The Defining Ten. #27

As we sit with cold pints of Rickard's Red in our hands awaiting our food, I look at Mark and flat out ask, "If you had to sum your life based on ten movies what would do you think they would be?"

He looked at me somewhat scared, being engrossed in film his entire life this wouldn't be a quick or easy answer. Thus I push to make him think even more carefully, "Now remember that these are ten movies that offer a well-rounded perspective of you. You can't just choose the cinematic masterpieces."

He stares at his drink for a moment, then back at me, "That's not an quick answer".

Because I have a knack for dishing these types of questions out and avoiding being asked them myself. Here are ten movies that offer a very "me" perspective(in biographical order):

1. A strange and unexpected start to the list, but every child has that one movie that exhausted the VHS player and Muppet Family Christmas happens to be mine. It wasn't just during peak Christmas season, but all year round. Even in the summer. I loved the Muppets, especially Fozzy, I loved the spirit and the message and everything about Christmas. A little known fact, but I was actually named after Saint Nicholas... Yes, the jolly ol' chap himself. Christmas remains my favourite time of the year. There's no tradition too corny or song that's too old, the spirit of the season has always been wonderful and nothing defines Christmas and family values better than this seasonal jem.

2. Ghostbusters is a timeless classic. The jokes remain relevant and, I daresay, the special effects, albeit a little cheesy at times, are still more impressive that the majority of CGI in movies today. The kid in me loved the buddy comedy mixed with clumsy, ghoulish encounters. The rewatch value of this movie as an adult is why Ghostbusters knocks the rival flick, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, off the list. It fuels the hero complex in me whilst having a much quotable laugh along the way.

3. There has been no movie that I anticipated seeing more than Jurassic Park. This movie started my love for epics, going to the theatre, the thrill of horror and create the sheer awe of seeing movies breathe life into creatures that have long since been extinct. Forget the fact that I had nightmares of velociraptors hunting me down, JP started bridged my imagination to a love for filmmaking. All this I felt in grade school.

4. After many failed attempts at sports, I found my love for recreation in theatre. The stage transformed me from a shy kid intimidated by competition to an outgoing goof in search for stirring emotions and laughter. As such, I looked up to Jim Carrey and, in my opinion, The Truman Show is his finest work. He allows you to empathize with a character in a bizarre alternative reality, all the while showing his range from well delivered comedy to heartfelt moments that cause you to reflect on your own existence.

5. Damn it feels good to be a gangsta. Anybody who has ever worked a job that drained them relates to this flick and lives vicariously through Ron Livingston as he moves up in the company with doing everything you ever wish you could've done. It's a comedy is about dated, especially when the workers there are planning for Y2K, but the heart of the working man will remain current for years to come. It also helps to play gangsta rap with nerdy men. Comedic genius!

6. From script to final edit, this flick impacted not only my love for writing and movies, but shaped some fundamental romances that define who I am today. The idea of loving someone's imperfections, the beauty of loyalty and developing meaningful relationships, and the comfort of discovering yourself and making the most of life through taking risks and sticking with your decisions. Good Will Hunting was one great conversation after another. The writer in me soaks up every bit of it.



7. We all have our guilty pleasures and this one I can indulge in whenever I want to feel good. The romantic in me yearns for movies and real life moments that showcase unbridled love. The fact it takes place during Christmas also helps it's case, but the mixture of love stories, good and bad, funny and not-so simply massage one's heart. Romantic comedies are often done very cliched and poorly, but this is one that throws a couple curve balls and delivers the message that all you need is love. I can't help but love that.

8. When people asked me for my favourite movie I used to hmm and ahhh over the answer until I rewatched Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind two years after it's release. The movie held it's initial charm and magic that initially won me over. It's a raw romance with a hint of science fiction and littered with brilliant performances. The movie challenged the audience to think and to journey with Joel as it toyed with a medley of emotions while showcasing such brilliantly wild and new sights. Eternal Sunshine may not have the rewatch value of your favourite comedy, but it is magnificent and awe-inspiring cinema.

9. Anyone who knows me, even remotely well, is not shocked to see Garden State make the ten. As a story touching on the need to feel life at it's best and worst, it came out around the time I needed to see the best during the worst. Andrew Largeman was in search of his future and was finding the past keeping him stationary. As a movie, Zach Braff did what I only dream of doing, write and direct a heartfelt movie that you also get to showcase your passion of acting.

10. Despite this being a recent release, there are a few factors that put One Week on here; It's delightfully Canadian, it is eloquent and refreshing, it deals with elements that my heart empathizes with, but more than anything it is an unapologetic and authentic story. The character is on a scary journey and makes some decisions that are cringe-worthy, but what's beautiful is the rareness for a movie to create a flawed protagonist and have him stay true to his character rather than satisfy the audiences desire for romantic perfection. What cements One Week here is the reminder that immediately following watching it in theaters I debriefed the film and life with a good friend for a couple hours in a Tim Horton's.

Good memories and good movies go hand in hand.

