Reviews

What can you say about the movie Elf? It's a Christmas classic. And that's not because it's the perfect movie, because it's not. But somehow, it brings together enough comedy and Christmas spirit to make you love it. At the center, of course, is Will Ferrell's performance as Buddy the Elf, a human raised by Santa's elves, who strikes out on a quest to find his bio father in New York City. He brings his naive, wide-eyed, exuberant innocence to the hardened, cynical dwellers of that urban jungle. The premise has been done many times before, in movies such as "Splash" or "Blast from the Past". But it's still fun. Even if Ferrell's brand of comedy is not your cup of tea, you can't help but be charmed by his performance. As a fish out of water in the Big Apple, his reactions to ordinary situations can be laugh-out-loud funny at times, such as when he thinks a department store Santa will be the real Santa, and, disillusioned at finding out that he isn't, spouts such classic lines as, "You sit on a throne of lies". Ferrell is always likable in this role, because he is always positive and always assumes the best of people. He has a child-like innocence that eventually wins over everyone, from his beautiful co-worker Jovie to his half-brother Michael to his crusty father Walter. With Buddy, you vicariously find wonder in ordinary things, such as endlessly going around in a circle in a revolving door, or seeing the giant Christmas tree in the Rockefeller Center for the first time.

Above and beyond Ferrell, you had some great performances from the supporting actors, such as James Caan as Buddy's dad, Zooey Deschanel as his girlfriend Jovie, Ed Asner as Santa and Bob Newhart as Papa Elf. Admittedly, the storyline was a big clunky in spots. For example, Buddy's dad Walter is really intended to be more of a neglectful workaholic parent than a truly evil man, but at the beginning, they paint him as worse than Ebenezer Scrooge, with him confiscating children's books from an orphanage and sending out defective children's books, just to save the few bucks that it would have cost to fix them. It was a bridge too far for him to go from that to the nice guy dad in the end, who warmly embraces his son Buddy. Also, it seemed really odd that Walter would actually bring Buddy into his home, and even more so that his wife would be so enthusiastic about having her husband's now-grown love child invade their space. But you tend to give the movie a pass on things like that.

This movie is pure fantasy, and you willingly suspend disbelief as you let its unabashedly sweet, sentimental Christmas vibe suck you in. The final scenes, where everyone is singing Christmas songs to try to increase the level of Christmas spirit, in order to allow Santa's sleigh to fly, just make you feel good. At this point, you're totally feeling the magic of Christmas, which every good Christmas movie should make you feel. Voila. A Christmas movie that, in spite of its flaws, is now a classic, and will be into the foreseeable future. It was fun checking it out again.

This movie was fairly enjoyable. The plot follows a teenage girl Joy, who is smart, nerdy, unattractive and who is the only responsible member of her dysfunctional family. She wakes up in an alternate reality, where she is beautiful, popular, athletic and the daughter of the perfect family next door. It's a plot we've seen before, in various forms, and not much new ground is broken here. Joy discovers, unsurprisingly, that her new life is as messed up, if not more so, than the life she left behind, and that she misses her old family and friends. She wakes up from the alternate reality a happier and wiser person.

Bailee Madison basically carries this movie. She gives her all to this role and is always likable and engaging. We realize that this is mostly a silly teen movie, but we really end up caring about her and what happens to her. She's the same cute, sweet Bailee that we've seen in her other roles, such as the daughter in "The Good Witch". It's also good that she was actually a teenager when she played this teen girl role, instead of a 20-something.

Sadly, this is far from a perfect film. There were the more obvious flaws, such as the fact that her supposedly hot boyfriend wasn't even that good looking, and came across as a whiny dweeb. Or the fact that Joy's family were poor and that their neighbors, the Wellmans, were rich, even though they lived in similar modest houses in the same average, middle-class neighborhood. Or the ridiculous premise that alternate-reality Joy was the most popular girl in the school because she was a star volleyball player. It must be a bizarre alternate reality indeed for girl's volleyball to be the cool sport of the school and for a female jock to be at the top of the pecking order of the mall-cruising crowd.

But the biggest flaws of the film were that the characters and relationships weren't well developed and that the whole storyline was not believable. I know it's a fantasy, but it still has to make sense. The old Joy needed to truly hate her old life and really be fed up with her family, which wasn't the case. She needed to really want to be a part of the Wellmans' family, but that was only implied, as she spied on them through her window. She needed to actually wish to be out of her family and in the Wellman family, instead of having it thrust on her. Her relationships with everyone, particularly her friends Sam and Montana needed to be much more developed. I would've liked the plot much better if she had confided the truth that she was in an alternate reality to Sam and/or Montana and enlisted them to help her deal with it. She also should have had a real heart-to-heart talk with her sister Eve in the alternate reality about why she hated her so much, instead of having that explained by her life coach/therapist. Finally, Joy needed to have the type of moment that we see at the end of "It's a Wonderful Life", where she truly realized that she wanted her old life back, and wished for it to happen.

The ending was a bit of a head-scratcher for me. So, was the alternate reality all just a dream? And, if so, why did she come back to "reality" in the hospital, but looking more like her glowed-up self from the alternate reality? And everything was way too perfect at the end, from her family not being so messed up any more, to the neighbors being nice and friendly to her, to her friend Sam instantly becoming her boyfriend. It was almost like she woke up in yet another alternate reality, but this time she was back in her old life, but with all the bad parts removed. Very weird. It would have been so much better if she had gone back to her flawed reality, but with a new appreciation for its good aspects.

So, this wasn't a bad movie, necessarily. I was definitely entertained by it. But it could have been so much better if they had just smoothed out some of the rough edges. Sad, really.

I was kind of dismissive of this movie when it came out in the 90's, because the whole premise seemed so preposterous. A divorced dad wants to spend more time with his kids, so he impersonates their new nanny, "Mrs. Doubtfire, complete with Hollywood-class facial and body prosthetics. Seemed like a lame excuse to use cross-dressing for some cheap laughs. But I recently saw this movie on streaming, and, I must say, it wasn't just a funny movie, it was a rather intelligent and though-provoking movie as well.

