My favorite movie of all time: "Harold and Maude". The soundtrack by Cat Stevens is worth getting the movie. When I grow up I want to be just like Ruth Gordon's free-spirited, bohemian character and live in a house made from a railroad boxcar.
Every time I watch this movie, I cry my eyes out. What an awesome story of love, sin, hypocrisy and redemption! It has no equal. If you've never seen this movie, then add it to your MUST-SEE list.
I take back what I said about the previous movie. "Babette's Feast" is a moving, beautiful redemption story and a classic, also. It was written by the amazing Isak Dinesen and will take your breath away.
Being a lover of all things Anais Nin, I got this movie when it first came out. It's fabulous and follows the first diary perfectly. Uma Thurman became June Miller, Henry's first wife. And Maria de Medeiros was truly Anais Nin. I've never seen a movie that cast characters so perfectly matched to their real life counterparts. It's also pretty hot and steamy. If you love Nin's diaries, then you'll love this movie.
I have a huge crush on James Spader. And this movie is absolutely wild. Ray brought it home from the library and after we watched it we both said, "Do ya think they even know what goes on in this movie downtown at the main library?" LOL! I also adore Maggie Gyllenhaal who steals the movie from Spader.
"Northern Exposure" has no equal. I bought it one season at a time and have watched them all until I have entire passages memorized. My favorite character? Chris in the Morning played so handsomely by the illustrious John Corbett. I am madly in love with him as the literature loving, motorcycle-riding, Freud-quoting DJ in Cicely, Alaska. Seldom has a televison show been filled with so much poetry, philosophy and just plain fun. On of my favorite lines is "It's not the thing you fling, it's the fling itself," spoken by Chris when he flings a piano with a catapult. He was going to fling a cow originally. (Someone had already done a cow to his dismay, but from thence comes the quote.) If you've never seen this series, put it on your list, too.
And last, fittingly, is "Six Feet Under". This is my 2nd favorite TV series after "Northern Exposure". It's about the dysfunctional (i.e. normal) Fisher family who owns and runs a funeral home and that's like saying "Gone With the Wind" is about the South. I can't do it justice with mere words. Frances Conroy as the uptight mother, Ruth, is amazing and fun to watch. Before Michale C. Hall became famous as the serial killing blood spatter expert in "Dexter", he played the part of David Fisher in this show. I only wish they'd gone on for a few more years.
On that note, I hope you all have a happy & safe 4th of July weekend. It's raining here, so I'll be hunkered down reading. I'm into Bram Stoker's "Dracula" at the moment.
What are a few of your favorite movies?
Blessings,
~Marion
"Sex on television can't hurt you unless you fall off." ~Author Unknown
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"Television! Teacher, mother, secret lover." ~Homer Simpson, The Simpsons
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15 comments:
I love Harold and Maude! It's one of the few movies I watch over and over. I loved it when I was young and can still relate to it as I age, that in itself rates it as an amazing film and the soundtrack is perfect, too!
Bennie and Joon, Sleeper, the first Raiders of the Lost Ark, Out of Africa...those are also high on my list.
I will have to check out the ones you noted...
I've heard about "Six Feet Under" and it always sounded intriguing, but I didn't have the cable channel that carried it.
(Same thing goes for "Dexter")
"Dracula" is a good read, enhanced (though some might also say hampered somewhat) by its 19th century styling.
Teri, I love what you said about "Harold and Maude". It's ageless! I like all the movies you mentioned, too, especially "Benny and Joon". Blessings!
Eric, I have $11 per month cable which is only about 12 channels. I check out all of the movies I watch from our local library. That's how I watched both "Dexter" and "Six Feet Under". I'm surprised that more people don't know that most libraries carry movies and televion DVD's now that you can check out just like books. Blessings!
Holy coincidences, Batman! I was just at the library yesterday!
Our library also rents VHS tapes, CDs, DVDs and such. Lots of old movies and special interest stuff, but not many recently-shown offerings - especially TV shows.
(Mostly PBS series, Masterpiece Theatre shows - stuff like that)
I do take advantage of their CD library though - lots of stuff that I wouldn't necessarily buy but would like to hear (and copy - shhhh!)
I can watch action-comedy movies or non-sappy romantic comedies over and over and over again. We're talking "The Princess Bride," "When Harry Met Sally," any of the "Die Hard" movies, stuff like that.
TV-wise: I could just cycle through all 7 seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for the rest of my life :)
Prepare to be shocked....
I have not seen ANY of these!!!
Great reviews, though. Maybe I need to check out some of them.
Still hot around here, but not AS hot as it's been. Hope you're staying cool.
Love the Homer quote!
Sadly, I've missed a lot of movies lately, due to trying to write every spare minute of the day.
I'm hoping to watch "The Fall" this weekend, I've heard great things about it.
I also love "Babette's Feast," haven't seen it in forever. "Breaking the Waves" sounds very good, too. I want to say I've seen "Henry & June"...I have such a horrid movie memory (and memory in general)...at any rate, it deserves another viewing, for sure!
I come from a family of huge movie buffs. I fell in love with international cinema while in college, there was a free theater on campus and I went there, religiously, alone, for 4 years and saw all sorts of mind blowing film.
I don't watch any TV, but when it comes to movies, I'm there!!
Harold and Maude is a classic. We loved Northern Exposure--TV has not been the same since.
OK, I suck, because I haven't seen most of these. Secretary was a trip!
Phoenix, well, chick flicks are a given, right? The "Kill Bill" movies are my #1 favorites of all time...the body count alone makes it the ultimate chick flick. Tee-Hee. And with a sword at that!
I love my Sandra Bullock collection (Practical Magic, Hope Floats, Miss Congeniality, The Proposal) and of course, there's "Overboard" with Goldie Hawn which I have memorized word for word. I'll have to check out "Buffy". If you like it, I'm sure it's awesome. Blessings!
Kelly, you've got to watch at least the first three, for sure. Blessings!
Terresa, I just knew you'd be a movie buff. I love the 'indies' I get from the library. They're so much better than the average mainsteam garbage. You'll have more time for movie watching when your rugrats are grown. LOL! Blessings!
DS, I know. I cried when they cancelled "Northern Exposure". But the final season did give us closure, unlike some series they just leave hanging nowadays! Blessings!
Riot Kitty, no, you don't suck. Most people don't even know about most of these movies because they were made by independent companies. Now you have something to look forward to. :-) Thanks for stopping by. Blessings!
Oh! Thank you for this list of movies...I never know what to pick when I'm recording or at the video store. And these look sooo good...just up my alley.
I think it's time to just relax this weekend and watch movies. The weather is on the cool side and it's supposed to rain...so what better thing to do than make some cookies and tea and watch a few really good movies?
Northern Exposure was a great show! I have only the first 2 seasons so far. After the doc left, I stopped watching the series on TV.
Marion! I hope you can find these movies. Most are oldies but goodies and you'll enjoy them. I did find most of them at our local library, though. Yes, a rainy weekend is just perfect for movie watching. Blessings!
Jen, there were still some great shows after the Doc was replaced. As long as Chris was there, I watched. LOL! Thanks for stopping by. Blessings!
Loved all those movies! Secretary is the quirkiest of the quirky. I would love to see Northern Exposure again!
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