Your best books and films?

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Elizabeth

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Thought it’d be fun - and useful - to find out people’s bestest ever books and films (and it’s cheating to say, The Passion, The Bible or The Catechism!). You can include books and films really worth reading/watching too. Always on the lookout for good stuff!

Me, I like Braveheart and The Railway Children (brilliant British drama film - the 1970 version - very wholesome and perfect for kids or family; in U.S. buy it on the internet). Oh yes October Sky is very uplifting.

:hmmm:Can’t think of a best book right now; too many to mention!

Looking forward to your responses!
 
Do you want the best I’ve seen, or my favorite?

Movies:
Favorite: *The Princess Bride 😛 *
Best: Jesus of Nazereth/Passion of Christ

Now that I think about it, I can’t choose any books!
 
As far as best books I would say, “To Kill a Mocking Bird”, “Memoirs of a Geisha”, and of course “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy”

Best Film “Office Space” and “The Last Emperor”

Best Musical Work “Mozart’s Requiem Mass”

Best visual artwork “The Sistine Chapel” < – is that one cheating? If so anything by Michelangelo or Gustave Dore
 
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Shibboleth:
Best Musical Work “Mozart’s Requiem Mass”
Click to expand...
Well, if you are going to do musical works…
Music: Gustav Mahler, Symphony #8 in Eflat

They call it “Symphony of a Thousand”
 
Best books: Watership Down I can and do read that one over and over again; Any of Tom Clancy’s fiction; The Name of the Rose is my most recent re-read.

Best movies (the short-list of the many, in no particular order): Apollo 13 (I cry every time they safely splash down); Rear Window (more for Grace Kelly than Jimmy Stewart); The Philadelphia Story; The African Queen; True Grit (Best John Wayne Ever); Auntie Mame; Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan; The Untouchables; lots more…

“Well, come and visit a one-eyed fat man sometime!”
(And save me an aisle seat),
tee
 
Best books: C. S. Lewis’s Perelandra and That Hideous Strength: James Blish’s Cities in Flight novels. Anything by Isaac Azimov

Best Movies: LOTR, Judgment at Nuremburg, Schindler’s List, The Pianist, and Fiddler on the Roof

Best Music: Beethoven’s Symphony #7 in A, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, Mozart’s 41st Symphony (Jupiter)
 
The Best Years of Our Lives, while not an “inspirational” film (and though it treats the whole matter of infidelity and divorce altogether too neatly), always brings a tear to my eyes. My personal favorite.

The Miracle of Our Lady of Fatima, from the 1950s, is a sweet, sincerely-told story, which I first saw as a 16mm print in the gymnasium of our grade school (American Movie Classics – AMC – used to run it from time to time, but seems to have changed their format somewhat).

Chariots of Fire was one of the rare films of that era that portrayed Christians and Christian belief in an even-handed manner; kudos to all concerned for avoiding the harsh-judgmental-Biblethumper stereotypes to which filmmakers often resort when they run out of ideas.

A couple of “Guy Movies”: 1) Ben-Hur: rising above the Cast Of Thousands is an inspiring story of Faith, Love and Honor – and the beuatiful Haya Harareet proves that Purity can be quite attractive 🙂 2) The Magnificent Seven (from Kurasawa’s Seven Samurai) Okay, not an “inspirational picture” as such but, along with the swagger and shoot-em-up, one finds a story of Faith (of a sort), Loyalty, Courage (beautifully encapsulated in a speech by a young Charles Bronson to local village boys), Devotion, Love, Racial Tolerance – and a peculiarly masculine form of Honor. All of this is accomplished in an entertaining two-hours or so – and it never once sounds like a lecture.

Books? I’m halfway through the Durant’s series on European history, and still loving it. *Mere Christianity * by C S Lewis is the one I would definitely recommend for anyone curious about the Christian faith: Lewis’ approach is completely logical and succinct – how one could reach the end and not want to jump immediately into the nearest baptismal font is beyond me 😉
 
favorite book:Pierced by a Sword by Bud McFarland Jr Father Elijah by Michael O’Brien
 
I really love to read so I have to offer a couple!

Best Historical Book: A Man on the Moon by Andrew Chaikin

Best Historical Fiction: Battle Cry by Leon Uris

Best Fiction: Lord of the Rings

Best Religious: Catholicism and Fundementalism by our own Mr. Keating (the bibliography in this book is worth the price on the cover) and Making Sense out of Suffering by Peter Kreeft

I really love movies, too, so forgive me for hogging the thread again…

Best Western: “Around Her Neck She Wore a Yellow Ribbon”

Best Comedy: “Kelly’s Heroes”

Best Check Reality at the Door movie: “Independence Day”

Best Recent Movie: “Secondhand Lions”

Best Movie: This one changes from time to time, but I just rewatched “Apollo 13” so I’ll give it the nod for now.
 
Elizabeth,

I just finished the “Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc”, by Mark Twain.

It is, simply, one of the best books I have ever read.

I look forward to your review.

