The World's Fastest Indian, 2005

Director: Roger Donaldson

Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Aaron Murphey

Burt Munro (Hopkins) has been restoring his 1920's Indian motorcycle, in order to race it during Speed Week in 1967 at the salt flats in Utah. It's the story of his journey from Inver Cargill, New Zealand, to the salt flats.

It's an absolutely wonderful film, and I don't want to give anything away! Watch it! I actually cheered when he passed though motorcyclists in the first race in the beginning. It had only been 20 minutes, but his character is so lovable, I couldn't help it.

Her Alibi, 1989

Director: Bruce Beresford (Driving Miss Daisy, Double Jeopardy)

Stars: Tom Selleck, Paulina Porizkova, William Daniels,

I adore Tom Selleck because of Three Men and a Little Lady, so when I found this movie for $3 on Black Friday, I thought I would take a chance. And it's all right. Definitely cute enough for me to recommend to watch at least once, for Tom Selleck fans.

Phil (Selleck) is a mystery writer with writer's block, whose agent (Daniels-- probably best-known as Mr. Feeny from Boy Meets World, or to an earlier generation as the voice of K.I.T.T., the talking 1982 Pontiac Trans Am in Knight Rider) tries to get him to start writing again.

Phil goes to court, where he apparently sits in on cases to get ideas for writing (which is a great idea!), and that's where he see Nina (Poriskova), a Romanian beauty accused of murder. On a whim, he decides to be her alibi.

In this little constructed alibi, they are having an affair, so she must come to live with him for a while, which she does, though only because there are people trying to kill her. Phil, sort of a wimpy writer who lives vicariously through his recurring character Peter Swift, now writes about his experiences with Nina, adjusting things to make them more exciting for the book, which is a very cute touch- and all the while he wonders if she is really a killer.

It's definitely cute enough to watch at least once. I liked how Tom Selleck didn't play Magnum. He played a wimp, so afraid of the woman he was providing with an alibi that he had to move a dresser in front of his door at night so she wouldn't come in to kill him.

Gaslight, 1944

Director: George Cukor (My Fair Lady, The Philadelphia Story, Adam's Rib)

Stars: Charles Boyer, Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotten, Angela Lansbury

When her aunt is murdered in London in the apartment they share, young Paula (Bergman) moves to Italy, and lives there for many years before she meets Gregory (Boyer) who sweeps her off her feet. After the wedding, he wants to move to London, and she finally feels ready after all these years to face the apartment, which was left to her, and all the feelings that go with the unsolved murder that happened there. As long as her husband is with her, how can she not be safe?

But in that house, she starts to hear things when her husband is gone for the night at work. And the gaslight in her room always goes down a little as if someone has turned on the gas in another part of the house, but no one has. She finds a letter addressed to her aunt, but later her husband tells her she had only imagined finding it. Is she losing her mind?

I thought it was excellent! I didn't know beforehand that Joseph Cotten was in it, and I am a fan, so that was a nice surprise. And then the rude chambermaid also surprised me: unmistakably Angela Lansbury! She's great!

The scene at the end that Paula shares with her husband is probably my favorite. Chilling!

Black Friday Movies!

Every Black Friday, and the week leading up to it, I always pay attention to the movie sales around town. Target, Walmart, and Big Lots, especially.

I love Target's deals. In the past I have been able to get seasons of my favorite tv shows for $12! Now that is a great price! Usually the price is above $30, and here I get it for $12!

Plus, some movie deals are absolutely brilliant: last year I bought "17 Again" (shut up- I LOVE LOVE LOVE Zac Efron) for $1.99.

This year, here's my list of deals:

Monday:

Target: I found "It Happened to Jane" for $4.99! I love this movie, and reviewed it a couple months ago. It is completely worth owning, and I was very happy to get it for such a great price.

Big Lots: "Ocean's Eleven" for $5! YAY!! See my review of this one a few months ago to see just how excited about this deal I really am!!!!!!!!!!

Black Friday:

Target: "Night at the Museum: Battle at the Smithsonian" for only $3.99! I really like these movies, and this one is a gift. I also found "The Princess Bride" for $3.99, and though I own it already, I bought it because mine has a scratch and I miss some of it every time I watch. And this is a better deal than my other deal last year!

Big Lots: "Gene Kelly: Anatomy of a Dancer" for $3. Shut up, I am a fan. Probably my biggest celebrity crush of all time- that's Gene Kelly. I know he's dead, but I still dream about him sweeping me off my feet, sometimes....

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" for $1.88. For it being such a classic, I think that was probably the best deal of the day! Or maybe not, since people are not watching classics anymore, it seems.

"Her Alibi" for $3. Okay, I did something I have NEVER done before. I bought a movie I have never seen before. I didn't take that much of a risk, so it's fine if I hate it. It's starring Tom Selleck and some girl I've never heard of, and I have a crush on Tom Selleck, so I hope I like it.

Time to knit Christmas presents and watch movies. :)

Twelve Angry Men, 1957

Director: Sidney Lumet

Stars" Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Jack Klugman

The story is simple. It starts in a courtroom, where the trial has just ended, and the judge tells the jury to carefully consider the case, and that whatever they decide, it must be unanimous.

