#also thank u to letterboxd that is absolutely the only way i could have remembered anything i watched this yr my memory is not that good<3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[newyikecity]

tagged by @romansmartini to post my top 9 first watches of 2023 (which made me v excited bc i am soso normal abt movies<3)

there it is. ✨ I didn't watch too many new movies in 2023 (i have hyperfixates on tv shows disease) but I'm thankful to say I watched a ton I really liked! Including Recovery which only exists on youtube as far as I know but is well worth it and def the most unexpected gem of this list.

tagging @ctrl-esc, @frengers, @andbutsowhen, @bjerre, @wambs, @modernoracleofdelphi and any other dear mutuals who are interested. I love to snoop on what other ppl have been watchin 👀

[leesh]

because i have zero self control when it comes to christmas films and, well, cheesy christmas films are #life. 

basically, i have developed a collection of favourites over the years, including both classic christmas films that are fun for the whole family and terrible, dripping with all our favourite favourite cliches hallmark christmas films, and yet i am still always on the hunt for more. so, i thought i would try a little thing to share them with everyone else as well (and actually remember them for future reference)!

check out the tag here i will try and remember to use as i live blog some of these movies or head on down below the cut to see all of the christmas films i’ve watched in 2020. thoughts and star ratings included! as expected, i will also be updating this as i watch more and more this holiday season (follow along on twitter too if you want).

note: since i LOVE terrible hallmark films, some that i give a higher rating will not actually be......critically acclaimed. i am just #obsessed and have my reasons as stated, i’m sure.

holidate (2020) 

⭐️⭐️| first time watch | someone on letterboxd compared this movie to when you watch a rom com in sims and it’s just a bunch of random scenes that make no sense and they’re absolutely right. its only saviour is an australian dude and the line “so you know me well enough to cum in my mouth, but you don’t know me well enough to get me a christmas present?”

my christmas inn (2018) 

⭐️⭐️| first time watch | i’ll be honest, this film was pretty forgetful. i watched it over a month ago and don’t really remember what happened. however, i do remember being impressed that the leading lady wasn’t a stereotypical thin white woman. so i guess at least it has that going for it.

christmas made to order (2018) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️| first time watch | i actually thought this was pretty cute. it’s not the best, but also not the worst, so a decent medium if you need to fill up those figurative christmas stockings. the concept of hiring someone to decorate your entire house with no budget sounds pretty cool, but when the guy is aaron samuels and looks far from straight, it becomes a little questionable. 

last christmas (2019) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️| rewatch | now this is not a cheesy hallmark film. in fact, i LOVE this film a lot and think i saw it twice at the cinema. last christmas is a top tier christmas song and i remember theorising about it when the trailer first came out, but i will say tissues may be a requirement to watch this. AND henry golding is my husband thank u and goodbye.

operation christmas drop (2020) 

⭐️| first time watch | interesting concept in theory, but this is nothing more than US military propaganda and a cgi lizard. bonus: white saviourism. 

the knight before christmas (2019) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️| rewatch | a medieval knight transported into today’s world and has never seen a car before can drive better than me. that’s it. that’s the movie. also, he literally says the words “modern technology is lit af” at one point. solid christmas film if you ask me. 

the princess switch (2018) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️| rewatch | i strongly believe in the vhcncu (vanessa hudgens christmas netflix cinematic universe). i also have so many questions, like how did they afford the flights or solid conversation or was it all expenses paid? how did they finish a bulk of the cake without a mixer? why does everyone always speak english with a posh english accent even though it’s a non-english european country?

the princess switch: switched again (2020) 

⭐️⭐️| if we learnt anything from a christmas prince, it’s that sequels are generally never better than their predecessor. that being said, this was much less cute body swapping christmas fluff and a little more literal kidnapping and saving the day. either way, blonde vanessa was hot and i appreciated the amber/richard cameo that insinuates a christmas prince is actually a dramatic documentary.

midnight at the magnolia (2020) 

⭐️⭐️| now if you’re after an absolute cheesefest that ticks the boxes on best friends meets fake dating over the holidays, then this is the movie for you! albeit it takes place between christmas and new year’s, it’s still filled with their families knowing they were soulmates the whole time and two people who are a literal too comfortable on the radio. also, the dad’s totally should’ve been gay. they had more chemistry.

christmas wonderland (2018) 

