Fun with movies
Aug. 5th, 2003 11:33 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tarotgalGacked from some random journal I got two journals in from someone who writes fantastic Remus/Sirius stories. I really like it... nicer than just asking what your favorite movie is (because I have so many I can't ever pick)
1. What movies are your comfort viewing -- the ones you slink back to in times of stress?
The Princess Bride, certainly, and The Breakfast Club, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Goonies, the Back to the Future movies(usually when I'm sick I watch these to feel better), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang(which I always watch when I'm horribly depressed and need to feel better), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The 10th Kingdom is great when I need cheering up and something very long I can adore but drift in and out of(it's nearly 8 hours long without commercials). There are a number of random ones that I will watch on TV just because I remember loving them as a kid and they always comfort me... like Trading Places, Clue, Funny Farm, Feds, League of their Own, Renaissance Man, Blues Brothers, Troop Beverly Hills, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Sound of Music... if I'm flipping the channels and any of those are on, I'll immediately stop, no matter what else might be on because they ALWAYS make me feel good and revert me back to happy times.
2. What was your favourite movie as a child, and why?
That's so hard. I had a weird childhood- I didn't watch many non-Disney or non-Benji movies (with the exception of ET and Wizard of Oz) really until I was nearly in middle school. So... hrm... favorite childhood movie... maybe the Shaggy Dog? Oohhh The Muppets Take Manhattan was one of my ultimate faves. OH! The Pound Puppies Movie! Yes! That was my favorite as a child.
Wait! No! I've got it! Adventure's in Babysitting! Yes! That's it! I adored that movie as a child! Saw it at least 100 times. At least! That's my final answer!
3. What was your favourite movie as an adolescent, and why?
Hrm... why is it that that part of my life seems blocked from my memory? LOL! I was a HUGE tv watcher at that time, so not as much movies. Hrmmm... this is tough. Maybe The Lion King? Or... The Princess Bride. Oh, and the BBC Chronicles of Narnia movies- those really can fit into questions 1, 2, and 3 easily. Honestly... I was more tv obsessed then.
4. What is the genre of movies gathering dust on your video library -- the movies you've bought but just never got around to watching?
LOL! How about I name them first... The Matrix- I've seen it so many times, thought I should have a copy so I could show it to boyfriend, and never watched my copy. Boyfriend bought me the Fight Club DVD- I LOVED that movie but it's not the kind I can watch multiple times. I also have 'My Best Friend's Wedding' which I've watched 4 times and am now bored with- you can really only watch romantic comedies so many times before you go insane. But the largest category of movies I own but rarely watch are: movies staring one of the Highlander stars which are so horribly bad I cannot stand to watch them for the plots. I've got, oh, maybe 15 of these. Possibly more than if you count ones taped off the tv. They very, very rarely get watched.
5. What kind of movies would you like to say you watch, but never do?
Documentaries/Realistic ones(i.e. more factual than just historical fictions). I have a few taped off the tv... but never get around to watching them. I keep thinking, OH! This will be great! I'll learn more about the Civil War... but it never happens. Unless it ties in with a fanfic/story or tv show (I watched 'The Plot to Kill Hitler' after Highlander did a take on it, and I watched a dozen Romanov things after Forever Knight did an episode about them)
6. What's the oddest movie you ever saw?
Oddest? Oohhhh that's hard! Hrm. I'm tempted to say Blade... but in the end, I'm going to have to go with: Faeries, the animated movie with Dougray Scott doing a voice. I love Dougray. Sister and I rented it for that reason. The plot was painful, the animation terrible, and they didn't want to pay another actor to do a voice so one of the faeries was MUTE! He conveyed important info using hand gestures the other faeries interpreted. LMAO! Very, very weird.
I've seen a LOT of weird movies, though. OH! There was one on HBO that beats that... can't remember the title, though. It was about a man who thinks maybe he killed someone in his apartment building and he feels guilty, but he can't remember doing it, though he thinks maybe he did. And there's possibly some ex-military crazy living upstairs who's only there part of the time. And everything's dark and it's always night and I couldn't figure out if it was all in his head or real or what. It made NO sense whatsoever. Yeah. That's the oddest one. Wish I knew the title.
