Best Movie Scenes EVER (Part 1)

I recently read an article about the top ten best summer movie moments, and was delighted to see that the entrance of Bones in the new Star Trek movie was number one. I read through the list and found I agreed with most of the choices, especially the honorable mention. This summer's movies were better than most of the movies we've had in a long time, and all of them had memorable moments that I absolutely loved. And that got me thinking, what are my favorite movie moments of all time? I began to write them down and found out that I have quite a few... so this is going to be broken into parts so as not to overwhelm you, and not to drive me crazy.

These are in no particular order, though the first one I know is one of my favorites. So sit back and enjoy

Lauren's Favorite Movie Scenes (Part 1)



Scene: "The Claw"
Movie: Toy Story, 1995
Starring: Tom Hanks & Tim Allen

I absolutely love this scene for so many reasons... but the reason I go to it first is because I've seen a LOT of movies, and this scene has still stuck with me.

I think I love it because it's a real turning point in the movie. Up to this point, the movie was basically about getting back to Andy. But, this scene turns Woody and Buzz's journey home into a life and death situation when they are won by Sid.

More so than that, I loved the aliens. They were very much like Buzz, unaware they were toys. Instead, they thought they lived in a world ruled by an all mighty claw that chose who stayed and who left. If the claw chose you, it was a great honor. There was always just something fantastical about that, and this scene has always stuck with me.



Scene: "I Can Fix That"
Movie: Star Trek 2009
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Eric Bana


I love this whole movie, but this scene in particular is my favorite. It ranges from the moment Bones gives Jim the "bovarian mud flea" vaccination, to the moment Jim runs onto the bridge. That entire course of events made me fall in love with the movie, because it was so reminiscent of the original series. In those moments, I really felt like I was watching Kirk and Bones, not so much Chris Pine as Kirk and Karl Urban as Bones.

I love it also because it's a very overlooked scene. The saving of the Enterprise is attributed to Kirk, but in reality, it was Bones' actions that saved the ship (in all fairness, credit should also go to Sulu and Chekov for the part they played).



Scene: "Ice Cold Rita"
Movie: Flushed Away 2006
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen

I don't remember much of this movie, but I remember this scene. The song was so ingenious!!! I find myself singing it often, and whenever I need a pick me up, I can just remember the line "Poor, poor Roddy, flushed down his own potty." Gets me smiling every time.

And it's Hugh Jackman singing! Doesn't get much better than that!



Scene: "Do you know the Jacksons?"
Movie: The Price of Milk, 2000
Starring: Danielle Cormack & Karl Urban

If I'm being biased, I'll say that Karl Urban's best role was Leonard McCoy in the most recent Star Trek movie.

If I'm being honest, I'll say it's Rob from the Price of Milk, the role that got him cast as Eomer in The Two Towers. This movie is amazing, and I'm not just saying that because Karl Urban is in it. It is in my top 5 favorite movies of all time, and I recommend everyone see it. It frustrated me in a Pride and Prejudice sort of way, but was easier to swallow, because it was manipulation that kept the two main characters apart, not unjustifiable pride.

I picked this scene because, in my opinion, Urban far outshines Cormack in this movie (though Cormack does a phenomenal job), and this is one of the only scenes in which they are equally matched. Urban plays Rob, a character that is extremely nice and never yells. So, when Lucinda (Cormack) sells his cows, he gets so angry and yells so much that his voice disappears. What follows is a series of scenes in which he tries to speak, but only utters a bunch of squeaks and whispers. When he leaves Lucinda, she tracks him down and finds him living in a friends barn, steeped in depression and refusing to take care of himself. She then begins to take care of him in secret, and he begins to think the imaginary "Jacksons" are the reason behind his good fortune. The scene is full of love, comedy, and a sweetness that I've found I absolutely adore.



Scene: Famous Last Words
Movie: Thir13en Ghosts, 2001
Starring: Tony Shalhoub, Matthew Lillard, JR Bourne

Thir13en Ghosts is one of my favorite scary movies ever, and it happens to contain one of my favorite deaths in any scary movie.

I love this death for the soul purpose that the character totally had it coming. I won't say who the character was, but he was a total jerk. After making a crude remark to a scantily clad ghost, two glass doors are shut on him and he is sliced completely in half. It was so sudden that I screamed, but I cheered very soon after. It's been a while since I've seen the movie, and I can still see that scene clear as day.



Scene: The Plants are Ringing
Movie: The Ruins, 2008
Starring: Joe Anderson, Shawn Ashmore, Jena Malone

I wasn't originally going to see this movie (my friends and I joked every time we saw the trailer "Snakes in a Cave!" or "The Runs!") but ended up watching it at a scary movie night and loved it.

