Lighter Side - Favorite Movies!!

If I had to pick a one and only favorite that would be difficult, but the one that has been with me the longest is Gone with the Wind.  As a child I was mesmerized with the clothes, the plantations without really contemplating the darker side of that way of life. As I grew older that changed, but my love for the film and the Characters of Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler outweighed the reality of what it represented,we are talking  entertaiment here.  To me Scarlett was a woman ahead of her time and misunderstood to some degree.  She used what was available to her to use and she thought ahead regardless of how single minded she appeared at times. A McGyver in hoop skirts if you will.

When the Sequel came out my feelings were validated about Scarlett.  Many people did not like the Sequel, either in written form or on the screen.  Those who were attached to Vivien Leigh and Clark Cable rather then the characters themselves had a hard time making any connection but I didn't.  In the end this woman who once seemed so selfish and superficial brought about changes for her entire clan and righted the wrongs of what had come generations before her......in the end she did far more then redeem herself.

There are of course other movies since then that I adore but this entry would go on forever if I started.  I am a romantic at heart so any love story well told is not lost on me, I love comedy, enjoy thrillers but hate horror movies and I allow nothing satanic in my home.  I have enough tension in real life without gritting my teeth through blood and guts and evil.  Movies that don't have happy endings make me want to throw something at the screen and if I am home I normally torpedo the tv with a throw pillow.

Other then home my favorite place to watch a movie is the San Marco Theatre.  The people that go there are respectful to others, no one comes with crying babies and people who forget they have an off button for their cell phones and there is something to eat and drink other then tired old theatre fare.  The outside theatre at Jax Beach in theory is a really nice venue for a movie but the irritation of those who are doing anything and everything but watching the movie bugs me so unless I am more interested in atmosphere then the movie itself there is little to no appeal.

Sunflower thanks for the lighthearted blog, we need more of them.

Also, I share your insight that there is something happening here.  There are those who see the blogs as nothing more then entertainment and a place to fuss and fume......I see far more then that.

...it would have to be Casablanca. This picture is a true classic, standing the test of time It celebrates individualism, coping with life's daily problems and never giving up. Even when losing the girl he continues to do the best in a world that has long forgotten what the best in human nature is. Rick Blaine is the quintessesntial loner, an outsider not by choice but by necessity and he is one who will never go along to get along.

There are other movies I particularly love but they are a pretty eclectic group so I won't confuse the issue here and now. Plenty of time for that in the future. :>)

Lily's Lore "I don't ever want to be rescued And I don't ever want to be saved I got a feelin' that I'm gonna be alive forever Dancin' on the edge of a grave..." Jim Steinman

Too fine classics, ladies.  Along with Citizen Kane, they compromise my top 3 of all time.

I saw Gone With the Wind for the first time in a theater on a military base in Athens, Greece.  Don't know if that theater still exists, but I hope Uncle Sam has found a few bucks to pad those seats.  By the time Sherman burned Atlanta, I tried to stand up to stretch my legs.  Too late.  I can almost recall how the nerve endings in the part of my body that had been making contact with that wooden seat screamed in pain as they came back to life.  Of course, the movie was so good I had to go back to watch the second half, knowing I'd have to repeat the painful process of lower limb nerve regeneration.

I had never seen Citizen Kane or Casablanca until I took a UF class on Film as Literature.  (Hey, three credits for watching movies!)  I still have a crush on Ingrid Bergman in that movie.

I guess it's no coincidence that our favorite movies don't depend on computer-generated graphics, explosions or jiggling boobs.  Without those, you have to depend on story and character development.

Michael S. Mann

Miracle on 34th Street. Can't count the number of times I've seen it. Are we all showing our age or just our good taste.

Movies with real plots, story lines and people that can act, what a concept.

Finder

Of course, I love the ones already mentioned.  In addition, I could watch Steel Magnolias over and over. 

Marsha, my daughter gave me the boxed set of Gone With The Wind for Christmas last year.  It is a treasure! 

Classics indeed.  I have never slowed down long enough to watch either Gone With the Wind, Casablanca or Citizen Kane.  All 3 movies I really do want to see.  Everyone always talks about how good they are, so there must be something to it.

Little Big Man with Dustin Hoffman is a movie that I really, really enjoyed and would sit and watch again.  I've seen it 2 or 3 times.  Funny, moving, sad, entertaining.

A "modern" movie that just tripped me out was Sixth Sense with Bruce Willis.  I never saw that ending coming at all.  I doubt it would ever qualify as a classic, but that ending was a trip.

The murder/chop 'em up genre (Saw, Hostel, etc.) just gives me the creeps.  I can't imagine anyone calling that entertainment.  But obviously some people do.

Sitting (actually laying) on the couch with my wife kicked back in her chair is probably my favorite way to watch movies, but it's hard to beat the sensory effects of a theater - huge screen, sound system to die for.  I just hate everything else - crowds, insanely high prices, rude people who actually answer their cell phone AND carry on a conversation.  Like they were in their living room.

Yes - thanks for a lighter topic.  And, yes, something is going on here.  We are meeting new friends and learning to communicate in a whole new way.  I've actually had the pleasure of meeting a couple bloggers in "real" life.  It was cool.

After reading the blogs for a while, I thought I'd jump in.  This sounded like an easy entry point.  Favorite movies . . .? Godfather series has to be at the top. Every time I watch the series, I see something new, even if its just a telling glance.  

I will not go the OP theaters to watch a movie anymore. . . at least not without a bulletproof vest.  On Demand is a great addition to our house.

Margo

I love all of the movies mentioned but especially Gone With The Wind.  However, growing up "Wizard of Oz" was a tradition in my family.  I must have seen it 15 times.  I remember when I was very young being very scared by it and then years later trying to catch the Oz characters in real life.  Also, remember the underlying messages like "There's no place like Home."   What a great flick!

Another great Christmas flick with my favorited actor, Jimmy Stewart, is "It's a Wonderful Life."  I love this movie at Christmas time.  Where have all the great message movies gone? 

One of the most memorable movies I've seen is an older movie titled, "Mindwalk." It's not flashy. There's no sex, drugs or rock 'n roll. It's a story about three strangers who happen to end up in the same place at the same time and the phenominally rich conversation that takes place between them.

It's an exchange of ideas. It's totally cool.

Maybe one or two bloggers will be interested enough to track it down and watch it. I picked up a used copy on eBay for $15.