100 movies everyone should see

So, Brian posted a list like this, and I didn't approve.  Then, Christian made a smart ass comment when I said I could do better.  So I took that as a challenge.  This list is preliminary, and I reserve the right to replace things as I see fit.  But, after about an hour of thinking about it, I think I came up with a much better list.

100 Movies Everyone Should See

1.       12 angry men

2.       2001: A Space Odyssey

3.       Alien

4.       Amadeus

5.       Apocalypse Now

6.       Back to the Future

7.       Bambi

8.       Birth of a Nation

9.       Blade Runner

10.   Boyz in the Hood

11.   Braveheart

12.   Breakfast at Tiffany’s

13.   Bride of Frankenstein

14.   Burch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

15.   Caddy Shack

16.   Casablanca

17.   Cinderella

18.   Citizen Kane

19.   Clash of the Titans

20.   Coal Miner’s daughter

21.   Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

22.   Dad

23.   Dances with Wolves

24.   Deconstructing Harry

25.   E.T.

26.   Enter the Dragon

27.   Fantasia

28.   Fiddler on the roof

29.   Forrest Gump

30.   Fried Green Tomatoes

31.   From Here to Eternity

32.   Full Metal Jacket

33.   Gandhi

34.   Gangs of New York

35.   Ghostbusters

36.   Goldfinger

37.   Gone With the Wind

38.   Goodfellas

39.   Heavenly Creatures

40.   It's a Wonderful Life

41.   Jaws

42.   King Kong

43.   Lawrence of Arabia

44.   Legends of the Fall

45.   Less than Zero

46.   Lincoln

47.   Mommy Dearest

48.   Mosquito Coast

49.   Night of the Living Dead

50.   O Brother Where Art Thou

51.   On the Waterfront

52.   Patton

53.   Phantom of the Opera

54.   Philadelphia

55.   Platoon

56.   Psycho

57.   Raging Bull

58.   Raiders of the Lost Ark

59.   Reservoir Dogs

60.   Rio Bravo

61.   Rope

62.   Sabrina

63.   Saving Private Ryan

64.   Say Anything

65.   Scarface

66.   Schindler’s List

67.   Sex, Lies, and Videotape

68.   Silence of the Lambs

69.   Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

70.   Somewhere in Time

71.   Spartacus

72.   Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

73.   Star Wars Original Trilogy

74.   Steel Magnolias

75.   Superman

76.   The Breakfast Club

77.   The Cowboys

78.   The Exorcist

79.   The Godfather

80.   The Godfather Two

81.   The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

82.   The Graduate

83.   The Life of Brian

84.   The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

85.   The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

86.   The Manchurian Candidate

87.   The Outlaw Josey Wales

88.   The Prince of Tides

89.   The Shawshank Redemption

90.   The Shining

91.   The Sound of Music

92.   The Ten Commandments

93.   The Thing

94.   The Unforgiven

95.   The Untouchables

96.   True Grit

97.   Vertigo

98.   When Harry met Sally

99.   White Squall

100.      Wizard of Oz

G.I. Joe

So, I started this casting call a long time ago, but I never posted it because i couldn't finish.  I had key characters that I had no ideas for.  You'll notice that I cast only one bad guy and no female characters.  That's because the bad guys all wear masks and I hadn't really delved into them yet.  The female characters I just hadn't started yet.  You'll also notice I cast people a lot older than the studio saw fit to.  that's because I was looking for quality.  Plus, the characters in the comics and the cartoon were not twenty something's who had just started their career in the military.  They were all lifers and seasoned professionals.  you don't get to be the baddest of the bad through training.  you need a lot of experience.  The major reason I started this one was because, as soon as I became familiar with Michael Clark Duncan, the first thought that came to me was "Roadblock!"  So, in honor of his passing, I'm going to post what I have, to be updated later.  Here's to Roadblock.

