Princess Movies

[lithorose]

Every little girl dreams of being a princess at some point. Some, like me, still do. Most of my favorite movies are 'princess' movies; Ever After, the Princess Bride, Anastasia, Sleeping Beauty; the list goes on and on:D So, what I want to know is, what are your favorites, and what do you love about them?

[Colli]

InconCEIVable! Definitely the Princess Bride... which came to me *sniff* late in life.

I liked Ever After, but wasn't completely enthralled with it.

[StarGazr]

"My name in Inigo Montoya, you killed my father... prepare to die!" The Princess Pride is one of my all-time favorite movies. Did you know that according to some "top-ten list," that [i]The Princess Bride[i/] was voted one of the top-ten silliest movies of all-time?! Yeah... I'd agree with that!
Iocane powder... it's odorless and tasteless... later... Humperdink inhales the Iocane powder and declares "It's iocane powder! I'd bet my life on it!" See... that's just silly!! :p

[Colli]

:D It was the movie that refused to take itself seriously..

I mean come on. ROUSes. Tiny people in rat suits. Anyone smell silly? :D

[Fleurdelacour]

I loove Disney films, and their Princessness ;)

My favourites are Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, oh not forgetting the Little Mermaid!

[StarGazr]

No no no... Sleeping Beauty is the best Disney movie... and The Little Mermaid, I'll agree... I grew up with the Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King... all those four in succession of one another... I'm THAT generation! HA

[Colli]

Aladdin is the BEST Disney movie, Lion King being a close second. :D Gosh.. I can still sing all those songs from memory. :o :D

[lithorose]

Nope, Sleeping Beauty's the best:p Followed by B&B, (except the prince is ugly), followed by Robin Hood, followed by all the rest.

[StarGazr]

Originally posted by lithorose
Nope, Sleeping Beauty's the best:p Followed by B&B, (except the prince is ugly), followed by Robin Hood, followed by all the rest.

Yes I TOLD you guys Sleeping Beauty is the best!!! Yeah, why is the Prince in B&B so butt ugly?? Explain please... I've been wondering this since I was seven.

[lithorose]

Well, they don't call it Beauty and the Beast for nothing!

[Fleurdelacour]

rotfl Lithorose! :D

He had terrible hair (once in human form) long? eugh...

I had the first song from Beauty adn hte Beast, There must be more then this provincial town, something like that anyway, in my head all day! lol Still do actually :)

DISNEY ROCKS! :p

[ChianaWeasley]

Princess Bride!!!!

That is my all time favorite Princess movie!!

Buttercup-"You can die too for all I care!" (pushes who she THINKS is the dread pirate Roberts) (He tumbles down the grassy hillside)

Roberts-"As......youuuu......wishhhh....."

(Buttercup realizes her mistake, he is not the dread pirate Roberts! But her long lost love, the farm boy, Westley!)

Buttercup-"Oh my sweet Weastly, what have I done to you?!" (jumps down hill after him)

Does it get any better then that?

[lithorose]

"Why didn't you wait for me?"
"Well, you were dead."


:swoon: for Westley, the hero with a decent haircut!:D

[Fleurdelacour]

I think I'm the only one who hasn't even heard of Princess Bride...

[Colli]

I hadn't heard of it before Imladris, spent a year listening to people rave about it, and I finally got around to renting it a few weeks ago.

You really must see it, it's a classic. :D

I found some awesome Princess Bride avatars... (my AIM icon is one) If anyone's interested, let me know and I'll post the link. :D


Vizzini: You only think I guessed wrong - that's what's so funny! I switched glasses when your back was turned! Ha-ha, you fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders, the most famous of which is "Never get involved in a land war in Asia", but only slightly less well known is this: "Never go in against a Sicilian, when *death* is on the line!". Hahahahahah! Hahahahahahahahaha!"


