Every week at SiftPop.com, we challenge our writers to choose what they think is the best movie under a certain topic related to a recent release. So this week, with the sequel to The Boss Baby, we’re counting down our favorite movies with alliteration in their titles. Let us know @SiftPop what your ranking is!
At first glance, Pride & Prejudice might strike you as nothing more than a stuffy period piece with extravagant sets and a few pretty costumes. While this movie does indulge in all the typical trappings of a large scale 19th century drama, the wholesome storyline and charming cast of characters make this book-to-film adaptation an absolute delight! Pride & Prejudice is one of the earliest and greatest entries in the Keira Knightley Period Piece Cinematic Universe™, and it should be on every cinephile’s watchlist. This film is littered with memorable supporting performances from great British character actors, the standout being Matthew Macfadyen’s pitch-perfect portrayal of literature’s most iconic leading man, Mr. Darcy. Once you’ve finished watching this adaptation of the classic novel, be sure to check out the fantastic BBC adaptation from 1995 as well (featuring a breakout performance from Colin Firth). (Foster Harlfinger)
The Sixth Sense is one of those films that has become so ingrained in our minds that it is easy to undervalue its accomplishments. Beyond the obviously noteworthy final twist, The Sixth Sense gifted us what I firmly believe is the greatest child performance of all time with Haley Joel Osment’s portrayal of Cole, a young boy who—we all know the line—sees dead people. His ability to convincingly portray his character’s anxiety and terror is what sells this movie’s concept. The success of this Best Picture nominee rested entirely on the shoulders of an 11-year-old boy, and he absolutely nailed it. M. Night Shyamalan directed this movie to perfection, though one should not ignore the stellar cinematography from Tak Fujimoto (of The Silence of the Lambs fame) and the eerie, dream-like score from James Newton Howard. Bruce Willis will surely be thrilled to learn that after a recent reordering of my favorite movies list, The Sixth Sense found its home as my second favorite movie of all time. The Sixth Sense is an endlessly rewatchable classic that will stand the test of time, and it provides us with yet another piece of evidence that 1999 is the greatest and most influential year for film we have likely ever had. (Foster Harlfinger)
“What, we some kinda… suicide squad?” Wait a minute… *checks notes*… oops. Apologies, I’m here to talk about the version of Suicide Squad that’s actually good. That’s right, nearly five decades before DC Comics took a swing at bringing the idea of a group of bad guys banding together to save the day to the big screen, another alliterative attempt was made to the audience rooting for a bunch of ne’er-do-wells. The film may jam its title into the script just as subtly as its comic book cousin, but The Dirty Dozen actually succeeds in its mission. In this version, rogue Major Reisman (Lee Marvin) is tasked with training 12 soldiers who are serving lengthy sentences or on death row for a top-secret mission behind enemy lines in World War II. Watching the bond between this star-studded cast, which includes the likes of Donald Sutherland, Charles Bronson, and… Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown (?!), come together is fun to watch. If nothing else, at least check out the war games scene. It’s a classic with plenty of creativity and great Ernest Borgnine facial expressions. (Jake Bourgeois)
When I watch Donnie Darko, all around me, are familiar faces of young actors like Jena Malone and Seth Rogen, who would go on to have incredible careers. The setting is a small Pennsylvania town full of worn-out places populated with the worn out faces of veteran actors like Mary McDonnell and Patrick Swayze who are still performing at the top of their game. The movie starts bright and early one morning as people prepare for the daily races, but there is a dark undertone which implies that people are going nowhere. I find it kind of funny how Donnie (Jake Gyllenhaal) is detached from the world, yet seems to be the only character truly experiencing it. I find it kind of sad that no one really can help or understand him throughout, save for Frank the bunny (James Duval), whose motives are less than pure. The dreams his girlfriend has which give hope to the future emphasize that this relationship is the best he’s ever had. I find it hard to tell you the details of this movie without spoiling it, yet to deeply appreciate it you may find it hard to take in yourself. Donnie’s journey causes him to metaphorically run in a circle, and the solution to his problem highlights that we live in a very, very Mad World. (Nick Ferro)
“Remember, remember the 5th of November.” The film V for Vendetta (based on a graphic novel by Alan Moore) tells the story of one man’s fight to overthrow a tyrannical government. The story and events in this movie seem all too real after what has happened in the past year. V for Vendetta is a groundbreaking piece of storytelling in the terms of dialogue, tone, and score. There is a scene where Hugo Weaving as V has a conversation with Natalie Portman’s Evey where V pretty much uses every known word with the letter V and you hang on every word of this conversation. The Wachowskis truly captures the tone and style of Alan Moore’s novel. Again, the score is excellent in a later scene where V conducts the musical number 1812 Overture whilst buildings are blowing up around him and Evey. This film deserves to be seen as a cinematic masterpiece and deserves to be watched and understood for what it is and the message it is getting across. This film is surely not one to be missed. If you haven’t seen it, then check it out now on HBO Max. (Austen Terry)
