No Place Like Movies at Home: Made for Each Other

1939 is wildly thought to be the best year ever for movies. Several classics came out of that year, like Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz. There is another movie that you don't hear about much that also came out of that year called Made for Each Other. 

This is a heartbreaking beautiful tale of life. The movie stars James Stewart and Carol Lombard, as very ordinary married couple. They met, the fell in love, they got married they had baby. They struggled as any young family: money problems, new born baby, a dead in end job. They are trying to stay afloat and are struggling with the current state of their lives when they find out that their baby is deathly ill.

Now, as sad as all of this sounds it all works out in the end. It's great story telling about some of the struggles we got through in life. That is why I enjoyed the movie so much. There isn't a whole lot of flash, or craziness. There wasn't plot twists or a big magic moment that made everything bad just instantly go away. It's life. That all it was. A story about the ups and downs of typical everyday people. An art form that I think Hollywood has forgotten about today. Even when they do try to do a movie about life they always seem to taint it with something that would not normally be an issue. If you are looking for a movie that is beautiful for it's simple art of story telling Made for Each Other is the one to see.

No Place Like Movies at Home: Meet John Doe

Barbra Stanwyck and Gary Cooper are great actors individually. However, they make a memorable performance in Meet John Doe.

Directed by the legendary Frank Capra, Meet John Doe is a touching movie about loving your neighbor. However, the movie doesn't start out that way. Stanwyck is laid off her job at the newspaper. She has to finish her last article before she is to leave. So, she makes up a letter saying the "John Doe" is going commit suicide as a protest. This letters grabs the attention of the public and eventually starts a movement. "John Doe" clubs start to form all over the country to start introducing everyone to their neighbor.

I have seen this movie before. I remember it being very good but it was also very sad. I knew what was going to happen before I started watching it. However, I didn't realize how much I didn't remember from this movie. It made me cry and smile and laugh.  It made me long to be around others again during this time of not being allowed to. This movie sneaks up on you a bit. It goes from predictable to unpredictable in a short amount of time. However, this film is a great example of what a great film is. There so much heart and love in this film. There is no much thought put behind what the film was about that it made it unbelievable that someone could think that such concepts where actually possible. This is one of the movie that if I could I wish we could be apart of the concept all the time instead of the harsh realities of what the real world is.

No Place Like Movies at Home: Dinner at the Ritz

There is not much else to do other than watch movies when you are told to stay at home. Thankfully, I have this challenge to keep me company. Yesterday I managed to watch six of my own movies. So lets get things started with an interesting film from 1937.

Dinner at the Ritz stars the very well known David Niven. Niven is a a detective of sorts trying to track down a killer. However, he ends up falling in love along the way wither the daughter of the name who was killed. She is undercover herself, as a jewelry sales person, trying to figure out which one of her father's colleagues killed him.

This movie came from a box collection that I have had for several years. However, I have not brought myself to watch all of these movies. The reason is I bought them cause I was young, stupid, and I had the money too. I really bought a them because there are a few stars that I really liked that were in the collection. So, I bought them. Now I am finally watching the rest of them.

This movie was really interesting. It was funny, cute and a bit of a mystery. I haven't seen very many movies that have Mr. Niven in them so seeing this was a real treat. It was a really easy movie to watch. It wasn't emotionally taxing, or sad to watch. It was really just a nice sweet movie to watch and one that I hope to enjoy again.

No Place Like Movies at Home: Gone with the Wind

Yes, I ended up watching another movie today... go figure.

This afternoon I partook in another classic 1939 file Gone with the Wind. 

This is just one of those movies that no matter how many times you see it there is always something new about it. My mom and I love this movie! It's one of the greatest to have ever been created. As Much as I love The Wizard of Oz I will say that Gone with the Wind really deserved to win best picture of 1939.

I have to say that watching it while being stuck at home really gave a little bit more perspective on Ashley Wilkes. Normally, I can not stand him. I love the actor, Leslie Howard, but I can never really stand Ashley. I think he is a man with no backbone that can't get over the idea of life that he had in his head. I never really made sense to me as to why I woul never tell Scarlet he didn't love her in that way.

