Do You Speak Cinema?

When Alex was just a fuzz past two-years-old, I had to give her a talk about something she shouldn't have done. It was a gentle scold – as mine have always been (and not terribly effective, I might add). But she was only a toddler, and at that age, who knew if she really got what I was trying to say. By the end of my lecture, I asked her if she understood. She stood tall in her crib and replied, "Because being brave doesn't mean you go looking for trouble, right?"

Straight from The Lion King.

In terms of raising kids, that scene is what you might call foreshadowing. Doug and I might've failed in many respects of childrearing, but we did one thing right. We bestowed upon them a fairly deep knowledge of cinema. And now? They are fluent in movie-speak. There's rarely a family outing without a hefty dose of lines from some of the classics.

Here's me trying to get someone to go for a walk:

"Who's with me? Ahhhhhhhh!"  (John Belushi, Animal House, motivating the Deltas to avenge their expulsion from Faber. Then running out the door without anyone following him. Ahem.)

Or, here's Doug responding to Alex who is describing an outfit someone was wearing:

"I remember her wearing black. Everyone was wearing black. I thought it was a fashion thing." (Bill Murray in Scrooged, responding to the ghost of Christmas Present, when she reminded him that his secretary's husband had died.)

Or, here's the family giving compliments to an unknown chef at a restaurant:

"Ugly as sin. But a sweet girl. Helluva a good cook." (Randy Quaid in Christmas Vacation, talking about the Yak Woman, one of his son's circus associates.)

Or, here's Cole facetiming his buddy for a total of ten seconds without a greeting or a good-bye, only needing to know the start of game time:

"When you get your answer, hang up."  (Brad Pitt in Moneyball, when contacting various agents in making trade deals.)

Or, here's Doug wafting the blankets in my face after passing gas and I'm telling him to stop:

"Well, if you don't want me to..." (Fever Pitch. The response to Jimmy Fallon after asking his buddy "Why you shaving my balls, Doc?")

Or, here's any of us saying goodnight, with a deep, unrelenting hug:

"I hate good-byes!" (Jim Carrey, in Dumb and Dumber, as Mary Swanson's driver, whom he just met.)

Or, here's Cole taunting his father into a fight:

"Don't try it Anakin! I have the high ground." (Obi Wan Kenobi, in his fateful light saber fight with the Jedi who becomes Darth Vader. But you all knew that.)

Or, here's he-who-must-not-be-named (hint: Cole or Doug) belching or farting in a way that should clear the room while the rest of us are are screaming how terrible it is:

"Terrible, yes. But great." (Ollivander the Wandmaker in Harry Potter, speaking of the evil Voldemort.)

There are hundreds, maybe even thousands, of more quotes we use on fairly frequent basis. But I think "that'll do, donkey, that'll do."

I remember as a child that there was a common notion that TV and movies were going to be the ruin of us. (Thankfully, this was not a sentiment my parents shared.) Well, as a solid Gen X'er, I can say with a fair amount of confidence that TV and movies didn't ruin us. It kind of made us, really. Storytelling has been around since the beginning of time. And no matter what form it takes (books, movies, even video games), it will always connect us. As we begin this new year with a load of new movies to take in, may the force be with you.

What quotes have become part of your family's language? I'd love to hear them!

Star Wars. Nothing but Star Wars...