My Favorite Movies -- Alien (1979)

Visually stunning, creepy, incredible. The best sci-fi horror flick ever. As much as I love Aliens, the original Alien is still the real deal for me. It is at-heart a horror movie, a slasher in a haunted house. There are several elements that really set Alien apart.

A. Art direction and cinematography. Gorgeous and unbelievably creative/innovative. The partnership with HR Geiger was a perfect choice.

B. Acting. No better array of actors have ever been in one sci-fi movie together... arguably horror either. Whoever cast this movie... gets a raise.

C. Alien design. Evolving, surprising, and iconic.


D. Direction. Ridley scott at near his best... or maybe tied for his best.

My Favorite Movies -- Star Wars (1977)

Ok, I really shouldn't have to explain this, so instead I'll just give some context. When Star Wars was first released I was 12. 12 year-old-boy meets Star Wars... and love ensues. I saw it in the theater on its original run 7 times. There is no need to discuss all of the great scenes in Star Wars, you've all seen it. I will, however, commend the original Star Wars lack of CGI and lack of shiny new spaceships and the lack of a bloated George Lucas with no creative spark and finally a lack of "a new hope."

Original crawl http://youtube.com/watch?v=iiNQc4RomWE

Oh, and the original star wars has freaking Peter Cushing. Note, Peter Cushing was always cooler than Christopher Lee (Wicker Man excluded).

My Favorite Movies - 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Ok, I know this is totally a love-it/hate-it sort of movie. I know it's long, self-indulgent, and mostly plotless. I still love it.

Anytime I come across it on tv I watch a huge chunk of it. The set design, art direction, music/sound design, cinematography, and special effects are groundbreakingly brilliant. These special effects still hold up 40 YEARS later. Just think about that the next time you watch 2001.... it's 40 years old. Amazing. I love the audacity of the film structure. I love the hypnotic (many say boring) pace. Many scenes are just jaw-droppingly beautiful... most notably the entire "open the pod bay doors, HAL" sequence.

Dawn of Man http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML1OZCHixR0

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uU4TQ1NTo50&feature=related