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movies, top 10

8 Movies That Prove Perspective is Everything

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If film has taught us anything, it’s that different people perceive things differently. That’s how we get conflict. And we wouldn’t have conflict if we all experienced and interpreted events in exactly the same way.

Whereas history presents itself as being an objective treatment of the human story, story in the narrative sense relies more on the subjective experiences of our narrators, protagonists, and characters. The way they view motivations and events isn’t necessarily the way other characters in those same stories would view them.

The storytelling term that addresses this subjectivity is called an ‘unreliable narrator.’ How an unreliable narrator frames story events for the audience isn’t necessarily the way they actually happened.

On that note, we’re going to explore eight movies that show how perspective and point of view shape our interpretation of story.

(WARNING! These films aren’t for everyone. But if you’re in the mood to flex those hungry cinephile muscles, then you should absolutely watch every movie on this list. Hint: The best ones are at the end.)

1. Dale and Tucker vs Evil

IMDB | 2010 | R | 1h 29min | Action, Comedy, Horror

Let’s start simple and easy. Dale and Tucker vs Evil is a fun, light-hearted romp that takes a concept like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and turns it on its head to show things from the perspective of the “bad guys.” What we learn, however, is that these chainsaw-wielding hillbillies are anything but “bad.” It’s merely the viewpoint of the victims that frame Dale and Tucker as psychotic murderers. Worth noting is how the movie goes the extra mile to make use love and sympathize with the unlucky protagonists, played by the talented Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine.

Continue reading 8 Movies That Prove Perspective is Everything →

movies, top 10

10 Artistic Films to Watch Before You Die

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A quick heads up: We’re going to hit the international smorgasbord of taste in this article.

Are you a cinephile who loves artistic film? The road less traveled? Films that dare to defy convention? Then you’ve come to the right place.

I’m not going to lie, each of these films holds a special place in my heart and have stayed with me in the decades since I first experienced them. Now I want to pass those memorable experiences onto others.

No, not every one of these movies hits a Perfect 10 on the quality scale, and no, I’m not asking you to absolutely love every one of these films. However, I will ask you to keep an open mind and ignore the IMDB ratings. This discussion is about expanding your horizons beyond the narrow cookie-cutter Hollywood norms.

Let’s start with something soft and light:

1. Heartbeats

heartbeats

Originally: Les amours imaginaires
Director: Xavier Dolan
Writer: Xavier Dolan
Year: 2010
Runtime: 1h 41m
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: France
Watch: YouTube, DVD

Perhaps the most mainstream film of this bunch, Heartbeats carries itself with subtlety, tenderness, and an almost uncomfortably close intimacy. This beautiful film takes a carefully crafted approach to navigating the uncertainties of love, friendship, gender and sexual fluidity by exploring the complex relationships within an ambiguous love triangle. A small cast in character-centric film, the content itself is somewhat progressive, but breathtaking in its heartfelt simplicity.

Still with me? Good. Let’s challenge your senses a little more.

2. Princess Mononoke

mononoke

Originally: Mononoke-hime
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Writers: Hayao Miyazaki, Neil Gaiman (Adapted By)
Year: 1997
Runtime: 2h 14m
Genre: Animation, Action/Adventure, Fantasy
Country: Japan
Watch: DVD, Blu-ray

This anime feature film expresses a deep, theme-laden story through a dichotomous portrayal of beauty and brutality. The plot literalizes the metaphor of industrialization polluting the purity of nature, playing out the struggle on-screen with visual moments that will make your heart drop in your chest. But don’t let me spoil the plot. Experience it yourself. After all, there’s a reason this Studio Ghibli masterpiece has remained popular over the years.

3. The Tenant

tenant

Originally: La locataire
Director: Roman Polanski
Writers: Gérard Brach, Roman Polanski, Roland Topor (novel)
Year: 1976
Runtime: 2h 6m
Genre: Drama, Thriller, Horror
Country: France
Watch: Amazon Video, YouTube, DVD

You’ve heard of Rosemary’s Baby, but maybe you haven’t heard of Roman Polanski’s other other, arguably better, psychological horror film, The Tenant? Probably not. But here’s why you should watch it: The storytelling pays incredible attention to detail and the fluid, gradual madness that befalls the protagonist. You won’t even realize how deep into the story you are until the circular plot throws you for a loop with a powerful finale—or is it the beginning?

