DESERT ISLAND DVD’S
So, good ol’ Andy, at the Fandango Groovers Movie Blog site, has got a bunch of us bloggers from around the world, and the blog-o-sphere, to put up a post featuring what DVD’s we would take with us if we got stranded on a desert island (Limit 8). Don’t overthink it and ask how we would play these DVD’s… my guess is I would use my above average intelligence to fashion something out of coconuts, bamboo and vines… just go with it!
To see some of the other bloggers contributing to this topic, click the pic of Wilson below:
But first, let’s get to mine!
In the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit, that if this were a real life scenario, I’d probably bring 8 Adult movies to the island with me. After all, I’m a man… I have needs… and I like variety. However, that’s not what we’re here to do today. We’re here to share our Film Geek-dom. Let me preface this list by saying that these are films I could watch over and over again… the best kind to have on an island… not necessarily my favorite films.
SIDENOTE: I’ve excluded Star Wars from this list because I pretty much know them by heart anyways!
So, here you go (in no particular order):
8. DAWN OF THE DEAD.
I actually don’t care which version. I love them both in different ways. I’m going to need to have some Horror with me and this is my all time favorite story of the genre. I could also use it to pretend that I’m watching what is happening back home and that I’ve come to the island to escape the devastation.
7. SHAUN OF THE DEAD.
Sadly, the problem with comedies of the last 20 years is they forget to try and make you laugh. Shaun of the Dead, however, makes me cry every time I watch it… happy tears… not the “Oh my God, why didn’t I bring food to a desert island instead of DVD’s?” kind!
6. INDIANA JONES & THE TEMPLE OF DOOM.
Okay, so “Temple of Doom” is the 3rd greatest Indiana Jones movie. However, the rap this film gets is unfair because it is utterly watchable… and re-watchable. If for nothing else than the scene where Indy goes back for the kids. I love it so much that I hope I landed on the desert island in a raft I used to jump out of a crashing plane after a young Asian boy said, “Mr. Pawker! Mr. Pawker! No mo pawachute!”
5. THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO (2002).
Let me start by saying that the acting in this version of Dumas’ classic tale is comical. However, I can’t help but love it. In my opinion, Monte Cristo is one of the greatest stories ever written. This version takes a few liberties with the story (happy ending) but I’m okay with it. Plus, it might inspire me to get off the island and get revenge on the bastards that put me there!
4. MALLRATS.
Every now and then, I just need a little Kevin Smith. Nothing can make me laugh like Jason Lee (as Brody) in Mallrats. This is one of the first films I went back and discovered when I decided “movies” were going to be “my thing”. Not to mention, the 2 second shot of Joey Lauren Adams could sort of make up for the lack of Adult Films on the island.
3. THE ABYSS.
What can I say? EVERYTIME this film comes on TV, I end up watching it to the end… I struggled with this pick because I do the same thing with Shawshank, but I’m gonna go with The Abyss. I’m sure one of the other sites will pick Shawshank and hopefully we’ll end up on the same island!
2. SERENITY.
I’ll just say it. I’ve got a man-crush on Nathan Fillion. I could pretty much watch him while he watches paint dry for 2 hours. Everybody knows my love for Indiana Jones. Well, Fillion’s Mal is essentially Indiana Jones in Han Solo’s universe written by Joss Whedon. It’s also a really good movie. “I aim to misbehave.” Goosebumps!!!
1. FIGHT CLUB.
“How much can you know about yourself unless you watch Fight Club on a desert island?” I know it’s silly but this is my all time favorite film, as it was the movie that made me want to become a filmmaker and got me writing screenplays… and it’s just so much fun!!!
That’s it for now, Castaways. Make sure to check out some of the other contributor’s sites and please feel free to leave your comments below. I never edit any of the comments. Remember, this was meant to be an interactive site, as much as I love the sound of my own voice.
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Check back next Saturday as that is when new posts go up. I’m also going to try and get some mid-week posts going in the future so stay tuned. Have a great week and remember… wait… where’s my volleyball?
April 11, 2010 at 3:16 am
Good to see that there’s another fan of “The Count of Monte Cristo”.
