Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Some Things I Love About Movies (and Literature & Television) -- A-Z Blogathon

This is a variation on the My Movie Alphabet Blogathon hosted by Mettel Ray -- I'm the kind of person who has to mix up the rules a little bit. :-)

:




My Neighbor Totoro

A ~ Anime -- Something my eight-year-old daughter and I love equally -- what a gift!




clockwise from top left -- In Bruges, The Shining, Sling Blade, The Living & the Dead, American Psycho, Blue Velvet, Buddy Boy

B ~ Bat-Crap Crazy Characters -- Delightful in books and film. In real life ... not so much.




clockwise from top left - All or Nothing, Secrets & Lies, Kez, Sweet Sixteen, Fish Tank

C ~ Cinematic Realism -- worlds that seem so real I feel like a voyeur




Little Miss Sunshine

D ~ Dysfunctional Families -- who struggle yet have moments of connection, love, and joy.




Pulp Fiction

E ~ Excellent Dialogue -- and sometimes a film deserves bonus points for particularly eloquent use of profanity.




The Fall

F ~ Flights of Fancy -- vivid, imaginative storytelling that celebrates the imagination.




clockwise from top left -- Persepolis, The Kite, Bear Cub, The Namesake

G ~ Glimpses Into Other Cultures





Atonement

H ~ Historical Books & Films





Lord of the Rings

I ~ Imaginary Worlds





The Matrix & The Truman Show

J ~ Jumping Down the Rabbit Hole -- stories that challenge your perception of reality




It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

K -- Kooky Comedies



L ~ Love Stories --


... whether they be classic ...
Pride & Prejudice

Doctor Who

... modern & a bit timey-wimey ...


The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

 


... or wildly off-beat



Severus Snape (Harry Potter) & Nate (Red, White & Blue)

M ~ Morally Ambiguous Characters -- a character you're inclined to loathe, but you can't entirely dismiss. Or a bully or sociopath who is capable of enduring love.




clockwise from top left - 21 Grams, The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Memento, 500 Days of Summer & Pulp Fiction

N ~ Non-Linear Storylines





Fargo

O ~ Ordinary People Who Are Really Extraordinary



P ~ Philosophical Perspectives -- including spirituality & religion, explored from myriad angles ...


 religious imagery and symbolism from various cultures ...

Shinto Shrine in Spirited Away

dark and contemplative perspectives ...
The Seventh Seal

people inspired, by their spiritual beliefs, to change the world ...
Amazing Grace

or a quirky, offbeat look at man's search for meaning ...
A Serious Man




clockwise from top left -- The Big Bang Theory, Happy Go Lucky, Juno, Burn After Reading ("I thought you'd be concerned ... about the security ... of your shit."), The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Amelie, Treacle, Jr.

Q -- Quirky Characters





clockwise from top left -- Shame, A Single Man, The Constant Gardener, Magnolia

R ~ Raw Emotion -- grief, regret, and deep -- often unspoken -- anguish is part of what binds us together as humans, and literature and films remind us that we are not alone.




clockwise from top left -- Jacob's Ladder, Eyes Wide Shut, The Living & the Dead

S ~ Surrealism -- because everyone needs a good mind-fuck now and then




The Disappearance of Alice Creed

T ~ Thrillers  -- especially unpredictable thrillers where the dynamics among the characters keep changing




Manic

U ~ Underrated Gems





Game of Thrones

V ~ Villains -- Rich moral ambiguity can be a great strength in a story or character, but sometimes we just want a "bad guy" toward whom we feel pure, unadulterated, utterly gratifying hatred.




Doctor Who

W ~ Wibbledy Wobbledy Timey-Wimey -- I do love me some good sci-fi and fantasy, especially if it involves parallel universes or time travel. And I have a deep and abiding love for the tenth doctor.




The X-Men

X ~ Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters -- because many of us need to be reminded that being "different" or "weird" can be a tremendous source of strength




The Wizard of Oz

Y ~ Youthful Favorites -- to share with my kids




The Walking Dead

Z ~ Zombie Killers -- For their sheer bad-assery.


