Watch This Month: Adventure Movies

by Culture Staff

Photography courtesy of impawards.com

Spring break is now long past us, but there are still some ways to escape from the last of the Boston winter. Our Culture staff generated a list of some favorite adventure movies to watch to “get away” for an hour or two.

“The Fall” (dir. Tarsem Singh)

Lee Pace plays a paralyzed stunt actor who befriends a young girl with a broken arm in a hospital in Los Angeles in the early 1900s. They keep each other company by sharing a made-up story about a masked bandit and a band of other mismatched characters seeking justice. The movie has very emotionally heavy undertones as well, but the fantasy story in the subplot and the hopeful ending make it one of our favorite movies of all time.

“The Grand Budapest Hotel” (dir. Wes Anderson)

Anderson’s films are known for being a little extravagant, a little quirky and a little emotional, and this classic is no different. The settings are like things out of a storybook, and even external shots of the titular hotel look like they’re of a dollhouse. Anderson’s storytelling doesn’t require intense analysis or bracing for action scenes, which makes “The Grand Budapest Hotel” a great movie to relax to and dream of faraway resorts and elaborate adventures.

“The Mummy” (dir. Stephen Sommers)

This 1999 film about a librarian and adventurer is full of thrills and one-liners. Brendan Fraser plays Rick, an explorer who is following Rachel Weisz’s Evelyn on an exploration of Cairo in search of treasure and information about an old Egyptian legend. The film has all the trappings of a stereotypical adventure movie, so put it on if you’re looking for an addition to your cheesy movie-night marathon.

“The Little Prince” (dir. Mark Osbourne)

“The Little Prince” is based on a French children’s book, Le Petit Prince, about a young boy and his imagination. The story is heartfelt but also bittersweet, exploring the wonders of childhood imagination, innocent wonder and gentle love. It’s good to watch if you’re feeling down or searching for the same inspiration you had when you were young and full of dreams.