Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 19. Innerspace (1987)

19. Innerspace [DVD]  (1987)

Plot: Vector Scope has chosen Lieutenant Tuck Penelton (Dennis Quaid), for a miniaturization program. The experiment is compromised when the chip making it all possible is stolen.

Pendelton, already miniaturized and inside a syringe, is saved by a scientist who flees the building. When he realizes he’s being followed, he, in an effort to save Tuck’s life, injects him into the body of paranoid local store cashier Jack Putter (Martin Short).

An Adventure of Incredible Proportions (tagline)

Also Starring: Meg Ryan, Kevin McCarthy, Henry Gibson, Fiona Lewis, Vernon Wells
Directed by: Joe Dante
Written by: Jeffrey Boam, Chip Proser
Length: 120 min
Budget: N/A
Gross Revenue: $25,893,810 (USA)

My Favorite Movie Quote:
Jack Putter: I’m possessed! 

Review: I read somewhere that Dennis Quaid used to do 2000 sit-ups every day to get his fabulous stomache. Maybe he still does? He did look good in that surfer movie from last year about the girl who loses an arm in a shark attack.

In that one he is married to Helen Hunt, in Innerspace he is boyfriend to Meg Ryan, So I guess he in some ways, even though his stomach has stayed the same, has deteriorated.

And speaking about Meg Ryan, she is so wonderful in this movie it’s hard not to fall in her. She looks so innocent with that crooked smile and sparkle in her eye.

And it’s a love I kept going for many years until it disappeared after watching In the Cut. What can I say? I didn’t think the story was good and also, the jungle scares me.
Martin Short is wonderful too. While I nowadays find him too over the top, here he is more levelled and whenever he “goes over the top” I totally buy it and enjoy every second of it.

Oh, and I realize that the Meg Ryan movie I talked about earlier was actually Proof of Life that came out three years earlier.. There’s a jungle in that one right, and not only a bush?

Nerdiest Movie Trivia AND Oscar Count: The only film directed by Joe Dante to win an Academy Award.

1 Win: Best Effects, Visual Effects (Dennis Muren, Bill George, Harley Jessup, Kenneth Smith)

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 20. Twelve Monkeys (1995)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 20. Twelve Monkeys (1995)

20. Twelve Monkeys [Blu-ray] (1995)

Plot: An unknown virus killes five billion people in 1996 and forces the surviving population to live underground. The convict James Cole (Bruce Willis) reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to 1996 to research the virus and the “Army of the Twelve Monkeys”, a group rumored to have released it. Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990, six years earlier than expected, and is locked up in a mental institution, where he meets psychiatrist Kathryn Railly (Madeleine Stowe) and Jeffrey Goines (Brad Pitt), the insane son of a famous scientist and virus expert.

The future is history. (tagline)

Also Starring: Joseph Melito, Jon Seda, David Morse, Christopher Plummer
Directed by: Terry Gilliam
Written by: David Peoples, Janet Peoples (screenplay) Chris Marker (film La Jetée)
Length: 129 min
Budget: $29,000,000
Gross Revenue: $157,900,000 (Worldwide)

Favorite Quote:
James Cole: I’m here about some monkeys. 
Jeffrey Goines: Monkeys? 
James Cole: Monkeys. Yes. Twelve of them.

Review: Who knew Bruce Willis could act? I knew he could be funny, be a badass, be sarcastic and even scary. But a real dramatic actor?

Well, I’ll be damned..

Congratulations. You did it Terry Gilliam, you did it!

Oscar Count: Two Nominations: Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Brad Pitt), Best Costume Design (Julie Weiss)

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 21. Star Wars Saga (1977, 1980, 1983)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 21. Star Wars – The Original Trilogy (1977, 1980, 1983)

21. Star Wars Saga [Blu-ray] (1977, 1980, 1983)

Plot: Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi take place in a galaxy far, far away.. and depicts the adventures of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), the wookie Chewbacca and the two droids R2-D2 and C-3PO; and their fight against the dark side and Darth Vader (David Prowse body, voiced by James Earl Jones). And now I just write some jibberish since I suppose everyone knows the plot and already has skipped this part. May the Force be with you and so on, yada yada..

