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Frida (2002)

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama

September 02, 2003
I first saw this film on a French language TV channel (in French) and was mesmerized by it. I don't speak French, but knew some basic details about Frida & Diego Rivera, had heard of the dust-up with Rockefeller and had seen Rivera's murals in Mexico City, so was able to follow most of the plot. Next day I ordered the DVD & played it (in English) over & over again till the fabulous music score & the song "Burn this bed, Burn it blue..." rang in my head for days.

The film is visually stunning (from the vibrant colours of the locations and costumes to Frida's paintings), the characters fascinating & the music score haunting.
It is set in the lively world of culture & society in Mexico between the two ... Read More:

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Brubaker

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Robert Redford, Yaphet Kotto, Jane Alexander, Murray Hamilton, David Keith
directed by: Stuart Rosenberg

May 20, 2003
This ranks right up there with ... as one of the great "hero with integrity goes up against the corrupt system" movies of all time.

I used to teach American Government and would show this and Redford's ... Two of the best political films of all time.

This movie brings up many important and insightful issues involving prison reform/management.

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Remember the Night

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi, Elizabeth Patterson, Willard Robertson
directed by: Mitchell Leisen

September 19, 1995
Well, what can I say?? It's an old movie and not
very interesting. I watched it once and probably
won't watch it again. This movie cannot compare
to some of the classics.

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The World in His Arms

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Gregory Peck, Ann Blyth, Anthony Quinn, John McIntire, Carl Esmond
directed by: Raoul Walsh

September 17, 1996
I saw a few bad reviews on this movie. I personally thought this movie was wonderful, full of action and romance. Gregory Peck is wonderful as usual, very good acting by all actors. Ann Blyth was beautiful in those lavish costumes, Ann Blyth & Gregory Peck acted well together. Overall a very good Gregory Peck movie! If your a Gregory Peck and Ann Blyth fan, a must see!!!

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Macbeth

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Jon Finch, Francesca Annis, Martin Shaw, Terence Bayler, John Stride
directed by: Roman Polanski

June 17, 1992
Unlike other reviewers, I think this version is completely true to Shakespeare's original vision. Polanski certainly put his stamp on this movie. However, not unduly so. It is a dark rendition of a dark play. The nudity may have seemed quite avant garde to North Americans in 1971. However, 37 years later in 2008 it does not seem at all shocking and simply reflects Lady Macbeth's deteriorating mental condition.

An excellent rendition. All in all one of the best movies of any Shakespearean play.

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Portrait of a Lady

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Nicole Kidman, John Malkovich, Barbara Hershey, Mary-Louise Parker, Martin Donovan (II)
directed by: Jane Campion

December 14, 1999
Nicole Kidman IS Isabel Archer! I don't understand why some reviewers here panned her acting as bad. She has never looked more beautiful than in this film. Her acting is also superb and expressive.

This is the story about a young American woman (Isabel) who is just orphaned and is invited to stay with her rich relatives, the Touchetts in Victorian England. While in England, she is wooed by the rich Lord Warburton but she rejects his proposal because she wants to see the world and be free. When her uncle later dies, Isabel inherits a big sum of money and becomes truly rich and "independent". It is actually her cousin, the consumptive Ralph Touchett (who is secretly in love with her) who pressed his father to leave the money to Isabel without Isabel's ... Read More:

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The Waterdance

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Eric Stoltz, Helen Hunt, William Allen Young, James Roach, Elizabeth Peña
directed by: Michael Steinberg, Neal Jimenez

July 01, 1997
The acting was first rate, no complaints, especially William Forsythe's character. This was a very powerful movie about coming to grips with a life-altering accident, then learning to adjust and carry on. The movie is compared to "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" which it does resemble in some ways. Eric Stoltze is very good in the lead role. Helen Hunt is her beautiful self and exceptionally revealing in this movie, she is awesome!!! She is unbelievably gorgeous!!! Do not deny this movie, cause you could be missing something. Although extremely depressing at times, the ending will satisfy. A must see!!!

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Little Women 94

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
from: Columbia/Tristar Vid

June 25, 2002
Louisa May Alcott's book has come to life in vivid detail and beauty. The casting is superb. The four sisters are a pleasure to watch and view as they develop into young ladies who experience both the pleasures and pains of growing into adulthood. The film depicts the changes in each character from adolescence and the growing pains associated with making independent decisions based on their personalities and values. As young ladies with education who grew up in a household where their opinions were heard and mattered, they stand in direct contrast with the majority of girls growing up at that time ...

In the attic, the sisters enact all the parts of a play which Jo had written ... it was a great moment when they invited Theodore Lawrence into their circle of friends. The individuality ... Read More:

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Romeo and Juliet (Widescreen) (1968)

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Leonard Whiting, Olivia Hussey, John McEnery, Milo O'Shea, Pat Heywood (II)
directed by: Franco Zeffirelli

March 18, 2003
This is one of my very most favorite films. They are the characters, no one else. It is perfect in every way. The costume, the acting, the sets, the casting, the music. I get thoroughy enthralled every time, and weep every time. I cannot say enough good things about this film. I am thoroughly in love with it. It's enchanting, enrapturing, rich and beautiful, honest, thrilling, inspiring, heartbreaking, eternal...

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Gia

Childrens Toy Shop > VHS > Drama
starring: Angelina Jolie, Elizabeth Mitchell, Eric Michael Cole, Kylie Travis, Louis Giambalvo
directed by: Michael Cristofer

April 11, 2000
Gia is a knockout, daring film. It tells the true story of the rise and fall of 80's supermodel Gia Carrangi. Many reviewers have said they never heard of Gia until the movie. In the cruel fashion world, Gia was forgotten as fast as she became famous. Not one person from the fashion industry attended her funeral. The man who wrote the book on which this film was based also coined the term 'fashionista' for his book. The word has since become a staple in the English language.

Angelina Jolie was made for this role; she deserved the awards and recognition she received for it. If this film had been made for theaters rather than HBO, she should have won an Oscar.

In Gia, Gia/Jolie is the sun, and all the other characters revolve around her. From her inauspicious beginnings in New ... Read More: