(M) Becoming Jane. (Julian Jarrold, 2007) Grade: B

Thoughts: I remember reading that Anne Hathaway would be playing the beloved Jane Austen and thinking it could not work. Well aside from a bad accent, Anne’s performance was strong. The semi biographical film takes a look at Jane Austen, before she became a writer, and her romance with Tom Lefroy (James McAvoy), a young Irish lawyer. Not much is actually known about the “romance” between Jane and Tom but the film took some liberties in filling in the blank. Overall, it was a well-done period piece that could have took a bit more time on character development and less on scenery. Interestingly enough, the title of the film was quite appropriate because it was more a look at how Jane became one of the greatest female writers of our times.

(M) The Simpsons Movie. (David Silverman, 2007) Grade: B+

Thoughts: After 18 years of the Simpsons on television, we finally get a movie. I love the Simpsons; always have and always will. There have been times/seasons when the show stopped making sense but compared to other shows on air, the Simpons are still the cleverest and witty. With that said the movie was one very long Simpsons episode for non-Simpsons fans. Many of the characters normal behavior was played up and some parts were just random but hey it is a Simpsons movie and I’m fine with that. Sequel anyone?

(M) Starter for 10. (Tom Vaughan, 2006) Grade: C+

Thoughts: Set in 1985, working class student Brian Jackson (James McAvoy) is trying to get through his first year at Bristol University. He joins a school trivia team called University Challenge where he meets Alice Harbinson (Alice Eve), the girl he thinks is perfect for him. The whole movie was a huge cliché like Pigern had mention in her review but the Cure, New Order and various 80’s songs throughout the movie was enjoyable. Oh and James McAvoy did a nice job.

Movie Count: 68