Author: Vivid Muse

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Chooch Dizzy Family Health Kids Our Kids

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

I wasn’t going to post this yet, but decided to after breaking down at the store today. What better way to purge but to write a blog? I did promise myself when I started this that it would be my true journal, if not specific it would at least document the “big” things going on in my life.

And no, there is no great tragedy here. My oldest son, jokingly known as Naughty Bear after a game of the same name, is getting his own place, has a job lined up, and will continue to take a full course load at his school. It’s all great stuff for him, and I could not be more proud or happy for him as he takes more steps into the world as an adult.

The only drawback? He’s moving out of state to the same area where his brother, known here as L.T., lives with his father, step-mother and the kids they’ve had since they married. This puts both of my sons approximately 1100 miles away, while my step-son remains 2600 miles away. This makes me a very sad panda.

He’s decided to move there for the same reason that L.T. moved there a little over a year ago. His younger siblings are growing up, and he’s missing out on experiencing it. This fact was brought home to him when L.T. returned for his summer break and we all marveled at his height and newly deepened voice.  I do not begrudge either of them the experience of deepening their bonds with their younger siblings and father. I’m simply pissed that it has to happen at the sacrifice of my selfish desire to spend time with them.

We’ve talked at length about it, and yes, I’m being extremely supportive positive and helping out where I can find ways to. He’s such a caring young man, and has even confessed that he thinks our relationship is better than ever. Our frank and occasionally uncomfortably honest conversations have bonded us even more closely, as we’ve all expressed. I’m thrilled to have this newly defined bond with him since he moved out after graduation to attend college.  However, it also makes his move extra painful for this selfish and wimpy mom.

After all, he’s my first child, and the first to forever change my heart and the way it loves, as only a child can. Having him nearby was the only thing that got me through the initial pain of L.T. leaving last year. Yes, my husband is an incredibly loving and supportive man, and we joke about our dog Kaylee being our ‘baby girl’, but come on, we’re talking about our babies.

So, if I seem to be struggling in recent and coming weeks, try and bear with me. He’s leaving in about three weeks, right before my birthday, and I’m wearing my Brave Face for him until then. That may crack from time to time with friends, so if I get too maudlin, know that my feelings will not be hurt if you get sick of it. Hells, I get sick of it so why shouldn’t you?

I’ve also started back to college on a very light schedule. I’m taking one online course and one course at the campus. That class was contingent on a discussion with the instructor, and her assurance that she will make allowances for classes that I have to miss due to my illness. She is a fellow migraine sufferer, fully understands my situation and will be flexible with me when I am unable to drive to the campus.

While I’m excited about this step in a new direction, I’m more terrified than anything. I’m scared that having to work around my newly acquired forgetfulness, inability to hold a thought, migraines, fatigue and inability to tolerate (physical and emotional) stressors will cause me to do poorly. The classes aren’t free, after all, and I don’t want to waste our money on failing a class. After long and encouraging discussions with my husband, I’m going for it, and will work hard to do well and maintain the very high GPA that I now hold.

So, that’s most of what’s going on with me. How *you* doin’?

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AFI's Top 100 Movies

The French Connection – Number 93 on the AFI's Top 100 Movies List

French Connection (1971) – I gotta say, I can think of several other gritty/ irreverent buddy cop movies that are far more interesting. There was absolutely nothing in the way of interesting characters, and as Chooch said, they’re like cardboard cut outs. I agreed and commented that I cared more about a random kid in the background of a sniper shooting than about Gene Hackman’s character that was the target of said sniper. I had no emotional investment in any of the characters, which is a big no-no for my enjoyment of a story in any form.

One stinker was a scene with Roy Scheider and Gene Hackman showed them playing cards and laughing while listening to a surveillance tape, and it seemed like a forced and unrealistic moment of camaraderie. The movie has the sound effects (screeching tires, subway train noise, gunshots) cranked up pretty loud, possibly to make it more gritty and life-like, but in my opinion it’s gone too far and hurts the film. And at one point, I had to crank the volume way down because the music being played during an action scene was so jarring and annoying that I literally almost left the room. The attempt to amp up the suspense and tension just irked me to no end and took me out of the movie completely.

I turned to our old friend Wikipedia to try and suss out what the big deal is, and it tells me that “The French Connection was a scheme through which heroin was smuggled from Turkey to France and then to the United States, culminating in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when it provided the vast majority of the illicit heroin used in the United States.”
So okay, another “based on a true story” film, I get it. Also, “In 2005, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being ‘culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant’.” Apparently, it was ground breaking and portrayed a drug war as it was still going on. Forty years ago.

