I haven't done a movie post in a little while so I thought that I would introduce my readers to another movie that I think you should see before you die. The movie I've chosen this time around is Mr. Holland's Opus. AWESOME movie!
Richard Dreyfuss plays Glenn Holland who is a professional musician who would like to spend more time working on the piece that he is composing, so in 1965 he takes up teaching music at a local high school. Little does he know that there won't be very much "free time" as a teacher.
In the beginning, Mr. Holland is frustrated that he is unable to connect with his students, but over time he becomes very successful at his profession. At home though, he is struggling with with a major "issue" surrounding his son and struggles through the years to develop any kind of relationship with him. When the music program is cut after 30 years, Mr. Holland wonders what, if anything, he really has accomplished in his life.
My blog giveaway is right HERE....Not to late to get in on the action!
Here is movie number 6 on my list of "Top 100 Movie's I Think You Should See Before You Die" Facing The Giants. This movie was made by the same production team as Fireproof and is another movie that has religion as a major "focal point."
For this review I'm actually going to borrow a review that I found on Amazon about the movie. I hope after reading these reasons to see this movie.....You will want to see it too.
There are basically 10 reasons "Facing the Giants" is a movie that every family in America should watch together:
#1. This is a movie about overcoming great obstacles, something every family faces.
#2. This is a movie that does not rely on sex, violence, or profanity to carry a weak or boring plot.
#3. This is a movie that examines the relationships between family members, and offers sound Biblical advice on how to make those relationships more successful.
#4. This is a movie void of famous actors with large egos to build upon, which means cast was able to focus on the overall production and not worry about the performance of one actor or actress.
#5. This is a film that stirs all kinds of emotions and can definitely clean out clogged up tearducts.
#6. This is a movie with some great football action scenes that rival any larger, Hollywood, big-budget film.
#7. This is a movie written and produced by Christians dedicated to their work of reaching out to a lost world with the message of hope and love.
#8. This is a movie that celebrates the power of the human spirit to rise above what we think is possible.
#9. This is a movie that just seems to have the Lord's blessing on it throughout the post-production, production, and distribution.
#10. The DVD has many extras that give the viewers a taste of the amazing character and the pure hearts of the people who helped make this film a success!
I've just listed 10 very good reasons to purchase "Facing the Giants". It is not my goal to write a review of this movie that spoils the plot, declares one actor better than an other actor, or compares the storyline to another movie. My review is to let anyone who reads it know that this is a movie worth owning and sitting down to view with the family. See ya next review!
Don't forget about my giveaway! Not too late to get in on the action!
Here is movie number 5 on my list of Top 100 Movie's I Think You Should See Before You Die" Fireproof. I'd already seen one of the other movie's that was made by this group of people, which will also be making this list too. I was kinda luke warm at first about this movie....It deals alot with religion and I realize that there are some out there that don't really care for that sort of thing when they go to see a movie. But after watching it I was really happy that I took the time to watch it.
Lt. Caleb Holt (played by Kirk Cameron) is a firefighter who lives by the old adage: Never leave your partner behind. Inside burning buildings it's just one of his natural instincts. In his marriage, not so much. After being married for a decade, Caleb and his wife Catherine (played by Erin Bethea) have drifted so far apart that they are ready to move on with their lives....Without each other. Yet as they prepare to enter divorce proceedings and a certain Dr. tries to make a move on Catherine, Caleb's father asks his son to try an experiment: The Love Dare. While seriously hoping that The Love Dare has nothing to do with his parent's newfound faith, Caleb commits to the 40 day challenge. But how can Caleb even attempt to love his wife while avoiding God's love for him? Will Caleb be able to demonstrate his love over and over again to a person who is no longer receptive of his love? Is this just another marriage destined to go up in smoke?
The next movie on my list is Operation Petticoat. A comedic war-time movie starring Carey Grant and Tony Curtis. If you love a good laugh you will definately enjoy this movie.
Cary Grant is the Commander of the Sea Tiger, a submarine with more problems than crew members. His troubles begin when the sub sinks before even leaving the harbor during a Japanese raid. Commander Sherman (Grant) and his men begin working to repair and bring up their beloved sub despite the fact that their requisition orders rarely are filled. Due to the fact that some of his men were reassigned to other duties after the raid, Sherman is granted some "replacement's"--enter Lt. Nicholas Holden (Tony Curtis).
