I want to be honest, this post is almost entirely an excuse for me to draw some of my favourite film characters. But this is my blog and I’ll make what I want to. So, in the same spirit as my podcast posters, I’ve done a small series of portraits of characters from four of the films I’ve watched the most.
I’m a bit of a serial film rewatcher, there’s just something so comforting about a rewatch, so this definitely isn’t the entire list (there are a load of romcoms that should be in here) but these are the four which came to mind first. If there are any on this list you haven’t seen, they’re all quite different, but all come highly recommended by me and the fact I’ve seen them all at least 5 times.
La la land
I know La La Land only came out quite recently, but that didn’t stop me pretty much putting it on repeat as soon as it was released on Netflix in the UK. I’m a sucker for a musical, and have always been, as you’ll see with one of my later picks. So, when you combine some Gene Kelly-esque magic, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone trying to fulfil their creative dreams you’re always going to be onto a winner for me. I may or may not have cried the first time (and every other time I’ve seen it) at the scene outside Mia’s childhood home. The position of this one has certainly been boosted by the number of times I’ve listened to the sound track. If you need to put some pep in your step on your morning commute, Another Day of Sun usually does the trick for me.
Garden State
This was the film that introduced me to The Shins, which I always feel is kind of shameful til I realise I watched it in 2006 and I was 13. It’s my favourite of a whole group of films all about the ways in which we isolate ourselves, and why should reach out and actually feel. I think it was a film that came to me at just the right moment, and has continued to comfort me in those moments when I want to tap out and detach myself from everything. It’s also one of only perhaps two films I’ve watched with the director’s commentary.
Bedknobs & broomsticks
Bedknobs & Broomsticks was my favourite film as a child (along with Spy Kids – the first one) so I’ve been rewatching this since I was probably about 5. It’s got a wonderful mix of romance, Angela Lansbury, adventure, mild peril, magic, cockney accents and animated animals, all of the keys to a great children’s movie. Plus, it’s got some darn catchy songs – bobbin’ along anyone? I’m always torn between wanting someone to remake it to introduce it to a new generation, and my love for the 1970s (I know I’m a 90s baby but still) grain and animation which just wouldn’t translate in the same way in 2018.
Die hard
I love Die Hard. I have no shame. I love it. It is a great piece of cinema. I’ve seen all of the entire series (apart from 5) multiple times, but I’ve gone classic with this illustration with our introduction to the badass that is John Maclane and his ever-white vest in the original Die Hard. I’m not sure there’s anything more I can say, other than Yippee Kay-yay.
