Movies

Arise, My Love (1940) — I’ve liked Ray Milland since I saw The Major and the Minor; this political romantic comedy pairs him with Claudette Colbert in a little-known film notable for being co-written by Billy Wilder. It’s very much of its time, both in tackling the questions of World War II before the U.S. was officially involved and in showing a woman as an equal partner to a man, both professionally (she’s a reporter) and personally (she doesn’t take his guff).

Death on the Nile

Death on the Nile (1978) — My favorite Agatha Christie movie, with an amazing all-star cast. (I like it better than Murder on the Orient Express because I like Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot better than Albert Finney.) A nearly unsolvable mystery starring Bette Davis, Angela Lansbury, Maggie Smith, David Niven, Mia Farrow, and Manimal (Simon MacCorkindale).

Eyes Wide Shut (1999) — the most boring orgy movie possible, but I’m not a Kubrick fan. I did expect it to be more equal between the partners, instead of being just his story. Watched it because it was a Christmas movie, and the decorations are lovely.

The Ghost Writer (2010) — I didn’t realize this was a Polanski film until it was over, or I wouldn’t have watched it. It provided what I expected from an “important” movie; it was slower than I would have liked, and at the end, not much had really happened. But Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan were in it.

John Loves Mary (1949) — A Ronald Reagan film that has him returning from the war to fiancee Patricia Neal. The premise — he married the girlfriend of the buddy who saved his life overseas in order to get her into the country, only to find the buddy didn’t really care that much about her — should have been light and frothy, but it winds up dull, and all the scenes take longer than they should. Slow and ponderous.

Just You and Me, Kid (1979) — I recall watching this I don’t know how many times on HBO one summer as a youngster, so it was interesting to revisit. George Burns and Brooke Shields star in a labored odd-couple caper. He’s a retired vaudevillian full of stories, a wonderful portrait of nostalgia. She learns to care about others, although she’s out of her depth playing a hard-boiled orphan on the lam from a drug dealer. In a supporting role is Chris Knight, still looking like Peter Brady. More interesting are the old pros who play Burns’ buddies, including Ray Bolger, Carl Ballantine, Keye Luke, and Burl Ives. Better than I feared it might be, mostly due to Burns’ character’s stories and props.

The Unguarded Hour (1936) — I don’t recall much about this Loretta Young oldie at this point. There’s some blackmail. It felt like one of those movies where the plot changes abruptly in the last 15 minutes because back then, you couldn’t have a star do anything really bad.

That Uncertain Feeling (1941) — Lesser Lubitsch. Melvyn Douglas and Merle Oberon are married, only she wants to run away with Burgess Meredith because he’s more artistic and interesting. That in itself shows one of the big problems with the film: I thought the only well-cast role was Douglas. Eve Arden is nice in a supporting role as a legal secretary.

DVDs

Bad Girls From Valley High — Julie Benz and Monica Keena are two snobby high school girls who get cursed into prematurely aging. Janet Leigh’s final movie, sadly. This was the 4th on a $5 four-pack of school movies.

The Big Bang Theory Season 4

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs — Very well-written and great voice cast, especially Anna Faris as the former nerd who feels she has to hide her smarts.

Community Season 2 — It’s so sad not to have more of this show available regularly. I hope NBC brings it back soon.

Dave — An amazing job by Kevin Kline playing two people who look alike but clearly have different personalties, conveyed by the way he carries himself. It’s The Prisoner of Zenda recast in the American Presidency. Hard to believe this movie is 20 years old.

Good News (Warner Archive) — This disc includes the movie trailer, two numbers from the earlier 1930 version (starring Penny Singleton, better known as the movie’s Blondie), and a deleted number, which was surprising. Classic old-school musical with huge, colorful numbers featuring a cast of 40 or so, led by the gone-too-soon Joan McCracken.

From the Warner Archive Jean Harlow set: The Girl From Missouri, Reckless, Suzy, Personal Property

Leave Her to Heaven — One of those old movies that seems surprised that beautiful women can be evil, but with gorgeous old-school production design and rich colors.

Monsters vs. Aliens — Disappointing and predictable.

The Shadow — Wow, look at young, hairy Alex Baldwin (his first scenes feature him shirtless). This is a pulp film, which makes it true to its roots, but an enjoyable trifle for a Sunday afternoon, with gorgeous period sets and costumes — and what a cast! Ian McKellan, Penelope Ann Miller, Peter Boyle, Tim Curry, Jonathan Winters, and more.