4. Run Lola Run

lola

Originally: Lola rennt
Director: Tom Tykwer
Writer: Tom Tykwer
Year: 1998
Runtime: 1h 20m
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Germany
Watch: Amazon Video, YouTube, DVD, Blu-ray

A well-known international film popular among American cinephiles, Run Lola Run straddles the line between feature and short film while exploring the surreality of multiple endings. In the story, the protagonist finds herself in a jam, forcing her to make quick decisions, each leading to a cascading series of unforeseen consequences. Lola doesn’t hold your hand along the way, either, creating plenty of material for thought-provoking analysis.

Still there? Great. Let’s move into more obscure territory…

5. Kanal

kanal

AKA: The Sewer
Director: Andrzej Wajda
Writer: Jerzy Stefan Stawinski
Year: 1957
Runtime: 1h 31m
Genre: Drama, War
Country: Poland
Watch: DVD

A film by one of the Polish masters, Andrzej Wajda, the predecessor to other Polish greats like Krzysztof Kieslowski and controversial directing great Roman Polanski, Kanal offers a layered retelling of Dante’s Inferno. Set in the sewers of Warsaw in WWII, the surface plot acts as a proxy to express Poland’s struggle to regain its lost identity after the USSR takeover. Bravery, insanity, and tragedy all have their place in this incredible piece of Polish Cold War-era film history.

6. Baraka

baraka

AKA: Baraka – A World Beyond Words
Director: Ron Fricke
Writers: Ron Fricke, Mark Magidson, Genevieve Nicholas, Constantine Nicholas, Bob Green
Year: 1992
Runtime: 1h 36m
Genre: Documentary
Country: United States
Watch: Amazon Video, YouTube, DVD, Blu-ray

No, this awe-inspiring documentary has nothing to do with former U.S. President Barack Obama. Rather, it’s a visual record of a day in the history of the world from sunrise to sunset, without any dialogue or narration. In many ways, Baraka is a more of a motion portrait of humankind than a true documentary, but let’s leave that distinction to the film critics. If you love documentaries, or even just love still photography, this often forgotten film should move to the top of your list.

7. The Double Life of Veronique

veronique

Originally: La double vie de Véronique
Director: Krzysztof Kieslowski
Writers: Krzysztof Kieslowski, Krzysztof Piesiewicz
Year: 1991
Runtime: 1h 38m
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Music
Country: France/Poland
Watch: Amazon Video, DVD, Blu-ray

Kieslowski explores the idea of an individual meeting their doppelganger in a surreal, dramatically emotional film layered with spirituality and ambiguous meaning. This is the film to watch and analyze if you want to get your fingers dirty with film criticism. And if you like Double Life, be sure to check out Kieslowski’s Three Colors: Blue.

Great work! You’ve made it this far. Time to bring out the big guns:

8. Man of Marble

marble

Originally: Czlowiek z marmuru
Director: Andrzej Wajda
Writer: Aleksander Scibor-Rylski
Year: 1977
Runtime: 2h 40m
Genre: Drama
Country: Poland
Watch: DVD, Blu-Ray

A personal favorite of mine, this Polish film (Andrzej Wajda again) requires some historical background knowledge to fully grasp. Essentially, a young film student tracks down an old communist-era hero of the working class, uncovering a long trail of untruths in the process. While watching Man of Marble, keep a keen eye open for how Wajda and Scibo-Rylski dodge the communist censors while simultaneously criticizing that very same institution of censorship with every second of motion picture. And sure, the dramatic leg poses and disco music can certainly be a sensory challenge, but hey, it was over 30 years ago. Those superficial issues aside, the film’s storytelling technique is deceptively deep and intricate, and every act and every line of dialogue comes loaded with subtext and double meaning. For depth in storytelling, it doesn’t get much closer to technical perfection than Wajda’s Man of Marble.

9. A Hole in My Heart

holeinheart

Originally: Ett hål i mitt hjärta
Director: Lukas Moodysson
Writer: Lukas Moodysson
Year: 2004
Runtime: 1h 38m
Genre: Drama
Country: Sweden
Watch: Amazon Video, DVD

Now we’ve arrived to the most obscure, avant-garde point of the article. This film experienced an extremely limited release (1 screen for 2 weeks only), paltry box office returns ($3,306 gross), and no mainstream reception whatsoever (just look at the IMDB rating and Metascore). A Hole in My Heart takes on the unrestrained lust of the pornography industry and peels away the layers to reveal the rot and disgust that lies beneath through visual metaphor and reality TV conventions such as the confession box. Sure, Moodysson’s film can be aesthetically challenging, if not outright bizarre, but simultaneously thoughtful, satirical, and—of all things—incredibly intimate and heartfelt.

