill: Confession of a B-Rated Actor', and it is a fantastic read. I highly recommend it) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/71ad0eb1-141b-43da-bedf-6391e2338d5d/Whiplash.png TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) - Make it stand out I remember this movie coming out in theaters and hearing all the award buzz around it. For some reason, I just ignored it. Man, how stupid I was for doing this. This movie is incredible. First off, the performances by Teller and Simmons are outstanding, but what really stuck with me was the message it sent out: How far can you push someone towards greatness before its too much? I played a LOT of baseball in my day and I pushed myself harder than anyone I know. I ran until I threw up, I pitched until my arm was going to fall off, I did catching drills up and down on my knees blocking balls until my body was black and blue, I’d drive 1 to 2 hours just to get to a thirty minute practice at 6am in the freezing cold. I practiced and played 4 or 5 times a week 365 days of the year. I did all this and while I got a scholarship to Iowa to play baseball, it still wasn’t enough to be the best. To be truly great. Did I need to be pushed harder? Did I need a coach who wouldn’t allow mediocrity? Maybe if I had that coach I would have been pushed too far over the edge and wouldn’t have wanted to play at all anymore. I think about these things often. More than I should, to be honest and this movie captured that journey I had and the emotionally crippling sacrifices I had to make. Simmons is not trying to make someone great, he’s trying to make someone the best. He’s trying to change the world and sometimes people need that motivation. But does he cross the line? Probably. Most likely. Yes. After watching this movie I forced my friends to watch it so I could see it again and have more people to talk to about it. It really made that much of an impact on me. Now that I have kids, I wonder how far I need to push them to be great at what they do. Do I want to raise mediocre kids? Will I accept tears knowing that through them greatness lies on the other side? There are different routes you can take to achieve that greatness, I will of course will push toward that goal with a gentle and loving hand. Still a wicked ass movie though. That last scene still haunts me to this day. Wow. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1600826326594-GMRPCDBMDTTOYDIMD9TU/%2385+The+Grand+Seduction.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Ah Ticklehead; which is what this movie should have been called. ‘The Grand Seduction’ is a love letter to the East coast. It shows what life is like in a tiny little town (Ticklehead) where everyone knows each other and where their own rules and laws feel made up. ‘The Grand Seduction’ stars arguably my favourite actor in the world, Brendan Gleeson, and he carries this movie from the beginning till end. I mean, he really is fantastic in it. There’s charm to this movie unlike many I’ve seen before. ‘The Grand Seduction’ delves into what lengths a person will go to keep their family afloat and happy. There’s nothing flashy about this flick, much like the East Coast vibe to it. It’s a good honest tale of simple folk trying to make their way and save their little town. When I first saw this, I was living in Toronto and was starting to get fed up with the constant construction of roads, new buildings, and fucking condos everywhere. I just wanted life to be calm, peaceful and happy. This movie came along and boom, there was the life I wanted to live. So simple. Ironically enough, we went to a screening on the Lakeshore of this movie and sat outside on a beautiful summer day and watched it on an outdoor projector with 30 other Torontonians. Something as cool and unique as that experience probably wouldn’t have happened anywhere else, but I still wanted out of the city! So to have my favourite actor in it, and me in my early 30s wanting a change of pace, this movie was a round hole going into a round peg. It really is a cute movie that I highly recommend. Not to mention it’s done by a local Toronto boy, Don McKellar. So it’s always nice to support your local scene. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609092115197-KE2HF4VKYN7SDPHDGJS7/%2384+The+Great+Outdoors.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) John Candy is a Canadian legend and no movie he has ever done is more perfectly suited for me than 'The Great Outdoors'. This is purely because my family owns a cottage up in Algonquin Park and we have spent the majority of our summers there my entire life. John Candy even wears the same blue cardigan sweater my Dad wears throughout the movie! 'The Great Outdoors' is a very wholesome, family flick with a bunch of laughs. I mean, Dan Aykroyd and John Candy? Fuck off. You know there's going to be a shit ton of laughs in it. The source of my good humour is completely through my parents; my Dad's unrelenting chest of jokes which capture an audience and my Mom's unintentionally confusing belly-bursting jokes. I will say though, that John Candy's bald headed killer bear story makes me want to spin a yarn no matter what story I tell. That scene kills me. My Dad would tell similar stories to Erik and I to try and freak us out all the time. I just hope I can still have fun like that when I'm older and a father. I also wonder if this movie is what gave me my crippling fear of bears? The bald headed bear in this flick is terrifying. Every time I make a fire at my cottage, I always think of Dan Aykroyd telling John Candy how to make a fire: "You don't crumple a newspaper up, ya twist it! Twist it! Length wise to simulate kindling." Of course, over 30 years of making fires and I still suck at it. Maybe I should take Uncle Roman's advice. I also tried water skiing for the first and only time up in Algonquin when I was a kid. They banned it several years later because it's too loud and obnoxious. I would watch my brother and cousins rip around the lake with my Dad driving a 40 horsepower boat he named 'THOR', until finally it was my turn. I couldn't have fucked it up any worse. I skied on the water for about 0.4 seconds and fell. But I mean, I was about 7 at the time and the ski boots were 5 sizes too big for me. So when I watch the Candy scene of him ripping around the lake and then picking splinters out his ass from now till the day he dies, it always gives me a little smile. There's also a random music fact in my life that this movie produced. Every time the older son goes out to meet the girl, there's a tune playing that I can recall without fail at any moment. It was the first time I understood that movies have musical themes for certain characters. You think it would be something a little more inspiring like the “Imperial March” from ‘Star Wars’ or something, but hey, 'The Great Outdoors' has offered me plenty to be inspired about. I mean, the ‘96er (96 ounce) steak that John Candy eats! I have a friend, Mike Comrie who is convinced he could eat it without fail no problem. Right. If John Candy can barely pull it off, no chance buddy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609092332492-Y9EBRNV3PDDP31EQG4CD/%2383+Crouching+Tigers+Hidden+Dragon.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) This movie came out when I was going through a pretty big transition in my life. I was in grade 10 and had just stated dating girls, for real – not like ‘Saved By the Bell’. Sex became an important thing in my life, but I always managed to split my time equally between relationships, sports and film. Overall, I started to become a man. When I saw ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’, I was dating my first real girlfriend, Arijana at the time, and because she was a few years older than me, she appreciated art in film more than the testosterone, Arnold Schwarzenegger infused mind that I bluntly brought to every screening. This movie changed me. I had never seen a foreign film that was so beautiful and high budget in my life. I grew up on Hollywood and movies from the 70s and 80s that my Dad recorded on channel 52 with his VHS player and kept in an armoire. It was almost like I was seeing the world in black and white, and then ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ happened and awoke all my dormant senses. Actors Chow Yung Fat and Michelle Yeoh would be seen dancing around like a dream, when in fact it was all practical effects of using wires. But even with the cool special effects overloading my senses, the romantic epicness of ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ still overloads my heart with happiness. The elegance of a sword and dancing replaced the forcefulness of a gun and car. The subtly of space and sound opened up a closed door. The delicate use of ambience and music replaced the booming scores of John Williams and James Horner. I wasn’t ready for what this movie was going to do to me, and after seeing it, I now keep an open mind to every culture of cinema, no matter who makes it or where it’s from. I would also go on to say, that after watching this movie, I didn’t date another white girl for the rest of my life. So maybe this movie had an even bigger reach of influence than I realized? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1600825963176-673NJ875FRJ3ZR5Z8JR0/%2382+Oldboy.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) The first time I saw 'Oldboy' I was just finishing high school and my brother's buddy, Bryan Pasic, brought over a couple movies on DVD. At the time in early 2000, I was obsessed with watching shock and gore movies. It seemed as though non-Hollywood productions gave me the greatest thrill, with movies like 'Ichi the Killer', 'Battle Royale', and 'High Tension' providing the most fucked up things I could watch and actually appreciate. So with that, Pasic told me that 'Oldboy' is nuts. I gave it a shot and it didn't disappoint. 'Oldboy' is a fucked up movie, no question about it, but it feels like none of it is done just for shock value like some of the other gore-porn stuff I was watching. There's a ton of substance here that lends it to be being one of my favourite foreign films of all time. Director Park Chan-Wook put Korean film on the international stage and 'Oldboy' is his crowning achievement (Spike Lee remade this in 2013 for some stupid reason. Stay away from that version of it). It's about a dude who gets locked up in a tiny room for 15 years and then is let out and tries to figure out who and why he was put in there. From there, it seamlessly blends between mystery, comedy, gore, revenge and drama. I thought the premise was fascinating and was chomping at the bit to give it a watch. After seeing 'Oldboy' I got out of the gore-porn genre. 'Hostel' came out, and watching it just made me sick. I realized that there was a way to explode your senses with fear and disgust and still produce something that's worthwhile to watch. I believe it was ‘Oldboy’ that pushed me over the edge from shock entertainment to film appreciation. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1600825941681-8XU3ZZI1XWVAC1I06JNY/%2381+Casino+Royale.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I wouldn’t say I’m a huge James Bond fan. My favourite Bond film was “Goldeneye”, and that’s more probably because of the N64 video game that I was obsessed with. They’re still fun movies though - super campy, full of action and sex, albeit wildly ridiculous. So ridiculous that ‘Austin Powers’ devoted an entire film to parodying it. Then ‘Casino Royale’ rolls out with Daniel Craig as the replacement to the beautiful Pierce Brosnan. Who the fuck is Daniel Craig? All I knew about him was that he had blue eyes and was pretty scrawny. Well, kiss my ass and call me Thelma, he is now the true James Bond! Craig completely reinvents the 00 agent. He went from being a satirical gun shooting spy, to a legit deadly weapon. All the ridiculousness of the previous James Bonds got thrown out the window in favour of realism. Normally I’d say I’m not a huge fan of that, because James Bond action movies are meant to be larger than life and not take itself too seriously, but director Martin Campbell (who I couldn’t name one other movie he’s done without looking it up on imdb) and whoever was responsible for this 21st century Bond, manages to still keep the charm and essence of the canon while keeping up with audiences hyper craving of realistic action movies. Movies around this time finally needed to be scientifically accurate. Gunshots had to wound, fights needed to look real, and villain’s motives needed to be practical. So seeing James Bond getting the shit kicked out of him and literally dying in this movie made me feel nervous that the greatest 00 agent of all time could actually fail or die during his mission. That’s pretty rad. As far as action and story go, it’s right up my alley. There’s a crazy parkour action scene to kick off the movie, it’s filled with Texas Hold’em poker, which in 2006 I was playing every weekend in college and still love playing today, and the rest of the movie takes us to beautiful places like Venice, Uganda, and Prague. It’s one of my favourite action movies and definitely my favourite Bond film. It set a new standard for these kinds of movies. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606582780825-TS25W4DR1DAGKF2SFLY0/%2380+Big.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) When I watched this movie I was just a kid, and of course I related to Tom Hank's character. I always wanted to be a big kid so I wouldn't be bullied, so I could play sports better, and so I could be an adult and get letters in the mailbox addressed to me. This is a great tale of two movies for me - remembering how I felt as a kid and now watching it as an adult. The kid version of me watched this and saw a guy who had a wicked job with lots of money, buying everything he wanted - a trampoline in a house! A basketball net?! Toys everywhere, a race car bed, it was just so cool. I didn't understand that the whole point of this movie is that being a kid is the best part of life. I had it backwards! Watching ‘Big’ now, I get reminded of the most important thing in my life, and that's now matter how old I get I always want to be a kid. I want to come up with goofy ideas, laugh, smile, and not take life so damn seriously. It's just not worth it and we don't have the time for it. I'm terrified the older I get the more I become the dreaded boring, lame, disciplining adult. This movie will always keep the child in me at the forefront of everything I do. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609894001606-MO2FS26NIXG04LKIJ9LS/%2379+The+Family+Man.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Believe it or not, not every movie on this list is from the 80s or stars Arnold Schwarzenegger! Brett Ratner's, 'The Family Man' managed to capture my heart the first time I watched it, and continually blooms my love for it with each sequential viewing. I have always been fascinated with alternate realities, going back to 1990s 'Mr. Destiny' with Jim Belushi, but it was 'The Family Man' that actually managed to make more of a lasting impression on me. The alternate timeline explored in this film is love; or to some degree, love vs money. The love you share with your wife, your kids, your family versus a life of solidarity, freedom, wealth, and loneliness. I always knew I'd choose happiness over money from a very young age, so it’s really exciting to get some insight to the life I'd be missing out on. Nothing tickles my excitement or imagination like the question "What if...?" What if I didn't download Tinder that day and meet my beautiful wife. What if my Dad actually took that job in the Caymen Islands. Would I still have the best friends of my life right now? You can go crazy thinking this... unless an angel offers you a glimpse into what your life would be like for these unanswerable questions. Nicolas Cage is phenomenal on camera with his co-star, Tea Leoni, (Who I developed a massive crush on after this movie) and watching him transform his idea of happiness and value in life is truly inspiring. Life is better when it's shared with the ones you love and this movie really punctuates that. 'The Family Man' just puts things in perspective for me. It keeps me aligned and happily offers me some waterworks when I give her a watch. Every time I go outside to walk my dog at night in the dead of winter, I pause, and remember that iconic scene of Nicolas Cage outside walking his dog and just try to take in a moment. I try to not take for granted the things and people I have in my life. I look down at my dog, Dexter, and smile. It's like taking an hour long yoga class in 10 seconds. I owe it all to this movie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606582680670-88XKR40J854NTS4ELSE9/%2378+Ex+Machina.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I saw this movie in theatres years ago with my now wife, Maria, and usually after we watch a movie, we chat for about 10 minutes on the drive home from the Yorkdale theatre about what we liked, didn’t understand, and it’s usually kinda shallow; but after watching ‘Ex Machina’, oh man, we had a heavy, intense, wicked talk. Writer and director Alex Garland is one of my favourites. It’s no coincidence that he and Danny Boyle work together often; with Boyle being my favourite director. There’s a certain style to Garland’s writing and the best way I can describe it is dark and practical. He writes about futuristic and seemingly inevitable things (End of the world in ‘28 Days Later’, or the sun dying in ‘Sunshine’) and ‘Ex Machina’ delivers what I believe to be his most inevitable outcome - Robots having consciousness. We’ve seen it before in ‘Terminator 2’ and fuck, about a million others, but what makes ‘Ex Machina’ unique is that it’s so intimate. It’s pretty much a three-person play divided into acts (Or sessions in this case). Just when you think you start understanding people’s motives, something comes up and flips your perspective on it’s head. To be honest, after watching it for the 2nd time I’m left even more confused by what truth is left for us. Boy genius Nathan (Oscar Isaac, who is fantastic in this role) creates robots with supposive consciousness. Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) is brought in to determine if the robot indeed does have consciousness. Where the difficulty lies, is whether what Nathan is doing is appropriate, or more importantly, necessary. He says in the movie that this stage of advancement is and was inevitable, so there was no question as to whether or not he should do it. It’s just the steady progression of life. This sentiment is already clouded with doubt. Bringing life into this world at will and without consequence is what they say in the movie as “playing God”. But the ethics of creating life at will isn’t even the strongest point of contention in this movie, it’s the fact that in order to make them as real as possible, Nathan gives them sensitive nerves in their vaginal area to get a pleasure sensation during sex. So not only are they stuck in an underground facility with no escape, they also are hinted at as being used as sex toys. I was positive Nathan was using them as sex toys when I first watched it, but upon a second viewing, it’s only alluded to and never truthfully revealed. So I watched it again knowing that Nathan is a villain, but then I started to sympathize and understand what he was trying to do. He’s a lonely guy who is way too smart for his own good and is trying to create something amazing for this planet. But then, I think about whether or not these things he has created truly do feel, understand and emote. Is it an advanced A.I. who can manipulate feelings? Are my feelings being manipulated along with Caleb’s throughout the movie? These questions are what Garland wanted you to experience. This movie gives you so much and yet so little to try and understand the ethics of creating robots with consciousness. You’re left wondering who is crazy, who is right, who is wrong, and everything in between. It’s a great mind fuck thriller with some of my favourite dialogue ever, and these are all questions we are going to be asking ourselves in the near future. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609092801507-H50P519FA31J0SXFS3KB/%2377+Commando.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) The first thing I think of when someone mentions ‘Commando’ is Arnold Schwarzenegger at his most jacked fucking up bad guys from South America. I mean, there’s not much more to it than that; other than one of the most iconic sound tracks in a movie by the famous James Horner. Those steel drums banging away brings me right into this ‘Commando’ world. I don’t know if the music is horribly mismatched for the action we’re seeing, or if it’s the work of a God damned genius. Either way, steel drums and Commando go together like Austin Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sexy. I digress; because what makes ‘Commando’ so good is that you know the writers are thinking “Ok, how can we make the most insanely aggressive, killing machine, hero script possible that we can sell to Arnold Schwarzenegger?” This movie is complete dog shit if Schwarzenegger isn’t in it, I mean, ‘Commando’ was without a doubt written with him in mind and exploits his greatest traits – muscles and killing. But not only that, it exploits his acting skills giving birth to his famous one-liners! “Let off some steam Bennett”. Or “Don’t disturb my friend here, he’s dead tired.” Every line that John Matrix (Schwarzenegger) has in the movie is pure gold. ‘Commando’ takes me back to a time with my brother Erik and cousin Chris, when we just threw on a movie and got so pumped and excited watching it. I didn’t care about plot or character, I just wanted to throw on a movie and be thoroughly entertained. In my mind, ‘Commando’ marks the turning point of Schwarzenegger’s career. There’s a defining scene in ‘Commando’ where a villain named Diaz is sitting down and gives a cordial, relaxed long ass speech saying how Arnold needs to chill and work out a deal with him so he can see his daughter again, and Arnold simply replies “Wrong” and fucking blasts the guy with a shotgun point blank. ‘Commando’ offers a chance to delve a little deeper into things, but Schwarzenegger just doesn’t give a shit and gives the audience what it wants. Action. I’d be remiss for not mentioning the opening credits in this movie. Arnold is with a young Alyssa Milano and they provide us with pretty much the definition of 80s parody. Fantastic and awful. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609092747129-208NUX90CVX8YWG08AB5/%2376+Apolcalypse+Now.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Watching this as a kid, I kinda thought, ‘Meh it’s alright. Kinda boring’. Then I watched it again in my early 30s and wow, this movie is insane. The trip these Americans go on through the Do Lung river in Vietnam to try and find Colonel Kurtz is epic. If you want some insight into how fucked up the Vietnam war was, just watch this. The whole thing just feels uncomfortable to watch. It just feels like these troops are taking the river Styx into hell. It’s so cool. Also, after watching ‘Apocalypse Now’, I watched the making of it, ‘Hearts of Darkness’ filmed by Coppola’s wife Sofia and holy shit, it’s even more intense than the bloody movie. It’s one of those times when you peel back the curtain on how the movie was made and it makes the experience just so much more grand. The shooting of this film got so intense that Francis Ford Coppola thought about committing suicide. The funding was barely there for the movie and he had to fund it almost all himself. It went way over budget and shooting time. All the actors were fucked on acid and shrooms to cope with the crazy ass location and shooting demands. The story and film of ‘Apocalypse Now’ is one that I’ll never forget and come back to every 5 or 6 years; because that’s how long it takes the recover from this friggin thing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606582621448-PG76FU39I8PV7OF80TEQ/%2375+Bloodsport.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) “Way to go Frankie!” This movie came out before Mixed Martial Arts and the UFC was a thing; and that’s all this movie is. It’s a movie long version of a UFC fight. There’s a boxer, sumo wrestler, kung fu master, a monkey man, and a whole lot of other martial artist fighting for the championship in the Philippines. So ya, already this movie is pretty wicked, but then put the absolute genius of Jean Claude Van Damme in there, and it becomes one of my most memorable fighting movies ever made. But lets be serious, the acting is atrocious, the story is as simple as it gets, and it reeks of a 80s action film. But because I watched it during grade school, I just thought it was the coolest thing ever. When JCVD does the splits and punches his opponent in the dick, or when Chong Lee kills (puts out of commission) the big stupid American during the Kumate (The death match tournament) or when the big dumb American and Van Damme play ‘Karate Master’ on an arcade machine when they first meet? It’s all so cheesy and awesome! It’s pretty much like a kid wrote this movie, which is why it holds such a wonderful spot in my heart. Upon watching it again, it’s actually quite awful. The flashback scene when the kid breaks in and tries to steal the sword might just be the worst acting in the history of cinema. If you’re trying to watch this movie for good acting and story, you’re barking up the wrong tree. It’s fun and entertainment above everything. Also the music by Paul Hertzog is killer. The final battle is an amazing 8 minute song that I listen to at work about once a week. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609093118280-WNOD0YGTM4R7PGWKH51D/%2374+Young+Frankenstein.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Director Mel Brooks has done some pretty funny parody movies throughout his career, such as 'Spaceballs', 'Blazing Saddles', or 'Robin Hood: Men in Tights', but without a doubt his 1974 movie 'Young Frankenstein' is his claim to fame. The first thing I noticed about 'Young Frankenstein' was that it was shot in black and white. When I saw this as a 12 year old, I immediately scoffed at it. Black and white? That's for old people and shitty movies. My Dad reminded me that this movie wasn't that old and coloured films had obviously been invented, and that it was a creative choice to shoot that way. I was flabbergasted. Nevertheless, I sat down and watched it with my parents. They were howling in laughter at all these scenes that just didn't seem that funny to me. "Walk this way." The hump changing sides. Frau Blucher - queue the horses. "What knockers!" None of these things made any impact on me at all, but the movie still held me with Marty Feldman's brilliant acting as the servant, Igor. A few years later I watched it again, really trying to understand the comedy and everything clicked for me. From that moment on, my idea of comedy elevated to a whole new level. I also felt like such an adult by liking this movie. Everyone my age was rocking 'Space Jam'. 'Happy Gilmore' and here I was, laughing at this black and white, 1970s movie. I certainly didn't like it because it made me unique to my peers, I liked it because it's a funny fucking movie. Even Gene Hackman was so desperate to get a role in this movie and venture into the comedy world that he took the role of the blind man for free! Four days of work for four minutes in the film. While 'Young Frankenstein' helped shape my idea of comedy, it also shaped my idea of creative choices in art. Why on Earth would Brooks shoot this as a black and white movie? When I finally realized that some movies aren't making sacrifices, but instead making it a specific way to get a vision across, it helped me immensely in my creative endeavours. I suddenly didn't feel limited by not having the best camera, a fist full of dollars, or the exact set piece I needed to make a scene come to life. I realized I can be creative and in turn end up putting a signature 'Allan Hughes' stamp on my shitty little films. Trying to create something perfect when you don't have the means to make your vision come to life is when you need to dig deep down and find alternatives that end up giving your piece of art more heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609093292601-LMJVTBGL40ZTI7F2ZXW2/%2373+Home+Alone.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) You know it’s Christmas time when ‘Home Alone’ comes on. It’s become an absolute staple with my wife and I when December rolls around; although she prefers the sequel ‘Lost in New York’, so we get to watch both back to back every time and enjoy the zany shenanigans. It’s weird, because when I think of ‘Home Alone’ it’s just kind of a part of my culture growing up. I don’t treat it as a feature film. It’s just a way of life for me. Macaulay Culkin was the most famous child alive when I was in grade 2, and I did everything I could to try and be like him; my parents must have hated me that year. I love the legendary John William’s enchanting score to go along with Harry and Marv being some of the goofiest villains on screen. A lot of people now talk about how unrealistic this movie is. That Harry and Marv should have died 4 or 5 times over from the trauma they endure. But I mean, seriously, it’s a fucking kids movie! Why are people analyzing the seriousness of a kid defending his home from the ‘Wet Bandits’? When I turn my brain off, I get to laugh my ass off unapologetically at how fun and stupid, yet incredibly witty and smart this movie is; it is written by one of my favourite writers, John Hughes, after all. When I was at my cottage as a kid, my cousin bought this book about how to spy, lay traps, build forts, and it was the coolest book in the world to me. I wanted to be a secret agent spy and lay booby traps and stuff. I did try and build some traps out of wood, dig holes and then cover them hoping things would fall in and get trapped. No doubt Kevin McCallister taught me out to get creative, draw out cool maps, and trap the bad guys. Thankfully I didn’t trap my Mom and break her leg. Yeesh! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606582559605-HIJBBFPVXXC0LCE92LWP/%2372+Rocky+III.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Certainly not my favourite of the ‘Rocky’ franchise, but ‘Rocky III’ provides us with some of the most emotional, and memorable moments from all six films. While the first two Rocky’s leaned more towards drama and romance, the third installation really zeroed in on the boxing and competitive element. There’s an opening charity fight between Thunderlips (Hulk Hogan) and Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) that is terrifying entertainment at its finest; and it has one of the most bone crunching, cringe worthy moments in a wrestling match that I’ve ever seen. Rocky’s first fight against Clubber Land (Mr. T) is loaded with emotion and shock, and the final fight is pure elation after everything Rocky goes through. It has a bitchin’ training montage with Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) to Survivor’s, ‘Eye of the Tiger’ that felt like it was the birthplace of memes, and a super intense performance by Adrian (Talia Shire) and Rocky on the beach. All in all, there are a ton of scenes that really inspire me to try and stay focused, and beat the odds – which is at it’s heart, what ‘Rocky’ is all about. There’s a lot of hate and anger in this movie. It feels as though it’s personified by the brute strength and frustrations of Clubber Lang. He has busted his ass to become the number one ranked contender and still won’t be given a shot at the title. Shit, I’d be pissed off too. This anger is then spilled over throughout the entire film. Mickey is screaming at people and angrily popping bubbles, Paulie is throwing whiskey bottles at pinball machines, Adrian is screaming on the beach, Apollo Creed is yelling at Rocky during the training, and the opening wrestling scene is a fucking shit show. There’s a lot of angry emotion in this movie, which bleeds over to fear. To hear my boy Rocky Balboa, the Italian Stallion, say he’s afraid, and then have his wife say that’s OK, I mean, wow. There has always been a vulnerability to Rocky, but to articulate so bluntly a feeling that all of us have felt at some point, and to push forward and still deal with it anyways is inspiring to me. Also, I’ll never forgive the costume designer for the blue clown outfit Adrian wears during the first fight with Clubber Lang. My god that’s awful, and unfortunately, very memorable to me. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609093889435-8CDUZQNMDSENHM7JGQU1/%2371+Christmas+Story.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I always know it's officially Christmas season when 'A Christmas Story' pops up on my parents DVD player (Or when I was younger, on TBS - Channel 47). Without a doubt, 'A Christmas Story' is the defining holiday movie of my life. If I really think about it, it might be my most viewed movie ever. I watch it at least twice during the holidays, and I'm 35 while I'm writing this. That's a lot of 'A Christmas Story'! The movie is packed full of family charm. It pulls me right into the story and most important, into the Christmas spirit. Christmas is without a doubt my favourite day of the year because I get to spend it with my family, and all of us just have huge beaming smiles on our faces. My parents are delighted with Erik and I freaking out over our presents, and our anticipation of what's under the tree consumes us completely. Couple that with 'A Christmas Story' playing on a loop in the background, it triggers a Pavlov's Dog effect in me that refuses to let me be anything other than joyous. Life transforms back to a simpler time, and reminds me to really enjoy what I have. How many times have I bundled up to go play outside, and my Mom would joke about "I can't put my arms down!", or my brother mentioning every gift at Christmas as "A major award!", or the lamp of the leg in our families den at 1/4 of the size as a gag. Hell, I even got my wife saying "Fra-gi-le. It must be Italian" when we open up our gifts. So while the movie itself is fantastic, it's really it's effect on me and my family, that launches this into my favourite Christmas movie ever. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609094053245-B1C291IKO1L6REOB5ONI/%2370+Parasite.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I heard about this movie from my buddy Guybrush, and he said "You have to watch this movie. Trust me" I asked him what it was about, and he said "Just watch it." Well, I watched it at my wife's parents house, in her basement with my brother in law, Phi, and holy shit, it was not at all what we were expecting. The spectrum of emotions this movie takes you on is impressive. I fully expected it to be a movie about getting infected, and a pandemic breaking out or something, but this fucking movie turns into a terrifying dark comedy, which is the last genre I expected it to be. From the opening scene, I tried to pay a little extra attention to it, and from the very beginning, everything pays off so satisfyingly; it all makes sense. The way 'Parasite' stacks it's drama is so phenomenal. The drama isn't just static either, it's constantly evolving and warping into weird, fantastical fucked up scenarios that generally leave you wondering "Where the hell is this going?". I've shamelessly only watched this once, and am dying to watch it again, but after the first viewing, I immediately told my wife and brother in law "This is totally in my top 100 of all time". I'm already a fan of Korean films like 'Oldboy', 'Joint Security', and 'Train to Busan', and had seen Bong Joon Ho's 'Okja', ‘Snowpiercer’ and 'The Host' and thought all three were outstanding. There's a certain shock and brutalness to Korean films that I find really refreshing. After checking out 'Parasite', it followed much of the same trajectory. It is just fucking nuts on such a subtle and aggressive level, which is insanely hard to do. Ho can build tension through any medium - writing, camera shots, music, acting, and editing. Bong Joon Ho has some serious skill, and I can't wait to watch his next flick. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609094171919-UGENF7ONWBQIM2Q4A2R4/%2369+Anchorman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) When I saw this movie in theatres, I was 20 years old. Right smack in the middle of University in Iowa, and my sense of humour was probably at it raunchiest. So when I saw 'Anchorman' I was really let down. The jokes were all dad jokes and half of them barely made any sense. There was no swearing, no blood, no funny moments at all for me. The movie sucked balls. Then I watched it again about 5 years later, and it left me wondering if I was in a coma the entire time I watched it, or on a bad trip of mushrooms, because 'Anchorman' is fucking hilarious. The comedy in 'Anchorman' is in it's delivery. All in all, the jokes really aren't that funny, because more often than not they're just stupid observations, but when Will Ferrel is delivering them with his channel 4 newscast team, it takes comedy to a whole new level. He takes lines like "My place smells of rich mahogany" and "I have many leather bound books" and somehow manages to make it a funny line. It's become one of the most quoted movies I've ever heard when I'm with my friends. It's almost on a weekly occurrence that I hear some sort of reference to this movie. Unfortunately, it's been quoted so much, that I don't really find it that funny anymore, but then when I watch the movie, it's a hidden gem line that ends up making me bust a gut. Like Brick (Steve Carrell) saying "I ate fiberglass insulation. It wasn't cotton candy like the guy said... my stomach's itchy". The cast of comedians is really what pulls the whole movie together. Will Ferrell is no doubt the star, but everyone has their chance to shine, and they really grab hold of it. Not surprisingly, a lot of the movies lines are improvised. They would do one scene a bunch of times, and just throw out random shit and see what stuck. You get to see a snippet of it during the credits. This was director Adam McKay's first real movie, and I don't think the world was ready for this kind of comedy. In the early 2000's, there were a lot of parody movies like 'Scary Movie 2 & 3', or 'Austin Powers 3', and really dumb fucking comedies like 'The White Chick' or 'Joe Dirt'. Will Ferrell's breakout role came 2 years earlier in 'Old School' which paved the way for him to play the starring role in 'Anchorman'. 'Anchorman' took everything that was funny in 'Old School' and just cranked it up a notch. McKay then followed 'Anchorman' up with another one of my personal favourite comedies in "Step Brothers". This stupid style of comedy just works with me. I know it's not for everyone because my Dad hates Will Ferrell with a burning passion, but when comedy can become basic, it has a chance to flourish with the everyday person. There are comedies like 'Stir Crazy' or 'The Big Lebowski' which have many layers to it. It's intelligent comedy. Comedy is hitting on subtexts in the film, promoting a theme in the movie, or developing a character to fall in love with, but 'Anchorman' is just dumb shit they're saying. Brick literally just says shit in a room, and people laugh their ass off. That's not to say that the comedy isn't genius in this movie, it's just a different type that doesn't require much analyzing to understand. You just sit back, and laugh. I'm OK with that. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606582465271-ZW7V4FDA50OBY2IWQO3G/%2368+Planes+Trains+and+Automobiles.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) John Candy and Steve Martin are so damn good together. Steve Martin plays Neal Page, the straight laced, uptight family man, and John Candy plays Del Griffith, the annoying, lovable oaf, and both of them act their character like Michael Jordan burying a fade away jumper. Their chemistry on camera is so awkward, and hilarious; it's one of my favourite acting duos of all time - right up there with 'Rainman'. It's a John Hughes script, which is probably why this doesn't feel like a movie, and it more feels like we're watching a snippet into their actual lives; he shows that human beings are fallible, full of flaws, and capable of beautiful things. Hughes has the ability to bring out the charm and realism in people, which is what gives this goofy comedy so much heart. I've always thought that Steve Martin was my Uncle Gary, and John Candy was like my Dad. One super serious, the other constantly joking around. So to me, the writing feels even more authentic. Watching Neal Page's brutal struggle to get home for Thanksgiving to be with his family gave birth to the buddy-travel comedy in my opinion. It's been attempted many times after this, and none even come close to the magic of this flick. The first time I saw 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' I was with my family, and my parents would cover my ears during Steve Martin's scene at the car rental desk asking for his "fucking car" when I later found out what that scene was about, I died laughing. I usually find there is a scene or two in movies that I just can't stand, and would want to fast forward, but 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' has zero of those scenes. I love every word, facial expression, and music cue in this movie. I was watching 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' one afternoon in my early 20s, and my buddy Bryan Pasic walks in the room and says "Oh, this is my favourite part!", It's the scene where John Candy steals Steve Martin's cab, and I'm thinking "This is a good scene, but what? Huh? Your favourite moment?" there's this brief moment, where John Candy looks up at Steve Martin in shock, and for some reason, Pasic bursts out in laughter and says "That look! That look right there. It's the best!". There are tiny little moments in this movie that manage to stick with you. Fuck it's so perfect. 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' helped me realize a lot of things when I was younger. It taught me that even though things may not go as expected, it doesn't mean you still can't enjoy the experience. You can meet new people, battle adversity, and more than anything, you have to try and find the good in things. If I had to live with Neal Page on the road, I'd fucking kill myself. But then again, the beauty of this movie, is that if I had to live with Del Griffith, I'd probably kill myself too. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609094310077-5ROA8RUAOZHZFTOWW148/%2367+Misery.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) 'Misery' is a novel by Stephen King, which was adapted for the screen by William Goldman, and directed by Rob Reiner. Holy shit did they nail this adaptation. The movie is pretty much completely dependent on two actors - James Caan and Kathy Bates; since it's a kidnapping story, and the relationship the two have is so strained and forced that you really do believe the actors hate each other in real life. While, I can't say if they didn't like each other, they did actually quarrel on set. James Caan apparently wanted to rehearse as little as possible, and Kathy Bates, who has a theater background, wanted to rehearse all the time. Director Rob Reiner told her to use that frustration towards him in her character. Every once in a while, there's a villain in a movie that just sticks with you in the worst way possible. 'Misery' has that villain in Annie Wilkes, played by Kathy Bates. I mean, talk about one evil son of a bitch. So evil and good that she won an Oscar for it in 1990. Also, to win an Oscar in a horror/thriller genre is pretty much impossible to do in Hollywood; that's how good she was in this movie. I part of what makes Annie Wilkes so disturbing is that she's incapable of swearing, and has this small town jargon that sends shivers up your spine. Stephen King later revealed that her character was a metaphor for his drug addiction, and also all the rabid Stephen King fans who freaked him the fuck out. Watching Paul Sheldon (James Caan) trying to manipulate his way out of her hold is captivating. You're with him every move he makes. It feels like you're in there with him, and praying to God that he can get out of there alive. There are so many scenes where I'm just holding my breath and reluctantly awaiting what's about to happen next. It's a page turner! Stephen King went on to say that his favourite written character is Annie Wilkes because she was always surprising to write, with unexpected depth and sympathy. What made this movie even more special to me, is that my Dad is a huge Stephen King fan, and has read about every single book he's written. So I naturally have a fond affinity for anything Stephen King has written. Also, my Mom watched this movie, and she's a nurse (As is Annie Wilkes) and this movie freaks the shit out of her. The last time I watched it, my wife Maria asked to put on a good thriller movie, and I found this in our old VHS collection. My Mom and I watched it vicariously through Maria's eyes, and shuttered at the pain and agony this movie puts your through. Movies are always better when you watch them with a fan, and my Mom is this movies "... number one fan." https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577242440-BI4OQDSXRQKKH5N8FIQO/%2366+Psycho.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Janet Leigh screaming in the shower as a knife tears into her body is a scene I’ll have tattooed in my memory for the rest of my life. When I was at the cottage with my family as a kid, my Mom and Auntie Ann, without question, would always act out ‘Psycho’. What made it even more comical, was the fact that they broke the rules of charades every time and would imitate someone stabbing over and over while screaming out the terrifyingly fantastic music of that scene. “REEE! REEE! REEE!” We would all yell out “PSYCHO!” and my Auntie Ann or Mom would smile, jump around and say “Yes!”. Funny enough, that’s actually probably why I like ‘Psycho’ so much. When I think about it, I think of family, and laughing - kinda fucked up eh? ‘Psycho’ is obviously not a comedy, and shouldn’t be making people laugh. It’s a terrifying movie, with a terrifyingly genius twist. While it’s the only legit black and white movie on this list (Young Frankenstein gets some credit) it’s by far the best one ever made, and with that, Alfred Hitchcock’s best film. I considered ‘Rear Window’ to be the best Hitchcock film ever made, but upon another watch, I realized it was just a little too slow for me. ‘Psycho’ is a non-stop investigating thriller of a movie, with a deep dive into the human psyche. Watching it again, it still holds up as a wicked thriller of a movie, and a landmark of slasher/horror films in the world of film. It’s an absolute must watch to lovers of film, and of thrillers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577259994-H2XOP4284GMVBFHP0HEQ/%2365+Knives+Out.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) This movie came out at a time where the world was just craving something other than shitty superhero movies. I mean, between 2015-2020, the market was so saturated with superheros that just about every month there was another fucking movie or TV show thrown in our face. That's why when 'Knives Out' came out in 2019, it was a breath of fresh air. I was craving something to make me think, something to challenge other parts of my brain, like when I was a kid reading 'Choose Your Own Adventures', 'Flash Fry Private Eye', Hardy Boys', and to some degree, 'Goosebumps'. 'Knives Out' is directed by Rian Johnson, who just finished making 'Star Wars Episode 8' which was subject to insane critical backlash from fans (I actually loved it), so a lot of people were quick to dismiss this movie because they were still butt hurt over a fucking Star Wars movie. To all those people who grudgingly passed on this movie, you are stupid. This flick was like watching 'Clue' (1985) updated in 2019 with more realism, and cheeky editing. Daniel Craig moves on from his James Bond roles into the cunning detective, Benoit Blanc, and steals the show with his Southern passive charismatic charm. He just oozes Agatha Christie detective. Craig has a fantastic cast of characters to investigate, who provide an entertaining spectrum of personalities and quirks to keep you wondering "Who killed Harlan Thrombey?" right to the very end. I was so inspired by this movie, that I decided to write a murder mystery for one of my best friends, Guybrush Taylor's birthday. After 2 weeks of writing, making props, building fake websites, connecting dots, dealing with motives, and character flaws, it made me realize how hard it is to build a murder mystery that challenges intelligent people, but also leaves it easy enough to solve. So then looking back on 'Knives Out', it really did a fantastic job of planting red herrings, and challenging my mind to figure this crime out with Benoit Blanc. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577282639-SOC3VUZVPP9IGZX49EQ6/%2364+Raid+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I'm bold enough to say, this is the best martial arts action film of all time. Move over Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Lee, Donny Yen, Tony Jaa, because Iko Uwais is a god damned legend when it comes to hand to hand combat. Part of the reason why it looks so damn good is that everything from kicks to punches are real in this movie. The movie uses are martial art called Pencak Silat, which is the native fighting style of Indonesia (The origin of the film). All the actors needed to learn how to control their speed and timing to make sure it looked legit, and didn't kill each other on camera. The fighters and protagonist, Uwais, even trained together for 6 months prior to the film to build chemistry and trust with each other. I mean, the amount of choreographing in this flick is mind boggling. There's a fight scene in a courtyard jail that rolls on one take for what seems like forever; and during that scene, there are tons of intense high impact fighting going on. The amount of effort that went into this movie is staggering, with the final fight being the ultimate climax. I must have watched that fight scene about 50 times. It made my wife sick how often I would keep putting it on. Everything about it is incredible though. The climatic build through the music, the fast editing, the martial arts, the gore, the pain - it's just the absolute peak of martial arts. There is literally nothing better. Apparently, the director Gareth Evans spent 6 weeks designing that final fight, and it was well worth it. Unfortunately, there is a massive flaw with this movie that prevents it from probably being in my top 10, and that's the inclusion of Baseball Man. Holy shit what a stupid fucking idea. I've been playing baseball my whole life, even went to Iowa on a scholarship to pursue my dream as a catcher in the MLB, so I know how hard it is to play baseball. But this fucking character, throws up a ball, and hits it at someone running away from him. The guy falls to the floor withering in pain, and then gets smashed in by the melee baseball bat. Um, I've been hit by a baseball before, it barely leaves a bruise, let alone falling to the floor, crumpled in pain. Secondly, Derek fucking Jeter could even self hit a ball directly into a moving targets spine a 100 feet away with one chance. It's just so far fetched and so fucking dumb, and worst, completely unnecessary. Remove that element from the movie though, and it’s perfection. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577308858-AVVGWQ0BDFVJYGZ6H0UJ/%2363+The+Departed.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) The classic cop vs crook story has never been done so well as in 'The Departed'. It takes such a simple concept, and turns it into such a wicked psychological cat and mouse chase by just swapping the roles. Leonardo DiCaprio is a cop who gains the trust of the city's drug lord, Jack Nicholson, and Matt Damon is a loyal subject to Nicholson who infiltrates the police; and both are looking for the other. It's a typical Martin Scorcese movie with swearing, blood, abuse, and the Boston gangster vibe, but there's something that feels more real about this one for some reason. He really digs in deep to these characters, and you sometimes lose yourself with them, and wonder who is right or wrong. Watching them try to balance love, work, ethics, and loyalty has never been more enticing to follow. It's a fascinating in-depth look into both the criminal and defenders psyche. I'm not usually a huge fan of Scorcese films or gangster movies in general. For some reason they just don't excite me that much. But 'The Departed' felt different. Maybe it's because it takes actors who clearly aren't mob types in Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio, or that it's just jam packed with my favourite actors. Alec Baldwin has a scene when he's talking to Damon about health and smoking that just kills me. It gives the movie a +1 to it's final score just because of those 5 seconds. I was surprised to learn 13 years after this movie came out that it's a remake of a Chinese film called 'Internal Affairs' which came out 3 years earlier. After seeing the Chinese version, it made me appreciate the US version even more. It's kinda cool that Scorsese purposely chose not to watch 'Internal Affairs' until after shooting to try and maintain some of his own integrity to the movie - good call. It won best picture at the 2005 Oscars. 'The Departed' is so perfectly crafted to keep you guessing at every second. There are so many times during this movie that I say to myself "Holy shit!". Always a good reaction to have. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577328913-Y580JJ0CXUN70B3150PV/%2362+American+Beauty.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) This movie came out in 1999, and I was in grade 10 at the time. I was in journalism class, and I had a crush on this girl named named Yagoda, and she said she saw 'American Beauty' over the weekend. I remember seeing the posters for it, and it looked so stupid. Like a dumb romance movie with flowers and girls in it. I instead went and saw 'For Love of the Game', with Kevin Costner playing baseball. Now we're talking. Boy was I wrong. Turns out that 'For Love of the Game' wasn't so much about baseball as it was a sappy romance, and 'American Beauty' is one of the craziest pot smoking, killing, spying, life changing, sexiest movies ever made. 'American Beauty' is the first movie I've ever seen, where I read the movie script before I saw the movie. I was really big into script writing, and trying to learn how to be a script writer, so I had a whole bunch of Tarantino scripts, and I bought Alan Ball's 'American Beauty' randomly at the Cole's bookstore. It was such a wicked experience, and surely why I like this film so much. Reading the entire movie first gave me my own impression of how to do it. How to act it, shoot it, edit it, do music for it. It humbled me big time, because it made me realize 1, how fucking hard it is to make a movie, and 2, it turned out completely different from my minds idea of it. The mood and pace the movie sets was so soothing, yet uncomfortable at the same time. The script is so simple, yet I think about their words over and over again. This movie made me think about life, love, and filmmaking in an entirely different way. Also, when I saw it at 16 years old, I wasn't prepared for the impact it was going to have on me. I thought it was going to just be a silly romance movie, but it still has a massive impact on me today - "It's just a couch! And honey, it's become more important to you than living, and that's just crazy". https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577348619-Z6WH4WRFQ3P4G47LX9Q2/%2361+Ferris+Bueller.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I'm a big fan of anything John Hughes writes (As evidence by having 4 of his movies in my top 100) but it's 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' that is his defining movie. This movie captures the time and essence of an 80s rebellious teenager in love to perfection. Everything Ferris does on his day off is so whacky and over the top, but yet there's this sense of truism to it for some reason. Matthew Broderick's actions are fantastic, but yet his acting is believably simplistic, and that makes all the difference in this movie. It takes realistic characters, and throws them into ridiculous situations, like Rooney trying to break into Ferris' house but has to deal with the dog, or Ferris on a float singing a Beatles song, or catching a baseball at a Cub's game. Maybe the float scene is a little farfetched, but Ferris represents everything I was and wanted to be as a teenager. To go out and do crazy shit, to fuck around with snooty people at restaurants, and suck the marrow out of life while I can. Hughes finds ways to make teenage life complicated, simple, and relatable all at once. It's cool how Hughes uses music in this film as well. Everything is very over the top. There's straight up horror themed music as Ferris' mom heads up to the bedroom to check on Ferris, there's 'Star Wars' music from John Williams when the garage attendant is flying the Porsche, there are haunting lullaby's when Ferris is with his girlfriend, or thoughtful masterpieces like 'Please, Please, Please (Let Me Get What I Want)' by the Dream Academy while at the museum. I can pretty much make a full mix tape of all the music in this movie, and listen to it over and over. My Dad actually did make a movie mix tape when I was a kid, and the last song in this movie 'Oh Yeah' by Yello ended one of his tapes, and because he pulled it directly from the movie, I always hear the bus driver yell out "Hey Mr. Rooney. Did you get in a fight? Want a lift?", and then the girl inside the bus asking him if he wants a warm and soft gummy bear - man, I can't wipe the smile off my face when I think of this scene with the music playing. Funny enough, John Hughes actually chose obscure music for the entire movie, because he wanted everything to feel new - I guess they're not obscure anymore. Such brave and bold music choices juxtapose so well with the calm realism of the three teenage actors to bring out a masterful feeling. When I first watched this as a kid, it seemed like such a realistic, adult movie. Almost too heavy for me to watch, which, in retrospect, is actually true, because the subtext of the movie is one final blowout before we lose our childhood. We all have to get jobs, start paying bills, and be responsible adults at some point in our lives, and 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off' gives us a little reminder of how much fun was, or could be again. I was surprised to learn that a lot of great scenes in this movie were improved as well. Ben Stein's only scripted line was him doing roll-call. Matthew Broderick playing the flute scene was improved as well as the coughing keyboard. Grace ad-libbed imitating Rooney on the phone, and her saying "He's a righteous dude" and a ton more. I guess when you write a script in six days (!) there are probably going to be a bunch of lines changed. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577366794-K11B43X0506BQBOWONZN/%2360+The+Ring.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) When ‘The Ring’ came out in 2002, I had just seen movies like ‘The Others’, ‘Thirteen Ghosts’, ‘Final Destination’, and more ‘Scream’ movies. ‘Scream’ reignited the horror genre in the late 90’s, but again, it was becoming a little stale. Japanese horror was just on the cusp of becoming huge in the Western hemisphere by releasing movies like ‘The Ring’, ‘Ju-on: The Curse’, and ‘Black Water’. I watched Japan’s ‘The Ring’ (1998) and was absolutely terrified. The creepiness and solemn tone throughout the flick just left me feeling hollow and vulnerable. Then, I remember watching ‘Ju-on: The Curse’ in the same year, 2002, and I was literally screaming with my buddy Haris in my room when I was 18 years old. It was then I decided: I love Japanese horror films. So when Naomi Watts was starring in a US remake (What else is new?) of a beloved Japanese horror flick, I scoffed at it. But, as a teenager, I usually had nothing else to do on Friday night except go to the movies, so I did, and I watched ‘The Ring’. Wow. I mean, nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to see. The opening scene of the movie was already better than the entire Japanese film. It was absolutely fucking terrifying. They took the original movie, and bolstered it in every way. The acting, the directing, the sound, the scares, the intensity, and the colour. It has a unique bluish colour tone that is very off putting. While I usually find the originals to be much better than the remakes, I’m happy to say, that this one was an absolute home run, and helped bring some light from the J-Horror scene to North America. I can’t say the same for the US remakes of ‘Dark Water’ or ‘The Grudge’; which were both pieces of shit. ‘The Ring’ will always be one of the best horror movies ever made in my mind. It’s brutally unpredictable, and has some of the creepiest sound effects I’ve ever heard. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577383695-KIJQZE1PJY02KNKV73I6/%2359+Blair+Witch+Project.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I still remember the first time I heard about this movie. I was at my cousin’s cottage at Inverhuron, and he was telling me about this movie that’s supposed to be the scariest movie ever made. It was 1999, and I was 15 years old in grade 10, and just dying for something to scare the living shit out of me, so we decided to head into the nearest town, and check it out. The movie started at 5:00pm and we left at 4:45pm. It was a 20 minute drive to get there, and I have never seen my cousin drive so fucking fast in my life. We burned some rubber and only missed a couple minutes of the movie. The town we were in had a population of about 100 people, and the theatre was the super old school one, with crappy seating, and boxed popcorn - kinda awesome. No joke, there was no one else there. It was just my cousin Chris and I, and we sat anxiously, and watched. When the last scene happened, which was kinda freaky, we saw the credits roll, and we looked at each other and said “What the fuck was that garbage?” It wasn’t scary at all! I fully went in expecting blood, gore, jump scares, demons and all sorts of cool shit, but not only did we not get any of that, I was also given no name actors, shit quality, and this handheld movie. I was so confused. We drove home and talked about how it was nothing like we were expecting. We were told it was the scariest movie ever made! We must have missed something. We must have. We decided that we were going to go back tomorrow, and watch it again. Our second time watching it through, was much better. Paying attention to the interviews they do at the beginning of the movie was pretty critical to understanding the lore of the Blair Witch; we missed that our first time through. Not only is it a creepy movie, with good scares near the end, it also gives me hope that I can make a successful movie on a budget. It made $250,000,000 and only cost $60,000 to make. That’s unbelievable. It also opened the door to an entire new genre of horror movie. First person perspective, Cam movies are now made all over the place. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609095658359-X05J1Q3WXRCH3T1W8PPE/%2358+The+Burbs.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) “Are you the one from next door?” I can’t count how many times my cousin Chris and I would joke about this movie up north at the cottage during the summer. Ol’ fucking Rube next door with the sardines (Which to this day I still have never tried because of that scene with Tom Hanks) to the zoom in and outs with Walter’s femur bone in the backyard, to Tom Hanks shuffling down the stairs after the explosion, there are just so many memorable scenes that fill me with happiness. It’s funny, I had no idea ‘The ‘Burbs’ meant the suburbs! I always thought it was a last name or something, but growing up in the suburbs in Brampton, Ontario, I can see an entire new layer of comedy to this movie now. They were so bored that they started doing stupid shit to occupy their time in the summer. The movie is so funny that it doesn’t even need another layer to it, but it’s certainly one of those movies that I can watch over and over again and not get bored of. That’s pretty rad. A movie like this just wouldn’t get made anymore. It’s such a basic premise that relies on the strength of its actors. Although, the music in it by the master, Jerry Goldsmith is such good quirky fun too. It gives the movie its feel. In 2020, I moved to the suburbs in Milton, Ontario with my wife Maria, and I told her, “The first movie we are going to watch when we get settled in is ‘The ‘Burbs!” We stayed true to our word, and threw it on the first night we had everything set up. Unfortunately, she fell asleep 1/4 through, then 1/2 way the next night, and maybe we finished it the 3rd night? Maybe this movie isn’t for everyone, but to me, it’s just such a fun little movie to throw on. It has incredible subtle nuanced comedic genius instilled throughout the entire thing, and a little something from each actor. “God I love this neighbourhood” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577429151-4DID239C9VHBYXDFKMRW/%2357+Dead+Poets+Society.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) I definitely have a soft spot for coming of age movies, especially set in schools, and especially starring Robin Williams. The first time I saw this, I thought it was so boring, and complicated. That's because I couldn't comprehend the thesis of the movie - “Carpe Diem". A simple phrase, that means so much. Unfortunately, I saw this in English class in highschool, and seizing the day seemed like an after thought to me. I was doing it everyday anyways! I lived my high school life fast, hard, and without regret. Anything I wanted to do, I put my mind to it, and I achieved it (with the exception of getting good grades). I thought poetry was lame; the only reading I would encourage myself to do would be to read Stephen King. So all in all, this movie just didn't vibe with me. Now, having watched it as a married man in my 30's, I can now put this in my top 100 movies of all time. It's so much more than just kids growing up in school and starting a club (my caveman analysis of the movie in my teens), it's about breaking conformity, living each day to its fullest, teenage repression, suicide, parenting, teaching, remembering to smile, seeing things in a different way, breaking the mold, following your heart, trusting and loving your friends, and most of all, don't be ordinary. I need to make sure I watch this movie once a year to remind myself to be brave and daring, no matter the consequences. The teaching from Mr. Keating (Robin Williams) remind us how influencial and important the teachers we have in our lives are. As Robert Frost said - "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference". It's a quote I have put up next to my computer while I'm working to push myself to edit and write in new, fascinating ways. I can vividly recall the three teachers who pushed me to try and be better than I was, and to reach my potential: Mr. Leetch, who was my grade 6 teacher and forced me ‘Treasure Island’ which was twice as long, and more difficult than anything anyone else read. Mr. Casey, my film professor in Iowa who saw me wasting my film potential and pushed me to try and do things out of my comfort zone. And Mr. White, who pushed me the hardest. He said “Don’t bother coming to my classes if you’re just going to waste our time” I had never pushed myself to hard to try and impress a teacher before. My point is, you remember the people who went out of their way to push you in your academic life. "I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately, I wished to live deep and suck out all of the marrow of life! To put to rout, all that was not life... And not, when I had come to die... Discover that I had not lived..." https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1606583404957-BNKVJCR90EBRXXJ8ZSXO/%2356+Raiders+of+the+Lost+Ark.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) Steven Spielberg was still relatively new to Hollywood, having directed 'Jaws' and '1941' in the 70s, but he came into the 80s with a smash adventure hit that put him on track to become the most successful director of all time with 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'. A fantastic adventure of an archeology professor racing to find the Ark before the Nazi's can get their hands on it and rule the world. Harrison Ford takes his first leading role with 'Raiders' after playing Han Solo for a while in the Star Wars series, and ‘Raiders’ propels him to acting superstardom. 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' is pretty cheesy, but everything about it is so cookie cutter perfect. It is a demonstration on how to shoot a film. The entire opening scene builds up the legend of Indiana Jones by not showing his face until he's about to enter the cave. There's a ton of shadow play giving the imagination a lot of room for creativity. When Indy first arrives in Nepal, he casts a huge shadow behind Marion giving the impression of being larger than life. The colour and contrast levels act as their own character throughout this movie as well. There's depth to every shot. Harsh yellows and browns in the Cairo sun, dark shadows in Nepal, deep fire-lit reds in the Well of Souls, corrosive shadows over every Nazi scene. Without even being aware of it, the shadows and colours are telling us a story. It's a pornography of colour mixing. Then there's the music. John Williams. I mean, is there a more iconic song in all of Hollywood than 'The Raiders March'? There isn't for me. The character Indiana Jones, and the tune are synonymous. That’s not an easy thing to accomplish, but it’s the staple for character music. It's not just ‘The Raiders March’ either, the entire soundtrack is first class. All performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra; who unfortunately didn't perform another Indiana Jones movie. All technical marvels aside, 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' is an adventure movie. To me, it defined the adventure genre. There's a sense of realism with the Ark hunt, but it's also a Hollywood movie. There are unbelievable, or laughable moments in the movie, but it's forgivable. Spielberg actually filmed this as though he was shooting a B film, and even though it's done so picture perfect, I can see where that's coming from. We go to movies to be entertained, right? This has larger than life stakes, sound effects, fights, chases, and hand burns, and it's the almost comic/cartoon feel of Indiana swinging off a branch, punching someone in the gut, or swimming onto a German boat that gives the movie it's charm. The rest of the Indiana Jones series gets a little more cartoonish as it goes, but the birth of Hollywood's greatest adventure is born with 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609095943559-H8HI9N3JZETGJQHTFGXP/%2355+Back+to+the+Future.