Movies and shows of 2011

I don't have cable or satellite TV, so I stream series or movies to my computer through Netflix. I like to keep a record of what I've watched the past year because, like the books I read, this is the input I've put into my brain which helps fuel my thoughts and writing.

Lois and Clark (season 3)
The Devil Wears Prada
The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency (season 1)
Outsourced — An enjoyable look at cultural differences between America and India.
Did You Hear About the Morgans?
The Book of Eli — One of those movies with a great twist that makes you want to watch it again, immediately.
Eat Pray Love
A Room With a View — I liked this in college and wanted to see it again.
84, Charing Cross Road — And then I went to England!
Avatar — I liked it.
Forbidden Planet (1956)
An Education
The Millionairess (Sophia Loren, Peter Sellers)
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Thomas Crown Affair (Steve McQueen, 1968)
The Jane Austen Book Club
Despicable Me — Very funny!!
Roswell (seasons 1, 2 and 3) — My naughty indulgence last summer was to watch this all the way through.
The King's Speech — I didn't know this bit of history, which made some items I have in the bookshop more significant.
Carribean (1952)
Possession
Soul Surfer
Emma (Gwyneth Paltrow) — Not bad, but the characters seemed so different from the A&E version that I have now have trouble picturing them in my head. I had to go read the book. It didn't help.
The Cowboy and the Lady (Gary Cooper, 1938)
Alfie (Jude Law) — Not a happy movie.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (season 1 and part of season 2) — I stopped for the same reason I stopped watching the original series: I knew it was going to get darker and darker and, unlike Roswell, the characters would never find happiness.
Toy Story 3 — (I haven't see Toy Story 2, yet)
Happy Accidents — I really liked this movie, the kind that makes you think and re-watch parts. I didn't know who Vincent D'Onofrio was (yes, I live under a rock). Caution: lots of foul language.
Here Comes the Groom (Bing Crosby)
Food, Inc. — If not completely life-changing, this documentary at least makes you think about where your food comes from and what you're eating.
Tangled
Signs of Life — Fascinated by Vincent D'Onofrio (but not a fan of police TV), I found this 1989 movie.

I forgot to list the one time I went to a theater; I think it was late summer or early fall. I watched Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides.

Movies of 2010

I watched a lot of movies in 2010, most of them at home on Netflix, because I don't have TV reception or cable. Lately I've been watching the series Lois and Clark for my suppertime entertainment (love it!). Sometimes I watch The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. I didn't realize it was a series, but the book has a lot of short stories in it and they filmed it as separate episodes. I like the African music, accents, and unique characters. I also liked Who Do You Think You Are?, but only saw two episodes.

These are the movies I would label:

Awesome! (I would watch these again)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (subtitled, Swedish). Pretty brutal, definitely not for kids nor the faint of heart. But I just finished the book, and I'd say the movie is even better, with lots of minor changes like a revision.
Oklahoma! Hugh Jackman. Talent, talent, talent. And fun.
Up! For laughing and crying. Like falling out of your chair laughing. Appropriate for watching with family/friends/kids.
Captains Courageous with Spencer Tracy. Wow! Powerful movie about a boy who starts out as a rowdy troublemaker and accidently becomes a crewmember on a whaling ship.
Eat Drink Man Woman. (subtitled, Chinese) About three very different sisters, who are wondering which one of them will be stuck taking care of their aging father. Meanwhile, he's wondering how long before he can get them out of the house. Lots of lovely food.
Jodhaa Akbar (subtitled, Indian) Sweeping epic, love story, traitors, religious tolerance, sword fights — it's all there and very well done. And not all of the sword fights are between husband and wife.
Ben Hur with Charlton Heston.

Really enjoyed: The Last Airbender, Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr. & Jude Law), Lawrence of Arabia, Notorious (Hitchcock), The Forbidden Kingdom (a little campy, but Jackie Chan and Jet Li — what's not to like?), National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets (old books!), Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (Bollywood humor/drama that reminded me of Jerry Lewis's The Nutty Professor), The Big Sleep (Bogart and Bacall), Julie and Julia

A bit dark: The Constant Gardener (not a happy story at all), Sherlock Holmes: The Sign of Four, No Man of Her Own with Barbara Stanwyck. I wasn't too crazy about any of these. The last one finally has a happy ending, but they sure go through a lot of misery to get there.


