Z is for Zombieland

Zombieland is currently #372 on my flickchart list.

I've only seen it once and I guess I enjoyed it well enough!  I'm not a huge "horror" fan, even when it is tinged with comedy (or is this a comedy tinged with horror).

I've heard murmurs of a television series adaptation that I don't really have much interest in!

Today's poster gives a subtle "SPOILER" that was such a delight when I saw the movie.

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Y is for Young Frankenstein

Young Frankenstein is #155 on my flickchart list.

I have a fondness for 1970's era Mel Brooks movies.  This is among his best.  And that's saying something...look at his output:

Blazing Saddles 1974 (#253)

Young Frankenstein 1974 (#155)

Silent Movie 1976 (#507)

High Anxiety 1978 (#380)

History of the World: Part One 1981 (#511)

He didn't direct another movie until Spaceballs (#935) in 1987.  It's been a long time since I've seen it, and at the risk of upsetting Nan, I'm going to refer to it as "over-rated".  It certainly lacked some of the cleverness of his earlier work.  It always seemed to me he started to feel the pressure of the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker juggernaut and couldn't get his form back.

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X is for X2: X-Men United

X2: X-Men United is currently # 40 on my flickchart list.

One of the best superhero films.  I loved the introduction of Nightcrawler and the look into Wolverine's origins.  Well crafted!

Even though the promise of the Dark Phoenix saga was squandered with the next movie, it was set up so nicely here.

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W is for Watchmen

Watchmen is currently #43 on my flickchart list.

Though much maligned by comic book fans and movie fans alike, I really liked the film.  I went to see it on my own.  It didn't have the build up The Avengers (#3) had for me, but it did have a lot to live up to.  That being said, I really felt it delivered.

And the opening credits (NSFW: violence) are second to none...they set the tone and give so many nods to fans of the original limited series:


The Watchmen Opening Titles por ypsilon2 no Videolog.tv.




(Both of the above are the same, I just want to make sure at least one stays embedded...)

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V is for Vegas Vacation

Vegas Vacation is currently #240 on my flickchart list.

A worthy entrant into the National Lampoon's Vacation (#75) franchise!  Far better than National Lampoon's European Vacation (#516) and better than the somewhat overrated National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (#248), I find the movie funny and well scripted.

Ohhh...and tonight...Star Trek: The Next Generation "Best of Both Worlds" on the big screen!

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T is for Time Bandits

Time Bandits is currently #10 on my flickchart list.

I saw Time Bandits when it was released probably 5 or 6 times in the theater and it was probably one of our first VHS rentals.  I'm not sure if I went to see it because of my love for all things Python-esque or if this was my gateway to Python.

Either way, it was just what my 11 year old mind needed....helped shaped my sense of humor.

And it has one of the greatest George Harrison compositions playing over the end credits!  It took me FOREVER to find a copy of the song...

I really thought 12 Monkeys would be in the "T" slot, but it is just shy of Time Bandits coming in at #14!

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S is for Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan is currently # 10 on my flickchart list.

I saw Saving Private Ryan in the theater by myself when it was released.

I had the pleasure of living with my grandparents for awhile during college and then again with Nancy before she and I got married.

Gramps spent one night going through a bunch of photos and telling us the stories behind his getting shot down, life in the prison camp and about his eventual liberation.  Nana chastised him, stating that he would have nightmares "again".  Gramps said it was important for us to know.

I also remember him telling my cousins and I the story of his getting shot down in great detail when I was still in high school.  Nana was so worried for him that night too.

I remember his story like this....he was nearing the end of his commitment   He was due to leave the theater of operations and went on one more mission.  He was a fighter pilot and told us of a fierce firefight.  He was protecting some bombers and in the course of the firefight, his plane was hit.  There was fire in the cockpit.  He tried to eject but there was trouble with the ejection system (as it was).  He managed to get out of the cockpit and rolled across the back of his plane and slammed into the tail.  He rolled off and tried to deploy his chute.  His chute would not deploy so he used his secondary chute.  The chute deployed and then almost immediately caught on fire.

