We’ve all enjoyed movie marathons from time to time. Matching two worthy movies together can be pretty challenging. Sometimes it’s tough to decide which two go together. Others are a little more obvious.
Some get inspired during the first movie and choose the next film accordingly. Others plan ahead. Some simply watch the same combos over and over again until they become cherished traditions.
Honestly, as I stared at my DVD collection, I could have easily named about 50 billion different combinations but I had to stop somewhere.
What are some of your favorite double features?
Feel free to contribute by commenting below!
Here are some of my favorites:
[Note] I’m aware this list doesn’t really have 10 films… I’m okay bending the rules every once in a while.
Narrowing down all the wonderfully entertaining dialects I’ve seen on the big screen took a little longer than I originally though it would.
Characters like Brad Pitt’s hilarious Mickey from Snatch came to mind. There really are a lot of contenders for this title.
When you start to think about all the incredible comedies featuring characters with accents it becomes even tougher.
So many to choose from yet only one gets the title of All Time Best.
In the end, I’m happy with my decision.
Teddy KGB
“He beat me… Straight up…”
The outrageously funny villain in the film Rounders played by the amazing JohnMalkovich.
Anyone who has seen this movie has impersonated Teddy KGB. Especially if you are playing poker with your friends.
“Mr. Son-of-a-beech… Let’s play some cards.”
I love this character. Fantastic role for Mr. Malkovich and one of my favorite movies of all time.
Rounders is one of those movies I call ‘whatchable’. Basically an entertaining movie that doesn’t require 10 thousand pounds of brain power to watch but keeps you interested throughout.
It’s because of characters like Teddy KGB that the movie reasonates and sticks with you.
Anyone who collects movies probably has a chest or shelf somewhere full of VHS tapes.
I have a large number of DVD’s in my collection but there are few that I own on both VHS and DVD. I simply haven’t gotten around to updating my collection yet.
I have a fairly new VCR so why not just wait until the tapes shrivel up and die?
DVD and Blu Ray purests will argue that the picture, sound and special features definitely make the upgrade worthwhile. I couldn’t agree more.
Here are 10 of my favorite VHS movies that I should upgrade:
Honorable Mentions: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Scream Trilogy, Men In Black
Snatch
“Five minutes? It was two minutes five minutes ago.”
When I first started collecting movies, I didn’t have a shelf so I simply made stacks with my favorites on top. For some reason, when I think of Snatch, I think of those wonderful stacks that I was so proud of. It’s one of the best bad ass movies out there.
Sneakers
“Be a beacon”
One of the main inspirations for this post. I watched this movie for the first time in a long time a while back and it’s still as entertaining as ever. Read my Rainy Sundays post here.
Bad Boys
“Now THAT’S how you’re supposed to drive! From now on, that’s how you drive!”
Action movies have certainly evolved in the last decade. There haven’t been many decent buddy cop movies that have found success. In my opinion, this is one of the best comedic combinations of all time and the movie is loaded with action.
Bad Boys 2 is a better flick but I own that on DVD so it doesn’t belong on this list.
Gone In 60 Seconds
“Low Rider Donny… Donny? Low Rider?”
I don’t understand why so many people seem to dislike Nicolas Cage these days. Granted, he hasn’t released a fantastic movie in a long time but you have to give him credit for some of the awesome action movies he’s been a part of.
Fight Club
“I am Jack’s complete lack of surprise.”
I’ve had a DVD copy of this movie in my hands so many times I’ve lost count. Who can resist? The movie tells one of the most original and disturbingly entertaining stories ever. Period. Why don’t I own this on DVD yet? Not sure but I welcome gifts. That is all.
Training Day
“You wanna go to jail or you wanna go home?”
Denzel definitely deserved the Oscar. His performance is incredible but really, so is the movie. One of the best.
Crimson Tide
“If I’m wrong then we’re at war… God help us all.”
Another Cage classic. Team him up with Sean Connery and you get one of the best action movies of all time. I remember renting this movie on a friday night, watching it, rewinding and watching it again before going to bed. I believe I owned it a week or so later. I just don’t own it on DVD yet.
Remember The Titans
“I want them to remember, FOREVER, the night they played the Titans.”
