Senior history major Brian Daley has an insatiable love of movies. His enthusiasm for all things celluloid led him to become president of NIU’s Student Film and Video Association and the first “Top 10” subject.

Daley said his 10 favorite movies all touch on the same themes.

“The common thread that links all of my favorite films together is that the storylines are based on individuals that aren’t afraid to take on the system to accomplish great things, regardless of the risk,” he said.

10. “Soldier” (1998) – “A shoot-’em-up movie that allows the viewer to sympathize with a ‘soldierized’ killing machine who finds himself displaced in a family community. John Woo could learn something from this movie.”

9. “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” (1954) – “Disney’s greatest live action film. To this day, Disney’s design for Captain Nemo’s ‘Nautilus’ is revered as the most impressive interpretation of Jules Verne’s submarine.”

8. “Tomorrow Never Dies” (1997) – “This movie shows what happens when everything comes together perfectly in a 007 film.”

7. “Mission Impossible” (1996) – “Tom Cruise’s dramatics exemplified the most intelligent action film ever made. The casting and directing was perfect.”

6. “First Blood” (1982) – “Sylvester Stallone’s last 10 minutes of the film forced anti-war activists to reconsider their view of the men and women who served in the military and woke them up to the horrifying wartime conditions that these men were forced to endure.”

5. “Journey to the Center of the Earth” (1959) – “This is the only movie in history to succeed at making believable dinosaurs out of lizards wearing special make-up prosthetics.”

4. “Mysterious Planet” (1982) – “Its stop-motion animation and cheap spaceship effects bridge the gap between professional filmmakers and backyard independents looking to duplicate ‘Star Wars.’ This film and the company that made it have been defunct for 20 years. It’s not available anywhere. I own two copies!”

3.”Mysterious Island” (1961) – “Ray Harryhausen’s stop-motion effects and matte paintings are mastered in this film. It really does transport the viewer to a place and an adventure that is far from anything you can see in today’s adventure films.”

2. “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century” (1934) – “The design of the special effects of this movie had the greatest influence on my own special effects for film.”

1. “Star Wars” (1977) – “‘Star Wars’ was the big film that changed the way movies were made and marketed. It gave new meaning to ‘epic adventure.’ It also began a special effects movement that is still in existence today.”

For more information on the NIU SFVA, go to http://www.sa.niu.edu /sfva/index.htm.