Thursday, May 14, 2020

Thursday Movie Picks-Girl’s Trip



So, one day my best friend, Loretta and I went on a road trip and had a great time visiting James Stewart’s home town and Lucille Ball’s home town enjoying every moment. So how could we cap this? Oh, I know, we decided to shoot up a tanker trailer to make it blow up, have the police force come after us and, smiling at one another, hold hands while speed driving off a cliff. Don’t all girls do this? I mean don’t we? Oh, and we play that Brenda Lee song, “Is that all There Is.”  I’m sorry but that song is one I laugh at every time it I hear it. OK, so this week it’s all about girl trips and I want to go another with my best friend. Let’s see what everyone else will choose so head over to Wandering Through The Shelves to find out. Here are my 3...

1. THE WOMEN-1939


This is one of my favourite films and one of very, very few films where not one man is shown. Men are talked about throughout the film but you don’t see one. Norma Shearer is happily married, so she thinks, and goes shopping and gets her nails done all while hob-knobbing with other women some sweet, others gossipy and others just nasty. The nasty played to the hilt by Joan Crawford. You soon find out Norma’s husband is having an affair with Joan Crawford who wants to move from perfume counter gal to rich bitch. Well, Norma decides to go on a trip to get a divorce only to meet other girls on the train and they all go together to find some fun in this pain. These women work well together with Paulette Goddard and Rosalind Russell almost stealing the show. I love how they show each woman and compare her to an animal...ok not politically correct but I don’t care because I always wanted to be compared to an animal and pray it’s not a warthog.

2.  BOYS ON THE SIDE-1995



I saw this in the theatre and was pleasantly surprised at how much deeper it was than just a frolic with dumb ass gals. Whoopi Goldberg plays a woman who just ended a relationship with her girlfriend and her band. She wants to go to California and places an ad to share travel costs. In comes Mary Louise Parker who seems to be this uptight nerdy gal that Whoopi is not keen on. She decides to take her on anyway and off they go on an adventure picking up Drew Barrymore along the way. They all come with baggage that brings tears, laughter, loss and love but created in a non cloying way. It is intelligent and fun to watch.

3. THE OTHER WOMAN-2014


Now this is one funny movie..not a great one or even a really good one but one that you can watch, laugh and forget right after..unless you are my best friend who went through over 2 years of sheer hell divorcing her narcissistic, arrogant jerk of an a-hole, bastard husband. This movie is about a successful woman, Cameron Diaz, who meets and falls in love with a charming(there’s that danger word) man who swoops her off her feet. She finds out that he is married...from his wife who will not leave her alone until Cameron finally relents and they decide to get even. They follow him on a trip to the Bahamas and find out he is with another woman, young and built, whom They quickly let in on the fact that the one is his wife and the other is his unknowing mistress. They soon find out how much the wife has been bamboozled by this schmuck and this is where the fun begins. My friend can so relate because, she was a good wife who signed what he put in front of her after gaslighting her for years that she had no clue about money. He had complete control, was often gone on business trips while she stayed home to care for their 3 kids. It finally came out, from a letter sent to her, that he was having an affair with someone, racked up huge amounts of debt in her name and, yes, he often went to the Bahamas. If you think this is unique, think again, her lawyer knew what kind of person he was before the first 5 minutes were in. Over the decades, he made her feel like she knew nothing and she is highly intelligent. So, for people who can relate, watch this movie and laugh because you are not alone.

What 3 films would you choose?


29 comments:

  1. Hi, Birgit!

    "Dowagers and debutantes! Chorines and mannequins!"

    My spellcheck never even heard of "chorine," so I needed to look it up in my Funk & Wagnalls. I correctly guessed in advance that a chorine is a chorus girl. I haven't seen any of these movies about girls taking trips together. The women in The Women don't appeal to me very much because I didn't find them attractive and didn't like their attitudes. I do want to see Boys On The Side because I love Mary Louise Parker in all of her roles. I'm not keen on Cameron Diaz, and so the third film doesn't interest me very much.

    On the tip of my tongue I have a girls' trip movie recommendation for you. Maybe you can help me come up with the name. Set in the Prohibition era, it follows a pair of lady musicians, Josephine and Daphne, from Chicago down to Miami where they land a gig playing in an all-female band called Sweet Sue and her Society Syncopators. Sugar Kane, the band's blonde bombshell vocalist, plays ukulele. Dang, why can't I think of the title! :)

    Enjoy the rest of your week, dear friend BB!

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  2. Well, when I saw the theme my first vision was two women driving off a cliff. Saw the first movie eons ago but not the other two. So many men are jerks we could probably each write a book on the subject.

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  3. I thought of The Women but never thought of the train ride as a road trip so good on you for seeing it that way. Fabulous movie and ya Roz and Paulette, along with Mary Boland, more or less walk away with the movie. Not that the others are weak, everyone is on their A game.

    I liked Boys on the Side when I saw it in the theatre but haven't watched it since....or really had any desire to. Good performances from the three women.

    I've avoided The Other Woman because of my disdain for Cameron Diaz but your description makes it sound fun so I might have to give it a shot.

    I watched a movie the other day with an all female cast-The House of Bernarda Alba-partly because I thought it might work for this and partly because it was Glenda Jackson's birthday and she was the star of it (LOVE her!). It turned out not to fit for this but it was a decent film, intense and dramatic plus Joan Plowright was in it as well. So a win even if it didn't help me here.

