Forrest Gump (1994)

MIMDB score: 9.1
Current IMDB score: 8.8
Directory: Robert Zemeckis
Main Actors you care about:  Tom Hanks, Sally Field, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise

Disclaimer:  This is one of the best movies ever made.

Why I liked it:
Everything.  Forrest Gump is one of the best characters ever crafted.  He's "dumb" but not in any sense that matters.  He's slow but he's also fast.  He's so small but he plays such a large role in history.  The duality of this character has so many domains there could be a college class on everything that is going on with Forrest Gump.  The plot is fantastic, the acting is fantastic, the music is fantastic.  It also has philosophy thrown in it.  You should either be entertained or be entertained by the thoughts this movie provokes.  I don't know what else you would want in a movie.

This movie makes me want to live more.  This movie makes me want to start a business, cut grass, eat chocolates, sit on a bench all day just talking to random people, and then at the end write a book about my life.

What stands out:
The story.  The movie makes you want to be Forrest Gump even though he is institutionally considered below average.  He excels on all things without trying.  All he does is follow simple rules and does what others tell him.  People make life so much harder than it needs to be.  "But if I do this then I have to do that which means that to that person and . . . ."  It's tiresome to get into all the nuisances of life.  All you really need to do is cut grass and you will have a happy life. If that's how you view life.  If you view life as this complicated mess than you will have a complicated mess of a life.

If people paid attention (even) more to any medium of art then their lives might be that much easier and better.  People get different things out of different pieces of art.  That might get into people seeing what they want but if you really look at movies like Forrest Gump your life should get better.  There are thought avenues to go down in this movie that should dictate how to live your life.  Just as an easy and light example if you are chasing some kids on a bike and throwing rocks at him you probably should realize that you are being mean for no good reason.  If you need to figure out what to do next in life just pick up a hobby like running or ask the people around you if they want to start a business.  Pay attention to what's going on around you and the decisions you are making instead of "operating on your default setting."

What I would change (if anything): Nothing, I wish Jenny would have figured her life out sooner but then the movie wouldn't have been as interesting. So again, nothing.
 
Favorite Line(s)/Scene: Forrest: "I don't know if Momma was right or if, if it's Lieutenant Dan. I don't know if we each have a destiny, or if we're all just floating around accidental-like on a breeze, but I, I think maybe it's both. Maybe both is happening at the same time." This is a fantastic quote.  It ties into his whole life as well as the beginning and end of the movie where you are following a feather float accidental-like on a breeze.

Of course: "Life's a box of chocolates, Forrest. You never know what you're gonna get." Countless others.

This scene is amazing.
Jenny: Were you scared in Vietnam?
Forrest: Yes. Well, I-I don't know. Sometimes it would stop raining long enough for the stars to come out... and then it was nice. It was like just before the sun goes to bed down on the bayou. There was always a million sparkles on the water... like that mountain lake. It was so clear, Jenny, it looked like there were two skies one on top of the other. And then in the desert, when the sun comes up, I couldn't tell where heaven stopped and the earth began. It's so beautiful.
Jenny: I wish I could've been there with you.
Forrest: You were.
Every girl I've loved I've had in my head with me since watching this movie.  I don't know love any other way.

Similar Movies/TV Shows: Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons, A River Runs Through It, Meet Joe Black, Big Fish

"Side" note: The bench scene is in Savannah Georgia.  The bench was made for the movie and was removed after shooting.  You can still visit the park and the statue behind Forrest in that scene though.

This is one of the first movies I saw without my parents in theaters at the age of about 9.  It's also one of the first movies I remember crying during.  I really think it should be watched alone unless, of course, you are lonely.

Interstellar (2014)

MIMDB score: 8.6
Current IMDB score: 8.8
Directory: Chistopher Nolan
Main Actors you care about:  Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, Matt Damon, Casey Afleck, John Lithgow, Topher Grace

Disclaimer:  I'm going to try and not be bias here as the concept of time is highly exciting to me.

Why I liked it:
The Science.  Granted there are a few things that aren't correct science-wise but not a huge deal.  Anytime a movie can disguise science as entertainment it makes me happy.  All the things in the "Side Note" section are super interesting things to think about. Physic in general is super fun to think about.  The main goal of any (non-romantic comedy) movie for me is to think about something differently or to think about something new that I haven't though of before.  Movies consistently give me that and this movie did that with physics and astronomy.

What stands out:
Music, Matthew McConaughey, and plot. Hanz Zimmer doesn't let me down as he yet again has a wonderful soundtrack.  The scene where McConaughey docks with a mostly out of control station is fantastic action in a science movie.  It is made so much more intense by Mr. Hanz Zimmer. Matthew McConaughey since True Detective has been killing it and this was no different.  Movies that deal with time travel that don't have events change makes we quite happy as I believe that's how time travel would work.

I think they nailed the child actor that played Casey Afleck.  Great casting and/or acting there.

What I would change (if anything): Only thing I don't overly like is Matt Damon turning on people.  I understand why he would signal them to come to his life to save himself but to try and kill people?  Come on!  I don't think a doctrine of any science field would try to kill any crew member the furthest away space mission the Earth has ever done.  I don't think that was believable and upset me.
I'm giving it an 8.6 because I don't think everyone wants to understand science.  Some people in life just want to enjoy the things on Earth and not really care about things outside of Earth since it doesn't affect their daily lives (which is a valid thought).
 
Least Favorite Line(s): "Murphy's Law: anything that can happen will happen."  I don't particular like Murphy's Law as I think there's a better idea.  The idea that anything that has a chance of happening will happen given a large enough sample size.  That means it's not surprising when some one wins the lottery when there are tons of times the lottery happens, people, and money.  It's not surprising that a bird poops on YOUR car when there are a ton of birds, cars, and time.  It's not surprising when life exists on Earth when there are ton of planets, time, and suns.  As long as life can happen it will happen (given enough time, space, and matter).  Now that doesn't mean ANYTHING that CAN happen WILL happen.  If only one person buys a lottery ticket once, or if only one bird exists, or if only one solar system exists then it probably won't happen.

Similar Movies/TV Shows: Gravity, Inception because Nolan does the "main plot lines climaxing at same time" thing.

"Side" note: "Time travel" exists.  As with most things it's not exactly how you would think it is.  Think of time travel as time accelerating or decelerating (relative to Earth's time).  We can move forward in time faster relative to Earth.  It's called relativity and it's what Einstein discovered in 1923 yet not everyone knows it yet.  The faster you move in a spaceship (or in anything) the faster time moves (It's called time dilation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_dilation).  So the idea of a "time machine" is really just a fast moving apparatus to make you move faster than people on Earth.  The people moving faster than Earth will be moving through time faster so they will be "traveling" through time.  Really though time is just moving faster.  We haven't come up with a way to move slower through time relative to Earth yet.  We don't know what happens in a Black Hole so it's the last place that going backward through time might be possible we think.  This movie capitalizes on that thought.