ectonplasm's - Favourites List

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Small town fire chief C.D. Bales (Steve Martin) falls madly in love with the new girl in town, a gorgeous astronomer called Roxanne (Daryl Hannah). But there's an enormous problem - C.D.

has an amazingly big nose, and is convinced that such a beauty could never love a man with such a gargantuan appendage. Roxanne proves him right when she falls for Chris, a hunky and good looking fireman. The mayhem continues when C.D. agrees to ghost-write Chris's love letters, in which he pours out his own secret feelings. In this charming modernisation of the Cyrano de Bergerac story, will C.D.'s nose (and Chris's body) come between him and true love?

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Palmer's film about the world of popular music was first shown on British television to near unanimous acclaim.

It features interviews and performances from members of Pink Floyd, Sir Paul McCartney, Cream, Frank Zappa, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Sir George Martin, Donovan, Jimi Hendrix, Manfred Mann, Lulu, the Who, Pete Townshend, Anthony Burgess and many more. Of particular note are the insights presented by the late Frank Zappa, Donovan P. Leitch and Sir Paul. A fantastic time capsule that realistically portrays the world's leading musicians at the end of the 1960's.

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Matt Damon and Christian Bale star in a film based on the remarkable true story about Ford Motor Company's attempt to create the world's fastest car.

American car designer Carroll Shelby (Damon) and the fearless British-born driver Ken Miles (Bale) together battle corporate interference and the laws of physics to build a revolutionary race car and take on Enzo Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France in 1966.

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The very rich and extremely greedy Duke Brothers (Don Ameche and Ralph Bellamy) wager a bet over whether "born-loser" Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) could become as successful as the priggish Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) if circumstances were reversed.

So begins one of the funniest, most outrageous comedies of the '80s, cementing Eddie Murphy's superstar status. Alongside the street-smarts of Ophelia (Jamie Lee Curtis), Winthorpe and Valentine are a trio ready for a riotous revenge that culminates on the commodities trading floor in New York City.

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Jimmy Rabbitte, is a man with a vision - to bring soul music to Dublin. His friends Derek and Outspan ask him to manage their band and Jimmy agrees, but only on his terms.

He places an ad in the local paper which simply reads: "Have you got soul? If so, the World's Hardest Working Band is looking for you". And so were born The Commitments...

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Philandering concert pianist Stefan arrives home to find a letter which begins 'by the time you read this I may be dead'. So unfolds the story of Lisa, one of many woman with whom he had shared a brief encounter over the years and swiftly forgotten.

Her life has been spent loving him unfalteringly and now he would learn the truth about his past.

The film is set against the impressive backdrop of Monument Valley in Utah and tells the story of a mixed group of travellers who are making their way across the country to Arizona. They are endangered by an Indian War Party and this, along with their personal histories, results in difficulties.

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Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond, an ageing silent film queen, and William Holden as the struggling writer who is held in thrall by her madness, created two of the screen's most memorable characters in Sunset Boulevard.

Winner of three Academy Awards, director Billy Wilder's orchestration of the bizarre tale is a true cinematic classic. From the unforgettable opening sequence through the inevitable unfolding of tragic destiny, the film is the definitive statement on the dark and desperate side of Hollywood. Erich von Stroheim as Desmond's discoverer, ex-husband and butler, and Nancy Olson as the bright spot in unrelenting ominousness, are equally celebrated for their masterful performances.

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"An Angel at My Table" is the internationally acclaimed second film by Oscar-winning director Jane Campion. It is an extraordinarily moving celebration of the life of Janet Frame, New Zealand's most distinguished author, based on her autobiographical trilogy.

The film follows Janet through her poor childhood in the depression and her growing fascination with literature; her painfully shy student days and subsequent treatment for misdiagnosed schizophrenia; and finally on her travels to Europe where she samples Bohemian life and achieves international success as a writer.

