Those that know me personally know that I keep a running list of my top 50 favorite movies.

Well, 35 favorite movies.

But, today, I'm getting it up to 50! In light of the fact that we have a new number five (Go read my Ratatouille review and you'll clearly see that it was bound for the top 10), I've decided to introduce The List to my blog-reading public. Since this entry is going to be huge anyway, I'll stop the introduction here...

Rules

• Any movie with one or multiple sequels will have the entire series condensed into one list item. I penalize filmmakers for making crappy sequels and reward them for good sequels.


• Often, my opinion on the merit of the film is ignored.


• Nostalgia, my theater experience, and my recurring experiences with the movie all go into the rating

Pat's Top 50 Favorite Movies

H.M.

Citizen Kane: Of course I had to have an honorable mention category! And I know a lot of you have got to be thinking that not fitting Citizen Kane into a top 50 is a travesty of cinematic justice. This is probably true. However, I've only seen Kane all the way through one time. I loved it, and it will eventually get a boost to the high teens, I promise, but I need to see it again before I can find a fitting place for it on the list. Every other movie I've seen at least twice.

50.

Miracle: The purpose of this spot on the list is two-fold. First, I must pay homage to the wonderful career of Kurt Russel (Kee-yah!) by recognizing his best performance ever. Secondly, I walked out of the movie thinking, "Wow, it'd be really cool to coach a little league team". Though that particular bit of inspiration only lasts about 10 minutes, it gets Miracle on my list.

49.

Road House: Similar to Kurt Russel, Patrick Swayze has a career that demands recognition. This happens to be his most ridiculous flick. It is truly the pinnacle of accidental comedy. I laugh hysterically at something in every scene. The mere mention of the title is good enough to get a chuckle out of me.

48.

The Rock: This was my favorite movie for about 20 minutes when all I ever wanted to see was preposterous action movies. After a childhood diet consisting of Disney movies, romance comedies, and SNL spinoffs, I was thirsty for blood right around puberty. Melting faces? Check. Massive Explosions? Check. Sean Connery? Check. Welcome to number 48.

47.

Crocodile Dundee: "That's not a knife. This is a knife." The greatest line uttered in the 1980s is why Dundee was nominated for a Best Screenplay Oscar and why it makes it onto my favorite's list.

46.

Independence Day: This was my favorite movie for a long time because I didn't understand what computers could do. 11 years later, I'm a year away from a degree in Information Technology and a lot of the mystique of the movie has worn off. However, it is still one hell of a man vs. annihilation alien action flick. I still remember seeing this movie as a 10 year old kid at one of the last great drive-ins in northeast Ohio. "Welcome to earth."

45.

Dumbo: Dumbo is the prototype behind all the heart in animation created since. There are few images in animation greater than a shackled mother elephant wrapping her abandoned child in his own ears and rocking him to sleep in her trunk. This was the fuel for many naptimes in my very early years.

44.

The Matrix: Ack! Why did you guys make more!? This series jumps up 30 places without those last two movies. The linguistic masochism of trying to follow the architect's speach in the end of Reloaded and the final fight scene of Revelations are the only graces that even keep this series on the list. Still, during the summer of 2002, I must have watched the original every night before sleep while eating a half bag of oreos and drinking an unhealthy amount of milk.

43.

Zorro (Antonio Banderas): The Mask of Zorro was fantastic. Anthony Hopkins was on top of his "Listen to every word I say because it's awesome" game, Catherine Zeta-Jones was at the peak of her hotness, and Antonio Banderas was looking to do a little comedy on top of his conflicted hero work. The dance scene, the training sequence, "surfing the shovel", and every word out of Hopkins' mouth makes this a classic. The Legend of Zorro, however, was one of the worst movies I've ever seen and it had no Tony Hopkins. Even the title was eons worse than Mask. Legend doubles the series' position. It's a top 25er otherwise.

42.

Rounders: The quintessential poker movie and an absolute staple and bane of my early college years. Don't take any of the advice that you get from this movie, because it will NOT make you a better poker player. Don't ever watch it before you play poker, and don't play poker within two weeks of watching. I am certain Rounders has lost countless college students countless dollars at the poker table.

41.

Fantasia: As a kid who knew relatively nothing about classical music, I watched this movie wanting to watch dinosaurs and mickey mouse. Not much else interested me at the time. I'm still a kid, but I've learned a thing or two about the classics. Like a fine wine, Fantasia gets better with age. I haven't seen 2000, so it doesn't go into my rating.

