30 Day Movie Meme, Days 17-20

[desertvixen]

Still trying to get caught up, but I don't want to have some long post hogging people's Friends pages.

Day 01- The best movie you saw during the last year -- Keep in mind I don't get to the theater much, even when I'm not deployed.  I'm going to have to go with the Star Trek reload (although to be fair, I saw it on a bootleg in Iraq).  It had some lame moments, but it also had some moments that just made you sit up and go, "This is freaking awesome" (like the whole beginning bit where they're evacuating the ship, and Kirk's Dad goes to leave and has to turn back - that moment  really pulled me in).  Plus, old!Spock made me feel better about it not just being a stupid retcon.  Karl Urban was not-too-bad (but I still prefer Original McCoy) and the guy who played Sulu was great. 

Day 02 - The most underrated movie -- Keep in mind the lack-of-theatergoing thing, but I'm going to have to go with the BBC "Poirot" adaptation of Cards on the Table.  There seemed to be a lot of people who were annoyed at the changes made to the book story, but I thought it was pretty good.  It stayed closer to the stated intent (four sleuths v. four criminals) by keeping all four suspects in play to the end, where in the book it pretty much came down to the last suspect standing. 

A lot of people seem to object to the sexual undertone that BBC puts in - in this case the implied homosexual and risky behaviors of the Superintendant (which Poirot didn't seem to actually condemn, just suggest that he shouldn't allow blackmail potential), the clerk who makes a sort-of pass at Poirot, and the two women, which I thought there was at least some subtext for in the book.  (They also change which member of the pair drowns.)

It also has some excellent casting - Zoe Wanamaker as Ariadne Oliver (who is PERFECT) and the really yummy guy who plays Major Despard, Tristan Gemmill.

Day 03 - A movie that makes you really happy --  For this one, I nominate The Thin Man.  It's pretty hard to stay in a bad mood after a good dose of Nick and Nora Charles, if only because they're so fun.  William Powell and Myrna Loy have oodles of chemistry with each other, and the mystery isn't horrible.  I'm also a sucker for "get all the suspects together and explain everything", because yes, I am an Agatha Christie fan.  The character interactions make me laugh, and the dialogue is always snappy.

Day 04 - A movie that makes you sad -- Now it's time to revisit something from my days at DLI, because there aren't many movies that make me sad and leave me that way.  Plenty of Disney movies have those moments, but generally they have happy endings.  This one doesn't have a happy ending, but that's because it's about Russian history under Stalin.

The movie is Nikita Mikhailov's Burnt by the Sun, a story about 1936 Russia.  It has pretty much everything - moments of drama, comedy, passion, tragedy, Stalinist repression, and the general sense of dread that seems to be in a lot of Russian history.  It also takes a couple go-rounds to really get it, but when we finished it,the class was quiet enough that you could have heard a pin drop in our class.  There's a love triangle, between Mikhailov's Colonel Kotov, his younger wife Marusia, and Mitya (now an NKVD man).  There's a lot of symbolism in the movie, and a lot of confusion, and one brief moment of uplift at the very end, but not enough to lift the depression that comes from knowing these characters were fictional, but that they were based on so many that were not.

Of course, the second runner up for Day 4 is Old Yeller.  I think that one's pretty self-explanatory... 

Day 05 - Favorite love story in a movie --  I actually gave this one some serious thought while studying my DVD collection.  There's a couple of contenders, but I have to go with one of the ones that isn't actually in a romantic movie - Rick and Evie in The Mummy and The Mummy Returns.  They have chemistry and tension, and "smart girl gets the guy" makes me happy (bonus points for "I... am a Librarian").  Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz play off each other well, especially since he's at the height of what I think of as his Ivan Vorpatril period.  The end also has a great romantic punch, especially for an adventure with a romance.  Not to mention their library in the second movie...

Day 06 - Favorite made for TV movie -- This one is easy - the 1995 BBC production of Pride and Prejudice.  I mean, what's not to like?  Excellent adaptation of the book, great casting, great costumes, great acting, and Colin Firth dripping wet.  I love the way he and Jennifer Ehle play off each other, in that scene and in others.  Jennifer Ehle made a wonderful Elizabeth - I'm particularly fond of the scene where she faces off with Lady Catherine de Bourgh.  In my mind, this is THE only adaptation - I refuse to acknowledge the 2005 production (pigs INSIDE Longbourn, wtf?), the 1940 one with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier has some interesting points (and some not-too-shabby casting) but Pride and Prejudice is NOT A VICTORIAN PERIOD PIECE, thanks much.  The only other contender is the 1980 BBC production with David Rintoul and Elizabeth Garvie, but it can't quite compare to the 1995 one.

Disappointing news of the day - they're looking to make a movie adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.  Don't we have enough bad movies as it is?

Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist or ending - Most of the movies I watch that qualify for having surprising plot twists are based on books.  (I'm thinking this meme would be more fun with books... heyyy, there's an idea to keep me occupied.)  So they aren't really surprises in the movie.  I am going with the movie versions of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None (also known as Ten Little N*ggers / Ten Little Indians).  The book is pretty awesome, with ten people brought together who are judged to be guilty of a murder that is not prosecutable, or for which they were not punished.  In the end, everyone dies, and it isn't until the epilogue that you find out HOW.  However, both of the English-language versions of the movie I have seen have a slightly different ending - the final two suspects are NOT guilty and do not die (which detracts from the psychological thriller aspect, but apparently Dame Christie thought it worked better on stage to have survivors and a romance).  The 1945 one (which includes Judith Anderson as the starched spinster Emily Brent) seems pretty comic to me, but it's worth watching.  The 1989 one (inlcudes Donald Pleasence and Frank Stallone) is pretty awful, with the story transported to a safari.

There is however, one movie version that is based on the book - a 1987 Russian version (Des'yat Negritat, using the original title) that preserves the psychological thriller aspect and everyone dies.  (It's Russian.  You expected something else?)  The dubbing on the one I have is pretty good, and it's worth watching.  It's creepy.

Day 08 - A movie that you've seen countless times - There's a couple that fit in this category, although I'm saving the obvious one for Day 30.  Instead, I'm going with Disney's Sleeping Beauty.  It's my favorite of the Disney princess movies, even though Sleeping Beauty doesn't do much.  Instead, we have Maleficent, possibly one of the most badass of the Disney villains.  She's evil, and she knows how to make an entrance and an exit.  I'm also fond of Prince Philip, because he's one of the few princes who shows up and uses his brain.  It's something I can put on and just enjoy, and the MV likes it as well.  I also like "Once Upon A Dream". 

Day 09 - A movie with the best soundtrack - I'm cheating a little here, but I like the three Shrek movies for soundtrack.  First of all, they're fun - I like soundtracks where the cast is involved.  I do wish they had Mike Myers' version of "Hallelujah" on the soundtrack CD, but oh well.  The Smash Mouth versions of "All-Star" and "I'm a Believer" are fun, although the former can be annoying if you hear it too many times.  Dana Glover's "It Is You (I Have Loved)" and Rufus Wainwright's "Hallelujah" are haunting, and touching, and almost make you forget it's about cartoon characters.  "Accidentally in Love" by the Counting Crows is good, as is Pete Yorn's "Ever Fallen In Love".  I think my all time favorites however, are the covers of "Holding Out For A Hero" (by the Fairy Godmother) and Fergie's version of "Barracuda".  The songs are fun, and some of the background music is good too.

Day 10 - Favorite classic movie - There's several contenders for this one, but I'm picking The Women (1939).  The entire cast is female (although the argument could be made the movie is all about the men) - and it's a pretty star-studded cast.  Norma Shearer plays the good wife, Rosalind Russell plays the catty female, Joan Fontaine plays the fragile young wife, Joan Crawford plays the man-stealing shop clerk, and Lucile Watson plays Norma Shearer's mother.  It's over-the-top (especially the Technicolor fashion show), gosspiy, and very dated, but fun to watch.  The dialogue snaps, and although it's pretty hard to like Joan Crawford's character, she has some of the best lines.  It's almost a guilty pleasure, but it's a little too smart for that.

Day 11 - A movie that changed your opinion about something - If you want to change my mind, a movie is not the way to go.  Most of what I enjoy are 1) historical dramas 2) stupid comedies and 3) animated movies.  They're a means to escape from the big bad world.

Day 12 - A movie that you hate - This could  be a really long list.  I'll keep it simple and go with a movie that I really wanted to like, and hated.  Murder in Three Acts, one of the Peter Ustinov-as-Poirot presentations.  Basically, they tried to update Poirot to the 80s, and moved the story to Acapulco, for no apparent reason.  It bites, big time.  It's just painful.

Day 13 - A movie that is a guilty pleasure - I have LOTS of these.  I like stupid comedies, and murder mysteries, and over-blown period pieces.  For this one, I'm going with a 1976 film, Murder by Death (written by Neil Simon).  It's a fabulously hilarious spoof of some of fiction's more famous detectives and things that annoy people who read murder mysteries.  Dick and Dora Charleston (based on Nick and Nora, naturally - played by David Niven and Maggie Smith in fine style), Sam Diamond (based on Sam Spade, played by Peter Falk, with Eileen Brennan as his Gal Friday), Milo Perrier (based on Poirot, played by James Coco), Miss Jessica Marbles (based on "Aunt Jane" Marple, played by Elsa Lancaster), and Sidney Wang (based on Charlie Chan, played by Peter Sellers).  It takes some familiarity with the genre, and you have to keep in mind when it was made.  But I love it.  It's so ridiculous, it's hilarious. 

