Weekly Theme

Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

Here's an idea I got from Gremlins. I bought this one from the $5 bin at Wal-Mart this weekend to show my kids on Halloween. One thing that struck me while watching this was the unusually high amount of references to other movies contained in withing the film.

At one point we see It's A Wonderful Life being watched on a TV in the kitchen. This is a pretty common reference for Christmas movie.

Then, in the pivotal scene that the mogwais are fed after midnight, we see the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Later the gremlins are watching Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

There are quite a few references to Spielberg films, both blatant and subtle. The marquee of the theater has two films being showed: A Boy's Life (which was the working title for E.T.) and Watch The Skies.( working title for Close Encounters of a Third Kind.)

There are really too many to name, I even saw The Road Warrior poster hanging in the bedroom.

So have at it. There it is. I think that a lot of these are put in film just for people like us. Some are so sublte that only the true movie nerds will get them. So, what do y'all think? Do you jump for joy when you see one of your favorite classics referenced in a movie? Or, do you just hate it? And more importantly, why??

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

This is one of those things that's really hard to recall, yet I know I know an insane amount of them.

WALL-E

- > Hello, Dolly!

Donnie Darko

- > Evil Dead

The Dreamers

- > Freaks, Bande à Part, etc. Full of references.

Interview With The Vampire

- > Tequila Sunrise, Superman, Gone With The WInd

Natural Born Killers

- > Loaded with references to countless films and television.

Home Alone

- > Angels With Dirty Faces

That's it for now . . .

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

Yeah I was definitely thinking of Home Alone first. I can't think of anything else right now that wasn't already mentioned. I suck at this. :(

I am thinking of some films that have shots of video games in them. Maybe we could do a theme for that sometime? :)

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

rjsprague:

Yeah I was definitely thinking of Home Alone first. I can't think of anything else right now that wasn't already mentioned. I suck at this. :(

I am thinking of some films that have shots of video games in them. Maybe we could do a theme for that sometime? :)

Yeah, Home Alone had a lot of references in it.

1. Joe Pesci's character is named Harry Lime: from The Third Man

2. In France, the family watches It's a Wonderful Life

3. The movie that Kevin watches "Angels With Filthy Souls" was made up for Home Alone, but it was a spoof on Angels With Dirty Faces.

that's just what I found on IMDB

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

I also remember being surprised by this one. In Ocean's Twelve, Brad Pitt and George Clooney have a discussion in which they talk about a scene in one of my all time favorites, Miller's Crossing.

I think that's something I kinda like to see: when a mainstream movie makes reference to a film less well known. It's kind of like a shout out to the filmmaker's influences.

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

How about this -- Touch of Evil within In Bruges...

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

leeroy711:

Here's an idea I got from Gremlins. I bought this one from the $5 bin at Wal-Mart this weekend to show my kids on Halloween. One thing that struck me while watching this was the unusually high amount of references to other movies contained in withing the film.

At one point we see It's A Wonderful Life being watched on a TV in the kitchen. This is a pretty common reference for Christmas movie.

Then, in the pivotal scene that the mogwais are fed after midnight, we see the original Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Later the gremlins are watching Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

There are quite a few references to Spielberg films, both blatant and subtle. The marquee of the theater has two films being showed: A Boy's Life (which was the working title for E.T.) and Watch The Skies.( working title for Close Encounters of a Third Kind.)

There are really too many to name, I even saw The Road Warrior poster hanging in the bedroom.

So have at it. There it is. I think that a lot of these are put in film just for people like us. Some are so sublte that only the true movie nerds will get them. So, what do y'all think? Do you jump for joy when you see one of your favorite classics referenced in a movie? Or, do you just hate it? And more importantly, why??

So I actually love when I am watching a film and I see or hear a reference to another film.

I was just watching Any Given Sunday. During the scene that Al Pacino is trying to motivate Jamie Fox Ben Hur is playing in the backroom. Oliver Stone sliced in moments of Jamie's speech with scenes from Ben Hur.

I know that there so many other flics that have these moments but this is the only one that comes to mind.

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

Meg Ryan is in quite a few:

Sleepless in Seattle is based almost entirely off a plot line from An Affair to Remember which is referenced throughout the film.

When Harry Met Sally . . . has that great split screen scene when they are lying in bed and watching Casablanca and debating the ending.

You've Got Mail references the film it is a remake of (The Shop Around the Corner) as well as the other Hanks/Ryan flicks.

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

mercurial:

Meg Ryan is in quite a few:

When Harry Met Sally . . . has that great split screen scene when they are lying in bed and watching Casablanca and debating the ending.

 

There's also that part in When Harry Met Sally when they are in the bookstore or something and the two girls mention a part in The Lady Vanishes.

Hmmmmm. This could easily be a movie connection game.

Re:Weekly Theme for November 3: The Movies in the Movie

When I first saw the subject of this weeks discussion I thought we would be talking about fictional films within fictional films, not actualy films in fictional films.

So the first thing I thought of was The Player with the the compromised film they eventually make at the end staring Bruce Willis and Julia Roberts where he saves her from the electric chair I think it is.

But then it only took me a moment to think about it longer and this is actually the ULTIMATE example of movies in this category.  There are people talking about all kinds of specific movies left and right.  There are posters for other real movies everywhere.  And people actually going to see some real movies.  I think The Bicycle Thief is one that they watch in the theatre and is constantly referenced as sort of an idea of classic unadulterated good film.

There are also several actors in this film who are playing themselves talking with the fictional characters.  This always makes me wonder what kind of world they live in.  For instance this is a world where Burt Reynolds, Andie MacDowell, Nick Nolte, and countless others are all real people who exist.  Yet there are characters in the movie who are played by well known actors as well.  So I wonder in the world of this movie are Tim Robbins and Peter Gallagher real people, and if so, so the characters they play just happen to look exactly like them?  And if so, how come no one ever comments on this?

Ok, these are the strange things I think about sometimes.