Category: <span>Top Rated</span>

From Gehrig to The Natural

Baseball’s proud claim to be the National Pastime has taken jarring hits from pro football and basketball in recent years. But neither of those sports can compete when it comes to providing the subject matter for some of America’s finest and most memorable movies.

In Oscar history, many fine actresses were never given Academy Awards for best actress. A few were eventually given other awards for their contributions to film.

Best Action Movies of All Time is a list of my top ten action movies. Like any true top ten list, I have included films that I have a personal connection with.

I grew up during the ’80s which was dominated by action films. As a child, my initial love for cinema bloomed through films such as ’Bloodsport’, ‘Commando’, ‘Predator’, ‘Aliens’, and a host of others.

This list of 10 Good Horror Movies is like any true top ten list. It is of personal taste as opposed to critical acclaim.

Some of the films to follow, would not feature on many top 10 lists or perhaps be classed as horror at all. For me, a ‘good horror film’, taps into the viewer’s psyche by delving into the primal fears that lie within us all. This may include a sense of isolation, knowing, but not seeing, unable to escape what awaits or makes us question life after death.

Science fiction films have plots revolving around interstellar travel, alien spaceships, extraterrestrial visits, robots, time travel or highly developed mind power. Of course, there is little or no relation to the existing scientific knowledge. It is basically an exploration of possibilities. Film makers chose this genre very early in the history of films. As early as 1902, Georges Melies entertained audiences with A Trip to the Moon. Science fiction movies are often based on books and often comment on politics or actual social conditions within the backdrop of science fiction. Jurassic Park, Inception and Star Trek (2009) are a few of the popular movies that belong to this genre but are treated very differently.

Drama is a genre that offers wide scope for experimentation in movies and that is the reason perhaps that most nominations for Best Picture awards come from this genre. Usually drama deals with the emotional dilemmas of people which we come across every day. It is usually achieved by in depth characterization. Themes around which dramatic movies have been constructed ranges from racial discrimination to infidelity but basically dramas revolve around a crucial moment of conflict.

International Film festivals have played a prominent role in garnering interest in world films. Festivals such as Cannes Film Festival, Berlinale and Toronto Film Festival have been longstanding. These Film Festivals have given a platform to many good films which would otherwise have gone unnoticed. Renowned directors, actors and producers grace the event with their presence and huge corporate sponsors promoting their brands do not miss rubbing off some glitter from these star studded events.

But the age old wisdom of all that glitters not being gold holds true for these festivals. Time and again, these festivals are marred by controversies ranging from choice of films to be screened to women artists not being awarded.

So I went through and did my ton ten favorite TV Villains a couple of weeks back and I figured I’d do my Top Ten Favorite Movie Villains! Now I don’t watch horror movies so there are no horror movie villains included in this list. But I do watch a lot of Sci-fi and Fantasy! So here is my list.