Cheryl’s take:

When Love Actually came out, it was one of those big movies that I avoided even though everyone I knew rushed out to see it. I could taste the saccharine from the trailer and I wanted no part of it. On top of that, it was released on the heels of Bridget Jones’ Diary, a movie I never saw because I’d hated the book so much, I threw it across the room out of rage.

Finally, it happened: I was home, sick, in bed, and Love Actually was on tv. It was a welcome relief from home renovation shows and 24 hour news, and in my weakened state, I let it play. And I loved it. And now I watch it regularly — even outside Christmas holidays because it’s just a lovely, charming, bittersweet, slice of life.

Love Actually allowed me to understand why so many women swoon over Colin Firth and reminded me why I love everything that Alan Rickman does. I fell for the adorable round-cheeked Martine McCutcheon and the sweetly sultry Lucia Moniz. Emma Thompson and Bill Nighy are in top form here, too. In the end, this was a case where a stellar cast plus a pretty good script overcame any amount of contrived schmaltz that a holiday rom-com might otherwise deliver.

Alynda’s thoughts:

I don’t remember the logic behind the choice of Love Actually for this review.  Frankly, I don’t care either.  I love this one, an awful lot.  Now I know as the cock-eyed optimist, that’s what I’m supposed to say, but it is true and this isn’t your average romantic comedy anyway.

Can you think of a relatively well-known British actor?  They are probably in this movie.  It is a series of stories that twine around each other, and sometime collide, all about the nature of love.  When love is good, when love is bad, romantic love, platonic love, and how sometimes the love of family can outweigh romantic love for one’s self.

Aside from a lot of touching performances, and some really very funny bits, (Martin Freeman’s storyline is delightfully weird) what makes this a good movie in my opinion is that all the different stories don’t end up tied up in a shiny, happy bow.  Did I mention that this is set around Christmas?  No?   Enough do that you get that warm happy feeling but enough don’t that the film doesn’t veer too far into the saccharine.  There’s a scene with Emma Thompson where she’s so quietly devastated that you’ll forget that overall this movie is supposed to be funny.

This has become a go-to Christmas movie for me.  Even if it was terrible, which it is not, quite frankly it had me at Colin Firth, Alan Richman, and Liam Neeson.  Oh, and a dance number done by Hugh Grant!  Make yourself some cocoa, grab a blanket and snuggle up to watch this movie.  It’s worth it.

Cheryl’s take:

The Star Trek franchise is what one might call well-loved and among the films in the franchise, Star Trek II the Wrath of Khan is among the most well-loved by fans. It’s also very accessible to someone who’s never seen an episode (I don’t know anyone but I am certain they exist).

This film introduces us to Captain Kirk’s son and re-introduces Kirk’s nemesis, Khan Noonian Singh (played with scenery-chewing glee by Ricardo Montalban) and takes viewers on a roller-coaster sci-fi romp that includes some tension, some explosions, and plenty of pathos. If you’ve been around people quoting Star Trek there’s a good chance the line was from this film: Kirk’s immortal, “Khaaaaaaaaann!” yell; Spock’s logical, “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.. or the one.”; or Khan’s frustrated, “The override. Where’s the override?”

Is it great cinema? Not particularly. The special effects are very dated and look incredibly clunky by today’s standards; the acting is, as you can guess, pretty over-the-top; and the plot? the plot is surprisingly above-average. In the end, this is one of those movies you just have to see. Entertaining and cannon as far as sci-fi films go.

Alynda’s Take:

Age changes your perceptions. When I first watched Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, I could not watch the scene with the space slug/scorpion being inserted into the ears of Chekov and some other random guy. I found it just too disgusting. Flash forward about 20 years or so. Special effects are now so good that the scene that once made me close my eyes now looks so tacky that I nearly laughed out loud. You know what? It turns out that when you’ve aged at least 20 years since your first viewing, you also realize that this movie is really about dealing with getting older, coming to grips with mistakes you’ve made in your past, and the enduring power of friendship.

But enough philosophy. Even though I can see a deeper meaning, the bottom line is that this is just full-on cheesy fun. Ricardo Montalban reprises his role as Khan-where he chews up the scenery in a most delightful way. His appearance and performance may be the best thing in this movie. Even if he is wearing a prosthetic chest. (Are those prosthetic pecs? I don’t know, but if not, wow! Not bad for a 62 year old man) The costumes and hair are 80’s chic, Spock makes logical choices, Kirk makes foolish ones (for a Captain anyway), Bones complains, and Scotty does his best to keep the engines running. Just another day in the Star Trek (TOS) universe. And I wouldn’t have it any other way. KHAN!!!!

Cheryl’s thoughts:

Having seen and not loved other Baz Lurhmann films, I did not have very high expectations for Strictly Ballroom. Those low expectations were not exceeded. Initially, I was pretty excited because it started out with a documentary feel and there were crazy bejewelled costumes everywhere and I was hoping for Spinal Tap… I did not get that.

What I found inside was the typical underdog sports tale — Bad News Bears, Rudy, Seabiscuit, take your pick — with a dash of Pretty in Pink wrapped in glitter. Oh, and throw in a little bit of mis-matched, star-crossed-leads (less Romeo and Juliet, more Beverly Hills Cop) to up the tension on screen and there you have it.

Strictly Ballroom was entirely too melodramatic for my taste, taking over the top to new heights. Until Luhrmann’s next film Romeo + Juliet, which pushed those heights even further

Alynda’s thoughts:

There was a time when ballroom dance was only seen on PBS, and there were no quasi-celebrities vying for another 15 minutes of fame and a mirror-ball trophy. But in 1992, Baz Luhrman gave us “Strictly Ballroom”, a romantic comedy set in the world of Australian ballroom dance competition. It turns out that he was following the instruction to write what you know: his mother was a ballroom dance teacher and he had studied ballroom dance as a child! I consider this movie to be one of the first of those quirky Australian comedies of the early 1990’s, like “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”, And “Muriel’s Wedding”.

I truly love this movie-it is everything you want from a good date: charming, funny, and attractive. It’s an ugly duckling story, and also encourages you to follow your dreams, no matter what others may think. All presented in a fluffy, bejewelled, and twinkly costume. Adapted from his own play, this movie really shows the genesis of what, to me, is Luhrman’s particular style: the music is as much a part of the narrative as the lines, and spectacle is par for the course. This is not a film of deep thought, but it is a lot of fun.