40.

The Karate Kid: Watched it when I was a kid, and it made me want to fight other kids. But then I grew up and watched it again? God bless the late, great Pat Morita. He absolutely makes this movie. Everyone else in the movie is a role model for accidental comedy, but Pat Morita creates a character in Mr. Miyagi that is absolutely timeless. The three movies in succession did nothing terrible to hinder the original, with the second even helping it a bit.

39.

Top Gun: This movie has the blessed distinction of being the first in my life that I ever watched in stereo surround sound in my pop's first foray into home theaters. The booming jets taking off the deck as "Danger Zone" roared over the sound system in my living room are some of my most memorable movie experiences I've had. And who hasn't thought of trying to pick up a girl with "Loving Feeling" or pulled a Val Kilmer and chomped their teeth at someone derisively. Gotta be on the list.

38.

Bambi: This movie is drenched with every kind of conflict there is. And it's for kids! Somehow, Walt made it work. I don't fully understand why I loved it as a kid, but it was definitely another pre-naptime Disney movie. I still have a very vivid image of my mom singing "Drip Drip Drop" in the kitchen while she was cooking something scrumptous for me to eat.

37.

Garden State: This is one of the first movies I ever took it upon myself to write a review for. It was mostly just to build my own ego. Still, it perfectly transitioned Natalie Portman from an actress I wanted to get in the sack, to the girl next door I wanted to date. When I wrote the review, I was pretty harsh on Zach Braff, but he really put together an extremely tender little romance flick without (too much) ego.

36.

A Streetcar Named Desire: One of the few movies on the list that has its position for merit alone. I love this movie. Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando are absolutely fantastic. Every line is a delight to hear. Tennessee Williams has a special place in my heart, but that is for different reasons we'll get to later.

35.

Back to the Future: Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox may be two of the most underrated actors out there right now. In their day, they were two of the best at what they did. And who didn't get sucked into the mind bending possibilties of time travel? No movie franchise has ever tackled the topic so proficiently. Excellent comedy all around, memorable characters, just a great time to spend at a movie theater.

34.

Orange County: Another movie of the summer of 2002. I just thought I was Shaun Brumder - aspiring novelist, trying to escape his insane family by getting to college, looking for inspiration anywhere it would come from. For my money, there's never been a better comedic performance than Jack Black in this movie. I don't think comedic timing gets any better. It's a shame Colin Hanks is going to turn out like Kobe Clemens - he'll just never be as revered as his father.

33.

Sabrina: During my sophmore year in college I happened upon this movie by accident one night and loved every minute of it. When it comes to old movies, the surest way to get me into it is to have Audrey Hepburn or Elizabeth Taylor in the cast. This one has the star power of Audrey, Bogie, and a still delightful William Holden. This is my favorite movie with Hepburn, and my second favorite with Bogie. The Maltese Falcon can probably be found somewhere in the upper 50s.

32.

Major League: For a sports fanatic such as myself, it's strange that this is the last sports movie on my list. But what a movie! This movie was a sure thing all the way around. A movie about the Cleveland Indians overcoming their laughing stock status and winning the pennant! And then art immitated life and it happened for real! Fantastic! Genuinely funny and infinitely better than the hackish Fever Pitch which similarly looked at Red Sox nation.

31.

The Shawshank Redemption: I love too many movies. It pains me to think that I only have one on this list in which Morgan Freeman narrates. Andy Dufresne is one of the most likeable guys I've ever watched in a movie. "Yeah. The funny thing is - on the outside, I was an honest man, straight as an arrow. I had to come to prison to be a crook. " Classic.

30.

Pirates of Silicon Valley: The only made-for-tv-movie I dare put on the list. I've watched it dozens of times, but I've never found it in any store where I was in a position for an impulse buy. I've put off the Amazon.com purchase for years. Everytime I watch this movie, I feel outraged because of how Bill Gates made his billions and simultaneously inspired that I could do it as well. Noah Wyle and Anthony Michael Hall were at different points in their careers, but no less talented. This movie is some of the best edutainment there is.

29.

