This is a guest post by  fellow, Filmgirl Force blogger, Karen who writes for ReelArtsy and equally enjoys French New Wave, rom-coms and action flicks.

I finally saw Twilight: Eclipse and I agree with New York Times columnist A.O. Scott that it’s “robustly entertaining film than either of its predecessors.” It’s the best movie of the saga because has more action, more romance, more angst and more abs (courtesy of Taylor Lautner). There’s something about the story, the characters, the folklore that connects with thousands of females, young and old. The tween girls love the handsome leads and perhaps it awakens something fierce in older women stirring memories of young love. Critics can tear apart the series for its lackluster moments, but all the Twilight bashing can’t stop fans from waiting in line for a midnight screening.

So what is it about the books, the movies, that make it box-office hit? The fact that it can cause an indie singer to shoot a music video for a song inspired by Bella and Edward’s story sums it up nicely.

When these type of cinematic wildfires come along you can analyze them all you want and people still won’t get it. All I know is that I like the Twilight Saga, and I’m okay with that.

Last night, instead of getting some much-needed sleep, I was tweeting with one of my Filmgirl Force friends about movies (of course). Karen from Reel Artsy (@reelartys) is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to indy films. On the subject of indy Chick Flicks, Karen  suggested I watch a movie called Timers. I had not heard of it, but the plot seemed quite interesting. It is available for instant viewing on Netflix.

Imagine that you could have a small band implanted to your wrist for a nominal fee that would count down the days until you meet your soul mate. The person you are destined to love for the rest of your life.  It tells you the days, hours and minutes until you meet The One. When that perfect One comes into your life, bells ring. Literally ring. No. this is not like nonni juice, the Japanese foot pads or anything that promises you can lose weight without diet and excercise. This is for real scientific fact. At least it is in the movie Timers.

Timer centers around Oona (Emma Caulfield), an almost thirty-something dentist, living in present-day Los Angeles, who is watching her biological clock/Timer very closely. However, Oona’s timer is blank. Does that mean she will not ever meet her true love? Not necessarily, maybe her one true love  doesn’t have a timer yet.  Thus Oona only dates men without a timer. When they have a couple of good dates, she marches them down to the Timer store (like the store in the mall where you get your ears pierced or a T-Mobile store) to get a Timer installed. But still no bells and no soul mate.  Feeling dejected, Oona gives in to the advances of Mikey, the grocery store check-out guy. So what if  he is much younger and his Timer is about to go off in a few weeks. It’s just a little temporary fun.

You Can’t Hurry Love

I liked  how the director, Jac Schaeffer created an entire society, with customs and behaviors  based on having everyone having a  Timer. Think about it if you knew you wouldn’t  meet your true love until you were 43 years old, what would you do with your life? Maybe you would have mindless affairs with guys whose Timers were about to go off for someone else; like Oona’s step sister, Steph. She lives her life in limbo, working dead-end jobs and having dead-end affairs, knowing that science has proved that she won’t find true love for another 13 years.

Getting a Timer at puberty is another custom. It’s almost like having a quinceanera or a bar mitzvah.  Oona’s mother, Marion (played by JoBeth Williams)  takes her teenage son, Jesse to get his Timer, which say he has 3 days until he will meet the love of his life. Imagine what it would be like to know the girl in your 7th grade math class will be the future mother of your children.  So all day Jesse walks around school looking at every girl to see if the Timer will ring. Nothing. So mom throws a party inviting every teenage girl in the neighborhood.

Are You The One For Me?

Timer asks so many compelling questions? What if you meet someone you really like, but your timers don’t ring? Should you end the relationship? Living in a world where you have a guarantee on true love sounds nice.  Would the certainty of the Timer take all the mystery and romance out of love? What happens when a married couple gets Timers installed and their dates don’t match?  Do they get a divorce? See what I mean? Lots of questions.