Hiring Robin Williams to play this role was definitely inspired. He has the comedic, as well as dramatic talent to pull this off and make it believable. Some parts, such as the classic scene where his fake boobs catch fire, were laugh-out-loud funny. But there were also some very touching parts, such as the scene in the courtroom where he pleads for greater access to his kids. This movie is hardly an excuse for wacky, outrageous gags, though there are plenty of those. It is actually a thoughtful story about how a man, and actually a whole family, deal with divorce. The characters have a lot of depth to them. Williams' character Daniel is the wacky, loveable goofball that we all tend to love, as his ex-wife Miranda did when she first married him. But Daniel is also extremely irresponsible, and we realize that his wife has good reason to divorce him. He has a great character arc, where he, of necessity, is forced to become more responsible and take life seriously. Sally Field's character Miranda is not the villain in this story, either. She is an overly-tense workaholic, but she sincerely wants to do what is right for her kids. And her new boyfriend Stu, played by a young Pierce Brosnan, isn't the jerky, "wrong guy" that inhabits most stories like this. Though he is wealthy, successful and a polar opposite to Daniel, he truly does care for Miranda and her kids. In the end, the movie avoids the sappy happy ending, where Miranda ditches Stu and gets back together with Daniel. The ending, where Daniel and Miranda stay divorced but become more amicable, as she lets him babysit the kids every day, is much more realistic and satisfying, to be honest. It's not exactly a happy ending in the classic sense, but it is more authentic and believable.

If you haven't seen this classic comedy, check it out. You will definitely laugh, even if Williams' frenetic, bizarre comedy isn't exactly your cup of tea. But you may also shed a tear or two, as Williams successfully pulls your heartstrings. Great writing and great performances, both comedic and dramatic, make this movie a winner.

What can you say about the new film adaptation of the stage play Wicked? It's just amazing. The cinematography, the sets, the CGI are all perfect. But there's so much more that makes this film so special. You have incredibly-staged dance sequences, such as the "Dancing Through Life" sequence in the library with the rotating bookshelves. You have the wonderful musical numbers, mostly performed live for greater realism. You have outstanding performances from Cythia Erivo as misunderstood, green-skinned witch Elpheba, and Ariana Grande as her frenemy Glinda. I'm not a huge Ariana fan, and you might think that they cast her in the role just because of her mega-popstar status. But honestly, she was born to play the role of Glinda, popstar or not, and she gives her all to the role and just nails it. And Cynthia, who most of us have probably never heard of, just shines as Elpheba. What a coup getting her for this role, and what an awesome performance! With the recent trend of having actors sing in movie musicals, whether or not they have singing talent, I'm glad that this movie actually cast stars who can also belt out a tune.

Above and beyond all the glitz of the production, this movie actually has a pretty compelling storyline. I'd never seen the stage musical and only had a vague inkling of the plot, but this is a very thought-provoking story and nothing like the weak replay of the old Wizard of Oz movie that you might have expected. The "Wicked Witch" Elpheba is actually the most noble, righteous character in the whole story, and is a misunderstood soul who everyone, even her own father, rejects and persecutes because of her green skin. We visit the theme of prejudice, not only against Elpheba, but also against the talking animal characters. Far from being the idyllic kingdom in the Judy Garland movie, Oz is an oppressive police state that Elpheba, in good conscience, must fight against, and she is branded a "wicked witch" and enemy of the state because of it. It poses the interesting question of what truly defines someone as "wicked". In the end, isn't what is "wicked" or "good" often defined by those in power, rather than some objective morality? It's actually a very deep story that makes you think.

Hollywood has been pretty hit and miss lately when it comes to transferring stage musicals to the big screen, but this time, they outperformed anyone's wildest expectations. The people involved in this production clearly spared no effort to make sure this movie was spectacular. It was obviously a labor of love for them. About the only bad thing I can say about this picture is that it is only part one of a two-movie production. What a letdown at the end of the unbelievable "Defying Gravity" sequence to have that abrupt "To Be Continued" banner appear on the screen! I'm pretty peeved that I have to wait for another whole year to see the conclusion.

This latest romance from Candlelight Media Group, a Hallmark wannabe, is much better than most of their offerings. I always enjoy a good time travel romance plot, and this one was done surprisingly well. We've seen it many times before, of course, from Kate and Leopold to A Biltmore Christmas. This is a low-budget production, but at least it appears that they film on location in Britain and use real British actors. The performances are also good, particularly from Toby-Alexander Smith, who plays Lord Charles Barkley V. He's instantly likeable and believable as our time-displaced 18'th century aristocrat. Aubrey Reynolds is always a solid performer and lends her usual bright-eyed sparkle to the character of American realtor Chelsea. This is more of a slow burn romance, and their chemistry is warm and comfortable rather than sizzling. The character of Quinn, the video-game-playing groundskeeper was also fun, quirky and enjoyable.

This wasn't a perfect movie. I really wish they had made Charles seem more like a fish out of water than they did. He seemed to adjust far too well to modern life. Also, I didn't quite believe that he would forsake his entire life in the past, just to be with Chelsea in the present, a time that was foreign to him. Perhaps if they had made him a character who was fascinated by technology and progress, it would have made more sense for him to want to travel permanently to the 21'st century. Also, they didn't develop the relationship with Charles and Chelsea sufficiently for me to believe that he would want to leave everything to be with her. And, after their conversation about how different 21'st century women are, I doubt that Charles would have adjusted well to being with a modern career woman who wasn't subservient to her husband like a woman from the 18'th century.

