The Social Network

2010

Director: David Fincher

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Story – Lines – Characters – Music

Review:

When I heard they were making a movie about Facebook, I rolled my eyes. How could that be worth watching?

But this is one of the best written movies I’ve seen in years. The dialogue alone is brilliant, but the story pacing and character delvelopment are also perfect.

I was blown away. Great movie.

Trailer:

Quotes:

• People wanna go online and check out their friends, so why not build a website that offers that. I'm talking about taking the entire social experience of college and putting it online.
• As if every thought that tumbles through your head was so clever it would be a crime for it not to be shared.
• We lived in farms, then we lived in cities, and now we're gonna live on the internet!
• If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you'd have invented Facebook.
• The internet's not written in pencil, Mark. It's written in ink.
• I like standing next to you, Sean... it makes me look so tough.
• You're not an asshole, Mark. You're just trying so hard to be.
• As for the charges: I believe I deserve some recognition from this board.

Stills:

The Ugly Truth

2009

Director: Robert Luketic

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Lines – Characters – Concept

Review:

I like this movie. I don’t have good reasons for liking this movie. But I like this movie, and I have fun watching it.

And katherine Heigl is gorgeous.

Trailer:

Quotes:

• OK, that's good. Now, just let him suffer.
• I'm used to women I can figure out in, like, five seconds. I can't do that with you.
• Tell me then, what’s her name? …the woman who screwed you up. She must have been a doosey.

Stills:

His Girl Friday

1940

Director: Howard Hanks

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Lines - Characters

Review: 

Newspaperman Walter Burns tries to coerce his ex-wife Hildy Johnson to leave her fiancé and return to editing the newspaper.

While the premise is intentionally kind of goofy, the dialogue makes this movie.  In fact it set the mold for the iconic fast-talking reporter, and set a precedent for movies that are driven by quick, witty dialogue a la Juno or The Social Network.

It’s a shame that these days movies driven by good writing like this aren’t more common.

Trailer:

Quotes:
What do you think I am, a crook?
-        Yes.

There's been a lamp burning in the window for ya, honey... here.
-       Oh, I jumped out that window a long time ago.

Walter, you're wonderful, in a loathsome sort of way.

I like him; he's got a lot of charm.
-       Well he comes by it naturally his grandfather was a snake.

Oh, you're losing your arm! You used to be able to pitch better than that.

Look, Hildy, I only acted like any husband that didn't want to see his home broken up.

- What home?
"What home"? Don't you remember the home I promised you?

He treats me like a woman.
-       Oh he does, does he? Mm-hm... how did I treat you? Like a water buffalo?

I wouldn't cover the burning of Rome for you if they were just lighting it up!

Madam, you are a cock-eyed liar!

You've got an old fashioned idea divorce is something that lasts forever...

I thought it would be a novelty to have a face around here a man could look at without shuddering.


Stills:

Loser

2000

Director: Amy Heckerling

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Characters – Message

My Review:

I feel like this movie shouldn’t be that big a deal to me, but there’s something I love about it.

It may be the way Paul mixes gentle naivety with steadfast character. He doesn’t know how to dress, act or talk. But he knows how to love a girl - respect her, appreciate her and protect her. He is at once, one of the dorkiest and coolest movie characters I can think of.

Or maybe it’s that Dora is completely adorable.

I think it’s both.

...And Paul's haircut.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• I love self-loathing complaint rock you can dance to.
• Do you have a girlfriend?
  - Ex-girlfriend. We dated in high school.
  Do you still see her?
  - She lost weight, so she's dating a lot more now.
• Oh yeah? Well if Kafka were alive I'm sure he'd say stop misinterpreting my novels you pretentious bonehead!
• It seems like this whole city is one big orgy and if you actually care about someone you're some kind of chump
• You know how there are couples that stay together just because they feel they can't do any better or there are people who are sad and miserable and live alone, but then there are this microscopically tiny group of people who get to be with the person they are madly in love with.
• I hope someday I get to be one of those lucky people.