Day 14 - A movie that no one would expect you to love - One of the film types I listed is NOT Westerns.  I'm not a big fan of shoot-em-up movies, but I like this one.  It's Big Jake (made in 1971) and naturally, it stars John Wayne (with Maureen O'Hara for all of five minutes).  The movie pretty much opens with the McCandles ranch being attacked by a band of out-of-work criminals, with plenty of on-screen and suggested violence.  I think it's the motorcars in the movie, or the fact that it shows the Old West giving way to a Newer West.  I'm not sure why, I just like it.

Day 15 - A character who you can relate to the most -  Wendy, from Peter Pan.  I can completely sympathize with being the only female, being the voice of reason, having to be the responsible one - and yet, having the imagination to still tell stories and imagine things like the mermaid lagoon.  Work especially makes me feel like I'm stuck with the Lost Boys.

Day 16 - A movie that you used to love but now hate -  This is hard because I don't change my opinion on a lot of movies.  The best thing that I can come up with is Disney's The Fox and The Hound.  I really liked it as a kid, and now every time I watch it, I bawl my eyes out when the widow has to take Todd to the sanctuary.  I also really dislike the hunter/trapper, and sort of wish the bear HAD eaten him.

Day 17 - A movie that disappointed you the most -  The 2005 Pride and Prejudice.  The people looked pretty, and I wanted to like the casting of Donald Sutherland as Mr. Bennett and Judi Dench as Lady Catherine.... and from the minute they showed PIGS in the Bennett house, I was done with that movie.  I also have noticed that several of the authors who've written some of the BAD Pride and Prejudice spinoffs/continuations seemed to have liked this movie the best.  One put that in her afterword.  If she'd put it up front, I never would have read the thing, and wouldn't have wasted my time.

Day 18 - A movie that you wish more people would've seen -  Given my admitted love for the over-blown period piece, I go with Young Catherine.  Technically, it's a four hour miniseries, but I'd consider it fair game for this meme.  Julia Ormond plays a young Catherine the Great (obviously) - the movie ends with her being crowned empress.  Vanessa Redgrave plays the Empress Elisabeth, Christopher Plummer plays the British envoy, Sir Charles, and Marc Frankel is enjoyable as Gregory Orlov.  There's a lot of historical facts omitted, but I think it does a good job of capturing the feeling.  It was also much better, IMO, then the A&E production with Catherine Zeta-Jones, I think because it confined itself to the younger period.  It's well worth the four hours.

Day 19 - Favorite movie based on a book/comic/etc. - For this one, I was a little torn.  Part of me wanted to pick the Anne of Green Gables miniseries starring Megan Follows because the first one was pretty wonderful, but after some thought, I have to go with the 1983 BBC miniseries of Mansfield Park.  (Honestly, I think it's hard to do a good book justice within the confines of a two-hour movie.)  I picked it because I think a lot of people already love Anne - it's hard not to - and this miniseries really made Mansfield Park come alive - the good characters and the bad.  It helped me really see how Fanny and Edmund fall for each other, and even though neither of them are a typical romance character, the scene towards the end of the movie where they acknowledge their feelings for each other is very good, very subtle, and very fitting.

Day 20 - Favorite movie from your favorite actor/actress - I don't really have a favorite actor or actress (all depends on the role they're playing) but for the sake of answering the question, I'll pick Katharine Hepburn, and that means The Lion in Winter.  Katharine Hepburn and Peter O'Toole play Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II and it's pretty awesome (and not horribly historically bad).  It brings them to life.  I was looking for a quote to share, but they all seem flat on paper.  Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close did a remake of it in 2003, and it wasn't bad, but Glenn Close isn't Katharine Hepburn.  Just go watch it.  I always recommend it when people say history isn't sexy.

Day 21- Favorite action movie -

Day 22 - Favorite documentary -

Day 23 - Favorite animation -

Day 24 - That one awesome movie idea that still hasn't been done yet -

Day 25 - The most hilarious movie you've ever seen -

Day 26 - A movie that you love but everyone else hates -

Day 27 - A movie that you wish you had seen in theaters -

Day 28 - Favorite movie from your favorite director -

Day 29 - A movie from your childhood -

Day 30 - Your favorite movie of all time -

Comments

[mmegaera.livejournal.com]

Young Catherine looked interesting. I wish Netflix had it...

[desert-vixen.livejournal.com]

I still my VHS somewhere. It is interesting.

[cynthia1960.livejournal.com]

Young Catherine! That was gorgeous.

[desert-vixen.livejournal.com]

It was. I was a little disappointed after I started reading about what her life was really like.

And I loved Princess Dashkova. I have a copy of her bio in Russian.