Starting Over

Starring:Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, Candice Bergen, Charles Durning, Frances Sternhagen, Austin Pendleton, Mary Kay Place, MacIntyre Dixon, Jay O. Sanders, Charles Kimbrough, Richard Whiting, Alfie Wise, Wallace Shawn, Sturgis Warner, Mary Catherine Wright, Daniel Stern, George Hirsch, Ian Martin, Aerin Asher, Ben Pesner
Director: Alan J. Pakula
Studio: Paramount
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
Until Boogie Nights, this film had stood for almost two decades as the best performance Burt Reynolds had ever given. In a criminal oversight, he was denied an Oscar nomination, perhaps because it came in the middle of his action-movie winning streak. Directed by Alan Pakula from a script by James L. Brooks, the film cast Reynolds as a newly divorced man struggling to cope with single life in the city. But a blind date (initially misconstrued by the woman as a mugging) leads to renewed hope in romance when he and his new lady friend (Jill Clayburgh) actually seem right for each other. But before he can make a commitment, his flighty ex-wife (Candice Bergen) bounces back into his life to make him miserable all over again with her flirtatious indecisiveness. Wonderfully acted and observed; a highpoint is Bergen's attempt (as the world's least talented singer-songwriter) to seduce Reynolds with one of her off-key tunes. --Marshall Fine
Description
Phil Potter (Reynolds) is a low-key, contented magazine writer who tries to put his life back together after his wife (Bergen) opts for independence as a singer-songwriter. Wacky nursery school teacher (Clayburgh) tries to help him surmount the emotional hurdles, but it's rough as he's still hung up on his ex-wife.

A Good Year (Widescreen Edition)
Average customer rating:

Russell Crowe does Hugh Grant Imitation...Even down to floppy hair.

"Dying is easy. Comedy is hard."

Not one of Russell Crowe's Best Works....Or the Director's for that Matter

i was pleasantly surprised by this movie...

Different spin; same result

A Good Year (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Freddie Highmore , Albert Finney , Abbie Cornish , Russell Crowe , and Rafe Spall
Director: Ridley Scott
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B000LXHK2C
Release Date: 2007-02-27

Amazon.com

A feel-good movie that highlights the beauty of France as much as it does its stars, A Good Year provides a languid, gorgeous viewing experience. Director Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe--who first worked together on the Academy Award-winning Gladiator--are reunited in this romantic film, which is based on Peter Mayle's book A Year in Provence. Crowe plays Max, a workaholic London bonds trader who doesn't know the meaning of vacation. When his uncle dies, leaving him a picturesque estate in the south of France, Max views it as an opportunity to cash in the vinery and pocket the profits. The film is reminiscent of Diane Lane's Under the Tuscan Sun in the way the scenery plays as much of a role in the film as its characters. The lush village and streaming sunlight portray Provence as an idyllic, magical place. Even Max falls under its spell. While not a particularly likeable character, especially in the early part of the film, Max also isn't a bad guy. When he gets the chance to live life at a less manic pace than which he is used to, he finds that a good year isn't dependant on a financial windfall. Though Scott tries to drum up some suspense in the film (Is the beautiful visitor really Max's illegitimate cousin? Will Max fall in love with the feisty local woman he trades quips with?) nothing that happens comes as much of a surprise. Still, while the film doesn't fully utilize Crowe's range of skills, the actor is charming in his role and A Good Year provides a fine time in the cinemas. --Jae-Ha Kim

Extras from A Good Year

Russell Crowe and Co-Stars on Filming in Provence
A Good Year Virtual Vinyard

Beyond A Good Year

A Year in Provence
More from Director Ridley Scott

More from Russell Crowe

Stills from A Good Year

Description

Max Skinner (Russell Crowe) is a highly successful investment expert with no time for life outside work. When his estranged uncle dies, Max inherits the vineyard in France where he grew up as a child, and his first intention is to sell the vineyard as qui

Customer Reviews:

Russell Crowe does Hugh Grant Imitation...Even down to floppy hair........2007-06-26

Okay the good stuff first; lovely Provence, beautiful French girl and...well that's about it. Brilliant director, acting talent galore unfortunately lumbered with plot and dialogue on the par with your average television sitcom. This is like pairing a fine Bordeaux with a Big Mac. Sadly it just won't do. I got the feeling throughout the viewing that I was watching Ridley Scott's home movie of his summer holiday.

This is not to say Russell Crowe can't do comedy. He is incredibly charming and seems to retain the boyish naughty boy quality which makes the girls hearts race, with a wink and a nod to all his fellow blokes on the other side of the screen. One gets the sense he was having a grand time, but wasn't called on to do much acting.

Albert Finney and Russell Crowe together with a script worthy of their talents would be a real treat. Maybe next time.

"Dying is easy. Comedy is hard.".......2007-06-09

I've been a fan of Russell Crowe for long time and I like a lot all his performances I've seen. He is a very talented actor, one of the best of his generation. He is especially good and convincing at playing strong, charismatic, intense, and often brooding characters but I've noticed that I like him the most when he smiles. He does not do it often, on the contrary, his smile is a rare gift but it changes his face completely, it literally lights his face, makes it younger, softer, and even tender. I have always been curious to see him in a light and funny comedy and when I learned that he and Ridley Scott who has directed him to the Oscar in "The Gladiator" teamed up for a romantic comedy that takes place in the vineyard of sunny Provence, in the south of France, I was very interested in seeing it.

