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Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 1:26 am
by stemikger
I was discussing this with friends last weekend and I was really hard pressed to come up with one but after some thought I did.

If I had to pick one it would be:

An Officer and a Gentleman with Richard Gere and Debra Winger (1982).

Would love to hear if anyone else has that one special movie they can call their favorite.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 3:07 am
by mhalley
I think everyone has several favorite movies. You might have your favorite comedy (Young Frankenstein), Your favorite action movie (Pulp Fiction), your favorite SciFi (Blade Runner), your favorite Classic (Casablana). Depending on your mood, you will have lots of favorites.
The great thing is, they might be filming your next favorite RIGHT NOW!
Mike

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 4:07 am
by JoMoney
It very much depends on what I'm in the mood for. I can enjoy some pretty "dumb" movies.
I do like the (true) story / movie of "Lorenzo's Oil"

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 6:44 am
by saladdin
Defending Your LIfe.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:43 am
by Johm221122
Indiana Jones(all of them)

John

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:06 am
by Toons
Yes it is,I have seen countless movies over the decades and Das Boot still ranks as my favorite. :happy

http://www.netflix.com/search/das%20boot

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:18 am
by MarkS
The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:35 am
by stemikger
MarkS wrote:The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
I have never seen this classic but I was just talking to my Cousin and this movie came up. Definitely one I will be watching soon. Thanks for weighing in.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:36 am
by stemikger
Toons wrote:Yes it is,I have seen countless movies over the decades and Das Boot still ranks as my favorite. :happy

http://www.netflix.com/search/das%20boot
Thanks for the link Toons.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:42 am
by Ketawa
Yes. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:53 am
by market timer
Tough call, but probably Amores Perros for me.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:00 am
by Toons
stemikger wrote:
Toons wrote:Yes it is,I have seen countless movies over the decades and Das Boot still ranks as my favorite. :happy

http://www.netflix.com/search/das%20boot
Thanks for the link Toons.

Thanks Stem,,,I will probably watch it again today!Like you have seen it so many times,never tire of it :sharebeer

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:26 am
by Erwin007
Yes, Fletch.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:42 am
by bertilak
Erwin007 wrote:Yes, Fletch.
Man at door: I'm from the CIA.
Fletch: How do you spell that?

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:45 am
by TravelforFun
Most favorite: Godfather II. There are several close seconds.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:50 am
by Professor Emeritus
:) My first movie date with DW was Cabaret in 1972. Both DW and Movie are still favorites :happy

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:53 am
by stoptothink
"Vision Quest". Most have never heard of it, most people I've watched it with (including my wife) think it is a terrible 80's movie, but I grew up wrestling and we watched it at least once a week for years and I share a ton of traits with the main character.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:54 am
by SorenK
Groundhog Day. It encourages me to improve myself.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:57 am
by MoneyMythsSolved
The Thing (John Carpenter's 1982 version) or Pulp Fiction - love them both equally, nothing else comes close.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:19 am
by gkaplan
Any movie that was on that Critically Acclaimed Movie That You Did Not Like thread.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:22 am
by spectec
Dr Zhivago

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:29 am
by Valuethinker
Blade Runner

A fondness for it was part of what got my spouse interested in me ;-). It is not, rewatching it, a perfect movie. But it has many, many moments of near perfection. To find as thoughtful a science fiction movie, again, you have to go to Gattacca, say.

Unsurprisingly, perhaps, my next favourite movie is probably The Big Sleep. Since Blade Runner is very much an homage to film noir, that's probably why. One of the things TBS is better than BR is that Bogart and Bacall actually were an item, and later married- -they steam when they are on screen together. Whereas Harrison Ford and Sean Young weren't speaking to each other by the end of filming-- so the relationship with Rachel has an oddly stilted character to it (which fits with some of the underlying themes of the movie).

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:11 am
by Kosmo
The Godfather. Followed up by Part II.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:16 am
by MoonOrb
I'm of the firm opinion that the likelihood that someone has a strongly expressed favorite movie is correlated strongly with whether the person saw it at a time when they were particularly impressionable: either during adolescence, or some other meaningful time in one's life.

