The Resident Bitch Prepares for... the Most Recent MoFo Countdown

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Vicky, have you seen Dancer in the Dark? Not sure how much you'd be into it, but most of the musical numbers occur in the protagonist's head as opposed to the traditional "breaking out in song" element, so I'm not sure if this would pique your interests. That said, I might nominate it in the group watch thread.
It’s on my watchlist but I’m on the fence about actually watching it because I’ve heard it’s really depressing.



Dancer in the Dark is a movie that will be most enjoyable for those who are big fans of Lars von Trier and his Dogme 95-influenced films

And yes most people find it rather grim



My main problem with Dancer in the Dark wasn't that it was depressing, but rather that it was too long and got kind of frustratingly contrived in the last 40 minutes or so.

That said, it's a unique film that features an absolutely incredible lead performance from Bjork and really solid supporting performances from everyone else in the cast.

And it's hard to describe, because it's depressing, but it's right on this line of being just very darkly comedic. As in, everything that's sad in the film also feels like it's meant to be a joke.

I do think that you can watch about 20 minutes of it and either get a sense that you want to see where it goes, or that you're like "Yeah, no thanks!".





Death To Smoochy
(Danny DeVito, 2002)

Well the shitshow parade that has been my week kept right on marching today and pushed me damn near the point of mental breakdown (or at least nearly to the point of rage-quitting my job) so when I got home I had absolutely zero desire to watch anything for this countdown, especially after last night's disastrous foray outside of my cinematic comfort zone.

So instead, I sat down to one of my all time favorite comedies: Death To Smoochy - a tale of greed, sex, drugs, corruption, and murder in the children's entertainment industry, starring an incredible cast of gifted actors. And as I laughed my ass off over and over again, I came to the realization that, while I'd never seen this movie discussed as a musical or ever considered it to be a musical myself, the cast of Smoochy sing and dance more times in this film than those in a lot of the movies I've seen that are considered musicals. I mean, after all, "Friends Come In All Sizes," "We'll Get You Off That Smack Oh Yes We Will," "Rainbow Randolph Is the Man, Yes Oh Yes He is," and "My Step-Dad's Not Mean He's just Adjusting," right? So f*** it, I say it counts.

Also, holy shit did I need this relief tonight.





The Resident Bitch Prepares For
The Most Recent MoFo Countdown


I've done individual threads for my preparations for a few of the previous countdowns and I wanted a place to organize my thoughts for the musicals countdown. However, I didn't want to dedicate a thread just to musicals so I figured I'd just make one thread to use for all future countdowns. The first few posts will just be reposts from the Rate The Last Movie You Watched thread.

**PLEASE READ BEFORE MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS**
Since apparently my previous statement wasn't clear enough for some people, if you want to give me recommendations you can. HOWEVER, if I tell you that I'm not interested in a particular movie, then drop the subject. Please do not spam this thread with multiple posts about movies I have no interest in watching. If you want to campaign for your favorites, great but go make your own thread for that.

Also: If a musical that you like is not animated and was released before the 1980s, you probably shouldn't bother suggesting it to me because I'm probably not going to watch it. Click here for an example of what I think of classic musicals.

Addendum: I didn’t think this needed to be said, but this thread is for MOVIES only. A recording of a stage production is not a movie. Even if it’s professionally recorded, it’s not a movie. Even if it was released in movie theaters, it’s not a movie. I have nothing against movies that are adapted from stage plays, but I’m not going to watch an actual play. I don’t think stage musicals are eligible for the musicals countdown anyway, but even if they are I’m not going to vote for them so don’t bother suggesting them.

Additionally: Concert documentaries are definitely NOT eligible, so don't suggest them either.


I've compiled a watchlist on LetterBoxd if you would like to see what I might be reviewing next.


* * *

INDEX:

Musicals/Music:
The Aristocats
The Bodyguard
Cry-Baby
Death To Smoochy
Follow That Bird
La La Land
The Little Mermaid
Little Shop Of Horrors
Muppet Treasure Island
Oliver & Company
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street


You do not know how many bonus points you've gotten mentioning Follow that Bird. At least 10,000.


I adore Muppet Treasure Island! But none of the others? I'm a Muppets superfan, and it feels like at least two more should be on the list. (Original and Christmas Carol).