My wife remarked that this movie had a "lonely" feel to it, which was caused, I'm sure, by the limited cast that they were able to hire on a low budget. But they did well with the cast that they had. All in all, this was a fun, enjoyable movie, a good blend of romance and fantasy. The writing, performances and cinematography were all decent. And you felt good at the end of the movie, as Chelsea, through Charles' help in the past, was able to save the manor house from greedy developers, and Charles was able to travel one last time to the present to be with Chelsea. Definitely good, solid entertainment for a low-budget film.

I'm a big fan of fantasy movies, so a movie about a teen boy who befriends a teen girl ghost who is haunting his bedroom is right up my alley. This one was better than most, as it largely concentrated on the relationships and the character of Cole dealing with the recent death of his father. The friendship between Cole and his ghost friend Bea was enjoyable and fun. I think I would've preferred it if they hadn't tried to inject some romance between the two of them. Cole wasn't really looking for a girlfriend, nor did he need one at this point in his life. He needed a good friend to help him deal with his grief and navigate his life in a new school and new town.

One thing I didn't like was that Bea, a girl from 100 years ago, didn't seem that different from a girl today. She didn't talk or act that much like a girl from the 1920's. I think the whole story was ripe for some major culture shock, as Bea confronted the world of the 2020's. This could have been interesting. Also, she doesn't seem to have much of a backstory. I wanted to know about her past too. And they needed to provide much stronger motivation for her to want to move on to the next life (desire to see her own family, friends, etc.) and also some motivation for Cole to want to get the other half of her ring so she could move on. As it was, he seemed to be highly motivated to want her to stay.

I did like the ending, where she was able to go back and have a redo, where she didn't die as a teenager but was able to live out a fulfilling life. I wish they had had Cole clearly moving on to a more fulfilling life as well, perhaps dating the spiritualist girl Lydia, making other new friends and starting up his own band. Anyway, this was a good production from Netflix, with likeable, relatable characters, good performances, and a good message. Plus, it was entertaining. What more could you ask for?

This is Lindsay Lohan's third movie with Netflix, and is probably the best of the three. It starts out with the awkward situation where Lindsay's character Avery arrives at her boyfriend Cameron's family's house for Christmas, and it turns out that her ex-boyfriend. Logan, is also there, with his current girlfriend Cassie, who is also Cameron's sister. Lindsay immediately pretends she doesn't know Logan and makes him swear not to tell anyone of their past connection. Okay, so that's kind of a stupid premise that the script never really makes believable. But if you overlook that, this is a scenario ripe for entertainment and laughs, and it provides the satisfying reconnecting of Avery and Logan, which you know will be coming.

There is a lot going on in this movie. In addition to the duplicity of Avery and Logan pretending not to know each other, you have Cam and Cassie's witchy mom, played to delicious, evil perfection by Kristin Chenoweth. You have their sneaky, conniving, substance-addicted brother Callum, whose THC-laced gummies cause Avery to be high during the family's Christmas service. You also have some unexpected infidelity between the wife of a family friend and the family's dad. And there is some behind-the-scenes hanky-panky with Avery's boyfriend Cam and his beautiful childhood friend Sophie. All of these subplots provide some entertainment and a few laughs, though the gags are a bit uneven. With everything else going on, I did feel like the romance between Avery and Logan was a little underdeveloped. But it was adequate.

I wouldn't characterize this as a cinematic masterpiece, by any means. But it was entertaining and enjoyable, and the performances were decent. Lindsay and her co-star Ian Hardy had good chemistry with each other. All in all, an enjoyable Christmas movie that will leave you with a smile on your face.

This is definitely one of the better Hallmark Christmas movies out there. Our heroine Evie, a pampered trust-fund baby, is sent by her mother to reconnect with and help the kind residents of the small town who helped her when Evie was born on Christmas Eve 35 years before. Her mother hopes she will learn something from the experience and grow up a little, and adds the pressure of Evie losing her trust fund if she is unsuccessful with her task. It's a plot very reminiscent of "The Ultimate Gift". Of course, Evie eventually does end up finding the people her mom sent her to find, and she does end up granting wishes for them that extend beyond just gifting them with money or stuff. She also ends up growing personally from the experience and learns to understand the importance of giving of yourself. She also ends up connecting with Kyle, the hunky lawyer who is helping her. This movie is well written, the performances are good, and the message is impactful without being overly sappy and sentimental. In all, a great addition to the Hallmark Christmas offerings this season.

This Norwegian movie from Netflix was a different kind of Christmas story. It was really more of a touching, emotional story about dealing with grief than strictly a Christmas movie. Our young protagonist Julian and his family are in the midst of despair and gloom over the recent death of Julian's sister Juni. They don't even want to celebrate Christmas because of their profound grief. Then, onto the scene, bursts the lively, sparkling girl Hedvig, a bubbly, enthusiastic force of nature determined to bring Julian out of his funk and reignite his love for Christmas. Their friendship is fun and sweet, though it has bittersweet moments.

This was a beautiful film in many ways. The cinematography was wonderful, from the snowy, picturesque Norwegian village on a fjord to Hedvig's magical "Christmas house". It was also beautiful emotionally. The young actors gave realistic, heartfelt performances. Their friendship developed naturally and never felt forced. The supporting actors, particularly Julian's family members, were also excellent.

Hedvig mostly plays the manic pixie dream girl for Julian in this movie. You instinctively know that there is something different and maybe even supernatural about her, especially because she refuses to tell Julian almost anything about herself. Added to the mystery is the old man Henrik, who continues to lurk around Hedvig's house. Julian eventually makes friends with Henrik, who proves to be not as scary as he originally seemed. I kind of guessed the big secret that Hedvig was the ghost of a girl who died, and that Henrik was her brother. I also suspected that a skating accident was responsible for her death. But ghosts and supernatural forces aside, this was mostly a story about the friendship between a boy and a girl, and how she is able to help him deal with his grief and remember the good things about his sister, as well as helping his family deal with their grief and remember the joy of Christmas. In the end, it was also about Julian helping Hedvig have the courage to leave this world and move on to the next.

