Time To Watch Some Movies!
There is nothing better than seeing a great film and wanting to share it with others – and thanks to the internet, we can do it all day long!
Ten Great Films That Begin With the letter “A”!
A terrific social media trend is going around where people share lists of their favorite films, A-Z. More on this in a moment.
But first, I decided to do it one letter at a time, so here we go – ten of my favorite movies that begin with the letter “A”!
10 – Animal House!
Yes, it is official “National Lampoon’s Animal House” but since this is arguably the funniest film ever made, I am going to go with the shortened title.
Check out the vintage trailer:
John Belushi showed that he could command the big screen, and togas were never funnier than in this hilariously profane look at college life…I suggest watching it as a double bill with “Old School” – here’s a bunch of fun trivia about the movie and the trailer as well:
https://johnrieber.com/2015/04/15/sex-togas-bluto-blue-schools-out-for-animal-house-and-old-school/
From comedy to horror, this is also arguably the greatest film of its genre:
9 – Alien
The most shocking sci-fi horror film of all – with the greatest poster as well! So many reasons to love this movie, and this scene is certainly iconic, isn’t it?
What a way to introduce a new cast member! None of the subsequent films can measure up – remember, “Aliens” is an action film more than horror – and that shocking introduction of the aline will never be topped!
Now onto one of the most interesting psychological biographies about Hollywood I’ve ever seen:
8 – Auto Focus
Greg Kinnear is mesmerizing as Bob Crane, who shot to fame as the star of “Hogan’s Heroes” – but he was a, shall we say, FAN OF WOMEN?
Check out the trailer – a blend of Hollywood bio-pic and sleazy exploitation:
Bob Crane loved to film himself having sex with female fans, and sleazy sidekick Willem Dafoe had no problem being his cameraman! A fascinating character study directed by Paul Schrader, who wrote “Taxi Driver.”
This is based on a true story, while our next film is a fictionalized version of Cameron Crowe’s teenage years – writing for Rolling Stone!
7 – Almost Famous
Cameron Crowe released a director’s cut of this great film – with more funny scenes, context and music – a classic movie about rock’n’roll!
Read more about the film, and the girls who followed by band:
Now, here’s a movie that has one of cinema’s more iconic lines:
“No, YOU’RE Out Of Order!”
6 – “And Justice For All”
Al Pacino shows that he’s got a set of lungs and he’s not afraid to use them in this late 70’s courtroom drama.
Check out the trailer:
Next up is one of my all-time favorite films: a masterpiece about the horror of war – and working with Marlon Brando:
5 – “Apocalypse Now”
Franci Ford Coppola went into the jungle and came back with this anti-war masterpiece.
Here is the trailer for one of the greatest films ever made:
Yes, Brando was a nightmare to work with, but the ending of the film has even been parodied on “Seinfeld”, and Coppola’s wife even made a documentary about how the experience almost destroyed their life:
What a great double bill!
Next on the “A” list is a Best Picture winner from 1977- yes, it beat “Star Wars” – Woody Allen’s masterpiece:
4 – “Annie Hall”
Diane Keaton won Best Actress for her portrayal of the title character – a film full of humor, insight, and of course, a small bit with Christopher Walken that is classic:
“Annie Hall” is an example of a film that is perfection: every scene works. A more recent comedy also balanced serious and funny – thanks to a “career best” performance by Hugh Grant:
3 – “About A Boy”
“You could end up childless and alone!”
“Well, fingers crossed, YES.”
Check out the trailer:
Hugh Grant has said that this 2002 film is the closest to his “real life” persona – a guy who simply doesn’t want to connect with anyone for any length of time – until “a boy” enters his life in the best way…Chris Weitz directed this, and its a terrific film – funny, emotional, and inspiring.
Now, one of the greatest “growing up” films of all time – directed by a guy who went on to make an “outer space movie”:
2 – “American Graffiti”
“Where Were You In ’62?”
The trailer asks this simple question – check it out:
One night in central California, as a group of high school graduates try to determine their future – a classic “coming of age” film with a great cast, expertly directed by George Lucas, who used this success to convince 20th Century Fox to let him make his passion film “Star Wars”….
Finally, a brilliant movie that is as topical today for reasons we all know:
1 – “All The President’s Men”
The story of the downfall of President Richard Nixon – Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman are terrific as the Reporter who won’t let the Watergate story fade away – even with overwhelming odds against them…a history lesson worth watching:
It’s one of a number of great political films, check out more of them by clicking on my story here:
https://johnrieber.com/2012/10/17/dont-put-baby-in-a-binder-presidential-politics-political-movies/
There you have it, ten great films that begin with the letter “A”!
