The Cutest Films.

01. My Neighbour Totoro
An initial flop in Japan, people slowly came round to loving My Neighbour Totoro. It tells the story of two sisters, Satsuki and Mei, 11 and 5 respectively, who move to the countryside for the health of their sick mother. Their house is near a forest, and soon they’re encountering mysterious and intriguing woodland creatures. These woodland creatures are utterly adorable and so, well… cute. And even though the film is very innocent, devoid of any evil characters, Miyazaki isn’t afraid to take a walk on the dark side too, meaning that this never veers into saccharine-Disney mode. And honestly, Totoro, Neko Bus Chu Totoro and Chibi Totoro are just so. darn. cute.








02. The Road Home
If you want to see how likeable Zhang Ziyi was before she became a full-blown diva, check out this film, in which she plays (in flashbacks) a girl who waits patiently for her love by the road. My heart literally broke and I was bawling my eyes out when, in once scene, the food she was carrying for him (I think it was dumplings) rolled down a hill, and the wife too, cries. Along with Not One Less, The Road Home also captures the impoverished, hardness of Chinese life, yet does so with a nostalgic fondness. Beautiful.

03. Monster’s inc
Mainly for Boo, the type of character that I usually find annoying in a film, but in Monster’s Inc, she completely won my heart. And the final look on Sulley’s face when he opened the door… ♥

04. The Spirit of the Beehive
05. Ponette


06. Wall-E
Sorry, I know I've said this about a thousand times, but - Eve was just so cute! Her giggle! And also, the whole holding hands thing. And the umbrella thing. And the scene where Wall-E and Eve were flying through space. They all left me feeling lighter than air.


07. The Hudsucker Proxy
Timmy Robbins swinging the hula-hoop... lols.

08. The Cave of the Yellow Dog
09. The Apartment
10. Jerry Maguire

01. University. Discuss.
02. What do you think is the funniest TV programme?
03. What is the most beautiful song you’ve ever heard?
04. What’s the crappest holiday you’ve ever been on?
05. Carrie, Samantha, Miranda or Charlotte? [Sex & the City girls].

Because I'm bored, I thought I'd compile my list of...

(this was 2007's list).

25. Umbrella (Rihanna)
24. Pennies in my Pocket (Emilio Estefan)
23. The Moneymaker (Rilo Kiley)
22. Glory Box (Portishead)
21. Jackson (Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash)
20. The Lady is a Vamp (Spice Girls)
19. Homecoming (Kanye West)
18. Hey Jude (The Beatles)
17. Seasons of Love (Rent OST)
16. Underneath Your Clothes (Shakira)
15. Don’t Stop Me Now (Queen)
14. All These Things that I’ve Done (The Killers)
13. Brandy Alexander (Feist)
12. Lullaby (Dixie Chicks)
11. November Has Come (Gorillaz)
10. Alison (Elvis Costello)
09. Sinner Man (Nina Simone)
08. Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy (Queen)
07. Romeo and Juliet (Dire Straits)
06. Adia (Sarah McLachlan)
05. Hallelujah (Rufus Wainwright)
04. Samson (Regina Spektor)

03. Clam, Crab, Cockle, Cowrie (Joanna Newsom)
One of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. Again, the real meaning of it’s a little obscure, but I love it because it’s so pretty, heart-rending, nostalgic, whimsical and weird. Favourite lines are “Your skin is something that I stir into my tea” and “and you are starry, starry, starry”, which gives me shivers every time I hear it.

02. Son of a Preacher Man (Dusty Springfield)
Sexual awakening is the dominant theme in this song, which was played in Pulp Fiction, as Springfield sings the age-old story of a girl becoming a woman (ironically, Girl you’ll Be a Woman Soon by Urge Overkill was also on the PF OST). Lots of my favourite female artists have covered it, including Aretha Franklin, Dolly Parton and Nancy Sinatra, but the original is the definitive. Sexy, soulful and terrific for dancing to whilst getting dressed. And the thought of being seduced by someone you shouldn’t sounds very enticing. “Being good isn’t always easy?” So true.