Even with all the questions, Director Jac Schaeffer has made a wonderfully sweet and quirky romantic comedy.  Schaeffer,  a female director has made a really good Chick Flick. Even though the situation is a bit off-beat, the characters are real and I thoroughly enjoyed Timer!

This is a guest post by a fan of Just Chick Flicks, Alexis Montgomery. Alexis  is a content writer for Online Degree Programs, where you can browse through various online degree programs to find a college that suits your needs.

If you’ve never been into chick flicks (you watched your mom sniffle through Steel Magnolias and outright sob when she watched Beaches), you should try to view college as a time to try new things, and include chick flicks on your list. There are a number of eminently enjoyable films aimed at an all-female audience and you (and a roomful of your girlfriends) could learn a thing or two by watching them. Although chick flicks have earned a bad reputation as tissue-fests, there is something empowering about movies that pander to the female psyche, exposing truths that we should all embrace. Here are a few that you absolutely need to see.

1. Pretty Woman (1990) – a rehashing of the classic Cinderella story (or the hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold). This movie puts a new twist on women’s lib. Granted, she is a prostitute, but every woman can revel in the reawakening experienced by Vivian (Julia Roberts) as she finds love and realizes her own self-worth, refusing to settle for less than what she feels she deserves. This movie proves that chick flicks can carry a message of empowerment without getting all weepy. Bonus: snappy costumes and a decent soundtrack.

2. When Harry Met Sally (1989) – okay, this one might make you squeeze out a few tears (especially during that last scene), but it is one of the best movies ever made concerning relationships, including falling in love, breaking up, faking an orgasm (in a restaurant), and finding that one person you can’t live without, no matter the flaws. This is hands-down the best role Meg Ryan ever played, peppered (on your paprikash) with some funny bits from comedian Billy Crystal. Best one-liner: “I’ll have what she’s having.”

3. Love Actually (2003) – If you’re looking for a diatribe on relationships that leans a little more towards the sappy, you can find it in this film, which BTW, is astonishingly good. You get the trials and tribulations of eight couples in one great movie, from love at first sight, to an old marriage on the brink of disaster, to a boy with some drumsticks trying to impress a classmate. Very cute and chock full of iconic romantic scenarios that will give you a few ideas for your own relationship.

4. Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (1991) – Now, most people might not classify this as a chick flick, per se, but since the lead is a female, I think it makes the cut. Sue Ellen (Christina Applegate) takes on a role familiar to male leads like Michael J. Fox in The Secret of My Success. She must scheme her way into a job. She lies on her resumé to land a job at a fashion company in order to pay the bills and take care of her siblings. What she finds is that, although she can’t do the job she was hired for, she is able to use her talents to save the tanking company, as well as run a household. Go girl power! When in doubt, just say, “I’m right on top of that, Rose!”

5. Mean Girls (2004) – Before Lindsay Lohan started sporting that hefty ankle bracelet, she learned how to dress and accessorize to fit in with the most popular girls in school (too bad it included kicking other girls to the curb). This is a great example of what not to do when it comes to dealing with your sistahs, but you can take a lesson from Lohan’s character, Cady, and learn to admit your mistakes with a modicum of grace and give other girls a hand. Let’s face it, we have enough problems without backstabbing each other.

Sanaa Hamri, the director of one of my favorite chick flicks, Something New does it again with Just Wright, starring Queen Latifah and Hip-Hop performer, Common. Queen Latifah plays Leslie Wright, a physical therapist with a new house in needs of repairs, a job she loves and a mooching cousin named Morgan taking up residence in her guest room. Leslie Wright is like most single women, or at least like me and some of my single friends. She has her life together. She is not waiting for Prince Charming to come and save her. She enjoys her job, but is not career obsessed.  Leslie, like many single women is waiting for Mr Right, but that thought doesn’t rule her life. And like most of us single girls, she has gone on her share of dates with seemly great guys, but not the right guy. They like her…for a friend. oooohh…I know, consigned to the friend zone. That is the kiss of death to any possible romance.

