What makes a great movie team or duo?

Chemistry between the leads. A banter back and forth that makes you care about the characters. Powerful personalities that draw you into the story. Iconic characters that anybody on the planet might actually recognize. Or just crap that makes you laugh and pump your fist while the good guys blast the crap out of anybody who stands in their way.

***Sidenote***
I will be eventually addressing the suggestion posted by a friend the other day. But I have to stick to my schedule that I deemed necessary. At least for another couple of weeks.

I realize that I think today is supposed to be a Video Game day but I haven’t done my research yet. We will be addressing that topic tomorrow.

Anyway…

Back to the point. I took a look at the movies I have seen over the years and put together a list of the groups or duos that I deemed the most powerful in terms of characters and pure coolness.

I tried to include mostly characters that have a certain immortality in the history of movies but there were a few fliers that I took, mostly because some of the movies have a special place in my heart.

So, without further ado, I present to you…

THE ELEVEN GREATEST MOVIE DUOS/TEAMS IN THE HISTORY OF FILM…

11. The Crew of Serenity (Serenity).
Let’s run down the roster: A burdened but noble captain, a first mate that could kill you with her pinky, a pilot that is an utter smartass, a mechanic that is a hot chick, a hired gun that finally does the right thing, a doctor and his sister who are being chased by the law, a preacher that definitely has more to him that what is on the surface, and a professional escort that is most sophisticated of the group.

From the word ‘go’ in this television series and more importantly, the movie, this crew sucked me in. The interactions between members of the crew and the things they would do for each other tucks at me each and every time I watch any other their visual productions.

If you haven’t seen the show or the movie, I highly suggest doing so.

10. The Crew of the Satellite of Love (MST3K).
Whether it was Mike or Joel, along with Tom Servo and Crow, these three personalities and their commentary on movies was what made for fantastic viewing.

Their mockery and commentary on some of the worst films in history kept me laughing for days. Trust me on this.

From their irreverent humor to their commentary on the world around them, these guys/things made for a fantastic couple of hours of entertainment.

9. Bob and Doug McKenzie (Strange Brew).
One could possibly rank useless duos such as Beavis and Butthead or Jay and Silent Bob alongside of these two but never before had a duo incorporated so many catchphrases into my lexicon of terminology.

Hoser. Eh. Take off. You knob. I gotta pee so bad I can taste it.

All quotes that one can use from these two in their famous film ‘Strange Brew.’

From their absurd, singular outfits to their total obliviousness to everything happening around them, these two manage to save the day, despite their not knowing what they are doing.

And anytime a guy can drink an entire vat of beer and then pee a fire out, that is worthy of mention. If you don’t get that, then watch the movie.

8. Harry and Lloyd (Dumb and Dumber).
There is indeed a duo of useless personalities that can outrank Bob and Doug. Harry and Lloyd.

These two idiots find a way to blunder their way across the country with a briefcase full of cash and get themselves totally engrossed in a myriad of shenanigans, all in the attempt to land a dream date for Lloyd.

Along the way they nearly kill a man by way of heartburn (then by accidental rat poison ingestion), spend $1,000,000 dollars on fuzzy boots and day glow colored tuxedoes, ride cross country on what was nothing more than a scooter, drive a fuzzy dog van, suffer from epic diarrhea, and manage to blunder up a chance to be oil boys for a bunch of bikini models.

In short…they were epic.

7. Neal Page and Del Griffith (Planes, Trains and Automobiles).
What do you get when you take an uptight business man and a slobby door-to-door salesman and ask them to travel across country?

One of the greatest and touching comedies of all time.

Back when Steve Martin and John Candy pretty much ruled the world with their humor, these two comedic giants combined to make a film so fantastic that small mammals would combust just from being in the vicinity of anybody viewing the movie.

The uptight Martin and slovenly Candy played off of each other so well that you could have sworn they were actually making the trip in real time.

Plus, this film gave us epic lines such as ‘those aren’t pillows’ and ‘how about that Bears game.’

6. Danny Ocean and his Crew (Ocean’s Eleven).
How they ever managed to make this film is something of a mystery to me. The combined salaries of these guys was probably more than the GNP of most countries.

But this group of characters had so much chemistry with each other that there really isn’t a dull moment in the entire film.

With a group that included a slew of hustlers, some mechanical egg heads, a computer nerd, a demolitions expert and a very nimble littler man, there is no way that these guys weren’t going to accomplish the job.

This is, without a doubt, still one of my favorite films of all time.

5. The Sandlot Kids (The Sandlot).
This film rules. These kids rule.

Without a doubt, this film was so enjoyed by myself that I named my two little fuzzy children after characters in this movie.

Whether it was the camaraderie displayed between the characters or the situations that most of us could picture ourselves in, this film showed the best of what could be had while growing up.

This group of characters always makes me flash back to the days of yore, when I was playing silly sports in a yard or large field with the Moe boys, or Davis boys or anybody else that wanted to participate in our shenanigans.

And that makes them very special.

4. Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh (Lethal Weapon).
I tried to stay away from mentioning any characters or films from my ‘Manliest Movie List’ but these two were absolutely necessary inclusions.

With the manic personality of Mel and the ‘by the book’ kind of cop Danny portrayed, these two were the perfect combination.

Plus, they blew up stuff, shot lots of bad guys and made Gary Busey a bona fied bad ass before they skewered him as well.

3. C-3PO and R2-D2 (Star Wars).
If there is a more iconic pair of characters in the history of cinema, I can not name them.

As the comic relief and instigation for the entire Star Wars mythos that we have now, these two will live on for eternity.

With a rigid and timid C-3PO and amusing little R2-D2 (if we could have only understood all the things he was saying), these two are possibly more recognizable than any other Star Wars character, outside of Darth Vader.

2. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid (Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid).
Paul Newman. Robert Redford. With guns.

Do I need to continue?

From a standpoint of shear star power, I’m not sure there is a more formidable grouping in the history of film. These two rocked the screen right off of its hinges from the very beginning. Their banter back and forth and the action scenes were something that defined the possibilities of what could be done with film. From their jump off of the edge of a cliff to the train job they pull to the final epic shootout, these two are something special.

And I look at the pure awesomasity of these two, I can’t even believe there is another team/duo that could possibly outrank them.

1. The Ghostbusters (Ghostbusters).
No other movie is so rich with quotes and epic characters than this film. There is no argument here.

Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson and Bill Murray. That was your cast. And not since has there ever been such a conglomeration of comedic and acting talent. I don’t care what you say.

And from the opening scenes with the immortal quote ‘Get her’ to the quotes near the end of ‘Let’s show this prehistoric bitch how we do things downtown’ or ‘Nobody steps on a church in my town,’ these guys dominate the screen and have ingrained themselves in our minds.

There has never been a film in my life that so tickled my funny bone but also had a few scary moments which actually made me jump. From the very beginning of this film, the Dan, Harold and Bill show they that are having a ton of fun with each other and when you toss Ernie into the mix, the film reaches a crescendo that has rarely, if ever, been matched.

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Tomorrow, myself and my herd of collaborative writers will return with another Video Game installment. Probably the Greatest N64 Video Games.

This is Pete…

Over and out.