I’m a movie buff. There’s something about the right combination of screenplay, direction, production, editing, and acting, that I just enjoy discovering. And when a movie is really good, I’ll watch it over and over. Sometimes I catch things I missed before, which is, to me, the mark of a great film. For the most part, I prefer classic movies, but newer ones grab me too. This is my top ten list of movies that are worth watching more than once.

10. [amazon_link id=”B001D8W7EK” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Notorious (1946)[/amazon_link]

Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman give stellar performances as a US intelligence officer and a woman who’s asked to spy on a Nazi group in South America.

9. [amazon_link id=”B00008LDO3″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Ox-bow Incident (1943)[/amazon_link]

Dana Andrews and Henry Fonda star in this gripping study of vigilantism in the Old West and what sort of man would go along with it.

8. [amazon_link id=”079284615X” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Henry V (1989)[/amazon_link]

Kenneth Branagh wrote, directed, and starred in this adaptation of Shakespeare’s play. Standout performances by a cast that includes Emma Thompson, Judi Dench, and a young Christian Bale.

7. [amazon_link id=”B00005A06N” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Some Like it Hot (1959)[/amazon_link]

What do two male musicians who witness a gang slaying do to escape the killers? Disguise themselves as women and join an all female musical troupe, of course. Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Marilyn Monroe shine in this fun romp by Billy Wilder.

6. [amazon_link id=”B0012KPPP2″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]My Man Godfrey (1936)[/amazon_link]

Carole Lombard died too young. She’s perfect as the flighty Irene Bullock in this classic screwball comedy and a great foil to William Powell’s staid rich man turned forgotten man turned butler.

5. [amazon_link id=”B000J670ZI” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Bringing up Baby (1938)[/amazon_link]

Howard Hawks surely got his wish when he declared he wanted no normal characters in this film. Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn always played well off each other, and this movie was no exception. Lots of fun, with some great one-liners.

4. [amazon_link id=”B00004RF97″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Philadelphia Story (1940)[/amazon_link]

Another fun Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant film, this time with the added talents of James Stewart and Ruth Hussey. A socialite about to remarry finds her ex husband has returned, with some guests that make her rethink her priorities. Another movie with some great quips.

3. [amazon_link id=”B009L147EE” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Best Years of our Lives (1946)[/amazon_link]

Three men return home from World War II to find their lives are unalterably changed, some for the good, some for the bad. Dana Andrews gives a great performance as a shell-shocked bomber pilot whose life and marriage are spinning out of control.

2. [amazon_link id=”B000ID37RM” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)[/amazon_link]

Gregory Peck is at his best as Atticus Finch in this tale of racism, poverty, and ignorance in the Depression Era South. Two moments choke me up every time: when Atticus is leaving the courtroom after the trial and when Scout meets Boo face to face.

1. [amazon_link id=”B0030MTXKS” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Lion in Winter (1968)[/amazon_link]

It’s Christmas in Chinon, and that means intrigue, anger, jealousy, and back-stabbing in this adaptation of James Goldman’s play. Katharine Hepburn is great as the imprisoned Eleanor of Aquitaine, and she and Peter O’Toole as Henry II play off each other well. This film marks the screen debuts of Timothy Dalton and Anthony Hopkins.

*~*

North and South: Wild and Wanton Edition, by Brenna Chase and Elizabeth Gaskell

Blurb:

Margaret Hale’s life changes dramatically when her father quits his living as a parson in the idyllic New Forest in the South of England and moves the family to the northern industrial town of Milton, intending to become a private tutor. There, she is appalled at the poverty surrounding her and at first finds the local mill workers too rough, but soon she can’t help sympathizing with their plight.

John Thornton is a magistrate and owner of a prosperous cotton mill. Forced to become the head of the household at a young age and driven to keep his family from becoming impoverished again, he’s had no time for love. He certainly has no time for a lady who looks down on both him and the industry in which he earns his livelihood. Their beliefs lead them to inevitably clash, but their arguments over his treatment of his workers mask a deep attraction neither wants, and eventually, one that neither can deny.

Although it is labeled as a social novel, North and South simmers with sexual tension. Through the backdrop of a labor strike and a riot, through a possible murder and its fallout, through the deaths of loved ones, and the rise and fall of fortunes, the romance between John Thornton and Margaret Hale still entrances readers as it did when first published in 1855. In this updated version, read the steamy scenes that Ms. Gaskell, a minister’s wife, could not include in the original work, from John and Margaret’s first desperate, yet tender, lovemaking, to their sizzling reunion in London.

 

Sensuality Level: Sensual 

Excerpt:

“… You will see Milton without smoke in a few days, I imagine, Miss Hale.” He turned his gaze to her as he spoke, and sure enough, little spots of colour formed on her cheeks. He leaned forward in his chair as he awaited her reply.

“But why,” asked she, “could you not explain what good reason you have for expecting a bad trade? I don’t know whether I use the right words, but you will understand what I mean.”

“Do you give your servants reasons for your expenditure, or your economy in the use of your own money? We, the owners of capital, have a right to choose what we will do with it.”

“A human right,” said Margaret, very low.

“I beg your pardon, I did not hear what you said.”

“I would rather not repeat it,” said she; “it related to a feeling which I do not think you would share.”

“Won’t you try me?” pleaded he; his thoughts suddenly bent upon learning what she had said. She was displeased with his pertinacity, but did not choose to affix too much importance to her words.

“I said you had a human right. I meant that there seemed no reason but religious ones, why you should not do what you like with your own.”

***

“Miss Hale, this is between my employees and me. I’ll thank you to remember that.”

Incensed, she rose and removed the dressing gown, thrusting it toward him. “I had better go. Thank you, Mr. Thornton.”

He stood as well. “It’s still raining.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Then I wish you good day, Miss Hale.”

But she made no move to gather her hat and shawl as she looked up at him. Instead, she found herself wanting to smooth the frown from his brow, and she tore her gaze away, unable to understand the feeling. She cleared her throat and glanced back at him. He was suddenly closer, and his expression had grown more intent, his eyes darting from hers to her lips and back again. Her pulse began to race again and heat flared in her stomach. “Mr. Thornton.”

“John,” he said, his voice a little deeper and more rough than usual. “My name is John.”

Before Margaret could reply, his hands cupped her face, and his lips brushed hers. Her eyes, which had drifted closed, opened wide and she stared at him, her tongue darting out to taste where he had kissed. Mr. Thornton released a harsh breath and his lips covered hers again, moving over them with slow, lingering caresses. Margaret was too astonished to push him away. She was further stunned to realise she did not want to. She liked this kiss: from the light tingling pressure of his mouth on hers, to the soft scrape of his stubble against her face. She liked it very much! Heady excitement rushed through her veins, warming her as it spread through her limbs, her body. She began to kiss him back, answering each ardent stroke of Mr. Thornton’s lips with one of her own as she sought more of the wonderful feelings.