Its one of my guilty pleasures too.
April 11, 2010 at 3:58 am
great list. i dont agree with loads of em but great writing as usual Kai B.
i actually went to see Count of Monte Christo and it was a pile of poo, but i understand your reasons for choosing it.
April 11, 2010 at 9:50 am
I thought for sure that if there was one person who’d give me love for Temple of Doom it’d be good ol’ McG… what up?
As far as Cristo goes, it’s not a great movie but it’s the only decent modern interpretation of my favorite story… what can I say?
April 11, 2010 at 5:16 am
No “Plan 9 From Outer Space”? Hel-lo!
Rob Hanson at Chrislip Journal
April 11, 2010 at 9:52 am
No, Chrislip, sorry… but welcome to the site!
April 11, 2010 at 6:20 am
This is possibly my favourite list in the whole Desert Island project (after my own of course). They aren’t exactly the movies I would chose but I would happily watch them over and over again
April 11, 2010 at 9:52 am
Ah, I’m blushing!
April 11, 2010 at 8:42 am
Good list my man Kai! I must really give The Abyss another watch. We tried to watch it one night when I was a kid. Oh man, we all fell asleep, there was nothing happening on screen lol. Any Indiana Jones movie is definitely a great pick and I see you got the deadly combination of Dawn/Shawn. I’m not sure I would want to think about zombie if I was alone on an island lol
April 11, 2010 at 9:55 am
I just love the Abyss for the scene where Ed Harris slaps around Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio while yelling at her and calling her a “bitch” in an attempt to rescucitate (?) her… classic!!!
April 12, 2010 at 10:32 am
Don’t know that it’s desert island worthy, but definitely worth a rewatch for that scene alone!!!
“Goddammit, you bitch! You never backed away from anything in your life! Now fight!”
April 11, 2010 at 9:02 am
Good list! Fight Club is a very good choice as really is a film you could watch over and over. Good reasons to back up your choices too.
April 11, 2010 at 9:55 am
Thanks, Caz… nice to see you stopping by again!
April 11, 2010 at 9:56 am
In no order:
Fight Club, L.A Confidential, Gladiator, Idiocracy, Return of The King, Serenity (still looking for the Easter Egg of Morena Baccharin naked), High Plains Drifter and Blues Brothers. If I could sub a TV series (Man vs. Wild – desert island) then that would be great – being on a desert island would suck if all you could do was watch movies until you starved.
April 11, 2010 at 10:50 am
Great list… with the exception of Drifter and Blues Bros. a lot of people are picking those films! If we’re taking TV series… Battlestar Gallactica… no question!
April 11, 2010 at 10:05 am
Yeah, Nathan Fillion’s one cool bastard. Good list, dude. Haven’t seen Monte Cristo since it was out in theaters, been meaning to give it another watch as of late. Good picks!
April 11, 2010 at 10:51 am
I’m going to do a man crush list just to talk about that guy!
April 11, 2010 at 4:35 pm
I need to see Serenity. I loved Firefly. It’s a freakin’ tragedy what happened to that show.
And I love Fillon. Look at that chiselled jaw.
April 11, 2010 at 10:35 am
Kai.. you get some love for picking Temple Of Doom, dont worry, but why pick the worst movie in the Trilogy. I pretend Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (or the appropriately abbreviated KOCS), doesnt exist. although saying that on second viewing i thought it was quite fun. complete shite, yes, but good fun. putting it in one of these lists would have been ballsy and sparked much anger, no doubt.
Im sorry, but if there is one film that went immediately out of date as soon as the end credits rolled it is Fight Club. i enjoyed it first time but as a repeat movie it is cringeworthy
April 11, 2010 at 10:53 am
YOU, SIR, ARE A BLASPHEMER, TRADER AND MEMBER OF THE REBEL ALLIANCE!!!
I won’t even dignify the Fight Club comments with a response. I will say the KOCS was a lot better on a 2nd viewing. It follows the Indy formula pretty well. The ending and Shia swinging with the monkeys were a bit jarring though!
