We are halfway through the first round. 16 teams have advanced so far, now we will set the next 16 to move forward. You will vote for matchups in The Dude and Han Solo regions. You have until midnight on Saturday to vote for your choices in those regions. Popular vote will determine which movie advances, and in the case of a tie in voting, the tiebreak score will determine who moves forward. I will do a brief rundown of each matchup that includes my vote in that matchup under a spoiler warning. Let the tournament begin!
#1 seed Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
#16 seed Aliens
This is a heavyweight directorial matchup of titans in the genre. Our 1 seed is George Lucas kicking off the galaxy far, far away with A New Hope, while our 16 seed is Aliens, James Cameron’s followup to the Ridley Scott original. Aliens takes Ripley and company through more of a war with the aliens than the first, which was more horror by nature, but it definitely keeps viewers on the edge of their seat the same way. A New Hope is a classic good vs. evil struggle that introduced classic characters known the world over.
#8 seed The Two Towers
#9 seed Psycho
This is a matchup that pits intimate storytelling against a grand sense of scale. Psycho is a thriller that kept audiences guessing, features one of the supreme villains in cinema in Norman Bates, and changed the culture of how we view movies today. The Two Towers is the middle chapter in the Lord of the Rings saga and features some of the most pivotal moments in the trilogy, including the battle of Helm’s Deep, which is absolutely in the conversation for the greatest battle put on film. T
#4 seed The Return of the King
#13 seed The Shining
While one might think that The Return of the King and The Shining don’t have that much in common, these movies have more similarities than you might think. Both are based on books by renowned fiction authors, both were directed by bearded non-American men with a meticulous eye for detail, and both have an overwhelming sense of dread in the land where we find our protagonists. These two movies are pretty beloved, and this matchup will come down to which genre is the speed of the voter.
#5 seed E.T.
#12 seed The Matrix
Another killer 5-12 matchup pits one of the most innovative movies in my lifetime with a beloved classic that helped shape the modern blockbuster. E.T. is one of Steven Spielberg’s finest in his storied career, tying science fiction in seamlessly with a childlike sense of wonder. The Matrix is a modern sci-fi action classic, with effects that are still imitated to this day.
#3 seed Jaws
#14 seed Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
It’s fitting that we would see a matchup of Spielberg and Lucas in this region, even though Lucas didn’t actually direct any of the original trilogy beyond the first movie. Jaws is a thriller that still holds up over 40 years following its release, pitting man against beast in one of the first true blockbusters in modern history. Return of the Jedi is the conclusion of the story of the Skywalker family, where our heroes must defeat the Empire once and for all (with the help of the Ewoks).
#6 seed The Fellowship of the Ring
#11 seed Jurassic Park
The final Lord of the Rings movie in the region is the one that started it all, The Fellowship of the Ring. This movie changed a lot of things about modern blockbusters, including filming all three movies at the same time, a major gamble that this movie paid off tremendously. It goes against Jurassic Park, a movie that changed how we used CGI by seamlessly pairing computer effects with practical models to bring dinosaurs to life.
#2 seed Back to the Future
#15 seed The Princess Bride
This matchup pits the two funniest movies in the region against each other, as Back to the Future takes on The Princess Bride. The Princess Bride is a movie that gets better with each viewing, with an all-star cast of characters, a narrative that is equal parts action, adventure, fantasy, romance, comedy, and everything in between, there really is something for everyone in this movie. Back to the Future is a time travel adventure that sees our heroes Marty McFly and Doc Brown try to send Marty back to 1985 in Doc’s time travelling Delorean. T
#7 seed Silence of the Lambs
#10 seed Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
This is a matchup that pits two of the greatest villains in cinematic history against each other. In one corner is Silence of the Lambs, a taut thriller that stars Anthony Hopkins in a breath-taking performance as cannibalistic Dr. Hannibal Lecter. On the other side, we have The Empire Strikes Back, arguably the best of the original trilogy, featuring Darth Vader and perhaps the greatest twist ending of all time.
Matchups for easier copy/paste
#1 seed Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
#16 seed Aliens
#8 seed The Two Towers
#9 seed Psycho
#4 seed The Return of the King
#13 seed The Shining
#5 seed E.T.
