Date night comes but once a week. What better way to reconnect than cozying up with a good flick and a pile of takeout?
Love in the Time of Cholera (New Line, 2008)
Dave: So this is the story of a fella who's rejected by a girl he's never talked to, and sets about sleeping with over 600 women in order to forget her? You'd think I'd have liked that.
Lisa: It's based on a novel by Gabriel Garcia Màrquez. It's a beautiful narrative about the power of love. I'm sorry there wasn't as much of the promised nudity as you would have liked.
Dave: As far as movies featuring the "power of love" go, the only one I want to watch is Back to the Future. A little Huey Lewis on the soundtrack is not a bad thing. This one has Shakira. Boring.
The Golden Compass (New Line, 2008)
Lisa: Lyra lives in a parallel universe and travels to the North to rescue some children from a creepy organization. It's a kid's movie, though the book was a bit heavier on the anti-religion aspect. I liked seeing the polar bear character in "real life."
Dave: Family/adventure movies may be my favourite genre for a Friday night. They always appeal to both of us: good stories, a little action. Most of all, there's little thinking involved - just a nice escape.
Lisa: Agreed. They rarely provoke any kind of argument about symbolism or allegories.
Bitchslap: Catfighting She-babes (Jef Films, 2008)
Dave: The tagline is "Action. Slap. Cut." The jacket promises that the vintage fight footage of these femme fatales will maul and brawl their way into your heart.
Lisa: I'm not watching this.
Dave: But it's "gorgeous grappling gladiator girls going ga-ga!"
Lisa: Maybe it's something you could watch alone. And not tell me about it.
Juno (Fox, 2008)
Lisa: I really liked this story about a way-cooler-than-real-teens teenager who gets knocked up. Funny that it made us both think of high school (not the knocked up part!). This is a good genre because it usually contains a lot of pop culture references that we can talk about afterward.
Dave: Loved it.
Lisa: I loved that you cried at the end. (I don't mean that in a mocking way.) I'm assuming it's because the super-cute couple played one of "our" songs at the end, and not because you were sad about the characters' situation?
Dave: Actually, I think one of the best aspects was the relationship between Juno and her dad (Law & Order's J.K. Simmons). It's pretty rare to see such a positive and supportive father figure in a movie like this. I hereby approve this rom-com as certifiably guy-friendly.
No Country for Old Men (Miramax, 2008)
Dave: I must say, the directors (Joel and Ethan Coen) deserved their Oscars [Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay and Best Directors]for this flick in which a hunter stumbles on some dead bodies and a suitcase filled with $2 million near the Rio Grande. They turned Javier Bardem [who won Best Supporting Actor] into one of the most haunting movie bogeymen of all time.
Lisa: I was terrified beyond belief, and angry that you made me watch it, but I did like it. I guess this is a good date movie, because you can use the "I'm scared" excuse to cuddle.
