How I Created My Top 100 Favourite Films

Making "the list" is a hard job. It really is. How in the world out of over 1000 films, is one supposed to pick their 100 favourites?

Truth is, you can't. And even though I'm mostly happy with my Top 100, there are still movies which I wish were in there. Movies that should've been slightly higher in the list. So of course, it isn't a definitive list for me, but it makes me happy. If you were ever wondering about how I make these Top 100 lists, here are the things I take into consideration:

1) The Favourite Film vs. Best Film Ever argument

It is so hard to define what the "Best Film Ever" is. I think it is all based on the superficiality: how good the script is, how good the editing is, how good the cinematography is, all of that stuff. But what's the point in me making a "Best Film Ever" list? I think that's only worthy if you've seen every single film under the sun. Favourite Films are a different story. The thing that keeps film alive is that we all connect to these different films in different ways, and the experiences can be unique to us. Which leads me to my next point...

My Movie Biography: 2011 and How I Came to Love Jessica Chastain

(2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) 2011. The bestest year ever. Well, in my life so far, but it is not like I have that many years to compare it to. It is kinda hard to write about a year so close to this one, but lemme tell ya, tomorrow is going to be even harder. Anyway, hope you're enjoying the series, and mark your calendars for Sunday. Big things are going to be happening!

• I went down to Wellington for a week with my best bud. It was fun. We went to the cinemas like, four times. I usually never go to the cinemas more than three times on my holidays (I know it is really bad, but hey, I'm in a big city, so how can I refuse that?) We went and saw Tron: Legacy (which we didn't really like), The Social Network (because somehow it was still in cinemas), Morning Glory and Unstoppable. It was so fun!
• One of the worst experiences I've ever had was watching Eat Pray Love when it was excruciatingly hot. That movie is by no means short. And it just does not stop. Ever. Okay it does, but it literally felt like I'd missed Christmas by the time it ended. 
• I get very nostalgic over that summer because I spent the entire thing to the tunes of The Social Network's soundtrack. Sometimes I just listen to 'Painted Sun in Abstract' and it takes me back to those happy times. And then I look outside and it has just started hailing for the fifth time (we are supposed to be in spring).
• That awards season was crazy. It was the first year I really got into it, even managing to watch all of the Best Picture nominees before the show. My love for certain movies changed so much during this awards season. First of all, I kinda resented The Social Network for being more popular than Inception. But what did I really expect? I thought that The Social Network was just gonna sail through and win everything. Then The King's Speech won the PGA. Everyone was now like "The King's Speech for Best Picture!" So I promptly realised that Inception wasn't going to win anything, I went and saw The King's Speech and thought it was pretty average, and then I became team The Social Network. From there on I became the biggest raging The Social Network fan on the planet. Every time I heard The King's Speech mentioned, I would fake gagging reflexes. I knew it was well over when The King's Speech won the SAG, but I refused to let go of the hope that The Social Network might take that award home. My friends and I gathered around the TV and watched The King's Speech win Best Picture. I may have cried.
  Those Oscars tore apart my life, man. Which I realise is pretty silly considering everyone in the blogging world hates the Oscars (seriously, they're still my favourite part of the year). Now I can tolerate The King's Speech, even though I still feel those twangs of pain whenever I hear it mentioned. As I said last night, I still can't decide between Inception and The Social Network being my favourite film of 2010. Ah, to look at things with a clear head...

In Defense of the Best Performances of 1993: Leonardo DiCaprio and Ralph Fiennes

Andrew over at Encore's World of Film & TV is holding a wee blogathon that pits performances from the 90's against each other so that we can find out what the most essential performance was of that decade. He invited me to vouch for some people, so I (coincidentally) chose a couple of performances that happened to be released in 1993 - and both lost to Tommy Lee Jones' supporting performance in The Fugitive at the Oscars - Leonardo DiCaprio as Arnie Grape in What's Eating Gilbert Grape and Ralph Fiennes as Amon Göth in Schindler's List. They're both facing off with their opposition on different days, but when they pop up, be sure to vote for them, okay? Good. Here's a few of my defending words on the two:

Leonardo DiCaprio as Arnie Grape in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (up against Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction)

Forgive me, but it has been around three and a half years since I last saw What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Coincidentally, it also marks three and a half years since I have been in love with Leonardo DiCaprio, and vowed to see everything he's in. Most people say that about his role in Titanic, which sent the world into Leo-Mania when I was just a wee tyke. But no, it was the day that I saw What's Eating Gilbert Grape on a jaded video tape that I'd used to record it off the TV that I fell completely and utterly in love with Leonardo DiCaprio. Up until then, my idea of Leo was based on the final half an hour of Titanic. Yeah. To know that this guy started out playing the mentally retarded brother of Johnny Depp, and the fact that he did it so damn well, pretty much blew my mind to pieces. I'm not joking.

