Mission 250 Filmcast

This week, we watch a film where Richard Gere struggles to decide what he loves the most: his own hair, or his adopted puppy. Does the struggle lead to his sudden death? Who's to say. Hachi: A Dog's Tale, directed by Lasse Hallstrome.

This week, we watch the film that brings back dinosaurs in the groundbreaking blockbuster that combines horror, drama, comedy, action, adventure, sci-fi...really, this movie does it all.  Now with four films in the franchise (Jurassic World is currently the 4th highest grossing movie of all time), the original still towers over the sequels, with special effects that somehow didn't age a day. Juras...

This week, we celebrate our 50th episode, and go over each one of our top 5 favorite movies, and bottom 3 least favorite movies, of the last 50 we've watched!

This week, we watch the animated classic who's popularity lead to the founding of Studio Ghibli, which went on to make additional milestones in animation like Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, and My Neighbor Totoro. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, directed by Hayao Miyazaki.

This week, we watch the landmark picture that depicts the hardships of the dust bowl survivors that journey to California to find a new life.  Adapted from the pages of John Steinbeck's classic novel that was released only a year earlier, these two pieces of art were among the most controversial of the time.  The Grapes of Wrath (1940), directed by John Ford.

This week, we watch the best picture winner that is one of the few "romantic comedies" on the top 250.  We have a little trouble separating the man from the movie.  Annie Hall (1977), directed by Woody Allen.

This week, we watch the Russian science fiction film where two men are lead into The Zone by a Stalker in hopes of entering a room that grants wishes. Come for the beautiful cinematography, stay for the inescapable atmosphere.  Stalker (1979), directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.

This week, we watch Ethan Hawk and Julie Delpy fall in love in Vienna.  What could be seen as a two hour long conversation, is really a film that sets out to achieve the focused goal of capturing a moment between two people falling in love. Before Sunrise (1995), directed by Richard Linklater.

This week, we watch Matt Damon try to find out who he is, as he runs around places, jumps across buildings, assassinates strangers, drives off buildings, has flashbacks, and jumps through windows on the sides of buildings. All the while, people in buildings talk about where he's running to. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), directed by Paul Greengrass.

This week, we watch the the movie that captured a slot in Quentin Tarantino's list of the 20 best films since 1992 - a murder mystery that combines horror and comedy in a way that that leaves you not only guessing at who the killer is, but what tone the movie will take with the next scene.  Also, the best jump-kicks in movie history. Memories of Murder (2003), directed by Bong Joon Ho.

This week, we watch the winner of 8 Oscars, including Best Director, Best actor (Ben Kingsley), and Best Picture, which it thoroughly deserved.  This is one of the most epic films in history, and stands up strongly to the test of time. Gandhi (1982), directed by Richard Attenborough.

This week, we watch Jim Carrey play Truman Burbank, a normal every-day kinda guy that just happens to be the focal point of the worlds biggest reality TV show. In the 90's the story seemed absurd, but nowadays, reality TV is everywhere and this movie almost feels normal. The Truman Show (1998), directed by Peter Weir.

This week, we watch the comic book movie that blew up the box office.  The Hard-R, ultra-violent comedy was a passion project that almost didn't get made, which not only restarted Ryan Reynolds career, but also is bound to start an R-rated comic book movie surge. Deadpool (2016), directed by Tim Miller.

This week, we watch the classic thriller that inspired Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho and Vertigo. The wife and the mistress of a boarding school headmaster plot to kill him.  This movie contains all sorts of 1955 murder, drowning, poison, zombies, ghosts, and creepy private investigators. Diabolique (1955), directed by H. G. Clouzot.

This week, we watch the mind-bending, genre-defying film that is at once about a time traveling super-hero who receives his directives from a imaginary man in a scary bunny outfit, while also being a coming of age drama/comedy with one of the best sound tracks in movie history.  Donnie Darko (2001), directed by Richard Kelly.

This week, we watch the Best Picture winning character drama - disguised as a sports movie - which not only brought writer/director/star Sylvester Stallone from being homeless and hungry to one of the biggest movie stars in the world to this day, but also invented the sports training montage. Is there a better motivational song than "Gonna Fly Now"? Rocky (1976), directed by John G. Avildsen.

This week, we try to make sense of the 1964 winner of the Best Foreign Film Academy Award, which is described a story of a director struggling to make a movie. Thats about as much of it as we understood. 8 1/2 (1963), directed by Federico Fellini.

This week, we watch the one of the first color movies ever made, which tells the now culturally-embedded story of Dorothy, her dog Toto, The Scarecrow, The Tin Man, The Cowardly Lion, The Wicked Witch of the West, and the title character, while using the new technology to a very purposeful effect. The Wizard of Oz (1939), directed by Victor Fleming.

This week, we watch the Pixar movie that leads us on a journey through the world behind the closet doors of children.  We dive deep into the potential history of the monster culture, and whether Waternoose created the notion that children are dangerous to keep the scary monsters in power. Monsters, Inc. (2001), directed by Pete Doctor.

This week, we watch the final chapter of the Harry Potter series, where Ron, Hermione and Harry must protect Hogwarts, find and destroy all of the remaining Horcrux, defeat Voldemort, shoot magic, drink potions...really its as magical as you can handle, and its a lot of fun. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (2011), directed by David Yates.

This week, we watch the Best Picture nominated film that gave Leonardo DiCaprio his much sought after Best Actor Oscar, as he suffers violently and horribly through some of the most gorgeously shot landscapes in movie history. The Revenant (2015), directed by Alejandro Inarritu.

This week, we watch ANOTHER (back-to-back) time travel, science fiction mash-up classic, that contains the break-out performance of Mr. Universe himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and kicked-off the career of the man who would go on to direct the two top-grossing movies of all time, James Cameron. The Terminator (1984).

This week, we watch the time travel, science fiction mash-up classic, that contains performances from Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt that defied all expectations, and is helmed by the visual genius, Terry Gilliam - Twelve Monkeys (1995).

This week, we watch the Best Picture winning film about three veterans arriving home after World War II, and the issues they face as they try to re-enter society. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), directed by William Wyler.

This week, we watch Bill Murray live the same day over and over again, as he struggles with self-hate, love, and death, in the classic comedy Groundhog Day (1993). Directed by Harold Ramis.