Independence Day
The classic story of aliens take over world, world unites to save it. I like movies with time travel, fantasy, aliens, future worlds or alternate realities. But, while this movie has a few of those aspects, the most compelling part was this:
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This gives me chills every time I see it and that is a big part of what makes a movie worth watching to me. Can you pull me in enough to make me forget where I am and not care who's watching it with me?
Inception
A movie about dreams in which you don't know if you are asleep or awake. The resulting disorientation keeps you on your toes as the main character tries to get to his reality and finally wake up. The most intense scene is when after a nice confusing and dangerous adventure, the party wakes up through all the layers of dreams within dreams.
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I love movies involving logic but I also like happy endings. If any of the jolts to wake the party at each level fails, then they may never wake up. Although some movies end on a nice happy note there's always the tension when you don't know what kind of movie this will be. Will someone die? Everyone? This scene is dramatic but also answers some questions. The main character is still trapped but most made it out; It's a relief.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
This is the story of a guy who appears to be an evil villain, but is really just trying to fix the world in the only way he can. Trying to change the status quo "because the status is not quo". The hero is a cocky man who believes that because he has strength, he can do as he wishes. No one else seems to see the bad in the hero just as no one seems to see the good in the villain. In this scene, the villain has just accidentally introduced the hero to the girl he secretly love and, wouldn't you know it, she falls for the hero's act.
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I find this song to be very powerful because it represents a situation that you know is wrong but you are powerless to change it. The main choice you have from this event is to either get mad at the situation, hold grudges and lose control of yourself; or to look at it from another point of view and find a logical way to fix it or move on.
Back to the Future
Time travel at its best. The main character is accidentally sent back in time by his scientist friend and runs into his parents. He inadvertently attracts his mothers affection causing his father to never meets his mother. If he doesn't fix it, he will slowly be erased from existence. After convincing the younger version of his friend that he isn't crazy, they must find a way to send him back to the future. This scene makes the boy out to be a hero by using things he knows of the future (in this case, simply, how to use a skateboard), but does cause more worry for his father.
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I have always wanted to time travel. I believe this movie opened my mind to all that is possible. It is almost like having superpowers in that, you could find out what events are going to happen and then go back and stop them (in the case of disasters) or profit from them (lottery or sport statistics like the villain in the second movie in this trilogy). It show what kind of person you are by what you choose to do with these powers. I think of myself as a good person and so find myself identifying with the main character.
Serenity
This story is the continuation from a TV show that was canceled after just one season. The fans wanted more and eventually a movie was made to tell more of the story. The crew of the spaceship Serenity are space cowboys and mercenaries. While doing missions and trying to keep the government off their backs, they pick up a tail that wont leave then alone; he will stop at nothing to bring one of them back into a government hospital. I feel more connected to these characters than with most movie because I have followed them through their adventures for so long before this. Unlike Inception, the scene here has me more emotionally invested. If the characters don't make it out of the dream then maybe I won't watch that movie again. In Serenity, I needed someone to survive because these are my people. I know them. They cant die. Two of them have already died and the rest are willing to, in order to get a message to the masses.
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At this point in the movie I was convinced everyone was going to die. I just hoped the captain survived long enough to get the message sent. The writer would have had some angry fans if he killed everyone but that didn't stop me from believing he would do it anyway. As a final chapter to his creation or just to show the point that something are worth dying for.
Along with fantasy and alternate realities, another aspect I like to explore is comedy. The next couple movie I like because they parody movies or genres that I love.
Princess Bride
A story about true love overcoming all obstacles; This scene shows logic and humor after the princess is kidnapped and attempted to be rescued.
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Love stories. What's not to love? You know the guy will get the girl in the end so you can automatically count on a happy ending. But all that stuff in between- how do we get there? What adventure will our heroes have to go through to make their ending happy? There's only one girl for the guy to get so what happens to the rest of the heroes? All these questions and more are answered if you just watch. This story in particular delivers humor in a medieval setting that I love.
