Last Vegas
Four childhood friends Billy (Michael Douglas), Paddy (Robert De Niro), Archie (Morgan Freeman) and Sam (Kevin Kline) are now old. Paddy lives alone after his wife Sophie’s death. Billy calls Sam, Archie, and Paddy for a reunion party in Las Vegas. In Vegas, Billy falls for a young singer Diana (Mary Steenburgen) and reveals that Paddy had told Sophie to choose either Billy or him and she secretly chose Billy first but Billy told Sophie that she was meant to be with Paddy. In the present, Billy tells Diana that Paddy too likes her but she says she is not Sophie which Paddy is shocked to overhear. Billy reveals his feelings for Diana and they decide to get married. The comedy film was CBS Films’ highest grossing movie to date.
Feast of Love
Café owner Bradley’s (Greg Kinnear) wife leaves him but he finds love in Diana. When she too leaves him, Bradley stabs himself and in hospital he meets Margit (Erika Marozsán). It is suggested that they may get hitched. Another couple Oscar (Toby Hemingway) a café worker and Chloe (Alexa Davalos) love each other. Harry (Morgan Freeman) who advises youngsters about love at the café, is married to Esther (Jane Alexander) but unknown to others they are grieving over the death of their adult son. So after Oscar dies and Chloe gets pregnant, Harry and Esther offer to adopt Chloe and she accepts. The drama film with a narrative by Harry (Freeman) and based on the novel by Charles Baxter is about love and its impact on people.
The Bucket List
THE BUCKET LIST, Jack Nicholson, Morgan Freeman, 2007. ©Warner Bros./courtesy Everett Collection |
Terminally ill mechanic Carter (Morgan Freeman) and billionaire Edward (Jack Nicholson) meet in the hospital. Carter writes a ‘bucket list’ i.e., things to do before he ‘kicks the bucket’ but discards it. Edward offers to finance the around-the-world vacation so they go skydiving, drive a Mustang, fly over the North Pole, eat dinner in France, see the Taj Mahal, ride motorcycles on the China Wall, go for a lion safari in Africa, etc. Edward reconciles with his estranged daughter and at Carter’s funeral says that the last three months were the best months of both their lives. Their ashes are taken to the Himalayas by Edward’s valet Matthew and he ticks off the last item on the bucket list (“witness something truly majestic”) The comedy-drama was a box office success and was considered to be among the top 10 films of that year.
Nurse Betty
Waitress Betty (Renée Zellweger) loves watching a particular soap opera on TV. Her husband, unknown to her, sells drugs. Charlie (Morgan Freeman) and Wesley murder Betty’s husband for the drugs and to escape the harsh reality, she assumes the identity of one of the TV serial characters, a nurse. The next day she drives away in the car containing drugs. The two hitmen chase her and Charlie falls for Betty, who feels she is married to the George character from the serial. George thinks Betty is an over-imaginative fan but falls for her. Charlie decides not to kill Betty and commits suicide. Betty appears in TV shows and plans to pursue nursing as a career. Zellweger won a Golden Globe and the quirky black comedy did well at the BO.
Kiss the Girls
After his niece Naomi and other young women are abducted, detective Cross (Morgan Freeman) gets details from local detective Ruskin (Cary Elwes). One girl Kate McTiernan (Ashley Judd) manages to escape the clutches of a masked man who calls himself ‘Casanova’. With her help, Cross rescues the kidnapped women including Naomi but Casanova escapes. Cross discovers that Ruskin’s signature matches with that of Casanova and tries to warn Kate about Ruskin but Ruskin disconnects the telephone. After a fight Kate manages to handcuff Ruskin to the oven and Cross shoots him. Based on the best-selling novel by James Patterson the tense and scary psychological thriller led to a sequel. Watch Morgan Freeman’s compelling performance as a cool, unemotional and calculating cop.
