Only Disney can

I watched the Hunchback of Notre Dame as I move into five days of animated films. Disney has managed to throw in religion, amongst the love story based on the story by Victor Hugo. The voices of Demi Moore, Tom Hulce and Jason Alexander are featured in this musical of yet another beauty and the beast story. There were too many musical numbers for me. Maybe it was the fact that the numbers weren't so entertaining. Maybe it was my mood. I'm not sure. The visuals were great, but The Prince of Eqypt remains my favorite film when it comes to animated humans, but The Lion King is still tops for it's spectacular visuals. If you like animation you'll enjoy this film. Lots of jokes even one scene taken from the Wizard of Oz. See if you can find it. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.

21 Jump Street

The 70’s was all about color. Putting together those patterns your mother told you never to mix and match. LOL. The Disco era. The 80’s was about the hair, New Wave fashion was what it was called. 21 Jump Street was the trendy new show that everyone was talking about. The show starred Johnny Depp, Holly Robinson, Peter DeLuise, and Dustin Nguyen. Undercover cops who looked young enough to get away with going back to school. The show tackled some pretty interesting issues that teens around the U.S. were dealing with. It paved the way for so many other shows that would hold the interest of teens and adults alike. 21 Jump Street was the first hit crime drama for the Fox network. It introduced us to many of the stars that would take over the tube. Christina Applegate, Jason Priestly and Shannon Doherty all appeared on episodes of 21 Jump Street before becoming residences themselves. Check out a few episodes if you’ve never seen this show. It holds up pretty well. If you have any film recommendations that I might not have seen yet, drop me a line. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.

The White Shadow

This was a television series that I would not miss. The story centered around a group of basketball players, mostly black, who were challenged by a white coach. The show was diverse in its depiction of the various backgrounds and the topics it covered. Ken Howard plays the coach who once had a promising career in the NBA until a knee injury benched him. A fellow friend and school principal hires him for his touch exterior to become coach, big brother and father to the guys of Carver High’s basketball team. Tonight I’ll watch an episode of 21 Jump Street. The rest of the week it’s Animation starting with The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Antz, Sinbad, The Road to El Dorado, and the Prince of Egypt. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.

Rainman

- I had two copies of the film in the VHS format. How did that happen? One copy went bad and I replaced it. Then I debated about having it on DVD. I recently found it at a good price and picked it up. The film stars Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise as brothers. Dustin Hoffman plays an Idiot Savant, the new politically correct term is Autistic. Dustin won an Oscar for his performance as Raymond Babbit aka Rainman. The first time I saw this film in the theaters it brought back some memories of someone I knew had gone through a similar incident that is talked about in the film. We all have secrets. Even if we share them with just one person, it’s still a secret to others around us. Is it a good thing to have secrets? If we told the truth about everything that we did, what would be the outcome? Do people even hear what we are saying? I remember once in one of my newsletters my opening line was a confession, but unless it’s plastered where everyone who visits me can see it, it means nothing. I’ll remember to post that opening statement on my Blog. LOL. If you haven’t seen Rainman give it a look see. It’s an interesting film that deals with hatred, betrayal, love and compassion. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind. I’ve not selected my films for the week at this writing. I will probably begin watching The White Shadow or 21 Jump Street. Check back to find out what it will be.

Ordinary People

Ordinary People - This is one of those films that when it first came out I wasn’t interested in seeing. I didn’t know any of the stars, well I did know Mary Tyler Moore, but the story just didn’t seem to be something I was interested in. I was used to action pictures, some comedies, but serious drama I wasn’t into at the time. After seeing Taps, Falcon and the Snowman, Iceman, I became a fan of Timothy Hutton. So I had to see the film in which he was nominated for an Oscar. When we are young there are just certain things we can’t relate to, that we can when we think we are all grown up. Depression, death, weren’t prevalent in my life at the time. At least not to a degree where I couldn’t cope. The film is about love, understanding, compassion and control. The film deals with the psyche and how we all at some point blame ourselves for events that we actually have no control over. If you haven’t seen this film I suggest you give it a look see. If you have seen it, why not see it again. Share it with a friend and see how your life has changed. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind. Tonight’s feature: Rainman. Coming soon: Havoc, Lady Sings the Blues, Oxygen, Harlem Nights, Above the rim and Steel Magnolia’s.

Glengarry Glen Ross

This is not just a film about real estate, this is a film about sales. It is a film about determination and survival. Everyone is at there best in this film, Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alan Arkin, Kevin Spacy, Alec Baldwin, Johnathan Pryce and Ed Harris. This is a dialogue film. We don’t get too many of those. Quentin Tarantino gives us dialogue amongst action, but this is all dialogue and little action. We’re watching a stage play which is quite a change. Check out this film and see how you react. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.

Runaway Jury

There aren’t a lot of great movies that have been filmed entirely in New Orleans. There aren’t a lot of great movies that even feature New Orleans. Usually it’s a jazz funeral, Mardi Gras parade, voodoo or cemeteries. Live and Let Die, The Killer Bees, Candyman, Farewell to the Flesh, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat People, Easy Rider, Tight Rope, Drum, Monsters Ball, Murder at the Mardi Gras and Pretty Baby to name a few. Most of the films get the accent wrong or they pronounce the streets differently. I like how a character can stay on one side of town and walk to another side. They’d be exhausted. Runaway Jury starts off kind of foolish. I’ve hesitated to purchase this film, but I found it at a good price. I paid around $6.00. Unless its something I don’t want to take a chance not getting I usually pay the price. I wish I had done that with Priest and now I’m having the hardest time getting it added to my collection. So I keep trying. Runaway Jury stars Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman, John Cusack, Luiz Guzman, New Orleans locals Audela Gautier and Carol Sutton and many others. It turns out to be an interesting film. The film is taken from a novel by John Grisham. Give it a look see. Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.