Tip#1114: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 10 - Moonstruck - Unleashed

I just trudged through a third week of seasonal affective disorder (SAD, winter depression, winter blues). For me the onset of SAD felt like slowly entering a dark tunnel where the shorter days of sunlight quietly tightens around my body and brain. The symptoms are similar to clinical depression where I’d start to lose my focus and concentration, feel heaviness in my arms and legs, feel hopelessness, withdrawal and a loss of self-worth. If this sounds familiar I encourage you to research more about the symptoms and coping tools for SAD. Read: SAD

The pattern of my SAD symptoms occur during the fall and winter months from September to March which is why it’s also called winter depression or winter blues. It can feel very isolating and these are times I really wish I had a family of my own or other like-minded people for support. This is why I’ve been actively seeking out local support groups, Facebook groups, Meetup groups and new LinkedIn contacts that can relate.

Though movies are a great coping tool when I’m alone a sense of family or clan is still so important during these dark months. Thankfully I’ve been rediscovering films that inspire that sense of family and loving support to keep me positive on my search. Here are two very different yet entertaining examples…

Moonstruck (1987)

The romantic comedy film, Moonstruck, is about Loretta Castorini (Cher) a widowed, 37-year-old, Italian-American woman who falls in love with her fiancée's estranged, hot-tempered younger brother, Ronny Cammareri (Nicolas Cage). This hilarious, heartwarming movie is filled with memorable moments and dialogue by a note-perfect cast that includes Olympia Dukakis, Vincent Gardenia, Danny Aiello and Feodor Chaliapin Jr.
See: movie trailer 
Watch now: Amazon Prime

I saw this romcom for the first time in many years and immediately fell in love it! All the characters and the story lifted me up and left me smiling. As a food lover there were so many scenes with food and my favourite was the breakfast scene of the eggs fried inside a hole in a slice of bread. And every scene between Loretta and Ronny and each member of her family had dialogue that was electric! It’s these scenes of family that warmed my heart because of the love that eventually shined through the frustration, pain and anger.

Unleashed (2005)

The martial arts action film, Unleashed, is about Danny (Jet Li) trained like an attack dog by Crime Boss Bart (Bob Hoskins) but discovers a better life thanks to blind piano tuner Sam (Morgan Freeman) and his daughter Victoria (Kerry Condon). This movie is a unique genre mash up of martial arts action and a comedy drama featuring the power of music and family.
See: movie trailer 
Watch now: Amazon Prime

If you are a fan of Jet Li or intense action fights that’s equally about the love of family and friendship then I highly recommend this film. Every scene with Sam, Victoria and Danny is full of warmth in how they help Danny’s hurt childlike mind adjust to receiving love, encouragement and support instead of being treated, literally, like a dog from his old life. Watching Danny learn to play the piano, shop in a grocery store and eat ice cream for the first time was unexpectedly fun! In the end I was deeply moved by how Danny transformed from a traumatic upbringing into a man surrounded by a new, caring family.

Family can be portrayed in so many different ways in the cinema that can inspire and warm your heart. How about you? What movies about family lifted your spirits and brought some light into your life?

Related Tips:
Tip#660: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 1 – Fast & Furious 6 
Tip#712: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 2 - Love Actually 
Tip#773: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 3 - Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Tip#794: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 4 - The Good Lie
Tip#795: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 5 – This is Where I Leave You 
Tip#948: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 6 – The Jungle Book
Tip#995: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 7 - Captain Fantastic
Tip#1073: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 8 - Office Christmas Party 
Tip#1093: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 9 - Grandma 
Tip#1114: What Does Family Mean to You? Part 10 - Moonstruck - Unleashed

See 100's of inspirational movie tips from this blog listed A to Z!

Click here: Movies for Motivation

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE DEALING WITH
DEPRESSION OR DIFFICULT TIMES?
• READ: Top 10 Inspiring Movies for Managing Depression
• READ: Emmanuel & Depression featured in The Toronto Star
• LISTEN: Emmanuel's CBC Radio Interview on Movie Messages of Hope: The Fresh Air Show
• WATCH: Uplifting Movie Montage produced by Emmanuel Lopez!
• DISCOVER: 8 Creative Tools for Motivation & Depression

Remember How Movies Can Help You:
A) Entertain & Escape
B) Re-energize & Release
C) Inspiration & Motivation

 

Emmanuel Lopez-Motivatorman
Motivational Speaker
Discover Movies As Inspirational & Learning Tools!
See website: www.motivatorman.com
 
© Emmanuel Lopez 2018

Tip#1113: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 6 – 4 Movies from the 90’s

It sometimes amazes me that my whole body and brain can feel the compression and shorter days of autumn. As the long summer days end and September arrived I started to feel symptoms of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and the shorter hours of sunlight. These symptoms are similar to depression symptoms: lack of focus, concentration, disconnect from all emotions, heaviness in body and ruminating thoughts of hopelessness. Read: More about SAD

Thankfully I had a supportive friend that invited me for much needed therapies like soaking up the soothing nature of High Park, the pet therapy comfort of her rescue dog from Mexico she was pet-sitting named Haggis and the re-energizing wonders of face to face human interactions. These feel-good activities really helped lift me up! I also have cinema therapy as coping aids for depression when I’m alone and not able to leave the house.

