Miss Potter

V: We checked this out in the library only to find that my parents own, and love, this movie. Rene Zellweger is an actress who I always think I don't want to see, only to find that she always does a really good job. This is a fun movie based on the life of Beatrix Potter. Who, come to find out, is owed a huge debt of gratitude from those who like some land preserved and not turned into heavy residential or industrial sludge. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Sweet story. The only thing I didn't really love was the way Miss Potter spoke to her "friends", that is, her illustrations. It was more childish than charming for me. I understand the imagination bit, the whimsy, and the loneliness. Maybe I'm a humbug - but Miss Potter seemed to think they were a little too real. It made her look crazy, OK? BUT - that aside, I really liked this movie. 3 1/2 stars.

M: *SPOILER ALERT* I agree with V that, in the beginning of this movie, the use of cartoons is distracting and annoying and probably filled with artistic license (unless Beatrix Potter was schizophrenic). Having said that, the sweetness of the Ms. Potter character, as well as the character played by Ewan McGregor, won me over in the end. My hat's off to McGregor and Zellweger. It was fun to read about Ms. Potter on Wikipedia afterwards and learn that she is the person responsible for the preservation of the lakes district in Lancashire, England. It was weird to learn that she was married, and the love of her life was not the man portrayed as such in the movie. The movie really gives the impression that she didn't marry (it is called Miss Potter - oops spoiler). Anyway, good show, worth seeing, just get past the weird animation bits. 3 stars

Amazing Grace

M: A touching story about one man's continuing fight for the abolition of the slave trade in England. An interesting story, and I learned a lot. I enjoyed getting a peek at the inner workings of the Parliament of the time, and I imagine that much of the dialogue comes directly from actual argument made and recorded during the slavery debates. I did, however, feel that the movie was a bit over-the-top. I know it is an emotional subject, but at times the movie laid it on a bit thick for me. Aside from a tendency toward the overly dramatic, which can be forgiven given the subject matter, I think it is a movie worth seeing. 3 stars.

V: We watched this over a two-day period. It's not that long, just was hard to find the time. (You always like a movie better when you watch it all at once.) I still really liked it. It's worth your time, if only to hear (watch) the story. Some people are called to do things they themselves don't think they can or want to do. But they've been given a gift and if they accept their call, they can do great things. You should see this movie. It's well done, good story, very clean. And that guy sure looks like Alan Rickman (aka Snape)! But it's not him. 3 1/2 stars.