Let’s trade favorite movies.
It’s the time of year where I sit around with my family, while someone plays movie trailer, after movie trailer, and someone else tries to get us to watch something derided by the rest, and we never actually choose anything, and then my father falls asleep on the sofa.
Maybe this is also your family… so I am hoping that from a shared list of recommendations, we can all be like– oh yes! That is exactly what we should watch!
I will go first, but please understand— I am NOT a film critic… to prove this, I begin my list with a Nicholas Cage movie… The Family Man, love! SO GOOD!
Note: I am breaking up this wall of text with past Christmas photos.
My movie-criteria was ABSOLUTE FAVORITES: movies that make me clap my hands together and say– oh! I LOVE that movie! LET’S WATCH IT RIGHT NOW!!!
In no particular order, and with plans to update the list, as you remind me what I forgot:
Goodfellas
Urban Cowboy
Amadeus
Wolf of Wall Street
Kiss Me Kate
Roadhouse
Braveheart
Good Will Hunting
Elf
White Christmas
The Family Stone
The Princess Bride
True Romance
Aristocats
Armageddon
Brokeback Mountain
Independence Day
Thelma and Louise
Ocean’s 11
It Happened One Night
The Talented Mr. Ripley
Blow
Casino
The Martian
I love a heist movie.
Bad boys, being bad.
Anything set in another period with EXCELLENT COSTUMES.
Anything with Robert DeNiro… EXCEPT THAT EXCRUCIATING NETFLIX MOVIE.
Brad Pitt, shirtless.
Literally everything about Elf.
Young Matt Damon.
Old Matt Damon.
Howard Keel.
scored these auction urns for a great price–they were exactly what I wanted for a tree base!
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Some of my movies are garbage.
Or generally problematic.
Be warned.
I rewatched Armegeddon this summer… and… Steve Buscemi’s character is… not good.
Some of these movies I love because they remind me so strongly of periods of my life— rewatching them is sort of like revisiting myself in that time period.
Sometimes I find that a movie is improved if you edit it for yourself… example: I don’t watch the end of Thelma and Louise— because it’s wrong.
Same for Roadhouse— once all the monster trucks show up, I’m done… also, even though obviously I am fine with a young Patrick Swayze, I’m actually in it for Sam Elliot.
Life Pro Tip:
If you have a choice, always choose Sam Elliot.
After he two-steps the girl around the diner, the movie is pretty much over for me.
Now.
I want to tell you how I came to watch Urban Cowboy, which I LOVE SO MUCH– it is pure kitsch, with EXCELLENT DENIM AND HATS AND CHARLIE DANIELS BAND AND A VERY BAD DUDE AND A MECHANICAL BULL AND LOTS OF FANTASTIC MUSIC AND DANCING.
Many years ago, on some list of “films every person should see“ I made a mental note of a movie titled Midnight Cowboy.
Sometime later, as I was searching through Netflix, I saw URBAN Cowboy. And my brain remembered the “cowboy” part, so I said to Paul— oh! This is a top movie everyone should see… want to watch it?
And like 10 minutes into it? I was speechless.
TRULY, I was like– HOW have I never seen this!! This IS the greatest movie ever made!
But also, HOW is this on a list of must-see cinema!?
Usually, when they say you should watch something, it’s Easy Rider. Have you tried to WATCH Easy Rider? I tried… after four minutes I was like— this is unwatchable AND WHERE IS JACK NICHOLSON?
ANYWAY.
Urban Cowboy.
I was SO confused that I googled— why is Urban Cowboy one of the greatest movies ever made?
And Google was like— do you mean MIDNIGHT cowboy?
Which we did watch later and it was depressing and cold and not in a good way.
Ok! I think that’s it! NOW IT’S YOUR TURN… what is your FAVORITE!?
Whatever you celebrate, I hope you get to spend it with the people you love!
xoxo, VEB
December 23, 2019 @ 7:04 pm
Ever year during the holidays we watch “Simon Birch.” Still males me laugh so hard I miss some
of the dialogue and have to rewind, but it has such a timeless message about kindness and acceptance everyone should watch it and make sure your kids see it too.
December 23, 2019 @ 7:05 pm
Notorious (the Grant and Bergman version), Mr. Blanding Builds His Dream House and all of the Thin Man series (basically anything with Cary Grant and/or Myrna Loy). But the one that cracks me up every time (especially being from NYC) is My Cousin Vinny!
December 23, 2019 @ 7:07 pm
Dogma, A Christmas Story is a must see this time of year (and how can you avoid it being on a 24 hour loop), Oh Brother Where Art Thou, Princess Bride, Its a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (the original), Office Space, Mystery Men, Time Bandits, Fiddler on the Roof, and the Frighteners. In no particular order but all must see movies!
You’re welcome 🙂
Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year to you and Paul, and the kittehs!
December 23, 2019 @ 7:41 pm
National Lampoons Christmas Vacation.
December 23, 2019 @ 7:47 pm
Favorite Christmas movie :
Love Actually
December 23, 2019 @ 8:15 pm
For witty dialogue/ romance: Princess Bride, Ridicule, Cyrano de Bergerac, Amelie… For more psychological: Slingblade, Dark Horse (chess in New Zealand)… For originality: Akeelah and the Bee, Wall-e….
December 23, 2019 @ 9:07 pm
About Time is my all-time favorite movie. You will laugh, you will cry, you will rethink your life and your priorities. It’s the best movie ever in my opinion. You’re welcome.
December 23, 2019 @ 9:28 pm
Oh yes! I loved it when I saw it. The part with his dad on the beach was just beautiful. I’ve been wanting to watch it again but I lost my dad in March and I’m afraid it will hurt too much.
