Father's Little Dividend, 1951

Director: Vincente Minnelli

Stars: Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett, Don Taylor

The sequel to Father of the Bride, of course! Kay (Taylor) and Buckley (Taylor)--haha, taylor and Taylor!-- surprise the whole family with more news: they're having a baby! There isn't much more to say: that's the gist of it. Then after the baby is born, it's the story of how Stanley (Spencer) goes from not caring for this crying baby who doesn't seem to like him to being wrapped around his little grandson's finger.

Unlike the first movie and it's remake, this second one and it's later remake, Father of the Bride Part 2, are very different, though the same basic story. I don't want to say too much about the remakes, because I still want to review those two.

Father of the Bride, 1950

Director: Vincente Minnelli

Stars: Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett, Don Taylor

I grew up watching Father of the Bride- the 1991 version. I didn't know until probably a year ago that there was an older version, the original. If you've seen either of them, they are very similar. Extremely similar! But I did enjoy the remake better. Steve Martin is funnier than Tracy, and Martin Short is brilliant! The music is modern and more enjoyable, and I always cry no matter what, because the story is just lovely.

The story: Kay Banks (Taylor) surprises her parents Stanley (Tracy) and Ellie (Bennett) with news of her engagement to Buckley (Taylor). The journey from engagement to wedding day is the story, with the focus being on Stanley, the "father of the bride", as he deals with paying for the wedding, and more importantly, losing his only daughter to her husband.

I did like the remake better, but it was totally entertaining and enjoyable! 5 stars in my book

(5 stars for the great movies that are worth it---6 stars for the ones you must own and watch over and over again!)

NOTE: just so you know, Elizabeth Taylor and Don Taylor (who play the happy couple) just happen to have the same last name. They weren't married in real life!

The Mirror Crack'd, 1980

Director: Guy Hamilton

Stars: Angela Lansbury, Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, Tony Curtis

Agatha Christie is the best-selling writer of books of all time. (Shakespeare is the best-selling writer of any kind, not books in particular. I got this info from Wikipedia.) And that is one spectacular claim!

In this one, Christie's character Miss Marple (Lansbury) solves the murders taking place at a large manor house outside her little village of St. Mary Mead. Actress Marina (Taylor) is in town filming a movie, when suddenly one of her fans is poisoned at a party. It soon comes out that Marina was the intended victim. Or maybe the killer would just have us think so....

I guess I sort of did these out of order. I should have reviewed this one first and then Murder She Wrote. Lansbury's character in Murder She Wrote, Jessica Fletcher, was based on Miss Marple, and the name even comes from one of Christie's Miss Marple novels "Murder, She Said".

"The Mirror Crack'd" was really enjoyable as a murder mystery. It kept me guessing right up until the end! (And I thought I had this mystery thing down!) I would personally rather watch Angela as Jessica than as Miss Marple, but it was still brilliant.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, 1958

Director: Richard Brooks

Stars: Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives

Wow. Not exactly what I was expecting. But not bad at all.

So Brick (Newman) is a alcoholic who is rejecting his wife Maggie (Taylor) because of something that happened in their past. While visiting his childhood home, they get caught in the midst of much drama on learning that Big Daddy (Ives) is dying. This film is a struggle of relationships and realizations of mistakes and all that jazz. It's emotional and dramatic, but I don't mean it negatively. And I don't want to give away any more.

And after I watched it, Paul Newman made a guest appearance in my dreams!

Needless to say, I highly recommend it.