West Side Story (1961) – This is going first only because I
don’t remember exactly when the first time I saw it was. I do remember begging my mother to let me
watch it on TV; she said I could, if I took a nap so that I could stay up to
watch it. Now, I don’t nap. I STILL don’t nap. However, I made an honest attempt to nap, and
I guess that was good enough, because I got to watch it. I love musicals – of course I had seen “The
Wizard of Oz” and “The Sound of Music”, but this was probably the first time I
discovered that a musical could be dark and gritty as well. At my wedding, I walked down the aisle to “One
Hand, One Heart” from the soundtrack.
101 Dalmatians (1961) – This is the first movie-going
experience that I remember, and I remember it as if it was only yesterday, even
though I saw it in 1969. I remember
wearing my little “Dalmatian” coat to the movie, and I remember sitting my
little stuffed Dalmatian, Lucky, by the door, promising him that I would tell
him ALL about it when I got home…then, when I got home, I remember picking him
up, and dancing him in circles into my room, in order to describe every detail.
Lady and the Tramp (1955) – THIS, however, is, was, and most
possibly always will be, my favorite Disney Animated movie. I must have seen it during its 1971
re-release, but it grabbed my heart and never let go. Fun fact:
Lady (and some pictures that decorated my bedroom in my childhood) is
the main reason I have long hair.
Once Upon a Time (1973) – This little-known animated movie
holds a very sentimental place in my heart: it was the first time that I got to
go to the movies with JUST my friends: parents dropped us off & picked us
up, but Taffy, Karen, Christine & I got to go in alone. I remember the theatre being almost empty,
and we all sat near the front. I
remember loving it…and then never seeing it again. A few years ago my husband found it on DVD
for me & I decided to show our daughters (our older daughter was exactly
the same age I was when I saw it). I
popped it into the player, we snuggled on the couch…when I was suddenly hit with
the thought: what if it’s totally lame,
and I only loved it for the experience?
Thankfully, it was just as enchanting as I remembered…and they loved it.
Carrie (1976) – If hard-pressed to tell what my all-time
favorite movie is, I would have to say this.
I remember the ads catching my attention; but, since I was only 12 and
it was rated R, I couldn’t see it. My
sister did, and (remember: this was in the years before home theatres or even
VHS), since we figured I’d never get to see it, she told me ALL about it. My sister is an excellent storyteller, so,
when I DID finally get to see it, I felt like I watched it before…except she
DID leave out one teensy-weensy little detail about the very ending…which made
the ending that much more
delicious. You don’t want to know how
many times I’ve watched it, and I will confess that I find it almost cathartic
(having been bulled horribly in school).
Oh, side note: I DO like the 2013 remake.
Logan's Run (1976) – Speaking of movies that you don’t want
to know how many times I’ve seen…This movie and “Titanic” rank as the only
movies that I saw in the theatre more than once. I really couldn’t tell you why this one ranks
so high with me, but I love it and still pull it out once and again…and again…
The Rescuers (1977) – This was the first movie that I got to
take my little brother to…just the 2 of us.
For that reason alone it belongs on this list…and makes me cry every
single time I watch it.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978) – OK, don’t
judge. I KNOW this movie is a stinker,
and that even the cast hates it.
However, I was about 13 when it came out, and had mad crushes on Barry
Gibb of the Bee Gees AND Peter Frampton.
Seeing them both on the BIG SCREEN was a teenage girl’s dream come
true. I remember that I watched
it alone: my mother went to the adjoining cinema to watch “Eyes of Laura Mars”. The movie hit me so hard, I actually had
trouble standing up when it was over.
Yes, I have it on DVD; and yes, I watch it again. Every time I do, the little 13-year-old girl comes
out to play.
Grease (1978) – I don’t think I saw more movies than I did
during the years 1977-1980, and a lot of times, it was with friends. However, when I think about my
early-to-mid-teen years and seeing movies with friends, this is the first one
that always pops into my mind. The
music! The dancing! The colors!
The story! Whenever I hear “We Go
Together”, tears of nostalgia form…and I smile.
Wait Until Dark (1967) – In 1979 I flew – all by myself – to
visit my sister in Texas. It was a great
visit, and I’ll never forget it. I
especially remember one night she & I sat & watched this movie. She didn’t give a spoiler, but she DID warn
me that I would jump & scream near the end…but asked that I try not to, as
her husband was asleep. Well, THAT part
came! I jumped, and before I could make
a sound, she clapped one hand on my shoulder & the other over my
mouth! It was such a great movie that it
ranks as my 2nd-favorite thriller…
Les Diaboliques (1955) – …only to be surpassed by this
one. When my husband & I were
dating, his father introduced us to this little foreign gem. You have to love a movie that has a
disclaimer at the beginning, asking that you not give away any details of the
movie after you watch it.
Precious (2009) – I know this is an odd pick. It holds no nostalgia, and it’s not a “happy”
movie. As a matter of fact, it lands on
most critics’ and movie lists’ “Movies You Can Only Watch Once” lists for its
dark subject matter. However, this one
hits all of my “cinema-nerd” buttons.
Incredibly acted, wonderfully directed, and, while, once again, not a “happy”
movie, it has one of the most simultaneously “down” and “upbeat” endings of
just about any other movie I’ve seen.
Oh, and I HAVE watched it more than once.
Now, I don’t “love” every movie I see, and there have been
movies that I saw and hated (“Fargo” comes to mind), but I have to admit that
there was ever only one movie that I deeply regret having seen…one of those “Well,
that’s an hour-and-a-half that I’ll never get back” movies. That dishonor goes to 2012’s “Spring Breakers”.
