Top Five Movies to Have While Stranded on a Deserted Island

Matt Nimerosky claims to have been lucky to be stranded on a deserted island with his five favorite movies, in his article Movie Time on the Deserted Island. And while I would be inclined to agree that Dazed and Confused, The Boondock Saints, and Bram Stoker's Dracula are all good movies, I'm not sure that any of them would make the jump from a part of my DVD collection to the five movies I would want on a deserted island.

So now that I'm headed to my own hypothetical deserted island with a DVD player, television, and power for both of the above, here is my list of the top five movies I would want to have with me, if I were stranded on a deserted island. These are not necessarily my favorite movies, just the ones that I think would be most worthwhile to have with me in these unusual circumstances. And for those of you readers who aren't familiar with them, I've included a quick summary to help you out.

1. Army of Darkness
Comedies tend to be among my favorite movies, and Army of Darkness is no exception to this. Between Bruce Campbell's acting and the highly quotable dialogue, it ranks among my top movies. It also ranks as a movie I would want with me if I were stranded on a deserted island because I know it's guaranteed to make me laugh, even in the most dire of circumstances.

The quick summary: A retail store employee is somehow transported back in time, with his car and shotgun, and wants to get back to the present. In the process of doing so, he ends up teaching medieval citizens about future inventions and getting into all sorts of trouble due to mispronunciation.

2. Gladiator
To go along with a great comedy, I think I also would want a great drama, particularly one of the epic variety. Of the available choices, I think Gladiator qualifies as my favorite, at least to date. The acting is amazing, the score is stirring, and the visuals are simply stunning. Although I don't watch it as often as I would like to in my normal life, I'm sure that once I was stranded on a deserted island, it would get a lot more views.

The quick summary: A Roman commander falls out of favor when the Emperor is murdered by his own son. The Roman commander ends up enslaved and learns to fight as a gladiator, quickly becoming the best of the best. He gains the attention of the usurper and is ultimately able to gain his revenge.

3. Amelie
If I'm going to be stranded on a deserted island, I might as well make the most of my time, right? I studied French in grade school, high school, and college, yet I can't really speak or understand it. So I include Amelie among my choices of movies to have when stranded on a deserted island to give me the opportunity to re-learn French. Sure, learning French from a movie might not really teach me the language, but it's worth a shot. In addition to that, Amelie is an exceptionally charming movie, with some great cinematography thrown in for good measure.

The quick summary: A young French woman delights in solving little mysteries that present themselves to her, as well as attempting to play matchmaker between her co-workers and patrons of the establishement. In the midst of all of this, she ends up falling in love. The entire movie is in French, which might discourage some viewers, but the subtitles are pretty easy to read.

4. Serenity
Though I am tempted to cheat and list the Firefly TV series, in its entirety, in this slot, I'm going to stick with movies only. As such, Serenity makes my list. Every time I watch this movie, I seem to notice something new that I missed on the previous viewing. So if I'm going to be stranded on a deserted island for an indefinite amount of time, I suppose eventually I will catch every little nuance of Serenity.

The quick summary: Set shortly after the end of the Firefly TV series, Serenity continues the plot of the series. In Serenity, viewers learn a great deal about what was done to River at the "Academy" and the secret behind the Reavers. If you haven't seen Firefly, don't fear. You can still watch and enjoy this movie without having previous knowledge of the series. I, however, would suggest watching the whole series first - you will appreciate the movie a whole lot more that way.

5. The Princess Bride
I have lost count of how many times I've watched this movie. The last time I did know what the count was, it was around 300 viewings. That was several years ago. My sisters and I wore out at least one VHS copy of this movie while we were growing up. I believe we all have it on DVD now. Even though I can probably recite every line of this movie, with all of the appropriate pauses and inflections, The Princess Bride is one movie that I absolutely could not live without if I were stranded on a deserted island. This is my favorite movie, and I could never get sick of watching it.

The quick summary: Boy and girl fall in love, boy leaves to find his fortune and is reported to be dead, girl mourns but ends up engaged to a prince, boy comes back (incognito) and rescues the girl, and they all live happily ever after. Throw in some swordfighting, giants, and revenge, and you've got yourself a classic fantasy movie, appropriate for nearly all ages. (There is only one curse word in the entire movie, and no inappropriate sexual content or excessive violence.)