<p>Another vote for “Love Actually” here, and I’ll also add “The Family Stone” as a touching seasonal movie. One of our all recent favorites for laughs together is
“Something’s Gotta Give” with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson.</p>
<p>dstark: My H is just as you describe only he never bothered to hide it!</p>
<p>S had as his desktop a Van Gogh picture. I don’t know how they did it, but is first night in college the buys on his hall wormed out of him that he liked Keira and changed the desktop to a very elegant picture of her.</p>
<p>Today I met with a couple of friends for “ladies lunch” and a movie. We saw “the devil knows you’re dead.” Since it was the recommendation of someone’s 70+ year old mom, we thought we were in for a chick flick - NOT! Has anyone here seen the opening scene?? YIKES!! Great movie, though. I think H will love it.</p>
<p>Mythmom, Well, then we would probably get along, except for the fact that you two live 4,000 miles away and you both don’t like The Notebook. (I’m kidding).</p>
<p>I like this scene too from the Notebook. Not nearly as much as the scenes in Love Actually though.</p>
<p>It’s a little dark. </p>
<p>[YouTube</a> - Why didn’t you write me?](<a href=“http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNKrCuPGtzY]YouTube”>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNKrCuPGtzY)</p>
<p>How could anybody not like Keira? :)</p>
<p>Have you two seen Waitress yet?</p>
<p>Keri Russell is my favorite actress. I hope she gets nominated for an Academy Award for this picture.</p>
<p>What should my wife and I and a couple of friends see this weekend at the movie theaters?</p>
<p>My wife and I saw “Dan in Real Life” a couple of weeks ago and we both thoroughly enjoyed it! Very funny, and lots of warm and fuzzy too. Plenty of family dynamics to relate to.</p>
<p>If you can find Lars and the Real Girl see that. Although the trailers make it look like a gag movie about a guy who dates a blow up doll, it is anything but that. It’s a movie about a young man who is so emotionally unexpressive that the doll is the beginning of his movement away from emotional isolation. It’s funny and poignant. Everyone who has seen it has loved it. I required my class studying Psychoanalysis and Literature to see and, and they loved it.</p>
<p>I agree with NJ res that Dan In Real Life is sweet and fun but not too deep. That’s okay. I enjoyed it, but it didn’t rock my world except for the brilliant acting of Juliette Binoche.</p>
<p>some old favorites:</p>
<p>Princess Bride (romance, action, comedy, all wrapped up in a fun package, but nothing too intense)</p>
<p>Time Bandits (no romance, but it’s fun)</p>
<p>Excalibur (King Arthur story, with romance, magic, and adventure)</p>
<p>Shakespeare in Love (romance and adventure, not to mention class and comedy)</p>
<p>Dstark:</p>
<p>When we have time (alas, not this weekend) H and I are going to see the Bob Dylan biopic “I’m not there.” We’re also looking forward to seeing Atonement, as both of us loved the book.</p>
<p>marite: We tried to see Dylan over Thanksgiving weekend, but it didn’t work out; S has forbidden us to see it without him.</p>
<p>Read two or three of his other books, and saw movie of Enduring Love with Daniel Craig.</p>
<p>I did not care so much for the other books. He did not deserve the Booker Prize for Amsterdam, I thought; and he should have gotten it for Atonement.</p>
<p>Back to movies: We loved The Lives of Others; I did not care as much for Pan’s Labyrinth. At times, we thought we needed subtitles for Gone Baby Gone, living across the river as we do. Hubby, who has watched Infernal Affairs, says it’s better than the Departed. At least, it does not have Nicholson caricaturing himself. </p>
<p>By and large, though, if one wants movies that appeal to both men and women, it seems to me older movies fit the bill more easily. They weren’t made for as segmented a market as movies are today.</p>
<p>H has just borrowed Moonstruck.</p>
<p>marite: I show my Intro to Lit classes Moonstruck as an intro to Midsummer Night’s Dream with the segue moon imagery. Seems to work.</p>
