Romance
Romance movie reviews
New Year’s Eve Review
New Year’s Eve follows the intertwining story lines of several characters over the course of one day…New Year’s Eve. Throughout the movie viewers are introduced to a number a different characters, all played by famous actors, and their various New Year’s Day circumstances. The film highlights the positive aspects of the new year; with hope, love and forgiveness as its central theme. Whether you’re on a date or out with friends, this is a fun, light hearted movie, with wonderful messages to start the new year out right!
Rating: 4 out of 5 buckets
Release Date: May 1, 2012
MPAA Rating: PG13
Best Age Group: 12 and up
Sexual Content: Mild
Violent Content: Mild
Crude or Profane Language: Moderate
Drugs and Alcohol Content: Mild
Talking Points:
I loved the different story lines and relationships in the film. From the terminally ill elderly man, who wanted to see the ball drop with his daughter, to the teenage girl who hoped to get a New Year’s kiss at Times Square; all the stories were filled with hope and anticipation for upcoming year.
New Year’s Eve is very similar to last year’s holiday-themed film, Valentine’s Day, with Garry Marshall directing both films. However, this movie is a lot cleaner, and much more appropriate.
There is an all-star cast, to name a few; Hilary Swank, Robert DeNiro, Halle Berry, Michelle Pfeiffer, Zac Efron, and Jon Bon Jovi.
Sexual Content: Mild
There are some some mild sexual references:
- Immediately following a wedding, the newlyweds say their casual sex days are over.
- Two women flirt with a guy at a party. One says she wants to be the women from behind him, while the other says she wants to be the women in front.
- A character comments on her “years of make-up sex,” with her boyfriend.
Women wear tight dresses with cleavage.
Many characters kiss, of course on New Year’s Eve.
Violent Content: Mild
- One character is nearly hit by a car, while another character drives off the road and damages his car.
Crude or Profane Language: Moderate
The a-word, h-word and b-word are each used several times.
Drug and Alcohol Content: Mild
Characters are shown drinking at parties and bars.
I brought three girlfriends to this film; it was a great way to spend the afternoon. As I previously mentioned the movie has some wonderful themes of hope, love and forgiveness which were portrayed throughout the film. New Year’s Eve is a PG13 movie that parents can feel comfortable sending their pre-teens and teenagers to this holiday season.
Twilight Saga: New Moon Review
“New Moon” is based on the best-selling books by Stephanie Meyer. The love story continues between mortal Bella Swan and the handsome, mysterious vampire Edward Cullen. However, in this second movie of the Twilight series Edward realizes that Bella will never be safe as long as he’s around, so following Bella’s 18th birthday party Edward makes the difficult decision to leave his true love. After his abrupt departure Bella is in a deep depression, but is comforted by her family friend Jacob. She then develops a very strong friendship with Jacob and becomes once again drawn into danger, but this time, not only with vampires, but also werewolves. Now the love triangle begins, there is more danger and suspense for Bella and her family.
Rating: Five out of five buckets
Release Date: March 20, 2010
MPAA Rating: PG13
Best Age Group: 11+
Sexual Content: Mild
Violent Content: Moderate
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
Drugs and Alcohol Content: Mild
Talking Points:
This is a story about losing a loved one, which most people go through at some point in life. No matter if it’s loss from a terrible break up, loss of grandparent or even a family pet, most young teenagers will be able to identify with Bella’s sadness. This movie may trigger some good discussions on how to deal with hardships in life, something that Bella had a hard time with.
On the MTV website they listed five reasons why the Twilight sequel is an improvement to the original movie, and I agree with what they said. The five reasons are:
1) The Acting is Better.
2) It Looks Great- This movie is more believable because of the bigger budget.
3) It sets up “Eclipse” perfectly, it leaves you wanting more.
4) The New Characters Rock-Dakota Fanning is a great job of playing an evil character.
5) The Line has been Walked- The fan base will be pleased, thanks to the new director.
The soundtrack is amazing.
Younger kids may find it a little disturbing when Bella screams at night, while having nightmares.