For one thing, Leo doesn't look 19 - he looks about 12. For another thing, you can tell he is having fun with his role, but at the same time, he plays the role with integrity, realism and heart. Unlike many of his Oscar-baiting roles, you can see Leo just relax into his role, which is incredible considering that any other actor could have taken it and blown it out of proportion. Mental disability roles are usually associated with that little golden statue, but not for one moment do you feel like Leo is constantly grabbing out for your applause. Instead, we're just overwhelmed by how sharp and intense his performance is, even though you feel as if it is just second nature to him. And that, my friends, is why I'll still watch movies like J. Edgar, because one day, I hope that Leo will ease into a role the way he did here. It might be too late, but I think we can all agree that Leo is a talented man, based on his performance in this film.

Ralph Fiennes as Amon Göth in Schindler's List (up against Juliette Binoche in Three Colours: Blue)

Every one knows that is my FAVOURITE. PERFORMANCE. EVER. So instead of writing something new, I'll just compile a whole lot of things I've already said about this performance on the blog:

"The best thing about his performance was the fact that when there was a close-up of him, you'd look into his eyes and it was like he was nothing. It was like he was empty, drained of life, drained of any humanism. He just kills because he feels he has to...It is hard to play someone so empty and power-hungry at the same time, which is why I loved Fiennes' performance so much.""I just can't stress enough how utterly perfect he is as ruthless Nazi Amon Göth. Reading about the actual person, I found it hard to believe that someone like him existed, but what I found even harder to believe is how anyone could throw themselves so completely into playing him. Ralph is utterly terrifying, even from just one look. Every single moment in his performance qualifies him for being the best performance of all-time - it is bloody ridiculous that he didn't get the Oscar. You look at him and you see death, right the way through him. Which, as an actor, is not a very easy thing to convey."

Look, this performance is just amazing, astounding, breathtaking, extraordinary, impressive, marvellous, miraculous, spectacular, staggering, striking, stunning, stupendous, wonderful thing ever created. Yes, I did just search up "amazing" in a thesaurus to get all of those words. Someone out to write a whole damn book filled with similar words to describe his performance.

So, what do you think of these performances? I hope to see you flicking a few votes there way when it comes time to stick up the polls!

9 of My Favourite Scenes with Horses

This post is inspired by Ruth, who posted her seven favourite scenes to do with horses earlier this week as part of a Horse-a-Thon, which I totally missed the deadline for. However, I couldn't let this opportunity slip. As you may know, I'm really a horse girl deep down. No, it wasn't one of those phases that every girl has. I couldn't help but love horses because, well, my family trained racehorses. I mean, I've been riding horses since before I was born (seriously). Here's a chance to put my two greatest loves together. Here are my favourite scenes that have horses in them - in no particular order:

The opening scene of The Fall.

The opening scene of Tarsem's wildly underseen and underrated beauty is pretty much the most amazing opening sequence I've ever seen. Okay, so there isn't a lot of horsey action for the large majority of the scene, but with that black and white and dripping slow motion, it manages to make the horses look even more amazing. Just watch it - I don't know how any words could possibly do it justice.

25 Moments of Cinematic Awesomeness

This post is inspired by something that Ruth posted earlier this week. What is cinematic awesomeness, you say? Well, Ruth derived the idea from something called a 'photogenie', which is a moment in a movie that you you love. You just love it, there's no way you can describe it. Therefore, it is a piece of cinematic awesomeness. I'm going to pick out my 20 favourites, for now, but I know that there are FAR more! (there may be some spoilers, so read with caution)

25. The final shot of The Ghost Writer

24. "Baby, you are going to miss that plane"

"I know" - Before Sunset (see the scene here)

23. Joey and Albert (Jeremy Irvine) reunite in War Horse - never before have I felt so many emotions exploding inside of me.

22. When Myra (Vivien Leigh) sees that Roy (Robert Taylor) is still alive - Waterloo Bridge

The Best Performances I've Seen from Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes

If you've been reading this blog since about July this year onwards, you will know that I am a little bit obsessed with British actor Ralph Fiennes (full name: Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, which is a name I'm equally as obsessed with). This year I've come to watch many of his films, but there are also many that I haven't seen (like Spider, The End of an Affair, Sunshine and Coriolanus). As today is his 49th birthday - I know what you're all thinking, he looks a lot younger than that - I'm going to list my ten favourite performances of his that I have seen. Because this year wouldn't have been so awesome had I not had a wee obsession with this impossibly good-looking and talented guy. And my teddy wouldn't have such a kick-ass name (Twisleton) if it wasn't for him.

10. Mr. Kendrick in Cemetery Junction

It may seem like an odd choice, given how this movie was unfortunately missed by a lot of people, but Ralph is pure awesomeness here. As Mr. Kendrick, he plays a man who purely does not give a shit about anything or anyone. He hasn't thanked his wife for a cup of tea in years, which is quite heartbreaking. But there is one scene where he gives a speech at a function, as he says goodbye to someone who has been working at his firm for years and years. He was so horrible I was in stitches. I love how funny Ralph can be even when he's insulting everyone.

