The Usual Suspects: ☆☆☆☆ (4 stars)

Film: The Usual Suspects
Director: Bryan Singer
Main Actors: Kevin Spacey; Stephen Baldwin; Kevin Pollack; Benecio Del Toro
Year: 1995
Rating: ☆☆☆☆ (4 stars)

I loved Netflix's House of Cards, and was a big fan of Kevin Spacey and his Frank Underwood character, so picked 'The Usual Suspects' as my next film to tick off the list. Although it was sometimes hard to follow, the twist at the end was honestly one of the best I've ever seen, and was voted best movie twist on IMDB! We follow a group of men wrongly accused of a hijacking, who plot revenge against the police, but this gets overshadowed by the bigger question of the identity of Keyser Soze. The ending was so good that I will probably watch it again pretty soon!

For a bit of impressive film knowledge, Al Pacino is supposed to have read for the part of Dave Kujan, but turned the role down due to other commitments. He said it was the role he most regretted turning down, which isn't a surprise. This film features highly on lots of opinion polls, and the only reason I haven't rated it as five stars is because I got slightly confused around half way through. Another brilliant aspect of the film is that it is only 106 minutes long, which, given how so many films now feel like they drag on forever, was a refreshingly concise run time.

You can catch the film trailer here, and the film can be seen on DVD, LoveFilm and Netflix which is always a bonus for convenience.

When Harry Met Sally: ☆☆☆☆

Film: When Harry Met Sally
Director: Rob Reiner
Main Actors: Billy Crystal; Meg Ryan
Year: 1989
Rating: ☆☆☆☆ (4 stars)

With a daunting 200 films to watch, and also being a testosterone-ridden man, I thought I would start with what I have been told is an absolutely classic Romcom! Yes, that's right, this reviewer has a sensitive side... I was hungover, flicking through Netflix, looking for a film to kick off the list, and use as procrastination from my Finals. I decided on When Harry Met Sally. 

For those of you who are looking to impress and 'wow' others with your new found film knowledge: the film stars Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan and tracks the various stages of their friendship. Harry's character (Crystal) is said to be based on Director Rob Reiner, whilst Sally's (Ryan) picky eating reflects screenwriter, Nora Ephron's own eating habits. The infamous line, "I'll have what she's having", following the fake orgasm scene, was delivered by Rob Reiner's own mother, and was voted number 33 on a list of best American movie quotes by the American Film Institute. 

I found myself smiling all the way through the film. Billy Crystal is really funny, and to be honest, knowing that my girlfriend hadn't seen the film in years, I was able to steal a few of his lines and make use of them myself. In addition to the iconic fake orgasm scene, this film is genuinely very heart warming, and an easy, enjoyable watch. 

Also, for anyone that has ever been on a date with an indecisive, demanding, or high maintenance partner (mentioning no names..), Meg Ryan's character will certainly ring a few bells! This film is a brilliant example of people in the classic 'friend zone' situation, and shows that the person that they think they have spent their whole life looking for may actually be right in front of them. So maybe just get drunk and try and kiss your best friend! What's the worst that can happen?* 

All in all, this was a very enjoyable film, and a great way to start The 200! I would suggest it's a good option for a date, but also thoroughly recommended as a hangover cure. Check it out and let me know what you think!

*DISCLAIMER: Don't blame me if this goes hideously wrong. It's just a Film Blog, you shouldn't base your life on this post (probably).

The List...

Hello and welcome to J. Blog's Film 200! 

The concept of this blog originated earlier in 2014, when in conversation with pretty much anyone, it became abundantly clear that I am severely behind when it comes to watching 'classic', 'must-see' movies. Ask me about any trashy American college film and I'm your man! However, when it comes to Best Picture winners or those films that "everyone" has seen - I clearly missed that boat. 

This isn't something I'm proud of, and with a girlfriend who works in the film industry, I've been coming in for more and more stick, especially whenever we meet any of her colleagues. 

This year is the year; I'm determined to transform from film rookie to complete and utter film buff by the end of 2015. Using a combination of:
IMDB Top 250 Films
Rotten Tomatoes Top 100 Greatest Films
TSPDT 1000 Greatest Films
Film4's 50 Films to See Before you Die 
Yahoo Movies 100 Modern Classics 
Total Film's 100 Greatest Movies of All Time
I've created the following list of my 200 films that I haven't, but really should, watch. The standard response to the list is "You haven't seen that?! What! Are you joking?!', which is a pretty stupid retort, given that this is, in fact a list of films that I have not seen! 

My aim is to watch all of these 200 films by the end of 2015, whilst blogging and reviewing each film out of 5 stars. Based on my own experience when talking about the idea for this blog, there are plenty of other people that haven't seen these films, but just won't admit to it! I'm hoping to make it easier for you other film rookies to get involved and let you know what really are "must-see's" as well as what to miss..

This list is not exhaustive and I'd love feedback and comments, to hear if you agree or disagree with my list and also my reviews of the films. If you have any suggestions of films that you think I should watch, then please let me know - if you recommend it, the chances are I haven't seen it! 