I saw Die Hard when I was 12 and more than 25 years later it's still my favorite movie.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:19 am
by rec7
It's a wonderful life. I love all the up's and down's in it. I also like how one man's life has so much meaning in it.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 12:05 pm
by sans souliers
Favorite movie AND favorite book -- To Kill A Mockingbird

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 7:45 pm
by Jazztonight
My two favorites of all time have both been mentioned:

Das Boot

Groundhog Day

I owned both in VHS format, and later bought the DVDs.

My third favorite was 101 Dalmations (the original animated version where the husband is a songwriter).

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 8:41 pm
by pennstater2005
Found Das Boot on Netflix. Director's Cut is 3 hours and 28 minutes of reading subtitles. I couldn't talk my wife into that one.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:01 pm
by madbrain
2001, a Space Odyssey .

I wasn't even born when it was released, but I find nothing else that comes close. So I don't have a number 2 favorite movie.

The story, setting, and especially the dialogue with HAL 9000 - everything is just perfect.

I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:02 pm
by Ged
I have a lot of movies that I love for various aspects but none of them stand out for me as THE favorite. From all of them I think that Sophie's Choice was the movie that moved me the most.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 9:12 pm
by detroitbabu
I have many favorites but one that particularly comes to mind is "Big" - Tom Hanks and Elizabeth Perkins.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094737/

Maybe it was the age when I watched it that I liked it. Still my favorite.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:31 pm
by steve roy
My favorites have varied over time, except for ....

"The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938) and "The Sea Hawk" (1940) because I loved them as a kid and love them still.

"How Green Was My Valley" (1941) has always been a keeper. I had the good fortune to attend a Directors Guild screening of the film in 1972 with director John Ford and most of the cast in attendance. (I was an E-3 in the Navy and a buddy got me in.) They showed an original nitrate print and the black-and-white images up on the silver screen were vivid.

And I've always been crazy about "1776" (the musical), even though only a handful of friends share my enthusiasm.

Newer favorites come and go.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:49 pm
by VictoriaF
Is the question whether it's possible to have the all-time favorite film? Or to tell what the film is?

Victoria

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:06 pm
by GerryL
West Side Story came out when I was a young teen. We went to see it every weekend for several weeks running. Over the years I continued to see it in theaters whenever I had the chance. Stopped counting at around 22 times. Once in Paris sat through two showings. (It was a very popular film in France.) Needless to say I had the VHS. Got the DVD and then got the 50th anniversary DVD set a few years ago -- after attending the special 50th anniversary special event showing at a local theater. I guess that would make it an indisputable favorite, although I can't remember the last time I watched it at home.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:09 pm
by grossbg
stoptothink wrote:"Vision Quest". Most have never heard of it, most people I've watched it with (including my wife) think it is a terrible 80's movie, but I grew up wrestling and we watched it at least once a week for years and I share a ton of traits with the main character.
Ahh a fellow wrestler. Very few understand the greatness of Vision quest. Excited about Foxcatcher!?" I sure am!

I'm going to drop to 168 and wrestle Shute"

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:15 pm
by Drew31
No Shawshank votes yet?

I've always been fond of Scent of a Woman.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:54 pm
by stemikger
stoptothink wrote:"Vision Quest". Most have never heard of it, most people I've watched it with (including my wife) think it is a terrible 80's movie, but I grew up wrestling and we watched it at least once a week for years and I share a ton of traits with the main character.
LOL. I remember Vision Quest. If my memory serves me right, Madonna had a cameo where she was singing in a club? There is something to be said about these cheesy coming of age 80s movies. If you grew up with them, they definitely hold a special place in your heart.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2014 11:59 pm
by stemikger
detroitbabu wrote:I have many favorites but one that particularly comes to mind is "Big" - Tom Hanks and Elizabeth Perkins.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094737/

Maybe it was the age when I watched it that I liked it. Still my favorite.
You definitely are on to something. I think if you watch that special movie at a time in your life where you are still exploring and have so much hope and are still pretty wide eyed and innocent, these movies can almost become like a real family memory. That is why I love Officer and a Gentelman so much. I just graduated high school and was pretty carefree and totally identified with Richard Gere's character and was also totally in love with Debra Winger. I wanted to be like him and have a girlfriend like her and was up for adventure and wanted to do big things.