Sexual Content: Mild
- As in the first movie, at night Edward sneaks into Bella’s bedroom. Jacob does too in this movie. Another topic that parents could discuss with their teenage daughters.
- Bella and Edward kiss passionately.
Violent Content: Moderate
- There were some violent scenes especially when Edward and the Volturi(another group of vampires) were fighting.
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
- The h-word is used several times and the d-word. “Fricken is used referring to the f-word.
Drugs and Alcohol Content:
- Bella’s dad drinks beer.
Fun Facts:
Taylor Lautner(Jacob) is from Grand Rapids. He lived in Hudsonville until 2003 then his family moved to LA to pursue his acting career. He is also a U of M fan, and tries to be a Detroit Lion’s fan.
Launter was almost dropped from the “New Moon” cast because the new director didn’t think he could fill out Jacob’s superhuman dimensions. Lautner locked himself in the gym until he fit the part.
Ever since the book was published in 2006, fans have been declaring themselves members of either Team Edward or Team Jacob. Lautner(Jacob) says, “We all get along great, and we’re in this together.” Robert Pattinson(Edward) said, “this is Lautner’s movie.”
After the movie I interviewed people in the audience. When I asked people’s opinions of the movie the comments were, “excellent, very very good, loved it, it was awesome.” That says it all, I’m giving it 5 buckets, appropriate for girls(and their moms) ages 11 and up.
Monte Carlo Review
I’m sure most teenagers would love to go to Monte Carlo and be treated like royalty. Well, that’s what happened to Grace, (Selena Gomez) a down to earth girl who just graduated from high school. She planned an ordinary trip to Paris for the summer, with her best friend Emma (Katie Cassidy). Things started out a little rough as Grace found out that her tightly wound step-sister Megan (Leighton Meester) is their chaperone. However things dramatically change once they’re in Paris. Grace is mistaken for a British heiress; so the girls lose their tour guide, and the next thing they know, they’re on a private jet to Monte Carlo, where they encounter a lot of adventure and romance.
Rating: Four out of five buckets
Release Date: October 18, 2011
MPAA Rating: PG
Best Age Group: 9+
Sexual Content: Mild, kissing and flirting
Violent Content: Mild
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
Drug and Alcohol Content: Mild
See the trailer of the movie here!
Talking Points:
This is a cute entertaining movie, one that girls will especially enjoy. Even though Grace (Selena Gomez) and her friends get caught up in their “fake, pretentious life” (as Grace pretends to be Corelia, the British heiress); they ultimately realize that all the material things and glitz and glamour won’t make a person happy. They also realize that the simple things in life aren’t all bad.
Grace wants to raise money for a charity event that helps children in Romania. This could be a great parent/child conversation on the car ride home.
Sexual Content: Mild
- Lots of kissing.
- The girls wear skimpy bikinis and revealing outfits.
Violent Content: Mild
- The girls tie Cordelia (the British heiress) up in her room with an apple stuffed in her mouth; so she’ll keep quiet.
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
- The “a-word” is used, other than that words such as “crap” and “heck” are used.
Drug and Alcohol Content: Mild
- Characters are shown drinking wine and champagne.
This movie is great for it’s target audience, tween girls! It’s not a deep, inspirational movie, but does have an important message for these young girls. It’s not about what you wear, or how much money you have, it’s about being a good person, and doing the right thing! In my mind, that’s not a bad thing for tween girls to see.
The Lucky One Review
Zac Efron as a U.S Marine…it’s gotta be good! Logan (Zac Efron) is determined to find his guardian angel, an unknown woman who saved his life. While in Afghanistan, Logan found a photo on the ground, and walked over to pick it up. Suddenly there was an explosion in the spot where he was initially standing. Logan was convinced that if he wouldn’t have found the photo, his life would be over. With the message “keep safe,” written on the back of the picture, Logan found that to be true, as he made it home alive and well. However, he wasn’t going home to relax, he was going home to find the women in the photo, and thank his lucky charm. Based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, The Lucky One is a wonderful love story, with some romantic love scenes that parents need to be aware of.
Rating: 3 1/2 out of 5 buckets.