9. The Duke in The Duchess

Admittedly, I don't remember a lot of this film as I watched it just about three years ago, but I do remember Ralph's performance above anything else in the film. Like a lot of his characters, he isn't very likeable in this film, to the point that you just want to punch him in the face for being such a royal pain in the butt. Still, even though his character is quite distant and insensitive, there's still plenty to like about Ralph's scene stealing performance.

8. Michael Berg in The Reader

I had a fair few problems with The Reader, which became increasingly evident when I rewatched it back in October. Despite that, Ralph, who plays the older version of Michael Berg (the younger version being equally as well played by David Kross), is still very good. It's undeniably Kate Winslet's movie, but I love how Ralph has to also confront the demons of his past, and learn to get over there. He's the centre of most of the heartbreaking moments of the movie, and that final scene kills me.

7. Count Laszlo de Almásy in The English Patient

I watched The English Patient back in July, and while I liked it, I still had some problems with it (I really do need to watch it again). However, Ralph's Oscar-nominated performance is one to treasure. He plays a rich, yet shy Count in two periods of his life: one where he is in love with an already married Katharine Clifton (Kristin Scott Thomas) and one where he is severely burnt due to a plane crash. Here is in full romantic mode - there is no way anyone with ovaries can't fall in love with him. Add that with the fact that save for the burnt scenes, this movie serves as some bloody good eye candy of him, and you have one of the best things he has ever done. As I said, I need to watch it again, mainly so I can fully appreciate everything this film has to offer, but he is great here.

6. Harry in In Bruges

He doesn't appear until an hour through the film, but when he does turn up he is pure awesomeness. He is absolutely hilarious as Harry, who is the definition of a complete asshole. And he uses the F-word five times in a normal sized sentence. Plus, he gets the best lines, like calling his wife an "inanimate fucking object!" and then following it up with "I'm sorry I called you an inanimate object. I was upset." The film itself is bloody great, too.

5. Justin Quayle in The Constant Gardner

This film isn't one of my favourites, and even though it was Rachel Weisz who got the acclaim and the Oscar for her performance, I was more blown away by Ralph's performance. In among the array of villains he has played, here is a film where he plays a shy, mild-mannered diplomat who's wife has been murdered, and he sets out on a journey to find out what happened. He is so good-hearted in this movie, even looking past his wife's horrible infidelities to do what needs to be done. He is also heart-breaking, particularly when he is breaks down crying at his now empty home, and especially in the final sequence. Quayle, in my opinion, is one of the best characters he has played, even if I didn't like the film all that much.

4. Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series

While his screen time is scattered throughout the five films he appears in, his presence is always there, which makes Ralph's performance as the nose-less villain of the decade quite eerie. You may take away his nose, his hair and his good-looks, but Ralph's talent shines through, delivering the best overall performance in the series. He gets his voice and evil-ness pitch perfect, and the way he carries himself is just scary. Ralph looks like he is having an absolute ball with his character, too. But just make sure that you don't piss him off, because he has a wand and he is not afraid to use it.

3. Lenny Nero in Strange Days

One of my greatest moments this year was discovering this movie buried deep in the messy shelves at Blockbuster and giving it a whirl. I'm not sure that I know many fans of Kathryn Bigelow's vision of Y2K, but I absolutely loved it. Ralph, who plays an ex-cop turned street-hustler who uncovers a police conspiracy  by looking at other people's recorded memories, is the definition of badass here. Give him a long hairdo, some stylish yet questionable clothes and a gun, and you have something unlike Ralph has ever done: be an action hero. I'm not talking about an action hero like those overly buff beef-heads. I'm talking about an action hero with heart, soul, and a pretty bad past. Such a shame that this movie is so under-appreciated.

2. Charles Van Doren in Quiz Show

When I saw Quiz Show, I instantly fell in love with it. A film about the quiz show scandals of the 50s, which has Ralph playing a pretty and privileged boy who is fed answers so he can beat geeky Jew Herb Stempel (John Turturro). While on the surface it could be said that Charles is at fault, the film digs deeper and shows things from his point of view. Ralph is perfect in this film, both in the way that he is insanely good looking (and that is an understatement), and in the way that he is silently in anguish underneath it all. When the story comes out, it is really sad watching him try and pick up the pieces, especially when he admits to what he has done in front of everyone. If you haven't seen the film, I highly recommend it. I think it is, for lack of a better word, a masterpiece.

1. Amon Göth in Schindler's List

This definitely won't come as a surprise for most of you, as I have said time and time again that this is my favourite performance of all-time. I just can't stress enough how utterly perfect he is as ruthless Nazi Amon Göth. Reading about the actual person, I found it hard to believe that someone like him existed, but what I found even harder to believe is how anyone could throw themselves so completely into playing him. Ralph is utterly terrifying, even from just one look. Every single moment in his performance qualifies him for being the best performance of all-time - it is bloody ridiculous that he didn't get the Oscar. You look at him and you see death, right the way through him. Which, as an actor, is not a very easy thing to convey.

