Monday Movie Meme – Stranded Top Five

June 7, 201016 Comments

Share on your blog those films you’d most want to have with you and why if you were ever stranded on a desert island.

Visit the Bumbles to find out what they would take and since Molly and Andy both posted their lists I called Jason to get his list too 🙂

Jason’s List

1. Shawshank Redemption – he could watch it over and over again (and has).

2. Braveheart – same reason

3. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles – one of his favorites comedies ever.

4. The Matrix – same as 1 & 2

5. Castaway – for educational purposes.

My List

1. The Sound of Music – I always find this movie comforting and I can sing along.

2. The Philadelphia Story – love the story and the three leads (Hepburn, Grant, Stewart)

3. There’s Something About Mary – I might have chosen Planes, Trains, & Automobiles, but Jason has it and I’m sure we’ll be stranded together!

4. Lord of the Rings- Fellowship of the Ring – I don’t need to have them all to appreciate the awesomeness. And I need my Strider fix occasionally!

5. Silence of the Lambs – a cautionary tale to be on the lookout for cannibals.

May’s 5 Word Movie Reviews

May 31, 2010April 8, 201720 Comments

May was a slow movie month for me. I was underwhelmed by what I saw. If you’ve seen any of the movies leave me your 1-5 words in the comments and I’ll add them to the post. Or, if you are feeling ambitious and want to do this on your own blog leave me a link in the comments and I’ll add it to the bottom of the post. Of course, you can always just comment

I’ve noted airplane movies because I’m not sure a nervous flyer like me should be completely trusted to give an accurate grade.

(2010. Cast – Robert Downey Jr. Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson) Grade B-

Pretty Decent Sequel. Liked Rourke.

Over the top action sequel. (Heather)

Tony too full of himself. (Kay)

Sam Rockwell really rocks, baby. (Tony)

(2008. Cast – Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson) Grade B-

Liked Same As Book = Okay

Sparkly vampire with sullen teen. (Stephanie)

Imagined Edward differently – glitter anyone? (Kay)

Making sparkly vampires cool, obviously. (Tony)

(2010. Cast- Amy Adams, Matthew Goode) Airplane Movie Grade C+

Needed a Little More Heart.

Adams is cute, mediocre rom-com. (Heather)

(2010. Cast- Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel, Danny DeVito, Angelica Huston) Airplane Movie Grade C

Wanted To Like It More

Boring. Hit fast-forward alot! (Nolatari)

Almost embarrassed for the actors. (Heather)

Monday Movie Meme- Dance Scenes

May 17, 201015 Comments

Feature Presentation…MONDAY MOVIE MEME

Visit The Bumbles for more dance scenes

I hope you’ll choose at least one video to watch 🙂

1. As a child of the 80’s this is right at the top. The Thriller dance from 13 Going on 30.

2. A real 80’s selection. Ducky in Pretty in Pink.

3. My sexy choice. Baby finally gets to do a little Dirty Dancing of her own!

4. My romantic choice. Sandra and Keanu in The Lake House.

5. A sweet choice from an old favorite. The Sound of Music.

Fave Film #14 – What’s Eating Gilbert Grape

May 7, 201024 Comments

1993

Cast – Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio, Juliette Lewis, Mary Steenburgen

DiCaprio was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Gilbert is struggling to keep his family together in a one street small town with no options. He supports his obese, house-bound mother, his mentally challenged brother, and his two sisters in the house that his father built before he hung himself in the basement. The only thing this family has is each other. While Amy, the oldest sister, takes care of the mother, it falls on Gilbert to take care of his brother at all times.

Why I Love It – Usually I fall in love with the performances or the story, but in this case I can’t choose one because I loved them both. Obviously, Johnny Depp is going to give you a good performance and this is one of his most normal roles. He plays a long-suffering man of the house struggling to keep it all together with little thought to his needs. But DiCaprio’s Arnie equally shines and he was more than deserving of the Academy Award. This was Leonardo before Titanic and showing his acting chops. I was amazed at what he pulled off. Those two performances alone make this movie a must see.

The story is heartbreaking, real, hopeless, and hopeful. The mother had become a joke to the town and even to Gilbert, who was embarrassed by her and for her. Arnie continued to run Gilbert’s life and he was stuck in an affair that had nowhere to go. Then Gilbert met a girl just passing through town with her grandmother and his world seemed to expand. Someone was looking at him, for him not for the role he played in her life. I don’t want to give too much of the movie away because if you haven’t seen it I hope you take the time to check it out. It will touch your heart.

Monday Movie Meme – Party Animals

May 3, 201018 Comments

Feature Presentation…MONDAY MOVIE MEME

This week is all about movies that focus on parties. I had a hard time coming up with the traditional wild & crazy parties, but managed to come up with a pretty good list, I think.

Check out The Bumbles for other participants.

1. The Ref (1994) This family holiday dinner party is my favorite ever. Denis Leary as Dr. Wong and Judy Davis with her Scandinavian Christmas was a riot. A great quote –

I have never heard of such a Christmas: sex, and drugs, and, and, and, and women being set on fire.

2. Four Weddings & a Funeral (1994) Wedding receptions are parties, so this great British movie had plenty of partying! Loved the cast and the humor. Here’s a quote from Hugh Grant’s character that sums up his wedding reception luck – I seem to be stuck in the wedding from hell, ghosts of girlfriends past at every turn. Next thing I’ll bump into Henrietta and the nightmare will be complete.

3. Meet the Parents (2000) There were many funny parts in this one, but when the family goes to Kevin’s house for a barbecue and water volleyball I laughed at Ben Stiller’s little Speedo and his hand in ruining the bride before her wedding.

4. Footloose (1984) The movie was a fight between the teenagers and parents of a small town to allow dancing at the Prom. Loved this as a teen, but didn’t realize until just recently that it is actually based on a real story! John Lithgow’s character was a real fun guy – Even if this was not a law, which it is, I’m afraid I would have a lot of difficulty endorsing an enterprise which is as fraught with genuine peril as I believe this one to be. Besides the liquor and the drugs which always seem to accompany such an event the thing that distresses me even more, Ren, is the spiritual corruption that can be involved. These dances and this kind of music can be destructive, and, uh, Ren, I’m afraid you’re going to find most of the people in our community are gonna agree with me on this.

5. Old School (2003) This isn’t a favorite of mine, but it did come to mind when thinking of parties. This ragtag team of losers decides to form a fraternity. Hijinks ensue. Vince Vaughn’s character has this to say – You think I like avoiding my wife and kids to hangout with nineteen year old girls everyday?

So, do you have a favorite movie focused on a party?

April’s 5 Word Movie Reviews

April 30, 2010April 8, 201733 Comments

These are the movies I’ve watched this month and I’ve given each one a grade and 5 words to describe it. I’ve seen quite a few since I’ve had to take it easy this month due to the babe. If you’ve seen any of the movies leave me your 1-5 words in the comments and I’ll add them to the post. Or, if you are feeling ambitious and want to do this on your own blog leave me a link in the comments and I’ll add it to the bottom of the post. Of course, you can always just comment 🙂

Heather at Gofita’s Pages has joined me this month (Yay!).

(2009. Cast – Jeff Bridges, Lauren Graham) Grade B

Reclusive Author Talks to God?

Mediocre movie but interesting storyline. (Heather)

(2007) Grade – B

Rats in the Kitchen Unite.

Culinary rats? Superb Pixar recipe. (Hannah)

Don’t watch on empty stomach! (Stephanie)

Least-favorite Pixar. Kinda boring. (Nolatari)

Rats Are Smart And Cute (Beth)

A truly exquisite dish, darling. (Tony)

(2007. Cast- Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei, Albert Finney) Grade B

Warped Family Thriller. Dark Drama.

(2004. Cast – Bradley Cooper, Jason Priestley, Emma Caulfield) Grade B-

Fun Spoof on The Bachelor.

(2009. Cast – Katherine Heigl, Gerard Butler) Grade B-

Predictable Love/Hate Romantic Comedy.

(2008. Cast – Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper, Kelsey Grammer, Nathan Lane, Stanley Tucci, George Lopez) Grade C

Surprisingly Enjoyable Take on Elections.

(2010. Cast – Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes) Grade C

Unremarkable Story of the Gods.

Best mediocre movie I’ve seen. – Stephanie

Great Effects but Original Better (Beth)

Same movie but different names. (Heather)

I discovered Gemma Arterton here. (Tony)

(2002. Cast – Thandie Newton, Mark Wahlberg, Tim Robbins) Grade C-

Uneven Thriller Set in Paris.

