For years I haven’t gotten to watch movies much—blame it on the kids! :roll:—and lately I discovered a craving to catch up with all the movies I’ve missed in the last decade.
Of course it has something to do with missing some of those gorgeous guys too…Brad Pitt, Hugh Jackman…get the picture? :lol: So I’ve declared Friday night a FilmFestNight. 
Originally the intention was to work through the mental list of movies I wanted to see – Miss Congeniality, Seven, Sliding Doors…the list is LONG. Then the family got hold of my list and it grew even LONGER…As for negotiations…give and take? Ha!…I’m not doing too well. Hubby loves westerns. I don’t. Hubby is not madly keen on watching movies about lots and lots of college kids–although She’s The Man proved to be an unexpected hit. My youngest has nightmares…so some of the thrillers the rest of us were keen on were…um…axed:shock:.
As for the ratings…they’re a nightmare on their own. It’s nearly impossible to work out when the language is going to be utterly foul and when it’s going to mean a couple of curses. Similarly, ‘contains sexual references’ can range from the subtle over-their-head quip to full out, full frontal bawdiness…definitely not kid-appropriate. Yet a couple of comedies that I considered borderline—given the rating and the back cover copy—proved to be hits all round.
So tonight will find us down at the local hire store…trying to pick a DVD to satisfy everyone. One kid wants Borat (!!). The other wants Mr Deeds. I’m going to try to sneak out Just like Heaven. Hubby wants Boiling Point. Who will win? Bets, any one?
Any recommendations? Romantic comedy, action thriller, high school capers…or plain family fun…what have you enjoyed? One person in the posts (randomly drawn) gets a copy of RICH MAN’S REVENGE my June release from Silhouette Desire. Read an excerpt.
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And the winner is PAT L…whoppeee!!!
Pat, email your details to me at tessa @ tessaradley.com
and I’ll get the RICH MAN in the MAIL 
Tessa
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Maybe each one will get the movie they want if there is a special for Fri. night or 1 movie for the kids and 1 for the adults.
Chocolat is a good movie but not for young ones; any movie with Sandra Bullock is great. Enjoy movie night.
by RobynL
on June 1st, 2007 at 10:18 am
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I know how you feel, Tessa! My kids are 5 and 7 , so if I do watch anything over PG rating it is after they are asleep. I do have a few reccomendations though:
Little Miss Sunshine - The grandfather curses, A LOT, so probably watch this without the kids. It is hilarious though, and the dialogue is extremely witty.
Music and Lyrics - cute romantic comedy
Step Up - I’m not sure how old your children are, but I’d say preteen through adult would like this one. It has a sweet romance, with lots of great dancing. It also has the guy from She’s the Man in it.
Turistas - This is a good scary one we watched recently, but not for the kids.
In Her Shoes - Based on the book by Jennifer Weiner, I loved this movie! It’s about two sisters with a very dysfunctional relationship. It’s funny, touching, and in parts quite romantic.
The Departed - I’m throwing this in for your hubby lol. This is a very violent movie though, so not for kids. I watched it with my husband, and though it was a gangster type movie, I enjoyed it. Of course having Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio in it helped too. 
by Zara
on June 1st, 2007 at 10:30 am
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I am in the same boat as you …haven’t seen a movie in ages because of the kids. The last movie I saw was with the kids and it was Happy Feet. The kids loved it and I thought it was okay…but if you like Elvis this has a bit of “him” in it.
by Deborah
on June 1st, 2007 at 10:32 am
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The movie industry I think have not made many good movies lately. But I enjoyed “Crash”
by Lisa W
on June 1st, 2007 at 10:53 am
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I liked - The Illusionist. The Devil wears Prada, Casino Royale, The Departed.
by Shuck Ying
on June 1st, 2007 at 10:56 am
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I have two little ones under the age of 4 so I have no time to go to the movies and have not rented anything in awhile. I think the last movie we went to see was about a year ago and it was XMen 3 which I was disappointed in. We are hoping to be able to get a date night this month for our anniversary and we hope to see either Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer or Spiderman 3. My sister watched Pan’s Labyrinth, which is out now on DVD, and she said it was very good. It has violence and foul language so not suitable for the kids.
by Cherie Japp
on June 1st, 2007 at 11:26 am
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No recommendations - I just wait for them to come to TV!
