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My birthday is coming up in just under two weeks, so I figured I'd use one of the upcoming A-Lists to give myself a present, or something close to it. Moreover, this week's A-List is a great way for you to get a bit of insight into my viewing habits; there's very little explanation necessary, as this column will take a look at my desert island Top Five movies of all time. These are, it goes without saying, the five movies I would take to a desert island if I was to be stranded there for the rest of my days (with an HDTV and Blu-ray player, in this magical island that gets crisp cable). Some are old, some are not, but all of them are among my favorite films.

To be fair, the first four movies that are listed this week are my four favorite films of all time. The fifth is something of a wild card, a movie that barely eked out the spot, beating other favorites of mine, including 2001's The Royal Tenenbaums, Memento, last year's epic hit The Dark Knight, the Marx Brothers classic comedy Duck Soup, and North By Northwest, which is arguably the most slickly entertaining film Alfred Hitchcock was ever a part of. Of course, I'm not saying that my fifth pick is any better than those films (I'd probably try and work my way so I'd get a sixth or seventh film on that desert island), but it is a movie I couldn't live without.

A list like this shouldn't need too much explanation; moreover, though you may send feedback that excoriates me for one or another choice, you can't convince me that, for example, a certain animated film about smart, humanistc toys isn't one of the best animated films of all time. Feel free to bombard me on this one, but I'm willing to stand up for these choices (and granted, I doubt any of them will shock you or cause a lot of controversy). With that in mind, here's this week's A-List.

The Shawshank Redemption

Yes, this prison drama, so oft-played on TNT and TBS, is my all-time favorite film. Yes, this same film appeared in last week's Comfort Films A-List. How do I explain the magic and power of this film, so strongly rooted in a belief of hope, an idealistic view which recently propelled a majority of this country to vote in its first African-American President? It's hard for me to explain why The Shawshank Redemption hits me hard every time I watch it. It's hard for me to explain why it comes so easy to glory in the vignettes that pepper this film, from Andy Dufresne basking in the hot sun as his fellow inmates enjoy a cold beer on the top of a recently tarred roof, or Red and Andy playing chess in the yard. It's easy, though, to recall the exact moment where the movie finally, truly gets me.

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