Just Go With It - 2011 ***

Moderately funny, but nothing to get too worked up about, this movie features Adam Sandler in the role he loves best, that of a quirky, not very funny, hard done-by bloke. After a misunderstanding, Sandler meets a woman he believes is meant for him. The thing is, he has always worn his wedding ring (despite the marriage ending when he was a teen) so that women will not want commitment from him. He therefore has to convince his new girlfriend that he is getting divorced from his wife and she believes him. This is so that she doesn't  The only thing is that he doesn't have a wife, only a good friend (Aniston). After a lot of begging, he persuades her to play along as his soon-to-be-divorced spouse, as well as her two children.
Of course there are some funny moments, but the standout performances have to be from Aniston's two children, one of whom spends the whole movie speaking in an awful cockney accent in preparation for going to drama school. Sandler gets annoying after a while.

Last Chance Harvey - 2008 ****

I was surprised by this movie. Warm and easy going, it was just the sort of thing you want to watch on a cold and cosy evening. Dustin Hoffman plays a wannabe jazz musician named Harvey and a bit of a useless father, to the extent that his daughter (who is about to get married) makes sure he stays at a separate hotel to all the other gusts and is put on the end of the dinner table. The icing on the cake however, is when she chooses her stepfather over him to give her away at the wedding.
Whilst in London for the celebrations, Harvey meets gentle and good-natured Kate, who refuses to find love, and spends her life on the phone to her neurotic mother who is convinced her Polish neighbour is going to murder her.
The pair, somewhat stubbornly, hit it off, and begin to spend a lot of time together despite their obvious differences.
Emma Thompson is wonderful as always and Dustin Hoffman is not bad at all.

Same Time, Next Year - 1978 ****

Surprisingly witty, tender and actually a very amusing plot, 'Same Time, Next Year' manages to glorify infidelity in a way that can't make you angry with the 2 leading stars.
Burstyn and Alda meet by chance after each having a meal alone in a lovely inn, and decide to spend the night together in Alda's holiday home. The next morning, although superficially full of regret, they both decide that they must see each other again, but not in such a regular way as a normal affair. Their rendezvous will take place at the same place and the same date each year (when Alda is away from his family in his holiday home working) and will last for one weekend only.
The basic premise of the film takes us through year after year after decade, as the couple become older, wiser, yet still totally devoted to each other. Their weekends are spent talking about their feelings, and the good and bad in their wives and husbands. It's bizarre, because you come away from the film, almost believing that they aren't doing anything wrong, when in reality they are having an affair which spans 25 years, however little time they actually spend together.
I enjoyed it, found it funny, and wasn't offended by it's carefree view of cheating (although I am usually the first to diss films where this takes place). I thought Burstyn and Alda made a terrific couple, more so because they are both so different and unlike each other.

Did you Hear About the Morgans? - 2009 ***

I was surprised by this film. Mainly because both the leads are annoying beyond belief normally and their acting leaves far too much to be desired. This wasn't a clever or intelligent film, but it was light, quite amusing and had a nice ending. The Morgans are separated, with both  trying to move on with their lives because of Hugh Grant's infidelity. The one time they decide to meet up for dinner to talk, they witness a murder, and are bundled into the Witness Protection Programme, meaning that they can have no contact with any family, friends or work colleagues. They are taken to a little town hundreds of miles away to stay with the sheriff and his wife in an attempt to ingratiate them into society there. It starts off quite a difficult task for 2 New York obsessives who are normally on the go constantly, but they do end up liking their new surroundings. The only thing is, can they get past their difficult feelings for each other?
I'll give Hugh Grant his dues, as he's pretty funny here,and maybe I will one day be able to say how excellent S-J P is as well...

Because I Said So - 2007 ***

This was a nice rom-com, although Mandy Moore is far too sickly sweet for me. Diane Keaton is always good in everything I have ever seen her in and I thought she looked surprisingly good for her age. She plays an overprotective mother who decides to kick-start her daughter Milly into a good, compatible relationship (for once) by placing an add online. She interviews a number of suitors before deciding on one whom she feels is fit for Milly and then sits back and watches the results. The problem is, very rarely do these things work out for the best, especially if you have an interfering parent in the background who won't let you go when push comes to shove.
One to watch, light, frothy and not taking itself too seriously.

Prime - 2005 ****

This film was good actually, mainly because it didn't follow the typical 'chick flick' formula that so many romcoms these days do.

It was more of a film about growing and maturing as an individual and in a relationship and had a good motto as well, added to which, it's ending was a bit like 'The Break -Up' in that it wasn't a particularly happy ending, or an ending that the audience may want to see, but it certainly taught you a lot.

A divorced 37 year old business woman (Thurman) becomes entangled with a 23 year old painter (Greenberg)who just happens to be the son of her psychoanalyst (Streep). Pretty soon she is telling her analyst all her feelings and worries regarding the relationship and the analyst is instructing her to do certain things that she would never dream of suggesting if she knew that her son was involved. However that is all to change for the better and the worse.

A nice film, and a real film about real life and real relationships which is somewhat refreshing in today's predictable American market where you always expect a happy ending.