Sleeping Beauty
1959
Mary Costa, Eleanor Audley, Barbara Luddy
Adaptation of the fairy tale of the same name. Princess Aurora is cursed by the evil witch Maleficent - who declares that before Aurora reaches her 16th birthday she will die by a poisoned spinning-wheel. To try to prevent this, the king places her into hiding, in the care of three goodnatured - but not too bright - fairies.
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I liked it, very fairy tale and romantic. I did think that Aurora moved remarkably slowly, I just wanted to jump in the movie and push her along! What can you say about 50's animation, though? I liked blue better than pink.
Mirror Mirror
2012
Lily Collins, Julia Roberts, Armie Hammer, Nathan Lane
After a beloved King vanishes, his ruthless wife seizes control of the kingdom and keeps her beautiful 18-year-old stepdaughter, Snow White, hidden away in the palace. But when the princess attracts the attention of a charming and wealthy visiting prince, the jealous Queen banishes the girl to a nearby forest. Taken in by a band of rebellious but kindhearted dwarfs, Snow White blossoms into a brave young woman determined to save her country from the Queen. With the support of her new friends, she roars into action to reclaim her birthright and win back her Prince in this magical adventure comedAfter a beloved King vanishes, his ruthless wife seizes control of the kingdom and keeps her beautiful 18-year-old stepdaughter, Snow White, hidden away in the palace. But when the princess attracts the attention of a charming and wealthy visiting prince, the jealous Queen banishes the girl to a nearby forest. Taken in by a band of rebellious but kindhearted dwarfs, Snow White blossoms into a brave young woman determined to save her country from the Queen. With the support of her new friends, she roars into action to reclaim her birthright and win back her Prince in this magical adventure comedy.
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This was much more of a kid movie than I thought it would be. There were some lol moments, mostly Julia Roberts' passive aggressive comments. I'm not so sure I like Lily Collins, but Armie Hammer is a perfect Prince Charming.
Ghost Dad
1990
Bill Cosby, Kimberley Russel
Elliot Hopper is a widower with three children, he is currently working on a deal. It seems like his wife illness was very costly and this deal could put them out of the red. However he gets into a cab that is driven by a maniac, and Elliot crashes and the next thing he knows he is floating around and finds himself in the lab of a scientist who studies paranormal. Elliot asks the scientist to send him back so that he could finish the deal and make sure that his children are taken cared of.
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This is not a movie I would normaly pick, but my aunt wanted to have a movie night, and this is what we chose from the free movies OnDemand. I was a little bothered that the children never mourned the death of their father and they were just fascinated that he was a ghost.
Pride&Prejudice
1995
Jennifer Ehle, Colin Firth, Adrian Lukis, David Bamber
Jane Austen's classic novel about the prejudice that occurred between the 19th century classes and the pride which would keep lovers apart.
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I have to say, I liked the movie better. I didn't like most of the actors, especially Mr. Collins. Okay, he's supposed to be a boring, insufferable man, but this guy was just a straight up creeper. I really did like the woman who played Elizabeth, and of course, Colin Firth. I am a woman after all and his good looks and charm really do get to you. Honestly, it just made me long for Matthew MacFadyen!
Sleeping Beauty
2011
Emily Browning
The nihilist college girl Lucy has a dysfunctional family and lives together with her sister and brother-in-law. She is financially supported by three minor jobs: she is submitted to a weird experiment in a laboratory; she cleans a restaurant; and she takes photocopies in an office. She finds an advertisement in the newspaper offering a job in a fancy brothel and paying US$ 250 per hour. The madam Clara hires her and she is assigned to serve drinks to wealthy clients on a dinner table wearing lingerie. Then Clara drugs her and she spends the night sleeping naked with impotent men that can do any kinkiness with her body but penetration.
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I need to stop watching these bullshit "artistic" movies. Not only is it extremely disturbing and creepy, the dialogue doesn't make any sense. There is an extra creepy part where the camera is in such a way that it looks like the guy is looking at you. And I mean it felt like he could see me, and I couldn't even watch that scene. While I was looking away his whole unnecessarily long speech didn't make any sense at all. And then he got naked. Full frontal; I have never seen that in a movie. This movie is just disgusting. Don't see it.
The Vow
2012
Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum
Leo and Paige are a couple who just got married. After an accident, Paige is left unconscious, and when she awakes she doesn't remember Leo. Her parents, whom she hasn't seen since she and Leo got together, come and visit her. She can't believe that she hasn't seen them for such a long time. Leo wants to bring her home with him but her parents want her to go with them. She goes with Leo but when she doesn't recognize anything, she goes to her parents. And she wonders why did she cut off contact with her family. She also runs into her ex and wonders why they broke up. Leo tries to win her back by courting her again.
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I was somehow left disappointed with this movie. Not as much romance as I expected. The ending also felt unresolved to me, which is weird because Chuck ended the same way and I thought it was beautiful. Maybe I just didn't believe them, I didn't feel any real chemistry between Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. Channing Tatum doesn't do anything for me.
Stardust
2007
Claire Danes, Charlie Cox, Robert De Niro, Michelle Pheiffer
The passage from this world to the fantasy kingdom of Stormhold is through a breach in a wall beside an English village. In the 1800s, a boy becomes a man when he ventures through the breech in pursuit of a fallen star, to prove his love for the village beauty. The star is no lump of rock, it's a maiden, Yvaine. Tristan, the youth, is not the only one looking for her: three witches, led by Lamia, want her heart to make them young; and, the sons of the dead king of Stormhold want her because she holds a ruby that will give one of them title to the throne. Assisting Tristan are his mother, the victim of a spell, and a transvestite pirate of the skies. Will Tristan win his true love?
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What a terrific movie! I have nothing but good feelings about it! It was a long movie, but I never once found myself glancing at the clock to see if it was almost over.
Hercules
1997
Tate Donovan, James Woods, Danny Devito
Hercules, son of the Greek God, Zeus, is turned into a half-god, half-mortal by evil Hades, God of the Underworld, who plans to overthrow Zeus. Hercules is raised on Earth and retains his god-like strength, but when he discovers his immortal heritage Zeus tells him that to return to Mount Olympus he must become a true hero. Hercules becomes a famous hero with the help of his friend Pegasus and his personal trainer, Phil the satyr. Hercules battles monsters, Hades and the Titans, but it is his self-sacrifice to rescue his love Meg which makes him a true hero.
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Not one of Disney's finest. I didn't like Meg and Hades didn't seem all that villianous. Now we all know that Disney likes to sneak in other characters into their movies; Hercules having Scar's skin was just disturbing!
The Phantom of the Opera
2004
Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum, Patrick Wilson
Begins when an opera ghost terrorizes the cast and crew of the French Opera House while tutoring a chorus girl. He finally drives the lead soprano crazy so she and her friend leave. The girl is able to sing lead one night but the soprano doesn't want her show stolen so she comes back. The ghost demands they keep giving his protégé lead roles. Meanwhile, His pupil falls in love with the Vicomte de Chagny, but the Phantom is in love with Christine, his student. The Phantom is outraged by their love and kidnaps Christine to be his eternal bride. Will Raoul, the Vicomte, be able to stop this dastardly plan?
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Too. Much. Singing. I like musicals, but I wasn't expecting every word in this movie to be a song. I didn't like it.
Return To Me
2000
Minnie Driver, David Duchovny, Bonnie Hunt
The film opens with a loving husband and wife preparing for a very important fund raising dinner. The evening ends with the loss of the wife. In a hospital a weak young woman who may die soon if she can not get a new heart. Jump ahead one year the young woman received a heart and is trying to adjust to a life no longer counted by hours or days, she can actually make plans. The grieving husband and his dog are still trying to adjust to life without his wife. His friends keep trying to pry him from his "work is my life" existence by setting him up on blinds dates. Finally he actually shows up for one at an Irish-Italian restaurant where he finds himself more attracted to the waitress than his blind date. He finds an excuse to return to the restaurant in hopes of seeing the waitress again, there's just something attractive about her. Unknown to both the attraction they both feel for one another is Grace has the heart of Bob's dead wife...
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This is a decent watch. I think I would have liked it better if there was a different actor. I didn't really like David Duchovny.
Message in a Bottle
1999
Kevin Costner, Robin Wright Penn, Paul Newman
A woman finds a romantic letter in a bottle washed ashore and tracks down the author, a widowed shipbuilder whose wife died tragically early. As a deep and mutual attraction blossoms, the man struggles to make peace with his past so that he can move on and find happiness.
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I really liked the beginning of this movie, but it just kind of fizzled for me. I also couldn't help thinking that I would never go sailing. It looks terrifying.
Nights in Rodanthe
2008
Richard Gere, Diane Lane, Viola Davis
Adrienne Willis, a woman with her life in chaos, retreats to the tiny coastal town of Rodanthe, in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, to tend to a friend's inn for the weekend. Here she hopes to find the tranquility she so desperately needs to rethink the conflicts surrounding her -- a wayward husband who has asked to come home, and a teen-aged daughter who resents her every decision. Almost as soon as Adrienne gets to Rodanthe, a major storm is forecast and a guest named Dr. Paul Flanner arrive. The only guest at the inn, Flanner is not on a weekend escape but rather is there to face his own crisis of conscience. Now, with the storm closing in, the two turn to each other for comfort and, in one magical weekend, set in motion a life-changing romance that will resonate throughout the rest of their lives.
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I didn't feel any chemistry between Richard Gere and Diane Lane. It had a shocker ending, but I didn't care enough about the characters to let the shock set in.