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Really uplifting films

Started by Custard, February 05, 2011, 02:33:48 PM

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Custard

The easier-going, smilier brother of the really depressing films thread

Little Miss Sunshine
Scrooge
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (well, certain moments)

What all uplifts you, then?

EDIT - How did i forget Amelie!

SavageHedgehog

The ending of the first Police Academy where they all graduate, Mahoney gets a BJ from that hooker (presumably) and an uplifting aspirational 80s song by Jack Mack and the Heart Attack plays. Lovely

Any comedy which ends with uplifting 80s pop is a good mood elevator really; Fletch, Beverly Hills Cop

Happy, Texas

Star Trek IV ("Remember where we parked")

Shoulders?-Stomach!

I didn't find Little Miss Sunshine uplifting. If anything the "yay, the losers win!'' was overplayed and I ended up feeling like that had undermined the character development.


Not sure who I've got to thank for this but [urll=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092048/]Tampopo[/url] was mentioned a little while back, probably in the 'worth watching' thread and during a very tough time, it was a complete celebration of the simple pleasure of being alive. Glorious, funny, profound, heartbreaking, triumphant, all with an incredibly light touch. One of my favourite films ever, already.

Thanks, stranger. I owe you one.

Also, Bugsy Malone has the most life-affirming ending of any film I've seen.

gmoney

Lukas Moodyson's first two films Show Me Love and Together are both great little uplifting family stories, can't recommend them enough, especially Together. Makes the crushing bleakness of Lilya 4-Eva all the more surprising. 

Serge

Quote from: gmoney on February 05, 2011, 03:13:53 PMLukas Moodyson's first two films Show Me Love and Together are both great little uplifting family stories, can't recommend them enough, especially Together. Makes the crushing bleakness of Lilya 4-Eva all the more surprising.

Funnily enough, this was the first thing that came to my mind - in fact, I nearly mentioned in the 'depressing films' thread that 'Together' was the complete opposite of 'Lilya' for changing your mood.

'Amelie' can rot in hell though - in fact Jeunet's entire back catalogue makes me want to claw my eyes out.

Quote from: The Boston Crab on February 05, 2011, 02:48:17 PM
Not sure who I've got to thank for this but [urll=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092048/]Tampopo[/url] was mentioned a little while back, probably in the 'worth watching' thread and during a very tough time, it was a complete celebration of the simple pleasure of being alive. Glorious, funny, profound, heartbreaking, triumphant, all with an incredibly light touch. One of my favourite films ever, already.

Thanks, stranger. I owe you one.

Look, this was me. There's never been a better time to try to convince you all to watch Patrice Leconte's films. You'll remember a very popular thread I concieved a while ago. The comedies Les Bronzés 1 and 2 are two of the funniest silly films I've seen, and the later films are more serious masterpieces. The Hairdresser's Husband is my favourite and although it's got sadness in it, it's definitely one of the most uplifting movies I've seen.

Johnny Townmouse

Fucking Åmål/Show Me Love is a film that I find students really take to - they seem to really empathise with some of the central messages. I'm just sad that they changed the dialogue in the final climax scene from "fuck" to "shag" on the recent DVD. It made a big dramatic difference to me. A nuance thing.

Despite the subject matter, I found The Sea Inside to be a remarkably moving and uplifting experience. In terms of a person finally acheiving dignity it is unbeaten. And for me this is Bardem's finest performance in any film.

I saw American Splendor again recently - and as well as being a very fine film that makes some extremely creative choices, it also ends on what for me amounts to a huge high. It's a delightful film.

The late-90s Australian film The Castle is a lovely little film, and very uplifting, but I don't know anyone that has seen it.

lipsink

Bad Boy Bubby has a suprisingly uplifting ending.
Spoiler alert
The main character ovecomes his horrific upbringing and finds happiness and a family. Sure he does kill some people but it's still quite an ending to a film that begins in absolute hell. The first half hour is rough stuff and I had initially rented it to see how bad it would be.
[close]

Mister Six

Quote from: Shoulders?-Stomach! on February 05, 2011, 02:41:34 PM
I didn't find Little Miss Sunshine uplifting. If anything the "yay, the losers win!'' was overplayed and I ended up feeling like that had undermined the character development.

But they don't win. None of them do, because their ambitions are far beyond their capabilities and resources. The uplifting element comes from a fractured family pulling together and moving past their various hangups and unrealistic dreams.

Ja'moke

Quote from: Johnny Townmouse on February 05, 2011, 04:31:03 PM
The late-90s Australian film The Castle is a lovely little film, and very uplifting, but I don't know anyone that has seen it.

