movies Archives | Page 2 of 2
previous ten entries | 1 2 |
Sunday, May 02, 2004
"What A Girl Wants"
I just finished watching "What A Girl Wants", because Miss Doxie forced me to. Or, OK, she reviewed the movie, in a hilarious weblog sort of way, and that made me need to watch it. Same thing. She's the one that calls it cinematic crack or something to that effect. (by the way, if you want a review, read hers, at the link above. In fact, just skip the rest of this entry and read her journal archives instead. I am in awe of her and so totally not worthy to even link my paltry excuse for a diary to her page. Dave Barry would totally be her humor acolyte if he knew her, following her around kissing the hem of her garment. She is that funny.)Anyway, I digress. There were a few redeeming aspects of this movie, in my opinion:
- Watching Anna Chancellor, playing a haughty, snobby, class-conscious vixen, fail to catch Colin Firth, playing a wealthy and eligible society man. And yet it's not "Pride and Prejudice." Actually, that was maybe kind of creepy.
- Seeing Kelly Preston, who played the valley girl with the photographic memory in "Space Camp", play a middle-aged mother. Wait, that was kind of creepy too.
- Watching the grandmother blow stuff up while shooting skeet. I actually laughed. Whereas the sounds I made during the rest of the movie were much closer to gagging.
Thursday, September 11, 2003
what a great day
I just had such a good day. It shows how petty I am, I suppose, that being able to wear clothes I hadn't been able to in the past can make me feel so happy. But there it is. Not only the "too small" jeans, either. After I got home from Bible study tonight I got out a denim dress from that same box -- a short dress with blue and white flowers embroidered on it -- feminine yet sturdy yet sexy. T had told me that he'd like it if I could wear it -- back when I couldn't even button it closed. It fit like a dream tonight. I was so pleased.
OK, I just had a call back to reality. I had to go make my washing machine behave. You know how some washers have a buzzer that goes off if the load is off-balance? This one doesn't need a buzzer, because when it is off-balance it makes as much noise as a mounted cavalry running through my linoleumed laundry room would. And of course since the laundry room is right next to both kids' rooms, and both kids are both asleep and afraid of loud noises that wake them in the night, I had to go make the darn thing shut up. T would sleep through just about anything and it even had him in there, blinking at me, asking me if I needed help. Hmm, maybe I should empty the garbage in the middle of the night, and make a lot of noise at it....
Anyway, back to my great day. Not only was there the weight loss thing, but school went really nicely, and for dinner, we had a picnic at the park in town for which I made deli sandwiches. And T and I had a big argument about something stupid last night, so we were still in the tender gentle happy make-up stage today.
The kids and I watched Return to Snowy River today, which also added to the overall mood of cheerfulness. Perhaps it is silly of me, but I really love a good pretty horse movie. Nice scenery and running horses just give me a happy little thrill. (I should start making a list of all the things I say that about!). Really. I love watching the Snowy River movies, and The Black Stallion (which is a really rare thing: a movie that is better than the book), and this version of Black Beauty that we bought from the bargain DVD bin at Wal-Mart. When I was little I was the same way (I'll have to find Phar Lap and National Velvet and see if they're as pretty as I remember them being). The dialogue can be hokey as anything, but if there's pretty scenery, nice music, and plenty of horsey eye candy, I can't help enjoying watching it. Hey, I never said I was a movie purist. Luckily I have a daughter as an excuse. :)
I'm starting to feel hungry so I'm going to get a good drink of water and go to bed before I start munching. (must forget about Cadbury bar in fridge. Must forget.)
--------
Wednesday, September 10, 2003
Movie List
I stole this from Emiline220, who stole it from Jenn. I'm thinking about stealing their book list thing too, even though it's just from ivillage and it has "The Mists of Avalon" on it. ;-) I can't seem to find a more authoritative one that goes beyond the 20th century but doesn't include a bunch of foreign stuff.