Nightmare Before Christmas?

South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut?
Mary Poppins?
Beauty and the Beast? (Disney, either animated or live action, they both have merit)
Lion King (animated only)
Rocky Horror Picture Show?



You do not know how many bonus points you've gotten mentioning Follow that Bird. At least 10,000.
It’s been almost a week since I rewatched that and The Grouch Anthem is still stuck in my head.

I adore Muppet Treasure Island! But none of the others? I'm a Muppets superfan, and it feels like at least two more should be on the list. (Original and Christmas Carol).
Here’s the thing: Sesame Street was a big part of my early childhood but The Muppet Show was not. I watched it occasionally as a kid, but it was never a favorite. So Follow That Bird has a huge dose of nostalgia on its side, but non-Sesame Street Muppets don’t. I don’t have any plans to rewatch any other Muppet films.

Nightmare Before Christmas?
It’s on the watchlist I posted, but there’s no doubt that I’m gonna vote for it so rewatching it is not a priority.

South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut?
I didn’t like the South Park show and I don’t like the South Park movie.

Mary Poppins?
I didn’t even really like that movie when I was a kid. There is no way in hell I’m going to like it now.

Beauty and the Beast? (Disney, either animated or live action, they both have merit)
I do not like either version of Stockholm Syndrome: The Movie and I’m not watching them again.

Lion King (animated only)
I’ve watched this movie several times and I’ve hated it every time. It’s not getting another chance.

Rocky Horror Picture Show?
I discussed this one earlier in the thread. I’ve seen it twice. Tim Curry’s performance is phenomenal but I don’t like anything else about the movie.



It’s been almost a week since I rewatched that and The Grouch Anthem is still stuck in my head.


Here’s the thing: Sesame Street was a big part of my early childhood but The Muppet Show was not. I watched it occasionally as a kid, but it was never a favorite. So Follow That Bird has a huge dose of nostalgia on its side, but non-Sesame Street Muppets don’t. I don’t have any plans to rewatch any other Muppet films.


It’s on the watchlist I posted, but there’s no doubt that I’m gonna vote for it so rewatching it is not a priority.


I didn’t like the South Park show and I don’t like the South Park movie.


I didn’t even really like that movie when I was a kid. There is no way in hell I’m going to like it now.


I do not like either version of Stockholm Syndrome: The Movie and I’m not watching them again.


I’ve watched this movie several times and I’ve hated it every time. It’s not getting another chance.



I discussed this one earlier in the thread. I’ve seen it twice. Tim Curry’s performance is phenomenal but I don’t like anything else about the movie.

Oh well. You still bank 10,000 points.



... the drought ending with the magnificent Frozen. (Try watching it without kids around, as the first time I saw it, the two little chatterboxes I was with didn't stop talking for one second, and I could barely keep up with what was happening.)
Sorry the way I worded that was misleading. The first time I saw it, I watched it alone. Partway through, I paused it and started drinking to see if alcohol would improve the experience. It did not.

I think the children had already seen it at that point so I'd already been subjected to their terrible rendition of that song, but having to hear it over and over again after seeing the movie just cemented my hatred of it. Then my friend played for them another "Elsa" (Idina Menzel) song called "Defying Gravity" - and I got to hear that shit be belted out by the kids over and over in between "Let It Go." Needless to say I will NOT be watching the Wicked movie. Also I hate The Wizard of Oz anyway so even without having been subjected to "Defying Gravity" I wouldn't want to watch it.

Mary Poppins has problems, most notably the interminable animated sequence, but is otherwise among the handful of truly great Disney live-action flicks.
Its biggest problem for me is that it's a musical from the 1960s.

Also, while Peter O'Phallus is a scary, creepy guy onscreen (even before his face started melting), you're missing out on at least a half dozen treasures of cinema by avoiding him.
Unless those "treasures of cinema" involve him doing voice acting, I'm not watching them. Because the only performance of his I've seen and liked was Anton Ego in Ratatouille - where I didn't have to see his ugly mug.



Have you seen Ladybug & Cat Noir?






I can let you use my password!

