I think I’ll do a Roger Ebert and say two thumbs up for one film and one thumb down for the other. One is a visual feast and a must see on the big screen, while the other, wait for the library to buy the DVD.

From the opening montage of Paris sights filmed by Darius Khondji, set to a wonderful score of jazz classics, Midnight in Paris gets you at bonjour. This romantic comedy examines two young people who are engaged to be married and the different experiences in Paris that change their lives. The film tackles with reverence the thought that life would be different and better if lived in a different time and place. Scenes contrast present day Paris with the dream of a young writer who travels back in time to the sizzling Paris of the 1920s to sip absinthe with Hemingway, dine with Picasso at La Rotonde. and enjoy the salon life of Gertrude Stein. Imagine the conversation! Wouldn’t we all love to live this exact fantasy, living in Paris when it was the center of the artistic universe?

Owen Wilson plays Woody Allen’s alter ego with perfectly halting speak. He plays the believable naive young man who is a highly successful hack Hollywood screenwriter and still young enough to feel pangs over not having seriously tested himself as a novelist. He idealizes the past while his fiancée cares only for the present and their new life in California. Rachel McAdams, Kurt Fuller and Mimi Kennedy and a cast of cameo performances by Adrien Brody as Dali, Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein, Marion Cotillard as Adriana, Tom Hiddleston as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Corey Stoll as Hemingway, Marcial Di Fonzo Bo as Picasso, and David Lowe as T.S. Eliot fill out this marvelous cast.

Even if you don’t like Woody, see this film. It’s filed with great footage and cleaver lines. It’s his homage to a beautiful city. After 41 films, I think he made his best film to date.

Bridemaids, on the other hand, received high marks form Entertainment Weekly and Rotten Tomatoes and I looked forward to seeing it. But in my opinion, it was just okay. As in the Mother Goose rhyme about the girl with the curl in the middle of her forehead, when it’s good it’s very, very good, but when it’s bad, it’s horrid. There are many funny scenes and Kristen Wiig, who starred in and wrote the script, is great at physical comedy. Producerd by Judd Apatow of Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin fame, you know where this is going.

Kristen Wiig plays Annie, a woman whose life is spiraling out of control just in time for her best friend's wedding festivities. The bride-to-be Lillian, played by Maya Rudolph, asks Annie to be her Maid of Honor and surrounds herself with a highly amusing diverse set of bridesmaids. When one of the bridesmaids played by Ellie Kemper as the superrich friend, takes charge and overdoes the arrangements, Annie reacts and tries to outdo the overdoer. Though lovelorn and broke, Annie bluffs her way through the expensive and bizarre rituals.

There are some great actors and great moments. Look for Chris O’Dowd, a skilled Irish comedian and actor who plays Office Nathan Rhodes. He’s a new kind of leading man, adorable and honest but not particularly handsome, not a Hollywood Adonis. We’ve seen him before in Dinner For Schmuck, Gulliver's Travels and Rumpole of the Bailey.

I adored seeing Jill Clayburgh, a long-time favorite of mine, playing Annie’s hippie-like mother. Most remembered for her Oscar-nominated role in the 1978 film "An Unmarried Woman," Clayburgh was known for portraying strong and confident women with character flaws, an a typical Hollywood image at the time. She died at the age of 66 on November 5, 2010 after battling lymphocytic leukemia for more than 21 years. Some of her best knownfilmswere: Starting Over, I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can. Portnoy's Complaint, Running With Scissors,Love and Other

DVD's JUNE list is out. Place your reserves today.


The Adjustment Bureau Matt Damon, Emily Blunt. Do we control our destiny, or do unseen forces manipulate us? Matt Damon stars in this thriller as a man who glimpses the future Fate has planned for him and realizes he wants something else.

Arthur Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud. Arthur Bach is very, very rich, and stands to lose his inheritance if he doesn't marry the most boring blonde on Long Island within thirty days. Unfortunately, Arthur has just discovered the girl of his dreams.

The Dilemma Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder. Ronny's world is turned upside down when he inadvertently sees something he should not.

Downton Abbey: Masterpiece Classic Hugh Bonneville, Joanne Froggatt, Maggie Smith. Set in an Edwardian country house in 1912, Downton Abbey portrays the lives of Lord Grantham and the rest of the Crawley family, as well as the servants who work for them.

The Green Hornet Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz. After the death of his father, a rich playboy becomes the crime-fighting hero known as the Green Hornet.

Letters to God Ralph Waite, Robyn Lively, Tanner Maguire. Eight-year-old Tyler is armed with strong faith and courage as he faces a battle against cancer. His prayers take the form of letters he sends to his ultimate pen pal, God.

