The Movie Confession Blogathon

Normally I don't do these blogathon type things, but this seemed interesting (plus my favorite site Deep Red Rum did it). It originally started on MyFilmViews and all the cool kids are doing it, so I have to ruin the party with my weirdo self!

Which classic movie don’t you like/can’t enjoy and why?

Hammer Films. They're pretty to look at, but boring as fuck. Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing are great, but these films are not.

Which ten classic movies haven’t you seen yet?  

So this is the part where people can point and laugh at me because I haven't seen Casablanca or a number of other classics, while I've seen Samurai Cop at least 10 times in the last month. I have bad taste...shut up.

Anyway...the list:

1.  Casablanca
2. Lawrence of Arabia
3. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (though I do a great Jimmy Stewart swearing impression)
4. West Side Story (Maria...I didn't see a film about Mariaaa)
5. Doctor Zhivago (Just looks dull)
6. Love Story (Love means never having to watch this)
7. Ben-Hur (Ben-Hur? I've never even met her!)
8. The Deer Hunter (Bambi playing russian roulette?)
9. In the Heat of the Night (They call me Mister Pibb!)
10. Rashamon  (I...have no excuse here)

Have you ever sneaked into another movie at the cinema?

There was this one time I was running from the cops (never make department store mannequins look like they're giving each other lap dances...the manager gets pissed) and to hide from the cops, I snuck in the backdoor of the theater. Of course, I found out it was an adult theater, and it was playing male gay porn, but I had to hide. I made 14 friends that day.

 Which actor/actress do you think is overrated?

John Cusak. Maybe it's just the smarmy way he comes off, but outside of High Fidelity (where he was suppose to play a douchebag) all of the work that he feels is important deep work is pure crap. Hey John, you may hate Better Off Dead, but it sure is better than fucking Martian Child. And stop shoehorning your sister in everything.!

Runner up is Ed Norton, for having the audacity to rewrite his dialogue in his movies. You're not a writer dickhole, stick to acting. 

From which big director have you never seen any movie (and why)?

This question is the hardest to answer because I've seen at least one film from pretty much all of the major directors. From Lang and Browning to Welles to Lumet and Altman. Just now though, a name came up that  would fit the bill...Gus Van Sant. Maybe it's because his work is so depressing, maybe it's the lame hipster title of "auteur" that gets tacked onto him. For one reason or another, I just don't wanna see his films.

 Which movie do you love, but is generally hated?

This one is a bit of a tie because I couldn't figure out which was hated more, True Stories or Shock Treatment. In the case of True Stories, I don't know why people hate it. It have great music (some of the best of the Talking Heads) and wonderful characters. There are some segments that drag, like the dinner scene with Spaulding Gray, but overall I loved it.

Shock Treatment is simply because it's not Rocky Horror. That's it. This movie was ahead of it's time about reality television, had arguably better music than Rocky Horror (which I do love), and has a better Janet in Jessica Harper (although Susan Sarandon can fill out a bra better, wink wink nudge nudge). I'm sure I'll get flack for that, but it's my opinion and I'll type if I want to.

Have you ever been “one of those annoying people” at the cinema?

Only once. Me and a couple buddies had the misfortune to see Batman and Robin in the theater. Instead of fuming at the monstrosity on the screen, we decided to riff it. BADLY. A few shining moments included a PSA beforehand about the exits of the theater, to which my buddy stands up, points to one, and yells "there it is!". I also would take the time to wait for each long pause to go "I'm Batman". By the time the movie was over, everyone hated us, but I'd like to think that those people saw it on video years later and realized that we made the movie better. I'd like to think that, but it's probably a lie.

Did you ever watch a movie, which you knew in advance would be bad, just because of a specific actor/actress was in it? Which one and why? 

I  like many others on this wide weird net, am a big fan of Bruce Campbell. Now while I thankfully avoided watching Alien Invasion, I wasn't so lucky with The Man With the Screaming Brain. I had heard bad things about it, but thought "It's Bruce, how bad could it be?" It was bad. Oh my Lord, it was BAAAAADD.  I actually threw away the DVD halfway through before realizing that it was a rental and had to dig it back out of the garbage. 

In short, don't watch The Man With the Screaming Brain. You'll thank me later.

Did you ever not watch a specific movie because it had subtitles?  

Hell, I add subtitles to English speaking films because I like them so much. You haven't experienced life if you've never seen Up in Smoke with subtitles.

 Are there any movies in your collection that you have had for more than five years and never watched?

I  think a good 40% of the DVD's I own I haven't watched. I think I have an addiction to buying DVD's. I need help. Hold me.

 Which are the worst movies in your collection and why do you still own them?

Hmmm...that's a tough one. I think that it's probably Death Nurse. Not because it's good or anything (it is beyond awful), but because I didn't pay for it and wanna stick it to director Nick Mallard for thinking he's a real filmmaker. I also misspell his last name on purpose.

 Do you have any confessions about your movie watching setup at home?

Just that I have my desktop hooked up to the television set. So if I want to watch something on Netflix, easy as pie. If I want to see that He-Man video of "What's Going On", then everyone is going to suffer.

 Any other confessions you want to make?

Alright...I mention from time to time that I don't like being depressed watching a film, and that's true. BUT...I do enjoy sappy movies that make me cry. Two right off the bat is Dominick and Eugene (good film btw) and...I can't believe I'm admitting this...I am Sam. I like it OK? Don't look at me in that tone of voice! Just...look away. I have something in my eye.