The Top Ten Most Touching Moments in Cinematic History

   Movies. We all love movies and TV shows, and have pathetically devoted much time to watching them. It is where our inner nerd comes alive. We feel accomplished when we drop a movie quote into a normal conversation, and even more accomplished when we pick up on them.  The world of the cinema can transport us on many adventures and make us feel emotions we would otherwise not experience. We started talking about the most moving moments in cinematic history the other day and couldn't stop! Our lists went on for pages. Somehow, we managed to whittle down our top ten and thought we would share them with you.
     So without further ado, these are our Top 10
 Most Touching Moments in Cinematic History.

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10)     I'm about to strongly endorse a movie which I hope is OK (I'll ask Cherith's permission later. Thanks, Cherith!). But if you haven't seen this yet, I highly recommend it when it comes out on DVD.

    Saving Mr. Banks

    For anyone who has dealt with a loved one who struggles(ed) with alcoholism or suicide, this movie will punch you in the gut and leave you gasping for air.

    Throughout the movie, we learn that the author of Mary Poppins really wrote the book as an alternative to the scarred childhood she experienced. I don't think I'm giving anything major away when I tell you "the moment."

    The Moment:
    For me, watching MRS. (you'll get it later) Travers sit in the theater and watch the book she wrote come to life on the screen was powerful. In a way, she comes to terms with her past and is able to see her father portrayed to the public as the man she wanted him to be for her. She cries. And once you watch the movie, you realize what a huge deal that is for her.
    Now go watch it and cry me a Nile River.
    -Corinna

9) My Best Friends Wedding
The movie came out in 1997 (about 17 years ago). Julianne (Julia Roberts), a twenty-something year old girl finds out her lifelong best friend Michael (Dermot Mulroney) is getting married.  She is asked to stand up in the wedding and makes it her mission to break the couple up.
This is my all-time favorite romantic comedy. It does not end the way you expect it to, but it does end the way it should.
I love the scene below for three reasons
1) The Way You Look Tonight is a timeless song and a personal favorite. I love Frank Sinatra.
2) Her emotions are so believable .
3) Lastly, it's a sweet scene.
Also if you haven't watch My Best Friend's Wedding and you like chick flicks, watch it, and here are some other recommendations:
You've Got Mail
Sleepless in Seattle
While You Were Sleeping
Sweet Home Alabama

                                                                                                                                                                    -Cherith



8)     I'm not sure if TV shows fall under the adjective "cinematic," but for my purposes it will, darn it! So without further ado.. 
How I Met Your Mother. Season 6: Episode 13- Bad News

    Throughout this episode, Marshall has been keeping some news from his dad (who he has been extremely close to throughout the show). Several times he picks up the phone to call him and ask him for advice but without ever committing to the "send" button. Finally, he makes up his mind and dials, only to get the voicemail.

    The Moment:
    Marshall runs to his wife Lily to tell her some good news only to find her fighting tears and looking horror-stricken. She tells him that his dad died. Marshall's facial expression is total disbelief as he says, "My dad's dead?" Lily nods. Marshall's reaction is absolutely raw and he breaks down into tears holding her for support. He says, "I'm not ready for this" as he sobs into her hair.

    The thing that was so poignant to me about this scene was Jason Segel's reaction to the news. I read that the directors originally told him that the scene would be Alyson Hannigan (Lily) telling him that they were pregnant. Segel was hyped for a positively-charged scene. Without telling him the script change, Hannigan broke him the news that his "father" had died. Segel stated in an interview that the news hit him like a freight train and shocked him, immediately making him think, not of his screen father, but his own father. He played his emotions out perfectly.
    The response was a totally raw and realistic portrayal of a life moment we all face at some point. I think everyone that's seen this episode is brought to terms with how they would react in the same situation.
    -Corinna

Gilmore Girls is a TV series about a single mother raising her daughter. They are best friends and go through life's ups and downs together. Full of laughs, small town charm, and family, if there is a such  a thing as comfort TV, Gilmore Girls is mine. The scene below is the family making up after they had been in a feud for several months. The universal sounds of family.
7) Gilmore Girls

                                                                                                                                                                         -Cherith





6)     Patriotism and military service run deep in my family, so it goes without saying that any military movie rings a strong bell for me. Therefore introducing to our list (dun-dun!):

    Saving Private Ryan

    'Murica!

    Basically, for 2 1/2 hours, we follow the story of a squad of soldiers whose sole responsibility is to rescue and bring home a young soldier to his widowed mother who has already lost three sons to the war (yes, THREE.). The ensuing struggle results in the loss of nearly the entire squad of soldiers as they fight their way through Normandy to find Private Ryan.

