Some of The Movie Sleuth writers teamed up to write this list of ten awesome movies that take place over the course of one day. Tom Cruise thinks you should read it.
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| "Where's Carl? We hate that little bitch." |
Narrowing
down the endless possibilities, The Movie Sleuth presents a focus on 10
examples of what we believe are some of the best movies that take place in one
day, irrespective of genre or the date of inception. We feel these unique pieces
manage to consistently engage the viewer without eroding one’s attention span
with several corresponding intervals, each title excelling from beginning to
end as their plots unfold over the course of 24 hours.
Night of the Living Dead (1968 –
written and directed by George A. Romero)
Arguably one of the single most
influential films of all time, George A. Romero’s micro-budget horror classic
defined the quintessential “movie zombie” as we still recognize it today.
Taking a cue from the claustrophobic entries in the Howard Hawks canon, the
film follows a small group of survivors trying to make it through a single
night alive by barricading themselves into a small farm house out in the
country while flesh-eating “ghouls” shamble about, ready to… slowly leap out
and bite them. But the zombies are beside the point. Romero’s film becomes a
sociopolitical allegory in which the true antagonist is our own inability to
work together when things get just a little too tough, and the
zombies—grotesque and mindless as they may be—are blameless freaks of nature.
To this day, this is a tense horror film with a prescient message that
transcends time and culture. The slow burn pace combined with almost
documentary style visuals cast a spell that still hold us in its grip almost 50
years later.
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| "I reeaallly wish it was a beaver in my lap." |
Groundhog Day (1993 – written and
directed by Harold Ramis)
There are some movies we can say
“wouldn’t be the same” if it was a different actor in a role; then there are
movies that would not exist if it was anyone but Bill Murray. Groundhog Day
is more than a film. It’s a cultural perennial that has seeped into our
collective consciousness. Because under the veil of its comic plot is a
poignant character portrait, a dramatic struggle, and a touching love story
that ties it all together. It’s as hilarious as it is heartfelt, playing out
each repetition of each gag exactly as many times as it needs, and wringing
real laughter out of human comedy borne from understanding as well as slapstick.
It also engages us at the fundamental level that all films should strive for,
making us ask ourselves, “What would we do if we were forced to live the same
day over and over?” The character of sardonic weatherman Phil Conners, and Bill
Murray’s pitch-perfect portrayal of his transformation, give us hope that we
would travel the same arc. After we crashed a few cars, maybe blew some stuff
up, and had a little fun first. More than the one-note joke its premise
suggests, Groundhog Day is something profound, moving, and yes,
hysterically funny.
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| R.I.P. |
Magnolia (1999 – written and
directed by Paul Thomas Anderson)
When I think of a filmmaker who can
direct his own manic energy with laser focus, I can think of no better example
to fit the bill than Paul Thomas Anderson when he made Magnolia. This is
pure imagination, unhinged, yet grounded in a darkly brooding reality, dusted
with a generous coating of the surreal, cooked and served to perfection. At
three hours, one would think it a test of patience to watch even this all-star
cast at the top of their game—Tom Cruise, Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour
Hoffman, Jason Robards, John C. Reilly, just to name a few—but it’s rocket ship
of an emotional roller coaster that leaves you breathless. Anderson catapults
his camera through the lives of random people going about their day, slowly
weaving his tapestry together through confrontation, deliciously profane
dialogue, and even background easter eggs, until we realize that even the most
unconnected people in this cleverly stacked Jenga of a narrative are essential
in each other’s lives. Remove just one, and the whole tower of Babel falls. For
me personally, the arrival of Magnolia and American Beauty, in
the same year marked my emergence as a true film fanatic. Revisiting it again
after 15 years, I’m reminded of how remarkable it is that PT Anderson was even
younger than I am now when he made it, yet his understanding of human nature
spans this universe in ways that will continue to astound for the decades to
come.
Falling Down (1993 – directed by
Joel Schumacher)
Michael Douglas plays William Foster, the walking, screaming symbol of all of
our minute fantasies we've escaped to in the midst of a hard day at work.
