Hit Me With Your Best Shot: 'Gone With the Wind' Part 1

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Hit Me With Your Best Shot: 'Gone With the Wind' Part 1

This is our third entry in The Film Experience's long-running series Hit Me With Your Best Shot, in which the film blog masses choose their favorite shot from selected movies. 

From the first frames of the 1939 epic Gone With the Wind, it's clear the action takes place in an alternate reality. It's a place where slaves are euphemistically billed as "House Servants," and delusions of grandeur run wild, with the Old South fetishized as a time when "the age of Chivalry took its last bow [...] the last ever to be seen of Knights and their Ladies Fair, of Master and of Slave."

Let's call a spade a spade: Gone With the Wind is racist to its core.

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AFI Challenge: 'The Day the Earth Stood Still'

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So... we may have lied. The first movie we watched as part of our AFI Challenge was not Gone With the Wind. (That was pushed back to this weekend due to Netflix difficulties.) Instead, we watched The Day the Earth Stood Still, director Robert Wise's 1951 sci-fi classic.

Klaatu struggling to shine a light on the world

Back in the day the film won a Golden Globe for Best Film Promoting International Understanding (apparently this award was a thing between 1945 and 1963). The Globe win should come as no surprise to those who've watched the film; from very early on it's clear this is a message movie, and that message is peace.

The film wastes no time getting to the action: a mysterious man from another planet lands in Washington, D.C. in order, we soon learn, to give earthlings an ultimatum. As it turns out, the interstellar community has been monitoring their radio transmissions, and it's clear they've become a threat not only to themselves but to the universe beyond. The only course of action? Nonviolence.

You can imagine the typical American's reaction to this concept. It's a nonstarter, to say the least.

Despite its straightforward premise and beat-the-audience-over-the-head political message, The Day the Earth Stood Still succeeds as pure entertainment. Striking cinematography, a vibrant score, and solid performances from the leads, including child actor Billy Gray, conspire to make this one hell of a watchable movie.

CineMunch grade: B/B+

BONUS! Are you still using Firefox? (You should be. None of this Chrome business.) When you're done watching the movie, open a new Firefox tab and type "about:robots" in the address bar. Then look at the title of the tab. Cool, right?

CineMorsel: 'What About Bob?'

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In this classic family dinner scene from What About Bob?, Bill Murray delivers some great one-liners--"Is it hand-shucked?"--but matriarch Julie Hagerty steals the scene. She gives us shy, stern, exhilarated, and more--all without saying a word.

Watch the full scene below.

Where to See AFI Classic Movies on the Big Screen: The Ultimate List

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Where to See AFI Classic Movies on the Big Screen: The Ultimate List

Let's say you committed yourself, in a moment of insanity, to watching all 400 nominated movies from the most recent AFI 100 Years... 100 Movies list. If you were foolish enough to do this, you'd want to do it right. (Read: watching grainy videos downloaded from Sockshare on your cell phone during your subway commute doesn't cut it.)

These are classics. They're meant to be experienced on the big screen, where they can be not only watched but also savored, not only seen but felt.

Well, if you happen to live in NYC-area and are as crazy as us, you're going to want to read on.

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CineDrunk Episode 5: Emmy Awards Special 2014

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In this special edition of the podcast, we dive into the 2014 Primetime Emmy Awards with our predictions and personal faves in the major categories. Yes, our love of pop culture and awards shows spills over into all realms of the biz. Let's call this one "TeleDrunk."

Our beverage of choice this round was a refreshing Watermelon Ginger Gin and Tonic that we recommend sipping while watching any television program (unless you watch any "Real Housewives..." series, in which case you likely need something stronger).
 

Cuddly little watermelon swimming in gin.

Watermelon Ginger Gin and Tonic
(makes 4 servings)

1 cup gin (cheapo is fine)
10-12 dime-size slices ginger root
2 dozen small watermelon cubes
2 cups tonic

Pour the gin into a martini shaker or other sturdy container. Add ginger slices and muddle. Add watermelon and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Pour over ice in four glasses and top with tonic.


The EMMYs will be broadcast Monday, August 25th on NBC. Tune in (and pour a drink or three) to see how (in)accurate we'll be!  Follow along with us during the ceremony @CineMunch as we live-tweet. 

Also listen and subscribe via iTunes.

Note: This was recorded before the Creative Arts Emmys ceremony took place on Saturday, August 16th, where both Allison Janney (Master of Sex) and Uzo Aduba (Orange is the New Black) (both mentioned in the podcast) deservedly won for their guest performances this past year.

The AFI Challenge: The List Is Up!

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As promised, we've compiled a master list of the 400 films we need to watch to complete The AFI Challenge. It's a living list that we'll update frequently, and as we go we'll be adding links to reviews and other relevant posts.

Here's to watching ever more motion pictures! Have you attempted anything similar to this? Let us know how it went in the comments below!

Conquering the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies Nominations List

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We're embarking on a new project here at CineMunch. With the realization that the third(!?) installment of the American Film Institute's Top 100 Films list is coming in less than three years*--and with it a few personal milestones of our own (the end of our 20sWHAT!?)--we've decided to buck up and take on the classic-movie challenge of all classic-movie challenges: watching all 400 nominated films from the AFI's 10th Anniversary list.