I should say that even though I had expected more from the movie, it was nice. The story is very familiar and predictable but the film is a delight to watch since it was made by a master of the stunningly beautiful visuals, the master who can look at the familiar landmark from the different prospective, the way nobody else has. The best about "A Good Year" is its look - dreamy, enveloping, delightfully intoxicating - just as wine that plays such a big role in the story of Max Skinner (Russell Crowe) who one day suddenly finds himself back in the place where he used to be happy once as a boy but almost forgot the feeling having left for a huge dynamic mega polis where he has become a ruthless arrogant businessman. He will have to slow down and to learn what the real pleasures, values, and priorities in life are. Once more, Russell Crowe has proved that he can act but I found his performance a little too heavy and intense for such a silly light comedy. Watching him in "A Good Year" reminds me of an old story. A famous comic actor, lying on his deathbed, was asked by a friend, "Is it hard, this dying?" "No," replied the actor. "Dying is easy. Comedy is hard." I was glad to see Crowe in the comedy even if not completely successful and there was one absolutely charming and hilarious scene with Crowe driving the smallest and cutest car imaginable which brought to my mind the similar scene in the latest Woody Allen's comedy. I began to wonder what Woody Allen's next project would be. What if two of them, Allen and Crowe will get to work together? That would be a comedy I will never miss.

Not one of Russell Crowe's Best Works....Or the Director's for that Matter.......2007-06-05

After reading some rave reviews, my husband and I settled down on the couch for our "date night". I am sorry to report that we were both sorely disappointed in the movie. We are both huge Russell Crowe fans but this may be his worst acting in a long time. I'm not sure that it is his fault so much as the script. I had a hard time believing that this "heartless, ruthless" male chauvinist (his character is ALWAYS staring at a woman's chest or derriere) is what became of the sweet, thoughtful boy that is wonderfully depicted by the young actor. In fact, the boy and Abbie Cornish, who plays his cousin, are the true stars of this movie. In my opinion, this movie does not hold a candle to true classics like "Under the Tuscan Sun."

i was pleasantly surprised by this movie..........2007-06-03

i should know better than to listen to the reviews - i found this movie delightful - sort of a mix of old world and new world in flavour - loved the flashbacks with albert finney - and the cinematography is gorgeous - a really fine movie to hunker down with on a rainy day:)

Different spin; same result.......2007-05-30

About 18 months ago, in my review of Peter Mayle's "A Good Year," I likened the book to a helping of cotton candy, a silly confection that may satisfy a temporary sweet tooth, but cannot satisfy a real appetite. It was with no small trepidation, therefore, that I sat down to watch the film version directed in 2006 by Ridley Scott.

One hundred and twenty minutes later, I was not sure what I watched....I know only that it was NOT Mayle's "Good Year."

Oh, yes...the title was the same, the setting was the same and the main character, Max Skinner, had the same name. But that was where any similarities between Mayle's original and Marc Klein's screenplay largely ended.

In Mayle's original, Max finds himself improbably cheated out of his livelihood at lunch, and inheriting an estate by dinner time. His career for the moment shot, Max has nothing to keep him from the splendors and adventures waiting in France. The Klein screenplay, by contrast, has Skinner at the top of his professional form, albeit under a small but worrisome cloud: France, the estate and the circumstances of his inheritance are a bother, and this Skinner fully intends to make short work of them. What follows is a standard boy-meets-girl tale, told against a larger story of self discovery. Klein begins where Mayle began, and ends up in roughly the same place...but the path he takes to that end point is vastly and significantly different that the one taken by Mayle.

The concept of screenplay and source material differing, even differing greatly, is certainly nothing new. The problem here, however, is that Klein added nothing appreciably better. Where the tension in Mayle's original came from a half-baked mystery he attempted to establish (before apparently losing interest and simply wrapping the whole thing up), the tension in Klein's version comes from Max's flashbacks to the time he spent under the tutelage of his dear, departed Uncle Henry....visions which call into stark contrast the man his uncle intended for him to become, and the man he in fact became. Unfortunately choosing spend time recreating odd bits of Mayle's original storyline, Klein never gets the chance to fully develop the thread of Max's catharsis. The change of heart he undergoes apparently comes as easily as everything else in his uniquely charmed life.

The mediocre screenplay aside, the acting is generally first rate. Russell Crowe has a romp playing a character who, had he been filmed fifty years earlier, would have almost certainly been played by Cary Grant. Albert Finney has a similarly grand time playing the dear departed Uncle Henry, irascible, sly and all-knowing. Unfortunately, Marion Cotillard, cast as Max's love interest, and Didier Bourdon, and Isabelle Candelier, the estate's husband and wife caretakers, get far too little screen time given the performances they turn in. Among the few annoying cast notes is Freddie Highmore, as the young Max of the flashbacks, once again cast as one of those wise-beyond-his-years screen kids no one has ever actually met in real life.

In the end, this film is no worse than the flawed book upon which it is loosely based, and may actually be a bit better. Both are meaningless confections; but, as opposed to the book, the film takes only two hours to digest.