Performed with literally brutal honesty, Douglas takes us on a vicarious ride
through many of our darkest, but hopefully completely innocent and harmless
desires. This is the film Bobcat Goldthwait wished he had made with the far
more overt, and less disciplined God
Bless America. Nothing has quite come close to the cathartic rewards Falling Down brought upon audiences more
than two decades ago in 1993. Arguably, this would be Joel Schumacher's career
peak with 8mm, Phone Booth, and a couple episodes of the excellent House of Cards following. If you haven't
seen Falling Down, it is undoubtedly
a timeless piece that nearly any American can relate to. Although, the price of
a can of soda in 1993 would seem like little reason nowadays to lay waste to an
entire store with a baseball bat.
Die Hard (1988 – directed by John McTiernan)
Another timeless action classic that never ceases to amaze me. For reasons that
baffle our leading scientists, I'll go a year or two without watching Die Hard. When I finally come back to
it, I'm stunned at how entertained I am from beginning to end. Willis is the
perfect every-man who beats a building full of terrorists with a smart ass
attitude and no shoes. The thing that's so charming about Die Hard, is that for how ridiculous that sounds, it's totally made
believable by Willis' natural performance and McTiernan's pacing and direction.
Not only is this one of the best "movies-in-a-day," it's also one of
the greatest action films ever made, setting benchmarks for action film
archetypes, backdrops, and themes—all of which would be copied and ultimately
come up short for decades to come.
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| "I am sick and tired of being called Zodiac. Now, it's time to die." |
Die Hard (1988 – directed by John McTiernan)
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| "White Castle!!!! Why did I eat that?!!!! Everyone clear out!" |
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| "Hello God. Are you up there? I'm really sorry about Twilight." |
Cosmopolis (2012 — written and
directed by David Cronenberg)
While
known primarily for being one of the greats of body-horror, from The Fly to
Scanners, David Cronenberg has stepped away from that in recent years. He has
started attacking more dramatic fare. But his cold, detached style has not
changed. That is most prevalently seen in his 2012 epic Cosmopolis, which
tracks multi-billionaire Eric Packer (Robert Pattinson) as he travels across
New York City in a limo to get a haircut. In town he encounters a “protest
against the future,” his wife, and a problem in the stock market that leads him
down a path of self-destruction. All taking place within a single day, it works
as an allegory for the imbalanced class system in a dystopian America. What
makes it even more interesting is that it presents current-day capitalist
America as a dystopia. Is our world already irreparably ruined? The speed at
which one can receive information, utilize secrets, or even destroy oneself
makes the single day the film takes place over feel like an eternity.
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| "A movie about pizza and race relations. Got a problem with that?" |
Do the Right Thing (1989 – written and directed by
Spike Lee)
Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing closed 1989 with this
still controversial masterpiece about racial tensions boiling over the course
of a day in the life of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The film concerns Mookie (Spike Lee), a
teenager working in a predominantly African American neighborhood for an
Italian pizzeria run by Sal (Danny Aiello) and his two sons. On a particularly hot summer day, an irate
customer asks why the walls of the restaurant aren’t decorated with African
American celebrities. Over the course of
the day, conflict and confrontation over this matter will ensue. Brisk, colorful and episodic, the film is a
kaleidoscopic slice of life told as an ensemble melodrama, cross cutting
between the inhabitants of the neighborhood and the employees of Sal’s
Pizzeria. Unlike the far more didactic
and manipulative Paul Haggis melodrama Crash,
Lee’s film gives equal time to both sides of the argument about racism and
leaves the viewer with more questions than answers. In addition to making a profound statement
about the nature of racism, it’s also a delightful exercise in pure
cinema. Take, for instance a shot of the
drunk elder Da Mayor (the fantastic Ossie Davis) finally gaining acceptance
from his one major detractor, Mother Sister (Ruby Dee). As excitement and joy fills Da Mayor, a
street light from overhead turns on with a subtle sound of a bell ring. The film is full of wonderful little moments
like that which harken as far back as the Golden Age of Hollywood, a style of
theatrical filmmaking Lee understands far better than most of his critics give
him credit for.
