Molly's Movie Meme!

Here are my responses to Peggy's post...





Name your (current) top 5 movies of all time.

So hard to whittle down to five... But, here goes: Singin' in the Rain, Apocalypse Now, Pee Wee's Big Adventure, Sunset Blvd., Underground

What is your favorite movie line ever?

I like smiling, smiling's my favorite.

Who is your favorite movie character?

Holly Golightly, Breakfast at Tiffany's

What movie do you love that most people hate?

Well, how about Dancer in the Dark? I don't think people hate that movie so much as they have no idea it exists, and should they have an idea that it exists, they then only know that it is the musical with Bjork in it. That movie SLAYED me. And in general, I kind of worship Bjork.

What movie do you hate that most people love?

Crash. Hated it.

What is the last movie you saw in the theatre?

Spiderman 3. Rockin good time.

What was the last movie you watched on DVD or via Video OnDemand?

Volver. It was okay. Penelope Cruz is hot.

Can you remember what the first DVD that you purchased was? What was it?

I think it was Boogie Nights. I didn't even own a DVD player, but found it in a $5 bin, and couldn't deny it.

(For us old fogies ... ) Can you remember the first VHS movie you purchased? What was it?

Technically, I remember buying a "buns of steel" tape early on in high school, so I'm thinking that was my first purchase of VHS, but as far as movie goes, I have never really owned many and most that I have are kid movie hand-me-downs. We were big on the renting, our family. I too, remember buying It's a Wonderful Life. But my parents did that buying, not me. I do own the VHS of Underground, one of my top 5 up there, so I'm guessing that might be the first (and possibly only) MOVIE I purchased on VHS.

What movie have you seen that you never want to see again?

United 93. And not because I didn't like it. I did. I really did. And not because it was overly disturbing. I'm really glad it was made. It was visceral and real and heartbreaking and I felt like I needed to see it, to live that anxiety again. But from now on, I want film makers and story tellers to bring us something less literal that can tell us about 9/11. Like, if Alien and Aliens were an artistic response to a cultural consciousness that arose from cancer awareness and AIDS, I want to see a figurative response to our reactions to terrorism and the cultural diseases that cause it. You know what I mean?

What is your least favorite movie ever?

Crash.



What song or soundtrack would you choose as your life's theme?

Blur has this song, The Universal, which is really cinematic, I think. I also think the refrain, "It really really really could happen" is fitting for my life, should it ever be a movie. Boring movie, however. If you follow that link, I can't believe how NOT hot Damon Albarn looks in that video. He's one of those incredibly gorgeous human beings.


Which actor or actress would you like to look like?

That's easy. Audrey Hepburn. If I got to inhabit the body of a man, that would have to be George Clooney, because who wouldn't want to be George Clooney for a day?


What classic movie are you embarassed to admit you've never seen?

The Maltese Falcon. I've had it at home for months at a time from Netflix, and never watched. I've returned it twice, unseen. It is now back on my queue. Someday I will watch it. I love Bogey, I love Noir, I can't explain why I've not watched it.


What is your favorite movie genre?

Good movies. I truly believe in assessing each movie on its own merits. I think WAY too much about movies, just like I think too much about everything, but I think when watching a movie, does this film accomplish its aim? Does it do what it sets out to do? I like all sorts of movies, as you can see from my top 5 today, I have a musical, a war movie/reinterpretation of a classic novel, a fantastical children's movie, a classic comedy/satire, and an epic foreign film. I love them all, because they are well done.


What is your least-favorite movie genre?

See above. Bad movies.


Is there an actor/actress/director whose movies you refuse to see?

The guy who plays Ernest as in "Ernest Goes to Camp" and such. I suppose.


What is your favorite movie concession stand snack?

Junior Mints and Sprite. Has to be the minty-citrus combo.


Front row, back row, center seats, aisle seats - where do you prefer to sit in a theater?