There were a couple of things I wish they had done differently. Particularly, I wish there had been more development of the relationship between Julian and Henrik. It would've been great if Hedvig had been able to also appear to Henrik before she passed on so she could assure him that her death was not his fault. Or, maybe Julian could have told Henrik about his experiences with Hedvig and could have passed on that message from her. I felt like Henrik was a bit of a forgotten character, a lonely soul who also needed healing, and it would have been great if Julian's family could have reached out to him and maybe invited him over for Christmas or something. I also thought it would have been good if, as Hedvig floats away to Heaven with the snow sister, that the snow sister could have very obviously been Julian's sister Juni, though I think that was implied.

All in all, this was a tender, thoughtful Christmas story that rose above the fluff and the silliness of most Christmas stories out there. It wasn't always the feel-good story that we might have wanted, but I think it had a good message and ended with an upbeat, hopeful tone. A worthy, welcome and unexpected addition to Netflix's Christmas catalog.

I wasn't expecting much from this Netflix movie, but my wife wanted to watch it. Was actually much better than I anticipated, and better than the relatively low IMDb rating might suggest. It's a fairly simple plot on the surface. A snow sculpture of an attractive man is magically brought to life and is taken in by a grieving widow, and they eventually fall in love. The premise has been done many times before, in such movies as Splash and Netflix's own The Knight Before Christmas. But this is a fun iteration on a familiar theme.

Jack, the enlivened snowman, instantly captures our hearts because of his sweet naivete, as he adjusts to life in the real world. Dustin Mulligan, though cute and undeniably muscular, isn't the actor you might have thought of casting in the part of a perfect specimen of a snowman-turned-real-man. But he is perfect for this role, because he exudes such a beguiling, wide-eyed innocence that you can't help but like him. Lacey Chabert is great as always, portraying our heroine Kathy, a woman dealing with loss and hesitant to move on. Their relationship is more of a slow burn romance, and is actually quite pleasant and even touching, as Jack helps her heal from losing her husband to cancer. I'm glad that the romance didn't end up going lowbrow, as the title of the movie might have suggested.

This wasn't a perfect movie by any means. The lustful reactions by the town's middle-aged women to a younger Jack were pretty cringe. The sheriff was way over-the-top too. I know he was supposed to be comic relief, but he just got annoying after a while. The whole plot, fantasy though it be, was rather unrealistic at times, such as the way that Jack progressed from a child's mentality to being a confident fix-it man in just a few days by watching a little TV. But the story is so fun and engaging, you tend to give the movie a pass on these little flaws. At the end of the day, this is a happy, feel-good movie that leaves you with a big smile on your face. What more can you ask of a Christmas movie?

This Hallmark Christmas romance was pretty good. The best part was the beautiful scenery in and around Heidelberg, Germany. I did appreciate that they actually filmed this one in Germany instead of Canada, and that they actually used real German actors. I lived in Germany for a couple of years, and everything seemed pretty authentic, even down to the brusque, bureaucratic German postal employee. The two leads were adequate, and their chemistry, though not sizzling, was pleasant enough. I did enjoy the interactions with our heroine Heidi and the German family. Germans really can be that warm and friendly, though it usually takes a little more time to break through their initial veneer of reserve and formality. I would accuse this movie of relying a bit too much on the idiot plot, with Heidi engaging a third tier shipping company to transport her precious glass ornaments. The result, when her ornaments finally arrived a broken mess, was predictable and you didn't sympathize with her as much as you looked down on her for being so foolish. Nothing too earth-shattering happens in this movie, but it is a fun trip through German culture and Christmas traditions as well as a warm, though not hot, romance. Decent entertainment for the Hallmark faithful.

I enjoy Hallmark romances, even the cheesy ones, but my wife normally hates them. But she loved this one. And what's not to love? You have an original, creative story of a young woman screenwriter, magically transported back in time to meet the cast and crew of the classic film for which she is writing the remake, and you have her, incidentally, fall in love with the film's star. You have great performances by Bethany Joy Lenz and Kristoffer Polaha, two of Hallmark's best actors. The chemistry between them is wonderful. You have top-notch production values, with no detail being spared to convincingly recreate the world of a 1947 film set. You have the magnificent, iconic Biltmore Hotel as the backdrop for the film, a welcome change from Hallmark's typical Canadian filming locations. And you have a script that is fun, sharp and witty. The dialog is very natural, and the people from the 1940's actually talk like people from the 1940's, without sounding over-the-top.

Full disclosure, I'm a huge fan of time travel movies. But I must say that this one does it better than most. Our heroine Lucy's adventures into the past are actually a part of the timeline, not a deviation from it. Clearly, her actions cause major changes in events, especially the storyline of the original movie and the fate of its star Jack Hutson. Also, when you have a story with fantastic elements, the rest of the story must still be solid and make sense within the parameters of the fantasy, and this one does. I loved the happy ending, which is almost a requirement of Hallmark movies. This happy ending, where Jack is able to travel to his future to be with Lucy, actually made sense. He left behind nobody who would really miss him. His exit from his timeline left no drastic change in the timeline. It was a nearly seamlessly perfect ending to a fun, engaging story. I'd love to see a sequel, where we see how Jack ended up integrating into modern society, perhaps becoming a modern-day film star.

If you love Hallmark movies, you will love this movie. If you don't normally love Hallmark movies, you will probably still love this movie. Many of the newer Hallmark movies, such as this one, have risen above the tired tropes of most of their films and have delivered original, fresh stories and brought in superior production values. I can only applaud the trend.

This Hallmark Christmas romance was fun, engaging and definitely in the top tier as far as Hallmark movies go. The movie has a "Father of the Bride" vibe, but I'd say this movie was much more focused on the couple getting married than on the reluctant dad. The romance between Celeste and Jason was more well-developed than is often the case in these types of movies. The performances all around were solid, especially from the two leads, who were very likeable. Madeleine Arthur really sparkled in this one, and I see her as one of the up and coming Hallmark leading ladies. I also liked the character of Pastor Mark, grumpy though he was, because he also came across as a caring father who truly did love his little girl and was less than enthusiastic about letting her go.