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) 'Back to the Future' represents one of the most iconic movies of the 80’s, and therefore, my childhood. I mean, I'd argue it's the defining movie of the 80’s. Fire up that Alan Silvestri music score, and I'll just sit back and let myself drift into a nostalgic dream of Marty McFly, Biff Tannen and the Doc running around causing chaos. The older this movie gets, the better it ages. Which is insane to think, but because they go back to the 50’s, it will always represent a frozen moment in time from a simpler era. I obviously wasn't alive in the 50’s, so there's a romanticism offered up in this movie that tickles a question that will burn inside me for the rest of my life - "I wonder what life was like back in the day". I get overloaded with excitement when I see Marty in the 50’s. Nothing has been invented yet, people are so ignorant and clueless. I just want to show people the future! I get so giddy when Marty McFly gives the kid his crappy ass skateboard back, and the kid looks at it and goes "Wow!". I've always been fascinated with science, and time travel and 'Back to the Future' shows us a science that's albeit ridiculous and fantastical, but seemingly realistic. Writer Bob Gale manages to capture your imagination with the most complex theory, delivered in the simplest way. The time travelling machine is a DeLorian for Christ sakes. But what makes this movie so special isn't the wacky science behind Doc Brown's time machine, it's a charm in the overly dramatic character archetypes. There's the bully, the damsel in distress, the nerd, the gang, the crazy scientist, the cool kid, and a buoyant role for what seems like every character in this movie. The characters feel like a paint by number, but there's a charm to them. Because we get to see them young and old, we forgive this repetitive character archetype. We see growth, and can cheer for characters to redeem themselves, knowing exactly how things will play out. It's a bizarre feeling to have towards characters in a movie. Aside from the genius of Robert Zemeckis and the world created by everyone involved, there's a mystery quality to 'Back to the Future' that I can't put my finger on. I had the luxury of watching 'Back to the Future' with my wife, who had never seen it before, and got to almost experience it for the first time again through her eyes. What a blast that was. I realized during that screening, that even though the movie as a whole is fantastic, it holds such a dear place in my heart because it just represents a time in all our lives. Also, I forgot how intense the last scene of the movie is at the clock tower. Holy shit. After screening with Maria, I realized the mystery quality to 'Back to the Future' is nostalgia, cued by the 'Back to the Future' Overture. Fuck I love that score. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609095924353-V2Z8W6G4JMFZKFS1A5DP/%2354+The+Goonies.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) If you were a kid or teenager growing up in the 80's, 'The Goonies' is just going to be one of those movies you can't help but acknowledge as one of the best family/adventure movies ever made. When I think about what I wanted to do as a kid, it was to go out on an adventure, find hidden treasures, or to solve puzzles. I loved making my own mazes, and rewarding myself with some fake sword or mystical amulet that would give me powers. In 'The Goonies', the best of friends and an older brother go out in search of the greatest treasure in the world, One-Eyed Willy's treasure. There are booby traps, hidden maps, scary villains, skeletons, waterfalls, and all this other cool shit that just kinda gets you into a fun adventurous feeling. Look at a movie like 'National Treasure', I actually really like that movie, but when you're done watching it, you don't feel motivated to go out and steal the declaration of independence. Or when I watch 'Ocean's 11' I don't feel like making a crazy ass bank heist with my friends. But with 'The Goonies', I do feel like going into my backyard, or finding a cave, and as Bilbo Baggins' says best "I'm going on an adventure!". This movie epitomizes the genre. It's directed by Richard Donner, who was coming off of directing massive hits like 'Superman', and the terrifying, 'The Omen', and was written by family specialist Chris Columbus, who I think is most famous for making 'Home Alone'. You can tell there's fantastic chemistry between the director and the actors, and the genuine fear they have for the Fratelli family - who terrified the shit outta me as a kid. When Robert Davi (One of the Fratelli sons) started singing opera to Chunk, it turned me off opera music, well, probably my whole life. When the kids make Chunk do the truffle shuffle, one, I always felt bad for Chunk because I was a chunkier kid in grade school, and super embarrassed of my body, and two, it was fucking hilarious. I loved how Data had all these cool gadgets, and absolutely made me want to go downstairs to my Dad's workshop and try and create some cool contraptions. Unfortunately, I'm a dumb ass, and probably just ended up breaking his tools. 'The Goonies' is good old fashioned family fun, and I can't wait to show it to my kid one day and go on adventures of our own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577538730-QL52ER7GV2KHF9W06XNE/%2353+House.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) My brother and I watched this movie to death when we were kids, but because we were so young, we didn't realize that this is a comedy/horror. We just thought it was the freakiest movie ever, and had one of the most bone chilling violin soundtracks we'd ever heard. 'House' actually does have a brilliant blend of horror and comedy throughout which was actually never intended. The story writer, Fred Dekker, originally wrote the script to have no comedy in it at all, but then Ethan Wiley rewrote the script, and added a ton of comedy into it - god bless that man. This horror/comedy 80's genre has now really become a cult favourite to fans, and 'House' is right up there with 'An American Werewolf in London' as having just the right amount of both genres to make it something special. But it wasn't the blending of genre's that makes this movie stick in my top 100, it's hearing how important Harry Manfredini's score was to this movie. It just kinda opened both, mine, and my brother's eyes to another level of movie making. He realized that he wanted to be involved with music, and I wanted to make movies to put his music into. It surprisingly all stemmed from this crappy little 80's flick. It's still a high set bar for horror music, and always gives me the chills when I hear it. One of my favourite scores ever. My brother and I keep trying to convince our friends, wives and family to watch this movie during Halloween, but no one ever wants to watch it because it's so cheesy. But this cheese, is damn good. Also, how cool is the poster for this movie? This is the cover of a movie you’d rent at Jumbo Video based off looks alone. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1609096079338-VNG1C802QUOKCKNGIO81/%2352+Jaws.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) The first time I saw this movie, I was 8 years old. I realize, there’s a terrible trend in this top 100 of my Dad letting me watch traumatizing movies when I was a kid. My family has a cottage in Algonquin Park, Ontario, and we go swimming for hours laughing and swimming til our skin turned wrinkly. Of course, that all changed when I turned 8. ‘Jaws’ fucking traumatized the shit out of me. Every time I jumped in the lake, I would immediately jump right back out thinking a shark was going to bite my legs and kill me. My parents kept reassuring me that this is a lake, and sharks are only in the ocean, but I didn’t care. I refused to believe that I would be safe in Smoke Lake. This refusal of safety lasted for 5 years. I mean, over and over, I kept thinking a shark is going to eat me. It’s unreal how ‘Jaws’ effected my summers at the cottage. To have a fear last so long, and be so strong is a testament of how incredible this film is. But what elicits fear, even more than an open body of water and a man eating shark, is the score by John Williams. We all know the 2 notes that changed film scores forever. It’s a haunting tune that reminds me of the power of music in a movie. Steven Spielberg even said “the score was clearly responsible for half of the success of that movie”. It’s a special movie that reveals a little something new to you every time you watch it. ‘Jaws’ went through it’s share of obstacles to be so special though, from re-working the script, bringing the reveal of the shark much later because of animatronic problems, to on set drama with Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw. Dreyfuss was quoted saying “Shaw was a perfect gentleman whenever he was sober. All he needed was one drink and then he turned into a competitive son-of-a-bitch.” There were concerns about the feud from Spielberg, but it ended up having the unintended consequence of them being edgy towards each other on camera as well - which added the proper amount of realism for their scenes together. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1596577609166-XX7C61G0TDANV9G6NVX4/%2351+Superbad.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (100-51) 'Superbad' was exactly what I needed when I was 23 years old. The movie came out in 2007, and I was just finishing up a drunken, baseball, party filled University education down in Iowa. I wasn't prepared for how funny this movie was going to be. The previous year, 'Borat' came out, and kinda flipped the comedy film on its head. Comedy started becoming really crude again, like the Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder days, and I couldn't have been more excited. 'Superbad' was surprisingly rated R, and I could relate to the good raunchy, drunken, dumbass, sex fuelled late teen comedy. This movie pretty much let me know that everything that was happening in University was normal - seeing fights, period blood on people (no personal experience in that) and filling laundry detergent with beer seemed like watching my life on a big screen. It felt real. I'm sure that also has to do with it being a Seth Rogan movie with Jonah Hill in it. For people to think it's just a way to relive being a stupid teenager heading to college, it's also injected with life after school. They walk into adult parties, get guns pulled on them, deal with cops, cocaine and weed, it's all in there to keep everyone excited. It was also an introduction to one of my favourite comedians now, in Bill Hader. The entire fake ID with McLovin, Jonah Hill boinking Michael Cera’s nose with with finger, getting period blood on his pants, getting hit by a car, punched in the face, shooting the car, fuck this movie is so funny. Actually, the word 'fuck' is used 186 times in the movie. Impressive. One of my favourite comedies of all time. There are so many funny moments in this movie, that I reference on a regular basis - "Hey Greg, why don't you go piss your pants again?" "That was like 8 years ago asshole" "People don't forget!” https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2017/9/22/top-100-movies monthly 0.5 2024-10-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1595008803955-TEDXWV0BS7JYFMJ8HLVI/%2350+Forrest+Gump.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I was 10 years old when this movie came out, and I remember thinking how stupid this movie looks. It’s called ‘Forrest Gump’? What a dumb name. It stars Tom Hanks, who I know best for comedies like ‘Big’, ‘The Money Pit’, or ‘The Burbs’, so how can this movie be any good? Well, the first time I saw it, I fell in love with it. Tom Hanks is mesmerizing as Forrest Gump, as he takes us on quite an adventure. We meet Elvis, John. F. Kennedy, the Vietnam War, John Lennon, the Black Panthers, and tons of other American icons throughout the years in a comically organic way. The theme that threads through all these meetings is that no matter the person, or voice, the tiniest thing you say, can have a lifelong influence on people. The weight of our actions and our words can resonate through others with such a resounding impact, that it’s astonishing to sometimes here what people say about you. I remember my brother calling me fat when I was swimming at the cottage when I was in Grade 7, and I burst out into tears, and still watch my weight everyday thinking about that line. When I was in Grade 6, I once told my mom she looks like a billy goat because I saw a hair sticking out from her chin. She brought it up to me 20 years later and says she still remembers me saying that and how much it hurt her feelings. It doesn’t matter who you are - a simpleton like Forrest Gump for example - everyone has the potential to change the world. ‘Forrest Gump’ doesn’t use too much from composer Alan Silvestri, but what little he did compose, really gives it a nice heart felt touch. The majority of music in this is pulled from famous US musicians to give it a realistic journey of Forrest’s life. There’s Elvis, Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, the Beach Boys and tons others to carry us through the decades, and make us believe that there really was a Forrest Gump who grew up in Greenbow, Alabama. ‘Forrest Gump’ is one of the greats. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1595008781776-NLVGXN19HJMY94CGWNKD/%2349+Drive.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I saw this in theatres, I had pretty low expectations. I wasn't a huge Ryan Gosling fan, and don't care a lick about cars; although I did like the game F-Zero for Super Nintendo. After watching the first 10 minutes of the movie, I was already putting this down as one of the best movies I had ever seen. The intro was so incredibly intense, dark, and then the 80s like music by Cliff Martinez kicked in, and I was sold. The reason why I like this movie so much, is coincidentally one of the reasons why it's so polarizing: the lack of dialogue. I've been making movies since I was a kid, and any time there's dialogue between my actors, it's always awful, I mean, painfully awful, and it's not because they're bad actors, it's because I don't know how to write fluent dialogue for some reason. So every movie I make is essentially a silent film relying on music, editing and facial expressions. Then enters 'Drive', and it was as though I watched a movie that I was born to make. It gave me hope that I can make a successful movie without using much dialogue. 'Drive' now serves as proof of that concept. I told myself after watching the movie, that 5 years later, the next time I watch it, I want to be at home, with a huge TV, amazing surround sound, a glass of whiskey, in total silence and darkness and engulf myself into the movie again (I'm still waiting on a bigger TV). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1595008762503-82HNH8GPEWK91TMU5EVG/%2348+The+Godfather.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I'll confess, I'm not a big mobster movie guy, and it took me till I was 29 to finally watch this movie. All the hype that had been built up for it, seeing it number two on imdb's list of movies, number 1 on the American Film Institute, friends and coworkers raving about it, was absolutely warranted. This movie is a masterpiece, and I think about it often when I'm trying to develop characters in a story or movie I'm making. In the opening 5 minutes the audience is told to believe that Marlin Brando's role of Don Vito Corleone (The Godfather) demands respect. A lot of movies try to do this, but this one pulls it off so perfectly. Francis Ford Coppola, or Mario Puzzo's story, gets me fully believing that this is the most respected, and scariest dude on the planet. People are coming in and begging at his feet, asking for forgiveness, and mercy - there's just so much crammed into such tiny scenes with Brando off the top but yet the pacing is slow; its really something to see. After that opening scene, I was hooked. I had to know what was going to happen throughout the rest of the film. There's the horses head scene which I had seen in 'The Simpsons' when Lisa wakes up in her bed, that I finally can make sense of now (It’s a real horses head by the way). There's the scene with Al Pacino in the restaurant, which is one of the greatest tension scenes I've ever had the pleasure of watching - It's right up there with the border scene in 'Sicario'. There's just scene after scene loaded with talent and wonderfully crafted story and tension. I'm not sure why it took me so long to watch ‘The Godfather’, but I'm glad I finally did. Contrary to many fans, I find the original 'The Godfather' better than the sequel, by a long shot. The slow building tension in this movie is some of the best I've ever seen. It's because of this movie that I took a chance and finally listened to my Dad and watched 'The Sopranos', all 6 seasons. It made me watch 'Casino', 'Goodfellas', and opened an entire genre that I thought I didn't like, but which is now one of my favourites. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1595008739415-IZBT6ACR1GN9S6DNQD6L/%2347+Big+FIsh.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) 'Big Fish' is my favourite Tim Burton movie. No doubt this is an unpopular opinion, considering it's up against great movies like 'Beetlejuice', 'Batman', and 'Pee-Wee's Big Adventure', but this one is his most fantastic adventure. The reason why I love this movie so much, is because it reminds me of my Dad telling jokes around the dining room table during Thanksgiving in Chicago. These big, lavish, never ending jokes that were so larger than life seemed to make everyone's eyes open wide, and bust a gut laughing at the grandness and ridiculousness of it all. There's a right way, and a fun way to tell a story. If you give the same story to a boring or a lively creative person, you have two completely different tales. I choose to live my life the 'larger than life' way. I like to exaggerate stories, make them fun, capture the excitement of people, because more often than not, the creative is more exciting than the real; much like the directing style of Tim Burton. This movie is the perfect vehicle for the whacky creative stylings of Burton. The whole movie is a metaphor for his creativity. Script writer John August captures the outlandishness, and charm of Daniel Wallace’s original novel. They're lovely exciting stories that Edward Bloom (Albert Finney/Ewan McGregor) tells, and it captures my imagination every time I watch it. It also has one of the best endings to a movie I've ever seen. It just couldn't have ended any better. It breaks me down into tears of happiness every single time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1595008714568-52C1L5FOFYPPO1Z18UWW/%2346+Beverly+Hills+Cop.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) is one of my favourite protagonists ever. He's rude, hilarious, creative, spontaneous, and never follows the rules - so having him constantly fucking around with shit is the best, and it happens often. It's a fairly predictable and weak story line, typical of 80s action movies. His friend is murdered, and he goes to try and find the killer, and unearths more than he bargained for. But the story doesn't really matter too much in this, because Eddie Murphy is so damn tantalizing as the lead, and the two cops he meets in Beverly Hills, Rosewood and Taggart, are such a good support cast to him. Rosewood has a place in my heart for some reason, I'm not quite sure why, but he's just adorable in this and the perfect counter to Foley. The first time I saw this movie, I must have been just a kid watching with my Dad, and Eddie Murphy had already taken over the world with his 'Delirious' stand-up the year before in 1983. So this was Murphy at his best. Watching such a crude and violent movie in grade school was actually really awesome, because it helped me develop a solid sense of humour at a young age. Although, I'm sure I just laughed at a lot of the jokes because my Dad was, and had no idea what was going on. The music in this is also very strong and memorable. Harold Faltemeyer writes maybe one of the best synth soundtracks ever with ‘Axel F’ being his main hit. That’s not just my 80s nostalgia hard-on talking either, it was #3 on the top Billboard charts for a while, and #1 in UK for a long time. The soundtrack really sets the tone for ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ and gives it a strikingly unique identity. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594845539226-RPWFOWK6B2GBLIWCM9KA/%2345+The+Sandlot.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When this movie came out, I was 9 years old. At that time, nothing meant more to me than the game of baseball, which is why ‘The Sandlot’ holds such a deep place in my heart. All I ever wanted to do as a kid was go out and play ball. I’d drag my friends out, and force them to hit me fly balls, or pitch to me so I could hit dingers into the parking lot. My friends weren’t the most gifted baseball players, and there weren’t any more than four of us at a time, so it was always a challenge to try and get out and play baseball with my buddies. ‘The Sandlot’ doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s like a 90 minute episode of the Wonder Years where baseball and mischief is constantly awry. I loved to problem solve, I loved to play baseball, I loved dogs, and I loved being with my friends, so really, this movie couldn’t have been more perfect for me as a kid. But surprisingly, I actually like this movie more as an adult. ‘The Sandlot’ revives the young spirit inside you. It reminds you that friendship, happiness, adventure and goofiness is what it’s all about. There’s a magic to this movie that almost quite indescribable. I mean, the script is drop dead fantastic, the actors are so damn good, and David Newman’s musical score gives it a whimsical 60s charm, but on top that, there’s just something to this movie that makes you smile. Really. Any baseball movie has a good chance to attack this top 100 chart, but ‘The Sandlot’ isn’t just a baseball flick. It’s a Goonies adventure mixed into friendship, competition, friendship and conquering fears. I really hope I get to show this movie to my kid one day, and get motivated to get outside and have some fun! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401198077-3UHV83U6NCI3BZBG5LK7/%2344+Robocop.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I show ‘Robocop’ to my friends now, they think it’s going to be this cheesy, clunky, boring robot movie, but what they end up seeing is nothing like they expected. This movie is rated ‘R’, and for a good reason. Director Paul Verhooven has a distinct feel to his flicks. There are always news feeds showing the crises going on in the world, there’s always a political agenda, and there is always a copious amount of blood and gore. When someone gets shot in a Verhooven movie, you generally see more of it than you’d expect or care to see. The scene that sticks out in my mind the most, is when the titular character gets tortured by the villains in a warehouse. This scene is just downright fucked. They’re laughing at him while shooting off his limb. Then asking him “Does it hurt?” while pelting him pointblank with shotgun blasts against his bulletproof armour. Then scenes later they throw a living body out the back of a truck onto the hood of a police car during a highway chase scene. What Verhooven always manages to do, is take a movie to its absolute limits, while maintaining a genuinely strong social dystopian ideology.. You could argue that he goes over the top with his brutality, but by stretching our emotions to their limits, it brings into focus how disturbing we really are. There’s no way I could review this movie and not mention Basil Poledouris’ iconic score. 80s movies tend to have a very recognizable score attached to them, with bright, bold and daring choices that give a movie their identity. I find movies in the 2010 decade play it super safe. There aren’t nearly as many sound tracks that jump out at you as super memorable. Music is now like Hans Zimmer, in that they’re gorgeous and haunting, but very background orchestral. Music doesn’t steal the show, and become synonymous with character or movie as much anymore. Now think Poledouris’ score in ‘Robocop’ if you’re seen the movie, you can sing the soundtrack to it. Time to stop playing it safe, and make some daring musical choices! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594843431603-7RBL8D3ZFI2WGHTN54ZH/%2342+The+Descent.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When someone asks me “What’s the scariest movie you’ve ever seen?” ‘The Descent’ is usually a part of that discussion. This movie is terrifying in so many ways. From the colours used, the claustrophobia, and then there’s the mistrust and turn of friendships that shocks me to my core. It’s also pretty badass that the entire cast was female - a decision made by director Neil Marshall. Colours are very important to me, not just in film, but in life. They elicit a powerful emotional response, and in film, a simple colour theme can change everything. ‘The Descent’ is loaded with red, and black which give off a dark, brooding, and blood filled feeling which magnify the fear of everything within. It’s cool that before they head into the dark cave, it’s bright, sunny, green and yellow above to put you in a happy safe place, but wow, does the colour then reflect the horror within. The claustrophobia is brutal in this. I mean, people getting stuck in little tunnels, being in a cave for the whole fuckin’ movie, and this fear of never being able to escape; to not have an exit plan, is just terrifying. Thankfully I’m not really that claustrophobic, but even with just a slight fear of it, this movie puts me off. So I can only imagine what this movie is like for someone who really fear it. Marshall frames most of his shots with darkness or cave around the characters to constantly give a feel of being closed in, and cramped by the unknown. Thankfully, the actors didn’t have to worry too much about it. Production decided not to film it in real caves, because it would be too dangerous. So 21 caves were built on set to get optimal shooting angles, and for the safety of the cast and crew. Then there’s the cast of all female characters who turn out to be awful people. Just when you think nothing worse can happen in the movie, they manage to snuff out any happy or positive emotion. It’s really a shot in the gut. You need these girls to work together and figure a way to get out of the cave, but it becomes a nightmare when you can no longer trust your best friends. The final hit of this movie are the Crawlers. The monsters in the movie are pretty friggin’ scary. The first time I saw them in the cave I screamed and felt horribly uncomfortable. Apparently the director kept the Crawlers away from the cast, so when they saw them for the first time, they all shit their pants and get genuine reactions of fear. Super cool, and super cruel. They are ruthless, disgusting creatures, and the movie does a great job at making these creatures unique and scary. ‘The Descent’ is easily in my top horror films of all time. It’s also one that gets overlooked, and seems to be more of an indie flick. Do not miss this movie. It’s fucking awesome. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594843451027-NV795P6T9AFRJ9NNJ0U5/%2342+The+Revenant.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I saw this movie in theaters, I really had no idea what I was getting into. It's bananas how intense this movie is. Since I saw it in theaters in 2015, I've only seen it once more, and as incredible as the movie is, I don't think I ever want to watch it again. It's just so brutal, emotional and raw. The director, Alejandro Innaritu, shot this movie in chronological order over a 9 month period, and would only use natural lighting for all his scenes, meaning there were only a few solid hours each day when he could shoot the movie. It's shot in legit freezing weather in Canada, and everything in this movie just screams authenticity. Leonardo DiCaprio even eats an actual bison liver, even though he's a vegetarian. Everyone involved was dedicated to making this movie as good as it could be, but it's really the two acting performances of DiCaprio and Tom Hardy that make the movie so fantastic. DiCaprio won an Oscar for easily his most inspired performance of his career, but I thought it was Hardy's performance as the villain that was truly outstanding. I mean, I thought he was up there with Heath Ledger for antagonistic roles of brilliance. The only way I'd want to watch this again would be to see the performances these guys put on, and try to figure out how to get my actors to be as good as they are. Tom Hardy not winning an Oscar for his role as John Fitzgerald pretty much finally made me realize what a joke the Academy Awards are (No offence to Mark Rylance for his performance in 'Bridge of Spies'). The music done by Ryuichi Sakamoto is chillingly haunting, and captures the mood of isolation, desperation and revenge. It's a remarkable creative journey for such a recycled formula. 'The Revenant' ushered in a new standard for filming and acting. This movie shows that beauty and perfection can be achieved without the use of computer graphics; and that the innate talent of a human holding a camera or acting can come forth and remind us all how powerful a movie experience can be. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594759743321-G1D7AJ5Z81TJWYPSC4X8/%2341+Cabin+in+the+Woods.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I had pretty low expectations heading into this movie. I just wanted to go see a horror movie, and anything that involves a cabin in the woods is aces in my books (Evil Dead, Cabin Fever, Blair Witch Project). So I was willing to give this movie a little bit of leeway even if it wasn’t great, but wow, it blew me away. Drew Goddard, who wrote and directed the movie, was coming off of writing the big secret monster movie hit ‘Cloverfield’, and had done a bunch of TV things in the past. ‘Cabin in the Woods’ was his directorial debut, and he made an ever lasting impression on me. This movie can be summed up in one word – fun! Man did I have fun watching this in the theaters, I was laughing my ass off, freaking out, and surprised on so many occasions. It just took one of the most used horror movie settings, and did something that I never would have conjured up in my wildest dreams. It made me think “Damn, I should of thought of that!” It made me want to think outside the box with horror, and try and do something that isn’t so campy and predictable. ‘Cabin in the Woods’ is one of my top horror movies. I’m dying for a TV series on this, where we get to see more of the villains play and in different parts of the world! A TV series is just begging to be made. Maybe I should pitch the idea… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594759717565-S3CG07C4RG51WNZ616Y7/%2340+Mrs+Doubtfire.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) This is the movie that made me fall in love with Robin Williams. I have so many good memories of ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’. From being in Chicago, visiting my family for Thanksgiving and yelling “HELLO!!!!” every time we saw each other, to visiting San Francisco and making a trip to the actual house ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ was filmed in (Which is constantly under construction apparently) to most recently with my wife who quotes the movie on what seems like a day-to-day basis. And since I’ve met my wife, I’ve watched this movie 3x as much, because it’s one of her favourites. ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ is once again, another movie that evolved as I evolved in life. I used to see this movie as the dinosaur rap, pie in the face “HELLO!!!!”, orange throwing at head, fun movie that it is, but now at 35, I also see it as a man desperately trying to piece his life back together, get the trust back of his ex-wife, and his children back. I used to hate Pierce Brosnan so much after this movie, but he’s actually the nicest dude ever – just happens to be caught in a desperate man’s attempt to get his kids back. It’s a very tightly crafted film, with amazing acting from the entire cast, really upbeat and fun music choices, and perfectly blending comedy with the chaos of life in a very discreet way. It’s also an emotional roller coaster of love and trust, with an ending that you’d never really expect Hollywood to put out. For as wacky as the story idea is, its profoundly impactful to experience as a child of divorce, or in any type of marriage. I can always count on it for a good laugh, and a tear. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594759697772-R5UAISCP4IRE7FX6Y7KZ/%2339+A+New+Hope.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Where it all began. 'Star Wars: A New Hope' came out in 1977, and even though I was born 7 years later in 1984, this movie is still a symbol of my childhood; thanks to my brother Erik. He was obsessed with the Star Wars saga, and forced my parents to buy him every God damned toy that came out. We had action figures, models, posters, fake lightsabers, and my brother's crown jewel, the Millennium Falcon. That spaceship was huge! So, even though I didn't grow up in the middle of the Star Wars madness, I was constantly around it, and I feel like I was indoctrinated into the universe from every family member around me. I can't remember an actual moment in time where I sat in front of a TV and watched the scrolling credits and John Williams' booming intro music flood my living room, but I do remember the feeling of it all around me. My brother loved 'Star Wars: Return of the Jedi' because of the Ewoks, so I, as always, followed in his footsteps and loved the forest and Ewoks as well. It wasn't until later, when I watched the trilogy again with a memory that I realized 'Return of the Jedi' was my least favourite of the three, 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back' was my favourite and 'A New Hope' was smack in the middle. 