Time To Celebrate Iconic Movie Images!

If you love movies, you also love iconic movie moments – like this shot of Cary Grant being chased by a small airplane…or this shot of an Anchorman who’s “mad as hell and not going to take it anymore!”

Both of these images can be found in this edition of “Movies A – Z” as I share ten great movies starting with the letter “N” – a yearlong dive into some of the best films with a specific letter – so why not start with a “Best Picture” winner?

10 – “No Country For Old Men”

In 2007, the Coen Brothers took home multiple Academy Awards for their dusty thriller that takes place along the Rio Grande river…when a hunter accidentally stumbles upon money left from a drug deal gone wrong…here is the trailer:

Javier Bardem won Best Supporting Actor, Joel and Ethan Coen won Best Adapted Screenplay and shared the Best Director Oscar – and the film took home the Academy Award as Best Picture Of The Year.

It’s a gritty, compelling look at evil, and Tommy Lee Jones is also terrific as the policeman who is old enough to have seen it all – and tired of what he’s seen. One of their many masterpieces.

You want to lighten the mood up a bit? Well, I’ve got the guy who can do just that:

9 – “Napoleon Dynamite”

Jon Heder created an iconic movie character the moment he struck this pose:

Napoleon Dynamite lives with his grandma and his 32-year-old brother in Idaho – the film documents his quirky life – and his attempt to help his friend Pedro win the Class President crown at school. Here is the trailer:

The movie is funny, offbeat and full of memorable lines like this:

Kid on Bus: What are you gonna do today, Napoleon?
Napoleon Dynamite: Whatever I feel like I wanna do. Gosh!

“GOSH” Indeed!

If your taste is for something more “EPIC” in tone, then you need to watch this Robert Altman masterpiece right now:

8 – “Nashville”

Here is the plot summary from IMDB:

“This movie tells the intersecting stories of various people connected to the music business in Nashville. Barbara Jean is the reigning queen of Nashville but is near collapse. Linnea and Delbert Reese have a shaky marriage and 2 deaf children. Opal is a British journalist touring the area. These and other stories come together in a dramatic climax.”

Check out the trailer:

“Nashville” was nominated for Best Picture and Director in 1975, as well as for Supporting Actresses Ronee Blakley and Lily Tomlin.

Actor Keith Carradine won the Oscar for Best Original Song for “I’m Easy” – and The Criterion Collection just released a special edition of this great film, so check it out!

Here’s another Best Picture nominee, this one from 1976:

7 – “Network”

One of the best and most incisive looks at the power of media – with one of the cinema’s most iconic lines:

“I’m Mad As Hell, And I’m Not Going To Take It Anymore!”

Peter Finch posthumously won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of a network news Anchorman who has a breakdown live on TV – check out the trailer:

William Holden and Faye Dunaway were both nominated as well, and Dunaway won for her portrayal as a “tough as nails” Network Executive who has no boundaries when creating hits…here is the iconic photo of her the following morning at the iconic Beverly Hills Hotel:

A brilliant film that is so prescient – because TV News is now wildly out of control – take a look:

Another classic movie on the “N” list is from Director Alfred Hitchcock:

6 – “North By Northwest”

Cary Grant stars as a New York advertising executive who is mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies – here is the trailer:

This film is filled with iconic images – Hitchcock was, of course, a master of suspense until he very end…

OK, time to relax and have a laugh – and who better than Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts?

5 – “Notting Hill”

This is a charming romantic comedy set in London’s Notting Hill neighborhood, where a local bookstore owner happens to meet – and fall in love with – the most famous Actress in the world…here is the trailer:

Two of the world’s biggest stars in 1999 working together in a charming, funny and romantic movie – and for those who have seen it, my review came straight from the pages of “Horse & Hound!”

Speaking of “news”, how about this intense look at freelance news photographers in LA:

4 – “Nightcrawler”

This is a devastating look at the predatory world of freelance news photographers, known as “Nightcrawlers”.

Jake Gyllenhaal stars as Louis Bloom, a con man desperate for work, who muscles his way into the world of L.A. crime journalism.

Here is the trailer:

Rene Russo also stars as Nina, a veteran of LA’s TV news scene, who hires Lou to get her the scoops before anyone else – before long, he blurs the line between observer and participant to become the star of his own story.

A really perceptive film!