Michael Clark Duncan as Roadblock

Really, when you think of enormous bald black men, this guy has to be who you picture.  Roadblock was not only a badass heavy artillery specialist and United States Marine, he was also a gourmet chef, specializing in cajun cuisine.  He had a sensitive side, and was loveable while not losing his shear shock value.  With Duncan's passing, Ving Rames is the obvious man to replace him.

Kurt Russell as Duke

Duke is the field leader of the Joe team.  When Hawk isn't around, Duke is in charge.  Russell has been duke to me since I first started fantasizing about a live action Joe movie when I was a kid.  Big Trouble in Little China was my favorite movie when I was a kid.

Liam Neeson as Destro

Destro is a Scottish arms dealer.  Neeson is an Irish Badass.  But the Rob Roy star has Scot street cred.  I'm thinking you'd only see his face briefly at the beginning before the family ceremony where he dons the iron headpiece.  After that he would be masked for the rest of the film.

 Will Patton as General Hawk

Anyone who has seen The Punisher or Falling Skies knows Patton can be a hard ass and a military leader.  It's unfortunate that such an awesome actor would actually have relatively little screen time.

Michael Rooker as Gung Ho

I don't need to justify this one.

Nathan Fillion as Falcon

Threw him in for the fanboys.  plus, I think he'd be great as Falcon.  Falcon is supposed to be extremely charming and equal parts natural leader and born screw up.

Updates...

Natasha Henstridge as Lady Jaye

Lady Jaye is a Ranger and Explosives expert.  Not to mention hot as all hell.  She always got less play than Scarlett, but I always had a thing for her.  She is Flint's sometimes girlfriend.

Michael Madsen as Flint

Flint is Duke's second in command and his go to guy.  He is a green beret, and has an on again off again relationship with Lady Jaye, who I've cast with Natasha Henstridge, Madsen's Species Co-star.

Eric Bana as Major Blud

Bana is Australian, like Blud, and with roles like Prince Hector, Avner, and the Airborne Ranger Hoot in Blackhawk Down, We know he could play the bloodthirsty mercenary.

That's it for now.  I'll edit it when I come up with more.

Wonder Woman

With rumors flying that another major DC power player may make a cameo, or at least be mentioned in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Man of Steel, any rational person will conclude that Wonder Woman is a very real possibility.  God forbid anything comes out of DC as unforgivable as Green Lantern, and I hope casting on WW doesn’t go the route some fanboys are pushing.  I’ll be honest, if they cast Megan Fox, I won’t go see it.  So, I decided to cast it myself.  There are a number of ways the film could go, so I’m not going to bother casting every possibility.  Here are just a few of my choices.

Jessica Biel as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman

I feel the need to explain myself.  I think Biel is not only hot, she’s a good actress.  She has proven herself capable of physically demanding roles in Blade: Trinity, and Total Recall, not to mention, this chick is yolked.

Sigourney Weaver as Queen Hippolyta

This requires no explanation in my mind.

Tom Hardy as Ares

Again, I don’t think I need to justify.

Zoe Bell as Baroness Von Gunther

I don’t know if Bell can do a German accent, but if so, I can’t think of anyone better.  She just looks like a Nazi super-spy, plus she is a stunt woman so she and Biel could just beat the living shit out of each other.

That’s it for now.  Although he didn’t come around until later, I’d like to see someone pull of Cheetah, or maybe Guy Pearce as Baron Blitzkrieg.  Maybe in the sequel.

Sherlock Holmes

Here's a quick, short one.  As a lifelong Sherlock Holmes fan, I have seen all of the film and television incarnations.  The latest attempts, the Robert Downey Jr. turn, the new television show with Lucy Liu as Watson, and the BBC modern spin on the stories, all seem to want to alter some major aspect of the stories.  The Downey movies put a steampunk type action adventure spin on them while the television shows turn them into a modern police drama.  I'm a traditionalist at heart.  My favorite Sherlock Holmes was Jeremy Brett in the Grenada series from when I was a kid.  I like the Victorian setting and the fact that they were true to Doyles work by being straight detective stories instead of cop dramas or action movies.  Don't get me wrong, I like all of the incarnations I've mentioned.  But my idea is a series of fims based on the more famous of the stories like The sign of Four, The Speckled Band, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and the Final Problem.  I should note that my forst inclination was to simply dig up the cast of Levinson's Young Sherlock Holmes and be done with it, but i decided to think a little harder.  Because the cast changes with every story with only a few exceptions, I have only cast those characters that repeatedly appear.  My casting Ideas are these...

