Directed by Sidney Lumet
Written by Reginald Rose
Produced by Henry Fonda and Reginald Rose
Starring by Henry Fonda , Lee J. Cobb, E.G. MArshall, Martin Balsam, Jack Warden, John Fiedler, Jack Klugman, Edward Binns, Joseph Sweeney, Ed Begley, George Voskoev and Robert Webber.
Country: United States
Release date: April 13, 1957
Directed by John Carpenter
Written by John Carpenter and Debra Hill
Produced by Debra Hill, John Carpenter, Kool Lusby, Irwin Yablans and Muoustapha Akkad
Starring: Donald Pleasence, Jamie Lee Curtis, P.J. Solaes and Nancy Loomis
Country: United States
Release date: October 25, 1978
2012 has been an electoral year pretty much everywhere, from Somalia to Czech Republic, from Iceland to Ukraine, From Mexico to Ireland; from the USA to Nepal. As you can see this year a lot of us had the right and the obligation to choose our government and to commemorate this, I decide to list the 10 best Election day films. (Check here world wide Electoral calendar) Continue reading
It’s the most wonderful time of the year
with the kids jingle belling
And everyone telling you “Be of good cheer””
it’s the most wonderful time of the year
it’s the hap-happiest season of all.
I really love Christmas, for me this holidays has always been a happy time. A time where I always has been surrounded for people I love and people who love me. One of the things always present in our Christmas celebration are movies, we have the habit of watch Christmas movies all day long as we eat left over. So in order to honor this holiday I decide to create a list with my favorites.
Lately I have seen the news and is really worrying the way our reality is; it is scary how some things that seem to happened only in dytopian films are now a reality. Imagine how similar are the sweatshops in the third world similar to the condition of the workers in Metropolis, or the idea of surveillance in 1984 to the way we are living.
What is a dystopian Film?
DIRECTED BY GEORGE LUCAS (STAR WARS IV: A NEW HOPE), IRVIN KERSHER (STAR WARS V: EMPIRE STRIKE BACK) & RICHARD MARQUAND (STAR WARS VI:RETURN OF THE JEDI )
WRITTEN BY GEORGE LUCAS (STAR WARS IV: A NEW HOPE), LEIGH BRACKET & LAWRENCE KASDAN (STAR WAR V; EMPIRE STRIKE BACK) & GEORGE LUCAS AND LAWRENCE KASDAN (STAR WARS VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI)
STARRING: MARK HAMIL, HARRISON FORD, CARRIE FISHER, PETER CUSHING, ALEC GUINESS, BILLY DEE WILLIAMS, ANTHONY DANIELS, DAVID PROUSE, PETER MAYHEW & FRANK OZ
RELEASE DATE: MAY 25, 1977 (STAR WARS IV: A NEW HOPE), MAY 21, 1980 (STAR WARS V: EMPIRE STRIKE BACK) & MAY 25, 1983 (STAR WARS VI: RETURN OF THE JEDI)
AGE RECOMMENDED: 6 & UP
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. . .
Here talking about the original trilogy: Episode IV A New Hope, Episode V The Empire Strike Back and Episode VI The Return of the Jedi, not the later prequels. I think Star Wars is a rite of passage, most of the parents saw the original trilogy and blew their minds and they are now eager to share that magic to their kids.
A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to introduce 3 boys to Star wars (back then they were 4, 6 and 8 ) and I can tell with not doubt in my mind that those nights change their mind. The 3 of them felt in love with the movie and the characters specially Luke Skywalker and Wicket. For the younger there was only one part that really upset him, the trash compactor in Episode IV, beside that he watch the trilogy with no problem. Beware although, make your research and watch yourself the 6 movies before show it to them because they will ask a lot of questions of the past an future of the characters.
DIRECTED BY GEORGE SEATON (1947) AND LES MAYFIELD (1994)
WRITTEN BY GEORGE SEATON BUT THE 1994 VERSION HAD SOME HELP FROM JOHN HUGHES
STARRING: – 1947- MAUREEN O’HARA, NATALIE WOODS, JOHN PAYNE, EDMUND GWENN
-1994- ELIZABETH PERKINGS, MARA WILSON, DYLAN MCDERMOTT, RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH
RELEASE DATE: MAY2, 1947 AND NOVEMBER 18, 1994
In my house we have this little tradition of watch every single Christmas on TV as soon December starts, so we always watch some classic like It’s a wonderful life, Miracle on 34th st, Home Alone 1 and 2 and new classics like Love Actually. But Miracle on 34th St is a truly Christmas Classic. What makes Miracle a genuine miracle of holiday filmmaking is the pitch-perfect balance of social cynicism and human generosity.
Here we have a little problem, we have to versions. Some may said that the remake is not as good but I like it, and may be a little more contemporary for kids. The original version, in on hand had a little Natalie Wood, while the remake had Dylan McDermott.
The movie re-make was produced by John Hughes and directed by Les Mayfield,
who follow the original fairly closely, but with a quieter, more elegiac tone. As in the earlier version, this “Miracle” begins with a charming old gentleman who is hired on sight and pressed into service after the department store’s Santa gets drunk at the start of the annual New York Thanksgiving parade. The old man says his name is Kriss Kringle. Played in 1947 by Edmund Gwenn, Santa’s portrayed this time by Richard Attenborough.
In the Original movie the store was Macy’s (which yes is in 34st in NY), but the store did not want to be part of the remake, so in the 1994 version the store name is Cole’s. For a remake, 1994′s Miracle on 34th Street is surprisingly old fashioned, which is good because all it needed was some kid teaching Santa Claus to breakdance and the whole thing would’ve been down the tubes. Its greatest suspense is that it teeters on the brink of failure throughout but still manages to stay in the viewers good graces. Another good thing about the remake is the color of the movie which was created to resemble a black and white movie that was colored.
So you decide which one you want to watch a black and white classic or a cute colorful remake.
PLOT (1994)
When the department store’s Santa gets drunk before taking part in the Thanksgiving parade. Cole’s director of special events, fires him and must find a replacement immediately. She spots an old man ( berating the drunk Santa, and begs him to take over. He claims his name is Kris Kringle. Kris does so well during the parade that he is immediately hired to be Cole’s main Santa for the holiday period. All the children in New York begin to believe that he is the real Santa, with the exception of six-year-old Susan, Dorey’s daughter.
Brian Bedford, Dorey and Susan’s neighbor does his best to convince Susan to believe. While being babysat one night by Kris, Susan shares with him her Christmas wish, she would like a dad, a house (used every year for the Cole’s catalogue photoshoot) and a baby brother. Kris asks if she would begin to believe in Santa if she got all those things. Susan agrees that she would.
Kris is credited with bringing in many more sales to Cole’s than previous years, until one night, when he is arrested, then sanctioned for supposedly assaulting a man on the street. Later, the truth emerges, that the man he assaulted was the original drunk Santa, who set up Kris to be arrested, with the help of members of staff from a rival of Cole’s.
With the help of Brian, Dorey takes Kris’ case to court, and drums up support from him from the public. It soon becomes clear that to get Kris acquitted and freed, Brian must prove that not only does Santa exist, but that Kris is the real one. It is a seemingly impossible task until Brian comes up with a plan that requires some help from Susan.
Just as the judge is about to make his decision — and it seems he was going to rule against Kris — Susan walks up to the judge with a Christmas card containing a $1 bill. On the back, the words “In God We Trust” are circled. The judge realizes that, since the U.S. Department of Treasury can believe in God with no hard evidence, then the people of New York can believe in Santa Claus in the same way. This leaves the elated judge no other choice but to declare that Santa is real, thus freeing Kris.
Following the court case, Dorey and Brian are maneuvered by Kris into realizing their true feelings for each other, and are married in a very small ceremony right after the Christmas Eve midnight mass. On Christmas morning, Susan wakes to the news of the marriage and is elated to see that she has part one of her Christmas wish, a dad. Together, Susan, Dorey and Brian drive out to the catalogue house and upon arrival, find that Kris has arranged for them to purchase the house. Susan, now having got two out of three of her wishes, excitedly runs upstairs in the house to look at her bedroom. Dorey and Brian ask her what the last part of her Christmas wish was, and she triumphantly announces that it was a baby brother. Dorey and Brian both look at each other, shocked, before glancing down at Dorey’s stomach. The film ends with the belief that Susan has now gotten all she asked for.
We invite you to ask yourself this one simple question: Do you believe in Santa Claus?
DIRECTED BY: MEL STUART
WRITTEN BY DAVID SELTZER
RELEASE DATE: JUNE 30, 1971
STARING: GENE WILDER, JACK ALBERTSON, PETER OSTRUM, JULIE DAWN COLE
AGE RECOMMENDED: AFTER 5 Y.O.
Who can take a sunrise
Sprinkle it in dew
Cover it in chocolate
and a miracle or two?
The candyman
The candyman can cause he mixes it with love and makes the world taste good
This are the first worlds we hear at the beginning of the movie and who can forget them?. This movie is loosely based in the book of Ronald Dahl Charlie and the chocolate factory, in fact the 2005 re-make is more similar to the book. But the point here are the movie. I mean I like Tim Burton, but this version is really magical.
The movie once classified as family musical, brushes into the genre of the dark comedies. The movie faithful in the spirit of book center in a message of family, love and unity. Each stage of the tour of the factory is to promotes values and teach some lessons to those whom fail to listen and learn. Willy Wonka deal with greediness, selfishness, and vanity in a hard but never un-childlike way. The movie was not a complete block buster although was number 54 in the yearly release gain most of its popularity in the 80’s when start its transitions on TV.
One of the main attractions of the movie is the music, which give the movie its only Oscar nomination, and of course Gene Wilder, the star of the movie. Gene Wilder entrance in the movie, when he pretend to be a frail old man before tumbling into action is one of the scene will stock in your mind forever. What I can said about the Oompa Loompas, they are truly cultural icons that had been copy or mention in endless tv show and movies .
Why I said Willy Wonka is a magical movie, well what is more magical for a children than candy?… Maybe Santa. But the idea of and endless bubble gum or a chocolate waterfall is hard to beat. This movie bring the child inside all of us out, and work miracles with children. A few months ago I saw it with a 5 y.o., a 7 y.o., a 10 y.o. and their parents and for 96 minutes everybody was quite they were completely and totally focus in the movie well what’s more magic than silence in a house with kids.
Coco's Film List 