YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD FILM ENTHUSIAST'S MOVIE LOVE QUESTIONNAIRE

Where did you grow up, and what was it like?
Chicago. What else can I say? It was my kind of town.

Was anyone else in your family into movies? If so, what effect did they have on your moviegoing tastes? Before my eyes were opened to the movies, I do not think that there was any other family member that was passionate to the degree that I am. My family did go to the movies. My family enjoyed going to the movies. But in my early years, all the movies were for me was just another place to go and to, of course, possibly have some popcorn. I remember seeing "The Bingo Long Travelling All Stars & Motor Kings" (1976) as well as "Rocky" (1976), but typically, I tended to fall asleep in the movie theater.

What's the first movie you remember seeing, and what impression did it make on you?
That's really hard. I do have a vague memory of seeing "Bambi" (1942) but all I remember from it was a fire sequence. If that was the first one I saw in a move theater, I just don't know. Now, the first to make an impression upon me was certainly "The Wizard Of Oz" (1939). I was perhaps four or five when I saw that for the very first time and I loved it!! Without realizing it, that movie was the very first to show me how the medium and language of film can be a completely enveloping experience that at its best is a level of storytelling that is entirely transportive and everything just feels to be so real, even when it is all so obviously make believe. That scene where the Wicked Witch has Dorothy captive in the castle, and she turns the hourglass over and tells Dorothy that she will die when the sand runs out...man, I was TERRIFIED!! My older cousin Susan was watching it with me and of course, she had seen it. But no matter how hard she tried to assure me that Dorothy would be saved, I just did not believe her until I saw it for myself. That movie left an impression!

What's the first movie that made you think, "Hey, some people made this. It didn't just exist. There's a human personality behind it.
"Star Wars" hands down, which I saw at the age of eight on its opening day in 1977!!! That was the very first movie I saw where movies and the moviegoing experience hit me like lightning. Before I went inside the theater that night, the movies were just another place to go. The moment the movie began and definitely by the end, it was like I had an out of body experience. George Lucas was the first filmmaker I was ever aware of as being a person who made movies as their chosen job and so, my eyes were completely opened. It was like I said to myself, "AHHHHHH!!! MOVIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

What's the first movie you ever walked out of?

Ha ha ha!! That's easy! It was during a special advance preview of "The Champ" (1979) starring Jon Voight and Ricky Schroder in his debut performance. I was 10 years old and my family plus two older cousins went out to see the PG rated re-released version of "Saturday Night Fever" (1977) and "The Champ" was a preview being shown right afterwards. I believe that you just always know when a movie is not working for you and believe me, I just HATED this thing instantly. It was so saccharine, so maudlin and such a prefabricated, overdone weepie as this kid (and seemingly everyone in the film) was just crying and carrying on and on and on and I could not stand it at all. After a while, I leaned over to my Mom and asked if we had to keep watching this movie. She then leaned over to my Dad and whispered, "Scott wants to leave." And as if the sharpest electrical current zapped through my Father's theater seat, he leaped upright before I even realized and he announced to the family, "Let's GO!!" In the car, we all realized that everyone in the family was hating the movie just as much as I was but thought that each other was enjoying it, so nobody wanted to be the one to pull the plug on the evening.

What's the funniest film you've ever seen?

To date, "National Lampoon's Animal House" (1978)  is my favorite comedy!

What's the saddest film you've ever seen?

Paul Thomas Anderson's "Magnolia" (1999) leaves me as a dish rag every time I have seen it. It is just such an emotional steam rolled and such an overwhelming experience--especially during its second hour--that my only reaction is to cry and cry. But, believe it or not, I think "A Boy Named Charlie Brown" (1969) possesses such a powerfully deep and profound sense of melancholy that my heart just falls every time I have seen it (especially when poor Charlie Brown loses the spelling bee over the word "beagle"), even though I cherish it. I felt that way when I saw it as a child, and it just amazes me how children can easily recognize those emotions of failure, disappointment, and insecurity and this film carries those emotions so honestly, that it makes any sense of uplift and messages of perseverance that much more meaningful.

What's the scariest film you've ever seen? 

"Poltergeist" (1982), without question. The experience of seeing that film for the first time--and in the afternoon--was so voluminously intense and horrifying that it is one experience that I have never had in quite the same way since. It worked me over--two times!! But, as a second choice (sort of), the "opening the Ark" sequence in "Raiders Of The Lost Ark" (1981) ranks near the very top as being one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen. I can still vividly remember shielding my eyes once those faces began melting.

What's the most romantic film you've ever seen?

Also without question, John Hughes' "Sixteen Candles" (1984). The hope, the yearning, the heartbreak and ultimate vindication that the one you secretly love the most will someday notice you and your self worth and then even reciprocate your love so purely and truly, as represented by Samantha and Jake sitting on that table with the birthday cake between them, lifted my 15 year old self through the clouds when I first saw it...and it still does to this day. It is a film with a perfect movie kiss and it is also a perfect ending. Just soaring in its beauty.

I also have to mention a very close runner-up and that is Cameron Crowe's "Jerry Maguire" (1996). I saw that film on opening day and while the entire film spoke to my soul, that film's love story, both with those killer lines, "You complete me," and "You had me at 'Hello'," just leveled me

What's the first television show you ever saw that made you think television could be more than entertainment?
It may have been some viewings of "Hill Street Blues." That was possibly the first show to make me experience a variety of different and darker emotions.  

What book do you think about or revisit the most?

I have read Judy Blume's Tales Of A Fourth Grade Nothing more than any other book in my life as I read it every year to my group of students. For me, that book is my Charlotte's Web. But my favorite book of all time is John Irving's The World According To Garp.

