Favourite Movies

This is a list of some of the best movies in recent times . My favourite movies cover a range of genres: from period pieces to sci-fi, chick flicks to action movies. It's not a list of the latest releases but a mix of old and new that I hope you enjoy as much as I did.

March of the Emperor Penguins - the Original French Version

The March of the Emperor Penguin, narrated by Morgan Freeman, won an Academy Award and is internationally acclaimed howeverit is decidely inferrior to the original French version - nothing personal Morgan.

The original is much harder to find but is available on the Fishpond website and marketed as "The Emperor's Journey". It differs primarily in the soundtrack as the story is told from the perspective of the penguins with highly regarded French actors voicing the parts of the penguin pair and their young chick.

The script is almost poetic and is accompanied by gorgeous, Bjork-like musical sequences to match the hauntingly beautiful Antarctic scenery. Despite subtitles my young sons watched this movie mesmorised.
One of the best movies ever!

St-St-Stunning!

A great period drama based on King George the VI's speech impediment and the unlikely Aussie who helps him to over-come it.
While the two Princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret, and their Mother (THE Queen Mother) are much more familiar to us - the story of the stuttering younger brother that became King after his brothers abdication is compelling.
Helen Bonham Carter is amazing as the Queen Mother and an award-winning performance by Colin Frith as the king.

Elementary AND Contemporary

Okay it's not strictly speaking a movie but movie length series.
"Sherlock" was a fantastic series that sets Arthur Conan Doyle's amazing Mr Holmes in modern day London with thilling, fast-paced action.
If your Dad missed the series on television then this DVD of the series will be a winner this Father's Day and keep him entertained for a few evenings.

The Illusionist

When a poor boy and a debutante fall in love and are found out - she is swept away and, heart-broken, he roams the world learning the art of magic.
Years later they meet again in Vienna - he has become a famous illusionist while she is newly betrothed to the Crown Prince.

Can the art of the illusionist reunite them once more?

What's Eating Gilbert Grape

See Johnny Depp, Leonardo DiCaprio and Juliette Lewis in what for each of them is one of their best movie roles.
It's a comedy-drama set in small town America where Johnny is a toy-boy to a married woman, has to mind his mentally challenged younger brother (Dicaprio) while also dealing with the issue of his morbidly obese mother. Then along comes a new intriguing woman in his life played by Juliette Lewis.

The Last King of Scotland

The acting of Forest Whitaker as Uganda's Idi Amin in this movie is spectacular and very desrving of the Academy Award he won for it.
The history of Uganda is told from the perspective of the Scottish doctor who assisted Amin and only gradually came to realise the brutal lunatic Amin had become.
Truth more shocking than fiction.

Slumdog Millionaire

A young uneducated Indian boy has to explain how he has reached the final question in Who wants to be a Millionaire.
So follows the tale of his violent life on the streets that provided some of the answers and the crazy circumstances that lead to the others. And as for the final question ..... well that would be telling

Movies in your Mailbox

If you find that you're wanting more movies than are available on Sky and free-to-air or if you are spending more than $10 a week at the DVD store then you may want to consider joining the on-line movie rental system - Fatso.

With Fatso your selected movies are posted to you with a pre-paid return envelope. There are no return times or late fees, you just select a plan reflecting the maximum number of discs you want out at a time and how many over a month. The other advantage of Fatso is that their library has 27,000 titles and a significant Blu-Ray collection.

Personally I chose the 3-disc unlimited plan which means I can have up to three discs out at a time and no monthly limit for $38 per month. With different movie requirements for kids and adults we could potentially see 6 or more movies a week .

To check out Fatso and maybe give their free trial a go, visit www.fatso.co.nz

Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels

Black, brutal and riotously funny. A continous series of comedic errors that would be worthy of Shakespear if he had been writing in modern day England.
Not for the faint-hearted with its use of colourful language and shotguns.

Hero

Yes there is lots of classic Chinese swords fights however this Quentin Taratino movie, starring Jet Li, is superbly artistic.
The colours, the costumes, the sword-play are all so beautiful that they are what I remember more so that the plot itself.
One of the best movies in its genre.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

This movie explores a near-future where selective amnesia is available as an experimental procedure to erase memories you no longer want.
Joel discovers his former girlfriend (played by Kate Winslette) has erradicated all memories of him. He decides to take the same procedure but changes his mind part way and starts hiding her among other memories. A complex movie that mainly takes place inside Joel's mind.

Gattaca

This looks like Sci-Fi but isn't to me since its premise seems so feasible for within our lifetimes.
Imagine if technology advances so that DNA analysis can be done in minutes alongside a move to genetic engineering to select only the best DNA from each parent. The result being a prejudice in favour of the genetic-elite. This movie explores how one love-child (non-engineered) fights to buck to system and pursues his ambition to be an astronaut. Stars Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Jude Law.

Juno

Quirky and fun tale of an eccentric teenager and her unplanned pregnancy.
She decides to find the perfect adoptive parents for her unborn child and the movie follows her interaction with her father, the baby's father and the prospective new parents.
This was an unexpected hit movie.

Burlesque

Okay I'm not really one for chick-flicks but I enjoyed the singing and the fabulous costumes in this one.
It was great fun to watch with the girls although if you're not a Cher or Christina Aguilera fan then it may pay to give it a miss.

Little Miss Sunshine

What a fun movie full of satire and humour as a family embarks on a road trip so that the ugly duckling daughter can participate in a beauty pagent.
Starring Toni Collette (always a favourite), Greg Kinnear and Abigail Breslin as the awkward and aspiring daughter.

E.T.

It's always great when a ground-breaking movie from your own childhood proves to be timeless enough for you to share with our own children.
A heart-warming story of boy-meets-alien and a friendship that spans the universe.

The Truman Show

I loved the concept of this movie since it reflects the craziness of today's reality TV and soap-operas.
Imagine taking reality TV one step further to where a man (Truman) is the un-witting star in the TV series literally of his life.
I know this is the second Jim Carrey movie on my list of movie favourites but you'll note they're bath dramatic roles - I'm not a fan of Jim Carrey's comedy at all. This is also a movie that pre-teen kids would understand and enjoy as well.

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