Average customer rating:

Reminiscense
Fantastic score... wish they left the oldies stuff off
Always
Always
Always

Always
Starring: Richard Dreyfuss , Holly Hunter , Brad Johnson (II) , John Goodman , and Audrey Hepburn
Director: Steven Spielberg
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00000IQW5
Release Date: 1999-07-20

Amazon.com

Considered by many to represent a low point in Steven Spielberg's career, 1990's Always did suggest something of a temporary drift in the director's sensibility. A remake of the classic Spencer Tracy film A Guy Named Joe, Always stars Richard Dreyfuss as a Forest Service pilot who takes great risks with his own life to douse wildfires from a plane. After promising his frightened fiancée (Holly Hunter) to keep his feet on the ground and go into teaching, Dreyfuss's character is killed during one last flight. But his spirit wanders restlessly, hopelessly attached to and possessive of Hunter, who can't see or hear him. Then the real conflict begins: a trainee pilot (Brad Johnson), a likable doofus, begins wooing a not-unappreciative Hunter--and it becomes Dreyfuss's heavenly mandate to accept, and even assist in, their budding romance. The trouble with the film is a certain airlessness, a hyper-inventiveness in every scene and sequence that screams of Spielberg's self-education in Hollywood classicism. Unlike the masters he is constantly quoting and emulating in Always, he forgets to back off and let the movie breathe on its own sometimes, which would better serve his clockwork orchestration of suspense and comedy elsewhere. Still, there are lovely passages in this film, such as the unforgettable look on Dreyfuss's face a half-second before fate claims him. John Goodman contributes good supporting work, and Audrey Hepburn makes her final screen appearance as an angel. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Reminiscense.......2007-04-11

I leanded how to pilot a plane at Hemet Ryan Field in Hemet, CA and I know that the PBY in this film belonged to Venable Flying Serive and that MAKES this film more special to me than anything........

Fantastic score... wish they left the oldies stuff off.......2007-03-20

I would have preferred more of the etherial Williams music and less of the oldies and country stuff. It's a very good score... very sedate stuff for the most part (and hushed, too... you have to crank the music to hear some of Williams' music)

Always.......2007-03-11

Wonderful movie. Great flying scenes and a love story the ladies will love!

Always.......2007-03-11

This movie is a great story of love and loss. If you liked Ghost, then you'll love this flim its the aviator version of that story. This film has an alstar cast Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, John Goodman,Audrey Hepburn. Always is about daredevil firefighter pilots that fly planes to help put out forest fires.

Always.......2007-01-22

I haven't gotten to watch this movie yet but it is movie my husband and I have always enjoyed. I am so glad just to have it.

Average customer rating:

A 'MUST SEE' MOVIE
Dear Frankie
Film
Superb
The best Gerry Butler movie to date

Dear Frankie
Starring: Emily Mortimer , Jack McElhone , Mary Riggans , Sharon Small , and Sophie Main
Director: Shona Auerbach
Manufacturer: Miramax
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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One More Kiss

ASIN: B00094AS9A
Release Date: 2005-07-05

Amazon.com

Driven by intelligent, constantly surprising and moving performances from the film's leads, Dear Frankie stars Emily Mortimer (Lovely and Amazing) as Lizzie, Scottish mother of Frankie (Jack McElhone), a deaf and highly intelligent 9-year-old. Constantly uprooting themselves and relocating from town to town, Lizzie and Frankie are on the run from the latter's abusive father, a fact unknown to the boy, who believes his dad is a busy seaman sending letters full of adventure and love. In fact, Lizzie is writing those missives, but she is faced with a challenge when Frankie discovers his father's ship will dock nearby. Lizzie hires a kind, handsome stranger (Gerard Butler) to play Frankie's dad, creating an odd situation in which ever-growing lies become a conduit for love, and Lizzie's repressed desires come to the fore with a man posing as her husband. The moral tangles are of interest in director Shona Auerbach's charmingly paced, quietly insightful drama-comedy, but so is the glorious feeling of watching these characters come fully alive. --Tom Keogh

Description

This touching and humorous movie has earned the raves of critics and won the hearts of audiences everywhere! To spare the feelings of her fatherless boy, Lizzie (Emily Mortimer -- Disney's THE KID) secretly authors letters from his "father" that detail seafaring adventures from around the world. But she cannot maintain this illusion forever. Torn between exposing the truth and protecting her son, Lizzie gets more than anyone bargained for when she hires a handsome stranger (Gerald Butler -- THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, LARA CROFT TOMB RAIDER: THE CRADLE OF LIFE) to play the role of a lifetime! Winner at both the Heartland Film Festival and the Seattle International Film Festival, this entertaining motion picture is sure to touch your heart!

Customer Reviews:

A 'MUST SEE' MOVIE.......2007-07-03

A beautiful story, a wonderful, heart-warming film, to be watched over and over and over again, with marvelous actors.....especially Gerard Butler. To steal a line from the movie: his "eyes -- they pull you -- right in!" He has to be the most exciting, expressive, multi-talented actor working today. Move over Sean Connery; Scotland has given us another of the most handsome and talented men in the world!

Dear Frankie.......2007-06-27

What a great movie. Its very tender and catches your heart. The characters are wonderful and you will want to see it over and over. The stranger is so believable as the hesitant skeptical man posing as Frankies father. As the story unfolds , he becomes such an important force in the lives of this boy and his mother that you are totally involved in their lives. It is beautifully filmed, lovely scenery and a heartbreakingly wonderful jewel of a film.....I loved it.

Film.......2007-06-11

Cannot beat this film in any category; the story, actors, script, cinematography, set design, and location are first rate. Saw it in a theatre, have watched it many times since the DVD arrived, and shared it with friends.

Superb.......2007-05-25

I won't go over the story line again - that's well-covered elsewhere. Suffice it to say that this movie is simply superb. I logged on after watching it just so I could recommend it to as many people as possible and give it 5 stars.

The best Gerry Butler movie to date.......2007-05-16

I bought this dvd so-so many weeks ago and have seen it countless (I lost count, actually) times. So far this is THE BEST Gerry Butler movie yet. The movie is so simple (and obviously low budget) but the plot is superlative which completely blew me away. I had never been so touched by any movie before and made me cry (especially the person who made me cry was no other than Gerry B). Other casts were just as perfect. Like other reviews, when I first saw the movie it lingered for so long and made me depressed that I needed to pop in some caffeine and jogged for miles to get the adrenaline back pumping. I saw Gerry's latest stint in 300 but it didn't impress me at all. This movie is unassuming but "a real gem" and real acting at its best. So few movies are made like this (and what a pity!). I'm glad I have this dvd copy and I will cherish it for so long.

Average customer rating:

Country History
Must have for GS fans
Great -- Music and story
A Must for George Strait Fans
AWESOME!!

Pure Country
Starring: George Strait , Lesley Ann Warren , Isabel Glasser , Kyle Chandler , and John Doe
Director: Christopher Cain
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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Pure Country [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]
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Cowboy Up

ASIN: 630493629X
Release Date: 1998-05-27

Description

After 25 chart-topping hits, the singing star becomes a movie star! George Strait makes his film debut in an entertaining look into the heart and soul of country music from Young Guns director Christopher Cain.

Superstar Dusty Chandler (Strait) is tired of the smoke, the strobe lights and the overmiked sound of his arena spectaculars. One night, something snaps. "I'm just going to take a little walk," Dusty says as he walks out of the empty hall, ditching his beard, ponytail - and temporarily, his career - to reclaim his down-home country roots. But his manager (Leslie Ann Warren) retaliates: a stand-in (Kyle Chandler) lip-synchs his songs in concert. And a romance with a lovely rancher (Isabel Glasser) is on again, off again like a rodeo cowboy. The simple life can be complex, but it's nothing a revitalized country boy can't handle!

Customer Reviews:

Country History.......2007-06-28

Pure Country is a wonderful review of history, not because the film is historical in nature but because it is part of the early Strait years and helped to establish what George Strait country music was and would be. The acting is visibly acting and the storyline is classic with little attempt at original plotting. Essentially, the successful artist has lost his grip on where he started, leaves the stage long enough to visit his home, takes the advice and love of the grandmother who reared him, finds himself and a sweetheart, then returns to dismiss the foolish imposter who would like to be in his place, and the ending is happy for everyone with the artist even forgiving his longtime friend for attempting to control and use him; everyone is redeemed to some extint. When you have had enough blood and guts, this is a sweet story with the added presence of a man who has been a sqeaky clean role model for at least twenty five years in the entertainment world. It is okay if you don't cry at the end, just count how many times Strait kisses this actress. This was a refreshing review.
Cora

Must have for GS fans.......2007-06-10

I've always thought this movie was a little bit corny, but I love it anyway. It's one of those rare movies that you can watch over and over and still enjoy.

Great -- Music and story.......2007-06-08

I have watched this several times since purchase; I love the story line about getting back to what matters instead of smoke and mirrors. Needless to say, the music is even better. George Strait IS Pure Country.

A Must for George Strait Fans.......2007-05-29

If you are a George Strait Fan, you probably already have this movie. If however, by some oversight you failed to see this movie, you have to get it immediately. You won't be disappointed! The soundtrack is wonderful. It's a movie I watch over and over again.

AWESOME!!.......2007-04-02

What a touching love story. I'm not really a chick flick watcher, but this movie was great!!

Average customer rating:

Awsome
Sunny Summer Magic
Summer Magic
Summer Magic
Definitely Worth Watching!

Summer Magic
Starring: Hayley Mills , Burl Ives , Dorothy McGuire , Deborah Walley , and Eddie Hodges
Director: James Neilson
Manufacturer: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005JMVV
Release Date: 2005-05-03

Amazon.com

This classic 1963 Disney film features child icon Hayley Mills as Nancy Carey, a teenage girl whose family moves from Boston to the New England countryside as a result of their father's untimely passing. Nancy writes to the kindly Mr. Poppem (Burl Ives) and single-handedly convinces him to rent the family a charming, if run-down, house for a mere $60 a year. Ever the optimist, Nancy brims with excitement at the family's new life, but this "perfect world" has its problems--notably an absentee landlord who knows nothing about the Carey family's rental agreement. Through hard work and Mr. Poppem's continuing generosity, the Careys fix up the house and find life in the rural Maine town quite satisfactory. Things become tense when their cousin Julia arrives for an extended visit, but eventually Nancy and Julia grow from one another's experiences and become good friends. You'll never guess what happens when the absent landlord returns unannounced during the family's Halloween housewarming party!

One section that may sit poorly with modern audiences features Nancy and Julia discussing how to emphasize one's femininity at the expense of hiding the real you--an indication of how much American thinking has changed in a relatively short period of time. Nevertheless, this is a charming tale featuring toe-tapping ragtime music, wonderful songs by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman including "Summer Magic" and "The Ugly Bug Ball," and the incomparable talents of Mills and Ives. Take a trip down memory lane and don't forget the kids. (Ages 7 and older) --Tami Horiuchi

Description

Hayley Mills brings a joyful enthusiasm to this nostalgic, musical, and bighearted adventure in small-town living, now on Disney DVD. When a close-knit Boston family loses their fortune, they find a wealth of family secrets, young love, and charming summer nights in Beulah, Maine. A good-natured postmaster, pretentious cousin Julia, and the mysterious absentee landlord, Mr. Hamilton, populate their new life in a charming old yellow house. Featuring an all-star supporting cast, including Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire, and Deborah Walley, this classic and wondrous tale will delight the entire family and belongs in every Disney collection.

Customer Reviews:

Awsome.......2007-06-29

I've always loved this movie and i'm soo glad i have the dvd now. It's a sweet movie and it's fun to watch. :) I think it's good for any age. :)

Sunny Summer Magic.......2007-06-02

Years ago the Disney Channel ran something of a nostalgia double bill and ran Vincente Minnelli's MGM classic MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS along with the Disney studio's own SUMMER MAGIC. From a thematic perspective, it was inspired programming--both films were warmhearted,unabashedly sentimental family pictures set in the early days of the last century. In terms of quality, however, there was no real comparison. MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS is a true American classic. SUMMER MAGIC, while it has a certain charm, achieved nothing remotely like that status. As non-animated Disney fare goes, it's pretty good, but running it alongside the Judy Garland classic couldn't help but point up its weaknesses--and even the movie's biggest fans would have to admit there are some.

But before I get into any of that, I have to say that I was one of the movie's biggest fans myself when I was 11 years old. Like so many other kids my age, I had a mad crush on Hayley Mills. And after seeing this movie, I developed an even madder one on flame-tressed Deborah Walley (who played spirited Hayley's snooty cousin Julia in this one). I don't think I noticed at the time, that neither one of them could sing all that well--but they did handle their musical numbers with a certain charm. And nobody was expecting young actresses of the early 60s to exhibit Garland-sized voices, nor did the rag-timey score for the film demand anything like it. It was enough that SUMMER MAGIC offered two such fetching young actresses. Unfortunately for me, while Hayley stayed in the Disney ranks for a few more years after this, Deborah "graduated" to more Beach Blanket Bingo type roles--and well, I wasn't allowed to go to those.

And by the time I was in my rebellious high school years, both Disney styled quaintness and Beach Blanket blankness were already passe. I wouldn't have owned up to liking any of it. Grace and Janis replaced Hayley and Deborah in my heart's hierarchy.

But do you ever forget your first love(s)? Watching SUMMER MAGIC now is perhaps something of a guilty pleasure, but I can see why an 11 year old of the era would have fallen for it--and for its young stars--hook,line and sinker. And of course, the rest of the cast were either old pros like Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire and Una Merkel or appealing young swains and adorable kids. Just what you would expect from a Disney flick of the period. You've even got Jerry Mathers real-life younger brother playing Hayley's movie kid brother (in the classic endearingly bratty mold--Kevin Corcoran and Jerry himself were aleady a little too old for the part).

And as a hint of wierdness, you get Michael J. Pollard in the role of the New England country boy who heads off to the big city only to return to his bucolic roots shortly thereafter. Even quirkier is this character's tomboyish (and somewhat spacey) younger sister played by a young actress named Wendy Turner who is given a lesson in "Femininity" by city gals Debbie and Hayley. (And no, it's not very politically correct by today's standards, but fairly reflective of its era--which is to say the storyline's early 20th century era, and well, maybe too, the era the film was made in as well: feminist consciousness on a broad scale was a few years away yet).

So about those comparisons to MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS: well, if the Disney Channel itself had not run the two films as a de facto double bill all those years ago, I don't think it would ever have occurred to me to compare the two. We all know that Disney family fare was lower budget and significanly less polished a product than anything MGM put out in the decades before. SUMMER MAGIC's status as a true musical is questionable in any event. There are several musical numbers, of course, but they're on the slight side. And they're just too sporadic for there to be much in the way of musical momentum. It's hard to pinpoint the difference, really, but it would seem that there are musicals and there are films--particularly Disney films--with a few musical numbers.

But give the filmmakers credit. There's no doubt that this is escapist fare, but unlike, say, MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, it actually does touch on some of life's harsher realities. In SUMMER MAGIC, the Carey family is in reduced circumstances because they have lost their father. Cousin Julia was completely orphaned, and although she had been taken in by a wealthy family that too proved to be a precarious situation and--although she is too proud and blind to admit it--she is in pretty dire straits when her relatives take her in. The worst traumas Judy's St. Louis family had to deal with was Tootie's scary Halloween and the upsetting prospect of their very much alive and well (if curmudgeonly) father's moving the family to New York City to accept a BETTER PAYING and more prestigious job.

No denying that the movie is fluff, but good fluff acknowledges--overtly or covertly--the realities it seeks to escape from. In fact, the lovingly bickering older couple played by Ives and Merkel have a running debate about seeing clouds or seeing silver lining. Merkel is even allowed to state a pretty good (and pretty funny) case for preferring your clouds to be clouds. I won't say this was deep stuff, even for my 11 year old brain, but the good cheer and optimism that dominates the movie does come at a price. The main characters' sunny optimism seems at times to be as much a matter of will power as of their fundamental natures.

Summer Magic.......2007-05-17

I loved Summer Magic! It is the typical Disney movie that I grew up with back in the 50's and I wouldn't be afraid for my grandchildren to sit with me while watching it. Dorothy Maguire, Haley Mills and Burl Ives are wonderful in this family picture. Anyone wanting to watch a movie that is lighthearted and fun, this I recommend and have your grandchildren with you....they'll enjoy seeing how things were in the "olden days".

Summer Magic.......2007-05-15

Charming, delightful and warm entertainment for the entire family. during the era movies were created using positive life's messages; this wonderful film provides true entertainment for children and a lovely stroll down nostalgic lanes for adults.

Definitely Worth Watching!.......2007-03-10

After the death of their father Hayley Mills and her two younger brothers and mother are left without much money and froced to move out of their Boston townhouse. They go to live in an old house in Maine and have to get used to country life, as well as their snooty cousin who comes to stay with them. A really good Disney movie, with a few good songs, like Ugly Bug Ball, and Femeninity.