Stills:

Seven Pounds

2008

Director: Gabriele Muccino

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Concept - Gospel

My Review:

I had to chew on this movie for a while.

Ben, a man in despair over a defining tragedy in his life, is seeking atonement. Blaming himself for taking so much good from the world, he seeks a way to restore some good to it.

[Spoiler Warning]

The way he does this is to seek out people who fall into two categories: They must be in need of something he has, and they must be someone he deems worthy of his help. In the end, he sacrifices himself so that he can give one woman his home, one man his eyes and one woman his heart.

I’m not sure how to measure the ethics on this one. But I have to say, I can identify with where his heart is, and I respect that. The action he takes is an ultimate expression of love.

And we can see the Gospel in that love. Just as Ben willingly gives his life for his friends, Jesus willingly went to the cross for us. Ben’s action provides a home, sight, and a new heart. Jesus also gives a home to the lost, sight to the blind and new life to the brokenhearted through the everlasting life He gives.

A terribly thoughtful movie. Give yourself the chance to really mull over it.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• In seven days, God created the world. And in seven seconds, I shattered mine.
• The first time I ever saw a box jellyfish, I was twelve. Our father took us to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I never forgot what he said... That it was the most deadly creature on earth. To me it was just the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.
• It is within my power to drastically change his cirumstances, but I don't want to give that man a gift he doesn't deserve.
• You know, Ben, I keep asking you this but why me?
  - Because you are a good man.
  No, really.
  - ...even when you don't know that people are watching you.
  Why do I get the feeling you're doing me a really big favor?
  - Because I get the feeling that you really deserve it.

Stills:

Surf's Up

2007

Director: Ash Brannon / Chris Buck

Distributor: Columbia Pictures / Universal Pictures

Key Elements: Lines – Visuals – Characters – Message – Concept – Music

My Review:

In college, this was my all-nighter movie. If I was going to be up till dawn writing a paper, I would play this movie in the background. I can’t be sleepy while watching this movie – it’s too colorful, alive, fun and positive.

And it’s got a great message. Love what you do. The moment it becomes something else to you – winning, being the best, etc. – you lose that magic. Do what you love purely for the love.

Also, I’ve long been mystified by the tao of surfing and it’s well represented in this movie.

Fun watch.

Clip:



Quotes:

• Everyone's like Cody's this, Cody's that. Cody's me bro, let me be me.
• So as soon as there was the first wave, right? - there was the first surfer. All they needed was, like, um, a piece of driftwood, a block of ice or something like that, and then they were off. And they were hooked, man. They were hooked. Up 'till recent times, you had your old dudes, you know, your hang-six cats, these old guys used to lay down with these huge, humongous boards. These guys were the pioneers, but nobody saw what surfing could be until Big Z did it.
  - Could you tell us who Big Z was?
  Who was Big Z? You're asking the right guy. You got that far. Z is everything. Big Z is surfing. I mean, there might as well not been an ocean before Z. They invented the ocean for him. Cause he lived so hard because he wasn't afraid to live. He wasn't afraid to die. He came to Antartica when I was just a kid. Man, it was the biggest thing that ever happened here. And suddenly there he was. Just floating on the water. Hovering, you know, like weightless. He could've walked up to anyone, and he walks right up to me. And he gives me this awesome, one-of-a-kind Big Z necklace. And then he tells me, "You know, kid, never give up. Find a way, 'cause that's what winners do." He was the greatest. Everyone looke up to him, respected him, loved him. And one day, one day, I'm gonna be just like him.
• Whoah! You gotta try this blowhole thing, man! This whale dude is giving me a brain freeze.
• You know, we've known each other way back since, like... yesterday, I think it was.
  Alright, well this is the third time this week you've been unconscious. I just don't think it's very good for your brain.
• Who wants to see the champion take on the little guy? Little guys rule!No joy, man. No joy. Fail.

Stills:

Before Sunrise

1995

Director: Richard Linklater

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Story – Lines – Characters – Concept

My Review:

This is an interesting movie. An American and a Frenchwoman are chatting on a train traveling through Austria. On a whim, He asks her to get off the train with him to keep him company for his last few hours in Europe. She agrees, and they get to know each other better while checking out the nightlife.

