Movies, Mom & Me

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This is the second movie I've bought since Mom died, strictly in memory of Mom, this time. This was one of her favorites. Although it didn't play on the cable channels often, I doubt that we ever missed a showing of it. There are many reasons she liked it: Its portrayal of a bright, gutsy young woman refusing to give up her dreams and desires in the face of a woman-stifling culture; its periodicity; its intriguing presentation of a woman who is so successful at masquerading as a man that she marries a woman who thinks she's an exceptional (because she's a woman) man (Mom has always loved gender-benders); the very messy, thus very realistic resolution. Although its not one of my favorites, I have to say that certain scenes have the power to mesmerize me, despite the outlandishness of the story. The movie wasn't released on video until this year, some months after Mom died. When I saw it at Costco I knew it was necessary for me to purchase it. And watch it, multiple times, I'm sure. In honor of Mom...and Momandme.

Labels: buddy, drama, fantasy, gender-bender, mom-favorite, period, political, romance

# posted by gail @ 18:44    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  none
3. Commentary:  I resisted placing this movie in our collection for some years, even though Mom insisted on watching it every time it came on TV and, I have to admit, I love the dancing, especially the "athletic" (as one critic called it) sequence involving the testosterone soaked brothers against suitors of the town vying for the affections of seven sprightly town maidens. Finally, winter before this last, I found it at Costco and brought it home for a weekend surprise. We watched the movie twice in a row, at Mom's request (and have watched it several times since). I was fascinated to discover that my mother's favorite dance sequence was the one done in the dead of winter while the seven brothers are chopping wood and bemoaning their singular (pun intended) fate. As she would watch that sequence, every time, she'd mention how much she liked it, her body would weave to the adagio accompaniment of the silken cowboy ballad and she'd swing her arm in an arc from her elbow each time an axe swung to a down beat. She loved the rest of the movie, as well, the Sabine Women sequence, in particular, and I loved watching her watch it. I will continue to love watching it and remembering the her high pleasure in the production.

Labels: action, dance, dramedy, musical, period, romance, shared-favorite, spectacle

# posted by gail @ 15:25    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  none
3. Commentary:  I picked this up because Mom and I so enjoyed the video versions of Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility that we own and a friend told me that I'd probably like this version of the JA novel, too. I'm usually wary of friends recommending movies to me, but she was right. Mom and I both enjoyed this one. Film adaptations of Jane Austen and others' works can be disappointing; Mom and I have been disappointed before. This one isn't. I still prefer the books, but this movie and the other two JA adaptations we own bring the characters and environments to life.

Labels: dramedy, period, romance

# posted by gail @ 14:45    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  none
3. Commentary:  I'm truly surprised that I never mentioned this movie in the journals because, after I'd first seen it, the year it was released, I was mesmerized by it and talked it up to everyone who would listen, rented it endlessly and forced relatives to watch it with me, etc. I've often tried to explain why this movie has such a hold over me. Luckily, Mom always enjoyed it, as she does most big country-spectacle-epics. The acting is poor to fair to good to very occasionally excellent (usually the minor characters ring in the excellence in acting); the story is, well, the father-son story at the base of it is reasonably interesting but predictable; but the whole business about bears and the fall...it resonates with my own interest in bears and the fact that I've always been unreasonably proud of being a fall baby and feel "special" because of that accident of birth timing. I tend to feel as though I am in a dream when I watch this movie. Weird, I know. But, I expect to unreasonably love this movie for the rest of my life. I was lucky that Mom enjoyed it, too, I think it was like reading a sprawling novel, for her, thus she indulged my need to watch this at least once a year, if not more.

Labels: action, adventure, drama, dream, haunting, me-favorite, period, spectacle, violence, war

# posted by gail @ 14:33    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  Despite the unresounding reception Mom gave this film when we first watched it, after some extensive wrangling I finally obtained a copy of it, solely because I wanted to watch it again, and again, and probably again. After a second watching of it, Mom warmed to it. It's a subtle movie, restrained acting in display of a restrained household...which is part of its magic. Judi Densch and Billy Connolly are wonderful in it.

Labels: biography, drama, historical, me-favorite, period, political, royals

# posted by gail @ 13:57    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  none
3. Commentary:  One of the advantages, for Mom & me, of subscribing to a DVD rental service was (and remains) the availability of foreign films. Slowly, because of my interest in films from everywhere, if they're good, she learned to handle foreign language films with subtitles. Our favorites, though, were the sweeping epics that communicate mostly without language. This movie became one of our favorites in 2008. You'd think, because it is mostly about conflict, sometimes bloody, short on specific cultural information, etc., we would have found it boring. Quite the opposite. Mom loved the scene-after-scene sprawl of the steppes. I loved the mythical ambience of the film.

Labels: action, adventure, drama, historical, period, political, spectacle, violence, war

# posted by gail @ 13:21    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  Yet another one of those teaching videos, for Mom. The Mention says it all. Yes, we made it through the entire series before she died. Yes, she was shocked and intrigued at the vaccination and breast cancer episodes; worthy of pauses and further discussion between us. During the breast cancer surgery (which wasn't completely displayed), she speculated, aloud, how lucky MCS (who is a breast cancer survivor) was that "we" weren't living during "those days". The surprising aspect of this was that my mother remembered that MCS had breast cancer, several years ago.

Labels: drama, historical, period, political, presidential, TV, war

# posted by gail @ 19:17    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3*
3. Commentary:  As covered in one of the above Mentions, this movie was suggested by MFS. I was surprised at how much Mom loved it. I enjoy it, too. It's yet another spectacle movie for me (I should create a "spectacle" category, shouldn't I...I think I will, then add to it later) and I love a variety of the acting performances in this movie, particularly (but not solely) Richard Harris as Marcus Aurelius. Before he ever says anything in the movie his acting makes many aspects of Marcus Aurelius' character clear. We watched this movie on TV several times, in "to-fit-your-screen" format, before I finally purchased it. Much better in widescreen. On a whim, I watched the movie last night. I continue to find it supremely entertaining; and, as well, now that Mom's dead, surprisingly emotional, specifically at the end when Juba says, as he buries Maximus' personal idols, "I will see you again, but not yet." If you have any interest in this movie, I urge you to click into the link to the title of the movie, above, which will send you to a thorough and compelling critique of the historicity of the movie. Believe me, despite the astonishing number of historical inaccuracies in the movie, the critique renders watching the movie even more enjoyable.