December 23, 2019 @ 9:50 pm
Goodfellas, When Harry Met Sally, The Women (the original version only!), Double Indemnity, The Postman Always Rings Twice, Working Girl, The Graduate, American Beauty, Step Brothers, The Grifters, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Urban Cowboy, and anything 007.
December 23, 2019 @ 10:03 pm
My favorite, favorite, FAVORITE movie is “Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House” with Cary Grant and Myrna Loy. Architecture and design and decorating and fashion and Cary playing the first Mad Man! It’s funny and adorable. If you’ve never seen it, I think that you would love it!
December 23, 2019 @ 10:16 pm
My favorite holiday movie is “While You Were Sleeping.” But I, too, love Sam Elliott, and if you haven’t seen him in the Christmas family movie “Prancer,” you should. <3 Other loves: Emma (with Gwyneth Paltrow), Serenity (though, really, you should watch the Firefly series first), Bend it Like Beckham, Amelie, Alegria (a Cirque du Soleil film), Billy Elliot, Wicker Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Amadeus, the original Star Wars trilogy, and Cold Comfort Farm.
December 23, 2019 @ 10:33 pm
Favorite Christmas movie is definitely a Muppet Christmas Carol. Singing, Dancing, and Michael Caine. Favorite period movie is the 6 hour BBC Pride &Prejudice. Favorite all time movie is You’ve got mail.
December 23, 2019 @ 10:36 pm
Urban Cowboy YES!!!
If you like It Happened One Night you are sure to enjoy My Man Godfrey, The Thin Man and The Gay Divorcee. Actually anything with Fred and Ginger or William Powell tickles my fancy!
Love your list♥️
December 23, 2019 @ 11:43 pm
Where are the costume dramas/plucky heroines? “A Room with a View”, “Persuasion”, “Cold Comfort Farm”, the PBS/BBC “Pride and Prejudice”, “Emma”, “Northanger Abbey” and “Sense and Sensibility ” mini series because they are basically movies. “Nine to Five”, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” and, of course, “Moonstruck” because Cher.
December 24, 2019 @ 12:01 am
Sam Elliott, yes! Except in that movie where he murdered Farrah Fawcett.😒 My first date with my husband was to Urban Cowboy when it was still in theaters! We danced our way home!🥰 Love, love Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels but love even more Snatch both Guy Ritchie movies. I rewatched Kelly’s Heroes the other day. Still the best movie song. Love it. I must have a thing for heists as well.!
December 24, 2019 @ 12:11 am
I guess all of my faves have been mentioned here at some point except one: The Full Monty!!
The best Cary Grant movie? The Awful Truth. (well N by NW but funny one has to be The Awful Truth with Irene Dunn)
December 24, 2019 @ 1:07 am
But what about Ferris Bueller, Animal House, Caddyshack, Napoleon Dynamite?
December 24, 2019 @ 1:42 am
Most of mine have already been listed but one I haven’t seen mentioned is The Court Jester with Danny Kaye. We watched it again recently with our ten year old grandchildren and we were all laughing out loud. Totally agree about Sam Eliot!
December 24, 2019 @ 1:51 am
This gem hasn’t been listed, and it’s a holiday movie – hell, it’s **called** Holiday! Here’s the entry from my movie recs:
1) Holiday (1938) – my favorite movie of all time. Hard-working young man Johnny Case (Cary Grant) takes a break from his labors to see what he’s working for. While on holiday in Lake Placid he meets and falls for Julia, a lovely young lady. After arriving home in NYC, he cabs over to her place to meet the family. Surprise #1 – she’s stinking rich. Surprise #2 – her non-conformist sister Linda (Kate Hepburn) is perfect for him. Their brother Ned (Lew Ayres), who likes a tipple, approves. The rest of the family – not so much. Johnny’s best friends, Nick (Edward Everett Horton) and wife Susan, provide support and superlative comedic timing.
Enchanted April isn’t a holiday movie, but it richly deserves a much wider audience. It’s a skewed sort of rom-com (and many a guy has gotten sucked in and watched the whole magical thing):
3) Enchanted April (1992) – two somewhat depressed Victorian housewives (Josie Lawrence and Miranda Richardson) decide to leave their dreary London lives and distant husbands behind and rent a small Italian castle for the month of April. They advertise for women to share the expense, expecting to be able to pick and choose the perfect companions, but only two apply; an elderly widow with firm ideas on how things should be done (Joan Plowright) and a beautiful flapper (Polly Walker) who just wants a break from being grabbed. Despite having seemingly nothing in common, they forge strong friendships, with each other and, unexpectedly, with their husbands (Alfred Molina and Jim Broadbent) who come to San Salvatore, one at the behest of his wife and the other looking for beauty. Breathtakingly gorgeous.
Actually, here’s the list of my top nine: https://elderwitty.livejournal.com/9321.html
Includes:
2) The Tall Guy (1989) – Jeff Goldblum and Emma Thompson (comedy/romance)
4) Let it Ride (1989) – Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr, Jennifer Tilly, and Buster Poindexter (comedy)
5) Gunga Din (1939) – Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Cary Grant, and Victor McLaglen (action/comedy)
6) Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead (1990) – Gary Oldman and Tim Roth (Shakespeare fill-in comedy)
7) Dead Again (1991) – Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson (suspense/supernatural/romance)
8) Bringing Up Baby (1938) – Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn (the classic screwball comedy)
9) The Philadelphia Story (1940) – Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn (#3!) (comedy)
December 24, 2019 @ 1:51 am
I also love The Family Man and Elf, our two must watch movies every Christmas. Add to that “A Christmas Story, It’s a Wonderful Life and The Bishops Wife” and you are in the Christmas spirit. Have a wonderful Christmas.
December 24, 2019 @ 2:00 am
Given your list, try “The Departed” or “The Cooler.”