For the True Romantics

My favorite movie is The Notebook, based on the book by the same title by Nicholas Sparks. I love the romance and suspense that The Notebook offers. The movie makes one believe in true love and the idea that if two people are meant to be together, nothing can keep them apart. This message is especially refreshing amidst a society with a divorce rate of over 50%, as stated on divorcerate.org.

The Notebook begins with a man in a nursing home, reading a story to a woman. The story is about two young lovers, Allie Hamilton and Noah Calhoun, who meet one day at a carnival. The two soon fallen in love; however, Allie's parents forbid the relationship and move Allie away. After waiting years for letters, or any sign of lingering feelings from Noah, Allie meets Lon Hammond and becomes engaged; however, Allie still has feelings for Noah. Despite her commitment to Lon, Allie decides to visit Noah after seeing his picture in the newspaper. After their reunion, it becomes apparent that the two are still madly in love with each other. Allie now has to choose between Lon, the man she has already promised to marry, and Noah, the man who she subconsciously wants. Allie picks Noah, her one true love. The audience then sees that Noah and Allie are in fact the elderly couple reading the story in the nursing home. Allie has developed Alzheimer's and Noah has faithfully stood by her, reading the story of their lives to her each day, hoping that she will remember him. Noah and Allie end up passing away together peacefully in the nursing home, side by side.

Although I've seen The Notebook over 20 times, the ending always makes me cry. Not because of the death of Allie and Noah, but because of the love that the two represent. As aforementioned, the divorce rate in the United States is atrocious; however, movies such as this remind one that it is still possible to retain love for a lifetime.

Nacho Libre

I have a very wide collection of movies but when I am asked what movie is my favorite, I instantly think of Nacho Libre. The movie stars Jack Black as Nacho, a Mexican-Scandinavian monk. Nacho is the cook at the monastery and the orphans that live there love him very much. Although Nacho loves the children too, he also loves wrestling. Wrestling is forbidden in the monastery because it is a form of idolatry and vanity. When the Sister Encarnación comes to the monastery to teach the children, Nacho falls in love with her, another forbidden love. The movie focuses on how Nacho and his friend Esqueleto become wrestlers and try to get Nacho the hook up with Encarnación. It's a very funny movie and definitely the kind of movie you can watch with your family. I like it because no matter what mood I'm in when I start watching, by the end of the movie it is impossible not to be in a good mood. So as Nacho would say about wearing stretchy pants, "it's for fun".

ALMOST FAMOUS!!

My favorite movie of all time is Almost Famous. Not only do I adore the soundtrack and have a huge crush on the main character, but I completely connect with the message of the movie. The first fifteen times I saw the movie, I just enjoyed the storyline and incredible song selection; but once I had seen it enough to memorize almost every line, the main message hit me. It’s about becoming who you are, without forcing it; letting things happen, good and bad, in order to shape and mold your identity. William Miller, only 15 years old, is invited to tour with the members of Stillwater in order to interview the guitarist, Russell Hammond, for a Rolling Stones article. However, Stillwater has a different agenda. This was the perfect opportunity for William to experience life in the most outrageous and extraordinary ways. While on tour, he fell in love, lost his virginity, partied with his heroes, and grew up. I love this movie because it teaches me how to sit back and let life and all its crazy adventures just happen because it’s more enjoyable and worthwhile that way. Almost Famous made me realize that I have to be open to life changing opportunities, even if they seem a little crazy, like going on tour with my idols. My favorite line of the movie is from Russell’s lover, the infamous Penny Lane: “Never take it seriously, you never get hurt. Never get hurt, you can always have fun. And if you ever get lonely, you just go to the record store and visit all your friends.”

Melvin Backman-Do the Right Thing

There is little, if anything, subtle about this film. Radio Raheem's boombox blares. Statements on issues of race and police brutality are heavy-handed. The colors are vibrant. The dialogue is half-screaming. I can't really relate to this film about Brooklyn's Bed-Stuy neighborhood in the 1980s, since I was born and raise in Charleston in the 1990s. I know nothing of the struggles of the protagonist, a part-time pizza deliverer/full-time hustler named Mookie since I'm a full-time student named Melvin. Something about this movie, however, pulls me in. Spike Lee's (in my opinion) masterpiece is full of energy and messages that bombard you, anger you, then force you to ask hard questions about race and the nature of resistance.

