Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Top 5 Films: Pennsylvania

Seeing as how well the my last blog series went (the still unfinished "Top Film For Each Year of My Life), I decided to start yet another, more ambitious, series. Taking a page from Sufjan Stevens (though I suspect my task is a bit more attainable than his), I'm going to come up with top 5 lists of films that take place in each state.

I realize that I could cheat a bit and include films that were shot in the state in question (which would allow me to include Robocop and Wet Hot American Summer on this particular list), but the only purpose of that would be to make my home state look even awesomer. I definitely wouldn't have that bias when dealing with any other state.

So, since I just came back from a trip to the Keystone state (home to scrapple, shoofly pie, Philly Cheesesteaks, and the Primanti Brothers), I figured what better place to start? In some particular order...

Groundhog Day
Depending on how I'm feeling towards the Hot Topic crowd, Groundhog Day could easily take the place of my favorite film from 1993. I've never done the Punxsutawney (I didn't come close to spelling that right the first time) thing myself, but some of Phil Connor's (Bill Murray) more cynical reports on the events don't sound far off. I feel as though if I were stuck reliving the same day over and over for decades, I'd start doing nice things then slowly devolve into and agent of chaos. Although, if I had to hear "I Got You Babe" and "The Pennsylvania Polka" everyday, for that long, I don't think the "nice things" period would last too long.

Slap Shot
I have a bit of a man-crush on Paul Newman. It feels good to finally admit it. I think it's something about his blue eyes (or his Newman's Own Orange-Mango Tango). Seeing it at this stage of the game, there's nothing too surprising about a ragtag bunch of minor league athletes making good, but damned if this doesn't do it best! And I don't even like hockey! If you want a great double feature, grab this and Bull Durham. You may never look at minor league sports the same again.

Adventureland
Of the films on this list, I'll probably get the most grief for this choice (especially given some of the obvious films I left out). I know the film isn't perfect, but Adventureland hit me in just the right way. It's like when I watch a film by Werner Herzog, Jim Jarmusch, or David Gordon Green. There work is so much better than the individual scenes and I feel like I've seen something that really meant something. Of course, Adventureland doesn't say a whole lot that is new, but it says it earnestly and in a meaningful way. Plus, Martin Starr!

Dawn of the Dead
I suppose I could just put every George Romero ever on here, but that just wouldn't be fair (and not all of them are, well, good). I went with Dawn of the Dead instead of Night of the Living Dead mostly because of the awesome Tom Savini effects and how much fun the bulk of the film is. Sure, it looks a bit silly now, but that doesn't make it any less awesome. And if anything epitomizes the denizens of rural Pennsylvania better than drinking beer and shooting zombies as they roam the countryside, I don't know what it is. Plus, it's got one hell of a tag line. (We won't mention the awful 2004 remake beyond this parenthetical).

Best In Show
Simply a top notch mockumentary from Christopher Guest and is merry band of improvisers. Definitely his best of the genre (I won't count This Is Spinal Tap since he didn't direct it). Seriously, who doesn't love adorable dogs and comedy's finest? No one I want to know.

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