Dean's Film Reviews, the top ten

0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

The best and the worst.

Here's a round up of the 10 best and 10 worst films that are reviewed on this site:

Ten winners:

Alien (1979), dir: Ridley Scott.
Both the best Science Fiction and best Horror film of all time, Alien is packed with nerve-jangling terror, spine-chilling suspence, that birth scene and a wonderfully dystopian vision of future coporate power. Plus there's a terrifying alien. What else could you want?

Airplane (1980), dir: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker.
Perhaps the greatest US comedy film of all time, 'Airplane' virtualy invented the spoof genre and delivered more gags-per-minute than any film before or since.

Dr Strangelove (1964), dir: Stanley Kubrik.
Easily the cleverest and funniest political spoof of all time, Kubrik's classic showcases Peter Sellar's acting talents as much as it does the insanity of using nuclear weapons as a method of 'defending' the realm.

Goodfellas (1990), dir: Martin Scorsese.
Scorsese's epic film about one man's rise and fall in the American Mafia is as beautiful as it is powerful. Possibly the best gangster film of all time.

Kes (1969), dir: Ken Loach.
One of the finest British films ever made, Kes tells a heart-rendingly emotional tale in which a boy's dreams are snatched away from him by an uncaring world.

Lord of the Rings, the fellowship of the ring (2001), dir: Peter Jackson.
Peter Jackson brought new life to the fantasy genre with this spectacular epic in which incredible special effects were used to bring Tolkien's classic novel to the big screen. It wasn't all about the flash-bang though, LoTR had a heart that few could deny falling in love with.

Manhattan (1979), dir: Woody Allen.
Woody Allen's biography of a city is almost lyrical in its use of imagery and music to get to the heart of what makes New York great. There's plenty of Allen's trademark dour comedy too.

Monty Python's The Life of Brian (1979), dir: Terry Jones
The best thing the Python team ever did, The Life of Brian is a wonderful spoof of just about everyone and anything anyone has ever found sacred. Just perfect in its iconoclasm, this film is endlessly watchable and full of genius comic moments.

Pulp Fiction (1994), dir: Quentin Tarantino.
A fantastically multi-layered and densely plotted post modern gangster film that re-juvinated more than one career while starting a number of others. Can be watched again and again without becoming dull, simply the best movie of the 1990s.

This is Spinal Tap (1984), dir: Rob Reiner.
A brilliant comedy which also launched a genre of storytelling, This is Spinal Tap is a landmark in film making and one of the funniest films you will ever see whether you are into rock music or not.

Ten Losers:

Baise Moi (2000), dir: Virginie Despentes.
Nothing more than a porn film dressed up as art, 'Baise Moi' is certainly not the women's liberation piece some critics have made it out to be.

Daredevil (2003), dir: Mark Steven Johnson.
Just stupid and senseless with no characterisation and bad dialogue, this film embodies all that can be bad in the comic book genre.

Demolition Man (1993), dir: Marco Brambilla.
Sylvestor Stallone can't act, this film has no plot and is simple dire.

For your eyes only (1981), dir: John Glen.
The worst of the Bond genre, this film has all of the series' the worst clichés with awfully cheesey lines and horrifically bad supporting performances.

Grease (1978), dir: Randal Kleiser.
Just about the most irritating film ever made, I can't think of anything worst than American teenagers moaning.

Hawk the Slayer (1980), dir: Terry Marcel.
Embodies everything that can be bad about the fantasy genre and makes you wish that no-one had ever come up with the concept of Elves and Dwarfs and fantastic realms.

Paycheck (2003), dir: John Woo.
Possibly the most inconsistantly plotted and unscientific science fiction film of all time, it makes you wonder why Uma Thurman is a film star.

Plan nine from outer space (1959), dir: Edward Wood.
The original and worst bad film of all time. No plot, awful acting, no effects and dismal dialogue conspire to make this the absolute worst in the history of cinema.

The Rules of Attraction (2002), dir: Roger Avary.
One of the only films I have ever walked out of, 'The Rules of Attraction' is trying far too hard to be clever and ends up being tedious and annoying.