Scent of a Woman: Woman can still go a bunch of ways on the list because I feel like I need to sit down and watch it ten or eleven more times. Second only to Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow, Al Pacino's Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade is one of my favorite characters in all of cinema. Couple that with the Catcher in the Rye feel that Chris O'Donnell comes with, a blindman's tango that is full of zest, and this movie is extremely watchable.

28.

Die Hard: Action movies do not get any better. The original remains the best action movie ever. Is there any situation more exhilarating than being stuck in a giant skyscraper, barefoot, with a dozen German supercrooks? Every movie in the series except for the most recent thrived on an excellent villain, a catchy overture(Ode to Joy, Ants Go Marching), and a badass John McClain. The 4th was ok, but the first three were classics.

27.

Gone with the Wind: I might have watched this movie 150 times by now if it wasn't 4 hours long. As it stands, I've seen it twice. When I have four hours to kill out of no where, I'll watch it again. I'm thinking a transatlantic flight. Viven Leigh and Clark Gable were the original Super Dialogue pair. Everthing they said to each was a blessing to hear. The historical backdrop heightens and overtakes the personal struggle. I don't know what I'm doing, a paragraph isn't enough to do this movie justice, so I'll stop now.

26.

Pulp Fiction: King of the "I can't beleive that just happened!" movies. I can't believe they just blew off his head, they just stabbed her with that needle, Vince Vega was in that bathroom, Marsellus was just walking down the street, that Samuel L. Jackson didn't kill Quentin Tarantino for saying the n-word. Nobody's better than QT at unnecessary dialogue - a truly lost artform.

25.

Chocolat: I avoided this movie like the plague for a year and half because I was tired of chick flicks. When I finally sat down and watched it, I not only realized that it wasn't a chick flick, but that there was a whole new world of movies out there then just the standard studio fare. Chocolat is a rare combination of originality, complimentary acting, and no unnecessary frills.

24.

Fight Club: Maybe a bit juvenille, but I'm pretty sure that was the point. Chuck Palahniuk, the accomplished author of the novel, said the movie made him ashamed of the book. I don't know about that, but I took his word for it. I've read 4 Palahniuk books, but never saw the need to read Fight Club because of the movie. The same can't be said for other novel-movies on this same list.

23.

The Princess Bride: The first of two Rob Reiner movies on the list. This movie is exactly as advertised - the perfect story for a sick day. I watched a few times, but suddenly had to watch it ten times in a row my sophmore year in college. It's just a really entertaining movie. Andre the Giant, Billy Crystal, Carl Elwes. Comedy out the wazoo. Peter Falk is engrossing as the grandfather. If you don't love watching this movie, there's no hope for you.

22.

Ocean's 11: An All-Star cast whose whole turns out greater than the sum of its parts. Great dialogue, excellent jokes, and an excellent heist at the end. I regret to say that I've never seen the original, so if you thought I was talking about the Rat Pack up until this point, sorry to disappoint. This is the last movie of the Summer of 2002 trio. Whenever I got sick of The Matrix, this was old standby. Oh, and Soderbergh is the man.

21.

Closer: I mentioned that Garden State made Natalie Portman the girl-next-door I wanted to date. Well, Closer made her the girl-next-door-I-want-to-bend-over-my-couch. There is no more realistic dialouge regarding the emotions of romance than that which appears in closer. Portman, Clive Owen, Jude Law, and Julia Roberts say the things that we say, and the things that we wish we could say to those we fall for. Expertly written. Natalie Portman is a fox.

20.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof: My senior year of high school, I played Brick in an abridged version of Cat with my best friend. Shortly thereafter, I watched the movie based on the Tennessee Williams play. Paul Newman is a much better Brick than I was, and Elizabeth Taylor was a much hotter Maggie than Mary was. More great dialogue. Get used to me saying that, because it's only going to continue.

19.

When Harry Met Sally: For my money, it's the best modern romance comedy. Billy Crystal is in top form, and Meg Ryan gives the performance of her career. The orgasm scene, Harry's menacing fist, the guy stuff Harry and Jess do while they talk about chicks. The second Rob Reiner movie on the list, this is yet another mountain of excellent dialogue.

18.

The Big Lebowski: My favorite Cohen brothers movie and currently the only one on the list because I just haven't seen the others enough. There are so many lines in this movie! "Don't fuck with the Jesus" "Dude, I'm not certain chinaman is the proper nomenclature here. Asian-american, please" "Damnit, Walter, I'm not talking about the guys who built the fucking railroads here, I'm talking about the guy that pissed on my rug" "You see what happens Donny? You see what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass (find a stranger in the alps)" Walter's eulogy, etc etc. This movie is laugh out loud funny on so many levels. Pure comedy gold.

