1. Fight Club (1999)

This is one hell of a film. Fight Club is a violent, trippy, brutal and stylishly cool film that came out of nowhere and has stayed in the cult movie mindset ever since. There's no doubt in my mind that out of all the films in this list I've seen it the most and strangely its the one that I can watch above all other movies and never get sick of it. It's almost hard to explain after being so in love with this film for so long to actually explain the reasons behind its placement in this list. I saw it after Se7en so I kind of had high expectations from director David Fincher but whilst Fight Club was nothing like what I'd expected it still totally blew my mind and was better than I ever could of imagined.

I bought the film after discovering that buying R rated films when you're under the age of 18 was an achievable feat in high school due to the local Target's inability to really care. This was 2003 and I'd been trying to see the film for years, I was so desperate in fact that I went out and bought the DVD even though my friend had already got me a copy off E-bay. I simply couldn't wait that long to see this movie I'd heard so much about. It wasn't successful on release and was naturally criticised by many critics due to its supposed excessive violence. It eventually gained a large and loyal following on its video release as all great films do and went on to be a classic.

David Fincher manages to pull off some of the sleekest camera work you'll ever see and this aspect alone is worth watching Fight Club. Thankfully however it's got plenty of substance as we follow the less than sane character simply credited as Jack. Edward Norton is perfect in this role and its a travesty that he didn't receive some form of recognition by the academy for his work. Brad Pitt has had some good roles, he's also had his fair share of average ones, his Tyler Durden is undoubtedly his most memorable character.

Fight Club is so absorbing and the story is told in such a different and exciting manner that its always hard to stop watching the film once you've started. From its innovative opening credits, its atmospheric and utterly cool soundtrack performed by the Dust Brothers to its ultra-smart dialogue, Fight Club is a blast from start to finish. Number 1 by a long way in my book.

Here's a scene from Fight Club...

7. Se7en (1995)

Do I realise the irony of this film being number 7 on the list? Well yes. Was this done on purpose? Absoloutely not, this isn't an attempt to be clever (believe me I'm not clever), this film just happens to fall at number 7 because thats where it ranks with my other favourites. Se7en was the second feature film directed by David Fincher after years of working in the music video business. His first film, Alien 3, was plagued by pressure from the studio and endless script changes and was critcally bashed on release. Although that experience may have left a sour taste in Fincher's mouth, it certainly showed he had promise as a director, especially in terms of his gift for the visual.

So along came Se7en years later and shocked audiences and critics alike, a twisted serial killer story with nightmarish visuals, an intrguing plot and two oscar worthy performaces from actors Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman. Considering I was only 9 when the film was released it would be some time before I discovered it's brilliance...7 years to be exact (and once again I'm not trying to be clever, this is just one of those coincidences). I remember when I first saw the film I was shitting myself, I mean there certainly were jump-worthy moments thoughout the movie but it was more the pure evil of the killer (Kevin Spacey in career best form) that really got to me. It was a twisted film and back then I wouldn't have put it down as one my favourites because how could you truly love a film where people get brutally tortured then murdered in a variety of ways by a psycho killer?

It wasn't until I saw Se7en for the second time that I realised there was a lot more going on in the film than what I'd first thought. It was as much a character study as a murder story, with the two main characters being forced to work together despite them being complete opposites. It's a fantastic idea, teaming a detective whos all but retired and has seen all the ugliness the world has to offer with the bright-eyed, trigger happy rookie and forcing them to work together to solve a case such as this. As the film progresses we learn much about these two characters through their contrasting methods and motivations and just when we think they've learnt something from one another along comes the breathtaking conclusion which must surely be one of the classics of cinema. Without this relationship at the center of the film it would be just another serial killer movie, albeit a very stylish one. I can watch it again and again, even though it's lost the mystery aspect it had the first time around it's still enthtralling to watch.

Here's the creepy opening credits from Se7en. Brilliant...