Honourable mentions:
Say Anything, The Notebook, High Fidelity, The Sandlot, Hook, Star Wars, The Rundown

The Door is Unlocked. #28

Growing up we would lock our doors only on two occasions: when we were going to bed or when we would be leaving the house vacant. Asides from that people would come and go as they please. I grew up in a home that once you were in, you were in. That means we would be offended if you rang the doorbell and waited for us to answer the door. We trained loved ones to simply walk on in. The next step to that would be helping themselves to our fridge. This is beneficial for two reasons; One, my responsibilities as a host would decrease the deeper the relationships and, two, the helper to the fridge would know that they are welcomed to anything I(or my folks) had to offer.

Yes, some days it would be chaotic with grandparents showing up unannounced and friends atop of friends atop of friends crowding in a room to play N64, but that was the beauty of community and being a true neighbour. The unexpected enjoyment of random people's company was exciting and nice. Often we'd adapt our plans to accommodate our guests.

These past couple years I've been out of touch with that atmosphere, jumping from place to place with no permanent situation in mind... That is until now.

I had a brilliant evening where I met two families that opened their doors and reopened my eyes to how awesome community is. By inviting me in we were able to engage in relationship that went beyond small talk. Regardless of one's financial stance in life, I think there is a great benefit to being openly generous with what you have to offer people in terms of yourself. Some may look at serving as offering drinks and munchies, but more importantly than that is offering time to really engage in welcoming the person in through relationship.

With the wife and I establishing and starting our own household it is my prayer that we can live with a generous heart and open arms to the people around us. Caring more about the people in our lives than the stuff.

Pop. #29

Myself and pop culture have never had a comfortable relationship. I used think that it was due to my unaccomplished desire to be a rock star and I built up resentment towards all things autotuned, but that is not the case.

What has had me uneasy about popular culture is a lack of trust.

Pop is very easy to find friendly & fun-loving. Musically they encourage us to shake our money makers and get low, movie-wise we are given very slapstick dramatizations that try so hard it's almost sad, and shopping-wise we are always encouraged to reinvent and treat ourselves. Pop encourages a great time all the while ignoring all things that aren't sex & love. He's one track minded and painfully executed. Pop is the loud obnoxious friend that you don't understand why he's there or who invited him, but he demands everyone's attention. My problem with Pop is we have no choice but to live with. Even in our best efforts to expand our tastes, Pop will infiltrate our malls, our commercials, our conversations and so much more. He is the McDonald's craving that every time you give into, you stomach hates youfor it.

Often I've gotten the eye roll or the groan indicating that I should just give up the conversation and allow Katy Perry to influence the youth of today because she's got a sick beat or simply accept that Vin Deisel ain't going anywhere except towards inevitable Oscar glory.

Here's the painful truth of the matter- I honestly feel that if I love someone or even remotely care about their mental wellness then it is my God-given duty to challenge anyone who believes Gran Torino or the Pink Panther remakes are cinema at it's finest. Nay! As a human being when Black Eyed Peas "I Got a Feelin" is the number one hit in the world it is my duty to poke fun at the way Fergie croons the word "drank" and ask anyone who claims it is their new favourite song if they recently suffered head trauma.

In most cases, I am the enemy of people's media consumption. But friends, life is far too short and far too fragile to ever convince yourself the Wayne's Brothers should be making movies.

Your Love is Strong. #30

There's this chamber in my heart that always remains vacant. No matter who or what else may enter there appears to be inaccessibility to this one corner. It makes me understand why when people lose loved ones they leave their room the same, bed still prepped and ready, clothes folded in drawers and hung in closets. It's as if the room remains untouched it will once again be occupied.

This chamber is a room for you. I pray that on Christmas it fills with child-like life and people wish to make sugar cookies quite as badly as you did and that they stress the great importance of dedicated nights to decorate evergreens or watch classic movies together. It's for endless enjoyment of turquoise waters and iced tea...

The toughest thing as an adult is not knowing what our relationship would've been like. I was a teen when you went away, still in my own world incomprehensible to the values of family. Would you share the same taste in movies? What would it be like now to enjoy the books you enjoyed? In what way would you guide me now? I'll never know...

This void, this chamber echoes somedays; Like this morning. This morning is peaceful and good. As I anticipate what is to come, I savour my coffee and enjoy a new artist. I feel calm and content, and then I hear an echo that reminds me that you will never know how much I've grown to love coffee like dad. And with that I instantly wish you were alive and present.

I don't fully know why, but I miss you more than usual today.

Much love, Nicky.

** If there is someone you love so strongly, perhaps today is a great day to do something out of the ordinary to express that. Life's little romances truly are remarkable.

Nineohfiveeightsevixnitwone.

Since the creation of the phone, people have been forced to memorize a series of numbers that identify their household, work, friends, cells, pizzerias and so on. No one who uses the phone has been spared the requirement of remembering at least one number to give out to people. That reason alone, it bewilders me that there are people who still rattle off their phone number like a four year old who drank two litre of Coca Cola and downed a few dozen pixie sticks. This is a matter of intelligence; they either haven't caught on yet that it takes time to write it all down or they feel empowered when people fall cannot follow what they are saying.

I believe it to be a combo of the two... Because they don't have anything else they could say to get people thinking they slur their number into one audible mess to boggle their victims' minds.

