Wednesday 3 October 2018

So long...for now...

Well, there we have it. 

This filmbore will (for the time being, anyway) be putting his pencil and pad in his desk draw, removing the batteries from his DVD remote and locking his film collection in his vault. For it's time to say goodbye.

For the beady-eyed, you may have noticed the recent lack of content. There have been some incredible changes in my life over the last couple of years. I married Mrs filmbore. I've said goodbye to loved ones. And I'm soon to meet my own mini-me...

I've made a little filmbore!

And now, I need to ensure that I focus my efforts on some of the next phases of my life. My unprecedented geeky-ness and over-analytical methods will be re-purposed to great effect. This does mean, sadly, that i cannot apply the bore to films in the way I have since my first film review in June 2012.

I'm not giving up the pen completely. I may venture into writing my own stories in the near future. Plus, the site will stay open. The reviews, top tens and other special features will be available for anyone to peruse. 

Also, I'm not going to leave you empty handed. I've put together one last hurrah of a Top Ten...of the most emotional goodbyes in cinema history. I hope you enjoy it.

I'm so grateful to all of you who has shared, commented and appreciated my articles over the last six years. It's been a wonderful journey, only truly enjoyable because of you. You're the real reason I do this. If there was nobody on the other side of the screen, I'd have no reason to bore you. So thanks for your patience, interest and, most of all, your support. 

It's been amazing!

Thank you



Top 20 Most Emotional Goodbyes

This is my last post, my loyal filmborians. And it's a sad one, I'm afraid.

I've had to say goodbye to a dear loved one myself these last few months. And with a pending mini-filmbore on the way, I'm in a bit of a whirlwind of emotion. So, let's take one last foray into the world of cinema geekery, stick on Andrea Bocelli's 'Time to Say Goodbye' and reminisce on the following moving moments

This was a very hard article to write. With re-watching some of these moments, while knowing this is my last piece, it's been quite overwhelming. So, I'm not going to put too many big explanations here (well...I've put a few!). The scenes speak for themselves. I'll mainly be just adding a line from the scene, or a comment about it. Otherwise, I'll get too emotional myself.

The criteria…simple. My favourite goodbyes in film.

This is a very personal top ten. Full of moments that have meant a lot to me over the years. You may not fully agree with this list, and that's fine. That's part of the fun!

But why make my last one a list of ten films. Let's make it a Top 20! Go out with a bang, eh.

So, for the last time...WARNING! Major spoilers and the odd tear lie ahead!




20. Gone with the Wind (1939)


"Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn"



19. Withnail & I (1987)


"What a piece of work is a man!"



18. Forrest Gump (1994)


"Life is a box of chocolates, Forrest..."

There are many goodbyes in Forrest Gump ("I wanna go home" still gets me) and plenty of emotional moments (Speaking to Jenny's grave being the most potent) but it's Forrest's goodbye to his mother that carries the most heft. It's this moment where his mother utters the legendary phrase that has stuck with is all. She was the backbone to his incredible life, and it's this moment that has led Forrest to regale to a number of strangers his beautiful story.





17. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)


"Now we can make it, Mac"



16. Cast Away (2000)


"I'm sorry, Wilson"



Mrs.filmbore's choice

15. Monsters, Inc. (2001)


"Kitty has to go"



14. Good Will Hunting (1997)


"Do you know when the best part of my day is?"

What I love about this goodbye is that it's a reserved one. Not just in its tone, but Affleck's Chuckie has banked a goodbye before it ever even has to happen. Or never, in this case! It's a sweet and generous offering to a lifetime friend. It's powerful, understated and an example of great writing. This is rare to see in cinema and it's still gently moving to this day.





13. Dead Poets Society (1989)


"Oh Captain, my Captain!"



12. The Iron Giant (1999)


(You are who you choose to be...) "Superman"



11. Casablanca (1942)


Undoubtedly one of the most quoted conversations in cinematic history. This farewell speech is so iconic. parts of it are often quoted separately, sometimes without any awareness that they are connected. I forget how famous these lines are myself sometimes.

Here's the full monologue in all it's glory…


RICK
Last night, we said a great many things. You said I was to do the thinking for both of us. Well, I've done a lot of it since then and it all adds up to one thing. You're getting on that plane with Victor where you belong.

ILSA
But Richard, no, I've...

RICK
Now, you've got to listen to me. Do you have any idea what you've have to look forward to if you stayed here? Nine chances out of ten, we'd both wind up in a concentration camp. Isn't that true, Louis?

RENAULT
I'm afraid Major Strasser would insist.

ILSA
You're saying this only to make me go.

RICK
I'm saying it because it's true. Inside of us, we both know you belong with Victor. You're part of his work, the thing that keeps him going. If that plane leaves the ground and you're not with him, you'll regret it. Maybe not today, and maybe not tomorrow, but soon, and for the rest of your life.

ILSA
What about us?

RICK
We'll always have Paris. We didn't have - we'd - we'd lost it until you came to Casablanca. We got it back last night.

ILSA
When I said I would never leave you...

RICK
And you never will. I've got a job to do too. Where I'm going, you can't follow. What I've got to do, you can't be any part of. Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday you'll understand that. Now, now. Here's looking at you, kid.





10. The Champ (1979)


"The Champ...always comes through"



9. The Remains of the Day (1993)


"It was so nice to see you again"



8. Toy Story 3 (2010)


"So long partner"



7. Schindler's List (1993)


"This pin..."



6. Terms of Endearment (1983)


"And you're gonna realise that you love me. And maybe you're gonna feel badly, because you never told me. But don't. I know that you love me. So don't ever do that to yourself, all right?"



5. Rain Man (1988)


"I like having you for my big brother"



4. Sophie's Choice (1982)


"Don't make me choose! I can't!"

This may be the most heartbreaking goodbye. 'The Choice' is kept from us until near the very end of the film. When it happens it's shocking and heartbreaking. It's as if she has responded on instinct. But the goodbye is filled with terror and regret. I am, like many of you, still haunted by this to this day. Nothing can prepare you for what could be the hardest choice any parent would ever have to make.





3. Blade Runner (1982)


"All those moments will be lost in time…like tears...in rain"



2. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)


"I have been, and always shall be, your friend"




...and before the top choice is revealed, take a breather to wipe your eyes and look over those honorable misses...


Just missed out:


"I know." - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)



"If you'd die, you'd forget me. I want to be remembered." - Brief Encounter (1945)


"I know know why you cry." - Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)



"Good afternoon, good evening and goodnight" - The Truman Show (1998)


"I love you forever. And I'm coming back" - Interstellar (2014)


"I'm a leaf on the wind..." - Serenity (2005)






And the winner is...





1. E.T. the Extra Terrestrial (1982)



It's poignant that the last film I mention on my site is the first film that I ever saw in the cinema.

This is the most emotional and beautiful moment ever captured on film. Especially given that it mainly stars children and a puppet. It's so delicately balanced in this final moment that it works for children and adults alike. It reminds us what film can do to us. How it forms us. How it widens our imagination. And how it helps us to understand the beauty in sadness and loss. 

I'll leave you with the immortal line...


"I'll be right here"



Goodbye