Films just so happen to depict such a range and offer the opportunity to explore the emotions that we, ourselves, experience on our own name days. So, in recognition of my own birthday recently, I have put together a list of birthdays in film. This is not a top 10 list, but rather a run through of some of the most memorable birthday celebrations (or non-celebrations) in film.
--- Possible SPOILERS ahead if you have not seen the films---
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
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| Partying like it's 1999. |
Who's Birthday? Bilbo Baggins
Why it's on this list? Not everyone makes it to the grand old age of eleventy-one (that's 111 to us humans), but Bilbo just so happens to be in that exclusive group. In true hobbity style, he is joined by hundreds of relatives and friends (and even unwanted family like the Sackville-Baggins') with barrels of beer, tables full of food and festive music to match such an occasion. Not to mention Gandalf's famous fireworks which catches all the guests by surprise when one rocket - that resembles a dragon - is released at the party, only to explode in the distance as bright as the sun. But what makes this birthday memorable is how it ends; with a speech by the birthday boy himself. Bilbo abruptly announces, half way through his speech, that he is leaving the Shire forever and vanishes in spectacular fashion - now that's the way to make an exit from your own party! There is no doubt that that moment was spoken about for generations to come in the Shire; how old Bilbo disappeared in front of the whole village. After all, to paraphrase Frodo, "half the Shire was invited and the rest turned up anyway!" Now, I wonder how Bilbo did that...
Leathal Weapon
Who's Birthday? Roger Murtaugh
Why it's on this list? Murtaugh's just having a relaxing bubble bath (with worryingly less bubble as the scene progresses) and his family surprise him by all barging their way into the bathroom. He gets the whole birthday cake ceremony while lying in the bathtub, and do you know what? He handles it with no shame or feeling of embarrassment whatsoever, even though he hates the fact that he's just turned 50. The family are managing to catch just enough time in their busy morning schedule to show their love and appreciation to the (old) man of the house - even if he is butt naked. Good thing he doesn't know what the rest of his birthday is going to bring for him...another 3 movies with some guy called Riggs.
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| Okay, maybe he was a little alarmed when the entire family turned up - with birthday cake in tow. |
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
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| It's the thought that counts. |
Why it's on this list? "You're a wizard, Harry". Come on, who wouldn't want to be told that on their 11th birthday, let alone any birthday! After being treated as nothing more than a nuisance and afterthought by his uncle and aunt for the 10 years prior, Harry got just the news and new lease on life that he needed - that he was a wizard. After being chased everywhere by owls hoo (sorry, couldn't resist) were trying to deliver letters relaying this information, the Dursley's take Harry to an abandoned lighthouse where they believe they will not be found by anyone. How wrong they were, as on the strike of midnight Hagrid thumps his way into the dilapidated building to give Harry his first birthday cake that he can recall being given. Heart warming stuff, indeed. Shortly afterwards, Harry is whisked away to his new life to study at some school that you may have heard off - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry - where he can learn all the things wizards need to know. Best. Birthday. Ever.
Toy Story
Who's Birthday? Andy
Why it's on this list? It's the day that we found out our toys are actually living secret lives when we're not playing with them. There are two aspects to this birthday. First, Andy is having a standard home birthday where his friends are invited over and they play games, eat cake and open presents; the norm. The second aspect, though, is the interesting one: Andy's toys have set up an undercover operation to report on the present opening ceremony. What we are left with are insecure toys that don't want to be replaced with new ones. However, from this we witness a new, though at first rocky, friendship that will be struck between a shiny new space ranger and an old cowboy doll.
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| I think this is what one calls 'laser envy'. |
Mrs Doubtfire
Who's Birthday? Chris Hillard (on the right)
Why it's on this list? House party? Check. Sheep? Check. Goat and pony? Double check. Lots of kids (not to mention the supervising adult) dancing and jumping to House of Pain's Jump Around? Check-list complete. What you get is probably the best party a kid is ever going to have. However, it doesn't last as Sally Field's highly strung mom - Miranda - turns up to find her house a mess, only to be further upset by Robin Williams' voice actor dad - Daniel - having organised it all. It is redundant to say that it doesn't turn out well for him, which is incidentally how the rest of the film (and the whole dressing up as an old English lady) is set up. This is a good illustration of how a birthday can be ruined in a moment. Sure, if Chris had a secret house party without telling his parents then that is one thing, but your dad sorting it out like a teenager is just asking for trouble - namely from a divorce lawyer. We then see how the three children have to listen to the aftermath of the party in their room and how it affects them. On the bright side, at least Chris didn't have to do the cleaning.
