I came up with this meme over the course of the past few weeks. If you want to partake, there is a blank survey at the end of this meme, which is the requisite ~30 questions.

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Going to the movies!!!

1. Have a regular place that you go to the movies:

I usually go to a place called "Rave Motion Pictures." It's a relatively small chain that likes to cater to the college aged and younger crowd. The picture and sound quality are pretty good, and doesn't feel quite as impersonal as some of the bigger AMC/Cinemark chains.

2. Sit up front, in back, in middle:

I prefer to sit dead center, in the middle of the theater. Anya likes to sit up on the first row of the stadium section, the place right before you get to the floor rows. She likes to put her feet up on that bar, while I care more about better sound and picture quality.

3. What is your favorite movie snack:

I'm like my dad, in that I like the popcorn and milk dud combination. But truth be told, I don't really do movie snacks that much...unless it's a Bruckheimer movie.

4. Rent or go out:

I love going to the movies and taking in the communal response. But more and more, I'm getting sick of the buttheads who kick my seat, or answer their cell phones during the movie.

5. Midnight showings:

Only for movies that I love: Like the Spiderman movies, Star Wars, X-Men, the upcoming Superman etc.

6. Previews: Have to see em all, or don't mind missing one or two:

I'm like Woody Allen in "Annie Hall." If I don't see the previews, it doesn't feel like I went to the movies.

7. Prefer Indie or Popcorn flicks:

I'm a popcorn fan almost to a fault. But I do love to watch a well made indie movie. I'd see a lot more indie movies, but I live about an hour away from the closest indie movie house.

8. Favorite actor(s):

Johnny Depp
Geoffrey Rush
Denzel Washington
Al Pacino
Peter Sellers
Don Cheadle

9. Favorite actress(es):

Jodie Foster
Meryl Streep
Julianne Moore
Angelina Jolie

10. Favorite movie star(s):

Tom Hanks
Angelina Jolie
Brad Pitt

11. What was the greatest decade for movies:

The 90's. It had just as edgy movies as the 70's, and more overall variety.

12. Musicals: love 'em, or kill em like Roxy Hart:

Love them...usually. If the songs are right, they're hard to beat. Oddly enough, my favorite musicals are the unconventional gems "South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut" and "Dancer in the Dark"

13. Are there any movies, either theatrically or on VHS, that you prefer to watch at night, and only night:

The "Alien" movies (only the Ridley Scott and James Cameron ones)
Predator (pretty much any Schwarzenegger movie for that matter)
I prefer to watch the "Star Wars" movies at night.
anything that has nudity

14. When renting, or when you used to rent, how often did you get your movies back "on time":

Never, ever. I now own "The Motorcycle Diaries" and still have not seen it.

15. Are you more Luke Skywalker or Han Solo:

Luke Skywalker. Never a thought on where I am, what I am doing.
Plus, I'm not near cool enough to be Han.
And I whine a lot.

16. Do you like watching movies multiple times, or is once enough for you:

For most movies, once is enough. But I do own a pretty substantial collection of movies. The movie has to be really good and thought provoking for me to watch it multiple times.

17. Favorite on-screen kiss:

I like scene in "Raiders" where Karen Allen's kissing all of Indiana's injuries. Good stuff.

18. Favorite movie-line of all time:

"Meesa called Jar Jar Binks."

a close second is (actually a series of lines) "I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright. And when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up DOES rejoice. Still, the place you live in is that much more drab and empty that they're gone. I guess I just miss my friend." - The Shawshank Redemption

19. Favorite movie character that isn't a shade of color that we commonly see:

The Wicked Witch of the West
Yoda
the devil dude in "Legend"

20. Greatest action movie(s):

Face Off
The Killer
Aliens
Terminator 2

21. Greatest romantic movie(s):

"When Harry Met Sally"

22. Greatest horror movie(s):

in this order:
The Shining
The Exorcist
Night of the Living Dead
The Others
The Ring

23. Greatest comedy(ies):

Raising Arizona
Dumb and Dumber
Wet Hot American Summer
Office Space
The Big Lebowski

24. Greatest drama(s):

The Shawshank Redemption
The Godfather 1 and 2
Goodfellas
Taxi Driver
Schindler's List

25. Greatest movie hero(es)/heroine(s):

Luke Skywalker
Indiana Jones
Brody from Jaws
Superman
the Dude
Wolverine
Spiderman

26. Greatest villain(s):

Darth Vader
Saddam Hussein in "South Park"
Magneto
Agent Smith
"whitey" in "Malcolm X"

27. Greatest song/soundtrack for a movie:

Boogies Nights
E.T.
Goodfellas
Star Wars (the whole series)
Close Encounters
The Lord of the Rings soundtracks
Edward Scissorhands

28. James Bond or Indiana Jones:

Don't stone me, but as a hero, I have to go with James Bond on this one. There isn't a single Bond movie as great as the bookend Indiana Jones movies, but James Bond as a hero is where it's at. He's got the cool gadgets, toys, and the overall better stunts.