Labels: action, adventure, drama, historical, period, political, shared-favorite, spectacle, suspense, violence, war

# posted by gail @ 14:15    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  We acquired this movie just before last Easter when I was on a mission to obtain every jesus/bible related that we didn't already own. I didn't know whether she'd ever seen this movie, but she was up for it when I mentioned it to her and was immediately enraptured in it's sprawl. She's also, of course, a big fan of over-the-top drama of the period in which this was made. So am I, depending, and this movie didn't disappoint me, but, I have to say, The Ten Commandments is still my preferred movie spectacle film.

Labels: action, adventure, bible movies, drama, jesus-dvds, period, spectacle, violence

# posted by gail @ 10:22    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Decades ago, when this show debuted on PBS, Mom and I watched it separately, then together during a serendipitous visit when it was being aired again, and, as well, during one of those watchings I recorded it off the TV and we listened to it many times. Over the last year the desire to listen to it, again, came up between us and I couldn't find the old casette tape, so I scoured the internet and found a copy of the original video production. We watched it at least twice before Mom died. We enjoyed it as much as we did the first time around. Definitely a shared-favorite! We both felt that Julie Harris did a wonderful job of portraying a highly self-possessed, talented wordsmith of a woman who wasn't so much shy as a joyful loner.

Labels: audio-visual, biography, period, shared-favorite, TV

# posted by gail @ 10:01    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  My mother's interest in this movie was a big surprise for me. I didn't expect her to enjoy it because it is subtitled, it portrays a brutal episode in history and Werner Herzog spared no one and nothing in making this movie, but she was mesmerized by it. Unfortunately, the only copy we were able to obtain was one that had been "formatted for your screen"...big problem with this movie, since it depends on panoramic scenes, especially in the beginning, but I don't think my mother notice or cared. I will probably keep tabs on versions of this movie an replace my copy with a widescreen version at some time in the future.

Labels: adventure, drama, haunting, historical, period, political, spectacle, violence

# posted by gail @ 09:43    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  Although the "Mentions" are only for one movie, we watched all four with just about equal pleasure: Kit Kittredge; Felicity; Samantha; Molly. Although I'm sure there are excellent reasons to critique the movies, we just sat back an enjoye them. Mom's favorite was Kit Kittredge, the one that takes place during the Great Depression of the 1930s; at least, this is the movie that elicited the most enthusiastic response from her, possibly because she was a child during that period. My favorite was Felicity, the one that takes place just prior to the American Revolution. I understand yet another American Girl movie has been released, Chrissa. If Mom was still alive I don't think I'd be collecting this one because there is no obvious historical context and it looks like a highly moral 'tween version of Mean Girls. Much of the draw, for Mom an me, of this series, was the historical context.

Labels: collection, historical, kids, period

# posted by gail @ 08:54    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I bought this movie sight unseen, the day it was released, based strictly on Mom's (and, now, my) love of stories about English Royals and my admiration for Helen Mirren. One of my best purchases to date! Mom and I so loved the movie that we watched it twice the day it arrived, then again the next day. We (almost) endlessly discussed details of the movie, including: The appearance of the stag, that it was actually a 15 pointer and wondered if odd numbered points were excluded when rating a rack; the importance of Diana as an icon; the likelihood that the portrayal of Prince Charles was accurate; the difficulty of being a monarch in today's world, depending on where one lives; the history of the political significance of the English monarchy and whether it would outlive this century; Queen Elizabeth II's dogs; the ick factor of lamb stew, especially when it's cold; Mirren's astonishing range, considering her performance in Elizabeth I and The Queen; and many other aspects of the movie.
     Yet another movie we'll watch over and over and over.
   

Labels: biography, docu-drama, historical, period, political, royals, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 02:35    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This is a movie I've avoided purchasing for a long time, even though Mom and I enjoy watching it every time it appears on TV, whether uninterrupted by commercials and uncut or otherwise. It is, plain and simple, riveting. However, for some reason I could never bring myself to pay for it. Finally, I noticed what looked like a relatively unplayed copy of it at my favorite trade-in movie store really cheap (I later discovered that Costco was selling it cheap, by then, too, although not as cheap as the copy I purchased) and decided, yeah, we should have it.
     Good choice. As soon as Mom hears the theme music, she settles back in her rocker with a subtle smile, as though someone is preparing to read her a Dickens novel cover to cover.

Labels: action, drama, period, violence

# posted by gail @ 02:04    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  We first saw this movie on TCM one evening about a month before I ordered it. Mom became so involved in it that she visibly cried at the end, and she doesn't cry easily. It's extremely idealistic. I can well imagine, although Mom didn't become (and had no intention of becoming) a spinster teacher, her attitudes toward teaching and education were much the same as portrayed in this movie. As well, I couldn't help but recall the line in Mona Lisa Smile in which the president of Wellesley, in 1953, states that higher education for women was unheard of a century ago. This movie accurately states that it was well heard of, which I already knew, anyway. Watching this movie in view of Mona Lisa Smile reminded me to be ever ready to reflect on the fact that, just as the 1950's clearly rewrote women's history according to its dictates for women, all history is rewritten, by era, according to what we want to see in it and get out of it. Made me wonder, too, as I have before, if this glitch in Mona Lisa Smile was intended or inadvertent. You'd think Julia Roberts' character, considering her championing of women's education, would have been aware of the presidents' blatant and incorrect reinterpretation of history and would have made some mention of this.
       I found this movie so charming and so much fun as far as watching Mom watch it that first we rented it, then, when Mom yet again, sobbed at the end of the movie, I decided we had to have a copy. I ran across it in the A2ZCDS.com remastered version at my favorite local movie trade-in store and snatched it up. Not a good copy, though; not nearly as clear, visually or audibly, as the copy we saw on TV. I'm going to hunt for a better copy. I notice TCM has one on sale...hopefully, it will be the same as the one they broadcast. So, eventually this one will go back to where I purchased it; but not before I obtain a better copy of it. We've watched it twice since I've purchased it and I'm sure it will become one of our most watched movies.

