mud is just fine

i don't know anyone who doesn't have a favorite movie from their younger years; that movie which you saw so often, parts of it are permanently ingrained in your memory banks. there are plenty of movies which i can spend an enjoyable bit of time watching again, which i either own on dvd or will stop channel surfing when i come across. but, i'm pretty sure that there are one or two movies which stand out the most. in my case, it has to be a quirky musical, starring the rascal lee marvin and a really good looking, pre-chair incident, clint eastwood. the movie, paint your wagon.

well, as it happens, i picked it up on dvd last week and decided to watch it with some musical loving friends. it's been quite a few years since last viewing; as i had it only on vhs, and like the dinosaurs, technology changes and viewing devices die. it's strange what one gets out of something so familiar. i've become more eco-conscious over the years, and since moving to and away from california these last few months, i saw something new in an old favorite. for the most part, it had to be the song lee marvin sings early on in the film, "the first thing you know". it goes like this:

God made the mountains

God made the sky

God made the people

God knows why

He fixed up the planet

As best as He could

Then in come the people

And gum it up good

The first thing you know

They civilized the foothills

And everywhere He put hills

The mountains and valley below

They come along and take 'em

And civilize and make 'em

A place where no civilized

Person would go

The first thing you know

The first thing you know

They civilize what's pretty

By puttin' up a city

Where nothin' that's

Pretty can grow

They muddy up the winter

And civilize it into 

A place too uncivilized

Even for snow

The first thing you know

They civilize left

They civilize right

Till nothing is left

Till nothing is right

They civilize freedom

Till no one is free

No one except

By coincidence, me

The first thing you know

The boozer's in prison

And the criminally isn't

And only the rascals have dough

When I see a parson

I gotta put my arse in

A wagon that follows the tail of a crow

The first thing you know

I pick up a blow!

The first thing you know

it just speaks to the environmental warrior in me. and makes me wonder about how far we haven't progressed in the years since it was recorded. paint your wagon was made in 1969. 43 years have come and gone, and i could wish for a better understanding of our planet, and our society's acceptance that we need to preserve it. all the things nature does for us can't easily be reinvented by mankind, and the functions that we will be forced to recreate won't work as seamlessly and balanced as the original.

...

i've watched the final harry potter, and it was brilliant (i still think they could have squeezed it into one movie, or at least separated the two halves at a different point in the plot then where they did). but, all in all, quite good entertainment.

tearjerkers and other thoughts

i don't particularly care for war movies; most glorify something that is ugly, or take a comedic standpoint where there is little humor to be found. but, as with anything, there are exceptions; captain corelli's mandolin, and miracle at st. anna.

i'm not sure why, perhaps it's the story that's underneath the backdrop of war that draws me, or the humanity of the characters, flawed and all. or maybe it's that they make me cry, or that they tell about the good things that survive the devastation of war.

one of the things i liked about these two films is that these movies show a more realistic view of war, that it's not glorious, or something which is clean-cut (these are the good guys and these the bad), that it's ugly, and seething with nonsensical violence, that it destroys thoughtlessly, that not everyone is decent and capable of humanity, regardless of which side they're on.

this genre may not be on the top of my preferred viewing list, but it's good to creep outside of one's comfort zone every now and then, what you find may stick with you and inspire.

it's like a pea under my mattress

there's something i'm a tad bit irritated by. it's the severe lack of current fantasy "save the world" movies starring a strong female lead, aka a heroine. every time i begin to watch a movie clip that looks halfway interesting, it turns out to be overrun by young males going on magical questing adventures while their love interest girlfriend gets to be saved and amazed by their new powers. blech.

you can't say "because there aren't any popular books with strong female leads being written". that's not true. there's the books about jacky faber, or betsy in the undead series, any one of robin mckinley's books, or the works of patricia mckillip, anne mccafrey, and of elizabeth moon. they're there if you bother to ask anyone who isn't a middle aged male director where they are.

