Hey y’all petrolheads. Take a peek at my list of must watch movies.
Easy Rider (1969)
Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper), two hippies from Southern California, stash their money acquired from a dope deal in their gas tank and set off for a trip across America. Easy Rider’s success sparked the New Hollywood phase of filmmaking in the early 1970s. The movie explores societal problems and tensions in the United States during the 1960s. It records the rise and fall of the hippie movement, drug use and community lifestyle. What’s not to like when real drugs and badass choppers were used in the movie. Steppenwolf kicked out some bitchin’ tracks for the movie, along with some tracks from The Band and Jimi Hendrix keeps things moving and oh, Jack Nicholson makes a guest appearance too.
Quotes:
Billy: [while smoking a Joint] Oh wow! What? Who's that man? What the hell was that, man?
Wyatt: Huh?
Billy: [nervous] No, man, like hey, man. Wow. I was watching this object man, li-like the satellite that we saw the other night, right? And, like, it was going right across the sky, man, and then... I mean it just suddenly, uh, it just changed direction and went whizzin right off, man. It flashed...
Wyatt: [interupting him] You're stoned out of your mind, man.
Cheech and Chong: Up in Smoke (1978)
Cheech and Chong’s first feature-length film starring Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong is a counter-culture classic. The movie starts when the two stoners meet up by chance on a highway somewhere in California. While searching for some dope, they are accidentally deported to Mexico. There, they agree to drive a van back to the US of A so that they can get back in time for a gig they have signed up for. The two are unaware that the van is made of marijuana resin. On the way they pick up two women hitch-hockers and evade cops and make it to the gig when things go absolutely ballistic with the truck catching fire and every one at the gig inhale the smoke through the ac vents and get high.
Pub fact: The car that Chong drives at the beginning of the movie is actually owned by Jack Nicholson.
Quotes:
Pedro: Hey how am I driving, man?
Man Stoner: [looks around] : I think we're parked.
Pedro: Man, What is in this shit, man?
Man Stoner: Mostly Maui Waui man, but it's got some Labrador in it.
Pedro: What's Labrador?
Man Stoner: It's dog shit.
Pedro: What?
Man Stoner: Yeah, my dog ate my stash, man.
Pedro: Yeah?
Man Stoner: I had it on the table and the little mother****er ate it, man. Then I had to follow him around with a little baggie for three days, man, before I got it back. Really blew the dog's mind, ya know?
Pedro: You mean we're smokin' dog shit, man?
Man Stoner: Gets ya high, don't it?
[Song, "Rockin' Robin" plays... ]
Man Stoner: I think it's even better than before, you know?
Pedro: Uhhh, I wonder what Great Dane tastes like, man.
Senna (2010)
Directed by Asif Kapadia, Senna is a story of the epic life and tragic death of one of my favourite F1 drivers of all time Ayrton Senna. The film follows Senna’s struggles in the mid-80s trying to make inroads onto the world of Formula One and also records his rivalry with French World Champion Alain Prost. The documentary shows Senna’s humble, shy, patriotic and philanthropic side and also his untimely death while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, certainly one the darkest weekend in Formula One’s history. R.I.P Senna.
Quote:
Sid Watkins (former F1 safety chief): [after the death of Roland Ratzenberger] Ayrton got very, very upset and cried a bit, and that's when I said to him, you know Ayrton you've been three times world champion, you're the fastest man in the world, and you like fishing. So I said why don't you quit, and I'll quit, and we'll just go fishing. And he said Sid, I can't quit.
Rush (2013)
Rush, directed by Ron Howard, is based on the true story of the greatest sporting rivalry in Formula 1 between English playboy James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and the methodical Austrian Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl). This movie shows the different personality of both the drivers on and off the track and their love affairs and also captures the beautiful 1976 season with great attention to detail. Deserved an Oscar in my opinion.
Quotes:
[Hunt enters Lauda's garage and sees the extent of the burn injuries to his head]
Niki Lauda: It's that bad, huh?
James Hunt: [Shrugs] No.