by Karen B
on June 1st, 2007 at 12:06 pm
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I loved The Pursuit of Happyness and Casino Royale.
by Susan
on June 1st, 2007 at 12:31 pm
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I like “Raising Helen” is a romantic comedy
I love Indian movies, if you’re up to it” Paheli” is a good one with great songs, dances and a hint of paranormal
by barbara
on June 1st, 2007 at 1:24 pm
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My daughter, mother and I all loved the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. My husband and I both liked Little Miss Sunshine but it is definitely not for kids.
by Maureen
on June 1st, 2007 at 1:31 pm
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Oh, I have such a long list of recommendations…let’s see… how about THE MUMMY. Absolutely adore that movie and Oded Fehr is great eye candy. There’s also THE PEACEMAKER with George Clooney if you like him in a macho part. 
Casino Royale is great, and so is BLOOD DIAMOND. None the the last ones work well for little kids, but they are great otherwise.
Denise A Agnew
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My reccommendations are as follows: The Holiday was a good and funny romance. Eragon is a good family movie. Both The Prestige and The Illusionist are movies for you and your husband. Have a great night!
by Teresa W.
on June 1st, 2007 at 2:55 pm
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Addams Family
Beetlejuice
Apollo 13
The Truman Show
Ice Age
X-men
Men in Black
Fish Called Wanda
Undercover Blues
by Minna
on June 1st, 2007 at 3:05 pm
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Spiderman 2
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
The Incredibles
Casino Royale
by Sue A.
on June 1st, 2007 at 3:15 pm
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The last movies I watched was HAPPY FEET with my 5 year old granddaugther, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE with my husband and our 16 year old and WEDDING CRASHERS with just my husband. I enjoyed all three of them.
by Christy
on June 1st, 2007 at 3:19 pm
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Our movie night is Saturday night. With 3 boys ranging in age from 10 to 20, it is also difficult here to find movies that the whole family can agree on. Recent movies that we have watched and enjoyed are: Night at the Museum, Eragon, Employee of the Month, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, RV, and The Chronicles of Narnia. Hope this helps. Enjoy the Movies!
by Linda F
on June 1st, 2007 at 3:38 pm
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cathch and release is good
hi tessa
by kim h
on June 1st, 2007 at 6:31 pm
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My all time favorite movie is “Forever Young”. After that First Knight, Ladyhawke, Legend, Never Ending Story, Beastmaster, Braveheart, Lord of the Rings and Mad Max Beyond Thunder Dome!
by catslady
on June 1st, 2007 at 7:58 pm
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Wedding Crashers is funny but definitely for the ‘older’ crowd. The Lake House with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves is good. And you can never go wrong with a good Rock Hudson/Doris Day movie (just rewatched Pillow Talk this wknd)
by Lis
on June 1st, 2007 at 9:43 pm
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I don’t get to go to the movies a s much as I like. I usually have to get the PPV.
by Kimmy
on June 1st, 2007 at 11:25 pm
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I dont get to the movies much - rather read. LOL. Do catch some lifetime movies.
Our friends come over often with a dvd and we have Fri nite at the movies.
The Departed was an excellent movie.
by Pat L
on June 2nd, 2007 at 5:46 am
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Gosh, what a great list of suggestions. Thank you! Some of them I don’t know at all…so they’re going onto the list as well. As younger son wanted to go to bed, we finally watched Boiling Point. Older movie, no cell phones in sight.
Step Up was last week’s movie–that was great fun. Made me wonder about getting Take the Lead one of these days. I saw it on the plane a while back, really good. The other movie that was a hit was A Knight’s Tale. And Beetlejuice…Ice Age is very cute..and I adore NeverEndingStory…Spiderman works too–the stories have a bit of a moral, don’t they? It’s time we watched Addam’s Family again. Saw the DVD of Meet the Fokkers recently and that was VERY funny.
And my son recently read Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants and LOVED it. He wants to read the rest of the series…so that’s certainly worth watching as a family. (Note to add to list). Eragon was definitely a hit. So was Narnia. And so was Night at the Museum. And I thought that Casino Royale was excellent…after I’d gotten used to a Blond Bond! Gosh, shows you that I’m starting to catch up on the backlog.
