some of my favourite movies

 

Hello Charlie!

Here's a blogpost about some of my favourite movies (it's my first time doing one of these, so bear with me. Also this post is definitely not made so I can get you to watch them. Definitely not. Cue the evil laughter.) You may also notice that at least 70% of my favourite movies are coming of age movies, because what else is better than worrying about your future than watching fictional people worrying about their futures!

First of all, we have Lady Bird. 

Released in 2017 and directed by Greta Gerwig, this movie follows teenage girl Christine 'Lady Bird' McPherson (played by Saoirse Ronan) throughout her high school experience- we also get to see how her family affects her life. She has a messy relationship with her mother, Marion McPherson (Laurie Metcalf), who has been working tirelessly ever since her husband lost his job. Marion and Christine have a very tense dynamic, as they are so similar yet so different in many different ways- they are both loud, opinionated and impatient.

I'll share an exchange that Christine and Marion had during the movie that made me cry (don't worry about it, it doesn't spoil anything.)

"I just wish … I wish that you liked me." - Christine

"Of course I love you." - Marion

"But do you like me?" - Christine

"I want you to be the very best version of yourself that you can be." - Marion

"What if this is the best version?" - Christine

We also get to explore Christine's school life and friendships, and her own character growth. 

Some other key characters are Danny O'Neill (Lucas Hedges): aka This Guy Needs Therapy And A Hug. I can't say much about him without spoiling anything, but just know that I became very emotionally attached to him (and so will you. Probably. If you end up watching the movie.). 

We also have Julie Steffans (Beanie Feldstein), Lady Bird's best friend. She doesn't really have a character arc, and she has a rather unimportant role in the movie besides being the token plus-sized best friend (but that's for another blog article about bad representation in cinema), but she's still loveable and witty.

This movie is very meaningful to me because I strongly related to so many characters in this movie in so many ways, and because you can't help but become completely absorbed into this movie. Lady Bird is just so human.

It's also a very aesthetically pleasing movie! Here are a bunch of stills, and wise words from Lady Bird.

Next up, we have The Grand Budapest Hotel!

What would a list of my favourite movies be without a Wes Anderson movie in it! There are so, so many things that I loved about this movie. It was directed by Wes Anderson.... Which was kind of in the first line but we'll ignore that. It was released in 2014.

The movie starts off by us being introduced to a man, known simply as Author (played by Jude Law), who will be our narrator for the rest of the movie. He meets the director of the Grand Budapest Hotel, Zero Moustafa (F. Murray Abraham), who tells our Author the story of the Grand Budapest Hotel.

The movie is in a flashback format- so everything that our Author/Elderly Zero is narrating has already happened. It's rather reassuring in some way.

The things that I love about this movie are the characters: we meet our protagonists, Monsieur Gustave (Ralph Fiennes), the iconic concierge (who has a liking for L'Air de Panache perfume), and young Zero Mustafa (Tony Revolori), an inexperienced lobbyboy, early on in the movie. However, when M. Gustave's mistress, Madame D. (Tilda Swinton) dies, M. Gustave is framed for murder by Madame D.'s family. 

We also get to meet Agatha (played by Saoirse Ronan- Whoops, there's a pattern...); the girl Zero falls in love with.  I usually hate the 'love at first sight' trope, but I can definitely understand Zero on this one.   Just look at Agatha and you'll understand why. 

She's a strong-willed and determined baker, and is really just wonderful. The lights in this scene are also marvellous- Wes Anderson really worked his Wes Magic on this movie. Speaking of which, I'll put some stills from the movie down below.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie from start to finish- the characters and the storyline and visuals were all iconic and memorable. 

Finally, we have Hunt For the Wilderpeople!

This movie is one of my comfort movies (even though it made me cry, but then again I cry at a lot of movies so it doesn't really count, does it?), and occasionally makes me homesick for New Zealand. It's a comedy-drama movie, starring Julian Dennis (whom you might know from Deadpool 2), Sam Neill and Rima Te Wata. It was also directed by Taika Waititi (one of my favourite directors, whom you might know from Thor: Ragnarok and Jojo Rabbit.)

Fun fact: Taika himself also got a cameo in this movie!                                                                        ->

It revolves around Ricky Baker (Julian Dennis)- a teenage juvenile 'delinquent' (he's twelve in the beginning of the movie), being taken to a remote farm to be taken care of by his foster aunt and uncle Bella and Hector. Several strange events happen, leading Hector and Ricky to run away into the neighbouring forests and bond, before Ricky has to leave to another foster family. 

This movie is heartwarming, and the landscapes in New Zealand are absolutely gorgeous. This movie simultaneously broke my heart and healed it again, over and over- it's just breathtaking. Taika Waititi is such a talented director. The soundtrack is also lovely (it's done by Moniker, their soundtrack for this movie was amazing).

You can find some screencaps and GIFs from the movie down below!

That's all for now! Bye Charlie!