The most engaging thing about this movie is that it isn’t driven by plot twists or quirky situations. You don’t even feel like you’re watching a movie, but just overhearing a conversation between two people. The writing does an excellent job of communicating the chemistry between the characters.

What’s funny is that most of the movie they talk about how disillusioned they are about romance, but by the end, they’ve fallen for each other.

Clip:

Quotes:

• Alright, I have an admittedly insane idea, but if I don't ask you this it's just, uh, you know, it's gonna haunt me the rest of my life
  - What?
  Um... I want to keep talking to you, y'know. I have no idea what your situation is, but, uh, but I feel like we have some kind of, uh, connection. Right?
  - Yeah, me too.
  Yeah, right, well, great. So listen, so here's the deal. This is what we should do. You should get off the train with me here in Vienna, and come check out the capital.
  - What?
  Come on. It'll be fun. Come on.
  - What would we do?
  Umm, I don't know. All I know is I have to catch an Austrian Airlines flight tomorrow morning at 9:30 and I don't really have enough money for a hotel, so I was just going to walk around, and it would be a lot more fun if you came with me. And if I turn out to be some kind of psycho, you know, you just get on the next train. …Alright, alright. Think of it like this: jump ahead, ten, twenty years, okay, and you're married. Only your marriage doesn't have that same energy that it used to have, y'know. You start to blame your husband. You start to think about all those guys you've met in your life and what might have happened if you'd picked up with one of them, right? Well, I'm one of those guys. That's me y'know, so think of this as time travel, from then, to now, to find out what you're missing out on. See, what this really could be is a gigantic favor to both you and your future husband to find out that you're not missing out on anything. I'm just as big a loser as he is, totally unmotivated, totally boring, and, uh, you made the right choice, and you're really happy.
  - Let me get my bag.
• I had worked for this old man and once he told me that he had spent his whole life thinking about his career and his work. And he was fifty-two and it suddenly struck him that he had never really given anything of himself. His life was for no one and nothing. He was almost crying saying that.
• Why is it, that a dog, sleeping in the sun, is so beautiful, y'know, it is, it’s beautiful, but a guy, standing at a bank machine, trying to take some money out, looks like a complete moron?
• It's just, people have these romantic projections they put on everything. That's not based on any kind of reality
• You know what drives me crazy? It's all these people talking about how great technology is, and how it saves all this time. But, what good is saved time, if nobody uses it? If it just turns into more busy work. You never hear somebody say, "With the time I've saved by using my word processor, I'm gonna go to a Zen monastery and hang out". I mean, you never hear that.
• If there's any kind of magic in this world it must be in the attempt of understanding someone sharing something. I know, it's almost impossible to succeed but who cares really? The answer must be in the attempt.
• I used to think that if none of your family or friends knew you were dead, it was like not really being dead. People can invent the best and the worst for you.
• I don't know, I think that if I could just accept the fact that my life is supposed to be difficult. You know, that's what to be expected, then I might not get so pissed-off about it and I'll just be glad when something nice happens.
• I feel like this is, uh, some dream world we're in, y'know.
  - Yeah, it's so weird. It's like our time together is just ours. It's our own creation. It must be like I'm in your dream, and you in mine, or something. And what's so cool is that this whole evening, all our time together, shouldn't officially be happening.
  - Yeah, I know. Maybe that's why this feels so otherworldly.
• You know what I want?
  - What?
  To be kissed.
  - Well I can do that.
• But then the morning comes, and we turn back into pumpkins, right?
• Maybe we should meet here in five years or something.
  - All right, all right, five year- Five years! That's a long time!
  It's awful! It's like a sociological experiment!

Stills:

Reign Over Me

2007

Director: Mike Binder

Composer: Pearl Jam

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Characters – Message – Music

My Review:

I’m always interested when a comedic actor begins to take on dramatic roles. In the case of Adam Sandler, it really, really works.