It contains one of the most amazing twists... one you kind of see coming but not quite. A group of hikers get stranded on the top of a structure, because the natives won't let them leave. Desperate and trying to get help, they lower themselves into the structure, lured by the sound of a ringing cell phone. They search for the cell phone, in hopes that they can call for help, only to find that the plants have lured them down there by mimicking the sound of a cell phone that had rung previously. It chilled me to my bone marrow to see the flower petals shaking and mimicking the sound of the cell phone. Creepy as all get out.

Evil plants. Take notes, M. Night.



Scene: "You Don't Have to Prove It"
Movie: Homeward Bound, 1993
Starring: Michael J. Fox, Sally Field, Don Ameche

Homeward Bound was watched constantly when I was a child, as well as it's sequel. But this scene is my favorite, because it's full of my favorite insults. This one sticks with me, because I still say it now and then.

Bulldog Chance is trying to get food at the wedding and can't, so he asks Siamese Cat Sassy for help. Sassy tells him that he can get food by pretending he doesn't want food. Chance replies that that's stupid, to which Sassy says she'll prove it. Chance's response?

"Oh, you don't have to prove it. I believe you're stupid." I've always loved that line, and even now, it still makes me laugh.



Scene: "Rohirrim! To the King!"
Movie: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 2002
Starring: Ian McKellen, Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortenson, Hugo Weaving, Orlando Bloom

This one should actually be ranked right after The Claw one. Helm's Deep is, in my opinion, one of the most amazing battles ever to grace the big screen. Peter Jackson did a great job capturing the hopelessness, honor, pride, and strength of the Edorians that sought refuge from the horde of Uruk-hai behind the walls of Helm's Deep. While this entire battle, from start to finish, is a favorite scene in the movie, one particular part near the end of the battle brings me to tears every time I see it.

As Helm's Deep begins to fall, Aragorn convinces King Theoden to ride out with him, to meet the Uruk-hai and defend his people while he still has breath. They do so, knowing they will most certainly die. But, as they fight their way through the horde, the White Wizard appears to the west as the sun rises. "Theoden King stands alone," he says.

"Not alone," Eomer replies as he steps out from behind the wizard. He then raises his spear and cries out, "Rohirrim!" Hundreds of riders come up behind him, and he bellows "TO THE KING!" The Rohirrim then tears down the shelf, toward unbeatable odds, to assist their king and people. When I originally read the book, I honestly did not see Gandalf and Erkanbrand coming to Theoden's aid, and when they did I cried. A bright spark of hope in a hopeless situation. In the movie, it had been changed so that Eomer was coming to the King's aid, and it was so sudden and again, unexpected, that I squealed in the theater! The mixture of Aragorn's strength (I love the words he and Theoden exchange before riding out), followed by Eomer's loyalty (When he stepped out and said "Not alone" it awoke such a great pride in me, as well as a feeling of triumph and a relief for those in the wall that I cheered loudly, despite my feelings toward Urban at that point), and mixed with Howard Shore's score brought me to tears again.



Scene: Sealed Cans
Movie: Ghost Ship, 2002
Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Julianna Margulies, Emily Browning

Steve Beck does it again with Ghost Ship. I enjoy this movie almost as much as Thir13en Ghosts, but the scene in this one that freaked me out the most was the sealed food scene.

The salvage crew takes a break and sits to eat some food... the food is sealed in cans, so they don't really think about it. However, a few bites in, they realize that the food has suddenly become infested with maggots.

That scene made my skin crawl, seeing as I have a fear of the eyeless wriggling things. I was extremely paranoid about what I ate for a long time, and I still won't eat anything within a few days of the expiration date. I'm also extremely paranoid when using flour, or any other powder, for fear the creatures are hiding in there, waiting for me to cook and eat them. *shudders* It was just one of those scenes where you know it's a movie, but you still can't help but be paranoid.



Scene: Ending
Movie: Reservoir Dogs, 1992
Starring: Tom Roth, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Steven Buscemi, and Quentin Tarantino

There are a number of movies that really get me in the ending... a number of them will be listed in future variations of this blog... but Reservoir Dogs is going to take the cake for this one.

This is one of my favorite Tarantino films, mainly because the ending is so epic. The entire movie, I remember asking myself, "how are they gonna get out of this? How are they gonna get out of this?" And the ending just kind of hits you, to where you can only say... "oh, that's how."

Reservoir Dogs, in it's entirety, is a masterpiece, but the ending has every thing and epic piece of cinema needs, and I'm certain that - had I not enjoyed the movie - I would still own it because of how it ends.