⭐️⭐️⭐️| tbh, i genuinely enjoyed this one. post breakup/high school sweethearts is a personal favourite trope of mine, so throw christmas & being forced to spend time together when she goes back home into the mix and i’ll have a serotonin explosion. bonus points for the guy telling the girl to go back to nyc to follow her dreams without being a dick. OH and the scene when he points a fuck load of sugar in his hot beverage.

a wish for christmas (2016) 

⭐️⭐️| who doesn’t love a good office romance between a boss and an employee at christmastime? especially when you throw in a little christmas magic that makes her more confident that results in her finally getting what she deserves and having to travel and rekindle with his family? also, fuck them rich white dudes, but props to her for the significant job promotion.

christmas with a prince (2018) 

⭐️| this was TERRIBLE and not in the good way. it featured: an entitled prince who suddenly had growth even though he did nothing to achieve it, majority of the film set in one hospital room, and the fact that she’s the only one with a tiara at the party filled with people who actually have titles. also, thought there was a decent ending but turns out there was still another 30 mins to go. ugh.

a royal christmas engagement (2020) 

⭐️| don’t be fooled by the title. the engagement doesn’t happen til the last two minutes. it’s actually about a prince (bet you didn’t see that one coming) who travels to america, pretending to be his best friend who works for this major marketing firm because he’s tired of being the spare. this gets one star purely for the line “she’s not a commoner, patrick. she’s an american.”

christmas wedding planning (2017)

⭐️⭐️| it looked like it would be half decent, and while it’s definitely better than the last two, it was still pretty eh. i could get on board with her texting her dead mother’s number as a way to talk to her still, and i understand we all experience grief differently, but.....actively paying your mums phone bill 3 years later? girl. also, the end made me SCREAM. WHY DID THEY DO THAT!!!!

santa girl (2019)

⭐️| this was just painful to watch. evil jack frost makes memes in his free time, santa has a fancy car and doesn’t eat sweets, and there’s an odd comparison between the elves, minimum age workers, and racism. however, one star purely for the entertaining (read: bloody awful) tooth fairy cgi that gave me a right laugh.

the christmas chronicles (2018)

⭐️⭐️⭐️| this was really cute and had the makings of what could be a christmas movie staple along with the likes of elf and the santa clause (but will never reach that standard, obvs). tbh, it’s just a nice heartwarming family christmas movie about two siblings who band together to help santa and save christmas. also, santa was a #dilf.

the christmas chronicles: part two (2020)

⭐️⭐️| one of these days i would love to see a sequel that’s better, or at least on par, with its predecessor, but that day is not today. sadly, this film lacked all the heart and magic the first one was filled with and some scenes were pretty redundant. kurt russell and goldie hawn, however... one star for each of them.

forever christmas / mr. 365 (2019)

⭐️⭐️| the title varies depending where you’re from, but that’s probably the most exciting part of this movie. a guy celebrates christmas 365 days a year and a reality show wants to invade his house? ok, sure. one star for the eye candy and one star for, surprisingly enough, their chemistry and all the kissing scenes that don’t usually make the mark in the hallmark world. 

noelle (2019)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️| did i renew disney plus just so i could watch this (and a couple of others)? maybe so... this movie is so fun! and family friendly! and is actually funny! it gives me major elf vibes, but if elf was set in a more modern day setting. either way, i had a great time and have been holding out on this one after loving it a lot last year!

the nutcracker and the four realms (2018)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️| anything nutcracker related is an instant win in my book because it’s my favourite ballet of all time (except for graeme murphy’s version, we don’t talk about that). does this movie actually deserve the four stars? maybe not. am i going to give them anyway purely for my love of the nutcracker and the soundtrack? absolutely!

[picopond]

picopond ranks all 22 studio ghibli feature films 🌲

i’ve watched all the studio ghibli films! yay! thanks netflix + covid-19! because i’m a film student, i thought i’d rank them + give them a little review, so uuuuh enjoy:) and tell me ur fave! and ur least fave! and whatever!

[gif credit]

22. when marnie was there (2014) this movie had me cradled in its arms until the end when i jumped out and hastily scooted my butt far, far away. i’m not sure if it was lost in translation, but it became very.... incestuous very suddenly. and therefore lost me.

21. the cat returns (2002) i enjoyed the story, i just felt the execution was very, very bland. also i would marry a cat prince idgaf.

