The Films I Love Because Of Nina

My grandmother was someone that never particularly cared for taking a trip to the movie theater to go see the newest movie that came to theaters or anything. But on the days that my mother worked her long hours at her job at quest diagnostics, my grandmother would sit down with me and we would split a can of Diet Coke and we would watch a movie together while we waited for my mother to come pick me up. We didn’t do it often because my grandmother did not like how much I was into movies and television shows. On those weekdays, they were very precious to me just to relax and get to show her something that interested me and then to get the reaction from her is something that I’ll always remember.

Nina always worried about how I would develop social skills because of my interest in movies. My interest in the craft of the cinema started at age 9 to scour the special features for commentaries, character creations, bloopers, history, anything! After I found my knowledge I would often make my grandmother watch them with me. She would sit and watch the featurette with me after we watched the movie,

She always pointed out to me if I was talking about movies too much.

However, she was also a movie fan like me .

Nina would tell me about certain films that she watched and would even call my mother on the phone to see if there’s a certain movie that my mother could get her. When Nina was recuperating from a knee surgery in the hospital she requested several movies, that I would eventually watch: Pretty woman, Steel Magnolias, dirty dancing, and Fried Green Tomatoes.

The afternoons I spent with my grandparents after school shaped my childhood and brought a lot of joy as well as structure. After school, Nina would help me with my homework, and then we would do three practices of songs and exercises on the guitar. Nina and I worked diligently to help me with my academic struggles, together we got it done, with everything accomplished before 3 o'clock it gave us some time together. On occasion, Nina would tell me to go to the fridge and get a can of Diet Coke, two glasses, and I got to pick out the movie. While we waited for my mom to come pick me up. It was a soda and a show.

Nina was very patient with her movie buff granddaughter, there are films we would watch over and over. Scenes that we had to replay for a enjoy laughing again. She was very patient and wanted to take in what someone wanted to show her.

Grease 2

Now the second movie to Grease is some thing that is not a critical darling, even people that aren’t really movie buff fans can tell you that the musical sequel is not a great movie. It’s just one of those enjoyably bad movies with great songs. It's not a perfect film and that's Ok. Grease 2 was one of the main movies we watched in the summer. I kept that DVD in my little basket to take out and watch together. Whenever I tell people about Grease 2 they immediately scratch their head or scrunch their face in distaste, But they watched it with judgment. I watched it with someone who didn’t look at it with judgment and just liked it because it was a continuation of Grease. It was the way that I watched it with my grandmother who always commented about Michelle Pfeiffer and how good she looked and how she would have this high pitch to giggle throughout some of the scenes.

It may been a bummer sequel to some, but it was the perfect number one movie for us in the summer.

Dirty Dancing

Speaking of summer, Dirty Dancing's plot as well the timing of watching it came at a perfect time in summer of 2008. I mentioned in the list above that one of Nina's favorite movies was Dirty Dancing, so when she caught wind that my mother got me to watch the movie she was happy that there was something that she had already watched and loved and that we had both seen this so we could enjoy this together.

I do find it ironic and perfect that dirty dancing is a summer movie and that is the timeframe for when I watched dirty dancing with my mom. My mother tried for a year to get me to watch dirty dancing and I vehemently denied it because I was all about action movies I wanted nothing to do with romantic movies. And then I watched it and I accidentally loved it. So naturally with my grandmother caught wind of this she was excited to be able to watch that with me. The one thing that I loved about watching dirty dancing with her is her laugh. Nina always laughed at the scene when Patrick Swayze was trying to do this one dance move for the Mambo with Jennifer Grey and she kept laughing hysterically and the laughter is contagious, it made my grandmother giggle and laugh.

It was the time of our life and we gladly replayed for a frequent favorite film.

Forrest Gump

I can’t believe that I had almost forgotten about how important the day was when my grandmother and I watched Forrest Gump together. in 2009, I had seen Forrest Gump on TNT, after the first time I watched it and accidently loved it, I got the movie for Christmas. Nina had not seen it. But the way that we set up a day to watch it together is something that I’m glad that I had remembered what it was because that makes me happy to know what she did and see our perceptions of it.

On Spring Break of 2010, Nina and I watched Forrest Gump on one of my Spring Break days. Looking back on that day with the preparations, she was very happy that I took one of my days of spring break so I could spend it with her.

Nina prepared a little bowl of popcorn, and we went upstairs to her bedroom that had a little living room in between the bathroom and the bedroom. A perfect little place with a tiny TV, two recliners. It was perfect, like a little makeshift IMAX movie theater. we went to just sit down as two hour movie. Nina did not expect she was going to like this movie, and did not know was gonna be so emotional. And probably no one else did in 1994 either. A couple times during the movie, I looked over at Nina to see her sniffing and wiping her eyes. When you watch a movie with someone you never know if they are sad because for the character or sad because of the personal relation to the character. After the movie was over, Nina told me she was happy she got a chance to see it but never wanted to see it again because it was too sad for her. It was one of the only times that we actually watched a serious movie together. Most of the things we watched was things wouldn't be heavy emotional material. But this was a serious film that dealt with a twist in time and lessons about love, life, and death

Hairspray

In 2007, this was the first musical that I ever got to see in theaters and Nina wanted to take me to go see it and I was very excited. Because this is virtually the only movie that I ever got to see with her in theaters (There were occasions that we all will go see movies together as a family but hairspray was the only one were it was just Nina and me). Nina did not like going to the movie theaters, she would rather watch a movie at home because it was more enjoyable to be able to laugh and pause the movie, ask questions or go do a quick house chore. It runs in my family that no one can sit still during a movie.

We went to go see hairspray at the IMAX theater, the primary reason that Nina wanted to watch it was she saw John Travolta’s name was in the line above stars mentioned in the movie. I knew who John Travolta was because of watching Grease with her. So we both were on the hunt to see where John Travolta was in the movie. This is also the first time my mother actually got to see one of the biggest heart throbs the time, the actor Zac Efron. My grandmother definitely understood why people loved to see Zac Efron and she also fell under her spell, especially after the scene which made her laugh in the theater .

Now before I explain the scene, Nina isn’t really one for vulgar jokes and she does not like words like ass or hell. She keeps it clean because she was a classy lady.

In the scene where Tracy is going to be sent to detention (again), the love interest Link Larkin stands up abruptly in the evening to go with her. The teacher calls on him to answer the questions of the last words of a historical figure. In that moment Link has to decide if he wants to stay in the classroom, or if he wants to go with Tracy. He made his decision by answered the teachers question by saying, kiss my ass?

Nina put her hand over her mouth and was trying to stop her laughter. It was the loudest, hysterical, hyena giggle I had heard. It's still wonderful to hear in my head when I think about it.

When we watch a story with our loved ones it changes the way that we look at that story. We choose how we are entertained and the association that we have with a certain film that makes it different for everybody. Watching these films holds a very special place in my heart because of Nina. I have watched many movies, and I have a very selected few favorites, but my favorite movies are the ones I get to watch with my loved ones.

These films are very precious to me, they may not be everyone’s favorite film but they’re my favorite films because of Nina.