Top Books to Film

August 9th is Book Lover’s Day and here are some books to film movies.

Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring/ The Two Towers/The Return of the King (2001,2002, 2003) Rated PG-13

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-Earth still it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell, by chance, into the hands of the Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins. On his eleventy-first birthday, Bilbo disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin, Frodo, the Ruling Ring, and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-Earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom. Based on the book: Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring 

Join Frodo, Gandalf, Aragorn, and brave members of the Fellowship as they continue their quest to destroy the Ring of Power. As darkness descends on Middle-earth, a strange creature named Gollum leads the heroes to the Black Gates of Mordor. The rest of Middle-earth prepares for a battle that will decide the fate of all. Based on the book : The Two Towers

Frodo makes his way through the darkness to Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring. Aragon learns of his destiny as the true King and the others prepare for a massive battle that will determine the fate of Middle-Earth. Based on the Book: Return of the King

The Godfather (1972) Rated R

Focuses on the Corleone family’s rise and near fall from power, shifting between the Sicilian Americans’ family life and their criminal enterprises. Based on the book: The Godfather

Schindler’s List (1993) Rated R

The story of a Catholic war profiteer, Oskar Schindler, who risked his life and went bankrupt in order to save more than 1,000 Jews from certain death in concentration camps. He employed Jews in his crockery factory manufacturing goods for the German army. At the same time he tries to stay solvent with the help of a Jewish accountant and negotiates business with a vicious Nazi commandant who enjoys shooting Jews as target practice from the balcony of his villa that overlooks the prison camp he commands. Based on the Book: Schindler’s list 

Hunt for Red October (1990) Rated PG

A new Soviet sub, the Red October, is heading for the U.S. coast. Government experts think it is planning to attack–that is, all the experts but one. He thinks the sub’s commander is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find the sub and prove his theory. Based on the book:  Hunt for Red October

Doctor Zhivago (1965) Rated PG-13

A poet and surgeon, husband and lover, finds his life disrupted by war. It alters the lives of many, including Tonya, the gentle woman he marries and Lara, the woman he cannot forget. Based on the book: Doctor Zhivago

Summer Olympics in Film

 

Chariots of Fire (1981) Rated PG

Story of two British runners that were both driven by different means to win at the 1924 Paris Olympics. One used his faith in God, and the other his hatred of Anti-Semitism. Based on a true story.

Munich (2005) Rated R

The story of the secret Israeli squad assigned to track down and assassinate the Palestinian terrorists believed to have planned the 1972 Munich massacre of eleven Israeli athletes–and the personal toll this mission of revenge takes on the team and the man who leads it.

Walk Don’t Run (1966) Rated NR

When English industrialist Sir William Rutland arrives in Tokyo on business, the influx of tourists for the upcoming Olympic games makes it impossible to find lodging, so Sir William fast-talks his way into sharing an apartment with beautiful Christine Easton for a few days. To further confuse matters, Sir William invites Olympic athlete Steve Davis to share his half of the apartment. Sir William then plays Cupid between Christine and Steve, much to Christine’s stodgy fiancé’s surprise. Will Sir William manage to send his roomies to the altar?

One Day in September (1999) Rated NR

They were billed as the ‘Olympics of Peace and Joy’ but became the Olympics of terror — Munich 1972. An extreme Palestinian group called Black September held 11 Israeli athletes hostage in the Olympic village while the world looked on, incredulous. Using extraordinary archive footage, music and interviews with those who took part (including the only surviving member of the Black September group), “One day in September” tells the dramatic story of what happened in Munich during those 21 hours.

Without Limits (1998) Rated PG-13

A fictionalized account of Steve Prefontaine, a distance runner, who took the sport into a new era.

Independence Day Films 2012

The Patriot (2000) Rated R

A hero of the French and Indian conflict, Benjamin Martin had renounced fighting forever to raise his family in peace. However, when British troops arrive at his South Carolina home and endanger his family, he takes up arms alongside his idealistic patriot son, Gabriel.

Johnny Tremain (1957) Rated NR

Johnny Tremain, a silversmith’s apprentice, dreams of learning the trade and making his own way. When a terrible injury ends his hopes, he joins the emerging Sons of Liberty and takes part in the Boston Tea Party and the Battle of Lexington Green.

1776 (1972) Rated PG

1776 is a delightful musical celebration of the founding of The United States of America. The story centers around the familiar historical characters as they organize a movement for independence from Mother England. All events lead up to that most significant date, July 4, 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was signed.