Till this day, I still have my favorite scene and thanks to Netflix I have replayed it numerous times.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 12:02 am
by stemikger
VictoriaF wrote:Is the question whether it's possible to have the all-time favorite film? Or to tell what the film is?

Victoria
Sorry about this, your the second person to address why I didn't answer my own post. Feel free to go in the other direction if you like. However, I'm still finding it pretty interesting and due to streaming I'm making a list from all the great suggestions.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 12:05 am
by stemikger
gkaplan wrote:Any movie that was on that Critically Acclaimed Movie That You Did Not Like thread.
LOL. Just pick one. :oops: :beer

Oh, you were being sarcastic. LOL. For the record, It did give me a chuckle. :D

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 8:32 am
by VictoriaF
stemikger wrote:
VictoriaF wrote:Is the question whether it's possible to have the all-time favorite film? Or to tell what the film is?

Victoria
Feel free to go in the other direction if you like.
My answer to the question in the title of the thread, i.e., "Is it possible to have a favorite movie," is as follows:

It is possible but it's irrational. Dan Ariely uses a term "coherent arbitrariness" to describe phenomena in which you make the initial choice arbitrarily, repeat the same choice the 2nd time because it worked the 1st time, and by induction repeat this choice the (N+1)st time because it worked the Nth time.

You really like Film X. Shortly afterwards someone asks for your all-time favorite film, and without much thinking, you say "Film X." Soon you are asked the same question and you give the same answer. After saying several times that Film X is your all-time favorite, it becomes strongly planted in your consciousness. As time goes on, you enjoy other films, and Film Y is objectively more enjoyable than Film X. "Objectively" in this context means that if I did fMRI of your brain while you were watching these films, the pleasure centers would be more active during Film Y. But you still automatically assume that Film X is "the one."

Victoria

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 8:49 am
by nisiprius
I am basically a reader, but my imagination is limited, and I therefore enjoy well-done movie adaptations that add an extra feeling of reality to the imagined world of the book. I therefore have a special fondness for filmmakers who seem to have experienced the book the same way I did, and managed to bring their vision to the screen--not necessarily faithfulness in detail, but in spirit. (There is not one single Disney movie that does this, not one--some of Disney's adaptations are good original works in themselves but when it comes to capturing the spirit of the original, they don't even seem to be trying. Alice in Wonderland would be a prime example of that. There is only one moment in that whole film that captures the spirit, and it is when someone at the Mad Tea-Party asks "Would you like a cup of tea?" and the other says "Thanks, I only want half a cup," and they slice the cup vertically with a knife). (I've yet to see ANY adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland--that captures my understanding of Alice's personality; in the adaptations she always seems bland, passive, and goody-goody, while to me, Lewis Carroll's Alice seems to be tart, subversive and critical toward adults and the adult world).

My favorite screen adaptation is Tom Jones (Albert Finney and Susannah York), particularly brilliant in capturing the spirit and "tone of voice" as I experienced them, without adhering particularly to the plot. LOVE the fox hunt sequence. My wife hates the movie and if I'm going to watch it I have to wait for her to be out of the house. Susannah York, mmm mmm good. I keep telling my wife I would be OK with her ogling Albert Finney (at whatever age he was in the 1960s) but she apparently does not care for Albert FInney.

I have to say though that the 2006 movie of Charlotte's Web--how the heck do you refer to it? "Starring" Julia Roberts as the voice of Charlotte? Or starring Dakota Fanning? is a close second.

Of course one problem with movie adaptations is that the movie vision overwrites and erases whatever personal pictures I may previously have had in my head.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:21 am
by Reb Tevye
Fiddler On The Roof.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:22 am
by stemikger
VictoriaF wrote:
stemikger wrote:
VictoriaF wrote:Is the question whether it's possible to have the all-time favorite film? Or to tell what the film is?

