Brief justifications Part II

Oldboy: This was probably one of the most surreal and sickening movies I've ever seen this side of David Lynch. Featuring compelling performances from Korean actors I've never heard of, director Park Chan-Wook's most popular film is full of style, action, and bizarre storytelling. This movie's quite a trip, but it pulls it off extremely well. Plus, the ending is all kinds of fucked up.

Raging Bull: Some argue that Taxi Driver is Scorsese's best work. I certainly don't disagree that that was several kinds of amazing, but Raging Bull is the textbook definition of character study done well. And it's Robert De Niro in the title role, how can you lose? Shot in crisp black and white, perhaps to emphasize the brutality of boxing, Raging Bull is the raw, unadulterated, all-grown-up version of Rocky. No montages here, just brutal beatdowns and the inner conflict of a horrible yet sympathetic human being.

WALL-E: There is no movie sweeter than WALL-E. I challenge you to find one. You couldn't? I figured as much! Drawing on the charms of the silent film, Andrew Stanton's love story between two adorable robots, one a curious, lonely, and caring trash compactor unit and the other a slick, badass, bounty-hunting vegetation evaluator, is funny, heartfelt, and just generally awesome. There's some half-baked subtext in there too, but I was too busy watching the robots dance in space to pay attention to it. Also, Jeff Garlin as a fat space captain. How fitting.

The Shawshank Redemption: This movie is a little heavy-handed in its message, but you can overlook that for the amazing performances from Morgan Freeman, Tim Robbins, and that bastard Bob Gunton. Even though it's a bit unrealistic, the ending will have you singing with the birds for days, which is impressive for a prison film. That Stephen King whore Frank Darabont sure knows how to make a good movie.

Fargo: This is easily one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. The Coens' dark and dry masterpiece hits all the right notes with a hilarious cast. The film is kind of a study of Minnesotan culture as well with outrageous accents all over the place (The prostitute interrogation scene had me doubled over). Like most Coens' films, it's also ridiculously violent, which goes perfectly with the wry script.

PS. Who the fuck still honestly reads this? I just spent two rambly entries shamelessly promoting myself for no adequate reason. You'd think you people would have better things to do than indulge my narcissistic whims. But the fact that you do means I love you.