Mechanic Jason Statham, Tony Goldwyn, Donald Sutherland, Ben Foster. Arthur Bishop is an assassin with a unique talent for cleanly eliminating targets. It's a job that requires professional perfection and he is the best in the business.

Mao’s Last Dance Joan Chen, Kyle Maclachlan, Bruce Greenwood. Based on an inspiring true story, the film recreates the fascinating and epic tale of Li Cunxin, a peasant boy from rural China who beats impossible odds to become a world-renowned ballet dancer.

Mildred Pierce Joan Crawford Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, Zachary Scott, Ann Blyth, Eve Arden, Bruce Bennett. Based on the novel by James M. Cain. Mildred Pierce is a woman who will do anything to satisfy the demands of her spoiled daughter Veda, including divorce, opening her own business, and possibly murder.

No Strings Attached Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher. Emma and Adam are life-long friends who almost ruin everything by having sex one morning. To protect their friendship, they make a pact to keep their relationship strictly 'no strings attached.' The question becomes: who's going to fall first? And can their friendship survive?

The Rite Anthony Hopkins, Colin O'Donoghue. Inspired by true events, this supernatural thriller follows a seminary student sent to study exorcism at the Vatican. Apprentice d with legendary Father Lucas, the young seminarian glimpses a phenomenon science can't explain or control.

A Somewhat Gentle Man Stellan Skarsgård, Jorunn Kjellsby, Bjørn Floberg. Ulrik is a somewhat gentle man, as far as gangsters go. Reluctantly back on the streets following a stint in prison, Ulrik's boss greets him with open arms and a plan to settle an old score. With a demented sense of professional pride, Ulrik's boss sets in motion a plan to right the wrong done to his star employee. The problem is, Ulrik would rather go about his own business, however mundane, than get involved with his ragtag colleagues again.

Somewhere Elle Fanning, Stephen Dorff. A witty, moving and empathetic look into the orbit of actor Johnny Marco, who lives at the legendary Chateau Marmont Hotel in Hollywood where he enjoys life to the fullest. This all changes when his 11-year-old daughter Cleo arrives unexpectedly.

The Way Back Ed Harris, Mark Strong, Saoirse Ronan, Colin Farrell, Jim Sturgess. Inspired by an incredible true story beginning in 1940 when seven prisoners attempt the impossible: escape from a brutal Siberian gulag. Thus begins a treacherous 4,500-mile trek to freedom across the world's most merciless landscapes.

The Wildest Dream Using astonishing visuals to tell the story of George Mallory, the first man to attempt to reach the summit of Mount Everest, and Conrad Anker, the mountaineer who found Mallory’s frozen remains 75 years later. Featured voices: Natasha Richardson, Ralph Fiennes, Liam Neeson.

Watch a movie with your Mom on Mother's Day. Here are a few suggestions.

Postcards from the Edge Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Quaid, Rob Reiner. Suzanne Vale is a wise-cracking, vulnerable actress determined to jump start her failing career. Her mother, an aging movie star, is the definitive portrait of a Hollywood's gutsy glamour queen, offers her daughter only razor sharp humor and searing honesty. Based on the novel by Carrie Fisher about her life in the Hollywood fast lane.


Erin Brockovich Julia Roberts, Albert Finney. A feisty young mother convinces an attorney to hire her and promptly stumbles upon a momumental law case against a giant corporation.

Mrs. Miniver Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon . A story of an average English middle-class family during the summer of 1939. The sun shone down on a happy people, who worked and played, reared their children and tended their gardens in that happy, easy-going England that would soon enter World War II. In the face of regular German bombings Mrs. Miniver's mission is to stay alive, and keep her family together with hope, strength, and dignity.

Steel Magnolias Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, Shirley MacLaine. A young diabetic's decision to have a baby may cost her life. This choice leaves her own mother torn between love and anger, while her loyal friends support her and try to deal with their own feelings.

Divine Sisters of the YaYa Sisterhood Sandra Bullock, Ellen Burstyn, Maggie Smith, Ashley Judd. Like mother, like daughter. Neither a hard-as-nails New York playwright nor her flaky Louisiana mother will take the necessary steps to mend their long-time rift and it’s up to Sisterhood who stage an outlandish "intervention" to bring them back together again.

A League of Their Own Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, Madonna, Rosie O'Donnell. A washed-up ballplayer is hired to coach in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League while the male pros are at war in 1943, and finds himself drawn back into the game by the heart and heroics of his team.

Where the Heart Is Natalie Portman, Ashley Judd, Stockard Channing, Joan Cusack. The story of a down-on-her-luck Southern teen who, after gaining 15 minutes of fame for giving birth to "The Wal-Mart Baby," begins to put her life together with the help of the kind, quirky strangers who become her surrogate family.