Holden is in the Navy not for the purpose of country but for the uniform so he can impress his rich girlfriend back home. Since he is no longer winning the rumba championships with the Admiral's wife he must settle into a role on the Sea Tiger--scavenging for items to repair the sub.
With new and inventive ways of obtaining supplies the Sea Tiger once again becomes sea worthy-- just barely.
But none of Holden's scavenging compares to the unexpected "guests" that are brought aboard the Sea Tiger....I'm not going to give it away....See this movie!
Cary Grant is charming as ever and deals with the many, many problems and situations thrown at him in such funny ways. Tony Curtis is equally charming and lends very much to this film.
Highlights of the movie: "Sea Men Hornsby," the unusal color of the sub
Best line of the movie: "Get that THING out of my engine room!"
Here is movie number 3 on my list of movie's that I think you need to see before you die. Friendly Persuasion is another one of my favorite movies also....It's actually my grandma's ALL TIME favorite movie that doesn't star Shirley McClaine.
Gary Cooper and Dorthy McGuire play Quaker farmer's and devoted parent's Jess and Eliza Birdwell, who happen to be living in Indiana during the height of the Civil War. The Birdwell's religion opposes all forms of violence and war, but as the Confederate forces move closer to home -- looting and burning homes as they go -- the community around them prepares to defend themselves.
To make things a little more difficult for Jess and Eliza, their daughter Maddie (who wants to remain a Quaker) has fallen in love with a dashing Calvary officer, a love that doesn't exactly make Maddie's mom happy at all. Then their oldest son, Josh, announces that he wants to go and fight for the North, putting the families nonviolent stance to the ultimate test. The Birdwell's youngest son, Little Jess, is constantly at war with Eliza's pet goose named Samantha. Eliza thinks Little Jess is just teasing her but if you see the movie, well, just see the movie to see who win's this battle, I don't want to give it away.
Highlights for me: Samantha the Goose, When the Confederate's show up at the Birdwell's farm
Favorite Line: "A man's life ain't worth a hill of beans except he lives up to his own conscience."
Here is my second movie on my list. It also made Yahoo's list but this is my list and I can have what ever movie I want on it right? Well I've already done a post on this particular movie already which you can read if you click HERE. So I will leave you with the highlights of the movie for me.
Highlights of the Movie: The scene's between Ward Bond, John Wayne and John's son Patrick Wayne. Monument Valley.
Best Line of the movie for me: "Let's go home, Debbie."
I posted yesterday that I was going to post my own list of movies that I think you should see before you die. Well here is movie numero uno....Second Hand Lions. If you liked the movie The Princess Bride you'll like this movie too.
Second Hand Lions stars, Robert Duvall, Michael Caine, Haley Joel Osment, and Kyra Sedgwick.
The last place Walter (Haley Joel Osment) wants to be is on his great uncles' farm in rural Texas, where he is dumped off by his mother Mae (Kyra Sedgwick), in the middle of nowhere living with two crazy old men, a pack of dogs and a pick with only the promise that she'll come back for him. Walter has been lied to enough times that he's not quiet sure what to believe in.
Walter's eccentric and gruff great uncles, Hub and Garth McCaan (Robert Duvall and Michael Caine) who had been missing for 40 YEARS are rumored to have been bank robbers, mafia hit men and/or war criminals in their wild and wooly younger days. No one seems to know the truth, although the brothers do seem to have an endless supply of cash. During Walter's stay begins to see a "new" side to his great uncles when he stumbles upon an old photography of a very beautiful woman hidden away in a trunk in the attic (known as the "Tower" in the movie) and asks his uncle Garth who she is.
Through the stories spun against the backdrop of the dusty Texas night, an amazing story comes to life through Walter's vivid and very colorful imaginings - a tale set in a very long ago exotic, very mysterious place where the men rode on powerful stallions and fought with HUGE swords. Complete with beautiful princesses mixed up with evil sheiks and where to very unlikely heros lived an adventure that only most people can dream of.