He landed in a field in Yugoslavia and was discovered by some locals who cared for him until the Germans could take him into custody.

He spent the next two and a half years as a Prisoner of War.  He was even declared KIA bu the US Government!

He missed the events in this movie but I still needed to see it.

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I nearly forgot to blog today!  I am a school teacher and today is our first real day of Spring Break!  Of course, that means I have some household projects to tackle.  I set out today with the goal of finishing the renovation of our downstairs bathroom that we started last year after the flood.

A relatively straightforward project revealed some mold and damage we didn't find last year.  However, I've torn out some drywall and cleaned and repaired what I could.  I decided I would take a small break before finishing the floor and replacing the sink.

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R is for Raiders of the Lost Ark

Raiders of the Lost Ark is currently # 8 on my flickchart list.

I remember being at "Lums" in Rutland with my brother, Justin, and probably my dad having lunch with Nana and Grandpa in 1981 after "Raiders of The Lost Ark" (the correct, true title) had come out.

Gramps had recently seen this with my cousins Marc and Lars. I clearly remember him telling us about the Swordsman scene, reenacting it and laughing, deeply and honestly, at the scene and his own retelling.

To this day, I try to buy all the toys based on the scene...

And, Dean at Springfield Punx made both of these. He had the Indy done and I asked if he would ever consider creating the Cairo Swordsman...and he did!  I need to ask Lee sometime if Gramps had any real "Simpsons" knowledge.

 

And the fan made posters....

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Q is for Quick Change

Quick Change is currently # 48 on my flickchart.

I haven't seen this one in a long time.  It is the only movie Bill Murray has co-directed to date.  His performance is incredible.  This comes in the middle of a streak of some of his best work:  Scrooged (#24), What About Bob? (#123), Groundhog Day (#44), Kingpin (#234), and The Man Who Knew Too Little (#174).

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P is for The Prestige

The Prestige is currently #26 on my flickchart list.

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O is for Ocean's Eleven

Ocean's Eleven is currently #25 on my flickchart list.

The modern "caper" flick.  Some strong acting....fun dialog...a fluid narrative structure.  And one of the only DVD commentaries I have ever listened to more than once!  

We tried the first sequel once and lasted about 40 minutes before during it off.  Never saw the second one.

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N is for Noises Off

Noises Off is currently #21 on my flickchart list.

Another movie that I can't trace my first watching.  Nan and I have since seen it performed on stage two or three times.  If you like screwball farces and have any love of the theater, you must see this movie.

It takes a few moments to get going but it grows and grows in laughs.  Each viewing still has me gasping for air as I am laughing so hard!!

The basic premise is that we are watching a group of actors attempt to put on a play entitled "Nothing On".  We get to see the trials and tribulations as the group move in and out of relationships and still try to remain "professional", because "the show must go on..."

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M is for My Neighbor Totoro

My Neighbor Totoro is currently #29 on my flickchart list.

Two animated features in a row!!

I'm not sure how we discovered My Neighbor Totoro.  However, once we did, it became a staple of our viewing habits.  My daughter, my wife and I loved it.

I even brought it into my classroom.  When I taught 4th grade at my previous school, we had a culture unit.  My teaching partner had chosen Japan and Mexico as the two cultures we rotated through every other year.  To end the Japan unit, we would watch this film.  It presents such a wonderful overall view of what life was like for Miyazaki growing up.  I had so much trivia on the movie that I would share with the kids as we watched it.  They loved it.

Sometimes, I still use Totoro images for my laptop wallpaper.  These will get projected up on the SMARTBoard while I am teaching.  This is the first year that NOT ONE student knew what the images were...it really bummed me out.  I think I will have to rectify the situation.

For more Miyazaki goodness, please to check out my pal The Armchair Squid via this LINK and scroll around.

