Watch more movies.

Last year I re-discovered my love for movies. Back in high school I went off the radar during one school break and I watched at least 2 movies per night for an entire month. This was in 2015: good times (only when I watched stuff: I was extremely depressed). Movies helped me escape the cruel realities of the world that my mind had created, and also some of the realities of the actual world. Life was dreadful and I wanted nothing more than to escape.

I fell in love with movies so much that I made handwritten lists. I think I still have them somewhere in one of the envelopes in my bottom drawer. Yes, I brought them with me to Germany. I made multiple lists of movies that I wanted to see in the coming years. I was inspired by this incredible list by TimeOut. I believe I’ve seen most of the movies in my lists, but I got lazy once I moved to Germany (p-wording is illegal here). I’ve watched great movies here and there in the last five years, but I haven’t been consistent. The one time I briefly re-discovered this hobby was during the first lockdown in Winter/Spring 2020. I even participated in this video by @LostInFilm. You can hear my voice from 1:51 over a clip from one of my all-time favorites, Before Sunrise.

In 2022, I made it my personal mission to get back into the movies game. I don’t think I’ve succeeded in the way I wanted to, but for the first time in a long time I felt strong emotions when watching a movie. It was the movie CODA, which also won Best Picture at the 2022 Oscars. I simply clicked on it out of curiosity and wasn’t really expecting to love it so much but wow. It’s a story of a teenage girl born into an all-deaf family but only she can hear, and sing quite well. It’s a story about the struggles that deaf people go through just to be able to do basic things like earn a living and on top of that it’s a beautiful story of family love. One moment in particular made me cry because I realized that even though our circumstances as human beings differ, we all share the ability to feel love for others. 5 stars from me. I strongly encourage you to watch this incredible film.

CODA is just one example of many amazing movies across different genres. Movies are simply a beautiful form of art. I could watch them all day if I had the time. It brings me the same feeling I get when I read a really great book (read An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green). I challenge you, dear reader, to watch more movies this year (check out my Letterboxd for some suggestions). Allow yourself to experience new things and possibly get lost on Wikipedia trying to figure out if the actor on your screen is the same one from that other movie from the 90s that you watched more than 7 years ago because they just look so similar. As you look for new realities to experience, also remember that great movies are not exclusive to Hollywood or other Western film industries. There are thousands of stories and beautiful worlds out there that you may never get to know if you’re unwilling to read subtitles. Where do you find these? Start here.

Header image is from CODA (2021, Apple TV+)