2. South Pacific - [blind spot] So even though I've never seen this, it's pretty guaranteed that I was going to know the music since it's based on the Rodgers & Hammerstein Broadway play (which I also haven't seen). And...yup...I immediately knew the first song LOL. I actually sang it in show choir when I was in 7th grade ("there is nothin' like a dame...nothin' in this world...there is nothin' you can name...that is anything like a dame"). Knowing that this is about soldiers in WWII, I was floored by how absolutely gay the opening scene is. The soldiers are in the tightest t-shirts I've ever seen or unbuttoned shirts or just shirtless singing and dancing with each other. It's hilarious. I am also familiar with "Some Enchanted Evening" (obviously). But my favorite song performance was the "Honey Bun" song because Mitzi Gaynor is so ADORABLE with the oversized sailor outfit. I would wear most of the outfits she wears - I love the whole 40s/50s Americana look. This is an odd movie in many ways - overtly racist but also extremely "woke" for its time. The line "you've got to be taught to hate all the people your relatives hate" is kind of shocking for a film from 1958. Overall, I liked this. I can see why it was a successful Broadway show and film. But did you guys know that there is apparently a 2001 one remake starring....Glenn Close??? WHAT?? Hahaha!
3. Dante's Peak - [rewatch] I definitely went on a 90s action thriller extravaganza for the next 5 movies and I'm not sorry. I tried to pick ones that that I either wasn't the biggest fan of or didn't remember well (aside from Face/Off). This is definitely one that I wasn't the biggest fan of. I preferred the even more ridiculous 90s volcano movie, Volcano. I think this one took itself a bit more seriously and I've never been the biggest Pierce Brosnan fan (sorry!). I do remember seeing this one in the movie theater with my grandmother and her really liking it. It just takes an entire hour before the volcano erupts and then when it does everything escalates so quickly to a comical degree. And everyone just does really, really stupid things (which is no different than any other disaster film). I do have a bit of a fascination with volcanoes though - I planned a whole Italy trip around going to Pompeii when I was younger, and my dream was always to do a helicopter volcano tour in Hawaii, which I did for my honeymoon and it was LIFE CHANGING. I wish someone would make an actual GOOD volcano disaster movie. Maybe one day. But this one is definitely way too boring and just plain uninteresting.
4. Point Break - [blind spot] Okay...so I definitely assumed that I watched this movie. It's a Keanu Reeves 90s movie directed by Katheryn Bigelow! I HAD to have seen it. And I definitely remember a Keanu Reeves surfing movie. But then my husband was describing it and he was like well, he's a cop though. And I got really confused. I thought it was like a surfer "bro" movie. Not a bank heist/cop thriller. So we put it on, and NOPE I definitely have not seen it. WILD! I mean, maybe I have, but my recollection of it is so little that I have to include it as a "blind spot". And also, I LOVED IT. It has everything! Action, romance, comedy ("young dumb and full of cum" lol). Keanu is as good as he can be (lol) and Patrick Swayze is great, but I was also surprised by the supporting cast - LORI PETTY!! I LOVE her - so quirky and cool. Tank Girl was big in my formative years. But she's still really great (Orange is the New Black, Station Eleven, I'm hoping she pops again soon!). And a very random Anthony Kiedis appearance?! WHAT? WHY? So weird! Anyway, I'm floored that I haven't seen this film a billion times - it should have been on my 90s rewatch list along with Speed, Bad Boys, Demolition Man, etc.
5. Face/Off - [rewatch] One of the greatest concepts for a movie EVER. It's HILARIOUS. They LITERALY SWITCH FACES! HAHAHAHA! So fucking good. It's so stupid, but the way they make it work is actually downright genius. And John Travolta and Nicolas Cage are both brilliant in this (and I don't say that often - I'm not exactly the biggest fan of either of them), they go with this extremely ridiculous concept with the right amount of seriousness and cheesiness and it seems like they are both just having the time of their lives. It's absolutely HILARIOUS that nobody notices that their BODIES ARE DIFFERENT. Like his wife doesn't notice that her husband is suddenly 2 inches shorter, has a thinner frame and a DIFFERENT PENIS??? LOL. I DIE every time I watch it - it's just so fucking hilarious. There is also a GREAT supporting cast - CCH Pounder, Gina Gershon, Joan Allen, Thomas Jane, Dominique Swan, Alessandro Nivola (the list literally goes on and on!). It's also a John Woo film, so the action and fight sequences are outstanding - my favorite is the gunfight scene with "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" playing. SO GOOD. This is a film that I rate 4 stars, but objectively I know that it's not a 4 star film. But I love every single second of it.