This movie tells the story of a man who lost his wife and three daughters in the 9-11 attacks. He now lives on the insurance money – which is just as well because he is so overwrought with grief, he can’t function.

Then his college roommate runs into him and they rekindle their friendship while trying to come to terms with what happened.

Sandler’s performance is nothing short of incredible. You really get a sense of how he’s mentally barricaded himself. It’s heartbreaking.

But we get a great message about supporting people who are dealing with difficult trials – be it grief or something else. We must respect who and where they are, because everyone progresses differently.

Also, the title comes from features Pearl Jam's awesome cover of The Who's Love Reign o'er Me.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• Ahh Graham Nash - Songs For Beginners. Just... just the album cover alone, look at that face, he knows he made a great record.
• You know, my wife and I, we tried to call him so many times. Hadn't seen him in years, and I heard about what happened in the paper, and I was just... I was just heartbroken for him. For them. …He just shut down. Quit work. He stopped wanting to talk about her. Then he acted like he didn't remember them. Then he pretended he didn't remember us.
  - Yeah.
  All my husband and I want to do is see him. And that crazy landlady and his business manager, Sugarman, both conspire to keep us away.
  - Sugarman?
  Yeah, I don't care for him. Who knows what that little shyster's taking from Charlie.
  - What is there to take?
  Between the government payout and the insurance policy, Charlie has enough to take care of himself, put it that way. …My husband retired young. He was a cop. We were young, young to be grandparents. I was gonna do nothing but travel and spoil my granddaughters. Then those monsters flew over here from across the world, and rearranged my dance card.
• Geena was five. Jenny was seven, she, uh... she liked boys already. Julie was 9. She was... she was older. They all looked alike, Johnson. Like Doreen. Doreen was my wife. DT. That was her nickname. Doreen Timpleman. She had a dog, Spider. Spider... the poodle. They'd wake me up all the time, Saturday mornings, you know, singing Beatles songs to me in harmony, the four of them... so cute, so cute. Doreen never judged me... never nagged like some wives do. Wanted me to take my shoes off so I didn't wreck the carpet. That's it. Doreen and the girls were VERY female. I... I... I was the oddball, you know. Mr. Man. They adored me, Johnson...
  - I bet they did... I know they did, Charlie.
  With the long brown hair... except little Geena. She kept the hair short... to be different from everybody... she, um, she had a birthmark, though. Looked like a burn... but it wasn't. She always said it was gonna go away, but it... it never did. Jenny, Jenny, this one... she wanted to be a gymnast. She was such a klutz, though. I didn't have the heart to mention it as a problem. They, uh, went to see Doreen's sister Ellen and her girls in Boston, and they took Spider, because... I had to work and they didn't trust me to feed her, but that was a joke. We were all going to DT's little cousin's wedding in Los Angeles, and I was gonna meet them out there... The kids wanted to go to Disneyland, but they... they uh, were already gonna miss a couple days of school, so we had to say no. You know. So I'm going out to meet them in Los Angeles, and on the way to JFK, I'm in a taxicab and I hear on the radio... I get there and the man tells me the plane's from Boston... another man tells me there's two planes. …Then I go inside the airport and I'm watching. I'm watching on the television... and I... and I... I... I saw it. I saw it and I felt it at the same time. I thought about Geena's birthmark, and I... I felt them burning...
• I don't know how they can't see that he's just got a broken heart. It's so broken, his poor heart.
• I don't need to talk about her or look at pictures... 'cause the truth is, a lot of times, I see her... on the street. I walk down the street, I see her in someone else's face... clearer than any of the pictures you carry with you. I get that you're in pain, but you got each other. You got each other! And I'm the one who's gotta see her and the girls all the time. Everywhere I go! I even see the dog. That's how fucked up I still am! I look at a German shepherd, I see our goddamn poodle. All right... All right...

Stills:

50 First Dates

2004

Director: Peter Segal

Distributor: Columbia Pictures / Happy Madison

My Review:

Lucy has a memory problem that causes her to forget each day after it ends. When Henry falls for her, he finds he has to hatch a new scheme to make her fall for him… everyday.

