The Movies Lulu's Seen The Most...

Since reading a little featurette on Slate the other day, StinkyLulu's sorta been stewing. In the piece -- The Movie I've Seen the Most: Films that Spike Lee, Peter Farrelly, and Paul Schrader watch obsessively -- a pile of movie types are asked: "What movie have you seen the most?" Fair enough. And an interesting enough list of fascinating films...

But what's got Lulu stewing is that most of these people -- when not saying things like "I am not much for re-watching movies I have already seen" (feh!) -- boasted of having watched their "most watched" movies 8 or 9 or maybe 10 times... Which worries StinkyLulu a little. See, there are a handful of films that StinkyLulu has easily seen more than 50 times, a few more than 100x. Only a handful Slate's cineastes profess to having seen certain films 10s of times, let alone more than that...

So, it only seemed right to check in with you, lovely reader.
Is StinkyLulu an especially wierd movie freak? Does your film obsession have you sampling the whole buffet, rather than gorging on a favorite dish? Or are there movies that you too have -- by choice -- seen twenty? or fifty? or eighty times?

To kick things off, StinkyLulu's offering the SIX titles that Lulu's seen the most. Theatrical screenings are weighted, but even partial screenings on cable count too. (Excluding -- of course -- "seasonal" titles, movies that are either unavoidable during certain times of year (ie. It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story) OR features of certain seasons of life (ie. the summer of 1978 when Lulu watched Star Wars 3 times a day, every day, all summer long...) Here goes:

The Movies StinkyLulu's Seen The Most

West Side Story
The movie that Lulu's most loved and most loathed (with an equal passion) for more than 25 years. Some of the best -- and worst -- performances ever captured on film. Robert Wise's banality combines with Jerry Robbins' genius in ways both gorgeous and garish. And then there's "Cool"...

Carrie
Always the challenger in the battle with West Side to determine which movie is StinkyLulu's true favorite. DePalma's ridiculously tricksy imagery combines with a decadent load of great actresses (in lead, supporting and bit roles) and a perfectly blended (just enough magic/gore/camp/genuine fright) horror narrative. All that and what is possibly StinkyLulu's favorite screen performance ever (Sissy Spacek as Carrie White) to boot.

Fame
The 1st movie lil Lulu screened -- by choice, often alone -- more than 100 times. The first movie to fold into StinkyLulu's dreams. The characters and the actors who played them still have a strange, mysterious & enduring place in Lulu's heart... (Sometimes Lulu actually has the thought: "Wonder if Coco ever got that career going..." Tragically, that's no lie.)

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
StinkyLulu's first experience with "appointment television" -- way back before the VCR, Lulu would clear the afternoon & evening for the annual broadcast of this film. A much more important annual ritual than the one about the Kansas girl. As the years have passed, Lulu's come to adore the wacky kooky first half of the film (which lil Lulu loathed) almost more than the second half. And, really, who has ever heard of a snozberry?

Gourmet Cheese Platters
Including The Women, Fried Green Tomatoes, SoapDish, Steel Magnolias, Terms of Endearment, The Joy Luck Club, Ya-Ya Sisterhood, The Color Purple, The Turning Point, etcetera...
Behold - The Power of Cheese. And, yes, this is almost cheating. But StinkyLulu's easily sniffled and giggled through each of these films upwards of 10x - EACH. And after a while, it's tough to tell them apart, let alone keep score. But through it all, the Oscar-baiting genius of the women in these flicks causes Lulu's clicker to screech to a halt & just watch: again and again and again and again. It's a sickness. But a tasty one.

X2: X-Men United
The only film from the '00s to make this list. Mostly because Lulu saw it 7 times in the theatre. And dozens of times since via dvd or cable. The queerish allegory stirs something deep but really it's simply the giddy pleasures of the film's basic narrative -- finding and using one's special powers -- that keeps Lulu just happy to visit and revisit this film. (Plus everyone's real pretty & they have cute outfits.)

MORE FILMS THAT MEET THE 10+ CRITERIA BUT DIDN'T QUITE MAKE THIS LIST:
Coal Miner's Daughter, School Daze, Selena, The Wizard of Oz, Cabaret, Sixteen Candles, Do The Right Thing, All That Jazz, Suddenly Last Summer, Sweet Charity, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Girl6, Xanadu, Grease (I and II), Cruising...oh well, you get the idea...

And what about you, lovely reader?
What are THE MOVIES YOU'VE SEEN THE MOST?
Post in comments or on your own site, but...do tell.