Also, it was the first R-rated film to win an Oscar since the MPAA rating system was put in place, and was nominated for 8 Oscars, winning 5:

  • Academy Award for Best Picture – Phillip D’Antoni
  • Best Director – William Friedkin
  • Best Actor – Gene Hackman
  • Best Adapted Screenplay
  • Film Editing

Other movies that were nominated for the Oscar that year were: A Clockwork Orange, Fiddler on the Roof, Nicholas and Alexandra and The Last Picture Show. I’ve never watched Fiddler… or Nicholas… but my favorite of the other three is easily A Clockwork Orange. I don’t hesitate to say that I would have preferred either it or The Last Picture Show to win. In fact, as little as I enjoyed The Last Picture Show, it definitely ranks higher on my list than French Connection.

And the car chase scene? The one everyone talks about that is supposed to be worth the time invested for that one scene? I didn’t realize it had already happened. I thought it was at the very end of the movie. And while that was a fantastic scene, especially the car racing along directly below the train in one shot, it was not worth all that time. The movie was exactly what I thought it was when i avoided it for all these years.

Meanwhile, I cannot wait to listen to Christiana and Mike discuss this film to see what I’ve missed. Their discussions on the previous seven films have, without exception, been able to reveal interesting details on the films that enriched my enjoyment of them.

But I have to say that while I’m counting on not having the full experience by not living in the times that the movie was released in, I still fully expect movies on this list to hold up to the test of time. This movie was released forty years ago, and while I love Hackman and respect his career I do not understand why this movie remains on the list. I’m grateful for the slew of amazing and ground-breaking films in recent years to hopefully correct this.

Happily, Goodfellas is up next. And I loves me some Goodfellas!

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies Movies

Pulp Fiction (94)

In spite of my usual aversion to splattery violence, I have loved this movie since I first saw it oh-so-many years ago. Chooch and I watched it last week with our nineteen year old son, and it was his first viewing. He was sitting at a location that allowed us to see his reactions to the many shocking scenes, and it was entertaining to behold.

There are many extremely talented actors in the film, and one or two popular actors that in my opinion don’t typically stretch their acting muscles beyond their usual character type. Somehow, Tarantino was able to pull amazing performances out of each of them as well. Makes me wonder if I would like Tom Cruise in a Tarantino film…?

Pulp Fiction is an amazing film that I’ve seen several times, however seeing my son’s reactions to the more surprising scenes, like the mess Vincent makes of the backseat of the car and the adrenaline shot given to Mrs. Wallace, made it seem like watching it for the first time again.

As an aside, I do love Tim Roth so very much, and will watch him in anything. Yes, that includes the weird veiny creature he was turned into in the latest Hulk movie. And in my dreams he calls *me* honey bunny.

This is a movie I will watch again and again, because the human story interwoven makes the gore and violence seem less graphic somehow. It is an exception to my usual low tolerance for violence, and it absolutely belongs on the AFI list. I need to peek at Christiana and Mike’s updated list to see how it compares for me in their ranking, but I plan on waiting until watching the movie in spot number 91 on the list, and every tenth movie after that.

Next up is French Connection, which has arrived from Netflix. I’ll be waiting for hubby to watch it with me, so it may not be viewed until the coming weekend. I’ve never seen it, but have of course heard of it. Other than an epic car chase, I don’t know anything else. And I’m fuzzy on whether or not there’s actually a car chase.

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5k Chooch Dizzy Exercise Health Kaylee

Back in the Saddle Again, Metaphorically Speaking.

If you’ve been reading about my health issues here, then you know how disgusted I am with the recently lost weight starting to creep back. I started walking again a few months ago, but it has been hit or miss. I get so dizzy that I don’t like to go by myself, and it was too much of a time investment for Chooch in the mornings before work. Yes, it has to be in the morning since he frequently doesn’t get home until 8 or 9 p.m., too late for us.

I’ve not been able to get started on any other work out plan, because I don’t enjoy anything as much as I enjoy running. Period. So after a lot of thought, I decided to re-start the Couch to 5k program, again using Robert Ullrey’s podcast. This will be the third time, and I really enjoy it. Chooch and I both had a lot of success with the slow ramp up of running time, so I broached him about doing it with me. Partially because I know he’s frustrated, and partially because of my fear of running alone. He was hesitant because of some issues with his previously sprained ankle, but otherwise jumped at the idea.