Sleeping Beauty

27 Dresses — I like James Marsden, what can I say?

Here’s the biggest comic-fan release of the summer — Marvel’s The Avengers, out May 4.

Neat finally seeing all the heroes in one shot, with that circle at the end.

Also from Disney is John Carter (no “of Mars”, not after their last film with that in the title), out March 9.

I don’t even like sword-and-sandals battle pics when they’re set on Earth, so that one’s not for me, but I suspect it will be hard to avoid hearing about it.

Also aired so far are trailers for Battleship and GI Joe 2: Retaliation, which look like they could be the same movie.

Her points are insightful and tackle what entertainment shows us about our culture, one of my favorite types of analysis. (Even if she doesn’t like Heathers — and I hope she tells us more about that soon.) Heck, you could just use her viewing list as a guide to the best to rewatch.

Oh, is the Super Bowl this weekend? Marvel wants you to know that they’re going to run an ad during the game, this Sunday on NBC, and here’s a teaser for the advertisement. Personally, I don’t need to see advertising for the film, since I already know I’m going to go see it this summer.

Not at these prices, it won’t. Paramount opened its direct sales site, ParamountMovies.com. There, more than 60 recent and classic movies are priced from $12.99 – $22.99, depending on age and whether you want SD or HD. That’s a lot for a digital file when they’re not offering anything in competition with free sources other than a legal figleaf (and license lock).

For those who already have a Warner Bros-related UltraViolet account, you still need to add a ParamountMovies.com account and install the Paramount download application. That breaks one of the key promises of UltraViolet, in my opinion. Even though it’s all one account, I still have to pay attention to which studio provides a film in order to know which application I have to open to watch it. Dumb.

Also dumb, and for no reason I can figure out, the ParamountMovies website has disabled opening links in a new tab, so you can’t open up several titles and compare. (Don’t break the web, jerks.) They do offer rental options (streaming only) at $2.99 – $3.99 for a 48-hour viewing period, but it requires a Silverlight-compatible browser and downloading that plugin. Whether rented or “purchased”, you can’t download to your iPad or other mobile device (only stream; downloads are for PC/Mac computers only), which is one of the key features audiences want. Android devices are completely unsupported.

In short, this is yet another example of studios designing new products based on their needs, not customer desires. That pricing is too expensive, especially compared to how much the DVD costs for many of these films, and the requirements are onerous.

Someone behind Sesame Street must be a Glee fan, because I was impressed by how much they got right: Rachel, Kurt, Mercedes, Artie, Mr. Schuester, Sue Sylvester, Brittany and the Cheerios… And they tackle a complicated point, that the letter G can sound like both guh and juh. Educational AND entertaining! And very up-to-date and relevant. Love Rachel smacking the others with her hair!

The Muppets

The deluxe pack is a three-disk Blu-ray that comes with DVD version, a digital copy on disc, and a card with a code to download all the songs from the movie’s soundtrack ($49.99 list price). The Blu-ray without digital copy or soundtrack is also available ($39.99). Special features include:

• The Longest Blooper Reel Ever Made (In Muppet History — We Think)
• A Little Screen Test on the Way to the Read Through featurette showing Jason Segel and the Muppets getting ready for the first day of production
• Disney Intermission — when viewers pause the movie, the Muppets take over the screen
• Explaining Evil: The Full Tex Richman Song — an extended version of Chris Cooper’s rap in which he explains why he hates the Muppets
• Audio commentaries with screenwriter and star Jason Segel, director James Bobin, and screenwriter Nicholas Stoller

The standard DVD comes with soundtrack ($34.99) or without ($29.99). No word on whether any of the special features will be available; likely most will not. The Intermission feature, definitely, sounds like it has to be Blu-ray-specific.

According to Laughing Squid, this is promo for a Super Bowl ad, product unknown. As my friend David put it, “I love how we have gotten to the point of having commercials for commercials.”

The Big Year

A “big year” is a competition to see the greatest number of birds in North America in a calendar year. It’s a particular twist on the hobby that, taken to this extreme, seems to involve a lot of travel to uncomfortable but lovely locations. (I found this IMDB board post intriguing for providing more details while making an argument against.)

Wilson is a well-known birdwatcher married to Rosamund Pike (Surrogates), who feels abandoned by his quest. Black is a divorced computer programmer, lonely and lost. Martin is a new retiree and soon-to-be grandfather giving up his CEO career to follow the birds.