So the twelve jurors adjourn to a room where the rest of the movie takes place. The entire movie is just the 12 men discussing the case and arguing. In the beginning on Juror #8 (Fonda) believes that the young boy on trial could be innocent of his father's murder. He proceeds to convince the rest of the guys.

I really liked it! You would think it might be boring because of how little action there is, but I thought it was fantastic!

Picnic, 1955

Director: Joshua Logan

Stars: William Holden, Kim Novak

I felt like this was a little like "The Long Hot Summer", except not as good. Holden is a drifter who comes into town, and everyone is smitten with him. And then they all go on a picnic.

And it's pretty dramatic for looking like a happy-ish movie in the beginning. My advice is to watch "The Long Hot Summer instead! It had Paul Newman! Although, I admit, William Holden did look great with his shirt off.

The Fugitive, 1993

Director: Andrew Davis

Stars: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward

Dr. Richard Kimble (Ford) comes home to find his wife (Ward) murdered, and fights off an intruder in his house. But no one believes him about the intruder and he gets sent to prison for her murder.

While being transferred to another prison, another prisoner tries to escape, causing the bus to go off the road and onto a train track, where it gets hit by a train. (What are the chances?) Anyway, the Federal Marshals arrive (including Jones) and the manhunt begins. They are to search every "warehouse, farmhouse, hen house, doghouse, and outhouse" until their fugitive is found!

But Kimble puzzles them all by heading right back into Chicago, rather than escaping, and investigating his wife's murder himself, since no one else believes him.

I am weird about this movie. It's not like I love it, I just can never look away from it. I think yesterday was the first time I had ever watched it from the beginning. Usually I come across accidentally on tv, and then I just have to watch it!

The Accidental Husband, 2008

Director: Griffin Dunne

Stars: Uma Thurman, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Colin Firth, Sam Shepard

Dr. Emily Lloyd (Thurman) is a radio talk show host, and her specialty is love and relationships. When she gives advice to a young woman about her upcoming wedding, the woman ends up calling it off, which changes her fiance, Patrick's (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), life forever. Heartbroken, Patrick swears that he will have revenge on Lloyd, and soon gets his chance, when his young hacker friend hacks into public records. They change Emily's marital status, so suddenly it appears that she is married to Patrick.

Emily only becomes aware of this when she applies for a marriage license with her fiance Richard (Firth). Horrified, she sets off to meet this stranger who is apparently her husband. What follows is a mix of mistaken identity and situations where it looks like Patrick really is Emily's husband.

I think I would have liked it better if it hadn't been Uma Thurman. I don't like her. The only scene I really liked her in was the very last one, in which she is pregnant. Of course, I won't tell you who the father is so I didn't spoil it too much. Oh, whatever, you know who she ends up with anyway.

Speaking of that, holy cow, Jeffrey Dean Morgan has this ruggedly handsome--- something-ness that makes me swoon.

Cars 2, 2011

Director: John Lasseter, Brad Lewis

Stars: Owen Wilson, Larry the Cable Guy, Michael Caine, Eddie Izzard, Bruce Campbell

I loved Cars so much! It was basically the story of Doc Hollywood (starring Michael J. Fox-- there's another movie I need to review) except with cars instead of people- and with an absolutely wonderful soundtrack! That soundtrack was half the charm, I swear.

Cars 2 is about the friendship between Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) and Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson). When they all head to Asia and Europe for the World Grand Prix, Mater accidentally stumbles into an international espionage mission, involving the new fuel all the racers are using, which was created by Sir Miles Axelrod (Eddie Izzard), and a plot to destroy Lightning McQueen!

In this one, I was more interested and amused in recognizing and enjoying the voices of the actors. I had no idea that Michael Caine voiced the main spy car (until I heard him utter one word, of course); and when I heard a few insults coming from one of the good spies while he was basically being tortured, I instantly recognized Bruce Campbell! But the best moment was when I realized that Eddie Izzard was the voice of Sir Axelrod! I just love that.

Don't get me wrong- it was totally entertaining!

Back to the Future, 1985

Director: Robert Zemeckis (Romancing the Stone, Forrest Gump, Cast Away)

Stars: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson

My favorite.

In 1985, Marty McFly (Fox) hops in a DeLorean to escape from terrorists, and he accidentally gets sent back in time to November 5, 1955. His friend "Doc"- Dr. Emmet Brown- (Lloyd) had converted the DeLorean into a time machine. Marty finds Doc in 1955, and together they have to repair the broken time machine and get Marty back to the future!

But a wrench is thrown into their plans when Marty bumps into his high school age father and mother, and interferes with their first meeting, which was pivotal in their relationship. Marty has to convince his wimpy father that Lorraine (Thompson) is the girl for him. Extra complications arise when Lorraine apparently has a crush on Marty, her future son!

This movie is brilliant, and I could watch it over and over again. I think my favorite part is when Marty plays Johnny B. Goode at the dance. Michael J Fox didn't actually play it, but wanting to be accurate, he learned all the correct fingerings on the guitar. He probably could have played it!

I have watched these movies (parts 2 and 3, as well) with commentaries a few times. They have so much information and insights for geeks like me! I loved it.