April 11, 2010 at 12:15 pm
McG – never before have I agreed so wholeheartedly with the first half of a comment only to vehemently disagree with the second half. I, too, think it’s odd to see Last Crusade as the Indy pick (and I also like to pretend the 4th doesn’t exist) when Raiders is just sitting there on the shelf waiting to be taken. But Fight Club out of date – ha! I must follow Kai’s lead and not dignify that with too strong a rebuttal.
I’m glad that I never got into Firely/Serenity enough for it to take up one of my 8 spots. 😉 Saw Serenity and it was ok, but I still don’t get the uber-love for Josssss.
Love the Mallrats pick. Not much can make me smile like Jason Lee does in that.
April 11, 2010 at 4:15 pm
I definitely thought long and hard about putting Shaun of the Dead on my list, too, but in the end that spot had to go to Army of Darkness. Maybe I could have figured out a loophole to get Shaun on my list, too, but I’m just not that ambitious.
Great list overall too!
April 11, 2010 at 6:34 pm
Yeah, I read your list… if Shaun loses a spot, I’m fine with it going to Ash!
April 11, 2010 at 4:34 pm
YESSS, glad to see a fellow Monte Cristo fan. I agree the acting is kinda subpar, and Pearce is chewing the scenery in a lot of them, but darn I love the story and some of the scenes — as corny as they were — were memorable (such as this one in particular: http://wp.me/pxXPC-1aX). Plus, Luis Gusman is hilarious!
Sorry, Temple of Doom is my least fave Indy flick, ’cause as bad as the 4th one was, at least it’s still got the great Cate Blanchett! But hey, a bad Indy flick is still better than a ton others. LOVE The Abyss, but like Castor said, it’s rather uneventful at times.
April 11, 2010 at 6:09 pm
My favorite list so far.
Stink Palm and Temple of Doom? Fuck yea. Temple of Doom and Raiders were always my favorite Indy flicks. Mola Ram is bad mofo and Kate Capshaw is brilliant in it.
Fight Club is in my top ten movies of all time and gets better each viewing.
LOVE LOVE LOVE your list.
April 11, 2010 at 6:32 pm
And I LOVE LOVE LOVE you, Heather… it’s funny, cuz I hate Kate Capshaw but love that frackin’ flick!
April 11, 2010 at 8:23 pm
yea right, you are so jealous of her
April 12, 2010 at 9:30 am
You get to watch her being tortured in the Bug scene though, and tortured by the Elephant, and almost burned alive. I mean she gets screwed pretty bad throughout hahahahaha!
April 12, 2010 at 10:36 am
kate capshaw steals husbands!!
April 11, 2010 at 10:48 pm
Three cheers for having Serenity on your list! I love that movie something fierce! A good list. I don’t think I’d take The Abyss with me. If I had to choose a Cameron movie, I’d take Aliens or T2. Other then that, great picks.
Love your rationale for including Count of Monte Cristo by the way. There’s nothing more intellectually stimulating then planning one’s revenge!
April 13, 2010 at 2:01 pm
The Abyss isn’t the worst Cameron pick. At least he didn’t pick True lies. Who wants to spend eterntiy with Tom Arnold?
April 12, 2010 at 2:37 am
Heather… ‘my favourite list so far’ – you say that to all the boys…
Kai B, Fletch.. some day you will wake up and realise that Fight Club is a zeitgeist-chasing piece of disposable puff and you will scream ‘Ross McG WAS right!!’
April 12, 2010 at 4:51 am
One day Ross you will realise it was a cutting and prophetic satire that set the scene for the zeitgeist that followed. And on that day you will say Kai, Fletch and Andy you where right all along I regret wasting my time watching Disney’s Robin Hood and Spiderman when I could have been watching Fight Club.
April 12, 2010 at 7:59 am
Spiderman? i dont like Spiderman, do I? what day is this, Monday? yeah, i dont like Spiderman. That opinion could change tomorrow…
Disney’s Robin Hood is a classic that will be treasured for generations, like The Beatles’ music and The Christian Bale rant video. Fight Club is a cool film. if youre 13. grow up Fands, grow up.
Kai, Fletch and Any… sounds like a really shit, pretentious alt rock band…
April 12, 2010 at 8:05 am
Yeah… what he said!!!
