Hello and welcome (back) to Thursday Movie Picks, the weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves where you share three movies to fit the theme of the week each Thursday.
Buildings aren't something I usually notice in movies so this was a pretty tough week for me. But there's a tall building in each one of these, so I guess I'm good.
Die Hard (1988)
NYPD officer John McClane goes to Los Angels to spend the Christmas holidays with his family and while he's at the wife's company headquarters for the Christmas party, a group of bank robbers take control of the (very tall) building and hold everyone hostage. And John has to save them all. I haven't seen this in a long time but I remember enjoying it. Keep in mind that it's a Bruce Willis flick though.
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
The government agency Ethan Hunt works for is shut down and he goes undercover with his rogue team to clear the name of the agency. And one of the cool things he does is climbing a ridiculously tall building using adhesive gloves because he's freaking Ethan Hunt so he can. The movie is pretty solid, one of the best of the franchise to be honest.
King Kong (2005)
A movie crew travels to a mysterious island to shoot their film. A giant gorilla happens to be on that island and things go south pretty quickly. I do realise it's a bit stretched but there's that scene everyone knows where the gorilla climbs the Empire State Building with the woman. I haven't seen this in ages but I liked it. I've seen it several times and that'd be impossible if I didn't like it since it's 3 hours long.
Ahh Die Hard and King Kong are great picks. Why didn't I think of that? lol
ReplyDeleteThey were the first two films I thought of :)
DeleteYours is the first TMP post I've read this week. I'm only sharing that because I'm guessing I'll see lots of Die Hard and King Kong, and for good reason. They're both great movies. Nice pick with Ghost Protocol, too. As far as I'm concerned it IS the best of that franchise.
ReplyDeleteYAY! Ghost Protocol is also my favorite!
DeleteDie Hard is so silly but I end up watching it when it's on and laugh every time Willis keeps getting rid of clothing. MI?..we match! I think this is the one to be everywhere today. It totally freaks me out when Cruise is out on the outside and then runs down the building.....outside! I really like this King Kong version and I don't even mind Jack Black. This film makes me cry for the big ape especially when he is on the ice with Naomi...so sad.
ReplyDeleteOmg don't even make me think about that scene. I'm crying already...
DeleteI was just wondering why I hadn't seen Die Hard turn up yet, it's so perfect for the theme and here it is. Wonderfully exciting film with what every action adventure film needs-a great villain in Alan Rickman. He just exudes silky evil. Bruce Willis is a great badass hero and Bonnie Bedelia a refreshingly self reliant and tough woman in charge. Too bad the sequels are by and large a consistently diminishing crop in quality.
ReplyDeleteI hated this version of King Kong though I'm a fan of the original with Fay Wray. Can't stand Tom Cruise or what they've done with the Mission Impossible movies so I've never seen that film.
I thought of Die Hard but had used it before. My first choice came to me immediately as did my last but it took some doing to come up with a third. I ended up with something that doesn't necessarily depend on the height of the building for it's story but everything takes place high off the ground so I decided it fit.
The Towering Inferno (1974)-It’s the grand dedication ceremony for the world’s tallest building, The Glass Tower a 138 story skyscraper in San Francisco and the party is being held on the top floor loaded with movie stars, politicians and the building team in attendance. But trouble’s abrewing when architect Doug Roberts (Paul Newman) arrives back in town to find that corners have cut and the wiring for the building is substandard. He’s right to be worried since when a small fire breaks out on the 81st floor it spreads quickly trapping the guests while the fire department works feverishly to save them. One of the big three Irwin Allen disaster films of the 70’s, along with Airport and The Poseidon Adventure, this was an enormous hit on release with an amazing cast of some of the biggest stars of the time-Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Fred Astaire, Robert Wagner, Robert Vaughn and Jennifer Jones (in her final film) plus dozens of recognizable performers in smaller roles.
Plaza Suite (1971)-Three act Neil Simon comedy based on his stage success all takes place in Suite 719 of New York’s Plaza Hotel. Each vignette stars Walter Matthau in different roles with three different leading ladies, Maureen Stapleton, Barbara Harris and Lee Grant in tales of a marriage in crisis, an assignation and a long married couple whose daughter has locked herself in the bathroom moments before her wedding downstairs. None are bad but the first and third are the strongest.
Fourteen Hours (1951)-Robert Cosick (Richard Basehart) is at the end of his rope and has decided to commit suicide by jumping from the ledge of the 15th floor of the Roosevelt Hotel high above the city. As police officer Charlie Dunnigan (Paul Douglas) tries to reason with him calling in both his girlfriend (Barbara Bel Geddes) and his mother (Agnes Moorehead) the event turns into a sideshow lasting 14 hours. Quite similar to the recent Man on a Ledge but a better film this was Grace Kelly’s screen debut in a small role.
I'm watching The Towering Inferno soon.
DeleteI thought about picking Die Hard too but went the other direction then. But I guess we still thought alike since Ghost Protocol was also one of my picks. :)
ReplyDeleteGreat minds think alike ;)
DeleteGreat picks! All of these crossed my mind, even if, If you can believe it, I have never seen Die Hard in its entirety. It's my December Blind Spot this year. Can't wait.
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm sure you'll like it. The first is a really good one.
DeleteNothing gets better than Die Hard and the amazing plaza. I actually quite enjoyed Peter Jackson's version of King Kong but the ending was always going to be tacky....
ReplyDeleteI agree on the ending.
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