3. Local Hero
Local Hero tells the tale of a big city oil man who tries to buy up a picture-perfect fishing village in Northern Scotland. What he doesn't know is that the challenge before him might not necessarily be as difficult. Throw in a CEO with his head in the stars and a mermaid, and you've got one of the most gentle little comedies ever made. With a memorable score by Mark Knopfler (of Dire Straits fame), you'll quickly feel as though you're there with our hero, "Mac." Look for little things along the way, our hero's slow ease into the laid-back culture, a baby everyone cares for, the red phone box, the Northern Lights and never say no to the man who offers to sell you a beach at a cost of a pound per grain of sand in his hat. If you've ever known the feeling of going home after a special trip, you'll appreciate the magic that this film delivers. This is Bill Forsyth's masterpiece in a criminally underrated body of work, full of eccentric but believable characters, deftly scripted and always shot through with the director's characteristic lightness of touch and sense of place. Lyrical without being sentimental, satirical without ever resorting to cheap shots, stunningly photographed, hip (for its time) without being tabloid, this movie will charm you from start to finish. The recurring teenager on a motorcycle sight gag is quite simply one of the funniest things I have ever seen in any film.