A Woman With A Plan

Her cousin Morgan, on the other hand is a woman with a plan. Morgan is played by  played by Mrs. Robin Thicke, Paula Patton. She is one of those girls that you see in almost every chick flick. She is sweet, gorgeous and her sole ambition in life is to be the trophy wife of an NBA player (prince, rich man or celebrity). She takes this goal very seriously. Studying the fashions of NBA wives, like a post grad working on a thesis; plotting and planning strategy like a military commander, Morgan is one determined woman.

Armed with a pair of tickets, binoculars,  a skin-tight dress and stiletto heels, Morgan goes to a basketball game with Leslie, who is a major fan of the team. What does a fan do? They go to the game in their team’s jersey. So, while Leslie cheers on her favorite team, Morgan checks out the designer handbags carried by the players wives. When Morgan abandons Leslie to go to a party where she hopes to  meet some players, Leslie goes home in her beat up old Mustang.

Meanwhile at the gas station

Guess who Leslie meets  at the gas station on her way home? Scott McKnight the star player of NY Nets! Skipping a few details so I can get to the good part….Scott invites her to his gala birthday party. Of course, being a good person, she asks Morgan (who thinks she has died and gone to trophy wife heaven) to go along. More skipping....Morgan uses her considerable charm to trap ( and I don’t use that term loosely) Scott and before you can say Christian Laboutain, they are engaged.

See…dreams do come true. Wait a minute! The cute, conniving girl getting the guy. Not in a Sanaa Hamri movie.

Things are going along just fine, well at least  for Morgan. She is finally the shopping, dining, fiance  of an NBA basketball player. Life is perfect until McKnight suffers a possible career ending knee injury. He might be ok with physical therapy. Great, but Morgan quickly gets rid of the top sports injury therapist in the NBA, who just happens to look like a member of the Swedish Ski Team. I don’t blame her on that one. Wait a minute….my cousin is a physical therapist. She won’t steal my hard-earned man. So Leslie moves into Scott’s home to help him on the road to recovery.

The Plot Thickens

Look for a few nice surprises, like Pam Greer and Lloyd Wright as Queen Latifah’s supportive parents. Phylicia Rashad makes an appearance as Common’s no-nonsense mother, as well a full line up of NBA players like, Dwight Howard, Dwyane Wade and Rashard Lewis.

I won’t tell you how the rest of the story goes. I may have said too much already. I enjoyed Just Wright, especially Queen Latifah. I hope she finds more roles like this one.  And I was also pleasantly surprised by Common. This is my first time seeing him in a movie. He did a good job in Just Wright. There were some nice scene between the two of them, where you could see their characters connecting on a personal and intimate level. This is what I like about Just Wright and also Something New; the love affair happens slowly and softly, like a dance. They talk and laugh and tell each other their childhood stories, lifelong dreams and that is why they fall in love. Not because She is gorgeous or he is rich, but because they like each other. Then they fall in love. Call me a hopeless romantic, but when you fall in love with your best friend, it’s just wright!

]]> http://justchickflicks.com/2010/06/just-wright-a-chick-flick-that-gets-it-right/feed/ 5 http://justchickflicks.com/2010/06/winner-of-the-pride-prejudice-contest/ http://justchickflicks.com/2010/06/winner-of-the-pride-prejudice-contest/#comments Mon, 21 Jun 2010 22:57:14 +0000 Clarabela http://justchickflicks.com/?p=2221

Congratulations to Sarah Lamb  from Spring, Texas, the winner of  Pride and Prejudice give-away. The the Emmy Award winning miniseries on two digitally restored DVDs. stars Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as Lizzie. Thanks to everyone who commented about your favorite Jane Austen movies and novels. Its was a neck and neck race between Emma and Pride and Prejudice.

Stay tuned to Just Chick Flicks for more contests and giveaways.

