MASTERPIECE -- what makes a great movie [part 1]

In this first of a three series blog entry, I will cover the makings of a cinematic masterpiece. Now I want to just point out that I am clearly not a Steven Spielberg and that I lack the qualifications in order to expertly plan out what a great movie should be. But I have watched more movies than almost anyone you know. I am basing this off what I see in my favorite movies (which I all consider to be masterpieces)  and what I would like to see if I were directing, writing, producing, and acting in a movie myself. So hopefully you will share my views and artistic expression in respect to the greatest man-made invention of our time, movies. Crew is ready? Actors are ready? Good. Because it's "lights, camera, action!" Here are the top three things I look for when I sit down with my pack of Bunch-A-Crunch and watch a flick.

1. A Compelling Story

• It is truth universally acknowledged that a great movie needs to have a great story. Why do we watch movies? To get lost in the world the movie creates and to sympathize with the characters, comparing what they go through to our own individual lives. And to be entertained of course, almost forgot that! If we can't fully believe what is going on, or can not at least in some degree, relate with the events of the story, all is naught for the movie makers and the audience members. A convincing, engaging, and a truthful plot line is key for a movie's ultimate success. 

• Now the story need not to be too realistic for an audience to feel connected to it. Take the blockbuster trilogy The Lord of the Rings, which has been mentioned as the the greatest movie trilogy of our time, as an example. All three films are set in a place called Middle-Earth filled with mirth and magic and is inhabited by outlandish creatures such as elves, orcs, hobbits, and wizards. The setting may have been fictional, but the trials and tribulations each character had to go through and the emotions felt and shared through each dramatic event really spoke volumes to each individual audience member. When Frodo, the least likely creature imaginable, volunteered to uphold the task of destroying the one ring, he had so many chances to give up and turn back, but he kept in going, finding hope where hope seemed desolate. A message many of us can appreciate. The emotional aspect and the morality of LOTR made it an almost perfect movie experience. Not to mention the amazingly epic war scenes (see Helm's Deep / Pelenor Fields) and stunning, over the top special-effects. Speaking of special FX...