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Tangent #11: Appreciating Feeling Good
76 Plays10 days ago
This week, Chris is absent, and Dot and I make him pay for it. After that, Dot and I discuss our favorite "feel good" movies, and the varied examples of what constitutes one. It's not just about listing them, it's about expressing why. Join our discord and be part of the discussion!
Our Discord: https://discord.gg/BFV9sJDDEX
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Transcript
00:00:03
Speaker
He's like, oh, sick as a dog. And he's bending over. i need an old priest and a young priest. You're killing me. It's so funny.
Introduction to Tabletop Tangents
00:00:17
Speaker
Hello, friends. Welcome to Tabletop Tangents, a podcast about running tabletop RPGs, writing stories, and the sometimes meandering paths we take in pursuit of creativity and inspiration.
00:00:34
Speaker
Tangent number 11.
Theme: Appreciating Feeling Good
00:00:36
Speaker
Appreciating feeling good.
00:00:43
Speaker
So, Dot, it's just you and me today. Yeah. Yeah. Chris is in Washington, like working and stuff. So, you know, important things. Yeah. He's a big, important TV man. So he's just, he's an award TV producer. Yeah. If you please. Hold on.
00:01:06
Speaker
but Hold on. TV producer. I feel like that's wrong titling, but maybe I'm wrong. I don't know. what is what ah what I thought he was a producer, but but he's also like, now he's sort of like a corraler, maybe, of producers. Yeah, he herds the proverbial cats of TV news. The kitty herder of TV news. Wait a minute, whoa. I mean, he's not here to defend himself, so. Yeah, fuck that guy. Oh, dang in we're not. We're even two minutes into the episode. Yeah. Okay. Well, so yeah. Am I wrong? Am I completely wrong?
00:01:49
Speaker
He works in like creative services. Like marketing and creative services. Yeah, I know. Yes. So it's more, it's less that he produces like TV news. Like he's not a producer of like a newscast, but he produces promos for the news. Yes. Yes. Yeah. That sounds familiar. still a producer, but he, that, that kind of made him sound more important okay than he is. I'm going in so much. trouble for that. but alsoson But now he's like he's like a coordinator or producer. That's a good way to put it. Yeah, he's, i mean, but going up in the ranks. Yes, he's moving up in the ranks. Again, big important TV man. That wasn't necessarily a dig. No, no, no, no, no.
00:02:38
Speaker
But he's and too important for us right now is what the point is. ah Yes, yeah. He's, you know, off doing work. Doing important things. Yeah.
What Defines a Feel-Good Movie?
00:02:49
Speaker
Well, here we are, me and Dot, and ah we thought, because I'm always up for talking about movies, i ah every week I've got to resist wanting to talk about movies. So we're actually doing it this time. At the behest is the big big important TV man.
00:03:08
Speaker
but um He suggested that we talk about movies. So I'm like, okay. What? Twist my rubber arm. So we thought we were, we we considered doing a sort of top five thing. i don't think it's going to become a top five thing. I think it's going to be a top 12 thing, but, yeah or something, but um romantic slash feel good is what we started with, but we're narrowing in on the feel good now.
00:03:39
Speaker
Yes. Feel good movies. Romantic is whole other thing. Yeah. ro Yeah. I think that there is something to be said about like rom-coms fitting into a category of feel good on its own. Sure. But then there is an extended layer of like romance movies and beyond that, just feel good movies.
00:04:03
Speaker
There And some overlap for sure. Some overlap for sure. I think just taking stock of my list, I think most of mine are feel good movies that have an element Roma romance as a, as like a plot catalyst potentially, but the overall plot itself and the theme of these movies is not romance. Hmm.
00:04:35
Speaker
At least that's how that's how I'm reading it. Yeah, mine, I would say mine are mostly that way too. that did um There are some that are a sort of deliberately not romance, um but some most of them have some kind of element of it.
00:04:55
Speaker
Yeah. But but yeah yeah yeah. Yeah. So we have not, i don't think it's going to be a top thing. The important thing for me when I'm talking about movies is the why. Not just listing a list. The why is what really makes it interesting to me.
00:05:11
Speaker
to agree To express or to hear and to share and all that stuff. And so whether you are down with this or not, audience member, we are doing it. So there it is.
00:05:23
Speaker
And um Dot and I have not revealed our lists. To each other. So we'll yeah we'll be doing that as we go and seeing if there's overlap.
00:05:34
Speaker
because Live react. Yes. It's a hot take, as it were. Yes. Yes. So i do just want i do just want to like continue to narrow in on what constitutes a feel-good movie. Like for you,
00:05:52
Speaker
what What needs to happen in order for it to be considered a feel good movie for you?
00:06:02
Speaker
Well, looking at my list, I think the the main thing is that the overall trajectory of the movie by the end has to make me feel like I've got hope.
00:06:17
Speaker
right that's That's one of the things. the other the The other seems to be there's also elements here of actually feeling like I can in in some way participate in that feel goodness.
