Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Guilty Pleasures

Y'know, those movies you know you shouldn't love, but love anyway. The ones you feel you have to "make excuses for". I've got a couple of them, and I'm not going to feel guilty about them! I'm here to confess some of my favourite "guilty pleasures".

Van Helsing

I don't like Stephen Sommers as a director. I haven't liked anything else he's done, but I adored Van Helsing. I saw it in theatres when I was 14, and just starting to get into posting on forums online. I remember proudly proclaiming my love for the movie, and having a well respected poster respond with something like "well, you like what you like. We all have different tastes." Hey, at least I wasn't flamed, right?

I love this movie so much, I bought the "Ultimate Edition" of the DVD. It came with a bunch of extra features, and some of the classic monster movies the film is based on (I haven't watched the other movies yet! I will though!). I still watch it at least once a year. I justify my love for it because it's just such a fun popcorn movie, plus Hugh Jackman and David Wenham seem to have a lot of fun with it. I was always disappointed they never did a sequel to it.

Happy Gilmore

This is one of the movies I have to watch anytime I see it on TV. Adam Sandler is not great, but he does have his bright moments, and this is one of them (Punch-Drunk Love and 50 First Dates are other bright moments). The premise is just so...ridiculous but it works for me. A wannabe hockey player realizing he can play golf? It just works. Plus any movie with a Bob Barker cameo has to be fun.

When I was 16 and in Drama class in high school, I performed the opening monologue from this movie for my final monologue (equivalent to a final exam). I think I walked onstage with a little hockey stick, and pretended to skate around while I did the monologue. Surprisingly, I got a good grade on it.

The Astronaut's Wife

I fully recognize that this is not a great movie. It's not even a "fun" movie. I watched this movie a few years ago, because I really love Johnny Depp, and was curious about it. I was fully aware of how bad it was supposed to be, but justified it by thinking that at the very least, there'd be a bit of eye candy. Yes, it's far from Depp's best performance. The script is terrible. But I still really enjoyed it, and will catch bits of it on the odd time it is on TV.

I'm not sure how widely seen this movie even is. Has anyone else seen it? It's not one I recommend to people, but I am curious about how many people have seen it.

***

Okay, so I confessed. Now it's your turn. What are some of your "guilty pleasures"?

6 comments:

  1. Bugsy Malone, starring Scott Baio and Jodie Foster. A crime musical featuring kids lip-syncing Paul Williams tunes. Crazy!

    I cheered loudly when David Turnbull sang "Bad Guys" at his IPP musical this year. I was the only one!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh, and Star Struck - the great-forgotten Australian New Wave Musical. Search "Star Struck" "I want to live in a house" on YouTube, and you'll get the idea!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Both sound like fun! Have you ever seen Cry-Baby? It's a John Waters musical starring Johnny Depp as a "Drape" leader who falls in love with a "square". It's full of lip-synching, and is painfully cheesy but I enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What's your take on Alice in Wonderland? I thought Depp was horrible in it. He was awful in Public Enemies as well. I think he's entering the Robin Williams level of his career (a confident, goofy actor who lost any restraint). [well, until Williams was cast in World's Greatest Dad]

    ReplyDelete
  5. I thought Alice was a decent movie, nothing particularly memorable, but it was fun. I thought Depp was alright in it, far from his best role, but I wouldn't say he was horrible in it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. 2 minutes...HAHAHAHAHAHA Okay, done with the RT

    ReplyDelete