Rope: This may have creeped me out the most of all the Hitchcock movies that I've ever seen. The rope is about two college aged, well off, intellectual young men who have murdered a friend of theirs for the art of it. It's eerie to listen to listen to them talk about it, their reasoning and what they do afterwords. The pair throw a party and serve out from their friend's resting place, inviting his friends and family. Jimmy Stewart is in attendance, a friend and former teacher, it was theories of his which inspired the act. Stewart is therefore the one that becomes the most suspicious through the course of the party. A very well made movie but I don't know that I'd care to see it again.

Saboteur: It was a Hitchcock mini marathon while I was working on getting a quilt tied. This movie takes place during WWII, and is somewhat of a propaganda movie to stir people to the war effort, not as much as other movies of the same period however. Barry Kane and his friend work at an air craft plant and when the plant is set a fire he and his friend try to help put it out, leading to his friend's death. After the fire Barry is wrongfully suspected of sabotage, he has to go on the run and try to clear his name. It's an interesting journey and along the way we see both the good and the bad of people. I recommend this movie.

Shadow of a Doubt: This movie, the last in my Hitchcock marathon, was not my favorite, nor was it pleasant to consider. In a small town a family waits for a visit from their Uncle Charlie, especially his name sake Charlie (Charlotte), she feels a special connection to her uncle. Uncle Charlie is much beloved but seems to be a little edgy, especially when two men show up to interview the family for the common good and to take pictures. Only Charlie finds out what Uncle Charlie knows, that these men are detectives that are looking for the "Merry Widow Murderer". Charlie is caught in a very hard and dangerous spot.

Tangled: I went to this movie with great expectations, the previews and advertisements that I've seen for this movie, as well as the reviews from friends etc. all made it sound very good. On the whole the movie was very good but I felt like it was not quite as good as the previews. I didn't care for the songs in the movie that much, but there were a lot of great and very funny moments in the movie. One thing was strange was hearing Zachary Levi's voice come out of a different face, Levi plays the title role in Chuck and it was a different sort of role for him. It was a really good movie but not as high I suppose as I expect from Disney and Pixar.

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner: I recently read a biography about Katherine Hepburn and this movie was mentioned, it's the last movie she and Spencer Tracy made together and I believe it was Tracy's last movie before he died. I saw it at the library, or maybe I put it on hold, either way I got it and watched it and it was phenomenal. Now despite my praise, and not to take away from it, this movie was a bit hard to watch. The plot centers around a biracial couple telling their parents that they mean to get married, it takes place in the late 60s or early 70s. I imagine that this movie was quite groundbreaking when it was made and possibly harder to watch then. It's hard to watch because even for all the progress made since the movie was made, the same issues still linger. The parents of the couple all struggle with the situation, they've worked for such a coupling to be possible and yet the prejudices and stereotypes that they were raised with are still hard to fight, the same struggles occur today. It's a very powerful movie, Sidney Poitier is fantastic in it, I think that everyone should see it.

Rear Window: I don't recall being too impressed with this movie the first time that I saw it but that was several years ago and I enjoyed it more this time. Alfred Hitchcock was truly a master at what he did, it's amazing to see the craftsmanship that he put into this and his other movies. I guess I have a bit more appreciation now and watching a documentary about it didn't hurt. I'm not Jimmy Stewart's biggest fan but both he and Grace Kelley were quite good in this movie. I think something that made me not so impressed with the movie the first time that I saw it is the advancement of movies since then. When I first watched this movie other movies like Bourn Identity etc. were around, perhaps not so masterfully done but designed to get adrenaline pumping. I also watched Rear Window in the comfort of my own home, not in a dark movie theater, that tones down the excitement some I would imagine.

The Butterfly/ Le Papillon: This movie is French and is very sweet. The little girl is adorable and there's a lot of beautiful scenery and I learned a fair amount about butterflies.
It's a Wonderful Life: It's after Christmas but I'm spending some time with George Bailey. We probably all have dreams like George and also like George we don't necessary see the fruition of those dreams, life had other plans for him.

National Treasure: I really liked this movie when it first came out but in subsequent viewings I've found myself liking it less. The plot is intriguing but it's really cheesy in many parts. It's not a bad action movie though and I like that it makes me think about history a bit more.

National Treasure 2: I don't actually remember what the exact title was. I think I like this one better than the first one, despite the fact that while a "national treasure" is a bit far fetched, a temple of gold behind Mount Rushmore is even more ridiculous. I think this movie on the whole is better than the first, however I think that the plot/idea behind the first movie was much better.

The Man Who Knew Too Much: I am a fan of Hitchcock and a moderate fan of Jimmy Stewart, but while this movie was very suspenseful, I didn't care for it. I blame Doris Day, she in no way says "Hitchcock thriller" to me, she says Glass Bottom Boat and other cheery movies full of song.

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington: This is one of Frank Capra's greatest movies, I think that everyone should see it, and often. Jimmy Stewart and Jean Aurthur are both wonderful in this movie. I highly recommend it.

Wives and Daughters: This is technically a mini serise but I'm going to count it anyways. Wives and Daughters is based off a book by the same name by Elizabeth Gaskill. I think they were pretty true to the book, edits here and there but I love both the movie and the book. One really nice thing about the movie is that there's an ending, Elizabeth Gaskill sadly died before she wrote the ending of the book. I really think that they did a great job with this movie, in picking out the characters and telling the story and everything like that, this is a movie that I enjoy watching time after time.

Shop Around The Corner: I'd heard about this movie and I saw it at the library and so I thought I'd try it, I wasn't expecting much but I was quite pleasantly surprised. This movie includes a fun cast of characters and I think that's probably why I like it so much, I find movies can be much more entertaining if there's a great cast of supporting characters in addition to the main characters. The setting for this plot is a leather goods shop in Budapest during some kind of economic depression. According to the blurb on the back of the case You've Got Mail was a re-make of this movie. It's a sweet if perhaps sappy plot but Jimmy Stewart is always great.

Annie: This was a movie I loved when I was little and I thought I'd see if it was still as good as it was then; it was still pretty good but not as good as when I was little but so many things showed up this time that were over my head when I was little. Carol Burnett is really good in this movie, Bernadette Peters is a pretty typical casting, no real singing though. It's a look back at life in the 30s.

Sabrina: This isn't a repeat, it's the remake of the one with Audrey Hepburn, this one was made in the 90s. This version of Sabrina, for me at least, doesn't have the charm of the original, it feels a tad adulterated, however it is still a good movie and it's very funny with lots of memorable lines.

Wait Until Dark: Do not watch this movie home alone in the dark, you will regret it. This movie I suppose might be called more of a thriller but I find it terrifying. I think far more frightening that the disturbing things that people can think up, are the things that are actually really quite possible. Audrey Hepburn's character is recently blinded and adjusting to life when she unwittingly becomes involved with drug dealers and murderers.