frankie's - 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die List
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Cria Cuervos (1976)Raise Ravens
Shot in the summer of 1975 as General Franco lay dying, Saura's masterpiece takes its title from a sinister Spanish proverb: 'Raise ravens and they'll pluck out your eyes'. A subtle yet unmistakable indictment of the family as a repressive force in Spanish society, 'Cria cuervos' centres on an eight-year-old orphan (the spellbinding Ana Torrent) who believes herself to have poisoned her cold, authoritarian father (Hector Alterio), a high-ranking military man whom she blames for the death of her adored mother (Geraldine Chaplin). - Director:
- Carlos Saura
- Cast:
- Geraldine Chaplin, Mónica Randall, Florinda Chico
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The Travelling Players (1975)O thiasos
Spanning the years 1939-52, the story follows a company of actors who tour the length and breadth of Greece performing a pastoral folk tale. Observing the upheaval wrought upon them during this politically turbulent period, the film also offers a daringly critical comment upon the times in which it was made. That Angelopoulos shot the film under the noses of the Colonel's semi-fascist regime makes his achievement all the more remarkable. - Director:
- Theodoros Angelopoulos
- Cast:
- Eva Kotamanidou, Aliki Georgouli, Vangelis Kazan
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When the seaside community of Amity finds itself under attack by a dangerous great white shark, the town's chief of police (Roy Scheider), a young marine biologist (Richard Dreyfuss) and a grizzled shark hunter (Robert Shaw) embark on a desperate quest to destroy the beast before it strikes again. Featuring an unforgettable score that evokes pure terror, 'Jaws' remains one of the most influential and gripping adventures in motion picture history. - Director:
- Steven Spielberg
- Cast:
- Roy Scheider, Allison Caine, Steven Spielberg
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In an absorbing performance Ben Gazzara plays small-time Sunset Strip entrepreneur Cosmo Vittelli, owner of the Crazy Horse West night spot. An obsessive showman, Cosmo navigates a murky world of loan sharks and crooks to keep his club afloat, but when a gambling debt spirals out of control he is blackmailed into accepting a murderous commission.
Featuring stand-out turns by Seymour Cassel and Timothy Carey as the underworld racketeers out to fleece Cosmo, John Cassavetes' portrayal of one man's hubristic descent subverts the conventions of its genre to explore the darker side of the American dream.- Director:
- John Cassavetes
- Cast:
- Ben Gazzara, Timothy Carey, Seymour Cassel
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At the centre of the terror is Carrie (Sissy Spacek), a tortured high-school misfit with no confidence, no friends... and no idea about the extent of her 'secret powers' of telekinesis. But when her psychotic mother and sadistic classmates finally go too far. the once-shy teen becomes an unrestrained, vengeance-seeking powerhouse who, with the help of her 'special gift', causes all hell to break loose in a famed cinematic frenzy of blood, fire and brimstone that will take you to the very depths of horror - and beyond! - Director:
- Brian De Palma
- Cast:
- Sissy Spacek, Katie Irving, Piper Laurie
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After avenging his family's brutal murder, Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood) is on the run, pursued by a pack of killers. He travels alone, but a ragtag group of outcasts Laura Lee and Lone Watie (Sondra Locke and Chief Dan George) is drawn to him - and Wales can't leave his motley surrogate family unprotected. - Director:
- Clint Eastwood
- Cast:
- Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Chief Dan George
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In the Watergate Building, lights go on and four burglars are caught in the act. That night triggered revelations that drove a U.S. President from office. Washington reporters Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) grabbed the story and stayed with it through doubts, denials, and discouragement. The entire 'All the President's Men' is their story. The film also explores a working newspaper, where the mission is to get the story - and to get it right. - Director:
- Alan J. Pakula
- Cast:
- John Randolph, Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford
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This is the film that catapulted Sylvester Stallone into the international spotlight and launched one of the most successful series of films in movie history, This is the story of a loser, a two bit boxer from Philadelphia, who gets a second chance in life by being offered an impossible shot at the heavyweight title. Stallone's performance is as powerful as his character's punches in the ring. This is one of the most exciting action movies you will ever see. Rocky is the simple story of a man whom fate chooses for a shot at glory in what has otherwise been an ordinary life. And while this subject matter is nothing new, it was unusual for Hollywood to release an old-fashioned 'feel-good' movie in the seventies, a decade whose films were mostly unconventional in attitude and anti-establishment in tone. Rocky is, of course, a fairy tale, but by grounding its characters in an everyday reality, the filmmakers were able to make them seem real and alive. And making the major contribution to that sense of reality was Sylvester Stallone, an out-of-work actor/writer whose faith in himself took him from utter obscurity to world-wide fame and fortune virtually overnight..... - Director:
- John G. Avildsen
- Cast:
- Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young