 Rupert Everett as Sherlock Holmes
Ever since I saw Cemetery Man I cannot look at this guy without thinking of Sherlock Holmes.  He also was one of the first people I thought of when I heard about the new James Bond film.  Everett can play pretty much anything and he has the perfect look to be a believable Holmes.

Simon Pegg as Dr. John Watson
I'll be honest.  It has been hard for me not to include Pegg in every casting call I've done.  I just really like the guy.  And, with goofy comedies like Shaun of the Dead, adventures like Star Trek, and a turn as a grave robber in Victorian Edinburgh in Burke & Hare, He has a resume that makes him perfect in my opinion to play Watson.  The problem with casting Watson is that he is alternately portrayed as either a bungling idiot, or more of a muscle character who is there simply as back-up.  Watson was a smart character who sometimes seemed less intelligent because of the man standing next to him.  I think Pegg would make Watson an intelligent and capable man while still being the character that is more accessible and lovable than Holmes.

Gary Oldman as Professor Moriarty
Again, I think this guy should be in every movie ever made.  The man can do anything, and do it well.  But the thing he can do better than anyone else is sinister. Moriarty needs to be a character who with a look conveys that he wants to take over the world and is smart enough to do it.  Moriarty is threatening not simply because he is "the Napoleon of Crime" but because the only man in the world capable of stopping him is Holmes, who, in a way, seems to truly admire him.

David Thewlis as Inspector LeStrade
Like Watson, LeStrade is a character that is often portrayed as being an imbecile and incompetent.  The truth is though that he was neither.  He only appeared that way because he was constantly being bested and shown up by Holmes.  I like Thewlis for LeStrade because I can see him being good at what he does, but frustrated and jealous because Holmes continuously beats him to the punch.  all that being said, Thewlis could be great at occasionally bungling something up and insisting he didn't.



That's all for now.  Just wanted to do a short and quick one to dust the cobwebs off of the blog.  hopefully I'll have another one soon.

Stephen King's The Stand

This is a hard movie to cast.  There are so many roles and all of them are important in their own way.  I only cast a few of the major ones, but there are a lot I didn't even attempt.  I also really liked the miniseries.  It wasn't perfect but as far as casting goes it was very well done.  It would be hard to beat Sinise as Stu, but I decided to go a different route.  Here are a few of my choices for the upcoming movie based on my favorite of King's novels.

Timothy Olyphant as Stu Redman

This is the "starring role" for the stand.  Stu gets the most camera time and needs to be played by someone you can believe is a texan good ol' boy as well as someone who can pll off surly defiance and charm with equal merit.  As I said in the intro, it would be hard to outdo Sinise in this role but I think Olyphant can match him.            

Holland Roden as Fran Goldsmith

Okay, I know she is young, and her and Olyphant getting together is kind of disturbing, but in the book she is supposed to be quite a bit younger if I remember correctly.  I'm hesitant to put any faith in anyone involved in MTV's take on Teen Wolf, But I am actually basing my faith on her performance as a Young Emily Locke on Lost.

Mickey Rourke as Flagg

I don't think I need to explain this one, but I will.  Flagg needs to be sinister, but he also needs to havea kind of charming rock star swagger and charm enough to warrent a massive following.  I can't really see anyone else in the role.

Ruby Dee as Mother Abigail

I straight up stle this one from the miniseries.  Not because I couldn't think of anyone else, but I just couldn't see anyone else being better.  I wold actually like to see some unknown woman found on a front porch in south Mississippi cast, but much respect to Ruby Dee for her previous performance.

Emile Hirsch as Nick Andros

Nick needs to be a character that people like immediately.  He also needs to be a leader.  I think Hirsch would be good in this role because I think he could perform without a voice.

Jack White as Larry Underwood

I want to see an actual musician playing this role, and while I am not a huge fan of the white stripes, Jack White was the forst person to come to mind.

Jonah Hill as Harold Lauder

Harold is a character that you feel sorry for while still not liking him very much.  I would like to see Hill because physically he is just what I picture, and I think he could pull off the whining jealous nerd while still maing the character sympathetic.

Will Patton as Trashcan Man

number one choice.  No one else even considered.

Ethan Suplee as Tom Cullen

Since Suplee lost a bunch of weight he is just a brawny dude.  He is still baby faced and innocent looking though.  I also think he has the chops to pull off the simple minded spy.

Hal Holbrook as Glen Bateman

Old guy that everyone loves=Hal Holbrook.

Mila Kunis as Nadine Cross

Basically I want to see Mila Kunis play someone who has completely lost it and uses sex as a weapon.

Autobiography of a Werewolf Hunter

As an introductory casting call on this blog, on which I will post casting calls nd various other shit about movies and Nerdvana, I decided to cast a movie, which I envision being called Autumn Moon, based on the book Autobiography of a Werewolf Hunter by Brian P. Easton (available from Permuted Press).  This book and movie is the autobiographical account of a young man raised on hate to be a werewolf hunter.  It is a story about the danger of being so consumed with hate that you become as inhuman as what you seek to destry, and end up destroyig yourself i the process.  Unfortunately the book is heavy on the details and life story that a movie just couldn't accomplish.  For one thing you would have to cast the main character and his mentor at three distinct ages or use special effects to make them different ages.  So for those of you who have read the book, the movie I envision starting after Logan has left the Army, with Prior details being filled in as backstory and maybe a few flashbacks.  As I said earlier, this is unfortunate because so much of the story comes from Logan's early life.  Anyway, on to the casting...

Josh Holloway as Logan
Over the years many actors have been tossed around as "the best" man to play the main character.  Unfortunately many of them, I'm thinking particularly of Daniel Day Lewis, are far to old to play Logan now.  The "best man" right now, in my opinion, is Josh Holloway.  Best known as the surly and sarcastic James "Sawyer" Ford on Lost, Holloway is tall, good looking, and most importantly can pull off the scruffy, mean, bad ass that you just can't help but root for even if you don't want to.  I have to give my Brother Christian credit for this casting, as he is the forst person to suggest it.
Second choice goes to William Fichtner, although he too may be too old.

Q'orianka Kilcher as Samantha
Ok so she's not Canadian First Nation, but she played Pocahontas (admittedly in a terrible movie).  And she is Native American.  Plus she is hot, can act, and has a vulnerable quality that is needed for the role.

Rebecca Mader as Tanya Clemmons
I know, another Lost alum, but I think this actress can pull off sexy, while not beautiful, while still managing to be the kind of woman who would intimidate most men.

Russell Means as Michael Winterfox
Since Floyd Red Crow Westerman is dead.  Might need a little bit of makeup to make him look older.

Christopher Walken as Diego
The Author himself pegged this one, and I totally agree.  Walken does snister like nobody else.
Second coice: Kevin Spacey (weird, I know, but he could do it.)

Ginnifer Godwin as Joanna
Joanna is described as looking like a pixie and being basically wholesome, nobody else even came to mind.

Hugo Weaving as Dan Rogier
The role needs someone who can pull off beareucrat as well as international espionage badass.  Who better than agent Smith/Red Skull/Inspector Aberline?

and...
Jackie Earle Haley as Digger.

Be ack again soon for something else.  I think I'm going to cast The Stand Sice I've been reading about the upcoming movie.  I'll also be back to post and ramble about other movie and nerd stuff.