Happy Birthday, Ralph! What are your favourite performances from Ralph Fiennes?

The 'Favourite Film' Argument...(post #700!)

About two weeks ago, I unveiled my Top 100 Favourite Movies of All-Time. Now, if you've made a list like this, you'll know how freaking hard it is. You have to pick and choose out of all the films you have ever watched which films you'd like to see in your top 100. Then you have to pick and choose out of those selections so you're left with 100 of your favourite movies. And then you have to decide which films are better than which, ordering them all perfectly. It's a hard, but totally awesome job. I particularly loved it when I picked up a free copy of Blue Valentine from work and exclaimed, "I just got my 21st favourite film for free!" What I didn't like was the fact that my fellow staff members looked at me strangely.

A couple of days ago a friend of mine said that Despicable Me was his favourite movie ever. Not thinking about whether what he said was a hyperbole or actually a well-thought out statement, I suddenly just blurted out "really?" He thought this was because I didn't like the film, but I actually really did like the film (seriously, every time I go to my niece's and she suggests that we watch a movie I always pick Despicable Me...I've probably seen it at least five times now). But even though I really enjoyed the film, it would never factor into my  top 100 favourite films, because I simply don't see it as 'favourite film' material. To be perfectly honest, though, if you were to put a gun to my head and ask me to choose between watching Despicable Me or my 39th favourite film There Will Be Blood on a Friday night, I'd probably go with Despicable Me. That's because I don't think after a full week of school I'd be down for any milkshake drinking, just easy breezy entertainment.

So what is it that makes 'favourite film material'?

As much as I'd like to say my entire 100 favourite films list came down to films I just simply loved and could watch over and over again, it really didn't. I'm talking films like Confessions of a Shopaholic or even something which was as generally well-received as X-Men: First Class. Yes, I loved them. Yes, I have watched them more than some of the films that actually made my list. But I just don't see them as 'favourite film material'.

'Favourite film material' is something which can't be accurately determined, and there's no rulebook. Except, it almost feels like there is a rulebook to creating your list of favourite films. Y'know, we feel like we should include those arty movies (otherwise known as 'pretentious' movies) just so people will be impressed with our range. And then comes all of the 'essential' movies. Ones like The Godfather, The Shawshank Redemption and Taxi Driver, plus anything by Stanley Kubrick. No matter if you'd rather watch some guilty pleasure movie or even comedy as well-received as The Hangover instead of the three hours of The Godfather, we can always tell which film would make the list. That's not to say that I don't like The Godfather. I love The Godfather. But I'm one of those people who, when I rewatch a film, it's usually a recent comedy because if I'm rewatching it's usually because I can't be bothered putting my brain in a movie.  If that makes me a bad person, then I am sorry.

Obviously, if you're going to put a film in your list then you better make sure you actually like it. In fact, like is not the right word. You should love the films you put in your list. Because if you don't love at least 100 films out of all the films you've seen, then I don't think you could call yourself a 'movie-lover'. Unless you purposely put yourself through all of the bad movies ever.

'Best Films I've Ever Seen' vs. 'Favourite Films'

I've always been under the impression that there is a difference between the 'best films I've ever seen' and my 'favourite films'. I'm not sure why exactly this is, but it probably has a lot to do with the fact that I'm not really sure what the best film I have ever seen is. However, I do know that my favourite film is Memento, followed by Schindler's List. Schindler's List is a film that I'd be more inclined to say is the best movie I've ever seen, but the fact of the matter is that I just like Memento a little bit more - it's my favourite out of the two.

The problem with the 'best films I've ever seen' is the fact that many people misinterpret it as 'the best films ever'. So, if I were to place Schindler's List at the top of my list, people would be bound to disagree because it wasn't a perfect movie, and then start hammering me about my choice. The problem is that people tend to forget that it's the 'best films I've ever seen', and I have different tastes to other people. People just look at the 'best films' and forget the whole personal taste thing. If one was looking for a best film list, then they should go onto IMDb and look at the top 250. And even then people will still complain about The Shawshank Redemtption being number one. Truth is, there's never going to be a movie which everyone agrees on. And it's then when these 'favourite films' lists come in handy because even while people may not agree with your choices, they better bloody accept them because they're your favourite films, not theirs.

Is it okay to have newer films in your top 100?