30 comments:

  1. Hi, I know I co-write this blog but I thought I'd add a comment. I noticed that all of you 'movies so real I feel like a voyeur' are British- big surprise there. I'll say as an American that American films are often a little reality-challenged. I'm glad to see two Aidan Gillen characters here, I think he's a very talented actor. And of the crazies, Francis (Buddy Boy) and James (TLATD) are my favorites!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The British do realism so well. :-)

      Delete
  2. Wow! Other than Doctor Who, I love every pick on here. B, C, E, L. M, P, Q, and R are especially true to my taste. Great post! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Josh! Doctor Who is definitely not to everyone's taste. :)

      Delete
  3. Wow, that's a very original way of doing it. Loved reading it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. GREAT choices! Loved the examples you included too, especially The Big Bang Theory and Pitt's funniest moment in Burn After Reading :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I never get tired of Burn After Reading, especially that particular Brad Pitt scene.

      Delete
  5. I love the 'twist' on your post, Stephanie. Instead of actors/films you focus on the various aspects of why you love films, what a splendid idea! We share the same one for X, I just love that franchise and Prof. X :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Ruth! I wanted to do something a little bit different. And I really do like the X-Men. I'm not usually a huge fan of comic book movies, but I can definitely get into the "mutants." ;-)

      Delete
  6. Love this list Stephanie.
    I should an alphabetical list of my favourite things about 2012 films!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Amir. I hope you will do that -- it would be a terrific variation on the theme.

      Delete
  7. A different and interesting list. I really enjoyed reading it!

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a wonderful twist on the blogathon! Loved seeing In Bruges under Bat-Crap Crazy and Pride & Prejudice on the list. Also liked your comment on Villains because, frankly, you're right. Sometimes I just love someone to hate.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I love both In Bruges and Pride & Prejudice (both Jane Austen's novel and the various film adaptations).

      Delete
  9. Greast list! I love that you included Snape and Nate. I always loved Snape in the HP books for some reason, because I always thought there was good in him. Nate - I probably should've dismissed him after that scene with the family in Red, White, and Blue. But I didn't.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I felt the same way about Snape, in a way, although I loathed the fact that he bullied children. I never really believed Snape was a villain. And yes, I wanted to dismiss Nate right from the get-go, when he admitted to having set his sister's pet bird on fire. But I never did. He was a fascinating character.

      Delete
  10. Been reading a few of these blogathon posts, and so far this is the most unique. Love it!

    Love that through movies we get to see both quirky characters and ordinary people who are really extraordinary. Or imaginary worlds and cinematic realism.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love the way you took with this!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Whoa, nice and different approach for Movie Alphabet. I too love Little Miss Sunshine. And yes, philosophical perspective is the one thing I love the most from movies. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Little Miss Sunshine is terrific, isn't it? :-) Thanks for your kind words.

      Delete
  13. What a list!! I like your chosen words! I think it's brilliant. I can never pull a list like this.

    I love the fact you put 2 image from Doctor Who ;)
    I will soon continue my Doctor Who marathon again. I promise myself to wait till 2013 as I have seen too many Doctor Who in two months

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. it's always great to talk to a fellow Whovian. ;-) I've been re-watching all the Nu-Who episodes, gradually -- I'm almost finished with the David Tennant era. *Sigh* Thanks for your kind words!

      Delete
  14. Great list! LOVE B!

    C: Yes, yes, yes.

    E: “What ain’t no country I ever heard of.”

    R: One of my favorite things in movies.

    Great inclusion to a great blogathon!

    ReplyDelete

Hello, and thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts -- reader comments make this blogging gig worthwhile. :-) Due to excessive spam, we are now moderating all comments. Like that dude in the Monty Python skit, we just Don't ... Like ... Spam. I will try to post and respond to your comments as quickly as possibly.