What can I say? It's a sickness.

I used to watch bad Lifetime movies for Blair Brown.

OTOH, by doing that, you do get occasional gems, like that 1994 Romeo and Juliet (the one starring the chick from Cracker who became Lily Potter and Colin Firth's hotter, more talented younger brother) that made me actually not hate either Romeo or Juliet, and in fact moved me muchly.

So I saw Michael Clayton. Quick thoughts:

1) If you watched any of the extended promos for the movie (particularly the ones shown on TNT, you are overly spoiled for the movie. I saw that promo after I saw the movie and damn it has nearly every key plot point in the entire movie laid out in that promo.

2) I enjoyed the movie, it had solid acting, but the plot is very basic and not at all complex. The movie needed another 30 movies of character development and another layer of plot before I would recommend it as an excellent movie.

It was enjoyable, I was entertained, but I think the movie was overpraised by many critics.

I know plenty of people who would watch actors they like in stupid or venal or even badly-written roles, just because they like the actor.

This is me, until I get burnt by too many bad ones ("Water's Edge" and "The House Next Door", I'm looking at you).

In this instance I've been reading a lot of different boards (IMDB, Life's OB, DL.net (*coughIamNOTobsessedcough*) etc.) and there seems to be overwhelming love for Soames. Maybe they really are discerning viewers who really mean "DL's performance as Soames was as compelling as Soame's himself was horrid" when they say that it was this character/role that turned them onto DL.

I'm definitely not knocking people watching crap for the appreciation of a favored actor, just trying to understand this Soame's love I've been seeing around. And as far as I know, TFS is a really good mini-series, just not my cup of tea.

I just came back from watching the adaptation of The Jane Austen Book Club. I was in a mood for a feel-good (but non-stupid) chickflick and this was perfect. It's got a very likable cast, some nice dialog, and an overly-tidy ending, but eh. I still liked it lots.

Hugh Dancy, who had always struck me as one of those bland British pretty boys destined to swan about in neckerchiefs and breeches in limp second-rate periodicals until they develop a beer belly, is COMPLETELY ADORKABLE in the role of the sole male member of the book club. Wow. I seriously wanted to reach into the screen, grab him and take him home with me. Is Grigg in the book as adorable? I guess I'll find out, since I went off to the Barnes & Nobles next to the theater and bought the book.

Vonnie, you should rent Evening if you want to see more of Dancy acting people's socks off—his performance in that struck me as one of the better ones.

He was very good in the recent Broadway revival of the World War II play, Journey's End . He got a Tony nomination, if I recall, though did not win.

Personally, I love him from Ella Enchanted anyway. Because that movie is awesome.

Thanks! I'll check the film out.

The only things I'd seen Dancy in before this was in BBC adaptations of Daniel Deronda and David Copperfield and I wasn't too impressed with him in those, but man, he was just so sweetly dorky and charming as all get-out in this movie.

For Damian Lewis fans, I can definitely recommend the updated version of Much Ado About Nothing shown as part of the ShakespeaRetold miniseries on BBCAmerica, in which he was delightfully snarky as Ben(edict), which also costarred Billie Piper as the smeared ingenue.

which also costarred Billie Piper as the smeared ingenue.

And as Beatrice, a woman whose name I forget, but who was the female lead in "Blackpool", which David Tennant fans may have seen.

I just realized I had been accidentally unsibscribed to this thread for about 4 months. Oops. No wonder I have no idea what movies are out.

So, what movies are out? Specifically, I am in the market for a movie that my husband and I can go see together and both enjoy. He likes independent artsy movies, I like chick flicks and wordy british things, we both dislike boring action movies. Anything out right now where we could find common ground? Preferably not depressing.