I finally watched Horse Sense, the prequel to Jumping Ship it was really well done and the story was great! I still like "Jumping Ship" the best, but "Horse Sense" was still awesome

Liberty Hoffman,
How did you manage Horse Sense? I've not been able to find it anywhere. Soon to get Jumping Ship. Never seen them. Hope to enjoy.

I've only watched the really old version of The Scarlet Pimpernel, but I do like it, depressing though it is. I listened once to the book on tape, and loved it, and hated it. I'll have to watch that version.

Elanor, I don't recall that The Scarlet Pimpernel was a depressing book. Now its counterpart, A Tale of Two Cities could be construed as depressing (although I found it merely annoying ) at least TSP gave you someone to root for and ended on a good note. Did they do something with the movie to make it depressing?

Edit: You and SnowAngel are using the same woman in your avatar and it's throwing me into confusion!

Edit: You and SnowAngel are using the same woman in your avatar and it's throwing me into confusion!

LOL! I'm surprised you noticed.

TSP the movie is not depressing, we actually laugh quite a bit. I didn't think the book was either, but it has been two years since I read it. The stuff with France is sad, but it's true.

I'm looking forward to hearing what you all think of it.
SnowAngel

Elanor, I don't recall that The Scarlet Pimpernel was a depressing book. Now its counterpart, A Tale of Two Cities could be construed as depressing (although I found it merely annoying ) at least TSP gave you someone to root for and ended on a good note. Did they do something with the movie to make it depressing?

It wasn't that the ending was depressing, just the middle. It got resolved. It made me really sad, but again, I was satisfied with the ending. And no, the movie was a little bit depressing for the same reason, but less so, and definitely not the ending.
AToTC is just too amazing to be depressing. All amazing books have to be depressing. Like LotR, and TCoMC, and Les Misrab, and AToTC.

You and SnowAngel are using the same woman in your avatar and it's throwing me into confusion!

I am actually surprised and impressed with you for noticing that. The pictures aren't alike. But good job, and sorry to confuse you.

EDIT: To tell you the truth, this post has veered a little. I finished thinking this was in the Books Thread. I'll try to keep more on topic next time.

So today I watched Anne of Green Gables for the first time. I LOVED it.
It was different from the book, but I'm learning to appreciate movies and books, as long as they capture the spirit and this movie definitely did.
Because I have only one and a half criticism about it, I'll go ahead and mention it and then say all I liked about the movie:

That is it.

Otherwise, AAAHH, I just love that movie. The atmosphere is beatiful. It was everything I pictured.
Megan Follows did an outstanding job as Anne. She really carries the role wonderfully, and has the Anne-ish prettiness.
The movie made me appreciate Marilla so much. Her character was so well done, and my mom was saying that the actress had so much character on her face--it was spectacular. I have a nicer picture of Marilla in my mind now.
Matthew!! I can finally picture Matthew when reading the book. I loved everything they did with his character.
Gilbert was also very well done. Like Matthew, I could never picture Gilbert and now I can. His character and how he behaved was the same impression that I got from Gil when reading the books.

I am in love with the setting. It was just so beautiful. The costumes were breathtaking. The details paid attention to about surroundings just took my breath away. I really loved the patterns of the dresses--so unbelievably gorgeous. The wallpaper and decor of rooms was very beautiful, too.

I have a new favourite movie.

I just discovered an older movie that I am glad I found - U571 it's a gripping plot, so gripping that I spent a whole afternoon in front of the TV, biting my finger and willing the characters on

I've seen that one! It is indeed gripping! My family stayed up late watching it, and then afterwords when I was brushing my teeth I noticed that the toilet in our bathroom had leaked a little water around the base and I started freaking out because my exhausted mind was still on submarine mode and leaks are very bad in subs! /embarrassing story

Last night my family watched an old film, 84 Charing Cross Road. Before we started it I thought it would be quite dull, but it was really very sweet and thoughtful. It's about the friendship that develops long-distance between a NYC woman and the employees at an old bookshop in London. Released in 1987, it follows their lives from 1949 to 1971.
One of the main reasons I like the movie is how little bits of everyday life in both cities are woven into the narrative. I love seeing how things were in London "Way back then"
I really recommend this movie, especially to those who enjoy books. My whole family enjoyed it. Be prepared for a kinda sad ending, though!

I watched The Tourist last night with winterlife. It was really good! I totally did not expect the ending until about ten minutes before

. It was awesome! I really like Angelina Jolie's acting and that was one reason I have really wanted to see it. However, I was turned off by a less-then-stellar reveiw on PluggedInonline.com. I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was and it reinforced my less-then-stellar opinion of PluggedIn.

I sometimes disagree with PluggedIn's assessment of movies, but you have to understand that they are reviewing with the whole family in mind. Parents and kids. So they've got to cover all the bases and if they think a movie is not family friendly, they probably won't recommend it in their conclusion.

However, I do find it's a good source to go to when I want a detailed review of what to expect. Another good site for that is IMDb, though they aren't always so . . . discreet. (Like they actually spell out the bad words sometimes and can get very detailed.)

P.S."Brooklyn!"

@Aslanisthebest: Yes, the Megan Follows version of Anne of Green Gables is outstanding. I can't think of one actor who was off-key. Be warned that the film sequels, although also well acted, deviate very significantly from the novels. By film 3 it's basically nothing that's in the book series. Think of it as an alternate timeline, like classic Star Trek continuity versus the new Trek film.