Admittedly, I have a lot of newer films in my top 100. Particularly in the higher ranks. I've been told this is wrong, but I don't care. I think this goes with the well-known statement around us film-lovers that films that were made ages ago are simply better than the ones made now. That may be true, but we have had some great movies come out in the last few years. For example, one of the movies I picked in my top 10 was The Social Network. Now, for a lot of people, this was top 10 stuff for 2010, but not top 10 stuff for their favourite films. The reason I ranked The Social Network so highly is because it's exactly the type of movie I'd like to make, and the script-work is literally music to my ears. In fact, I believe that The Social Network is one of the best movies I've ever seen. You may disagree, but no matter what year the film was made in, it all comes down to personal taste, not what other people think. Plus, my top 10 is filled with the likes of Inception, Inglourious Basterds, Mean Girls (if any of you try to say I'm wrong for having this movie in there, I will get as mad as Regina George), and The Dark Knight. All recent movies. All movies that I love. No problem.

That's not all. I had included three 2011 releases in my list, and one hasn't even come out in America yet. These movies are The Tree of Life, Midnight in Paris and Melancholia. Admittedly, Melancholia was a tough choice to include in my list, but I simply adored that movie and it's been haunting my dreams for weeks now. Even though I feel strange about including two extremely new movies, this is what I think: imagine that someone back in 1939 was making a list of their favourite movies, and one of the films that was included was Gone with the Wind. That was a new movie, then. Now it's one of those essential movies. We never really think about the future of the new movies that we've watched. Who knows, in twenty years, people may think The Tree of Life is the most meaningful movie ever made (well, I don't know, but I can see that it will be liked a lot more in the future than it is now). And I just simply love Midnight in Paris more than I could possibly say. Yes, movies do get better with age. But hey, if you include a newer movie in your top 100 now, you may be the one in twenty years who goes "I had that in my top 100 from the very beginning!" Yes, it's the little things like this that make loving movies 5% awesomer for me.

Anyway, back to the point...

So now that I have talked all of my feelings out about having favourite films (I'm sorry if it didn't make sense), I've come to realise that maybe my friend wasn't too wrong having Despicable Me as a favourite film. After all, it comes down to personal taste, and what people have and haven't seen. Maybe there's no such thing as 'favourite movie material'. But one thing is that just because one doesn't have some artsy movie or an old movie or even The Godfather as their favourite film doesn't make them any less of a film lover. Some people just love movies more than others. Everyone has different 'best films they've ever seen'. And after all, I doubt many people have taken at least 20 hours out of their life just to decide whether they liked Memento or Schindler's List more. It was a tough decision, but I decided that Memento deserved the top spot because every time I think about how great it is, I just want to cry. I can watch it whenever - it challenges me. You know, people who have made a top 100 list have probably thought it out more than you would ever know.

But then again, I think it will always be deemed a crime for a film blogger to have 27 Dresses as their favourite film.

So, what do you think about the favourite film business? What is your all-time favourite film, and why? What is 'favourite film material' to you?

16 Days of Birthday, Day 14: I Like to Cry at Movies

Remember how in that post I did about happiness in movies, I said that I prefer watching depressing movies or movies that make me cry? Well yeah, I'm a big crier at the movies. I will literally cry at anything.

You know, I used to be such a tough girl. I used to feel sad at some movies, but I never used to cry in them. No way, I was too tough for that kind of shit. That was until I watched the original version of A Star is Born (the one that was made in 1937 and it has Janet Gaynor in it), and I found myself tearing up a bit at the end of it. At first I was pretty angry at myself for breaking my rule of not crying, but little did I know that this was the start of something new. After that little episode, I was soon tearing up at anything. These days, if a movie has one shred of emotion in it, I will cry like a baby.

If I were to choose a movie which I've cried the most in, it would probably have to be Requiem for a Dream. And I think I was crying a lot more the second time I watched it, mainly because I had my friend crying along with me. How is it that the movie is so traumatizing, even though no-one dies? Well, it's like all of the characters die inside, which is pretty sad to watch. Then there's Clint Mansell's scary music blaring in the background, which I think sounds exactly like the struggle of life. But the one thing that makes me feel absolutely wrecked is when Sara Goldfarb has her last dream of being on TV, right before the credits start to roll. From there on, I'm left frozen in front of the screen, with tears just streaming down my face. I think watching this movie twice is enough for me.

The movie which I cried the most in at the cinemas, however, is probably Never Let Me Go. You know, the totally underrated and forgotten movie that was adapted from one of the best books ever. This movie is endlessly sad for me, because I really don't want to imagine living a life which is set out for me. In fact, I don't want to imagine a life where some people are kept away so much from the outside world, partly because that's what they're made to do and partly because the rest of the world seemed very ashamed of those poor donors. When I think about all that kind of stuff, even though it's not real, it makes me really sad. Brb, I'm just crying into my keyboard...