Mediocre mystery, mediocre Mark Wahlberg. (Nolatari)

(2008. Cast Will Farrell, John C Reilly, Mary Steenburgen) Grade F

Two Hours Gone Forever.

Hated it. Ridiculous and unfunny. (Nolatari)

Ridiculous and yet still affecting. (Tony)

Monday Movie Meme – Politics

April 19, 2010April 19, 201014 Comments

Feature Presentation…All About Politics

Visit The Bumbles for other selections

I do take an active interest in politics and I actually like discussing it with people who are not so convinced that their view is the only possible correct one. I mean, come one, if one party was always right they would never get voted out of office! I could go on, but the reason I don’t really talk about politics here is because people seem to get so crazy (and yes, sometimes that person is me!). So, talking political movies is a great alternative. Here are a few of my favorite political movies…

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) – Isn’t Jimmy Stewart the politician we all want on our side?

State of the Union (1946) – Spencer Tracy as the businessman turned politician shows us that the bought and paid for politician is not a new phenomenon.

All the President’s Men (1976) – Two reporters doing their job at great peril. Who is Deep Throat and how cool of a name is that?

Hotel Rwanda (2004) – A cautionary tale that no matter how mad our politicians may make us we are still blessed.

And for a lighter selection…Protocol (1984) – Goldie Hawn as the clueless politician really made me laugh.

Fave Film #80 – Romancing the Stone

April 9, 2010April 9, 201013 Comments

1984

Cast – Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas, Danny DeVito

Romance novelist Joan Wilder receives a call from her sister that she needs her to go to Columbia. As the uptight Joan travels to Columbia she is in danger at every turn and turns to fellow American Jack T. Colton to keep her safe and get her to her sister. Only he has bigger plans.

Why I love it – I love a good romance novel and this movie is a perfect homage to the genre. The heroine (a writer, no less) is forced out of her comfort zone and meets a man who is rough around the edges, but strong. The two are attracted to each other but fight it, eventually give in and then have a misunderstanding. But in the end the two live happily ever after. This movie benefits from the adventure and life or death situation, so it is better than a sappy romance novel – it’s actually campy fun too.

I loved Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner as the leads. They had great chemistry and were perfect in their roles.

My favorite lines of the movie

Jack: I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I even read one of your books.

Joan: Then you know how they all end.

After the heart of every romance lover 🙂

Here’s the trailer if you haven’t seen it.

Here’s the list of my Favorite 100 Movies.

Monday Movie Memes – All About Ensembles

April 5, 2010April 5, 201020 Comments

Feature Presentation…

This week’s movie topic is all about Ensembles…There are lots of great movies that succeed not because of megastars and lesser known supporting casts, but because of incredible actors working together without any one person taking on a lead role.

Here are my favorite ensemble casts…

Crash (2004). An uncomfortable look at race. Cast includes Sandra Bullock, Brendan Fraser, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Ludacris, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillipe

Love Actually (2003). Loved this cast from across the pond. Cast includes Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley

Ocean’s Eleven (2001). Movie okay, cast gorgeous. Cast includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Don Cheadle, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Bernie Mac, Elliot Gould, Casey Affleck

The Usual Suspects (1995). Which one is Keyser Soze? Cast includes Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, Kevin Pollak, Stephen Baldwin, Chazz Palminteri

Lord of the Rings trilogy. Frodo wasn’t the only one worth watching. Cast includes Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellan, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, Liv Tyler, Orlando Bloom

What’s your favorite ensemble cast? Stop by The Bumbles and see what others have to say.

Monday Movie Meme – Sidekicks

March 29, 2010December 20, 20108 Comments

This weeks it’s all about our favorite movie sidekicks. Here are my fave five…

1. Wilson from Cast Away (2000). Tom Hanks would have gone even more crazy without him. I cried when he lost Wilson to the sea.

2. Sam from the Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001,2002,2003). I believe that Sam defines loyalty and bravery. Don’t we all want a friend who would follow us even knowing it could lead to death?

3. Annie from Speed (1994). That bomb would have blown up everyone on that bus if not the for the quick thinking Annie.

4. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). So which one was the sidekick? Who cares?

5. Duckie in Pretty in Pink (1986). Duckie had Andie’s back even though he really wanted her heart. In the end he only wanted her to be happy.

So who did everyone else choose? Stop by The Bumbles to find out.

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