I expected laughs from Sandler, and I got them.

I expected Barrymore to be adorable, and she was.

What I wasn’t expecting was for this movie to have so much heart. In one of the most romantic character situations ever, Sandler bears the task of wooing his love anew every single day. A great illustration of loving sacrifice and devotion.

Surprisingly beautiful story.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• Are you staring at me or her? 'Cause you're starting to freak me out.
• I hardly know you.
  - Actually sweetie, you're kind of dating him.
  - Sorry I'm not better looking.
• Can I ask you guys something? What's gonna happen down the line? Someday she's gonna wake up and look in the mirror and notice her face's aged 10 years overnight.
  - You know something, Henry? I worry about that every day of my damn life.
• Can I have one last first kiss?
• The Beach Boys? How nice of that man to give me a CD that will remind me of all the wonderful times I shared with his daughter. What an asshole! WHY would you do this to me?
• So every day you help her to realize what happened and you wait patiently for her to be okay with it... then you get her to fall in love with you again?
  - Yes, ma'am.
• I don't know who you are, Henry... but I dream about you almost every night. …Why?
  - What would you say if I told you that notebook you read every day used to have a lot of stuff about me in it?
  I would say that that makes a lot of sense.
  - You erased me from your memories because you thought you were holding me back from having a full and happy life. But you made a mistake. Being with you is the only way I could have a full and happy life. You're the girl of my dreams... and apparently, I'm the man of yours.
  Henry. It's nice to meet you.
  - Lucy, it's nice to meet you too

Stills:

Gattaca

1997

Director: Andrew Niccol

Composer: Michael Nyman

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Concept - Message - Music - Story

My Review:

This movie is for anyone who feels inadequate.

Vincent is born naturally into a world where value is limited to those who have been genetically “perfected.” He is therefore doomed by his own DNA to second-class citizenship. It’s interesting to consider as our own geneticist get closer and closer to decoding the human genome (or have they already?)

But Vincent refuses to be held down. He dreams of becoming an astronaut – an endeavor usually reserved for the genetically sound. He works out an underground deal that allows him to move under the radar toward his goal.

In the end, it’s a great story about how going for broke and not giving up can be a rewarding risk to take.

Oh, and the music is completely beautiful.

Clip:



Quotes:

• "Consider God's handiwork; who can straighten what He hath made crooked?" - Ecclesiastes 7:13
• "I not only think that we will tamper with Mother Nature, I think Mother wants us to." - Willard Gaylin
• No, there's truly nothing remarkable about the progress of Jerome Morrow... Except that I am *not* Jerome Morrow.
• I belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the color of your skin. No, we now have discrimination down to a science
• You didn't know?
  - Oh, I knew. It's amazing, isn't it?
  - Twelve fingers or one, it's how you play
  That piece can only be played with twelve.
• You are the authority on what is not possible, aren't you Irene? They've got you looking for any flaw, that after a while that's all you see. For what it's worth, I'm here to tell you that it is possible. It is possible.
• Vincent! How are you doing this Vincent? How have you done any of this? We have to go back.
  - It's too late for that. We're closer to the other side.
  What other side? You wanna drown us both?
  - You wanna know how I did it? This is how I did it Anton. I never saved anything for the swim back.
• I got the better end of the deal. I only lent you my body
  - you lent me your dream.
• What's this?
  - New Policy, what's the matter? Flight got you nervous.
  Nope, there's a problem Lamar...
  - ...I still haven't told you about my son have I. He's a big fan of yours...
  Just remember. I was as good as any, and better than most...
  - ...He wants to apply here...
  ...I could've gone up and back and nobody would've been the wiser...
  - ...unfortunately my son's not all that they promised. But then again, who knows what he could do.
  …For future reference, right handed men don't hold it with their left. Just one of those things. …You're gonna miss your flight Vincent.
• For someone who was never meant for this world, I must confess I'm suddenly having a hard time leaving it. Of course, they say every atom in our bodies was once part of a star. Maybe I'm not leaving... maybe I'm going home.

