Thursday Movie Picks: Movies With Narrators That do Not Appear on Screen

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This week's theme from Wandering Through the Shelves is about Narrators that never grace us with their physical presence on screen. I ended up having to cheat a bit with my 3rd pick. 

 1) Little Children

 An unknown man narrates this story about two people, their infidelities as they meet up on play dates with their children, and the recently released pedophile in their town. 

 2) (500) Days of Summer

 Another unknown man explains Tom's mindset as he thinks he's found the perfect girlfriend in Summer.

 3) A Christmas Story

 This is narrated by adult Ralphie, who technically never appears on screen. I tried to avoid using this one, I really did. But sometimes you just have to go with the first film that comes to mind.

Comments

  1. AnonymousMarch 10, 2016 at 7:17 AM

    I really want to see A Christmas Story!

    I wish that I had thought of Little Children, because I actually adore the narration on that one so much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 7:55 AM

      How have you not seen A Christmas Story? What have you been doing for the past 30 or so years? lol

      Delete
  2. DellMarch 10, 2016 at 7:18 AM

    Great picks. Love all three of these films. Of course, A Christmas Story is the greatest thing ever. Great picks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 7:55 AM

      Thanks, I know that pick was pushing it because Ralphie is techncially on screen, but I got stuck this week.

      Delete
  3. joel65913March 10, 2016 at 9:14 AM

    Your picks run the gamut for me. I absolutely flat out adore A Christmas Story, I was indifferent to 500 Days of Summer despite the excellence of JGL in the lead and I detested Little Children but they all fit.

    This theme was a tough one and I did the same as you on my third pick with narration from the adult version of one of the characters which I don't see as cheating...they don't appear on screen in their present incarnation so it counts.

    Here's what I came up with:

    Ever After (1998)-Charming rethink of the Cinderella tale with Drew Barrymore a sweet but tough Cinder substitute now named Danielle, Anjelica Huston rockin’ it as a total bitch of a stepmother in whom she still manages to find nuance and Judy Parfitt and Timothy West a highly entertaining Queen and King. Somehow it also finds a way to include Leonardo da Vinci in the story too! Excellent production design. Jeanne Moreau narrates the tale as a reverie.

    How the West Was Won (1962)-Sprawling multi-generational saga with a cast full of legends (James Stewart, Henry Fonda, John Wayne, Debbie Reynolds, Gregory Peck plus about 20 other recognizable names) tells of the settling of the West in amazing Cinerama. Follows the Prescott family and their descendants through the hardships and joys of taming the wild land. Broken into three segments each helmed by a different director (John Ford, Henry Hathaway, George Marshall) this has stunning vistas and a great many excellent performances. Spencer Tracy provides the off-screen narration that connects the vignettes as well as the introduction and denouement.

    So Dear to My Heart (1949)-Wholesome Disney entertainment of poor country boy Jeremiah (the ill-fated Bobby Driscoll) adopting a black lamb rejected by its mother. As the mischievous lamb christened Danny grows Jeremiah determines to enter him in the county fair but that takes money he doesn’t have. He uses his daydreams-complete with animated Disney characters-to figure out ways to achieve his goal. Good family film with old reliables Burl Ives and Beulah Bondi filling out the cast. The unseen John Beal narrates as the grown Jeremiah.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 3:04 PM

      Ever After! We see the narrator though in that one? The women telling the story at the beginning and the end?

      Delete
  4. KatyMarch 10, 2016 at 9:35 AM

    Great picks! A Christmas Story is such a classic.

    ReplyDelete
  5. MyerlaMarch 10, 2016 at 10:40 AM

    Only seen 500 Days of Summer in bits, but I have seen the famous Exceptions vs Reality scene quite a few times.

    Like Fisi I'm gonna have to say I haven't seen A Christmas Story...or I don't remember seeing it.

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    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 3:03 PM

      (500) is an excellent movie, and I love that expectations vs reality scene.

      Delete
  6. s.March 10, 2016 at 12:43 PM

    Love Little Children but my God Wilson plays the biggest asshole I've ever seen in a movie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 3:03 PM

      I actually wanted him to get with Kate's character. I think he was just bored.

      Delete
  7. DanielMarch 10, 2016 at 1:42 PM

    LITTLE. CHILDREN. Patrick Wilson in his PRIME. Can you blame Kate Winslet?

    I figured 500 Days would be the big one this week. The narration is perfection.

    I have never seen A Christmas Story all the way through and really have no desire to.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 10, 2016 at 3:02 PM

      No, I can't blame Kate Winslet. That may have been the only time I've ever rooted for an affair in a movie. lol

      Delete
  8. Big Screen Small WordsMarch 10, 2016 at 5:58 PM

    Little Children and 500 Days of Summer are popular this week! I have yet to see A Christmas Story. Great picks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 11, 2016 at 6:45 AM

      I'm still blown away by anyone who hasn't seen A Christmas Story lol.

      Delete
  9. AnonymousMarch 10, 2016 at 6:11 PM

    What's with these people who haven't seen A Christmas Story? How is this even possible? LOL. Great picks!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 11, 2016 at 6:44 AM

      That's what I said! Is it TNT that shows it for 24 hours straight on Christmas every year? You can't escape this movie.

      Delete
  10. thevoid99March 10, 2016 at 8:31 PM

    Ah, 3 great films w/ the usage of narration. @Fisti-How in the hell have you not seen A Christmas Story? BAD!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sonia CercaMarch 11, 2016 at 1:50 AM

    I've only seen 500 Days and I loved it. A Christmas Story has been on my list for something like a million years.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 11, 2016 at 6:44 AM

      I didn't realize so many haven't seen A Christmas Story. It's on so much during the holidays I figured everyone had caught it at one point or another.

      Delete
  12. BirgitMarch 11, 2016 at 12:44 PM

    I have not seen your first 2 picks but love the 3rd one and I think that fits since I used a film where the man narrating was once the boy we see in the film. Plus that movie was filmed in the city I live in.

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    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 11, 2016 at 3:07 PM

      The first two are very good and very different from one another. Definitely worth checking out.

      Delete
  13. Kevin PowersMarch 11, 2016 at 4:43 PM

    A Christmas Story is such a great pick! I think I've blocked it out after years of TBS 24-hour marathons. But it is a classic. 500 Days of Summer is so great. Forgot about that one as well. We matched up on the other! Right on!

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 12, 2016 at 6:39 AM

      I still manage watching at least part of A Christmas Story every year around the holidays. lol. I can't make it go away.

      Delete
  14. RuthMarch 13, 2016 at 7:06 PM

    What a great topic, I actually have no idea what I'd pick but I love (500) Days of Summer, which is the only one here I have seen.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Sarah WardMarch 21, 2016 at 12:24 AM

    I just saw "Little Children" and wow, what a movie! The pedophile subplot absolutely killed me. Who knew I could feel sorry for an emotionally stunted child molester? Watching Jackie Earle Haley was like seeing a slow-motion train wreck play out on screen. "A Christmas Story" is one of my favorite movies ever. Unlike "Little Children," "500 Days of Summer" didn't make much of an impression on me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamMarch 21, 2016 at 1:38 AM

      Oh God, I know. I had such a moral dilemma watching that movie because that whole date scene was SO creepy, but the end at the playground was incredibly sad.

      Delete

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