Monthly Archives: February 2025

Love Story (1970)

14 Friday Feb 2025

Posted by in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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When I held your hand on the long walk home,
In the white twilight of a snowglobe’s gloam,
It warmed me through with the glow of you,
And I thrilled at the thought the world hadn’t a clue
Of the prize I held and the eyes I knew.
You tightened your grip; I tightened mine too,
Lest this moment should end.

When I held your hand as our vows were said,
I meant every word from the day we wed.
A promise once made some are prone to let fade,
But the sight of my bride is a terrible trade,
And your arm in my own as the rice was thrown
Had me feeling somehow young yet grown.
Alas that that moment should end!

When I held your hand after work that day,
Both our eyes had bags that were there to stay.
For richer or poorer, a bitch or a snorer,
A job that was either a bore or a horror,
Your grip reassured that the day was endured
For someone worth holding with barely a word,
Lest even this moment should end.

When I held your hand in the hospital bed,
I fondled your fingers from pallor to red.
You squeezed as a bluff to insist you were tough,
As I thought I had not held your hand near enough.
Why had I always let go first before?
You loosened your grip, but I tightened mine more,
Lest all of our moments should end.
________________________

MPA rating: PG (more like a PG-13)

There are romances, and then there are romantic tragedies, and Love Story has a strong claim as the epitome of the latter. Written by Erich Segal, who also penned a bestselling novel based on his screenplay ten months before the film’s release (the book was published on Valentine’s Day no less), Love Story is a film I only knew from reputation. I still chuckle at the reference to its most famous line in What’s Up, Doc? when Ryan O’Neal’s character replies to “Love means never having to say you’re sorry” with “That’s the dumbest thing I ever heard.” Yet, regardless of the quality of its quotable relationship advice, I was pleasantly surprised at how engrossing this iconic melodrama is.

O’Neal plays wealthy Harvard student Oliver Barrett IV, who starts a relationship with the working-class Radcliffe student Jenny Cavilleri (Ali MacGraw), after a meet-cute born out of mutual antagonism. Despite the contrasts between them and the open disapproval of Oliver’s imperious father (Ray Milland), the two dive headlong into love and marriage, only for disease to sunder what no man could.

With the known melodrama in mind, I wasn’t expecting to especially like Love Story, and Ali MacGraw’s casually scornful Jenny didn’t seem like the kind of character to change my mind. But when paired with O’Neal, her abrasive qualities are matched by his stubborn charm, not-quite-opposites whose attraction is palpable. Even if I’m not a fan of their spurning of religion, to the humorous distress of Jenny’s Catholic father, the pair is easy to root for, making the eventual tragedy hit all the harder. Much has been said of the unrealistic beauty of Jenny even as she’s supposedly on her deathbed, but I wouldn’t say it took me out of the movie too much. While not above some deserved mockery at times, Love Story managed to live up to its genre-defining name, paving the way for the likes of The Fault in Our Stars and We Live in Time and jerking tears and jeers with the best of them.

Best line: (Oliver’s opening voiceover) “What can you say about a twenty-five-year-old girl who died? That she was beautiful and brilliant? That she loved Mozart and Bach, the Beatles, and me?”

Rank:  List Runner-Up

© 2025 S.G. Liput
801 Followers and Counting

THE LIST (2025 Update)

08 Saturday Feb 2025

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Rather overdue, but here is the full updated list of my personal top 365 films, including the latest additions in bold, albeit with series and ties combined in completely arbitrary ways because it’s MY list. It’s hard to believe I’ve been curating this list for 10 years now. This blog started as a countdown of poems/reviews for my original Top 365 films that took up my first year of blogging, and then I have edited and updated it annually ever since. (I’m thinking I’ll combine the past updates onto a single page instead of having them clutter up the top menu.)