The supporting cast is strong, although few are given much to do; the focus is firmly on the three leads. JoBeth Williams plays Martin’s wife, with Kevin Pollak and Joel McHale as co-workers. Dianne Wiest and Brian Dennehy are Black’s parents. Other birders are played by Jim Parsons and Rashida Jones, while it’s very different to see Anjelica Huston as a boat captain. The movie is narrated by John Cleese throughout, treating the characters as though they were observed wildlife.

(Dennehy has one of my favorite lines, when he tries to understand his son’s hobby. A friend has called with the location of a specific species in a nearby national forest, and Dennehy reports they’ll be heading out together to see “some kind of owl out in the woods”.)

Brian Dennehy and Jack Black

Perhaps because they’re based on real people (the movie is based on a non-fiction book), the characters are nicely well-rounded (with the exception of Wilson’s super-competitive obsessive, although that’s certainly realistic). I particularly liked Martin’s ex-company head. He keeps getting dragged back into the business not because he can’t give it up, as Hollywood would have it, but because those who used to work for him aren’t used to proceeding without his advice and guidance. It’s a comforting, mature portrayal.

Those adjectives describe the movie as well. This gentle film builds based on character and locations. Some fans recommend it for its lack of strong language and nudity. There are no belly laughs, instead featuring the heart-warming humor of recognizing a particular personality or hearing a well-turned retort. It also has an excellent soundtrack. And the credits, which show images of all the different kinds of birds, are both educational and overwhelming.

Owen Wilson, Jack Black, and Steve Martin in The Big Year

There were no extras on the DVD screener I received (which seems to reflect the actual DVD), only the choice between the hour-and-forty-minute theatrical version or the extended version, with three more minutes of footage. The Blu-ray edition comes with DVD and digital copy, plus deleted scenes, a “Big Migration” featurette, and a gag reel.

This movie is an excellent option for a birdwatcher, since it’s rare to see such an extended treatment of the hobby on film. It’s also a good choice to watch with parents, since there’s little to embarrass anyone, and older viewers will appreciate its quiet grace. (The studio provided a review copy.)

Fonda first sweeps into view on a madcap bicycle, running over two professors, and revealing that she’s majoring in home economics. She has the profs she’s smacked into compete for her elective course slot, subjects she’s chosen because basketball star Anthony Perkins is in those classes, and she’s come to school “for the same reason that every girl, if she’s honest with herself, comes to college: to get married!”

That quote is only the most obvious reminder that we’re watching a time capsule. I also found it insightful that she has to explain that a pom-pom girl is a “girl cheerleader” who wears a very short skirt. (Nowadays, we’d find specifying the sex redundant.) At least the school is integrated, based on the basketball team, which has one black player.

Anyway, she’s tall for a girl, or so we’re told, so she’s come to Custer College, known for its basketball, specifically to catch a taller boy. The whole thing feels very much like an Archie comic, set in a very small community where the girl students babysit for the professors. Perkins was said to be 6 foot 2 in real life, so he fits the role, but he’s not very convincing as an athlete. He does have gawky charm as a college boy, though.

The only other person in the film you’re likely to have heard of is Ray Walston as a blustery, self-important professor. He’s sporting a Van Dyke, thick-rimmed specs, and teaching modern ethics. You might recognize Murray Hamilton, the coach, though, when you see him — he was the mayor in Jaws. Reportedly, an uncredited Robert Redford is one of the other players, but I never spotted him.

The jazzy theme song is sung by Bobby Darin. The film is black and white, which surprised me, but I guess they were still switching over in 1960. I found that a shame, just because I so enjoy seeing the fashion in these old films in all its glory. The stage play origins are visible, although the scenes have been opened up with different locations. The reaction shots are lengthy and the wisecracks telegraphed.

I can see how some of this was considered racy for the time, although what most surprised me was the locker room scene where Fonda is confronted with a naked player (not Perkins). One of the professors (Marc Connelly), visiting a colleague’s wife, asks if they have “time for a snort”. I haven’t heard that in decades! I was a little surprised when all the adults, knowing that she’s angling to snare him, thinks there’s nothing wrong with him joining her on her babysitting job alone in the house. The second half of the film turns into more of a sports story, as Perkins’ team is going to play some Russians in an exhibition game. There’s a bribery attempt and conflict over player eligibility.

