What's Your Movie Sign?

Originally published by The Odyssey Online

I'm not a huge fan of astrology. I understand the appeal of having something vast and permanent explain your life and offer advice on what you should do. But at the same time, it seems so restrictive. There are only twelve signs, and I think there are more than twelve kinds of people. I want something predictive that has more variety, something that I can easily access.

Enter the "movie sign." Your new gold standard for birth signs.

This is a concept that I first heard about from one of my film studies teachers. I'm shamelessly borrowing her basic idea and expanding it with my own interpretations. Your "movie sign" is whatever movie was #1 at the box office the week you were born. It's a basic idea with some very interesting possibilities.

It's not cyclical, like the zodiac signs are, so there is an incredible list of possibilities. It gives you an insight into the popular culture and consciousness at the time you entered the world. And it gives you a movie to either watch or re-watch.

I really think these Hollywood stars can predict you better than the astronomical stars. Need examples? Here are about half of the signs between August 1995 and July 1996, which covers most of my fellow senior class. Check out some of these titles, along with my opinion of what your movie says about you.

July 18–August 10, 1995: Waterworld

You like to take big risks. You like to think outside the box and come up with interesting new ideas. Sometimes those risks pay off big, and sometimes you're a man with gills in the post-apocalypse. Either way, you can learn from what happened and improve yourself. This is the sign most associated with valid concerns about global warming.

September 8–21: To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar

You will probably surprise a lot of people. They might know your name, but not a lot of details about you. Your heart is always in the right place, even if things don't work out exactly how you expected. This is the movie sign most associated with female success since it's the only #1 hit from a female director this year.

November 10–16: Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls

You're not afraid to cut loose and get a little wacky. Don't be too obsessed with your past efforts and biases. The new things you try out will work just as well as your old standards. This is the worst sign for traveling to Tibet or traveling in general.

November 17–23: GoldenEye

A lot of people had high expectations for you. You're trying to live up to the reputation of people that came before you, while also adding your own unique twist on life. In a lot of ways, you're living up to those expectations. You leave people with a lot of memorable moments and an optimism that you might not always live up to. This is the best sign for a video game fan or people that love to sing songs about their name.

November 24, 1995–January 4, 1996: Toy Story

Like the Waterworld sign, you like to take big risks. People will call you a groundbreaker, a trailblazer. You will do things that people haven't seen before and make it look effortless. But don't expect to stand out all the time. This is the longest-running sign of the year, so there will be plenty of others with the same ambition and talent as you. This is also my movie sign.

January 19–25: From Dusk Till Dawn

You like twists and surprises. You know what people expect of you, and you like to mess with those expectations when you can. In general, you define yourself mostly by the media you consume and the things you aren't. This is the sign most likely to really be into this "movie sign" idea.

February 23–29: Rumble in the Bronx

A word of mouth success, people heard great things about you before, and now is your chance to prove yourself. You may not have the most money, the most fame or the best sense of geography, but you have some great physical skills. This sign comes with the highest risk of injuries later in life.

March 8–April 4: The Birdcage

This is the funniest of all the signs covered here. You really commit to what you're doing and find a lot of success doing it. Very similar to the To Wong Foo sign in a lot of ways, but inversely memorable. Your name might not stand out all the time, but you'll prove to be reliable and great.

April 26–May 2: The Quest

You tend to be forgotten quite often. This doesn't mean you're bad or terrible, you just don't stand out as much as some of these other signs. You like action and you might be able to do the splits. This is the best sign for traveling to Tibet.

May 10–23: Twister

This sign has a little bit of everything. You're a risk-taker, you like cracking jokes, and you have a strong romantic side. To use Hollywood speak, this is a real four-quadrant sign. If you sometimes feel like a supporting character in your own life, this is a great sign for you. This is the sign most likely to call something "The Suck Zone."

May 24–June 6: Mission: Impossible

You're one of the flashier and more confident signs on the list. Drama and tension are things that you really enjoy. You might not have traveled much so far, but you will get more experience as life goes on. This is the sign that ages the best, in terms of how you look and what you stand for.

June 28–July 25: Independence Day

You will not be consumed by petty differences anymore. People with this sign will be united by their common interests. Perhaps it's fate that this sign covers the 4th of July, and you will once again be fighting for your right to live, to exist. You will not go quietly into the night. You will not vanish without a fight. You're going to live on! You're going to survive! Today, you celebrate your movie sign!

There are plenty more signs from this span of time that I haven't gotten to. These movies only cover about half of the #1 movies from this year-long span. There are so much more nuances and results, which is why it works so well.

Interested in looking up your sign? Head over to Box Office Mojo, look up the week you were born and join the conversation.