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Secret Letters and the Cruise

 Tuesday: The Last of Sheila (1973)

             Clinton's wife was killed in a hit and run after a party. A year later he invites his friends on vacation on a yacht off the French coast line. He suspects each of them of being the one who killed his wife. Clinton loves to play games and has created a game for the whole trip. Each guest is given a card with a secret on it. They have to find out who's secret it is by the end of the week. Each day they have a challenge where they can figure out who belongs to one of the secrets. He hopes this will help him find the killer. Not too far into the week it takes an unexpected turn. I liked this movie. It was a twist on your normal guests in a house murder mystery.

Wednesday: The Big Heat (1953)

        A cop commits suicide. Dave, another cop is assigned to the case. He soon starts to realize there might be more behind the suicide. The town is run by a mob. Many police and politicians work for the mob. They do their best to stop Dave from solving the case. Even threatening his family. Then he talks to the girlfriend of one of the high ranking mob members. She gives him information that will help break open the case. I thought this movie was alright.

Friday: The Last Letter from Your Lover (2021)

             Ellie is a journalist working on an article about the paper's former editor when she discovers a love letter. She is intrigued by the letter and wants to find more. Ellies gets help from the archivist at the paper, Rory. Back in the 60s we see the story behind the letters. Jennifer is married to a wealthy man. He is gone a lot for work and doesn't pay much attention to her when he is there. They go on vacation. A journalist meets them there to write an article about Jennifer's husband. Soon after her husband leaves for work. Jennifer and the journalist, Anthony, become friends. Soon that friendship leads to more. They fall in love. Yet Jennifer can't bring herself to leave her husband. In the present Ellie searches for more letters to find out what happened. She also tries to find Jennifer and Anthony. This is a good movie.

Saturday: Jungle Cruise (2021)

            There is a legend of a magical tree on the Amazon River that's petals can heal any ailment. Many have searched for it. Conquistadors searched for it but ended up being cursed. In 1916 Lily is a doctor in search of the tree. She drags her brother, MacGregor, with her to find the tree in Brazil. Frank is a skipper who gives tours on the river. Everything is rigged and fake. When Lily arrives she hires Frank to take them to find the tree. He reluctantly agrees. A German prince is also after the tree, hoping to use its petal to help Germany win the upcoming war. They all go on an adventure with many twists and turns. I thought this was a good movie. Not the best but still fun. It is inspired by many things. Let me tell you all the inspirations I saw. Obviously it's inspired by the ride. They have the animals and the corny jokes. The conquistadors have started to become part of the jungle. One is a beehive, one is made of mud, another is built up of snakes. Which is a lot like the pirates on Davy Jones' crew in Pirates of the Caribbean. Lily is a lot like Jack Sparrow. She comes up with these crazy plans that somehow work out. The ride was based on The African Queen and you can see that in this movie too. In King Solomon's Mines a brother and sister travel to Africa to find treasure. They hire a surly guide. Like this movie.  It's also a lot like Indiana Jones. Lily is an academic who also goes on adventures. There is a German villain also after the artifact. It's set at about the same time. With so many inspirations you almost wonder if they had any original thoughts. But it still worked I guess. It's fun.

Sunday: Whisper of the Heart (1995)

           Shizuku is a young teenager obsessed with reading. She starts to notice that a boy is checking out all the same books she is from the library. Shizuku starts to wonder who this mystery boy is and if they would get along. She keeps running into this obnoxious boy who teases her. One day on the subway she notices a cat get on. It gets off at her stop. Curious she follows it to an antique shop. There she sees a statue of a cat in a suit that fascinates her. Shizuku meets the kind old man who owns the store. Then she runs into the obnoxious boy, he is the grandson of the shop owner. After she goes back to the shop she realizes that the boy isn't so bad. This is a good movie. It is another Studio Ghibli film. 

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