I don’t particularly like this movie, but for personal reasons. Glengarry Glen Ross is a movie that if you have ever worked in sales for at least a week, you’ll have heard of. It glorifies the trials and struggles of the businessman. They are a breed of haves and have nots, and those who have it will survive. It also shows the stupidity of that world — the salespeople involved have good leads (you know, the things that would make doing their jobs easier) held out of their reach by their managers who are barking for more sales. The movie is probably most famous for the line delivered by Alec Baldwin, “Coffee’s for closers,” which is referenced in The Boss Baby as, “Cookies are for closers.” Having worked in sales and having known enough people who have worked sales, I can say that the vibe and pitch are perfect. It’s just that because I have worked in sales, I have been around enough of this that it also leaves a bad taste in my mouth. This movie is really great and is told very well. It’s that it does so well that I can’t like it. (Evan Lucken)
Beauty and the Beast was the first movie I saw in theaters more than once. It still holds the record for the most amount of times I’ve seen at the movie theaters (seven times)! There are a lot of reasons why I went back so many times: the story is amazing with a wonderful message about looking beyond looks and getting to know someone on a much deeper level, and the characters are so unbelievably memorable, especially Belle who was different from typical Disney princesses of the time. During this period, Disney was in the middle of a Murderer’s Row of classics, but the music with this one seemed almost broadway-like, which helps to progress the story while also being gorgeous. Stylistically, the animation is beautiful with the stained glass story at the beginning to that iconic ballroom dance scene. Even the Academy recognized its greatness by awarding it with a Best Picture nominee, something an animated film had never achieved before. It really is a “tale as old as time, true as it can be” for this one-of-a-kind movie that is arguably Disney’s best animated movie ever. (Mike Hilty)
In terms of movies that have some of the largest impacts on the future of film, I believe Seven Samurai could easily be in the conversation for number one, in more ways than one. I watched this movie for the first time as an adult after already becoming a self-described “film nerd.” You cannot go far when diving into film references without coming across Seven Samurai, so I was prepared to be surprised to a degree, but I cannot truly put into words the impact this movie had on me. Even outside the legend, the film just had me enthralled from start to finish. Visually, it still looks gorgeous and does not let you forget that Akira Kurosawa is one of the greatest to ever do it. The character work is also brilliant, with each of the titular samurai being fully fleshed out and important. The “gimmick” of the movie is of course this assembling of the team idea where a group of different people get brought together to achieve a common purpose. In modern films, the trope is everywhere. But imagine if the movie wasn’t good. Imagine that the characters weren’t as incredible. I doubt the trope would have caught on when it did. All that and more is why this movie resonated with me so strongly. If you care about film history, watch this movie. If you don’t care about those things and just want a good movie, you should still watch this movie. (Nashua Doll)
Do you fear death? Long before Davy Jones collected souls on the seven seas, William Sadler pitted his skills against Bill and Ted in games of chance and skill, and Clint Eastwood rode a pale horse into Lago to enact vengeance on dirtied souls, Death came in a more classic and iconic of forms. Ingmar Bergman created the quintessential embodiment of Death in The Seventh Seal with a black cloak and pale face. Death comes upon a knight of the crusade (played by a young and committed Max von Sydow) and confronts his life and humanity. Darkly funny, existential, and profound in the challenging way it peers into the human condition, this film is one of the greatest of world cinema. Bergman is so dynamic and impressive in his filmmaking that he makes a man taking on Death in chess so enthralling. Let’s play a game. (Shane Conto)
Now I want to make this clear — I actually have seen North by Northwest; however, any excuse to rewatch this classic is a good excuse. I mean, why wouldn’t you? You have one of the most iconic directors of his generation, a knockout cast, and a stellar story. Having two of these three is enough to get a good movie, but to have the trifecta is to have a movie that holds up across generations. Alfred Hitchcock is at his best in this film, as each and every moment leaves you wondering what will happen next. Cary Grant brings a character to life in ways few could against a scarily believable villain played by James Mason. All the while, you are bombarded by fantastic camerawork and some of the most iconic scenes in cinema history. By the film’s climax, you find yourself on the edge, literally and emotionally. I believe that no film is ever truly perfect, but few films have ever gotten as close as this movie does. (Joseph Davis)