:LOL:

[lithorose]

Please do! I wanna see avatars!:D



"Mawwidge. Mawwidge is whot bwings us togewwa today:D"

[Colli]

The impressive clergyman... at my brother's wedding rehearsal, the marrying guy (his wife's father) did that. It was SOOO funny, even though I didn't get it yet.

http://www.smorgenstern.com/imagegallery9-1.html

There ya go. :D

[StarGazr]

"The Princess Bride" is one of the top ten silliest movies of all time... but it is one of the best romantic comedies out there.. you HAVE to see this movie! The whole thing about iocane powder... and how it's odorless and tasteless... but yet Humperdink can smell it... I can't remember where I posted that I love that part.. but GO RENT THIS MOVIE.. haha

[lithorose]

Not to give too much away, but I couldn't resist:D :

"Inhale this, but do not taste."
"I smell nothing."
"What you do not smell is called Iocaine powder. It is oderless, tasteless, dissolves instantly in water and is among the more deadly poisons known to man."

:D

[StarGazr]

no no no no... try this:
"Mawwage... mawwage is what bwings us together... today."
Hehehe

[Colli]

;) I think lith already quoted that.. :D

[StarGazr]

Ohhhh grrrr... that's my favorite part in the whole movie and Lith has to go an quote it before me.. you're lucky I need you to edit my stories.... or bugger me you'd be in for it... hehe ;)

[Elfëa]

Gah. I dislike princess movies. Cause all the embarrasing stuff that has to happen to them.

I don't like Sleeping Beauty, nor Little Mermaid (she's stupid).

I kinda liked Beauty and the Beast to. :p And, I did like the Beast as prince. :p
but I like long hairs.

[elanorh]

I seriously resisted seeing The Princess Bride ... I thought it was a 'little kid movie', and was in high school at the time.

It's actually very fun to watch in reverse. My sisters and I really *have* watched it forwards and backwards!! :eek: ;) :D

I'm not a huge fan of most princess movies although I love 'chickflicks,' the basic romantic comedies (or romantic movies, period) which are out there ....

[Colli]

Romantic comedies rock.. they were my favorite genre before fantasy. :)

[lithorose]

Me no like chickflicks in general. But princess movies are usually good. And I like long hair on guys. Sometimes. Not on that prince though:barf: Sleeping Beauty...now there's a prince!:swoon:

Woo Hoo! Hundredth post on the new boards:D

[Fleurdelacour]

right, I went to rent out my Saturday Night video, asked for Princess Bride, and the bloke said it doesn't excist...!!! :( Got Shawshank Redemption instead. Love that film :)

Oh I love chickflicks in a weird way ;) They're fun to watch at sleepovers before you watch a scary film (they're never really scary, I don't get scared.) And then after watching, you feel down and want a man for yourself... *sigh*

[lithorose]

Doesn't exist?! What have I been watching all these years?:(

Shawshank Redemption is a great movie! But of course it's great, it has Morgan Freeman in it! That guy has a great film presence.

Anybody see Maid in Manhattan? It was pretty cute for a chickflick; Ralph Fiennes does a very good job in it!:D

[Fleurdelacour]

I can't quite stomach Jennifer Lopez ;)

Oh yes, I love Morgan Freeman, :) He does have a magnificent screen presence, his narration is lovely, I could sit there listening to him all day.

[Colli]

:D Of course it exists... go back and :trout: him!!!

And in the meantime.. order (http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005AVUC/qid%3D1047763811/026-9525555-3686810) it off Amazon. And I was enough nice enough to link you to the UK one. ;)

[Elfëa]

I think I'm going to rent it when I go back home :p Sounds interesting enough... and it has Gary Elwes :D

[Fleurdelacour]

I might order it, just need the money ;) (thats why I dont own Shawshank Redemtion, spent £34.99 on my Romeo + Juliet Moulin Rouge dvd box set!)

Stupid video bloke! :trout: :rolleyes:

[lithorose]

Who's Gary Elwes? There's this other actor by a similar name, Cary Elwes, maybe you've heard of him?:p

It's a seriously great movie. I think it's Cary Elwes's greatest role. But that may be because that's where I saw him first; he's forever embedded in my mind as Westley.

Fleur, check around other video stores, someone's gotta have it.

[Elfëa]

I can't really remember names, can I? :o

That's why my post count is so high :p

[ChianaWeasley]

Westley...yummy! :p
If you love the book, I couldn't impress more that you read the book. It's just as good as the film.
:D

[sirius2004]

I think, quite possibly, the best quote from Princess Bride is
Miracle Max: GET AWAY FROM ME YOU WITCH!
Miracle Max's wife: I"M NOT A WITCH I"M YOUR WIFE!!!!!!!
lmao...
ok....
breathe...