<p>How about Kenneth Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing? Best bard IMO.a</p>
<p>And a great movie: Songcatcher. Fabulous Appalachian music movie; the music feels authentic to the mountains. Great sexy, feminist story written and directed by a woman. H really likes it too. A scruffy Aiden Quinn is masculine.</p>
<p>H and I liked Songcatcher. Ss loved O Brother Were Art Thou. Niece went to see the latter (in Paris) because of George Clooney but did not appreciate the music; not many French people did. Too bad.</p>
<p>I’m very bad at remembering the story-line of a movie, but one of several that stuck to my mind, is “East-West”. It’s about a family (Russian husband with a French wife) that returned to Russia after WWII, during the Stalin era. It’s an old one which I watched on the airplane a couple of years ago. I have no idea how authentic it is since I know nothing about the circumstances of Stalinist Russia, but it is a well-made movie.</p>
<p>These are all so great. I feel like I have a wealth of great movies to chose from now, instead of standing in the video store quizzing the clerk behind the counter (‘romantic and kind of intelligent – with an uplifting ending??’)</p>
<p>I liked Shakespeare in Love (though hub didn’t see that w/me). I’ll chec out Much Ado (son is doing MacBeth in school–would like him to see a good Shakespeare).</p>
<p>dstark–thanks for the insights! Funny how we look at those ‘Love, Actually’ scenes – you (& other guys, likely!) emphasize the beautiful girl – the women (me, anyway) are touched by the guy’s passion for her (& his intelligence in hiding it — at which he doesn’t succeed). That’s a perfect type scene–both can enjoy for different reasons (although I’m not such a fan of hub appreciating beautiful actresses, lol!!).</p>
<p>Ditto on guys getting more emotional when a bit older. 
My dad tears up at commercials now. It’s okay. :-)</p>
<p>Rented “Evan Almighty” last night – saw it w/my hub & 6 yo daughter. We loved it! So funny & wholesome! God forces uptight congressman to build an ark in his upscale subdivision. (note: hub did sniff suspiciously a few times during some father/son scenes…!).</p>
<p>Hubby and I are watching The Big Picture, Christopher Guest’s directing debut. It’s gotten mixed reviews, but I’m enjoying it so far.</p>
<p>“dstark–thanks for the insights! Funny how we look at those ‘Love, Actually’ scenes – you (& other guys, likely!) emphasize the beautiful girl – the women (me, anyway) are touched by the guy’s passion for her (& his intelligence in hiding it — at which he doesn’t succeed).”</p>
<p>“the women (me, anyway) are touched by the guy’s passion for her (& his intelligence in hiding it — at which he doesn’t succeed).”</p>
<p>Jolynne, remember, I said I could obviously relate on some level. That’s the level. ;)</p>
<p>As far as fathers and sons go, I know we are talking about movies, but does your husband watch the tv show, “Lost”? Great show, especially first season, and father and son issues are paramount to the story.</p>
<p>Marite, my wife and I along with two other couples saw the Bob Dylan movie yesterday.</p>
<p>I can see huge Bob Dylan fans liking this movie. Otherwise, the movie was too long and as bizarre as the subject. The two other couples hated it. My wife and I thought it was ok. It was an interesting try, but the movie doesn’t really work. It’s disjointed for lack of a better word. </p>
<p>Most of the actors playing Bob Dylan were not very good. Cate Blanchett was amazing. I was wondering why they had a woman playing Bob Dylan and after seeing the movie, it was clear, because she was the best actor for the job.
She was so much better than anybody else in the movie. Her acting abilities are so much higher than the male actors, it’s as if she is in a different profession.</p>
<p>Dstark:Thanks for the review. We are Dylan fans and bought the DVD of the documentary that was shown a year or so ago. I’d read about Cate Blanchett’s performance. Maybe we’ll go for the music and for her.</p>
<p>Then you will like it. The music is great as you know.</p>
<p>Hero.</p>
<p>Excellent movie right there.</p>