The film has visible specks and lines at times, but the monochromatic tones are crisp. As with many of the more recent Warner Archive releases, there is also a trailer for the movie included. This one’s 3 minutes 42 seconds and features the director, Josh Logan, praising the “youth, beauty, and talent” of new discovery Jane Fonda.

This would make an excellent double bill with Where the Boys Are, also featuring 60s college girls, or for a more seasonal twist, pair it up with one of the beach party movies for an example of what the students did in the fall. You can see some images from the film online. (The studio provided a review copy.)

On the video side, another gem from the Warner Archive, available on DVD for the first time. Tall Story is a 60s romantic comedy with Jane Fonda. I’ve previously enjoyed her in Sunday in New York and Any Wednesday, so I’m eager to watch this, her debut film. She’s in college and trying to convince basketball star Anthony Perkins to marry her. Sounds slight, but it should be a fun slice of pop culture.

On the book side, Fantagraphics kindly sent The Sincerest Form of Parody: The Best 1950s MAD Inspired Satirical Comics for KC’s perusal and review. Just at a flip-through, it looks nicely grungy, with packed panels and a good choice for reproduction that makes the work feel authentic. You want a little age visible on something 60+ years old, just to remind you that this is something from a different time, and we’re lucky to have so much available to us through reprint.

The last cool thing I got this week was a gift from my new friend at JetPens.com. I expressed my appreciation at their marketing style in a mailbag post last month, saying I was tempted to steal one of the pens intended for Ed. Lo and behold, now I have my very own — thanks, Brad! These brush pens are impressive, comfortable to hold and a pleasure to use.

First, iTunes, Amazon, and Vudu are very similar. With one or two exceptions, they all have the same movies available and usually the same restrictions. Some films are available for purchase only, not online “rental”.

Second, Netflix is not a preferred outlet to see the big films. None of the top 25 are available, and only four of the top 100. (Strangely, of those four, three are not available to stream elsewhere. Exclusive deals?) The reason for this, I think, is obvious — studios want viewers to pay per movie. They don’t like the “all you can eat” viewing method, with one low monthly price, because they don’t get to exploit all the “value” from their films they can. Studios can block Netflix from streaming movies but not from them offering the discs.

Last, DVD is still the way to go. The films that aren’t there will be soon, since some of them are still playing in theaters. Whether that reflects studio preference (they want to sell product, not make movies available digitally) or customer desire (I’d rather “own” something than have to watch can-be-jittery films over an internet connection, and streaming can eat up bandwidth if your account is limited, and $3.99 to watch a film only once seems high to me when I’m providing the venue) or both, I don’t know.

I finally got a chance to see The Artist this afternoon, after waiting weeks for it to come to town, and I quite enjoyed it.

The plot is fundamentally A Star Is Born (established star declines while discovery’s career takes off) meets Singin’ in the Rain (talking movies cause radical changes in Hollywood), with a side of Benji. (There’s a really talented trained dog who is a joy to watch.) I don’t want to say too much about it, other than that it’s a black-and-white silent movie that serves as an enjoyable love letter to the history of film and the dreams of Hollywood and the struggles of artistic creators to stay relevant in the face of changing technology.

That’s why this film is so timely. Some might think that it’s only looking backwards, but I think its story of how to cope with new-fangled audience tastes is perfectly suited to today, with studios over-reacting to the much-discussed (and debatably not that harmful) threat of piracy. Silent film star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) may find himself risking the loss of his career when sound films come in, but it’s in large part due to his refusal to change the way he’s been working. (We find out why at the very end. Dujardin, who does a marvelous job, is reminiscent, in various ways, of Gene Kelly, Douglas Fairbanks, and John Gilbert.) Those who face the future with optimism and good humor, like Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo), do just fine.

But beyond the politics, which I’m probably reading into the film, there’s the fun of seeing universal moments with an audience, as we all laughed and gasped and sniffled together. At one point, the woman behind me said, when a dialogue card appeared, “but she didn’t say that!” She’d been lip-reading the character and discovered that what actors said didn’t always match the captions. That’s also faithful to the format. Although mostly silent, The Artist does play some creative tricks with noise during a dream sequence.

Here’s the trailer, in case you’d like to know more. I recommend seeing it in a theater, the way it’s designed.