7. What movie were you never able to get through, despite the recommendations of people you respect?
I always finish movies if I start them. Might take some time if they're multi-parters, though. But I've never stopped a movie halfway through. Never. Even if I'm lost. I always watch to the end even if I don't understand what's going on and even if I hate it. It's somebody's baby and I'm determined not to judge anything until I finish it. Just isn't fair otherwise.
The movie I've never watched, despite recommendations, is Last of the Mohicans, though. Everyone tells me to watch it, and my best friend would kill me if she read this and heard I still haven't... boyfriend even tried to get me to see parts... but I've never seen it. Honestly, after all the pressure, I don't want to any longer! LOL
8. What's the movie it took you a couple of tries to get into, but was as good as promised once you finally made it?
Weird as it sounds since it's one of my favorites now, Velvet Goldmine. I was utterly confused the first time watching... it jumps around so much... and this pin/space alien thing- HUH? But after watching a second time, I was in love. And on the third watching, I can't understand why I wasn't hopelessly in love on the first watching. It's actually the only movie I've ever rented from a video store three times. I finally ended up buying it. Wish I could find the extended UK version on DVD. I LOVE that movie now and it's one of the ones I watch when I want to be artistically inspired, but I was really... I dunno... confused and fuzzy the first time around.
9. What's your favourite animation . . . or do you even have one?
The Lion King.
That was easy :-) I love Anastasia, Winnie the Pooh, Beauty and the Beast, and Monster's Inc. as well (have all four on DVD, along with Charlotte's Webb and the Care Bears Movie). Oh, and The Phantom Tollbooth kicked serious butt. I love Fantasia and 101 Dalmations, too.
10. The desert island. Three movies (and collected works don't count; if you want *Lord of the Rings* it'll cost you all three slots). Go:
Whoo boy... this is hard! Um...
1-The Princess Bride
2-The Breakfast Club/Dead Poet's Society (depending on my mood the day I'm stranded and if I think I'll need an inspirational one or not- both are great character movies)
3-Highlander: Endgame
er... I think. Man... I wish I'd listed Lord of the Rings- Fellowship or Harry Potter or the Narnia movies in there... but no... honestly, if I were stranded and had to survive on just 3... those would be them.... I think. This is tough. I'm not good at decisions!!!
Yay! That was fun! I'm going to go to sleep now. I got less than 2 hours of sleep last night... I go sleep now... wake up in time for highlander on TNN at 4pm...
1. What movies are your comfort viewing -- the ones you slink back to in times of stress?
The Princess Bride, certainly, and The Breakfast Club, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Goonies, the Back to the Future movies(usually when I'm sick I watch these to feel better), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang(which I always watch when I'm horribly depressed and need to feel better), Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The 10th Kingdom is great when I need cheering up and something very long I can adore but drift in and out of(it's nearly 8 hours long without commercials). There are a number of random ones that I will watch on TV just because I remember loving them as a kid and they always comfort me... like Trading Places, Clue, Funny Farm, Feds, League of their Own, Renaissance Man, Blues Brothers, Troop Beverly Hills, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Sound of Music... if I'm flipping the channels and any of those are on, I'll immediately stop, no matter what else might be on because they ALWAYS make me feel good and revert me back to happy times.
2. What was your favourite movie as a child, and why?
That's so hard. I had a weird childhood- I didn't watch many non-Disney or non-Benji movies (with the exception of ET and Wizard of Oz) really until I was nearly in middle school. So... hrm... favorite childhood movie... maybe the Shaggy Dog? Oohhh The Muppets Take Manhattan was one of my ultimate faves. OH! The Pound Puppies Movie! Yes! That was my favorite as a child.
Wait! No! I've got it! Adventure's in Babysitting! Yes! That's it! I adored that movie as a child! Saw it at least 100 times. At least! That's my final answer!