What album or recording artist have you listened to the most, and why?
I listen to music infinitely more than I eve watch movies so it would be impossible for me to figure out which album or artist I have listened to the most. That being said, my #1 favorite album is "Abbey Road" by The Beatles and my personal musical "Holy Trinity" features The Beatles, Todd Rundgren and Prince. 

Is there a movie that you think is great, or powerful, or perfect, but that you never especially want to see again, and why? 
Darren Aronofsky's "Requiem For A Dream" (2000). It is brilliant but it is a ride too brutally disturbing for me to ever sit through again. 

What movie have you seen more times than any other? 

I honestly do not know but it is quite possibly a John Hughes title as I can quote those films unlike any others.

What was your first R-rated movie, and did you like it? 

"National Lampoon's Animal House," and absolutely yes. I loved the sheer anarchy of the entire thing even though my 9 year old brain could not even begin to process the actual content of the jokes. Once the jokes became clear to me by Middle School, I was just dumbfounded that I actually wore my parents down so far that they conceded to even let me see it...and then, not whisk me from the theater while we were there!

What's the most visually beautiful film you've ever seen? 

That is really hard!!! I'll toss out two that made my eyes POP. The French film thriller, Jean-Jacques Beineix's "Diva" (1981) and also Ridley Scott's "Blade Runner" (1982). And Stanley Kubrick's visual compositions are, and will forever be, unmatched.

Who are your favorite leading men, past and present? 

This is also very hard for me (as is the next question) as I don't tend to rank actors very much. I either respond to them or I don't and there are some that are personal favorites. From the past, perhaps Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda. From the present, Denzel Washington is one of the best we have ever had (although he needs to chill on the brain dead action movies), and I love Leonardo Di Caprio and Tom Hanks as well. John Cusack has truly been a hero to me through his romanticism and subversive cynicism, Tom Cruise has never elicited a lazy performance in his life and I deeply appreciate is 1000% commitment to a role and when I was growing up, Sean Penn was my Robert DeNiro. While not a movie, Bryan Cranston's work on television's "Breaking Bad" was one of the finest performances I have ever seen. And of course, the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman was, again without question, the very best of his generation.

Who are your favorite leading ladies, past and present? 

Oh boy...hmmm...from the present, Kate Winslet can do no wrong! I love Julianne Moore, Naomi Watts, Frances McDormand and Annette Bening as well. But I think quite a few leading actresses I love have been mostly featured on television like Amy Ryan from "The Wire" and "In Treatment" and most certainly, Julia Louis-Dreyfus.  From the past...hmmm...I thought that Elizabeth Taylor was a powerhouse in "Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?" (1966). Hmm...can I get back to you on that one? 

Who's your favorite modern filmmaker? 

I don't have just one. But my favorites (that are currently working) are/remain Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, Cameron Crowe, Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Spike Lee, Judd Apatow, Terry Gilliam, Richard Linklater, The Coen Brothers, Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, Sofia Coppola, and Clint Eastwood.

Who's your least favorite modern filmmaker? 

Michael Bay is the death of cinema.

What film do you love that most people seem to hate? 

"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1978), starring Peter Frampton and The Bee Gees has been long acknowledged as being one of the worst films ever made and yes, I am the only one who has ever loved it.

What film do you hate that most people love?

Most of the films by David Cronenberg and David Lynch are ones that do not appeal to me at all. I hated David Lynch's "Blue Velvet" (1986) when I saw it as a teenager and I have never understood its appeal at all. I just find it to be obvious, not the least bit provocative, totally overwrought, more than a little cruel and also more than a little stupid.

Tell me about a moviegoing experience you will never forget—not just because of the movie, but because of the circumstances in which you saw it.
Aside from "Star Wars"...well, there was most definitely the release of "The Blues Brothers" (1980), the film that singlehandedly revived Chicago as a primary filming location for Hollywood productions. This was an EVENT movie if there ever was one and a time when all of Chicago banded together in unison for a non-sporting experience. We tried and tried to see that movie on three separate occasions, each time waiting is epic long lines outside of the River Oaks theater only to be turned away with a "SOLD OUT" sign every time. The fourth time we tried, we got in and it was nearly as much of an out of body experience as "Star Wars" was as I could not believe what I was seeing.

Another cherished moviegoing event was the night my family and I saw a double feature of Milos Forman's "Hair" (1979) and Alan Parker's "Fame" (1980), two sensational and euphoric films that made me graduate to more adult themes and concepts via a format I could understand, the rock musical.

What aspect of modern theatrical moviegoing do you like least? 

Aside from seeing commercials and seeing previews that essentially tell the entire movie in two minutes thus completely negating the purpose of seeing the full length film in the first place, I cannot stand how some theater chains jack up the volume on coming attractions trailers to an ear splitting degree and the main feature is presented at the normal movie theater volume (in most cases). I know the powers-that-be want to grab the audience's attention but if an audience member cannot notice the images upon the giant movie screen, then what is making the audio element deafening going to do? Also I cannot stand seeing children attending films that are clearly inappropriate for them to view. I know the ratings system is deeply flawed but when it comes to what is acceptable for small children to watch or not watch, the ratings system is perfect and parents just need to be more proactive in attaining the information so that they can make wise choices for their kids.

What aspect of moviegoing during your childhood do you miss the most? 
Seeing films in 70MM and Dolby sound. But even more, I just miss the imagination, the level of creativity, the risk taking and the personal statements filmmakers could make as they are in increasingly short supply compared to when I was growing up.

Have you ever damaged a friendship, or thought twice about a relationship, because you disagreed about whether a movie was good or bad? 

Of course not. They're just movies.

What movies have you dreamed about? 

Too many to mention!

What concession stand item can you not live without?

Popcorn, baby!!! Always popcorn!!!!