I Hate Snakes!

In my house, I am the designated movie organizer. Most of the movies are just plain alphabetized, but I have specific sections for my favorite actors. Those actors are Clint Eastwood and Harrison Ford.

"Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark," to say the least, is a raring good time for everyone. As my brother would say, "It's bleeping awesome."

Here's the story: Indiana Jones, an archeology professor, moonlights as a kick ass treasure hunter. He finds a clue as to where the Ark of the Covenant lies. As he chases after the Ark, he encounters a nemesis, and old flame, and countless foolish henchmen... and NAZIs. Every good movie needs some Nazis.

With some great action sequences, an evil monkey,and hilarity by way of the awesome Harrison Ford, Raiders of the Lost Ark is a must-see movie. In fact, my 25th must-see movie that I've now seen.

P.S. My guilty pleasure today was "Lucky 7" with Patrick Dempsey and Kimberly Williams-Paisley.

The Producers (The Original, Of Course)

My brother and I, when we were little, both had a serious crush on Matthew Broderick. My brother's was a man-crush, an oh-my-god-he's-so-cool crush. Mine was a crush pure and simple. He both enjoyed his acting in Ferris Bueller's Day Off so very much that we sat through the new version of The Producers, with Nathan Lane as Max Bialystock. We actually like it.

However, there is only one thing that my brother and I love more than Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane: Gene Wilder.

So when I watched the older (and better, I must say) version, I didn't realize what I had been missing.

Mel Brooks is a master by himself, but when you stick him with Gene Wilder, he's unstoppable. One of the more prominent memories from my childhood is Willy Wonka going all nuts in the Wonkavator. He goes even crazier in this. If that's enough to persuade you to go rent this movie, then I don't what is.

Here's the story: Max Bialystock is a washed-up theater producer that gets by through befriending old ladies. His accountant, Leo Bloom, has an idea one day. He theorizes, out loud, that under the right circumstances, a producer could make more money on a flop than with a hit. The two then pair up and find a horrible script to produce. A script that is basically a love letter.... to Adolph Hitler. Sadly, the actors that they hire end up actually making a hit out of the project, by mocking the Nazis.

It's a hilarious portrayal of the musical world, with an unforgettable soundtrack and some of the best crazy acting ever.

Gene Wilder's Leo Bloom goes absolutely nuts over his childhood crutch, his "BLUE BLANKET!!"

Hilarious.

Jeepers, a "Ghost"!

Today, I watched Ghost, a guilty pleasure movie in itself. There are many aspects of this movie that I don't particularly like, but all of the other parts definitely conquer the negatives.

Here's the story: Sam Wheat (Patrick Swayze, RIP) is in love with Molly Jensen (Demi Moore), even though he never wants to say it out loud. One night, Sam is mugged and murdered. His role in the movie does not end there, however. Sam is now a ghost, confused and dizzied by his new state. Sam first discovers that he was set up to die, then finds his way to a phony psychic (Whoopi Goldberg). Sam soon figures out that Oda Mae Brown (the fake psychic) has a very real ability to hear everything that Sam says. Believing that Molly is in danger, Sam uses Oda Mae to communicate with Molly and, ultimately, save the day.

Even though I find Swayze's performance a tad overwrought and melodramatic, Whoopi Goldberg's performance is hilarious and spot-on, just as Demi Moore's is heart-shattering and down to earth.

With the most memorable pottery wheel scene of all time, as well as one the most emotional and tear-jerking endings of all time, this movie does its job. It influences the emotions, while it also terrifies you with the murderous plot and one of the most authentically frightening hitmen, too.

With the recent death of Patrick Swayze, that ending scene, with a brilliant use of the Righteous Brothers' 'Unchained Melody', is seen in an all new light, adding a new layer of emotional depth to the film that only makes it better.

For depressed people, this is not the best choice of movie. But for upbeat people like me, this movie just brings us down to a level of understanding and emotional maturity that may not otherwise have been obtained.

P.S. My other guilty pleasure movie today was Zombieland, a masterpiece in its own right.

The Wolfman Cometh

Two words: American Graffiti. I just watched this movie, and I was astounded by how much I enjoyed it. I must say, whoever named it did not pick a decent enough title. However, no title could have given this movie the proper justice it deserves.

Here's the story: a bunch of teenagers cruise the California strip on graduation night, getting into fights, trying to steal booze, getting drunk off of the stolen booze, following around supposed prostitutes, being inducted into gangs, having cars stolen, stealing back cars, racing Harrison Ford, meeting elusive local legends, and of course, just plain cruising.