Looking back at the 10 years that I’ve been curating this index, it’s hard to believe that only 8 films (not counting groupings) have managed to carve out a new place in the Top 100 in that time: Dungeons & Dragons, Little Women, the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Wit, Serenity, The Greatest Showman, La La Land, and The Martian. Otherwise, my favorites have remained pretty solid in the past decade, while the rest of the list has gone through quite a bit of fluctuation.

In this latest update, Tick, Tick… Boom! and Galaxy Quest saw the biggest boost, both jumping 50 places higher as I realized just how much I love those films, with other increases going to The Red Violin (+16), Hidden/A Quiet Place (+18), and Klaus (+26). Meanwhile, other films were brought down a peg, particularly The Right Stuff, dropping 102 places but still staying on the list. Also falling a bit were The Homecoming (-37), the Planet of the Apes series (-40), Labyrinth of Lies (-52), Shang-Chi (-24), and The Father (-42).

But what really pains me, as always, is tearing off the excess from this ever-growing list, so I must mention the excellent films that ended up being supplanted with this update, namely The Ultimate Gift, Shazam!, Wuthering Heights (1970), Remember the Titans, Kubo and the Two Strings, Swiss Family Robinson (1960), and A Chorus Line. I’m still a fan of these and all the other films that have been replaced over the last ten years; alas, there just isn’t enough room.

Thank you again to anyone who gives even a first glance to my little corner of the blogosphere here. I’ve actually been watching a lot more movies so far this year, so I’m hoping I can revive my rather languid posting schedule. Plus, I’m still working on that new musical project, and I live for the day when it’s ready to share with the world. In the meantime, may everyone have a fantastic 2025!

1.  The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001, 2002, 2003)

2.  Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995)

3.  Forrest Gump (1994)

4.  It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

5.  The Sound of Music (1965)

6.  Star Wars Trilogy (1977, 1980, 1983)

7.  Finding Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016)

8.  Titanic (1997)

9.  Toy Story Series  (1995, 1999, 2010, 2019)

10.  Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

11.  The Princess Bride (1987)

12.  Beauty and the Beast (1991)

13.  Groundhog Day (1993)

14.  The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

15.  The Prince of Egypt (1998)

16.  You’ve Got Mail (1998)

17.  The Wizard of Oz (1939)

18.  The Avengers (2012), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Infinity War (2018), and Endgame (2019)

19.  Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

20.  War Horse (2011)

21.  The Incredibles (2004) and The Incredibles 2 (2018)

22.  Cast Away (2000)

23.  Heart and Souls (1993)

24.  Pirates of the Caribbean (2003, 2006, 2007) and Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)

25.  Tarzan (1999)

26.  Les Miserables (2012)

27.  Ben-Hur (1959)

28.  Elizabethtown (2005)

29.  Star Trek (2009)

30.  The Chronicles of Narnia (2005, 2008, 2010)

31.  The Mummy (1999) and The Mummy Returns (2001)

32.  Driving Miss Daisy (1989)

33.  Oliver! (1968)

34.  Whisper of the Heart (1995)

35.  Spider-Man Trilogy (2002, 2004, 2007)

36.  The Five People You Meet in Heaven (2004)

37.  Doctor Zhivago (1965)

38.  Babe (1995)

39.  The Blues Brothers (1980)

40.  Jurassic Park (1993)

41.  84 Charing Cross Road (1987)

42.  National Treasure (2004) and National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007)

43.  Ratatouille (2007)

44.  The Fugitive (1993)

45.  True Grit (1969, 2010)

46.  Evita (1996)

47.  The Lion King (1994)

48.  Inception (2010)

49.  When Harry Met Sally… (1989)

50.  Back to the Future Trilogy (1985, 1989, 1990)

51.  Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

52.  Chariots of Fire (1981)

53.  Lilies of the Field (1963)

54.  Life of Pi (2012)

55.  Mary Poppins (1964)

56.  Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

57.  Glory (1989)

58.  Singin’ in the Rain (1952)

59.  The Family Man (2000)

60.  The Sixth Sense (1999)

61.  Aliens (1986)

62.  Life Is Beautiful (1997)

63.  Sherlock Holmes (2009) and Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)

64.  The Phantom of the Opera (2004)

65.  Awakenings (1990)

66.  Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)

