Monthly Movie Recommendation #1

Derek lived an apparently sheltered childhood and hasn’t seen really any movies outside of Marvel and the action genre. So a lot of jokes or references I made went over his head and apparently I am crazy enough that he just thought I was saying gibberish, being my normal self and just went along with it.

When I first learned about his lack of movie reference knowledge, we were at Bed Bath and Beyond. We were milling about and I was touching a lot of the towels (yes, I am that person, I like feeling textures). I put my hand in between two of the towels and said: “My fingers are in your mouth kitty, but I don’t feel no teeth.” (if you get this reference, I love you. If you don’t, it’s Eight Crazy Nights). Derek gave me a chuckle that I didn’t hear because I was laughing my butt off, and thought I was a mastermind comedian. It wasn’t until we watched the movie last December that he started laughing super hard at that scene. Which, yeah, it’s funny, but not that funny. He was laughing so hard I had to pause the movie and he then burst my bubble by telling me he had no idea what I was on about that day and that he just now got my joke. 😒

After I found this out, I put together a list of movies that I ~~demanded~~ recommended we watch together as I felt he was severely missing out. Now, most of these movies were introduced during my childhood or by my parents so they are from the 80’s, 90’s and early 2000’s. So, if you have trouble finding entertainment, missed out like Derek, or want to know of some those references people are making, this is the monthly movie recommendation for you!

We’ve been working our way through a list of movies that he has never seen that I hold near and dear to my heart and think are amazing. So, I thought I would share five movies a month with you so you can watch along with us. Plus, I realized there are a ton of other people out there like Derek who were either not allowed to watch certain movies or really only watched one genre. So this can help you expand your film taste and knowledge and it never hurts to try something new!

How It Will Work

I will not just be sticking to movies only available on Hulu, Netflix, Prime Video, or other streaming services. Since these movies are older, I think it would be limiting the list by a lot. If you would like to watch these movies, I recommend getting a library card. Just go to your local library, bring a piece of mail or your ID that has proof of residence in that county, and start the process by going to the front/information desk. It is free, and usually, you can start by checking out 5 movies the day you get it. I’ve lived in several places now, and the nearby library never lets me down. They always seem to have that niche movie I thought no one else even knew existed.

If you are a college student 1) you should have access to a library already, but 2) sometimes college libraries don’t have as huge of a selection because y’know they have all those dang reference books and what not, trying to educate people, jeez. 🙄 If you are worried you don’t have anything to prove you are a resident there (at least temporarily for the school year) just let the library know you are a college student and they will usually set you up with a limited library card (can’t check out as many items is usually the only limit).

Recommendations

1408

My first recommendation is 1408. It is a movie based on a Stephen King novel where John Cusack plays a skeptical ghost hunter that gets in over his head at one hotel. It is a psychological thriller/horror that is a great watch and has a great twist ending. It has some jump scares (I’m not a fan of jump scares), is pretty dark in theme, and has some graphic scenes that are well done and not gratuitous. Great late night watch!

Labyrinth

I LOVE Labyrinth, and not the scary really messed up one, but the David Bowie and Jim Henson one. It is a great movie with awesome David Bowie songs and I love the general aesthetic. It is considered a fantasy/action, but I think it’s generally hard to describe. It is about a girl who accidentally requests that the goblin king (David Bowie) takes her little brother away. After realizing her mistake she must find her way through a tricky and deceiving labyrinth and get to the castle in time before her brother is turned into a goblin.

It has some puppet characters (by Jim Henson) that are amazing additions to the quirky nature and Bowie-ness of the film. It’s not necessarily a little kids movie either, it has adult themes and may be entertaining to a kid but is really for adults/teens. I know these descriptions aren’t very specific, but I don’t want to give anything away!

Moulin Rouge!

My third and final recommendation, since this is the first installment (after this I will give five every month), is Moulin Rouge! It is a drama/romance (kinda) and a fast-moving, wild ride of a movie. The main plot is a poet (Ewan Mcgregor) falls in love with a courtesan (Nicole Kidman), but she has already been courted by a duke. They undergo a love affair and in an attempt to keep it a secret now have a web of lies they must untangle.

It is not a sappy, love triangle, chick flick. It is a quirky, full of singing, oddball of a movie. It also has a great soundtrack and choreographed dances. This movie again has an interesting aesthetic that is hard to describe as anything else but one of a kind!