April 13, 2010 at 2:07 pm
Hey now! Disney’s Robin Hood is a… surprisingly adequate film that was screwed by Disney’s poor financial decisions. Not the best or the worst of the animated canon, and significantly better than any late nineties output.
April 12, 2010 at 9:31 am
Ross I will never say that! I read Fletch’s before Kai’s, but I think I like both of theirs equally when it comes to personal taste.
There’s also the Abyss on here, which gets extra bonus points.
April 12, 2010 at 6:46 am
Kaiderman! You put a Kevin Smith film on here! Even though it’s not my choice (that’d be “Chasing Amy” or “Clerks”), I gotta respek you for that!
You’re the second person to include “Serenity” and I also respek you for that too. One of the few films that lived up to the TV show and gave it a proper sendoff.
April 12, 2010 at 8:08 am
I was the FIRST person to have Serenity… I wrote this the day after Andy e-mailed us like a month ago… uh, thank you!
PS… Can I swim over and watch Aliens some time? I’ll bring the coconuts! 😉
April 12, 2010 at 8:09 am
Nothing wrong with Clerks but I don’t hold it up to be the masterpiece Kevin Smith fans think it is. I would go for Chasing Amy or Dogma
April 12, 2010 at 9:25 am
I don’t love Chasing Amy as much as everybody else. I do think Dogma is Smith’s best film but Mallrats and Swingers were the first 2 movies I went back and found when I decided I was going to become a film geek. So, it holds a special place in my heart… like McG… no matter how wrong he tends to be! 🙂
April 12, 2010 at 9:34 am
Mallrats and Clerks are better for being simplistically funny, while Chasing Amy and Dogma represent his talents as a writer much better. Even though Dogma is a smarter movie it still has a fucking rubber poop monster. Dick and Fart jokes are heaven sent.
April 16, 2010 at 5:58 am
I’ll second the Chasing Amy love. And Dogma, which tends to get ignored a bit – it’s a very well put together film which is smartly written and a wonderfully cheap urban fantasy. Dogma is the most ‘out there’ film Smith has ever made.
April 12, 2010 at 11:45 am
My my Kai, gotta love a fellow Zombie fan. I know we agree on Shaun but the original Dawn is no joke either…although watching it now Savini’s make up makes all the zombies look like melted crayons:) Still I prefer the Zack Snyder remake for what it’s worth.
Also, I’m floored you put Cristo on here!! Now that’s an excellent choice and vastly underrated if you ask me. Pearce and Harris are quite good and even Luis “how did he get in this movie” Guzman wasn’t half bad.
April 12, 2010 at 11:56 am
Yeah, Pearce chews the scenes up. Also, I LOVE ZOMBIES. Check out this post I did on Zombie Apocolypses:
https://kaispace.wordpress.com/2010/01/16/how-to-survive-a-zombie-apocalypse/
April 12, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Welcome to LAMB bro.
April 13, 2010 at 7:35 pm
Thanks, man! I feel so special! 🙂
April 13, 2010 at 7:41 pm
You’ve got a terrific list here, and I’m glad to see Serenity making another appearance. It might just be one of the most popular picks, and for good reason!
Love that The Abyss is on here – it remains one of my favourite DVDs in my collection. As far as features and film and everything, it’s still got more than many blurays that are being released these days.
Count of Monte Cristo occurred to me too, but I feared flack for mentioning the Jim Caviezel version and not one of the “classics” like the one they watch in V for Vendetta. It’s such a fun and fancy film with all kinds of great things to love about it. And who knows, maybe your desert island could be populated by some immense treasure for you to salvage?
April 13, 2010 at 8:18 pm
GOD WILLING!!!
Thanks for stopping by, Steve. Hope to see you in the future!!!
April 14, 2010 at 7:24 am
Temple of Doom is actually my favourite Indy movie….
April 16, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Atta gurl!!!
June 8, 2010 at 2:52 pm
I’m not sure you should have been allowed to partake in this meme Kai. After all… you’re the list dude, you’ve got a headstart . You have a lot of different flavours there, tastes pretty good too.