00:06:35
Speaker
And I'll get into that when we see some of my choices, because there's, there's a particular category of movie that is well represented in this list. Okay. And you'll see what I mean, but, but yeah, I think overall it's, it's not only a feeling of hope at the end, but a feeling of, I i enjoy this either,
00:06:59
Speaker
Either outward cooperation between people, maybe even cooperation between strangers that I enjoy, yeah and or a nod to the ridiculousness that is humanity in a way that is funny and makes you feel good.
00:07:22
Speaker
And there's a couple of movies that represent that on my list as well. I don't know if that makes any sense, but that's it does that's what I'm looking at and in my list here. Yeah, I understand. i understand exactly what you mean when you say that. um For me, feel-good movie has to... The characters have to feel real to me. Like, they have to feel like real people. Mm-hmm.
00:07:49
Speaker
i I need to be able to align with the characters on a just human level, like person to person.
00:08:01
Speaker
and i have to experience like some level of empathy with like shared empathy with, with the characters on whatever it may be that they're going through. Right. So whatever,
00:08:16
Speaker
whatever plot driving struggle is happening in in these movies i in some way shape or form throughout my life and to to a few points at multiple points throughout my life i've latched on to a character and i've identified with them And that usually is what constitutes feel good for me. Like I walk, I walk away from watching that movie and I just think I've, I've felt this. I've gone through something like this or I've experienced similar feelings or a similar experience.
00:08:58
Speaker
And like, I get it. And to like, see that displayed in, you know, a fictional narrative, it helps bring that reality forward for me. Like it it, it almost grounds me like the fantasy of it happening and being written out that way.
00:09:22
Speaker
i I'm like, Oh, okay. So this is normal. that This, this just happens to people. That's okay. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Interesting. my some of mine are pure make me Make me feel good did not with little relation to the characters at all.
00:09:42
Speaker
Some of mine are. yeah I will say, I mean, some of mine are as well. Like, there is definitely more of a, like, fantastical element to some of these. But... And some of them, I just enjoy. Like, there's just...
00:09:56
Speaker
it It's just a good movie. And I return to these movies over and over and over again. It's comfort. It's comfort. And I think like, that's where I'll say my categories of movie of these movies, like kind of segregates. So I have, i have mine listed in like a three tiered organized list.
00:10:24
Speaker
Okay. Well, you're you're more organized than me. Impressive. So I have just my feel-good movie list. These were the movies that I first wrote out like when we started talking about this being our topic of discussion this evening.
00:10:37
Speaker
I was like, okay, well, these are the movies. These are the ones that are my immediate go-tos for feel-good movies. And then as I started thinking about it more, I was like, okay, well... I have my favorite movies that are also feel good movies that I will watch on repeat forever. And there is that sense of comfort that also attributes them as a feel good movie for me.
00:11:03
Speaker
And then there's just a couple honorable mentions.
Favorite Feel-Good Movies
00:11:07
Speaker
All right. In no particular order, favorite movies are Princess Bride, Willow, Jurassic Park,
00:11:15
Speaker
yeah Cutthroat Island and Moonstruck. Okay. Okay. We've got some range here. That sounds familiar. that all sounds yeah very familiar. Yes. Yeah.
00:11:28
Speaker
it It has, it does not change. Um, and I mean, a lot of it, those are just some just classic, absolute classics, right?
00:11:40
Speaker
uh,
00:11:42
Speaker
it's It's weird that like Star Wars and like I don't have any like outrageous fandoms listed among my favorite movies, even though those are some of my most beloved movies to watch.
00:12:00
Speaker
But when I think about like my favorite movies, my go to's, these are those are the five.
00:12:08
Speaker
okay and those are all feel good movies. Yeah, they're all feel-good movies to me.
00:12:16
Speaker
So, you know, while Jurassic Park may not seem like a feel-good movie, I was a dinosaur kid. And, you know, i've I've been actually really upset today about Sam Neill's passing. So that really threw me for a loop.
00:12:33
Speaker
um But... Like, I still get to watch that movie and i I get the same, like, energized, excited joy watching that movie every single time. There has not been a time where, like...
00:12:58
Speaker
Jurassic Park has just come on and I'm like, um no I don't really feel like watching Jurassic Park. No, I will. It doesn't matter what task I'm in the middle of doing. I will sit my happy ass down and I will watch that movie from where it's at until the very end.
00:13:13
Speaker
Yeah, I get it. I mean, I have many, ah many, many of those. And my ah my favorite movie list Certainly includes movies that I would not call feel-good movies.
00:13:26
Speaker
You know, they they so they speak to me, they they hit me and in a way that's, you know, powerful. But I certainly wouldn't call Twin Peaks Firewalk with me a feel-good movie, even it was one of my favorite movies.
00:13:42
Speaker
Yeah, that ah borders. Yeah. i i know I can see where that might not be considered feel good. Right? And same with 2001. I would not call that a feel good movie, but it is one of my favorite movies.
00:13:55
Speaker
Also agree. It's on the top top five, right? Yeah. What are you doing, Dave? But I love it. I love it so much. It's so good. That needs to be a movie night at some point.
00:14:07
Speaker
Oh. I love it so much. an awesome Yeah, but first we need we really need to Barry Lyndon first if we're going to do some Kubrick because I need to show you Barry Lyndon. Oh, yes. Okay, fair.
00:14:19
Speaker
um That also is not a feel-good movie, but I love it so much. But there are a couple of my favorite movies that are on this list, on that, that would be considered feel-good. And one of them breaks a category that i teased before, which is Sound Yeah.
00:14:35
Speaker
Sound of Music is one of my very favorite movies. Yes. And the reason, and I'll list some others that are in that vein, including Music Man, that's also one my favorite movies. I almost put it on my list. I almost put it on my list, but that would be a completely separate category for me. Like musicals are their own beast for me. Understood, but there are musicals that are, will go back again and again, and it makes me feel good. Grease is another one. 100%. Annie is another Those are not favorite movies, but they are favorite feel-good movies. So good. For sure.
00:15:12
Speaker
Grease, Annie, Sound of Music. um ah Seven Brides for Seven Brothers would be one of mine. Okay. Okay. For me, Fiddler on the Roof. but ah Also, so good. So good. I have so many of those that I love. And musicals, for particularly because I'm a singer and because I love to sing along. And Sound of Music is one of those where I'm just like...
00:15:36
Speaker
Not only do you get to feel good at the songs and I get to sing I Have Confidence and My Favorite Things along with Julie Andrews, who's awesome, but also you get that amazing moment between her and Captain Von Trapp where she's telling him how it is.
00:15:53
Speaker
Or she's like, I know you don't, but you've got to listen to me. you know And that gives me chills. It makes me feel good. And the transformation of what he was to what he becomes seems believable to me.
00:16:08
Speaker
And it seems like it was because of Maria. right and that yes that's feel good to me. that that is That is one of those ah green core movies um to me that I will watch later.
00:16:23
Speaker
And it's three hours long, but I still ill still i still love it. So good. I love it. 16 going on 17. I love to watch Liesl just abandon dancing before she realizes who Rolf really is, right?
00:16:39
Speaker
But it's just, I love it. And music bands the same way. Same exact way. It's yes's from start to finish... a whirlwind of Robert Preston that I cannot get enough of.
00:16:54
Speaker
But yeah, i love those. They they just, ah and i I spent, because when i when I was in college or so, i got the Laserdisc for Music Man. Like I had a Laserdisc player.
00:17:07
Speaker
And I would watch it again and again, and I memorized Trouble and, you know, We've Got Trouble. I memorized all the songs, and i still know them, and I still love them. And so Annie is the same way, where there's particular moments in Annie, especially You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile is one of my very favorite moments in that movie.
00:17:26
Speaker
So good. um And Grease also. I love Grease. Grease is so great. One of my one of like our families, my sorry, you brought up Annie and it just made me think about this. There's this trend that's going around on socials that's like you come up with different sayings and things that your family has just latched on to. And like you have to describe it in a way kind of like the game heads up.
00:17:54
Speaker
Mm hmm. And one of my families would be, you said Annie, and it made me think of this, but the, the scene where the girls, um, are hiding Annie or whatever, essentially. And, um, I can't remember what her name is, but she's like, she had to go bathroom.
00:18:10
Speaker
la but i forget her name too now offhand. But that's my fan all the time. She had to go bathroom. And then Carol Burnett. had to go bathroom. She had to go bathroom. Carol Burnett. Oh my God. Phenomenal. She's so awesome. So awesome in that movie. Yes.
00:18:32
Speaker
And lest we forget Tim Curry. And Tim Curry, of course. Naturally. I love that movie so much. And it's because of Carol Burnett. And it's because of the It's been a long time since I watched Annie. That's a good movie. It's a super good movie. So, so that's the the musicals category of my feel good movies. There is one other that is a musical, but doesn't quite fit in the same way. So I'll save it for later. But what, what else do you want to, to bring up as far as yours?
00:19:03
Speaker
Um, what are we going back and forth revealing our list? Is that what's happening? I think that's what's happening. All right. So my actual feel good movie list, not my favorite movies, but my feel good movie list. Okay. Um,
00:19:17
Speaker
Again, this is in no particular order, and since we were on the topic of musicals, I'm going to bring this one up first just because of relevancy. um Mr. Holland's Opus. Okay. i've mean I think I've seen it once.
00:19:31
Speaker
Oh, my lanta. I saw that movie for the first time when I was in middle school and i was in band and it was just like a, you know, we weren't marching that day or something. And, um, we, my band director just put on a movie and she put on Mr. Holland's opus.
00:19:53
Speaker
I,
00:19:57
Speaker
emotionally connected so hard to that movie because again it's just a man Richard Dreyfuss mm-hmm exploring his passion and desperately wanting to just do the thing. He so desperately wants to just be a composer, but he gets stuck in the, you know, mundane of day-to-day life being a high school teacher. Mm-hmm.