Wonder Woman
In 2017, director Patty Jenkins made a film that truly showed what it means to be a hero. Wonder Woman was such a huge departure from what was being produced by Warner Bros. and Zack Snyder at the time. The bleakness and dreariness of the DCEU was left behind and instead, it carried a more vibrant and heroic tone throughout the majority of its runtime. The partnership between Jenkins and Gal Gadot was lightning in a bottle, and you can tell the two of them knew what direction to take the character of Diana Prince / Wonder Woman. While Wonder Woman is a fish out of water and naive at times, there is still a fierceness behind her eyes and the courage that makes superheroes so special. The scene that always comes to mind when I think about this film is the famous No Man’s Land scene. Steve Trevor tells Diana that it’s impossible and describes the immense amount of futility of trying to cross into enemy lines. I love their exchange in the trenches — Steve tells her that they can’t save everyone because that isn’t what they came to do, and Diana looks at him, hoisting herself up the ladder saying, “No, but it’s what I am going to do.” That exchange of words hits me to my core each time and makes me swell with emotion due to the inspirational meaning behind her words and conviction. Wonder Woman is a film that means so much to so many people. It inspires us as great superhero comic book films ought to. (Joe Vargas)
The Karate Kid
Even if you’ve somehow made it through life to this point without seeing The Karate Kid, you have a baseline knowledge of it. Everybody knows, “Wax on, wax off,” has screamed, “Get him a body bag!” or sung, “You’re the best around!” at the top of their lungs. Maybe it’s just me. To be clear, as much as I love Jackie Chan, we’re talking about the 1984 original with Pat Morita as Mr. Miyagi and Ralph Macchio as his pupil Daniel. In it, Miyagi uses his unconventional methods to train Daniel for a climactic karate tournament to be used as the venue for which Daniel will confront his bullies from a local karate school. Though, if you believe a popular internet theory, the extent to which Daniel is the victim is up for debate. That’s what’s truly amazing about the endurance of this classic. It didn’t just support sequels, but it had a fanbase so fervent that an internet theory became the basis for the eventual (critically acclaimed) spinoff series more than 30 years later. If you’re in the mood for some throwback ‘80s fun with berating bullies, cool cars, and even cooler crane kicks, you can’t go wrong here. (Jake Bourgeois)
Fast Five
I’m not going to make any bones about it — the Fast and Furious franchise isn’t really my cup of tea. It’s silly, it’s loud, it’s too big for its own good, and Vin Diesel is charismatic antimatter. However, even I love Fast Five. It has all of those things I mentioned and more, but the execution here is something I can only respect. Justin Lin leads this team of street racers into the place it either never should have gone, or always should have been at with admirable skill and creativity, and the movie is all the better for it. This is the very top of the franchise for the people who love the whole thing, but even for someone who’s very skeptical about the fastness and furiousness of it all, there’s something about hooking a bank vault up to a couple of cars and dragging it through the streets of Rio de Janeiro that tickles every little bit of the giddy child I have left in me. (Chris Bakker)
Liar Liar
Facetious Frank here to talk about Liar Liar, the 1997 film starring the always amazing Cary Elwes. The plot centers around Jerry (Elwes), an amazing everyday family man and perfect stepfather to Max (Justin Cooper). This psychological thriller takes a dark turn when Fletcher (James Carrey), his fiancee’s ex husband, returns on a 24-hour mission to break up this happy family, using a curse that Max inadvertently bestowed upon him. What makes this film stand out from other movies of this caliber is that Jerry is the perfect stepfather; a hero that does nothing wrong. Jerry loves his fiancé, and provides and genuinely cares for Max like he was his own son. Can Jerry survive until sundown keeping the family unit intact? You’ll just have to watch to find out. (Frank Kemp)
Wayne’s World
Waynes World tells the story of Wayne and Garth, two characters plucked from SNL played by Mike Myers and Dana Carvey, who are early 20-somethings that know little about the world, running a popular local cable show. This show eventually gets bought up by a scummy executive type person played by Rob Lowe (I would have said big shot exec, but there is literally no evidence to show he was somebody important. If you don’t believe me, watch it again — he’s based in Chicago). The music choices became iconic to my generation because of this movie. I have many fun experiences with “Bohemian Rhapsody” in my life, but when Cassandra plays “Ballroom Blitz” at the end, it stirs something in me that only Tia Carrere’s vocals could accomplish. This was the second movie to be made out of characters from SNL and its success is to blame for the slew of not-so-great SNL-based movies. But the difference between them and Waynes World is the phenomenal writing. We not only have Mike Myers himself to thank, but Bonnie and Terry Turner who would go onto write 3rd Rock from the Sun and That 70’s Show. I was worried this movie wouldn’t age well, but upon rewatch there’s only one joke that wouldn’t be used if written today. Because the plot is so simplistic and there aren’t any twists, it allows characters to have a point of view of the world that then changes as they learn more, and it also keeps the subject matter evergreen with me drawing parallels between this and the real life Defy Media scandal from a few years back. All in all, I love this campy classic crashing back into my life, and yes Frank, they too make fun of Delaware. (Kim Hausen)
