Round One: Sin City vs. Airplane!

In this round one match-up, we have a hard-hitting action flick, Sin City, going up against a comedy legend, Airplane!

Sin City (2005)

• Directed by: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, Quentin Tarantino (guest director)
• Written by: Frank Miller
• Starring: Bruce Willis, Jessica Alba, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Michael Clarke Duncan, Josh Hartnett, Michael Madsen, Brittany Murphy, Rutger Hauer, Nick Stahl, Frank Miller
• Rotten Tomatoes
• Critics: 78%
• Audience: 75%

Frank Miller (writer of RoboCop 2, 300, The Spirit) is known more for his Marvel and DC comic book series than his directing, but finally broke through with this 2005 action flick. The storyline of Sin City is very Tarantino-esque (fitting, as good friends Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino both collaborated with Miller in this, his directorial debut), in that the plot revolves around multiple, seemingly intertwined, storylines all occurring simultaneously. IMDB writer Tom Benton put it best:

Four tales of crime adapted from Frank Miller's popular comics, focusing around a muscular brute (Mickey Rourke) who's looking for the person responsible for the death of his beloved Goldie, a man (Clive Owen) fed up with Sin City's corrupt law enforcement (Benicio Del Toro) who takes the law into his own hands after a horrible mistake, [and] a cop (Bruce Willis) who risks his life to protect a girl from a deformed pedophile (Nick Stahl)...

Also, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Brittany Murphy, Michael Clarke Duncan, Josh Hartnett, Michael Madsen, Elijah Wood, and Rutger Hauer all star in this action film.

Airplane! (1980)

• Directed by: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker.
• Written by: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker.
• Starring: Leslie Nielsen, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Robert Stack, Julie Hagerty, Robert Hays, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• Rotten Tomatoes 
• Critics: 98%
• Audience: 85%

Starring Leslie Nielsen in the role of a lifetime, Airplane!, written and directed by Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker (the masters of parody responsible for The Naked Gun and Hot Shots series), follows the story of Ted Striker (Robert Hays), a disgraced ex-Navy pilot, who is chasing after the love of his life Elaine (Julie Hagerty), a flight stewardess. After a meal of tainted fish is served, passengers and crew alike start to fall terribly ill. With Striker as their only hope of landing the plane safely, Rex Kramer (Robert Stack) and Steve McCroskey (Lloyd Bridges) must guide the traumatized war veteran to safety. Peter Graves and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar also star in this legendary parody.

Vote now for your favorite movie: Sin City or Airplane!

Survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZFYHYS7

Round One: Pulp Fiction vs. Donnie Darko

In this battle of movies that will constantly have you wondering what-the-hell is going on, you must decide between Pulp Fiction and Donnie Darko in this drama-filled match-up.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

• Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
• Written by: Quentin Tarantino, Roger Avary,
• Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis, Ving Rhames, Tim Roth, Amanda Plummer, Christopher Walken
• Rotten Tomatoes
• Critics: 94%
• Audience: 95%

                Quentin Tarantino (director of Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 & 2, Inglourious Basterds) combines the intertwined tales of two hitmen (Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta), their employer (Ving Rhames) and his wife (Uma Thurman), an aged boxed (Bruce Willis) and two thieves (Tim Roth and Amanda Plummer). In true Tarantino-fashion, the narrative of this story is presented to us out-of-sequence; the movie will only, finally, make sense after all 154 minutes have been thoroughly enjoyed. Christopher Walken makes a memorable, and somewhat humorous, cameo in this star-studded, action-packed film.

Donnie Darko (2001)

• Directed by: Richard Kelly
• Written by: Richard Kelly
• Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Holmes Osborne, Jena Malone, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, Seth Rogan, Noah Wyle.
• Rotten Tomatoes
• Critics: 85%
• Audience: 77%

                Richard Kelly’s (director of Domino, Southland Tales, The Box) feature film debut, Donnie Darko, is a perplexing combination of concepts and ideas mixed together to form an utterly-confusing storyline which, at the end of the film, still may not be clear to you. Donnie Darko is a personal favorite of mine, yet I feel like I still do not completely understand it, even after having watched it dozens of times. IMDB user MTRodaba2468 does their best to summarize this film:

During the presidential election of 1988, a teenager named Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) sleepwalks out of his house one night, and sees a giant, demonic-looking rabbit named Frank, who tells him the world will end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes, and 12 seconds. He returns home the next morning to find that a jet engine has crashed through his bedroom. As he tries to figure out why he survived and tries to deal with people in his town, like the school bully, his conservative health teacher, and a self-help guru, Frank continues to turn up in Donnie's mind, causing him to commit acts of vandalism and worse.

Drew Barrymore, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Patrick Swayze, Noah Wyle, and Seth Rogan also star in this film.

Vote now for your favorite movie: Pulp Fiction or Donnie Darko

Survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZFYHYS7