I am a big fan of movies, specifically the ones that are emotional, deep, and relatable. I feel like those are the kinda movies that make you feel less alone or maybe even question things you haven’t before.
Often, I try looking for movies with this feeling, but I keep getting stuck with ones that have already been seen and talked about a lot. A lot of the time, I will watch the same movies over again because I know that I like them already, and it’s too much work to find anything new. I feel like others can relate to this.
For this reason, I wanted to help you out and share some great movies that are hopefully new to you and will keep you entertained. Who knows, maybe you will even be introduced to a new genre.
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
Do you ever wish you could travel back in time- maybe so much that you would do anything to do so? I’ve definitely been there. If you have as well, I recommend The Butterfly Effect. This movie follows the life of Evan Treborn, who suffers from memory loss and intense headaches that cause him to black out. During Evans’ blackouts, he can go back in time and alter his past. With this ability, Evans goes back in time to change a traumatic childhood experience so that he can change his current reality. He goes back multiple times, which alters his reality in unintended ways, demonstrating the butterfly effect.
This is not just a basic demonstration of chaos theory that you heard about in your psychology class. It’s a movie about traumatic experiences that are confusing and hard to navigate. It’s about how sometimes trying to change the past can only bring us more pain and how we should come to peace with our current reality.
This movie reminds me of being an older sister and looking back at my childhood mistakes, thinking to myself, only if I had reacted to this situation differently, could I have impacted my siblings better. I sometimes wonder if I could have been more of a helping hand.
Similar to Evan trying to help out his friend throughout her trauma because he experienced part of it with her, it is a good reminder for me, and I believe many other people, that when we are young, we are still learning, and sometimes difficult situations cause us to make better choices when we grow up. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be good if we could go back in time and take away our past trauma. My point is that all we can do is put effort into our future because trying to change the past won’t give us the outcome we expect.
The Blair Witch Project (1999)
When I was younger, I spent many nights at my grandparents, eating a bunch of candy while watching scary movies on their big flat-screen TV. My nana usually had the best recommendations. I was a horror movie fanatic at the time. One day, my nana said we should watch the Blair Witch Project, which I was, to my surprise, very unfamiliar with. My papa thought the movie was hilarious, while I tried staying serious. Watching the film with my nana, I couldn’t help but laugh during what should have been the most terrifying parts of the movie.
The Blair Witch Project is a psychological-horror film. The film follows three students who venture into the forest to shoot a documentary about a serial killer who has murdered several teenagers. The students first interview some locals: some believe the tale, others reject it. The first night they were in a tent and heard some strange sounds, they brushed it off and thought it was probably an animal’s howling. The next day, they find some occult markings made of stones outside their tents. They return to their car and head back to town, but they find that they have lost their way, though one student assures the others that it is not so and that she knows the way. It’s not long until anxiety and fear start to overtake the minds of the students, and they start to lose their morale. This sense of there being no hope can be thrilling to watch.
I like this film because it feels so real due to the bad quality and choppy editing. I feel like when films are too perfect, it feels too unrealistic compared to the imperfections of real life. You kind of feel like you are there with the student in the forest. This film did not have a lot of money to work with, but I feel like that adds to the realness of the film.
It’s one of those films where it is so bad that it’s laughable, and that is what makes it good. It really depends on the perspective you are watching it from.
Buffalo ‘66 (1998)
Last winter, I was doomscrolling on my phone to the point where I was starting to feel guilty- until I came across a short video clip of the film Buffalo ‘66. One of my favorite beach house songs, “Master of None,” played in the clip. I decided it was probably a good idea to watch the movie because it looked good and better than consuming short-form media.
Buffalo ’66 is a messy romantic comedy, a Canadian-American film. The film follows Billy, who has just gotten out of prison, and Layla, a tap dancer who is happy to be with Billy even though he’s forcing their relationship only so that his neglectful parents think better of him. Later in the film, both of them form more of a real connection.
Throughout the film, we can see that Billy is pretty disrespectful, but Layla finds the positive in most situations and strives for a real connection. At the end of the film, Billy buys Layla a hot chocolate and a cookie, as well as one for another guy at the shop to give to his girlfriend. Billy has had a rough relationship in the past and roughly starts the one with Layla as well, but we see that he authentically connects with her at the end of the film. I think Layla deserved way better throughout the whole film, regardless of what happened at the end.
A fun fact is that the band Wet Leg refers to the movie in one of their songs. I like this movie not only because of its blue, wintery, 90s aesthetic but also because of how it portrays that sometimes we just need someone when we are lonely to change our mindset. When we are totally alone, it’s easy to live in delusion or not know what the right thing to do is because we are so far from other perspectives on life. similar to Billy and the way Layla changed him towards the end. By no means do I think Layla should have had to deal with him, and again, she deserved much better, but this relationship definitely caused Billy to step into reality. Props to Layla for sure.
Speak (2004)
Struggling with mental health while having to show up socially to school is hard; a lot of freshman year stereotypes worried me walking into high school because I couldn’t tell what was reality and what was just in the movies. And a lot of movies don’t show what going into high school whilst struggling is really like, and if they do, it only adds to the worry of what could happen if so, like being bullied or eating lunch in the bathroom all year. The reality of walking into freshman year for some students can be misrepresented. And while I think it’s important that we aren’t hidden from the difficult reality of high school, it’s very important that we aren’t hidden from the fact that change can be made, and there truly is a way out of the struggle.
Speak is a short film based on a true story and is a good film for the misrepresented. The film follows the life of Melinda, a freshman in high school. Last summer, she called the cops on a party and has refused to speak since. Melinda was assaulted by a senior named Andy during the party. She struggles throughout her freshman year with keeping her trauma from her peers, which weighs heavily on her chest. People only see her issues, and her close friend ditches her because of her depression. This movie is a reminder that you deserve to be heard, and there are people who want to hear what you have to say, even if it doesn’t feel like it sometimes. Even though this movie is based on a freshman’s high school experience, I would recommend this movie to any grade level if you are seeking some comfort in knowing you aren’t alone, and even though it’s hard to speak up, it’s worth it when you do.
I hope you found some new movies to add to your watchlist. I recommend trying out new genres of movies and taking new recommendations. It’s important to get out of your comfort zone and consume new media here and there, specifically movies, because it’s better for your attention span. This is my second piece in my underrated series, and I will be reviewing and sharing more pieces of awesome “underrated” media in the future!
