Five Fascinating Movies That Touched Everyone’s Heart

1. To Kill A Mockingbird

This movie was released in the year 1962 and became a great hit in America. The movie was based on the best-selling novel of Harper Lee . What made it attractive was the fact that it reflects what America was like back then. In the year 1995, the movie was even selected by the Library of Congress to be preserved in the United Stated National Film Registry. There are so many things that happened in the film, but if you try to summarize them, all of them will just sum up to one thing: discrimination.

Synopsis: The Family of Finch together with the other characters in the movie lived in America during the time of  Great depression. When a young black man named Tom Robinson was accused of raping a white woman, Atticus Finch was assigned to defend him. Although Atticus Finch did a great job in proving that Tom did not do anything, the jury composed of white people gave a guilty verdict. Atticus tried to plea for the change of verdict, but Tom escaped from the jail and was killed. The father of the white woman that accused Tom attacked the children of Atticus namely Scout and Jem, but Boo Radley, a mentally retarded neighbor whom the children made fun with, saved them by killing their attacker. The Sheriff decided to promulgate that the death of the attacker was just an accident so that Boo Radley will not be put to jail.

2. The Reading Room

The movie was just simple yet there’s something in it that will really make you watch. It is very different from the rest of the movies because this shows reality that “no matter how you try to be good, you cannot just please everybody.”

Synopsis: “After the death of his beloved wife, Helen, wealthy African-American suburbanite William Campbell  finds that Helen has left behind a “living will” in the form of a videotape. As William watches the video, his late wife urges him to take his huge personal library down to the tough inner-city neighborhood and to establish a reading room. Though confused by this request, William does exactly that, only to find that none of his new neighbors seem inclined to read — not until he posts a sign reading FREE SODA. Ever so slowly, a few “regulars” trickle into the reading room, among them an idealistic young special-ed teacher, a high-schooler studying for his SATS, and a little girl who hopes to get her mother to learn to read. For the most part, however, William’s little sanctuary is the target of break-ins and the hangout for local gang members, and with this in mind it isn’t surprising that several people encourage him to pack up and get out — none more adamantly than the Reverend Rashid Rahim (played by , the film’s director), a self-appointed urban activist who perceives in William a threat to his supremacy. Eventually, whether or not William stays or goes boils down to his attempt at “redeeming” a youthful thief named Javier — and it is at this point in the narrative that William finally understands why Helen wanted him to open up the reading room in the first place.” — Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

3. Changeling

“A scene when Christine Colins found out that his boy was missing”

This movie is totally heartbreaking because of the many things that the main character has to go through. The events were related to the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders, a kidnapping and murder case that was uncovered in 1928. This movie shows the image of the females in the society and how the Police department became corrupt. The writer of the said movie researched for relevant data in the historical records to be included in the script. The movie is suppose to win the Palme d’Or but the award went to Entre les murs (”The Class”). The movie lost by two votes because other judges doubt the legitimacy of the writers’ claim that the movie was a true one.

Synopsis: Christine and his son were suppose to go to the movie house, but she was called by the office to report that day. As Christine departed for work, she never anticipated that that will be the day when her life will totally be changed. Upon learning that her son was missing, she called the police immediately. After many months of hopelessness, a boy claiming to be his son came out of nowhere. She knew that he was not his son but she just invited the boy to his house because did not know how to explain it to the authorities and to the media. As much as Christine would like to accept the fact that her son has been returned to her, she cannot accept the injustice being pushed upon her and continues to challenge the Prohibition-era Los Angeles police force at every turn. As a result, Christine is slandered by the powers that be, and painted as an unfit mother. In this town, a woman who challenges the system is putting her life on the line, and as the situation grows desperate, the only person willing to aid her in her search is benevolent local activist Reverend Briegleb.

4. Forrest Gump

Image Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/67/Forrest_Gump_poster.jpg

I have seen this movie when I was 12 years old and I still remember the scenes until now. The film was a huge commercial success, earning US$677 million worldwide during its theatrical run making it the top grossing film in North America released that year. The film garnered a total of thirteen Academy Award nominations, of which it won six, including Best Picture, Best Visual Effects, Best Director, (Robert Zemeckis), and Best Actor (Tom Hanks).