Labels: drama, mom-favorite, period

# posted by gail @ 01:40    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This movie was given to us by a friend who is interested in politics, clearly remembers the 1960's (better than me, actually, since I went through a somewhat different 60's experience on Guam) and was sure she'd love the movie. She picked it up at Costco, where it was being sold with a free copy of a biography of RFK. She was completely disappointed in the movie, although not in the book, but said she wouldn't read it again and passed that off to us, too.
     Mom only sat through half the movie. I watched all of it. I understand what Estevez did in the movie and think he accomplished his goal, but I also understand why the critics were so divided on this movie. If I'd rented the movie, I'd've made a mental note not to buy it, even though many of its moments have stuck with me. I felt cheated that a lot of it was fictionalized...it seemed to me their was little to no reason to do this. However, I also found the vignettes involving and many of the performances excellent (I especially liked the vignette with Helen Hunt and Martin Sheen). Interesting and effective splicing of actual newsreel footage, too, although, frankly, The Queen does this better and more effectively.
       I don't think this is a movie that, on a second attempt at watching, Mom would discover she enjoyed. It isn't one I expect to watch again soon. I may add it to our ever expanding pile of movies for trade-in. I'll probably read the book, although I may not get around to it until after Mom dies.

Labels: docu-drama, historical, period, political

# posted by gail @ 01:24    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Yes, this is yet another jesus dvd that is a Jesus movie. We rented it first. For some unknown reason, I had the idea that maybe we had enough Jesus movies for Mom and she'd consider this one overkill, but I was wrong, which is why I purchased it for her. We've watched it several times.
     I appreciate it for the explanation it contains of certain cultural customs to which members of "The Holy Family" would have been obligated, but, more than this, some of the oblique symbology of the birth of Jesus is explained, such as the signficance of the gifts received from "the wise men". There is strong enough emphasis on the importance of the visiting of the shepherds that I finally understood this aspect of the Jesus Nativity Story. And, the parallel story of Elizabeth and Zechariah is well woven into the presentation.
     My mother, of course, is enthralled with the movie. The more apparently realistic Bible movies are, the more she likes them. This one rang a bell for her. She even enjoyed the offhand comic relief of the three wise men.
     I may have mentioned this before: I'm not Christian, never have been, actually, even though I was raised in what would be considered a typical Christian household of the 50's and 60's, which is to say, only mildly religious but with a strong emphasis on morality and ethics, not necessarily connected to but often echoing Christianity in particular. Because my mother is deeply spiritual, though, and uses Christianity as her spiritual touchstone (and, for a few other reasons, as well), I spent a fair amount of time (still do, in fact) investigating and thinking about Christianity. I've been at the point, for some years, where I firmly doubt the existence of the historical Jesus as presented in Christianity (even the Christian gospels hint that the Jesus they present never existed) but, because much of the symbology and beliefs are ubiquitous in many theistic and nontheistic religious doctrines and practice, the entire area of spirituality bounded by religion fascinates me and Christianity, being the first religion to which I was introduced, thus the one with which I am most familiar, is a good jumping off point for me. This movie, in particular, is a succinct reminder of the power of the Jesus story, Jesus mythology and Christian dedication. As well, while I was absorbing Elizabeth's story alongside Mary's, I was suddenly struck by the importance of the mothers of gods, in stories such as these, always being in some way barren, or, in the case of the births of great leaders of a theistic religion, the birth itself or the baby being threatened, thus the birth of the god or the leader is usually (except, for instance, in the case of Abram/Abraham), somehow miraculous. I don't know why I never before paid attention to this.
     Soon after we watched this movie a few times and had some stimulating conversations about Christianity in particular and spirituality in general, I decided to rent The God Who Wasn't There so Mom could get a better idea of why Christianity interests me but doesn't cause me to "fall on [my] knees". No, this isn't a movie we'll be purchasing. I was familiar with most of the stuff in it when I originally saw it and don't need it as a resource. But, Mom found this movie interesting and worthy of discussion, although it didn't sway her belief in her religion. I didn't expect this. Even those of us who aren't swayed by beliefs in gods and the ritual detail of god centered religions often have belief systems that make no rational sense but hold sway over us, anyway. At any rate, something I realized when we discussed spirituality and religion from the point of view of The God Who Wasn't There is that Mom is firmly centered in life-here-and-now rather than death-in-the-sweet-by-and-by. This, I think, is the important difference between her spirituality and that of many people who consider and call themselves Christians.
      The Nativity Story is not nearly as spiritually powerful for me as, say, The Little Buddha, for instance, but it's provocative, nonetheless, and I can count on it to trigger interesting discussions about religion and spirituality between my mother and me.

Labels: bible movies, Christmas, drama, jesus-dvds, mom-favorite, period, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 12:28    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I'm not sure it's even necessary to talk about why my mother loves this movie. It has been easy for me to forget to purchase because there is something about Topol's performance that irritates me, but, I like everyone else's performances, love the dances, love the fiddler, love most of the songs, usually sing along to them when the movie plays...so, when it showed up on cable one day a month or so ago and Mom was so sure we owned it that she asked me to replay the dancing at the wedding party, I realized, oops, it's time to purchase it!

Labels: dance, drama, musical, period, romance

# posted by gail @ 19:18    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Yes, that's right, yet another "Elizabeth" movie, just as good and just as involving as the others. I almost feel as though I should have a category label of "elizabeth movies" or, perhaps, "english royals movies", as A Man for All Seasons definitely qualifies for the same category. Mom has already mentioned that she wants to see the movie The Queen, as well, and I suspect we will end up owning this one. So far, the only English Royals movie she's seen and in which she lost interest halfway through was Mrs. Brown, which I immensely enjoyed. She was so distracted through it, though, that I haven't yet considered purchasing it; although it has occurred to me to rent it again, run it by her once more and see how she likes it. Could be that this one is not "period" enough for Mom. Could also be that the movie about Elizabeth II will be the same kind of experience for her. We'll see.

Labels: biography, drama, historical, mom-favorite, period, royals

# posted by gail @ 18:56    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  I was surprised to see that I mentioned this movie in my journals, albeit some time ago. I'd forgotten about it until some cable channel showed it not too long ago, I clicked into it and Mom was not only thoroughly entertained by it but enjoyed the idea that time can collapse forward as well as backward. It's very dated, true, and the singing is not well woven into the movie, but Streisand's performance, especially as her re- and pre-incarnated personalities, is riveting. Jack Nicholson has a forgotten part in this movie, as well, which renders it fun to watch, simply because he participated in this movie long before he became known for his portrayals of ticklish, "Nicholsonian" characters.