Another "cute" Princess movie, i think, was the Princess Diaries. i liked it...although i am kinda sick of randome people asking me if i've seen it cuz for some reason people see some sort of resemblence (i can't see it but some guy at McDonalds thought i was Anne Hathaway...it was weird...) anyways...it was a cute movie
the prince in Beaty and the Beast looks like a girl....ew...

[swiftsnowmane]

Yes, The Princess Bride is the BEST!!:swoon: ( And Colli, I think I was actually the one who started that thread back at Imly that got you into it! Wheeeee! Go me!:D )

I can do a PERFECT impression of Valerie, I have a bumper sticker that says "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father, prepare to die!" And yes, I swooned so hard for Westley when I was a youngin, and I still do. Check out the *swoon* thread for proof. ;)
I love that movie so much my pirate nickname is "The Dread Pirate Bonney" (Yes, i still play pirates with my friends.....ARRRRRR! :arrr: )

And don't get why everyone thought the Prince in Beauty and the Beast was ugly!:eek: I thought he was the hottest prince ever at the time. Wow, I swooned for him when I was eight! I guess even back then I had a taste for LOOOONG haired men. Yum.:D

Though I do love Sleeping Beauty, the prince just didn't do it for me. :p He reminded me too much of the neighbor kid across the street whose name was also Phillip. I liked Samson, the horsie. He was cute. No, what sticks with me most about Sleeping Beauty is the Three Fairies (I love them!) and..... Mallificent! Hoo boy, was she the creepiest villain ever when i was younger!:devil: That haunting music that accompanied her all the time, and how she appeared out of a green light thingie...*shudder* Classic sorceress. And I swoon for her when she is a dragon. That is a gorgeous dragon.:swoon:

[qleap]

"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means" ;)

I must admit I did like new Disney's movies when they came out... at least up to a certain point, I guess I got tired around B&B or Lion King, I just can't watch them, I fall asleep (Old ones usually are quite ok but my favourite is Alice so not your typical princess I suppose) I mean, I DID watch Little Mermaid so many times... but then I read the ACTUAL story :p Now don't laugh but I saw a Russian version of B&B on tv, it looked some old and definitely weird but it was so poetic, it was touching, and there wasn't any singing pottery :rolleyes: :D

About princess movies... when I was a child I LOVED the Sissi's movies (Austrian 50s movies with Romy Schneider about Princess Sissi's romanticized life), I have no idea if anyone but me and my poor parents ever watched them ;) I was totally obsessed.

[Colli]

I was on IMDb today and just so happened to notice that it's Robin Wright Penn's (better known to the layman as Buttercup on The Princess Bridfe) 37th birthday! :clap: Happy Birthday!

(edit) *chokes* Did you know she was offered the part of Maid Marian in the Kevin Coster Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves?????? How terribly ironic! Ooh... can you imagine her and Alan Rickman? :swoon:

[LuthienElentari]

I love romantic comedies! fantasy (of course) and science fiction!
When I was very little I loved to watch Star Trek! my favorite Star trek was Voyager !.


Anway I love princess movies they are so cool! especially storys where the girls kick some butt. My favorote is Beauty and the Beast . I also love Princess Bride!


Have any of you guys read the Gail Carson Levine books ?those are good Princess storys.

[Rivenlas]

Ouch. Just got my poor finger caught in the wheel of my comp. chair. It's gonna take me like an hour to reply.
I've only seen like a minute of Princess Bride. I happened to tune in when some sort of rat attacked and quickly laughed and changed the channel. Now I regret not giving it some sort of chance.
I like princess movies!! I loved The Little Mermaid, although thought the prince should have turned into a merman instead of Ariel turning human.
I didn't like Maid in Manhattan...It seemed too typical. I liked Ralph Fiennes better in Red Dragon.
Anyone seen Kate and Leopold? Yes, cheesey as all get-out, but its still great.