Average customer rating:

Life on the Prairie
great family movie.
Set in motion your love of Little House on the Prairie.
little house on the prairie the pilot
good times, good times

Little House on the Prairie - The Pilot
Starring: Melissa Sue Anderson , Alison Arngrim , Richard Bull , Victor French , and Jonathan Gilbert
Director: Victor French , Michael Landon , Lewis Allen , Maury Dexter , and Alf Kjellin
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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( L ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Little House on the Prairie - The Complete Season 1
Little House on the Prairie - The Complete Season 2
Little House on the Prairie - The Complete Season 3
Little House on the Prairie - The Complete Season 4
Little House on the Prairie - The Complete Season 5

ASIN: B00009QG5T
Release Date: 2003-07-08

Description

Based on the best-selling books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, this classic, produced and directed by Michael Landon, takes us from the woods of Wisconsin to the plains of Kansas where the Ingalls struggle to build a new life. With indomitable courage that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit, the Ingalls face endless challenges and experience countless adventures as they pursue their dream of a new home. This premiere movie is a "must-have" for all Little House fans! This DVD has been restored using state-of-the-art color correction, picture enhancement and noise reduction technologies.

Special Features:
* Interactive Full Motion Menu
* Actor Biographies
* Scene Index
Run Time: Approx. 95 min.
Components: 1 DVD

Customer Reviews:

Life on the Prairie.......2007-05-13

A series for the whole family. Something for everyone. Great actors, including the children. Good background scenes, alot of horse drawn rigs. Get a feel for the way life was many years ago. Go back in time and enjoy.

great family movie........2007-02-18

This was my favorite book series as a child, but somehow I missed the premier of this series. I saw the first episode of the tv show, but never saw the original tv pilot. I bought this and loved every second. I highly recommend this to any Laura Ingalls Wilder fan.

Set in motion your love of Little House on the Prairie........2007-01-17

I am a Little House fan so this was a must have for me. You will not be dissapointed. The pilot is based on the time before the Ingalls family live in Walnut Grove. You also meet Mr Edwards. My passion for this series began with Michael Landon and his creative genius for delving into positive family values. I look forward to the time when my children are old enough and we can watch the series together.

little house on the prairie the pilot.......2007-01-15

it is going to be a big part of my collecton

good times, good times.......2007-01-12

There are a couple of things missing in this movie that are in the book but not too many. I always loved the series but this pilot was great to go back and watch. reminded me that I love the books. Go old school and rewatch it. I intend on buying the whole series. I want my kids to watch them all.

Average customer rating:

My Wife's Favorite Movie
Golden Oldie!!!
The Goodbye Girl
Goodbye Girl
a great Neil Simon story adapted for the screen......

The Goodbye Girl
Starring: Richard Dreyfuss , Marsha Mason , Quinn Cummings , Paul Benedict , and Barbara Rhoades
Director: Herbert Ross
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

Same Time, Next Year
Murphy's Romance
The Four Seasons
Barefoot in the Park
Max Dugan Returns

ASIN: B00002ND7A
Release Date: 2000-01-18

Amazon.com

The Goodbye Girl is a bittersweet comedy about relationships and taking chances. Though it deals with the human condition, what most quickly comes to mind are those wickedly comedic scenes featuring Richard Dreyfuss in an Oscar-winning role. He plays a struggling actor with a sharp tongue who has sublet an apartment from single mom Marcia Mason, a divorcée with horrific taste in men, who are always running out on her. She is left high and dry once more, stuck sharing her apartment with Dreyfuss when he hasn't the heart to enforce his lease and toss out mother and daughter.

Neil Simon's play shines under the direction of Herbert Ross as these two mismatched people find their contempt changing into mutual admiration. Quinn Cummings is more interesting than most precocious child stars; she seems brighter and her manner is prickly instead of cloying. Watch this film just for the scene in which Dreyfuss plays Richard III in an off-off-Broadway play. He lisps, he limps, he screams. It is the worst theater you will ever see--and thoroughly hilarious. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews:

My Wife's Favorite Movie.......2007-06-28

Richard Dreyfuss, Marsha Mason, great story, romantic, funny and extremely well written. Why they even thought to remake this 1977 classic for television is beyond me. You just don't find chemistry on film like this very often. Richard Dreyfuss won a much deserved Academy Award for his outstanding performance, and Marsha Mason was perfect as these two performers jelled into one of the best and funniest love relationships ever.

I had to buy this DVD for my wife, who could watch this movie morning, noon and night. A real Hollywood romantic comedy that set the tone for all that followed. Quinn Cummings will win your heart over as the young daughter of Marsha Mason. An extremely entertaining experience for adult couples, yet gentle enough for younger teens as well.

Golden Oldie!!!.......2007-05-18

This movie is one of Neil Simon's best, especially with the addition of Marsha Mason(his real-life wife!!) It is a fun, real life story and I loved it!!
Richard Dreyfuss is so young in this and I'm sure starting his brillant career
If you want a "feel-good" somewhat chick flick, then this is a sure bet, and I feel it is timeless!!!

The Goodbye Girl.......2007-05-13

Super movie. Funny, yet sophisticated! Both Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason are terrific! And so is "the kid"! Too bad they don't make 'em like this anymore!