'Star Wars: A New Hope' was the starting point for one of the most important film franchises ever made, and the birth of some of the most iconic characters in my life. Learning Luke Skywalker's motivation for his hatred towards the Empire, meeting Han Solo in Tattooine, and learning the truth about ol' Uncle Ben out in the desert, fill out arguably the greatest science fiction story line told in movies. Director and creator, George Lucas has had this movie (and all subsequent movies) analyzed to death by Star Wars fans, but back in the mid 80s, this kind of microscopic nitpicky bullshit wasn't as affluent as it is now. (If it was, it wasn't as widespread as it is now. See: Internet) I didn't care about inconsistencies in grade school. I didn't care about bad acting, or what lore was being broken by what writer. I just watched a movie and fell in love with it. I looked up to Luke as the hero he was, I thought Han Solo was so cool and 'adult', Chewy was a big loyal dog I wanted to hug, and surprisingly, I never found Princess Leia to be hot, but did find she would shoot and hold her blaster really funny - maybe it was because I was in grade 3 and didn't realize or care about girls. 'Star Wars: A New Hope' was about a cool action movie. I mean, the Death star blows up a fucking planet, Luke then blows up the God damned death star, Obi-Wan sacrifices himself in a lightsaber duel with Darth Vader, there's shit blowing up, robots talking, guns blasting, and then toss in the best soundtrack of all time to spice it up a bit. Terrifyingly, Lucas was going to go with well known classical music for this movie, but thank God Stephen Spielberg recommended John Williams for it, and then the rest is history. Imagine this movie without that musical score? It would be a piece of shit. The music makes this movie. Darth Vader's Empire music is still a defining bar for representing evil. You don't have to be clever with music. When the good guys are on the screen, play good guy music and vice versa. This simplistic approach to music has actually helped me out as a video editor as well. Use music to establish tension, character, mood in the edits. I mean, that sounds pretty obvious, but there's always a moment in your life when you have that realization, and for me, it was when I saw 'A New Hope'. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594403080073-UIEKSTOU4EQMJRDD0KNX/%2338+Raid+Redemption.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Hoooooooooly shit this movie is insane. I wish I could remember who told me to watch this, because I owe them a scotch and a big hug. ‘The Raid: Redemption’ is my favourite martial arts movie ever made. I mean, this movie kinda blends together martial arts and gun shooting action (John Wick style) so maybe it can’t clearly be defined as a martial arts movie, but it has the craziest fights scenes I’ve ever had the pleasure to watch, and honestly, it’s not even close (Except for the sequel to this movie!). It’s an Indonesian movie, and has a pretty neat premise; almost video game like: a police squad raids a drug filled apartment building and they need to make their way up to fight the final boss. Kinda like the old NES game called ‘Kung Fu’. This movie doesn’t give you cheap fight scenes, they feel like this is how someone would be fighting if they were fighting for their lives. Breaking bones, ripping faces, shooting knees and eyeballs, it’s really ruthless. I’ve always loved the old Bruce Lee movies like ‘Enter the Dragon’ or ‘Game of Death’, and I love ‘Ip Man’, and Jackie Chan stuff like ‘Rumble in the Bronx’, but it’s not even close. I mean, I hate to say it, because they are all pretty badass movies, but how fast, and real feeling ‘The Raid: Redemption’ has, is genre changing. The choreographing of this flick must have been insane. But a warning: Don’t watch this movie if you have a weak stomach. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594403061250-C9LUTWPHAKUIAJL21O2D/%2337+Shawshank+Redemption.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) There’s a real inspiration in this movie that drives me to make the most of my life. Beyond the obvious setup of them being in prison, and my greatest fear of being wrongfully imprisoned (maybe this is where I’ve developed this fear), there’s so little hope in this movie that every glimmer of it is magnified to such a beautiful level. It’s about making the most of a shitty situation, really. Tim Robbins makes a library in the jail to give people something to do, he gives all the prisoners of Shawshank a treat by blaring some music for them in the courtyard, and sticks it to the warden whenever he can to remind people that everyone deserves fair treatment. When things are looking grim, this movie pays tribute to the reminder that you need to make the most of the situation you’re given. I’m flabbergasted that this is a Stephen King short story. I remember my Dad, who is an avid Stephen King reader, brought home a book from the library called ‘Different Seasons’, and he told me to give it a read whenever I had time. I flipped through it, and realized that these aren’t horror stories! Well, screw that. I had finished reading ‘Cujo’, ‘Salem’s Lot’ and was dabbing into ‘It’ (Before realizing I’d need 5 years to finish it) so I was fully invested with King’s horror writing. I’m almost glad I didn’t read the story, because the twist ending in ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ would have been stolen from me - although, I’m sure I would have appreciated the ending just as much having read it instead. Speaking of endings, I always thought it was kind of lame that Red magically finds Andy on the beach in the middle of no where somehow. I can’t even find my wife in my house, let alone a state in the US. But I found out that the director, Frank Darabont agreed with me! He wanted to leave the ending ambiguous with Red on the bus. That would have been such a better ending. While ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ is now a household name and consistently ranks among peoples favourite films of all time (iMDB has ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ and ‘The Godfather’ in a perpetual battle for the top spot), I don’t feel at all as though I’m just joining the masses in appreciating how great this film is. I mean, it’s kind of perfect. Frank Darabont makes his directorial debut and absolutely kills it. Tim Robbins plays without a doubt the best role of his career. He’s so level headed, yet chaotic in his thoughts by making you constantly question what his actual motives are. Then having Morgan Freeman do the voice over throughout the movie is a nice touch. ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ is filled with memorable scenes. The scene where Brooks gets released from prison is one of the most touching, and heart breaking scenes I’ve ever seen. The twist at the end is a momentous iconic moment. I think what makes this movie so special is that all the characters in ‘Shawshank Redemption’ are important. They’re all carefully crafted right from the get go, and you love them all, and we’re talking about prisoners here! But a solid acting shout-out goes to the Warden. Holy fuck, what a piece of shit that guy is. I have a tough time watching any movie with Bob Gunton in it without picturing him as that asshole. What’s even worse is that he plays the main villain in ‘Patch Adams’ as well. What a kill joy that fucker is. One of my top movie villains. Fantastic actor. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594403041147-CG312OYUV1CS4R9TB4K0/%2336+Slumdog+Millionaire.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I tend to have a favourite type of movie or actor, and then a movie like this comes around and changes all of that. Danny Boyle was fresh off of making ’28 Days Later’, and then he makes an international film about family, coming of age and love. It is such a far cry from what I’d expect him to make considering his track record, but he made ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ and entrenched himself as my favourite director from that point on. ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ was unlike anything I had ever seen at the time. The directing style is very harsh, bold, and loud. The cinematography is colourful, tight, and jarring. The editing is so fast, complicated, and daring, yet I never felt lost throughout the film. I never exposed myself to much Indian cinema (Watching whatever was on the TV while waiting for my Indian food in Brampton is the extent of it), but India has one of the most successful, and top movie scenes in the world. The Indian cinema scene is unique because when a family goes to see a flick in India, it’s a luxury. The cost to get in isn’t quite expensive, but there is a lot of poverty in India, so to get see a film is a big deal. Families will gather and watch a movie that is over 3 or 5 hours, and has dancing, fighting, love, horror, suspense, more dancing, and just about everything under the sun. Many movies in India want to give such a broad range of genres so everyone in the family is happy. Danny Boyle manages to blend both the Western and Eastern worlds together in this vein so perfectly. There’s love, dancing, deceit, horror, family, torture, excitement, and whatever else you can think of. It’s a genius collaboration of worlds. A movie can’t be great unless it has a great story, and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ is a wonderful story. I love the journey we are taken on, because I feel like we experience so damn much in this movie with Jamal Malick from Mumbai. While his story maybe isn’t that interesting on it’s own, using the editing tactic of bouncing back and forth through progressing questions in the game show ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’ is wildly genius and a heck of a lot of fun. ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’ is already entertaining enough on its own, so to add a backstory to every question and answer just adds the icing on the cake. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594403019928-OA57M7VQ4VE15HTXWHZM/%2335+Empire+Strikes+Back.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I find this one the most memorable of them all. The opening when Luke gets wrecked by the big yeti, and then has to use the force to grab his lightsaber and get out, only to immediately pass out from the cold and get thrown into a dead ton ton is just a pretty awesome way to start the movie. It has my favourite Han Solo line with Princess Leia: “I love you”, “I know”. Vader finally fights Skywalker and reveals something of significance. Han Solo gets frozen in carbonite, there's betrayal, fights, battles against the AT-AT's, Luke trains with Yoda and rides on his back like a backpack - it's got just about every memorable scene that comes to mind when I think of Star Wars. It's not quite the actual movie that makes me love Star Wars so much though, it's just the feeling, and the brand of the whole thing, and nothing sells the Star Wars brand more than John Williams’ score. Hearing the ‘Main Theme’, ‘Imperial March’ or ‘Yoda’s Theme’ transports me back to my childhood; to a time when everything just seemed simpler. It’s the 2nd most iconic film score to me (trailing only ‘Rocky’) and I listen to it at least once a month to get my creative juices flowing. Even though i didn't grow up on it as much as my older brother and cousin did, I still appreciate it just enough to realize how awesome all these characters are. It’s pretty rare for a sequel to be better than the first, but Empire definitely steals the thunder from the original. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401175921-J7FD5J0VA2928PINK7D2/%2334+The+Matrix.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I was in University, my English Literature professor, Dr. White, gave us a project where we had to take one film, and write an analytical essay on it using one of the critical theory authors we were reading. I wanted to do my essay on ‘The Matrix’, while citing Marshall Maclluan, and Louis Althusser. Then after class as everyone was heading home, Dr. White stopped me and said “Allan, are you sure you wanna do this?”, to which I responded “Ya, of course! There are so many ways to dig into ‘The Matrix’ from a philosophical perspective” Dr. White responded, “Exactly, there are about 200 books written on it from accomplished philosophical and PhD students. Are you sure you can come up with an original take on this?” I responded “Hmmm, Ok, maybe I’ll do something else”. (I ended up doing my paper on the Chuck Norris classic ‘Firewalker’ using bell hooks as my critical companion) My point is – this movie is beaming with replay and conversation value. The first time the world got their eyes on this movie, it opened up an entire different way of making films. It wasn’t just one of the best movies of the year, it was most of the most revolutionary films ever made. Being able to bend time and space, and to do all the stunts with practical effects?! It was the perfect blend between realism, and idealism. It challenged everything we thought we knew, and made us see things from another perspective. For a movie to challenge your very sense of life, or thought, or fate is always a bonus in my books. ‘The Matrix’ was what the whole world was talking about. It’s pretty rare for a movie to stop everything that was going on in the world, and make you take notice. There’s more to this movie than cool bullet time motion, and people in black, there’s a wealth of rich analytical and suggestive thought here to keep you active for weeks! It’s a crowning achievement in the action genre. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594227956950-AN5NVBCA0O6HY5V0X7I1/%2333+Big+Lebowski.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I remember being at Graceland University in Iowa, and in my 3rd year, we threw a party at our house (Which we called 'The Embassy' and became known for throwing non-stop parties) and 20 or 30 people watched me pour some Kaluha, Vodka, and Milk into a glass and start drinking it. They all looked at me like I was fucking insane and disgusting at the same time. That's because the majority of people I went to school with had zero taste in movies, and class. They didn't understand that The Dude showed me the way. He showed me that a White Russian is one of the tastiest, and weirdest drinks there is. 'The Big Lebowski' is one of the last places you should look to for advice or inspiration on life, because The Dude is a useless sack of shit, but it's that lazy, "I don't give a shit" attitude that opens up the door to some damn fine comedy. Joel and Ethan Coen just finished writing and directing the offbeat thriller 'Fargo', and then went into another offbeat style comedy in 'The Big Lebowski'. The premise is beyond stupid. The Dude seeks restitution for a guy pissing on his rug. That's it. From that simple and stupid idea, it branches off into some pretty wild stuff. Throughout the wild stuff going on, there's a genius level of comedy infused. There aren't any cheap laughs here. They're all layered through character, and then through simple looks, mannerisms, or a word or two, we start to understand and feel a level of sympathy for The Dude and his two dumbass buddies. This movie gives serious situations to characters that somehow turn into a roarous laugh fest. I mean, it's non-stop laughing for me. Every scene with Walter (John Goodman) puts me on the floor its so fucking funny. To try and quote some of the funny lines in this movie is pointless, because I'd just end up writing out the whole God damned movie here. When someone asks me, "What's the funniest movie ever made?" I put 'The Big Lebowski' up there in the top 3. If you compare it with another favourite of mine, 'Dumb and Dumber', it's just on a whole different plane of comedy. Stupid, silly, and physical comedy is incredibly difficult to pull off effectively, but it's easier than clever, intelligent comedy. It's just the style of writing that the Coen Brothers use. You get the feeling that the characters in this movie are all based off of real people the Coen Brother's met throughout their lives, because they all feel so ordinary, genuine and fucked up. This movie impacted so many people, that a religion was formed called 'Dudeism'. Seriously, they have a website: www.dudeism.com - There’s some proof for ya that the world is lazy as shit. People want to be a part of a religion that does nothing. No wonder why people love this movie so much. Impressive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594227939168-UCG9UAAI48Z5ICID48I2/%2332+Terminator+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I was only in grade 2 when this movie came out, but I still remember what a huge blockbuster it was. The entire world was talking about ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’. It catapulted James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s career into another stratosphere and set a new standard for graphics in film. What made it even more impressive, was that it was a sequel! The sequel curse was squashed with this massive success. Even though it’s not quite as good as the original ‘The Terminator’, it’s still an absolute gem of a movie. ‘T2’ takes the original story, and carries it into the future with incredible tact. It helps that James Cameron did both Terminators, so there’s a seamless feeling between both movies. While the original masterpiece had a budget of just over $6,000,000 this movie had $100,000,000 to play with (With $15,000,000 of that going to Schwarzenegger) so it was only natural that ‘T2’ would take everything from the original and turn it up to 10. The old villain is transformed into the hero, and a new terrifying villain emerges in his place. I love the scene where Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) sees the Terminator coming out of the elevator in the hospital, it’s just so damn cool. While I think the T-800 is one of the freakiest villains of all time, I gotta admit that the T-1000 is pretty badass. Robert Patrick’s dead panned, flawless running technique genuinely made me feel as though John, Sarah Connor and the T-800 had no chance to survive; even with the unstoppable Terminator on their side, they are still so fucked. “What’s wrong with Woofy? I hear him barking?”, “Woofy is just fine dear.” I get why James Cameron tried to humanize the T-800 in ‘T2’, because otherwise it would be two robots fighting each other, which pulls out any emotional attachment to the movie. In the first one, we cared if Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) died, because not only did we all love and root for him, but if he were to fail in his impossible mission, the bad guy would win and murder Sarah Connor. By giving the T-800 some semblance of emotion in the sequel, it not only gives Sarah Connor’s character depth and tolerance, it gives a movie about two cybernetic organisms attacking each other some humanity. One of my favourite scenes is in Mexico when Sarah is watching the Terminator play with John Connor and she says “Of all the would-be fathers who came and left over the years, this thing, this machine, was the only one who measured up. In an insane world, it was the sanest choice.” Then of course there’s Edward Furlong who plays John Connor. I would always crack up over his voice cracking and squealing, but he plays a pretty awesome on the run teenager with angst. While Sarah Connor seemed helpless in the first Terminator, John Connor as a teenager feels even more helpless, which just adds to the fear of them being hunted by the T-1000. Then last but not least is Sarah Connor. James Cameron has a tendency to cast strong female leads (Aliens, Terminator, The Abyss) and Linda Hamilton got ripped in reprising her role from seven years earlier. She says to Kyle Reese in the first one, “Do I look like someone who’s going to save the world? I can’t even keep my cheque book balanced.” Now she’s back to fulfill a predestined future as the badass solider/mother she was always intended to be. One of the best sequels ever made. “Easy money.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401153807-U3QZEG9OYAFEO4RYHQOS/%2331+Starship+Troopers.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) The first time I saw this movie was in Chicago, visiting my family for Thanksgiving. We had to wait a couple hours for someone, so we just went to the movies and watched whatever was playing. We ended up getting a ticket to see ‘Very Bad Things’, and when the movie was getting near the end, the projector went out and we were all sitting in this shitty little theater wondering “What the fuck?” A dude came out and apologized to us, and said if we want we can go into another movie and watch that for no charge. So Erik and I walked into another movie called ‘Starship Troopers’, which we knew absolutely nothing about. (I was in early highschool, and shouldn’t have been watching either movie to be honest). At the time, I was really big into the PC game ‘Starcraft’ and anything science fiction or space related. So since it was a free movie we naturally had zero expectations going into it. The opening scene had a ground army getting slaughtered by giant bugs, limbs ripped off, and spikes impaling people’s legs. What. The. Fuck!? My brother and I looked at each other, and got ready for the ride of our lives. It wasn’t until years later that I realized this movie was directed by Paul Verhoeven, who also did the 80s gem, ‘Robocop’. ‘Starship Troopers’ has a very similar vibe to it. It relies on a news channel to update the audience with what’s happening in the world, it uses comical political propaganda in commercials to serve his subtext to the state of right winged military and politics. He goes as far as even dressing the higher ups in SS uniforms to hint at government oppression against the working class. Then in typical Verhoeven fashion - It’s brutally gory. Much like Murphy getting his hand blown off in ‘Robocop’, there’re limbs flying everywhere, people getting shot in the head, decapitated, shooting blood from the mouth, it’s insane how rated R it is. And that’s exactly how I like my action movies. I love Verhoeven’s style of action. It’s extremely well polished, and organized, but keeps you guessing constantly. You never know who’s going to die, or where they’re going next. It’s just unrelenting as an action movie, that’s willing to reflect as Nazi satire. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608393981251-XJQNSZQKE9IQOG2TCKCP/%2330+King+of+Kong.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I had no idea how entertaining a documentary could be until I watched 'The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters'. I mean, this movie changed my life in the sense that I realized how easy, and exciting it can be to make a documentary. The whole thing looks like it's shot on a handycam, half the time the audio is awful, it constantly uses subtitles, and the material revolves around old stinky garages and arcades; yet this movie is beyond enthralling and fun to watch! After seeing this, I started making movie trailers using a documentary style. Speaking to the camera, spying on people, capturing people in their essence. It led to me making my proudest film achievement: my hockey documentary 'Brampton Hockey League: Throw the Sticks, Let's Go!' which is a pretty amazing thing. ‘King of Kong’ made me realize that I can focus on something that I really enjoy, and make a movie out of it. The movie itself has a fantastic story arc. They clearly define a hero and villain right away, and the challenges each of them has to go through to achieve their goal. The movie itself is analogous to Donkey Kong, in that Steve Weibe (The hero) is Mario, a small, hopeful little guy who has to overcome incredible odds to achieve success, and he's up against Donkey Kong (Billy Mitchell) who sits atop the throne using his barrels (The Judge, Walter Day) as obstacles to get in the way of Weibe's success. It's such a brilliantly crafted movie that also offers a definitive ending - which is wonderful to see in documentaries. * Although there has been another wave of controversy since the movie got released with Billy Mitchell getting his records stripped away, and then re-instated. Every time I think of this movie, it gives me motivation to go out there and create something - to believe in myself. Seeing how easy I could pull something like this off gives me energy. Pretty wicked for a 90 min movie to really motivate my life in a positive direction. The best documentary ever made! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594227857855-PH84IXLE2DY6Y46I6U5L/%2329+Neverending+Story.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Ah, 'The NeverEnding Story'. When someone says 'The NeverEnding Story', a wave of emotions flows through me - sadness from Artex (maybe one of the saddest scenes of all time), happiness from Falcor roaring and chasing those dickhead bullies, fear from that terrifying Wolf, laughter from the Gnome (Played by Billy Crystal. Took me years to realize that) and coolness from the Sphinx Towers (Loved this scene so much, I did a parody of it). Even though the movie is a dredge through the Nothing, and pretty bleak throughout, it radiates happiness when I think of it. It's one of those childhood movies that sticks with you. If you watch it for the first time now, it just won't have the same impact as it did when you were young. This movie gave life to fantasy genre for me. I would think of the craziest and coolest ideas for stories, and write them down in some awesome story. To realize I wasn’t limited by anything except my imagination was such a liberating feeling. ‘The NeverEnding Story’ romanticizes reading. This kid goes into a magical book store, runs to the school attic and has a little camp out. The blanket, the candle, the sandwich, it all seemed so fun to me. I was jealous. I wanted to be Bastian up there losing myself in an adventure. It made me want to read, and explore new worlds. Seriously, after I saw this movie, I was all over the Scholastic book fairs looking for the coolest and most fantastic cover art in books. Now a days, what makes ‘The NeverEnding Story’ so special is that it didn’t use computer graphics. Everything was done with practical effects and the use of massive models. Falcor was a 43 foot long model that had 6,000 scales on it. You just don’t see that happening these days anymore. So that’s pretty awesome. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401133654-56QPU79J07ZXVCIEF2NN/%2328+Saving+Private+Ryan.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I saw 'Saving Private Ryan' when I was visiting my Aunt's cottage in Tiverton, near Lake Huron. We went to a nearby theatre, and my brother was really sick with the flu. He was coughing and shivering, and no one really seemed to care, except me, because his coughing was really bothering me. Good brother, right? When the opening scene kicked in his coughing stopped and we all were transfixed to the screen thinking - "What the fuck am I watching right now?". The opening scene was such an incredible piece of cinema. It shocked the hell out of us. This seemed to be the truest, most realistic depiction of how war really was. Man, it hit us all hard. From then on, the movie stayed dark, grey, and depressing. One by one, we began to know and fall in love with this crusading band of brothers trying to save one dude during war, and one by one they all started to die. This wasn't the typical Hollywood blockbuster I'm used to seeing, where no one dies and if they do, they come back to life magically somehow and everything finishes hunky dorey. Nah, this was brutal. From scene to scene you had no idea who was going to live or die and that kept my attention throughout the movie. The sniper played by Barry Pepper was so badass. I decided after watching this movie that if I were ever to join a war that I would wanna be a sniper; just gotta watch out for those tanks. Tom Hanks is one of my top actors and it was cool to see him in a different role. The man is so diverse in his characters, from mentally challenged in 'Forest Gump', to a kid in 'Big', to a mobster in 'Road to Perdition', and now to a war veteran. He without a doubt is the best part of the movie. The scene he delivers when he’s talking about the rose bushes back home stays fresh in my mind like I watched it yesterday. It’s not just Hanks that drives the movie forward either, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Vin Diesel, Giovanni Ribisi all carry an equal weight to bring Private Ryan back home. ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is one of Steven Spielberg’s best movies, and my favourite war movie ever made. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1593132446182-QPJI5HSGJP2V3A0DEQD7/%2327+The+Shining.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I re-watched this movie in my 30’s and holy shit, it still holds up as an incredibly terrifying psychological horror film. From the opening aerial shot and the haunting music as the car heads to the Outlook Hotel, I’m enthralled. This movie taught me how scary the anticipation of suspense is. What is in Room 237? Planting that idea of fear at the beginning of the movie, and then paying it off later on is something I really try and implement in all of my shitty scary movies. I never realized how good Stanley Kubrick was until I watched this movie for a second time. Believe it or not, as a kid I actually preferred the made for TV movie of ‘The Shining’ that stared the dude from that shitty show ‘Wings’. I couldn’t appreciate the subtleties that Kubrick’s movie had until I was much older. The isolation he builds when the Torrence family first arrive, to the slow winding demise into madness of Jack Nicholson is done with such brilliance that I could probably go on and talk about this movie for an hour. Speaking of brilliance, Jack Nicholson’s performance is stupidly amazing. The only thing that really prevents this movie from being truly perfect is the performance of his wife, Shelly Duvall. Man, she is fucking garbage in this movie. I found it interesting that a lot of time her distressed acting isn’t acting at all. Her and Kubrick really didn’t get along and he was said to be a total dickhead to her on set throughout the entirety of filming. The scene where she is climbing the stairs swinging the baseball bat was shot 127 times! That’s a really emotionally draining scene to shoot as well. Aside from that though, it’s one of the top horror/scary movies I’ve ever seen in my life. There’s a documentary movie called ‘Room 237’ which is loaded with fan theories about ‘The Shining’. This film is so deep and thick with double meanings, subtexts, and hidden Easter eggs that a full length documentary was made about it. There’s no doubt that Kubrick paid really close attention to every detail and injected tons of meaning behind every shot, but to think that this movie reveals a secret American classified hoax of sending people to the moon, is maybe a little too insane. Either way, if you look deep enough into this movie, it can keep you busy for quite a while. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1593132495598-6CWB98RDE4RKEU9BE6QA/%2326+Dumb+and+Dumber.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When it comes to pure comedy, 'Dumb and Dumber' is up there as one of the best. Harry and Lloyd (Jeff Daniels and Jim Carrey respectively) team up to be arguably the funniest duo of all time. Usually when you have a duo team on screen, you need someone to be the level headed straight person to keep some solid trajectory of coherence in the film, but Harry and Lloyd break that rule, big time. Their stupidity is on a whole new level. They make their idiocy feel so natural that they don’t even feel scripted, it feels like they're just uneducated buffoons who have no idea how dumb they really are. It's really genius writing and acting. And while every scene they’re in has a comedy beat to it, it doesn't feel like a compilation of short comedy skits stitched together, rather it feels like a genuine movie with a streamlined plot and focus. It makes me wonder what makes a great movie? Why does it always have to be a serious drama, or an epic mystery documentary? Why can't a movie that explodes with 107 minutes of pure comedy be considered up there as one of the greatest of all time? Each genre has its own challenges and for a comedy it's to make you laugh - well, 'Dumb and Dumber' is about as good as it gets in that regard. As you would expect with a comedic God like Jim Carrey, a lot of the memorable scenes were improvised. The most annoying sound in the world? Ya, that's a genuine reaction from Mike Starr, cause he had no idea that was going to happen. It's terrifying to think that Jeff Daniels almost didn't get hired to make this movie. The Farrelly Brothers didn't want Daniels for the role, but Jim Carrey really wanted him. So the Farrelly brothers purposely offered Jeff Daniels a paltry $50,000 for the movie, expecting him to decline, but he quickly accepted it and ‘Dumb and Dumber’ went on to be the most successful movie of his career. Insane. To this day, I can't go out in the snow and not think of Jim Carrey launching a snowball into Lauren Holly's face. Fuck, this movie is funny. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1594227982191-DXM2YQH2R359XJU16KNU/%2325+The+Dark+Knight.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I’m a huge comic nerd. I used to collect hundreds of comics and Marvel cards as a kid. But out of those hundreds of comics, I’d say I owned two DC comics, and they were both the death of Superman. DC comics was never something that interested me as a kid, but when it comes to Batman movies, I’m in. They’re the best comic movies, bar none; and Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight’ is the best of them all. Ultimately, the reason why this one is my favourite is because of Heath Ledger’s Joker. There is no better villain in the history of film. That’s a bold statement, and I firmly believe in it. It’s fucking insane how good and terrifying he is. After seeing the movie in the theatre, I left with a feeling of dread, and hopelessness when thinking about him. What made him so scary, is that it felt real. Heath Ledger got so into his role, that he locked himself in a hotel room for 6 weeks to develop his character. He kept a ‘Joker’ diary of all his psychotic thoughts, and some people believe it was his deep psychological entrenchment into his character that led to his suicide of overdosing on drugs. I can’t think of another actor so dedicated to their role, and have it pay off so perfectly on screen. I was actually very skeptical of Ledger playing The Joker. I remember saying to my friends that he’s gotta be the worst choice ever, and it’s going to be a disaster. Well, fuck me did I ever eat those words. Never again will I doubt a casting decision till I see it with my own eyes. Aside from the Joker, Batman gets his ass kicked. It felt like he was having to fight against pretty insane odds between Two-Face, The Joker, and the gangs. Also, Gotham felt like a character. The lighting and cinematography helps paint a picture of a disturbed Gotham. You think of dark shadows, corruption, death, backstabbing, and all of these things existing through the lighting and shots that Nolan produces. ‘The Dark Knight’ is a dark, elegant, disturbingly beautiful movie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1593132380769-D2KXG1ZRM2KVL2QJ4OEL/%2324+It+FOllows.