The Spirit Of The Movie

If you check my internet history you'll notice a periodical pattern. About once a month there will be a website that lists the top ten sci-fi movies of 2019 or something similar. In my Vudu I'm always checking for similar movies to ones I already enjoy.

I've noticed that what the average person says is a similar movie is often nothing even remotely close. It may be genre specific, it may have the same actors and actresses but there is where similarities stop. Often the feel or spirit of a movie is entirely overlooked. Whether this is because of intellectuals needlessly picking apart the minutia or if it just wasn't their kind of movie is irrelevant. The outcome is the same. So, what is deemed similar?

As an example consider two very different movies that share the same spirit. The Grey with the great Liam Neeson and Cargo with the also great Martin Freeman. On the surface, The Grey is a story of a man barely surviving the frozen wastes of Alaska with his co-workers after a plane crash. A realistic survival action drama. However the movie actually becomes a study in the human experience and as  result carries with it a poetry in motion. In some cases that poetry is even stated but in others it is only seen and must be perceived. By the end of the movie though you are left with a feeling of deep empathy, a sense of bitter sweetness, and ultimately a new outlook on life and regrets. By definition you are now experiencing what is called introspection. 

Cargo is a very different movie. It is defined as an Apocalyptic fiction drama. To add to the differentiation, Cargo is a zombie movie! Nothing like a realistic survival story in the frozen Alaskan wasteland. Yet these two movies are more alike than different. By the end of this movie you will notice the same sense of introspection that resulted from The Grey. The same sense of poetry in motion. The reason for this is that both films focus less on the surrounding actions of others and more on the motivations, logic, psychology, and feelings of the main characters. In this way two seemingly dissimilar movies are the same feel and therefore a specific niche for what you may be looking for.

By contrast, compare Cargo with another zombie movie such as 28 days later. Yes they have similarities. Zombies, gore, and Male main characters. Yet one is considered a horror film and the other an introspective survival film. Oddly, these movies will show up in your similar interest lists although they have very little in common.

One more example to consider. The movie Big Fish is a feel good movie based on embellishing facts for an over the top story. It is dramatic, witty, and captivating to the imagination. An unusual combination to be sure. Ultimately it is a sweet movie about family with all its idiosyncrasies but has a feel good vibe the entire time. 

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty with Ben Stiller is another feel good movie but different in many ways. However the spirit remains the same. It's imaginative, witty,  funny, bitter sweet, and again makes you think. The two movies may not be in the something similar list but they have the same feeling and you will enjoy their overlapping nature. 

The lesson I've learned is pay attention to the spirit of the movie. You may find two entirely different movies have the same feeling that you wish to experience over and over. See the spirit, see the underlying feel of it, you may just open yourself up to a whole new world of stories that you've been overlooking for years.