Acceptable Male Tear-Jerkery

There are very few movies in which it is acceptable for Men to cry. At this point, some would say "Yeah, none, dur dur dur, Go make me a sammich", but I am of the opinion that it is OK for men to show emotion publicly when it's appropriate! At my Men's Fraternity Bible study last night, the preacher showed the end of Rudy and it got me thinking about movies that are actually on the following lists:
10 Films At Which a Real Man Can Cry (In no particular order)

• 10: Braveheart: Men in dresses??? NO, Men in kilts, big difference. It is completely unacceptable to cry during the love scene, but the ending is a real man's tear jearker if I've ever seen one. In fact, I'd say you aren't a real man if you don't at least feel a stirring at Wallace's final shout of "FREEDOM!"
• 9: Rocky: "Adrian! Adrian! ADRIAN!" If anyone can take a punch, it's Rocky Balboa. The whole fight scene leaves you emotionally vulnerable (as a man) because we all know that it's hard to take those punches and stay in the game. And then he's calling out the name of his girl, it rips out your already shredded heart...you know...in a manly way...
• 8: E.T.: All guys love Aliens, right? I do, I know that much. An alien movie is rarely a miss (let's just forget about Signs, ok?), but nothing comes close to the original Extra Terrestrial. If you've ever lost a best friend, you know how Eliot feels watching E.T. board the saucer...
• 7: Dead Poets Soceity: A mentor is very important, and very few of us get the chance to actually stand up against "the man!", but the students in Mr. Keating's class salute his educational forrays at the finale with a resounding "Oh captain, my captain." You'll have to fight back the tears, but don't do it...it's bad for your teeth.
• 6: One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest: Well if you don't experience the full range of emotions on this one, you're a Vulcan. And never are those emotions more potent than when Chief kills McMurphy and escapes. There's the notion, as the big Native American runs into the sunset, that something truly alive has died in that sanitorium.
• 5: Angels in the Outfield: Now, this one may be just me, but when the entire stadium stands up doing the "angel hand wave" at the final game of the season, it really gets me.
  
• 4: Homeward Bound: I have to admit, I've always had a soft spot for animals; in fact, I'm willing to get alot more emotional when a boy loses his dog than his best friend (but really aren't they the same??). There are two really rough patches in this one: Shadow in the hole, telling the other two to leave him and when Shadow finally comes over the ridge at the very end. (NOTE: I had a golden retriever growing up that I loved more than anything in the world so I might be biased here)
• 3: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan: Spock dies, could this list really be complete without this one. Yeah, I know, he comes back in the next movie, but for two whole years, Spock was dead! "The needs of the many outweigh ... the needs of the one", and then the casket being shot out of the torpedo launcher to the sounds of "Amazing Grace"? Well, you see why it belongs on the list.
• 2: Life is Beautiful: My family watches this movie every year at Christmas, and it gets me every time. When he grabs his kids and the whole town pour in to give him the money, it's gut wrenching. "My teacher said that every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings" "Atta boy Clarence".
• 1: Rudy: It did spark this list after all. By the end of this film you are Rudy; you've been through his whole story. And he never gave up no matter what happened. When he makes that sack and they carry him off the field, it takes an emotional dam to hold back the waterworks.

So this is the end of the list, but in case you were wondering:
10 Films at which a Man is NEVER, NEVER, EVER allowed to shed a tear:

• 10: Beaches: Barbara is never allowed to get to you...EVER
• 9: A Walk to Remember: It's freaking Nicholas Sparks, come on
• 8: The Notebook: Ok, let's get this straight, every movie based on Nicholas Sparks belongs on the list, so I'll stop listing them
• 7: Jerry Maguire: Good movie. Crying at "You had me at hello": Unacceptable
• 6: Ghost: Because really, it's Whoopi Goldberg, not Patrick Swayze
• 5: Titanic: Shouldn't have to put this one on the list because once you get weepy at Kate & Leo, you're officially not a man anyway
• 4: Fried Green Tomatoes/Steel Magnolias: Isn't this the same movie?
• 3: Gone With the Wind: Frankly, if you cry at this one, I don't give a damn
• 2: Flash DANCe, Dirty DANCing (Anything with the capitalized four letters in the title in that sequence): The only time water should be in your eyes is after the giant yawn when that "impressive" dance move makes your girlfriend/wife go "Ahhhh".
• 1: Anything with Matthew McConaughey: I have to read several Textbooks just to get my IQ back up after one of these.