[Colli]

I really liked Kate & Leopold.. I posted about it in one of these threads. :D

Maid in Manhattan.. hm. I liked Jennifer Lopez, I liked Ralph Fiennes, and I liked the cute little kid. I just didn't really like the movie. The first half was just painful and the second half was so typical I could've puked. I like my chick flicks to have a little variety. ;)

[swiftsnowmane]

I absolutely love Kate and Leopold! :D Though, I doubt I would like it as much if it weren't for Hugh Jackman. That man is a SWOON god!:swoon: :swoon: :swoon:

And Luthien, I LOVE Ella Enchanted. What an adorable story! Did you know that there is a movie version coming out soon? I have a thread all about it at Council-of-Elrond.com : Ella Enchanted Thread (http://www.council-of-elrond.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1054) Check it out! (Shameless plug, i know :D)

[lithorose]

Oh, well, if we're doing shameless plugs: X+X=2X...no wait, I mean X2! (http://www.council-of-elrond.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1752) :p

I couldn't stand K&L. Don't know how I managed to sit through it. Liev Schrieber was the only good thing about that movie. I got horribly distracted by the implausibility of the whole movie, of his attitudes and all those fun inconsistent stuff. Hugh Jackman's charm doesn't extend beyond Wolverine for me.

[LuthienElentari]

Yeah i'm so happy! thanks for the good news! Anne Hatheway was the perfect chioce! :D

[Elwen]

Well, well... I was looking for an old thread to post in to finally get rid of that stupid anti-tatoo spam thread on the top of the list in this forum...

and this thread is great!

Yay! I am not alone. I like romantic comedies in general, but princess movies have a special place in my romantic little heart :D

I even sat through the one where Julia Stiles gets hitched to a decidedly goofy prince of Denmark (can't remember what that one is called - not so good :eek: )


I am surprised, however, that no-one here has mentioned the princess Diaries - or is this so long ago that these were not yet available? These cound among my guilty pleasures....


I have to say, I don't like most Disney princesses (the one from Aladdin is OK, I suppose) - too barbie-ish, on the whole......


Ultimately, I still want THE princess story made into a proper film: has anyone come across the book Desiree by Annemarie Selinko? great historical fiction, a true story and absolutely perfect princess story, too (though not entirely in the expected prince-meets-girl mould) :D There is a 60's film, but that unfortunately doesn't do it justice....


Well.... there I go. I have resurrected a thread worthy of being at the top of this forum's list :D

[lithorose]

*re-reads long-forgotten thread*

I wonder if Fleur's seen the Princess Bride yet?

Time to update the viewing/opinion list: :D

I saw the Princess Diaries, but could only barely stomach it (I don't think I've seen the sequel). Anne Hathaway did a really good job in Hoodwinked though, so I guess I won't hold it against her.;)

I don't remember the name of it, but the one with Hilary Duff and Chad Michael Whatever wasn't too bad, all things considered. A Cinderella Story? I think it was.

I keep meaning to see the one with Julia Stiles but it always slips off the radar when I'm in the video store.

Anyone here see Once Upon a Mattress? Pretty good fractured fairytale.

And of course (I think there's a thread for it somewhere on these forums)- Howl's Moving Castle!!!!!!:drool: love that film! (Though actually I love the book much better.)

Elwen, not heard of that book but will keep an eye out. I hardly ever read historical fiction- it's so hard to tell where the history is and where the author just made stuff up, sometimes.

[Elwen]

Lithorose, I read this first as a teenager, and I had a chance to check on much of the history (it is basically a very feminine view of the Napoleonic age - but believe me, it is a classic princess story, too, with a reluctant princess)..... and it is so well researched, it is almost scary (got me through questions on Napoleonic France ever since!). At the same time, the thing simply isn't boring. :D I hope there is a good English translation, because the original is in German, but since Hollywood filmed it there must have been some awareness of it.

But again, forget the film: it somehow manages not to be a princess movie, which is sad.


I found Cinderella Story dire (too formulaic, and the school stuff is just too... American, I guess, for me to empathise in any way) - did you really enjoy that more than Princess Diaries?

The Julia Stiles movie is actually OK - and not totally conventional (well, ok, almost...).


Oh my, I can't believe I am discussing all these. :D

<nervous girly giggle>

I like this thread. :D

[lithorose]

I was probably just in a better mood when I watched Cinderella Story- my expectations were non-existant.:D With Princess Diaries there was enough word-of-mouth that I was rather disappointed with the result.

