I felt very connected to these storylines
I’m making a short list of movies that have marked me, from the story to the ambience and the acting… everything in the movies down below really kept my focus deeply interested from beginning to end, and they definitevely left something with me after watching them.
1. Black Swan, 2010
It’s about this wannabe “prima ballerina” who is obsessed with becoming so perfect in order to reach her almost impossible goal, that she’s actually losing her mind trying to achieve it. It gets darker and more intense as the movie unfolds, and it targets mental issues that I believe are more common than we’d like to admit.
2. Lovelace, 2013
I used to live in the Valley of Los Angeles for quite a while, and I adored it there, it has a reputation though and it’s nicknamed “Porn Valley” so obviously seeing pornstars casually getting Starbucks was not something I was unfamiliar with, although it was not as shady as it sounds… but I’ve always been interested in the behind the scenes of the porn industry, that’s why I checked this movie out. It’s really harsh and unpleasant what happens to Linda Lovelace, but it’s probably something everyone should watch.
3. The Wrestler, 2008
I’m a Mickey Rourke fan, and I was really excited when it was announced he would be the lead in this indie movie because it felt like for a while we didn’t get much of him on screen and he’s such a talented actor that he deserved something to measure up to his talent. This was a perfect fit for him in my opinion, he plays this washed out wrestler that has a couple of health and money issues, coupled with untraditional relations & breakdowns. It’s just a great movie, and it’s different from most.
4. Thirteen, 2003
I was actually thirteen years old when I saw this movie for the first time… so totally relatable, to a point. Evan Rachel Wood plays this Californian girl who’s got complicated issues to deal with for her young age, and obviously she starts acting out because she’s not able to handle things like an adult especially because the adults in her life are not the greatest example.
5. Monster, 2003
I think it’s after seeing this movie that my obsession with serial killers started… I was just so confused and scared of what a person can endure, act like, and come to be, that it was the beginning for me of trying to understand the minds of these so called people. I reckon that it’s unhealthy since it gives me nightmares, but somehow I can’t stop wondering why they are being so glamorized and have become such addictive topics to society.
6. The Virgin Suicides, 1999
This movie should be subtitled “the teenagehood depression”; Sofia Coppola is a mastermind at discerning teen angst and their feelings and accurately representing them. The Lisbon sisters are having what seems like at first, as quite a normal suburban life but in reality, behind the curtains it’s all kinds of wrong and it leads them to the ultimate sacrifice, which they prefer to keeping up any other way. It’s quite a shocking ending.
7. Into the Wild, 2007
I’m sure almost all of us at some point in our lives can relate to Emile Hirsch’s character. He’s fed up with society and its stubborn unbendable rules, he just wants to be free and exist for himself, and discover what life is really about. He goes on this road trip he’ll never be able to come back from, but at the end, even if it isn’t what he could have expected, he finally finds his answer.
Sunny, warm LA
Pictures from my beloved Santa Monica, where I find myself to pass by or hangout every single day when I am in the Los Angeles area. My best friend & I are practically in love with this city, it’s our favorite spot and were I wish I was right now, with him obviously. The last picture was taken on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, on a hot summery afternoon. You can see part of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, made famous by the movie Pretty Woman.
Palms, pier and the ocean
I love spending time in Malibu, the beaches there are absolutely gorgeous… the sign at the entrance of the city says “27 miles of scenic beauty” and it couldn’t be more right. It’s just the perfect description; that and the million-dollars villas, the expensive cars racing Pacific Coast Highway, the fanciest restaurants with magical views – I’m in love.
Nothing that some time on the beach can’t solve
Two quick shots taken with a phone from the Manhattan Beach pier, and Redondo Beach in the South Bay area of Los Angeles. I used to live around for a while until I moved up the city. Always love coming back here and chill, to look at the ocean, sit in the sand and breath the salt in the air.
Madison Kennedy 