Category Archives: Uncategorized

Movie Quote of the Day – Broadway Serenade, 1939 (dir. Robert Z. Leonard)

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Mary: Time will pass faster than a two-week vacation.
James: I’ll hold my breath until you get back.
Mary: Isn’t it awful? I can’t imagine any place without you. I can’t even remember any place without you.

Movie Quote of the Day – H. M. Pulham, Esq., 1941 (dir. King Vidor)

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Marvin Myles: Just try to forget that there’s anyone but me.

Ellen DeGeneres to host the Oscars

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Detractors from last year’s Oscars have something to celebrate: Months after the most recent Oscars host Seth MacFarlane said he wouldn’t be reclaiming the spotlight, TV star Ellen DeGeneres tweeted Friday that she would be taking up the hosting mantle.DeGeneres returns for take two, as she also hosted the 79th Academy Awards in 2007, for which she received a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program. The 86th Academy Awards will air March 2 on ABC.

“I am so excited to be hosting the Oscars for the second time,” said DeGeneres, in a statement. “You know what they say — the third time’s the charm.”

Producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron revealed the announcement via traditional means, too, releasing a statement that embraced DeGeneres’ gift for comedy, warmth and humanity.

“As a longtime friend, we had always hoped to find a project for us to do together and nothing could be more exciting than teaming up to do the Oscars,” said Zadan and Meron.

“She is beloved everywhere and we expect that the audience at the Dolby Theatre, and in homes around the globe, will be as excited by this news as we are.”

DeGeneres has made a name for herself with The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which has racked up 45 Daytime Emmys during its 10 seasons. She got her start as an emcee at a local comedy club in New Orleans before hitting the TV and feature film circuit. DeGeneres recently announced the highly anticipated sequel to Finding Nemo, Disney-Pixar’s Finding Dory, currently scheduled to be released in November 2015.

The Academy Awards will take place at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland Center.

[via Mashable]

Movie Quote of the Day – Dark Victory, 1939 (dir. Edmund Goulding)

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Judith: I’ve never taken orders from anyone. As long as I live, I’ll never take orders from anyone. I’ll tell you something else. I’m well, absolutely well. I’m young and strong and nothing can touch me.

Movie Quote of the Day – The Roaring Twenties, 1939 (dir. Raoul Walsh)

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Panama Smith: He’s dead.
Cop: Well, who is this guy?
Panama Smith: This is Eddie Bartlett.
Cop: Well, how’re you hooked up with him?
Panama Smith: I could never figure it out.
Cop: What was his business?
Panama Smith: He used to be a big shot.

Movie Quote of the Day – Gremlins, 1984 (dir. Joe Dante)

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Kate: Now I have another reason to hate Christmas.
Billy Peltzer: What are you talking about?
Kate: The worst thing that ever happened to me was on Christmas. Oh, God. It was so horrible. It was Christmas Eve. I was 9 years old. Me and Mom were decorating the tree, waiting for Dad to come home from work. A couple hours went by. Dad wasn’t home. So Mom called the office. No answer. Christmas Day came and went, and still nothing. So the police began a search. Four or five days went by. Neither one of us could eat or sleep. Everything was falling apart. It was snowing outside. The house was freezing, so I went to try to light up the fire. That’s when I noticed the smell. The firemen came and broke through the chimney top. And me and Mom were expecting them to pull out a dead cat or a bird. And instead they pulled out my father. He was dressed in a Santa Claus suit. He’d been climbing down the chimney… his arms loaded with presents. He was gonna surprise us. He slipped and broke his neck. He died instantly. And that’s how I found out there was no Santa Claus.

Movie Quote of the Day – Sweet Bird of Youth, 1962 (dir. Richard Brooks)

Chance Wayne: I like you. You are a nice monster.
Alexandra Del Lago: [laughs] I was born a monster. And you?

Movie Quote of the Day – Pushing Tin, 1999 (dir. Mike Newell)

Russell Bell: Thought is the enemy.
Nick Falzone: I know. I’ve gotta think less. I had that thought, actually.

Live Q&A with Angelina Jolie tonight at 5pm pst / 8pm est

Click here or visit our Facebook page to participate! Use the hashtag #AngelinaJolieFilmChat to participate on Twitter as well.

Review and Giveaway: The Rise and Fall of Margaret Thatcher

The upcoming release of The Iron Lady, with Meryl Streep tackling the role of Britain’s first female Prime Minister, has increased interest in Margaret Thatcher stateside. Case in point, BBC America released their three-film set The Rise and Fall of Margaret Thatcher this week. The set features three films from the BBC set during three specific eras of Thatcher’s life.

The first film in the set is 2008’s The Long Walk to Finchley, which looks at Thatcher’s life from 1949 to her election to parliament in 1959. In it Andrea Riseborough plays Margaret Roberts (who halfway through the film marries and gains the last name Thatcher.) The film plays almost more like a comedy than a drama. I wouldn’t say that’s a bad thing, though, because it makes the film more relatable for those who don’t know much about Britain’s political climate at the time. Riseborough is great as the type-A Margaret, whose only interest is “politics” and who proposes to a young Denis Thatcher before he gets the chance to do it himself. Actually, Rory Kinear as Denis was my favorite performance in the film. He’s simply adorable. The production design is top-notch and more than reminded me of the BBC’s recent period series The Hour.

The second film in the set is 2002’s The Falklands Play, which is set in 1983 and features Patricia Hodge as Thatcher. I must admit this film lost me a bit. I don’t know much about this era or the Falklands war (aside from what I learned from This Is England) and I’m not sure the film has much appeal to people who aren’t military history buffs and/or live and breathe political thrillers.

The last film in the set is 2009’s Margaret, which mostly takes place during the waning days of Thatcher’s post as Prime Minster, though it does occasionally jump back in time to when she was first elected. Lindsay Duncan plays Thatcher in this film with such assurance and explosive vigor, that it’s clear why she was known as “The Iron Lady”. No matter how you might feel about Thatcher’s politics, I think you’ll be hard-pressed not to be a little moved by the film’s last fifteen minutes, as Duncan’s stiff upper lip begins to quiver, finally accepting that the end has come at last.

You can find the 2-disc DVD  set on sale now at the BBC America shop.

I’ve actually got a copy to give away to one lucky reader, so leave a comment (don’t forget to include a way for me to contact you so I can mail it to you should you win!) and I’ll pick someone at random next Wednesday.

[edit] Congrats to Megan, winner of this giveaway!