Little Miss Sunshine was so poignant. Music and Lyrics I have to see…and Lake House. (I loved Speed…one of my all-time favourite movies) and I’ll add Forever Young as well-Lady Hawke is definitely worth seeing again too.And good to know In Her Shoes and Devil Wears Prada are a worth a try…might try Bridget Jones too. And I’ll add The Mummy and and Raising Helen and the Pursuit of Happiness and Catch and Release and and The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and First Knight and Beastmaster and X-Men…and Undercover Blues. Whew! For Hubby I’ll add The Departed.
That should definitely take care of some Friday Nights!
by Tessa Radley
on June 2nd, 2007 at 7:52 am
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PS Peacemaker with Clooney sounds good too. Thanks Denise…although I suspect I’ll need a pacemaker!
by Tessa Radley
on June 2nd, 2007 at 7:55 am
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Alas, I don’t watch a whole lot of movies, but ones that I do always go back to are Star Wars. . . And then there are the Star Trek ones. . . and practically anything from the 1990s on with Sean Connery of course! 
Lois
by Lois
on June 2nd, 2007 at 11:24 am
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Well.. I’d say Casino Royale and of course there’s Spiderman any part of it.
by Mona
on June 3rd, 2007 at 11:49 am
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Hi Tessa!
I haven’t seen a whole lot of films lately but the ones I would recommend are,
Flushed Away - a good animated film to watch with your kids
The War of the Worlds - great horror film to watch with your hubby, put kids to bed. Tom Cruise is in the film so great eye candy to watch.
Over the Hedge- Another great animated film to watch with your kids that I just loved! The characters are adorable!
The Pursuit of Happiness with Will Smith and his son. A good drama based on a true story.
While You Were Sleeping with Sandra Bullock is a great romance film. It is an older film but very good. Great chick flick!
As Good as it Gets with Jack Nicholsen. I loved it! He is a kooky, extremely phobic person who doesn’t get along with people. Helen Hunt is in it and she is excellent! Also, Greg Kinnear plays a gay guy who lives next door to Jack Nicholsen.
Titanic - the new one is excellent with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
Somethings got to Give with Jack Nicholsen - A good adult romantic film to watch with hubby. Great beach scenes in this film if you love the lake.
Romancing the Stone - the first one is a great family film. Danny DeVito is hilarious!
The Wedding Planner - with Matthew Mchanahey and Jennifer Lopez. Another great romantic film that is a chick flick. Matthew is great eye candy in this film!
There are also fun films such as,
- Planes, Trains and Automobiles with John Candy
- Ferris Buellers Day Off
- Ghostbusters
- Shrek
and so many more!
I love to watch movies and have a whole library of them.
by Michele L.
on June 3rd, 2007 at 10:37 pm
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Here are a couple more:
Leningrad Cowboys Go America
Beautiful Mind
Robin Hood -the one with Kevin Costner
The Birdcage
by Minna
on June 4th, 2007 at 11:45 pm
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Minna, I was staring at Beautiful Mind the other day…nearly took it out. I’ve been wanting to see it for ages…never thought of Robin Hood .
Wow, Michele thanks for that list, I’m printing it off - I LOVE Shrek we watch it often. I’ll give Panes and Trains a go…and those Jack Nicholsen’s sound woderful. My heroine in my first book BLACK WIDOW BRIDE had worked as a wedding planner…I think I better watch WEDDING PLANNER.
AND the RANDOM winner is Pat L!!!! Pat send your details to me at tessa @ tessaradley.com
by Tessa Radley
on June 5th, 2007 at 8:36 pm
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Lois, my son has collected all 6 STAR WARS DVDs. He watches them over and over. I had to even try make a star wars suit…and we have light sabres. 
Mona, I loved Casino Royale…I have a book in mind with a Greek heroine who looks just like the gorgeous Bond girl at the start–the one who died . 
I just read an interview where Kirstin Dunst said that Spiderman is a romance…I think I’d agree with that!
Tessa
by Tessa Radley
on June 5th, 2007 at 8:40 pm
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wtg pat l
by kim h
on June 6th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
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Thanks, Kim and Tessa - just I won. Sending email. Have a great w/e.
by Pat L
on June 7th, 2007 at 7:23 pm
