A Scanner Darkly | Cinema Parrot Disco

Happy Belated Birthday to Richard Linklater, who turned 57 yesterday.

I keep meaning to do this top ten because I really love some of Linklater’s films. Then I remember that there are a few I still need to see, such as Tape & Waking Life, which are very likely to knock number ten off this list since I can’t say I liked that one very much.

But time is short these days and I’m unlikely to see my “unseen Linklaters” anytime soon. So I’m doing this list now, which goes like this:

1-3: Love ’em
4-6: Really like ’em
7-9: Like ’em
10: Barely remember it & would rather just watch the original, which is a classic.
11: Ugh.

For now, here are My Top Ten Richard Linklater Movies (that I’ve seen):

11. Slacker (not really a fan of this one)

TOP TEN:

10. Bad News Bears (meh)

9. A Scanner Darkly

8. Everybody Wants Some!!

7. Before Midnight

6. Boyhood

5. Bernie

4. Before Sunset

3. Before Sunrise

2. School Of Rock

1. Dazed And Confused

Not Seen:
SubUrbia, The Newton Boys, Waking Life, Tape, Fast Food Nation, Me And Orson Welles

Happy Birthday to Keanu Reeves, who turns 52 tomorrow! 🙂

Dammit! I’ve not yet managed to watch John Wick. I really wanted to watch that before making this list since, if it’s as good as everyone seems to think it is, maybe it’ll make my top ten. Well, I’ve not had time to watch it so I guess I’ll just have to update this list when I see it. IF it’s top ten worthy… 😉 Oh, and I also desperately want to see The Neon Demon as that looks like the type of thing I could potentially love. Blame that one on cinemas not giving non-mainstream films a chance, though – I couldn’t find it playing anywhere near me. I’d have made time for that.

I’m a fan of Keanu Reeves. I think people either love him or they don’t (I don’t think anyone hates him, though, do they?). People make fun of him sometimes but I don’t understand that. He’s admittedly better in certain types of roles than others but, when it’s a role that suits him, he’s great. Yes, the dumb guy suits him & I’ll always love Ted “Theodore” Logan more than any other character he’s played. Who doesn’t love a sweet idiot?! But I had a massive crush on him in Speed & in Point Break when he was young, dumb & full of “whoaaaa”. He’s proven himself to be a fantastic popcorn action movie star & I’m always happy when he’s in a film that ends up being popular.

Sometimes when I make these actor top tens, I’m really scraping the bottom of the barrel for the lower half of the list. This time, I’d have to say I truly like at least eight of them (I could do with re-watching numbers 9 & 10). I love the top six and ADORE the top two (they’re all-time favorites). So, yeah, Keanu Reeves has had a very solid career despite some annoying critics.

So here are My Top Ten Keanu Reeves Movies, counting down to my favorite (movie, not character). Let’s start counting down from the bottom, though – I’ve seen 23…. 🙂

**Updated having now seen John Wick & The Neon Demon & John Wick 2. Ugh – The Neon Demon most definitely doesn’t make it into the top ten!

25. The Neon Demon
24 & 23. The Matrix Sequels (Whatever they were called – I’ve tried to forget them)
22. Johnny Mnemonic (Remember nothing about this now. How ironic!)
21. Chain Reaction
20. Something’s Gotta Give
19. The Gift
18. Much Ado About Nothing (Barely remember this either – am sure it deserves to be higher)
17. Parenthood
16. The Day The Earth Stood Still
15. Constantine
14. Bram Stoker’s Dracula
13. The Devil’s Advocate
12. My Own Private Idaho (Putting this at 12 is a total lie as I seriously need to re-watch it since I loved River Phoenix but, again, barely remember it…) 😉
11. A Scanner Darkly