The Thin Red Line (1998), dir: Terrence Malick.
Mind-bendingly terrible in it pomposity and mawkishness, Terrence Malick's war movie is historically unfounded, irritatingly cast and downright boring.

Alien (1979), dir: Ridley Scott. Both the best Science Fiction and best Horror film of all time, Alien is packed with nerve-jangling terror, spine-chilling suspence, that birth scene and a wonderfully dystopian vision of future coporate power. Plus there's a terrifying alien. What else could you want?
Airplane (1980), dir: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker. Perhaps the greatest US comedy film of all time, 'Airplane' virtualy invented the spoof genre and delivered more gags-per-minute than any film before or since.
Dr Strangelove (1964), dir: Stanley Kubrik. Easily the cleverest and funniest political spoof of all time, Kubrik's classic showcases Peter Sellar's acting talents as much as it does the insanity of using nuclear weapons as a method of 'defending' the realm.
Goodfellas (1990), dir: Martin Scorsese. Scorsese's epic film about one man's rise and fall in the American Mafia is as beautiful as it is powerful. Possibly the best gangster film of all time.
Kes (1969), dir: Ken Loach. One of the finest British films ever made, Kes tells a heart-rendingly emotional tale in which a boy's dreams are snatched away from him by an uncaring world.
Lord of the Rings, the fellowship of the ring (2001), dir: Peter Jackson. Peter Jackson brought new life to the fantasy genre with this spectacular epic in which incredible special effects were used to bring Tolkien's classic novel to the big screen. It wasn't all about the flash-bang though, LoTR had a heart that few could deny falling in love with.
Manhattan (1979), dir: Woody Allen. Woody Allen's biography of a city is almost lyrical in its use of imagery and music to get to the heart of what makes New York great. There's plenty of Allen's trademark dour comedy too.
Monty Python's The Life of Brian (1979), dir: Terry Jones The best thing the Python team ever did, The Life of Brian is a wonderful spoof of just about everyone and anything anyone has ever found sacred. Just perfect in its iconoclasm, this film is endlessly watchable and full of genius comic moments.
Pulp Fiction (1994), dir: Quentin Tarantino. A fantastically multi-layered and densely plotted post modern gangster film that re-juvinated more than one career while starting a number of others. Can be watched again and again without becoming dull, simply the best movie of the 1990s.
This is Spinal Tap (1984), dir: Rob Reiner. A brilliant comedy which also launched a genre of storytelling, This is Spinal Tap is a landmark in film making and one of the funniest films you will ever see whether you are into rock music or not.

Baise Moi (2000), dir: Virginie Despentes. Nothing more than a porn film dressed up as art, 'Baise Moi' is certainly not the women's liberation piece some critics have made it out to be.
Daredevil (2003), dir: Mark Steven Johnson. Just stupid and senseless with no characterisation and bad dialogue, this film embodies all that can be bad in the comic book genre.
Demolition Man (1993), dir: Marco Brambilla. Sylvestor Stallone can't act, this film has no plot and is simple dire.
For your eyes only (1981), dir: John Glen. The worst of the Bond genre, this film has all of the series' the worst clichés with awfully cheesey lines and horrifically bad supporting performances.
Grease (1978), dir: Randal Kleiser. Just about the most irritating film ever made, I can't think of anything worst than American teenagers moaning.
Hawk the Slayer (1980), dir: Terry Marcel. Embodies everything that can be bad about the fantasy genre and makes you wish that no-one had ever come up with the concept of Elves and Dwarfs and fantastic realms.
Paycheck (2003), dir: John Woo. Possibly the most inconsistantly plotted and unscientific science fiction film of all time, it makes you wonder why Uma Thurman is a film star.
Plan nine from outer space (1959), dir: Edward Wood. The original and worst bad film of all time. No plot, awful acting, no effects and dismal dialogue conspire to make this the absolute worst in the history of cinema.
The Rules of Attraction (2002), dir: Roger Avary. One of the only films I have ever walked out of, 'The Rules of Attraction' is trying far too hard to be clever and ends up being tedious and annoying.
The Thin Red Line (1998), dir: Terrence Malick. Mind-bendingly terrible in it pomposity and mawkishness, Terrence Malick's war movie is historically unfounded, irritatingly cast and downright boring.