We’re on our third week now, and I am loving it. We spend more time huffing and puffing than talking, so I miss that aspect of the change from walking to running. But I just love having the time with him regardless of what we’re doing. We take Kaylee along and she is getting conditioned along with us. She loves it, and has gotten very well-behaved on the runs. Okay, so she still goes crazy if a bird, cat or squirrel get close to us, but otherwise she’s doing great. She  hardly reacts when passing barking dogs or other runners/walkers now.

Even though it’s Week 3, we re-started Week 2 since weather and special projects prevented us from doing the 3rd day last week. We are also both dealing with sore ankles from previous sprains. We are babying them, but don’t intend to stop unless there is actual pain.

I am okay for about the first half of the run, but somewhere around the midpoint I usually get dizzy. It increases to the point of nausea almost every time, but I’m not stopping. Truth is, I’ll be dizzy either way, and this feels way better than not moving does. Plus, I take great pride in the fact that we’ve fully completed each session.

I’ve not had much weight loss, only about 5 pounds, but I don’t care. I’m converting fat to muscle, my heart is pumping, it helps with stress management and I feel like I’m less of a shut-in when I do it. Yes, I’m dizzy for hours afterward. Yes, I still get migraines. I don’t expect this to really help my migraine issues, but by improving my overall health I am giving my body a treat unlike any other. I’m also enjoying more energy during the day, which is major since I’ve had near constant fatigue along with this entire health dealie. Not as much as before, but more than I’ve had for months.

I’m so grateful to Chooch for going with me on the runs. He pushes me to speed up when I’m struggling just to maintain my speed, all the while keeping a watchful eye to make sure I don’t push too hard. If I had been solo, I would have started Week 3 even though I wasn’t ready, but he insisted we do Week 2 again. He was right, but don’t tell him I said so, m’kay?

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies

The Last Picture Show (95)

The Last Picture Show (1971)

This was a beautiful film, with a fantastic cast. Buuuuut… and I don’t know if it was due to my migraine or what, I had trouble with the film. Chooch did as well, so I’m thinking it’s not just me.  I feel pretty secure in my belief that the sparse and deserted town was exactly what was intended. The town perfectly matched the mood of its inhabitants, as they were clearly feeling the effects of living in the dying town.

The story was depressing and morose, and even in a scene that could have really pushed the dramatic effects and given the viewers a Big Romantic Moment, it fell flat. I believe this to be as the director intended, to bring home the point that these were truly hopeless people. It took me a long time to even be motivated to write anything about the movie, as the tone of the film definitely left its mark on me.

I think it must have been pretty shocking at the time of its release, as there are a few scenes that are pretty sexually graphic for what I remember being other movies showing.

It was filmed in black and white and featured several distant landscape shots that added to the sense of isolation. It was very successful and powerful in its ability to impart a tone on the viewer, as evidence by Chooch and myself. You know how a great action film gets your heart racing and you end up on the edge of your seat? This movie was just as powerful in getting you to feel what the actors were experiencing… which was hopeless and depressed. Understandably, it’s not an experience I want to repeat.

When I saw Brent’s comment to the DtRT (96) post, I stopped reading it when I saw mention of this film. I wanted to experience it without anyone else’s opinions coloring mine. I’m happy that I can now go read it as I’m dying to see his opinion.

Next on the list is Pulp Fiction, which we re-watched Saturday night. I’ll be posting that review shortly.

Categories
Consumer Info

Credit Info That You Hopefully Already Know

We have some credit card debt, and before you start to lecture me, YES we know better. Unplanned stuff happens when you own a home and cars and stuff breaks. Especially when you have kids living in different states and you have plane tickets to buy to spend time with them. Moving on.

I’ve had credit cards off and on over the last 20 or so years, and my preference is to NOT have them. Nothing irritates me more than looking at interest that I have to pay for spending money, whether it’s on a mortgage or a credit account. And I make a point of looking on every statement so I don’t ever forget the cost.

We try to be smart and take advantage of some of the better credit offers, and after doing a recent audit of all of our finances I had a few thoughts to share:

First of all, one of the “ace in the pocket” credit offers is from Best Buy. I don’t know if it’s always available, but we’ve made use of it a few times now –  interest free for 18 months for items over $xxx (I don’t remember the minimum). Keep in mind that the ONLY way this is a good deal is if you pay it OFF before the 18 months expire. If you don’t, then you are charged retroactively all the interest you would have paid. You are given a wonderful motivator on the statement itself, as they have to disclose the offer expiration date along with the accrued interest you will be charged with if you go beyond the expiration.

