Sunday Showdown: AFI vs. IMDb (#97)

Blade Runner vs. Gladiator

Or: Ridley Scott vs. himself.

I appreciate a young Harrison Ford and a robot snake lady in a clear plastic coat being shot in the back and falling – in slow motion – through multiple planes of glass as much as the next person. And I love Sci-Fi, so I always want to like Blade Runner more than I actually do in reality.  

Really, Blade Runner is more neo-noir than anything. And like I said last week I find most film noirs to be gorgeously cynical.  Neo-noir is great too, even though there's no Bogey.

Yeah, definitely noir



There’s like seven different versions of Blade Runner now– theatrical cut, international cut, director’s cut, final cut, really-we're-serious-this-time-final final cut, etc. If you’ve got a choice, try to watch one without Harrison Ford’s narration. Blade Runner is considerably better without the Philip Marlowe-esque narration attempt, but no matter what, the story line is a bit thin and pacing is a bit slow. But you can’t beat it in terms of atmosphere. And Harrison Ford’s fingers being broken one by one… priceless.

Gladiator, on the other hand, was just plain painful for me. It started sad and violent and ended sad and violent. Fortunately, the middle was filled with sadness and violence to break it up. Sigh.  Really, these are my least favorite kinds of films, no matter how well-acted, well-written, or well-produced.  Or how buff Russell Crowe looked.

(For Megan)

Both movies were directed by Ridley Scott, and both have their own merits. My pick for this week, though, is Blade Runner, due to its cultural influence and cult favorite status, more than plot or story.

So after Week 4, score is AFI - 3, IMDb - 1.

	AFI’s Top 100	IMDB’s Top 100 (as of 1/1/12)
#97	Blade Runner (1982)	Gladiator (2000)
#98	Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)	The Maltese Falcon (1941)
#99	Toy Story (1995)	Unforgiven (1992)
#100	Ben Hur (1959)	The Elephant Man (1980)

Next week #96: Do the Right Thing (AFI) vs. The Sting (IMDb). So… Spike Lee vs. Robert Redford/Paul Newman. Hmmm.

Sunday Showdown AFI vs. IMDb (#98)

This week’s AFI/IMDb showdown  (#98) was Yankee Doodle Dandy vs. The Maltese Falcon. Although it wasn’t quite as bad as comparing Unforgiven and Toy Story last week, it was still pretty difficult. Again, two entirely different genres (musical and film noir) but at least these were made in the same time period (early 1940s) and were both black and white.

I should say right from the beginning my choice for winner this week is The Maltese Falcon. It’s the first of the gorgeously cynical film noir genre of the 40s & 50s. John Huston (writer/director) was a genius.  Plus honestly, I would be hard pressed to vote against anything with Humphrey Bogart in it.  I’ve been on a huge Bogey kick the last year or so. I love The African Queen, Key Largo, The Big Sleep and, of course, Casablanca.

[As an aside, I got on said Bogart kick because last year I happened to hear the 1981 classic song “KeyLargo” by  Bertie Higgins – which I remembered, frighteningly enough, from my childhood. Includes such lines: “We had it all… Just like Bogey and Bacall… Starring in our own late, late show… Sailing away to Key Largo…”

In case you need to experience some of that sheer goodness:

Dude is smoking, has awesome facial hair, AND rocks a gold necklace & white sports jacket/shirt open to the waist.  You’re welcome.] 

But even though my vote goes to The Maltese Falcon, the biggest surprise came from Yankee Doodle Dandy.  Was that James Cagney – famous for playing gangsters – singing and tap-dancing in the biography of George M. Cohan? Sho’ nuff was.  When I think of James Cagney, I think of The Public Enemy: “Aw, you dirty, double-crossing… open up in there, you hear me?” (Admittedly, I think of that because of my many times on the Great Movie Ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studio, not because of the actual movie). But to see him singing and dancing was a pleasant surprise, although he’s still not one of my favorites.

So, after three films, the score stands 2-1, in AFI’s favor. 

	AFI’s Top 100	IMDB’s Top 100 (as of 1/1/12)
#98	Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)	The Maltese Falcon (1941)
#99	Toy Story (1995)	Unforgiven (1992)
#100	Ben Hur (1959)	The Elephant Man (1980)

Next week’s showdown: Blade Runner vs. Gladiator.  Interesting.