Movie #350 - L.A. Story

L.A. Story
1991 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 35 min
Director: Mick Jackson
Starring: Steve Martin, Victoria Tennant, Richard E. Grant, Marilu Henner, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kevin Pollak, Patrick Stewart, Iman

I love this movie, I really do.  It's got all the trademark wit of a Steve Martin-penned comedy (better than Shop Girl, that's for sure) and tells the "real" truth about late 80s / early 90s Hollywood.  From trendy twists of lemon to Marilu Henner's outrageous jewelry "points" system, Martin shows us his satirical side.  Good stuff, all around.

So the talking signboard is a bit weird, but for some reason, it's just handled as fact.  Martin's character doubts it at first, as anyone would, but once it proves itself, he starts listening.  And it's never explained, which I think does this movie a great favor.  To do so would belittle the "fairytale" of this love story.

And who doesn't want to rollerskate through an art museum?

Watch this one and laugh--both at the outdated technology (it's 1991, for crying out loud) and the witty reparte that Martin writes so well.

Movie #286 - Hudson Hawk

Hudson Hawk
1991 - Rated R - 1 hr 50 min
Director: Michael Lehmann
Starring: Bruce Willis, Danny Aiello, Andie MacDowell, James Coburn, Richard E. Grant, Sandra Bernhard, David Caruso, Frank Stallone

This movie is so early 90s, it's ridiculous.  It's campy, the comedy is kinda forced, and the characters are more like caricatures.  Bruce Willis isn't really so great as the goofy hero... and Andy MacDowell's dolphin bit just isn't funny.

Can you tell I don't really like this one?  It's not that I'm a snob, I just like my comedies to be a little more witty. A little less cheesy.  Mike loves this one, probably because he originally saw it when he was about 10, and I just can't get behind it.  If you have your first watch of this as an adult, you probably won't love it either.

Movie #134 - Corpse Bride

Corpse Bride
Warner Bros
2005 - Rated PG - 1 hr 17 min
Director: Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Starring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Emily Watson, Tracey Ullman, Albert Finney, Richard E. Grant, Christopher Lee, Deep Roy

Tim Burton and his usual cast of characters are animated this time, yet still as eerie and dark as usual.  The premise is a strange one - nervous groom-to-be accidentally marries a dead girl when he recites his vows as practice in the woods.  You know, the kind of thing that happens every day.

As Mike and I discussed while watching this one, it's as bittersweet as Burton's other movies.  Even when the characters have it all resolved in the end, there's still this unaddressed sadness within them.  In this movie, our corpse bride is about as cheerful as Edward Scissorhands.  Really, there can be no happiness for her, only resolution.

This is another one of those animated movies for adults that kids might also like (because it has singing?).  It's not really kids movie subject matter, but it's presented in a way that's friendly for all ages.  Still, do you want your kid thinking he can accidentally marry dead people? That'll be a confusing conversation...  Enjoy.

Movie #108 - A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol
TNT
1999 (TV) - 1 hr 35 min
Director: David Hugh Jones
Starring: Patrick Stewart, Richard E. Grant, Joel Grey

Right in time for Christmas, this movie popped up in the queue (yes, my reviews are taking longer than my movie-watching, ironic isn't it?)

And this is my favorite version and my very favorite Scrooge, so hooray!  Michael Caine's pretty good in the Muppet version, which we watched on Christmas Eve (but doesn't come up in this list until M) but I love Patrick Stewart, as does any true Trekkie. Or fan of bald men.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard aside, this version is also the most true to the text (that I know of).  So it may not have Muppets or 3D like Jim Carrey's version, but it remains a staple of my holiday movie-watching every year.