In her column “As Ribka Likes It,” Ribka Desta ’27 introduces her favorite pieces of media, justifying how and why they have taken up her time and invaded her mind. 

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year
– Robert Frost, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”

On the darkest evenings of my years, I always choose to cheer myself up through watching my comfort movies — old friends of mine — for the hundredth or thousandth time. I know many do not like rewatching movies, or at least hit a quota for yearly watches before they get tired, but I never tire.

As someone who worked at a movie theater for too much of my high school career, I had free ticket privileges that my friends and I abused regularly. Even after I stopped working at AMC, the theater remained our prime hangout spot during winter breaks to avoid the weather in D.C.

Winters in California are not nearly as cold, but midterm season puts a chill in my bones. As I’ve made my way through the long journey to graduation, the following films have been great places for me to stop and rest.  

Childhood favorites

I turn to the core films of my childhood when too much time studying has left me deficient of sunshine: “Meet the Robinsons,” “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” and “Rags.” 

Watching Pixar’s “Meet the Robinsons” leaves me with so much hope. The main character, Lewis, time travels to the future and meets the odd and kind Robinson family. This family is so welcoming and receptive to his oddities that Lewis attempts to stay in the future and live with them, only to discover that his future self is the patriarch of the family. I found it so cool — as a kid, and even now — that the warmth Lewis craved was from a family he created.

The ending song by Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, “Little Wonders,” is way too good for a children’s movie. Hearing it makes me want to hide under my bed and let time think I am not home, so it won’t pass and I can un-grow up. Rewatching the movie now, I start floating at the song’s opening note and gliding through memory lane. Rarely do I make it back to the real world by the opening credits.

I turn to my other two childhood staples for their charm and humor. “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” is unique and witty, and I’m so familiar with the plot that I can leave it in the background while I pretend to study or outline. “Rags” is my favorite Cinderella retelling, and the soundtrack is audible gold. Like with “Meet the Robinsons,” I loved the families these characters created for themselves. The happy endings are a perfect delight on rough nights.

Camp comedies

If I am ever trying to abandon the reality around me and laugh my academics off, I’ll turn on “Bottoms” or “M3GAN.” Both are satirical masterpieces, and I will never not laugh at their jokes.

In the time between the first trailer drop for “Bottoms” to its theatrical release, I gushed about my excitement to unenthused coworkers and friends — mainly coworkers, because truly, I spent every second of time that summer at my place of employment either working or movie-watching. “Bottoms” had three national preview screenings two weeks before its theatrical window, and I had my parents drop me off at the Georgetown theater straight from the airport after a long travel back home from Puerto Rico. Since then, I have watched the film five more times and I expect about fifty more watches.

“M3GAN” is another comedic favorite. In retrospect, I cannot believe that the only reason I initially watched it in theaters was because my friend asked me to get us free tickets. I ended up seeing it four times. I was a woman possessed by a fifty-five inch doll. The movie was ridiculously fun, and watching it now gives me nostalgia for how carefree I was. I envy the past where my friends and I had the time to go to theaters together often, instead of now having to wish on shooting stars that our calendars will intersect before 2027. I watch our movies when I miss them.

Romantic comedies

I don’t usually go for rom-coms, but when I succumb to the pink-red haze of February, or want companionship during cuffing season, I turn to these two films. If you don’t have faith in modern rom-coms, please tune into “Set It Up” and “Rye Lane!”

“Set It Up” is an hour and 45 minutes of fun from Zoey Deutch, Glen Powell, Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs. Its central quote (“You like because, and you love despite.”) is my favorite depiction of the “opposites attract” trope and the resilience of romance.  

“Rye Lane” snuck onto this list. I’ve only watched it for the first time recently, but I am positive many, many rewatches are imminent. It follows the recipe for a Ribka Love Spell perfectly: it takes place in one-day, has fun banter between the main characters and makes bold, colorful directorial moves. Now I also plan on moving to London and marrying David Jonsson. After watching the movie, I have no choice not to.

I am trying to move away from my habit of rewatching by making my way through my watchlist. Still, I fall back into my old ways frequently, revisiting movies to transform into the person I was when I first watched them. Stormy times seem less infinite when I have any of these movies on stock. (I could stick with them forever, easily. But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.)