Enjoyed, but rather shallow: The Proposal (Sandra Bullock), The Art of Travel (gratuitous nudity), Sky High (has some redeeming angst and morals), Journey to the Center of the Earth (Brendan Fraser), Duck Soup (Marx brothers), Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Inspector Gadget, Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood, Flight Plan (OK, these last two aren't shallow; I liked them OK but don't need to see them again.)

None of them were really awful, but some of the films really stand out and stick with you, while others are just a way to spend time.

Movies of 2009

Here are my movies and series that I watched in the second half of 2009, with mini-reviews.
I started the year with Heroes: Season 3, but it was getting so dark I stopped watching. I may go back to it sometime, but it seems like another one of those series that will never let the characters be happy because the writers think we need more and more "tension" to stay interested. There's got to be some hope.
Then I watched The Tudors: Season 1 - Historically interesting, and very racy.
Slumdog Millionaire - good, but not for family.
Titanic (again) - one of my favorites.
Titanic Survivor Stories - Documentary filmed in 1982, when several survivors were alive and related fascinating stories. At the end there's film footage of the actual ship leaving port.
Nights in Rodanthe - Better than I expected, and not as predictable as the trailers led me to believe.
Pride and Prejudice - (again) one of my favorites.
Monkey Business - cute, with all four Marx brothers.
The Great Race - I've always liked Tony Curtis, but this was not as good as I expected. Very campy, Road-Runner type violence/humor, and back when making fun of suffragettes was apparently funny.
Spaceballs - for the first time! light humor.
The Other Boleyn Girl - Quite a different version from The Tudors. Not very happy, but I suppose with those historical events that would be impossible. Intriguing.
Airplane! - for the first time in many years! funny.
Pirates of the Caribbean (again) - a favorite. I tried to add in the "deleted scene" where Elizabeth teaches him the pirate song.
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952) - Entertaining.
The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice - More somber than the first two movies. Enjoyed it.
The Buccaneers - Miniseries based on Edith Wharton's unfinished novel. Interesting, but not sure I would recommend it. Lots of "dark" (unhappy) scenes. I'm told her books were much better.
Saving Grace - Hilarious! (no, this is not some American series. It's an English feature) This tops my list and I would definitely buy a copy.
The Fifth Element (again) - I had forgotten most of the movie. Enjoyable.
Born Yesterday (1950) - A Pygmalion type story. Liked it.
Holiday (1938, K.Hepburn & C.Grant) - Liked it.
Berkeley Square - I recommend this miniseries, much better than The Buccaneers. Some reality and hardship, but it gives hope. And good historical detail; I now know what a footman does!
Home Alone (1st one) - I hadn't seen this in so long I forgot most of it. Funny.
Star Trek (the new one, DVD) - Good enough to watch again.
While You Were Sleeping (again) - My favorite Christmas movie, especially if you're blue.
Timeline - Entertaining, but turn off your reality switch.
Four Christmases - OK, but don't need to watch it again. It's like Christmas Vacation humor, which isn't me. But I didn't realize it had such an all-star cast! 'like the supporting actors.
Sometime in the past few months I watched Serenity and forgot to write it down. Although I had seen it in the theatre, I had since watched the Firefly series so everything had whole new meanings for me. Would like to watch the series and then the movie again.
Ben Hur - Watching this week (not finished). So far, it's awesome!

What I'm watching, 2009 part I

The year 2009 is half over (really!). I wanted to start over in the sidebar and list the movies and shows I've watched here. For the rest of the year, I'd like to get some some more classics in. I'm watching the two series because I did not upgrade my TV to digital - so this is all I watch!
Water (the plight of Indian widows)
The Tudors: Season 1 (started)
Finding Neverland
Heroes: Seasons 1 and 2
Cold Mountain (too long)
Star Trek (the new movie!)
Friendly Persuasion (Gary Cooper, with tons of Quaker humor)
In a Lonely Place (one of Bogey's darker roles)
Mrs. Brown (Judi Dench as Queen Victoria)
Becoming Jane
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
The Man Who Cried
Get Smart