Issue #11 🕰️
Hey {{name | friend}},
This week, I would like to look back at the movies of 20 years ago that still hit to this day.
It is wild to think about, but the mid-2000s gave us a very specific type of film that wrapped massive, reality-bending concepts inside everyday stories by using clever ideas to show us who we are.
One of the most memorable examples of this era is a film that sneaks up on you, starting out as a loud, breezy comedy before completely breaking your heart.
Click (2006)
Director: Frank Coraci
Most people remember this as a loud, goofy comedy about a guy who finds a magic remote control that can skip the boring parts of his life. We all know that feeling. We wish we could fast forward through a slow day at work or an annoying argument.
But as the remote starts skipping chunks of time on its own, the mood shifts completely. The goofy jokes disappear. Suddenly, you are watching a man realize he skipped his own life just to chase a promotion.
Moviegoers who went in expecting a simple laugh ended up sitting in the dark weeping.
It catches you completely off guard. It hits you with a heavy wave of regret, making you look at how fast your own days are moving.
The emotion on screen was real. Adam Sandler actually broke down and cried during the most famous, heartbreaking scene in the movie. It wasn't even written in the script that way.
It is the only film from his production company to ever get an Oscar nomination. It leaves you with a deep feeling that makes you want to put down your phone and spend real time with your family.
Here are two more films from 2006 for your weekend watchlist:
/ The feeling when you realize you've been playing it too safe /
Last Holiday (2006)
Director: Wayne Wang
The Story: Georgia is a shy department store worker who keeps her culinary dreams hidden away in a private scrapbook. When a sudden medical diagnosis reveals she only has a few weeks left to live, she decides to cash in her life savings and jet off to a luxury European resort to finally live without fear.
Why it’s worth your time: It is comforting soul food. Queen Latifah gives the character an infectious warmth that never feels forced, turning a heavy premise into a beautiful celebration of good food, bold choices, and treating yourself with genuine kindness before time runs out.
Trivia: All the gourmet dishes Georgia cooks and eats in the grand hotel were real, high-end recipes prepared on set by professional chefs from the Food Network, and the cast actually ate them between takes.
/ When you feel like you're stuck on autopilot and need a reminder to live /
Stranger Than Fiction (2006)
Director: Marc Forster
The Story: Harold Crick is a lonely IRS agent whose incredibly boring, structured life is turned upside down when he suddenly starts hearing a woman's voice narrating his exact moves. The real panic sets in when the voice casually mentions that he is tracking toward his own imminent death.
Why it’s worth your time: It balances a bizarre, fantasy idea with quiet, romantic charm. Will Ferrell plays against his usual loud comedy style, delivering a beautifully restrained, gentle performance about an ordinary man discovering the messy beauty of life just as it might be ending. Coincidentally, Queen Latifah is also in this movie!
Trivia: To make Harold's boring, mathematical world feel real, Will Ferrell wore an uncomfortably small, tightly fitted watch throughout filming to constantly remind him of the rigid ticking of time.
Thanks for reading all the way here. I’m ending this issue with a profound quote from Georgia Byrd (Queen Latifah) in Last Holiday:
Next time... we will laugh more, we'll love more, we just won't be so afraid.
Have a restful weekend.
See you next Friday!