1. CITIZEN KANE (1941)
Um, I've seen most of this. But I really wasn't paying attention. It was my grandfather's favorite movie because he used to work for William Randolph Hearst (kept his aviary, of all things). So when I was in a spate of Grandpa-reminiscence I tried to watch it -- key word being "tried". I kept wondering what the hype had all been about. Which shows what an uncultured individual I am.
2. CASABLANCA(1942)
Yes, I have seen this. I liked it pretty well, not so much as a romantic love story, because it's really not that. It was like watching Schindler's List and wondering at exactly what point the hero's motive changed from mercenary to humanitarian.
3. THE GODFATHER (1972)
I've seen this several times. First as a teenager, and I didn't like watching it because it felt creepy to feel sympathetic toward the Mafia. Then I watched it as an adult and wondered how it could have made me feel sympathetic toward them at all -- I guess I hadn't learned the concept of the antihero yet at 15.
4. GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)
Seen it a few times. I like it pretty well but I think its huge popularity was based on factors that are a bit dated now. It was the biggest deal in movies at the time, based on a then-current bestseller. It's still a great story, but not the be-all and end-all, if you ask me.
5. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962)
Never seen it.
6. THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939)
Of course I've seen this one, several times. It's another one that was great for its time -- although it is a prime example of how little filmmakers cared about faithful adaptation at that time. Baum's stories are hardly reflected here at all.
7. THE GRADUATE (1967)
I've seen it twice -- in high school because of the Simon and Garfunkel soundtrack, and as an adult on Turner Classics. It was... very interesting. Especially seeing the woman I thought of as Gram from Homecoming playing a jealous seductress.
8. ON THE WATERFRONT (1954)
Never seen it.
9. SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993)
We own this. We watch it once every couple of years. We actually watched it in the theater on our honeymoon, how's that for a mood setter? But it is probably the most important movie I've ever seen. Everyone over the age of 13 or so should watch it.
10. SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952)
Seen it, loved it. :) Did you know that all the songs were just kind of thrown in there? None of them were written with this story in mind.
11. IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946)
One of my very favorites. I love it, love it, love it. And I own it.
12. SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950)
Never seen it.
13. THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI (1957)
T and I watched this not long ago. I liked it. I surprise myself with my ability to enjoy war movies. This is the same person (well, not really) who committed an act of peacable protest by putting my head on my desk with my eyes closed when we watched Glory and Patton during history class. Oh yes, I was deep.
14. SOME LIKE IT HOT (1959)
Never seen it, don't particularly want to.
15. STAR WARS (1977)
Not only did I watch this when I was little, but my son is as obsessed with it as my brother (and my husband) were as children. I've probably watched it half a dozen times in the last two months; we borrow it from the library over and over. T and I watched The Empire Strikes Back in our hotel room the second morning of our honeymoon. (weren't we the romantic ones! but hey, we were TIRED!). The hotel offered free video rentals but everything else they had was lame.
16. ALL ABOUT EVE (1950)
Never seen it.
17. THE AFRICAN QUEEN (1951)
I've seen it a few times. I like it.
18. PSYCHO (1960)
Never seen it.
19. CHINATOWN (1974)
Never seen it.
20. ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST (1975)
Never seen it. Did you know that Ken Kesey (who wrote the book) refused to watch this movie? So I figure I definitely should at least read the book before I watch it, and I haven't gotten around to it yet.
21. THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940)
I've seen this a lot of times. It was one of my other grandfather's favorites. When I was in high school, my socialist self was in love with Steinbeck. My copy of this is shamelessly highlit all over -- every single reference that a "deep" 16-year-old would find important. Gag. My brother-in-law borrowed my copy years ago, and I keep meaning to buy him one and take mine back so that I can keep the incriminating evidence under close supervision. :)
22. 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968)
I have started to watch this several times. Someday I'll finish it.
23. THE MALTESE FALCON (1941)
Never watched it.
24. RAGING BULL (1980)
Never watched it.
