METTEL RAY

Thursday Movie Picks: Character Name In the Title

Behold, the first of many Thursday Movie Picks of 2018, and of course I’m starting the new year with a new banner! But more importantly, I’m starting the new year with new energy and lots of motivation, which is why in January I’ll be recommending 4 movies for each theme instead of 3. If you would like to participate in this lovely series, head over to Wandering Through the Shelves and join in on the fun! PS: I recommended two topics for this year, and both made the cut so I’m even more excited!

1. BRIDGET JONES’S DIARY (2001)

Well, this is an obvious pick after the holiday season because Bridget Jones is always on my mind during this time. And it’s also a funny movie to start the new year as I did in 2017, when I finally watched Bridge Jones’s Baby. Though, having seen all three, there’s nothing that comes close to the awesomeness of the first film.

2. HANNA (2011)

Saorise Ronan has had such amazing roles in recent years, so it’s a little shocking to me to think back to her role in Hanna. It’s so different to what I’m used to seeing from her but I guess that’s a great credit to her acting skills. The movie itself is a little weird and different, but it’s beautifully shot and visually stunning.

3. HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 (2010)

Well, how can I not mention the most famous wizard in the world during this theme? The movie I picked this time is one of the ones I haven’t seen as many times as the first four installments, but I think it’s one of the good ones (which they all are).

5. LOGAN (2017)

Last but not least, Logan, one of two movies from 2017 I gave 5 stars to and deservedly so. I saw it in the cinema twice, and it was worth it. The movie is an amazing example how a small, compact story of saving someone instead of saving the world, brings so much humanity to a superhero movie. Logan is stripped back, laid bare, and an amazing movie from start to finish.

 THIS SERIES IS CREATED BY WANDERING THROUGH THE SHELVES

mettelray

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23 responses to “Thursday Movie Picks: Character Name In the Title”

  1. Sonia (A Film A Day) Avatar
    Sonia (A Film A Day)

    I love the new banner!

    I haven’t seen Hanna yet but it’s on my list. I love the others. And yes, the Harry Potter movies are all good 🙂

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Thank you!

      Hanna is unique and different, definitely worth watching! 🙂

      Reply
  2. sati Avatar
    sati

    Awesome picks here! Hanna is such an underrated movie. Great cinematography and wonderful cast

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Thanks! It is, right? It’s so out of the box that I’m surprised more people don’t talk about it.

      Reply
  3. speaksmovie Avatar
    speaksmovie

    I need to see Hanna. Always wanted to.

    Reply
  4. Brittani Avatar
    Brittani

    Hanna is a great choice! That movie was so good. I love Harry Potter and Logan too. I never got into Bridget Jones.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Thank you! Well, I guess Bridget is not for everyone. 🙂

      Reply
  5. joelnox Avatar
    joelnox

    My enjoyment of Bridget Jones was tempered by my thorough distaste for Zellweger. It was alright but would have been infinitely better with Kate Winslet in the lead. I skipped any follow ups.

    I wasn’t crazy about Hanna though I do like everyone in it and it was actiony, I just couldn’t fully engage with it.

    I haven’t seen Logan yet but like all the HP movies except the first which was quite dull and ghastly. This beginning of the end of the series was suitably dark and tense.

    I did four this week though I can’t say I’ll be doing that every week. I just wanted to show that my theme within the theme wasn’t a strictly female happenstance:

    Mary, Mary (1963)-Struggling New York book publisher Bob McKellaway (Barry Nelson-who is fine but his role has Jack Lemmon’s name all over it) is getting ready to marry his socialite fiancée Tiffany (a knockout Diane McBain) as soon as his divorce from first wife Mary (Debbie Reynolds) comes though. However his accountant Oscar (a delightful Hiram Sherman) requests Mary come up from Philadelphia for the day to straighten out some tax issues before the decree becomes final. Once together Bob and Mary start to jab wittily at each other and before you know it their attraction starts to resurface aided by the attentions to Mary of movie star and prospective author Dirk Winsten (Michael Rennie) and an inconvenient snowstorm. Betrays its stage origins (the play ran for over 1500 performances) but is often clever and witty. Both Rennie and Nelson repeat their Broadway roles.