Spaceballs
A parody of Star Wars and life. Mel Brooks has a way of presenting a farce story where the obvious unspoken world of movie making is presented right in the open. Take the commercializing scene with Yohgurt. He takes a known fact (that the t-shirts and toys are where the real money comes from in movies) that most people forget about, and present it in a way that is funny and amusing.
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Spaceballs: the movie
But one of my favorite scenes is when the main character finds out he is a prince and can get the princess after all.
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More happy endings!
Galaxy Quest
This movie is a parody on Star Trek above all else. The character who were part of an old sci-fi show years ago are mistaken for real star explorers by aliens and must now use their fake abilities to save the alien race.
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Take all the stuff you know automatically from Star Trek. Don't go outside the ship onto a strange planet with a red shirts on or without a last name. Be sure to check the atmospheric reading for breathable air before opening any hatches. If something looks cute and cuddly, run in the opposite direction as fast as you can.
The fact that makes these last three comedies great is that the actors all play their part straight. They take their character's situation seriously and allow real emotion to show through. The jokes will come because it is written as a comedy but the story is worth watching because it feels real.
Speaking of Star Trek
Star Trek (2009)
There hasn't been a Star Trek film for a few years now. Why don't we reinvent it using time travel so we can tell the story however we want and somehow all the same characters end up on the ship despite a possible butterfly effect....
Sounds good to me!
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With modern (expensive) technology we are able to see the enterprise presented to the fans by the fans. The creators of the new Star Trek are, absolutely, fans of the original series and you can see the love that went into this movie in the tiny details that were place throughout. In the music swelling right when you see the Enterprise in its brand new glory. In Leonard Nimoy being in the movie! I appreciated what they kept for old fans as well as what they changed to bring in new ones,
The Return of the Jedi
While the entire original trilogy is worth watching over and over, the 6th installment is just a little above the rest for me. The first tells a story of a boy realizing who he really is and tapping his ability enough to destroy part of the enemy. You get some character development, cool new warrior and special effects. The whole movie wraps up nicely and could be a stand alone but nothing really happens. The next movie you realize that this boy didn't really destroy a lot of the enemy and there's plenty left over to keep control of the galaxy. The boy finds a teacher and hones his abilities but then rushes off to save his friends and walks into a trap. The boy's friend get taken prisoner and you learn that the main villain is the boy's father. The whole movie ends on a low note. And yet, you can still feel there's hope for the good guys.
The final movie is the end of a longer story. The director cut you off in the middle with the last story so it's exciting to see if everything will work out. Once we spend about 20 minutes rescuing the boy's friend and 10 minutes learning that the boy has a sister who can step in if he fails, (Wait? That mean he could die? He might not survive?) we get into a very intense part of the story with three story lines going on at once. One: the outnumbered main good force desperately trying to destroy the bad guys including the main villain's boss. (Are there more layers of evil that will sneak up when the good guys think they've won?) Two: finally rescued, the boy's friend along with his newly revealed sister try to bring down the field keeping the main force from succeeding while getting captured again. Three: The boy surrenders to his father in an attempt to make him realize that he can be a good guy again but gets taken to the boss an forced to fight his father to survive.
With all this going on it's tough not to get caught up in the intensity of the final battle. My favorite scene:
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I have always wanted to be a time traveler, but a Jedi?!? Even more so. I root for Luke every time I see this fight. DON'T LET THE DARK SIDE WIN!! And not only does he defeat his father but then spares his life, realizing that killing would push him over the edge. He is at peace with himself and his decision when he throws his light saber away and faces the emperor whatever the outcome.
Even with time travel slightly out of my reach, being a Jedi is something that everyone can do, or at least, work at. A Jedi is at peace with themselves in all situation with no need to get angry or even. They work hard because it needs to get done not for monetary gain or rewards. They try diplomacy and only resort to fighting to save lives.
I try hard to be a good person and strive to be more like the Jedis even if I cannot move things with my mind. But most of all, I look at the positive messages expressed within these movies and apply them to my life.
I leave you now with:
Vader's Death
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Vader's Funeral
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...so you can reflect on your inner Jedi and try to find peace.