00:20:29
Speaker
And it's just, it's so not gut-wrenching, but it's so moving. Because there are scenes throughout the movie that he is able to express that, that creativity, but it always comes with sacrifice. It always comes with like loss to one degree or another.
00:20:59
Speaker
And just like, ah again, going back to what I said earlier about, connecting with real people in these movies, right?
00:21:09
Speaker
That's what I'm living right now. Like I want to be able to just dedicate as much time as possible, as much brain power as I can to creative efforts.
00:21:22
Speaker
but I'm stuck in going through my day to day. i'm you know, full-time job, single mom. And
Movies and Personal Aspirations
00:21:31
Speaker
then I'm still just trying so hard to find time to express these creative passions. And like,
00:21:41
Speaker
As as middle school dot watching this for the first time, i connected to it on just purely an emotional like id level. Like just it there are moments of the movie that are so sad.
00:21:53
Speaker
But as I grew older and continued to just appreciate this movie, it changed for me. Like I saw things from different perspectives and I think that's why it's a feel good for me because I've grown and I've been able to grow with that experience.
00:22:19
Speaker
yeah So good. Yeah. I love it when movies, because I'll revisit movies when I'm much older and I'll be like, oh, wow, this is just as good as I remember it, but now I see it completely differently.
00:22:30
Speaker
You know? okay So I've got another category here that encompasses a couple of movies. So it's all on my feel good list. I got like 15 now. I'm ready. The first one was musicals, right? The second ye now is more ah this uncommon connection of people.
00:22:50
Speaker
Okay. Like you, you, you, you've, there are movies out there that occasionally feel like even strangers are friends. right And I love that when it's done well.
00:23:05
Speaker
And one of those for me is Anne of Green Gables, which is a miniseries. yeah It's not technically a movie, but Megan Follows is the is the old one we're talking about here. it's it's I've read the book. It's amazing. It's it's got that...
00:23:24
Speaker
It manages to to create drama in a way that is weirdly low stakes, but feels high stakes. and And it's about people getting along with each other.
00:23:37
Speaker
Right. It's about figuring out how to, I don't know. It's it's watching Anne bring everybody together. Yeah. That also happens in Doc Hollywood. So Doc Hollywood is a romance movie, kind of. So good.
00:23:52
Speaker
But that's not its main thing for me. whats What its main thing is, is everybody in the town getting to know and getting to like people. um Michael J. Fox, right? And Michael J. Fox kind of coming around to accepting what the town is and and and having that relationship with them.
00:24:13
Speaker
Like David Ogden Stiers as the mayor is just... He wants to keep him there, but yeah he's very friendly to Dr. Stone. He's just, he he wants to win him over.
00:24:26
Speaker
And the whole town kind of wins him over in the end. And that's, that's part, that's why I love it. It's not because of the romance, even though I love the romance in it. yeah But it's it's because even the Woody Harrelson character, the insurance salesman who wants to take a crack at earthquake insurance, that guy is he's great, right? It's like he's still likable. They're all likable.
00:24:50
Speaker
So that's why i love Doc Hollywood. It's that uncommon connection of strangers, right? I have another one here, but if you want to react. No, no, no ah go Go with your third. I'm ready. ah My third is It's a Wonderful Life.
00:25:06
Speaker
Ooh. Which does that too, right? Yes, It's about what happens if you didn't exist and all that stuff. And it's about George Bailey and some romance with with Mary and you know freaking Donna Reed, who's just, oh, man, I love her in that movie. right But it's much more than romance.
00:25:26
Speaker
it's about It's about community. It's about people coming together in a in unexpected and very, very tender ways. Yes.
00:25:37
Speaker
That's, yeah that's the category that I'm kind of hitting here. I love that. I love that you you, got a lot more detailed about your categories, but I think I have movies that hit on kind of each of them. Um,
00:25:52
Speaker
But like, i think yeah those are just some exemplary examples. Well, thank you. ah bill ah ah Because i would not have thought about them that way.
00:26:06
Speaker
e Like it it if you if you had just listed those three movies to me and said, what are these three have in common? It would have taken me a while to be like, oh, yeah.
00:26:18
Speaker
Trauma? I don't know. um But but that's that's not it. like it's It is that community element and that there is the growth of the main character to bringing all of these people together.
00:26:36
Speaker
i really love that. thats This is Han Cluster all encapsulated. right Yes. Right? I mean, yes it's it's the stranger's um assuming the best yeah first, yeah rather than assuming the worst first.
00:26:54
Speaker
I like that a lot. and so yeah it's it's It's hard to make a dramatic game out of it, but I managed to. Yeah. h um I don't really know that I have. i mean kind of. ah it my My closest in comparison is Steel Magnolias.
00:27:20
Speaker
That's a good one. Because, I mean, they already do kind of have a community. Like, the... the The group of friends, they they are like closely knit, but there is still certain layers of animosity because, you know, catty women, it just happens.