#12 seed The Matrix
#3 seed Jaws
#14 seed Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
#6 seed The Fellowship of the Ring
#11 seed Jurassic Park
#2 seed Back to the Future
#15 seed The Princess Bride
#7 seed Silence of the Lambs
#10 seed Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
#1 seed Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
#16 seed Aliens
This is a heavyweight directorial matchup of titans in the genre. Our 1 seed is George Lucas kicking off the galaxy far, far away with A New Hope, while our 16 seed is Aliens, James Cameron’s followup to the Ridley Scott original. Aliens takes Ripley and company through more of a war with the aliens than the first, which was more horror by nature, but it definitely keeps viewers on the edge of their seat the same way. A New Hope is a classic good vs. evil struggle that introduced classic characters known the world over.
While I think Aliens is a very solid movie, I have to go with Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
#8 seed The Two Towers
#9 seed Psycho
This is a matchup that pits intimate storytelling against a grand sense of scale. Psycho is a thriller that kept audiences guessing, features one of the supreme villains in cinema in Norman Bates, and changed the culture of how we view movies today. The Two Towers is the middle chapter in the Lord of the Rings saga and features some of the most pivotal moments in the trilogy, including the battle of Helm’s Deep, which is absolutely in the conversation for the greatest battle put on film. T
his is a tough one for me because I think they are both terrific pieces, but I’m going to have to give my vote to The Two Towers.
#4 seed The Return of the King
#13 seed The Shining
While one might think that The Return of the King and The Shining don’t have that much in common, these movies have more similarities than you might think. Both are based on books by renowned fiction authors, both were directed by bearded non-American men with a meticulous eye for detail, and both have an overwhelming sense of dread in the land where we find our protagonists. These two movies are pretty beloved, and this matchup will come down to which genre is the speed of the voter.
For me, I have to go with The Return of the King.
#5 seed E.T.
#12 seed The Matrix
Another killer 5-12 matchup pits one of the most innovative movies in my lifetime with a beloved classic that helped shape the modern blockbuster. E.T. is one of Steven Spielberg’s finest in his storied career, tying science fiction in seamlessly with a childlike sense of wonder. The Matrix is a modern sci-fi action classic, with effects that are still imitated to this day.
Either of these would be worthy to advance, but my vote has to go with E.T.
#3 seed Jaws
#14 seed Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
It’s fitting that we would see a matchup of Spielberg and Lucas in this region, even though Lucas didn’t actually direct any of the original trilogy beyond the first movie. Jaws is a thriller that still holds up over 40 years following its release, pitting man against beast in one of the first true blockbusters in modern history. Return of the Jedi is the conclusion of the story of the Skywalker family, where our heroes must defeat the Empire once and for all (with the help of the Ewoks).
As much as it pains me to not vote Star Wars, I have to give my vote to Jaws.
#6 seed The Fellowship of the Ring
#11 seed Jurassic Park
The final Lord of the Rings movie in the region is the one that started it all, The Fellowship of the Ring. This movie changed a lot of things about modern blockbusters, including filming all three movies at the same time, a major gamble that this movie paid off tremendously. It goes against Jurassic Park, a movie that changed how we used CGI by seamlessly pairing computer effects with practical models to bring dinosaurs to life.
This is an absolute monster of a first round pairing, and like the last vote, it pains me to not pick one of the Middle Earth movies, but I have to go Jurassic Park.
#2 seed Back to the Future
#15 seed The Princess Bride
This matchup pits the two funniest movies in the region against each other, as Back to the Future takes on The Princess Bride. The Princess Bride is a movie that gets better with each viewing, with an all-star cast of characters, a narrative that is equal parts action, adventure, fantasy, romance, comedy, and everything in between, there really is something for everyone in this movie. Back to the Future is a time travel adventure that sees our heroes Marty McFly and Doc Brown try to send Marty back to 1985 in Doc’s time travelling Delorean. T
his is a tough one, but I have to give it to Back to the Future.
#7 seed Silence of the Lambs
#10 seed Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
This is a matchup that pits two of the greatest villains in cinematic history against each other. In one corner is Silence of the Lambs, a taut thriller that stars Anthony Hopkins in a breath-taking performance as cannibalistic Dr. Hannibal Lecter. On the other side, we have The Empire Strikes Back, arguably the best of the original trilogy, featuring Darth Vader and perhaps the greatest twist ending of all time.
This is one tough, tough matchup, but I am going to have to go with The Empire Strikes Back.
Matchups for easier copy/paste
#1 seed Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
#16 seed Aliens
#8 seed The Two Towers
#9 seed Psycho
#4 seed The Return of the King
#13 seed The Shining
#5 seed E.T.
#12 seed The Matrix
#3 seed Jaws
#14 seed Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
#6 seed The Fellowship of the Ring
#11 seed Jurassic Park
#2 seed Back to the Future
#15 seed The Princess Bride
#7 seed Silence of the Lambs
#10 seed Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
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