30. Dogma (1999)
Written and Directed by Kevin Smith
Starring Ben Affleck, George Carlin, Matt Damon, Linda Fiorentino, Salma Hayek, Jason Lee, Jason Mewes, Alan Rickman, and Chris Rock
What can I say about a movie that has, to some small extent, formed a slight bit of the basis of my religious beliefs? Yeah, I based my technical Agnosticism on a movie but then again, I might consider myself an atheist if not for it so there. The movie is a satire on the Catholic Church but it's so much more than just that. It's also a criticism of most organized religion's problems, namely the fact that most people start worshiping the name rather than what the name stands for. I'm technically a Christian except I choose not to give my creator a name and just try to live by their standards and lessons. Yeah, I know, I got this from a movie that has a living excrement demon. Weird, huh?
The thing about any Kevin Smith movie is that it all comes down to the writing eventually. This is all helped by the fact that Smith grew up Catholic. He knew a lot of the rituals including the obscure one that forms the basis of the plot. One of the things that I especially like are some of the irrelevant non-sequenters. We get a monologue (which I used for auditions during my brief stint with college acting) about John Hughes movies. We get an argument about how The Walrus and the Carpenter from Alice in Wonderland is all about organized religion. But, like all good writing, it comes down to mostly one thing, people sounding natural. The main character, Bethany, reacts like most people would to finding out that they've been chosen for a holy crusade: freak out. Would you react all that well? Didn't think so. A lot of the humor is very profane but it's kinda like South Park: you have a lot of profanity but it's a way of getting people to listen. Once their ears are open, then you can get to the serious stuff.
29. The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
Directed by Blake Edwards
Screenplay by Blake Edwards and Frank Waldman
Starring Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Lesley-Anne Down, Burt Kwouk, and Leonard Rossiter
Oscar Nominations: 1
This is the best film in the entire series. The thing about The Pink Panther movies is the absurdity of them. Between Peter Sellers physical comedy and how he pulls off Clouseau's inept brilliance, it comedy gold. I especially love the premise of this one: The inspector who was all too often on the receiving end of Clouseau's bumbling goes insane and builds a doomsday device just to blackmail the world into killing Clouseau for him. Follow that up with the way that Clouseau manages to take out every single assassin is just the frosting on the cake.
I;d like to take a moment to talk about Peter Sellers now. They don't make actors like Peter Sellers now. In one man, we had someone who could be a huge idiot one second but at the same time convince you he was the most intelligent person you've ever met. Possibly the best comedy actor of all time, I know I'll get the chance to talk about him, and in some length, on another movie on the list but it's always going to be Clouseau that he gets associated with so here's to you Peter.
Next Time: "For those regarded as warriors, when engaged in combat, the vanquishing of thine enemy can be the warrior's only concern. Suppress all human emotion and compassion. Kill whoever stands in thy way, even if that be Lord God or Buddha himself. This truth lies at the heart of the art of combat." "The venom of a black mamba can kill a human in four hours, if, say, bitten on the ankle or the thumb. However, a bite to the face or torso can bring death from paralysis within 20 minutes. Now, you should listen to this, 'cause this concerns you. The amount of venom that can be delivered from a single bite can be gargantuan. You know, I've always liked that word...”gargantuan"... I so rarely have an opportunity to use it in a sentence. If not treated quickly with antivenom, 10 to 15 milligrams can be fatal to human beings. However, the black mamba can deliver as much as 100 to 400 milligrams of venom from a single bite."
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