Movie Meme

I borrowed this from Good Dog. I thought it might be fun to think about and make a mildly interesting post. Feel free to answer the questions yourself if you can be bothered..

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

Barry Levinson’s film Diner is one that immediately springs to mind, as this was a favourite of mine during the eighties. The film that launched the careers of Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon Ellen Barkin and ....erm.. Steve Guttenberg. I watched it again last year, and it’s lost a lot of it’s appeal. Maybe because I’m not twenty-something anymore. There are loads of films I’ve seen more than ten times

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

Dances with Wolves. Not because I thought it was that special, though it is a great movie. It just that the circumstances of it’s release coincided with seeing at at my local cinema, and then staying in a hotel that was next door to a cinema. I generally don’t go to the flicks, as I’m easily irritated when watching films, and don’t like noise or having conversations. I don’t see cinema as a social event. If I go these days, it’s usually alone and on a weekday afternoon, when I stand a better chance of having the theatre to myself. Anti-social as ever..

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

I’m not really motivated to see films based on who’s in them, though I’d be inclined to watch a film with John Cusack or Ed Norton, who seem to make interesting. Cate Blanchett and Casey Affleck have also usually worth a watch for their performances. I loved Affleck’s performance in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

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

Tom Cruise. Something slightly creepy about him. Though I’m a big fan of Michael Mann’s Collateral.

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

Silence Of The Lambs. I’m not sure why, but it keeps coming up in correspondence with a friend of mine. “It rubs the lotion on it’s skin or else it gets the hose again.”

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

I’m not big on musicals. My favourite is Singin‘ In The Rain. though I’m not sure I can say I know all the words to all the songs. I bet I know all the words to all the songs in Grease. I’ll have picked them up by osmosis.

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

There is no movie that I sing along to.

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

I like films that are slightly unusual. Donnie Darko springs immediately to mind, or better still, Jacob’s Ladder. Everyone should see Jacob’s Ladder. Not just because it’s a great film, but because of what it’s about, and the concept on which it hinges. Death basically. I say everyone should see it... it’s a little bit disturbing, so everyone except young children.

09. Name a movie that you own.

I own loads of films. One of them is Glengarry Glen Ross. (I just looked at a shelf with some, and that was the first one I saw)

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

Sting. I’m surprised at how bad he is.

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

Not many drive-ins in the countryside of South Staffs. I’m usually too busy racing hot rods and playing chicken at Thunder Road.

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

Citizen Kane. I have no idea if it’s as good as they say. I know what Rosebud is, so is it still worth seeing?

13. Ever walked out of a movie?

All of them. Otherwise I’d still be there wouldn’t I? I’ve never left one in disgust, though. I have switched one or two off. I can remember giving up on Dogville, and I’ve never been able to sit though Eraserhead.

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

I’m a man I don’t cry. Ever. Ok, I may have been a little choky on very very rare occasions. The ‘I could’ve saved more...‘ speech from Schindler’s List springs to mind.

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

Star Trek. Loved it.

16. What’s your favourite/preferred genre of movie?

Allsorts, though I really like good science fiction and horror films.

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

Not sure. Probably Dumbo, Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or Bedknobs and Broomsticks

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

I can’t think of one that I wish I hadn’t seen. What’s the point?

19. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across The Eighth Dimension is pretty ‘out there’. Never seen it on TV.

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

I’m never really been overly scared by films. It’s like roller-coasters, you delight in the fear rather than are actually afraid. The most effective horror films were seen in my late teens The Exorcist is the obvious choice, though watching it today it’s quite a dull film interspersed with shock scenes. Two comic horrors are extremely effective The Evil Dead and An American Werewolf in London. I think The Blair Witch Project does a cracking job of ratcheting up the tension until it becomes hysteria. The hype helped. I remember leaving the cinema after TBWP and a girl behind me was sobbing into her friends coat, “It’s so upsetting because it’s REAL!..” Ho hum.

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

Again they would have been seen in my late teens or early twenties. I like those early Steve Martin films, The Jerk, The Man With Two Brains and Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid. Delightfully silly. Whatever happened to him. Those family comedies that he and Eddie Murphy seem to make these days are dire.