Wikipedia calls Lions Gate “the most commercially successful independent film and television distribution company in North America.” Their slate has included American Psycho, Dogma, Fahrenheit 9/11, the comic book movies Kick-Ass, Punisher: War Zone, and The Spirit, the Conan the Barbarian remake, and the upcoming Hunger Games film adaptation.

Summit’s other releases have included The Hurt Locker, Letters to Juliet, and Red. The deal price is over $400 million in cash and stock. They hope to “create a Hollywood powerhouse focused on young adult audiences”, so expect to hear more from them in the future.

What’s Your Number? (Blu-ray)

I’ve wanted to see What’s Your Number? from the time I saw the first trailer for it. I’ve liked Anna Faris ever since The House Bunny, and of course, I’m a big Chris Evans fan, given how many comic book films he’s been in (Captain America, Fantastic Four, The Losers, Scott Pilgrim) and that he looks amazing in all of them. You can watch the trailer at the movie website (warning: sound), but I don’t recommend it, since it gives away a bit too much.

The premise is this: Ally (Faris) has a loser boyfriend (Zachary Quinto). He leaves the same day she gets fired (by Joel Hale, Community, playing uncool for once). On the way home, she reads one of those dumb women’s magazine articles geared to make you feel bad about yourself. This time, it says that the average woman has only 10.5 lovers in their lifetime. She finds that low, since she’s had 19. Now, this seems reasonable for a modern woman to me, but she freaks out over it and decides to be celibate.

Chris Evans in What's Your Number?

She winds up hunting down previous boyfriends, in the hopes that one of them is now a better match for her, with the help of her gorgeous neighbor Colin (Evans). He has his own issues, bringing home lots of women he ducks out on the next morning. His presence subtly points out the double standard, since no one cares about his number even though it’s increasing daily.

You see where this is going, of course. It’s a predictable film, but I found it just want I wanted, light entertainment that made me laugh. The scene, for example, where she’s trying to find her exes on Google, and she winds up talking back to her computer, I thought was both funny and a good example of how Faris could hold my attention on her own. Other scenes play off her skill with physical comedy. Then there’s the weird out-of-nowhere joke about Katharine and Audrey Hepburn that shows how friends pick each other up. Those were my favorite moments, the throw-away lines and random mentions, because they so often surprised and tickled me.

Ari Graynor, Anna Faris, and Kate Simses (Strangely, there is no publicity photo for this movie where Faris doesn't have her mouth open.)

The movie has a number of recognizable people in it. The supporting cast is the typical younger, better-adjusted sister (Ari Graynor, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist), who’s getting married; their gorgeous, somewhat controlling mother (Blythe Danner); various bridesmaids (including Eliza Coupe (Happy Endings) and Heather Burns); and the former dates (including Martin Freeman, Chris Pratt, and Andy Samberg).

What’s Your Number? (DVD)

I like a good romantic comedy, especially one with emphasis on the comedy, and this one brings the couple together with a twisted enough shared activity — hunting down people — that I found it unusual and entertaining. I also appreciated the way Evans’ character tended to answer the door in the nude. What’s Your Number? gave me exactly what I was hoping for, a fun evening in with plenty of laughs.

(Note: This is definitely an R-rated movie, due to a lot of frank language and situations, but unlike every other hard-R comedy I’ve watched, there were no gross bits or scenes that made me think “ewwwww.”)

Special Features

In addition to the choice of watching the theatrical version or an EX-tended Edition (with 11 extra minutes), the DVD has the movie’s trailer and four deleted scenes. The Blu-ray comes with a bare-bones DVD and a digital copy (iTunes compatible), plus another four deleted scenes — the eight together run 17 minutes, although I found them mostly unnecessary — and a gag reel (7 minutes). That part is actually funny, due to them splicing in, amongst the flubs and bad words, footage of the crew answering the question of what their number is in various ways.

Bob the Complete Series

Via TV Shows on DVD comes the news that Bob Newhart’s TV show about being a comic book artist, Bob, is coming to DVD on April 3. List price for Bob the Complete Series is $39.98 for 33 episodes, but I’ve already preordered it with Amazon’s 30% discount.

In the show, which ran 1992-1993, Newhart played Bob McKay, who had created Mad Dog, a 50s superhero put out of business during the Wertham era, when Seduction of the Innocent made comics bad for kids. Then his hero was revived by a huge media company, who wants to make the character a “bloodthirsty vigilante”. His boss was played by John Cygan, his wife by Carlene Watkins, and his daughter by Cynthia Stevenson. Also appearing were Lisa Kudrow, Tom Poston, and Dick Martin. Between seasons, the show was greatly retooled, bringing in Betty White to have Bob work for her at a greeting card company along with Jere Burns and Megan Cavanagh.

