Happy Groundhog Day!

According to Punxsutawney Phil, we are to see an early spring. In my opinion, it really doesn't matter. We will either see Spring come in 6 weeks or Winter will be with us another 6 weeks...kinda silly I must say.

This holiday is one of the many holidays that people decide to make movies. For example, today, many people will probably watch the comedic Bill Murray live the same day over and over again in Groundhog Day. I do like this movie, and it is one of the better ones that revolves themselves around a specific day. There are also some other notable ones, including Gary Marshall's duo of movies Valentines Day and New Years Eve. I prefer New Years Eve over Valentines Day because I think it had better acting and a story line, but I also might prefer it because I'm not the biggest fan of Valentines Day in general. Something about too much pink and PDA, who knows. I'll let you all decide for yourselves. 

Some other notable films include the action packed Independence Day, which is one of my favorites. Will Smith definitely brings a humor factor to this film and Bill Pullman adds the drama factor with his ever famous speech before the soldiers fly out to battle. "Today We Celebrate Our Independence Day". What impressed me a lot was the special effects in this movie. I forgot that it came out in 1996, way before a lot of more CGI intense movies came out. I give them props for this movie.

Then you have the ever long list of movies that revolve around Christmas and the Holiday Season. Home for the Holidays, Die Hard, Gremlins, A Christmas Story, The Holiday, How the Grinch Stole Christmas...and the list goes on and on. Even Pokemon has a Christmas movie...what is this world coming to? I ask myself this on a daily basis...

Probably one of my favorite holidays that movies surround themselves in Halloween. Most of the time the movies are not that scary and probably more humorous than anything. But I think it is interesting that each year someone tries to come out with a new movie that is to scare the pants off of you and it never seems to happen that way. I prefer the Halloween themed ones, such as Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas which can go either for Halloween or Christmas. It's one of those special movies! But I do also like the classic scary movies like M. Night Shyamalan's The Sixth Sense, Signs, and The Village. Those are the type of scary movies I like.

There are so many others that I could have covered, but we could be here all afternoon. As always, I ask a question to get your comments flowing. What is your favorite holiday movie? What is it about it that makes it great? Are there any that shouldn't have been made? 

Let's face it, it's all about the scores...

Behind every great movie, there is fantastic and mesmerizing score. The music is what brings the entire movie together. Just imagine if movies didn't have any music in the background at all. It would be entirely depressing. The scores are usually memorable and you find yourself whistling or humming it without noticing, I know I do. The music helps portray the emotions, much more than the actors ever could. You don't even need any words, the music is that powerful. Now let's talk about some of the greats and a few of my favorites:

John Williams. What is there to say about John Williams? Genius. Master. Exquisite. He is probably one of the greatest movie composers of all time. Ranging from the theme from Star Wars to Jaws to Harry Potter, John has done some of the most outstanding movies of all time. He has a special gift with the music to know what is perfect in each scene. What I love most about him, is how he has teamed up with Steven Spielberg for numerous films, movies such as Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Jaws, and War Horse. It's great how two people can come together and make such a masterpiece.

Hans Zimmer. When I think of Hans Zimmer, I immediately think action and adventure. With films like Pirates of the Caribbean, Inception, Sherlock Holmes, and The Dark Knight, he knows how to make each scene engaging and keep you on the edge of your seat. You feel swept away into the different worlds just by the music alone. The music from Sherlock Holmes especially. There is a uniqueness to the sound and approach to each section of the score. Hans is definitely one of the more quirky composers. Also, random fact, did you know that he composed the opening music for ABC World News?

Howard Shore. Four words. Lord of the Rings Trilogy. The scores for these movies are probably my most favorite scores of all time. They are so iconic, beautiful, and bring you to the fantasy that is Middle Earth. I think that it is safe enough to say that everyone loves it. I know there might be other scores he has composed, but none of which that can compare to Lord of the Rings. If you have not seen the movie, I highly advise it. You won't regret it if you have any love for music.

Danny Elfman. Another composer that likes to team up with his favorite director. Danny Elfman and Tim Burton have worked on a plethora of films together and I have seen almost all of them. Tim and Danny have to probably be my favorite duo, with John and Steven at a close second. These two really seem to understand each other when creating a film together. From beautifully written musical-bound songs from the Nightmare Before Christmas to the dark, to the eerie scores from Sleepy Hollow, Danny has created a place for himself as one of the best composers and one of my all time favorites.

Each of these composers and their music have made their places in movie history. They really know how to make each moment just right. Now that I've shared some of my favorite composers, what are some that come to your minds?

Want more info? IMDB also has their list of The Greatest Film Composers of All Time: http://www.imdb.com/list/FoiEz6pJZ6w/

Hi My Name is Ariel and I am addicted to Movies

So recently, I got the inspiration to start writing a blog. In a career seminar, I was told "enhance your social media footprint" and make a blog that you can see yourself becoming an industry expert in. While, I'll never be an industry expert, movies are just one of my passions. No, I'm not a director or a producer, I am simply a lover of movies and enjoy the company of a great movie. Movies are full of emotions, I love to cry, laugh, and be on the edge of my seat all at the same time. Movies to me are an escape from reality, an addiction, a mental break from the chaos we call the world. So my purpose of this blog is to share my love of movies with the world. As Audrey Hepburn once said, "Everything I learned I learned from movies". So please join me if you would like as we learn together what movies do for our lives everyday.