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Enchanted April (1992) -
Escaping Reality
Starring: Miranda Richardson, Joan Plowright, Josie Lawrence and Polly Walker Now this is my ideal vacation fantasy (okay, one of many): get a couple of like minded women together, rent a gorgeous v.... The Palm Beach Story (1942) - Money Makes the World Go Around Starring: Claudette Colbert and Joel McCrea This is one wacky Black and White flick. Tom and Gerry (groan) are married but Tom is a penniless inventor, so Gerry decides that the be.... Cyrano de Bergerac (1990) - Foreign Flings French with English Subtitles Starring: Gerard Depardieu, Anne Brochet & Vincent Perez An incredibly lavish French production of the classic Rostand play - the comedic yet tragic tale of the swashb.... Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998) - Feminist Fairy-Tale Starring: Drew Barrymore, Angelica Huston and Dougray Scott At last a damsel-in-distress movie in which the damsel rescues herself! Danielle (Barrymore) lives as a servant to her cruel stepmother .... The Princess Bride (1987) - Once Upon a Time Starring: Cary Elwes & Robin Wright In the words of the Impressive Clergyman (Peter Cook), T-woo Wuv is the greatest, and True Love is the basis for this fantasy fairy-tale directed by Rob Reine.... Soapdish (1991) - Life is a Soap Opera Starring: Sally Field, Kevin Kline, Elizabeth Shue, and Robert Downey Jr. No matter how many times I watch this movie I still laugh hysterically. Its a behind-the- scenes tale of the characte.... Spellbound (1945) - Haunting Hitchcock Starring: Ingrid Bergman and Gregory Peck This more obscure Alfred Hitchcock movie can be a bit over dramatic at times but once you get past the heavy violin score and rather sexist dialogue (T.... Stealing Beauty (1996) - I Need a Vacation Starring: Liv Tyler, Jeremy Irons & Sinead Cusack Bernardo Bertolucci directs Liv Tyler in this sweet coming-of-age movie set in Tuscany (what is it with me and films shot in Italy?). Naive nineteen y.... Charade (1963) - Stylish Suspense Starring: Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant Set in Paris, this comedy / thriller is as stylish as they come. Hepburn plays Reggie Lampert, a Givenchy garbed UNESCO interpreter whose husband has jus.... Only You (1994) - Date with Destiny Starring: Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. The impossibly thin Marisa Tomei is Faith Corvatch who believes her romantic destiny lies in the name her Ouija Board spelled out when she was 11. Fourt.... Le Confessional (1994) - Starring: Lothaire Bluteau, Patrick Goyette & Kristin Scott Thomas There are two stories being told in this great French Canadian film; in 1952 Alfred Hitchcock came to Quebec City to film his movie I Confess, 37 years later a fam.... Canadian Bacon (1994) - Starring: John Candy, Alan Alda, Rhea Perlman & Kevin Pollack Okay, so technically this does not qualify as Canadian Content as determined by the CRTC but it is such a wickedly funny political satire by director Michael Moore (Roger & M.... The Red Violin (1998) - Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Flemyng & Greta Scacchi A beautiful and brilliant Canadian / Italian co-production. This mesmerizing story about the travels of an extraordinary violin and its various owners had me so transfixed th.... Klute (1971) - Working Girls Starring: Jane Fonda and Donald Sutherland Sporting the original Shag haircut, Jane Fonda is Bree Daniels an upper-class call girl working in Manhattan. Klute (Sutherland), a small town private eye.... Steel Magnolias (1989) - Southern Belles Starring: Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts and Daryl Hannah Theres nothing like a big Southern wedding and big Southern hair to put your own life into per.... Pillow Talk (1959) - Sexcapade Starring: Rock Hudson and Doris Day Nominated for 5 Oscars, this is the classic bedroom farce of the 1950s. Doris Day (the original IT Girl) is an Interior Decorator, Rock Hudson a music composer - bot.... Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958) - Family Feud Starring: Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor Talk about a dysfunctional family - this Tennessee Williams adaptation about a feuding Southern family has issues galore: greed, obsession, alcoholism, adultery .... On A Clear Day You Can See Forever (1970) - Musical Madness Starring: Barbra Streisand and Yves Montand Your traditional musical this is not. Nutty, chain-smoking Daisy Gamble (Streisand) seeks the professional help of Dr. Chabot (Montand) a psychiatrist who.... Taming of the Shrew (1967) - Shakespeare 101 Starring: Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton Franco Zefferellis Shakespearean debut is not only one of the funniest adaptations of the Bards battle-of-the-sexes play, but probably