Release Date: April 20,2012
MPAA Rating: PG13
Best Age Group: 13+
Sexual Content: Excessive
Violent Content: Moderate
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
Drugs and Alcohol Content: Mild
See a clip of my review, along with reviews for Bully and Touchback!
Talking Points:
The acting was fantastic; with Zac Efron as Logan, Taylor Schilling as Beth (the woman in the photo), and Blythe Danner as Beth’s Grandma!
Dog lovers will really enjoy this film, as Beth, (the woman in the photo), owns a dog kennel. There were many fun dog scenes.
There were some mature relationship issues in this film. Beth is a single mom, and her ex-husband is a jealous cruel man, who caused many intense conflicts in the film. However, Beth has a wonderful relationship with her 7 year old son, and her grandma (Blythe Danner) with whom she lives with. We eventually learned that Beth’s parents died in a car accident, and her brother died in the war.
A movie with Zac Efron, will attract many pre-teen girls to the film. Parents may feel uncomfortable with the intense romantic love scenes.
Sexual Content: Excessive
- There was a very sensual scene with Logan and Beth (the two main characters) in the shower, which led them to the bedroom. We saw sexual movements while they were in the bed.
- There were many steamy embraces and passionate kisses throughout the film.
Violent Content: Moderate
- We saw several war scenes, with explosions and gunfire.
- When Logan returned back home, he was very nervous and jumpy. When his nephew woke him up, Logan jumped and viciously grabbed him by the throat.
- One character was very cruel and abusive. When drunk, he pulled a gun on Logan.
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
- We hear “h–,” many times, and “a–,” and d–n,” a couple times.
Drug and Alcohol Content: Mild
- Characters are shown drinking beer.
- One character is shown drunk at a bar.
Once again another romantic Nicholas Sparks movie, with a handsome leading actor, and a good storyline. As I previously mentioned, I know that many pre-teen and teenage girls will want to see this film. However, parents need to be aware of the passionate scenes in the film. Depending on the child, I recommend this movie for kids ages 13 and up.
Letters to Juliet Review
“Letters to Juliet” is a love story set in the romantic city of Verona, Italy, setting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. When Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), a young American writer goes to Italy, she joins a group of volunteers who respond to letters written to Juliet, seeking advice about love. Sophie answers a letter dated in 1951, her response inspires the elderly women who originally wrote the letter, to travel to Italy and search for her long lost love. During their search, they come across a series of events that change lives forever.
Rating: Three out of five buckets
Release Date: September 14, 2010
MPAA Rating: PG
Best Age Group: 12+
Sexual Content: Mild
Violent Content: None
Crude or Profane Language: Mild
Drugs and Alcohol Content: Mild
Talking Points:
This was a refreshing, old fashioned love story appropriate for women ages 13 to 100. I saw this movie with my mom, daughter, niece and sister-in-law. As my niece said, “What a great movie for all three generations to see together.” I couldn’t agree more.
I saw the movie a couple hours after I saw “Robin Hood,” so I was in the mood for a lighthearted, entertaining movie, however, the group of women I went with, thought that the movie was okay, but a little slow and boring. My 13 year old daughter was really bored, I dragged my 10 year old son to it, he was bored, and very fidgety.
“Letters to Juliet” is fiction, but I read in a review that for the last century, people have written letters to Juliet, and volunteers answer them. There’s also a website, which people write to. These letters, both in the movie and in real life, all involve love life problems or dilemmas, which hopefully will be solved.
I really liked the characters in the movie. Vanessa Redgrave played the elderly women looking for true love, she was so sweet and caring. Her grandson Charile (Christopher Egan), was very handsome and funny as well. Amanda Seyfried’s character was a very sweet and innocent girl in her early twenties.
Like a lot romantic comedies this was a very predictable, slightly cheesy movie, I found it a little slow in parts, but entertaining.
The scenery in Verona, Italy was absolutely beautiful!
I interviewed some 14 and 15 year old girls that really liked it. This movie is rated PG, and appropriate for any age. However, I think that younger kids will get bored, but teenage girls, who like a good love story, will most likely enjoy it. I give it three out of five buckets.