As much as I like reviewing films, I'd like to branch out in my writing. Not beyond films, no, that'd be silly, just different aspects of movies. Recently I was nominated by Elgringo over at He Shot Cyrus, probably my #1 fan, to write about The 12 Movies Meme, originated by Lazy Eye Theatre - Which asks, what if YOU could pick 12 movies to run at the New Beverly Cinema? (Which is a popular revival theater in L.A.) I thought I'd take that challenge.

I wasn't sure where the hell to start. There are too many films log-jammed in my brain to even know where to begin. Taking a look at He Shot Cyrus' list, I saw that he featured two old Peter Jackson films. Out of that grew my idea, showcasing some of the lesser know films from my favorite directors, and trying to program them together by genre. So here we go:

Monday-Tuesday

Start with a pair of family films, that everyone can enjoy.

Pee-wee's Big Adventure - Tim Burton's first feature length film. I think most folks remember this film... but do the know how freaking good it is? This film is constantly surreal, utterly hilarious, undeniably quotable and just plain fun. Plus it features my all-time-favorite score; Danny Elfman's 2nd, who's gone on to become one of the biggest composers in Hollywood.

Time Bandits - Terry Gilliam is one of my favorite filmmakers, he has an absolutely unique vision. In the right circles, this is a fairly well known film, but your average Joe has never heard of it. A brave group of little-people take on God. It's appropriate for kiddies, and would just be a total blast to see on the big screen.

Wednesday-Thursday

Some adult fare, with a couple of forgotten epics.

Empire of the Sun - Absolutely everybody knows who Steven Spielberg is. If you ask a random person on the street to name a film director, I bet at least 5 out of 10 answers would be him. But even a lot of film buffs, don't remember his 1987 film Empire of the Sun, which introduced a very young, British accent and all, Christian Bale. The film follows this young lad through WWII, as he moves from a posh life as an aristocrat to living in a Japanese P.O.W. camp. Brilliant, moving film.

Le Grand bleu - Most people think Luc Besson's career started with La Femme Nikita, but he made three feature films before that one. And since Subway and Le Dernier combat aren't very good, I chose Le Grand bleu. It's the story of a deep-sea-diver going for the world's record for deepest dive sans respirator. But it's so much more than that, a beautiful film about friendship and finding your life's limits.

Friday-Saturday

A couple of great B-movies, for the weekend

In the Mouth of Madness - Everyone knows the classic John Carpenter: Halloween, The Fog, The Thing, Escape from New York, Big Trouble in Little China - But how about the last film he did, before his talent seemed to leave him? Madness is a seriously scary and messed up film.

Starship Troopers - This is an under-appreciated classic. Politically subversive, full of over-the-top violence, nudity and giant bugs getting the shit blasted out of them; an utterly brilliant, yet incredibly stupid film all at the same time.

Sunday-Monday

Crimewave - I'm getting really obscure, from one of Hollywood's biggest directors. After breaking out with the cult-classic Evil Dead, Sam Spider-man's Raimi, created a little know slapstick-action film about little nerd taking on a pair of psycho-exterminators. The film is highly influenced by Looney Toons and features a very young Bruce Campbell.

After Hours - After Spielberg, among today's directors, Martin Scorsese would probably qualify as the 2nd best known director working. His list of classic films is long, I don't need to name them. But how many of you have seen After Hours? Cult actress Rosanna Arquette takes Griffin Dunn on a wild ride through New York, destroying his life and opening his eyes.

Tuesday-Wednesday

The Man Who Wasn't There - Sure, everyone knows the Coen Brother's films No Country for Old Men, Fargo, The Big Lebowski & Raising Arizona - All classic films, all too easy. So my pick from my favorite filmmakers, is their 2001 dark-comedy. Billy Bob Thorton stars in this underrated, double, triple-cross mystery film, with some classic Coen brother touches.

Weird Science - In the 80's filmmaker John Hughes had an unprecedented run of films, creating seven classic, to near-classic films in five years, and then he lost it all. Between Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller's Day Off, he created the surreal and hilarious film Weird Science. Oh, we've all seen it a thousand times on cable, but I'd love to see this film on the big screen, with an eager audience. Kelly Lebrock, gorgeous, and larger-than-life. Anthony Michael Hall, one of the greatest teen actors ever, at his peak. Totally awesome.

Thursday-Friday

Dark City - Alex Proyas isn't necessarily a well known director, depending on who you talk to his biggest film is either The Crow or I, Robot. But far-and-away his best film is Dark City, an absolutely brilliant sci-fi/noir mystery. Coming out in 1998, it was instantly overshadowed a year later, by the somewhat similar and far flashier film The Matrix, so it never got the attention it deserved. In my opinion it's the most beautifully photographed film ever.