The writing for this movie was decent. The dialog seemed pretty natural, with a minimum of the "Hallmarkspeak" that plagues many of their offerings. There were a few glitches in the script, unfortunately. Yes, Jason's character was supposed to be spontaneous, but the scene where he impromptu asked Celeste to marry him, right in front of her dumbstruck parents was just a bit too much. I'd have much preferred for him to pop the question to her in a private, intimate moment, and then spring the news of their engagement on the parents later. I also thought the whole marriage boot camp thing kind of fell flat. If you're going to set up something like that, the boot camp activities need to be both really torturous and they need to cause the future couple to fight and have real conflict with each other. Above all, they need to be funny. This so-called boot camp was none of these things. And the "bet" between Jason and Celeste's friend's husband Tim was also a bust. Jason was supposed to do something really embarrassing if he lost, but all he ended up doing was this weird robot dance. Again, a lost opportunity for some humor. I really thought it was weird that Jason's parents were so on-board with them getting married so fast. Honestly, Pastor Mark's reaction to their swift engagement was perfectly normal and I would think that Jason's parents, if they were normal parents, would react similarly. Finally, I thought the requisite "bump" in the relationship, which happens about 3/4 of the way into most of these movies, was handled pretty badly. You have this meeting with Celeste and her ex-boyfriend, with her hugging him and causing Jason to think the worst and leave, when the ex-boyfriend was hardly even a factor in the movie. It all seemed very forced. The "bump" in this story needed to come from Celeste and Jason having an argument over the relationship, thinking they may, indeed, have been rushing in too quickly, or having him just get fed up with her dad's meddling, and then having them resolve that conflict later.

Nitpicky plot points aside, this movie had a certain charm that sucked you in and made you like it. You ended up liking the characters and you felt invested in their lives and future happiness by the end of the closing credits. If you're into Hallmark movies at all, you'll definitely enjoy this one.

This drama and period piece about the Stasi and the former East Germany was moving and riveting. It certainly helped you feel the tension and the fear in the lives of everyday citizens of that police state. Everyone was potentially under surveillance. Everyone around you could be a potential Stasi agent or informant. Even trivial things you said could be used to arrest and jail you. We, in the democratic West, can't imagine what that was like. We certainly need reminders like this movie of how bad a totalitarian government can be, lest we forget.

The acting in this movie was incredible, and mostly understated, particularly from. Ulrich Mühe as the conflicted Stasi agent Wiesler. His character arc is fascinating. He starts out as a hardened Communist loyalist, coldly using recorded audio of his brutal interrogations to teach a class of future Stasi recruits. But in vicariously experiencing the life of playwright Georg Dreymann, the man he is assigned to surveil, he gains empathy for him and eventually uses his position to defend and shield him. Sort of a reverse Stockholm Syndrome, where the oppressor begins to sympathize with his victim. It definitely makes for a more complex character than the typical villainous Stasi officer that would probably be a more accurate portrayal. I also liked the performance of Martina Gedeck as Georg's girlfriend Christa, who very convincingly portrayed the agony of her tortured existence as both lover of Georg and pawn of the merciless, unfeeling state.

You could argue that the characters in this movie were too black and white, and that's probably true. The Stasi officers (except Wiesler) and DDR party officials were uniformly portrayed as villains, particularly the rapist Minister Hempf. The artists are all portrayed as good and noble. And the plot turned a bit melodramatic at the end, with the betrayal and subsequent suicide by Christa. Those elements were probably out of place in this otherwise intelligent, thoughtful film.

I would have rated this movie higher, but for one thing. The whole story is pure fiction! Yes, it's supposed to be a portrayal of true events in Communist East Germany. But there was no such person as Stasi officer Gerd Wiesler. Indeed, in reading the background on this story, there was never any Stasi officer who was documented as changing from his hardline views to a more compassionate stance because he began to empathize with his victims. Apparently, the Stasi were really as cold, uncaring and heartless as the stereotype of them would suggest. The film would have been much more impactful if it had been based on the life of some real person who was a victim of the Stasi. Director von Donnersmarck reportedly did research for this film for several years to try to make it authentic. Why couldn't he have found a real case from the vast Stasi files that were made available after the reunificaion? In fact, why did a West German like von Donnersmarck even write the screenplay for this movie? It should have been done by someone who grew up in Communist East Germany. That would have made it much more authentic. I guess I'm a little put off by the fact that this movie seems to pass itself off as painting a historically-accurate portrait of life in 1980's East Germany, yet the characters and, indeed, the entire storyline, were made up.

So, if you want a tense, gripping drama with incredible performances, this is your movie. If you want a movie that realistically creates the atmosphere and mood of life in the former East Germany, this is your movie. If you want a movie that actually portrays the lives of real people who lived in the former East Germany, this is definitely not your movie.

This was a slow, plodding film. The critics seemed to love it, and it was, after all, a German film, so I kept watching, hoping that it would eventually get better. I don't know, maybe I'm not as smart as all those uber-intelligent critics, but at the end of this long, depressing movie, I still didn't get the point.

I will give the film credit for artistic cinematography. I will give Nina Hoss credit for a haunting performance as concentration camp survivor Nelly. The plotline was pretty unrealistic, but I can forgive that, assuming they were going for surrealism. But I didn't understand what the movie was trying to say. I don't think there was a coherent message, other than, perhaps, the meaninglessness of life.

Nelly's husband Johnny seemed like a cardboard villain to me. He was brutish, controlling, deceitful, narcissistic and greedy. I was frustrated with Nelly's passivity toward him, and kept wanting her to finally tell him off and put him in his place. Somehow, though, I instinctively knew that wouldn't happen. What I really wanted was an honest exchange of feelings between the two of them after she told him who she really was, and the filmmakers cheated us out of that exchange with the abrupt ending, where he finally realizes who she is, and she just walks away.

