Monday, December 10, 2018

The Five Best Movies That Start With "Q"

I know it's quazy, but what if you're in the mood to watch a movie with a title that starts with "Q"? We pondered this question and came up with five quick picks:

Andrew Keir as Quatermass.
1. Quatermass and the Pit (aka Five Million Years to Earth) - Construction workers uncover the ancient skulls of “ape men” and a large metallic-like object while working in a deserted underground subway station in the Hobbs End area of London. Are the ape men the earliest known ancestors of humans? Is the metallic-like object a bomb or perhaps a spacecraft? And what does it have to do with stories of former Hobbs End residents claiming to have heard odd noises and experienced visions of “hideous dwarfs”?  Nigel Kneale's ingenious mix of science fiction and horror makes for a one-of-a-kind film. It was adapted from his earlier British television serial, which is pretty good in its own right.

2. The Questor Tapes - Robert Foxworth stars as the title character, an android assembled by a team of scientists from plans designed by Dr. Emil Vaslovik, a scientific genius who has suddenly disappeared. When Questor fails to function due to missing programming code, the project is abandoned. Later that day, the android "comes to life," completes its design (e.g., adding facial features and hair), and escapes from the laboratory--determined to find its creator. Gene Roddenberry produced this aborbing made-for-TV film, which doubled as a pilot for series that never materialized.

Robert Taylor and Deborah Kerr.
3.  Quo Vadis - This elaborate MGM spectacle stars Robert Taylor as a Roman military commander who falls in love with a Christian woman (Deborah Kerr) during the reign of Nero (Peter Ustinov). The studio spared no expense on the the film--and it shows with the elaborate sets, detailed costumes, and rich color cinematography. The standouts among its fine cast are the always marvelous Deborah Kerr and Peter Ustinov as the megalomaniacal Nero. At various points prior to production, Clark Gable and Gregory Peck were considered for Taylor's role and Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn as the female lead.

4.  Quackster Fortune Has a Cousin in the Bronx - A young man (Gene Wilder) makes a living in Dublin by scooping up horse dung and selling it as garden fertilizer. He becomes smitten with an American student (played by the late Margot Kidder). This offbeat Irish comedy was made before Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein made Wilder a star. It's been decades since I've seen it, but the faded memories of it are still strong enough to earn a place on this list.

Eeck! A winged serpent!
5.  Q--The Winged Serpent - A giant winged serpent is terrorizing the skies of New York City, killing window washers and snatching sunbathers from rooftops. Well, technically, it's an Aztec god called Quetzalcoatl and it's also indirectly responsible for a recent spate of human sacrifices. The film's "hero" (an excellent Michael Moriarty) is a two-bit crook who wants the city to pay him to reveal the location of the monster's lair. Larry Cohen's very quirky cult classic isn't a movie for all tastes, but it's a clever and amusing affair.

Honorable Mentions:  George Segal's spy thriller The Quiller MemorandumQ Planes, another spy picture about the theft of experimental aircraft; and Queen of Outer Space, a wacky sci fi film with about four male astronauts landing on a planet populated solely by women (including Zsa Zsa Gabor).

10 comments:

  1. Good list!

    Some other quick suggestions for the Q:

    Oldies:
    Queen Christina (1933)
    The Quiet Man (1952)

    Newer:
    The Quick And The Dead (1995)
    The Queen (2006)
    Quantum Of Solace (2008)
    Queen Of Katwe (2016)
    A Quiet Place (2018)

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    1. Can't believe I missed THE QUIET MAN, one of my favorite John Wayne movies!

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  2. Yeah. I was wondering what happened to The Quiet Man.

    My list would have to include Sean Thornton plus:

    Queen of Spades (1949), and
    The Quick and the Dead (1987)

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    1. I haven't seen QUEEN OF SPADES, so now I need to learn more about it. THE QUICK AND THE DEAD is a lot of fun; I'm a Sam Raimi fan.

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    2. Not THAT The Quick and the Dead. The 1987 The Quick and the Dead with Sam Elliott based on a Louis L'Amour Story. It's a dandy. Check it out.

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  3. Best Q Movies
    1, A Quiet Place
    2, The Quiet Man
    3, Quiz Show

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  4. A winged serpent terrorizing New York?! Count me in!

    Quo Vadis: I could never get into this film. Robert Taylor strikes me as being incredibly bossy & I can't get past that.

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    1. I'd watch QUO VADIS for Deborah Kerr alone. She never gave a bad performance. But Peter Ustinov also had one of his best roles.

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  5. The Quiet Man, number one, and Q is a good choice.
    Quintet (1979), not one of Paul Newman's best, nor director Altman's.

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  6. Quigley Down Under is an underrated movie, I think. I changed the channel after the first couple minutes the first time I tried watching it, but I was glad I gave it a second chance.

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