Favorite Movie-Julie Demuynck

It’s very difficult for me to name one movie as my favorite because I feel like I have a favorite movie in all of the many genres of movies; however, if I had to pick one then I would say that The Sandlot is my all time favorite movie. I grew up watching it and still enjoy watching it as a college student. The movie was released in 1993, directed by David Mickey Evans, and was also released in Australia and the United Kingdom. The movie is about a young boy, Smalls, who moves to a new town and his mom convinces him to go outside and play with the neighborhood kids instead of sitting inside all summer playing with Legos. When Smalls decides to go outside and play with the other boys, he brings outside his stepfather’s signed Babe Ruth baseball and plays with it because he doesn’t know any better due to his lack of knowledge about baseball. Smalls hits the ball over the fence where “The Beast” lives, and the rest of the movie is about the boys’ struggle to get the ball back without being eaten by the dog that lives next door.

The Sandlot is a cute movie with many heartfelt and hilarious moments. Each of the ten boys featured in the movie has a unique personality, and watching all their personalities interact is also an enjoyable part of the movie. I grew up in a neighborhood where all the kids would spend the summer days outside playing kickball or tag and watching the movie reminds how much fun I had when I was younger. Many sequels have made of the movie, but none can compare to the original film.

Dalsing's favorite movie: The Vampire's Apprentice-Cirque Du Freak

The Vampire's Apprentice, Cirque Du Freak is an exciting and well developed movie about a young boy who seemingly has everything. However, with a twist of fate, he becomes trapped in the vampire world after trying to rescue his friend from death. This movie is one of my favorite films for two reasons: it is funny and it involves vampires.
I love comedy, and this movie well integrates comedic aspects into a seemingly dark situation. During this film, friends are betrayed, war is about to begin, and a boy must learn to live his new life as a half-vampire. Throughout all of this, comic relief presents itself and greatly improves the movie. Most other films tend to focus on the dramatic side of the story. A boy is in trouble, and attempts to ward away a vampire that might possibly kill him! The audience is captured in the moment! What will the boy do?!? However, in this film, the audience is encouraged to take a step back and realize, “how stupid [the boy] looks,” while trying to ward away the friendly vampire by positioning his fingers in the shape of a cross. This film is remarkable and is filled with these moments of laughter. With the comedic aspect of the film, the audience gets to take a step back from the horror and is able to enjoy the movie.
Everyone has their own preferences to the types of movies that they like to watch. Romance, Horror, Thrillers, movies about werewolves, wizards, and superheroes are all in the repertoire of movies available in today’s society. I like to watch movies about vampires and The Vampire’s Apprentice, Cirque Du Freak is full of them. An interesting aspect of this film is that although it contains many vampires, it breaks down vampires into separate categories: those who kill people, and those who don’t. It is almost as if the creator of this film has put aside the exploitation of vampires as a means of scaring people, and has instead decided to analyze vampiric behavior, which makes this film all the more enjoyable and realistic.
Therefore, with the balance of comedy and horror, this movie is awesome, and is more easily watched by many ages.

Watchmen (2009)

In an alternative timeline, the year is 1985 and Richard Nixon is in his fifth term as president due to his repealing of the 22nd Amendment. A group of heroic vigilantes known as Watchmen have long retired from careers of protecting a society that believes it is already invulnerable. However, after a fellow Watchmen is murdered, the remaining members must come back from retirement in order to discover the murderer. The heroes soon find that despite the public’s desperate need to be saved, they are unwilling to face their personal mortality and vulnerability. The harder the Watchmen try to improve the world, the more the public revolts. Ironically, injustice arises against them for every act of justice they carry out. The group is thus faced with a moral and social dilemma. The Watchmen can continue to work for the collective benefit of the society they slave for, yet be punished for doing so, or they can allow the public to be consumed by its own incompetence and hatred, therefore being released from the abusive relationship. I like this movie because it was so well put together. The plot’s theme is complex and relatable. Furthermore, a considerable amount of money went into the projecting, demanding a budget of $130 million. The resultant is a movie that has a beautifully developed story line with relatable characters, produced by visionaries.