Goodbye Girl.......2007-03-26

First saw this years ago, but never forgot it. A very funny, intelligent, typical Neil Simon film. Simply heartwarming.

a great Neil Simon story adapted for the screen.............2007-03-14

THE GOODBYE GIRL is a wonderful Neil Simon romantic comedy (with emphasis on screwball). The film takes the formula of THE ODD COUPLE (another wonderful film that examines the relationship between a pair of opposites trying to compromise in a living situation) with a twist. Paula McFadden (Marsha Mason) is an out-of-work dancer and single mother whose boyfriend has abandoned her and her young daughter, Lucy (Quinn Cummings)--not a surprise. However, he also subletted the apartment to his out-of-work actor friend, Elliot Garfield (Richard Dreyfuss). This wasn't what Paula had in mind. This wasn't what Elliot had in mind. Nevertheless, the eccentric Elliot--who chants and eats odd, diet specific food-- and the embittered Paula, who has vowed to stay away from actors--must agree to tolerate each other (to put it nicely). This doesn't come easily.

This film has so many wonderful and funny scenes, and Marsha Mason and Richard Dreyfuss have wonderful screen chemistry even when they are at each other's throats. Wonderfully entertaining......Dreyfuss basically steals the movie. You'll love it.

Average customer rating:

old times
so funny!
Drop Dead Fred
Just an upgrade
Makes you want to be little again

Drop Dead Fred
Starring: Phoebe Cates , Rik Mayall , Marsha Mason , Tim Matheson , and Carrie Fisher
Director: Ate de Jong
Manufacturer: Lions Gate
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

DVDs Under $7.49 | Today's Deals in DVD | Special Features | DVD | Video

( D ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Little Monsters (Full Screen Edition)
Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead
BEETLEJUICE (DVD)
The Garbage Pail Kids Movie
Adventures in Babysitting

ASIN: B00009NHAG
Release Date: 2003-07-22

Amazon.com

This not-quite-black comedy was probably a laugh riot on paper. The translation almost works, but the execution is flawed. Phoebe Cates is a recently separated young woman who suddenly begins to see her supposedly imagined childhood friend (Drop Dead Fred) after moving back into her mother's home. Is he a manifestation of her secret desires to ditch the boorish spouse? Or was he real all along? Rik Mayall is a limber, carrot-topped Brit with the lamentable assignment of trying to make us laugh with vulgar, sophomoric trickery. He is supposedly the repository of Cates's fastidious repression but is more annoying than cathartic. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Customer Reviews:

old times.......2007-05-15

this movie was awesome.. was when i was little and still is now! only place i found it was here and the price BONUS!

so funny!.......2007-04-30

when I was a kid I loved this movie...it always bright the little kid in me and still does...its about an imaginary friend and the adventures he goes through..well kinda

Drop Dead Fred.......2007-03-29

Bought this for my 9 year old daughter and she can't stop watching it! She loves this movie! Thinks Fred is great and loves the "pants pie"....lol!

Just an upgrade.......2007-01-04

My daughter and I have watched Drop Dead Fred for years after renting it from a video store on VHS. Our own VHS tape had become worn and frayed - static and distortion while watching it. Mom decided it was time to upgrade to a DVD copy of it as part of Christmas. She's now 14 and still loves this hilarious show! ~*SNOT FACE!*~

Makes you want to be little again.......2006-11-04

I have always loved this movie and think that it gives us all something to think about. Not only can most people relate because the girl ( Phoebe Cates) has an imaginary friend, but then she grows up and still has him there. I think that it shows we all have the kid inside us that just wants out and sometimes were afraid to let it out for the fear of others reactions, but in this movie she doesn't care what other people think she just wants you to understand, and once she moved on from "Fred" she doesn't see him anymore, but still can hold him in her heart, its a great coming of age movie that is very funny.

Average customer rating:

Random Harvest
Classic Movies
Random Harvest- Very Good
A tear jerker to remember
Love story

Random Harvest
Starring: Ronald Colman , Greer Garson , Philip Dorn , Susan Peters , and Henry Travers
Director: Mervyn LeRoy , Joseph M. Newman , and Herbert Polesie
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

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Drama | Kids & Family | Genres | DVD | Video

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( R ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
Similar Items:

Mrs. Miniver
Since You Went Away
A Letter to Three Wives
Lost Horizon
Goodbye, Mr. Chips

ASIN: B0006B2AA6
Release Date: 2005-01-11

Amazon.com

The ultimate tearjerker, this 1942 romance classic directed by Mervyn LeRoy (based on a novel by James Hilton) stars Ronald Colman as a British army officer suffering from amnesia after World War I. After falling in love with and marrying a dance-hall singer (Greer Garson), Colman's happy character begins a career as a writer and doesn't seem to mind that he doesn't remember who he is. A car accident changes all that, however, causing the hero's memory to return and making him forget all about his lovely cottage and bride. LeRoy modulates the obvious suspense element in the story (for example, is Colman going to remember Greer or not?) extremely well, building ever-so-deliciously slowly toward a huge payoff. This is one of the great date movies of all time. --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews:

Random Harvest.......2007-06-25

A deeply moving fable showcasing the superb talents of Colman and Garson (fresh from her Oscar-winning turn in "Mrs. Miniver"), "Harvest" was adapted from James Hilton's bestselling 1940 novel and became one of MGM's biggest hits. The radiant Garson was never better playing Paula, a woman whose imperishable love motivates acts of supreme self-sacrifice. And Colman, playing essentially two roles, manages to elicit our sympathy as he journeys from shell-shocked mental patient to industrialist prince, a man with a nagging sense that the hole in his past is the key to real happiness. A lush melodrama of the highest order.

Classic Movies.......2006-11-06

I saw this film many years ago and I could watch it again and again. Boy meets girl loses girl finds her again. A basic concept but done so beautifully and with such great actors.

