Rating: B-
Premise: Rachel is a rehabbing addict who goes home for her sister’s wedding and causes all kinds of family drama.
Recommend: Yes, but not to everyone. Anne Hathaway gives a great performance but the movie as a whole is quirky and a bit tiresome.
Rating: B
This is a story about one of the themed American Girls dolls. Kit is a child in Ohio during the depression. Her family has to make sacrifices when Kit’s dad loses his business. Kit, wanting to be a journalist, follows her hunches to discover a thief disguised as a hobo.
For a kids movie this was good. It could have gone straight to DVD or been a TV movie. The non-main characters were pretty good. Your young daughters will probably like it.
Rating: B
A son examines his relationship with his father. The father is dying.
I liked this. It was definitely not lighthearted and if someone you were close to has passed away recently you probably don’t want to watch this. Colin Firth and Jim Broadbent were great (as usual).
Rating: B-
This is the movie based on the first book of the “Twilight” series. Bella moves from Phoenix to Forks, WA and meets Edward. Too bad Edward is a vampire, a nice one, but still. Then she gets chased by a not-nice vampire, James. And then they go to prom.
Well. I have read all four books and the book wins over the movie. I thought the movie was well-done but not worth the huge hype. Of course, this is probably the next Titanic with the teen-age girls repeating their trips to the movies and the supersonic rise in fame of Robert Pattinson – who plays Edward quite well. I’m not sure what I was expecting but what I got was a faithful adaptation of the book. Kristin Stewart’s Bella got on my nerves…everyone else was pretty good. Go see it but don’t expect to be amazed.
Rating: B-
A woman desperately wanting a baby has her husband leave her, meets the man of her dreams and has her mother die. On the same day. Soon after, her birth mother finds her. Comedy and Drama ensue.
This movie starts out a bit rocky but finds its legs after about 1/2 hour. I’m not a huge Helen Hunt fan but she did fairly well in this. Colin Firth was great (as usual) and the rest of the cast did well. I won’t buy this but I’m glad I saw it. Helen Hunt directed – did a good job.
Rating: B-
Premise: A young girl is about to get married and invites the three men that could possibly be her father. Her mom freaks out.
Recommend: Yes, although if you miss seeing it in the theater and have to rent it – you won’t be missing anything. Like all movie musicals, this is a little over the top. Meryl Streep is great as are the men (who all have fairly terrible singing voices) but everything else seems a little forced. Like “look at how much fun we are having”. The ending seems a little rushed and pieced together. Stay through the beginning of the credits.
Grade: B-
Rating: B-
Agent Maxwell Smart and Agent 99 go off on adventure to Russia and Los Angeles to stop the Walt Disney Concert Hall from blowing up.
I thought this movie was cute. Definitely a matinee price or a renter - but worth watching. Steve Carell is great as usual. Surprisingly good are Dwayne Johnson and Alan Arkin. I always like Anne Hathaway and she did not disappoint here either.
Rating: B-
Four best friends from an Australian orphanage (all born in December) are selected to go on a holiday to the sea shore. While there, they learn that one of them is to be adopted.
I liked this movie. It’s not going to blow you away but it is a good story. The actors who play the four boys are great…one of them is Harry Potter.
Rating: B
The story of Jane Austen in her later years, helping her niece to decide whether or not to get married.
This is a made for TV movie and was pretty good. It got a little long but overall I enjoyed it. Has one of my favorites, Hugh Bonneville, in it. Anyways, nothing spectacular but charming.
Rating: B-
Tom and Hannah have been best friends for 10 years. Tom likes women; Hannah likes art. Hannah goes to Scotland, meets Colin and decides to marry him. Tom decides he's in love with Hannah and becomes the Maid of Honor to steal her.
This is cute but not outstanding. Michelle Monaghan was really cute as was Selma Stern (grandma). There are some laugh out loud moments but overall, it's a renter.
Rating: B-
A brother & sister who have a tenuous relationship at best are forced to come together to care for their estranged father who has dementia.
This is a heavy movie. There are some comedic moments but the characters and their situations are depressing. Written by the same woman that wrote Slums of Beverly Hills. I liked it but it won't be for everyone.
Rating: B-
Old Fashioned Nancy Drew is transplanted from a small town to the middle of Los Angeles. She sleuths her way into trouble when she goes about looking for the killer of a movie star.
This was cute in a "family film" type way. It isn't an example of cinematic genius but it is worth a watch if you have kids.
Rating: B-
A self centered, career oriented top chef in New York City becomes the guardian of her young niece. She also meets a cute almost top chef. There is love. Didn't we see this before? (Raising Helen)
It was cute enough to sit through. There were no surprises - except how good Abigail Breslin is. Meh.
Rating: B-
A girl starts college at her dead mother's alma mater and tries to pledge her mother's sorority. After getting kicked out of the sorority house, she teams up with the resident dorks and challenges the hierarchy of the school. Oh, and gets a boyfriend at the same time.
This was incredibly predictable but not terrible. Amanda Bynes is too cute for words and does a good job carrying this movie. Rent it if you have teenage girls.
Rating: B
Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis are Chicago musicians that witness a mob murder. On the run from the mob, they decide to pose as women and join an all women's band that is on their way to a three week gig in Florida. All goes well until Tony Curtis falls in love with Marilyn Monroe, a ukelele player with the band.
I really enjoyed this move - I can't believe I haven't seen it before. It's a classic!
Rating: B-
This stars an older Jimmy Stewart and a fantastic looking Maureen O'Hara. They are Mr. & Mrs. Hobbs - while he dreams of the two of them going off to Europe together for a summer, she dreams of having the entire family together at the beach. She wins. All kinds of family drama ensues. This is one of those movies that is pretty good to watch but you feel like it was beneath the talents of the main stars.
Rating: B-
Story of a college graduate who is looking to find herself and finds herself a nanny for a wealthy family on the Upper East Side.
I loved this book but the movie was not exceptional. It wasn't terrible but it was really almost a line-by-line of the movie so it got a bit boring. Scarlett Johansson was an interesting choice for the roll of the nanny - I would have gone with someone with a bit more personality as the character felt a little flat. Laura Linney was great. Bob Giamatti was another interesting choice. I bought it but I probably won't watch it often.
Grade: B-
Premise: A woman's fiancee dies the week before their wedding - then she falls in love with his friend.
Recommend? Yes/No. Definitely a chick flick and not a strong one at that. Nothing really terrible about it but nothing special either. Jennifer Garner was pretty cute but I was most surprised to see Mr. Bullock of Deadwood, Timothy Olyphant as the male lead. Watch it if you want to kill time. Not a must own.
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