>> FEATURE PRESENTATION
★ THE MATRIX (1999) ★
"Welcome to the Real World." — Morpheus
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The Wachowskis dropped a BOMB. Keanu Reeves as Neo, Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus, Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity. Bullet time, leather trench coats, the red pill vs. blue pill dilemma, and the most quotable dialogue of the year. The lobby shootout? Iconic. The rooftop dojo? Transcendent. The soundtrack (Don Davis + Rage Against the Machine)? Chef's kiss.
FAVORITE QUOTES:
"Unfortunately, no one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself." — Morpheus
"I know kung fu." — Neo
"Dodge this." — Agent Smith
>> THE NEW HOTNESS (2002)
SPIDER-MAN (2002)
Tobey Maguire. Kirsten Dunst. Willem Dafoe's GREEN GOBLIN. This is the movie I waited my WHOLE childhood for and it did NOT disappoint. The web-swinging through New York? The upside-down kiss in the rain? "With great power comes great responsibility." Uncle Ben, you are not forgotten. Saw it three times in theaters, would've been five if my allowance allowed.
"My spidey-sense is tingling." — Peter Parker, before everything goes wrong
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS (2002)
Helm's Deep. THAT is all I have to say. No wait — also: Gollum is the best CGI character ever put on film, and the Ents are the best thing Peter Jackson ever gave us. Three hours long and I did not blink. The Battle of Helm's Deep made the Battle of Pelennor look like a scuffle (wait, that's book-only, don't worry about it).
"There's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for." — Samwise Gamgee
>> THE WALL OF CINEMA — REVIEWS
PULP FICTION (1994)
Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece. John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis. Non-linear storytelling, dance contests, Royale with Cheese, the Gimp, the Bible verse before each kill. The Jack Rabbit Slim's scene alone is worth the rental. "Say 'what' again, I dare you!"
"It's the little details that make a movie great."
FIGHT CLUB (1999)
Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter. The first rule is... wait, you know the rest. Soap, paper-mâché, Project Mayhem. "I AM JACK'S RAGING BILLOW OF FURY." A treatise on consumerism, masculinity, and the millennial condition. Chuck Palahniuk's novel is a worthy companion.
"It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."
THE BIG LEBOWSKI (1998)
The Coen Brothers. Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski. White Russians, bowling, a rug that really tied the room together. John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, John Turturro as Jesus Quintana. "This is not 'Nam. This is bowling. There are rules."
"Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man."
TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991)
James Cameron. Arnie. Liquid metal Robert Patrick. The T-1000 is the most terrifying villain of the decade. The highway chase? The steel mill? Linda Hamilton's arms? "Hasta la vista, baby." The CGI was groundbreaking — then came Jar Jar Binks and we learned what real evil looks like.
BLADE RUNNER (1982 / 1992 Director's Cut)
Ridley Scott. Harrison Ford hunting replicants in 2019 L.A. Vangelis's score still gives me chills. "I've seen things you people wouldn't believe..." Roy Batty's tears in rain monologue is THE most beautiful villain death in cinema. The Director's Cut fixed the ending — no more forced happy Hollywood bullshit.
"It's too bad she won't live! But then again, who does?"
JURASSIC PARK (1993)
Spielberg. Crichton. Dinosaurs. The T-Rex breakout scene had me hiding behind the couch at 4 years old. Jeff Goldblum's shirtless pose? Chef's kiss. The CGI was light-years ahead of its time, and the animatronics still hold up. "It's a UNIX system! I know this!" — pre-9/11 hacking optimism.
HACKERS (1995)
Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie, Matthew Lillard. Zero Cool / Crash Override. The Gibson. Rollerblading. Acid Burn. The Plague. "Hack the planet!" Technically the hacking is RIDICULOUS but who cares, it's a vibe. This movie got me into computers. "Goddamn. Sex still has a price." Huh?
STAR WARS TRILOGY (Special Edition, 1997)
Han shot first, damnit. Greedo's blaster bolt was added in post and we all know Lucas ruined our childhood. The SEs had cool new effects but at what cost? Then Attack of the Clones happened in 2002 and... let's just not talk about it. The original trilogy is still the benchmark. "I am your father." (NO SPOILERS — it's 2003, everyone knows.)
BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY
Marty McFly, Doc Brown, 1.21 gigawatts, the DeLorean. 88 mph through time. "Where we're going, we don't need roads." The Johnny B. Goode scene? INSPIRED a generation of guitar players (badly). Biff's tan. The Enchantment Under The Sea Dance. "If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything."
INDEPENDENCE DAY (1996)
Will Smith punching an alien. Randy Quaid kamikazeing a fighter jet. Jeff Goldblum uploading a virus to a mothership on a 90s Mac. "Welcome to Earth!" The White House explosion was a "remember where you were" moment for the summer of '96.
THE FIFTH ELEMENT (1997)
Luc Besson. Milla Jovovich in orange bandages. Gary Oldman chewing scenery. Bruce Willis being Bruce Willis. Chris Tucker screaming. "Leeloo Dallas Multipass." Opera scene. Diva Plavalaguna. The best sci-fi actioner of the decade. The font alone is iconic.
GHOSTBUSTERS (1984) & GHOSTBUSTERS II (1989)
"Who you gonna call?" Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson. Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Ectoplasm. Crossing the streams. The Vigo painting. Slimer. "I love this town!" ABSOLUTELY. EXCELLENT.
>> THE REEL VAULT — HONORABLE MENTIONS
>> THE KILLER QUOTE BOARD
Yoda, Empire Strikes Back: "Do or do not. There is no try."
Ash, Alien: "I prefer the term 'artificial person' myself."
Patrick Bateman, American Psycho: "I have to return some videotapes."
Keyser Söze, The Usual Suspects: "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."
Doc Brown, Back to the Future: "Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads."
Gollum, LOTR: "My precioussss..." (TWO movies so far, actually. Both amazing.)