Rick's Picks, Volume One

Hello everyone, Richard here and no, I'm not a pickle salesman or a would be politician. I am merely creating a series of articles where I point out a few things that you should watch, read, listen to, do, etc... I was inspired to do this when I found myself doing the same thing, but in the real world to my friends. I was telling them about this amazing movie I watched, a great album that is currently stuck in my head, or an innovative video game that just has to be shared with the public. So, here I go.

This article will focus mainly on movies since they are fresh on my mind. So here are five movies that you should most definitely check out.

Slacker
Set in Austin, Texas, Slacker follows the lives of...well.. slackers. This is the feature film (and a powerful one at that) of Richard Linklater, the man that brought us Dazed and Confused and SubUrbia. It's shot in a similar fashion to Dazed and Confused but with a tad bit more anti-establishment. You might just watch this over and over to find meaning to it, in a good way of course.

Death at a Funeral
A zany mix of slapstick and dry wit. At a funeral. Only Frank Oz could pull off this madness. Essentially the plot revolves around a dysfunctional family gathering for their deceased patriarch's funeral but run into complications that snowball into utter chaos. I first gained interest in it when I heard that Alan Tudyk was in it (who does an amazing job considering he spends most of the movie on LSD). Trust me, this movie is hilarious.

Night on Earth
Jim Jarmusch directed the film, Tom Waits did the soundtrack but sadly Bill Murray does not make an appearance. (Which is a bummer because Bill Murray makes most movies instantly awesome) Like Coffee and Cigarettes, Night On Earth is a compilation of vignettes, but unlike Coffee and Cigarettes, Night On Earth is set in various taxicabs around the world (L.A., New York, Paris, Rome, and Helsinki) where we get to peak in on the conversations between cab drivers and the people they're driving. A pretty dark movie, but that's something you should expect if you know Jim Jarmusch.

The Sasquatch Gang
At first I thought this was a Napoleon Dynamite rip-off, and in a sense it is. But in a good way. I'd even go as far to say that I enjoyed Sasquatch Gang more than Napoleon Dynamite. The movie revolves around the main character and his friends discovering what appears to be Sasquatch stool and how their lives change because of it. But at the same time we follow the next door neighbor played by Justin Long (his best role so far) as he and his dim-witted friend try to figure out ways to raise some. Hilarity ensues.

Brick
A beautiful homage to noir that manages to stay original. Containing a chilling soundtrack, dialogue reminiscent of a Raymond Chandler/Dashiell Hammett novel, and a plot that will keep you on the edge of your seat, Brick has to be one of my favorite films of all time. It's a shame that Rian Johnson has made only three films; he is an innovative filmmaker who has yet to let me down.

Well, there you go. Five movies that you need to run out and purchase/rent/steal/borrow. If you enjoyed any of these movies then stay tuned until Volume two where I will suggest more things for you!