The Inspector Lynley series  I started watching this series several years ago, having read the books by Elizabeth George. These mysteries are superb and all the shows that follow George's Inspector Lynley books are great.  The latter two seasons (this is only season one) do not follow the books since they ran out of them! The last episodes are too CSI for me, but I watched them anyway. I wholeheartedly recommend the shows that you can match with a book title. Elizabeth George writes great mysteries and the English countryside as seen in the BBC shows, along with the amazing actors, Sharon Small and Nathaniel Parker, can't be beat!

Once  I saw this movie after a friend recommended it.  LOVED it!  There is a lot of singing in it, for those who are more the blood and guts kind of moviegoer.  I also bought the soundtrack.  Some of the songs are absolutely haunting.

A Room With a View   When I first went to see this movie, I thought it was the Alfed Hitchcock one (Rear Window).  However, this movie turned out to be very different--it's a period romance--and I loved it from the beginning.  Fair Warning:  Has scenes exhibiting the male anatomy, but in a totally innocent way. 

The Red Violin  This movie, about a powerful, almost magical, violin, has great mystery and suspense, both of which build slowly and surely.  I love the way the story wove together different periods of history.

Young Frankenstein  You can't go wrong with Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder.  Very funny.

Goonies  This is a GREAT movie for kids and adults. Fun and adventure as a group of kids seek a pirate's treasure to save their home.

Sense and Sensibility  Another period romance.  I thought Emma Thompson did a great job with this movie.  It was funny, suspenseful, and my personal favorite...dramatic.

The Scarlet Pimpernel  I prefer the version with Jane Seymour and Anthony Andrews.  Adventure and romance during the French Revolution.

The Monarch of the Glen  Seasons 1, 2, and 3 are my personal favorites.  The series takes place in a castle in Scotland, which the handsome laird is struggling to hold onto against all odds.

The Secret Garden  I liked this version (the Hallmark one) of the Secret Garden, one of my favorite books.  The lead actress fit the role perfectly, I think.  It's about a young orphan girl taken from India to this large manor in England.  She is spoiled and willful, but in searching out the secret of the garden, she becomes likeable!

The Little Princess  This is by the same author who wrote the Secret Garden.  It's about a young girl who is left at a boarding school while her father goes off to war.  Then she is told that he has died, and since no money is coming in to pay for her keep, the schoolmistress begins to treat her very badly.  Bad mistress!

Harold and Maude  Dark comedy about a young boy and an old woman who form a romantic relationship.  Sounds rather strange, but it works in a darkly funny way.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy  What else can a person say about this epic adventure?  I thought the movies were very well-made, especially given the complexity of the books.

Love Actually  A great movie about a group of people whose lives all link together in some way.  Funny, touching, and sometimes a little sad.

The Age of Innocence  Another period romance!  I sense a theme.  This one has a bit of an edge to it, though.  I love the message the movie conveys about the mores of society--how petty they can be, and how damaging.

Galaxy Quest  This is a Star Trek farce that I can watch over and over.  You'll be speaking Thermian by the end of it, I guarantee it.

Napoleon Dynamite  If you haven't heard of Napoleon, then you haven't been getting out enough.  He is so totally 80s.  I grew up in the 80s so I thought this movie was even funnier for my generation. Sweet!

The History of the World, Part One  Another Mel Brooks classic about the History of the World (or at least his version).  I wish there'd been a Part Two.

Gormenghast  This is a strange story.  I love strange stories.  It's so strange I don't think I could even sum it up...You'd have to watch it.  Keep in mind that the beginning is slow, and sometimes the actors overdo it (like they're in a play).  But it pulls you in.  Like a black hole.

Chocolat  Romance and chocolate. Need I say more?

Little Voice  This is a story about a very shy woman who has a wonderful voice that she keeps to herself.  Great movie.

Labyrinth  This movie is one of the best fantasy movies I've ever seen.  It has David Bowie in it, too!

Willow  Another good fantasy movie.  The 80s knew how to put them out.

The Princess Bride  Funny, romantic and adventurous.  Favorite line... "That's inconceivable!"

The Dark Crystal  Again, a good fantasy movie (with muppet-like creatures).

The Neverending Story  I first watched this fantasy story about a boy who enters a world within a book when I was a teenager, a long time ago.  I watched it again with my son recently and found it just as enthralling.

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory  I much preferred the version with Gene Wilder.  Of course, I think Gene Wilder is a comic genius.  When I was a kid, I watched this movie every year.  Loved the chocolate and candy parts, still find the tunnel scene unnerving.

Hocus Pocus  "Amuck, amuck, amuck!"  What one of the witches (Sarah Jessica Parker) chants about going amuck...  Great for kids (and me) at Halloween.

The Nightmare Before Christmas  You may have noted that I like the strange and bizarre.  This movie fits those categories, yet it has heart and soul, too.

*You'll note that the movie title is a link to Amazon.com.  This is because I have signed up for their affiliate program.  All the money made from this affiliation will be donated to charity.