Movies

Movies I recommend...to go with the books list from yesterday. Once again, they're in no particular order.

1. Bridget Jones' Diary A classic. I am Bridget. I saw this movie long before I read the book and walked out of the theatre thinking, "Finally, someone made a movie of MY life!" I have not yet met a woman who does not like this movie. The second one is cute, but definitely not on my list of classics.

2. Forrest Gump This movie is one of the few that can still make me laugh and cry any time I watch it. It gets poked fun at ("Life is like a box of chocolates...") but I love this movie. Just goes to show that anyone can do great things, and "stupid is as stupid does."

3. Lord of the Rings trilogy I was only introduced to these movies in July, by Kathy. Not only did I agree with her that Aragorn is one lust-worthy dude, but I agreed that the story is wonderful and the movies themselves masters. The acting, special effects and attention to detail are superb. I have now seen all three extended DVDs--with subtitles, and I'm going to tackle the books.

4. The Usual Suspects Haven't seen this? Run, don't walk, to the nearest video store. This became a cult classic and has a huge following, but I saw it (I'm normally not into this type of movie) because it stars the one, the only, the wonderful Kevin Spacey. He earned Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Verbal Kint. The movie twists and turns and keeps you guessing...who is Keyser Soze? Watch and find out.

5. Miracle It's light, it's fluffy, it's Disney. It's basically what you get when you add a terrific true story (the 1980 USA Hockey Team beats the Russians for gold), 20-odd adorable young skaters-turned actors with bad 70s haircuts, Kurt Russell, and a phenomenal soundtrack. I loved it in the theatre, and I love it still. It's a feel-good movie with a lot of heart, and is very accurate, according to the men who lived it.

6. Bend it Like Beckham Indian girl in London loves football (soccer to us Yanks). Her parents want her to be ladylike. She wants to be able to bend a ball like Beckham. What ensues is an adorable movie with great performances by everyone and a wonderful blend of Indian and British culture.

7. American Beauty Another Kevin Spacey classic. He is fantastic as Lester Burnham--funny, sad, pitiable. Annette Benning is also impressive. This movie is funny, shocking, sad and never dull.

8. Cool Runnings Another Disney sports movie. This is very loosely based on the first Jamaican bobsled team, but the writers took major liberties. Still, what you get is a lovely product--hysterical moments and a cute-without-being-sappy moral at the end. Who can top the classic line, "Cold?? I'm freezin' my royal Rastafarian nenes off here!"

9. Pride and Prejudice The 5-hour version by the BBC is the only version worth seeing, in my opinion. No one can possibly top Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as Lizzie Bennett. I could add countless other performances by a Who's Who list of British thespians. In addition to great acting and the fact that it's Jane Austen's classic story, the attention to detail in this movie--from colors and fabric types to locations and hairstyles--is amazing.

10. Band of Brothers I didn't pay much attention to this 10-hour HBO miniseries until we bought it for my dad for Father's Day. Pretty soon I was drawn to the TV by cute guys (Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston, among others). I was held at the TV by my interest in World War II history and the absolutely fantastic story of Easy Company. I immediately bought the book (which was on my book list) and I have now even seen a few of the places associated with Easy Company and D-Day.

11. Love Actually Okay, it's not the most perfect movie on the planet. I admit that right up front. But every time I watch it, I laugh, cry and when it is done, I am smiling--no matter how crappy I felt before I put it in the DVD player. Now that is a good movie! I particularly love the airport scenes at the beginning and end of the film, having had a few of those reunions of my own.

12. Mr. Holland's Opus Beloved music teacher. I saw it when I was in high school--where we had our own beloved music teacher. I am now a music teacher. What's not to love about this movie?

There's other movies I enjoy, of course, but this is my short list.