Niki Lauda: In hospital, I asked them straight, no bullshit, how bad my appearance would be. They said in time, it would be fine. But it won't.
[Approaches Hunt]
Niki Lauda: I can tell, seeing your reaction. I will spend the rest of my life with a face that frightens people.
James Hunt: You know, Niki, I tried to write you a letter at the time, to apologize. The drivers' meeting in Germany, before the race, I swayed the room.
Niki Lauda: Yes, you did.
James Hunt: That race should never have gone ahead.
Niki Lauda: No, it shouldn't.
James Hunt: So in many ways, I feel responsible for what happened, and...
Niki Lauda: You were.
[pause]
Niki Lauda: But trust me... watching you win those races while I was fighting for my life, you were equally responsible for getting me back in the car.
[Lauda walks away]
Bullit (1968)
No list is complete without a movie starring the prolific Steve McQueen. Bullit’s got a dense plot showing how things work in San Francisco. Steve McQueen plays a cop, Frank Bullit, a tough police lieutenant assigned to protect a mob witness. When the witness is gunned down, it is up to Bullitt to exact his own brand of justice. There are excellent chases but the most notable one is Bullit’s 1968 Ford Mustang 390 GT 2+2 Fastback chasing the baddies driving a 1968 Dodge Charger 440 Magnum up and down the hills of San Francisco. Apparently, McQueen did most of the chase sequence on his own. A damn good driver he certainly is.
Quotes:
Walter Chalmers: Lieutenant, don't try to evade the responsibility. In your... parlance, you blew it. You knew the significance of his testimony, yet you failed to take adequate measures to protect him. So to you, it was a job, no more. Were it more, and you had the dedication I was led to believe...
Bullitt: You believe what you want. You work your side of the street, and I'll work mine.
Movies that almost made it to the list
The Italian Job (1969) Yup, the original one starring Michael Caine. Not the incredibly idiotic reboot with Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron.
Vanishing Point (1971)
TT3D: Closer To The Edge (2011)
Love The Beast (2009)
Y Tu Mama También (2001)
Feel free to post your movie recommendations below. Would love to watch 'em all.
Easy Rider (1969)
Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper), two hippies from Southern California, stash their money acquired from a dope deal in their gas tank and set off for a trip across America. Easy Rider’s success sparked the New Hollywood phase of filmmaking in the early 1970s. The movie explores societal problems and tensions in the United States during the 1960s. It records the rise and fall of the hippie movement, drug use and community lifestyle. What’s not to like when real drugs and badass choppers were used in the movie. Steppenwolf kicked out some bitchin’ tracks for the movie, along with some tracks from The Band and Jimi Hendrix keeps things moving and oh, Jack Nicholson makes a guest appearance too.
Quotes:
Billy: [while smoking a Joint] Oh wow! What? Who's that man? What the hell was that, man?
Wyatt: Huh?
Billy: [nervous] No, man, like hey, man. Wow. I was watching this object man, li-like the satellite that we saw the other night, right? And, like, it was going right across the sky, man, and then... I mean it just suddenly, uh, it just changed direction and went whizzin right off, man. It flashed...
Wyatt: [interupting him] You're stoned out of your mind, man.
Cheech and Chong: Up in Smoke (1978)
Cheech and Chong’s first feature-length film starring Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong is a counter-culture classic. The movie starts when the two stoners meet up by chance on a highway somewhere in California. While searching for some dope, they are accidentally deported to Mexico. There, they agree to drive a van back to the US of A so that they can get back in time for a gig they have signed up for. The two are unaware that the van is made of marijuana resin. On the way they pick up two women hitch-hockers and evade cops and make it to the gig when things go absolutely ballistic with the truck catching fire and every one at the gig inhale the smoke through the ac vents and get high.
Pub fact: The car that Chong drives at the beginning of the movie is actually owned by Jack Nicholson.
Quotes:
Pedro: Hey how am I driving, man?
Man Stoner: [looks around] : I think we're parked.
Pedro: Man, What is in this shit, man?
Man Stoner: Mostly Maui Waui man, but it's got some Labrador in it.
Pedro: What's Labrador?
