What Movies Inspired Me
Movies draw us into worlds that we could never dream of. Sure, books can do the same but movies are so accessible that you don't even have to know how to read. It’s not often that I write about myself. Every so often I get inspired to write about something that inspires me or influences me in some way. People often ask me, “What’s your favorite movie?” As a filmmaker, it’s actually pretty hard to determine one defining movie. So, I’ve decided to compile a list of my top five favorite movies of all time and why they inspired me to become a filmmaker. 1. Seven Samurai (1954) - Akira Kurosawa
When I was a young lad, my father introduced a certain type of Japanese cinema to me. Chanbara is a type of Japanese cinema highlighting certain aspects of Japan’s past during the samurai era, featuring swashbuckling samurai, ninjas, war, and wandering samurai. Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai combines different characters to unite for one setting. The film revolves around a group of villagers who must hire samurai in order to protect their village from bandits. It’s a story of love and loss, samurai and violence. The film is considered the beginnings of the “team up” movie where a group of people unite against an evil cause. I love everything about this movie. The characters are really what make it stand out more than anything. In my eyes, they bring the story to life.
2. Chungking Express (1994) - Wong Kar Wai
Wong Kar Wai likes to tell stories that revolve around characters in a small setting. He likes to focus on a small set of characters and really delve into what they’re thinking and feeling. Chungking Express is no different from his late 80s work and 90s work. The cinematography is probably the number one thing that inspired me to go into cinematography. Christopher Doyle is a fantastic cinematographer. Most of the film was shot handheld, with tracking shots and pans all done by hand; almost no tripods were used. The colors are deep and they give off a very vibrant mood. Doyle is one of those cinematographers that really knows how to put feeling into characters.
3. Back to the Future (1985) - Robert Zemeckis
I love time travel movies. But this, this is probably the greatest time travel movie ever made. As a kid, I loved cars and seeing this movie just fueled my love for the Delorean time machine. What I love is that at the heart of this film lies a tale of heart as Marty (Michael J. Fox) tries to save his best friend Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) from his own destiny. The special effects were top notch for their time. The Delorean is literally a vehicle for the film that would eventually become so iconic later. Bob Gale, the screenwriter of the film created a series of films that would become instant classics even 30 years from now. 4. The Social Network (2010) - David Fincher
A recent film, it highlights Mark Zuckerberg's (Jesse Eisenberg in the film), trials and tribulations when creating the iconic website Facebook. The witty dialogue, the humor, the acting, the cinematography, the editing, everything about this movie made the Facebook into just Facebook. Director David Fincher decided to use Adobe Premiere in order to edit the film, which proves that even the biggest Hollywood films can be edited on home computers. Cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth used a series of Master Prime lenses to shoot everything at f/1.3, which means everything in the foreground is in focus and everything in the background gets that nice silky smooth unfocused look. This film further propelled my interest in cinematography the more and more I watched it.
5. Shaun of the Dead (2004) - Edgar Wright
The Cornetto Trilogy. Anyone who knows movies knows exactly where this is going. All the movies are fantastic but this is the first in an unofficial "trilogy" that sparked two more movies Hot Fuzz and The World's End. Two men, (Simon Pegg and Nick Frost) must survive a zombie apocalypse. For it's time, the film was innovative for its use of both the horror and comedy genres. I love this film for two reasons: the editing and the humor. Editing is quick, cuts are almost perfect especially when transitioning scenes and dialogue. The humor is delivered in a way reminiscent of the Richard Lester film A Hard Days Night. I love the British humor that takes a spin on the zombie theme. Edgar Wright has a unique style that really bleeds into the rest of his films. Thank you for reading. Please check out my links below! Follow Dinosaur Productions: Website YouTube Facebook Twitter Instagram