That and Chad Michael Phillips is just cute.:o

[Elwen]

hehe.... :D

I also thought that the bloke in Ella Enchanted was rather cute :o

Most times these teeny idols are simply not appealing at all.... but that bloke... yeah, I can see the attraction :D

[Haldomere Banks]

I thought that Ella Enchanted was a great family movie, especially for dads. :smirk: Anne is my favorite princess, although I saw a few minutes of Havoc tonight and had to turn it off.

Ella and Princess Bride are probably my 2nd and 3rd favorite films to watch with my daughters, after the recent version of Peter Pan. I think that the Wendy (Rachel Hurd-Wood) would make a good princess in many of the Gail Carson Levine princess stories, although she may be aging too fast.

http://www.collider.com/uploads/imageGallery/Perfume/perfume_movie_image_rachel_hurd-wood__5_.jpg

I imagine that the actor who played Peter would start some swooning, too.

Hjal

[Elwen]

yay! A man who has something sensible to say about this topic (and being willing to admit to that in public)!

:notworthy , Hjal

[lithorose]

Hjal, now that you've shown your head about here, I have to ask if you've seen Ever After. It's one of the best princess movies out there, and very funny for everyone.

I rented it one night just for me (even though I'm not that into chick flicks, sometimes I just gotta watch one, esp. if it's a period piece), and my dad and brother ended up on the couch next to me because they kept hearing snippets of it and laughing.:D

Elwen- Desiree- is it the type of book where she is a historical character or deals with historical characters, or is it mostly just the time period? Because I can stand the latter much better than the former- I don't like it so much when they take a name and project a personality onto it.

[Elwen]

Lithorose,

Desiree is a historical character about whom we know little - the book is written as her diary.... and as it happens, she DID meet many of the most crucial people of her age (early love of Napoleon, as mentioned in Napoleon's own memoirs).

The fun thing about this is that we get the whole history from a female point of view, without getting too dizzy (IMHO). The whole thing is VERY romantic, but also very intelligent, IMHO. The history is amazingly well researched, IMHO. When I like a book like this so much I go and do check up on the facts, and I have to say, I could not catch the author at anything serious.... The only thing that disappointed me is that the few real portraits of the real Desiree Bernadotte (nee Clary) aren't anything like I had imagined them. That was disappointing.....


Anyway - it is my favourite 'princess' book - but I LIKE well written historical novels (BTW: I agree with you on historical characters who are 'hijacked' by an author).

Perhaps I should say that it doesn't quite have the typical 'princess story' structure (and roylalty in the Napoleonic age is a relative term) - although you'd see why I put it into the category once you are done with it..... let us say it like this: it has everything I like about the 'princess' genre - and in spades, and it is incredibly romantic, IMHO. :)



But back to the topic: I think one 'princess movie' (though not typical for the genre) that hasn't been mentioned here and should be is 'Roman Holiday'. Fantastic film. Very romantic :) and funny.


I'll have to check out Ever After I guess...

[lithorose]

Oh, Roman Holiday!:swoon: I LOVE that movie! I guess it does count, too, since she's a princess.:D

Probably the best line out of it: "I'm in the fertilizer business." Went right over my head the first time I saw it.:D

I think I'll risk Desiree at some point, if I can find it. Next question: does the character ring true for the time period? So often modern attitudes seep in and ruin it all. Especially with young females trying to keep up with the boys and constantly prove themselves. Because from what little I have read, women of ages past were generally more secure in themselves than we give them credit for, in spite of not having any legal rights.

swoons for Gregory Peck and his incredible eyebrows...:swoon:

[Elwen]

lithorose, to *me* she rings true.... she actually starts out as a fairly naive and not very well educated young girl and then sort of grows with the years. I can't think of anything that struck me as wrong. The tone is quite informal (because it is a diary, after all) but not too badly out of place. I haven't seen an English translation, but it would translate well, I think, with Jane Austen in mind. :) There is a funny perspective to it all, because as the big historical events go on Desiree will still be worrying about things like clothes and which food to serve - and it doesn't sound ridiculous to me, because in her position, and from her perspective, it DOES matter a good deal.

Of course, as Desiree grows up her tone changes a bit, although (quite endearingly) she can still be quite giggly in her fourties, at least sometimes, which lightens up some of the harder times in her life....

Anyway - I better stop praising this because otherwise your expectations will be so high the book might not live up to it - and I can't vouch for the English translation (and getting the tone right would be crucial - the German manages to stay on the right side of whimsy so one can always take her seriously, and that's crucial).