I like the front row of stadium seating where there is a bar directly in front where you can put your feet up. I really like seeing movies on opening weekends in full theatres with a bunch of other movie geeks, so I kind of like when I show up and the theatre is all full and you sit where you can because you are with your filmgoing geekitudes.

Peggy's Movie Meme

I'm posting my meme answers here. See the post below this one for the questions alone - and then make your own list to share!

Name your (current) top 5 movies of all time.
My top 5 today could be somewhat different than my top 5 tomorrow. Today I’m feeling sentimental, so I’m listing, in no particular order, the movies that have particular sentimental meaning to me:
• “Singin’ In The Rain”
• “ET”
• “Titanic”
• “Parenthood”
• “It’s a Wonderful Life”

What is your favorite movie line ever?
Favorite EVER? That’s a long time, friends. I’ll take a stab at it and pick, “Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer,” from “The Godfather II.” It’s not that I live by that quote or anything, I just think it best embodies the film. I took a look at AFI’s Top 100 Movie Quotes from a year or so ago to find my line, just so you know.

Who is your favorite movie character?
Indiana Jones – he has it all!

What movie do you love that most people hate?
“Titanic” – I don’t trust people who HATE this movie, btw. Save your hatin’ for evil dictators and people who kill puppies.

What movie do you hate that most people love?
"Pulp Fiction"

What was the last movie that you saw in the theater?
"Blades of Glory"

What was the last movie you watched on DVD or via Video OnDemand?
"The 40-Year Old Virgin"

Can you remember what the first DVD that you purchased was? What was it?
I can’t exactly remember. Maybe it was "Titanic?" I know that I had "Titanic" on VHS, loaned it around, and it got ruined. It may have been my first DVD purchase. Then again, it’s probably more realistic for me to say that it was a kids movie – like "Toy Story," or "A Bugs Life," or maybe even "Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace."

(For us old fogies ... ) Can you remember the first VHS movie you purchased? What was it?
When I was a teenager, my family bought “It’s a Wonderful Life.” That is the first movie that I can recall owning instead of renting and re-renting, and re-renting again.

What movie have you seen that you never want to see again?
“Night and Fog” - a 1955 documentary about the Holocaust. The images in that movie were burned into my brain. I am glad I saw it, but I never want to see it again.

What is your least favorite movie ever?
I wish I could say something like, “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo,” but I never saw that one. I guess I can admit to a visceral reaction to seeing “Sideways.” I really didn’t like that movie.

What song or soundtrack would you choose as your life's theme?
I love the soundtrack to “ET” because it combines everything I love about life – wonderment, awe, action, and the emotions of love, longing, and yes, even sadness.

Which actor or actress would you like to look like?
Looking like Angelina Jolie wouldn’t be so terrible. I’ve also always wished I looked like Grace Kelly.

What classic movie are you embarassed to admit you've never seen?
”Casablanca” I've seen parts, but never the whole.

What is your favorite movie genre?
Dramedy – A well-written drama that makes me laugh from the gut and cry from the heart all within opening and closing credits.

What is your least-favorite movie genre?
Teen-sex romp films – mostly just because so few are done well.

Is there an actor/actress/director whose movies you refuse to see?
No, although at this point you might have to threaten my children or pay me huge sums of money to get me to see anything directed by Quentin Tarantino. I’m hoping he comes around (i.e. grows up), so I won’t etch my hatred for him in stone, though.

What is your favorite movie concession stand snack?
Junior Mints

Front row, back row, center seats, aisle seats - where do you prefer to sit in a theater?
Middle of the theater, middle row – and I always, Always, ALWAYS prefer stadium seating.

Movie Meme

Why the heck not? Here's a meme for all of us to complete. I'm just gonna post the questions here.
Name your (current) top 5 movies of all time.

What is your favorite movie line ever?

Who is your favorite movie character?

What movie do you love that most people hate?

What movie do you hate that most people love?

What was the last movie that you saw in the theater?

What was the last movie you watched on DVD or via Video OnDemand?