Man Stoner: It's dog shit.
Pedro: What?
Man Stoner: Yeah, my dog ate my stash, man.
Pedro: Yeah?
Man Stoner: I had it on the table and the little mother****er ate it, man. Then I had to follow him around with a little baggie for three days, man, before I got it back. Really blew the dog's mind, ya know?
Pedro: You mean we're smokin' dog shit, man?
Man Stoner: Gets ya high, don't it?
[Song, "Rockin' Robin" plays... ]
Man Stoner: I think it's even better than before, you know?
Pedro: Uhhh, I wonder what Great Dane tastes like, man.
Senna (2010)
Directed by Asif Kapadia, Senna is a story of the epic life and tragic death of one of my favourite F1 drivers of all time Ayrton Senna. The film follows Senna’s struggles in the mid-80s trying to make inroads onto the world of Formula One and also records his rivalry with French World Champion Alain Prost. The documentary shows Senna’s humble, shy, patriotic and philanthropic side and also his untimely death while leading the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, certainly one the darkest weekend in Formula One’s history. R.I.P Senna.
Quote:
Sid Watkins (former F1 safety chief): [after the death of Roland Ratzenberger] Ayrton got very, very upset and cried a bit, and that's when I said to him, you know Ayrton you've been three times world champion, you're the fastest man in the world, and you like fishing. So I said why don't you quit, and I'll quit, and we'll just go fishing. And he said Sid, I can't quit.
Rush (2013)
Rush, directed by Ron Howard, is based on the true story of the greatest sporting rivalry in Formula 1 between English playboy James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and the methodical Austrian Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl). This movie shows the different personality of both the drivers on and off the track and their love affairs and also captures the beautiful 1976 season with great attention to detail. Deserved an Oscar in my opinion.
Quotes:
[Hunt enters Lauda's garage and sees the extent of the burn injuries to his head]
Niki Lauda: It's that bad, huh?
James Hunt: [Shrugs] No.
Niki Lauda: In hospital, I asked them straight, no bullshit, how bad my appearance would be. They said in time, it would be fine. But it won't.
[Approaches Hunt]
Niki Lauda: I can tell, seeing your reaction. I will spend the rest of my life with a face that frightens people.
James Hunt: You know, Niki, I tried to write you a letter at the time, to apologize. The drivers' meeting in Germany, before the race, I swayed the room.
Niki Lauda: Yes, you did.
James Hunt: That race should never have gone ahead.
Niki Lauda: No, it shouldn't.
James Hunt: So in many ways, I feel responsible for what happened, and...
Niki Lauda: You were.
[pause]
Niki Lauda: But trust me... watching you win those races while I was fighting for my life, you were equally responsible for getting me back in the car.
[Lauda walks away]
Bullit (1968)
No list is complete without a movie starring the prolific Steve McQueen. Bullit’s got a dense plot showing how things work in San Francisco. Steve McQueen plays a cop, Frank Bullit, a tough police lieutenant assigned to protect a mob witness. When the witness is gunned down, it is up to Bullitt to exact his own brand of justice. There are excellent chases but the most notable one is Bullit’s 1968 Ford Mustang 390 GT 2+2 Fastback chasing the baddies driving a 1968 Dodge Charger 440 Magnum up and down the hills of San Francisco. Apparently, McQueen did most of the chase sequence on his own. A damn good driver he certainly is.
Quotes:
Walter Chalmers: Lieutenant, don't try to evade the responsibility. In your... parlance, you blew it. You knew the significance of his testimony, yet you failed to take adequate measures to protect him. So to you, it was a job, no more. Were it more, and you had the dedication I was led to believe...
Bullitt: You believe what you want. You work your side of the street, and I'll work mine.
Movies that almost made it to the list
The Italian Job (1969) Yup, the original one starring Michael Caine. Not the incredibly idiotic reboot with Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron.
Vanishing Point (1971)
TT3D: Closer To The Edge (2011)
Love The Beast (2009)
Y Tu Mama También (2001)
Feel free to post your movie recommendations below. Would love to watch 'em all.
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