the most enterta.... Ridicule (1996) - Do The French Have a Sense of Humour? French with English Subtitles Starring: Fanny Ardant, Charles Berling and Judith Godreche Yet another beautiful French period film, set in the age when men wore just as much m.... 200 Cigarettes (1999) - Starring: Paul Rudd, Courtney Love, Martha Plimpton & Ben Affleck A surprisingly cute and amusing movie about a group of young people who are all in search of romance and companionship before the clock strikes twelve on New Years Eve. Its 1981 .... How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) - Starring: Lauren Bacall, Marilyn Monroe & Betty Grable A corny and rather out-of-date film, How to Marry a Millionaire still has its amusing moments. The premise is that three models of modest income rent a flashy penthouse apartment hoping to lu.... Norma Rae (1979) - Starring: Sally Field, Beau Bridges & Ron Leibman After seeing this movie you will never complain about your job again. Sally Field won the best actress Oscar for her role in this film, and deservedly so. Norma Rae is a feisty Southern woman try.... Nine to Five (1980) - Starring: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda & Dolly Parton I love this movie. No matter how bad Im feeling about my job, this film always manages to cheer me up (not least of all for the now very dated wardrobes!). Our three heroines have a problem - t.... Office Space (1999) - Starring: Ron Livingstone, David Herman & Jennifer Aniston Yet another film that most everyone can relate to. Peter (Ron Livingstone) hates his job. Hes a computer programmer for a big tech company he despises. Its causing him to have vivid.... Don Juan DeMarco (1995) - Someday My Prince Will Come Starring: Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando and Faye Dunaway Okay, so this movie revolves around a man but its his attitude and reverence towards women that make the film. Johnny Depp is a y.... Beautiful Girls (1996) - Boys Will Be Boys Starring: Timothy Hutton, Matt Dillon, Michael Rappaport, Mira Sorvino, Lauren Holly, Rosie ODonnell, Uma Thurman & Natalie Portman This story of commitment shy twenty-something men should be .... My Life So Far (1999) - Starring: Colin Firth, Irene Jacob & Rosemary Harris This is the coming-of-age tale of Fraser Pettigrew, a young boy living in Scotland in the 1920s. Like most boys, Fraser is an inquisitive child who constantly questions the meaning of various .... Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) - Starring: Marilyn Monroe & Jane Russell With the philosophy that diamonds are a girls best friend, Lorelei Lee (Monroe) embarks on a boat trip to Paris to snag millionaire Gus Esmond. Along for the sailing is her showgirl partner Dorothy (Ru.... The Poseidon Adventure (1972) - Starring: Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine & Shelley Winters Nominated for 8 Academy awards in 1972, this high-seas disaster tale is now so camp and so dated that I have to admit I laughed when I saw it. Its New Years Eve and Captain Leslie Neil.... The Impostors (1998) - Starring: Oliver Platt, Stanley Tucci & Campbell Scott A wonderfully talented cast makes up the players in Stanley Tuccis screw-ball comedy The Impostors. Two out of work Depression-era actors, Maurice & Arthur (Platt & Tucci), stage many sc.... High Fidelity (2000) - Starring: John Cusack, Jack Black & Iben Hjejle Based on the 1996 Nick Hornby novel and set in Chicago (not London), High Fidelity is a brilliant gem of a flick that will have you laughing at the sad but sweet affairs of Rob (Cusack). Poor Ro.... My Dog Skip (2000) - Starring: Kevin Bacon, Diane Lane, Luke Wilson & Frankie Muniz This comedic drama is the story of a young boy and his dog. Willie Morris (Muniz) is a shy boy growing up in Yazoo, Mississippi in the 1940s. His only friends are his parents, gre.... Blast From The Past (1999) - Starring: Brendan Fraser & Alicia Silverstone You may be pleasantly surprised by this movie about a man who, due to the Cold War and the eccentricity of his scientist father, ends up living in a bomb shelter for 35 years. Brendan Fraser is Adam.... American Dreamer (1984) - This romantic comedy is one of my guilty pleasures. Its corny & goofy & silly and I just love it. JoBeth Williams is Cathy Palmer, a suburban housewife with a fondness for cheesy romantic thrillers. Her favorite is a series featuring the stylish an.... Hotel de Love (1996) - Starring: Aden Young, Saffron Burrows & Simon Bossell This largely unknown romantic comedy comes to us via Australia - a country commonly acknowledged as the foremost producer of quirky movies (Strictly Ballroom and Muriels Wedding are but .... Metroland (1997) - Starring: Christian Bale & Emily Watson Based on Julian Barnes novel, Metroland is the story of youthful escape from suburbia