Dinner & A Movie: the Perfect Date

What a great marketing idea!  This is made those  for guys who have no idea what movie to see on Valentine’s Day.  No…fellas, not The Wolfman. Director Garry Marshall’s new movie released just in time for (yes) Valentine’s Day features an all-star cast. Julia Roberts,  Anne Hathaway , Jessica Alba,  Jessica Biel,  Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Shirley Maclaine, Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace, Emma Roberts, Hector Elizondo,  Patrick Dempsey,  Jamie Foxx, Queen Latifah, Kathy Bates, Hector Elizondo, Taylor Lautner, George Lopez, and Taylor Swift. Wow! That is some line up.

The movie  follows the intertwining lives of these young beautiful people on Valentine’s Day. I will be … (sniffle…sniffle) alone this Valentine’s Day. But it doesn’t bother me…no really, it doesn’t. I like my alone time. I really do. Maybe, I will try to muster the courage to go  (alone) to see this movie this weekend.

Exclusive Tickets to see the stars of Valentine’s Day on Lopez Tonight are available! If you’ll be in the Los Angeles area this Monday and Tuesday, go to www.lopeztonight.com/audienceand type in the promo code for the taping you’d like to attend:

Monday, Feb. 8th, 12 pm showtime:

Jamie Foxx
Garry Marshall
Jennifer Garner
Hector Elizondo
Promo Code: jckmon

Tuesday, Feb. 9th, 2 pm showtime

Ashton Kutcher
Topher Grace
Emma Roberts
Carter Jenkins
Jewel
Promo Code: jcktues

LOPEZ TONIGHT is a new late night talk show shot at the world famous Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, CA. Be sure to watch LOPEZ TONIGHT, Monday through Thursday, at 11 pm, only on TBS.

If you are planning a quiet romantic evening at home with a bowl of ice cream and a snuggie, you might enjoy one of these  Romantic Movies with a Happy Ending.

Meet Tiana, Disney’s New Princess

The  classic fairy tale, The Frog Prince gets a modern-day retelling in Disney’s  The Princess and the Frog.  Set in Jazz Age New Orleans, The Princess & The Frog is kind of  a fractured  fairy tale.  But in this  tale the princess is not waiting for the prince to come and save her. Tiana  has her own dreams and is willing to work hard to achieve them for herself. Tiana’s works two jobs as a waitress in order to make enough money to open her own restaurant. Broadway star Anika Noni Rose (Dreamgirls) is the voice of Tiana, Disney’s first African-American princess.

The Handsome Prince Naveen

The fun-loving and carefree Prince Naveen  (Bruno Campos) is tricked into being turned into a frog by the  Shadow Man, Dr. Facilier.  Naveen hopes he will be human again after kissing a princess. Instead,  when Tiana kisses him, she is turned into a frog. They head down river together with the help of a trumpet-playing alligator named Louis and  a Cajun firefly with dental problems  named Ray to find Mama Odie, ‘the old blind lady who lives in a boat in a tree’ to break the spell.  Of course,  along the way they fall in love. But in the movies as in life its the journey that make it interesting.

With wonderful original music by Randy Newman and featuring the voices of Terrence Howard, Oprah Winfrey and  John Goodman, The Princess & The Frog is also Disney’s first hand drawn animated movie to come along in many years. The Princess and the Frog soundtrack is full of Dixieland Jazz and Zydeco music that really makes you feel like you are in New Orleans.

I was really  anxious to see this movie. A lot had been made of the fact that Tiana was Disney’s “first African-American Princess”. But when you look at it, most of the princesses in Disney movies are from European fairy tales. Besides, we don’t have royalty in American.  And I doubt that any of the little girls watching this movie will notice or care.

I went on  Sunday afternoon and  was surprised to see a group of about 30 little girls in the three rows behind me. Oh my… a Princess and the Frog birthday party!  Their parents were passing out super-sized  Slushees,  M & M cookies, candy and popcorn. The trailers had not even started when the seat kicking started. I could tell this was only going to get worse. There they were,  3o potential princesses  filled to the brim with sugar and the anticipation of a beautiful new princess, a handsome prince and a happily ever after. Their little legs were just twitching with excitement.  So I moved up a few rows.