6. The Peacemaker - [rewatch, sort of] So this is the first film I ever walked out of the theater for. It wasn't my choice - I was with 5 or 6 of my friends who all decided it was too boring and wanted to leave. As a 16 year old girl, I too, found it very boring, but I probably would have finished it if it were my decision (but that's my personality as a completist! It's a curse most of the time. I mean, I'm still watching Grey's Anatomy after 22 seasons and it hasn't been good for at least the last 10. FML!). I've always been interested in watching it in full to see if it was really as bad as my teenage brain thought it was, and I'm not surprised to find out that I was wrong. It's a solid political action thriller, but I do think that any teenager watching this purely for George Clooney will be bored (which is why we watched this - my bff was obsessed with him). Nicole Kidman and Clooney play off of each other well. And there is a good story. Also the line "I'm not interested in the man who wants 10 nuclear bombs, I'm interested in the man who only wants one" is A LINE. I would also like to note that the guy they hired when George Clooney left E.R. is in this??? I remember them making such a big deal out of this new "heartthrob" taking Clooney's place and he ended up being such a dud (I don't even remember what his name was).
7. Snake Eyes - [rewatch] I remember this movie a little bit, and I definitely remember liking it - but I like most of Nic Cage's crazy 90s movies. My husband had never seen it so it made for a good rainy Sunday afternoon film. And also, it's Brian De Palma, so I know it's also a well-made film. AND IT IS! The shot that goes over each hotel room's ceiling (minus the actual ceiling) is GLORIOUS. It's also a very tightly edited twisty thriller. Obviously, I knew who the "bad guy" is (I actually remembered as soon as we started watching it!), but I think the twists are done really well. And Carla Gugino is so gorgeous, but also a great actress. She's really good in this, especially in one very intense scene. The only criticism is that Nic goes a little too over-the-top, but that's kind of his brand so I can't really fault it.
8. Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey - [rewatch] I was OBSESSED with this movie as a kid (and I read the book over and over again). It's so sad but heartwarming and wonderful all at the same time. I'm guessing I saw this in a movie theater on first watch, but I remember having it on VHS (probably taped from television?) and watching it as a kid and absolutely crying at the thought that these animals work together to find their way home. And that they feel emotions and concepts like abandonment (*cries again*). The voice actors are so perfect for this too (Michael J. Fox, Sally Field and Don Ameche). And the actual animals used are so good in their roles (Sassy is obviously my favorite - "Cats rule and dogs drool" was a popular quote in my household). Even as an adult, this movie hits all the emotional beats so well - I almost teared up a few times (the end part with Shadow falling into the hole - ugh it's so sad). And I totally forgot about the whole lost child in the woods part (what a serious thing to include in a kids movie!). Apparently there is a sequel? I don't know if I ever watched it? It only came out a few years later, so I can't imagine not watching it, but I have no memory of it. Hmmmm....