    Rachel, Rachel (1968)-Rachel Cameron (Joanne Woodward) is a lonely middle-aged schoolteacher. Never married and still a virgin she lives a life of quiet desperation with her widowed mother over the funeral home left to them by her father. Over summer vacation she goes to a revival meeting with her best friend fellow teacher Calla (Estelle Parsons) during which she has an epiphany and begins to emerge from her shell taking her life in unexpected directions. Directed by Paul Newman as a vehicle for his wife this received four Oscar nominations including ones for Woodward, Parsons and Best Picture.

    Corrina, Corrina (1994)-Widower Manny Singer (Ray Liotta) is frustrated in his search for a nanny for his young daughter who has withdrawn into herself since her mother’s death and stopped speaking. When Corrina Washington (Whoopi Goldberg) applies she is able to break through the child’s reserve and is hired. As time passes she and Manny discover an attraction and grow closer but all does not go smoothly.

    Buddy Buddy (1981)-Trabucco (Walter Matthau) a hitman on a job to rub out a Mob informant before he testifies is waylaid by Victor Clooney (Jack Lemmon), the suicidal guy in the hotel room next door. Once he talks him off the ledge he plans to jump from their lives become intertwined and nothing goes as planned. Billy Wilder’s final film as director would seem to have everything needed to succeed, a reteaming of Lemmon and Matthau, a quality supporting cast and the great man himself behind the camera but even he admitted that it was more or less a miss.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Wow, a theme in a theme, that’s great! I’m surprised how many movies there are with double names in the title!

      Reply
  6. Dell on Movies (@w_ott3) Avatar
    Dell on Movies (@w_ott3)

    Yay, Logan! I also really like Hanna. It had its flaws, but I really liked it, especially Cate Blanchett’s cackling witch routine.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      It does have flaws, but I have forgotten them over the years.. I think it’s that kind of movie you start to appriciate over the years.

      Reply
  7. Birgit Avatar
    Birgit

    I have not seen Hanna but I have seen all the rest and am surprised more people did not pick Harry Potter! Great choice for Bridget Jones Diary which I thought was great even with Zellweger as i am not a fan of her. I think my favourite part is the party scene where people can dress like a priest or a tart but that was changed at the last minute but he, along with her dad and a few others never got the memo. I did not see the last one since i didn’t care for the 2nd. Logan is excellent and quite sad actually.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      I think everyone figured Harry Potter was going to be picked a lot. 😀

      That costume party or the lack of was priceless. I liked the 2nd too, though the first is definitely the best of the bunch.

      Reply
  8. Courtney Young Avatar
    Courtney Young

    Totally brilliant what you said about Logan. 100% truth.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Thanks! I have had a long time to reflect on that movie, and I still really like it!

      Reply
  9. Kat Impossible Avatar
    Kat Impossible

    Does it have to be a human character? Cause otherwise I’d choose Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging hahaha but you had really great picks!! Maybe Amélie as well? That and Lola Runs is all I can think about, but I really don’t like the latter very much.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      I think you could have made it a theme of non-human characters too if you’d like. It’s flexible, I do themes in themes all the time. 😀

      Reply
  10. Big Screen Small Words Avatar
    Big Screen Small Words

    Great picks! Hanna is the only one I have yet to see.

    Reply
  11. abbiosbiston Avatar
    abbiosbiston

    I really liked Hanna. Great pick!

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      Good to hear! 🙂

      Reply
  12. Wandering through the Shelves Avatar
    Wandering through the Shelves

    I haven’t seen Bridget Jones Baby, I hope it is at least better than the second one.

    I was a bit disappointed by Hanna. Wanted to love it.

    Reply
    1. mettelray Avatar
      mettelray

      I don’t think Baby is better, it feels just a little bit different.

      Reply
  13. CB: Rewind << January & Monthly Awards – METTEL RAY

    […] “movie” by accident but nobody called me out on it, so not going to change it now), Character Name In the Title  /  Once Was Enough (Movies You Don’t Want to Watch Again)  /  Sundance Favourites  […]

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