For some reason, I really love watching movies with lengthy training scenes. Movies that show the hardwork and dedication that goes into being successful. There is something inspiring about that. I’d have to say that inspiring is an understatent in this case.
Pulp Fiction
“Mmmmmm, this is a tasty burger”
This is probably the biggest outrage on this list. There’s really no reason why I haven’t upgraded this movie yet. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I feel like I should apologize… I’m sorry.
PS: The lesson I learned from writing this post? Jerry Bruckheimer rules when it comes to VHS movies I need to upgrade.
It’s time for another feature to launch on The Athletic Nerd. Just about every blog about movies has lists. It’s inevitable. I’m about to join the team but I’ll be taking a different approach. By now, many of you are aware I earn a living editing professional sports. Sports is another area where lists are a must. On my network we countdown 5 highlights just about every day in categories like plays, misplays, fights, hits etc…
Now, I’m a sports fan in general so I do watch shows on ‘the other guys’ network. They create a top 10 list everyday that isn’t necessarily based on plays from that week. They base their list on current events using big news as a spring board to list similar stories.
This is the approach I plan to take with my lists and so in honour of yesterday’s ’44 Inch Chest’ post, here’s are 10 Bad Ass Movies.
I’m not afraid to go to the movies by myself and those Spartans got me twice for a total of 4 trips to the theater. From a visual stand point, this movie brought something new to the table that blew my mind. The fights are incredible and be honest, you’ve yelled it…
‘This is Sparta!’
Terminator 2
One of the best action movies of all time. Thinking about T2 has me even more excited for Cameron’s Avatar this month. Terminator 2 is one of the best sequels ever with better action, better effects and better gigantic explosions. It’s as bad ass as it gets.
“Come with me if you want to live.”
In Bruges
This movie made my list purely because of story. A simple concept told well and it all started with an original and hilarious script by Writer/Director Martin McDonagh. (I’m a big fan of original scripts. There’s only so many remakes and sequels I can take.) I bought this movie without seeing it thinking it could be good but I never thought it would become one of my all time favorites.
Predator
Oh Arnold, so many awesome movies. Predator is one of those movies that every bad ass movie fan has seen at least 457 times. Give or take. Don’t believe me? Stand in front of a group of people and yell:
“Get to the choppah!”
You’ll find out who the fans are. They’ll be the ones laughing. However, make sure you set it up. Don’t just randomly yell it because there is a chance you could look like an idiot. Attempt at your own risk.
“Soon the hunt will begin…” That old school voice over guy really doesn’t read with much enthusiasm does he?
Boondock Saints
I saw this movie years after it was released. The story of how it was produced is absolutely fascinating. I highly recommend you watch the documentary Overnight as well. Regardless of the trouble surrounding the production, Troy Duffy’s movie has so many memorable moments, it’s hard to ignore.
Not sure if I’m ready to see the new movie though…
Resevoir Dogs
Admit it, when you saw the title of this post, you knew Tarantino would show up eventually. What more needs to be said?
Snatch
I really didn’t know what to expect when I first saw this movie. A friend of mine showed it to me one day and I went out and bought it a few days later. It’s one of those movies that makes you ask a question I consider to be one of the highest compliments you can give a filmmaker.
“How did you come up with that?”
Such a good flick.
Goodfellas
Admit it, when you saw the title of this post, you knew Scorsese would show up eventually. What more needs to be said?
Seven
Story. I’m all about story. In my opinion, Seven has one of the best endings in the history of film. If you haven’t seen this movie and it hasn’t been ruined for you go out and buy it. I’m literally jealous of everyone who hasn’t experienced Seven yet. I would love to experience it for the first time again.
“What’s in the box!”
Pulp Fiction
Tarantino again. Is anybody else shocked two of his films made this list? Pulp Fiction is a true classic bad ass movie. It changed the way people looked at films and inspired young filmmakers everywhere. There have been countless emulators out there and while none have truly duplicated Tarantino, we still have him to thank some pretty great movies. It’s the bad ass flick that started it all, for me at least.
There it is. My top 10 Bad Ass flicks. I’m sure there are people out there who disagree. I recommend commenting below. I probably overlooked about a million movies. That’s the beauty of runnin my own site. I’ll just make another list.