17.

Star Wars: A cultural phenomenon lasting three decades, Star Wars has defined a generation of movies. Every trilogy since the original has been influenced by Star Wars in one way or another. It's incredibly addicting, and every movie in the original trilogy stands well on its own. The first two movies of the new trilogy weren't great, but they certainly weren't as bad as the second two Matrix movies. Some subtleties in the politics and a meatier story line would have helped the new trilogy in spades, but as it stands, the Star Wars series is easily in my top 20.

16.

The Bond Series: Is there a more unifying male movie experience? Even The Godfather is boring to some guys, but the most snobbish of movie boys will sit down and watch any 4 Bond movies in a row. If they can't, I sure wouldn't want to hang out with them.

15.

The Godfather: Three straight chick movies followed by 4 straight guy flicks! What a list! The Godfather is an easy top 10 w/o the third movie. Winona Ryder stays healthy and the whole series may be a masterpiece. Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro, James Caan, Robert Duval, Marlon Brando, and more guillones than can fill the town of Coleone. This movie may not have invented the crime-family genre, but it made it relevant. All you Sopranos fans should go shake Coppola's hand.

14.

The Little Mermaid: Could I do it? Could I follow up The Godfather with The Little Mermaid? Well, I did, and with good reason! Mermaid was the first movie I saw in a movie theater. Two much deserved Oscars for the score as well as "Under the Sea" for original song. It actually beat itself in the best original song category as it went up against "Kiss the Girl". The pinnacle of cinematic musicals. I love this movie.

13.

Blow: The ultimate drug cautionary tale. We get all the glamour and the glory of the drug trade, followed up immediately by the pain, regret, and suffering that it causes. Boston George will never get his life or his daughter back, but damn was it cool to watch Johnny Depp build a cocaine empire. Depp is also a deceptively competent narrator.

12.

Kill Bill: Quentin Tarantino's opus work. A fascinating mix of samurai, western, kung-fu, and exploitation spoofs in a movie that never quite feels like a spoof. I feel like QT sits around in his penthouse with his vietnamese hookers, drinks vodka, does blow, and just writes down the coolest stuff he can possibly think of. (Apologies to Jeremy Piven) Tarantino is the director of cool.

11.

Pride and Prejudice: We're talking 2005, we're talking Keira Knightley, we're talking Deborah Moggach, we're talking the best adaptation of Jane Austen's book to date. Elizabeth Bennet is perhaps the most complex female character in 19th century literature (The Awakening was written in the 20th, right?), and Keira Knightley absolutely nailed her. The far less inspired performance coming from Reese Witherspoon that year was awarded an Oscar made of fool's gold. I fell in love with Keira Knightley during the course of this movie. That's not supposed to happen. This movie caused me a borderline mental illness. I've never been so obsessed with a woman I've never met. Mad mad mad props to Joe Wright. He was robbed at the Oscars too.

10.

Casablanca: I have been told that this was the best screenplay ever written. At the time, I had never saw Casablanca or even a movie with Humphrey Bogart in it. I have since watched it at least ten times, and I can whole-heartedly agree that Casablanca is indeed the best screenplay ever written. Julius and Phillip Epstein were funny, original, and extremely astute at adapting the play that this classic masterpiece arose from. And there are few sets of lips better than Bogie's to deliver those lines. A classic that defines what classic means, Casablanca is the peak of film-making.

9.

Pirates of the Caribbean: As far as I'm concerned, no actor has done a better job at creating a character than Johnny Depp creating Captain Jack Sparrow. I went on a ravenous Johnny Depp binge after watching Pirates the first. I had to see everything he ever made. As a result, two other movies were added to this list. Pirates also has the advantage of feeding one of my boyhood fantasies. I've wanted to be a pirate most of my life. It was something that started with Walt Disney's Peter Pan and then just exploded through my imagination. I have even convinced myself that if I was alive during the age of high seas piracy, I would have been a pirate. The evils they committed would have been no greater than the evils that national naval powers were committing at the same time. Straight-man Orlando Bloom, the gorgeous Keira Knightley, the astute Geoffrey Rush, and, later, the great Bill Nighy round out the best cast of any big budget trilogy. Not to mention, it has the advantage of timing to have given it the best special effects we've yet seen. Only the original Star Wars trilogy can top it's story in the not-meant-to-be-a-trilogy category. Never has so much fun and talent been packed into a big budget trilogy.

