The Long, Long Trailer with Lucy Ball and Desi Arnaz

Rating: 5 arthritic fingers up.

Produced in 1954, this old movie is pretty amusing if you consider the age of the thing. You won't see any great special effects, although, the one scene where Lucy gets blown out of the camper is pretty funny. The premise of this movie (and the reason I watched it as we just bought a travel trailer) is that this young married couple decide to buy a travel trailer so that they can be together as Desi starts his music career on the road.

As can be expected, travels and travails occur, including getting the car (a cadillac is pulling this very long, long trailer!) and trailer stuck in mud up to the axles. Lucy, in typical Lucille Ball fashion, is a daffy housewife who insists on collecting rocks on their trip around the US. Of course, this adds to the weight of the travel trailer and to Desi's despair.

Amusing as this short film is, as a younger person, you might not like it, but watch it with an older person and you'll like it more. I'm sorry that my Mom is no longer with me to have watched it, but I know she would have laughed at the antics in this movie.

If you liked the Long Long Trailer, you might also consider watching Lucy and Desi's 2 other movies:

Not without my daughter with Sally Field

Rating: 7 arthritic fingers up.

Not without my daughter is a true story about Betty Mamoody - an American woman married to an Iranian man. In 1986, she agreed to accompany her husband to his home in Iran for a 2 week vacation to visit his family. She, her daughter and her husband arrived in Iran to a tumultuous greeting and a war strewn country.

During their 2 weeks in Iran, Betty Mahmoody's husband rededicated himself to the Shiite Moslem faith and took on the role of a traditional Iranian man and expected Betty to become an Iranian woman. Swathed in traditional Iranian dress she was beaten frequently and, upon occasion, Moody beat his daughter too.

Considering herself and her daughter held hostage, she fought long and hard to escape over the border (mostly on foot and horseback) to Turkey where she went to the American Embassy. She was reunited with her family in the US in 1986.

Today, Betty Mahmoody fights for the freedom of others in the same predicament. More can be read about this fascinating woman here: Betty Mamoody.

As is Sally Field's wont, she played the part of Betty Mamoody with perfection. This movie was a great find for a rainy, cold day. Mom had no trouble following it and really liked it.

If you liked Not Without My Daughter, you might like some of Sally Field's other movies such as:

Awakenings with Robin Williams and Robert De Niro

Rating: 6 arthritic fingers up

For those of you who have seen Awakenings, you might wonder why only 6 arthritic fingers up. I chose this rating as, in my own opinion, this movie is easily a 10 but, when viewing with a senior citizen, it's probably quite sad in the end.

Awakenings is based on a true story of British neurologist, Oliver Sacks, and his quest to bring back to life a group of people suffering the effects of an epidemic of encephalitis lethargica between 1917 and 1928. The disease left these people in a catatonic state with little ability to interact with others or their environment.

Robin Williams (playing Malcolm Sayer) is superb in his portrayal of Oliver Sacks. He breaks away from his rapid fire personality and plays this shy researcher with grace and great skill. But, the winning performance of the movie Awakenings, and perhaps of his career, goes to Robert De Niro who plays Leonard Lowe, a now 40 something man who has been in a catatonic state since he was a very young boy. Robert De Niro masters the mannerisms of one both awakening and then descending back into a deep sleep with such skill it's just amazing.

As heartwarming as it is heartbreaking, Awakenings should be on everyone's bookshelf. Just view it carefully before sharing it with you favorite senior citizen.

If you liked Awakenings, you might also like:

Moonstruck with Cher and Nicholas Cage

Rating: Four arthritic fingers up

I'll admit it - this review is mostly my take on Moonstruck as my Mom fell asleep right after it started, awoke briefly, decided it was boring and dozed right back off. I could have done the same if I hadn't been entertained by online writing while the movie was playing.

The premise of this movie is one of deception - and, everybody is cheating on everybody else during this particular phase of the moon - hence, Moonstruck.

Cher's character is engaged to an Italian mobster type man but sleeps, and falls in love with, his brother. Cher's mother (Olivia Dukakis) meets a younger college professor during dinner out one night and there she goes! Meanwhile, Cher's father is carrying on a display of affection with a tart.

Besides everyone doing everyone else, there was a scene when Cher's original boyfriend is at the bedside of his ill mother. I found that scene a bit uncomfortable given that I'm my elderly Mom's caregiver. I was glad she slept through it, although the mother does recover.

