Birthday Movie Marathon 2019

[theworstbuddhist 572]

Hi all, it's my 51st birthday and while I ordinarily take the day off and do whatever I feel like, circumstances have prevented that this year and I have to work, plus my wife is working for 12 hours today. Fortunately I work from home, so I am going to spend the day rewatching some of my favourite films, all on DVD, while I work and into the early evening. I'd be curious to know what your list would be if you were in this position. As for me, I will be watching the following (though not necessarily in the order listed):

Fever Pitch (1996), Dir. David Evans. Adapting Nick Hornby's memoir of being a fan of the Arsenal football club in the UK, stars Colin Firth, Ruth Gemmell, and Mark Strong.
Solaris (2002), Dir. Steven Soderbergh. Second adaptation of the Stanislaw Lem novel, stars George Clooney and Natascha McElhone.
Cinema Paradiso (1988), Dir. Giuseppe Tornatore. The veteran director's autobiographical love letter to the movies, winner of a Best Foreign Film Oscar I believe.
Funny Face (1957), Dir. Stanley Donen. I love Audrey Hepburn and I love Paris.
Stay (2005), Dir. Marc Forster. Not a well-known film but one of the most memorable big-screen experiences I ever had.
2046 (2004), Dir. Wong Kar Wai. Tony Leung and Wong Kar Wai work their usual magic in this dreamy and dark tale of romance and obsession.
My Favorite Year (1982), Dir. Richard Benjamin. Sentimental classic based on Mel Brooks' experiences working as a writer on the Sid Caesar show, starring Peter O'Toole.

Cheers.

[Gregory&Winona 10]

In order of the day:

Stepbrothers

Gigi

Captain America: The Winter Solider 

Pitch Perfect 3

Inglorious Bastards

I would physically go see a movie 

Thor: Ragnork 

Pride and Prejudice

[theworstbuddhist 572]

1 hour ago, Gregory&Winona said:

In order of the day:

Stepbrothers

Gigi

Captain America: The Winter Solider 

Pitch Perfect 3

Inglorious Bastards

I would physically go see a movie 

Thor: Ragnork 

Pride and Prejudice

Nice lineup. At first glance I thought you wrote Gigli and thought I was losing my mind.

[grudlian. 4725]

1 hour ago, theworstbuddhist said:

Nice lineup. At first glance I thought you wrote Gigli and thought I was losing my mind.

I'd watch Gigli again over Gigi again. At least Gigli is shorter.

[theworstbuddhist 572]

14 minutes ago, grudlian. said:

I'd watch Gigli again over Gigi again. At least Gigli is shorter.

I'm sure Ben Affleck's bookie will be thrilled for the additional revenue.

[GrahamS. 803]

My list would be:

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Escape From New York

Raising Arizona

Fight Club

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Donnie Darko

Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World

 

[muttnik 476]

Camille (1936)

Princess Mononoke

Congo

Predator

Alien

The Thing (1982)

Perfect Blue

Phantom of the Paradise

Creepshow *I knew after I posted I was forgetting one very important one.*

Edited August 14, 2019 by muttnik
Forgot a movie.

[theworstbuddhist 572]

10 minutes ago, muttnik said:

Phantom of the Paradise

Are you in or close to Canada? The Cineplex chain is showing PotP on the big screen as part of their classic cinema series later this year.

[GrahamS. 803]

Happy birthday, by the way!

[theworstbuddhist 572]

6 minutes ago, GrahamS. said:

Happy birthday, by the way!

Thanks!

[muttnik 476]

1 hour ago, theworstbuddhist said:

Are you in or close to Canada? The Cineplex chain is showing PotP on the big screen as part of their classic cinema series later this year.

No, unfortunately, I'm currently broiling in the American southwest, but that's super rad and definitely up my alley. I read before that the movie did much better in Canada than the US.

[theworstbuddhist 572]

1 minute ago, muttnik said:

No, unfortunately, I'm currently broiling in the American southwest, but that's super rad and definitely up my alley. I read before that the movie did much better in Canada than the US.

I certainly remember seeing it a lot on TV growing up. Never on the big screen though, and I don't think I have seen it for at least 30 years, so I might have to go check it out.

[Gregory&Winona 10]

10 hours ago, theworstbuddhist said:

Nice lineup. At first glance I thought you wrote Gigli and thought I was losing my mind.