8.

The Incredibles: Brad Bird's coming out party. The Incredibles reduces grown adults (or close to them) to drooling children. I walked out of the theater that day with my fading inner child completely rejuvenated. Now he's the only voice inside me I really listen to. By choosing talent that fits the role rather than names that will sell tickets, Pixar and Bird built a powerful cast that wasn't constantly reminding us of their star power. We could truly invest in the characters, and Bird provided us the opportunity every step of the way. I can think of few things more heart-warming than a family of super heros that fights the evils of this world together. If you want a crash course in animation, buy the DVD and watch all the commentary. You'll learn more than any fan will ever need to know. I don't think I've been more excited for a sequence than the 100 Yard Dash on a repeat showing of any movie. I loved The Incredibles, and I'm convinced it is the best super hero movie there is.

7.

Adaptation: I love this movie because it's one of the classic mind benders. The great Charlie Kaufman adapted a book about adaptive flowers by adapting as a writer to portray the adaptations we make in life to our adapting surroundings. It's incredibly difficult to separate fiction from reality in this film, and I doubt if you asked Charlie Kaufman that he'd be able to do it for you. There is no Donald Kaufman, but he has a spot on IMDB and was nominated for a real Oscar. Susan Orlean never had sex with John Laroche (I don't think) and I'm fairly certain you can't get drugs from ghost orchids. But then, who knows for sure? And how can someone write part of a movie about writing that movie? It's like a recursive algorithm or something. The thought of it just drives me happily up the wall! Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind and Being John Malkovich were both highlights of Kaufman's vast creativity, but for me, this is his best.

6.

Braveheart: As I'm writing this, I'm watching the tragic ending to Braveheart on the History Channel. The supporting characters, Gibson's Wallace, the directing, the score, the battle scenes, the setting, the culture, this movie is nearly flawless in its execution and completely moving in its substance. It reminds us that freedom is bought with a price. Our rights to live, to speak, to create, are not hindered because men like the Wallace depicted in Braveheart were willing to die for those rights. That kind of courage packed into this biopic that is largely historically accurate - an admirable trait for Hollywood fare. The movie makes me proud as a free man, as a person of Scottish descent, and as a fan of moving pictures. Braveheart is the most moving and well executed epic of my generation.

5.

Ratatouille: There are no standalone movies from 2006 on this list. This is the first, and likely, the only movie from 2007 that will be going on the list. I've seen it twice and may well see it a third time very soon. There are no superstars voicing this movie, because once again Brad Bird and Pixar have put together a perfect cast. Peter O'Toole gives a performance worth drooling over. Bird has established himself as one of the best directors in film making, animation or no. I've been listening to Michael Giacchino's score for 3 days. I don't think that any score has ever fit a movie so well. I am seriously thinking about how I'm going to get myself to Paris as soon as possible. A month ago, I would have never even considered going to gay Paree. Right now, this is my absolute cinematic inspiration. I want to be Brad Bird. I feel like going back to school and changing my major to computer animation. This movie is gorgeous with every meticulous detail being accounted for in constructing the perfect French kitchen. But the most inspiring part about this film is the moral. There is no harm in being a snob. As Bird is proving, a committment to excellence can make money as well as entertain and reduce to children even the most discerning critics. I love this film and all it embodies and I'll be watching it for a long time yet to come.

4.

Finding Neverland: I've watched this movie over a dozen times, and only twice have I not been left quite misty. The first time I was on a date and I was trying to impress the girl, the second time I was with a guy friend and trying to stay macho. Every lone viewing has left me bawling like a little girl. It's not the tragedy, they're not tears of sorrow. It's the beauty, they're tears of joy. Michael gets the kite to fly, the orphans arrive at the theater, Wendy escapes the rock in the play and unleashes Peter's imagination, Emma believes, the unveiling of the real Neverland, and Barrie's consoling of Peter. All of these scenes and sequences have moved me to tears at one point or another, but I don't put the DVD in again and again so that I can show off my delicate sensibilities. This movie is a near perfect depiction of the creative process. To create something the world is not familiar with, you have to go to another place. You must allow your mind to experience the unexperienced. You have to see things people have never seen. And you have to do it in an environment that hates that process. Creation is the pinnacle of human achievement, and Finding Neverland glorifies that achievement.