    The Moment:
    In the last scene of the movie, years later, an elderly man, who we now know is Private James Ryan, is standing in front of the gravestone of Captain Miller (the commanding officer who came looking for him with his men). Ryan is crying as he tells Miller's gravestone that he hopes he has been worthy of the sacrifice so many men made for him. He asks his wife if she thinks he has been a good man and led a good life. He then salutes the gravestone while an American flag flies in the background.  

    If you can make it through this movie and NOT get choked up at the end, well then I deport you effective immediately, you filthy animal.
    -Corinna

This is my favorite movie reveal. Professor Snape is portrayed as the dark character throughout the whole series. In The Half-Blood Prince he has book readers and movie watchers alike  convinced he is the bad guy.  That is until the final movie, Deathly Hallows Part 2, when we find out what side his heart truly was on. Now there are several excellent scenes in this movie series, but the rules of the countdown are we can only choose one.
5) Harry Potter

                                                                                                                                                                                   -Cherith




4) Confession: My favorite movies AND books of all time are anything Tolkien related. So naturally, one of the movies from the Lord of the Rings trilogy had to make the cut. And "the moment" is an easy pick.
   
    The Return of the King

    The moment (spoiler alert! {in case you've been living in a cave like Smeagol since 2003 [or 1955 if we're going by the books]}):
    Frodo is about to leave Middle Earth and sail to Valinor. For anyone that isn't super familiar with the back story of this fantasy world, Valinor is Tolkien's allegorical equivalent to heaven.
    As Frodo is boarding the ship that will take him away from Middle Earth, he turns back and smiles at his four friends. This is what gets me about this scene:
    a) For the first time in the trilogy since he was given the ring, Frodo's smile is joyful and peaceful which
    b) tells his mourning friends that he is not afraid of what is about to come, but he is actually looking forward to it. Like a burden was just taken off his shoulders. His friends, seeing his smile, smile back through their own tears. And the ship sails off into the sunset.

    Maybe it's because the first time I watched this movie, one of my dearest uncles had just passed away. But for me, there is no other more thought-provoking representation in all of Hollywood's history that represents our passing from this life to the next quite like this scene. It's beautiful. It's heart-wrenching. It's perfect.
    -Corinna

   

It was extremely hard to settle on one scene from The Lord of the Rings, but I love this speech.
Frodo is exhausted from the weight of the ring and the insufferable odds they are faced with. Sam has a way of always helping Frodo get up when he is knocked down. He delivers a speech in the middle of awfulness that would make me want to carry the ring to its destruction.
3) The Two Towers

                                                                                                                                                                  -Cherith




2)     So, ladies, let's be honest. How many of us have a feel-good, emotional, go-to movie when we're having "one-of-those-days"? Or if we just want an excuse to sit on the couch with a bowl of ice cream... *ahem* Well, I'm about to reveal mine (Shockingly enough, it isn't Dirty Dancing or Bridget Jones' Diary. Even more shockingly, I've never seen either of those. Sue me.)
    Ready?

    Warrior

    A fantastic chick-flick about an ex-marine, prodigal son that comes home to his in-remission alcoholic father. Who trains him for the superbowl of all MMA tournaments. Pitting him against his estranged older brother. (Ok, so nothing remotely close to a chick flick.)
    The "moment" that gets me every time (major spoiler alert!):
    Near the end of the movie, the two brothers, still at odds, face-off in the ring. After four grueling rounds, the oldest brother, Brendan, has his brother, Tommy, locked in a hold. Tommy, arm broken, continues to fight and refuses to give up the battle.
    The beauty of this scene is that the producer is able to play out the strained relationship between the two brothers metaphorically through the physical fight. In the middle of the screaming fans and flashing cameras, Brendan leans in to his brother and says, "I love you, Tommy. I love you," extending an olive branch. And Tommy accepts. He reaches up and taps out on his brother's arm.
    The movies ends with Brendan pushing away cameras and shielding his little brother from the crowd as they hold one another up going down the tunnel. Their father and Brendan's wife look on.
    At which point, I don't know if I want to fight someone or cry.
    Ugh. Gets me every time.
    -Corinna

Gladiator is jam-packed with adrenaline pumping fights , gore, and honor. The movie takes place in Rome. General Maximus (Russell Crowe) has had his whole world taken from him, and almost his life, when he is betrayed by the emperor's son. Below he meets up with  the man responsible who is unaware that Maximus is alive.  And delivers a moving speech.
1) Gladiator

                                                                                                                                                                                -Cherith





    So there you have it! Our countdown. Oddly enough, we just realized that two "Saving-Somethings" titles made this list... Anyways, what about you guys? What would your list be? Did we get any of your personal picks? We would love to hear from you! Go.
    

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