00:27:41
Speaker
But there is still that deeper understanding deeper layer of no no, no, These are our people. We support each other. Even if we don't necessarily agree with decisions that are being made or what might be happening, we still show up for each other. yeah um And that, that is one of the movies that I go um,
00:28:07
Speaker
Absolutely sobbing, crying to hysterically laughing. ah It's also another one of those movies that has grown with me.
00:28:18
Speaker
um i can remember the first time that I watched it and I just was so overwhelmingly sad. I was like, and again, this was my dad exposing me to this movie, but, and he cried with me. Sorry to expose you, dad, but he,
00:28:36
Speaker
he Like, I just, I was sad. i was sad. I didn't get the humor after the fact. So, like, yeah you know, when they're at the funeral and um Olympia Dukakis is like, hit her. this hit
00:28:53
Speaker
After watching it a couple of times, like, i was like, oh, my God, that's. absolutely hilarious she's like it just so i would go from just drenched you know sobbing tears to laughing and those emotional like flips for me i think that also makes it a feel-good movie for me let me steal magnolia's a good one even weezer and drum get along at the end
00:29:24
Speaker
Couldn't help myself. A smile, that son of a bitch.
00:29:30
Speaker
so yeah, that's a good one. I don't have that on the list, but it was ah it's ah it's a good one. Let me see. What is what is another? I'm trying to distill here. Like, okay, there's there's, let me see if there's another one that matches this.
00:29:45
Speaker
I would say kind of. Yeah. So Austin Powers is on my list of feel-good movies because it just makes me laugh.
00:29:56
Speaker
Like on the floor, like belly laughing. There are moments in the movie with the shh I've got a whole bag of shh with your name on it.
00:30:07
Speaker
It just...
00:30:10
Speaker
It's so funny to me that I'm, and when I haven't seen it in a while, I'm just out of breath laughing at this movie. And Austin Powers is in the, in the hallway with the thing and trying to turn around. i mean, just, yeah it's just so stupid funny.
00:30:31
Speaker
i love it. I love it. That's a feel good movie. If there, if there ever was one to me. Yes. Yes. And the The in-your-face, like, almost corny-level sexual humor, also 100% on board. 100% on board.
00:30:51
Speaker
and just, and some, even some of the sequel stuff, they, I mean, the first one he did the whole bag of shh. Then he did the whole chair swivel. Yes. Oh, my God. He's like, oh, sick as a dog. And he's bending over. It's just, I need an old priest and a young priest. You're killing me.
00:31:11
Speaker
It's so funny. It's just so funny. I'm like, I'm picturing the scenes. It makes me laugh just picturing it. It's just so well done. So well done. And I love it. I love Mike Myers for it. And I love Mike Myers even more because of his serious turns as well.
00:31:35
Speaker
And um i just love it. I love it. Uncle Buck is sort of in that vein too. Yeah. Where I love Uncle Buck because it's funny, but I love Uncle Buck more, even more because it's John Candy and he can deliver these things. And and he has this at the at the end when he comes together with, what is it, Mia is her name? I forget her name.
00:31:59
Speaker
But um think so when when he is defending her and taking care of her and she needs him, there's nothing better than that. There's no better feel good moment than that. when When she's just like, you know what, I i had really screwed this up.
00:32:17
Speaker
And he's like, it's all right. You know, I know how these guys think and it's it's okay. And and i they they become friends and I love it. It makes me feel good because he wins her over.
00:32:29
Speaker
h Mm-hmm. I think Captain Ron is another one that's kind of like that. That one I don't know at all. That one have not. You what? I have not even, i don't even remember hearing about that one.
00:32:45
Speaker
i know. Here's the shocked look. Here it is. What? um I'm stunned. I'm shocked. i am shooketh. Okay. ah and Kurt Russell. Okay. Okay.
00:32:58
Speaker
Martin Short. Okay. um Mary Kay Place. Okay. Yes. Okay. So. my yeah I've not heard of this movie at all. Nothing. Everyone in the Discord, if you've seen Captain Ron, this is your moment to shout it out in the tabletop cha general chat. Yeah, yeah. um It's a family that is like basically going on, not a cruise, but they rent a captain of a boat for their vacation or whatever. And it happens to be Kurt Russell's character, Captain Ron. Sure, of course.
00:33:32
Speaker
I might be mixing up my movies, but essentially they come across Captain Ron and they need him to like dry, like rescue them. And he wears an eye patch and he flips it from side to side. So he has both of his eyes and he just messes with them. And it's just family hijinks on the world's worst vacation.
00:33:58
Speaker
Like Martin Short's character is just he is very unlucky in almost all aspects of life in this movie. And he just wants to take his family on a nice vacation.
00:34:13
Speaker
And it it goes downhill very quickly. But the comedic acting between Martin Short and Kurt Russell is top tier.
00:34:26
Speaker
Awesome. Definitely a feel good movie for me, not on my list, but like thinking about it now, oof it's a good end. So, okay. Um, i I have two that I've listed that are, that have two movies listed and for different reasons. So they are categorized. So I'll, I'll do one first.
