It makes you think...

The Oscars are over and Bigelow triumphed over Cameron beating the highest grossing film of all time. Avatar is an awe-inspiring movie and has jaw-dropping special effects, so on that note what other films out there deserve that title of awe-inspiring (in no particular order). Tom Perry investigates...

1.2001: A Space Odyssey.

If you haven't seen this, you must. Your mind will be boggled, blown and according to Will Ferrell bottled. It has the single greatest cut in film, from a bone thrown by an ape to a spaceship floating in the atmosphere. The story is in three parts 1.primitive civilisation 2.more technologically advanced and 3. The distant future. The action moves forward every time this unexplained black monolith appears, why it appears? You have to figure that one out for yourself.

Directed by Stanley Kubrick it has influenced so many films, would there be Star Wars without it? Homages can be seen from The Simpsons to Pixar's Walle. Kubrick worked on he film with legendary Sci-Fi novelist Arthur C. Clarke, it is an intelligent look at life and evolution with no explanation. In the middle of the film it turns into a tense sci-fi thriller, you can see where Ridley Scott got his inspiration from. I could go on but I won't, just see it for yourself and be amazed.

2. The Godfather Part I and Part II

Francis Ford Coppola's masterpiece, let us ignore part III. I know they are individual films but let's just put them together for the sake of an argument. The tale of the Corleone family is so rich it deserved every Oscar it received. As a viewer you are transported into their lives, you live and breathe it which may be a bit dangerous.

The score is incredible and the cinematography is untouchable, take the wedding in the part one or the Don Fanucci chase in part two. I think part two is better than the the original, few sequels can claim that feat. It has been parodied but never bettered which I think is the ultimate mark of respect. It is part of our culture, where would we be without Marlon Brando's magnificent phrase 'I'll make him an offer he can't refuse' I think Fabio Capello should adopt it.

3. Pulp Fiction

Originally called Black Mask after a popular 'pulp fiction' magazine from the 20s with such contributors as Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. Quentin Tarantino's second film is quite simply breathtaking. From its non-linear structure to its cool as a row of cucumbers in a fridge characters, it has everything. The film works on so many levels mainly because of the dialogue a Tarantino trait which Guy Ritchie has tried to emulate in his fast-paced Cockney love-ins.

Anyway back to Pulp Fiction, it deserves to be in this list because there isn't a bad moment in the film, each separate episode adds something different. After watching it you want to watch it again and again. The film is coolness personified in celluloid, I mean it has one of the greatest ensemble casts. It's a shame that Mr. Tarantino hasn't made a film comparable to it since.

4. The Matrix

What is the Matrix? An amazing, visually stunning and ground-breaking piece of cinema. Released in 1999 it must be the movie of that year. It works on so many levels action/adventure, thriller and even a film noir if you think about the visual stlye. Neo could have been Will Smith or Tom Cruise it just wouldn't have worked. Keanu Reeves deadpan acting style suits the man who is finding himself well.

It paved the way for technological advances in film and even though bullet time was invented in the Max Payne game it still looked stunning on the big screen. Let's ignore Reloaded and Revolutions, two films that are hard to watch because of the green tint. Anyhow, take Morpheus' advice follow the white rabbit, take the red pill and stop trying to hit me and hit me. Classic.

5. Apocalypse Now

Where do I begin, another entry for Mr Coppola and another epic. Loosely based on Joseph Conrad's Heart Of Darkness the action is moved from the Congo to the Vietnam War. A tough and heavy film but definitely worth the running time of 153 minutes or the redux version of 202 mins. The plot, an American soldier played by Martin Sheen is sent on a mission to kill a former US army Colonel played by Marlon Brando in the backdrop of the Vietnamn War.

Where can you get such ranges of music from The Doors to Wagner. Like its source material it deals with complex issues of the nature of empire and the search of a renegade person or the search of oneself. There are so many war films that could be in this list, but this film is truly amazing and even features a cameo from the director himself. See if you can spot him.

To Be Continued...