There's also a lot of Italian yelling and gesturing. I say skip this one. Instead, you might like:

   

La Bamba with Lou Diamond Phillips

Rating: 7 arthritic fingers up.

La Bamba tells the story of Richie Valens, from the undiscovered youth all the way to the fated plane crash that took his life along with the Big Bopper and Buddy Holly on February 3, 1959. Lou Diamond Phillips does an admirable job portraying Richie although I felt like his lip syncing to the songs was a bit off.

La Bamba would have garnished a higher rating if it wasn't that I constantly had to readjust the volume to a comfortable roar. If I adjusted the movie speaking parts to a dull roar, when a song came on, if the volume was left alone, I would have had curled hair! For those who can't hear anyway, it was probably ok but it ground my teeth down! So I was always fiddling with the volume.

Mom and I loved the story though as it is heartwarming and inspiring. In Richie Valens short life, he only got a few songs out but they were all popular. "Come on, let's go" was his first published recording followed shortly by "Donna" and his most popular hit, "La Bamba." In his own way and in his short 17 years, Richie Valens left his mark on the music industry.

If you liked La Bamba, you might like:
    

Living with a Stranger - Julia Roberts

 Rating: 6 arthritic fingers up.

This thriller movie held my interest (mostly) but not Mom's. The story line is a bit implausible. Julia Roberts plays a battered wife who fakes her own drowning to escape from her husband. After a night sail which turns bad in a storm, she slips overboard and manages to make her way to shore and a quick trip to her house to gather her runaway bag. In her wake, she leaves the most gorgeous house on Nantucket. I'm thinking that if I were her, I would have figured out a way to keep that house! But, that's besides the point. She also made a fatal error by putting her wedding ring in the toilet. Why she'd do that when she had the whole ocean in front of her was just too weird. And, the implausibility of the wedding ring still being there peaking out of the bottom of the toilet bowl after the funeral and after the house has been shut up just doesn't ring true (sorry). Didn't those people pee?

Anyway, Julia makes a run for it and tries to start a new life. That's as far as I'm going with this review. Don't want to be a spoiler for the tense ending!

As far as senior citizens liking this movie, maybe not so much. There's flashback scenes that sort of confused my Mom and the suspense was not her favorite thing.

If you or your senior citizen liked this movie, you might also like:
   

Father's Little Dividend - Spencer Tracy, Joan Bennett, Elizabeth Taylor

Rating: 6 arthritic fingers up - would have been higher if the sound quality was better and Gert didn't like Billie Burke's voice - it was 'squeaky.'

This movie is the sequel to The Father of the Bride (which we didn't see as it's not on Netflix....drats). But, Father's Little Dividend was fun anyway. The main character, Stanley Banks (played by Spencer Tracy), has finally gotten over his daughter's (played by a young and very beautiful Elizabeth Taylor) elaborate wedding the previous year and is settling in, dreaming of his retirement when he gets a little surprise; she's pregnant and he's going to be a Grandpa. He's feeling old and not at all happy but that's not it....

Stanley's wife, Ellie, however, is over the moon with the news of the baby and wants to be a hands on Grandma! She gets uber involved in the situation and offers to have younger happy couple move in with she and Stanley while their house is being built. Remodeling and other havoc ensues throughout the rest of the movie.

We did notice a problem with the quality of this movie produced in 1951. As with most old movies, the sound quality is not superb and mom had a hard time hearing some of the dialogue, even with the TV volume up to the max. So, if your elderly friend is hard of hearing, this one might be a little hard. (Note: other places in the movie were SO LOUD they scared us to death!). Well, not quite to death...thankfully.

But, alas, Mom couldn't stand Billie Burke's voice so we ditched the movie after just 20 minutes or so.

Steve Martin and Diane Keaton recreate the rolls of the elder Banks couple in the recreated Father of the Bride series which are also very funny. These newer movies might be a better bet for the elderly with hearing problems.

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner - hint, it's Sidney Portier

Rating: 5 arthritic fingers up.

Well, Guess Who's Coming To Dinner was a hit with my Mom but a bit slow for me. It's a talk of an interracial couple when interracial wasn't cool - the movie was produced in 1967.

The action really focuses more on the parents of the woman half of the interracial couple (played by Katharine Houghton - her first role in movies) and Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy were hot even back in the day!

The movie was ok, but I'm just not sure it was fast enough to hold the fleeting attention span of the elderly (or me...). One thing is certain though: Sidney Portier sure was a good looking dude and even Gert thought so.

If you did happen to like this movie, you might also want to view: