recent sleeper–Rabbit Proof Fence–Australian award winner

You seems to underestimate the talent of Rob Van Winkle as an actor. I, on the other hand, embrace his genius and continue to await his comeback: Cool As Ice 2: Older and Colder.

Trav – Tommy Boy is a movie I had actually considered for my top 20. I think Farley and Spade are so good in that movie and unlike some comedies, it manages to keep a plot afloat the whole while.

Bucky – I’ve never heard of the movie Ruthless People and I thought I’d seen all of the Zucker brother films. I will bump that up top on the Netflix list. (And I’ve only seen a few scenes from the Big Lebowski and while I do need to watch the whole thing for sure, it seemed like it was mostly about swearing…)

Princess Bride
Death at a Funeral
Magnolia
What’s Up Doc?
The In-Laws (original)
Meet the Parents
Groundhog Day

5. Thelma and Louise
4. Enchanted
3. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
2. Maid in Manhattan
1. Cool as Ice

There’s my Top 23. A few comments on the entries that might need some explanation.

Bottle Rocket is phenomenal. It doesn’t feel epic enough to be my favorite movie, but there it is. “She said you’re a failure? What has she ever accomplished with her life? Nothing. Nothing.” That is brilliant. Or: “How’s an asshole like Bob get such a great kitchen.”

The Stoning of Soraya M is extraordinary. It’s a film about Islamic law and women’s rights in modern Iran – based on a true story in a book of the same name. It’s not out yet – I saw it at a small, private screening last fall. I thought it was one of the most powerful and moving films – maybe the most powerful and moving film – I’ve ever seen.

I liked Napoleon Dynamite before it was cool to like Napoleon Dynamite. I’ve probably seen it thirty times and it doesn’t get old.

Metropolitan – Whit Stillman’s best – a classic, and subtle, social commentary.

Yes, I’m a Hitchcock freak. The three Hitchcock films on this list could have easily been three or four longer (Vertigo, North by Northwest, Rope).

How could a bunch of commentators with ties to Wisconsin omit “American Movie.” For shame.

Vernon, Florida, is a fascinating documentary by Errol Morris (director who did, most famously, “The Fog of War.”) Entertaining, sad and disturbing all at once. Find it, watch it.

And I completely agree with Andy on The Shawshank Redemption. Very overrated. (So was The Usual Suspects back in the day.)

I tend to take a bit more unconventional approach and take other factors into account with my lists. For example:

Top 5 from the mid-90′s when I was living with 3 college friends and we had a “black box” – see: Usual Suspects, Tommy Boy, Braveheart, Pulp Fiction, anything on Spice with an up-and-coming starlet by the name of Jenna Jameson),

Top 5 High School/College Pre-Game Preparation Movies – Hoosiers, Vision Quest, Rocky II (the last 30 minutes only), Rocky 3, Rocky 4

Top 5 After Bar movies in college – see: Blues Brothers, Predator, Top Gun, Cocktail, All The Right Moves. (Side note: 3 Cruise films made this list as one of my roommate has a tape with all 3 on. We were poor at the time I think these 5 might have been the only movies we owned collectively.)

Top 5 movies I would never admit to liking outloud – this list is hidden to protect the guilty

Top 5 movies I always end up getting sucked into on cable, regardless of the number of times I have seen them – see: Roadhouse (you don’t mess with the Swayz…), Heat, The Contender, Office Space, and as of late: Friday Night Lights (the movie, not the series).

In retrospect, I am glad the meeting was only an hour as I put together 17 unique Top 5 lists during the meeting today. Thanks for the diversion, Andy. It made the afternoon go faster.