Movies

Barbara Nicolosi said something on her blog that got me thinkining. In dismissing a movie she had just panned, she said, "It will fade fast"-- as though that were the universal mark of poor cinema. Hence, it got me thinkining about which movies have not faded from my memory and therefore are worth celebrating. After all, it's summertime, when many of us have the chance to catch up on our Summer Watching List. Perhaps you will add one of these to your list:

Milo & Otis= one of the cutest things Japan's ever produced, the story of a curious cat and a pug-nosed pup and the many friends they meet along their way. Other favorites from youth include Anne of Avonlea, The Great Mouse Detective, Rats of Nimh, and Beauty & the Beast.

The Crucible= I love cathartic morality plays; the scene on the shore, when they must part...but not for all eternity- ay mi! Venues for catharsis include, but are not limited to, Scofield's other classic, A Man for All Seasons, Empire of the Sun, Gosford Park, Shawshank Redemption, 12 Angry Men, and Saving Private Ryan.

Breakfast at Tiffany's= Audrey. I do adore romance! Notting Hill, Sense and Sensibility, Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare in Love, and anything Jane Austen spring to mind. Of course, musicals combine the best in romance with memorable songs-- Sound of Music and The King & I will always rank highest on my list!

Field of Dreams= perfect for summer; it has baseball and cornfields. Other family favorites include Waking Ned Divine, Toy Story, Romero, E.T., Star Wars, and In America.

And not to be left off any list of mine, the best Papist movie of all time= Shoes of the Fisherman, a movie that combines the papacies of John XXIII, Paul VI, and JPII both ironically and prophetically. I could do without the 60's intrusions, which date the movie in the worst way; but the moment when Cardinal Leo proclaims, "You are Peter!"-- that sends tingles only a Catholic could ever know. Truly unforgettable.

Comedies-- hmm. I loved Emma Thompson in Junior. Remember John Candy as Uncle Buck? Oh, and the Bean movie! Rowan Atkinson's hilarious! I almost peed my pants.
Drama-- Anything by Merchant/Ivory. Blackrobe, Awakening, Power of One, and Dead Poets Society. To Kill A Mockingbird (Gregory Peck's finest). Snow Falling on Cedars.
Animation- Lion King, Chicken Run, Watership Down, the Fivel movie, anything Pixar, especially their film shorts.
Literary figures have been enjoyable films too- Finding Neverland, Miss Potter, and Shadowlands, which combined Anthony Hopkins with C.S.Lewis, among the best of England.

Also-- do you choose a movie for its soundtrack? Mission, Witness, O Brother Where Art Thou, and Master & Commander off the top of my head.

Good Actors not already mentioned = Dustin Hoffman, Helen Mirren.

I'm sure there's more, but let's not be exhaustive. Lord of the Rings. There- I'm done.