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"Taxi Driver" provoked fierce controversy when it was released, running into censorship problems in America as some of the scenes of violence were described to be "as gory as Clockwork Orange and Straw Dogs". In addition there was an outcry at a 13-year-old schoolgirl actress (Jodie Foster) co-starring as a prostitute. It won Best Picture at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival and received Academy Award Nominations for Best Film, Best Actor (Robert de Niro) and Best Supporting Actress (Foster). - Director:
- Martin Scorsese
- Cast:
- Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd
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Even more compelling today than when it was first released, Sidney Lumet's 'Network' is a wickedly funny, spot - on indictment of the TV news media. Winner of four Academy Awards including Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress and Best Screenplay (Paddy Chayefsky), this searing satire stars Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch and Robert Duvall. When longtime news anchor Howard Beale (Finch) is fired, he suffers a violent, on - air breakdown. Ironically, his angry rantings boost his sagging ratings - much to the surprise and delight of the UBS brass. Subsequently rehired and reinvented as the "mad prophet of the airwaves", he soon becomes a pawn of ruthless programming executives who milk his madness for every share point it's worth. Of course, when the "prophet" ceases to be profitable, something has to be done about Beale, preferably on camera, before a live studio audience... - Director:
- Sidney Lumet
- Cast:
- Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch
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The Ascent (1977)Voskhozhdeniye
In the darkest days of World War II, two partisans, Sotnikov (Boris Plotnikov) and Rybak (Vladimir Gostyukhin) set out for supplies to sustain their beleaguered outfit, braving the blizzard swept landscape of Nazi occupied Belorussia. When they fall into the hands of German forces and come face-to-face with death, each must choose between martyrdom and betrayal, in a spiritual ordeal that lifts the film's earthy drama to the plane of religious allegory. With stark, visceral cinematography that pits blinding white snow against pitch black despair, 'The Ascent' finds poetry and transcendence in the harrowing trials of war. - Director:
- Larisa Shepitko
- Cast:
- Boris Plotnikov, Vladimir Gostyukhin, Sergey Yakovlev
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In the Realm of the Senses (1976)Ai No Corrida
Based on a true story, this is the story of one of Japan's most notorious scandals. An ex-prostitute enters service in a household and promptly begins an obsessive and sexually perverse affair with the master. What starts as a casual diversion escalates into a passion that holds no bounds. The intensity of the affair and the couple's mutual appetite for exploring the physical and sexual limits of their love-making completely overwhelms them and the strain of the relationship takes its toll on all concerned. - Director:
- Nagisa Ôshima
- Cast:
- Tatsuya Fuji, Eiko Matsuda, Aoi Nakajima
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1900 (1976)Novecento
It is turn-of-the-century Italy, and in the summer of 1900 two children are born in the rich agricultural countryside in the region of Emilia. Olmo Dalco (Gerard Depardieu) is the bastard son of a family of farmworkers and Alfredo Berlinghieri (Robert De Niro) is heir to a wealthy family of landowners. Although they come from two different worlds, a friendship develops that will endure the sweeping changes of the 20th century. - Director:
- Bernardo Bertolucci
- Cast:
- Robert De Niro, Gérard Depardieu, Dominique Sanda
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Crash-landing on Earth from his dying planet, an alien humanoid travelling by the name of Thomas Jerome Newton (David Bowie) uses his superior intelligence to build a vast business empire. As he takes on - and beats - every US corporation, people can only guess at his true purpose: to save his dying world from agonising death by drought. Newton's ageless fall from grace, as he becomes prey to lust, alcohol, business rivals and finally, the US Government, makes 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' not only a bitingly caustic indictment of the modern world, but also a poignant commentary on the loneliness of the outsider. - Director:
- Nicolas Roeg
- Cast:
- David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clark
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The Jedi Knights have been exterminated and the Empire rules the galaxy with an iron fist. A small group of Rebels have dared to fight back by stealing the secret plans to the Empire's mightiest weapon, the Death Star battle station. The Emperor's most trusted servant, Darth Vader (David Prowse), must find the plans, and locate the hidden Rebel base. Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), a captive Rebel leader, sends out a distress signal that is intercepted by a simple farm boy, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill). Seizing his destiny, Luke takes up the challenge to rescue the princess and help the Rebellion overthrow the Empire, along with such unforgettable allies as the wise Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness), the cocky Han Solo (Harrison Ford), the loyal Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), and the droids R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels). - Director:
- George Lucas
- Cast:
- Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, Harrison Ford
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