The Godfather Movies and the Time Value of Money

Godfather Francis Ford Coppola Top 10 Movies

Paul Matwiy Top 10 Movie Picks

1.  Wings, 1927 directed by William A. Wellman.  Why?  This is the last of the great silent films and the first to win an Academy Award for Best Picture.  Ironically, The Jazz Singer was released in the same year.
2.  Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs, 1937 directed by David Hand.  Why?  What more can be said?  This is the film that started (and which could have ended) one of the most dominant entertainment businesses of the 20th Century.
3.  Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, 1939 directed by Frank Capra.  Why?  One of the best of the "movie as political statement" films, which succeeds at being both cynical and optimistic at the same time.
4.  Ben-Hur, 1959 directed by William Wyler.  Why?  The last of the big, religious-themed blockbuster movies.  A movie which manages to be exciting, spectacular, and reverential at the same time.
5.  Lawrence of Arabia, 1962 directed by David Lean.  Why?  Simply the most stunning of the grand, epic films.  A style of filmmaking many aspire to, but which we can no longer afford to make.
6.  2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968 directed by Stanley Kubrick.  Why?  This film legitimized science-fiction as a subject suitable for serious films, and released the genre from the B-grade category.
7.  Star Wars: Ep IV A New Hope, 1977 directed by George Lucas.  Why?  The birth of the modern, effects-driven, blockbuster.  Most big box office films of the last 30 years owe their existence to this movie.
8.  Jurassic Park, 1993 directed by Steven Spielberg.  Why?  This really did usher in a completely new way of making films.  It will be difficult in the future to find any feature film without some digital visual effect.
9.  Shakespeare in Love, 1998 directed by John Madden.  Why?  Aside from being the surprise winner of the Best Picture Oscar for that year, this film re-affirmed that a literate script with beautiful dialog was not box-office poison.
10.  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, 2001 directed by Chris Columbus.  Why?  Number 10 was a toss-up between any James Bond and any Harry Potter film.  These are examples of book series as film franchises.  The Sorcerer's (aka Philosopher's) Stone is, however, a very faithful adaptation of the book, and probably the best foundation for a film series done to date.

George Lucas's Blockbusting book consultant and fact checker Paul Matwiy is an entertainment technologist who has worked with THX, Lucasfilm and JAK Films.

Featured Films Standing the Test of Time #21-30

On This Day December 15 - Schindler's List, 1993

The Steven Spielberg directed film Schindler's List was released December 15, 1993.  Although not a Top 10 World War II movie (as measured by all-release domestic box office in equivalent 2008 $'s), the film and it's subject are historic.

6     The number of years it took Hitler from 1939 to 1945 to kill an estimated 42 million people during World War II
11   The number of years it took from when Australian novelist Thomas Keneally's book was first published in 1982 until the movie Schindler's List was released in 1993
72   The number of days it took for Steven Spielberg to shoot the movie between March 1, 1993 and May 26, 1993 filming on location in Krakow, Poland, Auschwitz and Jerusalem
1,200     The number of Jews Oskar Schindler saved from extermination
6 million  The number of Jews exterminated in death camps as part of the Final Solution
17 to 21 million +  The number of murdered persons attributed to Hitler (not including  14 million military deaths or other civilian deaths for an estimated 42 million in all)




Other #onthisday links of interest:
New York Times "On this Day"
History.com
Twitter #onthisday

Douglas Burns Top 10 Movie Picks

1.  Bambi, 1942 directed by David Hand.  Why?  Who wouldn't want to join Bambi and his pals for a romp in the most achingly beautiful forest ever captured on film?  Visually breathtaking.
2.  Sunset Boulevard, 1950 directed by Billy Wilder.  Why?  "It sure was a cozy set-up - that bundle of raw nerves, and Max, and a dead monkey upstairs ..."  'Nuff said.  Every line in this Wilder masterpiece is a classic.
3.  From Here to Eternity, 1953 directed by Fred Zinnemann.  Why?  An "impossible-to-film" novel, filmed.  Brilliantly cast -- particularly Iowa-scrubbed Donna Reed as a call girl, whose shipboard finale with Deborah Kerr is genuinely heartbreaking.
4.  Vertigo, 1958 directed by Alfred Hitchcock.  Why?  Likeable "everyman" actor Jimmy Stewart becomes - unnervingly - more and more alarming as he obsesses over two Kim Novaks.  Run!
5. Psycho, 1960 directed by Alfred Hitchcock.  Why?  Dutiful son Anthony Perkins decides to cover up "Mother's" dirty deed by sinking Janet Leigh's car in the swamp - yet when it momentarily refuses to go down, we're silently screaming "Sink! Sink!" Pure Hitchcock.
6.  American Graffiti, 1973 directed by George Lucas.  Why?  Wonderfully evocative of long-gone high school days - the classmates, the cars, the music - regardless of the era you were in as a high-schooler.
7.  Chinatown, 1974 directed by Roman Polanski.  Why?  The more Jack Nicholson snoops around, the more disastrous things become for all involved, including Jack.  Plus, a whirlwind tour of "1937" Los Angeles.
8.  Close Encounters of the Third Kind, 1977 directed by Steven Spielberg.  Why?  Leaving the theater at midnight after my first viewing of this film, I drove home anxiously scanning the nighttime sky for any unusual or remarkable airborne activity.
9.  Ordinary People, 1980 directed by Robert Redford.  Why?  Extraordinary story, direction and cast.  Perky, effervescent Mary Tyler Moore as a monster!  "You can't save French toast!"
10.  The Right Stuff, 1983 directed by Philip Kaufman.  Why?  I was too young at the time to appreciate the scope and effort of America's space program; this film defines it.  Epic, thrilling, and unforgettable.

George Lucas's Blockbusting book feature film writer Douglas Burns is a 28-year veteran of the home entertainment industry through his work at Disney and Paramount.

Tom Dupree Top 10 Movie Picks

1.  Fantasia, 1940.  Why?  The apex of cel animation, mated with great orchestral music.  A landmark.
2.  Citizen Kane, 1941.  Why?  Innovative, rule-breaking storytelling and filmmaking. You see something new every time.
3.  Casablanca, 1943.  Why?  The best love story ever made.  Tough guys, heroes, weasels, and one angelic dame.
4.  Singin' In The Rain, 1952.  Why?  A meta-movie with fantastic songs, characters, performers: a musical with brains.
5.  Psycho, 1960.  Why?  Pure cinema, Hitchcock as the audience's puppeteer.  Still shocks today.
6.  2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968.  Why?  Still unmatched outer-space effects, bravura wordless narrative.
7. M*A*S*H, 1970.  Why?  War as absurdity.  Often-imitated sound design.  You laugh and cringe simultaneously.
8.  The Godfather, 1972.  Why?  The great American film.  Organized crime as a metaphor for capitalism.
9.  Star Wars: Ep IV A New Hope, 1977.  Why?  Swashbuckling becomes cool again.  Visually as inventive as they come.
10.  The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, 2001. Why?  A sprawling epic done right.  Magnificent tech achievements never overshadow the story.

George Lucas's Blockbusting book feature film writer Tom Dupree is an independent writer and editor living in New York.