The Lake House (Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves)

(Amazon UK link)

When I’m in the UK, I love perusing charity shops, and nearly always find at least one or two DVDs which I haven’t seen, and which look interesting. One of them on a recent visit was ‘The Lake House’, a film we hadn’t even heard of although it was made in 2006. Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves star, and the storyline sounded rather unusual…

We watched it last night, and, on the whole, liked it very much. It was a bit confusing at first, with short scenes and quite a few different characters, but gradually it started falling into place. Perhaps this initial confusion was meant to recollect how the two main protagonists feel at first until they figure out what’s going on.

Sandra Bullock is excellent as Kate, a young doctor who’s extremely busy after just taking on a post at a large hospital. Keanu Reeves is also extremely good as Alex, a young architect who is in the process of moving into a rather run-down ‘lake house’ - a building overlooking a lake. When he looks in the mailbox, he finds a note from the previous owner, asking him to forward her mail to her new apartment. But he knows that the house has been empty for a while…

He replies, leaving a note in the mailbox and a correspondence begins; I don’t think it’s a spoiler to say that the two quickly realise that they are somehow living in two separate time-frames, with the mailbox behaving like a kind of portal. This foray into science fiction (or fantasy, perhaps) is never explained, and the two seem rather unfazed by it, although they would really l like to meet. They try all kinds of things - Kate telling Alex about things that happened in her past (he is apparently living two years earlier than she is) and he finding the Kate of two years earlier in his timeframe.

This means that Kate’s character appears in both 2004 and 2006, but it’s easy to distinguish which is which by her hairstyle. She wears her hair long and flowing in 2004, but has it short in 2006 when she’s working as a doctor. Even so I found myself puzzled at times about how something was happening; there are so many potential plot holes in a time-warp story that one simply has to accept that this is how it’s written. And that yes, one person can affect the past, even though it’s already happened…

I had guessed fairly early on what had happened to Alex, meaning that he didn’t follow up on planned phone calls or meetings in Kate’s timeframe, but it wasn’t explained until near the end, which is tense, and ultimately satisfying, albeit a tad unrealistic (even given the nature of the film).

Christopher Plummer is a wonderfully irritable and self-centered father who doesn’t want anything much to do with Alex, or his brother Henry (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). There are other minor characters - Kate’s boyfriend and Alex’s girlfriend, for instance, and Kate’s mother - who flesh out the storyline. Jack, a dog who seems to exist in both timelines and wants to live in the Lake House is a delightful addition to the film, although it’s not entirely clear whether the dog is male or female.

Reality has to be suspended while watching this film, and I suspect that future viewings may not make the timeframes any clearer, but overall we liked ‘The Lake House’ very much indeed, probably due to the excellence of the acting and helped by the attractive locations.

The rating on our DVD is 12, but apparently it’s PG in both the US and UK, so I’m not sure where the 12 comes from. There’s some strong language but it’s not excessive, and a nasty accident, but not too much gore is shown. Refreshingly, I don’t recall any incidents that were sexual in nature, nor any nudity.  However it’s not the kind of film likely to appeal to children anyway, given the nature of the story.

Recommended, if you don’t mind a bit of fantasy thrown into a romantic film.

Review copyright 2023 Sue's DVD Reviews

Must Love Dogs (Diane Lane)

(Amazon UK link)

We wanted something light and undemanding to watch, so we decided to see ‘Must Love Dogs’. We saw it ten years ago, but had entirely forgotten the storyline. We’re not dog-lovers ourselves but storylines involving dogs are usually good value, often with some canine humour thrown in.

Dogs don’t, in fact, feature all that highly. It’s the story of two people who are single and really don’t have any wish to start dating again. Sarah (Diane Lane) is a preschool teacher of around 40 who has been recently divorced. She’s quite close to her siblings, who are determined to match her up with someone. But their attempts, although mildly amusing, are not at all successful.

Meanwhile Jake (John Cusack) is also recently divorced, but has little interest in starting a new relationship. He loves building boats from scratch, but his best friend tries to match-make and he goes along with it, although without a great deal of enthusiasm.

One of Sarah’s siblings signs her up for a dating website, giving her an exaggerated description, including the fact that a potential ‘match’ must love dogs. Not that Sarah owns a dog herself, but she’s looking after her brother’s. This is how she comes to meet Jake, in a park, with a borrowed dog.

The two do not hit it off, and there’s a side story where Sarah is really quite attracted by the father of one of her young students. He’s clearly keen on her but she’s concerned about the ethics of dating a parent of one of the children in her care, even though it’s a child she finds quite appealing. So for a while it’s not certain which way the story is going to go - neither of us could remember.

I suppose it’s not a particularly memorable film, but it has some good lines, and more humour than some ‘rom-com’ movies. An added bonus is Christopher Plummer as Sarah’s father, who’s quite elderly but also rather a womaniser. It’s probably due to this that the film is rated 12; we didn’t notice any violence or bad language, but there are many references to sexual actvities (though nothing explicit).