Stills:

Stranger than Fiction

2006

Director: Marc Forster

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Story – Concept - Characters – Message

My Review:

This is a fun movie. The comedy is ironic and dry, but very enjoyable. Harold’s life is being narrated – turns out, a novelist is writing his story – and leading him toward his untimely death.
It’s a wake-up call for Harold that forces him to consider what he really wants from life – a good thing for all of us to consider. And it also asks the question – how important is your death to you?

One thing I really love about this movie is the character played by Maggie gyllenhaal. She’s just really cute. My favorite part of the movie is when Harold plays guitar for her.

Clip:



Quotes:

• This is a story about a man named Harold Crick and his wristwatch. Harold Crick was a man of infinite numbers, endless calculations, and remarkably few words. And his wristwatch said even less.
• Little did he know that this simple seemingly innocuous act would result in his imminent death
  - What?
• Get bent, TAXMAN!
• Listen, I'm a big supporter of fixing potholes and erecting swing sets and building shelters. I am *more* than happy to pay those taxes. I'm just not such a big fan of the percentage that the government uses for national defense, corporate bailouts, and campaign discretionary funds. So, I didn't pay those taxes. I think I sent a letter to that effect with my return.
  - Would it be the letter that beings "Dear Imperialist Swine"?
• No, no. It's not schizophrenia. It's just a voice in my head. I mean, the voice isn't telling me to do anything. It's telling me what I've already done... accurately, and with a better vocabulary.
• You were just trying to be nice, and I blew it… This may sound like gibberish to you, but I think I'm in a tragedy.
• I brought you flours. …Miss Pascal, I've been odd. I know I've been odd, and I know that there are many forces at work telling me to bring these down here to you, but I brought these for you because... I want you.
• As Harold took a bite of Bavarian sugar cookie, he finally felt as if everything was going to be ok. Sometimes, when we lose ourselves in fear and despair, in routine and constancy, in hopelessness and tragedy, we can thank God for Bavarian sugar cookies. And, fortunately, when there aren't any cookies, we can still find reassurance in a familiar hand on our skin, or a kind and loving gesture, or subtle encouragement, or a loving embrace, or an offer of comfort, not to mention hospital gurneys and nose plugs, an uneaten Danish, soft-spoken secrets, and Fender Stratocasters, and maybe the occasional piece of fiction. And we must remember that all these things, the nuances, the anomalies, the subtleties, which we assume only accessorize our days, are effective for a much larger and nobler cause. They are here to save our lives. I know the idea seems strange, but I also know that it just so happens to be true. And, so it was, a wristwatch saved Harold Crick.

Stills:

Spanglish

2004

Director: James L. Brooks

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

Key Elements: Characters - Message

My Review:

This movie makes me want to learn Spanish.

It draws an interesting distinction between White and Minority America. On the one hand you have people similar to Deborah – wavering between being disrespectful or patronizing towards the minority population. On the other hand, you have people like John – respecting minorities as people with the same cares and concerns as anyone else.

That is actually one of the main messages of the movie – people are people, no matter where they’re from. This is a good message for those who create immigration policies to consider.

The other great thing about this movie is how it looks at fidelity in marriage. Deborah has a great husband, but cheats on him. John has a great friendship with the maid, Flor, and is tempted to take that friendship further when he gets the news of Deborah’s cheating – but doesn’t. The beauty of this story comes from John and Flor choice to not pursue an adulterous relationship.

