Directors SteveGon's "Favorite Movies from His DVD Collection" Tournament (1 Viewer)

[SteveGon]

Round 1 - Bracket 25

The "mismatched men" matchup

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein vs. Of Mice and Men (1939)


Round 1 - Bracket 26

The "soul searching" matchup (and it's a tough one)

The Sweet Hereafter vs. Wings of Desire


Round 1 - Bracket 27

The "Vietnam f****d me up, man!" matchup (a heart-breaking contest for me)

The Ninth Configuration vs. Targets


Round 1 - Bracket 28

The "scientists sticking to their guns" matchup

Contact vs. Angels and Insects

 

[Jim_K]

Abstain - no Of Mice and Men
The Sweet Hereafter - I guess. Really didn't care much for Wings of Desire.
Abstain - don't remember much about Ninth Configuration
Abstain - never even heard of Angels and Insects

 

[SteveGon]

Comments:

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein is the greatest horror/comedy ever. 'Nuff said!

Of Mice and Men '39 is the best adaptation of Steinbeck's story, IMHO. Lon Chaney is perfect as Lenny.

The Sweet Hereafter is Atom Egoyan's best film, I'm sure most of us are familiar with it.

Wings of Desire is arguably Wim Wender's finest film, the story of two angels wandering Berlin and musing on what it would be like to be human. Somber, pensive, but ultimately hopeful. A great film.

The Ninth Configuration stars Stacy Keach as the head of an army psychiatric facility for trouble Vietnam vets. He has his own internal problems, possibly related to his brother, the infamous soldier "Killer" Kane...

Targets is the more-relevant-than-ever tale of a clean cut suburban man who goes on a shooting spree. Told in a matter of fact manner, it's a sobering experience (double-bill it with Elephant). Boris Karloff is featured in his last, great role.

Contact - We're all familiar with this one. Pretty good cerebral sci-fi tale from the Carl Sagan novel, though the edited-in footage of real people (ala Forrest Gump) could have been left out. The character of Ellie Arroway is a helluva better role model for young women than Brittney Spears.

Angels and Insects features Mark Rylance as a biologist who, on the outs after a failed expedition, takes a job cataloging a wealthy man's extensive collection of biological specimens. He falls in love with his benefactor's daughter which doesn't sit well with her sleazy brother. Based on a novella by A.S. Byatt.

 

[george kaplan]

Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein

Triple Abstain

I've actually seen both in the 2nd pairing, but feel that both are terribly overrated, and really don't care which wins.

 

[Brook K]

abstain, I've only see The Sweet Herafter

 

[Elizabeth S]

Wings of Desire
The Ninth Configuration

 

[Walter Kittel]

The Sweet Hereafter
Angels and Insects

- Walter.

 

[Agee Bassett]

Of Mice and Men
Abstain
Abstain
Abstain

 

[John C. Wilson]

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
The Sweet Hereafter
Targets
Contact

 

[Bill McA]

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
The Sweet Hereafter
Targets
Angels and Insects

 

[Arman]

Wings of Desire (very tough! TSH is also profoundly moving and devastatingly terrific film. BTW, the mediocre Hollywood remake City of Angels does'nt hold a candle to the original. Puhleeeez!)
Contact

 

[SteveGon]

My votes:

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein - Very tough.
The Sweet Hereafter - Could have gone either way; TSW gets the vote to avoid a tie.
Targets - Ditto.
Contact - So says the coin toss since I couldn't decide.



Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein wins 4 -1.
The Sweet Hereafter wins 5 - 3.
Targets wins 3 - 1.
Contact wins 3 - 2.


Round 1 - Bracket 29

Enter the Dragon vs. The Lair of the White Worm


Round 1 - Bracket 30

Champagne for Caesar vs. Grand Hotel


Round 1 - Bracket 31

Mad Dog and Glory vs. Little Odessa


Round 1 - Bracket 32

Immortal Beloved vs. The Gods Must Be Crazy

 

[Jim_K]

Enter the Dragon - but I also liked The Lair of the White Worm in a weird sort of way.
Abstain - no Champagne for Caesar
Abstain - not sure if I've seen Little Odessa
Immortal Beloved

 

[SteveGon]

Comments:

Enter the Dragon - Don't really need to say anything about this martial arts classic.

The Lair of the White Worm is a kooky little horror flick based on a short story by Bram Stoker. A big, hungry, albino invertebrate plus Amanda Donohoe as its naked high priestess equals great fun.

Champagne for Caesar stars Ronald Colman and Vincent Price in this fifties comedy that takes an early potshot at television.

Grand Hotel - One of the great films of the thirties. You can't beat that cast!

Mad Dog and Glory stars Robert DeNiro and Bill Murray. Bob is a milquetoast cop, Bill is a mobster who'd rather be a stand-up comic. Uma Thurman is the hottie who comes between them. Better than you'd think.

Little Odessa stars Tim Roth as a hitman who returns home to Little Odessa - only home is a dangerous place. Very depressing, but very well-done.

Immortal Beloved - Gary Oldman IS Beethoven. No better or worse than other artist biopics, but this was a labor of love for director Bernard Rose and it shows.

The Gods Must Be Crazy - An African tribesman, ignorant of Western society, believes a discarded Coke bottle to be a gift from the gods. Hilarious slapstick situations ensue. Some believe this denigrates such people, but I say nay.

 

[Brook K]

abstain again

Only seen Enter The Dragon and Gods Must Be Crazy

 

[Zen Butler]

Enter the Dragon
Abstain
Abstain
Immortal Beloved

 

[Walter Kittel]

Immortal Beloved - A film that I enjoy immensely.

- Walter.

 

[Elizabeth S]

Immortal Beloved

 

[george kaplan]

Triple Abstain

The Gods Must Be Crazy

 

[Arman]

abstain