This week for my “Tuesday Top 10” I decided to go with my 10 favorite movies. By no means are these the 10 best movies I have ever seen … but more so the 10 movies that impact the most, either because I think they’re just that good, or because they have an emotional tie. After the first 2, the order could be flip-flopped a lot, and probably changes on a day to day basis.
- The Departed
An all-star cast, a great story, excellent acting… and what an ending! My favorite movie, hands down. - Inception
Dreams have always intrigued me, and this movie just builds on that. Beyond the dreaming aspect, it also delves into problems with letting go of lost loved ones… if you could hold on to a lost family member, even if in your dreams, would you? Would you let go the rest of the “real” world for it? - Jaws
For all of the bad it did for sharks, this is the movie that really made being a marine biologist seem “cool”. I totally wanted to grow up to be like Matt Hooper, and now I kind of have (except I’m not trying to kill any sharks, I save them instead!) - The Dark Knight
Heath Ledger … Do you really need to say anything else? As good as this movie is as a whole, his performance alone put it in the upper echelon of movies - Jurassic Park
Another movie, like Jaws, that really made me want to be a scientist. Alan Grant was the man! I had a thing for dinosaurs when I was a kid, so this movie was just the best thing ever to me! - Gladiator
“My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius….” This movie is chocked full of quotes that I just can’t get enough of. Adding to that the great fight sequences and the sadistic nature of Joaquin Phoenix‘s character… Wow! I also remember seeing this in the theaters with my Mom and little brother, there was an old guy sleeping and snoring the next row over, Mom thought it was my little brother and told him to stop … hilarious! - Rounders
Matt Damon and Ed Norton were the cool poker players, and this was a time when I played A LOT of poker. This one, again, is full of memorable quotes: “He beat me, straight up… pay him, pay that man his money” (Thanks John Malkovich) - For Love of the Game
Kevin Costner played the aging pitcher on his way out of the big leagues after an illustrious baseball career. This movie had just enough sports in it to make me appreciate the “ooey gooey” love story. But come on, a guy can live with the sappy love story when the main character gets to hook up with his masseuse! - Warrior
Two estranged brothers are on a collision course in a winner-take-all MMA tournament. Joel Edgerton is the guy you want to root for, but Tom Hardy is just a badass. Totally underrated in my opinion, I loved the story. Maybe it’s because I have a brother and, even though we weren’t brought up with as poor of a situation as they were in the movie, I can understand the feelings they both have by imagining myself in that situation (maybe not fully understand, but you know what I mean). - The Land Before Time
Like I said, this is definitely not “the top 10 movies ever made”. I love this movie, even though it is a kid’s movie it can still make me tear up. At a young age, (I was a year old when this was made) this movie gave me a new appreciation for having a loving mother always be their for me. Yes, I have a loving father too, but there were no Daddy issues in this movie.
Honorable Mentions: The Professional, Black Swan
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