[lithorose]

The book is in my possession. I am twelve pages in, and so far it's pretty funny!:D

She had me at the first paragraph, where she decided (quite matter-of-fact) that she ought to stuff handkerchiefs in her dress.:rotfl:

Can't promise to finish it quickly though. I've got a pile of writing I'm trying to get done before I leave for Europe. :xcheer: <--'Cuz it's Christmas in July. :xflirt:

[Elwen]

woo-hoo! I hope you enjoy it.... :)

[Haldomere Banks]

Hjal, now that you've shown your head about here, I have to ask if you've seen Ever After. It's one of the best princess movies out there, and very funny for everyone.... Thanks, I'll add it to our queue. BTW, I usually only watch princess movies with my daughters, so I hopethat this isn' much past PG--I'll have to go look.

Hjal

[lithorose]

It's well within PG limits. The DVD is rated PG-13, because (supposedly) there's a muffled f-word, but I've never heard it.

And ironically the VHS is PG. Weird how they do that sometimes.

[Haldomere Banks]

We saw the trailer for Enchanted at Bee Movie last weekend--it looked pretty funny. The San Jose Mercury News review liked the movie well enough but loved the lead actress, Amy Adams.

http://www.mercurynews.com/movies/ci_7521966

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchanted_%282007_film%29

Trailer: http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/enchanted/

Anybody see it yet?

Hjal

[Elwen]

I thought of this thread when I saw the trailer - but wans't as conscientious as you, Hjal, to actually call in..... :)

It won't open here for another few weeks.....

I found that the trailer looked a bit too over the top for me, but reviews suggest that this may well be good! :)

[Haldomere Banks]

I'm not conscientious...

But there's more news -- $50 milion for the long Thanksgiving weekend, trailing only Toy Story 2. And it looks like most of the reviews are good.

Hjal

[Lanen]

Enchanted - was a fun movie, but not sure I'd be bothered to see it again, which is my measure of how good a movie is.

On the other hand, Iron Man was - ok, overdone on the 'bang! pow!' stakes, but still quite good. And Our Hero did in fact overcome the baddie by using his brain rather than his brawn, which always cheers me up. :)

[Elwen]

ohhhhh.... I enjoyed Enchanted! it's funny in this super-duper-technicolor-gee-wizz way.... and I have to say, I just found it very funny how they represented cartoon characters in the real world. :D

Nice one. Perhaps not a real classic - but a film I think I'll watch again on DVD. :)

[Lanen]

True, it was a good film. I was impressed with the actress - and the more I think about it, ok, have to admit I enjoyed the film, it made some good statements.

Not to change the subject, but have you seen Prince Caspian?

[Elwen]

LOL... not sure whether I detected many valuable statements in Enchanted - well - apart from the usual... don't be a workaholic, etc etc...

But I thought it was such light hearted fun... just unashamedly fluffy, and doing that very well. :)




I have seen Prince Caspian.

It was pretty good - not great, but good, I thought - well wortyh watching in any case. And Ben Barnes is RIDICULOUSLY good looking :D

[Haldomere Banks]

Humpf!

Princess movies should only have eye candy for dads. The ladies are suposed to be interested in the victory of good over evil, maybe a little romance, and a happy ending. "Cute" is OK, I guess, as long as it's Disney-cute for pre-teens.

Although, I guess that it's OK if the prince is so clearly a lunkhead.

Hjal

[Lanen]

Oy, Hjal! How come we ladies can't have a bit of eye-candy too? One requires a handsome prince, after all. Lunkheads are, by definition, not attractive.

And yes, Elwen, I agree about Ben Barnes. Sort of like David Tennant (current Doctor Who) - nobody should be that handsome all at once! I'm running out of drool cloths...

[Elwen]

LOL... just so. :D

And as far as I can remember most princess movies (except the cartoon Disney ones) the princess usually IS eye candy for the accidental male viewer? Am I wrong in thinking that? :confused:


But I am definitely in favour of having proper, droolworthy hunks as princes. This isn't actually often the case, because princess movies are made for the female agegroup who looks for the 'Little Pony' type man, as opposed for the 'Hunk who will bring home the mammoth' type.