29. Politics and social causes in movies. Enjoy it or leave it at the theater door.

LOVE IT! Preferred actually.
Do the Right Thing, Network, The Insider, Wag the Dog, Hotel Rwanda are some examples of movies that did it the right way.

30. Favorite movie(s):

in this order:
E.T.
Star Wars (the series)
The Shawshank Redemption
Goodfellas
Lord of the Rings (the series)
Fight Club

Bonus Question:

B1. Do you prefer talking about a movie with someone right after you've seen it, or do you prefer to give it some time to stew:

There really isn't a time when I *don't* like talking about movies. I love talking about them right after I see them, but usually find that the best conversations are the ones that take place a couple days after having seen a movie.

B2. Write a movie review for your all time favorite movie:

E.T.

Some may stone me for saying this, but I think that "E.T." is Spielberg's best movie. With Spielberg's sensibilities as a film maker being on the, how should we say, sentimental side, his best work are his more lighthearted movies. As great as "Schindler's List" was, there is something about the ending that seems forced and false to me. If I were to list the Spielberg movies in order of his *best* work, I'm not even sure where "Schindler's List" would rank. But that's a different review, for a different time.

I'd be hard pressed to find a movie that hits on all the senses in the way that "E.T" does. It never ceases to amaze me to hear how people talk about "E.T." I know some people who cannot watch the movie because of how intensely frightening the opening scenes and the spaceman suit takeover are. There are some people whose face brightens up when they think of the exhileration the felt when watching that iconic shot of the bike in front of the moon. There are those whose face grows melancholy because they remember the last scene, and how it rips their heart out of their chests. Movie critics use the term "roller coaster ride" when they're talking about big budget action movies. Roller coasters are fun, sure, but roller coasters used to be more than just a 100% adrenaline ride, and were more about taking the great feelings of the highs, mixed with the sinking feeings of the lows. It's a combination of the two that makes a ride great, so that's why I say "E.T." is the pure definition of a roller coaster movie.

Henry Thomas as Elliot is probably the single greatest child acting performance I have ever seen. Like the movie, he really has to hit on all of the emotions in believable ways to be successful. I'd say the single greatest achievement of his acting, and this goes with all the child acting performances in the movie, is that they totally buy into E.T. being a real, living breathing creature. If Henry Thomas didn't buy into the creature being real, then the movie would have fallen hard.

The John Williams score is completely beautiful. The movie itself really does hit on all emotional cylinders, but it is the music that takes the movie into overdrive. The greatness of this soundtrack lies in Williams' ability to make beautiful music that carries the same amount of sadness as the movie itself. While the movie could have gotten really bogged down with emotional content, Williams was able to keep it wistful enough to keep the movie soaring amongst the stars.

The movie only works because it takes the moments of exhileration, and couples them with moments of heavy gravity. He'll have a scene of E.T. and Elliot flying over the moon, coupled with a scene of Elliot trying to convince E.T. to stay. He'll mix the frightening scene of the space suited men taking over a house, with a scene of Elliot and his friends taking E.T. away from danger. He'll mix that thrilling bike chase scene with the final scene, in which a friend learns about the true meaning of friendship and remembrance.

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1. Have a regular place that you go to the movies:

2. Sit up front, in back, in middle:

3. What is your favorite movie snack:

4. Rent or go out:

5. Midnight showings:

6. Previews: Have to see em all, or don't mind missing one or two:

7. Prefer Indie or Popcorn flicks:

8. Favorite actor(s):

9. Favorite actress(es):

10. Favorite movie star(s):

11. What was the greatest decade for movies:

12. Musicals: love 'em, or kill em like Roxy Hart:

13. Are there any movies, either theatrically or on VHS, that you prefer to watch at night, and only night:

14. When renting, or when you used to rent, how often did you get your movies back "on time":

15. Are you more Luke Skywalker or Han Solo:

16. Do you like watching movies multiple times, or is once enough for you:

17. Favorite on-screen kiss:

18. Favorite movie-line of all time:

19. Favorite movie character that isn't a shade of color that we commonly see:

20. Greatest action movie(s):

21. Greatest romantic movie(s):

22. Greatest horror movie(s):

23. Greatest comedy(ies):

24. Greatest drama(s):

25. Greatest movie hero(es)/heroine(s):

26. Greatest villain(s):

27. Greatest song/soundtrack for a movie:

28. James Bond or Indiana Jones:

29. Politics in movies. Enjoy it or leave it at the theater door.

30. Favorite movie(s):

Bonus Question:

B1. Do you prefer talking about a movie with someone right after you've seen it, or do you prefer to give it some time to stew:

B2. Write a review for your all time favorite movie.