Recently I rediscovered four films from the 90’s that I always found highly entertaining. They were the kind of movies I’d always watch whenever they came on TV. And even though I was seeing them for first time in many years they were still engaging with the added bonus of giving my brain some pain relief. The stories and characters gave my head much needed rest from the negative rumination thoughts and feelings that come with depression and seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

The Client (1994)

This legal thriller is based on the novel by John Grisham and is about eleven-year-old Mark Sway (Brad Renfro) who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer, He hires an attorney, Reggie Love (Susan Sarandon), to protect him when the District Attorney, Roy Foltrigg (Tommy Lee Jones), tries to use him to take down a mob family. I always loved this story and how tough and resilient Mark and Reggie were when faced with extreme adversities. They both showed great courage and resourcefulness to persevere that I found inspiring!

Watch or buy now: Amazon Prime

A Few Good Men (1992)

This legal drama is about military lawyer Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) and fellow lawyer, Lt. Cdr. JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore) defending two U.S. Marines charged with killing a fellow Marine at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba. I loved the witty dialogue by writer Aaron Sorkin peppered throughout this entertaining film and how Kaffee finds his moral compass. Most of all I loved his courage and confidence in facing Col. Nathan R. Jessep (Jack Nicholson) who was vicious and highly intimidating!

Watch or buy now: Amazon Prime

The Hunt for Red October (1990)

This espionage thriller is based on the Tom Clancy novel and is about American CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Alec Baldwin) suddenly thrust on the battle field to track Soviet submarine captain Marko Ramius (Sean Connery) heading for the east coast of the United States. This is such an exciting film and the performances and action scenes are riveting. The strategic thinking and planning is inspiring to watch. This movie always takes me away from my problems and re-energizes my positivity and optimism!

Watch or buy now: Amazon Prime

The Quick and the Dead (1995)

This action western film is about a female gunfighter known as The Lady (Sharon Stone) returning to a frontier town where a dueling tournament is being held. Here she seeks to avenge her father's death with ruthless mayor and former outlaw, John Herod (Gene Hackman). This stylish western was such a delight to rediscover and to see a very young Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe in his first US film. Stone’s character The Lady also inspired me with her inner strengths and courage in facing such a ruthless villain like Herod. She is a great example of strong female leadership.

Watch or buy now: Amazon Prime

The uplifting power of cinema always lifts me out of depression or seasonal affective disorder (SAD) so fast that it will always be one of my go-to coping tools and therapies. And I do my very best to balance this with getting outside and soak up nature energy, vitamin D from sunshine, enjoy some pet therapy and the company and love of a good friend!

How about you? Is cinema one of your tools for inspiration?

Related Tips:
Tip#1000: The Uplifting Power of Cinema – Celebrating 1,000 Movie Tips & In the Film song 
Tip#1038: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 2 - The Zookeeper’s Wife 
Tip#1040: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 3 - Their Finest 
Tip#1044: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 4 – Galaxy Quest 
Tip#1080: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 5 - Phantom Thread 
Tip#1113: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 6 – 4 Movies from the 90’s
Tip#1115: The Uplifting Power of Cinema, Part 7 – A Simple Favor 

See 100's of inspirational movie tips from this blog listed A to Z!

Click here: Movies for Motivation

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE DEALING WITH
DEPRESSION OR DIFFICULT TIMES?
• READ: Top 10 Inspiring Movies for Managing Depression
• READ: Emmanuel & Depression featured in The Toronto Star
• LISTEN: Emmanuel's CBC Radio Interview on Movie Messages of Hope: The Fresh Air Show
• WATCH: Uplifting Movie Montage produced by Emmanuel Lopez!
• DISCOVER: 8 Creative Tools for Motivation & Depression

Remember How Movies Can Help You:
A) Entertain & Escape
B) Re-energize & Release
C) Inspiration & Motivation

 

Emmanuel Lopez-Motivatorman
Motivational Speaker
Discover Movies As Inspirational & Learning Tools!
See website: www.motivatorman.com
 
© Emmanuel Lopez 2018

Tip#1112: 8 Reasons Why I Love Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

I recently watched Scott Pilgrim vs. The World for the first time in years and had forgotten how wildly entertaining, fun, clever and inventive this movie was! It is so packed full of witty dialogue, awesome movie stars and brilliant scenes that I wondered why this wasn’t one of my favourite films of all time! So I made a list of why I loved this movie and to see how many people out there felt the same way.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010) is an action comedy film based on the graphic novel series by Bryan Lee O'Malley about Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera), a slacker musician, who must battle the seven evil exes of his newest girlfriend Ramona (Mary Elizabeth Winstead).

