MetaChat - Celluloid Prozac: Upbeat, happy movies

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26 July 2008

Celluloid Prozac: Upbeat, happy movies →[More:]Well, we couldn't predict that our interlibrary loan timing for the Criterion Collection of Brazil would come at such an awful moment. Yes, the hits keep coming. I'm punch-drunk. That's all about that for now. Although I have such a long relationship with the movie that I can separate myself from the here and now while watching it, apparently it has put my mother into an awful state of funk.

So, without further ado, what movies just put you in that upbeat happy state no matter how you felt going in? Stuff like The Princess Bride (watched last week) or Little Miss Sunshine (last year), or What's Up, Doc? (on the list) but it doesn't have to be a comedy. Neither of us is pretty big on straightforward romance. I like gritty drama, sci-fi, and anything cerebral, which doesn't always jibe with these requirements. She likes mysteries, British arthouse, and has affection for the stars of her youth (the 50s). So maybe stuff like mystery-comedies (The Thin Man)? The entire 20th century is up for grabs.

post by: stilicho at: 00:56 | 20 comments

Love and Other Disaters. Horton Hears a Who!. A Knight's Tale . Sabrina. The In-Laws.

Of course Clockwork Orange puts me "in that upbeat happy state" so ymmv.

posted by arse_hat 26 July | 01:24

Ooh! Yes, some Billy Wilder would be nice. Just maybe not Sunset Blvd. or The Lost Weekend ...

In completely unrelated news, my cat Fry is apparently on the verge of learning how to operate (i.e. open via lever handle) the screen door. He's a smarty-pants for sure.

posted by stilicho 26 July | 01:34

Rushmore, Field of Dreams, and Rain Man

posted by kyleg 26 July | 01:39

Hmmm, I love Foyle's War (British mystery series set during WWII). Even though there's at least one murder in each episode (1.5 hours) it's very British and entertaining.

I love the BBC Pride & Prejudice, that cheers me up.

Bread and Tulips is a very entertaining and upbeat Italian movie. I also like A Fond Kiss.

posted by Claudia_SF 26 July | 01:40

A few more:

Blood & Donuts. Breaking Away . My Favorite Year. It's a Wonderful Life . A Christmas Story.

Way to go Fry! Does he have a friend named Bender?

posted by arse_hat 26 July | 01:42

Endless Summer 1 & 2 are my go-to movies for just about everything. They are my ultimate happy place film, mostly because they are so completely and totally chilled the fuck out.

posted by sperose 26 July | 01:45

Movies that use to do this for me and always seemed to be on were Impromptu, Slaves Of New York, Swimming To Cambodia and all Spalding Grey's monologues... that's all my brain coughed up right now.
i highly recommend Stranger Than Fiction, i just adore this movies in so many ways.
i almost always watch About A Boy when it's on. i may burp up more as i think of them.

posted by ethylene 26 July | 02:24

Mon Oncle. It's hilarious until you realize we live in the future it is satirizing. It'll also make you want to move to France.

posted by BoringPostcards 26 July | 02:42

This is not a recommendation for you, but I watch anything with Sandra Bullock in it. She's my celluloid prozac girlfriend. Except when they make her an addict in recovery. Leave my Sandra alone. They tried to make her go to rehab, ah said "no", "no", "no".

My fave Sandra prozac is probably "Practical Magic".

Which reminds me of "The Witches of Eastwick". Zany fun.

My prozac boyfriend is Micahel Caine. Any Michael Caine is great. I'd watch him watch paint dry.

Sherlock Holmes! I love Basil and Jeremy!

How about PBS's "Mystery"? Can you rent any of those? I heart Miss Marple.

Is "The Usual Suspects" feel-good? It works for me. I had some others, but I can't type fast enough and they sifted out of my sievehead.

posted by taz 26 July | 02:50

Oh, yeah - I remember: Coen Brothers! "Raising Arizona", "Fargo", "Big Lebowski", "O Brother, Where Art Thou", etc.

Also occurring to me: "The Full Monty"; "Muriel's Wedding" (also, "Clockwatchers"); "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert"; "Cold Comfort Farm".

If you haven't seen it (or even if you have), see if you can find "Il Piccolo Diavolo", more likely called "The Little Devil" with Walter Mathau and Roberto Begnini. I don't know if they did this in both Italian and English, but I saw it in English (not dubbed; filmed in English), and it's wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.

posted by taz 26 July | 03:30

oh, huh. I guess the English version is partly dubbed.

posted by taz 26 July | 04:00

This may sound strange, but Trainspotting always works for me.

posted by syntax 26 July | 06:44

syntax: River's Edge always does it for me, but I don't recommend most people try it.

The one I do recommend is Escape from New York and the MST3K episodes with Joel (*not* Mike, they're not as good)--the early in the show's run, the better. The best is The Day the Earth Froze but you have to borrow it, not rent it. You can rent The Giant Gila Monster, which is awesome, and Tormented, which I love.

posted by crush-onastick 26 July | 09:28

preview only works, if you look at it. sorry

posted by crush-onastick 26 July | 09:29

The two Addams Family movies.
Heathers.
Jackie Chan movies, but none of his Hollywood stuff.
Down By Law.
Even though I didn't think Mystery Men was really good, I still like it, and it has Tom Waits in it.
I'll ditto ehtylene's mention of Spalding Grey too.

posted by Zack_Replica 26 July | 10:17

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind always makes me happy in the right kind of way.

posted by msali 26 July | 10:30

Another Tati recommendation: Playtime. The nearly-wordless film builds gradually to a giddy crescendo in a nightclub that will leave you smiling for days.

posted by treepour 26 July | 15:23

Groundhog's Day, Ferris Bueller, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Airplane, early Marx Brothers, MASH, The Thin Man, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, good Warner Brothers cartoons, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein or older Japanese monster movies (Godzilla vs. Monster Zero is a favorite).

posted by doctor_negative 26 July | 17:01

Seconding Muriel's Wedding and Groundhog Day. Also (for silly-ness) The Wedding Singer, Clueless, Bridget Jones's Diary.

posted by Claudia_SF 26 July | 17:12

Some good suggestions, folks! Some I know already, some I know wouldn't work, but there are some I didn't expect at all. Hmm.

posted by stilicho 26 July | 19:38

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