25. E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982)
I watched this in the theater when I was 7 or so. I haven't seen it in years, though.
26. DR. STRANGELOVE (1964)
I've never seen it. T loves it though, so eventually we will have to rent it.
27. BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967)
Never seen it.
28. APOCALYPSE NOW (1979)
Never seen it.
29. MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON (1939)
I've watched this. I liked it. I am a big Jimmy Stewart fan.
30. THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE (1948)
Never seen it.
31. ANNIE HALL (1977)
You know, I read a clip from an interview with Woody Allen, where he was talking to Europeans about how Americans don't like him; they wonder what the fuss is all about. That's me! me! right there. I watched this on TCM because it's one of those "important" movies and I hated it.
32. THE GODFATHER PART II (1974)
I think I watched this once years ago, but I don't remember much from it.
33. HIGH NOON (1952)
Um, this is an Eastwood one, right? That means I've seen it, but I don't remember anything specific about it.
34. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (1962)
I LOVE THIS MOVIE. Oh wow. Love love love it. Here is my IMDB review of it.
35. IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (1934)
I saw this once. I really liked it! Did you know that Bugs Bunny gnawing a carrot was based on a scene from this movie? And that almost nobody ate raw carrots till this movie came out? (I love the IMDB).
36. MIDNIGHT COWBOY (1969)
I saw the beginning of this on Turner Classics but never finished it. It didn't look appealing.
37. THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES (1946)
This is the first one on this list that I have never even heard of.
38. DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944)
And here's the second one.
39. DOCTOR ZHIVAGO (1965)
I watched this once when I was maybe junior high age. It didn't capture my attention. I'll probably have to watch it again sometime, maybe after I read the book.
40. NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959)
I adore Cary Grant, and I really liked this movie as well. Interesting twists in it.
41. WEST SIDE STORY (1961)
I own this. It's one of my favorites. The weird thing is that the guy who plays Tony (I know his name but it's not coming to me right now) looks JUST like the guy who used to be the pastor of our church. So much like him that I can't get it out of my head watching the movie that it is him. Kind of distracting.
42. REAR WINDOW (1954)
Another one I own. This was the first Hitchcock movie I'd ever seen and it was an excellent introduction. I recorded it off cable. Grace Kelly's clothes are just amazing in it, and all the actors do a really good job. (IMDB-gleaned trivia tidbit: all the sound in this movie is internal --in other words it's all happening in the movie, not superimposed over it for effect. It's neat to watch it and pay attention to that.)
43. KING KONG (1933)
Never seen it. I've only ever seen clips from it.
44. THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915)
Never seen it.
45. A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1951)
Never seen it.
46. A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971)
Never seen it.
47. TAXI DRIVER (1976)
Never seen it.
48. JAWS (1975)
I watched this a long time ago on HBO, as in, when I was a little girl. Scared me to death, I think it was my first horror movie. Or maybe it was Jaws 3 I saw. Who knows.
49. SNOW WHITE AND THE SEVEN DWARFS (1937)
I've seen this. I did a biographical report on Walt Disney when I was in ninth grade and it's very interesting for me to watch his movies, especially the early ones, after learning a lot about him.
50. BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID (1969)
Never seen it.
51. THE PHILADELPHIA STORY (1940)
I read the play first. Then I saw the movie. It was well-made and all, it just deals with an aspect of life with which I am fully unfamiliar. The whole high society thing kind of leaves me cold. But like I said, a well-made movie nonetheless.
52. FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1953)
Never seen it, and I really want to.
53. AMADEUS (1984)
Another of my favorites. I gush about this movie endlessly to my husband after we've watched it. I'll spare you that and just show you my IMDB review of it.
54. ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (1930)
I watched this once, in ninth grade, after I think we read the book in class. It was also during my war-protest days but I at least had sense to realize that it was an anti-war story. Doesn't mean I watched the movie though. I did not "do" battle at the time. I was too pure. And angst-y. And altogether too teenaged.