Yes, so many left off: from “Anti-Christ” to “Anchorman”, “Airplane!” to “Anvil!”, but I had to choose a list – so let me know what yours are!
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Leave me a comment and let me know your favorite “A” movie!
Categories: 70's Cinema, 70's Music, Academy Awards, Action Films, Art, Awards, Books / Media, British Cinema, Classic Rock, Comedy Movies, Cult Movies, Exploitation films, Film Fight Club, Film Noir, Foreign Films, Golden Globes, Great Films, Grindhouse, Hollywood, Horror films, Independent Cinema, Los Angeles, Memoirs, Movies, Movies About Movies, Music, Obscure Movies, Obscure Music, Politics, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities, The President Of The United States, Uncategorized
johnrieber 
Sophie’s Choice indeed! Got to say: I’m really happy About A Boy made it to the list! Must rewatch 🙂
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Some great movies here, John. Love, love Annie Hall and of course American Graffiti!
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I am happy to say that I have seen 50% of these, John. I’m glad to learn about the others.
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Robbie, thanks for commenting! Yes, they are all my favorites!
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Reblogged this on johnrieber and commented:
Here are ten great movies that begin with the letter “A”…what did I miss?
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All About Eve and Alien are two of my favourite films. Both so different but classics.
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Agree – “Eve” is a movie lovers delight and Alien is still one of the most intense sci-fi-fi horror films of all time – thanks for your comment!
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The script, direction and acting in Eve is impeccable. I can often be found quoting it. And Alien still gives me the chills.
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Apocalypse Now is definitely THE movie which begins with “A”. I would add some “oldie” like The Apartment, and maybe something “foreign” like Amour, but great list overall! P.S. I am sure glad not see any Avatar here lol
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HA! “Avatar” hasn’t aged well at all in my opinion, and we will see if anyone has a real appetite for a sequels (still years away)/ As for “The Apartment” – a brilliant movie!
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Haha that’s a valid point! 🙂
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Now I am pretty sure you will include Blade Runner when you move to B 🙂
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That’s right – the original one, not the sequel!
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I pin high hopes on it since it’s not filmed by a random guy but very talented director… He initially refused to even approach it, but after examining the script offered by Ford, he agreed. And he is extremely careful in choosing the scripts. So, it maybe one of those cases when the sequel is close to the original. But it doesn’t happen often. So far I could name only Dredd (2012), which outgunned the 1995 version by all means, and barely few other films. 🙂
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Agree, I have high hopes as well, but my “B” list will be shared before it opened – let’s hope they do the original proud! Thanks for your comment!
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I’ve seen all of these except Auto Focus, and now I really want to watch that. Perfect choices John! I also loved: Anatomy Of A Murder, Argo, and Air Force One.💁🏻
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Yes, so many good ones to add – look, I know I focused a bit too much on the 70’s, but I could have done a list of 50 “A” films – I’ve started working on “B” and I’m already in the midst of a lot of “Sophie’s Choices!” Thanks for your comment!
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I have actually seen all the films on this list for once! ‘Autofocus’ was a real surprise, and I loved it.
I will add a foreign film, from the crazy genius of Werner Herzog, and the crazy acting of Klaus Kinski.
“Aguirre: The Wrath of God.” Simply amazing.
Thanks for the much appreciated shout out too.
And if this link works for you, the whole film!
Best wishes, Pete.
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By the way, there are SO many great “A” films, I realized I used a lot of 70’s films, but what can I do – it was a GREAT decade for movies!
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“Apocalypse Now” is one of the best films ever. The documentary you included is almost as good as the movie. Those are my favorites from your list. For me, a few that affected me a lot was “Across the Universe” and “The Apartment” and “Amityville Horror”.
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There are so many great “A” films, Cindy – I didn’t get to “Across 100th Street”, “Apollo 13” and so many more!
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Argo…The Abyss…African Queen…Airplane!…All That Jazz…All About Eve…An American Werewolf in London…Amistad…The Aviator. 😉
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Absolutely – I love all of these – just got the remastered blu-ray from Criterion of “All That Jazz” and my wife and I saw a special screening at The Soho House a few months back for “All About Eve” – never gets old!
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