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away… (tagline)

Also Starring: Alec Guinness, Peter Mayhew, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Billy Dee Williams, Frank Oz, Jeremy Bulloch, Julian Glover

Directed by: George Lucas, Irvin Kershner, Richard Marquand
Written by: George Lucas (Star Wars), Leigh Brackett, Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back) Lawrence Kasdan, George Lucas (Return of the Jedi)
Length: 121 min, 124 min, 134 min
Budget: $13,000,000, $18,000,000, $32,500,000

Gross Revenue: (Worldwide including re-issues) Star Wars: $1,289,098,807
The Empire Strikes Back: $1,008,965,935
Return of the Jedi: $866,906,177

Favorite Quote:
C-3PO: [to R2-D2] This is all your fault.

Review: I can watch this trilogy as often as I want and it still feels fresh. It could be because George Lucas constantly keeps adding and changing stuff in these movies as new technology becomes available or it’s because I don’t understand half of what’s going on.

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: In the Italian version of the trilogy, the Death Star is called La Morte Nera (Black Death), and Darth Vader is called Lord Fener. But even cuter, R2-D2 was renamed C1-P8.

There are just too many names, people, places, planets, gadgets, ships, furry animals, alien creatures, weapons and Jedi stuff, I just can’t comprehend it all. Ironically there is just one band.. But I understand enough to find all of it marvellous!!

Oscar Count
Star Wars:
6 Wins: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Costume Design, Best Effects Visual Effects, Best Film Editing, Best Music, Original Score (John Williams), Best Sound
4 Nominations: Best Picture (Gary Kurtz) Best Director (George Lucas) Best Screenplay Written for the Screen (George Lucas) Best Supporting Actor (Alec Guinness).

The Empire Strikes Back
1 Win: Best Sound (Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, Peter Sutton)
2 Nominations: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Music, Original Score (John Williams).

Return of the Jedi
4 Nominations: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing (Ben Burtt), Best Music, Original Score (John Williams), Best Sound.

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 22. Pulp Fiction (1994)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 22. Pulp Fiction (1994)

22. Pulp Fiction [DVD] (1994)

Plot: Two hit men Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta) are out to retrieve a suitcase stolen from their employer, mob boss Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames). Wallace has also asked Vincent to look after his wife Mia (Uma Thurman) when he himself is out of town.

Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) is an aging boxer who is paid by Wallace to lose his next fight. The lives of these people intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.

I don’t smile for pictures. (tagline)

Also Starring: Phil LaMarr, Rosanna Arquette, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Walken, Harvey Keitel
Directed by: 
Quentin Tarantino
Written by: Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary
Length: 154 min
Budget: $8,000,000 (estimated)
Gross Revenue: $213,928,762 (Worldwide)

Favorite Quote:
Fabienne: Whose chopper is this?
Butch: It’s Zed’s.
Fabienne: Who’s Zed?
Butch: Zed’s dead, baby. Zed’s dead.

Review: Whenever I think about this movie, the scene that first pops up in my mind is when Elaine needs a “cleaner” and Newman arrives in his car, removes his sunglasses like a fat David Caruso and sits down to eat muffin tops. And that scene isn’t even in the movie!

But that’s the greatness of Pulp Fiction, it had such an influence on pop culture, it triggered a movement and it’s almost like that too has become a part of the movie.

Oscar Count:
1 Win: Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary)
Nominations: Best Picture (Lawrence Bender) Best Director (Quentin Tarantino) Best Actor in a Leading Role (John Travolta) Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Samuel L. Jackson) Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Uma Thurman) Best Film Editing (Sally Menke)

It’s almost like this movie is bigger than a movie. It emerged movie nerd Quentin Tarantino into becoming the coolest guy ever (paving the way for guys like Janne the Director) and rebooted the importance of a great soundtrack. I love the fact that Tarantino starts out with songs and then start to write scenes around them, like an Opera production; giving us the perfect background music for every scene and a craving to buy the album. Are they called albums nowadays?

And remember how everybody was doing the Pulp Fiction dance moves back in the mid-nineties? Actually, you can to this day still see some slightly overweight guy not knowing any other move on the dance floor and does the “fingers in front of the eyes” move.

Ever seen that guy? That’s me!!

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: The role of Vincent Vega was written for Michael Madsen, who played the character’s brother, Vic Vega, in Reservoir Dogs, but he couldn’t do the film due to scheduling conflicts for another film.

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 23. Forrest Gump (1994)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 23. Forrest Gump (1994)

23. Forrest Gump [DVD] (1994)

Plot: The story depicts several decades in the life of Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks), an Alabama simpleton who travels across the world, meeting historical figures, influencing popular culture, and experiencing firsthand some of the historic events of the late 20th century.

“Forrest Gump” is the story of a man who rises above his challenges, and proves that determination, courage, and love are more important than ability.