3. What was your favourite movie as an adolescent, and why?
Hrm... why is it that that part of my life seems blocked from my memory? LOL! I was a HUGE tv watcher at that time, so not as much movies. Hrmmm... this is tough. Maybe The Lion King? Or... The Princess Bride. Oh, and the BBC Chronicles of Narnia movies- those really can fit into questions 1, 2, and 3 easily. Honestly... I was more tv obsessed then.
4. What is the genre of movies gathering dust on your video library -- the movies you've bought but just never got around to watching?
LOL! How about I name them first... The Matrix- I've seen it so many times, thought I should have a copy so I could show it to boyfriend, and never watched my copy. Boyfriend bought me the Fight Club DVD- I LOVED that movie but it's not the kind I can watch multiple times. I also have 'My Best Friend's Wedding' which I've watched 4 times and am now bored with- you can really only watch romantic comedies so many times before you go insane. But the largest category of movies I own but rarely watch are: movies staring one of the Highlander stars which are so horribly bad I cannot stand to watch them for the plots. I've got, oh, maybe 15 of these. Possibly more than if you count ones taped off the tv. They very, very rarely get watched.
5. What kind of movies would you like to say you watch, but never do?
Documentaries/Realistic ones(i.e. more factual than just historical fictions). I have a few taped off the tv... but never get around to watching them. I keep thinking, OH! This will be great! I'll learn more about the Civil War... but it never happens. Unless it ties in with a fanfic/story or tv show (I watched 'The Plot to Kill Hitler' after Highlander did a take on it, and I watched a dozen Romanov things after Forever Knight did an episode about them)
6. What's the oddest movie you ever saw?
Oddest? Oohhhh that's hard! Hrm. I'm tempted to say Blade... but in the end, I'm going to have to go with: Faeries, the animated movie with Dougray Scott doing a voice. I love Dougray. Sister and I rented it for that reason. The plot was painful, the animation terrible, and they didn't want to pay another actor to do a voice so one of the faeries was MUTE! He conveyed important info using hand gestures the other faeries interpreted. LMAO! Very, very weird.
I've seen a LOT of weird movies, though. OH! There was one on HBO that beats that... can't remember the title, though. It was about a man who thinks maybe he killed someone in his apartment building and he feels guilty, but he can't remember doing it, though he thinks maybe he did. And there's possibly some ex-military crazy living upstairs who's only there part of the time. And everything's dark and it's always night and I couldn't figure out if it was all in his head or real or what. It made NO sense whatsoever. Yeah. That's the oddest one. Wish I knew the title.
7. What movie were you never able to get through, despite the recommendations of people you respect?
I always finish movies if I start them. Might take some time if they're multi-parters, though. But I've never stopped a movie halfway through. Never. Even if I'm lost. I always watch to the end even if I don't understand what's going on and even if I hate it. It's somebody's baby and I'm determined not to judge anything until I finish it. Just isn't fair otherwise.
The movie I've never watched, despite recommendations, is Last of the Mohicans, though. Everyone tells me to watch it, and my best friend would kill me if she read this and heard I still haven't... boyfriend even tried to get me to see parts... but I've never seen it. Honestly, after all the pressure, I don't want to any longer! LOL
8. What's the movie it took you a couple of tries to get into, but was as good as promised once you finally made it?
Weird as it sounds since it's one of my favorites now, Velvet Goldmine. I was utterly confused the first time watching... it jumps around so much... and this pin/space alien thing- HUH? But after watching a second time, I was in love. And on the third watching, I can't understand why I wasn't hopelessly in love on the first watching. It's actually the only movie I've ever rented from a video store three times. I finally ended up buying it. Wish I could find the extended UK version on DVD. I LOVE that movie now and it's one of the ones I watch when I want to be artistically inspired, but I was really... I dunno... confused and fuzzy the first time around.
9. What's your favourite animation . . . or do you even have one?
The Lion King.
That was easy :-) I love Anastasia, Winnie the Pooh, Beauty and the Beast, and Monster's Inc. as well (have all four on DVD, along with Charlotte's Webb and the Care Bears Movie). Oh, and The Phantom Tollbooth kicked serious butt. I love Fantasia and 101 Dalmations, too.
