15 Movies That Peaked In Their Opening 15 Minutes

by iconmatthew1

You ever wonder why some bad movies still managed to hook you right in despite being so awful? Ever wonder why some movies are thought of as classics even though they may not have the greatest ending? The opening. There are some good, average, bad and just flat out awful movies that have tremendous openings. Again let me reiterate making this list does NOT mean the movie is bad or even disappointing. All I’m saying is that it’s best scene is in the first 15 minutes. There is nothing wrong with that, as you will see many of these movies are films that you may love and that I myself adore. As always I only include movies I’ve actually seen. There are also slight spoilers included since I’m describing opening segments of films. Now let’s get things started on some of the best starters in cinema history.

Honorable Mention. The Kingdom – “The Kingdom” was a 2007 movie I actually saw in theaters. Starring Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. The film is decent enough, some good gun battles and a nice stylistic approach throughout. However the movie is at it’s best during it’s opening sequence. Designed by Pic Agency; led by Jarik Van Sluijs and Julio Ferrario “The Kingdom” has an impressive opening title sequence. You can watch it here. That explains the history of U.S./Saudi Arabia relations and why the country became infinitely more important after the 9/11 attacks. The opening segment also comes with a very surprising attack as well, and from there the movie can never seem to top it’s previous efforts. Peter Berg does a good job throughout but the only thing that has stuck with me from this film 5 years later is the opening title sequence. Hey at least that’s something memorable.

Why I Gave Toy Story 3 A Perfect 100/100

by iconmatthew1

On my youtube channel iconmatthew1 I have reviewed several movies, some better than others. I rank the movies overall on a scale from 1 to 100 1 being the worst grade possible and 100 being the best. (For those wondering so far the worst ranked movie I’ve reviewed is “The Marine 2”) Sometimes I review movies with my brother Jordan who I feel should really look into getting a youtube channel of his own as he is really funny with a camera. (His lowest ranked movie on my channel was “Funny People” which he gave a passing grade but felt it was too long and obscene. His highest ranking up until “Toy Story 3” was a 90 for “(500) Days of Summer”.)

Jordan and I have seen countless movies together from some of the worst syfy channel original movies to some of the great classics that are almost required criteria for any film buff. We both saw all the Toy Story movies together when they were released in theaters and with great anxiety we went into “Toy Story 3” hoping it would live up to the previous sequels as we both felt “Toy Story 2” was the best film in the franchise.

As we sat there and watched the cute “Night and Day” short before the feature presentation Jordan whispered to me that the kids in front of us who were talking had “better shut up” before he slapped them. The movie finally began and the children were quiet. And right off the bat the movie did not fail to impress us both. Instantly sucked into the story it appeared “Toy Story 3” was off to a perfect start, we had no idea we were about to witness a film that basically was flawless.

WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD: The movie starts off on a high note but by the end of the introduction it becomes clear that this film won’t be like the other Toy Stories. We soon discover that most of the toys from the first two films have been sold off in yard sales (including Woody’s love interest Bo Peep.) Only the more adventurous are left: Woody, Buzz, Rex, Hamm, Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head, Slinky, Jessie, Bullseye, The Little Green Men from Pizza Planet and Barbie. Pretty depressing we wont be seeing Lens, RC, Weezy, Sketch or Mr. Shark “Howdy, Howdy, Howdy!”

Since its been 11 years since “Toy Story 2” came out there truly is this feeling of age, that you’ve missed a lot during this time. Buster the dog is now old and tired. Andy is grown up, Molly is older and has a sassy attitude and Andy’s room once filled with posters of his favorite toys has been replaced by rock bands and rappers. I truly believe that while the younger kids will enjoy “Toy Story 3” I feel that it won’t hold the same importance as it would for people old enough to have actually been around when “Toy Story 2” was released. For my brother and my friends who were with us at the theater and in college this represented both nostalgia and the realization that things have changed, childhood is over.

But what makes this movie worthy of such a high accolades and my 100/100 ranking? Well I can’t say I have much authority, but I probably have more credibility at this point than any critic (I’m looking at you Armond White) that gave this movie a bad review. (“Toy Story 3” currently stands on Rotten Tomatoes with a 98% approval rating.) If you read any paper/visit any website where the critic disapproved of this film you should probably stop visiting that website and reading that paper. At the very least their movie section because to discredit this film is to in all honesty discredit your ability to appreciate storytelling, your beyond unimaginative you might only have a vegetable for a brain. Too harsh? Armond White who wrote a bad review for this film thought Hamm one of the heroes from the first two movies was a bad guy. Now, does that sound like a man of intelligence to you? I’d wager he didn’t even watch the movie. He should be fired and his review stripped from Rotten Tomatoes memory banks.