Lost In Translation
Who's Birthday? Adam Harris
Why it's on this list? Okay, I understand that this may be a cheat addition but let me explain my point. So, you're probably wondering who Adam Harris is in Sophia Coppola's beautiful film from 2003. And you'd be correct to wonder who Adam is as he doesn't physically feature in the film. Well, he is Bob's (Bill Murray) son who is only mentioned in a fax that Bob receives upon arriving in his lavish Tokyo hotel - completely jet lagged - which reminds Bob that he forgot his son's birthday. I'm sure Adam had a great birthday, but really, this entry is not about him. It's about a middle-aged man in an unfamiliar country, where he meets a young woman called Charlotte - played by Scarlett Johansson - who is also dealing with the same problems and questions about where her life is heading, and how they come to deal with this. When we meet them, Bob and Charlotte are lost. However, as the film progresses and they spend more time together in this completely alien culture, they discover that it is each other they need to find their way to the next branch of their lives. It is memorable as from that fax, we follow this unlikely pair through their experiences in Tokyo all the way through to that last scene. A whisper that you have to translate for yourself and come to your own conclusion as to what happens to both of these characters' stories. So, that's how Adam's birthday is memorable - it gave us the start of something special.
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| Bob arrives to his hotel. He's a little tired by the looks of it - and that's not from partying, either! |
Kick-Ass
Who's Birthday? Mindy McCready
Why it's on this list? Now, what do you expect an 11 year old girl to ask her dad for on her birthday? Maybe a cuddly, fluffy puppy, or even a barbi doll. Sure, Chloe Grace Moretz's Mindy does ask for these things. The catch is that she is asking in jest; only "fucking" with us - you know, for a laugh. She then settles her father's nerves (played by Nicholas Cage doing a brilliant homage to Adam West's caped crusader) by seriously asking him for a benchmark model 42 butterfly knife. I don't even know what that is! It is suffice to say that the humour and general craziness of the movie is portrayed in this scene and I doubt you'll forget it in a hurry.Dumbo
Who's Birthday? Dumbo
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| Yep, that's how babies are born. |
Sleeping Beauty
Who's Birthday? Aurora
Why it's on this list? After having been left out of the celebrations for the birth of Princess Aurora, the villain of the piece - Maleficent - curses Aurora, proclaiming that, before the sun sets on her 16th birthday, she will prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die. Fast forward 16 years and guess what? She gets lured away from the three fairies, who are supposed to be protecting her, by a trance that Maleficent has induced, and pricks her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel that was hidden away in a secret room. While she lies on her bed - as if frozen in time- it is left to Prince Phillip to battle Maleficent, in dragon form, and to break the curse. What an action packed birthday full of despair, horror and adventure.
Tangled
Who's Birthday? Rapunzel
Why it's on this list? Unknowingly to Rapunzel, the lighting of lanterns into the night sky - coincidentally on her birthday - are in fact for her and not a coincidence at all. Having been snatched away from her family when only a baby for her hair's healing ability, Rapunzel sets out on her 18th birthday for the chance to see the lights. Along the way she avoids danger, makes new friends and falls in love. It is a slice of old Disney magic for a new era. And that scene with the lanterns ain't too bad either.
Batman Begins
Who's Birthday? Bruce Wayne
Why it's on this list? His house gets burnt down once the party finished! In all seriousness, it wasn't Bruce's fault. At Bruce's birthday party, staged at Wayne Manor; a party that was meant to be mundane quickly becomes a threat to his unknowing guests. The League of Shadows have invited themselves and blended into the party and it is up to Bruce to get all of his guests out of the house no matter what the cost to himself. Therefore, Bruce puts on his 'mask' and acts drunk and tells everyone that they are suck-ups and should get out of his house. The guests are disgusted and offended, but what they don't know is how Bruce just saved all of their lives - and not for the last time. From here, Bruce is left to die in his burning house and he must thwart a disastrous plan by Ra's al ghul and the League of Shadows who intend to release an airborne hallucinogen that would make everyone in Gotham tear each other apart and cause the downfall of the city. All in a day's work for Batman.
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| Not what you want after a house party. |
Godfather Part II
Who's Birthday? Don Vito Corleone
Why it's on this list? Even though we don't see the man himself in this flashback scene (Marlon Brando was meant to reprise his role as Vito Corleone in this one scene, but did not turn up on the day of the shoot; no doubt because of financial disputes with the studio), it includes all of the Corleone family sitting around the dining table in conversation; something familiar to all of us. The conversation about Michael enlisting with the marines leads to a heated exchange between siblings, but it is this familiarity and the family dynamic and the discussion about real, everyday topics that is captivating from the start. When Vito finally arrives the whole family get ready to greet him with love and warmth. It's funny how people's moods can change for family on special occasions. What this scene shows is just the normality of even a crime boss' birthday; spending it with the family around a table.
Have I missed anything out that you would have included? Let me know in the comments.
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