It made a good light evening’s viewing, and no doubt we’ll watch it again in another decade or so, when, once again, we will have completely forgotten the story.

Review copyright 2022 Sue's DVD Reviews

The Man Who Invented Christmas (Dan Stewart)

(Amazon UK link)

I’m not entirely sure how the film ‘The Man who Invented Christmas’ arrived on my wishlist. Perhaps Amazon had recommended it to me based on other films I had rated well. Or perhaps someone else had suggested. In any case, I was pleased to receive it as a Christmas gift. It seemed like the ideal film to watch towards the end of the Christmas period.

This film is a fictionalised story set in the mid 1840s, based around the writing of Charles Dickens’ classic novel ‘A Christmas Carol’. Dan Stevens is superb as the author, who would have been around thirty at the time. I had only seen pictures of Dickens as a much older man, so it took a moment’s readjustment of my mental images. But I quickly realised that it was probably a very realistic setting.

I didn’t know much about Dickens’ life, other than that he had a happy childhood until his father was thrown into a debtors’ prison, and Charles had to go and work in a factory, giving up his education. It didn’t stop him reading and working as a journalist, and eventually a novelist. But I had no idea about his family life - he was married with several children - nor that for a while he was in debt, and in doubt as to whether he could keep going.

I assume that most of the story involving the writing of his famous Christmas book was in the imagination of the script-writers, but it all feels quite realistic. Charles feels rather worthless after a successful American tour, and unable to write, all the more so as his publishers pressurise him and his debts mount. He’s an angry person who has not forgiven his father for his childhood traumas. He is also very angry about the way that the poor are treated. This comes across in several of his novels. Charles Dickens was responsible for raising public awareness about some of the horrors of poverty and the workhouse.

But the film is mainly about the slow progress made on the novel ‘A Christmas Carol’, along with several flashbacks. As the character of Scrooge (brilliantly played by Christopher Plummer) develops, so some of Charles’ hangups also reveal themselves. It’s cleverly done. The story of the novel is so well-known that of course we knew what would be coming, but the way the plot emerged, rather slowly, feels entirely believable.

Morfydd Clark deserves a mention as Charles’ long-suffering wife Kate. He is a man of many moods, and she looks after her household, uncertain when he’s going to fly into a temper, patient about his many quirks. There are several children, and Charles is clearly fond of them; at times he seems to be a excellent father, at others he almost entirely ignores them and his wife.

There’s plenty of low-key humour in the book, including times when Charles hears a new name, or watches a type of person whom we know is eventually going to be put in one of his future books. Dan Stevens has some very expressive looks, too, that say almost as much as some of the dialogue. And there’s plenty to think about too - we see glimpses of cruelty, and poverty, and the hopelessness of those without family or work. But they’re not over-done; there’s nothing gratuitous.

The film title, of course, is hyperbole since Christmas relates to the birth of Christ 1840 or so years earlier, and also the ancient legends of St Nicholas. But apparently the popularity of his book changed ideas about celebrating Christmas in the minds of the general public, in particular encouraging them to help those less fortunate than themselves.

The PG rating reflects the lack of bad language, nudity, violence and so on. But I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone unfamiliar with ‘A Christmas Carol’, nor to a sensitive child who might be upset at the flashbacks to Charles’ later childhood.

Other than that, I would highly recommend this film, which absorbed us fully and gave an excellent insight into Dickens’ circumstances as a young man, as well as some more imaginative fantasy scenes involving dreams and visions.

Review copyright 2020 Sue's DVD Reviews

Elsa & Fred (Christopher Plummer, Shirley MacLaine)

(Amazon UK link)

I didn’t really know what to expect of this film, but it has an all-star cast, and Amazon recommended it to me as a gentle light romance. So it went on my wish-list and I was given it for Christmas. I realised that it was about an elderly couple, as the main title roles are played by Christopher Plummer and Shirley MacLaine. But I think it’s a positive move that films are being made about those in middle age as well as those beyond it.

The story starts as we meet Fred’s rather bossy daughter, who is helping him to move into a small apartment. He was widowed some months before the story opens, but although he’s not really grieving, he’s a bit lonely, and quite a hypochondriac. His daughter arranges for someone to cook, clean and provide company for him, but he’s cantankerous and prefers to spend his days in bed…

Then his neighbour Elsa comes into his life. She’s lively and imaginative, although we quickly realise that she has a habit of embellishing the truth, or even making up stories entirely to suit her purposes. She’s a dreamer, but she and Fred soon become friends…

It would be hard to say more without spoilers. It’s not a fast-moving plot, nor is it particularly original. But it’s nicely done with touches of humour here and there, and I found it mostly very engaging. I can’t say I particularly liked Shirley MacLaine’s character; I felt it would have been better played by one of the other well-known actresses in their early 80s, but on the whole the pairing works, and it’s a nice back-to-front touch that their younger offspring were the ones worrying about them, telling them what they should and shouldn’t do, and generally disapproving.

