rosie abigail

This was the film that made me go ‘ahhh, that’s what aesthetically pleasing’ means. The curated soundtrack, authentic storyline, charismatic leads, striking cinematography – it just has everything a good film needs. Simply put, a young woman and an ageing film star accidentally meet at a hotel in Tokyo. What follows are their adventures around the city and the impact they have on each other’s lives. But what makes it a comfort film, more than a favourite film? It scratches that itch that we all have, to know that we are not alone in just stumbling through the world. It shows you that every single person, even if they look like they have the perfect life, have no clue what they are doing and that’s fine. It reminds me that we all deserve to be distracted, whether that be running through the city with a new friend, crashing a karaoke bar, or just talking late through the night. That’s reminder we need more of. 

The two words I would use to describe this film? Pure joy. Well, pure joy with a bit of environmentalism thrown in. I would even choose WALL-E as my hill to die on. “What hill is that?” I hear you ask. That it is one of the greatest animated movies ever made. With that aside, it is also one of the only films I could put on the TV on Boxing Day, and all of my family would enjoy. WALL-E, a trash-compactor robot, is left to clean up Earth after we humans messed it up so badly that we are now living on a spaceship (unfortunately still a little too relatable for a film made in 2008).  He falls in love with EVE, a robot sent to look for vegetation on Earth to see if it is yet habitable. In a turn of events, both robots end up back on the ship and end up stealing my heart every time. They are robots who don’t speak and I am still rooting for them more than any other couple on film. The film itself is charming, witty, and offers just enough political stimulation for a comfort movie. Disney-Pixar at its finest. 

If camp was a movie, it would be The Princess Bride. I have to thank my Auntie Julie for this film as she showed this to me when I was about eight, and I’ve been hooked on it ever since. In short, it’s a typical fairy tale; there’s a love story, a farmgirl becomes a princess, sword fights, and dastardly villains. But it’s so much more than that. It’s silly and quotable, and comes with all of the eighties special effects that we love. There are monsters and giants and castles and twists and turns and – I’m going to stop there. In all honesty, I don’t want to tell you any more about this film. If you haven’t seen it, I want you to just go and watch it, fresh-faced and unknowing. Just know, it is joyful, camp, and frivolous, and that’s precisely why it’s one of the most important films ever made.

Every time my fiancé and I don’t know what to watch together, we choose a film from the famed Japanese animation studio, Studio Ghibli. Usually, it’s one that we haven’t seen before. Each time I watch a new Ghibli film, I claim it as my favourite until the next one comes along. I call that ‘the Ghibli effect’ – all of their films are fantastic! That is until Kiki’s Delivery Service arrived. Kiki is a young witch who moves to a new town to hone her skills. Sprinkle in some struggles with self-doubt and it, that’s the film! It is simple and uncomplicated and that’s the main reason it’s one of my comfort films. Yes, it does deal with themes such as maturity and the turn to adulthood, and it has a backdrop of a miscellaneous war, but these are all parts of the story, not the whole picture. Once I hear the opening credits, my heart feels warm and ready for an adventure.

I am unashamedly a Wes Anderson fan. I am a sucker for kitschy and whimsy and a perfectly thought out shot. Now, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is my favourite Wes Anderson film but it’s not necessarily a comfort film. If we are looking for comfort, then Fantastic Mr Fox ticks all of the boxes. It’s an adaptation of my childhood constant author Roald Dahl’s book of the same name, and keeping with the childhood whimsy, it’s shot in stop-motion. It’s one of those films that I can watch and the outside world just faaaades away. To both myself and my fiancé, it’s an important and relaxing film. So much so, we are having a Fantastic Mr Fox themed table at our wedding.