1. Meet Market 2/10

Stars: Krista Allen and Elizabeth Berkley

Not a great movie to start the month with. A shallow plot line and average performances.  Maybe comedy lovers would enjoy it more than I did. I, however, found it boring and unimpressive

2. All Night Long 5/10

Stars: Gene Hackman and Barbra Streisand

Not one of their better movies but Hackman and Streisand give good performances.  Some funny moments and it moves reasonably smoothly and quickly.

3. Copycat  8/10

Stars: Sigourney Weaver and Holly Hunter

This gripping thriller has a cohesive plotline and the cast give excellent performances. Weaver is particularly good in the scenes where she is endeavouring to deal with her agoraphobia.  Some very tense scenes.

4. Cannes Man  4/10

Stars: Francesco Quinn and Seymour Cassel

An interesting concept along the lines of Pygmalion set against the backdrop of the Cannes film festival and filmed in the style of a documentary with a huge number of actors having cameos as themselves. It moved a little slowly for me to be totally engrossed.

5. Camelot  8/10

Stars: Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave

This movie never fails to entertain. With great songs by Lerner and Loewe and some beautiful sets it is one of the classic musical movies. Harris and Redgrave are wonderful as Arthur and Gweneviere. One of my favourite musicals and well worth re-visiting.

6. The Lucky One 7/10

Stars: Zac Efron and Taylor Schilling

A sweet movie with well-developed characters and a good storyline. Some great Louisiana scenery shots and good performances by Efron, Schilling and cinema veteran Blythe Danner made this an entertaining movie to watch. One of the better movies in the chick-flick rom-com genre.

7. The Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift  4.5/10

Stars: Sean Boswell and Nathalie Kelley

I am not a huge fan of movies like this and I found myself easily distracted by other things. The story seemed a little contrived though the cast tried hard to keep the momentum. Not a movie I’d watch again.

8. Fast and Furious 5/10

Stars: Vin Deisel and Paul Walker

Having watched one of the franchise without Vin Diesel, I thought I should watch one with him.  Not my cup of tea as it seemed predictable, though were a couple of attention-gaining moments.

9. Words and Music 8/10

Stars: Mickey Rooney and June Allyson

This movie’s cast list is like a who’s who of classical Hollywood musicals.  With great musical numbers by Rodgers and Hart it’s a biopic well worth watching, if only to play ‘name that star’.  High energy and fun.

10. The Hunger 6.5/10

Stars: David Bowie and Catherine Deneuve

A reasonably good movie in the vampire horror genre. Bowie gives a strong performance and Deneuve is suitably chilling.  The soundtrack is excellent.

11. Joyful Noise 7/10

Stars: Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton

An entertaining musical move with some great scenes with Latifah and Parton. A bonus from my point of view was the presence of Jesse L Martin, who can always be relied on to give a strong performance.

12. The Fairy King of Ar (aka Beings)  3/10

Stars: Corbin Berenson and Malcolm McDowell

I can’t imagine that many children would enjoy this children’s movie. It has its moments but seemed a little scary for kids and a little ridiculous for an older audience.

13. Plan 9 from Outer Space 3/10

Stars: Gregory Walcott and Mona McKinnon

Even for an Ed Wood horror movie this one seems overacted. I found the narration grating but the movie has some good parts in particular an appearance by Bela Lugosi.

14. S.W.A.T- Fire Fight   5/10

Stars: Gabriel Macht and Robert Patrick

Not bad as sequels go. The actors were ok but the ending was a little weak. I quite enjoyed Macht’s performance and as a whole the move was better than expected

15. The Black Balloon  9/10

Stars: Rhys Wakefield and Luke Ford

This is an excellent movie with extraordinary performances by Ford, as the autistic teenager, and Wakefield, as his brother.  A strong cast, a good storyline and a great soundtrack made this movie riveting to watch. A great Australian drama.

16. The Yellow Handkerchief 5.5/10

Stars: Kristen Stewart and Eddie Redmayne

An OK movie. Slightly slow in some places but reasonable performances by the cast and a good storyline. Not one that I’d watch again but a fairly reasonable effort.

17. Children of a Lesser God 8.5/10

Stars: Marlee Maitlin and William Hurt

No matter how many times I watch this, I will still enjoy it. Wonderful performance by Maitlin and a great story make it an entertaining movie.  Don’t know why it’s been so long since I watched it.

18. Little Shop of Horrors 8/10

Stars: Rick Moranis and Ellen Greene

A great musical with good performances by all.  So many cameos to add to the impact.  Levi Stubbs is excellent as the voice of Audrey II but for me the standout song os Downtown/Skid Row.

19: The Borrowers 6/10

Stars: Christopher Eccleston and Stephen Fry

Reasonable performances but this remake doesn’t have the same standard as the John Goodman version. Stephen Fry is good as the scientist who is searching for homo sapiens reductus, The movie may have more appeal to a younger audience.

20. Hans Christian Andersen   8/10

Stars: Danny Kaye and Farley Granger

This is a great children’s musical.  Kaye gives a great performance as the cobbler turned storyteller and the songs are beautifully catchy. One to share with the kids and grandkids.

21. The Wedding Singer 7.5/10

Stars: Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore

A fun movie with some really hilarious moments and a great soundtrack. Barrymore and Sandler are likable in the roles of the main characters.  Well worth watching for an entertaining afternoon’s viewing.

22. The Lizzie McGuire Movie  6/10

Stars: Hillary Duff and Adam Lamberg

One for the tweenies with some great shots of Rome. While not a great movie it is good entertainment for the kids with a simple plotline and some good music to complement it.

23. Wish You Were Here  6.5/10

Stars: Joel Edgerton and Felicity Price

Some good performances and good cinematography make this movie a reasonable offering among recent Australian productions.  A strong soundtrack, including original music by rising composer Rosie Chase is an added attraction.

24. Celebrity 3/10

Stars: Kenneth Branagh and Judy Davis

A Woody Allen movie with a cast that includes numerous well-known actors and explores life after divorce.  Some usual hallmarks of an Allen movie including a couple of quite witty dialogue moments but not one of his better movies.

25. Man of Steel 9/10

Stars: Henry Cavill and Amy Adams

This is the Superman movie we have been waiting for:  one that is true to the comic book hero and does not compromise. An excellent performance by Cavill means that the movie is a wonderful entertainment experience.

26. The 19th Wife  6.5/10

Stars: Alexia Fast, Chyler Leigh

A reasonable example of the made-for-tv murder movie genre with interesting scenes related to a fundamentalist sect. Leigh gives a believable performance and the plotline is solid and well-paced.

27. Jane Doe: Now You See It Now You Don’t  6/10

Stars: Leah Thomson and Joe Penny

Another in the tele-movie series of Jane Doe thrillers.  It’s a bit formulaic and the writers seem to have forgotten the puzzle-maker aspect of the main character’s back story but it’s still an entertaining movie as is the whole series.

28. Like Minds aka Murderous Intent  6.5/10

Stars: Eddie Redmayne and Tony Collette

Redmayne is very good as the main character and Collette gives a strong performance as the forensic psychologist.  A little slow at the beginning but it quickly builds momentum.

29. The Emerald Forest  7/10

Stars: Charlie Boorman and Powers Booth

A beautiful movie with some great images of the Amazon rainforest. The cast gives strong performances and I especially enjoyed the insights into indigenous mysticism.

30. Time After Time  7/10

Stars: Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen

With good cinematography, screenplay, direction and costumes this movie was entertaining viewing. McDowell was a little ‘nerdy’ as HG Wells but Steenburgen gave a good performance.