00:34:48
Speaker
Um, because I said so, and that is paired with when Harry met Sally. Okay. Okay. So those two are feel good movies, but i love both those movies. And because I said, so it was new to me. we watched it and, oh, I loved it. Mandy Moore was fantastic. good um so the reason that I put these two together is because it is. a they're They're non-conventional romances. And.
00:35:19
Speaker
um and the the like The premise behind Because I Said So is the emotional relationship between mother and daughters.
00:35:32
Speaker
Specifically, Diane Keaton's character and Mandy Moore's character. um that That was hugely impactful for me. And it has actually shaped the way that I...
00:35:46
Speaker
I have a relationship with my own mother. And I think the movie does a really good job of expressing that sentiment of like, you can be upset with someone that you love and you can be frustrated with choices that they've made.
00:36:00
Speaker
But at the end of the day, they still have that mother daughter relationship and they choose to come together to figure out how to move past things instead of just writing each other off.
00:36:11
Speaker
And that like, that i so I stand true to that with my own mother. um And the reason that I pair it with When Harry Met Sally is because they have a similar dynamic.
00:36:25
Speaker
Their friendship comes first and foremost beyond their relationship. And the struggles that they each face in figuring out, a oh, no, we're like meant to be together.
00:36:39
Speaker
It's it's all based on their friendship. Like they have such a strong foundation that they develop and That when there is that time that they, you know, basically split from each other.
00:36:53
Speaker
It's a wake up call to both of them. a And. you know, the the the very end scene on New Year's Eve when um Billy Crystal is like, you know.
00:37:07
Speaker
i' I'm going to say the line wrong, but it's something to the effect of like, you know, you want to just spend the rest of your life with the your favorite person or what something like that. When you figure out you want to spend the rest of your life with a person, you want to start right away.
00:37:21
Speaker
Yes. Yes. Thank you for helping me. It's not because it's New Year's Eve. It's not because I'm lonely. Yes. Yes. And i don't think that has anything to do with their romance. I think it has everything to do with their friendship.
00:37:38
Speaker
I think that if, if i think that if she had said to him, like, I don't want to be in a relationship with you, but I do love you.
00:37:49
Speaker
That still would have felt just as gratifying to me because they would have just held onto that friendship. Now, I mean, I love it even better as a romance, but yeah like that principle still wins out for me. And that's why it's a feel good.
00:38:03
Speaker
Okay. But then there's the triumph over overwhelming odds thing.
Triumph and Inspiration in Film
00:38:11
Speaker
ohha And that were the most obvious series, but you could consider it one big old long movie would be Lord of the Rings, which is a huge feel good for me all over the place. Feel good everywhere.
00:38:27
Speaker
you know i I cannot deny that in any capacity. It is a feel good for me. It's just not on my list. yeah And one that's related to that is that feeling is Rocky.
00:38:39
Speaker
The original Rocky. Amazing movie. movie. amazing And a lot of people discount it because they think, oh, it's just Rocky. And especially back way back when, when it was Rocky two Rocky III, and people were looking at Mr. T and going, oh, Rocky III is just Rocky III.
00:38:55
Speaker
But the original movie, it's it's remarkable. It's a remarkable movie. And I love it very much because of that. Not only is there a romance in it, which is really cool romance, actually, but there's there's this triumph, even though he loses at the end. Yeah.
00:39:17
Speaker
There's this triumph of human spirit, this this American story that rings true. And it's pretty cool. Pretty cool. Agreed. alville ah John G. Alvildson is one of the best at making movies like this. Karate Kid, Lean on Me, Rocky, you know.
00:39:39
Speaker
I find it interesting that you did a overcoming odds category because I kind of have a similar. okay but But mine goes in a very opposite direction that I think you'll appreciate.
00:39:52
Speaker
So this is the other one that I have that's like two movies. you know I couldn't pick just one, right? And it's Legally Blonde and Clueless. Okay.
00:40:05
Speaker
Huh. Now, Clueless, I love. Legally Blonde, I've seen, it didn't connect to me like Clueless. Clueless, I've memorized it. Okay. Oh, God, I love that movie so much. um I mean, just start my epic level crush on Paul Rudd as a youth.
00:40:22
Speaker
Golly, Moses. Well, for me, it's both Brittany, Brittany Murphy and Alicia Silverstone. i was just in love with both of them. Yes. Overcoming odds. They are both categorized as just the ditzy blonde that has no idea what she's doing. And, you know, from Clueless, is that all you think I do is shop? Right.
00:40:46
Speaker
Both of them are basically from the jump, given the Well, this is all you're expected to do. This is all we would ever expect of you is to just, you know, be a pretty face, be, you know, a a of a trophy on a pedestal. Right. Like that's that's the presence that that is given for each of them at the beginning of their movies. Right.
00:41:13
Speaker
Legally Blonde takes it to a step of she's smart. She's she may not be the, you know, type of stuck up professional that they look to as an example. But she's smart and she uses her experience and her Like, like her hobbies, like her interests as a way to elevate that intelligence.