A Clockwork Orange - Okay, not an unknown film in the least. But how many have us have seen it on the big screen? I've seen 2001, it's beautiful, but boring! The Shining, yeah, scary as hell. But this, my favorite Kubrick film, no, I've never had the pleasure. The gorgeous photography, the brilliant mis-en-scene and editing, the incredible score, and Malcolm McDowell's gloriously over-the-top performance as cinema's all-time-greatest antihero Alex. I can't think of anything better to end this with.

The idea behind this film is wonderful; give twenty of the world's best directors free reign to make a short film about Paris and see what happens. Each director gets a section of the city to tell a love-story that takes place there. None of the films are connected in any way, there's no narrator, we simply move from tale to tale.

There are some really wonderful short films here. My favorite is a toss up between the Coen Brothers (no surprise) and Tom Tykwer. The Coen's tell the story of a slightly lost American in Paris, played by the always wonderful Steve Buscemi. He's minding his own business in the Paris Underground, when he catches the eye of a couple making out across the tracks. The boyfriend starts to yell derogatory things at him in French, which he can't understand, and before he knows it the girlfriend is sitting next to him, offering him a kiss. There's also a hilarious little bit about a boy who's shooting spit-balls at him.

Tom Tykwer's (Run Lola Run) is about a blind kid who falls in love with Natalie Portman. We see their entire relationship play out in a matter of minutes through a variety of still-shots, it's a beautifully shot and edited film. Alexander Payne's (Election, Sideways) was also a favorite, his is about a middle-age American woman, who has always wanted to visit Paris, and is now finally getting to and is falling in love with the city itself; told very much in his wonderful comic style.

There being twenty films, there was bound to be some mediocre and bad ones. Gérard Depardieu's turned out to be particularly boring, a French couple sitting around in a coffee shop talking. There was another one starring Bob Hoskins, I'm not sure of the director of the short, that I couldn't get into. But each film is only around five minutes and you're moving on to Gus Van Sant doing his thing, Wes Craven telling a weird little love story in a cemetery, and there's one tale that is way out there, Vincenzo Natali (Cube) has Elijah Wood falling in love with a vampire.

I'm a little biased, because Paris is my wife and I's favorite city in the world, so we just enjoyed seeing the beautiful photography of the entire city. But was also very cool to see all these director's one after another. You really get a sense for how much a director influences a film, as each short has it's own style, rhythm and pace. I can see going back and watching some of these shorts over and over, and never bothering with some others again. But overall Paris, je t'aime an incredible artistic experiment, I'd love to see another 20 directors get a stab at it.

When it comes right down to it, I'd have to say that the Coen Brothers are my all-time-favorite directors. They make movies exactly the way I wish I could; with a wonderful all-around sense of style, just the right amount of quirky, dark humor; beautiful camera work, the best writing and great performances from every actor, so that no matter how small the character in their films, you always remember them. Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski and Fargo are all near the top of my all time favorites list. Everything else they've done is also top-notch, with the exception of their last two films; The Ladykillers and Intolerable Cruelty, both were far below their standards, I was afraid they'd lost it. But when No Country For Old Men was released to phenomenal reviews, I knew they were back.

There is no question that this is one of the top films of the year. If it weren't for a slight stumble towards the end, I'd be ready to call it the year's best. The old west photography by cinematographer Roger Deakins is absolutely gorgeous. Every actor in the film is at the top of their game. A brilliant screenplay, building up the intensity with every scene, until it's almost unbearable; it's broken up occasionally with some pitch-black humor, so much so, that I was the only one laughing at some of the "jokes".

Llewelyn Moss, played perfectly by Josh Brolin, which I had no idea he had in him as an actor, is a typical no-ambitions type of guy, who's been content to float through life. Until he runs across the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong. Instantly his military training kicks in and he tracks down the injured guy who escaped with a suitcase full of money. He knows somebody is going to come looking for it; so he sends his wife off to her mother's and goes into hiding.

And he's right. The chase comes in the form of the ultimate bad-ass Anton, a bob-haired psycho, with no conscience about killing and the ultimate sense of how to get to anybody and through everybody else that stands in his way. I've seen nothing but sensitive type roles for Javier Bardem so far, but he's the most memorable bad guy of the year. (I think Anton will be remembered for a long time, we'll see folks dressed as him next Halloween.) He carries with him the most unique weapon we've ever seen for a professional killer, a cattle gun, which he uses to open doors and people's heads. I can't get over how much I loved this villain!

It's getting near the end of the film and I'm deeply involved in the game of cat and mouse between Llewelyn and Anton, it's the most tense filmmaking I've witnessed in a long time. Llewelyn gives Anton more trouble than he's probably ever had to deal with. And just when you think that Llewelyn actually has a chance to survive, the film veers off in a weird, unsatisfying way. Suddenly we're behind on the events and seeing the film from a new perspective. One woman at my screening explained it quite simply, "That ending was stupid!"