Sorry for being simplistic here, but there seems to be a distinct change of taste in men that a woman goes through as she gets older.

I am calling the first category the 'Little Pony' type because I am still so amused about Orlando Blooms' (pretty shrewd, IMHO) attempt at explaining why so many teeenage girls wer drooling over Legolas - he said that they probably wanted to 'comb his hair and stuff, a bit like My little Pony' :lol: :rotfl:

That's unfortunately often the type who gets cast as the Prince.... I guess they should go for Ben Barnes - he seems to tick the 'Little Pony' box reasonably well, while looking manly enough so as to not make me feel embarrassed when I find him droolworthy, too. :D

[Lanen]

Oooh, hadn't heard that from Orlando Bloom - gosh, you mean he has a brain? Amazing! (sorry slaps self, cynicism showing there) Wonder if he has a little sister?

Good bit of analysis re: the varying type of heroes. Certainly you've hit it that we prefer a different kind of fellah as we get older. I wonder, do you think the little girl princess movies have - er - vaguely effiminate men as the hero so there's no real suggestion of sex anywhere? Kissing, yes (e.g. Princess Bride - can't see Cary Elwes being particularly rousing!), but nothing so raw or "dangerous" as a man who could kiss you and carry on from there!

So yeah, I'm all for the Ben Barnes type once he grows up. ;) I know, it's so embarrassing - and I hate to admit it, but the fellah who plays Neville - Matthew Lewis, that's his name - has turned into quite the decent-looking chap as he's got older! Now, ok, I could be his mum (heavens, I could be his grandmother if I'd started early enough! lordy, shoot me now!) - but that's no reason not to find an attractive young man attractive now, is it?

Oh. Oh, ok. :redface:

[Elwen]

Definitely - I see it like that as well....

I don't know... I always felt REALLY uneasy about young men who really look like children - the 'angelic look' which seems to be stage 3 in some women's arc of tastre in men. Elijah Wood is a case in point. He looked all of... don't know... 14? when he played Frodo?

At least the bloke who plays Neville is starting to look like a grown-up man. I think there is a difference, somehow.

I never 'got' Cary Elwes - one of the bad points of Princes Bride, to be honest. All the men are .... not so attractive.

Give me Stardust over that any day ;)


Anyway - I think you are on to something about men in princess movies not being too grown up (so as to not look too threatening to the girls) ... funny, really :D :LOL:


Oh, and concerning Orlando Bloom: we need to see more evidence whether he DOES have a brain, or any talent for acting. But he did grow up to look rather fetching (cue: Kingdom of Heaven), it has to be said. ;)

[Lanen]

Elwen -

Haven't seen Kingdom of Heaven. Must give it a try! :D

I guest that's the difference. I personally thought Elijah Wood was dreadful as Frodo, for exactly that reason - yes, he looked maybe 14, far too young to have the character to do what Frodo did.

I'm glad you agree with me about Matthew Lewis. That's it, really - in OoP he is starting to look like a man, or at least is giving an indication of the adult he will become. Kind of a cheery Welshman with a goofy smile - a bit like my brother in law! :) Apparently he lost a lot of weight and they had to put him in a fat suit! Sheesh...

Daniel Radcliffe is almost too pretty (though who knew, when he was cast as a child, what he would finally look like when he got older?). Still, apparently he has done some fine acting on the London stage (or at least shown off some fine bits!) ;) so there is hope for him yet.

I liked Cary Elwes in Princess Bride, he did a good comedic job and made a good fencer. Haven't liked anything I've seen him in since, really, though mostly he does bit parts.

Just saw some of the trailers for HBP - gosh, December is a long way off!

[Elwen]

I am sorry that I haven't been in here for so long! And what an interesting conversation we had.

I am happy to find someone to agree with me on Elijah Wood's Frodo... it's not an opinion one can easily voice anywhere, least among other women, it seems. But I'll always think he was the wrong man(boy?) for the part.
He doesn't spoil the films - I find I get used to him over those 11 hours... but still.


Anyway - DO try Kingdom of Heaven, but only the extended version. The theatrical version makes no sense whatsoever!

[lithorose]

Interesting conversation...

