it was nothing like that, penis-breath!

I'm back on the movie track. Seen some good ones, and a few bad ones, and a lot of surprising ones.

E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982) - "After a gentle alien becomes stranded on Earth, he is discovered and befriended by a 10-year-old boy named Elliott. Bringing him into his suburban California house, Elliott introduces E.T., as he is dubbed, to his brother, Michael, and sister, Gertie, and they decide to keep his existence a secret. Soon, however, he falls ill, resulting in government intervention and a dire situation for both him and Elliott."
source: streamed on Amazon Prime
I watched it because: I waited as long as humanly possible, and finally it was foisted upon me. (I'm kidding--I was a totally willing participant.)
IMDB: 7.9/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 99% Audience: 72%
my IMDB: 6/10

AFI: 100 Years ... 100 Movies (1998) #25

    100 Years ... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition 2007) #24

    100 Years ... 100 Cheers (2006) #6

    100 Years ... 100 Thrills (2001) #44

    10 Top 10 (2008) Science Fiction #3

notable quote: "You must be dead, because I don't know how to feel. I can't feel anything anymore."

MPAA rating: PG

directed by: Steven Spielberg

my notes: clever, sweet, and cute. It has not aged as well as one might like, but it's still definitely worth seeing. I'm glad that I saw it!

Academy Award winner:
• Best Sound

• Best Effects, Visual Effects

• Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing

• Best Music, Original Score—John Williams
Academy Award nominee:
• Best Picture

• Best Director

• Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

• Best Cinematography

• Best Film Editing
overall: recommended

The President's Lady (1953) - "Future president Andrew Jackson (Charlton Heston) rises to fame as a military hero and rescues love of his life Rachel Donelson (Susan Hayward) from an abusive marriage. A man from Tennessee—which was at the time the edge of the American frontier—Jackson endures as his critics and opponents characterize him as a rogue from the lawless West. But when his rival, Charles Dickinson (Carl Betz), insults Rachel, Jackson challenges him to a duel that results in a national controversy."

source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: I don't know anything about Andrew Jackson
IMDB: 6.8/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 60% Audience: 50%
my IMDB: 2/10

notable quote: "Andrew, if I'm to be the cause of all your quarrels for the rest of your life, then you give me no choice. I must leave you!"

MPAA rating: [approved]

directed by: Henry Levin

my notes: Andrew Jackson was a complete asshole, his wife was probably worse, and this movie about them blows chunk.

Academy Award nominee:
• Best Art Direction - Set Decoration, Black and White

• Best Costume Design, Black and White
overall: not recommended

Platoon (1986) - "Chris Taylor is a young, naive American who gives up college and volunteers for combat in Vietnam. Upon arrival, he quickly discovers that his presence is quite nonessential, and is considered insignificant to the other soldiers, as he has not fought for as long as the rest of them and felt the effects of combat. Chris has two non-commissioned officers, the ill-tempered and indestructible Staff Sergeant Robert Barnes and the more pleasant and cooperative Sergeant Elias Grodin. A line is drawn between the two NCOs and a number of men in the platoon when an illegal killing occurs during a village raid. As the war continues, Chris himself draws towards psychological meltdown. And as he struggles for survival, he soon realizes he is fighting two battles, the conflict with the enemy and the conflict between the men within his platoon."
source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: it had been years since I saw it (2015 or so) and, honestly, I forgot what was so special about it
IMDB: 8.1/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 87% Audience: 93%
my IMDB: 7/10

AFI:  100 Years ... 100 Movies (1988) #83

    100 Years ... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition 2007) #86

    100 Years ... 100 Thrills (2001) #72

notable quote: "Elias didn't ask you to fight his battles for him. And if there's a heaven, and, God, I hope there is, I know he's sitting up there drunk as a fucking monkey and smoking shit, 'cause he done left his pains down here."

MPAA rating: R

directed by: Oliver Stone

my notes: painful, pretentious, and completely worth seeing. Charlie Sheen acts! The cast is first-rate. And it is an important look at life as a foot soldier in Vietnam (though Oliver Stone's writing is horseshit self-agrrandizement).

Academy Award winner:
• Best Picture

• Best Director

• Best Sound

• Best Film Editing
Academy Award nominee:
• Best Supporting Actor—Tom Berenger

• Best Supporting Actor—Willem Dafoe

• Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen—Oliver Stone

• Best Cinematography
overall: recommended

Yellow Sky (1948) - "A band of bank robbers on the run from a posse flee into the desert. Near death from lack of water they stumble into what appears to be a ghost town, only to discover an old prospector and his granddaughter living there. The robbers discover that the old man has been mining gold and set out to make a quick fortune by robbing the pair. Their plan runs foul when the gang leader, Stretch, falls for the granddaughter, which sets off a showdown between the entire gang."
source: I borrowed the DVD from my parents' collection
I watched it because: Gregory Peck! I keep hoping that something else that he's done approaches the quality of To Kill a Mockingbird.
IMDB: 7.4/10  -  Rotten Tomatoes: Tomatometer: 100% Audience: 80%
my IMDB: 5/10

notable quote: "Didn't anybody ever tell you before that you smell bad?"

MPAA rating: [approved]

directed by: William A. Wellman

my notes: yuck

overall: recommended with reservations

[the title quotation is from E.T. the Extra Terrestrial]