16 Oct 2018

MY 10 DAY MOVIE CHALLENGE .... REVEALED.

For those of you who follow me on FaceBook or Instagram you may have noticed I've been participating in the 10 DAY MOVIE CHALLENGE in which, every day for ten days, I've posted a clip from a movie that had an impact on me with no explanations as to what the film is or why it had an impact on me ... until now. Yes! ...







... I can now reveal all.

DAY ONE ... THE BIRD CAGE. Hmm! So just what is it that makes a man; is it really that he smears? OK, so arguably a bit of a cliche but I admit to finding the above scene so thought-provoking.

DAY TWO ... PRIDE. The coming together of two seemingly very different 'minority groups' (that of a group of Gay men/women in London and that of striking Welsh miners) who came together to fight the common enemies (the then Prime minister; Margaret Thatcher, the press, the police) was soooo poignant.

DAY THREE ... THE ELEPHANT MAN.  Feared by most of Victorian England, the fact that the 'Elephant Man' came to know respect and kindness meant I came away from this film (and still do), my faith in humanity renewed. 

DAY FOUR ... ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. First watched whilst I was at college studying for my PCSC (Preliminary Certificate in Social Care), blown away by the film to begin with; the lecturer then informed my fellow students and I that many of the extras were in fact actual mental health patients.

DAY FIVE ... THE HOMESMAN. A 'Western' that I actually enjoyed; surely reason enough to include it in the films that had an impact on me. Yes, there is that BUT, the story of three women rendered speechless in their madness by the hand life had dealt them, the fact that one of the characters went through most of the film with barely a word spoken was incredibly powerful.     

DAY SIX ... SONG FOR MARION (Known in the US as Unfinished Song). There is something compelling about 'everyday' love stories to begin with and this, the tale of a grumpy pensioner consumed by the pain of his dying wife, an estranged son and an unconventional choir is inspired.

DAY SEVEN ... THE RIOT CLUB. Perhaps of all of this selection this film had the most impact on me albeit for very different reasons. What may well be a fictionalised account BUT very well researched as MR T said in his review of it ... 'Watching the youthful moral meanderings of the future leaders of our country is simply a bit depressing.', I cannot remember the last time I came away from a film so, so angry, shocked, disgusted ... yeah, safe to say, this one had a HUGE impact on me.

DAY EIGHT ... THE SESSIONS. Who'd have thought, us disabled people have sexual urges! A film of one disabled man's journey to lose his virginity in his late thirties. It was the fact that the film was done with such honesty and sensitivity (albeit somewhat brash) that had such an impact on me.

DAY NINE ... THE FISHER KING. The second Robin Williams' film to make my list. The fact that here was the manic, the tormented, the sensitive, the funny all wrapped up in one amazing character aside, it was that Williams' played this character with such unbelievable depth; bringing to life the darker side of the character beautifully that left a lasting impression. Alas an impression that will doubtlessly be heightened by the fact that we now know Robin to be the tortured man he in fact was.

DAY TEN ... JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS. Not that I believe in a God (and I'm probably not expressing myself very well) BUT even as a girl watching this film for the first time it struck me that it did indeed sometimes feel like just as in this clip (approximately 1:42:37 until end of clip) we were merely chess pieces being toyed with for the amusement of some 'greater being(s)' that as Zeus declared 'For the moment let them enjoy a calm sea,'; that 'I have not yet finished with (insert name here), let us continue the game .. another day.'




Do you know I think it would be such fun if fellow movie buffs (maybe even those who have taken part in the Meme themselves) would do a guest post here on Pen and Paper about the film(s) that have had an impact on them and why. No pressure; it doesn't  have have to be 10 films, 1 will do. 


Anyone interested? Please feel free to contact me by email (you can find my details on my 'Review Policy') OR on FaceBook OR via Instagram ... I'd love to host you.


9 comments:

Kelly said...

Very interesting! I've only seen a couple of your picks.

At the risk of sounding very superficial... I tend to watch movies for pure entertainment and honestly can't think of any that had a lasting or profound impact on me. That's not to say there haven't been those I've enjoyed more than others and therefore will watch repeatedly - but not necessarily for any real impact they've had on me.

I'll keep thinking about it. Perhaps it's those I could only watch once, but still remember, that would apply here.

Brian Joseph said...

This is a great list of films. Sadly I do not have a lot of time to watch movies these days. It has been a long time since I have seen Jason and The Argonauts. I must give it a watch soon.

Literary Feline said...

I think if I were to come up with a list, it would be movies that had meaning to me growing up. For nostalgia sake? Hmm. Some probably aren't very good in retrospect. I hadn't thought of THE FISHER KING in a long while. I loved that movie when I first saw it. I confess I have never been too keen on ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. I didn't care for the book either, frankly. I did really enjoy THE BIRD CAGE though.

nightwingsraven said...

Tracy,
Thank you for an interesting and
varied post. Of the films which
you reviewed, I only saw The Bird
Cage and The Elephant Man.
To my most favourite films belong for
instance: Les Enfants du Paradis, Jean
Cocteau's La Belle et La Bete, The Red
Shoes, Anne of the Thousand Days, The
Lion in Winter or Born Free.
Raven

LL Cool Joe said...

I loved the first 4 films you listed very much.

Gosh I'd have to give this a great deal of thought. When Kelly mentioned it to me she said images I think, but I see you've mentioned film clips which makes it even harder to do!

Felicity Grace Terry said...

I'm so excited by the thought that Mr T, Kelly and now LL Cool Joe may be on board. I'm more than happy to go along with whatever you wish to make of this. 1 film or more, images and text, text without images or, as was the original Meme, images only; it really is up to you.

Shooting Stars Mag said...

Ooh fun post! The only one I've seen is Pride, but I really love that film, so I'm happy to see you included it. :) A movie that really impacted me - it's a favorite for sure - is Life as a House.

-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net

Suko said...

Tracy,
Ive only seen two of these movies (featured on Day One and Day Four), a long time ago. I will keep some of your choices, such as Pride, in mind for future viewing. I love to watch movies and need to watch them more often.

LL Cool Joe said...

I haven't forgotten about this, I'm still thinking!