The House of the Spirits

Mixed genre (political-spiritual-human drama) takes place in Chile over 50 years ago - a determined man's fights from poverty to riches and power with detrimental effects to his family. Lengthy movie covers two generations. Fine cast of stars include Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons, Winona Ryder, Antonio Banderas, and Meryl Streep's daughter! Maybe not a masterpiece but entertaining and lovely to watch.

Vatel

France, nearly 340 years ago - Based on true story. The King visits his Prince for the weekend. Vatel (main character) is put in charge of entertainment, banquets, accomodation. Vatel works himself to near exhaustion while still managing to fall in love with one of the King's Court ladies. This film starts very slow but heats up later on. Gerard Depardieu and Ulma Thurman are excellent as the ill-fated lovers. Lovely costuming and photography.

Shadows in the Sun

Pleasant drama with some comedy and romance. Young publisher is sent from London to a small Italian village to contract a great writer who is suffering from writer's block. Meanwhile the publisher falls in love with the writer's daughter. Idylic setting, fine photography, and a loveable cast provide many enjoyable moments. Easy entertainment.

Everything is Illuminated

A drama with some comedy - 3 men and a dog drive across Ukraine searching for a woman who helped Jews escape death from invading Nazis during the war. The film is nicely photographed and has many language subtitles. Elijah Wood's character is visually appealing but a bit empty. I enjoyed the actor ensemble and the landscape more than the story.

The Gods Must Be Crazy

VERY unusual comedy beautifully filmed in the bush of Africa. The main bushman character Gao displays deep and real emotions. Other characters include a research scientist, a school teacher, and a political revolutionary. Lots of variety and lots of craziness. One of the most memorable films I have seen.

Click

Futuristic Comedy with Adam Sandler REALLY twists your mind. Busy executive, father with kids gets hold of a dangerous remote control that pauses/fast forwards/skips episodes in real life! (Remember Back to the Future). Sandler does a great job with this role. Other actors are likeable and the script is interesting. Not my favorite genre, but it packs a message and entertains too.

The Thing About My Folks

Fun road comedy-drama and more than that. Insights on the man-woman, husband-wife challenges, and a wake-up call for all of us to be more aware of the people around us. Fine acting and excellent script. Peter Falk shines brilliantly. Recommended !

State and Main

Cute comedy ! Hollywood film makers find themselves in a small town and short on time and money. Can the movie crew and the town reconcile differences? Spiced with some romance and unusually awkward confrontations. All star cast with light and/but enjoyable performances. Entertaining.

Thank You for Smoking

Dark comedy satire on tobacco industry spokesperson Nick Naylor who can make anything OK with his gift of gab. The bad guy here is the hero as the public outrages at the dangers of smoking. Nick faces all odds and comes out a winner. Sure smoking is bad but denying freedom is worse. Fine acting all around and an intelligent script.

Shopgirl

Intriguing light comedy heavier drama love triangle. Based on a story written by producer-actor Steve Martin. Fine performances as the plot twists and turns for the characters to grow and develop. It is not sterotypical. It teaches and entertains.

Manchurian Candidate

Fiction we hope! And fine acting, intelligent script, and photography. Denzel Washington, Merryl Streep, Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight and more. Intriguing plot of political hardball games, war, power, money, and family mixed in. Unusual and unique. This is the 2004 version. Entertaining.

Born Into Brothels

Lively documentary of Calcutta red-light district's children. Colorful photography and character portraits of 9 children tutored by photographer Zana Briski. Will they escape the brothel through education? Watch and see. Recommended.

Why We Fight

Is this true? Could USA be the bad guy? Every American should see this movie. Documentary with radical views on the evils of capitalism, war technology corporations, think tanks, and politicians forced to comply to vectors of power.

The Family Stone

Drama - Comedy had me focused ! Neurotic girl visits boyfriend's family at Christmas. Great acting and/but almost uncomfortable to watch. Diane Keaton (mom) and Sarah Jessica Parker (visitor) really spark this movie. Considerable turns and twists in these 2 vacation days !

The Devil Loves Prada

Comedy with Meryl Streep and a look at the New York fashion world. Well-paced and with fine acting, it entertains and educates. Although women will relate to this movie more than men, it has something for both. The choices and challenges of getting ahead in the big city. Sacrifices that the rich must make ... A fun movie.

Little Miss Sunshine

I enjoyed this movie. What a cast of characters make this family ! Crazy sequence of events. This is a true "Dramedy" to coin another reviewer's words. Laughs with a message. Characters are well acted by - Greg Kinnear, Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin, Alan Arkin.