Anyway back to why I personally gave this film a 100/100 and my brother as well. Yes I understand there is no such thing as the perfect movie. There is always something that can be improved. Even my favorite film of all time “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” has some flaws. Still all that being said there can be in a sense a movie that is as perfect as movies will get. “Toy Story 3” is that rare movie. And perhaps it is the greatest of those films in a sense. “Toy Story 3” does have one advantage over films like “It’s a Wonderful Life”, “The Godfather” and “Empire Strikes Back”. Animated films are generally shorter, and so everything is tight. Cartoons usually don’t have scenes without purpose, it takes too long to animate them to have a scene that is just there for filler. There are animated films like this, but there is a reason “Beavis and Butthead” is the only true farce animated comedy movie. So in “Toy Story 3” there is never a point where the movie sags or I found myself thinking “Hurry this up/let’s get to the next part already.” Everything moves fast when it needs to and slows down when necessary.

The animation itself is incredible, I remember seeing the first “Toy Story” and being blown away by the animation, and it wasn’t until years after the sequel came out I realized the big animation gaps between the two in their style and fluidity. “Toy Story 3” next to really “Avatar” is probably the best use of 3D animation I’ve ever seen, the textures in the film have really stepped it up to a new level.

The voice acting is top notch as always and the music is flawlessly seamed into the movie. But its the story that really separates “Toy Story 3” from your run of the mill 3rd installment (3rd installments for those who don’t know are notoriously usually bad/mediocre films.) Some 3rd installments can be so bad they can basically tarnish a franchise. I’m sure “The Matrix: Revolutions” just popped into the head of sci-fi fans. The story itself is one that many can relate to, it really centers around mortality and growing up. Losing one’s innocence in a sense.  The toys are getting old and so is everyone else around them. Their lives are changing and they find themselves unsure about their futures. But as the wise Olivia Wilde once posted via a picture on her twitter: “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.” And really that is what this movie is all about. Making life decisions when its time to move on. But frame by frame this movie never slips up and finds ways to make these familiar characters seem fresh. My brother was quick to highlight that one of the reasons he loved this film so much was the fact that the characters we cared about were really expanded on.

SUPER WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN FILM: This movie has it all; drama, comedy, romance, action, suspense and a message that is timeless. Twenty years from now you could play this movie and it would still be 100% relevant, and thats important when you are making a classic. There are no real faults with this film, I challenge someone to give a real legitimate fault with it, thats not being nit picky. As I said no movie is perfect but this gets really darn close.

There were people crying near the end of this movie, and the movie got two big rounds of  applause in the theater I attended. At the end when the toys find themselves trapped slowly sinking towards a giant pit of fire which will surely melt them and all they can do is hold their hands together, there is a real emotional punch to the gut. I’m not going to lie I thought Woody, Buzz and company were all goners. That the franchise was going to end on this sad note about the destruction of toys as childhood moves on. And yet as you know that does not happen, the toys are saved! A big sigh of relief can be heard, I haven’t watched a movie in a long time where I truly felt the hero and all his friends were going to die, I mean truly thought it. Usually you can say “oh no, they’ll find a way” but at that moment all hope seemed lost.

The ending is emotional as well this is when people (including my brother) cried as Andy all grown up and heading off to some unnamed college to some unnamed major he ends up donating his beloved toys to a girl we know will take care of them. Its a bitter sweet ending, a chapter in their lives has closed. Do toys live forever? Will this be the last time they are forced to be separated with their owner? This is never explained, and that’s what makes this picture great. It doesn’t need to be, we love it and appreciate it for what it is. There was not a bad note, moment, or plot point in this film. From start to finish they went for perfection and for my money’s worth they got it!

Now as far as awards go I’m pretty sure no film is going to beat this for Best Animated Feature come time for the Oscars. And seeing as “Toy Story 2” won Best Picture at the Golden Globes and this 3rd and final installment is better I’m hoping for somewhat of a repeat. Some critics and people might disagree but I feel “Toy Story 3” was better than “up”, and the often heinously overrated “Wall-E”. In fact “Toy Story 3” may only have true Pixar competition with the other “Toy Story” movies and maybe “The Incredibles.”  So I feel it should be nominated for Best Picture and if the awards were tomorrow it would probably win. In fact at this moment I’m kind of hoping it does regardless of which movies come out. Though I’ll keep an open mind and get back to everyone on that after December 2010 passes.

In closing this is a movie that is truly a bookend of an epic saga, a saga we didn’t know was epic until it was finished. And this may have also just made “Toy Story 3” the best trilogy ever made with only the original “Star Wars” and “Lord of the Rings” on deck for a good argument otherwise. Seriously can you name a trilogy this fantastic? Without a single swear word, rude sex joke, or any real violence “Toy Story 3” was able to produce a thought provoking and fully satisfying experience that when it all ended you didn’t feel cheated out of something. (I’m looking at you series finale of “Lost”!) If you disagree or agree please leave a comment and if you’d like to see my original review for “Toy Story 3” with my brother Jordan you can watch it below. I’ll probably never give a 100/100 again so you may want to watch it.