Labels: dramedy, fantasy, period

# posted by gail @ 18:24    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  Both, partially
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Yes, although we haven't completely watched it, we own it. This is the movie that MCF tried to get Mom and me to watch over Christmas. Mom fell asleep on the couch. I saw parts of it and began to understand why they raved about it. I think we will enjoy this movie, too, and watch it again. From what I saw, it reminds me a little of Holes in structure, but I may be mistaken about that. Hmmm...today seems like I good day to watch this for the first time. If anything else strikes me about this movie and/or Mom's reaction to it, I'll be back. Please note, the labeling is pre-viewing.

Labels: adventure, buddy, dramedy, period, road-movie

# posted by gail @ 10:55    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This one is a bit of a surprise. We discovered it one evening while searching through the channels looking for movies. Mom's eyes latched onto the title and we clicked into it, then caught a later run to catch what we'd missed. It's a made-for-TV movie that is more about Mary's imagined influence in Jesus' life than it is about Jesus. It was made by the Kennedy family, to what purpose I'm not sure, but it's intriguing, especially the parts that suggest that the parables of Jesus were actually stories Mary told Jesus, when he was a child, in order to illustrate ethical and moral values. I found the first viewing intriguing but quickly realized it wouldn't be one that I'd watch repeatedly. Mom, though, was quite taken with it and requested that we add it to our collection, so that's what I did. It's been watched once again since it arrived, and, again, Mom said, "I think we should get a copy of that movie." I reminded her that we did, and she just watched it. Interestingly, it reminded me of Anne Rice's book, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt. I wonder if either influenced the other.
     It reminded me that the theaters are currently featuring a new movie about Mary's story, so to speak, The Nativity Story. I imagine, when that's in DVD once we've rented it, Mom will want that one added to our collection, as well.

Labels: bible movies, jesus-dvds, period

# posted by gail @ 12:48    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3*
3. Commentary:  I noticed, in the mentions, one of them states that Mom always thinks she wants to see this movie, then she gets bored with it. This is no longer true. It is now one that she asked after the last time we did a "jesus movie" festival, so, this year, I purchased it.
     For me, as well, the more I watch the movie, the more I like it. I tend, now, to ignore the discontinuities, like yet another Nordic Jesus, Harvey Keitel as a red-headed Judas and Barbara Hershey's bee-stung lips. Especially since I've read the book, I tend to appreciate the story more for what it symbolizes rather than what it portrays.
     I think what Mom likes about it is the gritty realism and the startling detail, like how the crosses are made. We watched this movie again, recently, right after I ordered it and just after a couple of other Jesus movies. It seems that each movie has its own version of how crucifixion crosses are constructed, which mom noticed this time around, which led to yet another Jesus movie festival.
     The only disappointing aspect of this movie was that it promised subtitles and they may exist but they aren't listed in any of the menus so I'm not sure if listing this as a feature was an error or if there is an Easter Egg technique to cuing them. I need to check this out. It does not feature Closed Captioning. I was afraid this would be a problem for Mom but the first time we watched it after receiving it, Mom had no problem with it. This is, at any rate, primarily a visual feast for her, so I guess that's why it doesn't matter. As well, the dialogue is not mumbled or distorted by other sound tracks.

Labels: bible movies, drama, fantasy, haunting, jesus-dvds, period, shared-favorite, spiritual

# posted by gail @ 12:24    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  Yet another one of Mom's "jesus-dvds" (I use this term tongue-in-cheek, as I also consider The Ten Commandments a "jesus-dvd"). I didn't think we'd ever own it because, the last time we watched it on TV I noticed there was no closed captioning. I found a cheap copy of it at the grocery store today, though, with closed captioning (although no English subtitles, which is unfortunate since closed captioning is sometimes kind of iffy on our set) so decided I'd get it for Mom. I think this is one of her favorites of this genre; not because it features yet another Nordic Jesus, but because of the scope and grand presentation. And, it's length. Weighty movies work better for her when they go to extreme lengths. This is not my favorite, but I am attracted to it's spectacle.
     Now all we need to do is procure a copy of The Last Temptation of Christ [we finally did procure a copy of this movie] and Mom will figure we're set.

Labels: bible movies, drama, jesus-dvds, mom-favorite, period, spectacle

# posted by gail @ 13:47    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  G, I think
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  My confession is this: I think I've probably seen this entire movie, but I've never seen the entire movie in one sitting. I have memories of seeing parts of it while watching a football game. Weird, I know.
       I got it because this, also, was at a very low sale price, not Costco, and I have, for some time, very much wanted to see the movie of a piece.
       I don't think my mother has ever seen the movie, in whole or part, and I don't think it would command her attention. I think she'd consider it boring.

Labels: period, political, satire, war

# posted by gail @ 17:21    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I didn't know about this movie version of Rudyard Kipling's story (which I read some time in late high school, I think, in a collection of short stories, and remained haunted by it) until te late 1970's when the sister of a good friend of mine told me of the movie, extolled it's virtues, told me it was her "favorite", that it was showing on television that night and persuaded me to watch it. I was enchanted. Not only did the half remembered story come back to me in full, the movie overshadowed the story, for me, so well is it done. It is a movie I've never forgotten. A few years after I came to live with Mom and we began renting movies, I scoured several video stores before I found it. Mom loved it, too. I've rented it since, a couple of times, so I was thrilled when I ran across a copy of it. I was determined to buy it, cheap or not, as long as it was letter-boxed, which it was.
     The presentation is sparkling, but, being a very cheap version, the movie is cut in two; half on one side of the DVD, half on the other. This surprised us wen we watched it this afternoon. "I don't remember it having an intermission," I said.
     "I couldn't tell you," responded Mom, "I don't believe I've ever seen this movie."
     Good. I can get away with watching it a few more times before she becomes suspicious!
     For the curious and uninformed, while looking for links about the movie I came across the original short story here. Don't be put off by the "Chapter 1" after the title; the entire story is there.