Revolutionary Road
It took 12 years, but Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio finally reunited for an acting tour de force in Revolutionary Road, or as I like to call it Old Yeller! Because it’s set more than 60 years ago and they yell. A lot. Anyhoo, it sounded funny in my head. Frank and April Wheeler (DiCaprio and Winslet) play a married couple who’ve decided to sell up and escape the “empty hopelessness” of their mundane ‘50s family life and flee to Paris to “live again.” Sometimes though, life gets in the way of well laid plans. Frank accidentally gets himself into a great promotion selling “computer machines” to businesses, and April finds herself pregnant with their third child. From there on, we are treated to some sadly realistic situations that are played brilliantly well by our leads. I’ve always considered DiCaprio the greatest actor of his generation, but Winslet is truly astonishing in this and shows DiCaprio the way. Revolutionary Road boasts a great supporting cast, including David Harbour, Kathryn Hahn, Kathy Bates, and Michael Shannon, who was nominated for an Oscar as a former asylum inmate that spits truth with each word he utters. Sad, but somehow apt that he is considered the crazy one. If you’re a fan of watching great actors acting great, then this is a must see. (Adam Ritchie)
Man on the Moon
Andy Kaufman lived through entertainment and off-the-wall jokes. His pranks were often victimless and caused more confusion than anything. I cannot picture anyone other than Jim Carrey playing Kaufman in the biography, Man on the Moon. This movie takes you behind the scenes for some of the greatest jokes and performances of all time. You get to see Tony Clifton come to life and you get to see Kaufman fight studio execs who don’t understand the joke Kaufman is aiming for, and it’s all brought to life by Carrey. Jim Carrey melts into Andy Kaufman so much so that a documentary was released in 2017, which details the making of this movie. While some say Carrey took on the persona to an annoying degree, I say it’s perfect. Watch clips of Kaufman and then clips of Carrey being Kaufman and be amazed at the brilliance. It is a shame we lost Kaufman, dying at only 35 years young, but I am thrilled that we have Jim Carrey, who can take the craft of joke telling and spin comedy in the most unexpected ways. (Scott Batchelor)
Freaky Friday
Confession: body swap films are usually not my cup of tea. Thus, it comes as no surprise that, while having always had Freaky Friday referenced to me by my peers, I had avoided actually watching this film until recently. For that I am fully in regret mode, as it meant I missed out on the joy of watching Jamie Lee Curtis go into full angsty teenager mode. It’s hard not to enjoy the chemistry between Curtis and Lindsay Lohan as they navigate the stuff of nightmares for a teenager: living out the literal version of the Progressive Insurance “Becoming Your Parents” commercial. Enough can’t be said of Curtis as she delightfully kills as the Anna-Tess combo throughout to the final fortune cookie. For the cherry on top, having grown up in the prime of NCIS, I get to see Mark Harmon on the big screen as non-Jethro Gibbs. Get a fortune cookie, a friend you don’t mind becoming for a while, and kick off your weekend with Freaky Friday. (Matt Lawson)
The Great Gatsby
“The Great Gatsby” is a legendary book that I have never read (yep, showing my cards here, as I am not American, so this book was never on our “mandatory-to-read” list), but of which I have seen two movie adaptations. What’s that, you say? Two? Yes, you are getting two for the price of one, dear reader, because you deserve it. And because you are not actually paying anything, but tomato, potato, right? Anyway, I know there have been more than two film iterations of this book, but I have only seen the most famous ones — The Great Gatsby from 1974, starring Robert Redford and Mia Farrow and The Great Gatsby from 2013, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan. Would I recommend both? Well, it depends what you are in the mood for. If you want a more traditional approach that could put you to sleep, definitely go with the 1974 version. It’s well acted, don’t get me wrong, and it has stellar casting, but these “we are dressed uncomfortably and speak differently, old sport” movies were never my cup of hot cocoa. If you are in the mood for something crazier and more modern with a really different approach, do try the 2013 version. This film kept my attention better (part of it might have been my undying admiration and love for Carey Mulligan), but be aware, it is definitely more modern (did somebody say Jay-Z, Beyonce, or Lana Del Ray on the soundtrack for the movie from the 1920s? Yes, Baz Luhrmann did.) Also, be aware, no matter which version you choose, you’ll watch a movie that is almost two and half hours long. And what’s up with that green light again…? (Luke Burian)
Also See: Gone Girl, King Kong, Batman Begins, Peter Pan
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