Hello, my name is Melissa and I'm addicted to BBC shows, John Hughes movies, and...

You know how some film classes have certain movies on their curriculum? There are days when I tell my husband if I had a class about films, this movie or show would be watched. The following are my favorite movies and television shows. In no particular order because they are all equally awesome.

The Breakfast Club. There are some youngsters today (hehe I said youngsters) who will not know the joy and heartache of being a teenager. Before there was the WB and such we had Pretty In Pink, Some Kind of Wonderful, and Sixteen Candles. John Hughes movies should be required class materials.

The IT Crowd, the BBC version. Two words, Moss and Roy. One question, “Hello IT have you tried turning it on and off again?” It’s hard to explain The IT Crowd if you have not seen it. And I don’t mean that in a “don’t worry citizen I can take it from here” kind of way. If you are every on the YouTube you’ll have to look this up.

The Muppets Take Manhattan. I can’t say that I do not care for cartoons or kids shows today because I have never really seen them. But what I can say is that Jim Henson was a genius. In my humble opinion, he led the path for studios like Pixar to have a comedic balance that is funny for both kids and adults. Let’s not forget Labyrinth. Magic Dance. And don’t forget my favorite phrase, "It’s not fair!"

My So-Called Life. If John Hughes is the King of teenage angst, Winnie Holzman is the Queen of Teenage Angst. In my humble opinion she has a way of writing her characters true to life. Even now when I watch this show it takes me back, and I say to myself I remember feeling this way, or that character reminds me of the friend I had. I think her and John Hughes’s stories stand the test of time and can be relatable for young people today.

(Side note, as I am writing this I know I will keep thinking of more to add to the list. Then once I am done I will say, I can’t believe I forgot this one.)

Dazed and Confused. One time my husband played Slow Ride for a class presentation when getting his RTF degree. Afterwards some of his class mates said hey that’s a great song, where is it from? He replied Dazed and Confused. They had no idea what he was talking about. Never hear of it. To which my reply was the same as his, mouth opened in disbelief. It’s hard to believe some people will never know where All right, all right, all right come from when referring to Matthew McConaughey.

The funny thing is that not much separates these films and TV shows from others. The events and situations range from simple to crazy. Muppets are on the list. It’s the characters that make all the difference and the little details that make them unique and memorable. There are reasons why they stand the test of time and become part of our lives.

“Sometimes someone says something really small, and it just fits right into this empty place in your heart.” – Angela Chase

My So Called Angst

I’ve been reading a lot of quotes from My So Called Life, and Freaks and Geeks. And watching a lot of My So Called Life, and Freaks and Geeks. Besides the fact that they are awesome shows, they are relatable. Well to me anyway they still deal with present day issues such as dating, friendships, and every day high school life.

(Side note: A lot of people say that these shows were prematurely cancelled. I like to say they were ahead of their time.)

One thing I noticed about these shows is the teen angst. And not the sparkling in the sun like diamonds kind teen angst. Then that took me to my next thought, in the world of social media, is there such a thing of teenage angst anymore?

Back in my day (side note, please don’t judge me based on that back in my day statement).

But back in my day, teen angst meant having to wait all weekend to see your crush, your boyfriend, or girlfriend. It meant going from being super psyched about Friday to counting the hours before Monday morning.

Now with social media you can see what your crush is tweeting. (Side note: please also don’t judge me if that sounded stalker-y.) My point is not having social media taught people my age how to write (yes paper, pens) down how we felt privately. We would write things in our journals, or write letters that we would never give to the person we wrote them to.

(Side note: You know what I mean. I don’t think I am the only person who did this. Write letters for your crush, right? *She asks nervously.*)

No, I will not stand for this anymore television people in charge of things, where have all my Jordan Catalanos gone? *She sings in her Paula Cole impression music voice.*

Today the closest we get to stories like these are in books. Books like The Fault in Our Stars, and Eleanor & Park. If you’ve read up to this point, I just wanted to say how much I miss those television shows, the kind with heart, and the kind that taught us how to deal not only with teenage angst, but our first heartbreak.

My thoughts after watching Her

These are my thoughts after watching this movie are a lot, and a couple may be out of nowhere. Hopefully in the end it will make sense. Warning may contain a spoiler or two.

The movie was vividly stunning. I enjoyed how when Theodore Twombly began falling in love the colors became warmer. It was interesting to see how the colors went from dull to brighter.

In the scientific aspect of it, it was very interesting to see how Samantha evolves and essentially becomes her own person despite the fact that she is an operating system. (Side rant: Systems becoming self-aware? Skynet?)

On the matter of the heart, Her was a great movie about the joy and pain of relationships. I like how Amy (Theodore’s friend) put it love is one of the socially acceptable forms of insanity. As cliché, and perhaps it is an overused term, but Her shows how love has no bounds. It also shows how friendship is part of the foundation of true love.

As I was watching the movie the thought “this is weird” never crossed my mind. The reason is simple, Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson’s characters fall in love and it is real. Real because it goes through life situations and not necessarily everything will always be happily ever after.

Then I started getting mad because when Samantha tells Theodore that she is evolving beyond anything a human person could understand, I was like say what? Then I was that was mad. Finally I was like this is unbelievable. (Side rant: Women, am I right? Okay I say that in jest.) But as with any love story I could not believe the “it’s not you, it’s me” speech was happening. At this point in the story if Her was a book I would have thrown it across the room. I mean that as a compliment just as a piece a music should be connected with emotion, so should a movie.

On another note, I am not sure if I was the only one thinking this, but when she was talking about how her and the other operating systems were leaving, my thought was “So long, and thanks for all the fish.”

When I first saw the previews to Her I was super excited because this was the first non-based on a book movie I have wanted to see in a long time. And I was not disappointed after watching it. At the end of it all, it was a beautifully written and directed love story.

Although I did mention it is not necessarily a happily ever after kind of movie, it still ends up being somewhat of a happy ending. Although the two do not run off into the sunset their relationship taught them both how to let go and not be afraid to love and be loved. And sometimes that is what we need. To find the person who sees us as we truly are.