Finally, let’s end on a (slightly) more positive note:

10. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

cherbourg

Originally: Les parapluies de Cherbourg
Director: Jacques Demy
Writer: Jacques Demy
Year: 1964
Runtime: 1h 31m
Genre: Drama, Musical, Romance
Country: France
Watch: Amazon Video, DVD, Blu-ray

This award-winning musical hangs somewhere between the realms of obscurity and cherished history, sweeping Cannes in 1964 but losing out at the 1966 Academy Awards to more mainstream films like The Sound of Music and Doctor Zhivago (yes, THAT Doctor Zhivago). Strange in its vivid colorfulness but drab, unflinchingly realistic portrayal of a romance that doesn’t work out, Umbrellas is nothing short of a filmic experience every cinephile should have. And while you’re at it, maybe you can settle the debate over whether it’s a true musical or really a modern asymmetrical opera.

 

Did you like this list? If so, give me a shout out on Twitter or Facebook and I will write another!

Or pick my brain yourself at Storysci.com.

movies, top 10

Top 10 Guy Movies to See Before You Die

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No, this isn’t a collection of fine art or introspective indie films. These are man-guzzling, eye-popping, armpit-sweating flicks that will double your testosterone and make you want to chug a 12-pack of beer and do 10,000 pushups with your pinky fingers.

Are they the BEST man movies ever made? Not likely.

Are they the most BADASS man movies ever made? Probably not.

Are they a list of my 10 favorite man movies ever made? Absolutely.

1. Fight Club (1999)

The first rule of Fight Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club. The Second Rule of Fight Club is that you DO NOT talk about Fight Club.

2. 300 (2006)

movie poster for 300 a film by zack snyder who created the movie Sin City

Despite some misguided opinions, 300 is not a commentary on current world affairs or the American war in Iraq. It’s about 300 of the manliest of man with incredible abs being badasses for 117 minutes.

3. Die Hard (1988)

movie poster for Die Hard starring Bruce Willis, the movie that changed action movies forever

Die Hard is the classic man movie that revolutionized the action movie genre by adding depth, mystery and incredible plot twists. It may be over 25 years old, but that doesn’t make any less manly to watch.

4. Rambo: First Blood (1982)

movie poster for Rambo: First Blood, starting one of the most famous action franchises

The original Rambo: First Blood made in 1982, not the 2008 gorefest sequel. Here we have one of the manliest men of all time doing all kinds of extremely awesome man things like killing baddies with handmade primitive weapons, building deadly traps out of raw materials and gunning down guys like a madman—but without the cartooniness of its sequel, Rambo II.

5. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

movie poster for Stephen Spielberg's World War II movie epic Saving Private Ryan

If there ever was an epic war story about brotherhood, this would be it. War, guns, explosions, blood and guts, and bros before hos. That’s what it’s all about.

6. Conan the Barbarian (1982)

movie poster for the original Conan the Barbarian film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger

Before its sequel and the 2011 remake ruined its reputation, this stoic barbarian film about swords and sorcery was a regular part of the manly meal. Let’s make it so once more.

7. Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000)

movie poster for the remake of Gone in 60 Seconds starring Nick Cage

Guys, cars, cops and criminals. Need I say more?

8. Gunga Din (1939)

movie poster for the Cary Grant classic adventure film Gunga Din

This nearly forgotten classic is about boys being boys. Features the noble savage, cavalry coming to the rescue, evil natives and lots and lots of fights.

9. Bad Boys 2 (2003)

movie poster for classic guy movie Bad Boys II starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith

Two badasses with guns doing manly things, like shooting baddies in a ridiculous over-the-top glamorous version of Cops.

10. The Godfather (1972)

movie poster for The Godfather starring Al Pacino and Marlon Brando

Let me make you an offer you can’t refuse: Betray the family and you sleep with the fishes. Watch this movie and you will understand.

tech, top 10

10 Free Programs Everyone Should Know About

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ten free programs everyone should know about screenshot collage from James Gilmore's blog

1. 7-Zip

7-Zip: One of the best (and cheapest—free!) archive programs on the internet. It compresses, encrypts, and decompresses RAR and ZIP files along with dozens of other formats. [view website]

2. BackUp Maker

Set up BackUp Maker once and never worry about backing up data manually ever again! Not only does this utility allow you to schedule regular backups, but it also includes the ability to encrypt, split backups across multiple destination media (such as multiple discs), and much more. [view website]

3. Dropbox

Dropbox creates a folder on your computer that will sync (via internet or LAN) with any other computer signed into the same account, or you can simply share folders with other people with or without a dropbox account. Files can also be accessed via the web, along with previous and deleted versions. Dropbox also boasts some of the best encryption on the Internet. [view website]