i can count on my one hand the amount of big budget fantasy films which were made in the last several years which have a strong staring female role who can save themselves thank you very much; alice in wonderland, underworld, pan's labrynth, the work of hayao miyazaki, coraline, v for vendetta. okay. maybe two hands. but still.

the ones with a leading cast of mostly males? there's the lightning thief, the sorcerer's apprentice, harry potter, transformers, star trek, the lord of the rings, star wars, the current batman franchise, spiderman, eragon, how to train your dragon, iron man, where the wild things are.

one's which were thankfully balanced; avatar, crouching tiger hidden dragon, pirates of the caribbean, x-men franchise, narnia franchise.

i love to watch and read science fiction and fantasy. i'm a woman. can't i have any awesome fantasy movies with strong female leads on the silver screen i can relate to and feel empowered by? i shouldn't just be stuck in the history department (though all those real women are awesome, and when are they going to do a movie about catherine the great?).

oh, and i loved the new alice, wacky wardrobe and all. it was visually amazing, highly creative, and more true to the books then most portrayals.

things that change us

recently i rewatched the movie how to make an american quilt. it's a very strange sensation, but i think watching this movie when i was 16 shaped my views on marriage and men is particular. or atleast imparted itself somehow and merged with other views i formed. i think perhaps it is interesting to come across something that had a deep impact on part of who you are, which you did not realize until you saw it again.

are there any moments or works which shaped your thinking? works which you had forgotten?

visual delight

i find the films of hayao miyazaki entirely enchanting. some of them touch on the uglier sides of our nature, nausicaa of the valley of the wind, princess mononoke, but for the most part are quite wonderful. spirited away, howl's moving castle (the book by diana wynn jones is amazing), whisper of the heart, and the latest installation, ponyo, have quickly become some of my most viewed and favorite films.

i viewed ponyo the other night; it had been languishing on my netflix list for quite some time, always reading "very long wait". i absolutely love this film, the plot, the characters, the adventure, the amazing animations in the opening sequence, not the least of all the scrumptious visuals found throughout. i find this movie sweet with an aftertaste of that mushy lovely warm feeling.

there are some of his works i haven't seen yet, but hopefully this will be remedied in the next year.

holiday entertainment

something i always like doing when i find myself with free time on the holidays is to watch movies; actually, it doesn't even have to be a holiday. my favorites for this particular holiday, christmas, are usually comedic, romantic, and/or classic. without further ado here's the list:

scrooged

a christmas story

national lampoon's christmas vacation

love actually

so what christmas movies are your favorites?

queue hunting

since getting my membership for netflix i've been watching some really good movies, some "they eventually get better three quarters of the way into them" movies, and the occasional kinda awful movie. but, every now and then i pick a fantastic movie; the ones you want to purchase for your collection. camille definitely falls into the last category. i absolutely loved this movie, it was quirky, humorous, colorful, made me cry, and left a lasting scar on my psyche. and after all, isn't that what movies are supposed to be made to do, the really good ones?

on pins and needles

do you ever have moments of intense boredom even though there are at least eight things you could and perhaps should be doing? not that the choices are dull, in and of themselves, but you just can't gather the enthusiasm to work on them.

yesterday was a day like that for me. usually i just try to force the day gone; hoping that when i wake up the next the boredom will have passed. "forcing" time to go faster means immersing my brain in a book, a favorite movie, or lallygagging around the internet. for the most part any one of these helps my boredom pass and i can get things accomplished. yesterday was such an awful all encompassing period of boredom i had to try all three (dead and loving it, highlander, notcot.org) before i was able to work my way out.

i haven't a clue how much time on this planet i have, so i really don't like wishing it away; but there are days. though luckily i was able to work on and finish a pin last night, it being the perfect short time activity to pick oneself up with.

yuki 7

this fake title sequence is amazing! it's like watching an early 007 film merged with samurai jack, but done with so much flair and such aesthetic eye candy. i wish they really would make a film, or at least an animated short.
it's titled a kiss from tokyo and is incredible; for a film that's only a few minutes long, animator stephane coedel and creator kevin dart pack in suspense, intrigue, espionage, action, drama, deception, gun battles, and car chases. and i must say, the costumes are wonderful! especially the dress pictured above.