That is until today. This great scene, the one that is shown in the GIF actually, is where Ashley basically says that his idea of life is in the past, and that he doesn't really fit in with what is happening now. That the way of life he knew was never going to happen and be the same agin. It reminds a bit of how I think everyone is feeling now. For the most part, everyone is trying to act like everything is great a normal. However, we all now it's not, and don't want to address it too much until we can all enjoy life again. However, we aren't really sure how this is going to change us, and society, once we are free again. Ashley always seems to live his whole life like he was in quarantine. He never straight up tells Scarlet that he is not really in love with her because that is the only think from his life before the war that is still the same. The fact that Scarlet never got over him is the only thing that is current, in the here and now, that was also in the life he once had and the life he wants to go back to. Melanie, his wife, brings the comfort of love, and shared memories and hopes of what they wish they could have been with her but she also see the reality of what is. She knows that they can't look too far in the past because they will never survive in the now.

For Ashley, Scarlet is the only thing that has always remained the same to him. That she is a wonderful dream to have before the war and a wonderful living memory to hold on to while adjusting to a new reality. He never really says how he feels because he knows that she will move on to fall in love with someone else, but he can't because then he would have to fully acknowledge that his old life is dead.

Then there is Mammy. A most deserving Oscar winning performance from Hattie McDaniel. She has the best lines, facial expressions, and truly one of the best performances to come out of the film. She has less screen time than the rest of the stars but her performance can rival that of the rest any day of the week! I love her sass toward Scarlet for being a spoiled girl, but her best performance comes at the end of the movie. She is talking to Mellie about how Rhett won't let them bury Bonnie. She talks about how upset he and Scarlet are at each other. How she cries, and prays for them. How she loves that whole family. How it must break her heart that she brought three generations of girls in this family into the world and in such a small few years time buried two generations of them. I also love to the fact that she is respected by those who are supposed to be "Superior" to her. Rhett tells Scarlet that she should buy her a present while they were on their honeymoon. When she refuses he says he is going to buy her one himself and that she is one of the few people that he wanted respect from. I love how it's put because he doesn't want respect from her as a demand because she serves them. He wants to earn her respect and have her give it to him willingly.

To put it plain is simply Gone with the Wind is a masterpiece.  

No Place Like Movies at Home : The Wizard of Oz

Yes, we are totally doing my favorite movie! I will say that I might be doing several of these since we can not go anywhere or do anything other than going to work and home. 

This wonderful 1939 movie is my all time favorite movie. I try to watch it a least once a year. That once a year that I do watch it is when I am wrapping Christmas presents. This movie has basically all of life's lessons you will ever need in it. It's also where I get all of my themes for every movie challenge that I do every year. 

My favorite character is the Cowardly Lion. He has the best lines and he always makes me smile no matter what is going on! He is that one that doesn't have courage and really has to fight through his fears in order to help his friends. He is the only one of the friends that Dorothy picks up on the way that gets his own song. 

The reason this movie has such a special place in my heart is because this is the movie that got me into classic films. TBS actually showed this movie during the weekend for the 70th anniversary and I watched it cause I hadn't seen it in years at that point. However, TBS also did a trivia game during the commercials about the movie that just made me so much more interested in it. A few weeks later my English teacher was making us to a research project on one person and my mom suggested I do Judy Garland, since I refused to let her erase the recording of The Wizard of Oz off the tv. Once I did that it was all down hill from here for me and movies. Judy Garland led me to Mickey Rooney and he led me into so many different classic films that it became my favorite thing in the world. 

This movie is a true classic film. It's one that everyone should see at least once. It's a great movie with a great message that makes you laugh along the way.

If you are stuck in your house, like I am at this time, why don't you take a trip "Over the Rainbow". 

Yes, I did have to say that and I regret nothing!

Jack of All Trades: February

February has been a month. I have to say that while is was a bad month for me personally, I was able to make it a good month for a few other people. 

Unfortunately the lovely Nikki Day was not able to participate because work was insane and had no one to work! Nikki Day is a one woman machine! So they needed her. However, Nikki Day is the one that got me connected to this organization.

The Event was called Game on Against Cancer. This event was held by Thompson Cancer Survival Center. It's a night out for people to come and play all sorts of games, like Darts or blackjack. You get drinks and there was also an area to bid on auction items. I was one of the auction assistants and I got to help people bid on things, and I got a good view of the the games!