Jack Kirby (!) even appeared as himself on one episode. Marvel actually put out six issues of a Mad Dog comic, done as a flipbook. One side was the old-fashioned version, done by Ty Templeton, while the other was the “updated” 90s version, written by Evan Dorkin.

It’s unclear to me whether they want to extend the delay because 1) it’s working, in terms of increasing DVD sales, so they’re being greedy and wanting to boost sales even further, or 2) it’s not working, and they think a longer delay will make it work. I would guess the latter, just because I haven’t seen anyone agree with the studios that the delay matters to them or has changed their behavior. The linked article calls DVD sales “disappointing”, but I don’t know if that really means disappointing, or if it just means that the studios had expectations that were too high. (The problem in most media these days is that the producers value their content much more than the consumers do.) This analysis of the news suggests that Redbox and Blockbuster don’t intend to wait and will instead buy discs elsewhere, perhaps paying more but giving customers a better experience than the one Warner wants to impose.

Personally, I buy DVDs in two ways. If it’s something I really want to see, with good extras, I’ll buy on release day, when the best deals are in effect. (These days, I won’t even consider it without at least a 40% discount off list price.) More likely, though, I just make a note and then pick the disc up used when I can get it for $5 (DVD) or $10 (Blu-ray) or less. (Or during big sales periods, such as taking advantage of some of Amazon’s deals just before Christmas.) That’s how much I’m willing to pay, not $30-$50, and by waiting, I’ll get what I want at the price I think is fair, and it costs me less to see the movie at home than it would for two tickets at the theater.

Plus now, I’ve got so many stocked up that I don’t even rent any more. To see a movie I don’t want to own, I just wait for a free premium channel weekend and load up the TiVo. I’m sure all this makes me a bad customer, but I was already in that category by refusing to be manipulated by the studios’ attempts to play with release dates.

In related news, movie ticket sales are down, so ticket prices are going up. That doesn’t make sense to anyone but the companies who feel they deserve a certain level of profit. They’ll do whatever they can to get it, even if it means driving away customers and putting the business into an ever-declining death spiral. Meanwhile, normal people know that if customers aren’t buying, you either make better products or drop prices or both.

I haven’t gone out to a movie since November. I’d like to, but the film I most want to see right now isn’t playing in my city, and those that are playing don’t seem like I would enjoy them enough to justify taking an evening away from everything else I want to do. (Especially during the past month, when I spent time with friends and family instead.)

For those tracking the Twilight phenomenon, here’s an example of a exaggerated tie-in I observed while shopping the other night.

In case you can’t read the window text, it says “Bella’s Twilight gown is here!” The wedding dress is displayed in the center of the store, surrounded by cardboard cutouts of Edward (Robert Pattinson) and Jacob (Taylor Lautner).

That’s a genius tie-in that captures one of the most important elements of the Twilight story and aims directly at a core part of the audience. They’re selling a way to make yourself part of the story with a Twilight wedding dress. I do wonder, though, if a lot of people really want the dress, or if they just want a picture of themselves wearing it standing next to the cutouts.

Reel Cuisine

Author Nami Iijima is a professional food stylist, someone whose job it is to create meals for the screen that look good. These recipes come from her column for a Japanese magazine in which she aimed “to faithfully recreate the dishes shown in various films so as to appease film fans and movie buffs.” Many of her choices are from slice-of-life movies, so if you’re looking for more fantastic fare, look elsewhere.

The book is grouped into several loosely themed sections. The first, featuring dishes she created for films she worked on, will be the most confusing for American readers, since they likely have never heard of the movies, let alone seen them, while the dishes are an odd mix of Japanese specialties (seaweed bento, vegetable chirashi sushi) and American basics (chicken nuggets, cinnamon rolls). They use complicated techniques and, in the Japanese food, unfamiliar ingredients. I think I would have put this section last, with more editorial explanation, since the remaining sections are much more comprehensible, consisting of brunch dishes, family dinners, desserts, and international fare.