from one book...

comes many stories. the story of alice and her fall into wonderland has taken many forms of entertainment in the visual arts. from so many creative minds a new story evolves, sometimes parallel to the original; phoebe in wonderland is a movie that is a little different for it uses the book as a metaphor. for this movie isn't about alice, nor of wonderland. this is about a child, unique in so many ways, and her path through her life; one that is at times as mad as that land through the looking glass, with it's strange ways and even stranger characters. but through the telling of alice we catch a glimpse of what is going wrong with phoebe and how those around her react, and ultimately learn to cope with her changing behavior.
i found this movie to be thoughtful in its telling, to be direct in its showing, and to be ultimately a realistic vehicle for a painful subject matter. but the movie is not without beauty, for you almost wish phoebes' world were real so that there were a place for her where it's okay again.

southern portrayal

i love movies, that i don' t doubt. my favorites typically cover a full scope of genres; romance, fantasy, sci-fi, drama, comedy, and for the most part they are all of these wrapped up in a 2 hour bundle.
there is one group of movies that are what i call "southern". they're usually quirky, queer, have a touch of sadness and are full of strange ideas of justice; or maybe it's just how that judgement is carried out that is strange and oftentimes hysterical. there's something satisfying about watching these types of movies. below are a cut of my favorites ranking them from laughter to tears:

crazy in alabama
cookie's fortune
fried green tomatoes
to kill a mockingbird

i've been in the south for 8 years now, and i can't really say that i've had much personal experience that is at all similar to any of these movies. but maybe that south is out there and i just haven't discovered it yet.

that's entertainment!

wherever would we be without movies? i'm pretty sure the majority of my generation grew up on them and though i'm not certain how much they were of influence to my everyday life, they sure did make my imagination sweeter.
i've been thinking over some of the films i want to see again. maybe they weren't as special as i remember, or maybe there are things i would get now that i'm older; but it sure would be good to revisit them. here's a short list (they're arranged from when i saw them, not when they were made) of some of my favorites that i would love to see again or have added to my library because i've seen them again and again:

1980's
_____
labrynth
the three lives of thomasina
bedknobs and broomsticks
return to oz
dot and keeto
seven brides for seven brothers
a christmas story

1990's
_____
shirley valentine
the adventures of baron munchausen
paint your wagon
stalag 17
spaceballs
benny and joon
the 5th element
meet joe black
toys

2000's
_____
v for vendetta
kung fu hustle
the thin man
love actually
howl's moving castle
danny deckchair
spirited away
that touch of mink
marie antoinette

what are some of your remembered movies that you would love to see again?

this i have got to see

and luckily it is the day after my birthday. sweet. i don't remember reading the book as a child, but i definitely remember it being big, and seeing it at the library a lot. the trailer is captivating and i love the song they used.
this has also given my brain fodder for halloween. i know for sure that i can sew a costume together before that time. i'm excited. i'll be warm and get to wear a crown. oh, yes, a crown.

i actually quite liked it

i thought the movie australia was rather nice, poignant really, and rather beautiful. yes, long, but it didn't feel so when one was watching it. i had heard so-so reviews from some sources, but as i've come to find out, most of the movies i find wonderful are given reviews that are rather shortchanged. and though i may tire of happy endings as being the norm for hollywood, i did not mind it in the least for this film.

enchante!

this is a simply lovely commercial! all the pastels and the enchanting child-like world; balloons, flowers, sweets. if paris was really like this for everyone i would be on a plane tomorrow.

wondertainment

i just finished watching Mister Magorium's Wonder Emporium, and i have to say that i simply adored it. there was a good mixture of funniness and sadness all wrapped up in a very poignant story. during several of the scenes i definitely felt like crying; but it was a good feeling because you know you just watched an occurrence that was bitter-sweet. i love movies that make you believe that all of the ideas you felt so strongly for as a child can still be possible in the realities of an adult.