Some of the best Highlights of the night was one group of friends wanted to win a trip, however they were worried they were going to be outbid. I told them there was a "buy it now" option on some the trips and they were SO excited! They ended up buying it and then they kept thanking me the whole night! The other highlight was the fact that I had a great view of the Just Dance station! I was set up right in front and I got to see a whole bunch of people, who have never seen Just Dance before, play the game! There was a couple of older ladies who I got to talk to a lot during the night that were dancing at the table and have a good time, they wound't do the video game, but they had the most fun in the whole place! 

I was a little nervous going to this event cause I wasn't quite sure what to expect. However, this is an event that I will probably help out with again next year! 

I really do love Thompson Center because it holds a sweet place in my heart. My friend's mother was treated by them during her battle with cancer. My friend donates gloves and blankets every year on the anniversary of her mother's passing. She really has nothing but amazing things to say about the place. Seeing how well the event was run, and all of their talked to making it better in the coming years, really shows how much they care about the people they treat the the organization!

The other organization was one the I donated to. Newborns in Need is an organization that provides newborn essentials to babies that are premature, impoverished, or ill. The really cool thing about this organization is that all of the chapters are usually one person, or family, in a community that work with local hospitals and organizations to deliver this supplies. The donations are provided by locals and they get in contact with a person closest to their community to deliver and then the persons in charge of that chapter take the donations to the places that need it! The woman I talked to was very nice, and excited, about my donation. I was able to get a bulk box of wipes from Costco to her! The only down side was that she wasn't feeling well the day that I got to deliver, so I had to ring the bell and drop the stuff off on her porch. However, when I was getting out of her driveway she come out to the porch and waved as I was leaving. She was super apologetic on the phone about how she couldn't meet with me in person. 

This is something that is great and I would do again! Supplies is always needed when babies are concerned so being able to help in even a little way really made happy!

The other event that I got to be apart of was the Weed Wrangle. This was in event that happened in multiple places in Knoxville at once. It was an event to help to get rid of invasive plants in local parks in the area. I was going to originally do it with Ijams Nature Center but there was one event closer to my house that I could get to much better! That location was Lakeshore Park.

We had a team of about eight people that didn't know each other very well, and we cleaned up a nice little portion of the park! 

Lakeshore Park Instagram Post

We all had a great time, although being attacked by the evil thorn bushes the whole time was not great! Thankfully, I was able to thwart those attacks off. 

As of right now I am not sure if my one lonely volunteer opportunity is going to make with everything that is shutting down at the moment due to Covid-19 but I know more helping will probably be needed once it's all said and done. 

Have a great month everyone!

If you would like more information on these organizations please follow the link below!

Thompson Cancer Survival Center: This link is to the donation page but it also lists the events they are doing to raise money and there is a volunteer link on the right hand side.

https://www.thompsoncancer.com/giving/

Newborns in Need: 

https://newbornsinneed.org/

Lakeshore Park:

http://lakeshoreparkknoxville.org/

Ijams Nature Center: This is a lovely group that I have worked with in the past. They one the ones that provided the information about the Weed Wrangle.

https://ijams.org/

  

No Place Like Movies at Home: Singin' in the Rain

"Here we are Sunset and Camden"... ok not really there but it's one of my favorite lines in the movie Singin' in the Rain. The first movie on watching all of the movies that I own is not what I thought it was going to be. I really thought I would choose The Wizard of Oz but when it came down to me finally having free time and wanting to watch a movie that I own I really wanted to watch Singin' in the Rain.

This is my 3rd favorite movie of all time. It has been a while since I really sat down and watching them film. I think that it's the most wonderful musical ever made. It's one of those rare movies that while it's really fun to watch it hits you in all the emotions on the spectral of the human being. It hits them but not in an over whelming kind of a way. You really want to punch Mr. Gene Kelly sometimes, and sometimes you want to punch Ms. Debbie Reynolds. What I really love about this movie is Donald O'Connor. When I first watched the film many in elementary school I really didn't remember him much. However, when I rediscovered the film in middle school found his "Make'em Laugh" Scene was the one that really stuck with me. However, as I got older he has become my favorite character of the film. He is hilarious, cares about his friends, and really loves his job. H want well respected with the people that he works with, and he can really keep up with Gene Kelly. He is one of those characters that you feel like you can relate to him. I can't not dance or do any of those moves that he does. However, I fell like we could be really good friends with him.

This is just one of those movies that you can watch and re-watch and always enjoy it. There is always something new to learn about this film and there is always a new element to the appreciate.