Monday Movie Meme - The Big Impact!

The theme for this week's Monday Movie Meme is based on one of the questions from a blog fest hosted by Nostra at My Film Views and Karamel Kinema, in an attempt to expand upon it a bit: Life, Love and the Movies.

Share on your blog or in the comments section, movies that had a big impact on your life.

This can include movies that changed a small part of your view on life, films that you will forever cherish for their depiction of life as you see it, or films that moved you in some way, shape or form.

Here are my selections for this week's Life, Love and the Movies meme. They include films that were not mentioned when I did my post for Nostra's blog fest.

Booker's Place: A Mississipi Place

I'm glad to have been able to watch this documentary because it reminded me that settling for mediocrity is not an option. The importance of unity and putting your best foot forward, even when people are trying to bring you down continues to be all the more present in my mind, after watching it.

The movie also makes me even more aware of the fact that your enemies, whoever they may be, don't always come at you directly -- many are clever and use folks from your own community, circle of friends, workplace or family, to destroy you, which kinda reminds me of the movies "Malcolm X" directed by Spike Lee and "Panther" directed by Mario Van Peebles.

Street Paper

This documentary about a group of homeless men and women who are working as newspaper vendors was an enlightening movie to watch for many reasons -- two of them being that we are best to not take things for granted. Also, you can always pick yourself up and make your way out of an undesirable circumstance; sheer will and determination allow you to make your tomorrows better than today.

Walk the Line

I hold a special for this biographical musical drama about Johnny Cash, because it tells a great story of redemption. 

These are the few that come to mind at the moment.

What movies had a big impact on YOUR life?

Monday Movie Meme – Say Cheese!

My apologies for last week’s missing theme. Let’s get this Monday Movie Meme started with a new topic: Say Cheese!

Share on your blog or in the comments section, movies featuring photographers. This can include those who do it professionally as well as characters who are hobbyists.

Here are my selections for this week’s Say Cheese! theme.

Road to Perdition

Although it’s been a long time since I’ve watched this crime thriller starring Tom Hanks, I could swear there is a guy who takes pictures of dead people or something, in the movie. Correct me if I’m wrong about this though!

In Search of a Midnight Kiss

Guy meets girl who loves photographing abandoned shoes, in this romantic comedy directed by Alex Holdridge.

Born into Brothels

Filmmakers teach kids in Calcutta how to use still cameras to capture their experiences, which leads to the children’s’ growing interest in photography in this documentary directed by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman.

Love Jones

Man meets woman who starts working as a magazine photographer but not before she starts snapping nude photos of him in this romantic drama starring Larenz Tate and Nia Long.

Blood Diamond

A journalist uses her photography skills to ease a potentially hostile situation in this thriller starring Jennifer Connelly, Djimon Hounsou and Leonardo DiCaprio. I know there are other scenes where she takes pictures, but, the one that comes to mind right now is when a group of village warriors are skeptical about her, Danny Archer and Solomon’s intentions. Oh, and there’s also the scene later in “Blood Diamond” where she takes some investigative photos but you’ll have to watch the movie to find out what that’s all about.

What movies have YOU seen that feature photographers?

Also, I’m over at the A-to-Z Challenge Blog today, in the feature: Meet Your Co-Hosts – A Word (or Two) about Nicole. Check it out to learn some things that you didn’t know about me.

Monday Movie Meme – Best Picture Snubs at the Oscars

For every Oscar winning film, there is often one or more that we wish took home the gold instead. So let’s celebrate these films in the theme for this week’s Monday Movie Meme: Best Picture Snubs at the Oscars.

Share on your blog or in the comments section, the movies you’d wish had won an Oscar for Best Picture.

Meaning, films that were obviously nominated but still lost to another (better or worse) motion picture. I’m drawing a blank for picks, so, courtesy of some mentions by Herman at Terrible Analogies, here is a selection of Oscar nominees for Best Picture that were snubbed at the Academy Awards. He picked the movies. I’m just elaborating on them in the descriptions.

Goodfellas

Of the six Oscar nominations this crime drama received in 1991, it lays claim to one – Joe Pesci’s win for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. It’s almost hard to imagine such a favorite gangster flick being snubbed, but alas, “Goodfellas” was upstaged by the adventure movie “Dances with Wolves.” Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather: Part III” was also in the running for best picture. Maybe it wasn’t a good year for mob movies, as far as awards season goes. It’s a damn shame.

Pulp Fiction

Quentin Tarantino’s crime thriller is a cult favorite and arguably one of the best films ever made; nominated for seven Oscars in 1995. It took home one golden statue for Best Writing (basically, Best Screenplay!) but was snubbed in the Best Picture category, where it was up against another goodie – crime drama “The Shawshank Redemption.” However, the romantic drama “Forrest Gump” scored the win for Best Picture that year.

Saving Private Ryan

The Academy could not deny this war movie by Steven Spielberg -- or could they? The World War II film did win five of its eleven Oscar nominations in 1999. Those wins just didn’t include Best Picture, an honor that went to the romantic comedy drama “Shakespeare in Love”.

What Best Picture nominees would YOU say were wrongly snubbed at the Oscars?