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| "Al, how many times have I got to tell 'ya? No male hookin' on this corner!!!" |
Dog Day Afternoon (1975 – directed by Sidney Lumet)
Sidney Lumet’s 1975
crime dramedy Dog Day Afternoon tells
the unbelievable true story of two bank robbers (Al Pacino and John Cazale) who
take its employees hostage and inadvertently create a media circus as hundreds
of law enforcement officials and spectators befall the building. Told in real time and loosely based on the
story of bank robber John Wojtowicz, Dog
Day Afternoon is a scathing satire of media exploitation and the strange
camaraderie which forms between the thieves and the employees. At one point, Pacino brings the head teller
(Penelope Allen) out as a human shield to help negotiate the hostage
crisis. The woman looks about the crowd
with excited delight and smiles for the television camera. She might technically be a hostage but she’s
absolutely having the time of her life as well.
When a pizza delivery boy brings in food for the thieves and hostages,
he leaps in the air exclaiming ‘I’m a star!’
What begins as an ordinary crime drama transforms into a brilliant
comedy about how any situation can be elevated into a major celebrity event
with the aid of television cameras. As
law enforcement closes in and tries to end the situation, you get the feeling those
in captivity don’t want the party to end.
12 Angry Men (1957 – directed by Sidney Lumet)
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| "Who am I to judge? I say we hang his sorry ass." |
Sidney Lumet’s jury
room drama 12 Angry Men is one of the
greatest films ever made in the history of cinema. Spanning one long day in court, the film
concerns 12 jurors deliberating on whether or not to convict an 18 year old boy
accused of stabbing his father to death.
A clear cut case in the courtroom, everyone unanimously votes guilty
except for one dissenting juror (Henry Fonda) who believes there is more to be
discussed before making such a hefty judgment.
Taking place largely in the jury room as day becomes night and rain
falls, it’s an intense, heated debate with conversing, convincing, and
confrontation over the validity of each juror’s verdict. Based off a teleplay by Reginald Rose,
Lumet’s film is both a minimalist drama and an insightful portrait of the jury
trial system in the court of law. As a
director, Lumet makes extensive use of silence, close ups of intense faces, and
allows room for each juror to grow into fully fledged characters. Though remade in 1997 for television by
William Friedkin, there’s a reason the Library of Congress inducted Lumet’s
adaptation into the Hall of Fame. It
hasn’t aged a bit or lost any of its relevance with time.
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| "Stupid painting." |
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986 – written and
directed by John Hughes)
John
Hughes is considered one of the great auteurs of the 1980s for successfully
creating the dramedy, or comedy with heavy overtones of drama to give his
stories weight and meaning. One of his
greatest examples is the timeless 1986 classic Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, starring Matthew Broderick in the title
role as a high school student playing hookey for one last time before the
summer lets out. Covering one day in
Chicago, he picks up his girlfriend Sloane Peterson (Mia Sara from Ridley
Scott’s Legend) and his best friend
Cameron Frye (Alan Ruck) while dodging his parents, embittered sister (Jennifer
Grey) and the watchful eye of his high school principal, Ed Rooney (Jeffrey
Jones). Throughout the film, Ferris
speaks directly to the viewer about how to skip school, some of the city’s
finest highlights, and lamenting the plight of his depressed friend
Cameron. It is with Cameron that the
film’s heavy drama seeps in, with Ferris trying to imbue some happiness into
the unhappy sod’s life as he struggles with acceptance from his distant,
materially possessed father. Viewers
took away timeless asides from the film, including an unscripted downtown
parade Ferris crashes, the deadpan Ben Stein as the world’s most boring teacher,
and Yello’s Oh Yeah dominating the
soundtrack. This is one really cool film
that reminds us that everyone needs a healthy break from responsibility from time to
time.-J.G. Barnes
-Andrew Kotwicki
-Blake O. Kleiner
-Greg Dinskisk