News of how ABC is wimping out on some of its strongest women characters reminded me of a list The Park Bencher recently compiled of “Twelve Fictional Females Who Don’t Take Crap From Anybody.” This seems like a good day to remind ourselves of such characters that have both survived and thrived onscreen — and to give us incentive to demand more from film and television producers.

Here are some of my favorites from the list.

Princess Leia, Star Wars

Leia may have needed a better hair stylist, but she was the voice of reason in Star Wars. She survived Vader’s torture and Han Solo’s attitude. Without her, the Empire would’ve been little more than Egos in Space. With her, the Federation refused to lose — and she won most of her battles wearing little more than gold lamé underwear. … continue reading

Another list? Darn tooting! This time it’s about two great things that go great together: movies and music. CNN’s Screening Room has named its Top Ten Songs in Movies. Not soundtracks, not scores, but singles used during a particular scene. As expected, the list is heavy on the male-dominated scenes and, somewhat less expectedly, fairly violent.

10. Trainspotting, “Lust for Life” by Iggy Pop (opening scene)
9. Dr Strangelove, “We’ll Meet Again” by Vera Lynn (atomic ending)
8. The Royal Tenenbaums, “Needle in the Hay” by Elliot Smith (Richie’s suicide attempt)
7. Say Anything, “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel (Lloyd’s boom box serenade)
6. Almost Famous, “Tiny Dancer” by Elton John (bus sing-along)
5. Muriel's Wedding, “Waterloo” by ABBA (talent show triumph)
4. Apocalypse Now, “The End” by The Doors (awaiting orders in Saigon)
3. Goodfellas, “Layla” by Eric Clapton (Jimmy’’s murder spree)
2. Reservoir Dogs, “Stuck in the Middle With You” by Stealers Wheel (ear slicing)
1. Easy Rider, “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf (opening scene)

Now, I love Nos. 7–5. I had a poster of Lloyd’s grand romantic gesture from Say Anything on my dorm room wall. And I dare you not to feel unbridled joy as Muriel and Rhonda come out in their white ABBA outfits in Muriel's Wedding. This movie made me forever love Toni Collette and Rachel Griffiths. Heck, let’s watch it again, just because we can.

As for the other selections on CNN’s list, I would have picked a scene from Wes Anderson’s film Rushmore instead of Tenenbaums. And I would have gone for the “Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon” Uma scene from Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction instead of the unfortunate Van Goghing of a victim’s ear in Reservoir Dogs. Also, no mention of The Graduate anywhere on this list? Didn’t that film practically pioneer the use of popular music in movies?

To balance out the bloody and the manly, I thought I’d add some gay, girly and (whenever possible) gay girly selections to the list. Since CNN’s list makers seemed impressed by showy outer death and destruction, how about some quiet inner devastation? In Love Actually, Emma Thompson realizing her husband is being unfaithful — set to Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” — will break your heart, guaranteed. … continue reading

Over the holidays, I went to a very special place: smack dab in front of my TV. Yeah, fine, I already spend a lot of time there. But rarely do I get to spend hours and hours of quality time with the DVR. Pure bliss. And when I did leave the apartment, I went to the movies. Even more bliss!

So because I'm still in a fog of TV- and film-induced joy, the most I can manage to do today is reflect on those days of uninterrupted entertainment.

(Note: I did do some reading, too. I finished Away by Amy Bloom, which was just OK, and I plowed through a pile of magazines. There; now I feel slightly better about my couch potato tendencies.)

1. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Practically perfect in every way. I've loved the score for a long time, especially "Johanna" and "Pretty Women." But the recent Broadway show (starring Patti LuPone) was a huge disappointment. So I'm thrilled that Tim Burton got it exactly right and did justice to Sondheim's genius. "A Little Priest" — aka the song-and-dance number with cleaver and rolling pin — is awesome. … continue reading

I'm not sure why, but even though I enjoy watching classic movies on television, I don't like renting them. Something about catching them when they air makes them cooler. So I keep tabs on Turner Classic Movies' schedule, just in case it's Topper movie day or spy movie day or Barbra day.

During the month of November, TCM is turning over its evening programming to celebrities, from Whoopi to The Donald to Cybill — even Kermit the Frog gets a turn. And not only do they choose the films, but they also join host Robert Osborne to explain why.

Tonight (Nov. 5), Rose McGowan is guest programmer.

McGowan grew up in a Children of God commune in Italy, where her father led a chapter of the cultish organization. In her interview with Osborne, she explains that even as a small child, she could recognize false prophets within the group. One of McGowan's choices is Night of the Hunter, the 1955 film with Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters and Lillian Gish. Mitchum plays a homicidal preacher who stalks two children — a brother and sister — because $10,000 is stuffed inside the little girl's doll. McGowan thinks the movie reflects the fact that children can see more of the truth than we think. This film definitely would fit on Ace's list of non-horror movies that haunt me. … continue reading

Entertainment Weekly recently issued a list of the 25 best action movies. I skimmed it so fast, I almost sprained something, because very few of the movies appealed to me. I'm just not big on big exploding things. There are exceptions, of course (like The Matrix and the original Star Wars trilogy), but I tend to prefer films in which character development prevails over plot development — or at least doesn't disappear entirely in a flaming fireball or a rain of bullets.

So here's my list of inaction movies. In these films, the fireworks occur inside the characters' heads. Maybe the characters talk a lot; or maybe they think a lot but say very little; or maybe they actually do a lot, but the doing is less important than how they feel about what they've done. Or maybe it's not so much about a lack of action as an abundance of brain activity. Or maybe I'm overthinking it. Nah! Anyway, here they are. (The quintessential inaction movie is, of course, My Dinner With Andre (1981), but I'm not including it here because, hello? No women.)

13. Clockwatchers (1998)
It's right there in the title: In this movie about temporary office workers, all the characters do is watch the clock and plan to prepare to get ready to change their lives. It's like 9 to 5 on quaaludes. But I can't think of four people I'd rather watch do nothing than Toni Collette, Parker Posey, Lisa Kudrow and Alanna Ubach (she also happens to be my favorite part of Legally Blonde). Don't miss Debra Jo Rupp (the mom from That '70s Show) as the paranoid, pernicious head of personnel.

The trailer even crows, "In a world where nothing ever happens ..." … continue reading