[02] Top 30 Personal Favorite Films [1989 - 2000]

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The list continues as we slowly enter the time period when I was born, but still too young to truly come to understand what was happening around me. Always makes me wonder how different I would see the world if I knew what amazing films had come out during the time I was just a toddler. Would my list mainly consist of films from this era? I have many films I quite enjoy that go past 2000, so maybe there is some strong influence from the date one was born and how we perceive cinema. Yet, one should always look at the past what paved the way towards the films we all come to enjoy and love. No matter what age. So, let us continue!


Batman
I told a story about my mother, my step-father and now comes my father. Yes, it seems my family has created my love for film, as many of my memories are connected to them. Batman was a strange film to me as a child, as my father gave me a cassette of it and told me you will love seeing this film. I was quite young at the time so seeing this rather dark interpretation of a character and the maniac that is the Joker was thrilling actually. The most fascinating thing to me was the packaging. It was a bright white cassette case without any thing on it an d as I opened it there was the cassette with only the Batman symbol on it. I have no idea why it fascinated me so, but to this day I still remember that simple design and all that is stated with it.

I am a kid who actually ended up growing up with each incarnation of Batman. Yes, even the cheesy 60s Batman was still playing here in Austria when I was young and when I was in the States I watched the Animated series. So seeing Tim Burton’s variation on the character left quite an impression as I think for many, this is what Gotham is. It was a combination of Gothic and modern lore that just worked so well. Michael Keaton was incredible as Bruce Wayne and the Joker was a fascinating dark character to watch. While there are some strange moments now and then, like Joker taking down the Batwing with a gun was odd, it worked somehow. I guess that is the brilliance behind this film, the angles, the darkness, if it weren’t for this film I think Batman wouldn’t be the character he is today.



Terminator 2: Judgement Day 
No, I did not chose this film on my list because Arnold Schwarzenegger is Austrian, a country I grew up for years. This films addition is due to a variety of reasons. Let’s start with the most obvious one. It is just a fantastic action film. The way actions scenes are shot are always a pleasure to see, especially just how the T-800 flips the shotgun, but also the creative ways they use the T-1000 bizarre abilities not only from a visual standpoint, but also the implications. It took me years to realize that he is flying the helicopter while growing an additional arm, which makes so much sense if you consider his abilities in general. When they said they are going to create a liquid metal Terminator, they planned on taking advantage of that concept in any way possible. It is quite a spectacle.

Another reason I added this film to the list is for a rather simple reason, the film has one of my personal interpretations of a time travel storyline. It is simple and doesn’t try to contradict itself, but at the same time if you consider the paradox the entire film is completely pointless. What do I mean by that? Their main goal is to avoid the upcoming doomsday by destroying all chips that could potentially lead to that happening. Well, this all wouldn’t even happen if the Terminator wasn’t sent back in time to save them, so in order for this timeline to exist the future is forced to exist either way. Yet even if you take all that into consideration, every moment in this film feels important. It is humanity trying to grasp at straws for some insignificant sign of hope that just maybe we can change the future after all.

In addition to this, we have some amazing performances with probably next to Ripley from Aliens, my personal favorite female heroine portrayed by Linda Hamilton. This is the biggest change of a character that shows just how far she has come and how knowing the future can even influence you as a human being. She has gone slightly insane simply because no one would believe her in any way. She knows what her son is going to become so she does anything in her power to ensure that to happen, but doesn’t realize the implications this could leave behind. Also, Arnold was born to play the Terminator even if it is strange that a highly intelligent T-800 from the future talks with that strange Austrian accent of his. It just adds to the charm.



Jurassic Park 
Is it wrong of me to fall in love with a concept alone? I mean when I was a child I loved dinosaurs and grew up with them. My personal favorite Pokèmon or Digimon were always inspired by either dragons or dinosaurs, so it seems that even to this day my love for these prehistoric animals continues to live on. Also, I cannot deny that I find Zoo’s fascinating that if someone walked up to me and said: “Hey, would you like to see a zoo with dinosaurs?” my brain would explode with excitement. As a child watching this movie I was just amazed at seeing them come to life on the big screen.

