Every week, The Scene staff, in our infinite generosity, feels the need to address the unenlightened and culturally-deficient masses of AU about what upcoming movies they should and shouldn’t watch. Since it is quite obvious that students in this day and age have no other avenue when it comes to top-notch film reviews, we like to challenge the status quo by offering our invaluable insight and unmatched writing ability — such deft erudition that could only be crafted through our first-hand exposure to masterful franchises like “Bring It On” and “Transformers.”
As the all-knowing arbiters of good taste, we know you’ll graciously accept the following list of some of the most underrated gems of cinema to have been overlooked by the plebes of mainstream media.
“The Room”
In what many consider to be his magnum opus, Tommy Wiseau is the director, producer, writer and star of “The Room,” a drama about a man whose perfect life is thrown out of balance when his fiancée decides to cheat on him with his best friend for some reason. As Johnny, Wiseau is a young banker with an indeterminate accent and instantly likeable, totally-not-creepy personality. His hobbies include tossing a football in a tuxedo while standing three feet away from his friends, saying “Oh, hi” to just about every castmate and gratuitously making love to his wife. In addition to the brilliantly quotable script, the film is also known for its lush transition shots of San Francisco that include the Golden Gate Bridge, the cable cars and the Golden Gate Bridge, again. Be sure to catch a midnight screening near you!
“Troll 2”
You may remember this film made in 1990 from the scene where the geeky Arnold helplessly screams: “They’re eating her, and then they’re going to eat me. Oh my Goooooooood!” Fans of horror and grindhouse can get their fix with this dark tale of a middle American family that decides to vacation in the town of Nilbog. They soon learn lessons in family togetherness and subtle acting as they discover that the townsfolk are actually vegetarian goblins with a devilish plot that involves turning people into plants and then eating them or something.
“Battlefield Earth”
Quite possibly the film that catapulted John Travolta into A-list status, “Battlefield Earth” is a sci-fi epic based on the book by Scientology founder, L. Ron Hubbard. At just under two hours, the film, made in 2000, features beautiful cinematography of Earth 1000 years in the future as humans have literally reverted back to cavemen (complete with grunts and bad posture) and everything must be viewed at a 45-degree angle. There is absolutely no requirement of suspension of disbelief as to why a member of a superior alien race would want to educate a human slave for the purpose of repression, but that’s just a testament to the complexity of the characterization and scriptwriting.
“The Happening”
With such films as “Lady in the Water” and “The Village,” M. Night Shyamalan surely doesn’t deserve all the vitriol he’s received from critics even though the general consensus does seem to be that the only decent film he’s ever made was “The Sixth Sense.” He’s a true artisan of horror because he’s able to subvert the stereotypes that seem to overrun the genre. Take “The Happening,” released in 2008, for instance, where we’re not afraid of aliens and ghosts, but grass and trees. Only a true auteur like Shyamalan is able to instill fear in us when it comes to something we see everyday — bolstered by the first-rate acting ability of funky bunch rapper, Marky Mark.