National Treasure (2004) Rated PG

Since his childhood, Benjamin Franklin Gates has known that he is a descendant of a long line of people whose job it has been to guard a treasure hidden by the Founding Fathers. They hid clues to its whereabouts in the country’s currency and on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Now, Ben has learned of a plot to steal the Declaration, and has only one option: he has to steal it himself. Even if he pulls off this monumental task, keeping the treasure safe is still going to be incredibly hard, especially since the FBI now knows of his plans.

Drums Along the Mohawk (1939) Rated NR

A historical drama that tells the story of a young frontier leader, his spirited wife, and their struggles in the backwoods of New York state.

Father’s Day Films 2012

To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) Rated NR

A Southern lawyer defends a black man accused of rape. The story is viewed through the eyes of his young daughter, Scout.

Finding Nemo (2003) Rated G

The fretful Malin and his young son Nemo, become separated from each other in the Great Barrier Reef. Nemo, a clown fish, is unexpectedly taken from his home and thrust into a fish tank in a dentist’s office overlooking Sydney Harbor. Buoyed by the companionship of a friendly fish named Dory, Malin embarks on a dangerous trek and finds himself the unlikely hero.

Father of the Bride (1950) & (1991) Rated NR & PG

A father deals with his only daughter’s lavish wedding.

Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) Rated PG

When his wife walks out, Ted Kramer and his six-year-old son have a chance to really get to know each other. Then Ted’s wife returns and she wants her son back.

Parenthood (1989) Rated PG-13

The Buckmans are a modern family facing the age-old dilemma of trying to raise children the “right” way.

Best Friends in Movies

Wayne’s World (1992) Rated PG-13

Wayne and Garth have their own public access TV show. When it becomes popular, a local station decides to hire them to do their show professionally. Meanwhile, Wayne meets and falls in love with Cassandra, a bass guitarist, who he helps by getting her career started by using his connections. But the road from basement to big time is fraught with danger and temptation.

The Odd Couple (1967) Rated G

A film about two divorced men who decide to share a New York apartment. One of them is fastidious and the other a slob.

Thelma and Louise (1991) Rated R

Thelma is an abused and neglected wife, while her friend Louise is a bitter, hard-edged waitress. The two decide to take a brief vacation to escape the drudgery of their everyday lives. Immediately, they run into trouble, as Louise shoots and kills a man who tries to rape Thelma in the parking lot of a country bar.

When Harry Met Sally (1989) Rated R

Will sex ruin a perfect relationship between a man and a woman? That’s what Harry and Sally debate during their first meeting and for the next eleven years.

Beaches (1988) Rated PG-13

Traces the friendship of two very different women, who meet on a beach as young girls, through good and bad times, career and marriage changes until together they must face a final challenge as only best friends can.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a national holiday created to honor those men and woman who sacrificed their lives in service and protection of our country. It was first celebrated informally by cities across the nation to honor Civil War soldiers. It was officially proclaimed in 1868 by General John Logan, but was not followed by southern states until after World War I, at which time it became a remembrance of all American soldiers who fought and died in any military engagement. The National Holiday Act of 1971 proclaimed that the last Monday in May would henceforth be the official day of remembrance.

Many people celebrate this holiday by gathering with friends and family to enjoy the freedom brought about by the sacrifices of our soldiers, while others visit cemeteries to place wreaths and flags by soldiers’ gravestones. The following books are about soldiers and their sacrifices. Some are fictional and others are true stories. Check them out and remember our soldiers!

Top Films on Teachers

Dead Poets Society (1997) Rated PG

Robin Williams stars as English professor John Keating, a passionate iconoclast who changes his students’ lives forever when he challenges them to life life to the fullest and “Carpe Diem” – seize the day!”

Teachers (1984) Rated R

A well meaning but burned-out high school teacher tries to maintain order against the backdrop of a pending lawsuit against his school district when it comes to light they gave a diploma to an illiterate student.

Stand and Deliver (1988) Rated PG

Story of Jaime Escalante, a math teacher at East Los Angeles’ Garfield High School, who refuses to write off his inner-city students as losers. Escalante pushes and inspires 18 students who were struggling with math to become math whizzes.

Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995) Rated PG

A frustrated composer comes to realize that his real passion is teaching and that his legacy is not a truly memorable piece of music, but the generations of young people whose lives he affects.