    I did however end up with at least one inspired by your first paragraph reference-Thelma & Louise!

    Orchestra Wives (1942)-Small town girl Connie Ward (Ann Rutherford) is swept off her feet by Bill Abbott (George Montgomery), a trumpet player in Gene Morrison's swing band (actually Glenn Miller and his entire orchestra). She hits the road with the band but soon finds herself at odds with the cattiness and petty jealousies of the other band members' wives also accompanying their husbands on the cross-country train tour. Add in her jealousy at the harmless flirtation between Bill and Jaynie (Lynn Bari), the band's female vocalist and it’s only a matter of time before things blow between all concerned. A more serious storyline and a lot of glorious Glenn Miller music distinguish this from other 40’s musicals.

    Leaving Normal (1992)-Waitress Darly (Christine Lahti) unhappy with her lot decides to drive to Alaska to try and come to terms with her muddled past. In her travels she meets Marianne (Meg Tilly) who is running away from an abusive relationship. As they hit the road north they forge a bond over shared hardships and encounter some eccentric characters along the way.

    Bonneville (2006)-Newly widowed Arvilla Holden (Jessica Lange) has a problem. She wants to scatter her late husband Joe’s ashes as he requested but her bitter step-daughter Francine (Christine Baranski) demands they be placed in her family crypt in California. Arvilla, still reluctant decides to take them there herself and hits the road with her two best friends, Margene (Kathy Bates) and Carol (Joan Allen) from her home in Idaho. As they share memories along the way they visit various places Arvilla & Joe spent time during their marriage and begin to scatter some of Joe's ashes as he wanted.

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  4. Thelma and Louise also came to my mind.

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  5. I haven't seen that version of The Women, but I've seen the newer one with Meg Ryan. I have seen The Other Woman, and I thought it was cute and funny. I'd probably add Ocean's Eight, Fried Green Tomatoes, and Steel Magnolias to the list.

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  6. I haven't seen any of these, but had to stop by, even though I haven't been exactly well, in order to applaud you for your latest synopses. Makes me want to kick your friend's ex's ass.

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  7. Thelma and Louise came to my mind too. I haven't seen any of the ones you mentioned but they all sound good!

    Betty

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  8. Hmmm....

    I guess I'm out this time.

    Well, actually, there's
    'TWO WOMEN' (1960)
    with Sophia Loren
    that I like.

    Yeah, I'll go with that one.

    ~ D-FensDogG
    STMcC Presents BATTLE OF THE BANDS

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  10. I'll have to check out The Women! That sounds interesting. I almost watched The Other Woman to thirst over Nikolaj Coster-Waldau but then I just re-watched Game of Thrones instead. lol

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  11. I've only seen The Women. (And bits of the remake.) I do remember Boys on the Side, but I never sat through it. When I saw the topic, I thought Thelma and Louise, but I don't think I'd go there if I were coming up with three movies.

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  12. I remember that Whoopi movie but didn't see it. About time, I do.

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  13. Hi Birgit...3 new ones to me....just wish some of the new movies could be released on DVD waiting for the new James Bond...Hope you are still keeping safe at home....xxxx

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  14. Never seen the third one, must have missed it on my radar. Other two are good one I remember seeing at one point and enjoying, at least at the time. My taste was bad in some ways way way way back lol

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  15. Now I want to see that film The Women. We're in for rain later today so after my afternoon meeting it might be nice to see if I can find it. Thanks so much for the suggestion.

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  16. These all sound like wonderful movie choices, and despite the fact that I watch many, many movies and tv shows, I'm having trouble coming up with selections of my own. Under the Tuscan Sun was a bit sappy, but as someone who longs to travel and is still in desperate need of a fresh start, the idea of starting over someplace completely new (and on a whim, no less!) is very appealing.

    Kim

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  17. I haven't seen any of these. And what happened in your friend's marriage is appalling.

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  18. Hi there Birgit, I've not seen any of these movies, but I'd love to see the first one, absolutely love her hat lol, Kate, Kate

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  19. Birgit,

    I'm not a huge Whoopi fan but some of her older films are good. This one is new-to-me, though. I may look for it. I'm a Carmen Diaz fan ever since seeing her in The Mask. She does comedy great! I think we've seen this movie but it's been too long ago and I really can't recall if we liked it or not. I may have to re-watch it. Thanks for the suggestions and for your visit today. Have a great weekend, my dear!! xx

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  20. We bought a copy of The Other Woman. That movie is a scream.

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  21. The only one I did see was Thelma and Louise. I always liked Whoopi Goldberg.

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  22. I’ve never seen either version of The Women but I’ve read bits of it in a play-reading group I go to (or used to before everything went pear-shaped) and have it on my list to see because of that. The group leader highly recommends the original version.

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  23. Hi everyone...sorry for not responding to each. My pain is just making me lethargic. I love your answers and Thelma & Louise is a popular choice but one film I think has the stupidest ending ever. As per norm, I have not seen Joel’s picks but would love to. I am not a Cameron Diaz fan either but I love this movie for some mindless fun and the scene stealer is the wife of the slime ball

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  24. A road trip with a bud sounds like so much fun.
    Hope your day is filled with fun and good health.

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  25. I saw Boys on the Side at the movie theater back when it came out. I also own the CD. I really enjoyed the movie- so much more than I thought I would at the time. :)
    ~Jess

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  26. I remember watching The Other Woman and laughing so much. I wonder how I'd feel today.

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