Movies

I have a fundamentalist Christian upbringing. What does that have to do with movies you ask? By the age of sixteen I had maybe seen a few Disney flicks in a theater. My parents didn't approve and that I had been allowed to see a Disney flick in a theater was amazing. You know...separation from worldly things, and Hollywood was about as worldly as you got. By the way, this separation did not extend, amazingly enough, to most television. I avidly watched old classics, TV movies, and edited theatrical releases. Then at sixteen I got a job and a car. I started sneaking off to matinees in the afternoon...lots. I love movies and have a fondness for John Ford, Howard Hawks, John Wayne, Japanese samurai flicks, Akira Kurasawa, John Woo, Sam Peckinpah, and violent action films. I might point out that none of the violent action films I watched turned me into a mass murdering, wife beating, serial killer. or a Hollywood liberal.

A few years back I did start picking my favorite film of the year. Note that all years are subject to change without notice. Some of my favorites just don't hold up to repeated veiwings and that's pretty much the standard.

1983: Risky Business, directed by Paul Brickman.
1984: The Terminator, directed by James Cameron.
1985: Silverado, directed by Lawrence Kasdan.
1986: Aliens, directed by James Cameron.
1987: The Monster Squad, directed by Fred Dekker.
1988: Die Hard, directed by John McTiernan.
1989: Glory, directed by Edward Zwick.
1990: La Femme Nikita, directed by Luc Besson.
1991: Beauty and the Beast, directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise.
1992: Last of the Mohicans, directed by Michael Mann.
1993: The Fugitive, directed by Andrew Davis.
1994: Legends of the Fall, directed by Edward Zwick.
1995: Braveheart, directed by Mel Gibson.
1996: Phenomenon, directed by John Turteltaub.
1997: Titanic, directed by James Cameron.
1998: The Negotiator, directed by F. Gary Gray.
1999: The Sixth Sense, directed by N. Night Shyamaian.
2000: The Patriot, directed by Roland Emmerich.
2001: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, directed by Peter Jackson.
2002: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, directed by Peter Jackson.
2003: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, directed by Peter Jackson.
2004: Million Dollar Baby, directed by Clint Eastwood.
2005: Serenity, directed by Joss Whedon.
2006: V for Vendetta, directed by James McTeigue.
2007: 300, directed by Zack Snyder.
2008: Gran Torino, directed by Clint Eastwood.
2009: Harry Brown, directed by Daniel Barber.
2010: How To Train Your Dragon, directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois.
2011: Warrior, directed by Gavin O'Connor.
2012: Les Miserables, directed by Tom Hooper.
2013: Pacific Rim, directed by Guillermo del Toro.
2014: John Wick , directed by Chad Stahelski.
2015: The Age of Adaline directed by Lee Toland Krieger.
2016: Your Name directed by Makoto Shinkai
2017: The Foreigner directed by Martin Campbell
2018: Mission Impossible: Fallout, directed by Christopher McQuarrie.
2019: John Wick 3: Parabellum , directed by Chad Stahelsk.
2020: Weathering with You, directed by Makoto Shinkai.
2021: Spider-Man: No Way Home, directed by Jon Watts.
2022: Three Thousand Years of Longing, directed by George Miller.
2023: Suzume, directed by Makoto Shinkai.
2024: Deadpool and Wolverine, directed by Shawn Levy.
2025: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Movie: Infinity Castle, directed by Haruo Sotozaki.
2026: Project Hail Mary, directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.