Throw Momma from the Train Danny Devito, Billy Crystal, Kim Greist, Anne Ramsey, Kate Mulgrew. A student tries to convince his writing professor to exchange murders - he'll murder his teacher's wife, and the prof will murder his student's mom. Based on the Hitchcock film “Strangers on a Train.”

Little Women Katharine Hepburn, Joan Bennett. Humorous and sentimental fortunes of the four March sisters are chronicled as they grew into young ladies during the harsh times of the Civil war.

The Goodbye Girl Richard Dreyfuss, Marsha Mason. When a woman's ex-husband sublets her apartment right out from under her and she refuses to move, the new tenant, a Chicago actor, moves in, touching off a comic, hate-love relationship.

Mother Anne Reid, Daniel Craig. A newly widowed woman moves to London to be near her family. She soon feels like she is just an invisible old lady until a young man comes into her life.

DVD's May 2011

All Good Things Ryan Gosling, Kirsten Dunst, Frank Langella. A love story and a murder mystery set against the backdrop of a New York real estate dynasty in the 1980s. Based on a real life story.

Animal Kingdom Ben Mendelsohn, Guy Pearce, James Frecheville. Seventeen year-old J is in the process of becoming initiated into a gang of armed robbers, known as the Cody brothers. J quickly comes to believe that he is a player in this world, but soon discovers that the entire situation is far larger and more menacing than he could ever imagine.

Black Swan Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Winona Ryder. Nina, a stunningly talented but dangerously unstable ballerina is on the verge of stardom. Pushed to the breaking point by her driven artistic director and the threat posed by a seductive rival dancer, Nina's tenuous grip on reality starts to slip away...plunging her into a waking nightmare.

Country Strong Leighton Meester, Tim Mcgraw, Gwyneth Paltrow, Garrett Hedlund. Soon after a rising young singer-songwriter gets involved with a fallen, emotionally unstable country star, the pair embarks on a career resurrection tour steered by her husband/manager .

Fair Game Naomi Watts, Sean Penn, Sam Shepard. Based on the autobiography of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame, whose covert identity was exposed when her husband, retired Ambassador Joe Wilson, wrote a newspaper article challenging the basis for the claim that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

The Fighter Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo. Micky Ward is a struggling boxer long overshadowed by his older brother and trainer, Dicky, a local legend battling his own demons. Their explosive relationship threatens to take them both down.

Four Lions Riz Ahmed, Arsher Ali, Nigel Lindsay. Follow five clueless buffoons as they plan to strike a blow on their own turf, showing that while terrorism is supposed to be about ideology, it can also be about idiots.

Gasland Documentary. Filmmaker Josh Fox travels the United States along the Marcellus Shale formation to uncover the negative environmental and health effects of fracture drilling as a means of extracting natural gas.

The Green Hornet Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz. After the death of his father, a rich playboy becomes the crime-fighting hero known as the Green Hornet.

Holy Rollers Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Bartha, Ari Graynor. Sam Gold reluctantly studies to become a rabbi to please his family. His neighbor senses Sam's discontent and propositions him to transport 'medicine' for an Israeli dealer. Exposed to the exciting worlds of Manhattan and Amsterdam nightlife, Sam spirals deeper into that lifestyle. Caught in a double life, he must make a decision that could bring the entire operation crashing down.

How Do You Know Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Paul Rudd, Jack Nicholson. A professional softball player discovers she is in the middle of a love triangle after she falls for two different men and wonders when it comes to love, how do you know?

The King’s Speech Colin Firth, Helena Bonham Carter, Geoffrey Rush. The story of King George VI of Britain, his impromptu ascension to the throne, and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch become worthy of it.

Little Fockers Ben Stiller, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Teri Polo, Owen Wilson, Blythe Danner, Barbra Streisand, Jessica Alba. Greg Focker has finally begun to earn the respect of his ex-CIA father-in-law, Jack Byrnes, but one important test still lies ahead: will Greg prove that he has what it takes to be the family's next 'Godfocker', or will the circle of trust be broken for good?

Made in Dagenham Andrea Riseborough, Jaime Winstone, Lorraine Stanley, Sally Hawkins. In 1968, the female workers at the Ford Dagenham car plant, walked out in protest against sexual discrimination. Their actions played a major role in the battle for equal pay, both nationally and internationally.

Megamind Voices: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, David Cross, Tina Fey, Will Ferrell. Megamind has tried to conquer Metro City in every imaginable way. But each attempt is a colossal failure thanks to the caped superhero known as 'Metro Man, ' until …..