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I don’t have too many movies from the 2010 decade on here, but ‘It Follows’ absolutely deserves to be on this list. I haven’t legitimately had a nightmare following watching a film in a long time, but damn I had nightmares after watching ‘It Follows’. It’s weird too because it’s not really that scary of a movie, but for some reason the slow inevitable coming of death was enough to really freak me out. In fact, it scared me to the point where I felt uncomfortable being in places with only one exit; just in case death was coming and I needed an escape plan! I have a massive hard-on for 80s movies, because my Dad recorded every single movie that came out on the movie network back in the day on VHS. So I have hundreds and hundreds of 80s movies that I grew up on, and ‘It Follows’ is a nice throwback to the old 80s horrors. It has kickass loud synth horror music like the old ‘Friday the 13th’ and the way it’s edited is very harsh and abrupt. It was a movie I needed, because all the new horror movies coming out around that time were completely relying on jump scares, which I just can’t stand; and ‘It Follows’ relies on the expected and unknowing terror. Fuck it’s such a good movie. The only issue I have with the movie is the ending – it sucks. It breaks every rule it told us throughout. This thing that just comes after you and won’t stop (kinda like ‘The Terminator’) all of a sudden starts to think. It doesn’t want to go in the water. It throws things at people now? It’s standing on top of a roof not moving? Director David Robert Mitchell said he’s aware of the ending’s negative criticisms, and tried to clarify that no rules were officially set. It’s just what a couple teenagers have seen, and told to others. So in that regard, it leaves the ominous villain’s motives slightly more ambiguous, but it’s that basic simplicity of dread that filled me with terror in the first place! Either way, the movie is that good that an ending I don’t like still makes it to #24. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401110556-GDT9NKV7LUD0LGFEIPIV/%2323+A+League+of+their+Own.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) It's hard to believe that there are two baseball movies better than 'A League of Their Own', because this movie is fucking amazing. I first saw this in Chicago with my relatives around Thanksgiving in 1992 and when we got into the theatre, the first scene I saw was Kit and Dottie walking back to the barn in what becomes a race. I had never seen the intro of this movie where we find out that Kit likes the high ones. And believe it or not, when my Dad recorded this on VHS off the movie network, he missed the intro on that as well! 12 years later, I finally got to see the intro and it provides such a massive payoff. When this movie came out, I really had a passion for baseball, so it immediately became a favourite of mine. But unlike ‘Major League’, ‘Field of Dreams’, ‘Little Big League’, or ‘Rookie of the Year’, this movie is all about women, and delves into things much more than baseball. Women have been fighting for equality all their lives, and with men out of the picture during WW2, it was their chance to take the front stage. But once again, it wasn’t that easy. Without the efforts of the incredible true life women of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL), and founder Philip K. Wrigley (Yes, the gum), this magical era of women’s baseball would have never come to light. Aptly having the wonderful Penny Marshall direct this masterpiece of film really helped illuminate how even gender equality should be, and how awesome female sports really are. I went to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018, and one of the coolest sections of Cooperstown was the one dedicated to the AAGPBL. I owe ‘A League of Their Own’ for giving me that desire and knowledge to respect such an important part of sports in our lives. Ultimately, I love this movie so much because it's about baseball and actually has some high quality behind the scenes looks at how baseball is really played. There are tears, there are bumps and bruises, there’s shit you have to deal with from your teammates, your coaches, the fans, and the other team. Even the scene where they sneak out to party at night is something I’ve done with my baseball teams before a big game the next day. Travelling, and living with your teammates brings out the best, and the worst in your habits. Thank God I never had a little shit like Stilwell running up and down the bus driving us all insane. I also love this movie because it's just plain hilarious. Having one of my good friends, Laura, obsess about this movie every time we hang helps keep it in the front of my mind, and constantly reminds me how amazingly funny it is. Just about every scene with Jimmy Duggan (Tom Hanks) makes me burst out in laughter. In fact, I think it's his best acted role of his career, which is crazy to say considering he won back-to-back Oscars for 'Philadelphia' and ‘Forrest Gump’ , but he personifies the drunken, I don't give a shit coach so perfectly. The rest of the cast is a star studded female ensemble featuring: Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell, Geena Davis, Lorie Petty, and whoever played Marla Hootch (What a hitter. It’s Megan Cavanagh who plays her by the way). A strong female film, which in retrospect now was way ahead of its time. Tom Hanks has one of my favourite inspirational lines near the end of film when Dottie (Geena Davis) chooses to leave baseball and go to being a domestic housewife with her husband back from war: Dottie says about baseball: "It just got too hard", and Jimmy Duggan replies, "It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard is what makes it great". I played baseball in Iowa for 4 years, and believe me, trying to become an athlete as a career is really fucking hard. But the few who stick with it and bust their ass, are rewarded with the greatest job in the entire world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608401083132-5QUA0OA1YOLI56K1MFCQ/%2322+Hear+no+Evil+See+no+Evil.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Dave (Gene Wilder) is deaf, and Wally (Richard Pryor) is blind. Between the two of them, they heard and saw a murder. What comes after that is sheer comedic genius. The dynamic between Wilder and Pryor is top notch. They had already done 'Stir Crazy' back in 1980, which is very funny in its own right, so the chemistry between them was already strong, and 'See No Evil, Hear No Evil' really gives them a chance to shine. Watching Dave and Wally play very ordinary people trying to blend into society, but fail miserably at every turn lends to some really clever dialogue, and marvelously funny scenes. I actually believe the directing and music aren't very strong in this movie, but it doesn't matter at all because it's fully carried by the starring actors: Wilder and Pryor. While common for most actors to study their roles, Wilder went to Hard of Hearing League in NY to study the deaf, and Pryor went to Braille Institute in LA to mimic their mannerisms and how the blind use a cane. They absolutely fucking nail their roles. 'See No Evil, Hear No Evil' is one of the funniest movies ever made. It pokes fun at blind and deaf people, but it's done in the name of comedy and helps raise awareness, Terrifyingly, Wilder turned down the movie twice because he thought it was insensitive to blind and deaf people, but on his third offer, they let him re-write a bit of script to make it more appropriate for him. A lot of people haven't even heard of this movie, and it doesn't look very enticing, but I'm telling you: Watch this movie. It's comedy genius. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608400944526-JI6432UDATQKU7YG5MUG/%2321+An+AMerican+Werewolf+in+London.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I was a kid watching 'American Werewolf in London' (Already a wrong statement to make. Kids should not be watching this movie), I was completely enthralled and God damned terrified. This is a brutal movie. Blood. Gore. Sex. Nightmares. Monsters. The transformation scene is a big one that stuck with me because of three things: first was how amazingly well done the prosthetics were by Rick Baker, and the detail gone into every hair added to his body. Secondly, there's a moment where he says "I didn't mean to call you meatloaf Jack", and then shrivels in pain to the ground, and there's a shot of a Mickey Mouse toy. Even as a kid, the juxtaposition of that shot showing the innocence of a cute Disney character against a monster being transformed on the ground beside him was so powerful. The third is when he is grimacing in pain and stares directly into the camera, reaching for the lens. What the fuck? It was such a random thing to see. The entire movie never breaks down that fourth wall, so it really stuck out and forced me to ask questions about why director John Landis shot it that way. This was the beginning of my recognition of film. I started to emulate, question, and analyze this movie. It wasn't until later in life, around my 30th time watching the movie that I realized there is a great deal of comedy and pathos in this flick. His torture of becoming a monster and being constantly reminded that he's murdering people, and his actions are having real live consequences, regardless of his cognizance is quite powerful for a werewolf movie. I enjoy horror movies that inject a subtle use of comedy into them to just lighten the mood a bit and to remind the film not to take itself too seriously. The opening scene when they're in Northern England and go to the Slaughtered Lamb is such a delight to watch. It’s loaded with people laughing, jokes, but then a terrifying honesty and fear to all the bar patrons. There was just something about that scene that stuck with me - "You made me miss. I've never missed that board before". Absolutely one of my favourite horror films ever. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886177944-LUX7VC4JP9ZECB0SMRGN/%2320+Major+League.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Believe it or not, this isn’t my favourite sport movie, or let alone baseball movie, but it damn well takes the cake for funniest sports movie ever made. When I saw this as a kid, I was already a massive baseball fan and player, so I just loved it for the fact I got to have an inside look at baseball – and surprisingly, it’s quite accurate. The coaching, the swearing, the trash talk, the pressure, is all very much what it’s like at high competitive levels of baseball. Even Charlie Sheen was a legit pitcher back in high school, so all the baseball we see in this movie isn’t fabricated, it’s real. When Cerrano smashes a home run to left field and starts running around the bases with his bat in his hand? That was real. He was genuinely so jacked that he smoked that ball that he forgot he was carrying his bat. This movie doesn’t cater to children by being a fun baseball movie, it’s brutally crude, adult and honest. I love it. ‘Major League’ made me like the Cleveland Indians as a kid, which I’m sure it did for just about every other person who watched this movie. But it really made me want to get outside and play baseball. The Indians are just a bunch of average Joe baseball players who bust their ass off and catch a lucky break. It then becomes their job to make the most of it and be the instruments of their own success. Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger) surprisingly acted as a bit of a role model for me in my baseball career. Like him, I became a catcher and while I like to have fun when I play baseball, I first and foremost make sure I respect my teammates, my opponents and most important, the game. Baseball has given so much to me and to ever hot dog a routine play, pimp a home run, not hustle to first base, or purposely not give it my 100% effort is absolutely unacceptable to me. This set of values has not only help define me as a captain on the baseball field, but also in my day to day life. Director and writer David Ward deserves some serious props for writing some of the funniest, most memorable movie lines in my life: “Fuck the curve ball Ricky, give em the heater!” – “Stay away from my wife”, “Suck my dick” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886152247-SU8RGOA5RED5P1ECON15/%2319+Indiana+Jones+and+the+Last+Crusde.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) This is my favourite adventure movie ever made. The journey that Indiana Jones goes on to find the Holy Grail is just so much fun! I like whimsical movies that are a bit exaggerated and really focus on smiling and fun. This movie punctuates that more than any other movie I've ever seen. The one liners, the comedy, the ridiculousness of it all makes the adventure feel like a book, or my imagination come to life. Even the editing is remarkable. One scene that helped me get passionate about editing was when Harrison Ford is telling the Nazi's how Marcus speaks 10 different languages, blends in, is an international spy, and has probably found the grail already, and it cuts to him sticking out like a sore thumb yelling out "Does anybody speak English?". It's not just the story that makes this movie so good, it's the music, directing, acting, editing, set designs, villains, traps and adventure. Fuck, it's so good. I remember the marketing campaign for it when I was just a kid. A fake Indiana Jones gets through the final gauntlet and has a choice between Pepsi and Coke. He chooses a Pepsi, then the Grail Knight says "You have choosen, wisely". I just thought it was such kick, I loved it! One of the reasons I like this movie so much is that I always seem to be in the mood to watch it. Happy, sad, excited, anxious, 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ is great for any mood and that's a big sign to me that it's one of my favourites. The final tests that Indiana goes through to reach the grail had a very big impact on me as a child. Every movie I made had obstacles to overcome to reach the treasure. I even made a movie called ‘The Gauntlet’, which was about 2 kids locked in a house trying to get through life threatening trials (I never finished it, and had no idea what the 2 characters were moving towards, but it was fun as hell to make). Indiana being pushed to go through this life and death trial to save his dad, (Played by Sean Connery who is fucking amazing in this movie) puts a heavy emotional burden on the adventure as well. Indiana was always trying to impress his father and then finally he gets the opportunity of a lifetime to do it. Then it all comes to an apex at the end with the most profound three words in movie history: “Let it go”. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886106663-5S8LNI5HXMV9T53IR9TG/%2318+Good+Will+Hunting.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Every once in a while, I'll throw 'Good Will Hunting' on, and I'm always left feeling better for it. My favourite scene as a kid was Will Hunting (Matt Damon) talking to the Harvard guy at the bar, and schooling him with his "wicked smaht" knowledge. Then, with each subsequent viewing, a new scene would take the front stage. From the emotionally charged construction site chat with Ben Affleck, to the joke telling bar scene with Mini Driver, to Robin Williams rounding the bases in his office pretending to be at a Red Sox game, this movie is loaded with inspirational and beautifully crafted character moments. The scene where Williams is talking to Damon in the park about experiencing life made such an impression on me, that I actually did that soliloquy in my grade 9 drama class for my final. I gave it everything I had and my teacher, Ms. Ross, still gave me a C. That pissed me off. It actually kinda killed any desire I had to be an actor. Just a few weeks earlier, I was the lead actor in the grade 9 play entitled "New Canadian Kid", and then at the end of the school year, she killed my ambition. Funny how one tiny moment can change your life like that. But that's also what I take away from 'Good Will Hunting'. One person can change your life forever. Will Hunting is a janitor who is a mathematical genius, but is throwing his talents and ambition down the toilet by choosing to have fun with his friends instead. What better reminder for a creative individual like myself to stop playing video games and watching TV, and instead be the one who makes the video games and TV shows. I always feel guilty if I'm not pushing my mind to do something special. I wonder, what could I have made if I chose to redirect those 10,000 hours of video game playing towards making more movies. Or instead of watching the first 10 seasons of 'The Simpsons' again, I decided to write that fantasy novel I always wanted to do as a kid. Will Hunting has the ability to do something great for people, but is it his duty to fulfill that? He tells Sean (Robin Williams) during a session: "I didn't ask for this", so it makes me wonder how much ambition is wasted on this planet. 'Good Will Hunting' is one of my favourite Robin Williams roles. The advice he gives to Will in his sessions makes up a large part of my life mantra. In fact, we used a paraphrased version of one of his quotes at our wedding: "You're not perfect Sport, and let me save you the suspense: this girl you've met, she's not perfect either. But the question is whether or not you're perfect for each other. That's the whole deal. That's what intimacy is all about." God I love that line. To err is human. I've made so many mistakes in my life, and to know that the friends and family I have around me accept me for all that I am is what fills my life with love. Sean has another line he gives to Will when he's talking about his late wife and how she used to fart in her sleep: "She's been dead two years, and that's the shit I remember. Wonderful stuff, you know, little things like that. Those are the things I miss the most. The little idiosyncrasies that only I knew about. That's what made her my wife ... People call these things imperfections, but they're not, aw, that's the good stuff. And then we get to choose who we let in to our weird little worlds." I can't begin to say how much that line has helped me through questioning times I had during a relationship. It's pretty amazing that a solid chunk of my life philosophies are based around a 2h 6m movie. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon Williams won an Oscar for this Original Screenplay, and I'm not at all surprised. Don't forget, as Sean says: "You'll have bad times, but it'll always wake you up to the good stuff you weren't paying attention to." https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886078062-B3H83S74ZO96X66ZRBDU/%2317+Predator.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When it comes to action movies, ‘Predator’ is the manliest movie ever made. A muscle loaded cast showcasing Carl Weathers, Jesse Ventura, Sonny Landham and the indomitable Arnold Schwarzenegger. What I love about all these guys, is that they aren't all stereotypical action movie archetypes. There's no medic, there's no scientist, there's no crazy person, this is just an insanely badass group of fuckers going into the jungle to do a job. The story isn't complicated - guns, explosions, deaths, and one of the coolest, scariest, and most original villains of all time. The Predator is ruthless, relentless, terrifying, and just so damn cool that I can't even express how much love I have for it. When I found out they cast Kevin Peter Hall, a 7' 2" monster of a man to play the Predator, it just made the movie even that much cooler, because it made it more real for me. When he's beside Schwarzenegger, that's not a camera trick, he's dwarfing him. Man, that's just so cool. especially considering the other direction this movie could have gone. Jean-Claude Van Damme was originally hired on to be the Predator because of his flexibility and agility and they put him in a weird early version of the Predator costume that was apparently horribly restricting, and looked like a silly bug. After complaining of working too long in the heat, and thinking the movie would suck, he quit, and then Stan Winston came on to create the Predator as we know it, and Kevin Peter Hall jumped inside the suit to bring him to life. Thank God. From the one liners in the movie "Ain't got time to bleed", "Stick around", "You're one ugly motherfucker", "Get to the choppa!", to the jokes, "Jeez, you got a big pussy. Jeez you got a big pussy" to the Predator kill scenes, it's just a cacophony of happiness and greatness. I would also happily argue, that ‘Predator’ is Schwarzenegger’s defining movie. Yes, even moreso than 'Terminator 2'. ‘Predator’ is the movie that truly and absolutely defined him as the greatest action star of all time. Also, Alan Silvestri's musical score is perfect jungle hunting music. Also: a note to anyone making a sequel to this movie: Don't cast the star of 'The Pianist' to play the role of Arnold Schwarzenegger. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886052294-A6SCZ5SQ13X97JCF59B5/%2316+OFOTCN.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) My Dad made me watch this movie when I was a kid, and the only thing I remember from it was what the Simpson’s did a parody on, and that was the Chief at the end of the movie throwing the water fountain through the window and escaping. I didn’t realize the significance of that scene, and the sheer genius of the rest of the movie until a much later age. The performances given by the actors are truly remarkable. Jack Nicholson is so young, and I think delivers the best performance of his career. All the patients make me believe that it really is a nuthouse, and Nurse Ratched is just such a bitch. Such a convincing bitch in fact, that she won an Oscar for it, and refuses to watch her performance in it again because she can’t stand how cruel she is. It turns out that many of the extras in the psych ward were actual patients at the hospital in Oregon State, further adding to the visceral feeling throughout the movie. It’s a great blend of comedy, pain, friendship and a rare movie that gets better every time I watch it. There are a ton of subtleties that make me wonder “What makes a person crazy?”. Trying to diagnose mental illness in 2020 vs 1975 is a very different ball game. Eccentricity is now much more celebrated rather than frowned upon, but that’s what ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s’ nest gets you thinking about. Does the Chief deserve to be in there? Does McMurphy? It shows the repression of nurse/patient relationship, and really accentuates how poorly funded and motivated people are who care for those requiring mental health. I had to read this book in University and compare it to the movie, and in another rare case, the movie is way better than the book – which is told through the perspective of the hallucinogenic induced Chief. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592885964056-9V100CMS9RNNQD4DQU8F/%2315+Sunshine.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) The first thing I think about when I think of 'Sunshine' is the John Murphy soundtrack, and the song - Surface of the Sun. It's the best song ever written in a movie. It sets the tempo for the editing, acting and overall pace and feel of the music. Back in 2010, I was walking in Interlaken, Switzerland, looking at the mountains, feeling the cool breeze on my face, and smelling the crisp fresh air, while I listened to 'Capa Meets the Sun', and 'Surface of the Sun'. It's as though something clicked inside me, and I realized how important music is to film. I was in such a serendipitous mood and the music from 'Sunshine' captured the exact moment of everything I was. Sometimes all a movie needs is one incredible element to be one of your favourites - an acting performance, a setting, cinematography, music and for 'Sunshine', it's all that and more. It's done by my favourite director, Danny Boyle, who decided to dip into the science fiction genre, and he makes arguably, my favourite movie that takes place in space. A rescue mission to reignite the sun and save humanity. It's the moment that Cillian Murphy became one of my top actors. His performance, surrounded by an incredible ensemble cast, sticks out as one of the best. Quentin Tarantino reviewed the movie and said this about it: "Its first two acts are so wonderful, even its disastrous climax ... can't diminish [its] power". Now I agree with him in that the first two acts of the movie, purely sci-fi, are beautiful, but I disagree with his 3rd act disaster comment. The 3rd act in 'Sunshine' is essentially a horror movie, but... I love horror movies. Blending the two genres is so awesome, and has worked in the past (See: Alien, Aliens, Event Horizon). I thought when the 3rd act kicked in, it couldn't get any more intense, and it did. Another thing I love about this movie, is that not a lot of people know about it. It's one of those rare epic sci-fi flicks that kinda went under the radar. When I mention the movie to people, they usually look at me with a weird stare, and I get a gentle shock of excitement knowing that I can tell them to watch one of the best movies ever made. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608400923718-7A1SJ18EC3JTAHBKGUE2/%2314+The+Exorcist.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I'm kind of a horror guy. When people ask me what the scariest movie ever made is, they take my answer seriously, and 'The Exorcist' is my answer. There's just a natural horror and fright to the movie that gives me chills, and now more important than ever, it doesn’t rely on stupid jump scares to frighten you. Upon watching 'The Exorcist', I didn't realize how long, and slow the build up to her being fully possessed was! The first half of the movie is watching a tortured girl being poked and prodded by doctors (which is a horror movie in itself), and the slow destruction of a sweet girl into the devil. I’ve had four MRI’s in my life, and everytime I go into that white tube and the thunderous sounds start crushing into my brain, I always think of ‘The Exorcist’ and realize I don’t have it that bad, haha. It's an agonizing movie to watch. Cold, dark, ugly, rotting, and puts your faith to the test. It's not a villain that attacks you, or harms your physically, the Devil harms you in so many different ways. He tests your faith, sanity, perseverance, love, and will, in such an epic battle. 'The Exorcist' is the movie that started it all. When you usually look at movies that started a movement, you're going back to 'Citizen Kane', 'Birth of a Nation', 'Dracula', 'Night of the Living Dead' etc, and these are great movies, but they don't hold up to today's standard of entertainment. When 'Citizen Kane' comes on TV, you don't gather all your friends, and go "No way! Citizen Kane is on! Lets watch!", but when a classic like "The Exorcist" comes on; which redefined the horror genre, you fucking pay attention. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592885937418-IMAFGV9VBAP0CRW4VACK/%2313+Beauty+and+the+Beast.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I saw this movie twice in theaters when I was a kid. I was 7 years old and in grade 2, and going to see a romantic animated musical called ‘Beauty and the Beast’ wasn’t the ticket to being the cool kid in class, but I didn’t give a shit because I loved this film. The music was one of the few Disney films that didn’t annoy me and I found really fun to sing along to. I loved how they turned the expected villain of the Beast into the hero, and the good looking star of the town, Gaston, into the villain. The formula makes sense now of course, but when I was 7 years old, this was a cool twist to me. The impending doom of the rose falling was a great way to keep the tension and suspense of the movie going, and the graphics were groundbreaking. This is by far my favourite Disney movie. It taught me that reading is cool, that bad manners are unacceptable, and that people are misunderstood until you get to know them. It taught me to root for the underdog, and be kind to people. It taught me so many lessons that I still hold on to today. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608400904201-SY2EI2X0EZUKO5UXWGSL/%2312+Rocky+4.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Anyone who knows me, knows that this is one of my all time favourite, quoted, and watched movies; and probably shocked to find it at #12. If there were to be a movie that defined me as Allan Hughes, it would be ‘Rocky IV’. My favourite movie character ever is Rocky, and my favourite villain is the super Russian, Ivan Drago. The entire movie is cold war propaganda between Russia and USA, and the more I watch it now as an educated man, the more I unfortunately realize that. The Russian crowd actually starts rooting for Rocky Balboa at the end of the movie, rather than their hometown hero, Ivan Drago. Right. Because I always start rooting for another country when I’m watching the Olympics. It’s pretty ridiculous, but that’s exactly what this whole movie is about. It takes everything and pumps it up to a thousand! The training montage is fucking epic and I’ve used it for the last 20 years as my workout anthem. The music in the whole movie is up there as one of my favourite movie soundtracks – ‘Hearts on Fire’, ‘No Easy Way Out’, ‘War’, ‘Sweetest Victory’, they’re all gold. A funny fact is that it got nominated for a Razzie award for worst soundtrack of the year. What?! Madness. This movie once again proves that you can overcome the odds. Tiny Rocky taking on the towering Drago is one of the biggest mismatches I’ve ever seen on TV, but he manages to overcome the odds, avenge Apollo’s death, and give himself peace (Although he suffers brain damage from the pounding he takes). I think the life lesson in this movie is secondary to it’s primary focus, which is adrenaline fueled, power punching, blood exploded training and excitement. If I was stuck on an island the only movie I had with me was ‘Rocky IV’, I’d be a happy man. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592670482853-DW1D5I99WP1EA71JSNI8/%2311+Memento.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) My old friend Zee took me to a shitty little theatre in Toronto to see this movie because he said I absolutely have to see it. (This was a big deal because I’m from Brampton, and going to the city to see a movie, whaaa?) Wow, was he right. ‘Memento’ opened an entire universe of possibilities to me. I was really only exposed to Hollywood movies as a kid, with Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Cruise, and then seeing this black and white movie that’s in reverse, shattered everything I thought I knew about movies. The story telling is some of the greatest I’ve ever seen, and the twist at the end was phenomenal. After you were done watching it, you had to piece together all the scenes in your mind to try and make sense of the scene before it. What a brilliant idea. It put Christopher Nolan on the map for me, and he hasn’t disappointed me since. ‘Memento’ changed the way I made my own movies. I was trying to make Lord of The Rings epic movies with faked explosions, and asking my Dad for a blue screen so I could make effects, trying to jump out of windows onto mattresses because that’s what Tom Cruise does, and then I see this movie which looks like it was made with about $55 bucks and camera picked up from Cash Converters. This movie is so important to me. It reminds me that it’s not about the money and how awesome your camera is, it’s about story and character. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608400880585-8UNEXHJPFS5W0E0G714J/%2310+Jurassic+Park.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When I was kid, dinosaurs were my thing. I collected every book I could, and believe it or not, I actually read them. I had a T-Rex, Brontosaurus, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops (Triceratops was my favourite) and I would play with them for hours and hours and hours. Then Steven Spielberg decided to release a movie called ‘Jurassic Park’. I demanded my parents to take me to see it, and it changed my life. My whole imagination came to a reality on the big screen, my eyes opened wide and sparkled at the marvel I was seeing. My parents bought me every single ‘Jurassic Park’ toy they could fit in my room, and I saw it another FIVE times in the theatres. I had never seen a movie more than twice in a theater, so ‘Jurassic Park’ holds the record by far, seeing it 6 times – once in the Cinesphere. As if I needed another excuse to like dinosaurs, the execution of this movie is incredible. The sound of the Tyrannosaurus Rex’s roar gives me chills, and the Velociraptor clicking it’s claw on the ground sends shivers up my spine. The acting is hilarious with Nedry, and Ian Malcolm. (There’s a YouTube video of Ian Malcolm laughing for an hour straight, which is sure to make you smile, and cringe in pain). Even now, as I type this, I’m drinking out of a Dilophosaurous collectable cup from McDonalds. The influence this movie had on my life is just too big to ignore. The reason it’s not as high on this list, is because watching it today there are many inconsistencies and things that really bother me with the movie – cheap scare and jump tactics that I loved as a kid, but now I’m like, huh? When Ellen is underground and the arm of Samuel L. Jackson falls perfectly onto her shoulder is just so beyond stupid, and when the T-Rex comes at the end of the movie to rescue them just doesn’t make logistical sense to me. The T-Rex decided to quietly come in through the 8 foot front door without anyone knowing and kills the Raptors? Meh. But that’s nitpicking like crazy, because this movie deserve that kind of whiny treatment. They even named our fucking basketball team after this movie it was that influential! Toronto Raptors baby! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592670359531-DYSKD71OTUEE3NBOMLK3/%239+LOTR.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) When this movie came out in 2001, I was playing Magic: The Gathering (still am), reading R. A. Salvatore’s ‘The Dark Elf Trilogy’, Terry Brooks ‘Shannara Series’ and playing Baldur’s Gate on PC, so when I sat in the theatre on my brother’s birthday, December 19, 2000, and watched the ‘Fellowship of the Ring’ I fucking exploded with happiness. I wanted to be like Legolas: an angelic and agile warrior elf gracefully unleashing arrows and destroying everything. It affected me on so many great levels. In fact, I liked the movie so much that I spent 2 weeks with my friends Tolga, Tiago and Comrie making our own epic ‘Lord of the Rings’, We planned for it to be a 2 hour long movie and even created all of our props and clothing. We bought pieces of wood and then carved out weapons. We made daggers, axes, swords and shields and then I meticulously painted every piece. It took forever! We even made armour out of that car sunshade metallic looking thing – turns out, when you wrap that around a dwarf, it doesn’t look at all like armour. I actually found that old movie, which we called ‘The Rune Dagger’ and stupidly uploaded on my webpage. It’s here if you want to see some of the worst shit I’ve ever put on camera - https://vimeo.com/234959725 This movie has everything I love. Heroism, trolls, goblins, wizards, magic, monsters and the scope of the film is magnificent. Now a days, these kinds of graphics and scope are quite common, but when this movie came out, man, there was absolutely nothing like it. Seeing Gandalf fight the Balrog on the bridge? Holy fuck, that was amazing. It was also so perfectly cast: Ian McKellan personifies Gandalf to the point where I don’t even call him by his real name anymore - he’s just Gandalf to me now. Elijah Wood’s never-ending boyish youth is now and forever Frodo Baggins and Sean Astin’s everlasting dedication to friendship eliminated his famous ‘Rudy’ character, and is now only known as Samwise Gamgee. Also, after only recently reading the novel did I realize how masterful director Peter Jackson and screenplay writer Fran Walsh were at picking the most exciting parts of Tolkien’s fairy tale adventure; and omitting some of the most boring (Tom Bombadil). Wow, what an accomplishment. I feel like this movie carved open the opportunity for anything to be made. Wizards and Dragons were possible. It meant a lot to me, and still does. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592670292232-LG5E6NA1ZK8SPF8UBTJ7/%238+Field+of+Dreams.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) “Is this Heaven? No, It’s Iowa”. I actually went to school in Lamoni, Iowa on a baseball scholarship, so this movie kinda aligns perfectly with my life. My entire childhood, my Dad would take me to my baseball games, and I played a lot of baseball games. I mean, I was on the rep team, elite team, highschool team, all-star team and just about everything else inbetween. He had to drive me to tournaments in Ohio, London, and all over the place, just so I had a chance to succeed. Eventually he got tired of it, and as a result I was one of the first kids in highschool to get his license and his own car! I then continued to drive to Hamilton, Montreal, Ajax, and Welland to keep playing baseball at the highest level Ontario had to offer. Thankfully for my parents, it paid off. I got a scholarship and went down south to Iowa. I played for 3 years, and eventually quit because of injuries and how much my coach and I equally despised each other. But the funny thing is, I spent 4 years down there and didn’t once visit the Field of Dreams. It actually wasn’t that far from my school - only a 2 or 3 hour drive. But my passion for the game was gone at that point and baseball was the last thing on my mind. But I have never forgotten those times Erik and I played baseball at the cottage, or down at the park in Brampton where I would pitch to my Dad and he would tell me everything I’m doing wrong. What I’m getting at, is that ‘Field of Dreams’ isn’t a movie about baseball, it’s a story about family. It’s about how a stupid sport like baseball can bring a father and son together. God, I can still remember our drive to Toledo, Ohio and we were going down a bend and my Dad said “Take the wheel” I was astonished. I started to turn the wheel while he reached for something in the backseat. We stayed at hotels together and watched movies at the Howard Johnson and would get fast food for all our meals. ‘Field of Dreams’ brings these memories back for me. They remind me how much I love my family, my father, and the game of baseball. Still to this day, every time I visit the folks, we sit down and watch the Blue Jays play and have a beer. It’s one of the fondest memories I have in my life. Every time I watch this movie I manage to learn a little something different with it. As a kid, all I cared about was the baseball and how cool it was they were going to Fenway Park and Shoeless Joe was playing on their farm. Then I watched it as a teenager and I thought ‘He tried to kidnap Terrence Mann with a fake gun!’ And oh man, that ginger brother Mark (Played by Timothy Busfield) is such a fucking dickhead! Also, what’s the deal with old man Moonlight Graham? But now I watch it as a 30 year old and I see how understanding the wife is, by letting them plow their field for a baseball diamond. How caring and thoughtful the brother Mark is - who is truly trying to save them from going bankrupt, and how amazing the Moonlight Graham story is - how he would always by his wife a blue hat. I think it’ll continue to be a life changing movie for me throughout my life, and I’m so lucky and honoured to have this movie at my disposal. Also, the magic of this movie is accentuated by the films beautiful score – done by James Horner. It is so simple, clean and really gives it an identity. It still stands as the only film that will guarantee make the tears roll down my face. It’s a beautiful, beautiful film that holds a dear spot in my heart. Archie (Moonlight) Graham says one of my favourite movies quotes ever: “We just don’t recognize life’s most significant moments while they’re happening. Back then I thought ‘There will be other days’… I didn’t realize that that was the only day.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592670212859-APER5HKR0MBSI7EC0Z57/%237+Rainman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) I would say that I’ve seen ‘Rainman’ more than any other movie in my life. There was a time in my childhood, around grade 6 or 7, when I put ‘Rainman’ on every single day when I got home from school and watched the entire thing. Kind of a weird movie to watch as a kid, but there was something about this story that just really stuck with me, and still does. It’s the most perfectly crafted drama movie ever made. I have a brother, Erik, so I understand the dynamic between Raymond (Dustin Hoffman) and Charlie (Tom Cruise). They have a pretty unique situation and it taught me to be patient, loving and understanding with my friends and family. The range of emotions that goes through Tom Cruises’ brilliantly under appreciated performance is spectacular. He starts off as a rich, selfish asshole, and in the most organic and brilliant way, his selfishness slowly burns into a deep love for his brother. The way Dustin Hoffman portrays a savant is obviously incredible. Every line he says in the movie is Oscar worthy, and it was the first time I had really, really appreciated an actor transforming himself into a completely different person. I was so interested in Autistic Savants that I read a book by Daniel Tammet called “Thinking In Numbers” to try and understand Raymond better. ‘Rainman’ used to be my favourite movie ever, and I still have trouble putting this at #7 because it really is a flawless movie. There are no plot holes, no weaknesses, only a road trip movie of Hoffman and Cruise belting out their best performances of their careers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592670143477-NDG7ZJUKFDEHX98U6F0O/%236+Aliens.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) My brother Erik was the first person to show me ‘Aliens’, and even as a kid, I knew this movie was special. As far as action movies go, this is one of the best of the 80s. I love the atmosphere this movie creates. Being alone in a space colony, and there’s no one coming to help you. It’s dark, brooding, terrifying, and totally kick-ass. I fell in love with every character in the movie from the first scene they’re introduced. That’s a pretty tough thing to do. Hudson, Hicks, Newt, Ripley, Gorman, I love them all! All the supporting characters somehow don’t seem like supporting characters, they all have their chance to shine and add to this great feeling the movie creates. As far as villains go, the Xenomorph’s are one of the coolest. Acid for blood, impregnante people to populate their race, fast, agile, and deadly. When the troops are up against these things, you genuinely feel like they’re fucked. The setup to get there is great too. All the Marines are super cocky, abrasive, and confident. Nothing sums this up more like Vasquez mimicking her hands as a gun and saying: “All I need to know, is where they are”. This entire review should actually just be a bunch of movie quotes, because people who love the movie know every line of it: “Let’s Rock!!” I went and saw ‘Aliens’ at the CNE in Toronto back in 2018, and it will now forever be one of the greatest movie experiences of my life. Not only was it just mind exploding to watch a 1986 movie in theaters again, but to be surrounded by a 100 fans to boot? It amplified everything I loved about this movie and more. The best example of that is when Paul Reiser’s name appeared in the opening credits and every single one of us yelled out “Boooooooo!!!!” and then had a little chuckle. This movie is an absolute masterpiece. James Cameron is one of the greatest directors of all time, if not the best. Sigourney Weaver is my female action role model. Michael Biehn is my favourite action male hero. And Bill Paxton enshrines himself as one of the greatest action comic relief characters without outwardly trying to be a comedic character. ‘Aliens’ is the one movie I wish I could steal and say “I made this, check it out". The original ‘Alien’ by Ridley Scott is good, but compared to the sequel? Not even close! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886613079-75WRUA6K5Y3P0J5O6OVR/%235+28+Days+Later.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) ‘28 Days Later’ is my favourite horror movie ever made. I was fucking blown away when I saw this movie in theatres, so much so that after I saw it, I came back the next day and watched it again. When I saw the zombies running after Cilian Murphy, I shit my pants. It was something I had never seen before and it gave a fresh take on zombies with the Rage virus. The stylistic choices director Danny Boyle and his crew made really help tell this story, from the colours used, John Murphy’s creepy ambient score, and even video camera it used to film. The whole movie has a very brooding, black and red feel to it which helps push it deep into the horror spectrum. To add to this harrowing vibe, portions of the movie were shot with a Canon XL1 mini DV camcorder. Wow. That was a $5000 camera at the time, and to think one of the best directors in the word, and one of the best horror movies ever made used a video camera that was crappier than mine? Well, I guess I can’t use the excuse of having shitty equipment for making terrible movies anymore. The Canon XL1 really helped Boyle get those tight shots that a massive camera couldn’t pull off, and because there’s little to no setup, it helped get some difficult shots while on a time crunch, such as the the deserted highway and the barren downtown London shots. The mini DV camera also gives it a very gritty and realistic feel, which makes it feel like they’re living in such a dilapidated dystopian zombified world. Even though ‘28 Days Later’ feels glum and like its the end of the world, there are just enough scenes of levity with Brendan Gleeson to keep everything from falling too far into despair. The shopping scene where they gleefully ‘purchase’ all their food and drinks and leave a Mastercard on the counter as they leave, or when Hannah throws a stuffed animal at Frank and he calls her a “cheeky monkey”. I’m not left feeling depressed after watching this movie, so they did a good job of balancing it all out. I generally don’t like movies that go into a military theme in the 3rd act, but this one makes sense. The answer to infection is a terrifying discovery – and one I wasn’t expecting. The answer is putting women into a type of sexual slavery and force them to procreate our species. The Major isn’t hoping for the worst, he just wants to project his people. He tells Jim “What are 9 men do, but wait and die themselves? … I promised them women, because women mean a future.” When the entire human race is at stake, you understand where this guy is coming from, but the terror of how it will happen makes you completely lose faith in humanity. Maybe we shouldn’t be procreating if that’s the answer to infection. The proclaimed ‘Spiritual Guru’ Sergeant Farrell sheds light to this fucked up dilemma: “If you look at the whole life of the planet, we, you know, man has only been around for a few blinks of an eye. So, if the infection wipes us out, that is a return to normality”. ‘28 Days Later’ is a zombie movie that makes you think, and lets you marvel at the writing, acting, editing, music, lighting and makeup. I love every single part of this movie - especially the acting. It pushed both Brendan Gleeson and Cilian Murphy to the top of my favourite actors of all time, and enshrined Boyle as the absolute best. It’s a phenomenal movie from every angle you look at it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1592886641462-VW0G0VM2PXULDB4U5SPC/%234+The+Karate+Kid.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) A lot of people laugh at me when I say ‘The Karate Kid’ is one of my favourite films of all time, but they can all kiss my ass because it’s best coming of age/high school movie ever made. Every single aspect of this movie is the cat’s ass. I’ve seen 2 movies directed by John G. Avildsen, and both of them are in my top 4 movies of all time. So I obviously have an affinity for this guy’s movies. Avildsen finds a way to bring out a heart felt realism in his actors. Daniel (Ralph Macchio) reflects exactly what it was like being in school in the 80s and the only reason I know this is because I saw the shit my brother went through during his school years. Being bullied is a fear for most kids and thankfully I didn’t have to experience it too much, but unfortunately my older brother Erik did. I remember being at home in the morning during breakfast and watching TSN sports highlights and seeing him nervous and sometimes scared to go to school and face being bullied or having to get into a fist fight. Ironically enough, my brother Erik looked exactly like Ralph Macchio did in ‘The Karate Kid’ when he was in grade school, so this movie feels even more real! Erik used to teach me karate as a kid, so if I got bullied I could take of myself. Funny enough, he taught me how to block attacks exactly how Mr. Miyagi (Pat Noriyuki) taught Daniel. He would punch from the sides and I’d whip my arms up to block it. We would go through different routines and he would keep going until I managed to block every attack without letting one through. Of course being the older brother he would sneak a few punches by to keep my on my toes. It’s not the karate in ‘The Karate Kid’ that makes it great, it’s the life lessons that we learn while trying to overcome adversity. We’re always going to meet bullies in our lives at some point and ‘The Karate Kid’ teaches us to stand up for ourselves, learn confidence, be brave and you’ll gain the respect of those around you. But also more importantly, it teaches us to show compassion, because everyone is battling something. There’s a nostalgia I get when I’m watching ‘The Karate Kid’ that I honest to God don’t get with any other movie. My childhood was so unbelievably amazing and happy that anytime something evokes memories of my past, I smile from brim to brim. So for me, ‘The Karate Kid’ is a love sonnet to my childhood. I think what infuses this movie with nostalgia more than anything, is the music. The composed music is done by the legendary Bill Conti (Who also did ‘Rocky’) and the tracks they select in this movie epitomize the 80s to perfection. Bananarama’s ‘Cruel Summer’, Baxter Robinson’s ‘Feel the Night’, Joe Esposito’s ‘You’re the Best’ and ‘Young Hearts’ by Commuter add up to be my favourite sound track in movie history. I even used 3 of these songs in my wedding video! Gotta keep that 80s spirit alive. Now that the TV show ‘Cobra Kai’ is out, it’s actually made this movie even better! All that bullshit of people saying that Daniel Larusso was the bully in the original ‘The Karate Kid’ is just wrong. Johnny (William Zabka) was a bully and deserved all the shit he got. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1591735097477-ISMC1MPGE48IFEI11V0X/%233+Braveheart.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) The best action/adventure film ever made by far. There’s no movie I can quote better than ‘Braveheart’. Every single line of the movie is amazing. I reinforce this fact with my friends all the time when my best buddy Mike Comrie and I get 3 beers in us and recite the entire fucking thing. Accents included. Actions optional. The way Mel Gibson tells this tale of a simple farmer, lover and scholar trying to live a simple life and have it torn from him due to war is masterful. Unfortunately, it turns half of the story is completely fabricated. I had a leadership paper to write in school one time and I chose William Wallace as my guy. I went to library to find every book on Scottish history I could find, and out of 5000 pages, William Wallace was about 3 paragraphs of that whole thing. I was so confused, because William Wallace is Scotland’s great liberator and hero! Then Maria and I visited Scotland and while doing a bus tour of the highlands, our guide brought up Braveheart and said how shit it is because it’s pure Hollywood action. I argued with him and said it’s the greatest movie ever made, and he got so pissed off at me. He told us to watch ‘Rob Roy’ for a better depiction of Scottish history. But you know what? I don’t care if it’s not 100% historically accurate because if I wanted a fucking history lesson I’d watch a documentary or read a book - this is ‘Braveheart’ and it’s a fucking wicked movie. The war scenes in this movie had me in awe. It set a new standard for how to film war scenes. Brutal violence, massive amounts of extras, blood and screaming, it gave of a visceral feeling for what war was really like. ’Braveheart’ also showed me the value of friendship, loyalty and compassion. William Wallace has friends who would go to war with him, die for him and live for him. It made me realize how important it is to have such good friends in my life who would do anything for each other. I think how busy we can all get sometimes. We don’t call each other, go visit, return a text, lend an ear, but after a viewing of ‘Braveheart’ it reminds me that Christ, returning a text should never be a chore. Going over to help a friend is something you need to make time for. Seeing Wallace’s loyalty of Scotland, to his family, his people and friends is something to admire. He fights for what is right and what is true. And in this shit year of 2020, It’s needed now more than ever. Sometimes its worth the sacrifice or minor annoyance to achieve the greater goal. I hope I don’t get tortured for trying to do what’s right, but I always look to this movie as a reminder to be a good person. Love hard, and fight strong. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1591638282897-GXLNZQAQIND67MVWFM49/%232+The+Terminator.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) Man, ‘The Terminator’ is just such a crazy ass movie. First off, the Terminator is the most terrifying villain of all time. Arnold Schwarzenegger just couldn’t have been cast in a more perfect role. His stoic, robot-like acting set a new standard for movie villains. Funny enough, after reading James Cameron’s biography, Cameron actually envisioned Schwarzenegger as the hero - Kyle Reese, but after a lunch meeting together, he cast him as the Terminator instead. The brutal killings, and raw emotion in this movie hangs on you like a wet dew. You’re left feeling like this really happened somewhere in California. On the flip side, the hero Kyle Reese, played by Michael Biehn, is what makes this movie so incredible. I wanted to be Kyle Reese when I was a kid. I wanted to protect the girl, fight the robot, and be the hero. What makes Reese such a relatable hero is that he’s scared himself half the time. He’s a vulnerable hero who admits that he can’t stop the Terminator. It leads the viewer to a such a feeling of dread. When he says to Sarah Connor “Listen, and understand. That Terminator is out there. It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead.” Sarah says “Can you stop it?” and he replies “I don’t know. With these weapons… I don’t know.” I mean, talk about terrifying. And then they make the strongest, scariest human being in the world even more scary when his skin melts off in the truck explosion and exposes the exo-skeleton. Jesus Christ. That scene when the Terminator is chasing them down the long hallway in the factory is up there as one of the freakiest scenes ever. I get shivers every time. In typical Cameron fashion, there’s a strong female hero as well. So not only do Biehn and Schwarzenegger make this the 2nd best movie ever made, Linda Hamilton’s performance as the helpless waitress turned total fucking badass at the end really helps round out this movie, and give it the love and depth it needs. For some reason when I think of Linda Hamilton in this movie, I always think of the scene where the kid puts a scoop of ice cream in her uniform. It grossed me out so much! I love the 80s synth music in the movie by Brad Fiedel. As a matter of fact, ‘The Terminator’ theme is the first and only song I learned how to play on a keyboard! I love the directing, the acting, the costumes, the lighting, the pacing, the dread, and most of all, the story. A time traveling story of a robot assassin sent back to murder a woman before giving birth to a child who would lead an uprising and turn back Skynet and the self aware robots, is pushing the limits of imagination; in my mind anyways. Wow, such a cool story. This movie is so beyond perfect. The greatest science fiction movie ever made. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1608400855400-J3H78JGUG319EKM9X4TF/%231+Rocky.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 100 MOVIES (50-1) ‘Rocky’ is the perfect movie. It has music, acting, story, directing, editing, and most of all, inspiration. This movie inspired me to do great things, no matter the odds. If I ever stop believing in myself, I remember ‘Rocky’. Sylvester Stallone plays the life of a bum (Rocky), who gets offered the opportunity of a lifetime - to fight Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) for the boxing heavyweight championship of the world. But what makes ‘Rocky’ so inspirational is that it’s not about the boxing or the opportunity, it’s about being the best person you can be and giving it everything you have. It’s about going the distance; because at the end of the day, that’s all that truly matters. There are so many times when I play a baseball or hockey and have an absolute stinker of a game and feel like total shit. But then I ask myself - did I give it everything I have? If I did, then there’s nothing to be ashamed or upset about because the human body can only accomplish so much. We’re not all gifted with the lightning quick speed and intelligence of Apollo Creed, and many times I’d see that as a reason to give up. There’s a pretty low key scene near the end of the movie that most people gloss over. It’s when Rocky is in bed with Adrian and he says he can’t beat Apollo so all he wants to do is go the distance against Creed. This is one of the most significant scenes in the movie because it shows that a man can be vulnerable and scared. It’s a good lesson to learn as a kid who grew up in the 80s and 90s when men were taught to be strong, not cry, or show any signs of weakness. Rocky is picked on by other boxers, friends, co-workers and neighbourhood hoodlums and it makes me so sad to see such a good man treated so poorly. At one point he says to Adrian on their first date that he’s “at least half a bum” because that’s the way he sees himself. Rocky is pretty rough around the edges considering he’s a leg breaker for his small time Italian loan shark, Gazzo, which adds to the complexity of Rocky’s character. He’s a lovable sweetheart that is forced into the life of a thug. Then seeing the juxtaposition of the rich, intelligent and famous Apollo Creed against Rocky, explodes this story to a whole new level of David vs Goliath; which I love to see! What’s pretty cool about ‘Rocky’ is that I don’t even like boxing. I’ve never seen a live fight, I never got into the Mike Tyson craze, and never much cared for watching people beat the shit out of each other, so it’s kinda funny that my favourite movie of all time is a boxing movie. It really goes to show you, that this movies isn’t about the boxing. It’s about human beings, and their drive to be the best they can be. ‘Rocky’ also one of the most magnificent scores in film – I dare you to hear Bill Conti’s ‘Gonna Fly Now’ and not picture Rocky running up the steps in Philly without a big damn smile on your face. It won Best Director, Editor and Film in 1976. It was filmed in 30 days with a budget just under a $1,000,000. Sylvester Stallone had to sell his dog and fight tooth and nail to star in the film, and get it made. So I mean, just the way the film was made serves as a reflection of the underdog story. ‘Rocky’ will always be number one. I’ve made parodies of it, I quote the movie non-stop, and I watch it anytime it’s on TV or at least 2 or 3 times a year. ‘Rocky’ without a doubt is my favourite film of all time. https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2018/11/28/allans-top-40-ps1-games monthly 0.5 2020-06-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383383236-GA1WSHI88WTXCSFALS57/PS+40+Warcraft2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 40. WarCraft II Man, this game is one of my all time favourites... on PC. This game for PS is a piece of shit. It's clunky, and not having a mouse makes it almost unplayable. Real time strategy games aren't meant for console playing - and this is proof. It's last on my list because it's probably one of the worst PlayStation games I've ever played. I think I've only played 40 games, so by default then, this game is ranked number 40. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383398541-3MJNY99JLNBH3CX1HGN7/PS+39+Carmageddon.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 39. Carmageddon Killing people, killing cars, or killing the race was a real game changer in my mind. You had choices for how to complete a stage. I drained a lot of time into this game. Running people over to gain extra time and money, and finding creative ways to smash the other cars to beat a stage were really, really fun. The problem with this game, is that, once again, I played it on PC, which was a way better version. That's why it's so low on this list. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383412929-AVW8OX1Q2GFB34AM3OC8/PS+38+Moto+Racer.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 38. Moto Racer Surprisingly, this game was a shit ton on fun. I could care less about motorcycles, in fact, I think they're really stupid, but this game had me ripping around trying to set the best times on races over and over. The controls handled really well, and the sequel to this game had pure Tony Hawk music. It was great. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383564994-V4NAO5CWP9R7OZ9RJVOO/PS+37+Dino+Crisis+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 37. Dino Crisis 2 Well, it's pretty much like the first 'Dino Crisis' except, longer, and ... well, it's the same thing. Add in some newer and bigger dinosaurs, and a couple new weapons, and you have another 'Resident Evil' with a dinosaur skin on it. Was great to play when there were no other 3rd person shooters to destroy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383587061-TN7BV0X8BYMTTH4I0J3W/PS+36+Need+for+Speed.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 36. The Need for Speed I was never a big racing game fan, (Mario Kart was always my jam) but 'The Need for Speed' was a pretty rad game. It had already existed in the arcades in different formats, like 'Cruisin' USA', so it was kinda cool to not have to drop a Loonie in everytime I wanted to play it. They added in cops being able to pull you over if you fucked up, which was a nice addition. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383603307-STH9VDBPXVFNJGM8HL6U/PS+35+Intelligent+Qube.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 35. Intelligent Qube I remember playing this game at my cousin Chris’ house, and I remember loving the shit out of it. Problem was, I think I only played the game a handful of times, so I don’t remember it too well. Now that this is out on the PS Mini, I have a feeling I’d like to get my hands back on it. It was a problem solving game that was fun. It’d probably be higher on the list if I play it again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383618437-MNY9NCFHYBUXQOW5UNGB/PS+34+Vigilante+8.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 34. Vigilante 8 Man, this game sucks. I don’t know why it’s ranked 34. I guess it was a cool driving game like 'Twisted Metal', and 'Carmageddon', but I feel like the former games are better than 'Vigilante 8'. It was just a fun game to drive around and attack and blow up the other cars. I probably played this game for 3 or 4 hours and got bored. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383641310-829B8WJSJ2RXY4MUOI1V/PS+33+Legend+of+Legaia.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 33. Legend of Legaia Taking the now over produced genre of turn based RPG's, and trying to put an original spin on it was starting to get difficult. It seemed like every single Playstation game was turn based, like Final Fantasy. But 'Legend of Legaia' actually managed to put it's own little twist on it. They introduced a sort of 'Tekken' feel to it. When it was your turn to attack, you could choose a combo of attacks, and chain them together into something cool. It kept the repetitiveness of hitting X, X, X, X, X, X, X, fight over, to trying to combo some neat shit to kill your enemies. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383656444-6ZHBE3TYSVHEY8TE4D06/PS+32+Crash+Bandicoot.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 32. Crash Bandicoot Never really got into 'Crash Bandicoot', I was a Mario and Zelda kinda guy, so this game is pretty low on my list. As far as these open concept action games go, this one was pretty good. But I never related to the character, I thought a big Fox as a main character was stupid. Maybe I was too young to appreciate how funny this game could have been. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383672670-8IISVAN16IXYWCGYM1UF/PS+31+Tomb+Radier+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 31. Tomb Raider 2 I loved the first 'Tomb Raider' on PC, and I was itching to get my hands on the second one for Playstation. The game was solid. Not much more to say than that. It was a great Indiana Jones feeling action game with tough jumps, and cool treasure hunting. This was an action game done right, and I feel like it set the bar for all those bazillion other action type games. I loved having the dual pistols with infinite ammo. Ahh, the best! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383691856-28H0DM7M1P9B8L4FE7MH/PS+30+Metal+Gear+VR+Missions.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 30. Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions Man, I couldn't get enough of 'Metal Gear Solid' and when they announced they were releasing a new one called VR Missions, I got so excited. Of course, I didn't realize it was just a game about training exercises, but I didn't care. I played through every single one of these fucking missions trying to get the lowest time possible. The game now seems like it'd be a side mode in a full sized game, but some of the missions were really well thought out, and I had to really try and problem solve with this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383708384-468BR2WFUFMH86645Q9G/PS+29+Legend+of+Dragoon.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 29. The Legend of Dragoon A shitty version of 'Final Fantasy' is really all this game is. It plays the exact same, but the graphics and story are a little weaker. They added a timing element to the battle, where you had to hit a button to make the attack do more damage, which makes the monotony of turn based games like this a little less redundant. This is what you played if your parents didn't buy you a Final Fantasy game. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great game; it’s more a compliment to how good the ‘Final Fantasy’ series is. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383723158-Q9AP7R0MFSE0X2J0DF1X/PS+28+Parasite+Eve.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 28. Parasite Eve Combining 'Silent Hill' with 'Vagrant Story' is pretty great idea. 'Parasite Eve' plays like 'Silent Hill' but instead of just pointing in a direction and shooting, it added a big circle area that you have to fight in. It seemed to me to just about another 'Resident Evil' style game, so I didn't pay too much attention to it. But playing it again, the game is actually pretty bad ass. Great cinematic cuts, and the action element of the fighting was pretty cool. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383741528-R21HI23B5ZP441IH8QOI/PS+27+Tony+Hawk.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 27. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater This was the one that started the entire skateboarding fad in the 90's. I had absolutely zero interest in skateboarding, and didn't even realize it was a competitive sport until this game came out. The replayability of it was off the charts. The music was incredible (I still can't hear 'Superman' by Goldfinger without thinking of this game). You could do competition mode against the other pro skaters, and get graded, or you can just try and find the video tapes to advance to the next levels. It was pure genius this game. This wasn’t just a great game, it transformed the entire sport of skateboarding and brought it into the mainstream. This game was a huge deal. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383756620-J1BO8R4HJKYDF2ZZ43NL/PS+26+Monster+Rancher.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 26. Monster Rancher Holy shit, did I spend a lot of time playing this game. I had my fix of 'Pokemon Blue' for the Gameboy, and I needed something else, and that's where 'Monster Rancher' comes in. I had a modded Playstation, so my cousin gave me a whole bunch of shit, and this was one of them. As soon as I put it in, and started feeding my Monster food to make him lvl up, and eventually start to breed with other Monsters to grow my collection, I became hooked. You got to battle them in arenas as well. So you'd grow your monster super strong, and then enter them in a massive competition. Winning it gave you a crap load of money and experience to help further grow your ranch. It blended the Tamagachi fad with Pokemon, but added the arena element to it. I dumped so many hours into trying to grow that damn farm, god it was fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383776289-NZF28XIF6XG620ACRDDK/PS+25+Grand+Theft+Auto.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 25. Grand Theft Auto The first time I played this was at my cousin's place, and I thought this game looked so stupid. Just get in a car, and drive around running people over. I already have done that in 'Carmageddeon'. But for some reason, the thrill I got from stealing fire trucks, sports cars, getting the police on my tail and trying to lose them, was exhilarating! I loved the different music in the cars, and started to really enjoy the top down perspective of the game. Little did I know, this was the beginning of something great. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383798038-OT9Q9UKKSEX26Z52UAWF/PS+24+Gran+Turismo2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 24. Gran Turismo My favourite racing game before this was probably 'Super Off-Road', 'F-Zero', or 'Top Gear 2', so I wasn't really burning up the racing games at the time, but when I first played 'Gran Turismo 2', I had no idea that racing games could look so polished, and feel so real. The coolest part of the game for me was being able to pick REAL CARS. I mean, I was cruisin' down San Francisco with a Ford Mustang or something. It was kinda neat. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383815516-ZM3XPB0UMN32DKGJKPQ3/PS+23+Final+Fantasy+9.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 23. Final Fantasy IX This is the only Final Fantasy on the Playstation that I never finished. For some reason, I didn't get into this one as much as 7 and 8, but I know, from what I've played, that this one is a gentle return to the roots of the Final Fantasy lore. I had only played 'Final Fantasy 7 and 8' when I cracked this sucker open, so going back to the more magic like, and kid format of Final Fantasy through me off a bit. I was used to this ultra realism, crazy serious cutscenes, and deep themes to the game, so I don't think I was in the right mindset for 'FF9', but now that I'm thinking about it, shit, I gotta go back and play this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383834041-6M6PXVZC5ORN1XTEVWPL/PS+22+Vandal+Hearts.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 22. Vandal Hearts A tactical turn based RPG game that focused on the fun and mechanics more than the graphics. The game looked pretty shitty. It was caught between final fantasy, an anime, and a drunk dude drawing characters. For some reason though, I loved it. It nailed the tactical strategy down. The characters were fun, and the game just felt like the people who made it knew what they were doing. The class system was very shallow, the music got repetitive, but it's another solid tactical RPG. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383850209-3R1HYWT3SZIH6SYUCSML/PS+21+Twisted+Metal.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 21. Twisted Metal All of the 'Twisted Metal's' were pretty good. Being able to pick a unique car with different attack abilities was a nice touch. It was like a destruction derby, but you had weapons on your car. It was a simple game, but it did it very well. It had great replay value as well. Fun to play with friends. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383870802-JI6CU7MEH8H8LD89YYO8/PS+20+Dino+Crisis.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 20. Dino Crisis After finishing 'Resident Evil' and 'Silent Hill', I needed to get my fix of survival horror games somewhere else, and that's where 'Dino Crisis' came in. It's another game by Capcom, so it's the exact same engine as the Resident Evil series, but that's totally fine. They replaced the zombies with dinosaurs, and... yep, that's about it. Since it's Resident Evil, it was a great game! And I like dinosaurs. ‘Jurassic Park’ was my favourite movie in 1993, and 6 years later, I still loved it. So ‘Dino Crisis’ felt like I was being thrust into one of my favourite movies ever, and that was a dream come true! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383888050-E4Z326AK0AUP92G60KNL/PS+19+GTA2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 19. Grand Theft Auto 2 God I love running people over, burning cars, stealing cars, shooting people in the streets, and having the cops coming after me. 'Grand Theft Auto 2' was a parents worst nightmare. You could just destroy, kill and do the worst things in this game, and it was so much fun! The first GTA was pretty cool, but this one added a couple neat elements to make it a lot better, one being multiplayer, and the coolest one was gang reputation. There were some bars at the top of the screen that showed how tight you were with a gang, and the more you killed the rival gangs, the better you became. It just added little things like that to make it better than the first one. The music was awesome, there were more cars to choose from and it offered more of a storyline to follow rather than the first one where I just drove around stealing shit. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383908907-YZLQUMVAIWXJ0NP1K5AV/PS+18+Spiderman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 18. Spider-Man Usually, video games based around movies suck balls, but this one was actually pretty good! For the first time, I really got to use 'Spider-Man' in a open world, 3D environment, and feel like I was actually Spider-Man! Web slinging around the city, and wrapping up bad guys with my web shooters was done incredibly well. I feel like I had also just played 'Superman 64' for the Nintendo 64, which was an absolute piece of shit. So that made this game even better to play. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383925490-DF33D29HQMX8FDQUYODA/PS+17+Vagrant+Story.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 17. Vagrant Story Playstation is the ultimate tactical RPG system. It has a deep wealth of turn based games, which happen to be my favourite type of video game (at the moment). 'Vagrant Story' was a pretty cool take on the traditional tactical RPG, because you could choose which part of the enemy to attack. You could take out their legs so they lost all their movement speed, or just go for the head, and risk missing your attack, or landing a huge blow. The story was deep and dark, but I never really followed it. I just wanted to keep trying out this cool attack mode. The problem with the game is that it's insanely easy. It almost made me think i was doing something wrong it was so easy. There's a crap load of health to stay battle ready, and your attacks seemed to kill things so easily. I wanted to attack the arms, and disable them, but all you had to do was attack the head, and they died so much quicker. 'Vagrant Story' was a refreshing take on a game genre that was being overdone at the time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383955200-GG9YVCEWEOILY2ONXB2B/PS+16+Hot+Shots+Gold+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 16. Hot Shots Golf 2 I love the entire 'Hot Shots Golf' franchise. I loved unlocking all the new characters through out the world by challenging them to a match. The game mechanics were incredibly simple, but it was very difficult to yield good results on a consistent basis. The characters were bold, fun, and stereotypical which made it easy to follow. The stages and sounds were meticulously crafted. 'Hot Shots Golf 2' is part of my favourite golfing franchise. No golfing game even comes close to the amount of fun I have playing this one. It does lack a bit of variety for upgrades, and replay value, but getting to the end of it is worth the short trip. Making golf fun? Now that’s a talent. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383980354-KS75YXULQ45HX2C4KW5Z/PS+15+Tenchu.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 15. Tenchu: Stealth Assassins Sneaking up behind people, and sticking a sword through their back in a sweet cut-scene was a new concept at the time. But 'Tenchu' essentially paved the path for a different type of stealth game. Sure, 'Metal Gear Solid' has existed for a while, but 'Tenchu' was... different. Climbing on buildings, creeping down and slicing someone's throat, or hiding in the dark shadows waiting for a kill. The dark ambiance of Japanese village and cherry blossom trees. 'Tenchu' had a really neat stealth vibe to it that 'Assassin's Creed' has ripped off completely. The game wasn't just about stealth, it also had a hack and slash action side to it as well. It was a little more boring than running around a dark Japanese village, but it added a little depth to the game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543383998884-AY0OFJEPIO9WI7RVG7YB/PS+14+NFL+Blitz.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 14. NFL Blitz Most of the sports games for Playstation sucked balls. They just developed the 3D animations, and it didn't translate to the required pinpoint precision that's needed for most sports games. But 'NFL Blitz' embraced the shitty 3D graphics and just turned a boring ass sport like football, into the most fun sport of all time. I played the shit out of this game. There were no pauses, the gameplay moved super fast (which is the biggest problem with just about all sports games now a days), and there were lots of touchdowns, and massive body checks. Still the best football game ever made. It focused on the most important word in all of video games: fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384016771-KASA2D0BBZX6R115GW7B/PS+13+UmJAMMER+Lammy.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 13. UmJammer Lammy I was really big into playing guitar when this game came out, and I was already a monster fan of it's predecessor, 'PaRappa the Rapper'. The only issue I had with PaRappa was that it was too short. So getting another version of the game that involved playing guitar rather than rapping was right up my alley. The controls were solid, the songs were fun (I can still sing them in my head - "Hold the hose right tight, and get ready for a real fight". You could free style, and create your own sounding music, it was just really fun game to play. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384043049-H9MT2REZNYRGFPRVOYT3/PS+12+Driver.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 12. Driver The hype for this game was the the biggest I had ever seen at the turn of the century. This idea of an open concept driving game. It was going to have a 'movie' feel to it with all these modes, and challenges in the game. It was hyped up so much, that I don't think any game could have lived up to the expectations, but it was pretty rad. The only really good racing games out there, were either battle games like 'Twisted Metal', 'Carmageddeon' or actual racing games like 'Gran Turismo'. I feel like 'Driver' started the entire open world driving concept. 'Grand Theft Auto 3' would be released 2 years later, and pretty much made the same game, but added an RPG and story element to the game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384062966-RQHG7FDQR4E96LU6JPXS/PS+11+Resident+Evil+3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 11. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis This game is high on my list because it's a Resident Evil game, and I love all the old Resident Evil's, but it's because of where I played it. I brought my Playstation with me to Chicago for Thanksgiving one year when I was in grade 9, and on the first day, we went to a mall, and bought a copy of Resident Evil 3. I got back to my cousin's place, and I started playing it with my cousin Mike Hoelskin. We got SO into the game. I think we ended up finishing it the week we were there. We were investigating Raccoon City, fighting the Nemesis, and had a blast going through pretty much another version of 'Resident Evil 2' but without it's raw enjoyment. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384085417-KNOJYBE2THG4SNEZK8EC/PS+10+Silent+Hill.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 10. Silent Hill The first time I played this game, I was at my cousin's house. We were terrified playing this game! It's like it should have been rated R. The music is just, awful. Awful as in, it makes me so unsettled and edgy. I hated it, in the best way possible. Apparently the graphics for the game couldn't be handled by the playstation, so they created this 'fog' so they didn't have to render out all the buildings and next scenes. It's a genius way of creating a terrifying mystery at every corner, and also saving a hell of a lot of time on making level design. 'Silent Hill' is pretty much 'Resident Evil' but with monsters instead of zombies, and a scary vibe rather than a suspense vibe. The ambiance they created with this game is fucking incredible. It truly is a scary game to play. It made the scariest game I had played at the time 'Alone in the Dark' look like an episode of Teletubbies. The puzzles were tricky to solve, the ammo was scarce, and the morphing into the Hell world was so friggin' cool. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384100813-BY9Z0N6RNDIPPT7SDC96/PS+9+Tactics+Ogre.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 9. Tactics Ogre This game brings back such good memories with my buddy Mike Comrie and I in highschool. We would stay up til 4am listening to 'Saves the Day' and 'The Get Up Kids', in my parents den, and leveling up our character, Mortilus, in training mode over and over again. We grinded so hard on this game, because when you lose a character, they're gone forever. So we'd train new recruits up to level 15 (which would take us about 2 hours to do), make them a cool wizard or something, and then they'd get in the next battle. For fuck sakes. The music in this game is really well done. It has a great 'going to war' vibe to it, and gives off a completely accurate vibe based on whatever you're doing in the game. The game itself is another tactical RPG game, and it's very well polished. The graphics are slick, the storyline is very deep and political. The characters feel like 'real' people. They are fallible, they change sides, they have honest opinions about things, it was really quite refreshing to play a game that didn't follow the typical cookie cutter - hero out to save the world feel. It's side by side with Final Fantasy Tactics and XCOM 2 as the best tactical RPG out there. This game is truly a hell of a lot of fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384120286-Z0P0A8BYNVZ6IJ2DMEAO/PS+8+Final+Fantasy+8.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 8. Final Fantasy VIII The thing I loved most about this game, was it's mini game. It had this really cool card game that you played, and when you beat someone, you took an anti card, and could use that in the next battle. Also, if you beat a boss, you got his card to add to your deck. I spent most of my time walking around challenging people to card games, than actually playing the game. The game itself is also amazing. The graphics were once again, top notch. The cut scenes were like watching a movie. They moved to a different magic use by forcing you to draw out magic to use a limited amount of times. I wasn't a big Final Fantasy guy, so I didn't realize what a big deal that was, but I enjoyed it. It was just another massive, super fun game with great characters and sound track - I mean really, the soundtrack was fucking awesome. It’s no longer a video game score it’s become full on orchestral movie quality scores. Something to listen to for sure. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384147136-0STGDQMK07KFO0HBLRNP/PS+7+Resident+Evil.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 7. Resident Evil When I think of Resident Evil, I usually think of this game first for some reason. The zombie turning around and revealing the white, bald, fucked up zombie face, and then him coming at you. I must have crapped my pants, and died 5 times to that guy the first time I saw him. I just wasn't ready for it. No game had given me this sense of true terror. Alone in the Dark was out before this, but the graphics were too primitive to really make me scared, but Resident Evil was there. It was happening. I can't state enough how much I love this game. Being in a creepy mansion filled with zombies, puzzles and a complete lack of chests to put, and grab my items is incredible. The item management in this game is insane. So many times you have to backtrack because you need a herb, a key, or something, and trying to find your way back is really difficult - especially when the doors you open end up breaking, and you can't use them again - FUCK. This game started one of my most beloved franchises ever. Such an incredible blend of skill, scares, graphics and story have made this game a masterpiece. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384165636-ODF2R1H8JAWHINF5HOYZ/PS+6+Pa+Rappa+the+Rapper.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 6. Pa Rappa the Rapper This is one of the most influential games I've ever played. It taught me rhythm. It taught me how to rap outside of the box as well. It was such a bizarre concept. I remember seeing a commercial for it when it first came out, and it was a business man rapping on the streets, and I thought "This is going to be dumbest game ever made", and boy was I wrong. It's a ton of fun to play. It introduced me to a different type of music, and made me realize there's more to video games than Zelda and Metroid. I still play this game all the time. My only issue with it, is that it's waaaaay too short. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384191367-23H9117L4C8O216P3MCF/PS+5+Metal+Gear+Solid.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 5. Metal Gear Solid SNNNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAKEEEE!!! This game was unlike any other game I've played. I usually rely on my skill in reaction time, and coordination to win, but this game punishes you if you try and be a hero. You need to be patient, alert, and clever with how you advance in this game. I hated it, until I learned to accept it, and it became one of my favourite tactical games ever made. It was just such a different way to play a game. I admired it’s creativity. The storyline in the game was one of the few I actually really followed and I’m a better man for it. It’s a pretty great storyline. The betrayal, the surprises, and the mini bosses you fight throughout are just totally rad. Everyone always talks about Psycho Mantis, but for me it was the sniper fight against Sniper Wolf. That was something else I tell ya. I was terrified and exhilarated at the same time. ‘Metal Gear Solid’ was a defining game in my life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384214794-ON44YBQANI8I0XYVRIHS/PS+4+Final+Fantasy+Tactics.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 4. Final Fantasy Tactics This game is fucking awesome. It's the best turn based strategy game ever made. Tactic's Ogre is pretty close, but no it's not really. This game is polished. It has a wicked story line, the upgrading and skill system is amazing, and it has vintage Final Fantasy characters, enemies and music in it. I check online to see if there will ever be a sequel to this game about once a month. The first time I saw someone play this, was an old friend from highschool named Tim, and I went over to his house for his birthday, and he was playing Tactics, while 3 people sat around and watched him. I was intrigued by the game, but it's also not really a multiplayer game, or once you want to play with friends over - it's fucking boring to watch. But the way the game was flowing, and the actions in it, I knew when I got home, I had to rent it, and burn a copy of it from my modded PSX. Best decision I made that year. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384232538-PIIKDXKU9ALZ5BXQAQXI/PS+3+Tony+Hawk+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 3. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 I became so addicted to this game, I'm scared to know how many hours I've put into doing dark slides, sick ass grinds, and filthy flips off of a school buildling. This game pretty much got an entire decade of kids into skateboarding (including myself). The music in the game was unlike anything i've ever heard - it was good! For once they played music that I was into, listening to Millencolin, Lagwagon, Rage Against the Machine, it's so awesome! The amazing soundtrack was just the beginning of what turned out to be a very polished, fun game. The replay value in Tony Hawk 2 was crazy - taking turns with friends in 2 minute rounds to see who could unlock all the challenges for the stages, or get the highest score. The sheet at the beginning of each stage gave you all the things you needed to do, and some of them were friggin hard! You also got to create your own character, and pick their moves, upgrade them, which was a huge upgrade compared to the first game. One of the best sports games out there still to this day. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384249649-0L5JKW7ZZ5UHJFWTWN3Q/PS+2+Resident+Evil+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 2. Resident Evil 2 Oh man, talk about a crazy ass game. Resident Evil 2 took everything that was great about the first Resident Evil, and just made it a million times better. The controls, the graphics, the story, and the enemies all got a massive upgrade, and it is easily one of the coolest action games I've ever played. You're no longer just in the mansion, you're now all over Raccoon City, which gives you such a greater wealth of options to stage design, and more than just zombies infesting a mansion. This game scared me. I was always wondering if it'd run out of bullets, or zombies coming around corners, dogs bursting out, it just managed to create a really freaky vibe, which wasn't all that common at the time. The entire Resident Evil franchise is a favourite of mine, and this one might just be my favourite of all of them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543384275866-0L23A9K6ZK2WAWLZFFUZ/PS+1+Final+Fantasy+7.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 40 PS1 GAMES 1. Final Fantasy VII This is the only game on this list that I still play, and finish at least once a year - and it's a huge game. When I first played this game, the graphics, the music and the characters really excited me. It was my introduction to the Final Fantasy franchise, so I had no idea what to expect, but after playing so many turn based strategy games for Playstation, and then digging my teeth into this one, it was pretty clear that this game was something special. A lot of games put me in moods, or I need to be in the right mood to play a game, and Final Fantasy 7 seems to fit so many of my moods. Thinking of the music, and even the menu sounds, makes me happy. There are several different ways to play this game, focusing on different characters and battle tactics. There's an open world to explore, crazy hard monsters to kill, and extremely rare materia to find. I'm rarely put in a bad mood while playing it. It's not a frustrating game, but it's very rewarding as you progress. I love the world of Midgar, and the planet they created. All the characters you meet along the way offer something unique and exciting to the story line, and I look forward to playing with all them. Cid, the cocky pilot, RedXIII the world saving dog, Vincent the genetically altered, kinda vampire creature out for revenge against Hojo, and then there's Sephiroth, one of the most memorable, crazy storylined villain I've had the pleasure of killing. It's the best game I've played on PSX, and it's one of the best games I've ever played, period. https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2017/11/9/allans-top-50-snes-games monthly 0.5 2021-07-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543557629518-CIBOOFQRB1UGDUBPKRYA/SNES+50+the+flintstones.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 50. The Flintstones Terrible game. Only reason it’s here is because when I was on ‘Video and Arcade’s Top 10’ this was the game I played, and won. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543557646086-ZS38AZXKNCGPM4VQGLVB/SNES+49+Out+of+this+world.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 49. Out of this World Escaping the opening scene where that Lion or whatever chases you, and you have to do that jump. It’s fuckin’ hard. Then the first thing the freak in the cage says will resonate throughout my cousin’s and I’s inside humour – Mahtouva! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1543557668192-ZYS3X30JPW6V8VRQHVH6/SNES+48+Super+bases+loaded.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 48. Super Bases Loaded First baseball game on the SNES. It definitely had its flaws, but I played the hell out of it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544540998053-9TD3PDL01CN9DBHWAMCC/SNES+47+Prince+of+persia.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 49. Out of This World I feel like I’ve played 5 different versions of this game. But either way, once you get used to the controls of this game (Which take quite a bit of patience) it’s actually really cool. It has killer graphics, great SFX, music, and neat stage design. It has no weapons, just jumping and traps! Pretty neat! Actually, there are sword fights I hear, but I’ve never gotten that far. Ha! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544541029384-L4PPCJQSTSE25NCTAN54/SNES+46+Boxing+Legends.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 48. Boxing Legends of the Ring I pumped a lot of hours into this game trying to max out my guys stats and take out the greatest boxers of all time. It has a cool mechanic that shows how badly you're getting your ass kicked. Your face starts to get all busted up, and things start to flash and get white when you're about to fall. You had a ladder to climb on your way to being number one in the world, and the music is also pretty rad in the menu screens. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544541059140-RZJYGQ3IIBM3RRSCXEX5/SNES+45+Jurassic+Park.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 47. Jurassic Park I think because I was just such a huge fan of the movie, I fell in love with this game. Top down look, it was actually pretty good. Never got far in it…. I need to finish it. Dr. Allan GRANT! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544541087409-0TLT576TO0R60007TRGG/SNES+44+Killer+Instinct.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 46. Killer Instinct Graphics were incredible. Donkey Kong, Stunt Race, and Killer Instinct all set new boundaries for graphics. This one was also a brutal killing Mortal Kombat game. Controls were pretty decent. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544542937413-H7KHD9FFKFRXR8JQRY8I/SNES+43+Barts+Nightmare.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 36. Bart’s Nightmare You entered different realms, the graphics were great, lots of mini games in it, and you already know and love the characters. Finally, a good game where you’re playing as the Simpsons. Holy fucking shit this game is hard though. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544543890600-XIC7K1C92KW7XS4O99TW/SNES+42+super+bomberman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 45. Super Bomber Man Everybody loves a good bomberman game. Lots of fun items, and 2 players action. Wicked. Don’t kill yourself, don’t put the bomb there! No!!….. fuck. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544543910879-Z73KSCFZVXT5DJ6B3AD9/SNES+41+NCAA+BBALL.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 42. NCAA Basketball Picked the Huskies everytime, and always passed it to a guy who was 65% at 3-pointers. Never lost a game. It was the first time I ever got into basketball. It was really well made; until NBA Jam came along, that it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544543930807-XJ15L5B9J888QN5O2Y1X/SNES+40+2020+SUPERBASEBALL.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 31. Super Baseball 2020 Now the baseball games are starting to get REALLY good. This game was just a shit load of fun. Busted pitchers, smoking balls out of the park, smashing it on glass, batters with .800 averages and 99 homeruns… but they can only swing once a game. Just filled with so many innovative ideas. They designed this game with one mission: Fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544543951455-RGCQ8TJTO3E27RBANVVX/SNES+39+THE+ADDAMS+FAMILY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES I played this for the first time at my friend Guybrush’s place in Chicago. We ordered Thai food, and finished them game in 4 hours. It was one of the fondest memories I’ve ever had playing a SNES game. Killer soundtrack, solid controls, and fun story! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547517665-0NETHIBSGXXNO2EXOEGB/SNES+38+MEGA+MAN+7.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 38. Mega Man 7 The one where you had to only fight 4 bosses?!? Huh? Then another 4 showed up, then another 15, then you switch characters, then you rule the world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547539298-MO7VD7PXHQ9G41BUVAS6/SNES+37+MK.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 37. Mortal Kombat First port from arcade. The game was no where NEAR as good as the arcade version. Quite a let down. And no blood? They made MK pg13? Wtf? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547559155-FYT4WILHQR3REYKHKJ1B/SNES+36+BLACKTHORNE.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 36. Blackthorn Having prisoners chained looking at the ground. And then they left their heads up, and your double barrel shotgun if pointing RIGHT at their face, and you can blow them away. Fuckin’ awesome. It was castlevania but you have a fuckin’ unlimited ammo shotgun. I guess Lost Vikings would be a better comparison. But man, this game was wicked. Blowing the shit outta everyone and everything. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547580148-SO3S7BNGQYVPHOTDHZJF/SNES+35+SMASH+TV.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 35. Super Smash TV Big money, big prizes, I loooooove it! GO GO GO GO GO ! I’d buy that for a dollar. NOOO WAYYYYY!!!! … need I say anymore? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547602189-T6CN40MD0I1OGT9KXC83/SNES+34+XMEN+MUTANT.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 34. X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse Pick as Psylocke, Cyclops, Wolverine, beast, Gambit, all with their own attacks and moves. Battle Omega Red, Magneto, all the coolest Xmen bosses. Solid gameplay, quite difficult, and amazing characters. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547622280-ZETV0STD5OMW7CPECIPE/SNES+33+yoshis+cookie.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 33. Yoshi’s Cookie Can’ count the amount of hours I spent playing this game. SOO Addictive. Different characters have difference specials, and speeds. It was Tetris to like, the next 20 levels. Really cool. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547646510-X374E3SGR9CA56SWQBEK/SNES+32+TMNT+TURTLES+IN+TIME.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 32. TMNT: Turtles in Time They took all the successes of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 for NES, and improved on it in everyway. Big Apple: 3am. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547666326-Q3X64UKX9V2YDKICUZEA/SNES+31+SOUL+BLAZER.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 31. Soul Blazer Mumumumumushrooooom! This game is a cool 'Secret of Mana' style game with a brutally addicting, awful, and fantastic soundtrack. The attacking mechanics aren't the best, and the game really isn't all that great, but rebuilding lands, and investigating the problems plaguing the land are kinda cool. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544547684701-1S6YC1YQD4M8SFQA8JKL/SNES+30+LOST+VIKINGS.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 30. The Lost Vikings Super addicted. Really challenging. There were puzzles in there that drove me insane. You have to utilize all three characters. One was super fast and could jump high. Another had a shield that you could springboard off and float, and another did something else, had a weapon or something? It was a lot of fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561134271-KSMXGCPDOAABWXKWCL0R/SNES+29+TOP+GEAR+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 29. Top Gear 2 Best racing game ever made? It took everything that made Top Gear one successful, and then, oh yeah, how about we give you money for winning races, and let you buy insanely cool upgrades for your car. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561164040-836KMDQNUMU4PT3J41A5/SNES+28+MEGAMAN+X.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 28. Mega Man X This is the one I remember most from SNES. Had lots of original boss ideas, good game play, alternate characters usages… crazy weapons. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561225916-0UXTV6FJFS5IGW9YA7PQ/SNES+27+POCKY+ROCKY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 27. Pocky and Rocky amazing 2 player game. Cool weapon upgrades. One of the best 2 player co-op games made for SNES. So much fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561245387-TTYJWJQDR8H6L9AX5Z7R/SNES+26+MICKEY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 26. Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse 80% of people out there haven’t played this game. Well, they’re missing out. It’s Super Mario World but with magic, and Disney themed. They nailed this one. A stellar side scrolling adventure game. It’s Capcom - so no surprise its a high quality game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561275791-9N62JFL7LWR9ESETXCA0/SNES+25+LEGEND+MYSTICAL+NINJA.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 25. Legend of the Mystical Ninja There wasn’t actually anything amazing with this game. But on stage 4 I think it was, you get to a fair, and there’s all these mini games you get to play. So all the hard earned money you collected on your way there, you get to blow it at the race tracks. Friends and I would play just to get to the Fair area, and wouldn’t even care about finishing the game. We’d spend HOURS at the race tracks. It’s also a really good co-op two player game with fun Japanese graphics, and a good sense of humor https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561299221-SEJI1NMSSA578B8TSO5V/SNES+24+SUPER+TENNIS.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 24. Super Tennis One of the best tennis games I’ve still played to date. Incredibly simple, with 4 different ways to stroke the ball. Amy was hot. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561324455-KX687QR5VSRQ1WBGM8IA/SNES+23+ACTRAISER.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 23. Actraiser My friend Guybrush showed me this game, and what a cool concept for a game! You are God, and in charge of keeping the lands safe from monsters. People grovel at your feet, and offer you gifts and weapons to use against fighting the evil. The game looks like 'Sim City' and you are building a landscape for people, but then the top down look transforms into a side scrolling action game when you go into dungeons to clean them out. It's really cool playing as God. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561350818-KHW1KLKZS2BJQA59M3KL/SNES+22+ALIEN3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 22. Alien 3 Speaking of blowing this shit outta things. You get upgradable flamethrowers, grenade launchers, and a machine gun. It really stayed true to the movies, as you get all these little missions to try and secure your area, gather resources to get the hell off that metal pit. Then you fight the AlienQueen at the end, who is just awesome. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561096878-JHYWCIT91TLZFICXN47Q/SNES+21+DONKEY+KONG+COUNTRY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 21. Donkey Kong Country Landmark in graphics for the SNES. Fun side scroller, lots of secrets, 2 different characeters, fun mini games, cool guys to ride (shark, rhino, etc) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561389567-NV47SIMI4HE3HQRX4BOO/SNES+20+FZERO.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 20. F-Zero Do I pick the blue one? Yellow? Green or Pink? This game was friggin wicked. Awesome soundtrack, great gameplay. This is one of the best racing games made for SNES, and it was one of the first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561427777-DZCK45QRF7CNOL7JO5S5/SNES+19+FINAL+FIGHT.