20. tales from earthsea (2006) i was so lost i had to look up the plot half way through. also didn’t really get the dragon thing. 

19. ocean waves (1993) just a quick note - wikipedia states this was a television film and not feature, but i’m including it cause i watched it so !!! anyway, a more realstic ghibli film! i enjoyed the story and the characters, but that’s about it!

18. porco rosso (1992) a very fun film! also very underrated, which is a shame. the story was silly yet not comedic, and i liked the added touch of ~secrecy~. i know this is pretty low in my rankings, but i would watch it again! 

17. only yesterday (1991) again - very low in my rankings but it had quite an effect on me. i am a very sentimental person, so it’s no surprise. it felt very ahead of its time and i appreciated that.

16. my neighbours the yamadas (1999) i enjoyed the layout of this film, the characters and the animation a lot. another fun film, and i know it’s a favourite among a lot of people, but not for me. sorry!

15. pom poko (1994) i actually put off watching this for a while. i’m not very interested in animal-centered films, but this was surprisingly pleasant! we don’t have raccoons here, but maybe our possums have magic and live among us?

14. nausicaä: valley of the wind (1984) the first studio ghibli movie ever made ! it has a strong, smart female lead AND an adorable fox squirrel! yet, why is it so underrated? because it is so old? do not let that scare you. it has everything your favourite ghibli movie has. 

13. castle in the sky (1986) this one is a weird one for me, but i still enjoyed it. i’m not sure how old sheeta and pazu were, but it was weird. oh, but the castle reminded me of skyloft!

12. princess monoke (1997) can u believe movies like this exist and people still wanna fuck with nature? also i just found out gillian anderson voiced moro and i need a moment.

11. grave of the fireflies (1988) a...refreshing take on a war movie, but also i feel empty inside. so often we see in films the conflict, but never the effect on the people whose lives are being "fought" for. this film shows you that very effect. a similar movie worth watching that isn’t ghibli but i enjoyed is ‘in this corner of the world’. 

10. my neighbour totoro (1988) a favourite among many! very sweet and easy to watch, though i did watch it back in february and am struggling to remember the storyline... so sadly not very memorable for me? 

9. the tale of the princess kaguya (2013) really enjoyed the animation and characters in this one. reminded me of that time sokkas girlfriend turned into the moon. depressing and magical, it didn't fail to captivate me.

8. kiki’s delivery service (1989) i was very excited to watch this! unfortunately, it didn’t live up to my expectations, but it was still a very sweet and enjoyable film nevertheless. 

7. from up on poppy hill (2011) my tutor says to put your protagonists through the absolute worst thing possible... and they sure as hell did in this one. it made me VERY NERVOUS FOR A MOMENT. and surely there are better ways to trial people. but all’s well that ends well, thankfully!

6. the secret world of arriety (2010) made me wish i was a tiny person living in a handsome boys yard. 

5. ponyo (2008) this film is pure happiness! incredibly adorable! and sosuke has a peaky blinders haircut!

4. the wind rises (2013) based on the life of jiro horikoshi, there’s a LOT of aeroplane talk but it’s all so fucking BEAUTIFUL.

3. spirited away (2001) i almost didn’t rank it so high just out of spite - i know it’s a favourite among many, many people. unfortunately for me, it was the first studio ghibli film i watched...in year 7 english. to study. and then i decided to study it last year for uni! so naturally i put off rewatching it until i had seen everything else... and yes. i get it now. with a charming storyline, a strong, young female lead and a good dose of platonic love, you cannot help but be engrossed by the warmth this film radiates.

2. whisper of the heart (1995) sigh. i watched this almost two weeks ago and i am still thinking about it. this film is a lot deeper than it appears to be - at least for me, cause i saw my younger self in shizuku. it’s a very sweet coming of age film with a gentle touch of falling in love. i don’t know how anyone could not enjoy it.

1. howls moving castle (2004) i’ll be honest - i almost wanted to tie whisper of the heart and this. but i made myself pick, and howls moving castle won. because i love magic! i love sophies idgaf attitude! i love calcifer and markl and turnip head and howl! every single frame of this movie is enchanting. i smile even thinking abt it. if i had to pick one movie to watch for the rest of my life, this would honestly be it. and i like a hell of a lot of movies.

yay! i hope one day i can make films that are magical and warm and nostalgic like studio ghibli’s stuff! thank u for reading this! here’s my letterboxd for more reviews!