I finally saw Ella Enchanted. It was pretty good, but I did skip over all the songs. I just don't do pop and/or Broadway musical numbers in my movies, thank you! Took me a long time to remember where I'd seen the prince before, and I was amused at how many scenes reminded me of Ever After.:)

Twilight is coming out next week here; looks to be a princess movie in spirit if not in look. I just finished the novel, and OB's quote about My Little Ponies is particularly fitting...:rotfl:

[Haldomere Banks]

...I finally saw Ella Enchanted. It was pretty good, but I did skip over all the songs. I just don't do pop and/or Broadway musical numbers in my movies, thank you!...But the musical numbers are some of the best parts! Maybe it would help if you knew that they were slightly sarcastic?

Tonight we watched Princess Caraboo. We all really liked it, and Phoebe Cates was just luscious. Kevin Kline was not as wild as in A Fish Called Wanda, but he was pretty funny. I hadn't known he and Cates were married.

The film: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Caraboo_(film)

The real story: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Caraboo

Hjal

[Elwen]

I agree on the songs in Ella Enchanted.... isn't that part of the faux-Disney style?

[lithorose]

This is one case where a bad joke badly told is still a bad joke. Or something. I just really, really, REALLY don't like sitting through singing, whether it's sincere or tongue-in-cheek.

[Elwen]

Ah well.... a matter of taste then, I guess.



So, what does everyone here think about Stardust? I have to say, I really love it. It looks gorgeous, is funny and a good story, too.... :)

[Lanen]

Elwen - yes, I loved Stardust! Neil Gaiman is such a brilliant writer, and even though the movie deviated quite a bit from the book, it was terrific. I wouldn't have missed the interpolated Captain Shakespeare for anything, De Niro was wonderful!

When my DH and I saw it at the cinema, there was a wee lad and his father a few seats away. When it came to the line 'We always knowed you was a whoopsie', the lad whispered loudly, "Dad, what's a whoopsie?" I barely kept from laughing outloud at them rather than the movie. I bet THEY had an interesting conversation on the way home! :D

All in all, though, it was a gorgeous film. And much of it filmed in the highlands and islands of Scotland. :D

[Elwen]

.... and in Wales! :)


I was really amazed to see just how well they managed to show off the best bits of the UK (plus a bit of Iceland and Ireland) - and you are of course right, Skye and the Highlands make up most of it.... . :)

Ad it loosk particularly good when one 'borrows' PJ's circling helicopter shots ;)


I have to say, I love Gaiman's original, but as story-telling goes, I think they actually improved on the story in the film - and I rarely say something like this. I think the character arcs were clearer, and end was better, too, because it actually managed to draw together more strands, and do so in a more satisfying way. And yes, Captain Shakespeare was terrific! Although I would have loved to see Gaiman's original skyport - that is such a beautiful idea in the book. :)

[Haldomere Banks]

After seeing the reviews of the book and then seeing it in the store and reading a few pages, I decided to get two copies, so each of my daughters could have one after i read it to them. As a physical artifact, it is my favorite book since LotR, with the exception of some large reference works and a few items I've seen in libraries and could never afford. I like the shape, the illustrations, the style.

Then I read it myself.

Now I have to decide if I can edit on the fly to make it an acceptable story to read to my 8-year-olds, or to wait for one to five years and just give them the books for their birthday.

Is the movie more age-appropriate, perhaps?

Hjal

[Elwen]

Gosh - yes, I was wondering about this recently. It's such a beautiful picture book (I live how the illustrator actually crtedited the influence of Alan Lee - it shows! :notworthy )... but definitely not entirely child friendly!

The film is PG (PG-13) - I would assume that this is for violence (not a lot, and no bloody violence, but a few scares certainly) rather than for sex - although of course a few of the jokes are quite saucy, but might just pass by an eight year old. I am never quite sure! Today's eight year olds are much more savvy in those things than I was at that age!


In any case, you might just nfind you enjoy the film yourself if you want to watch it just to check whether it's OK for your chidlren. It's probably a matte rof how individuals react to certain details ...

[Lanen]

Indeed. I generally don't think of Gaiman as child-friendly, on paper or onscreen, though it's hard to know. Depends on the child, I suspect, but I would guess that waiting a few years might be the clever thing to do, Hjal.

Unless you wanna get a head start on how come Dunstan Thorne was given a baby to take care of 9 months after he visited the Faerie Camp? Over to you, Dad!