Here’s another movie shocker, from a great Director who left behind a series of films that will stand the test of time:

3 – “Night Of The Living Dead”

This ultra-low budget film changed horror movies forever – here is the original trailer:

Director George Romero risked everything when he made the ultra low budget “Night Of The Living Dead”, and the list of filmmakers who have referenced its influence is large…sadly, Romero passed away, but he left us with some enduring classics – here is a homage to his life:

Ron Howard went from acting to Directing such great films as “Apollo 13” and “A Beautiful Mind”, but this was his first major studio effort:

2 – “Night Shift”

Howard’s “Happy Days” co-star Henry Winkler plays a timid Morgue Supervisor whose life is turned upside down when a new co-worker arrives….here is the trailer to this 1982 comedy:

Of course, Keaton decides to turn the morgue into a brothel!

Chuck Lumley: As we sit here and idly chat, there are woman, female human beings, rolling around in strange beds with strange men, and we are making money from that.
Bill Blazejowski: Is this a great country, or what?

“Night Shift” is a funny movie that made Michael Keaton a star…always fun to watch.

Finally, how about this hilariously insightful story of working women getting the respect they deserve:

1 – Working “9 To 5!”

It’s one of the funniest – yet also most insightful – films about female empowerment in the workplace, released at a time when the workplace was anything but equal!

In 1980, Jane Fonda, Lilly Tomlin, Dolly Parton and Dabny Coleman starred in this comedy about women who got fed up with being sexually harassed by men in the workplace!

Check out the trailer:

This empowered comedy sent a message that a new day was coming – a day when women didn’t have to be subservient to their male co-workers – and that sexual harassment was going to be called out.

Of course, it has taken decades longer for that despicable behavior to finally be brought to light, but the film was a clarion call for female empowerment and female rights – and the film was a smash hit!

You can see much more about the impact this film had – click here:

There you go, a list of ten great films with the letter “N”!

If you want to see what showed up on earlier lists, there’s this classic poster from the letter “A”:

that’s just one of the films I covered in the alphabet – here’s a look at all of the movies from “A-F”:

As the alphabet progressed, I tried to include some offbeat films as well as foreign films like this one:

John Woo’s action classic showed up on the “H” list, and here are all of the films from “G” to “L”:

Finally, the great character Actor Dennis Farina was in my list of “M” films, for his great comedic turn as Mobster Jimmy Serrano in “Midnight Run”:

You can see all of my movies that begin with an “M” here:

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Let me know your favorite from the letter “N” – and if you like this list, please feel free to share on social media!

Categories: 70's Cinema, Academy Awards, Action Films, Art, Awards, Comedy Movies, Cult Movies, Film Fight Club, Great Films, Hollywood, Independent Cinema, Movies, Obscure Movies, Politics, Pop Culture, Revenge Movies, Talent/Celebrities

Tags: 2007 Best Picture, 70's, 70's films, 70's movies, 70's obscure movies, 80's comedies, Academy Award, Academy Award best picture, Academy Award best supporting actor, academy award facts, action films, Actor Jake Gyllenhaal, Actress Lina Romay, Alfred Hitchcock, Alfred Hitchcock cameos, best 80's comedies, best Alfred Hitchcock thrillers, best Michael Keaton films, best Michael Keaton movies, best movies A-Z, Best Picture 1976, Best Picture 2006, Best Picture 2007, Bloody sex thriller, British crime film, British Crime Thrillers, british films, classic 70's movies, classic Coen Brothers movies, Crime thrillers, cult films of the 70's, Director Alfred Hitchcock, Director George Romero, Duane Jones night of the living dead, Faye Dunaway, films, films of the 70's, Frenzy, funny movies, George Romero Director, George Romero RIP, Horror Director George Romero, iconic movie dialogue, iconic movie posters, Jake Gyllenhaal films, Jarvier Bardem Best Supporting Actor, Master of suspense, Michael Keaton best actor, movies A-Z, movies of the 70's, Napoleon Dynamite, Napoleon Dynamite movie trailer, Network, Network best picture nominee, Night of the living dead duane jones, Night Of The Lving Dead George Romero, Night Shift, Night Shift comedy, Nightcrawler, Nightcrawler movie, No Country For Old Men, North By Northwest, obscure films, obscure movies, obscure movies A-Z, RIP Director George Romero, thrillers, TV network