10. The desert island. Three movies (and collected works don't count; if you want *Lord of the Rings* it'll cost you all three slots). Go:
Whoo boy... this is hard! Um...
1-The Princess Bride
2-The Breakfast Club/Dead Poet's Society (depending on my mood the day I'm stranded and if I think I'll need an inspirational one or not- both are great character movies)
3-Highlander: Endgame
er... I think. Man... I wish I'd listed Lord of the Rings- Fellowship or Harry Potter or the Narnia movies in there... but no... honestly, if I were stranded and had to survive on just 3... those would be them.... I think. This is tough. I'm not good at decisions!!!
Yay! That was fun! I'm going to go to sleep now. I got less than 2 hours of sleep last night... I go sleep now... wake up in time for highlander on TNN at 4pm...
no subject
Date: 2003-08-05 11:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-08-06 03:37 am (UTC)To recap quickly and sadly, in less detail:
1. Comfort viewing: The LOTR and HP movies, and I'll agree with you on Princess Bride. I'll also chuck in there Moulin Rouge, though I'll stop the DVD before the tragic end.
2. Fav. movie as a child: The Star Wars trilogy, hands down. I don't consciously remember seeing this for a first time, I've just always loved it. When I was little, Return of the Jedi was my favorite. I thought Jabba was hilarious, and the music at the end when Luke snaps and jumps out to fight Vader, silhouetted against the dark starry background, sent shivers down my spine. Luke Skywalker was my first crush...he had sweet Jedi powers and what I thought were the most gorgeous blue eyes (obviously, Elijah Wood was yet to be born *G*) SW also jump-started my love of movie scores...they're practically the only CD's I ever buy.
3. Favorite movie as an adolescent, and why: Honestly, my tastes didn't change much from childhood to now. I added into the mix Star Trek, (I especially liked the arc from ST II-IV), as well as a love for historical costume-drama/epics. I must have watched Gone With the Wind dozens of times in my teens. I also really loved the Karate Kid, especially the second one where they go to Okinawa. That should have been a warning about my anime obsession yet to come :)
4. Genre of movies gathering dust on my shelves: I seem to have lost interest in a couple anime series that I rushed out to purchase a couple years back, namely Gundam Wing and Ayashi no Ceres, the latter of which I have yet to watch the last 2 discs at all as of yet. If I actually owned any movies that were not sci-fi, fantasy, or anime, they'd probably be gathering dust too *G*
5. Movies I'd like to watch but never do: Popular movies that other people seem to love and always discuss at work, but that I either won't spend my money on in the theater, or am too busy with my current obsession to be willing to take time out to see or rent. Case in point: Finding Nemo. I've heard wonderful things and I'm sure it's great and all, but I'd rather spend my money on Pirates of the Caribbean right now, thanks very much!
6. Oddest movie I've ever seen: Jacob's Ladder was pretty messed up, but I fell asleep 2/3 of the way though and have no clue how it ended. Also, the animated versions of LOTR and The Hobbit definitely fall in this category. The people responsible for putting Boromir in animal skins and a viking helmet, those who decided that the Mirkwood elves in 'The Hobbit' were a different species than Elrond entirely and look like little ugly little house elves with green skin and hair (poor Legolas and Thranduil!), and those who thought it would be fun if Mordor Orcs liked to march happily singing 'Where there's a whip, there's a way' should be forced to sit and watch their creations until the excruciatingly bad rotoscoped man-in-a-cheap-ratty-Balrog-suit is burned upon their retinas forever. The cartoon 'The Hobbit' turned me off of LOTR and kept me from reading the books for years, a fact that saddens and angers me now.
7. Movie I can't get through, despite recommendations: Pearl Harbor (sorry Hermione), and the anime series Cowboy Bebop (sorry Ty-chan and 'Remy-kun).
8. Movie that took me a couple tries to get into, but was as good as promised once I did: Monty Python and the Holy Grail
9. Favorite animation...or do I even have one? This merits an answer and a rant too long to put here. Suffice it to say, few American cartoons make it on my list, save the 90's Disney movies, Sleeping Beauty, and Pixar stuff. A list of great anime would be long indeed, but I must at least mention Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke, which are true works of art.