Once again as I grew older I have come to realize the darker elements at play here. There is a certain fascination with man’s ambitions to prove that he is completely in control of everything, but then after one mistake is made everything slowly falls apart. Unlike in the newest release of Jurassic World were it is arrogance that ends up destroying the park, I believe that it was good intentions once again that was the cause this time around. No, this isn’t a theme I tend to like in general. It was just a funny coincidence. John Hammond had a simple vision of people being able to see beings that went extinct years ago and sadly ends up overestimating the force of nature.

Ironically, a reason I kind of enjoy this film is that it is a fascinating watch. Not only from a technical spectacle considering the usage of CGI and animatronics, but because it is what Steven Spielberg does best, a family film. Yes, it is strange to state that a film featuring people being eaten by dinosaurs still feels like something everyone in my family could watch and enjoy. In a way, it is the first horror film for children as the reality slaps in the face that those cool dinosaurs actually are quite scary. Among all the wonder and beauty of nature, there is a horrifying truth we all tend to ignore as long as it doesn’t haunt us.

 
The Truman Show
The more I write about this list, the moore I come to realize that I love well-executed concepts more than anything else. The Truman Show is an especially bizarre one that I still cannot believe is an actual film. Furthermore, I am still having a hard time digesting that this film back in 1998, when I was seven years old, kind of predicted the way we are today. I mean the fascination with reality television is worst then ever and this film was made before MTV mutated into whatever it has become. What scares me the most though is just the thought of what it would be like if the entire world is watching your every move. I still can’t believe that it is so cheerful at the end and Jim Carrey is the perfect leading man. While he slowly goes insane after realizing that his life is actually quite calculated.

Haven’t we all felt like someone is watching us? If you take a closer look at this film you find a lot of elements that hint at believe and fate. Have I gone crazy? Maybe, but that isn’t the point here. Every actor around Truman is chosen for him, or was auditioned for a fitting role. The only real person he has a connection with is his mother. His wife was chosen for him, so he was going to end up marrying someone anyway. He was going to end up at the job where he landed and never would leave the town because every single move is calculated. In a way, the entire Truman Show is a look at our lives, we believe in fate that some things have to happen or will eventually fall into place. Our beliefs in a higher being further cement this fact that some things have to happen. Scary, how much can be hidden behind a small and simple concept with a funny lead actor, isn’t it?


Komm, süßer Tod
My guess is you are trying to figure out what this film is or if you don’t speak German what the title means. It is rather simple, it means “Come, sweet Death” and the title does not have much to do with the film besides that it is a bizarre concept of a murder thriller. To explain it simply, this is the most Austrian film I have ever seen and love every minute of it. The film is actually inspired by a book written by Wolf Haas, a famous Austrian novelist. This story is actually part of a ongoing series called the Brenner detective stories, which are commonly individual stories focusing on a different murder case, not fare removed from Agathe Christie.

The thing about this film though is that it is a very dark comedy, which perfectly showcases Austrian humor. Helping that fact is that Josef Hader is the main actor and is quite a famous comedian in Austria. The thing about the story is that the murder case is very interesting yet quite simple in a way. Imagine if you are an ex-police officer who is forced to work at Red Cross. Then suddenly people start dying and you are having a hard resisting the temptation to return to your original job. The thing is thought, the film is Austrian through and through just with the way humor is portrayed, the comedy and especially the dialogue.

Maybe I have some softer feelings towards this film as it was one of first films I actually watched together with my first girlfriend beside Happy New Year, which is an okay film. Yet as she was very much a part of Austrian culture and pulling me into it, this is a gateway film to it. You understand the humor behind it, the way people talk over here and also you just enjoy the darkness behind some comments. Probably many readers will never get to chance to truly see this as there are no dubs or translations available, but it is a culture thing as I live in this country and it simply represents a part of a culture I am surrounded by daily.

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