alphabetical movie challenge, I through Z...

a few people have asked me, "hey, did you ever finish that alphabetical movie challenge?" but, of course i did.

some would argue that a better question might be, "why did you finish the alphabetical movie challege?" but i have an answer for that as well. it's because i'm ambitious. and, believe me, nothing says ambitious more than dedicating an entire month of your life to sitting on your ass, watching movies.

or something.

so, sorry for the delay, but here it is. a brief summary on movies I through Z...

I is for "i'm not there". actually, i didn't care for it. as much as i understand what they were going for-- that bob dylan's a complex dude and deserves a complex tale... i'd much rather watch martin scorsese's "no direction home" instead.

J is for "junebug". such a fantastic film!!! the script is unbelievably good, and amy adams is incredible.

K is for "kramer vs. kramer". dustin hoffman is absolutely great in this movie. but, my favorite robert benton film is still "nobody's fool".

L is for "lawrence of arabia". crazy that i'd never watched this before. and am still envious of my friend in los angeles for seeing it on the big screen.

M is for "my bloody valentine". i absolutely HATE horror movies, but my friend liam is in it. and i am even more envious of him for getting his head chopped off on the big screen.

N is for "nick and nora's infinite playlist". this isn't exactly a perfect film about young love, but it's pretty damn close.

O is for "october sky". one of those movies that gets better and better every single time you watch it. and makes you love chris cooper a little bit more, too...

P is for "punch drunk love". that song gets me every time... "he needs me, he needs me, he needs me, he needs me.... lah da da da da..." love it!!!

Q is for "q & a". because it's the only movie i had with a Q at the beginning of it. and also probably the only movie ever to have nick nolte, armard assante, luis guzman, charles s. dutton, dominic chianese, and fyvush finkel in it. oh, and jenny lumet.

R is for "rachel getting married". look... i wanna marry anne hathaway. there. i said it. and i love bill irwin, too, just... y'know, not in THAT way. phenomenal movie. great performances. exceptional script, written by... oh, jenny lumet.

S is for "silverado". i dunno, man, i hear people are down on this movie, but i think this is the best western kevin kline has ever starred in. by far.

T is for "tell no one". terribly underseen movie!!! and maybe it's because on the cover it says, "eight years ago, alex's wife was murdered. today she emailed him." ...urgh. no, but, really, it's a great movie!!! i promise!!!

U is for "the untouchables". top notch. i can watch this twenty times and not get bored of it.

V is for "the visitor". see? this is the reason why i know i shouldn't be a film critic. because i just don't even know how to tell you how much i love this movie. i can only say that if you do see it, you'll thank me later.

W is for "way of the gun". one of those films where you can almost hear the director whispering, "i'm gonna be the next tarantino!" to himself in between takes. but i still dug it. not for everyone, though. you'll know if it's your kinda flick within the first six minutes.

X is for "x2: x-men united". i really love this franchise. and i think this might be my favorite out of the three. or four (i still don't know what to think of the whole 'wolverine' fiasco).

Y is for "year of the dog". this is another movie i don't know what to make of. i mean, on one hand, it seems to be a celebration of the rugged individualist. which is great, but... isn't this character also... y'know, kind of psychotic???

Z is for "zoolander". everybody seems to think this is a comedy, but-- take it from someone who knows what it's like to be an extremely desired male model-- this is a truly powerful documentary.

...what?


the five things i fell in love with today...

1) ben stiller.
2) richard jenkins.
3) adam sandler.
4) kat dennings.
5) the hope that hugh jackman will someday balloon up to five hundred pounds, so it will make more sense when i call him "huge assman".

song of the day...
"lilac wine" by jeff buckley. there's a beautiful, heart-wrenching scene in "tell no one" featuring this tune.

movie of the day...
film i wished i'd watched instead of the one i did? "into the wild".