00:41:45
Speaker
Like there, there are varying degrees of intelligence and how you apply them to certain situations makes a difference. And the same thing happens in Clueless.
00:41:57
Speaker
She's, you know, given this expectation of what you're just going to sit around and, you know, go to the mall and go shopping and, you know, abuse daddy's credit card and whatever. But she's a very wholesome individual. And even from the get go, when she's trying to help.
00:42:17
Speaker
Brittany Murphy's character and she has the, huh? Tie. Yeah. She has the best of intentions. It's not that she's trying to turn her into like the clicky popular girl. She's trying to just help her come out of her shell a little bit. She's the new kid at the school. You know, they have the status of being part of that click. So yeah, of course we're going to take you under our wing and help you fit in.
00:42:43
Speaker
But she does it within her box. And then as she grows through the movie, she realizes like, wait a minute. I didn't even take into consideration Ty's feelings and all of this and what she wanted.
00:42:57
Speaker
And there's a level of humility and growth that she experiences. And the romance aspect is Paul Rudd seeing that growth happen and realizing that she's matured.
00:43:12
Speaker
and then it's like, oh, well, wait a minute. She's not just some like dorky kid that was my stepsister for a year. Cause you know, like that, that wasn't really cringe, but, um,
00:43:26
Speaker
Like, it just, it hits on such a level for me that, like, as a girl growing up watching those movies, those are very girl forward.
00:43:37
Speaker
it doesn't matter. you can do whatever you set your mind to. Like, as long as you put in the work, you put in the effort, you make yourself present in those moments.
00:43:52
Speaker
Limitless. Mm-hmm. And that was a huge driving factor for like how I approached going through like high school into college and then early adulthood. hmm.
00:44:05
Speaker
So there's one related on my
Allegory and Identity in Movies
00:44:07
Speaker
list. The one that's related to what you were just saying is The Little Mermaid. it's an odd pure It's an odd one out because it's, yes, it has some romance stuff. Yes, it seems like it's simple, like it is simplistic, like what Ariel wants is just to be human. But but this Little Mermaid is so much more to people like me who are trans than It has become a major trans movie.
00:44:37
Speaker
and not And the reason is she wants she's yearning to be something else. She's yearning to be ah you know part of a different world.
00:44:52
Speaker
That is the definition of what being a trans person is. And Howard Ashman knew what he was doing. when he wrote the lyrics and developed this movie with, with Alan Menken, right? Like he, he knew what he was doing and it, it's very, very powerful to me.
00:45:13
Speaker
And it's, it's odd in the sense that there is no other movie quite like this. I've also read the little mermaid story and it's much darker than the movie, obviously, but it's, it's equally powerful when you know both. Yeah.
00:45:28
Speaker
Because what what she does and what she sacrifices, like the the the the prickle, awful of her feet and having to to to deal with that pain of the sacrifice she had to make to become human, all this other stuff. And and the the love she feels for this guy who never in the in the story never really reciprocates. Never really loves her back. Yeah. But in in in the movie, it there is that, but there's also like, ah like I said, there's a yearning. Part of your world is, it's a very, very, very powerful song for people like me, or at least for me.
00:46:11
Speaker
And I sing along with it. I cry with it. And it's not about a mermaid trying to be human. It's about yearning to be part of a world that you can never quite be part of.
00:46:23
Speaker
Yeah. There is no way to do it, no matter how much you want to. Even if you're early and you've managed to do hormone replacement or do some sexual reassignment surgery or whatever, even then, if you're doing it, maybe if you do it early enough, but then there's trade-offs to that too. you know they're You're just never going to get there. And that's partly that's partly what Little Mermaid does for me. And it makes me feel good.
00:46:55
Speaker
In a weird kind of I'm being seen way. Yeah. And that's why it's different. Yeah. yeah Yeah.
00:47:07
Speaker
i I absolutely see how how that translates. um I mean, a grow ah for me, growing up with that movie, i I always went to that same place of just her wanting that feeling of belonging. And, you know, like even before she approaches the idea of becoming human, like she still expresses that, that desire to go beyond her status quo. Like there she is, is not quite right.
00:47:46
Speaker
Exactly. Exactly. And, and yeah, that's, that's a very beautiful sentiment. I like that. And I got to meet Jody Benson once and it was really cool. I have signature and all that stuff, but, um, final couple that are odd, odd ones out are best in show.
00:48:08
Speaker
They don't really fit. That doesn't really fit into the any of the other categories, but it makes me laugh. And it also has this feeling of of um like this ensemble feeling of meta about it that makes me feel good. Like, oh, my God, you know, we're we're watching these people, these actors work together, improvise together to create something That is funny and intelligent and like it's it's much more than just a movie.
00:48:40
Speaker
it's it's It's a collaboration. And that's what makes me feel good about it. It's not just what's happening on screen. It's what happens between the actors on screen. Right? And then the last one is Forrest Gump. And Forrest Gump for me, it has elements of romance. Uh-huh.