Random Harvest- Very Good.......2006-05-29

I love this movie. I first saw it flipping through channels and landed on TCM. I fell in love with it. The true love in it is phenomenal. I definitly recommend this movie if you want to see a classic love story!

A tear jerker to remember.......2006-01-30

This is my favorite movie. It used to be on the tv all the time. That was then, this is now. I'm so glad I now own it myself. It is the story of a World War I, shell shocked man and the woman who meets and falls in love with him. When he later regains his memory, he loses his memory of her. She finds him and submerges her own persona in order to be near him. It has a happy ending, as did all movies of this era.

Love story.......2005-10-26

Another of my favourite films, A wonderful love story, my only fault is that they cast older actors to play the parts of young men and women. That aside it is a wonderful film and I personally like it as the wedding hymn is the one sung at my own wedding.

Average customer rating:

Zorba the Greek
Wow!
Zorba the Great!
great film!
IT IS ALL A CLASSIC SHOULD BE

Zorba the Greek
Starring: Anthony Quinn , Alan Bates , Irene Papas , Lila Kedrova , and Sotiris Moustakas
Director: Mihalis Kakogiannis
Manufacturer: 20th Century Fox
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

Never on Sunday
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Zorba the Greek
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ASIN: B0001XALGY
Release Date: 2004-08-03

Amazon.com

If you think Zorba the Greek is a simple-minded homage to a man with a zest for life, then you haven't seen the movie. Basil (Alan Bates), a reticent British writer, comes to the Mediterranean island of Crete to revive a mine his father owned. On the way, he meets a Greek roustabout named Zorba (Anthony Quinn) and hires him to help, little suspecting that Zorba's exuberance will lead him to some dark and troubling places--frankly, if the last 30 minutes of Zorba the Greek are what it means to embrace life, some viewers will want to shut the door in life's face. But there's no denying the movie's ambitious scope and implacable force, even as it paints an alien and disturbing portrait of life in a Greek village. On top of that, gorgeous cinematography and one of the greatest film scores ever give this movie almost demonic energy. --Bret Fetzer

Description

On the Greek isle of Crete, Basil (Alan Bates), a shy inhibited writer from England is befriended by Zorba (Anthony Quinn) a boisterous peasant with an astonishing love for life. When Zorba agrees to work at Basil's abandoned mine, it is the beginning of a lesson for the young man as he gradually moves from an observer of the world to a participant. This acclaimed classic co-stars Irene Paps and Lila Kedrova in an Oscar winning performance. "An utterly absorbing and sharply memorable film" (The Hollywood Reporter)

Customer Reviews:

Zorba the Greek.......2007-07-02

Based on the novel by Nikos Kazantzakis, the multiple Oscar-winning "Zorba" is all about Quinn's indelible, galvanic performance. A bon vivant who exhorts Basil to "loosen your belt and go find trouble", Zorba is a hurricane of manic energy and strapping muscularity, but also great tenderness. Bates portrays the cerebral, sissyish Basil with perfect restraint, while Oscar winner Kedrova (as ailing French hotelier Mme. Hortense) and Eleni Anousaki (as a stunningly gorgeous widow) provide excellent support as doomed love interests. Zesty and passionate, even in its darkest half-hour, Cacoyannis's "Zorba" is an irresistibly salty portrait of Greek life.

Wow!.......2007-06-11

Basil, an English writer caught up in orderliness ("I write essays") meets up with Zobra, a Greek with a huge lust for life. Basil hires Zorba to help him restart a mine he inherrited, and Zorba teaches Basil to get more out of life. It's more than a typical buddy scenario - the lessons are clearly only one way, and they're not always good ones.

There are several strong points in the movie. The humor is frequently dark, and not sanitized hollywood. The Buddhist undercurrents and morality are shown, lightly told, but no over-preachy. And rather than present a purely rosy picture of "living large" the darker sides are also explored.

It's a great movie, certainly worthy of the oscars it won, and perhaps it deserved a few more.

Zorba the Great!.......2007-05-13

This film is, has been and always will be one of the 10 ten films ever made in my opnion. Anthony Quinn's performance is magnificent as well as Alan Bates' and Lila Kedrova's. I was fortunate enough back in the '80s to see him do Zorba at Ford's Theatre in D.C. And Lila was in it also. Sadly they have both passed away.

great film!.......2007-05-07

My introduction to this film was actually the wonderful soundtrack on vinyl, played while a small child, in our family living room. Much of this great music, with traditional Greek accompaniment, is often heard at Greek restaurants, too. I always had wonderful memories of souflaki, piping hot spanakopita and saganaki, associated with all of the songs!

It wasn't until some years later that I saw this great film, starring Anthony Quinn, as Zorba, with Alan Bates, as Basil, the young English writer he befriends and helps awaken to the sights and sounds of life. There is more to this film than meets the eye. For starters, it isn't all dancing and singing. There are also some very dramatic moments that I won't elaborate on, here, so as not to spoil the plot for you! I will say that the acting is superb, that Irene Papas and Lila Kedrova are fabulous co-stars, and the music will linger in your ears for days following your intial viewing of the film.

IT IS ALL A CLASSIC SHOULD BE.......2007-03-26

What can you expect from a classic? "Zorba" is simply excellent. Anthony Quinn, Alan Bates and Irene Papas are the big guns that make this an unforgettable movie.

DVD:

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DVD

Mystery of the Maya (Large Format)

Winnie The Pooh : The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh :

Red Surf

DVD: The Most Terrible Time in My Life

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