Lean on Me (1989) Rated PG-13

Based on the true story of high school principal Joe Clark, who armed himself with a bullhorn and a Louisville Slugger and slammed the door on losers at Eastside High in Paterson, New Jersey.

Australian Films

Lantana (2001) Rated R

A woman disappears and four marriages are drawn into a tangled web of love, deceit, sex and death.

Moulin Rouge (2001) Rated PG-13

Christian is an idealistic and impoverished young writer who, newly arrived in Montmartre, is haphazardly inducted into a circle of young Bohemians led by Toulouse-Lautrec. A comedy of mistaken identities ensues, quickly enmeshing the young poet in a love triangle involving the unobtainable and consumptive Satine, queen courtesan of the Moulin Rouge, and the foppish Duke of Roxbury, his villainous rival for her affections.

Muriel’s Wedding (1994) Rated R

No one ever paid much attention to Muriel and her humdrum small town life, so she and her best friend Rhonda decide to leave it behind and head for the big city… where they end up having the exciting adventure of their lives! What’s more, soon everyone takes notice when Muriel becomes engaged to a handsome and popular sports hero!

The Piano (1992) Rated R

A young mute woman and her child travel to New Zealand in the 1800s for an arranged marriage to a farmer. After the marriage she meets another man, and the competition for her love begins. Just one of the men realizes that her affections can only be won through her beloved piano.

Shine (1996) Rated PG-13

The story of Australian pianist David Helfgott. He suffers as a child under his father’s ambitions and as a young man defies his father’s wishes in order to pursue his dreams. At the beginning of a great concert career, he experiences a nervous breakdown and is hospitalized, but later returns to the concert hall. Tells the story of rebellion and of individuality through the eyes of a pianist whose major form of self-expression is found in the keys of his instrument.

Titanic Films 2012

In honor of the 100 years of the titanic’s sinking, here’s  a list of films to watch.

A Night to Remember (1958) Rated NR

In his unforgettable rendering of Walter Lord’s book of the same name, the acclaimed British director Roy Ward Baker depicts with sensitivity, awe, and a fine sense of tragedy the Titanic’s final hours. Featuring remarkably restrained performances, A Night To Remember is cinema’s subtlest, finest dramatization of this monumental twentieth-century catastrophe.

The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964) Rated NR

Molly, a poor, uneducated young woman, leaves her mountain cabin home in search of a rich husband and a better life. She finds both in Leadville Johnny Brown as she strikes it lucky and he strikes gold. Along the way, Molly survives the Titanic and the snobbery of Denver society.

Titanica (1992) Rated NR

The unsinkable ship. The unthinkable tragedy. Discover the Titanic…in a whole new light.

Titanic (1997) Rated PG-13

Two people from different worlds meet and fall in love on the brief, tragic maiden voyage of the grand ocean liner “Titanic”.

The Chambermaid on the Titanic (1997) Rated NR

Horty, a foundry worker travels to England to witness the launching of the Titanic. Marie, a beautiful chambermaid due to board the ship, asks to share his room. Returning home to his wife, Horty’s account of the night he met Marie will change his life and transform all those who hear it.

Easter Films 2012

Easter Parade (1948) Rated NR

Astaire is trying to forget ex-dance partner Miller while rising to stardom with Garland.

Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) Rated G

Drama of the life of Christ, the teacher and saviour, healer of the hopeless and champion of the poor, from Galilee to Golgotha.

Jesus of Nazareth (1977) Rated NR

Maintaining the perfect balance between religious fervor and realism, this film depicts the life of Christ from His birth through His resurrection. It is acclaimed exceptional for its thorough Biblical and historical research written in consultation with leading Anglican, Catholic and Jewish religious authorities.

King of Kings (1927) Rated NR

The King of Kings is the Greatest Story Ever Told as only Cecil B. DeMille could tell it. In 1927, working with the biggest budget in the history of Hollywood, DeMille spun the life and Passion of Christ into one of the highest-grossing films of all time.

Passion of the Christ (2004) Rated R

Concerns the last twelve hours in the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In the Garden of Gethsemane near the Mount of Olives, Jesus is betrayed by Judas Iscariot. Jesus is condemned to death for blasphemy and brought before Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, for sentencing. The roaring crowd demands his death, so Pilate orders his crucifixion. Jesus is severely beaten and made to carry his cross up to Golgotha, the hill outside Jerusalem, where he is nailed to the cross. With his mother looking on, he dies.