With a soundtrack that includes just about every song in my ultimate playlist, and Richard Dreyfuss as the conflicted main character, this movie is just classic.

Dreyfuss' character, Curtis, if conflicted about whether or not he's ready to leave home for college. And after following him around for the entire movie, the audience begins to see why. He leads quite a unique and somewhat enchanting lifestyle on the streets of California. But also, in following him around, we get to see that there is only so much that a person can accomplish in one city. Not to give anything more away, but Dreyfuss literally does everything that there is to do in his hometown, all in one night.

Ron, then Ronny, Howard's character, Steve, offers cruel insight into the life of the high school king. The quarterback for the football team, the prom king, the man's man, the ladies' man-- in the last area, however, we can see that he is sorely lacking, as his stereotypical character evolves into a jerk and a manipulator, who ultimately fails to succeed in any area.

My personal favorite is the dreamy John, a guy that got stuck on the strip, known as the best racer in town, and a total badass. His stereotypical character evolves just as much as Steve's does, but in a good way. We see the heart and soul of every 'trouble-maker' in John. We see how really, he envies the young and protects them with all he has.

It's a great coming-of-age movie, a fun ride, and a stereotype-imploding drama that will lead you to understand that there is only so much that one person can accomplish in one place.

Another Bogie Classic: Casablanca

Casablanca. Can it get any better? I've seen this movie only a few times, but it feels so familiar to me. It's the quintessential dramatic romance movie, with absolutely perfect timing and great conflict, flawless acting, and just a dash of action.

Here's the story: in World War II Africa, Rick Blaine, exiled American and former freedom fighter, runs the most popular nightspot in town. The cynical lone wolf Blaine comes into the possession of two valuable letters of transit. When Nazi Major Strasser arrives in Casablanca, the sychophantic police captain Renault does what he can to please him, including detaining Czech underground leader Victor Laszlo. Much to Rick's surprise, Laszlo arrives with Ilsa, Rick's one time love. Rick is very bitter toward Ilsa, who ran out on him in Paris, but when he learns she had good reason to, they plan to run off together again using the letters of transit. At least that's the plan.

Ingrid Bergman (who plays Ilsa) is just stone-cold and sorrowful. Bogie's heart-break is truly heart-breaking. The complexity of their story is beautiful, and the decisions that they make leave the viewers with a thick reflection of the decisions we make in our own lives. I just love it.

P.S. My guilty pleasure movie today was Someone Like You, with Ashley Judd, Hugh Jackman, and Greg Kinnear. Yay.

Bogart: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

One of my favorite actors of all time is Humphrey Bogart. I've heard people say he was a real diva on set, but that doesn't change my mind about his acting prowess. So yeah, I don't like it when Bogie plays a bad guy. I've only even seen it in one other instance: "The Caine Mutiny."

This week, though, I watched The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, the other movie in which Bogie is mostly a bad guy.

Here's the story: Fred C. Dobbs (Bogart) and Bob Curtin, both down on their luck in Tampico, Mexico in 1925, meet up with a grizzled prospector named Howard (Walter Huston) and decide to join him in search of gold in the wilds of central Mexico. Through enormous difficulties, they eventually succeed in finding gold, but bandits, the elements, and especially greed threaten to turn their success into disaster.

I do not particularly enjoy westerns, but I actually liked this one. The depth that director John Huston gives to Bogart's greed and the danger of the entire situation puts viewers into a unique position of really understanding the gold rush madness.

Ultimately, I still strongly dislikes westerns as a genre. But Walter Huston was really funny, and Bogie's bringing me around to them, even though he's a bad guy.

Back to the Future

I myself have never found Michael J. Fox very attractive. But after seeing Back to the Future, I think he's very cute. I could just never get past Stuart Little before.

Here's the story: Marty (Fox) is a normal teenager. His parents are beaten down by failure and a romance on the brink of death. His siblings are awkward, and his mother keeps them all on a short leash. His father, George, is held down by an eternal bully. Oh, and he's also friends with a mad scientist (Christopher Lloyd) who creates a time machine. Marty goes back in time, and meets his teenage parents. He meets up with his mad scientist pal in the past, and they work on getting back to the future while Marty unintentionally affects the 1955 world around him.

The movie is interesting, exciting, funny, fun, heart-warming, and ultimately, inspirational. At the end of the movie, there's a cliffhanger. I enjoyed this movie so much that now I really want to see the sequels! I hope Michael J. Fox looks just as good in the next two movies.