And the art you can find online is awesome!!!

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L is for The Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid is currently #30 on my flickchart list.

I didn't see this in the theater...I had just turned 19 when it was released.  However, once it was released on VHS, I showed it for movie night in my dorm when I was a Resident Assistant.  I fell in love with it.  I know it is not the greatest of the Disney "Renaissance" of the late '80s and early '90s, but it really like it.

Earlier this week, I started singing some of the songs in the middle of class.  And my students just accepted it.

I know I have a reputation as being...odd.  I think I can trace my embracing my oddness (publicly) back to this movie.  It wasn't a big deal to like Star Wars or Star Trek, but my love of this Disney animated musical brought me some sideways glances.  But it also started me being "me".

BONUS STORY:  I loved the movie so much, I passed my joy of it on to Nan and our daughter...so much so, Ariel and Eric were the cake toppers for our wedding cake!!

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K is for A Knight's Tale

A Knight's Tale is currently #170 on my flickchart list.

The highest letter by far to this point.  I was scrolling and scrolling through flickchart looking for a "K"!  I think my "Q" is much higher!

I remember this being a fun movie.  What a great cast!

Nan and I have talked about this being our next "Family Movie Night Movie"...perhaps this weekend?

"You have been weighed, you've been measured, and you have been found wanting."

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J is for Jerry Maguire

Jerry Maguire is currently #47 on my flickchart list.

It took a bit of scrolling through my list to find my first J.  I really expected it to be Jurassic Park, doubly so since the kids have recently been introduced to my favorite dinosaur movie and we have watched it a lot.  However, Jerry Maguire is ONE SLOT ahead of Jurassic Park.

I have not seen this movie in a long time.  And I am not really a Cameron Crowe fan.

This movie, however, was released during an incredible time of doubt and self-reflection in my own life.  When I went to see it, alone, it resonated with me.  A man who lost himself...needed to hit the bottom before bouncing back.  And Jerry's mission statement..."The Things We Think and Do Not Say"...it was MY call to arms.  Everything in the movie, especially at the time, showed me how things could be for me.

It was me.  

And I am almost afraid to watch it again.  I worry it won't stand the test of time. I also don't want to re-rank it.

But either way, I got the happy ending I finally realize I deserved.

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I is for It's A Wonderful Life

It's A Wonderful Life is currently #6 on my flickchart list.

Growing up, mine was not a terribly sentimental family.  We loved each other and I felt loved.  However, I battled some minor teen angst (like we all do) and there have been a few moments in my life where I had some real doubts about everything.

I discovered this movie on my own at the perfect time.  I think it does have some unfair labels attached to it.  It REALLY isn't a Christmas movie.  It really isn't as cloying or simple as some might intimate.

I am not sure how I would articulate what the movie means to me.  I keep typing something and deleting it.  Suffice it to say, I think it resonates so strongly for me because I, too, want to make a difference.  I want everything the movie offers in my own life.   

And I think the scene between George and Mary while on the phone with Sam is one of the most passionate,  explosive, romantic scenes I have ever seen.

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H is for The Hunt For Red October

The Hunt For Red October is currently #9 on my flickchart list.

Andrew Leon commented on Saturday's post about Harrison Ford taking over the Jack Ryan role.  I had heard that Ford was offered the role as early as this film but found the part of the Russian captain that Sean Connery got to be far more interesting.

This is another movie that rides high on nostalgia for me.  It is one of only two movies I ever saw in the theater with just my grandfather.  He took my brother and our cousins to lots of movies growing up.  But by the time this came out, I had moved in with my grandparents to save some money in college.  Nana hosted bridge games once a month and Gramps and I had to make ourselves scarce.  One time he asked me to go see this.

The other movie we went to was Back to the Future III.  It ranks #146 on my flickchart list.

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I am using my flickchart list and blogging about the highest ranked movie for each letter of the alphabet.  

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