00:49:00
Speaker
part of Part of why I mention it is not only is it just extraordinarily well done, sort of an epic story through the lens of this guy. It's fascinating. and And the real, what it hits for me, and it's the same thing with watching Tom Hanks and Captain Phillips, which is the acting of Tom Hanks in certain points.
00:49:24
Speaker
yeah and And this is where movies that have like some of my favorite actors come up, like Boogie Nights or Magnolia or some of these other moments where these acting moments happen where I'm just like, oh my God.
00:49:38
Speaker
Forrest Gump has one when he's talking at Jenny's grave. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Captain Phillips has one between him and the military doctor or the yeah first aid person who's there with. I'm just I'm floored by the performance of it.
00:49:57
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. You know, and it hits Forrest Gump at the grave site. He's just, oh, he's so smart, Jenny. You know, it's just it hits your heart so hard. And then the feather thing. love That made me tear up. You just saying it made me tear up. I love the bookmarks of the of the feather coming down with the music that by Alan Silvestri that I mean, it's brilliant.
00:50:23
Speaker
Yeah. It's brilliant. And it's it's not just Tom Hanks. It's Robert Zemeckis. It's a whole army of people who made this happen. And that's why yeah love Forrest Gump.
00:50:37
Speaker
Yeah. So good. That's my last one. Okay.
Listener Engagement
00:50:42
Speaker
So the last one on my feel-good movie list is Julie and Julia.
00:50:51
Speaker
is I thought about it. Did you? Oh gosh, I love that movie so much. ah as As a foodie, food. There is the expression i love food i there is the expression That happens throughout that movie, seeing, you know, a dramatization of the portrayal of Julia Child's life.
00:51:20
Speaker
And then the experience of this woman decades later that is going through her cookbook and just basically living vicariously through food is so purely beautiful to me. hmm.
00:51:38
Speaker
And the acting is phenomenal. The the emotion is there. And, like, you know, anytime there is, you know, one of the scenes where... Because Julia Child, she struggled with infertility and and and loss and everything.
00:51:55
Speaker
And the moments where, like, she sees... um a mom or a family and they're pushing a baby in a pram or when she gets the letter from her sister and her sister's pregnant. And like, again, these women are in their forties.
00:52:12
Speaker
And so even still, that would have been tough, but like the emotional weight That Stanley Tucci's character, he plays Charlie, her Julia Child's husband.
00:52:25
Speaker
The emotional weight that he just takes on for her so that she can feel that without feeling ashamed of feeling that. Mm-hmm.
00:52:36
Speaker
While also supporting her and validating. Oh my gosh. It's just so good. And you know, the food on top of it, just it's ah so good.
00:52:52
Speaker
One of my absolute favorite movies. um It is my airplane movie. Anytime I, anytime I fly, that is what I'm watching. Okay. Yeah, that it's it's been my airplane movie for years.
00:53:07
Speaker
Yeah, my favorite scene is the letter when the letter arrives. Oh, that's so good. And she's just, oh, I'm so happy for them. So happy. And Stanley Tucci knows better. He's like, I know.
00:53:19
Speaker
i and But that's the thing. She genuinely is. correct yeah She genuinely is happy for her sister. But in the same set, like in that same sentence, she is breaking. She's just like, why, why, why can't I have this? This is the thing. This is the thing that I've wanted for so long. Why can't I have this?
00:53:39
Speaker
And then, It just works that she puts all of her energy and all of her efforts into this book because it becomes just a masterpiece.
00:53:52
Speaker
And it's it's beautiful. It's a beautiful story. Excellently well done. There's great drama on both sides. And it's it's so good. Yeah. And that one hurt hit me because Boof and couldn't have kids and we yeah we had to go through all that.
00:54:10
Speaker
Yeah. Had to go through all that. And it was, you know, finally coming to the blissfully childless conclusion took a little while. Yeah. It took a little while. Yeah.
00:54:22
Speaker
But yeah, so that one, that one speaks to me too. Yeah. I don't know that I would put it on a feel good movie list though. That's why I didn't. But it is very powerful.
00:54:34
Speaker
I think it's feel good for me because it it falls into like a category of comfort food. Yeah. In a weird way.
00:54:44
Speaker
well you know, we... Yammered for a while. I don't know. We did. Hopefully people will ah find find their own feel-good movies to share with us because I'm sure they'll be different. Yeah.
00:54:59
Speaker
Yeah. Because I feel like I'm odd in that way. And I'm not. Yeah. but
00:55:13
Speaker
Thanks for hanging out with us. Whether you're behind the screen, at the table, or lost in your own story, we hope you found a little inspiration. If you enjoy our tangents, be sure to connect with us on Discord and follow us on socials to keep the conversation going.
00:55:26
Speaker
Until next time.
00:55:39
Speaker
I was just going to say, if you're in our Discord, if you're in the Tabletop Tangents general chat, put your top three. Give us your top three feel-good movies, and we'll we'll continue the discussion there.