The story of a lifetime. (tagline)

Also Starring: Rebecca Williams, Sally Field, Robin Wright, Mykelti Williamson, Gary Sinise
Directed by: Robert Zemeckis
Written by: Eric Roth
Length: 142 min
Budget: $55,000,000 (estimated)
Gross Revenue: $673,800,000 (Worldwide)

Favorite Quote:
Forrest Gump: Stupid is as stupid does.

Review: This movie is flawless! Tom Hanks is just brilliant in the lead and I’m in such awe of him, not only his proven acting capabilities, but also the person he seems to be; fun, kind and filled to the brim with integrity. Did you know that back in 1994 when this movie became a huge success, there was immediately talk about a sequel riding on its popularity. But what did Tom Hanks say to that? He said “no, I’m not that kind of actor, I don’t do sequels”.

What a guy, not selling out like that! … sure, he later did Toy Story 2. And 3. But regardless of th.. Oh, yeah, and a sequel to The DaVinci Code…

Sidenote: What the hell was up with Tom Hanks hair-do in The DaVinci Code and Angels & Demons? It totally ruined those movies for me. I’m not even joking. It really freaked me out! Is it a wig? Is it his own hair? Is it CGI? I even preferred the shaven look he had in Philadelphia over the “kind-of-looks-like-Nic-Cage-but much-much-worse” look he had while finding clues in art and stuff.

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: Bill Murray, John Travolta and Chevy Chase turned down the role of Forrest Gump. Travolta later admitted that passing on the role was a mistake.

But enough about his hair and back to his integrity as an actor and non-sellout. Oh, wait.. According to google he’s doing Toy Story 4 too.. And a third one of those “find clues on floors in Rome that lead to other clues and stuff” movies..  … sigh … and apparently also Gump & Co., the sequel to Forrest Gump…

Never mind…

Oscar Count
6 Wins: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Published (Eric Roth) Editing (Arthur Schmidt) Visual Effects (Ken Ralston, George Murphy, Stephen Rosenbaum, Allen Hall)

7 Nominations: Best Supporting Actor (Gary Sinise) Art Direction (Rick Carter, Nancy Haigh) Cinematography (Don Burgess) Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing (Gloria S. Borders, Randy Thom) Makeup (Daniel C. Striepeke, Hallie D’Amore, Judith A. Cory) Original Score (Alan Silvestri) Sound (Randy Thom, Tom Johnson, Dennis S. Sands, William B. Kaplan)

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 24. Three Amigos (1986)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 24. Three Amigos (1986)

24. The Three Amigos! [DVD] (1986)

Plot: When silent film stars Lucky Day (Steve Martin), Dusty Bottoms (Chevy Chase) and Ned Nederlander (Martin Short) get fired, they get a job offer from Mexico: Doing a show with the infamous El Guapo. They arrive only to learn that El Guapo (Alfonso Arau) is not an actor, but a cruel gang leader suppressing the town’s people.

When he kidnaps the mayor’s daughter Carmen (Patrice Martinez) all hope rest on the shoulders of the three actors.

They’re Down On Their Luck And Up To Their Necks In Senoritas, Margaritas, Banditos And Bullets! (tagline)

Also Starring: Tony Plana, Jon Lovitz, Joe Mantegna, Phil Hartman
Directed by: 
John Landis
Written by: Steve Martin, Lorne Michaels, Randy Newman
Length: 104 min
Budget: $25,000,000 (estimated)
Gross Revenue: $39,246,734 (USA)

Review: So what in the world could be better than watching Al Pacino play a gay bank robber? Easy question. Chevy Chase in a big hat.

Favorite Quote:
Mr. Flugelman: Do you know what “nada” means?
Dusty Bottoms: Isn’t that a light chicken gravy?

Seriously, I just realized something.. I only have 5 days to complete this list or else Janne the Director is going to win our bet!! 5 days and 24 posts to go, including this brilliant film!! That’s like five a day!? I need to speed things up. Well, with this movie it’s easy, I just copy/paste the stuff Janne the Director himself said about “Three Amigos” in his Top 10 Steve Martin Movies list. I totally agree with all he had to say.

You might argue that out of the 3 amigos Steve was the least funny one BUT I’d say that… yeah, he was the least funny one. He was the straight guy that glued the comedy styles of Martin Short (the physical fall on your ass kind) and Chevy Chase (the dead pan kind) together and without him this jewel of a film would’ve been an uneven mess. And saying that you are the least funny guy in ¡Three Amigos! is like saying you are the least tanned face on Jersey Shore. /Janne the Director

There, another one down! Only 23 to go…

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: Originally the movie was supposed to star Steve Martin, Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. Martin mentioned it in a Playboy interview published January 1980, referring to the movie as The Three Caballeros.

