Movie Review Monday #5: My Top Ten(ish)

Recently, a co-worker and I were checking out some Top 100 Movies lists and I asked him what his personal top ten would be. He of course asked me the same question, and it proved way more difficult than I would have guessed. In fact, just minutes after I emailed this list to him, I remembered that Dan in Real Life should have made an appearance. And maybe The Princess Bride or Goonies. What I give you is my gut feeling top ten, in no particular order, unabridged:

1. Pride and Prejudice (2005) – It’s visually stunning, the music is awesome, it’s funny, there’s romance, there’s intrigue, it’s literary, and there is one of the most amazingly choreographed long shots I’ve ever seen.
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer – My first Whedon. Brilliance.

3. Shop Around the Corner – a delightful romantic comedy starring Jimmy Stewart. This choice also includes You’ve Got Mail since they’re essentially the same film and I’m a cheater.

4. Lars and the Real Girl  – an incredibly creative, original film that shows the power of family and community. And the acting is so good that I’m still convinced they found some of the townspeople in a random small town.

5. Center Stage – don’t judge me. I love a bad movie with good dancing, and I have seen this one over 20 times. Okay, maybe you should judge me.

6. Muppet Christmas Carol – The best Christmas movie ever. Hands down. It’s a Wonderful Life can suck on it.

7. Anastasia – wildly underrated, this is one of the best animated films of ever. Although I admit I was having trouble deciding between this and Mulan.

8. Roman Holiday – Audrey Hepburn: Adorable, hilarious, and a total drama queen. And in addition to starring her awesomeness, Rome stands alone in this film.

9. About a Boy – Nick Hornby, who wrote the book on which this film is based and is my favourite novelist and is British which is why I spelled that "favourite," is just a genius. This is such a sweet story about a friendship and how people are capable of change, but it’s not schmaltzy.

10. Two Weeks Notice – I hate to put two Hugh Grant films in my top ten. I’m not really a fan, I promise. I just watch this movie whenever I’m sick, and it makes me feel like I’m hanging out with friends. I can quote the whole thing, really. Not something I’m proud of, it’s just a fact. It’s a shallow, entertaining film.

Man, I never think of myself as a girly girl...but looking over this list, I am a super girly girl. If it helps, some runners up are Zombieland, Speed, and Forrest Gump. And it’s not like I don’t like action/drama/horror/etc. Those films just aren’t my favorites. I can’t watch them over and over again. I’ll stop making excuses now.

Your turn.