and the eventual return to it. Chris (Christian Bale) is a married, thirty-something advertising executive living on.... Gorky Park (1983) - Starring: William Hurt, Joanna Pacula & Lee Marvin Three faceless and fingerless bodies turn up in the dead of Winter in Moscows Gorky Park. Clearly a matter for the KGB, Police Inspector Renko (William Hurt) is perplexed when he is given the .... Butterfield 8 (1960) - Starring: Elizabeth Taylor, Laurence Harvey & Eddie Fisher Elizabeth Taylor won her first Best Actress Oscar for her role as Gloria Wondrous in this adaptation of John OHaras earlier novel. The story is one of a woman who is tortured by moral.... Cosi (1996) - Starring: Ben Mendelshon, Barry Otto, Toni Collette & Rachael Griffiths Yet another kooky comedic drama from Down Under. Lewis (Mendelshon) is a twenty-something slacker who cant seem to hold down a job. Lucy, his law student girlfriend (Grif.... Mansfield Park (1998) - Starring: Frances OConner, Jonny Lee Miller, Alessandro Nivola & Embeth Davidtz This has definitely got to be the loosest adaptation of a Jane Austen novel ever. I read Mansfield Park as a teenager and believe me I do not remember the book b.... Me, Myself, I (1999) - Starring: Rachel Griffiths, David Roberts & Sandy Winton Yet another what if film working on the premise of parallel lives. Pamela (love that name!) is a thirty something single living in Sydney. A successful newspaper reporter, Pamela (Grif.... Welcome to Sarajevo (1997) - Starring: Stephen Dillane, Woody Harrelson & Kerry Fox Welcome to Sarajevo has to be the most powerful movie Ive seen in a long time. Totally ignorant about most of the issues concerning the conflict in the former Yugoslavia, my eyes were .... Operation Petticoat (1959) - Starring: Cary Grant & Tony Curtis War is hell, especially when youre Gary Grant and the captain of the ill-fated Sea Tiger submarine. Built as a warship for World War II, the only action this sub sees is its own destruction. As Captain Mat.... M*A*S*H (1970) - Starring: Donald Sutherland, Elliot Gould & Tom Skerrit Before Alan Alda and the TV series, there was Robert Altman and the movie. This probably has to be one of the all time classic anti-war films ever made. Darkly comedic (yet clearly making.... Mumford (1999) - Starring: Loren Dean, Hope Davis, Jason Lee & Alfre Woodard Loren Dean plays Dr. Mumford, a psychologist newly arrived in a small town of the same name. The dispenser of good advice and common sense, Dr. Mumford soon becomes the most popular sh.... The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) - Starring: Steve McQueen & Faye Dunaway Poor Tommy Crown (McQueen), life as a handsome millionaire is so wearisome that he must resort to robbing a bank for excitement. And what a robbery it is - over 2.5 million dollars in small unmarked bills..... White Christmas (1954) - Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney & Vera-Ellen What is Christmas without a bit of campy nostalgia? Santa stuffed this old musical in my stocking a couple of years back and as far as Im concerned I cant get into the holiday sp.... Blackadders Christmas Carol (1991) - Starring: Rowan Atkinson, Tony Robinson, & Robbie Coltrane A rather unique approach to the classic Charles Dickens tale A Christmas Carol. Ebenezer Blackadder (Atkinson) is the nicest man in all of England. A modest shop merchant, Ebenezer r.... How The Grinch Stole Christmas (1965) - Narrated by: Boris Karloff Forget Jim Carrey - stick with the original Grinch. Who hasnt seen this 1960s made-for-TV animated Christmas special? Based on Dr. Seusss story about the dastardly Grinch who does everything within his power to des.... Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (1970) - Narrated by: Fred Astaire & Mickey Rooney Santa Claus Is Coming To Town is the story behind the man. It explains how Kris Kringle grew to become the jolly old soul who delivers toys to children every Christmas Eve. Granted, I think they stret.... The Ref (1994) - Starring: Denis Leary, Judy Davis & Kevin Spacey Who would have guessed that this comedic holiday flick comes to us from the shoot em up / blow em up team of Simpson & Bruckheimer? Its Christmas Eve and Lloyd and Caroline Chasseur (Spacey &.... Die Hard (1988) - Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman & Bonnie Bedelia The unsuspecting employees of the Nakatomi Corporation are in for a real treat this holiday - nothing like a bunch of Teutonic terrorists to liven up your offices Christmas party! Alan Rickm.... Life Of Brian (1979) - Starring: John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Jones & Terry Gilliam Ahh, theres nothing like a sacrilegious adaptation of the birth of Christ to get you into the spirit of Christmas. Initially banned in many places upon.... Father Goose (1964) - Starring: Cary