67.  Paulie (1998)

68.  Home Alone (1990) and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992)

69.  The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

70.  Big (1988)

71.  Jumanji (1995)

72.  A Christmas Story (1983)

73.  Speed (1994)

74.  Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

75.  Little Women (1994, 2019)

76.  1776 (1972)

77.  High School Musical Trilogy (2006, 2007, 2008)

78.  Wit (2001)

79.  Serenity (2005)

80.  Somewhere in Time (1980)

81.  Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

82.  Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

83.  Gone with the Wind (1939)

84.  Aladdin (1992)

85.  The Greatest Showman (2017)

86.  Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), The Last Jedi (2017) and The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

87.  Saints and Soldiers (2003)

88.  La La Land (2016)

89.  Fantasia (1940)

90.  Shadowlands (1993)

91.  Hook (1991)

92.  Young Frankenstein (1974)

93.  The Truman Show (1998)

94.  The Ten Commandments (1956)

95.  Star Wars Prequel Trilogy (1999, 2002, 2005)

96.  October Sky (1999)

97.  Saving Mr. Banks (2013)

98.  Holes (2003)

99.  The Martian (2015)

100.  The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

101.  About Time (2013)

102.  Tick, Tick… Boom! (2021)

103.  Mr. Church (2016)

104.  Taking Chance (2009)

105.  Signs (2002)

106.  Star Trek: Generations (1994)

107.  Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

108.  The Santa Clause (1994)

109.  Starman (1984)

110.  The Passion of the Christ (2004)

111.  Train to Busan (2016) and Peninsula (2020)

112.  1917 (2019)

113.  Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Far from Home (2019), and No Way Home (2021)

114.  Brother Bear (2003)

115.  Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

116.  WALL-E (2008)

117.  The Green Mile (1999)

118.  On Golden Pond (1981)

119.  Air Force One (1997)

120.  Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) and Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2013)

121.  Shrek (2001), Shrek 2 (2004), and Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022)

122.  The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)

123.  Star Trek into Darkness (2013) and Star Trek Beyond (2016)

124.  Big Hero 6 (2014)

125.  To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

126.  The Matrix (1999)

127.  Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

128.  Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

129.  Shuffle (2011)

130.  The Mask of Zorro (1998) and The Legend of Zorro (2005)

131.  The Color Purple (1985 and 2023)

132.  Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)

133.  Cyrano (2021)

134.  The King’s Speech (2010)

135.  X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

136.  My Fair Lady (1964)

137.  Iron Man Trilogy (2008, 2010, 2013)

138.  The Hunger Games series (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2023)

139.  Men in Black Trilogy (1997, 2002, 2012)

140.  The Wild Robot (2024)

141.  The Music Man (1962)

142.  Ghostbusters Trilogy (1984, 1989, 2021)

143.  Ready Player One (2018)

144.  Yentl (1983)

145.  The Blind Side (2009)

146.  Regarding Henry (1991)

147.  Alien (1979)

148.  Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

149.  The Polar Express (2004)

150.  Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

151.  Julie and Julia (2009)

152.  Airplane! (1980)

153.  Castle in the Sky (1986)

154.  Secondhand Lions (2003)

155.  Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

156.  Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)

157.  Wicked: Part 1 (2024)

158.  National Velvet (1944)

159.  Darkest Hour (2017)

160.  A Christmas Carol (any version)

161.  E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

162.  The Little Mermaid (1989)

163.  Die Hard trilogy (1988, 1990, 1995)

164.  Godzilla Minus One (2023)

165.  Soul (2020)

166.  Source Code (2011)

167.  Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

168.  Gattaca (1997)

169.  Inside Out (2015) and Inside Out 2 (2024)

170.  Oppenheimer (2023)

171.  Hacksaw Ridge (2016)

172.  Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

173.  Overboard (1987)

174.  Cinderella (1950) / Cinderella (2015)

175.  A League of Their Own (1992)

176.  Tangled (2010)

177.  Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

178.  Zootopia (2016)

179.  The Untouchables (1987)

180.  Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)

181.  Treasure Planet (2002)

182.  Ella Enchanted (2004)

183.  Splash (1984)

184.  Monsters, Inc. (2001) and Monsters University (2013)

185.  Children Who Chase Lost Voices (2011)

186.  How to Train Your Dragon (2010)

187.  Guardians of the Galaxy (2014),  Vol. 2 (2017), and Vol. 3 (2023)

188.  Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018)

189.  Mission: Impossible III (2006), Ghost Protocol (2011), Rogue Nation (2015), Fallout (2018), and Dead Reckoning (2023)

190.  Selma (2014)

191.  Doc Hollywood (1991)

192.  Knives Out (2019) and Glass Onion (2022)

193.  The Holdovers (2023)

194.  Extraordinary Measures (2010)

195.  The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974)

196.  Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)

197.  Enchanted (2007)

198.  Up (2009)

199.  What’s Up, Doc? (1972)

200.  Ant-Man (2015) and Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

201.  Wolf Children (2012)

202.  Jojo Rabbit (2019)

203.  Your Name (2016)

204.  Wolfwalkers (2020)

205.  Galaxy Quest (1999)

206.  Pocahontas (1995)

207.  Planet of the Apes series (2011, 2014, 2017, 2024)

208.  Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

209.  Rudy (1993)

210.  Mulan (1998)

211.  Hidden Figures (2016)

212.  The Homecoming: A Christmas Story (1971)

213.  As Good As It Gets (1997)

214.  Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)

215.  King of Thorn (2010)

216.  In the Heights (2021)

217.  Les Miserables (1998)

218.  Spaceballs (1987)

219.  My Left Foot (1989)

220.  The Way (2010)

221.  The Prestige (2006)

222.  Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011)

223.  Blinded by the Light (2019)

224.  The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

225.  Wreck-It Ralph (2012) and Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)

226.  Saving Private Ryan (1998) / The Longest Day (1962)

227.  To Sir, with Love (1967)

228.  The Right Stuff (1983)

229.  Frozen (2013) and Frozen II (2019)

230.  The Dark Knight Trilogy (2005, 2008, 2012)

231.  Harriet (2019)

232.  United 93 (2006)

233.  Joyeux Noël (2005)

234.  Woman in Gold (2015)

235.  Twister (1996)

236.  Foul Play (1978)

237.  Coco (2017)

238.  Funny Girl (1968)

239.  Rocky (1976), Rocky II (1979), Rocky III (1982), Rocky IV (1985), and Creed (2015)

240.  Hello, Dolly! (1969)

241.  Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

242.  Weathering with You (2019)

243.  April and the Extraordinary World (2015) / Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004)

244.  Déjà Vu (2006)

245.  Out of Africa (1985)

246.  Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

247.  The Hobbit Trilogy (2012, 2013, 2014)

248.  Adventures in Babysitting (1987)

249.  Hoosiers (1986)

250.  The Great Escape (1963)

251.  Arrival (2016)

252.  Scrooged (1988) and Spirited (2022)

253.  The Naked Gun (1988)

254.  Jumpin’ Jack Flash (1986)

255.  Philadelphia (1993)

256.  Raising Arizona (1987)

257. The Jerk (1979)

258.  Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

259.  Ghost (1990)

260.  Misery (1990)

261.  School of Rock (2003)

262.  42 (2013)

263.  Daniel Craig Bond films – Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015), and No Time to Die (2021)

264.  Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)