It was a good vantage point to observe how these young ladies enjoyed the movie. They were ages 6-12 and not that it matters, but they were white. It didn’t seem to matter to them that Tiana was a different color. She was pretty, she sang and wore pretty dresses. When she turned into a frog, she had big frog eyes and long eyelashes. To them a princess is a princess.

What is Beauty?

Did you ever have one of those days when you felt ugly? Fat? Old? No matter what you look like or how much self-esteem you have, sometimes I think we all have those days (or weeks). Your hair is out of control…all your pants are too tight…there is a pimple the size of a Volkswagen on your forehead. Let’s just blame it all on HORMONES.

I am having one of  those days and I thought of a movie I watched on my flight from London last year-Penelope. It is a really cute movie that has some interesting things to say about beauty and how we can find it in ourselves.

Penelope [the pig-faced girl]

Penelope is a romantic fable that stars Christina Ricci as the title character.  Penelope Wilhern is the child of  wealthy socialites and is cursed by a spell that causes her to be born with the face of a pig. The spell can only be broken when she is truly loved “by one of her own kind”.

Her parents keeps her hidden in their estate and parades a succession of rich young men in front of Penelope (who is hidden behind a mirror) in an attempt to find her a husband that can  break the curse.  Even though they like Penelope for her  money, none of them can bear to look at her. But this doesn’t break Penelope’s spirit.  She is happy with her books and her gardening. What kind of curse is it that can only be broken by finding  husband?

Enter Peter Dinklage,  who plays an  sleazy tabloid reporter that wants a picture of the mysterious ‘pig-faced girl’. He bribes Max (played by the dreamy Scotsman James McAvoy) to pose as a prospective suitor. But the down-on-his luck gambler finds himself falling for Penelope, not for her looks, but for her personality. Because Max knows that he is unable to break the curse, her disappears instead of disappointing Penelope.

Her parents are devastated. So tired of letting them down, Penelope runs away  into a whole new world. She  goes to a pub that Max mentioned, drinks her first beer, rides on a Vespa and meets her very first friend,  the adventurous Annie. Annie is played by Reese Witherspoon, who also produced the movie.

I Like Myself  The Way I Am

With her face covered in her ’signature’ purple scarf, Penelope eventually becomes an overnight celebrity. Instead of running from people to hide her face she shows the world who she really is-the person inside and not the ‘pig-faced girl‘ they saw in the tabloids.

I don’t want to tell you the whole story, you can rent it for yourselves on Netflix. I guess my point is more about being happy with ourselves and not letting the world define us by their idea of what is beautiful.

Remember the media sensation, Susan Boyle? She became famous overnight, not so much for her amazing voice when she sang on Britain’s Got Talent. But more so because she didn’t look like the audience and the judges thought a person with talent should look.  Even though she has a voice like an angel, the first thing people wanted to do want give her a make over. OK. She did need to do something about those eyebrows, but the focus of the attention was more on how she looked and not her voice.

When it comes to Chick Flicks, sometimes I would like to see more women who get the guy, not because she is the prettiest choice, but because she is the best choice. I love the movie The Mirror Has Two Faces because Jeff Bridges eventually falls in love with Barbra Streisand for herself  (ok…and I LOVE Barbra…she’s like buttah), not for her looks.

Don’t get me wrong, I am all for looking good, taking pride in my appearance and all that. I love mani-pedis, hair products, fashion and make-up. But that’s not who I am. It  makes me wonder, what do people think when they see me? Are they judging me by how I look? OK…I am not 23 anymore and I seriously need to workout and lose 25 pounds. But that’s not who I am.  I am more that the sum of my parts. So maybe I should take a page out of Penelope’s book and not worry about what others think or even judge myself by the pages of fashion magazines and just like myself the way I am.

I really want to hear from you.What are you thoughts?