Whether to story is true or not, the uncle's tales become a "doorway" of sorts for Walter, to "experience" their many adventures. Little by little they also give Walter something true to believe in - a "world" where honor and valor mean more than money and power. A place, real or not, belongs only to him. While telling their stories to Walter, Hub and Garth begin to see their lives with a whole new set of eyes.
Over one unpredictable Central Texas summer in the early 1960’s, everything in the lives of this new family of strangers is about to change forever.
Highlights for me: The lion, and the "flashback" scenes to the uncle's younger days.
My absolute favorite "line" in the movie: "Sometimes the things that may or may not be true are the things a man needs to believe in the most. That people are basically good. That honour, courage and virtue mean everything ; that power and money ... money and power mean nothing. That good always triumphs over evil. And I want you to remember this.... that love....true love never dies ! Remember that boy ... remember that. Doesn't matter if it is true or not, a man should believe in those things , because those are the things worth believing in...... got that ?"
I am a HUGE fan of John Wayne and John Ford movies. First, I’d like to say if you haven’t seen this movie, The Searchers, I highly recommend it. You get the chance to see John Wayne play his most complex character yet…. Ethan Edwards. Though I must warn you that there are a LOT of complex racial and sexual issues dealt with in the content of this movie.
The Searchers Trailer
"In ''The Searchers'' I think Ford was trying, imperfectly, even nervously, to depict racism that justified genocide; the comic relief may be an unconscious attempt to soften the message. Many members of the original audience probably missed his purpose; Ethan's racism was invisible to them, because they bought into his view of Indians. Eight years later, in ''Cheyenne Autumn,'' his last film, Ford was more clear. But in the flawed vision of ''The Searchers'' we can see Ford, Wayne and the Western itself, awkwardly learning that a man who hates Indians can no longer be an uncomplicated hero." Robert Epert
John Wayne as Ethan Edwards
Ethan Edwards is an ex-Confederate soldier who never really surrendered after the end of the war between the states. For a couple of years he just wondered around the country, he may have even been an outlaw, nobody really seems to know. Then he decides to head for his brothers ranch in Texas. Ethan has a HUGE problem with indians and his adopted nephew Martin Pauley is 1/8 Cherokee, which causes some problems along the way. Then comes the massacre at his brothers ranch, where his brother's family is slaughtered and his two nieces are taken captive (one of which is later killed also.) Which brings us to the 5 year quest to find his youngest niece that was captured by the Comanche's who massacred his family. At first it was a mission to rescue her and bring her home but as time wore on it became more a mission to find her and kill her because "Livin' with Comanche's ain't being alive."
One of the most famous scenes from the movie....this photo really doesn't do it justice though...you'll have to see the movie to truly appreciate why it's so famous.
"Ethan Edwards, fierce, alone, a defeated soldier with no role in peacetime, is one of the most compelling characters Ford and Wayne ever created (they worked together on 14 films). Did they know how vile Ethan's attitudes were? I would argue that they did, because Wayne was in his personal life notably free of racial prejudice, and because Ford made films with more sympathetic views of Indians. This is not the instinctive, oblivious racism of Griffith's ''Birth of a Nation.'' Countless Westerns have had racism as the unspoken premise; this one consciously focuses on it. I think it took a certain amount of courage to cast Wayne as a character whose heroism was tainted. Ethan's redemption is intended to be shown in that dramatic shot of reunion with Debbie, where he takes her in his broad hands, lifts her up to the sky, drops her down into his arms, and says, ''Let's go home, Debbie.'' The shot is famous and beloved, but small counterbalance to his views throughout the film--and indeed, there is no indication be thinks any differently about Indians." Robert Epert
If you listen and watch closely you will also see that John Ford was a VERY crafty man. Though there are A LOT of racial and sexual issues dealt with in the content of this movie, there are also A LOT of "religious" and "faith symbols" used in this movie as well. I don't want to say too much but in the end this is a story of redemption against almost "impossible" odds.
John Wayne as Ethan Edwards
One of the most famous scenes from the movie....this photo really doesn't do it justice though...you'll have to see the movie to truly appreciate why it's so famous.