As you know, I'm a huge fan of Schindler's List. I cry a lot during this movie because I just can't believe that something as horrible as that could have happened in history. But the moment which I always have a good cry in is during Oskar's "I could have done more" speech. Why? Well, Liam Neeson totally owns in that scene (I miss those days, Liam, please let your sensitive side show again?), but I would have said the exact same thing. I would have cried because I couldn't save one more. Then again, I'm not a player or a guy who is obsessed with money...Oskar's transformation just makes that scene all the more sweet. Now I'll tell you a semi-funny story: me and my drama class were watching this because we wanted to get a better idea of the Holocaust for our Anne Frank unit. When we got up to this scene, I started crying a lot. I mean, tears were streaming down my face so much and I had to keep mopping them up with my jersey sleeve. Luckily I composed myself right when the credits started rolling, and everyone was looking around giving each other the 'that was a good movie' look. In ICT, we started talking about the movie and one girl was like "I nearly cried at the end!" So I blurted out, "I was in tears at the end...I couldn't stop myself!" Then the guy who was sitting next to me while watching the movie said "I didn't see you crying!" Wow. Either he is blind and deaf or I'm just a really composed crier.

Anyway, those are my main crying movies that never fail to make use a box of tissues.

Here, however, is a list of the weirdest movies I've ever cried in:

• Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging (when she gets a surprise birthday party...I wish I could have one of them but I always find out)
• Love and Other Drugs (okay, so I didn't cry during the movie. I just had a mental breakdown at the end of it for no reason - the movie was pretty dull)
• Gone with the Wind (it took me six watches to actually cry during the movie)
• Black Swan (I still don't know why I shed a tear during that movie...but it happened)
• Inception (the first time I saw it I cried so much - now I just cry at the sight of Christopher Nolan's name for some silly reason)
• The King's Speech (when I watched this with my cat when it first came out on DVD I cried rather vocally during the end speech...needless to say, my cat was scared)

What are some movies that you have had memorable crying experiences in? I'd like to know some weird ones!

16 Days of Birthday, Day 13: Music in the Movies

If you were to look through my iPod at the moment, you would be sad to find that I do not have any Justin Bieber. Or any of that rap crap that I am forced to listen to in ICT (i.e. a song that only has the words 'everybody in the club getting tipsy'). Or any emo screamo or whatever the hell it is called. If you were to judge me through my iPod, I think you would find that I'm not a normal teenager. Nor am I one of those hipster kids who only listen to indie music. Instead, at least 75% of my iPod is filled with songs from the movies, mainly full soundtracks.

I pretty much listen to my iPod every night, usually while I'm blogging, because I pretty much hate silence. And with all this movie music on my musical device, it all ties in, doesn't it? There are quite a few songs which I always have to listen to every time they come around on shuffle. Because everyday I'm shufflin'. And here they are:

According to iTunes, my most played song on my iPod is 528491 by Hans Zimmer off the wonderful Inception soundtrack. Now, all of you people probably love the track Time (more on that soon), but 528491 has to be my favourite. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: put this on your iPod, stick in your headphones, turn this song on full blast and close your eyes...it is more epic than the movie itself. The song has so many layers and it always reminds me of Cillian Murphy's eyes - mainly because this song is used while the camera is looking straight at him.

I'm also a huge fan of the track Time, don't worry. This song is so amazingly beautiful and it just adds more epicness to an already epic ending. To be honest, Time was probably the soundtrack to my latter half of 2010. I used to listen to it like five times a day.

The Social Network's soundtrack, composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, has quite a few songs on my most played list. The one that has been played the most is surprisingly track #14, Magnetic'. This is the one which is played during the first meeting between Sean, Mark, Eduardo and Christy Lee, even though in the movie it's given a bit more of an Asian vibe to fit with the sushi bar they're at. I don't know why I love this song so much...I think it is probably because it's so frustratingly fun, just like the character of Sean Parker.

There are so many other songs that I like from The Social Network, though. If I were to rank the songs on the album from best to worst, the list would go something like this:

1. Magnetic
2. In Motion
3. A Familiar Taste
4. Intriguing Possibilities
5. The Gentle Hum of Anxiety
6. Soft Trees Break the Fall
7. In the Hall of the Mountain King
8. Pieces Form the Whole
9. Painted Sun in Abstract
10. Penetration
11. Almost Home
12. Hand Covers Bruise
13. On We March
14. It Catches Up with You
15. Complications with an Optimistic Outcome
16. Eventually We Find Our Way
17. Hand Covers Bruise, Reprise
18. 3:14 Every Night
19. Carbon Prevails

Haven't listened to The Social Network soundtrack yet? You can do so on Youtube here. I reckon that this soundtrack is probably one of the best modern soundtracks out there...it's just so damn perfect for the movie!

The Black Swan soundtrack by Clint Mansell (inspired by the work of Tchaikovsky) is one which I bought pretty much straight after I watched the movie around Oscar time. While most of this score is basically Tchaikovsky's work, Mansell does some amazing things with it, such as playing the Swan Lake songs in a distorted manner and giving his own paranoid twist to them. Two of my particular favourites are:

Perfection - This song is probably my favourite because it is the exact music played from the time Nina kisses Thomas to the very end. And if you've seen the film, then you know the ending is pretty damn epic, but still very beautiful. In five minutes, this song seems to capture every emotion that little Nina could possibly be going through at that point. Which makes for an amazing, heart-stopping and pretty song which is the perfect end to an almost perfect film.

