My Movie Confessions

Great movie blogger Nostra over at My Film Views is hosting a new blogathon offering the opportunity for us to confess our movie sins. Nostra has a list of all the bloggers taking part, but in the meantime here are mine.

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

I’m not a fan of Goodfellas in the slightest, I don’t particularly like gangster films at all but there’s just so much anger and swearing in Goodfellas that I find it very difficult to focus on the story. I can’t help feeling that screaming and swearing is making up for a lack of story.

I’m a big fan of musicals and love almost every one that I’ve seen except South Pacific. I don’t know why but this film leaves me completely cold.

Which ten classic movies haven’t you seen?

Oh so, so many. I call myself a film fan but there are massive gaps in my viewing history. I had no idea where to start compiling the list so went to Empire’s top 500 list and had a mooch through the top 100. So from that is my list of ten must-see movies that I just haven’t seen (and I’m not sure when I will see them).

Vertigo
A Clockwork Orange
Citizen Kane
Alien
Dr Strangelove
Taxi Driver
Chinatown
Fight Club
Apocalypse Now
The Shawshank Redemption

Have you ever sneaked into another movie at the cinema?

No, but it has crossed my mind a couple of times. Especially last time I went to the cinema – middle of the day and it cost me £14 for the ticket, drink and sweets. I almost felt like actually getting value for my money.

Which actor/actress do you think is over-rated?

Don’t shout but the one name that jumped immediately to mind is Al Pacino. I get there’s been some amazing performances but from what I’ve seen there’s been more duff that not. He seems to spend a lot of  time now playing a parody of Al Pacino and that’s just tiresome.

And James Franco annoys me a lot.

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

Turns out I’ve never seen anything by Stanley Kubrick. There’s no particular reason, just never got round to any of his films.

Which movie do you love (but is generally hated)

I’m not sure that there is a movie that I love which is hated, more likely to be the other way around. Escape to Victory is a trashy piece of guff about footballing prisoners of war which I love but always seems to get one star in the ratings. I really enjoy it though, Pele and Sylvester Stallone in the one film – fantastic.

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

I don’t think so – I’m very good at keeping my phone off and at not speaking during the film.   I know that I did annoy someone behind me once when I was slagging off every advert. But if it’s before the trailers it doesn’t count right?

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’m not sure that I have ever watched a film that I knew beforehand would be bad. If there’s an actor/actress I like I assume they’ll always be in good films (HA!) but I never go into a film thinking it will be bad, I’m the eternal optimist.

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

No, not specifically but if there’s a choice of a film with subtitles and one without I’ll tend to be lazy and go for the English language one.

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

A couple, but not too many. What there are lots of love are movies that I’ve watched once years and years ago and haven’t seen since like Gone With The Wind and Casablanca.

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

I tend not to keep hold of movies that I hated and will never watch again. The charity shop is my friend.

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

Sadly there’s nothing exciting going on. No surround sound, no massive screen. Just a normal TV and Playstation 3 as a DVD/Blu-Ray player. If (when) I win the lottery that’ll all change and I’ll have a proper home cinema system.

Any other confessions you want to make?

My biggest confession is that I’d rather watch movies at home than in the cinema, even if that means waiting months to see one that I’m really looking forward to. The cinema experience, while being technically superior, is so expensive and unpleasant at times that I feel much more comfortable at home. I wish that wasn’t the case though – going to the pictures should be one of life’s great pleasures.