Victoria
Feel free to go in the other direction if you like.
My answer to the question in the title of the thread, i.e., "Is it possible to have a favorite movie," is as follows:

It is possible but it's irrational. Dan Ariely uses a term "coherent arbitrariness" to describe phenomena in which you make the initial choice arbitrarily, repeat the same choice the 2nd time because it worked the 1st time, and by induction repeat this choice the (N+1)st time because it worked the Nth time.

You really like Film X. Shortly afterwards someone asks for your all-time favorite film, and without much thinking, you say "Film X." Soon you are asked the same question and you give the same answer. After saying several times that Film X is your all-time favorite, it becomes strongly planted in your consciousness. As time goes on, you enjoy other films, and Film Y is objectively more enjoyable than Film X. "Objectively" in this context means that if I did fMRI of your brain while you were watching these films, the pleasure centers would be more active during Film Y. But you still automatically assume that Film X is "the one."

Victoria
Victoria, my daughter could have written this. She is a psychology major. It is very interesting, but I still say my favorite film of all time is Officer and a Gentleman or maybe it's Fame, wait did I mention. . . oh forget it!

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:25 am
by stemikger
nisiprius wrote:I am basically a reader, but my imagination is limited, and I therefore enjoy well-done movie adaptations that add an extra feeling of reality to the imagined world of the book. I therefore have a special fondness for filmmakers who seem to have experienced the book the same way I did, and managed to bring their vision to the screen--not necessarily faithfulness in detail, but in spirit. (There is not one single Disney movie that does this, not one--some of Disney's adaptations are good original works in themselves but when it comes to capturing the spirit of the original, they don't even seem to be trying. Alice in Wonderland would be a prime example of that. There is only one moment in that whole film that captures the spirit, and it is when someone at the Mad Tea-Party asks "Would you like a cup of tea?" and the other says "Thanks, I only want half a cup," and they slice the cup vertically with a knife). (I've yet to see ANY adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland--that captures my understanding of Alice's personality; in the adaptations she always seems bland, passive, and goody-goody, while to me, Lewis Carroll's Alice seems to be tart, subversive and critical toward adults and the adult world).

My favorite screen adaptation is Tom Jones (Albert Finney and Susannah York), particularly brilliant in capturing the spirit and "tone of voice" as I experienced them, without adhering particularly to the plot. LOVE the fox hunt sequence. My wife hates the movie and if I'm going to watch it I have to wait for her to be out of the house. Susannah York, mmm mmm good. I keep telling my wife I would be OK with her ogling Albert Finney (at whatever age he was in the 1960s) but she apparently does not care for Albert FInney.

I have to say though that the 2006 movie of Charlotte's Web--how the heck do you refer to it? "Starring" Julia Roberts as the voice of Charlotte? Or starring Dakota Fanning? is a close second.

Of course one problem with movie adaptations is that the movie vision overwrites and erases whatever personal pictures I may previously have had in my head.
Good points and agree with them, but let's not forget who Disney's target audience is. Having said that, I'm still traumatized over Bambi's Mom.

It would be great to see Alice portrayed that way, but movies have become more of a business than an art. That is why all these superhero remakes are so popular. I hate them all.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:41 am
by StormShadow
L.A. Confidential :beer

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:49 am
by stoptothink
grossbg wrote:
stoptothink wrote:"Vision Quest". Most have never heard of it, most people I've watched it with (including my wife) think it is a terrible 80's movie, but I grew up wrestling and we watched it at least once a week for years and I share a ton of traits with the main character.
Ahh a fellow wrestler. Very few understand the greatness of Vision quest. Excited about Foxcatcher!?" I sure am!

I'm going to drop to 168 and wrestle Shute"
Foxcatcher comes out November 14th, our anniversary is the next day. My wife isn't very excited about that part of the evening.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:57 am
by kenner
"Saving Private Ryan".

Steven Spielberg's remarkable capture of the worst and best aspects of human nature.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 10:03 am
by miles monroe
can't answer off the top of head what my current favorite is.

for the longest time -- years and years -- it was annie hall. but its no longer my current favorite since i've seen it so many times.

Re: Is it possible to have a favorite movie

Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2014 10:28 am
by rec7
I said It's a wonderful life but it was a close call between it and Ben Hur.