Can you remember what the first DVD that you purchased was? What was it?

(For us old fogies ... ) Can you remember the first VHS movie you purchased? What was it?

What movie have you seen that you never want to see again?

What is your least favorite movie ever?

What song or soundtrack would you choose as your life's theme?

Which actor or actress would you like to look like?

What classic movie are you embarassed to admit you've never seen?

What is your favorite movie genre?

What is your least-favorite movie genre?

Is there an actor/actress/director whose movies you refuse to see?

What is your favorite movie concession stand snack?

Front row, back row, center seats, aisle seats - where do you prefer to sit in a theater?

Sci Fi Summer is On Its Way!

I know I'm alone on the Sci-Fi channel, but I thought you might enjoy some nice prose about Sci Fi and some ranting at Lucas, who we all love and hate...

(By the way, Dan Simmon's mentioned in the article is a Boulder writer... and Hyperion is masterful, but I couldn't figure out what it all meant!)

http://movies.msn.com/movies/sci-fi?GT1=7701

Enjoy... Comment!!

I'm Still Undecided!

I've seen four of the five nominees for best picture, and of these four, I still can't figure out which one is my favorite... Or which, at least, I think is the best picture of the year.

I did not see Letters from Iwo Jima. I really can't stomach a war picture right now, I'll catch it on DVD someday. I'm sure it is quite good, as Clint has not steered us in the wrong direction in many many years, if ever. I'm also intruiged by the idea of a film from the perspective of the American enemy, as it harkens directly back to tongue lashings I got from my Irish friends after Saving Private Ryan came out in Dublin: "All American war movies are the same." "WWII movies never show that the Germans had families and people who mourned them." Well, friends from neutral-in-WWII Ireland, you got your picture.

As for the other nominees:

Little Miss Sunshine
I didn't like this all that much. It was cute, and quirky, and the story moved well enough. But there was something incredibly missing for me. It is as if between the quirk and character development of each individual (and overbearingly 'unique') character was done in a vacuum, and it was hard to see why he was married to her, why he would be the son of her, or why she is so goddamned cute in the face of the rest of her family, or why in gods name a 10 year old girl in 2006 would be dressed like that, seriously. That said, there were a couple of relationships I did buy: The Uncle and The Son, for instance. Grandfather and Olive, I suppose as well. And while I appreciate the message at the bottom of it all, be yourself and while you're at it, be quirky and unique, the climatic 'pervy' dance by Olive in the pageant (hilariously disgusting the pageant mothers who goad their children into equally, or perhaps moreso, 'pervy' hairdos and evening gowns, so much so as to lure pedophiles in the audience), somhow missed the mark. Would Olive, in being her own unique self, chosen such a sensual dance had she not been equally goaded into it by her grandfather? All I'm saying, this movie was so filled with quirk, it was slightly hard for me to believe there were real relationships in there, and ultimately, the kind of quirks that you and I and all of us unique beings in this world really have. Plus, it had the 'move the dead body around' motif that makes me really uncomfortable.

Babel
Before I say anything about, say, the convoluted plot lines or the confusing continuity of this film, let me state that it was one of the most beautifully shot movies I've seen come out of Hollywood in a long time. Sure, Brokeback Mountain was lovely, with its helocopter shots of its titular mountain, and it's drab depiction of small town Wyoming life, but this movie... It pulsated. It popped out of the screen, and each scene, each setting, was lovingly filmed. But I come back to the convolution. In a way, it was the only way the movie could be made, and the ultimate theme of the film, that we ultimately misunderstand each other either through will, pride, discrimination or isolation, was proved in the way that as a viewer, I felt disconnected from the goings on on the screen. Since that was the point of the movie, that we are all suffering from a imposed-by-God disconnect, I must assume that the way it made me feel meant that the movie acheived its aim.