Here is the complete list… First review coming soon!

1. The Godfather
2. The Godfather II
3. Pulp Fiction
4. The Good The Bad The Ugly
5. 12 Angry Men
6. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
7. Goodfellas
8. The Matrix Series
9. Seven Samurai
10. City of God
11. Se7en
12. The Usual Suspects
13. The Silence of the Lambs
14. Once upon a Time in The West
15. It's a Wonderful Life
16. Leon: the Professional
17. Casablanca
18. Life is Beautiful
19. American History X
20. Psycho
21. Rear Window
22. City Lights
23. Spirited Away
24. Rain Man
25. Memento
26. Terminator 2
27. Modern Times
28. Sunset Boulevard
29. The Pianist
30. Dr Strangelove: Or How I learned to Stop Worrying and Love The Bomb
31. Apocalypse Now
32. The Green Mile
33. Alien
34. The Prestige
35. The Lives of Others
36. The Great Dictator
37. The Shining
38. Cinema Paradiso
39. Paths of Glory
40. American Beauty
41. North by Northwest
42. Amelie
43. Citizen Kane
44. Aliens
45. Vertigo
46. M
47. Das Boot
48. A Clockwork Orange
49. Oldboy
50. Taxi Driver
51. Double Indemnity
52. Reservoir Dogs
53. Once Upon a Time in America
54. Requiem for a Dream
55. To Kill a Mockingbird
56. Braveheart
57. Lawrence of Arabia
58. Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind
59. Witness for the Prosecution
60. Full Metal Jacket
61. Singin' in the Rain
62. The Sting
63. Amadeus
64. All About Eve
65. Rashomon
66. L.A. Confidential
67. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
68. The Apartment
69. Some Like it Hot
70. For a Few Dollars More
71. The Third Man
72. Inglorious Bastards
73. The Kid
74. A Separation
75. 2001: A Space Odyssey
76. YoJimbo
77. Metropolis
78. Unforgiven
79. X-Men: Days of Future Past
80. Raging Bull
81. Chinatown
82. Scarface
83. Downfall
84. The Great Escape
85. Mr Smith Goes to Washington
86. Pan's Labyrinth
87. Like Stars on Earth
88. On the Waterfront
89. The Bridge on the River Kwai
90. Heat
91. 3 Idiots
92. The Hunt
93. The Seventh Seal
94. Wild Strawberries
95. The Elephant Man
96. My Neighbour Totoro
97. Ikiru
98. Ran
99. The General
100. Blade Runner
101. The Gold Rush
102. Good Will Hunting
103. Gran Torino
104. The Secret in Their Eyes
105. Rebecca
106. The Big Lebowski
107. Casino
108. Warrior
109. It Happened One Night
110. V for Vendetta
111. Rush
112. The Deer Hunter
113. Cool Hand Luke
114. The Grand Budapest Hotel
115. Fargo
116. The Maltese Falcon
117. Dawn of the Planet of Apes
118. Gone With the Wind
119. 12 Years a Slave
120. Into the Wild
121. Colour It Yellow
122. Hotel Rwanda
123. Judgment at Nuremberg
124. The Sixth Sense
125. A Beautiful Mind
126. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
127. The Thing
128. Dial M for Murder
129. The Wages of Fear
130. No Country for Old Man
131. Platoon
132. Kill Bill: Vol. 1
133. Mary and Max
134. Annie Hall
135. Sin City
136. Touch of Evil
137. Network
138. Diabolique
139. Incendies
140. The Avengers
141. Ben-Hur
142. There Will Be Blood
143. The Grapes of Wrath
144. Million Dollar Baby
145. The 400 Blows
146. The Best Years of our Lives
147. In The Name of the Father
148. Donnie Darko
149. The Bourne Series
150. Strangers on a Train
151. Gandhi
152. Persona
153. Her
154. Jaws
155. Internal Affairs
156. Notorious
157. Twelve Monkeys
158. Terminator
159. Stalker
160. Groundhog Day
161. The Night of the Hunter
162. The Road
163. Rocky
164. Dog Day Afternoon
165. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
166. Before Sunrise
167. La Haine
168. The Big Sleep
169. Barry Lyndon
170. The Graduate
171. Roman Holiday
172. Memories of Murder
173. Castle in the Sky
174. The Hustler
175. A Fistful of Dollars
176. The Celebration
177. The Truman Show
178. In the Mood For Love
179. A Christmas Story
180. Rope
181. The Killing
182. Swades 
183. Underground
184. Erin Brockovitch
185. When Harry Met Sally
186. Barry Lyndon
187. E.T.
188. Mullholland Drive
189. The Breakfast Club
190. Thelma and Louise
191. Malcolm X
192. Trainspotting
193. Out of Sight
194. There’s Something About Mary
195. Being John Malkovitch
196. Memento
197. Brokeback Mountain
198. The Artist
199. The African Queen
200. Pretty Woman