Stuff I’ve Read, Watched, Done – April 18, 2022

There have been a couple of major family events in the last couple of weeks. My wife had surgery–nothing too dire, but still something that she is not fully recovered from. And my youngest daughter is celebrating her 16th birthday!

This is her at about one month.

The Three Cabelleros [50 Films Older Than Me #15]

Over six months ago, it was my birthday! And to add to all the real life goals and challenges that that brings, I’ve created at least one as it relates to movies and this blog–watch a film I’ve never seen before which came out in each year of the fifty years before I was born, and then write a bit about it.  This is Post #15. So, that’s 15 movies out of 50 in just over 50% of the year, which just goes to show how far behind I am with all this.

Spoilers ahead.  

Candleshoe [50 New-Old Movies for the 51st Year #28]

Mid-last year, I turned 50 years old!  And to add to all the real life goals and challenges that that brings, I’ve created at least one as it relates to movies and this blog–watch a film I’ve never seen before which came out in each year of my life (thus the “Old-New” terminology), and then write a bit about it.  This is Post #28.  Spoilers ahead.  

Stuff I’ve Read, Watched, Done #18 – December 30, 2020

A lot has happened since last time and The Importance of Being Earnest, but that’s not surprising since we had a little thing called Christmas during that time. 

Stuff I’ve Read, Watched, Done #6 – Mar 30, 2020

Well, it’s a crazy old life we live these days.  Here in Perth, in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, we’re in a near-total lockdown–allowed to go outside for a few particular reasons but for the most part advised strongly to stay indoors.  I continue to work remotely, a lot of which involves having digital meetings.

Surviving quarantine

Box Office Blockbuster Tourney: Even-Numbered Years Conference, Round One

So as explained previously, we are playing a seeded tournament-style elimination game amongst each of the US domestic box office champion movies from the last 32 years.  Seeding was done via Rotten Tomatoes scores, with ties broken with Metacritic scores.  Three of our six judges will vote on each match-up of two films, with the winner advancing to the next round and the loser skulking off into obscurity, until we have our overall Champion!

Mary Poppins Returns–doing Nostalgia right

Star Wars Episode 7.  The Day of the Doctor.  Ocean’s 8.  Live action Beauty and the Beast. All, on some level or another, movies that offer some fun in the viewing–some thrills, some warms feelings, some familiar taps of the toe to classic songs and musical themes.

In other words…nostalgia–that feeling of fondness and comfortability that comes from revisiting sights and sounds and situations that used to occupy happy places in our hearts in the past, especially from our childhood.  Mary Poppins Returns, the sequel to the 1964 Disney classic, definitely trades in on that nostalgic quality to earn some of its goodwill.  But it does so perhaps in the best way I have ever seen.

47 Movie Blogs #46 – Movies That I’m Embarrassed to Admit Made Me Cry

I think that I probably cry more than the average guy.  Or at least more than society assumes that guys cry.  In fact, I find I cry pretty regularly in movies, and not always at the saddest bits.  Sometimes it’s when something happens that has to do with fathers & children.  And often it’s as I’m simultaneously criticizing the film for its emotionally manipulative storytelling.

And while it’s rare that I’m genuinely embarrassed about crying in a movie, it does make me feel a bit uncomfortable.  I guess I think it will look weird to my friends or my kids or whomever.  

Frozen in the Park Last Night

So, apparently a pleasantly cool Summer evening + a Friday night before Christmas + school holidays + a new computer animated children’s movie (in Australia anyway) = a really crowded night at the open-air screening of Frozen in the city park last night.  So even though it was being projected on a big screen, we were so far away that it was roughly the equivalent of watching a 34 cm TV sitting at about 3 metres away (estimating, of course).

“Waaallleeee!” (said in a high pitched, funny voice)

“Eeeeeva?” (said in a different high pitched funny voice)

And repeat.