See: movie trailer
Watch now: Amazon Prime

1. The Best Unexpected Superhero Film

The film starts out as a fun slacker comedy but then unexpected moments unleashed mild-mannered characters into their kick-ass superhero personas! Their transformations still surprised me after all these years especially when… okay no spoilers if you haven’t seen yet!

2. All the Awesome Movie Stars in It

Check out this cast: Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Anna Kendrick, Brie Larson, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Evans, Brandon Routh, Jason Schwartzman and more! Wow!!! This film was the first time I’d seen Brie Larson and it was years before she’d win a Best Actress Oscar and then become Captain Marvel. Chris Evans was also just a year away from becoming Captain America. It was also cool to see Brandon Routh in white hair after playing Superman.

3. Filmed in Toronto as Toronto

Since Toronto is my home town it excited me to see so many recognizable locations throughout the entire movie. And now years later the film has become a historical archive because the beloved Honest Ed’s has since been torn down, Lee’s Palace has changed and the Second Cup location (that I used to go to regularly) is no longer there at Queen St. West and Augusta Ave. Here are some visible locations:

Casa Loma
Pizza Pizza
Honest Ed’s
Sonic Boom 
Lee’s Palace
Goodwill Store
Second Cup
TTC buses
Read more: Reel Toronto

4. The Great Songs

This film is filled with a mix of classic rock, alternative rock, indie, garage and post-punk some of which are performed by the actors themselves. The highlights for me were written by Beck performed by Sex Bob-omb in the film. Beck also wrote the short ditty called “Ramona" that Michael Cera sang. And my favourite song was "Black Sheep” by the band The Clash at Demonhead with Brie Larson singing vocals.

5. Lots of Marvel & DC Superhero Actors in It

Brie Larson - Captain Marvel
Chris Evans - Human Torch & Captain America
Brandon Routh - Superman & The Atom
Thomas Jane - The Punisher
Aubrey Plaza - Lenore "Lenny” Busker (villain in Legion)
Michael Cera - Robin (voice in The LEGO Batman movie)
Mae Whitman - Batgirl (voice in DC Super Hero Girls)

6. Super Witty Dialogue & Director

I just loved the fun, hilarious dialogue like in one of my favourite lines about “the L word”. The film was co-written and directed by Edgar Wright who also did Baby Driver, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. If you’ve seen Baby Driver you'll see that Wright is a visionary filmmaker who made sure Scott Pilgrim has every frame brimming with creativity and wit! You could watch it over and over just to study the transitions, camera effects and performances. HIGHLY recommend you see this super fun cast discussion with Wright moderating: Scott Pilgrim panel, San Diego Comic-Con 2010

7. The Playful Life Lessons

I laughed when the film's life lessons were so blatantly, yet playfully declared by Scott. SPOILER ALERT! Here are other examples of the life lessons: Scott challenges the final evil ex to a fight for Ramona's affections, earning the "Power of Love" sword. Later Scott makes peace with his friends and challenges the evil ex again, this time for himself. He then gains the "Power of Self-Respect" sword.

8. My Crush on Ramona Flowers

I was immediately smitten with Ramona Flowers played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead! I loved how her hair looked in magenta, blue and green. She just looked hot! And when she finally kicks ass in the film she looked even hotter. Plus, since I see myself as a SCI FI/superhero movie geek, Ramona is truly a fanboy’s dream girl! Only thing is if I got to date her I know I’d have to battle her 7 evil ex’s!

How about you? Do you agree with my list? What would you add?

And if you haven’t seen it I highly recommend you do. It's highly entertaining on so many levels. And if you live in Toronto this is a must-see historical archive of places familiar to you. There are many reasons why I love movies and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is overflowing with some the reasons why cinema is so important to me. Hope you have favourite movies like this that you are wildly passionate about!

See 100's of inspirational movie tips from this blog listed A to Z!

