10 Comfort Movies

Curious George at TVANDCELLULOID did a post on his 10 Comfort Films - movies that make you feel good and give you an escape. I liked the idea, so here are my top 10 Comfort Films:

Casablanca, which Curious George also mentions. Love this movie, love the characters and the message of self-sacrifice that comes across in different ways from different people. Always a good one to watch. Love the song, too.

Rear Window, which is my favorite Hitchcock film. I just love it, love the main characters, love the story. It all feels so personal.

Halloween. I have seen this movie many times over the years, and I enjoy it each time. If you just watch this film for what it is and forget all that would come later, it is just so creepy. Michael Myers is so creepy, lurking barely hidden here and there. Great film. Sadly, the remake was NONE of those things.

Arsenic and Old Lace. Such fun! This is such a great movie. They don't make them like this anymore - actors or movies.

The Princess Bride. A modern classic. And so damn quotable! Love it all, each scene is so good. "As you wish."

Christmas Vacation, I usually just watch this in Demember, but it is a comfort movie for that time of the year. Funny, goofy stuff. And all of Clark's mania is redeemed by the scene of him watching the old family movies in the attic. He just wants to achieve once more what he remembers from childhood. So relatable.

Overboard. Not an Academy Award winner, but that doesn't matter to me. This is fun, relaxed, inane stuff. Loved Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell here more than anything. "Andrew! I'm sitting!" heh!

Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI. To me, this is the perfect "Jason" movie. Fun, creepy, totally '80s - just a fun, slasher-film ride from start to finish.

Our Vines Have Tender Grapes. Okay, this may seem like an obscure one, but I caught this on TCM one time when I was laid up in bed, and watched it from start to finish and fell in love with it. Next time it aired, I recorded it to save. The characters are great, love Edward G. Robinson and Agnes Moorhead and Margaret O'Brien. There is a scene in this movie, where little Selma shows her selflessness, that rivals the end of It's a Wonderful Life, in my opinion.

The Emperor's New Groove. Animated, zany fun! This movie had a torturous process being made, going from serious drama to wacked-out comedy, but it is just so damn funny. David Spade, Patrick Warburton and the late, great Eartha Kitt are just fantastic in this. And I just got it on DVD from my kids for my birthday. Sweet!

There others I thought of including (Harvey, The Thin Man, Die Hard), but these ten seemed like the best choices for the "top". What about you? What do you pop in when you need a boost?