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August 14, 2006

Movie Tag

1) What is a movie that changed the way you think and act? Or just got you thinking, if the first question is too intimidating.

I think ALL movies change the way I act at least for a little while, cause at least for the first few hours after you see a movie you have a compulsion to "be" one of the characters. At least I do.
"The Color Purple," got me really into African American History, which influenced what kind of classes I took in college and what kind of living environments I chose.
"1984," made me paranoid in a very check-the-closets-and-behind-the-mirrors way. It also fueled a love for dystopia movies and books. "Pieces of April," encouraged me to process though family dynamics in a new and very helpful way.
2) It's a late autumn evening and rainy and cold? What do you have for dinner/snack?

"Little Women" (for the movie-not for my snack) Foods. I think I would want: quail, dry red wine, good bread and cheeses, and for dessert a macchiato (it's an espresso so dark and rich that you feel like your drinking delicious mud, but the best part about it is that it is covered with a cap of foam that reminds me of the bubbly stuff that you find around ponds-pond foam?) and a big obscurely shaped hunk of dark chocolate to gnaw.

3) You are off to wee Himalayan hamlet for a year, your laptop hard drive can hold one film. What will it be?

"Pride and Prejudice," The 1996 BBC rendition! It's timeless, plus, with that much time to kill why not memorize some stellar dialogue?

4) What movie made you laugh the hardest? What movie made you cry?

I laughed so hard at "Life is Illuminated;" I thought I was going to have to stop the movie. Oh and "Meet the Parents".

I cry easily during movies. I mean, my first movie ever was a tear jerker. It was ET. First of all, I was crying cause I was terrified to be looking at a gigantic-glowy-fingered alien. And gad-zooks, by the time I had cozied up to ET I was crying that he had to go back to outer space. Other sad ones were "Dancer in the Dark" and "Stand by Me".

5) Favorite actor (female, male)?

Emma Thomson, Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu. I especially like when Franka and Moritz are in movies together like "Run Lola Run" and "The Princess and the Warrior".

6) What book or story would you like to see made into a film or what book do you love that could never be made into a film?

Dostoevsky's "The Brother's Karamazov". The beauty of the book is that it allows you to explore the intricate workings of each characters psyches while moving fluidly from one character's vantage point to another. I think the fluidity would be difficult to achieve. I've noticed that even the best cinematographers struggle to seamlessly shift from one vantage point to another. Plus the book is a book of philosophies colliding and it may lend itself to too many voice-overs.

7) What is a movie that immediately after you watched it? Clockwork Orange.

8) Do you read movie reviews? Before, after, never? Whose reviews do you find the best? Are you an analyzer?

Usually never. I'm real critical of most "real" critics.

9) What movie do you think is a must see, but that you can only recommend with caveats?

The "Red," "White," and "Blue" trilogy: It is beautifully crafted and a great look into French culture post Camus and Sartre, but it's a bit racy at points for the youngins.
"Donnie Darko": I's a bit dark.

10) What movie do you most wish to share with your friends?

"Life is Illuminated,": Laughter is a beautiful thing to share.
"Down by Law," Tom Waits under the direction of Jim Jarmusch! Need I say more?
Oh and...any movie ending with a "men" or "man": Batman, Spiderman, X-men, Little Women.

Posted by Heidi V. at 12:31 PM | Comments (4)

August 02, 2006

Playing Book Tag

1.One book that changed your life: The Brothers' Karamazov by Dostoevsky.

2.One book that you've read more than once: Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott.

3.One book you'd want on a desert island: A Boy Scout's guide to Wilderness Survival AND The Complete Shakespeare Anthology, so I can memorize if and do plays with the island animals.

4.One book that made you laugh: Naked by David Sedaris

5.One book that made you cry: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe by Clive Staples Lewis.

6.One book you wish you had written: The Encyclopedia! Lit wise, Catcher in the Rye.

7.One book that you wish had never been written: The Gnostic Gospels

8.One book you are currently reading: Gilead by Marilynne Robinson.

9.One book you've been meaning to read: The book my dad's writing called Mongo...I just never tell him I want the chapters he's finished.

10.Now tag five people: I don't know how to tag people. I've always been horrible at tag, cause I was always "IT" and I would get bored and turn it into a self-deprecating game of Hide-and-Seek! I guess I would tag...Jacob (hubby), Becky (mamma), Dan (Papa), and my blood family, but they are not really into blogging, so I guess that'll do.

NO TAG BACKS!

Posted by Heidi V. at 11:43 AM | Comments (3)