So here it is, the conclusion to the proposed movie challenge. As a reminder, the post explaining the concept of this movie challenge is below. If you need a refresher, by all means, go and read that post. I'll be waiting, with spoilers of course...
12. 12 Angry Men (1957)
For the first film in this challenge, I chose the classic: 12 Angry Men to represent the 12th day. I did not know what to expect in watching this. I, of course, had heard of it but knew nothing about it, apart from an episode of Veronica Mars centering an episode around the plot. 12 Angry Men focuses on a court case trying a young man being accused of murdering his father. The majority of film is featured in the jurors' room, with nearly all of the men concluding that the defendent is guilty. Until one man speaks up and questions the evidence provided by the prosecution. Slowly, through his determination, arguing skills, and compassion, he is able to get the jury to see his way of thinking with some interesting conclusions forming. Overall, I found this movie riveting. I did not think I would since the film spends the majority of the time in one setting and I did not think 12 white men would have anything to impress me by. And yet, the arguments made by Henry Fonda's character can easily be applied to today's way of thinking. Fonda, of course, gave an incredible performance but all the actors portraying each jury member held their own, making even the angriest of them sympathetic. The pace was not at all slow, opposite to what I was expecting. Considering basically the whole film took place in the jurors' room, the pace did not drag.
I wholeheartedly enjoyed this film and I recommend it for those interested in character development and well-thought out arguments.
11. 11:14 (2003)
The next film on the list is 11:14 to represent the 11th day. I chose this film due to not wanting to be a cliche and re-watching Ocean's 11. I could have watched the original of that crime caper, but since I'm only realising that now, then onto my choice.11:14 follows the events leading up to a car crash that happens at, you guessed it, 11.14pm. The film shows the different perspectives of each character at around the same time. It starts with Jack, who is shown to be drinking and driving down an empty road. As the time changes to 11:14pm, something big lands on Jack's windscreen, which causes him to lose control of his car and onto the side of the road. From there, each character has their own story that all starts up at around the 11.14pm mark and the audience gets to see how each character is connected.
I really did not know what to expect going into this film (an occuring theme as I'm sure you've noticed). I knew it was quite highly-rated, even though I had never come across it before. What I found was a highly enjoyable dark comedy, with a lot of recognisable faces: Henry Thomas, Hillary Swank, Rachael Leigh Cook, Clark Gregg, Colin Hanks and the incomparable Patrick Swayze, to name but a few. Each perspective features a twist, which left me guessing, and the pace was so on-point, leaving the film feeling like a rollercoaster, with plenty of dark laughs. Dark humour is my favourite type of comedy and is done well here in 11:14. The flow of each storyline is handled perfectly, with surprises in the plot around each corner. If you enjoy your comedies to be dark, I definitely recommend 11:!4.
10. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Ok, I'm slightly cheating with this next choice, as I've already seen 10 Things I Hate About You a few times and I think I may have already written about it in the past. However, I have not actually seen the film in awhile and it's a good representation for the 10th day in this countdown.
10 Things I Hate About You is a Shakespearen play disguised as a high school movie, coming out in a time when Hollywood was obsessed with high school movies (see Never Been Kissed [1999] and Bring It On [2000] for other examples).
Based on Taming of the Shrew, the film follows two sisters, Bianca and Kat, who are the complete opposite of one another. Bianca is the party girl, she who loves boys and fashion; whereas Kat is the angry one, one who shuns the usual cliches that fall upon teenaged girls and does her own thing away from the crowd. Enter Cameron, the new boy who realises he wants to date Bianca. However, both girls' father has extremely strict rules about his daughters dating, in that they should never date unless both of them date at the same time. Cameron forms a plan with his friend Michael, which involves enticing the local bad boy, Patrick, to date Kat (with the promise of being paid to do so). Hijinks ensue, with going the way the audience could expect: Kat eventually finds out the plan and we see the consequences of the boys' actions.
This films holds a special place in my heart, as do all the films in this genre around this era. I remember watching it for the first time with my family, finding it hilarious and being captivated by Heath Ledger's performance, especially that scene in the bleachers. Even though there are standout moments in the film, on a re-watch I noticed that there were a tonne of things that went unnoticed on the first few times I had watched it. Just the little things in each scene, how some parts nearly broke the fourth wall, and the guidance counsellor character, played hilariously by Allison Janney. It's good to see that 10 Things I Hate About You still holds up as an enjoyable watch today.
And there came a break with my countdown. What, with the days leading up to Christmas, I found myself with not much time to focus on the movie challenge. So that is why there is a bit of a jump with the next film:
2. Happy Death Day 2 U (2019)
With the jump came my next choice, straight to number 2 on the list: Happy Death Day 2 U. This film is the follow up to the surprising hit: Happy Death Day (2017) and is centered around the main character from that film, Tree Gelbman. In the first film we see Tree experiencing her birthday over, and over, and over, each day resulting in a brutal murder, no matter what Tree learned to prevent it. Eventually she figures out that the killer who has been stalking her in each different version of her birthday, is her roommate, jealous of the affair that Tree was having with her professor. Sounding like Groundhog Day meets Scream was not a concept I thought I would enjoy so much and yet I did thoroughly like the first film. When the sequel was announced, I was excited. And let me tell you now, I was not disappointed. The sequel begins a day after the events of Happy Death Day, following Tree's boyfriend's roommate with the audience finding out it was his and his classmates' science experiments that led to the original incidents. Due to these experiments, Ryan triggers an alternate dimension, meaning Tree has to relive her birthday events all over again. This does not come as easy as Tree first imagined, as the original killer in the first film is actually innocent in this reality. It is up to Tree to experience every death until she could come up with the answer as to who's stalking her this time around, while also helping Ryan and his group to figure out how to resolve the dimension dilemma.
Happy Death Day 2 U is packed with funny, dark moments, that leave the audience guessing. I did not realise I would laugh so much at what sounds like a ridiculous concept but the writing and acting is well done here, capitalising on the fun moments while making you care for the main character. The first film may not at first seem like a dark comedy, with it being focused on the slasher context, but watching the sequel makes it clear that, yes actually, both films are meant to be laugh out loud fun. I left watching this film feeling satisfied and if you were a fan of the first sleeper hit, I think you would enjoy the second movie just as much. I hear there's talk of a third film being made, for which I cannot wait.
I did actually think I would complete this challenge, considering it only consisted of 12 movies. However, the realities of the Christmas period stepped in. Of course, now I get to turn over to my pal who had suggested this challenge in the first place. As you may remember from the previous post, I had said that if this challenge failed, then my friend would have to write their own entry as a guest post. The conspiracy theorist in you may think I failed this on purpose, but I guess you will never know. Stay tuned for what I am expecting to be a hell of a read!
Source
12 Angry Men
11:14
10 Things I Hate About You
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