Movies for me?

I have a hard time finding good movies to watch these days … which is one reason why I stopped doing my weekend update posts.

Now, my problem is this: I don’t like chick flicks and I don’t like the modern action movies which seem to me like a collection of explosion with a little bit of story wedged in between. That’s one reason why I haven’t been to the movies for a long time now. (The other reason is that most movies are shown in 3D here and I hate wearing those 3D glasses over my own glasses – especially as I have enough imagination to enjoy a movie in 2D as well.)

I like my movies with story, some action, and more story. I’m not adverse to action sequences as a such, but I don’t like action without a reason. If something explodes, I like to know why – and ‘because nothing exploded for the last five minutes’ isn’t a suitable reason in my book.

Maybe it’s because most of my teenage life I have enjoyed crime stories and horror movies. Both need a story to work out. Maybe it’s simply because I am neither your average woman, nor an average guy. Maybe movies just got less interesting over the last few years. All three theories seem about equally likely to me.

What I’d like to see are movies with an interesting story, diverse characters and a bit of action. I’m not the romance type, but if I have to resort to kids’ movies or comedies to find something to watch (or watch TV series like “Big Bang Theory” and “Criminal Minds”), something is going very wrong.

What would I like to see in a movie? Well, first of all an interesting story that gives the hero apt reason for being a hero. Those soldier-boy war-heroes don’t do anything for me – that’s probably something for guys. I like to see a more ordinary guy in the lead – or even better: give me an ordinary woman who manages to save the day by herself, instead of waiting for the big, strong hero to turn up. That’s actually what I like most about horror movies (apart from the horror, of course). They feature mostly ordinary people who get thrust into a terrible situation and have to grow strong or die. Crime stories also include a lot of normal people, now that I think of it. Give me a good story that helps me to understand the motives, both the ones of the hero and of the villain. Time for the ‘I’m doing everything for the sake of being evil’ villains has run out long ago. The motives of the villain may be quite normal, like greed, revenge, or power, but they should be shown. Give me additional characters that are more than just 2D cut-outs. Every character in a story should have depth, should have wishes and fears, should have a life. They should not just stand around waiting for the moment when they have to hand the hero a clue or when they have to be shot by the villain or his men. Especially henchmen should be more than just guys with guns. What else is there? A nice backdrop would be good. I like horror movies with a background from the past, an old evil lying low or an old sin that is avenged now.

That is my personal list for a good movie, but it’s not something I have found in a lot of them. Especially not recently.