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Superhero movies, thrillers, sci-fi epics, intense dramas, fantasies and horror films have their place. But as lockdown drags on around the country, it feels like we need more upbeat entertainment to get us through hard times.
That means chasing down heartwarming and inspiring films – sunnier experiences – that are the home-viewing equivalent of comfort food. Here are 10 of the best to help ease the lockdown blues.
Amelie (2001)
Audrey Tautou in Amelie.
Credit:Dendy
A French charmer with heart and humour that is just about guaranteed to lift your spirits. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, this much-loved comic romance is about a shy waitress (Audrey Tautou) with an active imagination, who is determined to bring happiness to others in a whimsical version of Paris.
Share I knocked on her door and she said, bless her, OK let s have a chat.
Sonia then told Faith that she was a professional dancer who had aspirations to have a speaking role in the film, too.
Faith went on to tell a young Sonia about the role of Tina Sparkle, which seemed to spark her interest, however the team wasn t casting for another year.
Despite losing hope, Sonia said: But sure enough a year later she called me up and invited me to audition for Baz and that was it. I got the part, she added.
Taking the lead: Big Brother host Sonia was also a ballroom adviser in the movie and helped teach her fellow cast members how to dance
The plot of Strictly Ballroom is as old as the hills, but the characters in the movie seem to come from another planet. Surely nobody in Australia dresses like this, talks like this, takes ballroom dancing as seriously as this? They do? The true weirdness of the movie comes when we begin to realize the director didn t make everything up; only real life could possibly have inspired a world this bizarre.
The movie, which crosses Astaire and Rodgers with Mickey and Judy and adds a dash of Spinal Tap, is a comedy posing as a docudrama about competitive ballroom dancing in Australia. Everyone in the movie takes the sport, or art, with deadly seriousness, and their world revolves around the Pan-Pacific Grand Prix Amateur Championships (which, despite its grand name, seems to be a local event). Like synchronized swimming (the most hilarious event in Olympics history), competitive ballroom dancing is essentially lighthearted fun spoiled by lead-footed rules.