Treasure Island

James: 5 *: five stars.  I liked it when Blackdog gave the pirate the black dot and he said, "You have until ten tonight," and then when the pirates came he was dead.  And I liked it when Jim found out that his friend Long John Silver was a pirate. And I liked it when Long John Silver stole gold from the Treasure Island. I liked it when the pirate fell from the rigging to the deck. And it was funny when Ben Gunn was eating cheese and then Long John Silver whacked him on the head with a bat and put some rum right next to him and then Jim came over and said "How did this guy fall over?" and Silver was like, "I don't know." It was also good when the pirates dug in the wrong place. 

Jupiter: 2 stars. I didn't like the pirates. I didn't like it when they used guns and swords. The only girl in the movie was the mother of Jim.  I did like the lizard and the parrot. That's all I have to say about it.

Raiders of the Lost Ark

James (age 6):  ***** I liked the part when they said, "No human has come out alive from this cave."  And then the boulder chased him.  And when the monkey took a date and he was laying on the floor dead. And when the Nazi's were digging in the wrong spot and Indiana Jones was digging in the right spot.  And he said, "Why is this floor moving?" And Indiana Jones said, "Snakes." And then he went down to the ground and fighted off the snakes with fire, and that cobra was about to strike at his face, and then he went over tot eh ark and brang it up to where the Nazi's were and then the Nazi's carried it to their place.  And I liked that truck scene, when that Nazi was driving the truck and Indiana Jones took over the front seat and then this other guy, he jumped in feet first and kicked indiana Jones out of the truck and then Indiana Jones went and kicked him out of the truck and off the cliff.  I did not like the way there were too many scary parts and the way it was like, we had to close our eyes, for like, I don't know how long.  How many minutes? I liked when that Nazi was trying to get the diamond on the necklace but it burned his hand and made that marking.  And when those guys with bows and arrows were waiting at the end of the cave and Indiana Jones was coming out of the cave and they stole the gold idol with words.

Jupiter: *** I wish there was less fighting, less trucks and less bleeding.

Justice: *** Three stars.  Snakes.  I liked the snake part.   And the scary part and the bloody part.  The bloody skeleton part.

Mama:  This movie held up!  I loved it as a kid, and with reason, I now realize.  It's gripping from beginning to end.  This time around I spent a lot of time watching my kids watch the movie, and their faces showed how the action possessed them, how the movie owned them.  What a pleasure to be so enrapt in the action, the tension of a chase scene--the relief when Indy's safe (though not for long!)  As an adult the scene where Indy decides NOT to save Marion really took me by surprise.  He's that kind of action hero, for whom securing the treasure is more important than saving the girl.  And when the girl doesn't get saved, she has to be left to her own devices, which is much more interesting. As for Marion, I always loved her as a kid, and was sorry the later movies wrote her out. Indy's utter ambivalence to her actually made for some good chemistry.  I could have done with less truck stunts, and the airplane fight scene had no purpose in terms of plot or character, but Harrison Ford is adorable as Indiana Jones, and the adventure is non-stop.