Grant & Leslie Caron In this film Cary Grant gets to shack-up, literally, with Leslie Caron as they, and a gaggle of seven school girls, are marooned on a Pacific island during World War II. Yep, its Sound of Music meets Sou.... Irma la Douce (1963) - Starring: Jack Lemmon & Shirley MacLaine Originally a French play, Irma la Douce was brought to the screen by the great director William Wyler. A very light-hearted look at the profession of prostitution, it was highly criticized for its subje.... Rope (1948) - Starring: Jimmy Stewart, Farley Granger and John Dall Philip and Brandon (Granger & Dall) are Harvard undergrads who dress impeccably, live in a massive apartment, and throw lavish parties. They have also executed (pardon the pun) what they con.... From Russia With Love (1963) - Starring: Sean Connery, Lotte Lenya, Pedro Armendariz & Daniela Bianchi Exotic Locales: Venice & Istanbul For me, the second James Bond film starring Sean Connery exemplifies all that Ian Fleming imagined for his British Agent. Its the pic.... Thunderball (1965) - Starring: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger & Adolfo Celi Exotic Locales: Paris, The English Countryside & Nassau, Bahamas Ah, Thunderball. The fourth installment of the James Bond series wins my enthusiastic nomination simply due to the fact .... The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) - Starring: Roger Moore, Barbara Bach & Curt Jurgens Exotic Locales: Austrian Alps, Egypt & Sardinia Lets face it, in the late 1970s the Bond flicks got pretty cheesy not least of all for their weak plots and bad puns. Who can deny that ther.... The Advocate (1993) - Starring: Colin Firth, Ian Holm, Nicol Williamson & Donald Pleasence One of the more obscure films by Colin Firth (he of Pride and Prejudice fame), The Advocate tells the story of a 15th century Parisian lawyer Richard Courtois (Firth) who .... Mystic Pizza (1988) - Starring: Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts, Lili Taylor Before her big break in Pretty Woman, Julia Roberts appeared in a few smaller budget films. Mystic Pizza is a cute tale of three friends who are spending their last summer together working.... Tune in Tomorrow (1990) - Starring: Peter Falk, Barbara Hershey and Keanu Reeves Forget Speed and The Matrix, this is Keanu Reeves as youve never seen him before - sweet, romantic, and innocent. The time is 1951, the place New Orleans and young Keanu is Martin Load.... Dead Calm (1989) - Starring: Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman & Billy Zane With the Cruise/Kidman split making headlines this week, what better film to review than Nicoles breakthrough role? Hard to believe she was only 20 when she made this picture. A wimp at the .... Hanover Street (1979) - Starring: Harrison Ford, Lesley-Anne Down & Christopher Plummer Theres nothing like a man in uniform, especially when that man is a very young Harrison Ford. Before Witness or Indiana Jones (and too many blockbusters of the 80s and 90s t.... Target (1985) - Starring: Gene Hackman & Matt Dillon This little known Matt Dillon vehicle is a personal favourite of mine. The Lloyds are an average middle-class Texan family, dad Walter (Hackman) owns a lumberyard and son Chris (Dillon) is defying him by .... Shirley Valentine (1989) - Starring: Pauline Collins, Tom Conti & Joanna Lumley Who could ask for a better present on February 14th than Shirley Valentine? The tale of a lonely Liverpudlian housewife who runs away to Greece in search of herself, Shirley Valentine has.... Captives (1994) - Starring: Tim Roth & Julia Ormond A maximum security prison is not the first place one would believe conducive to falling in love, but prison is precisely where love finds Rachel Clifford (Julia Ormond). After separating from her husband, Rach.... Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down (1990) - Starring: Victoria Abril & Antonio Banderas Spanish with English Subtitles Nothing like a little bondage to get you in the mood for Valentines Day and who better than zany director Pedro Almodóvar to provide it for you? Ricki (Banderas.... Hard Days Night (1964) - Starring: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison & Ringo Starr Ahhhh, the film that started it all. Before MTV, before Friday Night Videos, before (dare I mention it?) CBCs Good Rockin Tonight there was a small British band called .... This is Spinal Tap (1984) - Starring: Michael McKean, Christopher Guest & Harry Shearer What can I say that hasnt already been said before about the ultimate in mockumentories? Directed by the great Rob Reiner, Spinal Tap is the tale of a fictitious British Heavy Met.... Still Crazy (1998) - Starring: Stephen Rea, Jimmy Nail, Billy Connelly & Juliet Aubrey Our heroes in this fanciful romp are Strange Fruit, a 70s glam rock band whose career