Oh wait... they don't let people do that anymore





Repo! The Genetic Opera
(Darren Lynn Bousman, 2008)

I didn't really know anything about this movie going into it, but it was suggested to me by a couple of MoFos who are familiar with my tastes so I decided to give it a try.

Having seen it now, I have to say that it actually has a lot going for it. I thought the story was really interesting, the performances were pretty good, and, like Sweeney Todd, I really liked the gothic look of the film. Unfortunately, like Sweeney Todd, I also hated the songs. Like really hated the songs - especially Shilo's "Seventeen" which had me physically cringing - and my patience with that aspect of it had really started to wear thin by the movie's end. And whereas Sweeney Todd had the benefit of Johnny Depp, Repo! has... Paris Hilton? Ugh.

Still, I didn't hate the movie and I do think that the positive aspects of it outweigh the negative, but only by a little.






Repo! The Genetic Opera
(Darren Lynn Bousman, 2008)

Still, I didn't hate the movie and I do think that the positive aspects of it outweigh the negative, but only by a little.

I think I liked it a little less than you did. My review is HERE. Like I wrote in my review, the amount of talk-singing really grated on me.





Repo! The Genetic Opera
(Darren Lynn Bousman, 2008)

I didn't really know anything about this movie going into it, but it was suggested to me by a couple of MoFos who are familiar with my tastes so I decided to give it a try.

Having seen it now, I have to say that it actually has a lot going for it. I thought the story was really interesting, the performances were pretty good, and, like Sweeney Todd, I really liked the gothic look of the film. Unfortunately, like Sweeney Todd, I also hated the songs. Like really hated the songs - especially Shilo's "Seventeen" which had me physically cringing - and my patience with that aspect of it had really started to wear thin by the movie's end. And whereas Sweeney Todd had the benefit of Johnny Depp, Repo! has... Paris Hilton? Ugh.

Still, I didn't hate the movie and I do think that the positive aspects of it outweigh the negative, but only by a little.



I love that bizarre movie, despite its many flaws. It's too strange not to. To make things stranger, it's actually loosely based on the real life Borgia family, which peaked with its patriarch becoming pope, and his children being extremely violent and/or insane.


The highlights are definitely the songs and narrator. I sometimes sing "It's a Thankless Job" to myself while I work.





Black Snake Moan
(Craig Brewer, 2006)

Black Snake Moan's advertising campaign (and the images from it found around the web) would have you believe that this is some sort of interracial bondage porn between an old man and a young woman, but that's not at all what this is. Instead what you get is a really sweet and moving story about trauma, friendship, and redemption. Sure it has a lot of sex and a good portion of it features Samuel L. Jackson chaining a half naked Christina Ricci up to a radiator while he Samuel L. Jacksons all over the motherf***ing place, but it really is a story about two broken people who come together as friends and help each other overcome their own personal pain.

And while this certainly is not a musical with a capital M, music is a big part of its story and its themes. Samuel L. Jackson gives a very convincing performance in four songs as bluesman Lazarus and in two rather poignant scenes Ricci's Rae treats us to "This Little Light of Mine." S. Epatha Merkerson also sings one song as supporting character Angela, though popstar Justin Timberlake has no songs in his performance as Rae's boyfriend Ronnie.

Black Snake Moan has been a favorite movie of mine since the very first time I saw it and at one time it held a spot in my personal top ten. I added it to my watchlist for this countdown mainly as an excuse to watch it, but I also did so not thinking there was anywhere near enough focus on music to seriously consider giving it a vote. But now it's definitely a contender.






Miss Vicky, what sort of music do you like?
Mostly classic rock from artists that became famous in the 70s and 80s. Favorite artists would be Tom Petty and Lindsey Buckingham. Also like some pop music and some alternative rock.



Mostly classic rock from artists that became famous in the 70s and 80s. Favorite artists would be Tom Petty and Lindsey Buckingham. Also like some pop music and some alternative rock.
Just out of curiosity, have you seen Phantom of the Paradise? (And if so, what was your take on it?) I was considering recommending it and was shocked to see that IMDb doesn't classify it as a musical.



Just out of curiosity, have you seen Phantom of the Paradise? (And if so, what was your take on it?) I was considering recommending it and was shocked to see that IMDb doesn't classify it as a musical.
I don’t think I never even heard of it until now. Looks interesting.