I saw one last night with DH on cable :

Monster's Ball with Halle Berry, Heath Ledger and Billy Bob Thornton and the father from Everybody Loves Raymond

I can't get it out of my head, I've been analyzing and analyzing and thinking and thinking - those are the best kind of movies, I think.



Which movies have done this to you? What movies do you recommend for Alternachick entertainment?



Love, Terri

Good idea, Terri. I haven't seen that one.

How about K-PAX?

Yes, Ellis

K PAX is good. We'll never know the answer, will we?


Terri PS - Kevin Spacey was sooo good in that role

How about Wim Wenders' Wings of Desire? One of my favorites - a German movie about two angels, one of whom wants to become human, in the city of Berlin. They go all around the (divided) city observing people (invisibly) and their joys and sorrows, though they cannot really help them...I know it may sound weird or possibly annoying! But it is really amazing - I think it is largely a silent movie as I recall.

We also saw "Kandahar" recently and that was quite thought-provoking too. I like documentaries a lot!

Lidian

Wings of desire is an awsome movie!


One of my faves is Lost Highway by David Lynch- there is one little part that explains the whole film and if you miss it you don't get the movie.

I loved Magnolia too-I like stories where total strangers lives are interconnected by strange events. Fate, Karma, life choices and for every cause there is an effect are always a fascinating topics for me.

Another movie that makes you think is was The 6th Day. All that stuff about genetic engineering and cloning

OK, I have to tell you if you have a thread that in any way lets me bring up Blade Runner you are just asking for it! LOL! It' is such a good film, and it really did make me think. For anyone who hasn't seen it yet the movie is set in 2019 and is about these cyborg/ synthetic humans called replicants who are so close to human that there is a special test given to see if they are in fact human or replicants. The replicants are illeagal on earth and will be kiiled if detected by special police called Blade Runners. The part that makes me think is if you make a creature that can think, feel, love, care, be frightenend, and all of those sorts of emotions, and cognitive abilities is it ok to kill them? What makes a human a human? I don't know I just love that deep stuff, and besides the movie is just brilliant to look at as well. Anyone here seen it?

I have Blade Runner Directors cut and visually it sets the tone for much sci-fi to come. I think Steven Speilberg always wished he made it, and his pittiful attempt was AI. Same theme, what is the spark that makes us human? I don't know, I think sometimes I can't see it myself. During the ST Voyager series everytime they ran into the glitch with the holo-Dr I was always like re-boot, but if I had my own robot boy(or replicant) living in my house would I feel different? I also think the other issue is slavery, when do you stop owning your creations and they own themselves? Our children included?

Monster's Ball was also very good. I think it really touches that thing inside each of us, what make us good or bad? Are we in touch with our humanity or just living the doll-drums of our existence?

Magnolia, I liked it and the way the story came together. But it was missing something for me. Same with K-Pax, I thought the movie was a reflection of the shallowness in each of us it was betraying. Does that make sense?

I have to say my most thought provoking flicks of recent are Fight Club. There is visual subtelties, along with a true humanity. Catch phrases and how easily we are bought and sold. How we define ourselves by the things we own or by job we have. It took me 3 viewings to get the meaning to the core of my being and it shook there with my life and even my eating seeming so much more shallow.

I also really enjoyed Donnie Darko. As a child of the 80's and a sci-fi fan it hit both the displacement that Gen X sometimes feels with the irony of dying to live.

Well there is my thought. Whew. I had a few more than I thought!
Miss Chris

Run Lola Run

Apocalypse Now

Vanilla Sky

Magnolia

Memento

American Beauty

28 Up and 35 Up (the Michael Apted documentaries about the lives of British children in the 60s, followed up every 7 years)

Roger and Me

Stranger Than Paradise

Down By Law

It's a Wonderful Life (the annual Christmas thought-provoker!)


Lidian

Fight Club... rebellion, anti-capitalism, anti-establishment, the evils of matialism and consumerism, anti-religion, Brad Pitt at his hottest, and a mindbending plot twist that you won't forget! This is one of my all time favorite movies and literally changed the way I thought about western culture... despite the movie's hints of neo-facism and testosterone drenched male chauvinism. Warning... this movie is not for the faint of heart... I imagine that many folks won't be able to get past the brutal violence throughout the film. You'll either love it or hate it.

American Beauty... exploring the theme of not living true to yourself and being bound by societal norms... life is short, carpe diem... a familiar theme but masterfully told in this brilliant film.

Memento... film making at its creative best... no lessons here but will keep you guessing until the end.

Dead Man Walking... a thought-provoking look at capital punishment... absolutely heart-wrenching no matter where you stand on the issue.

The Matrix... besides being a great action/science fiction movie... the unexpected but numerous underlying Christian themes and parallels were enough to keep me thinking for a very long time.

Heathers... a Gen-X cult classic... Winona Ryder and Christian Slater take teenage angst, the evils of conformity and rebellion to their extremes.

There are more but will have to think about it...

Better Than Chocolate- loved it, want to see it again.
Monster Ball- very good movie, love Hallie Berry
Sixth Sense

Also must recommend Heathers and the Matrix. Other examples of film making at it's best.

True Romance-dialogue and subplots tie this movie together in a way that it is even taught in the American Film Making Class here in Omaha.

Snatch and Lock,Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels will take you on a trip you will never forget.

Anyone who had to make a choice about choosing their addictions from chocolate to heroin should check out Trainspotting.

Right now since it is also close to my heart and mind Fellowship of the Rings Extended Version. Not only is there an excellent amount of eye candy for everyone, one must ask themselves what are the characteristics of all the peoples of Middle Earth? And do we do our best to exemplify the best of those things or not. The war in heaven and the Aurthurian Legend are also there for the taking!

Miss Chris
Movie Lover!

the horrifying "Requiem for a Dream"... another movie about addictions. These white teenager drug addicts will haunt you for days.

Yes Rochemist... looks like we have similar tastes in movies! I have a twisted sense of humor and a love for the subversive and ironic, maybe you share these traits as well? Also should add that I also LOVE the Lord of the Rings books and first movie. Can't wait to see the next.

American History X- very controvertial film at the time as a lot of people were saying that it promoted racism because of the skinheads in it. To me it was more about how someone can change themselves and their way of thinking and have a whole life reversal and I found it to be anti-racist. Ed Norton is the lead and he is amazing in it. I highly recommend it but it is very dark in theme and violent, not for the faint of heart.

This is on my "movies to watch" list... heard it is very dark and upsetting. I love Edward Norton though, so must see it.