movie tag

Now for this very overdue post, which owes its existence to footloose and fancy free, who was tagged by jodecro

In short, i was tagged by someone who was tagged by someone else. Never mind that i hardly know what tagged is, never mind that i am tagged the first time.

number of films i own on VCD/DVD
if this means the number of VCDs/DVDs that i have bought myself, then it's a grand total of one. Not some unforgettable classic or oscar-winning film. Just a film about a superhero: Spiderman. I caught the show in a cinema in Taiwan when the film was first released. One year on, when the DVD came out, i reckoned i like the action-flick enough to want to buy it and watch again.

last film i bought
that has to be Spiderman, of course.

last film i watched
Before sunset. Watched it on a DVD i borrowed from a friend. A review i read says that, this is one of those movies, you either love, or you hate. Not quite true, judging from my personal response to the film. I certainly don't hate the show - in fact, if you hate the show, that's because you've failed to be engaged by its essence, conveyed through dialogue that is deep with introspective contemplation and charm. Ironically, i can't say what the essence is, because i think it is what each individual takes away from the film. I like it because the actors could engage me with their portrayal of their characters; because the characters speak amidst a beautiful and serene setting; and because there is a sense of realness conveyed by the subjects of their conversation. But i don't love it to the extent that i have absolute praise for it, mainly because i get distracted and tired from following the continuous train of thoughts.

5 films that mean a lot to me
now i am not one of those who keep track of what movies i've watched. neither do i have a conscious list of movies that i would put under 'my fav' heading. So this is a little tricky here. Nonetheless, i have given some thought about it. Bizarre choices, perhaps, but read on for my explanation.

• Spiderman/X-men: yes, the first has a superhero, the second does not. Yes, i am greedy and i can't settle on just one, so i've decided i shall put both. I like Spiderman, that's why i bought the film. Maybe it's a guy thing; i like to be transported away to the fictional world of superaction-heroes who possess super powers. I like the world of superheroes where evil and good seem to have a clear boundary. Above all, i like the breathtakingly spectacular effects that indulge my imagination.
  

• Fong Sai-Yuk (aka Fang Shi yu): 'fast action movie in period costume.' If i can't be in the superhero world with superpowers, let me become a chivalrous pugilist who has unrivalled martial arts skills, a reluctant master of coveted deadly skills passed to him by master pugilists. I love Jet Li and the veteran Xiao Fang-Fang in the movie. They make executing difficult martial art skills look so easy. I can't count the number of times i've watched the film on tv and i don't tire of watching them. Martial arts genre movies like this always have me in awe of their beauty.
  

• The Barbarian Invasions: A french-Canadian production with French dialogue about a dying man who faces his mortality. I don't think there's an underlying message. The beauty of such a great film lies in the honesty with its portrayal of human relationships and reality. Somehow, watching a film in a foreign language ironically engages me. Nuances may be lost in translation but the acting does not change, and it is from there that you appreciate the film and all the beauty that it carries. I like this film because the conversations between them are candid and poignant. The characters are as fallible as you can get in real life. A real gem.

• Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind: though watching the film halfway i got a little confused, i got hold of the plot soon enough to appreciate its bizarreness and ingenuity. Life's such a paradox where our memories are concerned, and i thought the film kind of depicted that. We are who we are because of the memories we hold, which are constantly in the making; memory is what our identity rests upon. It is precisely this that our memories, good or bad, plauge us and are the cause of our miseries. Hence our desire to expunge the unpleasant memories. This is a refreshing film that is, er, weird, but totally provovative, in a good sense.
  

• You've Got Mail: ok, i have to confess i am putting this on the list in part because i can't think of something else. I like Kill Bill but i think i would rather put You've Got Mail down. Love the New York setting. Love the soundtrack of the movie that blends in with the mood and the setting. Love the gorgeous Meg Ryan in the show. Love the charming bookstore that she works in.
  

So, there, not exactly the films people would consider a favourite, but as i've already explained, i like the movies because they have each connected with me in some ways. Can't really bear watching the cheap, hollow flicks hollywood churns out these days. On the other hand, I will gladly watch any of the above movies again.