10. Ah, the desert island. I accept your terms!
1. LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring
2. LOTR: The Two Towers
3. LOTR: Return of the King (but until it's out, I'm putting in Pirates of the Caribben as a worthy placeholder!)
no subject
Date: 2003-08-06 05:10 am (UTC)1. Comfort viewing: The LOTR and HP movies, and I'll agree with you on Princess Bride. I'll also chuck in there Moulin Rouge, though I'll stop the DVD before the tragic end.
Yeah... I do that with Moulin Rouge sometimes. I enjoy watching it with the green fairy on to break it up and see behind the scenes and all. There's such a magic to the movie... but I cry horribly at the end. And yeah, I do watch LotR and HP movies for comfort, too.
2. Fav. movie as a child: The Star Wars trilogy, hands down...
As I was listening to HP5 yesterday, it reall struck me how much like Luke Skywalker Harry is. That scene with Dumbledore trying to tell Harry that it's a good thing he feels because that means he's human(unlike Voldy who's gone through so many procedures/spells) and Harry says then he doesn't want to be human. Man. Huge Star Wars vibe. I don't know how I missed that on first reading! YAY! Return of the Jedi was ALWAYS my favorite. I had a thing for Ewoks when I was little. Not that kind of a thing. But I really loved 'em. And I like that final ending and resolution and understanding that comes with that movie.
Is it still your fave now that you're older? Or are some on more of an equal level now? Just wondering :-)
3. Favorite movie as an adolescent, and why: Honestly, my tastes didn't change much from childhood to now.
My boyfriend lived in Atlanta, Georgia for 2 years, and yet still has never seen Gone with the Wind. It's astounding. Oohhhh I love the Star Trek movies. Everyone always puts down III... maybe I like it because of the h/c possibilities... I dunno. But IV was ALWAYS my favorite. A perfect mix of humor and nobility and time travel and classic Trek elements.
5. Movies I'd like to watch but never do: Popular movies that other people seem to love and always discuss at work
That's a good point. There are a ton of movies I'd love to watch in theaters but don't want to pay or can't find anyone to go with me. I am still dying to see Finding Nemo... I'd have to bind and gag boyfriend for him to go see it with me though.
6. Oddest movie I've ever seen: Jacob's Ladder... Also, the animated versions of LOTR and The Hobbit definitely fall in this category.
LMAO! I'm glad I was too young to remember a lot of the animated versions, then :-) I don't think I ever saw The Hobbit, though. But the LOTR certainly put me off reading the books too. As for Jacob's Ladder, I haven't seen it... but fom the description on IMDB I don't think I will be seeing it.
7. Movie I can't get through, despite recommendations: Pearl Harbor (sorry Hermione), and the anime series Cowboy Bebop (sorry Ty-chan and 'Remy-kun).
LOL I haven't seen either. Though I have heard good things about both. Pearl Harbor just doesn't look like my thing. Having grown up as a liberal in a a military town, I'm a little less fond of military movies than I should be. One day I will sit down and make myself watch Black Hawk down, if only for the guys. I'm sure I'll like it, just not the sort of thing I seek out.
8. Movie that took me a couple tries to get into, but was as good as promised once I did: Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Awwwwwww! I grew up in a house where British comedy was law. Fawlty Towers was as sacred as Mr.Rogers and Monty Python was my ultimate in funny. I first saw Holy Grail when I was 11 and DIED laughing at the bridge of death and the animator's fatal heart attack. My friends STILL don't understand what I find so funny about that movie.
9. Favorite animation...or do I even have one?
I actually really want to see both of those- I've heard they're gorgeous. They're close to the top of my list right now. Oh! And Sleeping Beauty! YES! I love MUCH!