3.

Patton: There are two types of biopics. The first details the individual's entire life. It attempts to frame every major experience a person has to create a completed picture of the exceptional individual in question. The second type focuses on a portion of a person's life that defined the individual in our hearts and minds. Braveheart is probably the best example of the former, and Patton is the absolute best of the latter. George Patton is a singular individual. I can't think of anyone I've ever heard of that was like him or anyone that will ever be like him. He was deeply spiritual and deeply religious, he craved leadership but openly accepted missions that meant many of his men would die, he defeated every foe that was put infront of him on the battle field, but couldn't overcome the politics of 20th century warfare. General George Patton was a huge ego and a bigger pain in the ass to deal with, and this movie captures that singular individual expertly. Giving the best performance of his career (as well as the best in any biopic), George C. Scott not only painted an extremely inspired Patton for audiences that were distraught with the ravages of Vietnam, but he had the gall to send the Oscar he won back to the Academy because he felt acting competitions were completely bogus. He didn't win any more Oscars after that. Patton is the most intriguing movie from start to finish of any other biopic. Perhaps he would have been more accurately portrayed by Anthony Hopkins, but only in the hands of George C. Scott was General George S. Patton immortalized. No movie more accurately paints my ideal example of a leader. I love every quality portrayed in a leader in the movie, and I hope to embody many of them one day. I only hope it doesn't mean that I lose my position because I'm such a pain in the ass.

2.

Lord of the Rings: Peter Jackson has proven without a doubt that the only way to make a trilogy is to set out from the beginning with a trilogy in mind. As George Lucas has proven, even that is an extremely difficult task regardless of budget size. Tolkien was a deeply religious and spiritual man who felt that humans were created in God's image. Furthermore, he believed that God created the Universe and everything that it creates in every moment of its existence. Therefore, because we were created in God's image, we also have that innate desire to create. So that is exactly what Tolkien did. He created an entire world with different races, countries, politics, economies, and ideals. Middle Earth is one of the great creative masterpieces of the 20th century, and its cinematic portrayal in Lord of the Rings the greatest masterpiece of the 21st century. The story of Frodo and the Ring is far more detailed in the book, but any movie that can move a busy high school student already reading 30 books a year to add another 1200 pages to his list is clearly a work of art. The only downfall of this movie is that it's 9 hours long or 12 hours long using the uncut, extended version. Try finding time to watch it. I've only seen the whole 12 hour set once, and the 9 hour set four times (give or take). Other than that, it is brilliantly executed in every facet of film making from screenplay to score to acting to direction. Only the length keeps it from number one.

1.

Gladiator: To me, there is no better movie. Russel Crowe's Maximus show depth, strength, courage, justice, and certainly internal conflict. He struggles with everything from wanting to live, to wanting revenge, to finally uncovering his righteous desires and reconciling them with what is best for Rome. Gladiator is a more powerful Ben Hur. The fight scenes are majestic, but the real action is when the actors are going at one another with words. There is not a single actor in the cast that doesn't fill the role to it's absolute full potential. That speaks volumes to the abilities of Ridley Scott in organizing the cast. Scott is like the Phil Jackson of movies. Give him a great cast, and he'll do greater things than have ever been done. Hans Zimmer's score is so inspired! From the intense waltz sequence in the first battle scene to show the civilized destruction of the germanic hordes to the heartfilled aria that leads into the credits after Maximus is finally reunited with his murdered family, every note fits the film perfectly. The CGI creation of Rome is some of the most beautiful imagery yet created in an authentic period movie. While there are a host of historical innaccuracies, these are inconsequential to the nature of the story. Maximus, the main character, is admittedly fictional. As a result, the movie cannot be seen as anything more than historical fiction and any gripes about historical accuracies have to fall by the wayside. From screenplay to acting to direction to post production, Gladiator is a masterpiece in every way. It is beautiful, it is entertaining, it is even quite badass. It's the best movie I've ever seen.

---

I must be retarded. Who writes whole paragraphs for 50 movies in one night?

It took me a whole hour just proof read the thing.

Oh well, at least it's up now.

Enjoy!

Tschüs!