Thursday Movie Picks: Childhood Favorites
1) The Secret of NIMH
I did a post back in August where I ranked all of Don Bluth's films and this was my number one. I loved watching this as a kid and still do. It's one of my all time favorite animated films.
2) A Little Princess
While I liked Shirley Temple's version, the 1995 film was so much more magical to me. I even had a plastic version of the same locket in the film.
3) The Last Unicorn
My sister is a decade older than me and this was one of her favorites that ended up being one of mine as well. It's weird as fuck when you watch it now but I really liked it back then.
This will be a huge difference between my age and yours. It will be fun to see the differences because you grew up with vhs and DVD and never had to wait for a film to come back on tv. I grew up with no remote, black and white tv and waiting for a movie to come on tv which was a huge event! I only have seen the Little Princess...both versions and I agree with you, I prefer the newer version. It seemed more magical.
ReplyDeleteOh I know! The differences are interesting. My parents recorded a lot of films on VHS.I only kept two VHS tapes from back then. Jurassic Park and The Little Mermaid because it's the one with the dick in the castle. lol
DeleteI have only the vaguest memory of The Secret of NIMH as a kid, which is weird because I LOVED the book.
ReplyDeleteCuaron's A Little Princess is SO GOOD. I liked The Secret Garden more, but still. SO GOOD.
I love The Secret Garden! I own a DVD 2 pack of both of those movies lol
DeleteI can see that A Little Princess as a movie is probably good and certainly looks pretty, but I just can't stand the story.
DeleteSo I prefer and love The Secret Garden.
I love The Secret Garden as well.
DeleteI don't think I've seen any of these.
ReplyDeleteIf you pick any of them, pick THe Secret of NIMH!
DeleteI've definitely seen these three films as The Secret of NIMH and The Last Unicorn are films I definitely remembered watching as a kid. The former is a great film while I don't remember much about the latter. I do remember seeing the Shirley Temple version of A Little Princess as a child but it's been a very long time. The '95 version by Alfonso Cuaron came out when I was 14 as I was looking for other films that I felt were cooler but I was fortunate in seeing it a decade later due to my interest for Cuaron. Truly a great film as it is so beautifully shot by Chivo.
ReplyDeleteThe cinematography in it was great. I especially love the shot of her twirling in the snow.
DeleteI watched The Secret of NIMH once and while I'm not much of an animation fan I didn't think it was too bad. I've only seen bits of The Last Unicorn.
ReplyDeleteThe Shirley Temple version of Little Princess gets the Dickensian darkness of the story right and of course Shirley dives right in and makes the film her own but I think this version is the better over all even if it doesn't have as magnetic a star at its center.
I went far back to when I was under 10 and these three are ones my folks and I would watch whenever they were on. I still have a soft spot for them all.
Papa’s Delicate Condition (1963)-Based on silent film star Corinne Griffith’s memoir of her small town childhood with her brash, tippling father (Jackie Gleason) and aggrieved mother (Glynis Johns) who while frustrated with her feckless husband and the troubles he causes when he’s in his cups still loves him very much. Homey and sweet film introduced the song “Call Me Irresponsible” which won the Oscar.
Mary Poppins (1964)-Practically perfect in every way nanny appears on the doorstep of the staid but colorful Banks residence one day and nothing is ever the same again. Julie Andrews IS perfect as Miss Poppins, the songs are wonderful as is the rest of the cast including Dick Van Dyke (terrible Cockney accent and all), a delightfully addled Glynis Johns again and Oscar winner Jane Darwell in her last film appearance as the Bird Woman.
Angel in My Pocket (1969)-Minister Sam Whitehead (Andy Griffith) arrives at his new post in the small town of Wood Falls, Kansas with his wife Mary Elizabeth (Lee Meriwether), kids, mother-in-law Racine (Kay Medford) and trouble making brother-in-law Bubba (Jerry Van Dyke) hoping to lead his flock in a peaceful fashion. Instead he finds himself smack dab in the middle of a feud between the families of Mayor Will Sinclair (Henry Jones) and his rival Axel Gresham (Edgar Buchanan). While he tries to deal with that unbeknownst to all Bubba (Jerry Van Dyke) turns the church boiler into an alcohol still leading to another set of problems. As things come to a head and Sam fears he is losing his faith something happens that leads to a happy conclusion. Homespun and comfy movie with Griffith adding just the right blend of warmth and gravity to the lead.
I've only seen Mary Poppins, which I'd like to watch again as a refresher. It's been years since I've seen it.
DeleteA Little Princess is magical! I do want to look for the Shirley Temple version though.
ReplyDeleteThe Shirley Temple version is good too.
DeleteSomehow, I haven't seen any of these. I feel really out of the loop.
ReplyDeleteYou probably didn't have kids yet when I was little lol. It's understandable.
DeleteAw excellent picks all round. Forgot how great A little Princess is.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Delete