Krissen

Wannabe screenwriter and rom-com enthusiast.

“I’m looking for corny in my life.”

The Holiday

A Few Favorites

  • Rogue One
  • Casablanca
  • Kiki’s Delivery Service
  • The Holiday
  • Spy
  • Like Crazy

https://letterboxd.com/stargirl428/

My first in-theater movie was A Quest for Camelot (1998) when I was four-years-old. We went to one of the local malls as a family, but as my dad took me to see the newest animated feature, my mom and brother ventured across the hall to see the American Godzilla (1998). When we all met up after the movies, only half of us were pleased with the viewing of the day. 

I’ve enjoyed movies for as long as I can remember. I grew up with a large collection of Disney movies on VHS. I would watch Mary Poppins (1964) over and over again after kindergarten, without ever watching the last third of the movie, and Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) was my go-to “sick day” movie. 

Lord of the Rings changed my life. 

In 4th grade, we read The Hobbit as a class. Mr. Phinney was a Tolkien purist and was not impressed by the movies being released at the time. But I was curious. And upon first viewing I was completely obsessed. After I got The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition on DVD, I think I watched it every weekend for a good 6 months straight. 

In my senior year of high school, I took an Art of Film class. Mr. Ojeda was an idol and his approach to art – literature, music, film, life – has stuck with me. I was already a fan of movies by this class, but here I learned to be more critical of what I so readily consumed. We watched films from Citizen Kane (1941) to The Shining (1980) to American Beauty (1999). We analyzed story arcs, shot compositions, and historical context. It was then that I wanted to really love film as an art form. 

2012 was the first year I made an effort to watch each Best Picture nominated film before the Academy Awards. And since then, it’s been a yearly tradition. 

My favorite kinds of movies are simpler ones. Well-written, well-acted, without a lot of fluff. Dramas that simmer rather than boil over. I’m a sucker for good eye-acting and I love a bittersweet ending. 

I also love feel-good, romantic comedies. It’s a balance.