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 19. Final Fight Haggar and Cody rule the world. Watching them beat the shit outta people. The first boss looks like Randy macho man Savage, and you face these Giant looking fuckers from the WWF. They were tough. Fuckin’ awesome game. The last boss is in a wheelchair I think, hahaha. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561450835-NG8S5LH80YJI6VLEN2Z7/SNES+18+NBA+JAM+TE.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 18. NBA Jam: Tournament Edition Great graphics, perfect game play, and 2on2 basketball. NBA Jam: TE scrapped the realism of sports in favour of pure fun - and it succeeded admirably. This game is a ton of fun. It gets a little repetitive (and frustrating) playing the computer, but if you have a buddy to play this with, it’s a blast. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561476684-PU0ZO8F1JT71RH3BI3FD/SNES+17+YOSHIS+ISLAND.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 17. Super Mario 2: Yoshi’s Island Superbly made adventure game. Does everything Super Mario Bros did, and changed it up graphically. Didn’t have the depth as the original Super Mario Bros, but a worthy competitor. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561509559-3QGDQBJUDWWU6CK19TSQ/SNES+16+BUSTER+BROS.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 16. Super Buster Bros here’s a fun fact: Busting bubbles is fucking fun! Getting a machine gun to break them is even more fun. Fun backgrounds. For some reason, getting the background to change was the coolest part. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561536646-EML209GHW2TAK5BNNEKL/SNES+15+STREET+FIGHTER+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 15. Street Fighter 2 The original coming over from the arcade had such unreal expectations, it wasn’t even funny. The whole world was waiting for this, and it didn’t disappoint. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a hell of a lot better than the MK transition. The world was changing, and this was the first sign of the death of arcades. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561561018-E1YKIW2PEJN12XVN4T0E/SNES+14+SIM+CITY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 14. Sim City Getting to a Metropolis without using the cheat I’ve confirmed is pretty much impossible. I always hated building in the Industrial zones. You learned a lot, and who woulda thought building a city and watching it grow for 3 months would be fun? Again, a landmark in games to come. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561585365-D3FEW1X1N5OGIVHGIVWE/SNES+13+MK2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 13. Mortal Kombat 2 Unlike the first one, MK2 was emulated perfectly onto the Nintendo. The blood was there, all the characters, the graphics were exactly the same, the gameplay the same. It was as near perfect as you could get to the real thing. Not to mention this game had wicked combos, and such a great variety of characters. They were almost all equally good, where street fighter really lacked character balance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561627605-CWWTJIDL56SQ4IK37KPT/SNES+12+STARFOX.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 12. Star Fox “You’re the best Slippy!” … 3d rendered graphics. Now it looks like shit, but back then, man. It was the cat’s ass, the bee’s knees. Best flying game ever made. Yep, I just said that. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561651416-NAD2POONJCH1G0I7OTB2/SNES+11+NHL94.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 11. NHL 94’ Best hockey game made for the SNES, by far. The game speed was perfect, not too fast, or slow. The one timers FINALLY work. The checking was wicked, you could make people bleed. Everything about it was good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561673067-SYEHC2VGCINMRDKZKVKR/SNES+10+FF6.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 10. Final Fantasy III I have a feeling this game would probably be way higher on this list, but I'm only 5 hours into the game. I love the Final Fantasy games, and it's a tragedy that I haven't played this game until I'm solidly into my 30's now. The story of magic being banned, and the protagonist being the only one who can use magic, and is in charge of saving the world is pretty badass. Like many turn based RPG's a lot of this game is just sitting there hitting one button over and over again until you kill the creature and then healing after battle, but the story and boss fights keep it really interesting. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561695941-3GREOVYXAOJ2PB2EFPIM/SNES+9+GRIFFEY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 9. Ken Griffey Jr’s Winning Run Up until MVP 2005, this was the best baseball game ever made. Bull Gigante, Scorch McFadden, Sluggo Steel, SO many memorable characters that were completely made up. The only character in the game that was a true to the MLB, was obviously Griffey. But even thinking about it now, it was funny, amazing graphics, PERFECT game play and controls, had long, hard seasons, good stats, and trade values went up and down based on performance - brilliant. The first Griffey was too cartoonish, this one was fuckin’ amazing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561720514-G4H05PRGFPNDZWXXJQUS/SNES+8+PUNCH+OUT.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 8. Super Punch Out!! No Mike Tyson, but the brothers you face at the end were pretty tough. This one was way more bold, and cartoony. Fortunatley, that was a good thing. Bald Bull was back, everyone was there, and it was just wicked. A very fun sequel. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561760596-TRS8DRBTY15EUJD2WKOB/SNES+7+SF2+TURBO.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 7. Street Fighter 2: Turbo Edition Street Fighter finally made the clone transition over to port. Turbo let you play Champion OR Turbo in the same game, so it was already a 2 in 1. The graphics were near as good as the arcade, and the controls played exactly like the arcade. It was a street fighter 2 players dream. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561779701-TYYBWJYNH6OY0WMERPYL/SNES+6+CASTLEVANIA+4.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 6. Super Castlevania IV Dark, brooding, and the clock tower stage that moved. My favorite Castlevania game of them all. Once again, it took the success of its predecessors and just ran with it.This game puts you in a mood, it is more than a video game, it becomes a part of you when you play it. This game really stuck to me, and always puts me in a gothic mood. I feel like listening to Dracula's music right now. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561805262-U8JVVCVF1EXIAKCDARG6/SNES+5+SUPER+MARIO+WORLD.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 5. Super Mario World It seems like any other Mario, but man, thinking back to this game, and the secret passages you can take, rainbow world (TUBULAR!) and all the different worlds you enter. Being able to pick your stage, again, it took what made Mario 3 so incredible, and made it better in every possible sense. The Mario’s consistently just keep getting better, and better. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561828989-4G0M52IHPCOLH9X1G4EP/SNES+4+MARIO+KART.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 4.Super Mario Kart can you say… addictive? I played this game for years and years, hours upon hours each day, and never got tired of it. I even liked it better than the 64 version. There was something about this game. You get to race with your favorite characters, each has their own strength, fun items you can use, great stage variety, the best multiplayer game made on SNES, and you could do it over, and over, and over. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561869744-HL9RSVX3SMF9ST7SL48J/SNES+3+SUPER+METROID.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 3. Super Metroid The last 3 are interchangeable. Super Metroid is the shit. Facing Ridley and Kraid again was cool. The best part of this game, is that you start off, with… .EVERYTHING. You’re a mean fuckin’ killing machine. Then, you get sent back in, and you have nothing. You have to gather all your equipment again. This would be a template for games to come. The soundtrack was so eerie. Just a massive massive game which brought you into this crazy world, and you lost your mind trying to fight your way through it. A bounty hunter on a mission. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561895123-QZMXU2TU4PT0DZ8KW9SH/SNES+2+ZELDA.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 2. Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past So amazing. Pretty much a flawless game. Music, character, gameplay, replay value, story, graphics. What isn’t there to like about this game? It’s so amazing, that even 10 years after it’s made, I still think about it, and want to play it and finish it. The storyline is whacked out, phasing in and out between worlds, trying to find Ganon and end his reign of terror over the light world. The definition of SNES … is this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1544561924826-ORLFJHTN4Q78HO0UP97N/SNES+1+MARIO+RPG.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN's TOP 50 SNES GAMES 1. Super Mario RPG: The Legend of the 7 Stars An RPG that after I finished it, I started it up and played it again. This game is so vast, it has such fond memories from every part. You get to use 5 different lovable characters from Bowser, to Mario, to Princess and even a couple new characters. A straight forward, simple, graphically exciting RPG. It doesn’t hold the same ‘epicness’ as final fantasy’s or other famous SNES RPG’s, but being able to run things with Mario, controlling all characters, getting sweet upgrades, and an interactive battle system makes this game as charming as it is just fuckin’ awesome. https://www.allanhughesfilms.com/writings/2017/11/9/top-50-nes-games monthly 0.5 2020-06-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520297915345-S4FXZWNW2ZTYTE9J8ZL2/NES+Roger+Rabbit.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 50. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? The worst game on this list. If the controls weren’t so fucked up, and the direction of the game not a complete mess, it’d be pretty cool. But even still, it was a fairly open game. One of the first where you can search just about anything. Closets, drawers, carpets, linens, your pants, anything. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520298253637-UCVRHARALKNYPYJXHIJK/NES+Ghostbusters.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 49. Ghostbusters All I remember of this game is going up stairs, over and over and over again killing ghosts. But again, it was like a Grand Theft Auto in that you could drive around anywhere you want, stop off at stores to buy shit. Pretty poorly executed though. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806811739-BP58LNWEP7RU2D8120IK/NES+48+startropics.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 48. StarTropics This is a pretty cool adventure game. I hadn't played this game til I was an adult, and I played with with my buddy Guybrush. The game was a blast to get through, and then we couldn't beat the last boss. We tried over and over, and it was driving us insane. Until finally Guybrush completely blacked out, and didn't get hit fucking once against him. It was pretty awesome. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802259802-5ZMI3EAXEO6MXKQ7APK9/NES+47+jaws.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 47. Jaws From what I remember of this game, it was absolutely shit. But when Jaws came, once every 20 minutes, it was freaky as hell. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520807036721-GK21ZVO2YJGB4CKSUWT3/NES+46+BAD+DUDES.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 46. Bad Dudes A game that opens up with two guys flexing their muscles and then saying “I’m BAD”, has to be good. Fun beat em’ up 2 player co-op game. Always nice to have a game to play with your friends, no matter how boring. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802245384-9O0WOJIQHFRN6XF7TRH0/NES+45+snake+rattle.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 45. Snake Rattle, and Roll This game always tripped me out. You’re a snake? Eating balls to make your tail longer and then you escape through a hole. Bizarre, and the controls were tough as shit. Up meant right, right meant down, everything was one over. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802231328-3HQ68T1V1JKY0VQYLZTW/NES+44+tmnt2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 44. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II While a favorite in most minds, I found it to be very monotonous. The only thing I loved about it was the two player action, and the last boss: Shredder. FUCK he’s hard. Turning you into Turtle Soup with one friggin hit. Man… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806956849-5CQGW3GJJBOGL2TVZ1I8/NES+43+Bubble+Bobble.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 43. Bubble Bobble Great 2 player action. Lots of little secrets, and fun for boys and girls. Gets long at points, but overall is a great experience that will last you a good hour or so. Short levels to keep your attention. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520302261508-27AHGKQO8VG0Y486SAU4/NES+42+Commando.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 42. Commando Awesome soundtrack, shooting grenades and killing people. Rescuing prisoners, secret staircases, and you can finish it all in under 10 minutes. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802217353-NKOVRQQBLYW5YVQW7Y57/NES+41+kungfu.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 41. Kung Fu Mr. X was hard. Getting to him was harder. The basis of ‘The Gauntlet’, all the bosses at the end were unique, and fun to play. I love the idea of climbing levels to rescue you’re girlfriend. Brilliant. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520807052349-UUPIIWKJLKDR7FFARJVK/NES+40+ADVENTURE+ISLAND.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 40. Adventure Island II That fat fuck is never satisfied. I’d play this game in the arcades everytime my brother had a hockey game. I loved going to them because of this one game. Lots of fun, addictive, and surprisingly tough to beat. A FUCKIN PIG!!!! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802200028-RAPJJ91ZMWEBRUK49H6U/NES+39+life+force.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 39. Life Force Of all the shooter games that Nintendo made, this one is my favourite for one reason - music. The music in this game is so friggin' badass, especially stage 3. It's a tune that I have rocking on my iPod more often than I'd care to admit. My brother Erik said this game can't be beat without using continues or the extra lives cheat code, and I told him that's bullshit, I'll do it right now. I beat the game only dying 3 times; he was stunned. It's one of my favourite NES moments. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802176515-XC3ZMNW1ZXMZV420918B/NES+38+DOUBLE+DRAGON.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 38. Double Dragon II Another great two player game that’s tough to beat. These games that are just unrelenting. You get 5 lives, and that’s it. No continues, no extra lives, if you die, you suck, start over. Don’t make em like this anymore. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520302222944-WIMW3XDNEJ5JF19DOLLH/NES+37+Batman.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 37. Batman This was just a really well made game. It was very dark, good controls, lots of weapons, and one of the first well adapted movies into games. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802149771-MAY8XIWY0HYA06H0HHJH/NES+36+friday+13rh+copy.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 36. Friday the 13th I’d be sitting in my room at night, around 2:00am playing this game in the dark with the volume turned up and my face right up against the screen. I’d enter a house, and turn and corner and the music would flash and there’s Jason with a fuckin’ machete trying to chop my head off. What a freaky ass game. And hard as shit. Jason moves around the camp grounds like nothing, when you’re trying to do a side mission, like get the machete, he’s always killing a kid somewhere. The game is actually a piece of shit and you love left, and it turns out you're turning right on the map, it made absolutely no sense. But from a horror perspective, this game was the first one to genuinely scare the living shit out of me. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802125005-91L0BZBU0E3UI4R9K4WX/NES+35+Supermariobro.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 35. Super Mario Bros The original. Fantastic, great soundtrack, sound controls, and a template that would be used to this day for side scrollers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802102462-WGNB6PCHH2VOTYE136YK/NES+34+excitebike.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 34. Excitebike Fun racing game with good acceleration mechanics. The game was surprisingly very sensitive to jumps, landings, and response times. Not to mention the build your own level addition, which gave the game almost unlimited replay value. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802082072-4EJ4EPBUU442CULWQHO0/NES+33+tmnt.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 33. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles A tough, complicated game. Don’t think I ever finished it. This game was fuckin’ hard. Maybe it was because I was 10 years old when I was playing it, but it was a lot of fun being able to drive the turtle van, and much like Zelda 2, flip flopping to side scroll, and top down play. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806894959-HXVXB6QERTY5CHLPIMXF/NES+32+ice+hockey.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 32. Ice Hockey What a hockey game. Obviously, the best part about it was being able to pick the guys you wanted on your team. Not you’re team, the players! The fat, slow but strong, the skinny, fast but weak, or the medium guy. A lot like Blades of Steel, but the options of picking your team still is just… so cool. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802062581-8OU73MO51XSKEA24TIOO/NES+31+rcproam.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 31. R.C. Pro-Am Best racing game that came out of the NES console. Upgrading your car’s tires, acceleration, top speed, and then getting car upgrades the better you do was great. An RPG style of racing game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802040788-M81IFNXGQBPOF52NJFQI/NES+30+karnov.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 30. Karnov Another fat protagonist who needs to place a ladder to get where he needs to go. This was such an underground hit in side scrolling adventures, but it was a fabulous game. Picking up new equipment, and weapons along the way, it was just a good, fun, hard game. Many like it, but this is one of the better. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802016343-TI36XO42U8QS44EBTJ2A/NES+29+ninja+gaiden+2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 29. Ninja Gaiden II While not as good as the original, Ninja Gaiden II was almost identical to the first, but some games just have better memories. The second was great, but it just seemed like the first one set the bar so high, all it could do was match it, and it did, but the first always wins out for me because of sweet, sweet memories. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806910090-X80C0A6V20C5IJ8XIRSG/NES+28+Crystalis.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 28. Crystalis Any game where you kill monsters and get gold to buy armour and weapons is just dandy. Then add in some dungeons, huge maps to explore, involving storyline, and badass music. You got yourself a pretty sweet RPG. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801669821-FYPB4WO1SOYPA1GAZZ0L/NES+27+Castlevania.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 27. Castlevania This was one of the first Nintendo games to be released, and it is easily one of the best. The music is still to this day, one of my favourite sound tracks in video games and it helps set a gothic mood unlike any other. The 'Castlevania' series has a spot in my heart, because the game is just so well made, and so complete with it's enemies, weapons, items, and stage design. There were 2 more 'Castlevania' games spawned after this one, and the sequels only got better and better, but the original is the one that got it all started, and I got mad respect for that. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802000068-S3UDJJHINPUKLRRZ62AJ/NES+26+hogans+alley.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 26. Hogan’s Alley Some liked Duck Hunt, other’s preferred Hogan’s Alley. I liked the option of being able to choose between 3 different game play modes. One was about speed, another about accuracy, and another about reflexes. Shooting the bad guys made the game finish with a sense of satisfaction, although I always shot that fuckin’ cop for smilin’ at me. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801966991-IEAJSX4DQ0GVR0PW6AW5/NES+25+CONTRA.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 25. Contra While famous for it’s up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start code, have you ever tried beating the game without using it?! That’s because it’s near impossible. Two players, upgrading weapons, different styles of gameplay through alternating stages, awesome soundtrack, and wicked bosses. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806924898-UDR49YSABIOOS3TRB2SF/NES+24+Castlevania+3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 24. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse Probably would be higher if I actually ever made it to Dracula’s castle. But getting the guy where you can crawl on walls, and other characters which were just awesome REALLY turned a normally linear side scroller, into an interesting non-linear RPG type side scroller. An interesting hybrid. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806979170-V1OB76C18C3XIIA2BFWM/NES+23+Blades+of+Steel.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 23. Blades of Steel Take the pass, take the pass. The idea that when you lose a fight, you’re the only one that goes to the penalty box is genius, Changing the rules of hockey to make it more fun. The mini games between periods actually made intermissions fun! It's the first sports game I ever played, and I played the living hell out of this game. It really helped carve out my passion for hockey as a young Canadian kid. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806796406-M6EGB8MC5JBOVYFJE3ZE/NES+22+SMB2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 22. Super Mario Bros 2 A game with options again. Being able to pick all the characters was awesome. It’s a shame how the hero from number one, and the main character is easily the worst character. Pick Princess and just run through the game. It took the success of number one, and improved on it, in every which way. Except the last boss isn’t Bowser, it’s a fuckin’ frog. Yes…. A fuckin’ frog. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806876296-1KD7N3C5CBHUPWAB32DB/NES+21+marble.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 21. Marble Madness The only game in the world that I can beat in 7 minutes. That’s not a lie. Perfect gameplay mechanics, and a fun sound track. Because the game can be beaten in 7 minutes, it really pushes you to try and beat your score, over and over. It’s a timeless game, that everyone loves. Frustrating as hell sometimes, but the controls are just so amazing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806766783-8JNMF4L5GTGLRIKVNCHD/NES+20+Wizards.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 20. Wizards and Warriors A cool action adventure game. The first time I played this I was in Chicago and my cousin Steve had this game. I was super excited to try a NES game I've never played before, and there was a weird allure with this game. The box art, the name of the game, and the insane music that starts it. The game seems like it'd be something I love, but it's controls are dreadful. You don't really swing your sword, you just kinda poke people with it. I keep falling from the top of the map down to the bottom because of a tiny tiny little mistake a made, and I have to start it up all over again. The game is pretty ruthless that way. But once I got the hang of it, I cruised through it. I replayed this with my buddy Chiefy Poo, and we absolutely demolished it, and had a pretty good time doing it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801909231-ZGR80L7126HG1UCKA290/NES+19+Simon%27s+quest.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 19. Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest This game was so cool, I almost named my first band after it. Simon’s Quest. This game, this fuckin’ game. I got to a point where I’m standing on a ledge and there’s 80% water and at the other end of the screen is where I need to get to. How the FUCK would I know that you have to kneel there for 10 seconds and wait for a whirlwind to throw you to the other side. This game requires patience, skill, and a little thing called Nintendo Power. It was so much fun to beat. The changing from night to day, the towns, the hints and clues, it had it all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801891675-TZSE0ZJHK600TDA4927V/NES+18+ghosts+goblins.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 18. Ghosts n’ Goblins The only reason why this game is so high is because it’s officially the hardest game ever made. Ever. You can get to stage 7/8 after 5 hours of playing, but then trying to get up the stairs in the last stage, facing every boss you’ve seen along the way in one stage, and you’re only allowed to get hit twice. Yep. Twice and you’re dead. Then you start all over. It was so hard, I would throw the controller at walls and want to pick up the Nintendo and smash it through a window. Yeah, it’s that hard. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806995684-TN4F2TSN57EV6LJNC6YR/NES+17+Binoic+commando.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 17. Bionic Commando An extendable arm, and a gun. It was a really cool game. Long, hard, interesting, had twists and turns. Haven’t played it in 15 years, but when I did, it was always one of my favorites. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801875047-J64KXJNPZ4F7PP4K4FMT/NES+16+NEMO.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 16. Little Nemo: Dream Master Even though he jumped like a little homo, he would be able to ride moles, frogs, lizards, all this cool stuff through some seriously tripped out stages. You’d have to find keys, and feed candy to monsters. It was a dream world, and one of the staples of the NES system. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806938858-ZPXCYP5SS0FNEB0YVLLE/NES+15+Casino+Kid.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 15. Casino Kid The game that got me into poker. This game was so addictive, if it weren’t for the 600 letter passwords, I would have beat the King (last boss) so many times. It taught you how to play blackjack and poker, with fun characters and building your bankroll to get to a million. I still remember spike. Fuckin’ hated that guy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520807007930-4M2TERDRKLWWBILT4YS0/NES+14+BATTLECITY.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 14. Battle Tanks I played this game more than any other 2 player game on NES. Upgrading your tank to get the gun that can shoot through metal was so cool. All the upgrades you could get while protecting your base from enemy fire was wicked. So many stages, I never actually finished the game. Another one where there are no continues, you have to be good. And I was good… but never saw the end. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806781750-UPCJWKTU4JIM0MWV1LJX/NES+13+Vball.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 13. Super Spike V-Ball Who ever would have thought a volley-ball game would be fun. Well, this one was amazing. You could pick your team of strong guys, fast guys, defensive guys, average guys, and then travel the world beating the best volley-ball teams there are. Super attacks, diving plays, and shit it gets hard in the later goings. A sensational sports game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801853684-7MP8Q6Q2QSY4WB5LTYTT/NES+12+ducktales.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 12. Ducktales A very fun experience. Fun soundtrack, really good controls; it’s Mega Man for kids. There’s not much more to say about this other than, it was just, fun! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801837364-GIVW6NWE8AZM0JRW3YBL/NES+11+megaman3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 11. Mega Man 3 The exact same as all the other Mega Man’s, but with one HUGE different. He can slide! Adding the slide ability added a whole new dimension to the Mega Man franchise. It added a bit more skill to the game. He characters were really cool, Gemini Man, Snake Man, Pharaoh Man, really neat bosses. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801819818-5Z4DNPCSEMPZ2PFQWGKC/NES+10+SMB3.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 10. Super Mario Bros 3 The top 10. Super Maro Bros 3?! Yeah, this game was awesome, but I always felt it was over hyped. It was a lot of fun, but when it came down to it, it was just like number one except you can get a feather and the useless frog. The ability to move through stages, to castles, wild cards, toad’s hut, and use flutes and hammers was amazing. This game is flawless, but, not the most fun, and memorable in my opinion. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520802274609-2WDYC6FHSAOJVHPELX6D/NES+ninja+gaidenhuh.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 9. Ninja Gaiden Side scrolling ninja named Ryu who can get ninja star upgrades and jump off walls; need I say anymore? This game was so fuckin’ hard I don’t even know where to start. You get to the last level, and it’s in 2 parts. You get to the second part (which takes forever) and that’s fine, when you die, you start again at the 2nd part, but when you get to the last boss and die, you think it would send you back to the beginning of the second park right? WRONG. It sends you back to the beginning of the level. WTF?! So hard, so rewarding, amazing story line, awesome cut scenes, better music, incredible game play, and you’re a ninja named Ryu. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520807022678-UXOCZOWOBYNU9CI0QJYX/NES+8+BAD+NEWS.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 8. Bad News Baseball Even with the graphics now a days, this is still the top 3 baseball game ever made. With around 10 teams to choose from, with all fictional characters (I know these characters better than actual MLB ones) cartoonish graphics, and surprisingly responsive gameplay, this game has eaten up more than my fair share of days trying to be the champ. The cheat to unlock the girls league was awesome too. So much fun. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801801793-FT2OA5ZXMPDI8MITOWIL/NES+7+Faxanadu.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 7. Faxanadu RPG? This was the defining RPG of Nintendo. Huge, and deep, the storyline pulls you in with a simple quest. Our castle is crumbling, we’ve lost everything, here’s a 1000 gold. Please go and save our kingdom. You’re sent out on a quest where you get upgraded weapons, armour, potions, shields, magic, huge bosses, complicated quests, intricate levels, keys, and trolls. This game is huge, hard, and an absolute must play for RPG fans. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801786343-0N7M6K4GARZ4JIG5RRLZ/NES+6+link.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 6. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link Quite possibly one of the biggest changes to its predecessor ever made. The original Zelda was a top down adventure very simple, and enjoyable. This game turned into a side scroller, and takes forever to beat. Experience, level ups, awesome magic, amazing items, bosses from Knights, to Dragons, (and then one of the coolest last bosses) and some of the best music to go into a video game. You just feel so right when playing this game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801768661-T1RIF4FH0XUJLK0A7YXC/NES+5+MEGA+MAN2.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 5. Mega Man 2 The whole sound track is an anthem. The mini bosses are amazing, Dr. Wily’s stages are incredible, the gameplay is top notch, the concept is fantastic, and the execution is fuckin’ perfection. Talk about one of the best games on Nintendo, but one of the best games ever made. It’s a 10/10 for just about every criteria you can name. The music though, resonates throughout video game history as the best. Hands down. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520806858862-477UFYPZ60FA9XB2O66M/NES+4+punchout.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 4. Mike Tyson’s Punch Out!! The characters are so fun, and enjoyable, Glass Joe, Bald Bull, King Hippo, Mr. Sandman, they’re all in a class of their own, all with unique attacks, and again, an awesome soundtrack to play with. Then there’s Mike Tyson. Beating him is like solving the question “why?”. He is so hard, that it’s impossible to beat him first try. Once you get past the first round, it’s not that bad, but man, good luck getting by the first round. The last time I beat him, I through the controller down and ran outside ala Rocky. I never felt so proud…. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801744204-3X8YLZH10H4MVYYLJC0H/NES+3+kid+icarus.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 3. Kid Icarus The most under-rated, underappreciated game of Nintendo. This game was fuckin’ awesome. The last boss is Medusa, and you can get an egg plant stuck on your head and need to go to a hospital to get it off. You get awesome upgrades, battle really hard dungeons, buy maps, pencils, pens. This game is a complete package, and one that you remember after finishing it for years and years. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801718421-IFLLPHHTF4FEAKRLI4HS/NES+2+zelda.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 2. The Legend of Zelda Doesn’t get much better than this game. The first, the classic, the original, and one of the best of the franchise. A huge map to explore, so many little secrets to unveil, and a catalyst for so many other games. Amazing soundtrack, cool save system (which never works) and requires so much recalling of where the fuck the 5th stage was, or where the master sword is located. The Legend of Zelda. It’s my desktop wallpaper on my computer, it’s that fuckin’ good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59af62f76f4ca3de31c17a91/1520801696651-VWGOR81F99O1XGN5660C/NES+1+metroid.jpg TOP LISTS - ALLAN'S TOP 50 NES GAMES 1. Metroid Best game ever made on NES. It has just about everything a game could ask for. It takes forever to finish, and when you finish it, you feel like taking a nap because it’s that epic. The best mini bosses ever in game – Ridley and Kraid. This game single handedly brings me back to my NES at least once a year. 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