265.  Gravity (2013)

266.  Hidden (2015) and A Quiet Place series (2018, 2021, 2024)

267.  Vantage Point (2008)

268.  Peter Pan (1953)

269.  The Terminal (2004)

270.  The Father (2020)

271.  Eddie the Eagle (2016)

272.  Labyrinth of Lies (2014)

273.  Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

274.  Jane Eyre (1970)

275.  Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension (2011)

276.  The Poseidon Adventure (1972)

277.  The Girl Who Leapt through Time (2006)

278.  Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) / Furiosa (2024) and Waterworld (1995)

279.  Ride Your Wave (2019)

280.  Cloud Atlas (2012)

281.  Anastasia (1997)

282.  Violet Evergarden: The Movie (2020)

283.  Short Term 12 (2013)

284.  X-Men (2000) and X2: X-Men United (2003)

285.  The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (2024)

286.  Green Book (2018)

287.  Surrogates (2009)

288.  Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

289.  WarGames (1983)

290.  Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)

291.  The Red Violin (1999)

292.  Cars (2006) and Cars 3 (2017)

293.  My Girl (1991)

294.  Memphis Belle (1990)

295.  Soul Man (1986)

296.  The Terminator (1984)

297.  The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947)

298.  The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)

299.  Casablanca (1942)

300.  Rain Man (1988) and Dominick and Eugene (1988)

301.  One Cut of the Dead (2017)

302.  Pinocchio (1940) and Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022)

303.  City Slickers (1991)

304.  The Hundred-Foot Journey (2014)

305.  Patema Inverted (2013)

306.  Forget Paris (1995)

307.  A Silent Voice (2016) / Hear Me (2009)

308.  Dances with Wolves (1990)

309.  Doctor Strange (2016)

310.  Akeelah and the Bee (2006)

311.  Murphy’s Romance (1985)

312.  Shenandoah (1965)

313.  A View to a Kill (1985)

314.  Wonder Woman (2017)

315.  Con Air (1997)

316.  Unbreakable (2000)

317.  Trading Places (1983)

318.  Sister Act (1992)

319.  Alien: Romulus (2024)

320.  Something the Lord Made (2004)

321.  The Way Back (2010)

322.  Superman (1978) and Superman II (1980)

323.  Dave (1993)

324.  Klaus (2019)

325.  Annie (1999)

326.  Elemental (2023)

327.  The Elephant Man (1980)

328.  Mean Girls (2004)

329.  The River Wild (1994)

330.  A Beautiful Mind (2001)

331.  Finding Forrester (2000)

332. The Big Year (2011)

333.  Starter for 10 (2006)

334.  Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003)

335.  The Pianist (2002)

336.  Wayne’s World (1992)

337.  Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)

338.  The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (2010)

339.  Steel Magnolias (1989)

340.  Encanto (2021)

341.  Searching (2018) and Missing (2023)

342.  Chronesthesia (or Love and Time Travel) (2016)

343.  Dancer in the Dark (2000)

344.  Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

345.  Please Stand By (2018)

346.  Music and Lyrics (2007)

347.  The Abyss (1989)

348.  The Breakfast Club (1985)

349.  Places in the Heart (1984)

350.  Psycho (1960)

351.  Cabrini (2024)

352.  Chicken Run (2000)

353.  Black Panther (2018) and Wakanda Forever (2022)

354.  Hercules (1997)

355.  Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993)

356.  In Time (2011)

357.  The Emperor’s New Groove (2000)

358.  The Spiderwick Chronicles (2008)

359.  A Monster Calls (2016)

360.  Ordinary People (1980) and Rabbit Hole (2010)

361.  Fiddler on the Roof (1971)

362.  Seven Samurai (1954) / The Magnificent Seven (1960/2016)

363.  Citizen Kane (1941)

364.  The Conjuring (2013) and The Conjuring 2 (2016)

365.  Sneakers (1992)