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 25. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 25. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)

25. Dog Day Afternoon [DVD] (1975)

Plot: On a hot summer afternoon, a bank in Brooklyn is held up by Sonny Wortxik (Al Pacino) and Sal (John Cazale). Although the bank manager and female tellers agree not to interfere with the robbery, Sonny finds that there’s actually nothing much to steal, as most of the cash has been picked up for the day. Sonny then gets an unexpected phone call from Police Captain Moretti Charles Durning, telling him the place is surrounded. Having few options, Sonny bargains with Moretti, demanding safe escort to the airport and a plane out of the country in return for the hostages.
Also Starring: Chris Sarandon, Carol Kane, Lance Henriksen, Sully Boyar, Penelope Allen, James Broderick

Directed by: Sidney Lumet
Written by: Frank Pierson
Length: 125 min
Budget: N/A
Gross Revenue: $50,000,000 (USA)

Favorite Quote:
Sonny: What country do you want to go to? 
Sal: Wyoming. 
Sonny: Sal, Wyoming’s not a country. 

Review: Written by Frank Pierson who wrote Cool Hand Luke, directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Al “Michael from the Godfather” Pacino as a gay man trying to rob a bank to pay for his boyfriend’s sex change operation, with the help of John “Fredo from the Godfather” Cazale!!

Seriously, could it get any better than this!?
Well actually, it could. And apparently 24 times since I have 24 more posts to do on this list… And not to spoil anything, but some of those post might be trilogies which I’ve counted as “one” movie, which makes it.. Nevermind, I hate math.

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: Sal (John Cazale) at one point berates one of the bank tellers for smoking, saying he didn’t smoke because “I don’t want to get the cancer”.

Ironically, Cazale himself died from cancer three years later.

I have a feeling Dog Day Afternoon is pretty unknown, at least among my friends. Every time I talk about this masterpiece, none of them have seen it. It’s actually the same with “Serpico“! And “Cruising“!! And “Author! Author!”!!! … What the hell!? Isn’t watching the entire back catalogue of Al Pacino something everyone does? If only just to impress the ladies?

Maybe that’s just me… I’m such an Al Pacino-fan I even bough Revolution…

BUT, even though I sometimes spend money on shit movies (and that one is bad, sooo bad) I know when a movie is great, and Dog Day Afternoon is just that. Great.

And Al Pacino is brilliant as usual*!!

Oscar Count:
1 Win: Best Writing, Original Screenplay (Frank Pierson)
5 Nominations: Best Picture (Martin Bregman, Martin Elfand) Best Director (Sidney Lumet) Best Actor in a Leading Role (Al Pacino) Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Chris Sarandon) Best Film Editing (Dede Allen)

*For my own personal moral reasons, I have to add that the phrase “brilliant as usual” in that context excludes movies like Gigli, Revolution and S1m0ne…

ALTERNATIVE POSTERS
 

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 26. See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989)

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Sika’s 100 Greatest Movies of All Time! 26. See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989)

26. See No Evil, Hear No Evil [DVD] (1989)

Plot: A man is murdered. Two men witness it; Wally, a blind man (Richard Pryor) who hears the killer, and Dave, a deaf man (Gene Wilder) who sees her (or actually, just her legs). The police believe they are the killers, but the real killers (Joan Severance and Kevin Spacey) don’t want to take any chances.

Wally and Dave must now work together to stay alive, save themselves and bring the killers to justice.

MURDER! The blind guy couldn’t see it. The deaf guy couldn’t hear it. Now they’re both wanted for it. (poster tagline)

Directed by: Arthur Hiller
Written by: Earl Barret, Arne Sultan, Eliot Wald, Andrew Kurtzman, Gene Wilder
Length: 103 min
Budget: $18,000,000 (estimated)
Gross Revenue: $46,908,987 (USA)

Favorite Quote:
Wally: These streets are bumpy.
Dave: You’re driving on the sidewalk!

Review: Gene Wilder is deaf and funny. Richard Pryor is blind and funny. And together that makes for a very funny comedy. One that I’ve seen countless times and know each and every line of dialogue from.

“I thought you let one go!!” Hahaha. Priceless.

Nerdiest Movie Trivia: Gene Wilder went to the NY League for the Hard of Hearing to study for his role, and he was assigned to his future wife, Karen Boyer.

PREVIOUS ON THE LIST: 27. The Commitments (1991)

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