4. OpenOffice or LibreOffice

While many people have heard of Open Office, much fewer have heard of Libre Office, an excellent alternative to costly Microsoft Office. [Open Office] [Libre Office]

5. Primo PDF

This popular free program allows you to convert any kind of document into PDF format. It also installs a virtual printer which allows you to “print” a file into a digital PDF file instead of a physical sheet of paper. [view website]

6. Recuva

Have you ever accidentally deleted a file and couldn’t get it back? Or worse, had your laptop hard drive crash, destroying your entire digital life along with it? Don’t be left out in the cold again! Use Recuva, an awesome (free) utility for recovering deleted, files, emails, and damaged hard drives. [view website]

7. Screen Hunter

Screen Hunter is a screen capture utility that gives you considerably more versatility than the built-in Windows or Mac screen capture capabilities. [view website]

8. Skype, Google Hangouts, or Facebook Videochat

Videochat is the best way to stay in touch with friends and family, no matter where they are. It’s also a simply way to hold meetings when participants aren’t able to be in the same place. Skype is standard free videochat program but doesn’t allow group videochat sessions in the free version. Google+ Hangouts and Facebook Videochat (available through the chat window) can be buggy but are included as free features of having an account on either social network. Both allow group videochat as well. All three services include instant messaging. [Skype] [Google Hangouts] [Facebook]

If you need to use screen sharing or share files in your meetings, try—

9. Team Viewer

This incredible program allows you to login to any connected computer (it must be turned on) and use it remotely. Not only does it allow file transfers between the two computers, but it also has built-in functionality for collaborate meetings, screen sharing, video chat, and much more. One of the best features of Team Viewer is the ability to login to Windows and Mac computers via smartphone or tablet. [view website]

10. VLC Player + CCCP

Hands down the best free media player around. VLC can handle practically any video format and has numerous viewing options, such as the ability to switch languages or subtitle tracks mid-stream. VLC is unstoppable when combined with the Combined Community Codec Pack—a collection of all the media codecs you could possibly need. [VLC Player] [CCCP]

books, top 10

10 Great Books to Read Before You Die

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1. 1632 by Eric Flint

(sci-fi, alternate history)

book cover for alt history fiction novel 1632 by Eric Flint a book to read before you dieA small West Virginia town is transported from the year 2000 to the year 1632 in central Germany during the midst of the Thirty Years’ War due to an alien technology called the Assiti Shards.

You’ve probably never heard of 1632, Eric Flint or the Thirty Years’ War, have you? Let’s start by pointing out that the Thirty Years’ War was among the deadliest in human history and almost no one has ever written fiction or fantasy about them. As to Eric Flint…he wrote a book called 1632, a novel with a concept that sounds so horribly bad there is no way it can be any good. But it is. And not just good, but great. Flint tackles his premise with elegant execution that ensnares the reader in a strange and unique world and makes us love him for it. Available on Amazon.com.

Read my Minimalist Review of 1632!

2. 1984 by George Orwell

book cover for classic fiction novel 1984 by George Orwell a book to read before you die

(sci-fi, literary)

Set in a dystopian socialist future, a low level bureaucrat goes in search of a rebel organization that promotes free thought, only to find himself ensnared in a devious government plot.

Orwell’s masterpiece is one long illustration of why communism is evil and in so doing creates one of the greatest and most haunting futuristic worlds in all of literature. 1984 is one of the few books with an overt message that isn’t beaten over your head every five minutes. If you walk away from this book with a new-found fear of rats eating your face off, we will understand. Available on Amazon.com.

3. Dracula by Bram Stoker

book cover for classic horror novel Dracula by Bram Stoker a book to read before you die(horror, literary)

A young engaged couple is haunted by nocturnal visits of a reclusive vampire named Dracula. With the help of Prof. Van Helsing they follow the vampire across Europe in an effort put a stop to his long trail of gruesome murders.

This classic vampire tale is widely regarded as one of the best horror novels ever written. Bram Stoker uses implication and psychological terror to spur the reader’s imagination and heighten emotions. Everything Anne Rice and Stephenie Meyer wrote derives from this source. Except for Nosferatu, no one has ever been able to make a decent screen adaptation of Bram Stoker’s best novel. Available on Amazon.com.

4. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

book cover for sci-fi fiction novel Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card a book to read before you die(sci-fi)

A young boy goes to battle school in preparation for war against a hive-minded insectoid alien race but soon discovers that he alone is central to winning it.