Johnny is portrayed as a monster, but I would have been much more satisfied if he had turned out in the end to be more of a morally conflicted, though flawed character. Yes, he betrayed his Jewish wife to the Nazis to save himself. Sitting here in comfort, peace and security, decades removed from the Nazi horror, it's easy for us to judge him. But, if we were in his place, can we honestly say with certainty that we would we have acted differently? And, living in post-war Germany, on the brink of starvation, lucky to have a menial job and a dingy dump of an apartment, is it really so horrible that Johnny would want to cash in on his (as he supposed) dead wife's fortune? Who's to say he didn't really love his wife and felt tortured and guilt-ridden over her fate? A conversation about some of these things between Johnny and Nelly would have made this a much more meaningful movie to me. It's easy for us to put the Nazi-era Germans into convenient black-and-white categories as either victims or evildoers, but the truth is that the vast majority of Germans in Nazi Germany, even if they didn't go to a concentration camp, were also victims of that regime. That would have been an interesting theme to explore, but the filmmakers apparently weren't willing to go there.

So, all in all, this film was a disappointment for me. Too slow. Not enough action. An unrealistic storyline. And no real resolution or point in the end. Very unsatisfying.

This biopic about former German POW Bert Trautmann, who became a superstar in English football in the 1950's, was warm, engaging and very watchable. I'm an American, so I'm not sure if Trautmann is a historical figure that most Brits would be familiar with, but for purposes of this film, it didn't matter. This was a story about one man's journey to put the difficult past of World War II behind him, to assimilate into the British culture as one of its former enemies, and to become successful playing the sport he loved. It was also a touching romance and a film that tugged at your heartstrings during tragic moments in Trautmann's life, such as the death of his son. This film takes on the well-worn theme of prejudice, but in a unique light. In this case, it's not racial prejudice. It's prejudice against someone who fought on the other side in a recent, painful war. It's easy enough for us to demonize those against whom we have prejudice, and in this case, the prejudice of those British people was understandable, since they lost loved ones at the hands of the Germans. Germans from the WWII era are usually portrayed as two-dimensional villains, but Trautmann, in this movie, is shown as a sympathetic character, a man who at one time was doubtless an enthusiastic supporter of his country's evil regime, but who, ultimately, was just a soldier who served his country as millions of others on both sides of that conflict did. This movie makes us understand him and root for this most unlikely of heroes.

The performances in this movie were great. The historic details seemed to flawlessly take us back to that bygone era. All in all, this was a well-crafted film. Of course, they took liberties with the facts of Trautmann's life, as movies almost always do, but on the whole, this seemed to be an honest attempt to portray this man's life in a realistic way. Sadly, in real life, Trautmann and his wife Margaret eventually divorced, but their love story in the movie was very moving and emotional. Definitely one of the better biopics I've seen lately.

This is kind of a different movie that has it's own unique charm. You aren't sure at first if you''ll even like it, but it sucks you in. The concept is quite novel. A young man in East Germany goes to extreme lengths to make his mother, who missed the fall of the Berlin Wall while she was in a coma, believe that East Germany is still the same and hasn't changed. The performances were great, especially from Daniel Brühl as the caring son Alex. I read the storyline was inspired by the life of Lenin himself, who, in the last couple of years after he had a stroke and before he died, was kept in the dark about everything going on in the outside world. They even printed special newspapers, just for him to read.

It's amusing watching the lengths to which Alex will go to keep up the ruse, including filming fake newscasts, supposedly from the DDR, with his friend Denis. But beyond the comedy, there was also quite a bit of social commentary about the German reunification. Although East Germans were overwhelmingly in favor of that reunification, it wasn't all honey and roses, as this film shows. People lost their jobs and had to try to make ends meet by selling their stuff. People descended into alcoholism. With the West's prosperity came the West's high prices. This is a side of the reunification that's rarely portrayed.

This was a comedy, but more of a tragicomedy. Alex becomes so focused on trying to preserve the old East Germany for his mom and to even create for her an idealized East Germany that never existed, and to never let her know the truth, and he believes right up to her death that he's succeeded. The irony is that she likely never did love the old DDR as much as he thought she did. She actually confesses that she had originally planned to escape to the West after her husband had escaped, but was too afraid of the government. That was likely the reason that she went so full-boar for socialism, because she never wanted to give the government reason to suspect her. But Alex wouldn't listen. Then, Alex's girlfriend Lara actually tells her the truth, and she seems fine with it, but Alex never knows. Alex is no fan of the old DDR, but he ends up creating a tissue of lies to try to perpetuate the old DDR for his mom. He lies to her as much or more than the old DDR ever lied to its citizens.

So, this is a movie that seems somewhat whimsical on the surface, but as you watch it, you realize that there's a lot of depth there. It's a fascinating, one-of-a-kind look into that amazing moment in time when Communism fell and Germany reunited. Definitely worthy of a watch or two.

This little gem from our friends in Germany is a shamelessly feel-good movie, and one of the most unabashedly romantic movies I think I've ever seen. Who knew the Germans could bring us such a wonderful romance? Is it mostly fantasy? Absolutely. Is it unrealistic? Of course. But, to paraphrase a quote from this movie, the most important thing about a movie is how it makes you feel. And darned if this movie didn't make you feel good. It wasn't trying to portray the brutal, gut-wrenching reality of life in East Germany during the erection of the Wall. Those historical events were almost an afterthought compared to the romance. It wasn't trying to make you think deep thoughts. It was just trying to portray the joy of falling in love and do so in a fun and often funny sort of way.