The characters are so well written, this movie merits re-watching. Adam Sandler can definitely do tender roles – he’s self-controlled when his wife breaks his heart, genuinely connects with Flor as a concerned parent, and shows attentive love for his children.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• American women, I believe, actually feel the same as Hispanic women about weight: A desire for the comfort of fullness. And when that desire is repressed for style, and deprivation allowed to rule, dieting exercising American women become afraid of everything associated with being curvaceous. Such as wantonness, lustfulness, sex, food, motherhood. All that is best in life.
• I know what it’s like when you feel like your kid’s being messed with. It won’t happen again. It won’t.
• You’re kidding me. Pretty wild to say something to somebody and have someone just concede the point. I’m dazed here.
• Listen to your mother. She knows it all.
• Do this for me or I’ll set my hair on fire and start punching myself in the face! …yeah, yeah you’re right. That was an unusual way for me to make myself understood.
• You don’t have to worry about Bernice. Nothing is going to change that heart.
  - Yeah, thanks. …It’s just great to hear someone else say that out loud.
• Worrying about your kids is sanity, and being that sane... can drive you nuts.
• I’ve never known a man who can put himself in my place like you do. …how did you become that man?
  - I don’t know… Would you get out of the damn wind? Sit down!
• You speaking English, it’s… Nice meeting you.
• Deborah, you are going to lose your husband if you don’t stop what you are doing. And you are never going to find someone as good. …if you do not act quickly, you will soon cement an awful fate for yourself: a life with no hope of repair, which has already begun to turn desperate and dumb. …that’s it! Drive carefully.
• …honey, lately your low self-esteem is just good common sense.
• Hold on, hold on, hold on. I’m… I’m missing what you’re saying. You can’t keep talking and expect me to follow it when you start the way you did.
  - Well then, what did you hear?
  I couldn't hear you. There was a crack in the planet. WOW... that was noisy! There was an actual noise in my head. …when you talk that fast, I’m not going to hear you. There’s a lot going through my mind right now.
• I’m trying to figure out if there’s a way to avoid knowing. …no. damn it. There’s not.
• What other questions could there be?
• How are you really that much nicer than me?
  - Well, you didn't set the bar that high.
• …I gotta get out of here. You keep talking. …stay put.
• Would you be willing to hang out with me for a while?
• My hand is the only sane part of my body. Every other part wants to jump off a cliff.
• …It’s me. I’m not making any sense. But I can get you fed.
• I am enjoying actually being of use to my daughter. I am enjoying the fact that I really know how to advise you. And the miracle that you are so deeply disoriented that you are gobbling up everything I say. …right now, the lessons of my life are coming in handy for you.
• They should name a gender after you. Looking at you doesn't do it, staring is the only way that makes sense. And trying not to blink so you don't miss anything. And all of that and you're you. It's just… forgive me, but you are drop dead crazy gorgeous. So much so, that I'm actually considering looking at you again before we finish up here.
  - Soon. Please.
• There are some mistakes you cannot risk when you have children.
• I love you.
  -…what??
• Do you know that right now you are your own worst enemy? That you cannot trust one thought in your brain.
• It’s not the worst thing in the world to find out that you love your husband.
• …I’m just so glad you’re back.
• I just hate that you had that kind of night.
  - It’s good for me to worry about something that really matters. Instead of the stupid stuff that’s usually on my mind.
  Like..?
  - Surviving.
  What? How did you come up with this? You are fantastic Bernie, I love you. I love you.
• I think you are a wonderful boy. Be good – like you are.
• You are a trip. You are. You are a beauty.
• Listen, I’m sorry that you’re sad, but this could have been so much worse.
• I lived my life for myself. You live your life for your daughter. None of it works.
• God bless the guy who gets you.
• I had publicly scorned my mother. And yet she had not reacted.
• No space between us!
• Is what you want for yourself to become someone very different than me?
• My identity rests firmly and happily on one fact: I am my mother's daughter.

Stills:

The Shawshank Redemption

1994

Director: Frank Darabont

Distributor: Columbia Pictures / Warner Brothers

Key Elements: Story – Lines – Characters – Message

My Review:

This is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. Great writing. Moving acting. And an important message.

Andy’s world has fallen apart. His wife cheated on him. Then she was murdered. And, framed for the killing, he has been sent to Shawshank prison where he suffers terrible abuse.

Amazingly, though he is knocked down, he is not destroyed. Andy holds onto hope even when everyone thinks he’s crazy. In the end, he shows them all.

As in all great stories, the gospel can be found in this one. As Red puts it, Andy “crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side.” It parallels the way Jesus went through death – both physical and spiritual – and yet came out alive and victorious on the other side. Andy not only frees himself, he takes down the corrupt prison staff and inspires Red to hope for his own freedom. In the same way, Jesus work conquers sin and death and gives us the hope of new, eternal life.

