R.I.P., Tony Scott

Tony Scott has long been one of my favorite action movie directors. His films were always fun and popcorn with a little smarts mixed in, never feeling like they were dragged through development hell, which is how most action movies feel to me.

Tony Scott made a lot of memorable films, but CRIMSON TIDE is the first movie I think of when I hear Tony Scott's name. No, it's certainly not his showiest film, but it's the best example of a contained thriller I've ever seen. If someone wrote that script today, it would be the hottest spec on the market.

My love for CRIMSON TIDE exists not solely because it is a fine film, but the sentimental attachment I have with it; it was the first R-rated film I saw at the theatre. My two underage cousins and I snuck in. We didn't get past the previews before a theatre staffer shined the flashlight on us. Busted. But the staffer didn't kick us out. She merely confiscated the bags of M&M's and Skittles we smuggled in to avoid the pricey concession stand. And then she left us to enjoy the movie. Which we did.

Oh man, and that score. I think the score for CRIMSON TIDE is Hans Zimmer's finest work.