This movie felt like pure magic, from start to finish. The cinematography was spectacular. The supporting characters were fun, interesting and quirky. And the two leads were just plain awesome. Dennis Mojen made our sweet, naive hero instantly likeable, but he was also great at portraying a romantic guy that any girl would have a hard time resisting. Emilia Schüle was fun, beautiful and sexy, but also warm and vulnerable when she needed to be. Their chemistry was off-the-charts. You were rooting for their romance to the very end of the movie, and you truly believed that this French girl would give up her life in Paris and move to the prison that was East Germany in order to be with the man she loved.

If you've seen any German period films, they mostly focus on WWII, the Holocaust, or living under the oppressive boot of the Stasi in Communist East Germany. They are extremely depressing. This fun, whimsical German movie was, frankly, a breath of fresh air. It's not about to win any awards for best International film, but if you see it, I guarantee you will leave with a big smile on your face.

This bland rom-com is about what you would expect from Hallmark (or GAF, in this case). It was mildly entertaining, but nothing special. Merritt Patterson was, as always, her cute, smiling, likeable self. Joshua Sasse, with his nice guy persona and square jawline, was perfectly serviceable as her love interest. The supporting actors were fine. The dialog was mostly natural. And the scenery was nice, though most of the locations in this filmed-in-Australia production didn't really resemble its supposed location in Florida.

So, why wasn't I that excited about this movie? Well, for one thing, you knew how it would end in the first ten minutes, but it seemed to take forever to get there. They dragged out the "I can't date him because he's a client" thing to the point of nausea. And his weak, wimpy inability to actually make a move on her got old really fast. Most of the movie felt like filler to me. Some reviewers said there was chemistry between the two of them, but I really wasn't feeling it. They were mostly just awkward around each other.

If were writing the screenplay for this movie, I would make it an enemies-to-lovers plot. Finn would be a somewhat arrogant guy who considered finding his perfect match to be a checklist item, and who viewed the matchmaker Lucy as just another employee to service his needs, like an Uber driver or a waitress at a restaurant. Their interactions at first would be contentious, with her barely tolerating him as a client and ready to drop him at any moment. A few disastrous dates from hell would provide comic relief along the way. As the movie progressed, Finn and Lucy would start warming up to each other after getting to know each other better. Lucy would discover that he was actually a kind, generous person behind the arrogant exterior. It would turn out that this exterior, particularly in matters of the heart, was a cover for his past heartaches and failed relationships. He would eventually realize that she was the quality woman he had been searching for, but he wouldn't know how to break the matchmaker-client barrier. Eventually, he would win her heart with an act of uncharacteristic kindness from him to her sister or one of her friends, which she wasn't supposed to know about but which she would discover. They would eventually realize that they were each other's "one perfect match". A bit more engaging than the plot that actually made it to celluloid? Perhaps.

So, if you're up for a mildly-engaging, paint-by-the-numbers rom-com, this is definitely your movie. But don't be surprised if you find yourself getting bored with the dragging, one-note plot.

This was an enjoyable Steve Martin movie and one of his better ones. He's a bit of an acquired taste, but in this one, he was allowed free rein to be bizarre and off-the-wall. The scenes of his character Roger fighting over control of his body with Lily Tomlin's character Edwina were laugh-out-loud funny at times. The premise of this movie was clever and original. The soul of a dying, misanthropic rich woman is accidentally placed in the body of her lawyer, with both sharing partial control of it. If not handled correctly, this movie could have been a disaster, but it works because of the chemistry between these two great comedians, both comedic and romantic. It also works because, even though Tomlin dies relatively early in the movie, her presence is still very much there, with the inspired mechanism of having her appear in and talk to Martin in every mirror he sees. The movie is able to make Edwina, who starts the movie as a rather unlikable character, into a sympathetic and relatable one, as we understand her backstory of how she was an invalid her whole life and had no friends as a result. The movie was mostly silly and goofy, but it was also fun and had a lot of heart. It made you care about what happened to its characters till the very end. After 40 years, it's definitely worth watching again.

This Steve Martin vehicle was just okay. Martin is a decent actor, but as a comedian, I can't say I find him that funny. I didn't laugh much at all in this movie. This was clearly supposed to be a spoof of the city of Los Angeles and its unique culture. Unless you live there, though, I'm afraid it's too much inside baseball. Yeah, we know that it's always warm in LA, making the job of a weatherman like Martin's character Harris almost unnecessary. Yeah, we know that everyone there is supposed to be superficial, as demonstrated in such scenes as the lunch with 10 people. Yeah, we know there are freeway shootings (or they were apparently a big thing in the 90's, when this movie was made). But none of these LA-isms seem to really hit comedic pay dirt.

The romance in this story between Martin's character Harris and Victoria Tennant's character Sara was not that engaging. I wasn't feeling a lot of chemistry, which is odd, considering that Martin and Tenant were married to each other at the time. They did get divorced about 3 years after this movie was made, so maybe they were on the downward spiral of their marriage, or something. The story seemed kind of stupid, where both Martin and Tennant, supposedly so much in love, were enthusiastically having sex with other partners in hotel rooms next to each other. Then, we're just supposed to believe that they are magically going to get together after that? Sarah Jessica Parker, to be fair, was pretty good as Martin's temporary squeeze SanDeE. She had ditzy down to a science in this role. The only real genuine emotion I felt in this whole movie was when Martin was describing all the weather phenomena he would muster, if it were in his power, to keep Sara's plane from taking off and going back to London, as he was apparently that much in love with her. But nothing else in the movie really led me to believe that those beautifully-expressed feelings were truly real.

Other than an extended spoof of the city of LA and a weak attempt at a romance, I wasn't sure what the point of this movie even was. If it had been more funny, I might have been able to tolerate its vapidity. But frankly, it just left me feeling kind of bored.

I'm in my 60's now, and it's been decades since I watched Gone With the Wind as a young man. I recently watched it again with my family. What can I say? It's clearly a monumental piece of filmmaking, with the lavish sets, sweeping vistas and beautiful, brilliant colors. It's an awesome achievement, and not just for 1939, but for anytime, really. It's a story full of passion, set against the backdrop of one of the more fascinating, tempestuous era's in our nation's history. It's clearly a classic, A movie that is in a class by itself.