I’m proud to say that I have never seen gigli from start to finish. 

[Gregory&Winona 10]

7 hours ago, muttnik said:

Camille (1936)

Princess Mononoke

Congo

Predator

Alien

The Thing (1982)

Perfect Blue

Phantom of the Paradise

The Thing is a classic. I remember watching it as a kid. 

[Gregory&Winona 10]

8 hours ago, grudlian. said:

I'd watch Gigli again over Gigi again. At least Gigli is shorter.

Whoa Whoa Whoa...... Gigi is an old fashion creeper movie about turning a kid into a a proper prostitute in old age France. It deserves respect.   

 

Thank heaven for little girls

[muttnik 476]

12 minutes ago, Gregory&Winona said:

The Thing is a classic. I remember watching it as a kid. 

It really, really is, and every effect still looks fantastic to this day.

 

[Gregory&Winona 10]

19 hours ago, muttnik said:

It really, really is, and every effect still looks fantastic to this day.

 

It needs no remake.

[theworstbuddhist 572]

21 minutes ago, Gregory&Winona said:

It needs no remake.

Carpenter's version of The Thing is a remake, of course. I like the recent "premake" with Mary Elizabeth Winstead too, but I agree, Carpenter's is the best.

[GrahamS. 803]

I heard the screenwriter of the prequel to The Thing (he also wrote the script for Arrival) interviewed on Ben Blacker’s podcast. The writer did not sound thrilled with how the film came out.

[muttnik 476]

4 hours ago, Gregory&Winona said:

It needs no remake.

And yet I know that years down the line with the way things are currently going, we'll get one.

3 hours ago, theworstbuddhist said:

Carpenter's version of The Thing is a remake, of course. I like the recent "premake" with Mary Elizabeth Winstead too, but I agree, Carpenter's is the best.

The Thing From Another World was just on TCM a few weeks back and I gave it a rewatch as it'd been a while. If anyone hasn't seen it I would definitely recommend doing so at your leisure; I remember not being super impressed with it as a kid (because by then I'd already seen Carpenter's version as well as other things like Alien and Cronenberg's The Fly, and that's like trying to give a kid an apple after a can of Coke), but I appreciated it a lot more on this viewing. As for the 2011 prequel, there are things I absolutely love about that movie, but a lot of the effects having no weight to them is what ultimately disappointed me about it.

[GrahamS. 803]

I rewatched most of the prequel a few months ago (I had to return it to the library so didn’t finish it). It lives in that odd realm where it’s good enough to be decent, but just doesn’t feel necessary.

A far shittier film COULD have been made, though, so props to everyone for not phoning it in. And I generally like Mary Elizabeth Winstead a lot. She’s on some show on Amazon called Brain Dead (I think) with Tony Shalhoub and others. It’s a very quirky horror/comedy/political satire. Not for every taste, but I liked it!

[theworstbuddhist 572]

6 hours ago, GrahamS. said:

I rewatched most of the prequel a few months ago (I had to return it to the library so didn’t finish it). It lives in that odd realm where it’s good enough to be decent, but just doesn’t feel necessary.

A far shittier film COULD have been made, though, so props to everyone for not phoning it in. And I generally like Mary Elizabeth Winstead a lot. She’s on some show on Amazon called Brain Dead (I think) with Tony Shalhoub and others. It’s a very quirky horror/comedy/political satire. Not for every taste, but I liked it!

I really enjoy her work, I must check that out. She was in a really creepy film called Faults a few years back.

[GrahamS. 803]

Yeah, she was really good in that! She and an actress named Carrie Coon were also the best things in the mixed-bag third season of Fargo.

[theworstbuddhist 572]

26 minutes ago, GrahamS. said:

Yeah, she was really good in that! She and an actress named Carrie Coon were also the best things in the mixed-bag third season of Fargo.

I quite enjoyed that season, but then I also love Carrie Coon. She was amazing in The Leftovers. She also has a weird little role as one of Thanos' elite guards in Infinity War (she's the one who fights Black Widow and Scarlet Witch in the last big battle).

[GrahamS. 803]

Yes, she’s awesome as well. I thought David Thewlis was great in that season of Fargo as well, I just was frustrated by the ending (which I realize was the point, but still...).