Movie Meme

Via Sheila.

1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times.

Braveheart. When I was in high school / early college, my way of spoiling myself sometimes was a night in, Chinese food and Braveheart...again.

2. Name a movie that you’ve seen multiple times in the theater.

Ace Ventura, Pet Detective. When I was in eighth grade, it was the be-all and end-all of humor. I saw Titanic a couple times too. And I am prepared to defend the notion that Titanic was actually a pretty good movie.

3. Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie.

Joaquin Phoenix, as I have discussed here exhaustively, especially when he is directed by M. Night Shyamalan. I actually sometimes go for not only an actor but an actor-director combo, like Brad Pitt and David Fincher. Brad alone is not enough to make me see a movie (I mean, he made Meet Joe Black for crying in the mud), nor is Fincher (Panic Room, not that great). But the combination of Pitt and Fincher has meant both Seven and Fight Club. If they get together again, I'm seeing whatever they make.

Also Tom Hanks. And Kevin Spacey. And Jake Gyllenhaal, although I'm not going to act like that last one has anything to do with any highbrow sense of his acting ability or script judgment.

4. Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a movie.

Nicolas Cage, in another predictable answer. I'm not too crazy about Nick Nolte either.

5. Name a movie that you can and do quote from.

Good Will Hunting; Office Space; Monty Python's Life of Brian; Major League; Harold and Kumar Go to Whitecastle; Friday; I have realized in trying to think up this list that most of what I quote / reference are actually TV shows.

6. Name a movie musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs

A Mighty Wind. And, oddly enough, Hello Dolly with Barbara Streisand as Dolly. I went through a phase of obsession with that movie in high school, probably the only "old" movie (i.e. movie filmed before I was born) I've ever been so interested in. I still love some of Barbara's particular interpretations of different lyrics, especially--and kind of randomly--the way she sings the part where the only lyric is "Goodbye", right before "Love is Only Love", which is one of the greatest songs in the musical-theatrical canon, as far as I'm concerned. Bawbwa. She's like buttah.

7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with

Aladdin. When I was like, thirteen.

8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone see.

Gladiator has a little something for everybody. Shakespeare In Love is another crowd-pleaser, I think.

9. Name a movie that you own.

Every movie I've named so far, plus about 100 more.

10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops.

Eminem was pretty good in 8 Mile, but he was basically playing himself. It's hard to argue with Bob Barker in Happy Gilmore, too. Quick funny story now that I'm thinking about Happy Gilmore--yesterday Steve and I went to a party for Chris's daughter Kaylee, and a middle-school-aged relative (sorry, can't remember his name or how he's related, but he looked to be somewhere between 11 and 13) opened a conversation with me by asking, "What's your favorite Adam Sandler film?" That was seriously Thing One this boy said to me when we encountered each other at the snack table, and he did also rather pointedly use the word film. I actually thought it was a refreshing way to open a conversation, though, and I was also able to answer Happy Gilmore pretty quickly. We had an interesting discussion after that.

11. Have you ever seen a movie in a drive-in? If so, what?

Top Gun, when I was six; we were supposed to be asleep after a children's feature. If anyone were to ever ask me, when did you first sense that you were heterosexual? it would be when I watched Tom Cruise in Top Gun. I was six, but he was dreamy.

13. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven’t yet gotten around to it.

Scarface. I hate answering these questions truthfully--someone is invariably outraged at the important movies I haven't seen. I tend to see new movies, just like I'd rather at a gallery full of work from unknown contemporary artists than the stock collection at most art museums, just like I'd rather read new fiction than make sure I've checked off all the "canonical" titles an educated person should read. Or at least that's my excuse, anyway. Also, just to torpedo that argument entirely, Borat.

14. Ever walked out of a movie?

No. I would have walked out of A Clockwork Orange if I'd seen it in a theater, though. So many other people have seen something in that movie, but I can't get past all the rape scenes. I'm so offended by those that I really don't care what point the movie is supposedly trying to make.

15. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater.

I cried at the end of Ladder 49. That was probably the most recent one; I don't usually cry at movies, TV or books.

16. Popcorn?

Sure.

17. How often do you go to the movies (as opposed to renting them or watching them at home)?

Not as often as I used to, that's for sure. Maybe once every two months.

18. What’s the last movie you saw in the theater?

Saw III

19. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie?

It's a toss-up between comedy and drama. I like weird blends of the two as well, depending on my mood.

20. What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?

Jungle Book. I still love Sher Khan.

21. What movie do you wish you had never seen?

The Neverending Story, when I was little.

22. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?

Probably Les Visiteurs. Monty Python meets Back to the Future in French with English subtitles.

23. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen?

The first Saw. I could feel actual, psychological damage being done to me as I watched it. And yet I was desperate to know what was going on, what was going to happen, whodunit.

24. What is the funniest movie you’ve seen?

There are two kinds of funny movies: the kind that lasts, and the kind that doesn't. The movies I've laughed the loudest and hardest at during my first viewing are South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut; Ace Ventura, Pet Detective; Friday After Next and Wayne's World 2. Of all of those, I own one on VHS (Ace Ventura) and probably haven't watched it in at least ten years.

Meanwhile, though, I never get tired of Major League; I still get in the mood for it every so often and watch it again and laugh out loud at certain lines ("Look at this fuckin' guy" and "No more of this ole shit" and pretty much every one of Bob Uecker's lines get me every time). Liar, Liar has some moments like that, too. Uncle Buck has also stood the test of time. 

Comments

[Iain]

"Juuuuust a bit outside..." ;-)