ended literally when it was struck by lightning! Now in their late 40s, the Fruits (as t.... The Big Kahuna (1999) - Starring: Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito & Peter Facinelli I had heard so many bad things about this film that I was hesitant to see it but as it landed in my lap free of charge I figured Id give it a chance - and was surprised by my reaction. I.... Saturday Night, and Sunday Morning (1960) - Starring: Albert Finney, Shirley Ann Field & Rachel Roberts This is one depressing film - well written and acted, but depressing nonetheless. Albert Finney is Arthur, a stereotypical, working class, angry young man who is smart enough to know t.... The Cider House Rules (1999) - Starring: Tobey Maguire, Michael Caine & Charlize Theron This adaptation of John Irvings book of the same name touches on a lot of sensitive subject matters, incest and abortion being the biggest. But even with those heavy storylines, this fil.... Emma (1996) - Starring: Gwenyth Paltrow, Jeremy Northam, Toni Collette & Alan Cumming I am not a fan of Gwenyth Paltrow (especially since she won Best Actress for Shakespeare in Love), but I do like her in this Jane Austen adaptation. I can only describe t.... An Ideal Husband (1999) - Starring: Rupert Everett, Cate Blanchett, Jeremy Northam, Julianna Moore & Minnie Driver Theres nothing I love more than a good costume drama, unless of course its a costume comedy. And who better than the brilliant Oscar Wilde to provide one.... Wilde (1997) - Starring: Stephen Fry, Jennifer Ehle, Jude Law & Tom Wilkinson Theres no doubt that Oscar Wilde was a literary genius and theres no denying that Stephen Fry is a genius in portraying Irelands finest wit (the physical resemblance alone between.... The Castle (1997) - Starring: Michael Caton, Anne Tenney and Sophie Lee A mans home is his castle - or so believes Darryl Kerrigan (Caton) even though he and his bizarre family live right next door to the local airport. Yet another quirky Aussie picture, this i.... Breaker Morant (1979) - Starring: Edward Woodward, Brian Brown & Jack Thompson Shortly before the turn of the last century, there was a small conflict called the Boer War. Trying to protect their interests in South Africa, the British government sent thousands of t.... Sirens (1994) - Starring: Hugh Grant, Tara Fitzgerald & Sam Neill This is a rather risqué movie. Risqué in that its a story about a progressive Australian artist named Norman Lindsay (Neill) and one of his controversial paintings called The Crucified Venus.... A Town Like Alice (1980) - Starring: Helen Morse, Bryan Brown & Gordon Jackson Epic is the only way to describe this six hour Masterpiece Theatre production of Nevil Shutes book. Set during the Japanese occupation of Malaya in World War II, Alice is the story of two.... The Efficiency Expert (1991) - Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Ben Mendelson & Alwyn Kurts Anthony Hopkins is Wallace, an unfeeling management consultant who has been hired by a family run moccasin factory to streamline its production. Knowing that his company needs help, the kin.... Children of the Revolution (1996) - Starring: Judy Davis, Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush & Richard Roxburgh Like the Americans before her, Australia suffered from the fear (and ignorance) of Communist Russia in the 1950s. Even if you know nothing about the subject, youll have no trou.... Chances Are (1989) - Starring: Cybil Shepherd, Robert Downey Jr. & Ryan ONeal Looking suspiciously like a revamped Heaven Can Wait, Chances Are is yet another Hollywood film about reincarnation. The story is overly simplistic (and a tad sappy) but whats so .... Home For The Holidays (1995) - Starring: Holly Hunter, Robert Downey Jr., & Anne Bancroft As the saying goes: You can choose your friends, but God picks your relatives. Like many of us , Claudia Larson (Hunter) has a love/hate relationship with her family. And like mo.... Restoration (1995) - Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Sam Neill, & Meg Ryan Based on the novel by British author Rose Tremain, Restoration is the tale of Robert Merivel (Downey Jr.) a young physician in 17th century London who is called to the palace of King Charle.... My Favorite Year (1982) - Starring: Peter OToole, Mark Linn-Baker & Jessica Harper Directed by the talented Richard Benjamin, My Favorite Year is an amusing tale set in the world of 1950s television. Benjy Stone (Linn-Baker) is a junior writer on The King Kaiser .... Network (1976) - Starring: Faye Dunaway, William Holden & Peter Finch In todays world of Shock TV, Tell All National Enquirer headlines, and the widespread de-sensitizing of the majority of the North American viewing public, its interesting to watch thi....
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