"Tell him he's dreaming!" The Castle is great, uplifting and hilarious. It's by Working Dog Productions, the team behind hit Australian sitcom Frontline, and Marty from Frontline appears in The Castle as the shoddy lawyer. Tony Martin also appears very briefly at the end.

madhair60


SavageHedgehog

Close Encounters of the Thid Kind gets to me

vrailaine

Quote from: Ja'moke on February 05, 2011, 05:26:18 PM
"Tell him he's dreaming!" The Castle is great, uplifting and hilarious. It's by Working Dog Productions, the team behind hit Australian sitcom Frontline, and Marty from Frontline appears in The Castle as the shoddy lawyer. Tony Martin also appears very briefly at the end.
Yep, it's a surprisingly well known film, I've given it to people only for them to come back to me saying they already saw it (and thought it was great). Great characters. Eric Bana has a small role in it and yer man from the Micallef Programme is Wayne.
The Dish is okay too, nowhere near as good as the Castle or Frontline(series one anyways, haven't seen the rest) though.


...and here's another chance for me to ask if Dossa and Joe was any good, seeing as it was by Caroline Aherne, sounds a bit like an aussie Royle Family and has the dad from the Castle as the Jim figure, I assume.

Quote from: Shoulders?-Stomach! on February 05, 2011, 02:41:34 PM
I didn't find Little Miss Sunshine uplifting. If anything the "yay, the losers win!'' was overplayed and I ended up feeling like that had undermined the character development.

Agreed. If anything you're more concerned about the characters, and the family itself after the movie then you were before. Everything is very much up in the air for them.

Quote from: Smeraldina Rima on February 05, 2011, 04:18:10 PM
Look, this was me. There's never been a better time to try to convince you all to watch Patrice Leconte's films. You'll remember a very popular thread I concieved a while ago. The comedies Les Bronzés 1 and 2 are two of the funniest silly films I've seen, and the later films are more serious masterpieces. The Hairdresser's Husband is my favourite and although it's got sadness in it, it's definitely one of the most uplifting movies I've seen.

I thought it was you! I didn't trust my hungover memory, though. Thanks, I loved it! I'll check out the Leconte films, I remember the thread, ignored as it was, as I was going to post the tag 'Patrick The Cunt'. Sounds wonderful.

Phil_A

Quote from: vrailaine on February 05, 2011, 06:45:53 PM
...and here's another chance for me to ask if Dossa and Joe was any good, seeing as it was by Caroline Aherne, sounds a bit like an aussie Royle Family and has the dad from the Castle as the Jim figure, I assume.

Ahh, not really. It was a bit of a weak attempt to repeat the success of the Royles in Australia, they even had some of characters doing Jim Royle impressions in the first episode, which seemed a little desperate. It was no Early Doors, that's for sure.

Lfbarfe

If ever I'm in need of cheer, I have Passport to Pimlico, Two Way Stretch and The Rebel to hand.

NoSleep

Quote from: Lfbarfe on February 05, 2011, 09:54:43 PM
If ever I'm in need of cheer, I have Passport to Pimlico, Two Way Stretch and The Rebel to hand.

Aaaah... comedy films.

NoSleep

The film that leaves me with a warm feeling in my heart and a smile (not to mention punching the air and several shouts of "YES!"), is the documentary "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" because, for once, the good guys win in real life.

A.A

Danny Boyle's Millions does it for me.

Just a wonderful, heart-warming movie, with a great soundtrack to boot.

Santa's Boyfriend

Quote from: NoSleep on February 05, 2011, 10:01:11 PM
The film that leaves me with a warm feeling in my heart and a smile (not to mention punching the air and several shouts of "YES!"), is the documentary "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" because, for once, the good guys win in real life.

Depending on whether you're part of the 80% underclass or the wealthy 20% of course!  But yes, it's a tremendously uplifting film.  THE NEOLIBERALS CAN BE BEATEN!!

I'm looking forward to the (hopefully) inevitable documentary about Egypt made by a film-maker who happened to be there at the time.

Glebe


Dark Poet

Along with Together and Millions, which have already been mentioned:






Ocho

The Sandwich Man (even though some of it qualifies for dodgy race bits).  Michael Bentine wanders around 60s London and encounters people being nice and/or silly in lovely 35mm colour.

El Unicornio, mang

It's an obvious choice, but The Shawshank Redemption never fails to cheer me up when it gets to the lovely last 20 mins or so.

Catalogue Trousers

Mr Reliable - more Antipodean leave-you-with-a-big-silly-grin-and-a-reaffirmed-faith-in-Humanity's-basic-decency-underneath-it-all. Ranks with The Castle and The Dish, I reckon.

Gilliam's The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen - a glorious reaffirmation of imagination and friendship. No, it wasn't just a story.

Oddly, despite being kickstarted by
Spoiler alert
the suicidal shotgun spree of a lonely man
[close]
, The Fisher King deserves recognition here, too.

jonnycuba

David Lynch's - The Straight Story.

The end scene always brings a tear to my eye.

hummingofevil

The Princess Bride.
Robocop.
South Park The Movie.

Phil_A

Gregory's Girl. Who could possibly fail to have their heart lifted by this ending?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZtHWz3yr4I

Also:
My Neighbour Totoro.
Back To The Future.