55. THE SOUND OF MUSIC (1965)
We own this on DVD AND video (it's a great one for putting both on at once and switching back and forth to see how much DVD kicks butt over VHS). Sappy or not, we love it.
56. M*A*S*H (1970)
I watched the TV show when it was on when I was little (and I might add that it all flew directly over my head. I was so puzzled, among other things, about why the guy dressed in women's clothes. Dad told me it was because he was trying to prove he was crazy so he could get out of the Army. ahem. :), but never saw the movie.
57. THE THIRD MAN (1949)
And the third one I've never heard of. :)
58. FANTASIA (1940)
Another one of my kids' favorites, although we don't own it. I have the 3-DVD anthology on my Christmas list. We LOVE the whole idea of Fantasia, and my kids "play Fantasia" whenever we listen to classical music -- they tell me "what it is saying." Needless to say this totally breaks my heart. waah.
59. REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955)
Never saw it, and keep meaning to.
60. RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981)
I've seen it a couple of times. It's funny.
61. VERTIGO (1958)
My second Hitchcock. I love it. So creepy and hard to figure out the first time! Trivia: they had to use computers to superimpose the tower on that mission because it doesn't have one. I've been there plenty of times. It's much more interesting to go there having seen the movie, and vice versa.
62. TOOTSIE (1982)
This is a great movie. Bill Murray and Dustin Hoffman worked so well together, and Teri Garr, and Jessica Lange too. This was another one that I saw when I was younger and didn't really "get". I really enjoy it as an adult though.
63. STAGECOACH (1939)
Never seen it.
64. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)
I think I saw part of this once, when I was little, but I have very little memory of it.
65. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)
Great, great movie. T hates it, but I don't. So creepy.
66. NETWORK (1976)
Never heard of it.
67. THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (1962)
This is such a well-made movie. People in film-making school should have to take a class in it. Except Frank Sinatra, he's kind of what NOT to do. But overall, WOW. Here's my IMDB review for it.
68. AN AMERICAN IN PARIS (1951)
I watched part of this on Turner Classics but didn't get to finish it. I'll have to give it another shot some day; it looked pretty good.
69. SHANE (1953)
I read the book in elementary school but I've never seen the movie.
70. THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971)
Never seen it.
71. FORREST GUMP (1994)
Watched it on video when it was pretty new; I thought it was OK but I wasn't as impressed as everyone else seemed to be.
72. BEN-HUR (1959)
My daughter loves this movie. She's 3!! She wants to watch the chariot race over and over. And it is a pretty good movie. I think this is the only thing I've seen Charlton Heston in.
73.WUTHERING HEIGHTS(1939)
I've never seen it. I had a hard time seeing colors after reading the book, though; it was so dark and depressing. I love Jane Eyre but Charlotte should have taught Emily a thing or two. This book was like a soap opera set in Gothic/Victorian language. Anyway, I digress, I've never seen the movie.
74. THE GOLD RUSH (1925)
Never heard of it.
75. DANCES WITH WOLVES (1990)
I saw it once. I didn't really pay attention. Poor Kevin Costner, he was the hottest thing going for a while and now nobody will look at him.
76. CITY LIGHTS (1931)
Never seen it.
77. AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973)
T and I watched this, and liked it. He is a car buff. For me, the most fun part was racking my brain trying to figure out who the actors were -- "I KNOW THAT GUY! WHO IS THAT?" I could hardly wait for the credits to roll before I ran to the IMDB to find out.
78. ROCKY (1976)
I think I saw this one. But it may have been Rocky III. Come to think of it, yes, it was, because that was the one with Mr. T. So I've never actually seen the original.
79. THE DEER HUNTER (1978)
Never seen it.
80. THE WILD BUNCH (1969)
Never seen it.
81. MODERN TIMES (1936)
Never seen it.
82. GIANT (1956)
Never seen it.
83. PLATOON (1986)
Never seen it, don't want to.