Opposites Attract - Okay, so this song is the one that is played during that sex scene between Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis. But it is also the song which is played in the trailer, which I heard a lot when I was at work, therefore my ears really warmed to the song. It's a pretty cool song which has this really weird strain of evil in it...very good, very good.

In Kick-Ass there were two very awesome John Murphy songs which were incidentally both in Danny Boyle movies.

The first is Kaneda's Death, Pt. 2 (Adagio in D Minor), which is from one of the most underrated movies ever, Sunshine. It can be seen in Kick-Ass when Hit-Girl is trying to save Big Daddy...what an epic moment. If any of you keep up with the trailers, then you'll probably recognise it from The Adjustment Bureau's trailer. This is one stirring song which always makes me feel like someone on the moon bouncing around. Don't judge me.

The second in In the House - In a Heartbeat, from the scene where Jim is trying to save himself and his friends. The song starts out all nice, but then it goes totally badass at the end making for the perfect track to go with any action sequence. Which is shown in Kick-Ass, too, as this song is used in a scene which nearly made me forgive Nicolas Cage for all of his past mistakes: the one where he is setting fire to the warehouse. So badass.

Another Clint Mansell song that I really like is Lux Aeterna from Requiem for a Dream. Of course, this song is pretty much a staple for any movie lover as it is now used everywhere. But who remembers it in Requiem? That traumatic piece of music backing an already traumatic scene. While I'd like to blame Darren Aronofsky for wrecking my life forever after watching that movie, I think it's all Mansell's fault. This song still terrifies me.

The Theme from Schindler's List is a particular favourite of mine, too. Well, obviously, since the movie just so happens to be one of my favourites and John Williams' score work couldn't have been more impeccable. With Itzhak Perlman playing the violin, Williams manages to put every shred of pain, sadness and the heroism from Oskar Schindler into this achingly beautiful piece of music. It always makes me feel like crying, usually because when I hear this song I always think of Oskar saying "I could have done more!"

And just for randomness, here are some songs which I like that just so happen to be in movies (but they're not from scores or anything like that):


Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap - from (500) Days of Summer


Black Sheep by Metric - from Scott Pilgrim vs. the World


Hero by Regina Spektor - from (500) Days of Summer


Letters from the Sky by Civil Twilight - from I Am Number Four (movie sucks, the song is amazing)


I'll Try Anything Once by The Strokes - from Somewhere


Where is My Mind? by The Pixies - from Fight Club


La Boquilla (Dixone Remix) by Bomba Estereo - from Limitless


Stand Up by The Prodigy - from Kick-Ass


Little Green Bag by George Baker Selection - from Reservoir Dogs


You've Got Me Wrapped Around Your Little Finger by Beth Rowley - from An Education

What are some of your favourite pieces of music from the movies?

The Art of Inspiration: Schindler's List

I must admit, I hate watching movies in class. Everyone usually groans when the teacher announces what we are going to watch, and therefore everyone watches the movie with this instilled hate, which means they refuse to like it. Mind you, the kinds of movies we watch at school are very standard...ones I can remember watching since I started high school are Wild Child, Avatar, Forrest Gump and Ferris Bueller's Day Off (now that one was awesome). Anyway, for drama we are doing some scenes from 'The Diary of Anne Frank'. First off, we watched the 1959 version of the movie (which was good). After we finished that, we got into a bit of a discussion about the Holocaust, before me and the teacher started telling everyone about Schindler's List. The next day I brought the movie in for all of us to watch, just so we could get a better understanding of the Holocaust. Let's just say, this is probably the best movie I've watched at school. Even though I've already seen it, I felt that this time I got a better handle on it.

"Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire."

Schindler's List is the story of a man who didn't care much for anything but money and power, but then he came to change his mind when he saw first-hand what was really happening to these Jews. Now this might seem like your average inspirational flick that has so much hope in it you feel on top of the moon while watching it. But for one thing, we all know the Holocaust wasn't a very hopeful time at all. For the most part, we know the inspiration is there, but there it isn't that so-happy-you-feel-sick sort of inspiration. Instead, the movie is just so horrible to watch that you feel sick, with the greater good of a human making this an unforgettable experience.

At the beginning of the film, we are introduced to Oskar Schindler (Liam Neeson), who has scraped together every cent he has so he can go to a fancy restaurant and dine with some fellow members of the Nazi Party, eventually bribing them to sponsor his business: a factory which makes cookware for the army. Here we see the Schindler who wants money, and wants it bad. Once he has it, he uses it to send lavish gifts to some powerful figures in the SS. The best thing is that he hires Jews to do all of the work at his factory, who come at very cheap rates. So here Oskar is, well on the road to having more power and money than he has ever had before, taking advantage of everybody's vulnerability during the war: the Nazi's because they want to be lavished more than anything and the Jews because they just want to stay alive as long as possible.

