it's all memorabilia, but incidental and not integral - if you know what I mean

I think that movies might just be the way that I'm most different from other people. Huh. 

Harold and Maude (1971) - "Young, rich, and obsessed with death, Harold finds himself changed forever when he meets lively septuagenarian Maude at a funeral."

Source: I borrowed the DVD from the public library
I watched it because: it is on the AFI lists, and is one of those movies I've heard about forever but didn't really know about. I thought it was time to learn.
IMDB: 7.9/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 84% Audience: 93%
AFI: 100 Years ... 100 Laughs (2000) #45

    100 Years ... 100 Passions (2002) #69

    100 Years ... 100 Cheers (2006) #89

    10 Top 10 (2008) Romantic Comedy #9

notable quote: "If some people get upset because they feel they have a hold on some things, I'm merely acting as a gentle reminder: here today, gone tomorrow, so don't get attached to things now. With that in mind, I'm not against collecting stuff."
story: it is a strangely engrossing story, wrapped in a flat-out strange movie
acting: it's hard to know what to say about this. Both of the main characters are insane, and so is the script. Is that good acting? It was "believable," to some extent, if only in a detached "not in my experience" sort of way. 

intangibles: I found this film creepy as Hell, quite morbidly funny and affecting, and I have thought about it quite a bit since then. That probably means I liked it.
overall: recommended

Show Boat (1951) - "The daughter of a riverboat captain falls in love with a charming card-player, but their fairytale romance is threatened when his luck turns sour."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from the public library
I watched it because: I was in the mood for a musical, and had never heard Ava Gardner in a singing role
IMDB: 6.9/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 82% Audience: 71%

notable quote: "I hope it's not Saturday night one minute, with a cold Monday morning to follow. Whatever happens, Nollie, always remember to smile."
visuals: very nice
costumes, hair & makeup: gorgeous costumes
acting: Gardner (Julie LaVerne) was wonderful. Her character was all over the map in emotions and looks and affect, and she brought it all together.

intangibles: it's fun, it gave me some things to think about, and there are some good songs
Academy Award nominee:
• Best Cinematography, Color

• Best Music, Scoring of a Motion Picture
overall: recommended

Stand and Deliver (1988) - "The [true] story of Jaime Escalante, a high school teacher who successfully inspired his dropout-prone students to learn calculus."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from the public library
I watched it because: I was in the mood to be inspired
AFI: 100 Years ... 100 Cheers (2006) #86

IMDB: 7.3/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 82% Audience: 79%

notable quote: "I dreamed I was swimming with dolphins whispering imaginary numbers and searching for the fourth dimension."
story: this is a very, very simple story. Deceptively dull, from the outside. 
costumes, hair & makeup: effectively used to show the differences in class among the characters
acting: very good. I was drawn in from the start, and there was not a weak point in the cast. 

intangibles: really, legitimately inspiring 
Academy Award nominee: Best Actor—Edward James Olmos 
overall: recommended

The Two Jakes (1990) - "The sequel to Chinatown [1974] finds J.J. 'Jake' Gittes investigating adultery and murder, and the money that comes from oil."
I watched it because: I was on a date, and the choice of film suited us both
IMDB: 6.2/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 65% Audience: 38%

notable quote: "What I do for a living may not be very reputable, but I am. In this town, I'm the leper with the most fingers."
story: if I thought Chinatown was complicated...
visuals: dark & gritty, though not with quite the same brilliance and clarity as the original
costumes, hair & makeup: striking and classic. There's just something about noir to bring out the suave and handsome in a man, and the dichotomy of fragile spitfire in a woman.
acting: J.J. Gittes is one of the roles that Jack Nicholson was born to play. He's an unexpected and slightly awkward - how many times has he nearly lost that nose? - hero, but it is impossible to imagine anyone more appealing. And Meg Tilly, never a favorite of mine, stole my heart as Kitty Berman. Tough as nails but with a backstory that would fell a moose, she played that combination with the perfect balance. I will never see her the same way again.

intangibles: it's not the best movie I've ever seen, but it's unforgettable for several reasons, not least of which being the way that I saw it. I also enjoyed the movie.
overall: recommended

Rudy (1993) - "Rudy has always been told that he was too small to play college football. But he is determined to overcome the odds and fulfill his dream of playing for Notre Dame."
Source: I borrowed the DVD from the public library
I watched it because: this is one of those movies that's on the list that seems to disgust people - movies that everyone else on the planet had seen except me
AFI: 100 Years ... 100 Cheers (2006) #54

IMDB: 7.5/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 78% Audience: 90%

notable quote: "Having dreams is what makes life tolerable."
story: little guy works hard for a huge goal
visuals: lovely college-y stuff
costumes, hair & makeup: almost effective in bridging the gap for Sean Astin from childhood to adulthood (like, a dozen years? in which his hair style never changes, he never grows the slightest beard, never changes weight at all, probably wears the same jeans?? COME ON.)
acting: this could effectively be done by a decent community theatre, with the same result

intangibles: schmaltz at its highest level, the movie written specifically to tear your heart apart. Didn't everyone else feel manipulated while watching it? I was gagging, just wanting it to end.
overall: not recommended

[the title quotation is from Harold and Maude]