Since I associate Christopher Plummer primarily with ‘The Sound of Music’, I found myself expecting him to break into ‘Edelweiss’ when he picked up a guitar… and there was a bit of cognitive dissonance when Scott Bakula appeared as Elsa’s reliable accountant son; I’ve only known him as the star of the lengthy ‘Quantum Leap’ series. But he was believable, as was his artist brother, whereas I had a hard time believing in Fred’s controlling and unpleasant daughter and son-in-law.

Rated 12, which I suppose is about right; I did notice one instance of ‘strong’ language, and perhaps a couple of minor words, and there are several implied bedroom scenes, although nothing at all explicit. I’m a little surprised it’s not PG from the legal point of view, but the storyline would be of no interest to a child, or even a teenager; indeed, I wouldn’t really recommend it to anyone under the age of about forty.

The ending is bittersweet, as was inevitable almost from the start, but nicely done. Overall it made a pleasant evening’s viewing even if there wasn’t much that was memorable or thought-provoking.

Review copyright 2016 Sue's DVD Reviews

Danielle Steel's 'Secrets' (Christopher Plummer, Linda Purl, Gary Collins)

(Amazon UK link)

Danielle Steel is a very popular novelist, although I was not particularly impressed with either of the books I have read by her, so far. I don't suppose it would ever have occurred to me to get hold of a DVD of an adaptation of one of her books. But we were given this - a freebie from a weekend newspaper in the UK - by a relative. It has sat on our shelves for quite some time, but last night we finally sat down to watch it.

'Secrets' is set in Hollywood. It's the story of a group of people who get together to make the pilot series of a new TV show called 'Manhattan'. The director, and really the star of the whole film, is called Mel. He is nicely played by Christopher Plummer in a role that seemed to suit him well.

The cast he gets together are a somewhat caricatured and unlikely mix. There's Sabina (Stephanie Beacham) who really doesn't like TV, but very much likes Mel. Yet she keeps popping off to San Francisco for some purpose which is not revealed until the end. There's Jane (Linda Purl) who is in a horribly abusive marriage. There's Zack (Gary Collins), a likeable guy who becomes quite protective of Jane, yet evidently has a worrying secret of his own. There's Gaby, apparently a diva, who turns out to be rather wealthy, and Bill (Ben Browder) whose wife is a druggie.

Somehow all these confused and hurting people manage to create a show that is a terrific hit. The movie shows the filming interspersed with scenes from their increasingly unpleasant private lives. The film was well done in a 1990s kind of way (I had thought it earlier than that). But the story itself is artificial, with exaggerated traits in all the cast, and a tidy, predictable outcome. There seem to be rather a lot of bedroom scenes, too. They're fairly subtly done with no nudity as such, but by the end had become somewhat tediously repetitive.

It isn't a bad film, if a bit depressing in places. I thought Christopher Plummer held it all together very well, and the ending is at least positive, if unlikely. But the story feels too plastic to be interesting. Perhaps it somewhat reflects life in Hollywood, but the characters do not seem believable in the ways they behave. I was not at all inspired to get hold of the book.

Oh, and there was a very odd start and end to the film, featuring Danielle Steel herself thanking the viewers for watching. I expect she's a very nice person, but these parts are cringeworthy, and very off-putting. Perhaps they were put on the DVD for the freebie version.

Review copyright Sue's DVD Reviews

Must Love Dogs (Diane Lane, John Cusack, Dermot Mulroney)

(Amazon UK link)

I'm not quite sure why 'Must Love Dogs' appeared on my wishlist; probably Amazon recommended it to me, based on other films I had rated and enjoyed. The reviews sounded reasonably positive, and it's in the light-hearted romantic genre, so I was pleased to receive it as a gift for Christmas.

So, with a free evening last night, we sat down to watch this with a guest. We expected something fluffy that would not require much thought, and, indeed, that's what we got.

The plot is about Sarah (Diane Lane) who is recently divorced. She works as a pre-school teacher, and is happy enough. However, she's part of quite a big extended family, who think she must be desperate for romance, so try to set her up with other men. Her family includes a womanising father (played by an aging Christopher Plummer) and a busybody sister Carol (Elizabeth Perkins) who sets Sarah up on a matchmaking website.

Of course, not all the guys who get in touch with Sarah are suitable... we see cameos of various dates with caricatured bores, geeks and even one who bursts into tears every couple of minutes. Sarah really isn't interested in another guy; she prefers to hang out with some safe gay friends who reassure and comfort her.

However, there are two rather nice men Sarah comes across who do appeal – the ‘incorrigible’ Bob, father of one of her students, and Jake, a perfectionist boat-builder who doesn’t seem able to make a sale. It's not immediately obvious which one she was going to end up with, although it soon became clear.

There were a few dogs thrown into the mixture, some lines that made us smile, and a happy, if predictable ending. All in all, 'Must love dogs' was a pleasant evening’s viewing.

Rated 12 in the UK, PG-13 in the US, probably due to repeated references to sex. However, there is nothing explicit in the film, no nudity, no violence, and - unusually - we didn't notice any bad language.

Review copyright Sue's DVD Reviews