Which, if you ever see the new Trek film --and I didn't for years -- Karl Urban as Dr. McCoy knocks it out of the ballpark. The film has plot holes big enough to fly a starship through -- bigger than usual for Trek, I mean -- but the acting is well done.

Meanwhile, I just recommended the Toy Story trilogy to someone who has somehow missed it all up until now.

Despicable Me and Megamind had the misfortune to not only come out at the same time but to have a few plot elements in common. Still, both are a light and fun use of 1.5 hours of time. Megamind has hard rock music such as Guns & Roses, Ozzy Osbourne and AC/DC for its soundtrack, for those for whom that would be an issue. Both are redemption stories, though.

I haven't seen the Anne movies in AGES...really should again.

Right as I type this I'm watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding with my parents. They are enjoying it, and so far it's OK.

I don't really like pluggedin, I find them way too...opinionated, and I feel like a lot of parents would read the review of a movie and go by the summary (aka opinion of the author) at the bottom (which often ends negetively) instead of thinking about it for themselves... BUT, as Ryan said, it really is great for figuring out the details of a movie instead of watching it and then...being unpleasently surprised.

I sometimes disagree with PluggedIn's assessment of movies, but you have to understand that they are reviewing with the whole family in mind. Parents and kids. So they've got to cover all the bases and if they think a movie is not family friendly, they probably won't recommend it in their conclusion.

I agree. However, that (concerning content) isn't what I meant. PluggedIn's review said

It (The Tourist) boasts some heavy-duty star wattage but never shakes its dim storyline. This is a two-hour escape from reality where the most meaningful thing we see is the closing credits.

This movie is a breezy affair bearing ... no point.

That is what I meant. I loved the movie and thought it was very good! I love the plot. Now, I do understand that whether a person likes a movie or not is all up to personal opinion but this has happened with several movies: PluggedIn gives a dismal "it's awful" in the conclusion and I either watch it anyway and love it or read the review after watching the movie and was like "WHAT???? They're totally off base!" So that's why I don't really care anymore what PluggedIn says about whether a movie is good or bad; I know I will probably disagree.

Also, I have found them to be incorrect at times when it comes to reviewing content. For example, their review of Taylor Swift's self-titled album.

(Listed beneath "Objectional Content")

Lines on "Our Song" refer in passing to a "lovin' bed"

True, however, if you listen to the lyrics of the song, there is absolutely nothing sexual about that line. The lyrics say "I was walking up the front porch steps after everything that day/Had gone all wrong or been trampled on/And lost and thrown away/Got to the hallway/Well on my way/To my lovin' bed/"

The line is simply conveying the idea that her bed is somewhere she can just flop down and cry about the day. And her bed isn't trampled on or been thrown away or lost and won't trample on her. It won't be mean to her and will just be there and "love" her when nothing else is. Nothing sexual in that yet, listing it under "Objectional Content" makes it seem like it is objectional and is meant to be sexual.

That's why I'm not a fan of PluggedIn. I'm sure it is nice for parents to be able to go on and get a complete listing of objectional stuff and it has helped my parents with regards to what my little siblings have wanted to watch. However, people should be cautious. They do tend to over-exagerate how bad the sexual content is, in my experience.

Sorry for that off topic bit, mods.

Anyway, I watched two other movies recently. Unknown and Vantage Point, both also with winterlife. Both were very good. I thought Vantage Point was very unique and different in it's approach. It replays the same scenario, the US president being assassinated and a bombing, from several different vantage points including the president himself, the media, a tourist, and a member of the president's body guard. Each time it plays a vantage point, it plays a little bit longer after the attack. With each vantage point, you get new glimpses at what's happening until the whole thing comes together at the end. It was very interesting and a really great movie. I highly reccomend it.

You think PluggedInOnline.com is bad? Try ChristianSpotlight.com, it's even more legalistic. The movie House, based on Ted Dekker and Frank Peretti's book is given a Very Offensive moral rating, despite it's Christian worldview. The reviewers can talk about discernment all they want but maybe they should practice it within the context of the movie.
Another reviewer gave Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 a moral rating of Average and wrote a well-thought out, discerning review. Still they mentioned there was Minor: Sex/Nudity (when there was absolutely none). To crown it all, there's an Editor's Note (not the reviewer) to tell everyone to keep away from anything Harry Potter because it's EVIL! Ugh.

I enjoyed Vantage Point too. The middle part of the movie was a bit dull but the rest was great fun and the climax is hugely suspenseful.

So I've heard about the second two Annes, The Old Maid. I was really impressed by the first! (and kind of don't want to see the sequels, for fear that it will ruin my liking of the movie. ) My sister saw some of the second and said it was much different from the book(s) and also was on the dramatic side, so I don't really want to watch it. But, anywho, I loooved this one.

I agree that sometimes pluggedinonline.com can be biased. Such as, if they like a certain movie or band they might say that there's nothing wrong with it. (like, um, Dawn Treader. I think they missed the humanistic values. I could be wrong--I haven't read the review in some months) There's one reviewer who I've witnessed to be pretty unbiased, so I don't mind reviews by him.
The reason I go on there is because they provide what kind of content is in the movie, and it's said discreetly for the most part. I have witnessed some times they took something to a level it was not intended, so that wasn't alltogether nice. However, I'm kind of 50-50 or more 45 percent of me likes the site and the other 55 percent doesn't.