01. Rocky Raccoon (The Beatles)
I first heard this back in 2007 when I had my iPod on shuffle, sitting on the train to somewhere. I had uploaded all of The Beatles’ songs, but I hadn’t actually heard some of them before. Rocky Raccoon hit me like a bullet. It tells the story of a young lad who tries to avenge the man who stole his girlfriend. It’s a sad love story with an old western saloon melody and probably has some of the most random lyrics ever, probably containing thousands of layers I’d never thought about, but my my, what a pretty song! I really love it, it’s breathlessly sad, beautifully song but extremely catchy. When I’m extremely emotional, just listening to this song makes me cry.

Keira Knightley Vogue Photoshoot.

She looks beguiling in some, bewildering in others. Click on the photos for the bigger picture.

It looks a bit like they've fiddled about with a binliner and bunged it on her head.

Lampshade head!



She is REALLY pretty and noir-ish in this one.








I really like her hair in this one.

The general thought from me is that these are pretty good, even if the clothes are a bit weird. Maybe Keira should become a full-time model? ;)

Screening Log.

I never keep this damn things up, but that ain’t gonna stop me starting again. No sirree. Alright, films I saw this weekend.

High School Musical 2 (Kenny Ortega, 2007)
Hilarious, but for all the wrong reasons. Terrible acting, predictable plot, contrived characters… it was neither a step up nor a step down from its predecessor. Actually, one thing it did lack was catchy songs. HSM had “We’re All in This Together” which I’ll never forget because we sang it because we sang it in our Sixth Form Revue, as well as “Getcha Head in the Game” and “Stick to the Status Quo”. Only “Bet on it” from HSM2 will linger in my memory, and that was for Zac Efron’s dodgy dancing as much as anything. One thing that really brought the lolls, however, was how that girl was always conveniently around to play the piano whenever Troy and Gabriela needed it. Ffs.

Never Been Kissed (Raja Gosnell, 1999)
Oh, ♥. It may be because I’m feeling amorous because of the season, or me feeling soppy because I believe I’m in love, or pure nostalgia for my secondary school (cringey days and all), but practically everything about this film pushed my buttons. Firstly, you’ve got Drew Barrymore at her loveliest, as newspaper copyright editor Josie. In order to make it as a reporter, she needs to go undercover in a high school. She, like most of us, had a pretty torrid time at high school, and after some initial failures in trying to be cool, her brother (played by David Arquette) helps her make it with the cool crowd. There’s a great supporting cast (including the ever-lovable John C. Reilly), some hilarious moments (the bananas…lol) a cute soundtrack, but what I loved most about this film was the chemistry between Barrymore and her teacher Michael Vartan. The ending, though morally rather dubious considering he thought she was a student the whole time, was still lovely, and I was so happy for Josie.



Ballad of a Soldier (Grigori Chukhrai, 1959)
Continuing with my “watching a film ‘cos it’s Russian”, I went for this minor masterpiece. Ballad of a Soldier points out how single minded and silly it would be to beef on the Russians and the beauty that an individual is capable of. Like Turtles Can Fly, Ballad of a Soldier captures the detrimental effect of war toward the country and the individual. It’s about one soldier, who possesses all the attributes that a good person should have, and is granted 6 days to go on leave: 2 to get there, 2 to spend with his mother (wherein he plans to fix her roof) and two days to return. However, in his journey, he comes across a range of people that need help, and in helping them, delay his arrival. He also develops a romance in the film, but we’re not even treated to a kiss… :( We’re told from the off that he doesn’t survive the war, but that didn’t stop me crying my eyes out at the end. Completely moving and heart-breakingly beautiful, this is highly recommended.

Top 5 of 2007 Vs. Top 5 of 2006.

In the blue corner, we have The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Atonement, Persepolis, No Country for Old Men and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

In the red corner, we have Pan’s Labyrinth, The History Boys, Offside, Volver, and Red Road.

Now, for me, Diving Bell < Pan’s
Atonement = History Boys
Persepolis < Offside
No Country for Old Men < Volver
and
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford > Red Road

With three wins and a draw, 2006 takes it.