Labels: adventure, drama, haunting, period, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 23:48    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3* *4* *5*
3. Commentary:  Although I can't remember my journal comments, I'm sure, if you're even a semi-regular reader of my journal(s) about my mother, you know that this is one of my mother's all time favorites, and I've come to enjoy it, as well. I love the opulence the story, the acting and the sets. I am proud to say that I can quote dialog from this movie. I never get tired of my mother wanting to see this movie. Each time she decides to watch this movie, the chances always become excellent that I will drop what I'm doing and join her.

Labels: bible movies, drama, period, shared-favorite, spectacle

# posted by gail @ 12:58    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3*
3. Commentary:  For both my mother and me, the controversy over this movie was beside the point. My mother is an aficionado of both Jesus and religious movies, so, of course, she had to see this one. If I hadn't been living with my mother when it came out, I probably would not have seen it, but not in some sort of intellectual or spiritual protest. I wouldn't have bothered because I know the story so well and know what I believe about the issues it raises.
       The rough and violent nature of the movie bothered neither of us. We discussed, briefly, whether Jesus was singled out for unusual torture, as, basically, his crucifixion was all in a day's work, and he wasn't the only person crucified on the day he died, nor was he the only person ever convicted of exactly the type of political treason that sent him to Golgotha.
       Other than that, my mother's favorite "character" in the movie is the oblique, white head of who she assumes to be "satan", or, more appropriately, as she expressed it, the spirit of evil and selfishness luring Jesus to turn his back on his mission. The head reminds me a bit of the spirit masks floating about in Spirited Away.
       The movie is definitely a winner from the "Bible Movie" perspective, for my mother.

Labels: bible movies, drama, jesus-dvds, mom-favorite, period, spectacle, violence

# posted by gail @ 12:53    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Although I'm nowhere near a Bette Davis expert, this movie seemed to me like a Bette Davis miscast, at first, although my inordinate love of Claude Rains took my mind off this for quite awhile. Despite this, it didn't take long for me to believe her portrayal; a credit to Davis, not the casting, I think. Mom loved the intense, obvious melodrama. She also got lost in the lush period flavor and imagined, afterward, that the movie had been in color; which I understand is a typical reaction to both this movie and Jezebel. I'd watch this movie again, just for the pleasure of watching Claude Rains again.
     This movie is a part of the Bette Davis Collection.

Labels: collection, drama, period, romance, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 13:23    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  This was the other movie I ordered for Mom's birthday. Truth is, I could only vaguely remember whether she had a marked interest in it. As it turns out, she did. When I cued it, she remembered, almost immediately, having seen it.
     "Oh," I said, "I hope it isn't one of those movies you only wanted to see once."
     "Oh, no," she replied, "I think I remembered liking this movie."
     She loved it, maybe even more than How the West Was Won. We saw the movies back to back and she even mentioned, regarding the portrayals of Native Americans, "Yes, now this seems more realistic."
     Since I'd never watched the entire movie, I settled down and was surprised, pleased and inspired. "Well, Mom, that's what I'd like to do, figure out how to be completely self-sufficient, in landscape similar to that."
     She looked at me approvingly. "I know what you mean," she said. "So would I. Even with all the problems and difficulties."
     I know we'll be watching this one again...probably every time I have multiple Abandoning Fantasies.

Labels: adventure, biography, period, western

# posted by gail @ 13:20    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This is one of my parents' historical favorites. I remember watching it in the theater but discovered, upon rewatching it (I got it for my mother's birthday this year) that I'd misremembered quite a bit of it and apparently mixed it up with another movie that featured the great prairie land grab, which isn't covered in this film. My mother, who has become much more sophisticated about the depictions of Native Americans in movies, although there is actually little in this film but N.A. hearsay, was unsettled enough by what it included to voice her objections. Otherwise, we both enjoyed the sprawl, became surprisingly involved in the stories, loved some of the individual performances (Will Geer's, in particular, as the patriach of a river pirate family and Carroll Baker's surprisingly subtle performance as a pioneer wife). I was intrigued by the Civil War sequence, as well. My mother devoured the entire movie and breathed a satisfied sigh through a satisfied smile when it was over. "Let's start that again," she said. Luckily, we had another movie which she was equally anticipating, Jeremiah Johnson. This movie will be one of those "snowy/rainy day when I'm baking" movies, I'm sure. I don't think I'll become as fascinated with it as I have The Ten Commandments, of which I often find myself needing a fix, but I don't think I'll ignore it when I'm playing it for Mom, as I do some movies.

Labels: adventure, dad-favorite, drama, mom-favorite, period, spectacle, western

# posted by gail @ 13:18    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  See, also, commentary on Elizabeth R. Although I confessed to preferring, by a minor edge, Glenda Jackson's epic, truth is, it depends on my mood. They are both lush, but in this HBO production the lushness is almost touchable. The are both dramatic but, in this production, there is more emphasis on Elizabeth's emotional life. The curiosity, to me, is that Mirren's and Jackson's portrayals are side-by-side excellent and, rather than competing with one another, it is as though one fleshes out the other. Neither my mother nor I ever tire of watching either.
     Sidebar:  My mother prefers the hairstyles in this one.

Labels: biography, drama, historical, period, political, royals, TV

# posted by gail @ 13:17    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  Another one of our perennial BBC favorites. Believe it or not, our entire family first watched this on Guam during it's first run. I was reminded of it when my mother became entranced with HBO's recent offering Elizabeth I. It's hard to say which we prefer, although the BBC version has more compelling detail, and, of course, Glenda Jackson is the definitive Queen Elizabeth I, although Helen Mirren runs a very, very close second, and Jeremy Irons is my favorite, by a hair, for The Duke of Leichester.

Labels: biography, drama, historical, period, political, royals, TV

# posted by gail @ 08:59    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This is one of those movies that has a hypnotic effect on both of us; both the way it's filmed and the story. Every time we watch it we're galvanized into a discussion of the extraordinary possibilities inherent in the desire to survive, regardless of the difficulty.

Labels: biography, drama, historical, period

# posted by gail @ 08:58    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I actually asked Mom, when I noticed the 40th anniversary edition of this movie at Costco, if she wanted me to purchase a copy. Silly question. Although most of the songs are too catchy to be believed and I have good-but-not-quite-reverent memories of this movie, if she'd said "No" I would have heeded her request. Some years ago, when one of my nieces was much younger, this movie was her absolute favorite, always playing at her family's house to the point where I entered "The Sound of Music" overload and have yet to exit that state. I have to say, though, "watching" the movie while doing chores and tending to my mother is pleasant and my mother is thoroughly entertained, singing along, rocker-dancing, etc. As well, this edition includes the Biography channel program about the real Von Trapp family, which is enormously interesting, so much so that we found ourselves searching through movie scenes afterwards to compare fact with fiction.

