I love crafting song mixes, so when I saw this blog-a-thon hosted by Andy at Fandango Groovers Movie Blog, I knew I’d want to participate. I already made one mix but I couldn’t help making another because I loved the concept so much.
Here is the concept behind the blogathon:
Mixtapes are most relevant when shared, to give someone a collection of songs, some they will know, others they don’t but will come to love is a true gift. The best mixes are of songs that are completely unconnected but fit together perfectly. So how does this translate to movies? The idea behind Mixtape Movies is to compile a list of movies that fit together. There are no hard and fast rules but here are my guidelines:
A selection of movies with no direct connection (star, director, source material) but that fit together or compliment each other.
Around six movies, five plus one wildcard (a movie that doesn’t quite fit but still belongs).
My inspiration for this list started with the idea of doing a female movie character driven mix. Then when I started thinking of ideas, I realized a great focus would be movies that are named after the female lead character. There are plenty of great options but I narrowed it down to 5 women that are all fairly different from films I really enjoy along with one wildcard that almost fits the bill.
Mixtape Runtime: 708 minutes/11 hours & 48 minutes
Juno – This story about teenage pregnancy could have been after school special material if it wasn’t for Jason Reitman’s assured direction, Diablo Cody’s zippy dialogue, and most importantly Ellen Page’s Academy Award nominated performance as the lead character. She completely sells the dialogue and makes you feel for her every step of the way. She’s damn funny but throughout reveals her hard sides and soft ones.
Amélie – Audrey Tautou is stellar as the titular character here. The tale is so whimsical and charming that the lead has to radiate those qualities and she does entirely. She’s reserved and introverted at the beginning of this film, but as she begins an adventure and falls in love she does her best to impact the lives around her with the meaningful gestures.
Jackie Brown – Playing easily the most badass female on this list, Pam Grier gives a stand out performance as Jackie Brown. In the Tarantino world, she stands aside Beatrix Kiddo & Shoshanna as his three best female characters (right?). All of the men around her think they are in charge of the situation, but all along it’s Jackie who is pulling the strings in this crime film.
Annie Hall – While Woody is the main character, Diane Keaton certainly makes the film as the female lead and his love interest. She’s a bit of an oddball, but she’s funny and bright. I absolutely love the scene where she sings in the night club for the most part because you really think you know the character at that point. But in that scene a whole other side comes to light and you realize just how complex she is.
Sabrina – A great classic romantic comedy helps to fill out this list of very different women. I am referring to the Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, & William Holden version, of course. It’s a sort of ugly duckling tale (not that Audrey Hepburn could ever be considered ugly) about a girl who leaves her home an wallflower and returns an enchanting woman. It has the classic set up of the romantic lead thinking she really wants one person, only to find she’s better suited for another but it’s quite delightful.
Rebecca – The reason this is the perfect wildcard is because the title character isn’t actually in the film, but informs the events that take place. The female lead is actually unnamed throughout, but is forced to live up to Rebecca, the dead wife of her new husband. It’s Hitchcock so you know there is a great mystery to be solved here, and it all deals with the truth behind this woman everyone cherished so much that she even named the movie.
Hope you liked my mixtape! What would you add?
Check out the other participant’s movie mixtapes here.