On my trip to Virginia Beach this summer, I was squished into the backseat of my mom's Buick with my two nieces. With their iPods an inch away from their faces and their headphones softly leaking music and dialogue, I watched as their eyes filled with wonder and disappeared into whatever world their movies were taking them. I can not even begin to tell you how many times I caught them watching The Lorax or Puss In Boots. That is the funny thing about children. They can sit through an hour to an hour and a half long movie, turn around to their parents and say, "Can I watch it again?" At one point during our twelve hour car ride I whispered to my mom and my brother, "I can't believe they are watching that movie again!" My brother, who is twelve years older than me, just laughed. He continued to recount how when I was their age I did the same exact thing with my movies at home. Well. That put me in my place for certain. I recalled going through my old picture books and seeing some pictures of my four or five year old self, laying on the floor staring up at the moving pictures on the TV.
I loved watching movies when I was young, and as the years flew by, that love never vanished. I eventually developed a passion for reading novels (I read fifteen or sixteen different ones this summer!), but I never get tired of movies. Even television shows, although I'm a little picky when it comes to this kind of entertainment. When I was little, and today as well, I was quite an oddity I think. Instead of waking up in the morning and putting on cartoons, I would put the channel to TVLand. I loved Get Smart, I Dream of Genie, I Love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show, Bonanza, MacGyver, and the list goes on and on.
By the time I was a senior in High School, I thought that I had a pretty good movie and TV show library in my head. I had even watched the Behind the Scenes footage from Lord of the Rings (my favorite movie) directed by Peter Jackson, and I think by then, even Behind the Scenes from Avatar directed by James Cameron, and many others. Then my world was completely changed by one thing. Netflix. Not only did Netflix have a billion movies and shows I hadn't seen (or heard of) that you could rent, it also allowed you to stream some of those movies right online! It was thanks to this discovery that by my freshman year in college I was a pro at browsing through Netflix in search of my new favorite movie. This is still my addiction today. Recently, I have gotten hooked on movies set in 19th century England, such as North and South directed by Brian Percival, Pride and Prejudice (the 1980 TV miniseries), Mansfield Park (1999) directed by Patricia Rozema, and again, the list could go on and on. I have also watched different TV shows on Netflix including Downton Abbey, Lost, and Robin Hood (2006 TV series).
By this point in my life, I was again content with my new expanded range of movies and shows. I had even enjoyed Charlie Chaplin when I went with my friend to France. We stayed with her grandparents in Antibes, and her grandfather loved Charlie Chaplin. My friend translated later of course, but her grandfather said that Charlie Chaplin was the best because it didn't matter what language you speak, everyone can understand and laugh along. He was right. I also took a course called Bollywood while I was in college, and we watched films ranging from Jab We Met (which I recommend because it is amazing!) directed by Imtiaz Ali to I've Loved You So Long (another great movie!) directed by Philippe Claudel.
Yet, I am continually shocked by how small my knowledge of movies is still. Even though I watch movies on Netflix all the time, (Seriously, sometimes I watch three movies in a row. Don't worry I still have a life.) somehow I am still in the dark when it comes to the classics. In class this week we were asked if we had seen several different films for examples. I don't think I raised my hand once. This was such an eye opener for me.
So, since I am heading into a career where it is important to know and see other people's work, I have decided to watch as many movies on the list that Professor Sinclair provided for us on the blog page. Through all this I have learned that it doesn't matter how many movies or TV series you have watched, you will never have seen enough. The learning process never stops throughout life. Just like my nieces, I have to be prepared to watch, watch and watch some more. Not only for entertainment, but in order to learn and become more knowledgeable.
~Amber Capogrossi
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