I simply take the total charged and split it into 17 payments and pay that every month instead of the minimum required. If I can spare any extra I throw that on top also, just in case there is a financial crisis later that may make it difficult. You have to be very disciplined to do this, or you could be staring down the barrel of a huge balloon payment to make to avoid getting tagged with the accrued interest.

Another thing I learned ages ago was to always pay more than the minimum payment. I strive for at least a double payment, and more than that if possible.

Being disciplined with this is much easier now, thanks to the Credit Card Act of 2009. There are some very helpful requirements placed on credit companies to help you stay on track with your credit goals. If you click on the link, you can even download the legislation. It’s dry, but I think anyone with or contemplating a credit line should be familiar with it.

The provision most likely to help you achieve or maintain a healthy credit score is the Enhanced Consumer Disclosure found in Title II. In it, credit card companies are  required to show how long it would take you to pay off your current balance AND what the interest would be over that time. Right below that, they show the calculation of how much you should submit in order to pay off the entire balance in 36 months and that amount of interest. It is shocking to see how long you’ll be paying that minimum, assuming that is all you pay and have no other charges on the account. I think one of ours was NINETEEN YEARS. This is definitely need to know information, and I’m happy that it’s on the statements now.

Another favorite is in Title III – Protection of Young Consumers. It prohibits practices such as giving away promotional items on or near college campuses for credit applications. This practice led countless kids to sign a form and get some crappy thing, not realizing they were harming their credit scores and opening a credit line that in many cases has led to devastating debt for young and informed students. It also prohibits from those under 21 unless there is a co-signer or the person actually meets requirements such as being able to pay independently. Y’know, like the rest of us?!? Also, the student now has to get authorization of joint account holder to credit limit increases. This was so long overdue, and I hope that it actually works as intended.

The Act also prohibits some of the “fees” on gift cards, those ridiculous dormancy and inactivity fees among others, that can chip away at the balance and zero it out before it can be redeemed on goods.  These will only kick in after 12 months, as long as certain provisions are met.

It also provides a lot of other protections and requirements, and while I’m sure there are things in there that suck, if nothing else the aforementioned disclosure should scare you into being aggressive with your credit payoff efforts. I didn’t read the whole thing word for word, and if you find anything that I got wrong, please correct me!

Separate from the legislation, I must insist that you get your credit report from all three credit agencies annually. You can get it for free as explained on the Federal Trade Commission website, which points you to https://www.annualcreditreport.com. I’ve used this for a few years, and it is easy and painless to use. You can see everything that has hit your report, down to who has requested credit reports on you. Dooooo eeeeeeet! It only takes a few minutes to make sure everything is as it should be, and you don’t want to wait until you are applying for a mortgage to find out there is inaccurate information out there.

Now, back to that Credit legislation mentioned earlier. You know how you hear that politicians are always tacking unrelated things on? Well, buried at the bottom of the Credit Card Act (among other things) is an item covering gun possession at National Parks – Visitors to U.S. National Parks can legally carry licensed firearms in to parks, subject to state laws and other provisions, effective Feb. 22, 2010.

I hope Yogi got the news, or else he may get shot for lifting his next picnic basket.

Have you ordered your free credit reports yet? No? Then get to it, Twitter can wait.

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies Movies

Do The Right Thing (96) Review

I watched “Do The Right Thing” (1989) many years ago, shortly after it came out on video tape. (Yep, I said TAPE. I’m that old.) To my then 19 year old self, while I understood the importance of directors like Spike Lee and John Singleton having a voice in Hollywood and being able to get their vision on film, I just didn’t really like the movie. It was believable and ugly, but in my memory some of the stereotypes were exaggerated to an offensive level. Maybe that is part of why I didn’t like it, as I felt that my friends and co-workers in downtown D.C. were unkindly represented.

I don’t think I could ever define why back then, but now I would also guess that since I loved “Boyz n the Hood” (1991), it may have been the lack of seriousness in “DtRT” that I found lacking. They both tackled very serious issues, but the more dramatic and serious tone of “BntH” really resonated and made a big impact on me.