Beautiful movie.

Trailer:



Quotes:

• It's my life. Don't you understand? IT'S MY LIFE!
• I must admit I didn't think much of Andy first time I laid eyes on him; looked like a stiff breeze would blow him over. That was my first impression of the man.
• The first night's the toughest, no doubt about it. They march you in naked as the day you were born, skin burning and half blind from that delousing shit they throw on you, and when they put you in that cell... and those bars slam home... that's when you know it's for real. A whole life blown away in the blink of an eye. Nothing left but all the time in the world to think about it.
• What was his name?
  - What did you say?
  I was just wondering if anybody knew his name.
• Same old shit, different day
• I could see why some of the boys took him for snobby. He had a quiet way about him, a walk and a talk that just wasn't normal around here. He strolled, like a man in a park without a care or a worry in the world, like he had on an invisible coat that would shield him from this place. Yeah, I think it would be fair to say... I liked Andy from the start.
  This is the part I really like, when she does that shit with her hair.
• We sat and drank with the sun on our shoulders and felt like free men. Hell, we could have been tarring the roof of one of our own houses. We were the lords of all creation. As for Andy - he spent that break hunkered in the shade, a strange little smile on his face, watching us drink his beer. … You could argue he'd done it to curry favor with the guards. Or, maybe make a few friends among us cons. Me, I think he did it just to feel normal again, if only for a short while.
• I have no idea to this day what those two Italian ladies were singing about. Truth is, I don't want to know. Some things are best left unsaid. I'd like to think they were singing about something so beautiful, it can't be expressed in words, and makes your heart ache because of it. I tell you, those voices soared higher and farther than anybody in a gray place dares to dream. It was like some beautiful bird flapped into our drab little cage and made those walls dissolve away, and for the briefest of moments, every last man in Shawshank felt free.
• That's the beauty of music. They can't get that from you... Haven't you ever felt that way about music?
  - I played a mean harmonica as a younger man. Lost interest in it though. Didn't make much sense in here.
  Here's where it makes the most sense. You need it so you don't forget.
  - Forget?
  Forget that... there are places in this world that aren't made out of stone. That there's something inside... that they can't get to, that they can't touch. That's yours.
  - What're you talking about?
  Hope.
• These walls are funny. First you hate 'em, then you get used to 'em. Enough time passes, you get so you depend on them. That's institutionalized.
• You know what the Mexicans say about the Pacific?
  - No.
  They say it has no memory. That's where I want to live the rest of my life. A warm place with no memory.
• Get busy living, or get busy dying.
• Andy crawled to freedom through five-hundred yards of shit smelling foulness I can't even imagine, or maybe I just don't want too. Five-Hundred yards... that's the length of five football fields, just shy of half a mile.
• Andy Dufresne - who crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side.
  I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright. And when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up DOES rejoice. Still, the place you live in is that much more drab and empty that they're gone. I guess I just miss my friend.
• Ellis Boyd Redding, your files say you've served 40 years of a life sentence. Do you feel you've been rehabilitated?
  - Rehabilitated? …Well now, let's see. You know, I don't have any idea what that word means.
  Well, it means you are ready to rejoin society...
  - I know what you think it means sonny. To me it's just a made-up word. A politician's word; so, young fellows like yourself wear a suit and a tie... and have a job. What do you really want to know? Am I sorry for what I did?
  Well, are you?
  - There's not a day goes by I don't feel regret. Not because I'm in here and because you think I should. I look back on the way I was then... a stupid, young kid who committed that terrible crime. I want to talk to him. I want to try and talk some sense to him. Tell him the way things are, but I can't. That kid's long gone, and this old man is all that's left. I gotta live with that. Rehabilitated? It's just a bullshit word. So you go on and stamp your form, sonny, and stop wasting my time. Because to tell you the truth, I don't give a shit.
• Remember Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.
• I find I'm so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend, and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.

Stills: