“Bottle Shock” -
Bill Pullman, Alan Rickman, Chris Pine, Rachael Taylor, Dennis Farina

While I enjoy the French, there is nothing more fun than trumping them at the wine game and that’s was this is all about. I loved it! First, I’m a big Pullman fan even if he did look a bit worse for the wear (yikes, he’s my generation so tough to see myself getting older.) Rickman is always bloody brilliant with his arrogance and yet ridiculousness. Chris Pine was adequate, I kept wanting to comb and cut his hair and dye his eyebrows, I would never have made it through the sixties (I was not even a tween yet!) Farina is quintessential American in Paris, embarrassing in the plaid leisure suit but perfect for the time and place.

This was a captivating lesson in the history of winemaking a la California, the value of passion and persistence, and the price of perfection. It doesn’t get any better in film and this is a rare gem, sure it will be compared to Sideways, entirely different but equally wonderful, more so in this fans opinion.

“Vicky Cristina Barcelona” -
Scarlett Johannsson, Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Rebecca Hall, Patricia Clarkson

I have to confess that I do enjoy Woody Allen and he has gotten mellower but more sexually overt in his advanced film making. He is also (possibly forced) using overseas settings a lot more often since he created such a debacle in his personal life some years ago. This has a very unique cast, rather like Scarlett is his new Mia and Rebecca his new Diane. I couldn’t take my eyes off Bardem. The last movie I saw him in was No Country for Old Men and he was just as riveting but in grotesque and frightening way, this time I simply wanted his clothes off! HOT.

Two best friends on opposite sides of life and love spend a summer in Barcelona both falling for the same man who is in turn hopelessly and virtually fatalistically captivated by his ex-wife Penelope Cruz. Their relationship only works when a third is in it. This gives new meaning to ménage a trois and the delight it can bring.

Of course it wouldn’t be Woody Allen without poignancy and tragedy to balance the comedic moments. Patricia Clarkson does a brilliant job as the trapped housewife, no longer in love, but too terrified of life and herself to leave her husband. One of those, glad-I-haven’t-yet-married moments for this viewer. The ending sort of fizzled, predictable and not terribly original, felt like Woody got bored and left.

“27 Dresses” -
Katherine Heigl, James Marsden, Malin Akerman, Edward Burns

Totally not my scenario having never even been a bridesmaid, I couldn’t imagine loving a “job” so much! (Heigl) Jane clearly does as proven by evenings she juggles two weddings with complete changes in the back of a taxi. Such devotion is truly rare, but clearly she has mastered the art of it. Her world comes to an abrupt stop when her younger sister (Akerman) steps in (Cameron Diaz like) and taps Jane’s boss to be her groom. Suddenly Jane’s closet feelings of true love for George (her boss, played by Edward Burns) surface and she is faced with realizing she may not always want to be a bridesmaid at all, but instead rejoice in being a bride. Marsden plays Kevin, the newspaper reporter responsible for the bridal announcements and tracks Jane and her incredible 27 weddings as a bridesmaid story. Okay from here it is a little predictable, but still fun. Boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back. . . .

The dresses alone, as most bridesmaid gowns prove, are quite entertaining. And each tells its own story of culture, custom and sometimes downright bad taste. Heigl pulls it all off with aplomb but this did feel like a second tier movie, not an A-lister.

“21″ -
Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Bosworth, Aaron Yoo

This was brilliant and Spacey and Sturgess are well matched as the upstart mathematical genius and his OCD college professor with a pricey gambling habit. Fishburne seems to be doing a cameo here and that doesn’t fit his larger than life abilities, he definitely needed more meat than this skimpy bit. Spacey is edgy, angry, and arrogant and pushes all the right buttons. Sturgess leads his fellow MITers on a wild ride of gambling success, teasing the law, and hustling with the cards. He learns lessons in love and friendship and earns his tuition. Money or the love and need for it can give some priceless experiences. This is even better as it is based on a true story. Truth is always stranger than fiction. Harnessing genius when hormones are at play can be dangerous work. Vegas never looked better!

“Dan in Real Life” -
Steve Carell, Juliette Binoche, Dane Cook, John Mahoney

Finally, a feel good movie! While Carell will never have the depth and comic genius of Tom Hanks or Jim Carrey, his is sort of a reality version. His humor is less expected and less quirky. This was wonderful and Binoche is always a delight. Widowed Dad to three girls is home for a reunion when he meets gorgeous mystery woman in the bookstore; he returns to the house to be introduced to the same woman (who completely captivated his heart) as his brother’s new and best girlfriend. Torture for the week as he sees the object of his affection romping with his brother, but can’t lay a glove. Even his daughter see the sparks fly. This is a fun take on guy meets girl, guy loses girl, guy gets girl back. The best line in the whole show is spoken by the teenage daughter’s boyfriend “Love isn’t a feeling, it’s an ability.” Brilliant, now if we could just live our relationships like that, it would be significant.