Call it Beach Body Insanity for the sedentary set.

We have our work cut out for us: 196 films as-yet-unseen by both of us, plus 64 more that only Nathan hasn't seen and 2 more (ha!) for Matt. All with a deadline of January 1, 2017. But we will persevere, because what is this life but an excuse to set arbitrary challenges for ourselves?

Of course this isn't entirely arbitrary. Yes, critics have perhaps rightly criticized the AFI's list for being too much of a popularity contest, and yes it's disappointing that every foreign film in the history of ever is by definition excluded. But we also know we have a long way to go in educating ourselves on movies from before our time (we tend to focus on what's here and what's now), and popularity contests have always helped reveal what makes a culture tick.

In any case, we encourage you to play along (stay tuned for the master list of films!), and we appreciate your words of encouragement, especially for the much-feared collection of Westerns (ugh) that await us.

First up is Gone With the Wind, a catch-up for Nathan, which we'll be watching for The Film Experience's brilliant series Hit Me With Your Best Shot. (We previously participated in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and L.A. Confidential.)

So there you have it. The declaration is public. The deadline set. Bring on the films.

*At least, everyone in the industry seems to agree that A) there will be another list and B) it will come out, like clockwork, in 2017. Let's hope that's the case.

CineDrunk Episode 4: Summer Movies Recap 2014 Part 1

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It's summer, so a special breed of movies has hit theaters. And they must be discussed! In this first installment of our summer movies recap, we cover:

  • Captain America: The Winter Soldier
  • The Other Woman
  • X-Men: Days of Future Past
  • Godzilla
  • Edge of Tomorrow
  • Maleficent
  • How to Train Your Dragon 2
  • The Fault in Our Stars
  • They Came Together
  • Snowpiercer
     

Tilda says: "It's summer, damn it! Enjoy yourselves!"

It's summer, so there's no reason to stress over what we're drinking. Let's keep it simple with gin, limeade, and blueberries:

The Liminator

1 part gin (cheap to semi-cheap)
2 parts limeade
small handful blueberries

Muddle half of blueberries in bottom of glass. Pour gin and limeade over ice. Stir. Top with remaining blueberries. Relax.
 

It's summer, so when will you have a better excuse to devote an hour of your life to a little podcast called CineDrunk? Join us below, or subscribe on iTunes and never miss an episode!

CineDrunk Episode 3: Summer Blockbuster Showdown

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In honor of the World Cup and summer movie season, we staged a bracket battle to choose the greatest summer blockbuster of all time.

Ever since Jaws swept audiences (and their wallets) away in the summer of 1975, Hollywood has zeroed in on the hottest months of the year to release their biggest, baddest, most epic films. The best blockbuster is a summer event, reeling in casual moviegoers and serious film critics alike -- much like the World Cup, every four years, suddenly makes everyone a soccer fan. 

To establish our bracket, we selected an initial list of 32 films (beginning with 1975's Jaws and ending with 2012's Marvel's The Avengers). To qualify, a film must have been one of the top grossing films of its year, have lasting staying power (aka the "Rewatchability Factor"), and must have made a cultural impact. We tried to limit ourselves to one movie per year, though some years warranted no entries while others warranted two. Seeding was based on the total domestic box office gross of the film when adjusted for inflation (though these figures also included any re-releases these films may have had). By those numbers, Star Wars is our #1 seed (with $1,417,832,000 adjusted earnings).

Every tournament should be infused with libations, and for ours we chose the Brazilian national drink (hey, World Cup), the Caipirinha (hey, summer). Breezy and sleazy--it goes down easy. Nothing says summer like sugar cane. Here's how to make our version:

Mojito-fied Caipirinha

KNG Sommers Photography

1 tsp granulated sugar
1 lime, quartered
10 mint leaves, whole
2 oz. cachaça

Muddle the mint leaves with two lime quarters in a tall, sturdy glass. Add the remaining lime quarters and the sugar, and muddle some more. Add the cachaça. Stir and enjoy.

Our first round matchups and winners are listed below. Have a listen to the podcast to see which of these movies made it past the Sweet 16 to be crowned our Greatest Summer Blockbuster of All Time Ever in History!

ROUND ONE (Winners in bold)

#1: Star Wars (1977) vs. #32: Die Hard (1988)

#16: Spider-man 2 (2004) vs. #17: Back to the Future (1985)

#9: Marvel's The Avengers (2012) vs. #24: Transformers (2007)

#8: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) vs. #25: Armageddon (1998)

#4: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) vs. #29: Inception (2010)

#13: Independence Day (1996) vs. #20: The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

#12: Spider-man (2002) vs. #21: The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

#5: Return of the Jedi (1983) vs. #28: Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1986)

#2: E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982) vs. #31: True Lies (1994)

#15: Batman (1989) vs. #18: Twister (1996)

#10: The Dark Knight (2008) vs. #23: Top Gun (1986)

#7: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999) vs. #26: Batman Forever (1995)

#3: Jaws (1975) vs. #30: War of the Worlds (2005)

#14: The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) vs. #19: Men in Black (1997)

#11: Ghostbusters (1984) vs. #22: Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

#6: Jurassic Park (1993) vs. #27: Batman Returns (1992)

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