The Red Circle

Ryan’s Top Ten Movies
By Ryan Brlecic

Too often we forget the why portion in our obsessions and hobbies. We get jaded or soft in our opinions and neglect what came before. More often than not we need to go back to the well and replenish. Rather than bore you with a typical critic pissing contest of a top ten films list, I will instead regale you with a top ten movies list (note the difference). What follows is the High Fidelity approach to calling out the movies that I unabashedly love to watch and could give a damn if you feel the same. This is not about defending your critical integrity. This is about wearing your heart on your sleeve and loving the movies that love you back. Trust me folks, I could have rattle off a top ten that reads like any fanboys. Chock full of safe bet blockbusters like Star Wars and Jaws. However this is about the films your taking to that desert island, being buried with, or being inspired by.

Enjoy!

1. The Good The Bad The Ugly – Sergio Leone’s best film is Once Upon A Time in America; this is Sergio Leone’s masterpiece.

2. Dawn of the Dead – George Romero’s zenith and hands down best depiction of a world overrun by zombies…at the mall.

3. Blazing Saddles – Racism is ironic. Irony is funny and always will be. This is Satire at its very best. Mel Brook’s masterpiece still stands as the funniest movie this country has ever produced.

4. Goodfellas - As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.

5. North by Northwest – I am not George Kaplan, but I always wanted to be. The model for all adventure thrillers.

6. Carnival of Souls – Herk Harvey made one film. He made the best damn American independent horror film ever. Black and white phantasmagoria at it’s best.

7. Duck Soup – Before you were brought In the Loop, The Marx Brothers wrote the book on government’s utter ridiculousness.

8. Army of Darkness – Yeah, Evil Dead was better, but this is Bruce Campbell’s awesome clip tape. The Internet grew in the early 90’s as a place to house Ash .wav files and porn.

9. Condorman - Cinematic masturbation and pure imagination. Walter Mitty be damned.

10. Die Hard – The first action movie I ever remember seeing, and the last damn action movie anyone ever needs to see.

Included are my B-Sides in keeping with the High Fidelity theme.

B-Sides (in no particular order): Raiders of the Lost Ark, Charade, Night of the Creeps, Big Trouble Little China, House on Haunted Hill (1959), Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, Seconds, The Mechanic, The Great Escape, and Blade Runner

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