On re-viewing, I was surprised that there was a lot I don’t remember having seen before, and I greatly enjoyed the movie this time around. There are so many extremely talented actors and actresses in the movie, which I remembered, but the rest of it was as if I’d only seen clips previously. I’m guessing my (hopefully) more mature viewpoint is able to process it all better, but I found the story to be much more compelling then I remember. The exaggeration is still there, however experience has taught me that sometimes people really *are* that unbelievably stereotypical. They are few and far between, but they do exist. And the extreme level of bigotry on all sides is crucial to this story.

The acting is fantastic, across the board. I remembered that the woman that played Mookie’s sister in the movie is his sister in real life, mainly because the physical resemblance between them. I found her role small but important, as a strong female that continually urged him along the path toward adulthood and maturity. His girlfriend was so negative in her behavior towards him, that even though she was telling him to grow up, there is no way that message could be heard and absorbed.

Our nineteen year old son watched it with us, to my great surprise. He really LOVES movies, but I was still shocked when he logged out of World of Warcraft at 11 pm to watch it with us. He really enjoyed the film, although he wasn’t interested in a deep discussion about it. We’re holding off on “Pulp Fiction” (number 94)  until the weekend, so he can watch that with us also. I cannot WAIT to see what he thinks of that one!

Coming up next for Chooch and I is number 95, “The Last Picture Show”. We are so far behind Christiana and Mike that I wonder if we’ll ever catch up, but we’ll keep trying!

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies Chooch

Blade Runner (97)

We watched Blade Runner (1982) last night. I’ve seen it before, but that was over 20 years ago. No, I’ve not watched it again since then. (Don’t judge me, I’ve been busy.)

I remembered the key elements – Replicants, Daryl Hannah doing gymnastics, Rutger Hauer looking fierce and Harrison Ford. *sigh* (Yes, I’m one of the kajillion girls that had a crush on him. I even watched the Frisco Kid every time it was on TV in spite of my mild aversion to Gene Wilder.)

I found the movie much more enjoyable this viewing, and picked up on a LOT more story than I caught the first time. This makes me wonder if I’d ever watched the ENTIRE movie before. It bears pointing out that Joanna Cassidy, who has been in a lot of movies but is not likely a household name (Christina Applegate’s boss in “Don’t Tell Mom The Babysitter’s Dead”, if that helps), had a killer body.

Ridley Scott directed, and visually it’s a very beautiful and striking movie. I giggled at the fact that it’s set in the year 2019, only 9 years away from now. It also starred Edward James Olmos and Sean Young (before she went crazy for Cat Woman). She had a very touching moment, and I had forgotten that she’s actually a pretty good actor.

My favorite line is probably Rachel’s “I’m not in the business. I am the business.”

For a more thorough and thoughtful discussion, head over to “Watch 100 Movies”, the podcast that inspired our viewing of AFI’s Top 100 Movies.

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies Chooch Movies

Ben Hur (100), Toy Story (99) and Yankee Doodle Dandy (98)

As I mentioned in a previous post, Chooch and I are following behind Christiana Ellis and Mike Meitin in their quest to watch all 100 of the AFI Top 100 Movies.

We use Netflix, with Chooch and I each having our own queue. It’s worked beautifully, and we always have something wonderful waiting for us. It’s very rare that something comes for one that the other doesn’t want to watch, but it does happen.

Since I was inspired to finally watch these by Christiana and Mike’s new podcast series, I decided to take the hit on my Netflix queue for whatever we don’t already own, and while updating my Netflix queue I made the following discoveries:

  • I’ve already seen 47 of the top 100. We’ve decided to re-watch them, to decide if we agree with the ranking.
  • The Color Purple is not on the list. I’m sure people will disagree, but I’m extremely disappointed.
  • Little Big Man is another shocking admission from the list.
  • The Godfather, Parts I (#2) and II (#32) are both on the list. I completely agree with Part I, but I have to wonder about Part II. Especially with the two movies I listed above being absent. It’s not that it wasn’t good, I just don’t remember it being SO good that it merits being on the list. I’ll revisit this item when I view it again.
  • I’m very excited to finally see some of the movies that Hollywood legends starred in. I’ve never seen a Buster Keaton movie, nor an entire Charlie Chaplin or Marx Brothers’ film. Many of the movies caused me to squee as I added them, because I’m excited to finally have an excuse to watch them.

On to my thoughts on the first three that we’ve viewed.

