Papa B.’s Favorite Movies

My dad is my guest blogger today. He's a big film buff especially of World War II era films but watches a lot of other films too. Anyway, he sent me an article from Deseret News listing the five movies you must see.

My Dad:

Last week I saw an article in the "Deseret News" about their favorite movies and like most lists they list them in order which movies they prefer. I do not know how people can make a list and say this is my favorite movies listing them in order. I have many movies in which I think are my favorite. I was talking to my daughter about those movies and she asked me to come up with a list from the Top 100 from Filmsite.org the article referred and a synopsis about each movie.

Below is a list of my favorite movies, but not in order of which ones I think are the best. I think that is impossible to classify which is the best movie of all the millions of movies made:

1. "To Hell and Back" with Audie Murphy The true WWII story of Audie Murphy, the most decorated soldier in U.S. history. Based on the autobiography of Audie Murphy who stars as himself in the film.

2. "It Happened One Night"with Claudett Corbert and Clark Gable The story centers around an heiress, played by Colbert who runs out on her father when he won't allow her to marry the man she wants. She is attempting to get from Miami to New York where she will meet her husband to be. Gable plays a newspaper man who follows her and promises to help her. Not knowing he is after her story for a scoop, she agrees. Of course they fall in love while on the road which produces two very famous scenes. The walls of Jericho, where Gable divides their beds by a blanket was considered very daring at the time. The other famous scene, the leg is mightier then the thumb, is while they are hitchhiking where Colbert gets to show not only her shapely legs, but her comedic skills to perfection. Gables undressing scene is something not be be missed for any Gable fan!

3. "Forrest Gump" with Tom Hanks Directed by Robert Zemeckis. Starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise. Forrest Gump, while not intelligent, has accidentally been present at many historic moments, but his true love, Jenny, eludes him.

4. "A League of Their Own" Directed by Penny Marshall. Starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna. Two sisters join the first female professional baseball league and struggle to help it succeed amidst their own growing rivalry.

5. Hoosiers Directed by David Anspaugh. Starrin

g Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey, Dennis Hopper. A coach with a checkered past and a local drunk train a small town high school basketball team to become a top contender for the championship.

6. "Patton" with George C. Scott Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner. Starring George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Morgan Paull. The World War II phase of the controversial American general's career is depicted.

7. "To Kill a Mocking Bird" Directed by Robert Mulligan. Starring Gregory Peck, Frank Overton, Brock Peters. Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the Depression-era South, defends a black man against an undeserved rape charge, and his kids against prejudice.

8. "North West by North West" Directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason. A hapless New York advertising executive is mistaken for a government agent by a group of foreign spies, and is pursued across the country ...

9. "Mr. Roberts" Directed by John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy. Starring Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell. Comedy-drama about life on a not particularly important ship of the US Navy during WW2.

10. "Since you went away" with Claudett Corbert The film was produced by David O. Selznick and attempts to capture a typical American home and how the family is impacted by the head, Mr. Hilton going off to war. Colbert plays Mrs. Hilton who is mother to two teenager daughters played by Jennifer Jones and Shirley Temple.

11. "The Fighting Sullivans" Directed by Lloyd Bacon. Starring Anne Baxter, Thomas Mitchell, Ward Bond. The Fighting Sullivans (1944). This story is about five brothers who grew up Waterloo, Iowa and joined the navy right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor

12. "Drums along the Mohawk" Directed by John Ford. Starring Claudette Colbert, Henry Fonda, John Carradine. Before the Revolutionary War farmer Martin brings bride Magdelana the Mohawk Valley where they are burned out by Indians..

13. "So Proudly we Hail" Directed by Mark Sandrich. Starring Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, Veronica Lake. A group of nurses returning from the war in the Phillippines recall their experiences in combat and in love.

14. "Three Came Home" Directed by Jean Negulesco. Starring Claudette Colbert, Sessue Hayakawa, Patric Knowles. The true story of Agnes Newton Keith's imprisonment in several Japanese prisoner-of-war camps from 1941 to the end of WWII...

15. "Mc Clintock" Directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. Starring John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Patrick Wayne. Cattle baron George Washington McLintock fights his wife, his daughter, and political land-grabbers, finally "taming" them all.

Me: I'd agree with the films on this list I've seen but there's a few I'm not sure if I've watched before (12, 13, and 14). Claudette Colbert? Looks like she's a favorite on the favorite list.

*Seven Things I'm Grateful for today:

1) Eucalyptus

2)Not one, but two humidifiers.

3) Figuring out what my body needs to get over this bronchitis/sinus infection which meant I let myself drink a gallon of milk in three days by myself. What do I think about that? Moo.

4) Kind friends and people in my church congregation.

5) A tithing settlement where I never actually declared my tithing. Instead, I got a great analogy likening my ward (church congregation) to an African herd of animals---which was kind of awesome.

*I turn 34 in a little over a month-so every day before the big day I'm making a list of things I'm grateful for....not to remind you constantly of my birthday, but so I'll be in the proper mindset of getting older. Or more likely, once I turn 34 I'll be so happy not to make this list anymore, that I won't think much about the birthday. :)