Top Ten Movies of All Time

6) Star Wars Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back: The best of an already awesome series of movies. This is the second installment of the series, released in 1980. People were stunned by the release of "Episode IV," and they didn't know what to expect, whether this one could live up to its name or if it would be sup bar, there is no question about it. With the best technological achievements for any movie at the time, it was a HIT in the box office and instantly critics were adding this movie to their list of classics. For those who get confused on the Star Wars episodes, this is the one where Darth Vader says his famous, pivotal quote, "No, I am your father." Often misquoted, but nevertheless this movie is a gripping tale filled with lots of emotions, heroes, villains, everything you could ask for.


5) Fight Club: If "cool" could manifest itself in the form of a movie, this is what it would look like. This movie tells the tale of an exasperated desk jockey insomniac who can't figure out what's wrong with his life and a mysterious soap salesman whom he meets on a plane's adventures in using different types of male "therapy." They start underground fight clubs where people get together and just beat the hell out of each other in order to ease some of the tension in their lives. This movie really messes with your mind. I highly recommend seeing this movie twice, because the second time, you will notice things a lot differently. This movie really messes with your mind, the first half of the movie and the second half are so totally different, you start wondering if you accidentally switched to a different movie, but all in a really cool way. Easily in my top five collection.


4) Goodfellas: There are a lot of gangster movies. Quite possibly one of the most overdone genres of all time, its really hard to make a gangster movie that doesn't feel like an EXACT COPY of another, previously released movie. With quite possibly the best actor selection any movie has ever seen, its hard to believe that this movie was based on a true story, and not the other way around. Maybe I'm just a gangster movie fanatic, but even those who aren't serious fans of the genre can tell you that this movie is a definite keeper. It stays with you for a while, as any good movie should. You find yourself enjoying really good, genuine laughs at some of the dialogue and events that take place, than you find yourself really tense and full of adrenaline, just as the characters in the movie seemed to feel.

Top Ten Movies of All Time

3) The Godfather Part II: As we enter the "top 3" category, it becomes extremely crucial that I choose movies that stand out, movies that are better than good, or great, but movies that are never forgotten. This movie happens to be the greatest sequel of all time to the greatest movie of all time, why not? "The Saga Continues." Seriously, another flawless work by Francis Ford Coppola that tops the charts for the best sequels ever. Using the superb acting skills of DeNiro to portray Vito Corleone in his younger years was one of the coolest things I've ever seen in American cinema. Michael Corleone, taking the throne after his father's death, is faced with many hardships including, a rebellious sister, a brother who maybe the downfall of his family, and the crude realization that he has become a ruthless mob boss, something that he had hoped and tried so long to stay far away from. There has never, EVER been a story as good as this one in my opinion, and in the opinion of many others. Another classic soundtrack, more flawless editing and screenplay, and a continuation of a story that was left at one of the strongest cliff- hanger endings of all time. Its no wonder that "The Internet Movie Database" (IMDb) agrees with me that this is the third best movie of all time.


2) The Shawshank Redemption: Possibly one of the most underrated, under appreciated movies of all time. A thrilling story which only someone like Stephen King can make, it explains the tale of two inmates in an imaginary high security prison somewhere in Maine, the Shawshank penitentiary. A different style of movie than most, it leaves you thinking about many, many things after its over. Sometimes I find myself going back and watching it and feeling the same way I did the first time I saw it. An original story, if you haven't seen it than you're really missing out, very few movies are able to make a prison drama stand out so well.


1) The Godfather Part I: Absolutely. No debate here, none whatsoever. Has there ever been a movie so finely crafted, with so much attention to detail and story, that for a little over three hours you are hooked, and find the ending to be a big slap in the face just because you didn't want to movie to finish so soon? Never has a movie suffused the viewers in its events better than this one, the hardest decision ever made with regards to this movie is figuring which quote is the best. "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse," versus, "Take the Cannoli." An epic tale set in the late 1940s of the Italian crime families of the United States, Francis Ford Coppola dropped this atom bomb on the United States cinema in 1972 and to this day, its radiation plagues the movie industry.

Top Ten Rap/ Hip Hop artists (5-1)

5) Scarface: The King of the South. Coined the term "the Dirty South" before people like Rick Ross and T. I. learned to go potty by themselves. Deep, deep lyrics, he touched on many social aspects in America, the mistreatment of blacks, gender discrimination, racial stereotypes, etc. He made a lot of people really, really uncomfortable with the way he rapped. Questioned society's perception on the typical black man living in the ghetto, asking them if they really knew what life was like. This man was an intellectual, a deep thinker, and he expressed his thoughts with such an aggressive tone and delivery, it sends shivers down people's spines.
"I've got this killer up inside of me,
I can't talk to my mother so I talk to my diary,
I'm going off in the deep end,
I find myself face to face with myself when I'm sleepin'"
- No Tears, The Diary


4) Eminem: Maybe the most underrated mainstream rapper there ever was. He has done in his small career what many have failed to do in their lives. He remains the holder of the top selling album: The Marshal Mathers LP, his flow rivaled that of Biggie's. His freestyle skill was unmatched, he was so good, at one point he was losing respect from critics because they thought that he had rehearsed all of his freestyles. He never once sugar coated his rhymes, never once did he try and make subtle remarks because he was too scared to say something, if he felt it, he rapped it.
"Sure I got a few screws up in my head loose,
but no different from whats going on in your parents' bedrooms."
- My Name is, The Slim Shady LP


3) Tupac: Biggie's counterpart. This man contained the very short list of items that Biggie did not: themes and messages of lyrics. He was truly a deep man, way ahead of his time. You could tell he rapped from the heart, his songs often horribly true instances of past life experiences that he raps with unbelievable delivery. The West Coast King, shared Hip Hop in the ninety's with Biggie Smalls.
"I see no changes wake up in the morning and ask myself,
is life worth living or should I just blast myself?
I'm tired of being poor and even worse, I'm black,
my stomach hurts so I'm looking for a purse to snatch."
- Changes, Greatest Hits


2) Jay- Z: Many people don't understand who this guy really is. He's been around for a VERY long time, his debut album being released back in '96. Many, many critics have dubbed him the Greatest of all time because of what he has done to Hip Hop. His style is unique, his intelligence allows him to craft lyrics and put verses together that blend together seamlessly. He has swagger, style, he owns the rap market, in the literal sense and in the theoretical sense.
"I sell ice in the winter, I sell fire in Hell,
I am a hustler baby, I sell water to a well."
- You Don't Know, The Blueprint


1) The Notorious B.I.G.: Biggie Smalls, the King of New York, I've mentioned the plethora of names he has before, there is no need to delve into that again. But seriously, what he has done for the game is beyond words. Two albums was all it took to earn himself the "most quoted MC" award. He could make your hair stand up with his cold, ferocious flows, make your eyes water from his deep story telling ability, cause you to lose your voice from laughing so hard at some of the punchlines he throws into his rhymes, all in one verse.
"Silly Cat, wore suede in the rain, swear he put the "G" in game,
had the Gucci frame before Dana Dane, thought he ran with Kane,
I can't recall his name,
you mean that kid that nearly lost half his brain over two bricks of cocaine?"
- You're Nobody Till Somebody Kills You, Life After Death