Just as Dracula is one of horror’s best, Ender’s Game is one of sci-fi’s greatest. Originally a novelette, Orson Scott Card later expanded the story into a full-blown novel. With one of the biggest and most emotionally devastating twists in all of readingdom, Card knocks this one out of the park with a story like no other. It’s kind of like a vanilla Full Metal Jacket in space, but without as much Vincent D’Onofrio. Ender’s Game (2013) has also been recently adapted into a feature film starring Harrison Ford. Available on Amazon.com.

5. I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

book cover for horror thriller novel I Am Legend by Richard Matheson a book to read before you die

(horror, thriller)

A lone survivor barricades himself in his home while the dead come back to life and cover the earth.

This is where it all began. Before Anne Rice and George A. Romero there was Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend which introduced both zombies and vampires into the same story of post-apocalyptic survival and paranoia all the way back in 1954. In spite of being an absolutely incredible story, much was lost in its adaptation from page to the silver screen, including the most thought-provoking ending in all of undead literature. Our condolences to Richard Matheson‘s family; he passed on June 23, 2013. Available on Amazon.com.

6. Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan

book cover for literary fiction novel Saving Fish From Drowning by Amy Tan a book to read before you die

(literary)

A group of American tourists disappear in the political uncertain country of Burma (Myanmar).

Combine a group of tourists who find themselves lost in the backwoods of a third world country with a character-centric story by novelist Amy Tan and what do you get? A perfectly constructed novel called Saving Fish from Drowning. You may recognize Amy Tan from her famed Joy Luck Club, but sadly Saving Fish doesn’t get the attention it deserves. Available on Amazon.com.

7. Sphere by Michael Crichton

book cover for science fiction novel Sphere by Michael Crichton a book to read before you die

(sci-fi, thriller)

A psychologist is sent to a military science base on the bottom of the ocean floor where a mysterious airplane has crashed.

While Sphere is easily author Michael Crichton’s best novel, the movie adaptation does the book little justice. And trust me, the plot sounds cheesier than the actual execution. Using an introspective protagonist to analyze a mysterious brain-wrenching plot, Crichton navigates the reader through certainty, doubt and speculation and into an immersive science fiction experience. Available on Amazon.com.

8. The Giver by Lois Lowry

book cover for young adult science fiction novel The Giver by Lois Lowry a book to read before you die

(YA, sci-fi)

In a seemingly utopian society, a 12-year old boy enters training to become the new “Receiver of Memory” and comes to realize that their utopian society has eliminated all individuality and emotion.

Even though The Giver is intended for middle schoolers it is worth the quick read. Sporting a beautiful story with a universal message, Lois Lowry‘s Newbery Medal winner expounds the values of art, individuality and deep emotion better than most adult novels. Available on Amazon.com.

9. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

book cover for classic literary novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Lee Harper a book to read before you die

(literary)

Two young children in the American south experience racism first-hand as their father, a lawyer, attempts to defend an African American in a small town court.

There’s a reason To Kill a Mockingbird appears on every high school lit class syllabus. It’s beautiful. It’s terrible. And it is still one of the most effective works of fiction about racism and inequality ever written. For an added bonus, read Truman Capote’s Other Voices, Other Rooms. Truman Capote and Harper Lee were close friends as children and the pair appears in both novels in two different but fascinating interpretations. Mockingbird and Other Voices are both available on Amazon.com.

10. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire

book cover for revisionist oz fiction Wicked The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire a book to read before you die

(fantasy, literary)

A revisionist version of L. Frank Baum’s original The Wonderful Wizard of Oz which follows Elphaba as she faces a series of misfortunes that ultimately turn her into the Wicked Witch of the West.

It’s a shame this book has been nearly forgotten in the shadow of its sequels and the hit Broadway musical of the same name. Gregory Maguire‘s Wicked is truly a work of art in the form of a literary novel which thoroughly examines the nature of good and evil through a lengthy, in-depth discussion of surprising gravity. Available on Amazon.com.

Read my Minimalist Review of Wicked!

5 books that didn’t make the list (but you should read anyway):

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin (fantasy): A fully-realized fantasy world starring a large cast in a character-centric fantasy epic.  Available on Amazon.com.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (sci-fi, thriller): If there is ever a way to revitalize your childhood love for dinosaurs, this is the book is the way to do it.  Available on Amazon.com.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (mystery): A dark mystery novel featuring one of the most interesting characters to hit the written page. Adapted into several films, including [list here].  Available on Amazon.com.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (sci-fi, thriller) One of the most intense books you will ever read.  Available on Amazon.com.

The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane (literary, war): A haunting, surreal account of chaos in war.  Available on Amazon.com.