10-Gladiator (2000, Ridley Scott) showed the power of movies. The backlash against the film has never detracted from my enjoyment of the film. I'll love it till death. I saw this movie on opening day with some friends back in May of 2000. At that point in my life I enjoyed movies a lot, but the scope, drama and action of this Ridley Scott effort was what began my true, deep love for the art of film.
9-I was an actor. Not really, I'm exagerating the facts of the case of course, but when I was a kid a friend called me once with the proposition of being in a movie. His family knew somebody who somebody who somebody...Anyways, the movie, the title of which I've embarassingly forgotten, was a silly kid's film. I was a student in a classroon (not a peasking role, mind you), but when we rented the video (VHS!), all we saw was the corner of my desk...
8-My mother introduced me to James Bond. A lot of people I know who grew up with the Bond movies discovered them through their fathers, or uncles, or some other male relation. Not me, no sir! I still remember the day I was staying at home from school due to illness, when my mother said she was going to the video store to rent a film she thought I'd like. She said it was nothing like those pathetic cartoons I watched. No, this character had some class, she claimed. Since then I have been a die hard Bond fan. That first 007 movie? My mother's favourite of course, Octopussy.
7-I love special edition DVDs. I own maybe a handful of DVDs that aren't 'special editions', no more. I love commentary tracks, deleted scenes, 'making-of' documentaries, etc. Now, I never find the time to watch or listen to every single feature of every single DVD I own, but I do try. And even if I don't, I just like the idea that I can get the most of out the DVDs I purchased.
6-I am absolutely in love with film scores. There's something about what a film music composer does to add an extra layer to the storytelling and themes of a film that makes me so happy. I even used to buy film scores back in the day (I don't so much anymore). I'm always curious to listen to a great film's score after I've watched a movie I love for the first time.
5-I'm not big on soundtracks. I don't know why exactly. It isn't that I don't like them. On the contrary, when the music fits a scene I appreciate the cleverness and work that went into choosing the right song. Soundtracks have just never carried as much weight in my warped mind as film scores. The latter is original work done from A to Z to compliment the storytelling. The former is a job fitting in songs that already existed.
4-When watching movies at home, nothing beats a good bowl of cereal. When it comes to cereal, nothing beats a good bowl (or 3) of Reese's Puffs.
3-I don't like dubbed versions of Non-English or Non-French language films. If I don't understand the original language in which the film's dialogue is spoken, then I'll happily read the subtitles. In fact, and this is going to make me look like a bit of a jerk, if there is another person who wants to watch the same movie but feels more comfortable with the dubbed version, I'd just assume not watch the film at all.
'Whoa!'
2-I really like seeing big films on opening weekend. I know that's nothing extraordinary (although I didn't garantee that this was going to be a list of 'extraordinary' movie inspired facts about me), but there are a handful of people who prefer waiting for the crowds to die down or even wait for a film's release on DVD. For some movies, like smaller indie films or Foreign language stuff that I usually go see alone, I'm not usually in any rush to see them. Those movies tend to be in half empty rooms anyways. But the big Hollywood stuff that attracts crowds on Friday and Saturday nights...I love going out with friends to see those.
1-This is less of a 'fact' and more of a 'fantasy.' You know us cinefiles/movie buffs/movie maniacs all wish we could do something in the movie business, or something movie related. I know a few people who would like to direct, others who like to write. Some of us would like to play in the editing room. If I were part of the movie industry, I'd be an actor. I'm not saying I have the talent required to be one, only that that is the one role I'd like to have were I part of movie making magic. I've always been an actors and actresses kind of guy. Directors bring what they have to the table, so do the writers, cinematographers, visual effects teams, etc. None of them can be a character in a film other than an actor. Agree to disagree if you feel like it, but in my book, you don't have a movie without the actors.
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6 comments:
Great list! I identified with many of your points with the exception of the Reese Puff (never tried them). My mother introduced me to Bond as well, though it was my cousin who further cultivated my love for the character.
You eat cereal when you watch movies, too? Great minds think alike!
We diverge a little on soundtracks. I'm a sucker for a good one, with my current favorite being "Pulp Fiction" and "Slumdog Millionaire." There's a fine art to making a good movie soundtrack, so when I find a good one I hang on for dear life.
@CS: I didn't have a cousin to cultivate my appreciation for the character of Bond, but my mom did more than enough by showing me 'Octupussy' (that's a phrase that can come off terribly...)
@MCarter: I won't disagree that there is an art to making a good soundtrack. Like I said in my post, it does require effort (and some music knowledge). But at the end of the day, it's compiling songs that already been written and trying make something stick. When it works, it definitely works, I wouldn't want to say that soundtracks suck, only that scores embody a more complete form musical work on a film due to originality and its (the film's score) specificity to whatever movie it was composed for.
i'm exactly theopposite when it comes to scores and soundtracks. i hardly even a notice a score, but the soundtrack crucial for me. not many filmmakers are good with soundtracks, though.
whoa, sorry for all the errors in my comment...
I figured you typed the comment quickly, or something.
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