Each recipe is printed with a short plot description of the associated film and sometimes an author’s note about the dish. These may clarify a technique or mention ingredient substitutions. Only a limited number of the recipes — those printed with tan background instead of white — talk about why the particular dish was selected to represent the film. I wish we’d had those notes on all of the recipes, because sometimes, I thought the choices were odd or just plain wrong. For instance, for Fried Green Tomatoes, she provides instructions for fried chicken. That’s likely of more interest to readers (especially those in Japan) who actually want to make the food, but I would have expected at least an acknowledgement of why you aren’t telling us how to make the title dish.

Also, the recipe specifies chicken thighs, while the picture clearly shows a drumstick. Which, yes, is more evocative, but disconnects between the food shown and the method described always make me suspicious of cookbooks that play fast and loose that way. Some of her steps are similarly missing in details. For instance, in the hamburger recipe, Iijima advises cooking the burgers for a total of 2 1/2 minutes. I’d have expected her to be more specific about how thick her patties are, because I typically cook hamburgers for more like 10 minutes (because I do not enjoy eating raw ground beef or food poisoning) and they still come out pink in the middle. Other recipes advise cooking “until cooked through”, which can be difficult to determine without some time guidelines.

I was surprised at the number of recipes for basic dishes, including fish and chips, pancakes, popcorn, tuna salad sandwiches, and green salad. Often, I found the connection between the recipe and movie somewhat nebulous. Why guacamole for Bridget Jones’ Diary? Waitress is all about making dessert pies, so why a recipe for quiche? Tampopo features the search for the perfect ramen, yet we’re told how to make fried rice instead. In Stranger Than Fiction, one of the characters is often seen making cookies, so I expected that recipe, not one for banana cake.

Some of the food choices are perfect, though, like the Chicken Meatball Pho for Good Morning Vietnam or spaghetti for The Godfather: Part III or truffles for Chocolat or ratatouille (guess). Other recipes range widely, through pot au feu (with boiled chicken, not beef), paella, chili, hummus, roast chicken, yakisoba, and various pastas. I don’t see myself cooking from this book, since the dishes I’d want to make are already well-known to me, but as a reminder of the connections between food and film, it would make a great novelty gift for the movie buff. Many of the films are international, so most readers will find some listed that are unfamiliar to them, the better to seek out and try. (The publisher provided a review copy.)

Christmas in Connecticut

Tonight starts the festivities with two of the very best Christmas films and one I just don’t get the appeal of. That one, The Bishop’s Wife (8 PM, all times Eastern), I’m trying to watch yet again, in the hopes that this time, I don’t wind up feeling that Loretta Young should leave her pastor husband (David Niven) and run off with the angel (Cary Grant). I suspect it’s not going to work, though, since the casting gets in the way of the story for me. Still, it has a nice message about avoiding obsessing about money (as Niven’s character is doing, fundraising for church) in favor of family.

After that comes my favorite Christmas movie, Christmas in Connecticut (10 PM), which I’ve talked about several times before here, so I shan’t go into detail again. It’s followed by The Shop Around the Corner (Midnight), a Lubitsch film in which Margaret Sullavan and James Stewart fight at work but fall in love through letters. (Letters! Can you believe it? If you must have email, then you want the remake, You’ve Got Mail, the Blu-ray of which comes with a DVD of The Shop Around the Corner, but it’s not nearly as Christmassy.) All three movies tonight are heart-warming and romantic in various ways, just right for a cozy holiday evening. Take a break and recharge among the shopping and decorating and expectations.

The Complete Thin Man Collection

If heart-warming doesn’t work for you for relieving the seasonal stress, how about outstanding comedy? Tomorrow, Saturday, the evening brings four Katharine Hepburn classics, pairing her in each case with Cary Grant. Beyond the well-known and deservedly praised Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story, there’s the underrated (and preferred by me) Holiday and the cross-dressing Sylvia Scarlett.

Sunday opens with another holiday-ish family film, the 1933 version of Little Women (6 AM), again with Hepburn as our favorite Jo. If you’d rather have more Cary Grant, then Monday’s your day, with seven films, from the gangsterish Mr. Lucky (10 AM) to the moody Hitchcock Suspicion (6 PM) to Grant’s last film, Walk Don’t Run (Noon).

Tuesday night is all about holiday movies that deal with shopping and department stores. Neat idea, but not what I’m looking for right now. Thursday night is more my speed, with a marathon of all six Thin Man movies. That’s a week early, though, since Nick and Nora Charles (William Powell and Myrna Loy) are much better suited for the drinking parties of the New Year.