Poet's Corner

[alexed]

And The Winner Is
By Jim Warda

With the Academy Awards approaching, I wanted to offer a
few of my favorite movies for your consideration:

- "The Godfather, Parts One and Two" - In Part One, watch
Al Pacino's eyes as he sits in his father's office, after
being hit by a police chief while protecting his injured
father. Can you see the struggle between who he was and
who he will become?

- "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" - Only in this
column, will you find The Godfather and Willy Wonka next to
each other.

- "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" - Those aren't pillows!

- "Braveheart" - Mel fights for love and freedom. Plus, he
bears a slight resemblance to me. Very slight.

- "Defending your Life" - What if, after you died, you had
to defend those moments in your life when you didn't do
something you wanted to do or should have done because you
were afraid?

- "Jaws" - When it came out, this movie gave me my first
nightmare. In fact, I still check the water before a bath.

- "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" - Who never took a day off to
do something fun and spontaneous? If you haven't, I'd
highly recommend it.

- "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" - Many Jimmy Stewart
movies, including "It's a Wonderful Life," hold sacred
lessons.

- "The Matrix" - There is no spoon.

- "The Fisher King" - Robin Williams is the fool who sees.
Jeff Bridges is the successful radio host who doesn't.

- "When Harry Met Sally" - Love has its ways.

- "The Princess Bride" - As you wish.

- "Alien" - You hardly see the monster. That makes it
worse.

- "Top Gun" - I came out of this movie wanting to join the
Air Force, ride a motorcycle and play volleyball.

- "Field of Dreams" - Just reading the title makes most men
instantly weep.

- "Say Anything" -If you ever wondered if love has a theme
song, this movie will give you the answer.

- "Big Night" - See this movie hungry!

- "Star Wars" - Good versus evil. Is there anything more
important?

- "Return to Me" - In every love, there is a leap.

- "Saving Private Ryan" - I always wondered why my dad
couldn't talk about being in the war. After seeing this
movie, I finally understood.

- "Creature from the Black Lagoon" - Yikes!

- "The Adventures of Robin Hood" - As a boy, I wanted
desperately to be one of the Merry Men. As a man, I'm
pretty happy. Does that count?

- "Four Weddings and a Funeral" - O.K., so I'm a sucker for
romantic movies. Plus, at our wedding, Gina and I danced
our first dance to the movie's theme song, "Love is all
around." Our second dance was to "Kiss the girl" from "The
Little Mermaid." See what happens when a guy gets married?

- "Pretty Woman" - We all need saving.

- "The Wizard of Oz" - We already have what we're searching
for. Of course, I still believe Dorothy wasn't dreaming.

What are your favorite movies?