This Double Feature Will Save Your Life
When I used the iconic image of Lloyd Dobler holding a boombox above his head in Tuesday's post, I realized it had been months since I had last viewed Say Anything..., a movie that I need to view regularly in order to survive. In my opinion, Say Anything... is the best Seattle-based movie out there. Want to challenge me? HAH! I can, with certainty, guarantee that I have put more thought into this than almost anyone. For a little background, I sort-of-but-not-really grew up in Seattle. My family owns a house there, I spent a approximately two million school breaks there, but I never actually "lived" there, so it's like a psuedo-hometown for me. But back to movies. Here we go: 10 Things I Hate About You is either tied for first or an incredibly close second. If you even bring up Sleepless in Seattle you are phoning it in, because while Nora Ephron is a saint, and Seattle is in the title, it would be generous to say that half that movie actually takes place there. There are certainly a lot of great movies that take place in Seattle, and those get honorable mentions, but for a true, "Ahhhh, Seattle" feeling, you should watch Say Anything..., 10 Things I Hate About You, and stop there. Also it should be clear by this point that one of my all-time favorite genres is Teen Movies.
So I watched Say Anything..., and it was just as beautiful as the last 50 times I've watched it. It's one of my favorites, and if you haven't seen it, WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING WITH YOUR LIFE?! It has some of the best lines, some of the best music, and quite possibly one of the best endings, of any movie, particularly a movie that's about teenagers. I often feel sick and crappy, and Say Anything... is is one of my go-to movies that distracts me and makes me feel good, even when I feel like garbage.
The other night when I watched it, I was feeling like a garbage-y hot mess, and Say Anything... alone wasn't going to cover it. I needed to bring out the big guns. Which is how I inadvertently discovered one of the best feel-good double features EVER: Dirty Dancing and Say Anything...
I recommend watching Dirty Dancing first, because you should save the best for last. Not that Dirty Dancing isn't amazing - it is. But in my opinion, it's no Say Anything... Plus, Say Anything... is a little more subdued, so you can start your evening with riotous dancing, then segue into one of the greatest love stories of the 80s and possibly time eternal, then drift off to sleep dreaming of Lloyd Dobler standing outside your window, waiting for you to admit he's your true love.
A quick note: Not to mention old school Tarte products again, but remember their double ended lip gloss? It was two lipglosses that snapped apart, so you could mix and match them to fit whatever look you wanted? And each set came as a "Power Couple" from history or pop culture, i.e., Anthony & Cleopatra, Bogey & Bacall, Ferris & Sloane? Well, Lloyd & Diane AND Johnny & Baby were both included. So I guess that just proves... that I have an odd memory for makeup I loved over a decade ago and a love of movies from the 80s. Moving on!
I'm still in a middle of a gnarly fibro flare up, but lucky for me, both Dirty Dancing and Say Anything... are available to steam on Netflix Instant whenever I need them. And if you are stuck in bed, feeling like death, I prescribe these coming of age classics. Take this double feature and call me in the morning.