9. Edward Scissorhands - [rewatch] I have a hard time with the whole Johnny Depp thing because he was such a big part of my teenager years - with this, 21 Jump Street, Benny and Joon, and What's Eating Gilbert Grape, he was literally in several of my favorite movies. And I truly believe he just needs someone to help him with his substance abuse problems - he doesn't seem like a naturally violent person and he has so many people sticking up for him (including ex-wives & ex-girlfriends). I think his relationship with Amber Heard was just extremely toxic and when that's mixed with drugs/alcohol it becomes even more toxic and led to violence. I wish he just admitted that and sought help instead of dragging it out into the public. It turned into a circus of he said/she said, and it did nobody any good (and also proved that people don't understand nuance, or that two wrongs don't make a right, or that nothing is black & white - you know all of those things that people are supposed to learn at like the age of 11? It just doesn't happen anymore). Anyway, he was always a terrific actor - one of those who wasn't scared to take roles that were different. I'm not exactly the biggest Tim Burton fan, but I do think his films are beautiful, and he goes all in on the gothic fairytale aesthetic so I respect it. This is definitely my favorite of his films (it would be this or the Batman movies). I love that it's a take on Frankenstein but also Beauty and the Beast (I would love to see a Burton version of The Little Mermaid). I also love Winona Ryder (always have, always will), but her blonde hair is so awful in this. I think it's funny that the gossipy neighbors find his literal scissor hands/blade fingers sexy because I do not think that's a turn-on for a variety of reasons. I actually forgot about the whole Avon Lady thing (remember the Avon Lady?! What a weird time...). I do still absolutely love the scene with Ryder twirling in the snow, with the camera panning around her and then pushing in. Just a gorgeous scene. Overall, I'm glad to say that this is just as good as I remembered. Not necessarily a story I would tell as a bedtime story to a child though (LOL).
10. From Dusk Till Dawn - [rewatch] One of my favorite movies ever! It's another one of those films that, objectively, I know it's not a 4 star movie, but I just adore everything about it. As I said above, my high school bff was OBSESSED with George Clooney, so it was ALL George Clooney ALL the time (I should have realized then that she had clear daddy issues. I mean, my big crushes at the time were Leonardo DiCaprio and Ryan Phillippe - both 6 years older than me, which I think was normal for a teenage girl. George Clooney is older than my mom!). But this was definitely one of his movies that I didn't mind watching over and over again. And I do think he's hot in this movie (is it the neck tattoo? Couldn't say.). The downfall is obviously that Quentin Tarantino is just about the worst actor alive. I think Clooney does a good job of playing off of his chaotic energy, but it's definitely the worst part of the movie (if it were someone who could act, I would probably rate it a whole 5 stars). I also think I might have blocked out just how awful these brothers are - I remember that they were bank robbers, but I definitely repressed the rape scene. And the thing is - it definitely doesn't need to be that nasty. ANYWAY, I love that the movie starts out as an entirely different movie - just a couple of criminals trying to get across the border and then it turns into a full blood-thirsty vampire movie. The whole reason I watched this is because I wanted to watch Sinners again (two reasons: (1) because my first watch was mostly of disappointment. I acknowledge that the story is GREAT, the vibe is PERFECT, the music is BRILLIANT, but the film is not well-made aside from one terrific scene, (SORRY NOT SORRY) and certain actors were WAY overpraised. I wanted to watch it again just to analyze and confirm my initial thoughts. And (2) because Jack O'Connell is HOT and I've been watching all of his movies/tv shows. And it makes me so mad that his performance is clearly the best performance in this movie. There's actually an interview with the Sinners cast in which they have to answer questions about their co-stars and one of the questions was "which cast-member could nail a scene with one take" and they literally all pointed to Jack. Like, the three OSCAR NOMINATED performers from that movie just admitted that he's a better actor. LOL. It just makes me mad because the producers clearly put money into an awards campaign, but didn't put any of that money behind him. It's fucked. Anyway, sorry for the rant...it's kind of relevant). So I asked my husband if he wanted to watch Sinners with me and he said "maybe...it's like From Dusk Till Dawn, right?" and then I realized that he would probably hate Sinners, and that we should just watch From Dusk Till Dawn instead. After watching them both close together (I rewatched Sinners the next morning on my own), I do see more of the comparisons. The way that it does the same thing with telling a completely different story before the vampire stuff kicks in, the two brothers being criminals trying to start over, and, of course, the way the vampire does a sexy dance before killing the main characters (I mean, Salma Hayek's dance *might* be sexier than Jack's Irish jig, but it's close for me. Haha!). Anyway, I just love everything about this movie - the dialogue is great (funny, sarcastic, smart), the vampire makeup is fantastic (even if a bit cheesy), it oozes sexiness and has this super cool vibe, and it's just a really wild, enjoyable ride.
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