Synopsis: The film begins with a feather falling to the feet of Forrest Gump who is sitting at a bus stop in Savannah, Georgia. Forrest picks up the feather and puts it in the book Curious George, then tells the story of his life to a woman seated next to him. The listeners at the bus stop change regularly throughout his narration, each showing a different attitude ranging from disbelief and indifference to rapt veneration.

On his first day of school, he meets a girl named Jenny, whose life is followed in parallel to Forrest’s at times. Having discarded his leg braces, his ability to run at lightning speed gets him into college on a football scholarship. After his college graduation, he enlists in the army and is sent to Vietnam, where he makes fast friends with a black man named Bubba, who convinces Forrest to go into the shrimping business with him when the war is over. Later while on patrol, Forrest’s platoon is attacked. Though Forrest rescues many of the men, Bubba is killed in action. Forrest is awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroism.

While Forrest is in recovery for a bullet shot to his “butt-tox”, he discovers his uncanny ability for ping-pong, eventually gaining popularity and rising to celebrity status, later playing ping-pong competitively against Chinese teams. At an anti-war rally in Washington, D.C. Forrest reunites with Jenny, who has been living a hippie counterculture lifestyle.

Returning home, Forrest endorses a company that makes ping-pong paddles, earning himself $25,000, which he uses to buy a shrimping boat, fulfilling his promise to Bubba. His commanding officer from Vietnam, Lieutenant Dan, joins him. Though initially Forrest has little success, after finding his boat the only surviving boat in the area after Hurricane Carmen, he begins to pull in huge amounts of shrimp and uses it to buy an entire fleet of shrimp boats. Lt. Dan invests the money in Apple Computer and Forrest is financially secure for the rest of his life. He returns home to see his mother’s last days.

One day, Jenny returns to visit Forrest and he proposes marriage to her. She declines, though feels obliged to prove her love to him by sleeping with him. She leaves early the next morning. On a whim, Forrest elects to go for a run. Seemingly capriciously, he decides to keep running across the country several times, over some three and a half years, becoming famous.

In present-day, Forrest reveals that he is waiting at the bus stop because he received a letter from Jenny who, having seen him run on television, asks him to visit her. Once he is reunited with Jenny, Forrest discovers she has a young son, of whom Forrest is the father. Jenny tells Forrest she is suffering from a virus (probably HIV, though this is never definitively stated). Together the three move back to Greenbow, Alabama. Jenny and Forrest finally marry. Jenny dies soon afterward.

5. Casper

Image Source: http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/070717/cgi/casper_l.jpg

For those who love family movies, Casper is one of the movies you can watch. Although some critics said that the movie does not fit its genre since it shows a comedy with serious themes of death. Nevertheless, the movie was a huge success grossing $100 million in the United States, almost twice its budget, and $326 million worldwide.

Synopsis: Carrigan Crittenden only inherited an old house but upon learning that there’s a treasure inside the manor, she became interested in owning it. The only problem is that it’s being haunted by ghosts, Casper (voice of Malachi Pearson), a friendly but lonely young ghost and his three obnoxious uncles, the Ghostly Trio: Stretch (voice of Joe Nipote), Stinky (voice of Joe Alaskey) & Fatso (voice of Brad Garrett). Dr. Harvey was tasked to do the job in eliminating the ghosts. The next day, Kat, the daughter of Dr. Harvey, became good friends with Casper. After a long time, they discovered that there is a reviving potion that can be used in reviving Casper, but as Casper was about to enter the reviving chamber, Dr. Harvey shows up as a ghost. Realizing that Kat needs her father alive, Casper uses the Lazarus machine to revive him, giving up his own chance of returning to life. The Halloween party begins and Kat ends up being the only person without a partner. A boy (played by Devon Sawa) appears before her and they dance. He reveals himself to be Casper, having been visited by the angel of Amelia Harvey (Amy Brenneman) and revived temporarily as a reward for saving her husband’s life. Casper and Kat kiss just as Casper turns back into a ghost at the final stroke of 10, scaring all the Halloween guests away. However, he doesn’t mind, and neither does Kat. The Ghostly Trio then start playing a rock and roll version of Casper the Friendly Ghost and Kat, Casper and Dr. Harvey dance around the hall. 

I have watched them all, and I must say that they are all good. Happy Holidays everyone!