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It’s a bit of a mystery why lines like  “Do I feel lucky?” (“Dirty Harry,” 1971)  and “I’ll be back!” (“The Terminator,” 1984) enter the popular zeitgeist, but there’s no denying they do. And there’s more than a bit of magic to that.

In need of a laugh? Aren’t we all? That simple truth explains why there is nothing better than a consistently funny movie. Given the tricky, delicate nature of comedy, I’d also claim there are few things worse than a movie that tries to be funny but isn’t. It’s hardly surprising that there are many more comedies out there of the latter variety.

As Hollywood pumps out a succession of big, loud movies that reflect tired variations on familiar formulas, animation remains a bright spot. Over the past two decades, major players like Disney, Dreamworks and Pixar have released a series of fun, fresh films that have scored big at the box office. It’s foolish to argue with success, and again, a surprising number of these entries have achieved classic (or near-classic) status — and deservedly so. But that doesn’t mean they represent the last word on animated film.

Many of us have lost someone we love way too soon. After the initial shock and grief recede somewhat, the prevailing feeling (at least for me) is waste. Wasted opportunity. What more could that person have done with his or her life? I feel it too with famous names in the arts who left us way too soon.

Today - if you mention the name Josephine Baker - most people will remember her vaguely as “some singer way back when”. But how many are left who can picture her in all her glory, with her sassy, sexy, breathtaking charisma on full display? Damned few, I’d guess. And that’s a shame, considering she’s right at your fingertips, forever preserved on celluloid.     One of the first black stars, Josephine had a flamboyant personality, with a singular grace and a confident style — unusual indeed for a performer of color in those days, much less a female one. Though not conventionally beautiful – her face a little too round, perhaps, her chin receding a tiny bit — her star-power was undeniable. And those eyes!  Born in 1906 to humble circumstances in St. Louis, over time, Josephine rose from being the poor daughter of a laundress in Missouri to steady work dancing in New York City. However, despite gaining some notoriety, by 1924 she had been relegated to perform in a musical called “Chocolate Dandies”, as well as joining the floorshow in a place called… I kid you not… The Plantation Club – gulp.   

In theatre they call it “breaking the fourth wall” - that “wall” being the one we sit behind as popcorn-chewing observers. When used sparingly, this technique can be hilarious (or really creepy).

I can vividly recall the first moment I saw Meryl Streep on-screen. The film was “The Deer Hunter” (1978). Her part was relatively small — she played the stateside love interest of two men shipped off to Vietnam — but I was immediately struck by her presence. 

Just like the image of her fragile, unconventional beauty trapped within the glow of a tight spotlight, Judy Garland’s life as a performer was surrounded by a vast darkness. She gave the world her special gift, and it gave back not a shred of happiness. There was an overarching sadness about her that only grew more pronounced as the hard years went by. As Frank Sinatra put it, “When she sang, it always felt like she died a little.”   It was tragic pretty much from the outset. When overbearing show mom Ethel Milne found she was pregnant with her third child by husband Frank Gumm, she attempted to induce miscarriage by throwing herself down a flight of stairs. Failing that, she tried to get an abortion. This desire may have partly stemmed from Ethel’s growing suspicion that her husband was homosexual. Regardless, a family friend finally convinced the couple that this little one would be a blessing. They hoped for a boy. On June 10, 1922 they welcomed their third daughter – Frances Ethel Gumm – the combined hopes of her mother and father right there in her name.

 Tonight, make it real; watch a doc.  Here’s a bugaboo of mine: while the documentary form offers viewers incredible rewards, it rarely gets the attention it deserves. Theories abound as to why, the most prominent being that people tend to watch movies to be transported, to actually get away from life as it is. Perhaps there’s some truth to that, but to avoid the best of these films is to miss out on something truly special. In examining real life, its myriad characters and society as a whole, docs can be wildly entertaining, yet still deliver a form of insight and impact quite distinct from narrative films.