Still Playing Catch Up

95. The Last Picture Show (1971)- If only I could get this movie out of my head! Except for the fun of seeing a very young Cybill Shepard, Randy Quaid, Cloris Leachman, and Jeff Bridges this movie is a bust! The synopsis makes a viewer think it is going to be a good ole' small town movie about a picture show going out of business... nope. It is about adultery, family dysfunction (cybill's character sleeps with the man her mother is having an affair with... and tries to get with a whole bunch of other people as well), death, alcohol, war, and small town blues. Oh, and it also included unnecessary boobage (once from a scene with a whole bunch of teens in a naked pool party... not as fun as it sounds). Two Thumbs Down!

94. Pulp Fiction (1994)- If you like Quentin Tarantino, you will like Pulp Fiction. I for one am kind tired of his obsession with the Samaria sword, but Bruce Willis kicking butt of some nasty, prejudice, red-neck molesters was fun. John Travolta is always a fav (minus some of his later movie picks) and Samuel L. was a hoot. Yes, it was violent... but Quentin always makes it fun. If you like Kill Bill... you'll like this one. Also this was the second movie on the countdown that included Samuel L. Jackson (first was as a DJ in Do the Right Thing). This movie gets a Thumbs Up from me!

93. The French Connection (1971)- Following a Quentin Tarantino flick, this movie makes you think that it is where he got his inspiration. It is a true story about a drug deal from France, hence the name. The first scene is a guy who gets shot right in the face! That will wake you up! The rest of it was kind of a snooze fest! Gene Hackman was cranky and I prefer Roy Scheider in Jaws. There a famous chase scene which lasted too long and the movie was gloomy. I guess they made a sequel... not a surprise to me that it didn't make the list. A Big Thumbs Down!

92. Goodfellas (1990)- Watching a movie a week from this list can really warp your opinions. If I saw this movie and was not watching the list, I wouldn't care for it too much. However, compared to some of the movies before it, it wasn't that bad. Yes it was violent, and drug-filled and Ray Liotta turned into a big bummer... but other than that it wasn't too bad. I prefer Joe Pesci as cousin Vinny and a nicer Robert De Niro... but we can't get our way all the time. This was also the third time Samuel L. showed his face on the list. However, he didn't last long in this movie. If you want to be a drugged up gangsta... this movie is for you! No Thumbs Up or Down... it just gets a Hand.

91. Sophie's Choice (1982)- Now, I love Meryl Streep. I love movies about the Holocaust. Therefore, it isn't a shocker that I had seen this movie before. It is also not a shocker... that I blocked most of it out. If someone really did go through the Holocaust and have to choose a child to die, and then never saw their other one (which I am sure really happened) I am sure they turned out like Sophie in this movie. She would be emotionally damaged, date a mean Kevin Kline and end up in horrible, emotionally dysfunctional life. Not one of my favs for the big screen. I can see how it is a classic and Meryl did AMAZING. However... I prefer Kevin Kline in romantic comedies and the narrator, Peter MacNicol as the weird museum guy in Ghostbusters 2. Big Thumbs Down!

90. Swing Time (1936)- I like older movies, and surprisingly I had never seen a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers movie before. So I was excited! If they had kept dancing the whole time, I would have liked it a lot more. The whole thing was rather odd to me. Fred was going through a major crisis having missed his wedding and needing to get a ton of money to win back his fiance. However, he never let a smile leave his face. Big surprise that he doesn't wed his fiance and falls madly in love with Ginger's character. In reality everyone should have been pissed off and stressed through this entire movie... and it ended with everyone laughing! Including the man that supposedly loved Ginger's character and was broken up with 5 seconds before the credits rolled. It was upbeat and the dancing was awesome... but they should have just kept dancing! Another No Thumbs Up and No Thumbs Down... just a Hand.


more catching up to do tomorrow...