totallytinab

The other day a friend remarked about how often I go to the movies.  It is true.  I love going to the movies.  The reasons are many.  First and foremost, I have a lot of time on my hands, especially lately.  The two hours spent in the theater and the drive time fills up part of my day and I am getting a little bored being at home.  I also really like popcorn.  I always go to the same theater chain because of a sweet deal they have.  At the beginning of each year, I buy a t-shirt and a plastic cup.  Then each time I go to the movies, I get a free popcorn and a $1 soda refill.  The deal pays for itself in about 3 movies.  Brilliant!  My favorite time to go is during the day.  I like the late-morning or early afternoon shows.  The fewer people in the theater the better.  People can be annoying.  They text, chat to their friends, chew too loudly, sit too close.  I want to lose myself in the experience.  I want to escape.

I like all kinds of movies.  Rotten Tomatoes has a cool feature where you can rate the movies you’ve seen, write a short review and then share this review with your Facebook friends.  This brings out the inner Roger Ebert in me as I have always thought it would be pretty cool to be a movie critic.  So here is my list in no particular order of movies that I give at least 5 stars and 2 thumbs up:

Shawshank Redemption-probably my all time favorite
The King’s Speech
The Fighter
The Tillman Story
The Kid’s Are Alright
The Social Network
ET
40-Year Old Virgin
Knocked Up
No Country for Old Men
Juno
Slumdog Millionaire
Gran Torino
When Harry Met Sally
The Blind Side
Crazy Heart
The Hangover
Precious
Inglorious Basterds
The Departed
Garden State
Little Miss Sunshine
Crash
Schindler’s List
The Silence of the Lambs
Saving Private Ryan
Forest Gump
Life is Beautiful
Million Dollar Baby
Brian’s Song
Caddyshack
Good Will Hunting
Dead Poet’s Society
The American President
Dave
Rocky
The Sixth Sense
Dead Man Walking
Leaving Las Vegas
Thelma & Louise
Top Gun
The Breakfast Club
The Godfather
Animal House
The Goodbye Girl
Philadelphia
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Million Dollar Baby

I am sure this list is missing a few of my favorites, but I think it reflects the fact that my love of movies started a little later.  You can see that I am not into Science Fiction or Horror.  I mostly like a feel good story. I also like dramas and movies that make me think.  I want to be entertained.  I want to like the characters or hate them but I want to care one way or the other.  I want to think about the movie as I drive home.  I wait until after a see a movie to read its reviews and then I decide whether I agree with them or not.

So I will see you at the movies.   Just remember to turn off your cell phones and stop talking to your friends.  Its time for me to escape!