84. FARGO (1996)
Never seen it. When it was new I didn't want to but now that that hype has died down I think it sounds interesting and maybe I'll rent it.
85. DUCK SOUP (1933)
Never seen it.
86. MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935)
I saw part of it on cable once but never got to finish it. I keep meaning to, though.
87. FRANKENSTEIN (1931)
Never seen it. Never read the book either.
88. EASY RIDER (1969)
Never seen it.
89. PATTON (1970)
See above re: Bridge on the River Kwai.
90. THE JAZZ SINGER (1927)
Never seen it.
91. MY FAIR LADY (1964)
We own this. It is a family favorite. I wish they'd have let Audrey Hepburn do her own singing though. The clips I've heard of her sound better than Rex Harrison did, speaking his songs, and the dubbing sounds a bit fake. Marni Nixon did a great job, though; it's beyond me why she didn't have more up-front roles.
92. A PLACE IN THE SUN (1951)
Never seen it.
93. THE APARTMENT (1960)
Never seen it.
94. GOODFELLAS (1990)
Never seen it.
95. PULP FICTION (1994)
Never seen it and don't particularly want to.
96. THE SEARCHERS (1956)
Never seen it.
97. BRINGING UP BABY (1938)
I'm torn about whether I want to see this or not. I might.
98. UNFORGIVEN (1992)
We watched this when it was new. My dad and brother were disapppointed in Clint having gone a bit soft. If they'd only known that Bridges of Madison County was coming, they'd have counted their blessings...
99. GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER (1967)
Never seen it.
100. YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (1942)
Never seen it.
OK, now my fingers are totally, totally worn out from typing. They actually feel bruised. Ouchy.
--------
Friday, August 22, 2003
just stuff
I just finished watching When Harry Met Sally. That is definitely not a movie without moral faults, but I have to confess I love it, especially the second half. I love the way Marie (whom I cannot help thinking of as Marie Organa since we've been plunged into the world of Star Wars so much lately -- she's played by Princess Leia, I mean Carrie Fisher) and Jess get together, I love the 80's clothes, I love the way it makes New York look like such a lovely place, and I love love LOVE the "I love you" line at the end. Possibly one of the most memorable such lines in movie history. :) My friends and I used to watch this in high school and we had the whole last scene memorized. I was having an 80's nostalgia moment just looking at the clothes. Watch it and see if you don't think Meg Ryan's sweaters and slacks and formals were much wiser fashion decisions than all the slinky tank tops and goofy flare-legged hip-huggers everyone's wearing today. (well, everyone except me).
My parents have the kids tonight, not because we had a date or anything, just because. I finished the tape for my dad, and then folded a bunch of laundry (watching the beginning of the aforementioned grown-up movie this time), and then we drove to the valley to buy some groceries and derby supplies. I found THE most filling 600-calorie dinner I think I've ever heard of -- a footlong roast beef Subway sandwich, no mayo or cheese. I really could have done with a 6-inch and wrapped the rest up, but a) we weren't going straight home and I didn't want it to sit there multiplying bacteria in the car while we shopped, and b) I would have been under 1200 calories for the day and I'm trying to stay at or just above that so that I don't go into "fasting" mode and start losing muscle or something. Not that one day would do that, but still.
I stunned the daylights out of a Sam Goody employee at the mall, I think. First of all, because it seemed quite shocking to everyone there that two such ancient persons as T and myself (at the ripe old ages of 33 and 28) would enter their domain, and secondly because when the nearly-prepubescent clerk approached and asked if he could help me, I told him I was looking to see if they had any CPE Bach CD's, but it looked like they just had JS Bach. I think I may as well have spoken in Sanskrit, or perhaps spun my head around. At any rate, he backed away slowly like I was an escapee from a high-security mental institution. It seems like not very long ago that I looked at adults with the same kind of shocked (and somehow patronizing) unbelief that they could ever have been my age...
--------
movies Archives | Page 2 of 2
previous ten entries | 1 2 |
