54 days into self-isolation/working from home because yours truly is a fine upstanding member of the high-risk group and therefore getting C19 would be very very bad for my continued existence on this fine planet. The city is slowly phasing into a full re-open which is not ideal but also not as bad as it could be. We’re lucky to have the Mayor we do.
I’ve been defaulting to my comfort films a lot lately with some of the work stress that I’ve been under. And while your mileage might vary, I figured I’d put up my short list of comfort films here in case it helps anyone else:
- The Mummy (1999) – because this is pretty much a perfect self-contained movie. It has an engaging plot, tons of action, a romantic subplot that is pretty much one of the best ever- it feels both authentic and developed naturally. That’s not easy to do. The cast is great, the effects are awesome and it’s got a banging score. The worldbuilding makes sense.
- Pacific Rim – also pretty much a perfect self-contained movie. The worldbuilding and cast are phenomenal, the writing is excellent, the score is one of my top ten favorites, and while the plot isn’t that complicated, the level of details put into this makes it a movie that I could roll around in for days and never get bored. It makes internal consistent logical sense and just yeah. Also – there is a deep awesome relationship portrayed that doesn’t have to be read romantically and that was nice.
- The 13th Warrior – An oldie but a goodie. I’m a historian and specifically a Crusades historian and I love this movie so much. I know it’s based off a Michael Crichton book but the man could spin a hell of a yarn and the translation from book to movie is well done. I LOVE that it is from Ibn’s perspective, I love that we get to find out about this completely foreign culture from his viewpoint. I love the cast, I love the storyline, and I really really love the battles. Pretty sure this movie is also responsible for my love of mead.
- Stargate – There is no universe where I don’t love this crap out of this movie. The storyline, the characters, the plotline, all the hilarious one liners and so many reasons why you REALLY NEED the humanities in addition to STEM. They get a lot of the details right and it’s one of my oldest comfort films.
- Jupiter Ascending – We have covered that I am a sucker for really interesting good worldbuilding yeah? This movie has that in SPADES. The cast is good, the visuals are breathtaking, the worldbuilding is great, the heroine is badass and gets to save the day herself as well as hooking up with the genetically altered space rollerblading werewolf-angel hybrid. This movie is everything the 14 year old inside me ever wanted and had never gotten until then. Haters to the left, this movie is GOLD.
- Rogue One – Quite possibly the Prisoner of Azkaban out of all of the Star Wars films. I love the casting and the views we get of the settings and how much deeper it lets us go into the story and worlds and mythologies and histories of the Star Wars universe. The music is gorgeous and the whole movie is about unyielding hope.
- Holes – probably the single best book to movie translations ever. If you have never read or watched this, please please do yourself a favor and fall into this world of awesome. Stanley Yelnats and the Green Lake Camp and then Kissing Kate Barlow and “I can fix that” and yes. So much yes. It’s so good. Eartha Kitt is in this movie ya’ll.
What are some of your comfort movies? Share in the comments!