The Departed
The story is the thing in The Departed. It boasts a strong, tight script, instantly engaging and superbly acted. I'm not the biggest fan of shoot-em-up action flicks, but I make a big and generally wholesale exception for a good gangster movie, and for me, The Departed sits in the ranks of the best of its peers in the genre. I love that this movie is nominated for best picture, it is so untypically "Oscar." The steely gray streets of Boston and dirty green and brown of its seedy gangster bars don't reflect a thing of beauty, but the cinematography is controled and on a perfect pitch with the mood of the film. The tight control of the subject matter and every other aspect of the film (soundtrack, editing, etc) is what makes The Departed so exemplary. Even the characters follow these rules of constraint: each character in this film stands on his own, an island unto himself. Self preservation is a high priority for each character here. Unlike other films in this genre, there is no interplay between family and familia, like that of Goodfellas or The Godfather. Each character is disconnected, but unlike in Babel, it engaged me. As a film, it reminded me more of Munich than other, more gangster-ish films in its theme: What is the cost on a man to be a mole, even if it is for a cause in which he believes? The answer isn't pretty, and either is this film, but it is certainly watchable, exciting, and just simply well done. This may not be Raging Bull, but it is definitely Scorcese's return to true, murderous form.

The Queen
I just saw this last night, and I'm still chewing on it. I understand so little about the purpose of the English monarchy, but I think that part of the aim of this movie is to give perspective to their role. I also think that the movie aimed its sights on a larger theme, of the price on dignity in the face media savvy. Diana was a darling of the media, and I loved her, and felt for her, having pushed upon her all of the suppression of emotion that appears to be expected among the royal family. She was represented as a too free spirit in a role and a family that wouldn't allow her to be herself. Queen Elizabeth II is the antithesis of Diana's struggle. She speaks to restraint, tradition and dignity while as a family, the royals circle their wagons in what she considered a private period of grief, while Prime Minister "Call me Tony" Blair laughs with his staffers about their robotic non-response and strange traditions, envoys and basic non-media friendly manners. The queen has some catching up to do with the state of the media frenzy, and by the time she does, she understands enough to take Mr. Blair down a few notches by the end of the film: in the end, she knows in 1997, as Tony does not, that he will have his turn for media scorn, perhaps prophesizing his recent troubles holding office amidst strong Britain's disapproval of his handling of Iraq and his relationship with President Bush. The film is, however, all about her. The queen does grieve Diana's death, and the pieces of the monarchy that she took with her to the grave, but she does so with stoicism and refinery that fit her position. She proves that restraint does not necessarily belie a true emotional 'self,' but that in her restraint, she gets the much larger picture, always. And yes, I'll say it, Helen Mirren is perfectly and absolutely the queen.

And the winner is. .

Okay ladies-the heat is on! Only 24 days until the big night. . . Sorry I've been such a stranger to our BLOG, but I am so happy to be posting tonight. I can't sign in at work-probably a good thing- so I have to do it from home--probably a good thing again!!

The only movie I have seen to date (of all the 5 that have been nominated) is Little Miss. . .I would be terribly surprised if that actually won, but it was a funny movie, but Oscar-Worthy?? Hmmmm. . .

I'm with Peggy, I still want to see Dreamgirls. . .surprised that didn't get a nod. I am looking forward to the big night on Feb. 25th, I think Ellen D. will be a very entertaining hostess.

Meanwhile ladies--when are we going to see The Queen? I think I can drag my husband to Babel and The Departed, but I would love to see The Queen with my Oscar friends. I enjoy anything that has to do with Princess Di. . . Yes Peggy, I am moving away from my traditionalist ways and will not be seeing Letters from Iwo Jima this year. Yawn!!!- I don't do well with subtitles. Sorry Clint! Same would have gone for Apocalypto had it been nominated.

Until we meet again,
"Starting the countdown to the Oscars" Maureen

But I STILL want to see Dreamgirls ...

So now we know the 5 movies that we'll be trying to see before the evening of Feb 25th ...

Babel
The Departed
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Sigh. No Dreamgirls, although the expected supporting noms came through for J-Hud and Eddie Murphy.

