Here's comes the bride...

All the essentials are there. The flowers, the cake, the dress, the decorations and... the slapstick mayhem?

Romantic Comedies have become a staple of the cinematic offering. From early on there has been the same story: Boy meets Girl in quirky, atypical way; Boy and Girl fall in love; Boy proposes to Girl; Hilarity ensues.

With the release of Bride Wars on DVD, the trend carries on. While in more recent years, these girls-night-out must-haves have taken on a "freer" element they still do hale back to the off-beat Romantic Comedy of yester-year:

Father of the Bride-In this 1950 film, Spencer Tracy stars as a father trying to come to terms with the fact that his little girl is growing up and getting married, while at the same time trying to plan, pay for and put on her dream wedding. Starting at the engagement announcement and following through to the big day, he's wants to make this a day to remember...if he survives it.

Elizabeth Taylor co-stars as the Bride.

This film was remade in 1991 starring Steve Martin as the father and Martin Short in a supporting role as the quirky wedding planner.

The Happiest Millionaire- Although not completely a boy-meets-girl story, this is the story of eccentric millionaire, Anthony Biddle. His daughter, tired of boys being scared off by his enthusiasm for boxing and his collection of pet alligators... That's right, alligators. She heads off to a boarding school and ends up meeting the love of her life.

Things getting interesting when the two families meet and Mr. Biddle realizes he may not be able to let go of his little girl just yet...

So, ladies, pick up some chocolate and popcorn and grab your girlfriends and guys... well, maybe humor us once in a while.

Who knows, the next quirky wedding story you hear may be your own...

Star date 03/08/2009: There's a new Enterprise crew in town...

Admist much hype and anticipation a new Star Trek movie was released this past Friday, May 1. This newest installment is the most successful movie of the Star Trek franchise to date,taking in more than $75 million over in its opening weekend alone according to boxofficemojo.com. This new trend towards reviving old movie franchises with prequels, seems to be a successful venture with movie makers.
With the success of the Star Wars prequels as well as Batman Begins and the Dark Knight, the very beginning is, indeed, a very good place to start.

But does the new Star Trek remember its beginning? No, not the original 1960's T.V show but the Sci-Fi thrillers of the 50s and even earlier. Let's take a look back at just how far this box office smash has come from its predecessors.

Buck Rogers- This 1939 film was based on a cartoon ship by Dick Calkans and Phil Nolan. The story of a pilot and passenger who end up 500 years in the future, our hero fights the villain Killer Kane a tyrant now rule over this earth of the future. Although lacking in the visual effects department, this sci-fi classic was pretty impressive in its day.

Metropolis- The view of the future was bleak in this 1927 Fritz Lang film. In the year 2026 man kind is separated in the Thinkers and the Workers. The Thinkers make plans but lack the skill and the Workers achieve those plans but lack the vision. Separately neither can survive but together they can succeed. Then all changes when one of the Thinkers goes down to the Workers and is appalled at the way the other half lives...

The Day the Earth Stood Still- In this 1952 classic, an alien visitor and his robot friend come to seemingly live peacefully and share a message with the people of earth. But, upon a rough first meeting, this other worldly boarder discloses another reason for his visit as well as the threat of a race of beings who are easily provoked...and deadly.

Well, if we are discussing the predecessors to this new Star Trek, we can't leave out the the one that started it all : Star Trek the Original Series.
This 1966 series ran only four seasons but has since garnered a huge following. With its phasers and telecommunicators and even it's beaming effects, this series was the project that started all the craze.
From Tribbles to Klingons, the Original Series is the one that started it all and with this latest installment, a whole new generation will have the chance to "Live long and prosper".

Classics? Really?

It has occurred to me lately that the Golden Age of cinema is quickly being forgotten. Not only are the classic movies of yesteryear, such as Casablanca, Sunset Blvd., Harvey and A Star is Born, no longer staples of every movie collection but the stars themselves are fading.

This thought occurred to me as I read about the recent passing of legendary film director Kenneth Annakin.
Annakin directed such classic films as The Swiss Family Robinson and The Longest Day. He also directed six episodes of Walt Disney's Disneyland.

With in the last two years, multiple classic cinema stars have passed away. Cyd Charisse, Paul Newman and Bea Arthur.

Where does this leave us? The title of Classics in film has now been relegated to film like Animal House and Dumb and Dumber.

I have friends who won't even watch a film if it's over 30 years old. What good does that do anyone? Where will avoiding the classics, because they're "old" get us?

What is the public looking for in a film now? The draw seems to be to violence and bathroom humor rather than the film making techniques and quality.

In 2007 all but one of the Oscar nominees for Best Picture were rated-R for violence and language. Is this what we want future generations to remember us for?

For the last four years the films that have won the Oscar for best picture have been R-rated.
Is the call for blood and action or political statement become more important than the movie quality its self?

Where are the films that make a statement in their unique style or story instead of their big time special effects or shock-value?

It seems as if as our stars of the classic cinema die out, so does our desire for a quality film production.

Movies are so much easier to make that they can be made on a grand scale inside a computer. It seems that quality has been sacrificed for quantity.

When will this epidemic end? Who knows. Maybe Hollywood will never be what it once was. Maybe the movies will just keep getting more violent and less substantive.

I seem to have more questions than answers. A lot of good that does.

I hope that the film industry can get back to a time where less emphasis was put on scale and more on story.

Maybe we'll see a Casablanca again.

Or maybe we'll be stuck with Dumb and Dumber for the rest of our lives...