And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007)

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"It's stupid really.

You spend your lifetime trying to avoid talking to someone and then, all of a sudden, it's too late."

Based on Blake Morrison's reminiscences of his own father.

Arthur Morrison (Jim Broadbent) is dying. His son Blake (Colin Firth) arrives to be with him. As the days pass, Blake recalls the years with his father, the love and the frustration, the irritations and intimacies of their relationship, and questions the nature of of the relationship between parent and child.

Tender and poignant.

Bradley Johnson and Matthew Beard are touching as Blake as a child and as a teenager. Also appearing are Juliet Stevenson and Claire Skinner as Arhtur's wife and daughter, Elaine Cassidy as Blake's first love,

The music, which ranges from classical and opera to rock 'n roll, is finely tuned to the tone of each scene.

Directed by Anand Tucker.

Run time: 1 hour, 32 minutes

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, thematic material and brief strong language.

My personal rating: B

Shopgirl (2006)

A Certain Tenderness

Wealthy, middle-aged Ray (Steve Martin) becomes the suitor of a young store clerk, Mirabelle (Claire Danes), who feels isolated and purposeless selling gloves in an expensive clothing store.

Eventually she longs for more commitment than Ray can give her and meets the penniless but sincere Jeremy (Jason Schwartzman). She wonders if it's time to give up one man for the other.

This is a bittersweet story flawed with some slow pacing and a fairly predictable ending, but there were some warm and rich sequences. I enjoyed it considerably more than the similar Lost in Translation.

From a novella by Steve Martin and directed by Anand Tucker.

Rated R for some sexual content and brief language.

My personal rating: B-.