Labels: biography, musical, period, romance, spectacle

# posted by gail @ 22:40    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  We watched this one afternoon on TCM and our interest in it surprised us both. Every performance is a delight. The film of the story is much better than the book, full of character scrutinizing scenes. My mother teared up at the end of the movie; very unusual for her. When I saw a copy of it being sold, I had to have it. We watched it again, the day I bought it. Again, my mother was transported to tears at the end. We'll be watching this again.

Labels: period, romance, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 22:37    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This was yet another movie that I never thought I'd like and avoided with a passion. I never read the book but from what I'd heard from other "little women" about their favorite characters, I just knew, well, it wasn't for me. Then, one evening, Mom noticed it on one of those cable channels and decided she wanted to watch it. I watched most of it and was surprised at how interested I became in it. I purchased it because, after that fateful watching, Mom said, "If you ever see that, get it. I'd like to see that again." So, I did. We've watched it twice since then. I especially like Wynona Ryder's performance; it's a little hammy but she's got the goods. Too damned bad she doesn't act much, anymore.

Labels: drama, period, romance

# posted by gail @ 22:29    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I'm not surprised this movie hasn't been mentioned in my journals. When I bought it I thought I remembered that Mom liked it. She may have, but had little patience for it this time around. I thought I had found it interesting. I did, but immediately after watching it for the first time in a long time, I decided it would be one I'd never enter in here and would sell back as soon as I had a few other movies to turn in. Then, I found myself going back to the movie, replaying particular scenes, looking forward to the well planned music score, watching Gary Sinese closely...and decided, hmmm, I'd better keep this one. It does remain one of the strangest movies ever made. Being a movie maven, this is a good enough reason for me to keep it. Who knows. The next time I play it "in front of" Mom, she might like it again.

Labels: biography, dramedy, fantasy, period, satire

# posted by gail @ 22:27    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I'm surprised I've made no mention of this movie in any of my journals. This is one of those movies that we watch every time we can catch it on a television channel, which is why I snatched it up when I ran across a copy of it. We both hone into this movie as though we're having a dream. I'm glad we finally got a copy of it because when it was on TV I used to have a hell of a time getting Mom to go to the bathroom during a playing of it. Now, I can stop the movie when I notice she looks like she'd better hit the toilet. [Her joke is that you can tell when someone needs to go to the bathroom when you can see waves crashing in their eyes...which is almost the truth with my mother.]

Labels: drama, dream, period, political

# posted by gail @ 22:26    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  I got this as a nod to Mom (see mention) but, lo and behold, I enjoy it, too. It's not even a guilty pleasure for me. It's got some great actors in it, I enjoy the fact that the Japanese is not subtitled in English because it keeps the viewer in the same position as Anjin-San and, well, it's an involving production. Mom could probably watch this 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Labels: action, adventure, drama, mom-favorite, period, political, spectacle, TV

# posted by gail @ 17:09    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I used to be a Shakespeare snob. Up until the late 70's when I took a college course in Shakespeare I just didn't get what was interesting or important about Shakespeare's plays despite the fact that I'd studied two of them in high school. The course I took finally opened up the language and the structure for me. The class took place as these BBC plays were being broadcast on PBS and was recommended by the instructor. I bought a television just to see them. I get it, now. Although I have some other favorite productions of some of these plays: Laurence Fishburne's portrayal of Othello, for instance, and my favorite version of Hamlet is the production starring Richard Burton and Hume Cronyn, the vocals for which I have on record album, these BBC productions are excellent and do not disappoint. I hope to obtain the entire collection, since I've seen the entire collection.
     When I queue up these plays Mom tries her best but I think she's where I was before I took that course and, as well, she has trouble with British accents. It's easy for her to get bored and switch to her tabloids or take a nap.

Labels: buddy, drama, haunting, me-favorite, period, romance, royals, tragedy, TV, violence

# posted by gail @ 17:08    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I have, for a long time, been shy about mentioning my adoration for this movie. Something about the way it's put together from the beginning. Something about its nonmusical musical quality. Something about its datedness, which was dated when it was made and thus makes it a period piece. Something about the coarse vulnerability of the characters. Something about the title song. Mom likes watching it because it's a dance movie. That's good enough for me.

Labels: drama, me-favorite, musical, period

# posted by gail @ 17:05    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  MS introduced both of us to this movie. Since knowing it was one of MS's favorites it has become a favorite of Mom's although sometimes, now, it moves a little fast for her. I've always enjoyed this movie. It's like riding on a carousel.

Labels: action, adventure, buddy, mom-favorite, mystery, period

# posted by gail @ 02:29    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  I've seen this three times; Mom's seen it twice. The first time we weren't using Closed Captioning and she found the English accents irritating. The second time around she thoroughly enjoyed it and we watched the entire series, six hours, I think, in one afternoon-evening marathon. This is my favorite video recreation of this story.

Labels: period, romance, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 02:26    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Mom has never cared for Barbra Streisand, neither her voice nor her presence. I have always adored Barbra Streisand without question. Having said this, we both enjoyed this movie and Mom has a few other Barbra Streisand favorites, like Nuts and Yentl, neither of which we've yet collected. She also has a problem with Omar Shariff. She considers him overwhelming. I think he's great in this movie.

Labels: biography, dramedy, musical, period, romance

# posted by gail @ 02:20    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I consider this movie chiefly a tour de force for Streep. It is an incredibly dark movie, almost too dark for me, although I can't resist Michael Gambon's performance. I've gone back and forth over whether I'll keep this movie or trade it in. I doubt that I'll ever think to show it to Mom. I may not ever watch it again, either.

