Oscars host Amelia Dimoldenberg names her five favourite movies
Since Chicken Shop Date started in 2014, Amelia Dimoldenberg has been on a skyrocket to success. Quickly gaining a huge fan base for her dry humour and satirical interview style designed to make celebrities blush, she’s now the top call-in for red-carpet interviews. In 2024, she’s set to take to the Oscars as their host.
From the start, she knew her YouTube series would be a hit. “I actually thought it was a hit from the very beginning,” she said, “And then it was just about persuading people to see my vision.” Ten years on from the first date with MC Ghetts, she’s spoken to the likes of Louis Theroux, Paul Mescal, Matty Healy and Cher.
Now taking the series offline, Dimoldenberg’s been on the red carpet of the Golden Globes, the Brit Awards and the Barbie premiere. As she prepares to host the 96th Academy Awards, she revealed her five favourite films.
As a major player in classically British sarcasm, her first choice of Spice World is a perfect pick as the Spice Girls’ 1997 film is packed with witty one-liners. “It’s such a fun film with so many amazing cameos, and I really think the sense of humour of it is brilliant,” the presenter said. Merging movie magic with a clear pop culture streak reflects the direction Dimoldenberg’s own career is headed.
Another humorous pick comes from the 2004 chick-flick classic Mean Girls. “Every single line is perfect. It never gets boring watching it, and I’ve watched it about over a hundred times,” Dimoldenberg explained. Proving to be a totally timeless movie that has held onto its place in pop culture, Mean Girls is a crowdpleaser to the presenter, who added, “Everything about it, from the costume to the characters to the storyline, it’s just iconic, and I feel like nothing will ever beat it, really.”
Sticking true to her British roots, her next two choices celebrate classic and modern English cinema. First, Stephen Daldry’s 2000 film adaptation of Billy Elliot stands out for its layered tale. “You can rewatch it so many times, and then you find new things about it,” the presenter said. “I also think it’s a political film at the same time. It’s about the strike, about Thatcher’s Britain. It’s about ballet, it’s about toxic masculinity, and it’s all packaged up in this really beautiful, charming film.”
Her modern pick is about as new as it comes, as she chose the 2023 film How To Have Sex as her current favourite. Tackling the topic of sexual assault and consent, the film is the directorial debut of Molly Manning Walker. To Dimoldenberg, it’s a vital piece of cinema as she said, “I think it’s really crucial viewing for all young people, and all young boys, actually, as well.”
Her final slot is reserved for a classic piece of Hollywood history in the form of The Wizard Of Oz. Crediting “its place in cinematic history — being one of the first Technicolor films — and the legacy of that film,” she declared it “one of the greatest films ever made.”
Amelia Dimoldenberg’s favourite films:
- Spice World (1997)
- Mean Girls (2004)
- Billy Elliot (2000)
- How To Have Sex (2023)
- The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