10. Ah, the desert island. I accept your terms!
1. LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring
2. LOTR: The Two Towers
3. LOTR: Return of the King (but until it's out, I'm putting in Pirates of the Caribben as a worthy placeholder!)
LOL! Looks good to me!!! *claps*
Thanks for sharing!!
no subject
Date: 2003-08-06 06:41 am (UTC)I disliked Pearl Harbor because of it's vast historical inaccuracies, and I thought the love triangle seemed contrived and I never quite bought into it. It just seemed a bit too convenient that she loves both and one dies to get rid of the conflict of who she should choose. She ends up not ever having to make the tough call, but I think it would have been infinitely more fascinating if she had had to make a decision. Plus, quite frankly, I don't think Josh Hartnett has as much depth or ability as an actor as his popularity merits. He tries to play 'sensitive guy' but it just comes off as wooden to me. All his characters have felt the same to me, and he was actually my least favorite part of Black Hawk Down, other than the excessive violence. On the plus side for Black Hawk Down is the little office scene where Ewan McGregor takes down Orlando Bloom's registration info...it's just such a joy to see them together! I say BHD is worth renting, but I don't think I would buy it.
As for Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back is now my favorite, mostly because it has such great emotion and some pretty deep character moments, most notably in the Han/Leia department. Between the gorgeous love theme, and the great 'I know' response to Leia's profession of love, and it stands as an example of the right way to do believable romance. After rewatching Empire, the flatness of the Anakin/Padme relationship really stands out even more painfully. I also love Empire for the Yoda stuff, and I'm also a sucker for cold, hurt Luke on Hoth *G*
It's a hard choice though...ROTJ still has so many moments I love: How Luke is so calm and powerful in the beginning, the salute he gives when he jumps off of Jabba's skiff, and the surprise from his friends that he can now kick total ass instead of being all whiny, the conversations with Leia in the Ewok village, and then later with Vader, the aforementioned final saber fight with Vader, and that cute confindent stride he has, lightsaber swinging at his belt, when he returns to his friends after the battle. Great moments that still give me the warm fuzzies!
no subject
Date: 2003-08-13 09:14 pm (UTC)1. My fav. comfort vid's are "Princess Bride", "Father of the Bride (the orginal with Spencer Tracy and Elizabeth Taylor), "Monty Phython and the Holy Grail (yeah... I'm odd), and "Cutting Edge"
Oops! And "Charlie Brown Christmas" -I am a sucker for the Linus and Lucy song (and a dancing Snoopy (grin)
2. Hmmmm.... I loved "The Parent Trap" and the "Superman" movies *blush* I really liked Christopher Reeve.
3. As a teen.... I don't know- I liked Steve Martin, and John Candy movies. But I think that I would probably have to go with "Princess Bride"
4. *hangs head* Fitness vid's.- I've used them- but haven't in a Long time. And two movies that my brother got me for Christmas presents. "Meet Joe Black" and "City of Angels" (Meg Ryan movies tend to be too sappy for me- and I'm not overly fond of Brad Pitt- although Hopkins is one of my fav. actors)
5. Hmmm... I don't know- I probably don't watch as many "classic" movies as I feel like I should....
6. "Novacaine" with Steve Martin- It was supposed to be dark, but... in my opinion "One Hour Photo" was dark, "Mr. and Mrs. Bridges" (I think that was the title) was dark - Novacaine-was just.... kinda odd.
7. I can't think of any movie that I didn't watch all the way through. I didn't want to watch "Titanic" *but I was forced to by my best friend*.
8. Hmmm.... if I don't like it the first time out I really don't watch it again. Although- the more that I've seen Monty Phython the more that I like it.
9. Lilo and Stitch *grin* I love that the girls aren't sticks and that the story isn't a romance story. (My second fav. Disney movie is Lion King).
I also love Veggie Tales. Yeah... I'm a goof- but Larry the Cucumber makes me grin.
10. Ugh!!! Just 3?? Yipes!!!
Hmmmm....
1. Bridget Jones Diary (cause I'd Have to have a Firth movie along- and P&P is Two tapes)
2. Lord of the Rings: the Fellowship (I liked the first one movie better than the second- I'd bring parts II and III in book form *at least till I see the third one and decide if I like book or movie better for that one);)
3. The Princess Bride: humour action, Elwes, and it would make me happy.
This was fun. Thanks tg! :)
tma