Labels: drama, period

# posted by gail @ 07:31    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This movie has obsessed me since it was first advertised when I was a nascent teenager. For some reason, I hyped the possible experience up in my mind to the place where I found the movie disappointing and was embarrassed (in the way young teens are) that I liked the movie. But, the summer of the year we (my sisters and I as a group) saw it, we also spent that summer on vacation singing all the songs from the movie, working out harmonies, etc. My decision to buy the movie was of the gut and immediate when I noticed the commercial, last year, for the "limited release" of an edition of this movie. I snapped it up and I'm glad I did. We've watched it maybe four times since then, and sing our way through the movie when we view it. During one viewing I made a savory stew and it was as though The Spirit of Mary Poppins inhabited our house. And, I'm no longer embarrassed to admit this! So there!

Labels: kids, mom-favorite, musical, period

# posted by gail @ 07:19    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This is a little symphony of a movie that I discovered some years ago on the Sundance channel, stayed up after my first viewing long enough to set up tape for a second run, and showed the tape to my mother the next day, knowing that despite the movie being in Dutch with English subtitles, she'd love the movie and especially Antonia, because there is much of Antonia's spirit in my mother, even though their lives are quite different. We watch this movie fairly often, now, whenever one or the other of us needs to revel and refresh ourselves in the strength of lineage and the march of time.

Labels: drama, haunting, period, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 15:14    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  I wasn't sure if Mom would like this movie, even though it is one of my three favorite education movies. I needn't have worried. She got it, and she enjoyed it, although she prefers education movies like Stand and Deliver (the link to this movie, by the way, is to a site which details the fate of Jaime Escalante's legendary high school calculus program). She even said, "I've known teachers like that."

Labels: drama, me-favorite, period, political

# posted by gail @ 15:13    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This is one of those movies that has a magnetic affect on both my mother and me. Although it's not the best school movie I've ever seen (my vote on this score is for The Paper Chase, although I'd consider The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, as well, and, a few others, come to think of it, The Blackboard Jungle, Goodbye Mr. Chips), from the cords of the opening music it drafts both of us into college, again, from our own perspetives. When we view this movie we always review the featurettes.
       I have to admit, though, and here is a good place, she and I are both suckers for school and education movies. Sometimes it's pathetic.
   Update 6/13/06: Since I first wrote this short review we've watched this movie on the average of once a month, at my suggestion. During tonight's watching I was uncustomarily analytical about some of the aspects of this movie that I love.
   • All the performances are a delight to watch and utterly convincing, with the exception of Julia Roberts' performance. Tonight I finally figured out why, in this movie of incredibly performed roles (even the bartender at the wedding and "Mrs. Stone" the waitress are spot on) the star fell just short of matching her colleagues' level: She's, well, Julia Roberts and, as such, is no longer able to be a character. She is always Julia Roberts playing a character. This is unfortunate in movies such as this.
   • The romance between Roberts' character and West's character is inauthentic, unconvincing, distracting and boring. It's possible that Roberts' character needs some sort of quickie affair in this movie as a device to underline her single status and her attitudes toward sexual attachment, but the one written and acted didn't work.
   • The background music is both unobtrusive and evocative; so much so that the strains of the theme played behind the menu evoke pleasurable anticipation for the movie.
   • The subject matter, despite being heavily covered in many other movies and, at the time of this movie's release, seemingly dated, lurks in women's souls deeply and is still not well addressed by society, thus, continues to have a powerful effect. As well, the characters and the story are so well developed that the period piece effect actually contributes to the emotional effect of the layout of the issues.
   • The camera work is subtle and masterful. No camera effect is used for the sake of the effect alone.
       The more I watch this movie, the more I realize it is a gem of a movie. As I watched it tonight I realized, if asked, I would bet that this movie is going to be one of those It's a Wonderful Life movies...not appreciated in its time nearly as much as it will be appreciated, decades later than its time, as a classic.

Labels: drama, period, political, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 22:55    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Mom introduced me to this movie, and Greer Garson, soon after I moved in with her. Although the relentlessly chin-up attitude of this movie may seem hard to tolerate, these days, I think what I enjoy most about this movie is that it is, as I believe Winston Churchill pointed out, clearly England's and America's secret weapon.
       One more footnote, Greer Garson, I think, is probably the only actress with whom I've ever been familiar who can pull off the perfect, long suffering war-heroine-on-the-homefront.

Labels: drama, period, war

# posted by gail @ 22:53    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G, both more than many times
2. Mentions:  *1* *2* *3* *4* *5* *6*
3. Commentary:  That's right, we've finally got it, watched it the same day I purchased it for us, and enjoyed it, once again, as though we only vaguely remembered it.

Labels: caregiver, drama, period, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 22:51    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M [lots more than] G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  This is one of my mother's haunting movies. Her reaction to this movie is similar to my reaction to Little Buddha: During some parts, she experiences trance-like states; during others, she becomes fully engaged in the finest detail of the culture of the Native American community portrayed in the movie; throughout, she follows the story meticulously and often attempts to engage other viewers in conversation about the movie, which means that she remembers enough of it from viewing to viewing not to feel as though she has to pay close attention every minute.
     Sometime in late 2007 "they" finally came out with the widescreen version, which I quickly snatched up. This version also cuts in close to an hour of extended footage. I was surprised how much of the original cut the extended footage explained and very pleased with the additions

Labels: action, adventure, drama, haunting, mom-favorite, period, spectacle, war

# posted by gail @ 10:29    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M
2. Mentions:  *1* (added 2/10/05 after watching movie)
3. Commentary:  So, I was wrong. There is one movie that Mom has seen that I have not...this one. In fact, she was the one who suggested we get it, when Costco has it, when we saw a commercial on TV for the dvd. She may have seen it at MCF's house...we visited there a lot up until just about a year and a half ago. Anyway, I'm not quite sure this is the movie she is remembering...I'm thinking she must be thinking of some kind of Liberace production type of movie, but she insists this is the one.
       Which is fine with me. I am, generally, a Roman Polanski fan, and usually try to watch all his movies. I hadn't yet thought of owning them. This should be an interesting start.

Labels: drama, musical, period, war

# posted by gail @ 15:20    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I know, this is the movie, not the series, and Mom loves the series, too, but that's on TV so much we decided not to buy it. This, however, is not.
       Because, when I came to live with her, she liked this series so much and had been in the military just previous to the Korean conflict, so she identified with a lot of the show detail, I challenged her, once, to see the original movie from which the show was adapted. We were both surprised how much she liked it. I remember that she was surprised at the words of the theme song, with which one does not become familiar if one watches only the television series.