The only thing worst than someone who speeds through their numbers is a person who gets impatient when you ask them to repeat it. If you only divulged the information correctly the first time you would have saved yourself a good 15 seconds...

Certainty.

It took me a little over a year to own my faith. Even then, it wasn't as evident to my character as my everyday styled bed-head. I would acknowledge it when it was safe to do so or in a like-minded group, but intimidation would hit when I felt being Christian wasn't the popular thing to be.

Yet it has been less than two years and I declare it pretty confidentially. I'm still a baby, still learning, but I own it. Not shyly, nor apologetically. I am ignited with amazement and hunger to learn and grow. Prior to being baptized I used to think it too dangerous to have a cemented faith, as if someone would come along and destroy the foundation my life was built on. Tetertottering on the unknown was a sign of intelligence and a safe guard. My naive arrogance has since been humbled.

I had the pleasure of bumping into an old teacher of mine who help shape my outgoing nature and love for the arts through musical theatre. We ran into each other at my church. In addition to learning that I was five weeks away from marrying the sweetest girl alive, she also found out that my life took a turn from a love of filmmaking to filmmaking and storytelling for He who is love. She grew teary eyed and up until tonight I didn't know why...

My love for storytelling is a mirror of the story God has written for me; journeying me through art and theatre to writing and movies to Him being in all the aforementioned and more. I may have only allowed Him a part of my life a year and ten months ago, but He has always been involved. As she left me Sunday morning she repeated twice, "God is good". And He is.

I envision friends from high school reading this and getting freaked out. This coming from the kid who loved to shock everyone by crossing the line, I now do so in a very socially dangerous way. Sadly, a part of me wishes to keep my past and my present separate to avoid awkward run-ins and quiet murmurings, but that intimidation dwindles day by day. It dwindles because it has to.

I had a great conversation back in the day due to confrontation of past and present. An old friend challenged "this Christian business". I love this friend and I was able to share. As I did so his eyes may have glossed over and he looked at me as if he lost a friend, but in that conversation I wasn't afraid to own it. I hope that showed more respect to our friendship than pretending to be something I am not. Loving people is easier the more your get to know what is on their heart; the joys and the sorrows.

People fear the unknown, but when I was agnostic I was far more bewildered by those who aligned themselves with a set of beliefs. Their certainty glimmered with some craziness. In a broken world, people love to hold the power in their life, believing they know what is best for them. I've discovered the opposite, my life has been liberated since accepting that the more power I let go, the more beautiful my life becomes.

Mental Pushups.

I realized the downfall of not being in school anymore: My brain seems to be progressively coming at a halt. I try to indulge in regular reading, but my ability to just focus on text seems weak. My mind used to be sharper, both in absorbing teachings and creating answers, but now it is primarily occupied with simple decisions or my chaotic scheduling of where to go next.

I hesitate to think if it's my inability to sit still that is hindering my brain from performing at a higher efficiency. The last time I did a puzzle was a month ago, attempting to teach a coworker how to play sudoku. This was the most engaging activity I've done in a while because not only did I need to recall my own understanding of the numbers game, but describe it step by step so that someone else could understand. I used to read the math lessons before hand for fun. It gave me a cheap thrill to be able to know what the teacher was talking about before anyone else. At the same time, I would cut out any math questions that I rendered too easy to perform. It was arrogant, it was lazy, and at the same time it was engaging; If I was put on a spot about a math question, 95% of the time I could answer.

Fast forward to today, it took me a minute to remember how to carry a one during a subtraction question. I don't think the brain degrades quite as much as we forget to engage it into daily excercise.

I have a sick confession. Sometimes I read a book quickly primarily to say that I've read that book. It's an intangible collection; I love checklists. As I commit this sin, I don't absorb quite as much of it as I would like to. School had it right by reading only a chapter or two at a time, and then quiz you on it. It requires you to deepen your memory of the book, to hold it to heart, to talk about the effects it may have on you, the reader. It builds meaning. A friend of mine used to make fun of symbolism. He felt it was the teachers way of trying to create something that wasn't there.

The beauty of books are that they are the only form of art that we cannot absentmindedly enjoy. Movies, music, art... These are beautiful mediums, that experts and enthusiasts could talk about for hours, but still are capable of looking at it and forgetting, turning your brain off to watch another Vin Deisel movie or bop your head to the latest Lady Gaga hit. A literary work of art demands your attention, demands you to visualize for yourself, given the criteria the author provides, what the protagonists looks like as he walks down a deserted street. Books require you to look within yourself and identify with first person narrative. It's an emotional journey and that's where aspects such as symbolism are quintessential to an english classroom. They engage the student to find meaning or at least create it. Own it.

Gym class would do wonders for me now too come to think of it...

Never when I was a student did an adult explain to me why I would miss school. I was warned that I would, but I didn't believe it then. Any high school attendee who would read this, probably wouldn't believe it, but there is luxury in spending so many hours a week simply working on your mind, engaging in topical conversation beyond the weather, the latest movie or your line of work.

Maybe piecing a puzzle over a matecinno latte will be of some assistance...