Tag / Haunted Mansion

by admin

2023: The Year In Movies

The return of my annual long December vacation helped push a healthy increase in movie watching for me, with my highest total since the lockdown in 2019.  I managed to watch 88 movies last year, my third consecutive year under 100, despite being home all day and not needing to bother with pesky things like a commute.  Or exercise.  The extended WGA and SAG strikes limiting new output probably didn’t help either.

Here’s a look back at the first 50 movies I watched last year and what recollection, if any, I have of them. The films are listed in the order I saw them.

Luckiest Girl Alive (2022)
Mila Kunis stars as a woman who sees her life start to unravel when she is faced with a years-old trauma.

Do Revenge (2022)
Two high school girls decide to trade off and get revenge on each other’s bully.

Orphan: First Kill (2022)
A long-delayed sequel to the 2009 horror film.

Margaux (2022)
A smart house sets its targets on a group of friends who have rented it for the weekend.

American Pie Presents: Girls’ Rules (2020)
The latest sequel to the comedy hit flips the script and has a trio of girls looking to lose their virginity before graduation.

Sick (2022)
Two friends quarantine at a lake house, but they quickly find out they are not alone.

The Menu (2022)
A chef prepares his final meal, taking out his frustrations on his diners on the way out.

Death on the Nile (2022)
Hercule Poirot takes on another case, based on the Agatha Christie novel.

Unhuman (2022)
A bus full of high school students try to survive after a crash leaves them vulnerable to an attacker.

Shotgun Wedding (2023)
A destination wedding goes off the rails when the wedding party is held hostage. Continue reading →

by admin

You Ought To Be In (20) Pictures

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  Given those guidelines, it is time once again to look at the now 107 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

We continue today with the three actors that have starred in exactly 20 movies that I have seen, down one from 3 years ago.

Michael Keaton

Michael Keaton burst on to my movie going radar with 1983’s Mr. Mom.  He had two different years, 1995 and 2000, where I saw three of his films.  After a nine-year absence from my screen, he returned in 2015 to increase his total once again.  The last time I saw him in a starring role was back in 2020, where he starred as McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc in 2017’s The Founder.

Eddie Murphy

It’s hard to believe now, but at one time, Eddie Murphy was the biggest star in the land.  My first experience with him was likely Beverly Hills Cop.  Seven of his films were seen before I started my database, so I can’t be entirely sure of when I first saw them.  Of the seven years since that I have seen an Eddie Murphy film, five of them have been multiples.  After a 15-year absence, Eddie Murphy returned to my screen in 2019, when I finally took in 2003’s Haunted Mansion.

Sylvester Stallone

My first exposure to Sylvester Stallone was through the Rocky franchise, whose eight films make up 40% of this total.  Add in the Rambo franchise and is exactly 50%.  My biggest Stallone years were 1991 and 2007, when I took in a grand total of two films each.  His longest streak was four years, which ended with my most recent experience with his films in 2021, seeing the 1992 comedy(?) Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.

by admin

You Ought To Be In (20) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, and thanks to a corona virus inspired uptick to my movie watching this year, it is time to look at the 100 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we continue with the 4 actors that has starred in 21 movies that I have seen, an increase of three from 3 years ago.

Samuel L. Jackson

26 years ago, I first made the acquaintance of Samuel L. Jackson in 2 polar opposite films, Pulp Fiction and National Lampoon’s Loaded Weapon 1.  After 1994, I also saw 2 Jackson films in 2000, 2006, 2019, and 2020.  There was a 6 year break between Lakeview Terrace, which I saw in 2010, and Kingsman: The Secret Service, which I saw in 2016.  The last starring roles of Jackson’s I took in earlier this year were 2019’s Shaft and 2015’s Barely Lethal.

Scarlett Johansson

I was first introduced to Scarlett Johansson in 2001 when I saw the comic-book adaptation Ghost World.  Starting in 2004, there was a 6 year run where I saw 11 of the 14 films that make up this total, including 5 in 2006 alone.  Another 3 films came in 2014.  She is riding an active 3-year streak, with my most recent experience with her coming last year in Netflix’s Marriage Story.

Eddie Murphy

It’s hard to believe now, but at one time, Eddie Murphy was the biggest star in the land.  My first experience with him was likely Beverly Hills Cop.  7 of his films were seen before I started my database, so I can’t be entirely sure of when I first saw them.  Of the 7 years since that I have seen an Eddie Murphy film, 5 of them have been multiples.  After a 15 year absence, Eddie Murphy returned to my screen in 2019, when I finally took in 2003’s Haunted Mansion.

Julia Roberts

Julia Roberts burst on to the scene in 1990’s Pretty Woman, which was one of 2 films of hers I saw in 1991.  I’ve seen multiple films from her in 1991, 1994, 2000, and 2017, with her big year for me being 2000, when I saw 4 different films in which she starred.  My last Julia Roberts vehicles, 2016’s Money Monster and 2011’s Larry Crowne, were seen in 2017.

by jim

Vacation Recap: The Magic Kingdom

disney_worldWhen most people think of Disney World, the image in their mind is likely that of the Magic Kingdom, which is where I spent the first day and part of the second day of my vacation last week.  Between both days, we pretty much hit all of the non-kiddie rides and attractions.

Our first ride upon arriving at the Magic Kingdom, after the railroad, was the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel.  After that, things become a bit of a blur, but we did end up on Pirates of the Caribbean, Peter Pan’s Flight, Under the Sea – Journey of The Little Mermaid, It’s A Small World, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, and Tomorrowland Speedway.  The only show we took in was Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor.

The highlights of the trips through the Magic Kingdom include Danny not getting his fingerprint to work on the first day and not being able to get in to the park for a good 5 – 10 minutes and getting stuck on Splash Mountain while animatronic birds kept looking at us and going over their lines again and again.  Beyond that, there was a lot of walking and a lot of classic, if not somewhat tame, rides.