1-Sting: (1984)
I recently wrote a comparison of Dune, the book, the original movie, and the two subsequent film remakes. My favorite, after the book, is the original film. I have many reasons for this choice, but up front and personal is Sting’s performance as the villain Feyed-Rautha Haarkonen, the beautiful nephew. His image is etched into our minds forever. Sting is insurmountable in this most important role. He is the personification of evil, yet we lust for his sensuous embrace. Why? Human nature? He cannot be replaced or improved by anyone ever.
2- Gary Oldman: (1992)
‘Dracul”, as he calls himself during one of the scenes of the film Bram Stoker’s Dracula. We’ve been living Dracula movies since we were kids. Nosferatu! Vampires have grown into a realm of their own. At the core of their existence, at the very heart of all the vampire folklore, reigns the original Dracula and, for me, Gary Oldman’s vampiric unbending love story. The moment Count Dracula says to Mina Murray, “I have crossed oceans of time to find you,” Dracula binds his profound love and loss for his wife into our pain and loss forever. The element of sensuous delivery captivates the watchers of this extraordinary film.
3-Rutger Hauer: (1982)
The futuristic film Bladerunner, starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, and Daryl Hannah, became a classic against all odds. This film was created ahead of its time. It’s recognized as a masterpiece. When Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), the Blade Runner, is assigned to kill the replicants, we watch and listen, our hears in our hands, to the ‘Tears in Rain’ monologue as a beautiful silver-haired replicant languishes under the rain and says his parting words before dying. He etched himself into our souls and our consciousness. We each know we will die. This insight into the wastefulness of death at such an intimate moment of raw reality still carries us through the night.
These are his words:
“ I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off (the) shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.”
Could we all be replicants?
4-Legends in the Fall (1994)
Native American One Stab, played by Gordon Tootoosis, pulls us completely in when he explains us to ourselves. He carries us home. One Stab reminds us of who we are.
These are his words:
“ Some people hear their own inner voices with great clearness, and they live by what they hear. Such people become crazy, or they become legends.”
As such, he remains etched in our consciousness forever.
5-Moonstruck: (1987)
In Nicolas Cage’s monologue, where he explains the monologue when Nicolas Cage is the true reason for love, what love is, we stand and take notice because, as a perfectly aimed arrow, it lands straight into our minds.
This is what he says:
“Love don’t make things nice, it ruins everything, it breaks your heart, it makes things a mess. We’re not here to make things perfect. Snowflakes are perfect. The stars are perfect. Not us. We are here to ruin ourselves and break our hearts and love the wrong people and die.”
It sure seems that way.
Thank you for reading.
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