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As the sport of climbing turns from a niche pursuit to mainstream media event, Marc-Andre Leclerc climbs alone, far from the limelight. On remote alpine faces, the free-spirited 23-year-old makes some of the boldest solo ascents in history. Yet, he draws scant attention.

With no cameras, no rope, and no margin for error, Marc-Andre's approach is the essence of solo adventure. Intrigued by these quiet accomplishments, veteran filmmaker Peter Mortimer (The Dawn Wall) sets out to make a film about Marc-Andre. But the Canadian soloist is an elusive subject: nomadic and publicity shy, he doesn't own a phone or car, and is reluctant to let the film crew in on his pure vision of climbing. As Peter struggles to keep up, Marc-Andres climbs grow bigger and more daring. Elite climbers are amazed by his accomplishments, while others worry that he is risking too much. Then, Marc-Andre embarks on a historic adventure in Patagonia that will redefine what is possible in solo climbing. 'The Alpinist' is an intimate documentary of a visionary climber who follows the path of his own passion, despite the heaviest of possible consequences. .

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Bergman's masterpiece of self-doubt, identity and eroticism is an audacious example of cinematic art. The notional story centres on newly mute actor Elisabet (Liv Ullmann) recuperating at her coastal holiday home in the care of a nurse, Alma (Bibi Andersson).

As tensions between the pair grow, their very selves seem to blur, chronology becomes uncertain and what is real and unreal loses significance. Yet the true impact of Persona goes beyond mere storytelling, touching, as Bergman said, 'wordless secrets that only the cinema can discover'.

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Denys Arcand's Oscar winning comedy drama is a life-affirming tale of love, family and friendship that features many of the cast and characters from his breakthrough film 'The Decline of the American Empire'.

After years of indulging his hedonistic lust for life and women, Remy (Remy Girard) is taken ill, an event that prompts a reunion with his ex-wife (Dorothee Berryman) and estranged son Sebastien (Stephane Rousseau). As father and son learn to set aside their differences, Sebastien moves heaven and earth to make his father's life more comfortable, calling upon the unorthodox help of his old childhood friend Nathalie (Marie-Josee Croze) and Remy's close friends and past mistresses. A brilliantly written and engagingly acted exploration of personal, political and sexual moves, Arcand's acclaimed film is witty, moving and hugely entertaining.

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"2001: A Space Odyssey" is a countdown to tomorrow, a road map to human destiny, a quest for the infinite. It is a dazzling, Academy Award-winning visual achievement, a compelling drama of man vs. machine, a stunning meld of music and motion.

It may be the masterwork of director Stanley Kubrick (who co-wrote the screenplay with Arthur C. Clarke) and it will likely excite, inspire and enthrall for generations. To begin his voyage into the future, Kubrick visits our prehistoric ape-ancestry past, then leaps millennia (via one of the most mind-blowing jump cuts ever conceived) into colonized space, and ultimately whisks astronaut Bowman (Keir Dullea) into uncharted realms of space, perhaps even into immortality.

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When a young Amish woman (Kelly McGillis) and her son (Lukas Haas) are caught up in the murder of an undercover narcotics agent, their unlikely savior proves to be the worldly and cynical Philadelphia detective John Book.

Harrison Ford is sensational as Book, the cop who runs head-on into the non-violent world of a Pennsylvania Amish community. The end result is an action-packed struggle of life and death, interwoven with a sensitive undercurrent of caring and forbidden love.

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Belfast is a poignant story of love, laughter and loss in one boy's childhood amid the music and social tumult of the late 1960's.

Buddy's family lives in a largely Protestant district with a few Catholic families, but one day his community and everything he thought he understood about life is suddenly turned upside down. Buddy's family gets caught in the mayhem and must decide to stay or leave the only place they have ever called home. Through it all, his passionate parents (Caitriona Balfe and Jamie Dornan) and quick-witted grandparents (Academy Award winner Judy Dench and Ciaran Hinds) keep the joy alive through music and the magic of movies in this feel-good story that reminds us that no matter how far you go, you never forget where you came from.