Labels: period, satire, war

# posted by gail @ 15:19    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  Watching this movie is pure delight for my mother. Although she appreciates children's or 'family' musicals, considers them, "very nice", her preference is for adult musicals. Recently, when we were watching a Broadway retrospective on PBS, she mentioned, while "Sweeney Todd" was being reviewed, that she thought she'd "enjoy that one".
       My mother is a big fan of cross dressing and love/gender complications in movies. Add Julie Andrews, Robert Preston and James Garner and my mother will buy a ring side seat.

Labels: comedy, gender-bender, mom-favorite, musical, period

# posted by gail @ 01:53    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This movie was one of those that was better in the remembering than in the reviewing of it. Even my mother thought so, and she's only seen it once.

Labels: mystery, period

# posted by gail @ 19:16    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1*
3. Commentary:  This is one of my very favorite movies. It is one of my mother's least favorite movies. She watched it once when some friends were visiting, one of them noticed I had the movie and wanted to watch it. The visit became a Scarface Fest. When the movie was over my mother turned to me and said, "I don't know why you like watching all that blood-letting, girl!" Neither do I.

Labels: action, drama, me-favorite, period, violence

# posted by gail @ 19:13    3 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G (G many times)
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  Another movie for which I have an unreasonable love which my mother tolerates. All I can say is, the scene where Noodles stirs his coffee? Devastates me every time.
       I don't think my mother gets the garbage truck scene, although she gets the rape scene and doesn't like it.

Labels: drama, dream, me-favorite, period, violence

# posted by gail @ 15:04    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G, more than once
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  Something about the scene in which the invading army comes over a snow ridge. Something else about that "song and dance" number about what it takes to be a man. Something else about it being a Chinese fairy tale. I don't know if Mom likes it for the same reasons I do, but I know she likes it. I've even replayed the "Be a Man" song for her when we are watching it.

Labels: action, adventure, animated, kids, period, shared-favorite, suspense

# posted by gail @ 15:03    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I think this movie may have been one of the last I saw in the theatre alone. It is a dream of a movie for me. As well, I like, and have watched a fair amount, of Indian cinema. I'm surprised that this is the only one I own. I look forward to watching it, with or without Mom. From what I remember, I think she'll be transfixed. Sort of an Indian Sex and the City.
   UPDATE 2/24/06:  For lack of anything better to do that interested Mom, I decided to pull out this movie and view it with her, her first viewing of it. She, too, was entranced by the color and composition of the movie, the dancing and the stylized movements (which actually cause the movie to be more like theater than a movie) and the music. Although there is some full female nudity in it and obvious suggestions of sex (both of which actually make this movie less than a true East Indian cinema), she enjoyed it immensely and was transported back to Guam, primarily because that is where she became familiar with East Indian customs and clothing. We talked about Guam, and a store called Radhi's, which shared a space with Eileen Kershaw's. She remembered the sari material she'd bought which I'd transformed into a table cloth and the rich, stunning Asian fabric selections at Radhi's. At one point, when Maya was explaining to Tara how to seduce her husband, essentially telling her that it was simple, I laughed and said, "See, Mom? Men are easy in every culture."
       She laughed and added, "Men have always been easy and always will be."
       Such a woman!

Labels: drama, dream, erotic, period, romance, royals

# posted by gail @ 08:38    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I rented this movie a couple of weeks ago just to undergird my decision to purchase it. Mom was thoroughly bored, so bored that she wandered around looking for things to do, at one point, while doing crosswords, asked, "Is that thing still on?!?", so my viewing was highly distracted.
       No matter. Martial Arts movies of all stripes are another of my guilty movie pleasures. I am particularly fascinated with the use of color in this movie. I am approaching it rather more as though it were a Little Buddha movie, rather than a "guilty pleasure" movie. I like the idea of the telling of stories being the subject as well as the discipline of the movie. I find the depiction of the 'heroine', as well, thoughtfully complex.

Labels: action, drama, dream, period, political, spectacle, suspense

# posted by gail @ 08:32    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  I am probably more of a fan of this movie than my mother. She loves the eye spectacle, and every time we watch it, which is at least once a year, she mentions several times that she would have loved to have lived during the period of the regal, stately Southern U.S.
       For me, I love reminding myself that the best, most successful romance in the history of romance stories contains a heroine who is wily and unredepemptive and whose one sterling quality is her ability to survive, despite who she hurts in the process. The hero, a scoundrel himself, is more sympathetic than the heroine.
       When we watch this movie, it is always a "planned" watching; in other words, we plan appropriate food, make sure the phone ringer is off, and settle in for several hours. It is, for us, an Event Movie.

Labels: drama, period, romance, shared-favorite, spectacle

# posted by gail @ 08:29    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  *1* *2*
3. Commentary:  This one transports both of us. I purchased it because we watched it so much on cable, then I recorded it and we watched it some more. The music and the European time period are major attractions for my mother. She really likes stories of women raising children alone with strength and courage, too. The fairy-tale quality of the story mesmerizes both of us.

Labels: drama, period, romance, shared-favorite

# posted by gail @ 23:12    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched:  M & G
2. Mentions:  None
3. Commentary:  This is one of our family classics. We both watch it for Joel Grey's performance as the MC. Mom get's bored with the story and the subtleties, though; for her it's a case of "say-mo, say-mo". Not a frequent feature in our house.

Labels: drama, musical, period

# posted by gail @ 23:09    0 comments    email......this post

1. Who's watched: G [M was in the room looking at the TV for awhile, but not watching...she evetually napped.]
2. Mentions: *1*
3. Commentary: It was on sale, I thought, sight unseen, I'd be glad I owned it...what can I say?!? I'm glad I watched it. It was one of the last few in a long line of Vietnam War movies (including the obscure) I make it a point to watch. I thought I'd want to watch this one more than once. Not really. I would have liked to have seen it when it first came out and Tom Cruise wasn't Tom Cruise. I think I would have appreciated his performance more. For some reason, as I watched this, I was continually reminded of Risky Business. I kept having to remind myself that it is based in 'truth' because it was acted for melodrama, which was distracting to the story. I doubt that I'll ever watch it again. I may pass it off to someone.

Labels: biography, drama, period, political

# posted by gail @ 09:42    0 comments    email......this post