Schindler's big introduction is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful things that I've ever seen. The camera goes around him as he navigates his way around the club, looking even more suave thanks to the carefully placed smoke coming from his cigarette and his appearance in black and white. I reckon this is the moment when I just fell completely in love with Liam Neeson. His presence in this film is compelling. From the start, you can't tell whether this guy is capable of so much good. He just weasels his way to the top, without little thought for anyone else. But there's that scene where he rides up to watch the liquidation of the ghetto in Krakow, and he sees the iconic little girl in the red coat, that he is compelled to make a change.

Schindler makes a change, by hiring these Jews to work for him, basically saving them all from being gassed. He makes a list of all the Jews he needs as 'essential services', which means they shouldn't be put on the trains to Auschwitz. Along with saving almost 1,200 lives, he also refused to contribute to killing in the war by producing faulty ammunition. While the guy was a truly inspirational figure for the things he did, he wasn't the kind of guy who was filled with positivity and spread glitter around everywhere because he was God. He only really cared about money all along, he did dodgy dealings with the black-market and he slept with countless women even though he was married. When sorting the good guys from bad, Schindler will always be at the top of the good guys list, but there are those flaws there to remind us that he is only human, not God. Even though he achieved so much, Schindler felt overwhelming guilt by the end of this movie, because he felt that he could have saved more Jews by selling his possessions to buy them. The scene where he is thanked by the Jews with a ring and a letter describing his actions and he breaks down was beautifully played by Neeson. He felt that he could have done more, even though he had done more than enough. Which was the moment when this film became truly inspirational, and when Schindler is established as a wholly good guy.

Along with the beauty and horror of this story, another thing which I absolutely loved about Schindler's List was the performance from Ralph Fiennes as SS-Lieutenant Amon Goeth. Our class all pretty much agreed that he was a hell of a good-looking man but he was a complete psycho. The best thing about his performance was the fact that when there was a close-up of him, you'd look into his eyes and it was like he was nothing. It was like he was empty, drained of life, drained of any humanism. He just kills because he feels he has to. He doesn't get joy out of shooting a whole lot of Jews - he gets joy out of feeling like he has some sort of authority over everyone else. I'm sure he didn't just wake up and decide to shoot someone from his balcony because he wanted to kill someone - he did it so everyone knew that he was around. He wanted everything to go his way, because he was in power.

So what if he didn't feel anything? He was little more than a boy getting a gun and being told to kill the people who remotely pissed him off. But he didn't kill Helen Hirsch (Embeth Davidtz) - he beat her because he cared about her, and that was his way of showing power around someone he felt any sort of emotion for. I liked how when he went down to the cellar and found Helen down there, he started off talking to her all edgy, like a boy with a crush. This was a completely different side to him which Helen didn't buy because she knew first-hand how horrible he really was, which in turn, made him go back to his usual self. It is hard to play someone so empty and power-hungry at the same time, which is why I loved Fiennes' performance so much. It is probably the best male performance that I have ever seen.

To me, Schindler's List is a perfect film. The black-and-white cinematography was absolutely impeccable, and made the movie far better. With colour, the film may have become dated and would have lost most of it's haunting vibe. However, thanks to the black-and-white this is a timeless classic, perfectly capturing the story. Steven Spielberg's direction adds a lot of humanism, and definitely puts most of his other films to shame. Everything technical is brilliant in this film...so carefully crafted. The performances from the entire cast are all heartfelt, even the ones from the several secondary cast members who played many of the Schindler Jews. Ben Kingsley has a particularly restrained performance as Schindler's accountant Itzhak Stern, which I found to be quite poetic for some strange reason. It has a brilliant mix between good and bad; showing many scenes encapsulating the horrors of the Holocaust without portraying the Jews as exactly what the Nazi's thought of them: helpless animals. Instead, many of them are given true identities, and you feel their fear and eventual gratitude.

At the end you see the real Schindler Jews coming to put stones on his grave, there is no doubt that it will fill you up with hope and inspiration. These people went through hell, but they survived thanks to a man who had enough compassion to give some people a chance at life that they had the right to have. He saw above what many other people saw. He even saw above what he really wanted to gain in life. His life after the war wasn't brilliant either, as he still had to hide from the many people who disagreed with his actions, and he failed at marriage and attempting to make good business. He later died without any money. But thanks to this film, no one can forget what a good influence he had on the future of the Jewish people. He left 1,200 people to continue on for generations and generations. He wasn't a completely good person, but he was a human, and he saw other humans for what they were. And that, to me, is why this film is so inspirational.

What are your thoughts on Schindler's List? Is it one of the greatest movies ever made? Did you find it inspirational?