At the Movies with the Friday Five
I was sure that this week's Friday Five would be related to St. Patrick's Day ... but I'm delighted to be wrong, as I think I have more to say about the movies than about the Irish.
Got your ticket and popcorn? Let's go to the movies!
1. What's your favorite monster movie?
Is it cheating to name Pixar's Monsters, Inc.? I love Pixar, it *is* genuinely one of my favorite Pixar movies, and it's all about monsters (even if it's more of a buddy picture than a monster flick). I suppose, to be more in tune with the spirit of the question, I should choose something along the lines of Frankenstein, Godzilla, Mothra, or even The Blob. And I actually *do* have some level of appreciation for all of those ... but not enough to affect my answer. Monsters, Inc. it is.
2. What's your favorite social issues movie?
I hope documentaries count, because I want to name a Michael Moore film. (*Are* his movies conventional documentaries? Their POV is so pronounced as to seem to put them in a category all their own, IMO.) My favorite, hands down, is 2009's Capitalism: A Love Story, which I used to show to my Business Ethics class at the beginning of every semester. Say what you will about Moore (and there's plenty that can be said, I know), he completely nails this one.
Okay, and since I feared I might again be subverting the intent of the question with my choice, as I prepared this answer I actually searched on "social issue movies" to see if I could be reminded of a more conventional (i.e., story-with-actors) piece that I liked enough to name instead. Google found me this terrific site, which is perhaps *too* generous with the "social issues" designation (for example, the "X-Men" films are listed as dealing with discrimination), but made for interesting scrolling. I was reminded of some favorites that qualify (to name them reverse-chronologically, how about Hidden Figures, The Big Short, Silkwood, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Best Years of Our Lives, and The Great Dictator), but I'm still committed to my first answer.
3. What's a movie you dislike in a genre you love?
I like romance and I love British -- not to mention ensemble and indie-ish -- movies, but I *hated* Love Actually. What a waste of a lot of talent. The only tolerable storylines were the Alan Rickman-Emma Thompson marriage crisis and the Martin Freeman-Joanna Page porn-actor meet-cute. The others were either too slight, kinda creepy, or downright insulting.
4. What's a movie you like in a genre you dislike?
My least favorite genre is horror, but I am so averse to it that I categorically *never* watch one, so there's no exception to the rule there.
All right, here's a qualifying response: I'm not much into war movies, especially not now that they make 'em realistic and gory, but I have a big ol' soft spot for 1962's star-studded, multi-lingual D-Day epic The Longest Day.
5. What's a movie everyone else has seen but you have not seen?
Is James Cameron's Avatar still the most-seen-ever film? Whatever its numbers, it garnered them without me.
And for classic all-time-great movies, how about The Godfather? Several people whom I know personally and respect immensely say it's the best movie ever made. Not only have I never seen it, but I've never even been tempted to see it.
6. [BONUS QUESTION FROM ME] What's your favorite Irish movie/movie about Ireland?
I put this one in not only on account of St. Patrick's Day, but also because I've watched and enjoyed a fair number of Irish movies over the years (in fact, I just saw a really sweet one about two weeks ago, called Sing Street), so I can kind of give a meaningful answer. And that answer is ... hmmm ... gosh, I'm sort of stuck between two 1991 films that I liked a lot. One of them, The Commitments, is based on the first of Roddy Doyle's Barrytown Trilogy novels (the other two were also made into quite good films). It's kind of a cult classic, and I always include it when asked to name my favorite music-themed movies. As, indeed, is true of Hear My Song, the *other* Irish-themed (though British-made, I think) '91 flick at the top of my list. It's a fantasy/caper about the real-life Irish tenor and famous tax exile Josef Locke, who is portrayed in the movie by Ned Beatty.
(I know; I didn't say Waking Ned Devine -- also English-made, and also very good.)
Got your ticket and popcorn? Let's go to the movies!
1. What's your favorite monster movie?
Is it cheating to name Pixar's Monsters, Inc.? I love Pixar, it *is* genuinely one of my favorite Pixar movies, and it's all about monsters (even if it's more of a buddy picture than a monster flick). I suppose, to be more in tune with the spirit of the question, I should choose something along the lines of Frankenstein, Godzilla, Mothra, or even The Blob. And I actually *do* have some level of appreciation for all of those ... but not enough to affect my answer. Monsters, Inc. it is.
2. What's your favorite social issues movie?
I hope documentaries count, because I want to name a Michael Moore film. (*Are* his movies conventional documentaries? Their POV is so pronounced as to seem to put them in a category all their own, IMO.) My favorite, hands down, is 2009's Capitalism: A Love Story, which I used to show to my Business Ethics class at the beginning of every semester. Say what you will about Moore (and there's plenty that can be said, I know), he completely nails this one.
Okay, and since I feared I might again be subverting the intent of the question with my choice, as I prepared this answer I actually searched on "social issue movies" to see if I could be reminded of a more conventional (i.e., story-with-actors) piece that I liked enough to name instead. Google found me this terrific site, which is perhaps *too* generous with the "social issues" designation (for example, the "X-Men" films are listed as dealing with discrimination), but made for interesting scrolling. I was reminded of some favorites that qualify (to name them reverse-chronologically, how about Hidden Figures, The Big Short, Silkwood, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Best Years of Our Lives, and The Great Dictator), but I'm still committed to my first answer.
3. What's a movie you dislike in a genre you love?
I like romance and I love British -- not to mention ensemble and indie-ish -- movies, but I *hated* Love Actually. What a waste of a lot of talent. The only tolerable storylines were the Alan Rickman-Emma Thompson marriage crisis and the Martin Freeman-Joanna Page porn-actor meet-cute. The others were either too slight, kinda creepy, or downright insulting.
4. What's a movie you like in a genre you dislike?
My least favorite genre is horror, but I am so averse to it that I categorically *never* watch one, so there's no exception to the rule there.
All right, here's a qualifying response: I'm not much into war movies, especially not now that they make 'em realistic and gory, but I have a big ol' soft spot for 1962's star-studded, multi-lingual D-Day epic The Longest Day.
5. What's a movie everyone else has seen but you have not seen?
Is James Cameron's Avatar still the most-seen-ever film? Whatever its numbers, it garnered them without me.
And for classic all-time-great movies, how about The Godfather? Several people whom I know personally and respect immensely say it's the best movie ever made. Not only have I never seen it, but I've never even been tempted to see it.
6. [BONUS QUESTION FROM ME] What's your favorite Irish movie/movie about Ireland?
I put this one in not only on account of St. Patrick's Day, but also because I've watched and enjoyed a fair number of Irish movies over the years (in fact, I just saw a really sweet one about two weeks ago, called Sing Street), so I can kind of give a meaningful answer. And that answer is ... hmmm ... gosh, I'm sort of stuck between two 1991 films that I liked a lot. One of them, The Commitments, is based on the first of Roddy Doyle's Barrytown Trilogy novels (the other two were also made into quite good films). It's kind of a cult classic, and I always include it when asked to name my favorite music-themed movies. As, indeed, is true of Hear My Song, the *other* Irish-themed (though British-made, I think) '91 flick at the top of my list. It's a fantasy/caper about the real-life Irish tenor and famous tax exile Josef Locke, who is portrayed in the movie by Ned Beatty.
(I know; I didn't say Waking Ned Devine -- also English-made, and also very good.)