My Happy Movies

My family has kind of obsessive personalities...nothing insane or anything, but we tend to get in ruts. My mom quilts. My sister, well she went a little overboard with her comic book phase. On the wonderful ven diagram that my coworker has in his cube, my mom and sister are "nerds." I have a little bit less of the obsessive tendency, but other nerd traits, so I think that actually makes me a "dweeb." :)

Of course, I get in ruts, and I tend to watch movies or listen to songs until I can't ever see them again the rest of my life. Star Wars. Pirates of the Caribbean. Any song by Avalon. Of course the real winners last forever. (And this throws me back to the conversation I had with my brother in law, where we talked about how you can own a movie, but when it's on TV you drop everything to watch it, or you own a song, but you always stop the radio on that song when it's playing. Ironic!)

Well, I would like to introduce three movies that may soon go the way of Star Wars for me, but I think everyone should see for themselves. These are movies that either put me in a happy place, or I watch when I want to feel good. They are the chocolate chip cookies of movies.

The first is not well known. It is a 1960's movie creatively titled, "Francis of Assisi." I received it in a package of Catholic movies a friend sent me, which I may dive into more later. However, this was a movie that surprised me, and I think I watched it about three times in a row. It has all the characteristics of a goofy 60's movie - although I think Francis is a pretty good actor. But I was more inspired by the positive (not 100% historically accurate, but then again, what St. Francis movie is?) motiff of the movie, and also the religious aspect. Friendly for non Catholics, although non Christians may not love it, it really talks about the yearning to follow God's will and go the extra mile to do what you think is right. As someone who has always struggled with loneliness, the passion of Claire rips out my heart and reminds me that there is only One person who can make me perfectly happy. Even though the movie ends with his death (I hope that's not a spoiler - it's an autobiography and the man IS a saint...), it still makes me feel happy afterwards. And maybe that I put my priorities where they should be.

The second movie should not be surprising, given my recent post lauding C.S. Lewis. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (and to some extent its sequel) is a story that almost cannot go wrong, no matter how portrayed. Still, in leaps forward from the old BBC version of the movie, the recent movie is one of the few movies that is as good or better than the book it was based on. I could go on an on about the story - it is so magical, yet it is a parable, too! And this representation makes it so much better - the colors, the characters! The animals seem (a little) more lifelike. And the music is incredible! Many times it gives me goosebumps! Of course, the end of the movie is a little bittersweet. It kind of makes me sad because a) it's over and b) I was not able to participate. I will never open my closet to find a secret world inside. I will probably not even find a secret passage. But it's nice to imagine. By the way, the music in this movie is incredible and the movie is set in an era I have always found fascinating - World War II. Of course, I watch this one so much, it is soon likely to go the way of Star Wars...

The final movie I could go on an on about - Meet the Robinsons. First of all, it is incredibly quirky. And it has a good message (Keep Moving Forward). The music is enchanting, although I think the best part is the song, "Little Wonders" at the end of the movie. The movie is hilarious! I sometimes walk down the hall with a goofy grin on my face just thinking about aspects of the movie. The bad guy is Classic! Well, not classic in a traditional way, but just really funny - perhaps my favorite character! I don't know what it is about this movie, but it just gets me all giggles to watch it or think about it or talk about it. I think one reason is it reeks Disney. Even the future world imagined in the movie reminds me of the dreams of Tomorrowland and Epcot in Disneyworld. But this movie, too, leaves off a little bittersweet - I think it's the reporter that says, "You have a bright future ahead of you!" I know we have to keep moving forward and shape our destiny, but who among us really knows with as much certainty as Lewis did that our future is going to be bright? I mean, my current life is not as good as the bright future I imagined as a kid - will my future go better or worse? I can do everything I can to make it go better, but I cannot be certain that it will. Lewis was certain (and I guess you can't go too far downhill from orphan no one wants), and that's why the movie ends a little bittersweet.