That being said, I watched this movie with my 16-year-old daughter, and this was her take on it. She thought it was way too long. She thought Scarlett O'Hara was one of the most mean, unlikable characters ever to grace a movie screen. She thought the movie was unnecessarily sad and tragic, with virtually everyone, even saintly Melanie, dying before it was over. She thought the ending was idiotic, with Rhett and Scarlett having lived in a toxic marriage for years, and then, as Scarlett finally realizes that she loves Rhett and is willing to make a go of their marriage, he just up and leaves her. She thought the depictions of slaves happily serving their masters were borderline racist. Basically, she felt like she wasted 4 hours of her life. Honestly, I can't really say that she's wrong.

Yes, this is an iconic movie. But I didn't really like any of the characters in it. Scarlett is a selfish, scheming, manipulative shrew of a woman, who seems incapable of loving anyone but herself. Even her supposed love of Ashley is all about her. She only wants him because he is the one thing that she can't have. Rhett is an amoral, arrogant, brutish sort of a man. Melanie is noble and good, but is so angelic that she doesn't seem human. Ashley is basically a spineless wimp. I kept asking myself why I should care about any of these characters.

To be fair, Scarlett does have the good quality of determination and she does work hard to save her whole family and Melanie and Ashley. I suppose we shouldn't judge her too harshly, because she was forced by circumstances to do what she did, and she ends up sad and unhappy in the end. Clearly, life has punished her for her many sins. Rhett is not without his good qualities either. He helped out Scarlett and, later, Ashley, when they were in dire straits. And he was a loving, doting father to his little girl. These are complex characters, and not all bad, to be sure.

There was a lot of 1930's era content to this film that didn't age well into 2024. That whole scene where a drunken Rhett threatens to crush Scarlett's skull, then angrily carries her upstairs for what, you can only assume, is a session of marital rape, is profoundly creepy. And having her smiling and happy about it the next morning is even more creepy. Then you have the total lack of any negative aspects of slavery being displayed, and the black people in the show being dumbed-down caricatures or unrealistic, docile, happy servants. Seems pretty racist to us today. To be fair, the character of Mammy was someone who was wise and commanded respect from everyone, despite her skin color. You really need to take this movie as a product of its times and not dwell on issues like these too much.

So, this movie remains a classic in my mind, and I give its producers kudos for even attempting such a grandiose project. I'm not sure you could even do it today. It would be prohibitively expensive and nobody would sit through a 4 hour movie. I wasn't a fan of the characters in this movie, but I think, in a way, you have to see them more as archetypes of various characters in the pre- and post-Civil-War South. I'm sure it will be a few more years before I sit through this movie again, if I ever do. But I feel safe to say that this is one of the indispensable products of American cinema, which everyone should watch at least once in their lives.

This Christian movie was a big disappointment. I'm a Christian, so I do appreciate clean, faith-based movies. I also realize that Christian movies are mostly low-budget, so I give them the benefit of the doubt. But I was struggling during the whole movie to figure out what the point was. Why was I even spending nearly 2 hours of my time on this film?

I did like Masey McClain's performance as Lillian. You really felt her pain, fear and anguish as she tried to find her missing boyfriend, hoping, against hope, that he was still alive. The other performances in the movie were mostly duds. Oscar Mansky as vanished boyfriend Brad was particularly bad. I also think he was horribly miscast. He was supposed to be this former bad boy who had reformed. He needed to be a lot more edgy, but he mostly came across as a boy scout. There also wasn't a lot of chemistry between Brad and Lillian. I really wasn't feeling the love, even when he made the big confession that he loved her.

But my biggest problem with this movie was that, as a Christian movie, it lacked a really compelling Christian message. It talked about how Lillian had saved Brad from continuing down a bad path, and how her Christian friend group had accepted him. But you didn't ever see the effects of new-found Christian faith on his life. And his horrible past life didn't even seem that bad. So, he and his friends broke into people's houses and ate some of their food. Not very earth-shattering. The detective hinted at a serious rap sheet in his past, but gave no specifics. The story needed him to be a kid who had been into drugs, done some serious crimes and spent time in juvenile hall. If this was supposed to be a tale about his redemption, it was pretty weak.

Was this story mainly about Lillian dealing with loss? If that was the point, they should have found Brad's dead body, or they should have found him back with druggie friends, stoned out or something. But, no. They come up with this stupid, unbelievable ending, where he goes back to live with and support his dying bio mom. And so, he was never in any real danger. He was just a jerk, who never even thought to contact Lillian, his adoptive family or anyone, letting them at least know he was okay. Even worse was Brad's brother Chris. He participated in searches for Brad and even sought out and befriended Lillian, when the whole time, he knew exactly where Brad was and could have told them anytime. Why was he even in the story? You got the impression that he might eventually step in as Lillian's new boyfriend when Brad ended up dead or whatever. But no. And at the end, she didn't end up with Chris, or with Brad. And, after so much anguish and searching, and now finding Brad alive and still in love with her, she just rejected him! Sure, he should've told her where he was. But he was helping his dying mom. That's at least a somewhat noble excuse. How could she not get back together with the guy? If she had said, "Sorry, I don't love you any more", or "Sorry, I've moved on", that would be one thing. But she just left without explanation, mouthing a weak "I forgive you" out of his earshot. If forgiveness was the message here, that was handled extraordinarily badly as well.

So, this movie was a big miss for me. Weak production values. Weak acting. Weak screenplay. Those are a given with most Christian movies. But a faith-based movie not even delivering a coherent, impactful Christian message, heavy-handed or otherwise? That's pretty unforgiveable. Have the movie be about redemption. Have it be about grace. Have it be about forgiveness. Have it be about something, anything meaningful, for crying out loud! That's all we Christians expect from your movie.