Cast: Amanda Seyfried (Sophie), Meryl Streep (Donna), Pierce Brosnan (Sam Carmichael), Colin Firth (Harry Bright), Stellan Skarsgard (Bill Austin), Julie Walters (Rosie), Christine Baranski (Tanya), Dominic Cooper (Sky)
For complete info, see IMDb's Mamma Mia! page.
If you've seen Mamma Mia! on stage, clearly that's a better show than the movie version. However, they did a great job with Mamma Mia!. I was worried, since Colin Firth had pointed out that they never asked any of the actors if they could sing before they got their parts, but for the most part they did a good job. The weakest singer in the cast is probably Pierce Brosnan, who unfortunately sings more than any of the other guys in the show. Of course, they cover by having the ensemble and backup louder than it would be normally to compensate for the weak voice and it works pretty well for the most part.
I knew they would have to cut some songs, but I noticed that my two favorites from the show (oddly enough, not my two favorite ABBA songs) were on the CD. Unfortunately, one of them was used in the credits instead of the show, but they used the full version and it's such a great recording of it that I'll have to download just that song from Amazon. The rest, I don't need to have, since I have the original cast recording of the show.
If you like musical theatre, this is a great fun show. It's very funny and the cast is great. Sure, it's a cheesy show, but they wrote a show to go around songs that already existed. Like all jukebox musicals, the plot is thin, but it's not about the plot. The plot merely exists to bring the music to you. Anyone who liked ABBA's music should enjoy this cute movie.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2008, ABBA, Amanda Seyfried, Colin Firth, comedy, Meryl Streep, movie, musical, Pierce Brosnan, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 4:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Rupert Everett (Guy Bennett), Colin Firth (Tommy Judd), Cary Elwes (James Harcourt), Michael Jenn (Barclay)
For complete movie info, see IMDb's Another Country page.
Had this not been recommended to me, I doubt I would have ever seen it, in spite of the amazing cast. If you're a fan of Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, or Cary Elwes, you should see this movie to see the young stars shine. Another Country is no Dead Poets Society, but this movie (based on the real life of Guy Burgess, a Cambridge Spy) is very well done.
Almost the entire movie is a flashback and the make-up on Rupert Everett is so good that if it weren't for his voice I wouldn't have realized it was him in the beginning. The story is interesting and I think this movie is definitely worth renting.
Grade: B
Labels: Cary Elwes, Colin Firth, drama, movie, romance, Rupert Everett
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Renee Zellweger (Bridget Jones), Colin Firth (Mark Darcy), Hugh Grant (Daniel Cleaver)
For complete info, see IMDb's Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason page.
I haven't read either of the Bridget Jones books, but I enjoyed the first movie and enjoyed Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, too. Sure, it wasn't as good as the original, but sequels rarely are. There were a lot of things I enjoyed about this movie and I do recommend renting it.
Grade: B
Labels: 2004, Colin Firth, comedy, drama, Hugh Grant, movie, Renee Zellweger, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 11:00 AM show | 0 screams
Cast: Bill Nighy (Billy Mack), Gregor Fisher (Joe), Colin Firth (Jamie Bennett)
For complete information on this wonderful cast, see IMDb's Love Actually page.
Since I loved the other movies they did, I was excited about Love Actually's release. In spite of my high expectations, Love Actually did not let me down. The cast of this great romantic comedy is amazing. The stories (about eight different couples) are so touching and very real.
The snipets and voice overs pull the whole movie together and make you realize that "Love actually is all around."
Grade: A
Labels: 2003, Colin Firth, comedy, drama, Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson, movie, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Rupert Everett (Algy), Colin Firth (Jack), Fances O'Connor (Gwendolen), Reese Witherspoon (Cecily), Judi Dench (Lady Bracknell)
For complete info, see IMDb's The Importance of Being Earnest page.
Although I like Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, I went into this movie with an open mind and was rewarded for doing so. I could tell from the titles of the reviews that most people were not happy with the latest version of this story, but I love the cast and I wanted to see for myself. I was happy with the movie. I love the story and have seen the play and still enjoy this movie. I recommend it, whether you've seen other versions of play, other movies, etc. or not. I think you can enjoy it either way as long as you don't go into the experience assuming it will be exactly like the last time you saw the play live or the last movie. Enjoy it for their interpretation of the classic.
Grade: B
Labels: 2002, Colin Firth, comedy, drama, Judi Dench, movie, Reese Witherspoon, romance, Rupert Everett
Reviewed by Kat at the 12:55 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Renee Zellweger (Bridget Jones), Colin Firth (Mark Darcy), Hugh Grant (Daniel Cleaver)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Bridget Jones's Diary page.
I didn't read the book, so I can't say how it compares. However, I really enjoyed the movie Bridget Jones's Diary. This movie seemed to have more scenes in the previews that were altered in the final version of the movie than I've seen in a long time, which was a bit distracting, but the entire cast was wonderful and the story was great.
Definitely an empowering movie for women and funny for anyone. Totally hilarious and enjoyable.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2001, Colin Firth, comedy, drama, Hugh Grant, movie, Renee Zellweger, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:10 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jessica Lange (Ginny Cook Smith), Michelle Pfeiffer (Rose Cook Lewis), Jennifer Jason Leigh (Caroline Cook), Jason Robards (Larry Cook), Colin Firth (Jess Clark), Kevin Anderson (Peter Lewis)
For complete info, see IMDb's A Thousand Acres page.
I didn't read the book, but I have read King Lear. A Thousand Acres is basically King Lear set on a farm. I don't know if the book is as well done, but I thought the movie of A Thousand Acres was a very good re-telling of a classic. The performances of the cast are amazing and the movie is well worth watching.
Grade: B
Labels: 1997, Colin Firth, drama, Michelle Pfeiffer, movie
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:25 PM show | 0 screams