Colin Firth

The Perfect Movie for Valentine’s Day

  • Title: Love Actually
  • IMDB: link

love-actually-dvdWritten and directed by Richard Curtis, Love Actually is a celebration of love. More than that, however, it’s a celebration of movie love. The film is jam-packed with characters, stories, situations, sampling the best romantic comedies have to offer. It’s not a spoof of romcoms, but a celebration of the best movie romances have to offer.

The film focuses on eight couples, each in a different part of their relationship as well as two additional stories which help tie them together: an aging rock star (Bill Nighy) and his manager (Gregor Fisher) attempting to win a holiday contest and jewelry store attendent (Rowan Atkinson) who shows up only when needed.

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The Best Movies of 2010

This wasn’t a year to wow you. 2010 may have been somewhat of an off year for movies, but there are several quality films that hit theaters this year which are worth noting. A couple things struck me as I was putting together this list. First, how actresses stepped up huge this year. Whether in lead or supporting roles, it was a year dominated by the performances of the fairer sex. And second, 2010 was a year of raw emotion, almost visceral, brought to screen. You might argue that one or two of my choices didn’t have elaborate plots, but each delivered on an emotional level.

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The King’s Speech

  • Title: The King’s Speech
  • IMDB: link

In the age of the Internet and high speed wireless devices comes a tale about radio. When you’ve got you’re entire music library on a MP3 player, and can get your news from any number of 24-hour cable news channels, it’s easy to forget how vital a communication device radio was, and how a single speech could change the tide of history.

The King’s Speech begins and ends with speeches by Prince Albert, Duke of York (Colin Firth) who would go on to rule the British Empire as King George VI. The differences between the speech he gives at at the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley as the King’s son and the famous speech he gave as King to the British people, uniting them as they marched to war, is what the film is all about.

Written by David Seidler and directed by Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech gives us a rousing performance by an actor at the height of his game, and a traditional story masterfully retold.

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Easy Virtue

  • Title: Easy Virtue
  • IMDB: link

easy-virtue-posterWhen you stop and think about it, it’s amazing any movie ever actually gets made. Many films flounder through the maze of casting issues, constant rewrites, shooting problems, and budgetary constraints. A finished film, even an awful one, is something of a miracle. If you don’t believe me check out Terry Gilliam’s Lost in La Macha which chronilces just how far a film can go off course when the gods are against you.

Easy Virtue isn’t a great film. It just didn’t navigate those treacherous waters with enough skill. Despite several pieces which work well, and a definite style, it’s a deeply flawed film. Much, though certainly not all, of its troubles can be laid at the feet of its young stars.

The film stars Jessica Biel as Laritta, a poor American race-car driver who marries young British aristocrat John (Ben Barnes) for love. What follows is something of a farcical Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (with snobby class warfare replacing racial tension) as John and Laritta travel to England to introduce his family meet his new bride.

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Mamma Mia!

  • Title: Mamma Mia!
  • IMDB: link

The British stage show based on Swedish pop music comes to American theaters.  Well, you don’t see that every week.  The long-running international musical has made more than a few quid since its premiere in London in 1999.  Just how successful?  It’s the 17th longest running Broadway show of all-time (beating out little muscials like Sound of Music, The Music Man, and My Fair Lady).  It’s been adapted in eleven different languages and has grosssed and estimated $2 billion worldwide.

On a small Greek island Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is preparing for her wedding to Sky (Dominic Cooper), but something is missing.  Sophie has been raised on the island by her loving mother Donna (Meryl Streep), former lead singer of Donna and the Dynamos who now owns and runs a small villa on the island.  Sophie loves her mother and her life, but she has always been kept in the dark about the identity of her father.

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