Rabbit Hole Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart Becca and Howie Corbett are returning to their everyday existence in the wake of a shocking, sudden loss. The journey is an intimate glimpse into two people learning to re-engage with each other and a world that has been tilted off its axis.

A Summer in Genoa Colin Firth, Catherine Keener. A man moves his two daughters to Italy after their mother dies in a car accident.

The Tourist Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie. Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie. During an impromptu trip to Europe to mend a broken heart, Frank unexpectedly finds himself in a flirtatious encounter with Elise, an extraordinary woman who deliberately crosses his path.



  Water for Elephants is a big screen movie that keeped true to the book by Sara Gruen.  I loved the book and rushed out to see the movie as soon it was released.  I was not disappointed.  With my training in the fine arts, I tend to examine the sets, the staging and the acting before examining the script.   The sets for the film were wonderful.  Who doesn’t love a circus? The romance of the traveling circus draws us in.  We love the trains that transport them to cities and we love the parades that lead us to the circus grounds.  Under Francis Lawrence's sleek direction and Richard LaGravenese script, the love story between Jacob, the  circus vet, and Marlena, the circus owner’s wife, emerges.   Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson, Christoph Waltz, of Inglourious Basterds fame, offer the perfect triangle to base the story.  At first, I was a bit iffy about the casting but they were perfect, particularly Christoph Waltz, who can play sadistic and charming at the drop of a hat.  You enjoy watching him because you know something bad is just around the corner.  With all the Twilight buzz surrounding him, I didn’t expect Pattinson to be able to act but he can and Witherspoon, an Oscar winning actress, did not over power the cast.  Hal Holbrook does a nice job, too, framing the story as he tells the tale of the ill-fated Benzini circus to a modern circus worker.  The only thing missing for me was the lack of grittiness and hopeless of the Depression era, the desperate way circus people lived in order to have a job, roof over their heads and food in their stomachs.  The roustabouts suffered the most. If the owner couldn’t make money at each stop, he would order several thrown from the train in a practice called “red lighting.”  Some would survive the fall but most would not.  The Depression was a desperate time!  Forget bout the symbolism behind water and train tracks.  Just sit back and enjoy as the story unfolds.



Win Win is a winner and Paul Giamatti is a master. Win Win, directed by Tom McCarthy of The Station Agent and The Visitor fame, does not hurry along. Instead you are given time to get to know the characters. Giamatti plays Mike Flaherty, an average man who finds himself struggling economically with a failing legal practice. Trying to keep his head about water, he takes on the difficult task of coaching the local high school wrestling team. He is trying his best, but neither the team nor his finances are getting better. Unethically, he takes on the guardianship of an elderly, but rich client, Leo, in order to receive a monthly stipend. Without family to care for Leo, Giamatti sells this idea to the judge. Enters Kyle, Leo’s grandson, and everything changes. Alex Schaffer as Kyle is new to acting but there is great promise. He exudes Eminem broodiness. An actual high-school wrestling champ in real life, he is convincing as a disillusioned and troubled 16 year old running away for his abusive mother. Everyone loves a winner and everyone loves Kyle once they know what he can do. The ensemble cast of Amy Ryan, Jeffrey Tambor, and Bobby Carnavale lend spunk, empathy and humour to the film.

In the world of Hollywood glitz and glamour, how can a short, double chinned, pudgy man with slopping shoulders be so appealing? Giamatti has talent and skill to make you love him.

This movie could be about how loss makes you do things you cannot defend and ultimately regret, but to me it was just about average people, living average lives trying to do the best they can. Yes, you can find fault with this film, but somehow it just draws you in and you stay there. I found myself smiling all the way to the car. See it or borrow it from the library when it’s on DVD.

WHAT A MESSAGE! The only good things about Limitless: 1. it was not limitless, (running time 1h.45m), and 2. Bradley Cooper’s electric blue eyes. In this sci-fi thriller, Cooper plays a naive writer living on the fringe in NYC dealing with sever writer's block. He falls for the pitch that taking a mind expanding drug will solve all his problems. It did! But created many more. Over more than a year you see Eddie Morra move from the grimy streets of Chinatown, to the slick money-hungry world of high finance, to the halls of the Senate with the potential of becoming a presidential candidate. The film, directed by Neil Burger, based on a novel by Alan Glynn, uses every possible trick including Russian gangsters, corporate mergers and moguls, murder, lost time, addiction and withdrawal along with some interesting visual effects to keep the audience trapped. Robert DeNiro turns in a cool performance as Carl Van Loon and has the best dialogue and message in the entire film. Reviewers have given it a B+ but I say skip it. If you must see it, borrow it from the library and save your money for a good film like Win Win.