Bill
 
Best movies-

Comedy- Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail

Drama- A Man for All Seasons (1966, not 1988. Heston can lick Scofield’s boots)

War- Patton

Religious- The Passion

Honorable mentions: Kelly’s Heroes, Goonies, the Mission

Best Books:

This is hard

Liturgical- The Spirit of the Liturgy (Guardini, not Ratzinger, though both are great)

Theology (in general)- Theology and Sanity by Frank Sheed

Theology in subject- Predestination by Fr. Lagrange, and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass by Fr. Müller.

Church History (general)- Triumph

History, specific- The Last Crusade by Caroll, the Great Heresies by Belloc, and To the Gates of Richmond by Sears

Apologetical- The Everlasting Man by G.K. Chesterton, *Apologia pro Vita Sua *by Newman

Fiction- Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy
 
My my! What an incredibly well-read and cultured lot you are. :clapping:

Well, if we’re going to talk music then it has to be something sung by Kiri Te Kanawa, like “Let the Bright Seraphim” or “Rejoice (…greatly and Shout oh daughters of Zion”), whereupon I do my very best operatic impression and receive a very swift rebuke from 4 and 6 yr old daughters!! Also Handel’s Messiah - “The Trumpet Shall Sound” (my personal choice of song for my departure, whenever that shall be!) and “Every Valley”. Rousing and powerful, all of them.

Finally, to add to the film list, “The Inn of Sixth Happiness” about Gladys Aylward, played by Ingrid Bergman. Oh watch it, do!

Now, books, books…?
 
Apologetics: Suggested Reading
Catholic
–Apologist’s Bookshelf
–Catholic Bibliography
–Top 25 General Books on Catholicism & Catholic Apologetics
–Top 10 Bible-Based Catholic Apologetics Books
–Top 25 Books on Catholic Converts and Conversion
–Top 10 Catholic Books on Protestantism
–Top 15 Books on Catholic Church History
–Top 20 Catholic Apologetics Books on Specific Doctrines
–Top 20 Books: Christian Culture vs. Secularism & Agnosticism
–Top 15 Books on Post-Vatican II Catholic Confusion
–Top 15 Catholic Books About Mary, Mother of Our Lord Jesus
–Top 10 Books on the Papacy and the Authority of the Church
General Christian
–Top 15 Christian Apologetics Books: Historical Arguments
–Top 25 Christian Apologetics Books: Philosophical Arguments
–Top 10 Books on Scientific Arguments for God’s Existence

more to come in another post…
 
The Best of Catholicism in Mass-Media
Books
–(a journal of the arts and religion) Top 100 Books of the Century*The Image *
–The Most Edifying Books of the 20th Century
–Top 20 Biographies of Famous Christians
–Top 10 Christian Fantasy Alternatives to Harry Potter
–Catholic Library Reading List
–Recommended Reading List
–Catholic Bookrack
Film
–The Fifty Best Catholic Movies of All Time
–The Most Edifying Films of the 20th Century
–USCCB Top Ten Movie List (1965-2003)
–Vatican Top 45 List
Music
–Google Directory: Catholicism–Music
–Singers and Songwriters
–Bands
–Music Festivals
–Music Publishers
–Catholic Midis
–Religious Music
–Catholic Media: Online Audio
Internet
–Apologetics: Catholic Websites
–Sources for Apologetics
–Apologetics Pages
–New Advent’s Top 50 Catholic Websites
–New Advent Catholic Links
–Catholic Apologetics Network: Links
–Catholic Information and Resources
–Best Catholic Links on the Net
–The Catholic Goldmine
–The Catholic Internet Directory
–Catholic Links Directory
–Google Directory: Catholicism
–Catholinks
–Catholic Links General Index

for more on practical apologetics, go here
for the entire reference section at phatmass, go here

pax christi,
phatcatholic
 
Flipping heck (as we say in England) Phatcatholic, how long have you been working on that one (two)?! Thanks for all the links and info… :blessyou:
 
shoot, i practically scour the internet for a living, hehe 🙂

its kinda my thing over at phatmass.com. the reference section over there is rather huge as a result. make sure u check that out.

anyway, i’m glad i could help…pax christi,
phatcatholic
 
Lord of the RIngs (all three), The Truman Show, The trouble with Angels, Zoolander, The Great Escape and to top it off the Untouchables. All Classics all great!

Books how about the Wheel of time series, and of course Lord of the Rings!
 
Oh, and one film I forgot to mention*: Groundhog Day*.

Certainly the most original premise I’d seen in a long time – a narcissistic wiseguy forced to relive the same day over and over (…and over) until he “gets it right”. Those who enjoy Bill Murray’s past comic portrayals will be delighted to see what appears to be more of the same – but the film takes on unexpected twists, and proves what I’d suspected for awhile: that, given the right material, Mr. Murray can act as well as clown.

Never heavy-handed, I found it inspirational – though it’s definitely not for the less-mature kids. I give it 👍 👍
 
I just finished reading No Greater Love by Mother Theresa, and I found it **very **inspirational!
 
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