List of Crap #115: Top 50 Movies of the 70s Countdown!

[Cyrusso]

Willy Wonka was a mixed bag for me so I left it off my list.

[Edward J Grug III]

Willy Wonka was a mixed bag for me so I left it off my list.

Yeah, Wonka wasn't anywhere near my list.

Rocky was close, but didn't make it. Great film that I always assumed wasn't for me until I saw it in the last couple of years.

[Charles Castle]

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is excellent but wasn't on my list.

That's almost the entire list for me. Too many options.

[Cyrusso]

Rocky's a really good movie but honestly, I'd rather watch Rocky 3 or 4. Of course, that's another decade entirely...

[ScottotD]

I REWATCHED DIRTY HARRY FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 15 YEARS RIGHT AFTER THE LIST STARTED, SO TOO LATE TO VOTE FOR IT. HOWEVER, IT'S STILL TREMENDOUS.

ARE ANY OF THE SEQUELS WORTH A LOOK? I'M PRETTY SURE I'VE NOT SEEN ANY OF THEM.

About 10 minutes into The Dead Pool has Jim Carrey playing a glam rock star lip synching to Welcome to the Jungle

NONE OF THESE AWESOME MOVIES COULD BE MADE TODAY. A TOAST TO THE 70S.

What makes you say that?

[Johnny Unusual]

#13

66 Points, 5 Lists, #3 Charles Castle

Now, I see it clearly. My whole life is pointed in one direction. I see that now. There never has been any choice for me.

Year 1976

What's it about?

Travis Bickle is a taxi driver.  Every night, he picks up people who disgust him.  He suffers from insomnia.  He is alone.  Something is wrong with Travis.  He thinks its the city.  His thoughts are getting more violent.  There are women in his life.  He thinks.  But they are only in the periphery, really.  Betsy, who dates Travis once until his idea is a trip to the porno theatre.  He also knows an underage prostitute named Iris.  He thinks they might need help.  Iris might.  But Travis' idea of a solution and what a hero is can't really be called "help".  Because Travis finally thinks he has an idea of what he needs to do...

What's it REALLY about?
The existential pain and mind warping horror of loneliness and isolation.  The title character's situation makes him vulnerable to destructive impulses and thoughts due to his inability to connect with others and the one major attempt going horribly might extend to simply not knowing how to properly connect (taking a date to a porno).  It evolves into assumptions about women (he clearly has a Madonna/whore complex) and everyone who isn't him (he sees pretty much everyone else as scum).  There's also an exploration of how we relate to violence as the film ends with a horrible act of violence that people make some incorrect assumptions about and someone is lauded as a hero when it should be seen as a crime, even if it was one directed at criminals.

Legacy
The film was incredibly well-received but also courted controversy for its extreme violence and Jodie Foster as a 12 year old prostitute.  The line "You talkin' to me?" from an improvised scene is one of the most quoted from film.  And, unfortunately, the film was also the inspiration of an attempted political assassination by John Hinkley Jr who wanted to impress Jodie Foster.  The attempt was, thankfully, unsuccessful, though it did cause multiple very serious injuries, including that of the president.

Trivia
Between the time Robert De Niro signed a thirty-five thousand dollar contract to appear in this film, and when it began filming, he won an Oscar for his role in The Godfather: Part II (1974), and his profile soared. The producers were terrified that De Niro would ask for a deserved large pay raise, since Columbia Pictures was very discomfited by the project, and were looking for excuses to pull the plug on it, but De Niro said he would honor his original deal so the film would get made.

Johnny's Thoughts
It is eerie and upsetting how relevant this movie in an era of horrible gun violence by disturbed loners and people vulnerable to having their worldview warped.  Travis Bickle would sadly fit in quite well in the Internet age.  The movie is brilliant and it might be De Niro's best performance.

[Cyrusso]

I have to say the ending of Taxi Driver surprised me when I first saw the film many years ago.

[PsychoGoatee]

Really memorable ending for sure, especially that very last scene. Great great movie. And gotta love Rocky, agreed 3 and 4 are magical, the first one rules. And the more Jack Nicholson on this list the better, still some Jack joints I'd like to see on here.

[Cyrusso]

Really memorable ending for sure, especially that very last scene. Great great movie. And gotta love Rocky, agreed 3 and 4 are magical, the first one rules. And the more Jack Nicholson on this list the better, still some Jack joints I'd like to see on here.

Forget it PG, it's Chinatown.

[PsychoGoatee]

Really memorable ending for sure, especially that very last scene. Great great movie. And gotta love Rocky, agreed 3 and 4 are magical, the first one rules. And the more Jack Nicholson on this list the better, still some Jack joints I'd like to see on here.

Forget it PG, it's Chinatown.

Haha, good line for sure, close but I actually have a different Jack movie high on my list. I don't think it made it though.

[Johnny Unusual]

#12

71 Points, 5 Lists, #4 Linszoid

There might be a legal precedent. Land snatching.  "L-l-land. See snatch."

Year 1974

What's it about?

In 1874, the town of Rock Ridge is the target of a scheme by the attorney general to end their sleepy little town in order to make way for the railroad.  First, he has criminals kill the sheriff and loot the town and when the town demands a new sheriff, they are horrified to see their new Sheriff is black.  The plan is to have the new sheriff's race chase off the town but they severely underestimate Sheriff Bart, a railroad worker who is smarter than anyone expects.  In addition, Bart finds help from a former master gunslinger turned alcoholic known as the Waco Kid.  Together, the two plan to save the town, even if they have no support from anyone else in town.

What's it REALLY about?
Racism is really stupid and we can come together to beat it with our wits.

Legacy
The film first received mixed reviews for its various sort of gags ranging from clever to dumb, but since then, it's been considered a comedy classic.  The film also had a TV pilot made of it, but it didn't work very well.

Trivia
When the film was first screened for Warner Brothers executives, almost none of them laughed, and the movie looked to be a disaster that the studio would not release. However, Mel Brooks quickly set up a subsequent screening for the studio's employees. When these regular folks laughed uproariously throughout the movie, Warner Brothers finally agreed to take a chance on releasing it.

Johnny's Thoughts
I'm not the biggest Mel Brooks fan.  I tend to respect his film more than find them a laugh riot.  But the film has some inspired gags, a well-delivered message and is just a rollicking good time.  And the theme song is wonderful.

[Cyrusso]

I know this is going to sound crazy but I prefer Robin Hood: Men in tights.

[Johnny Unusual]

I have a friend, one with great taste, generally, for whom that is one of his favourite movies.  His number one is Maverick, which frustrates him because, for obvious reasons, he doesn't want to watch it again.

[Cyrusso]

I have a friend, one with great taste, generally, for whom that is one of his favourite movies.  His number one is Maverick, which frustrates him because, for obvious reasons, he doesn't want to watch it again.

I've never seen Maverick so I feel like I'm really missing something here. Is there something I should know?

[Johnny Unusual]

Dude, I have some BAD NEWS for you about Mel Gibson...