#100 – Ben Hur
This was my first viewing, and the first thing I’ll admit is that I had no clue how entrenched it is in the story of Christ. The lives of Jesus Christ and Judah Ben Hur intersect at a few points, and many events in Judah’s life are put into motion because of Christ. At one of their meetings, I began to wonder if the tiny seedling of inspiration for the Forrest Gump concept started here. This is a very long 212 minute movie. By that I mean it seemed like it took a lot longer than 212 minutes to watch. I loved the grandness of the film and some elements of the story truly moved me. While I can see how this was a ground-breaking movie in 1959, it is not a movie I plan on ever watching again.

#99 – Toy Story
No big surprise, but I’ve viewed this movie dozens of times. I saw it in the theater when it was released, and have watched it when my kids played it at home. I really do love this movie, and like many of my generation and younger, I can recite whole sections of dialog. I did learn one new thing, which was that Joss Whedon was one of the folks that wrote the screenplay.

#98 – Yankee Doodle Dandy
I hadn’t seen and knew nothing about this movie, other than that my friend Leslie LOVES it. While there were some very touching points in the movie, in general I was underwhelmed. I even questioned why it was on the list since I could think of a few musicals that are better (in my opinion) that are NOT on the list.

I was pretty annoyed, so hit up Wikipedia for some background and discovered that it is based on a real person, George M. Cohan. I had assumed that the famous songs were born in this musical, but learned that he wrote them, including  “Over There”, “Give My Regards to Broadway,” and “The Yankee Doodle Boy.” The same article states “he is considered the father of American musical comedy”. Those things, coupled with what must have been a grand production in 1942 made me understand why this film was so important. While I don’t plan any additional viewings (Sorry, Leslie), I certainly understand it’s existence on the list.

My favorite line from the movie occurs upon the birth of George M. Cohan when his Irish father announces “He’s crying with a brogue!”.

I apologize if I’m re-hashing anything Christiana and Mike already mentioned. I’m still on the fence as to whether or not I want to post my thoughts before or after listening to their coverage, so have not listened yet.

Next up, Bladerunner!

Categories
AFI's Top 100 Movies Chooch Movies

One Hundred Movies, Finally

I’m happy to report that I’ve finally started watching the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Movies, and I owe my thanks to Christiana Ellis. Chooch and I have talked about going through the list before but we never actually started. Now that Christiana has started her new podcast endeavor, Watching 100 Movies, we’ve finally gotten started.

Christiana and her usual partner in media consumption discussions, Mike Meitin, have already released three episodes discussing the first six films (numbers 100 through 95). We are behind their schedule, but have now gotten our Netflix queue in order to hopefully catch up, but at least follow along. We’ve watched 100 – 98, and I thought I’d give short posts on my thoughts of the movies. I’m hoping this will keep me from getting too far behind, or from stopping when a cluster of unappealing movies are next. There, now I have accountability.

My next post will be about the first three movies on the list. Before that, I thought I’d briefly tell you about my movie tastes.

  • I love movies, especially in the theater. I think the suspension of any interruption to be almost necessary for immersion into the world that I’m watching, except for the most exceptional films.
  • I will see anything and everything starring Kevin Spacey, Audrey Hepburn, Johnny Depp, Sandra Bullock and Denzel Washington. I’m sure there are others, but these are the first that come to mind.
  • I love some musicals, including “West Side Story”, “My Fair Lady”, “Moulin Rouge” and “Sunday in the Park with George”.
  • I find war movies, all of them, particularly difficult to watch. While I’m not a pacifist, I do have great difficulty watching mass numbers of humanity get blown to pieces. Empathy/sympathy/whatever overwhelms me and so it is extremely rare that I’m able to get past that to enjoyment.
  • This same issue is why I have trouble with some other films, such as “Meet The Fockers”, “Falling Down” and “Pursuit of Happyness”. I never finished watching any of these. In fact, since the standard theme in Ben Stiller movies is for terrible thing after terrible thing to happen in a ridiculously long string of unlucky events, I also tend to avoid his movies. I find that the continual beating down of a character unenjoyable, even when I know that eventually the tide will likely turn to his or her favor.
  • That said, I have a particular love of dramas. When a film or actor’s performance is able to reach out and touch my soul in a resonating way? Heavenly, even if I’m sobbing.

Expect a post sometime this week on films 100 (Ben Hur), 99 (Toy Story), and 98 (Yankee Doodle Dandy).

Thanks to Christiana and Mike for motivating us to finally watch all these movies!