Click here: Movies for Motivation

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE DEALING WITH
DEPRESSION OR DIFFICULT TIMES?
• READ: Top 10 Inspiring Movies for Managing Depression
• READ: Emmanuel & Depression featured in The Toronto Star
• LISTEN: Emmanuel's CBC Radio Interview on Movie Messages of Hope: The Fresh Air Show
• WATCH: Uplifting Movie Montage produced by Emmanuel Lopez!
• DISCOVER: 8 Creative Tools for Motivation & Depression

Remember How Movies Can Help You:
A) Entertain & Escape
B) Re-energize & Release
C) Inspiration & Motivation

 

Emmanuel Lopez-Motivatorman
Motivational Speaker
Discover Movies As Inspirational & Learning Tools!
See website: www.motivatorman.com
 
© Emmanuel Lopez 2018

Tip#1111: Remember Your Indestructible Optimism, Part 8 - TIFF 2018 - CLARA

One of the key factors that helped me survive years of dealing with unexpected crisis, clinical depression and other adversities was believing I’d get through it all. Even if I couldn’t see a solution I pushed myself to believe everything would be alright and I’d make it through the storm. Believing was necessary in building what I like to call my indestructible optimism!

While growing up I loved to believe there was life on other planets. That’s why I absolutely loved SCI FI films like Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Contact where I identified with characters like Roy Neary played by Richard Dreyfuss or Dr. Ellie Arroway played by Jodie Foster. These movie heroes inspired me to keep believing in whatever dreams and goals I had because I was able to witness how they trusted their own inner voice to persevere through their challenges.

Listening to my own inner voice is how I'm led to seeing movies that affected me in a positive way. It’s a gut feeling that tells me I need to see something specific and when I do the film always triggered an epiphany or answer to the next step in solving a problem in my life. Movies are also healing for me. This happened recently when I received a press preview screening invitation for TIFF 2018. Despite other invitations to other previews my inner voice told me to see a movie called CLARA. Once again I had an unexpected cinematic experience that lasted for days!

CLARA (2018)

The science fiction drama film, CLARA is about professor and astronomer Isaac Bruno (Patrick J. Adams) consumed by the search for life beyond Earth and meets an artist named Clara (Troian Bellisario) who helps in his search while profoundly changing his views about life and his own personal pain. Filmed in my hometown of Toronto, this engaging, moving film also stars Ennis Esmer, Kristen Hager, R. H. Thomson and Jennifer Dale. See: movie trailer

Right after seeing this movie I realized this was one of the best SCI FI films I’d ever seen brimming with life lessons on perseverance, hope and indestructible optimism! Big congratulations to the Toronto based writer and director, Akash Sherman for this remarkable achievement. It kept me highly engaged while feeding my passion for believing in life on other worlds.

It also excited me to recommend this as an ideal movie to use as an inspirational learning tool. Clara and Isaac are both compelling cinematic role models for demonstrating perseverance, resilience, teamwork and optimism. And yet it is Clara’s inner strengths and beliefs that are the keys to not giving up when everything looked hopeless.

Inspiring Themes:
• Passion
• Perseverance
• Resilience
• Indestructible Optimism
• Leadership
• Teamwork
• Supportive Relationships
• Resourcefulness
• Hope & Faith
• Power of Believing

This is a must see film for anyone who has a dream and wants to believe the impossible is possible. It is also a story about healing. It left me feeling so full of hope and positive energy that I immediately wanted to see it again! I highly recommend seeing this movie to inspire you not to give up on your goals when things look dark and that trusting in other people is an important key to helping you move forward.

So remember that believing helps fuel your indestructible optimism. And whether you call it inner voice, intuition or a gut feeling do your best to trust it. It could lead you to people with an answer or to the perfect movie with an inspirational message just for you. This is how your indestructible optimism activates and allows you to enjoy the journey for accomplishing your goals!

Related Tips:
Tip#998: Top 20 Inspiring Movies for Indestructible Optimism!
Tip#1097: Remember Your Indestructible Optimism, Part 7 - Depression - Breathe 
Tip#1111: Remember Your Indestructible Optimism, Part 8 - TIFF 2018 - CLARA

See 100's of inspirational movie tips from this blog listed A to Z!

Click here: Movies for Motivation

DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE DEALING WITH
DEPRESSION OR DIFFICULT TIMES?
• READ: Top 10 Inspiring Movies for Managing Depression
• READ: Emmanuel & Depression featured in The Toronto Star
• LISTEN: Emmanuel's CBC Radio Interview on Movie Messages of Hope: The Fresh Air Show
• WATCH: Uplifting Movie Montage produced by Emmanuel Lopez!
• DISCOVER: 8 Creative Tools for Motivation & Depression

Remember How Movies Can Help You:
A) Entertain & Escape
B) Re-energize & Release
C) Inspiration & Motivation

 

Emmanuel Lopez-Motivatorman
Motivational Speaker
Discover Movies As Inspirational & Learning Tools!
See website: www.motivatorman.com
 
© Emmanuel Lopez 2018