My observations:

I know that Molly, Kath and I have seen Little Miss Sunshine. Reenie - I think you mentioned that you and Mitch watched it on vacation? How 'bout you Francine. Seen it? I just saw it last weekend, and I’m racking my brain trying to figure out why Alan Arkin got singled out while the other supporting males were not (Greg Kinnear, the kid who plays the silent kid, or my personal favorite, Steve Carrell). Of COURSE the little girl got nominated. What is the Oscars without some little girl getting to play dress-up in the Supporting Actress category?

It's always interesting to me to see the screenplay nominations. Maybe it’s because I fancy myself a professional writer (oh wait – I am a professional writer – I get paid for my efforts, however lame they may be!), or maybe it’s just because I admire creativity in cinema, but doesn’t it seem like the BEST films are always those that get screenplay noms? So I’m counting on being most impressed with movies like Children of Men, Borat, and Little Children.

It’s going to be a struggle to get me to sit down for Letters From Iwo Jima. I am sure it’s deserving, but I am tired of the violence of war. And I’m still not frothing at the mouth to see Babel. And I still don’t know why.

Some of the nominations seem very manly-man to me ... Is this Brokeback-lash? Heh heh heh.

Three of Dreamgirls nominations are in the Best Original Song category … Just pointing that out. Babel received 7 nominations, in 7 different categories. I’m thinking that’s pretty telling. (But I STILL want to see Dreamgirls … )

Click got nominated for Best Makeup!? Must be harder to age Adam Sandler than I would have thought …

Am I the only one excited about the prospect of seeing Al Gore at the Oscars? His documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, is nominated (and I would think, is a front-runner). I wonder if they could get him to be a presenter …

I kind of feel bad for Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. The buzz is/was that they each turned in winning performances in Hollywoodland and The Departed/The Good Shepherd, respectively. Maybe the academy feels like they’ve already won one and are harder on them than other actors??? I think Damon is a danged fine actor, so it bums me out that he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves.

Even though everyone says Hudson is a shoo-in for Best Supporting Actress, I have this twinge in my gut that Blanchette could slide in there, particularly since there might be an anti-Dreamgirls sentiment.

I am most excited about seeing The Queen. I’d like to see it this weekend, if possible. Who’s in????

So, ladies? What do you think? Is this the year when we don’t actually follow-through with the pledge to see all Best Picture noms? Is this the year when we forego the picture noms to see nominated performances (in addition to Hudson and Murphy in Dreamgirls, think: Forrest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland, or Kate Winslet and Jackie Earle Haley in Little Children, or Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson, or Penelope Cruz in Volver, or Sascha Baron Cohen in Borat)? Is this the year we see the movies that get the buzz of screenplay noms instead of the big picture (Pan’s Labryinth, Children of Men, Notes on a Scandal)? And do we dare watch movies that got snubbed (Sherrybaby, and for the most part, United 93 and The Good Shepherd)?

What do you say???

And The Winner Is...

Some mystical energy universal force prevented me from applying for jobs and submitting posts over the weekend. So, this is CLEARLY late, because I had to write it all over again... and I couldn't bear to do it after the third, no FOURTH, blip on my internet activity!!

But, it is so fun I wanted to share. Forgive the lateness. Please.

MSN hosted a game And The Winner Is... for the Golden Globes! I'm so hoping they do it for the Oscars too. They tabulate the winners and you can see your score, compare your score with others... and on and on. I think it's way cool.

I sucked at the game... 9 picks correct...270 points. But it was fun. I will try to do better for Oscar.

Couple of things I just need to say:

Meryl is the best thing about "Prada."

Patricia Arquette as a nominee is a complete mystery to me. Being frumpy and acting flatly is award garnering?? Sup??

I totally called the Hugh Laurie thing, but missed America whats-her-name... even though I really like her.

I love that Heroes got nominated. Sci Fi hardly ever gets a nod.

I'm getting all ready for Oscar! Bring it on!