Graham Simpkins, The Holiday, 2006

There are some movies that are just keepers.  Ones I enjoy watching over and over.  The Holiday is one of those movies, and though I’m not really a Jude Law fan, there’s something so vulnerable about him in this movie that I’m almost a convert.  Graham Simpkins is a book editor in England.  His sister, Iris, works for a newspaper in Surrey.  When her love life falls apart, she swaps houses with a woman from LA and goes on a two week holiday.  

Stats:

Graham gets phone calls from girls when he’s with love interest Amanda.  One call is from Sophie, the other from Olivia.  Obviously, he comes with baggage.  The truth of the matter is that these two people in his life are his daughters, and he keeps them private, reluctant to introduce anyone to them who might not be there for very long and who might disrupt the fragile balance he and his girls have.  They’re the three musketeers.

When Amanda comes calling to Graham’s house one evening before Christmas, she discovers Graham is not alone.  She says to him, “Are you married?  Tell me quick.”

He shakes his head and spells, “W. I. D. O. W. E. R.”

That moment shines a light on Graham and who he is inside, the world he’s trying to protect, and what his future will hold if he lets someone into this private haven he’s created for his children.

The Look:

Golden skin, blondish hair, blue devilish eyes, and a dazzling smile.  When he puts a napkin over his head, dons his eyeglasses and sucks the cloth into his mouth, he becomes ‘Mr. Napkinhead’, a look that makes him even more lovable.  

Jude Law plays Graham with just the right amount of devil-may-care flare and vulnerability.  He even cries [a little bit–which actually I don’t love] so he’s a really emotionally accessible man in the end.

Leading Lady:

Amanda Woods makes movie trailers.  Meanwhile her love life is in a shambles.  When she trades homes with Iris, she thinks not being around anyone she knows will be a good thing.  Instead, she’s never been more lonely in her life.  Until, that is, she meets Graham Simpkins.  

Amanda’s never gotten over the divorce of her parents.  She doesn’t cry.  At all.  Until Graham shows her love and how to feel more deeply than she’s ever felt before.  They compliment each other.  Who knows how they’ll manage a cross-continental relationship, but I’m rooting for them.

The Final Analysis:

The Holiday is one of those movies I will watch once a year, or so.  When I’m feeling blah, or just wanting an ‘ahhh’ moment, it’s the perfect escape.  Jude Law is a perfect Graham Simpkins and he’s a big part of why I like this movie.  It’s a great romantic comedy and worth the rental.  

Question of the Day:

What’s your favorite ‘ahhhh’ movie when you need a romantic fix?

Sacred Sins by Nora Roberts (Bantam, 1987)

STATS: There’s a killer strangling slender, pretty blondes with the white silk scarf of a priest and Ben Paris is the magnetic police sergeant assigned to the case. 

THE LOOK: “His profile was in shadows, struck intermittently by streetlights.  It was funny how sometimes he looked safe, solid, the kinds of man a woman might run to if it were dark.  Then the light struck his face another way, and the planes and angles were highlighted.  A woman might run from him.” 

LEADING LADY: Tess Court is a shrink who believes “The Priest” is in pain and seeking help.  She’s immediately drawn to Ben despite his resistance to her theories.  He’s immediately drawn to her, struck by her elegance and the cool wash of her violet eyes. 

There’s a particularly funny scene when Ben is trying to romance Tess and he gets a call from one of his lady friends:

“It didn’t take a trained psychiatrist to understand there was a woman on the other end.  Tess smiled into her drink and went back to the view.

‘No, I’ve been tied up.  Look, sugar—“  The minute the word was out, he winced.  Tess kept her back to him.  “I’m on a case, you know?  No, I didn’t forget about..I didn’t forget.  Listen, I’ll have to get back to you when things lighten up.  I don’t know, weeks, maybe months.  You really ought to try that marine.  Sure.  See ya.’  He hung up, cleared his throat, and reached for his drink again.  ‘Wrong number.’

It was so easy to laugh. She turned, leaned against the windowsill, and gave into it.  ‘Oh, really?’

‘Enjoyed that, didn’t you?’

‘Immensely.’

‘If I’d known you’d get such a kick out of it, I’d have invited her up.’”

J  Love Ben.

BOTTOM LINE: Ben is a tough cop who often butts heads with Tess, but he always makes me think of a gentleman.  Just like his description above, he’s a bit of a riddle—gentlemanly but capable of ripping someone’s head off if he needs to protect the public or the woman he loves.  This is probably Nora in my favorite phase, concentrating on just a couple of characters and drawing out the story so we get to really enjoy it.  

QUESTION OF THE DAY: Ever been in an awkward situation and had to laugh your way out of it?  

Jack Carter, Chief, Boy Next Door and Charmer

SCIFI Channel, returning in July.

STATS:  Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson) is sharp and charming, with a quick wit and a street-smart edge. Dedicated first and foremost to his career, but a recent separation from his wife has left him at odds with his teenage daughter, Zoe, whose brushes with the law keep Carter nearly as busy as his day job as a Marshall. In fact, it is one of Zoe’s escapades that forced Carter to drive her home to Los Angeles from Seattle. When their car crashed outside the town of Eureka, it set in motion a sequence of events that resulted in Jack becoming the town’s new sheriff.

THE LOOK:  Tall, blue eyed, with sandy blond short hair and quirky smile, that makes his eyes twinkle.

LEADING LADY:  Allison Blake, (Salli Richardson) the government liaison between Eureka and the Pentagon. Allison provides Jack Carter with a steady flow of professional and romantic frustrations. Charged with reporting on the progress of Eureka’s citizens as well as their temperamental innovations, Allison grapples with an endless stream of crises and moral dilemmas, as well as Jack’s obvious crush on her.

BOTTOM LINE: Poor Jack, sheriff of a town full of geniuses who are temperamental and weird all at once. What I love best about Jack is he’s a normal guy in a town populated by individuals with I.Q’s off the chart. Not that he’s any slouch, but he is normal, which brings a lot of pity to him from the local residence.  They fell sorry for him, because he is normal, and often make comments about what it must be like for him to be him. Than there is Allison, his love interest, who Jack has a HUGE crush on. The affection isn’t returned, in fact her ex-husband, Nathan Stark, (Ed Quinn) who is still very much in the picture, proves to be a constant aggravation.  Jack in so many ways is like the boy next door, who is both innocent, and yet streetwise. Honorable to a fault, Jack is in constant struggle to provide a ‘normal’ home life for his daughter, in a not-so-normal town. His morals are strong, keeping him steady on a road that often throws a punch of very unexplainable stuff in his path. But yet his strength is his charming naivety in the face of adversity.

Question of the Day:   I have always loved the innocent naive, but yet, strong hero. Do you find the boy next door type sexy or not?  If so, why?

Lover Eternal by JR Ward (Signet Eclipse, 2006)

STATS:           Black Dagger brother with “the strongest appetites.  He’s the best fighter, the quickest to act on his impulses, and the most voracious lover—for inside him burns a ferocious curse cast by the Scribe Virgin.  Owned by this dark side, Rhage fears the times when his inner dragon is unleashed, making him a danger to everyone around him.”  All I can say is – Wow. 

THE LOOK:   A face so dazzling you have to blink to make sure you aren’t dreaming.  “Perfectly square jaw.  Full lips.  High cheekbones.  Broad forehead.  Hair was thick and wavy, lighter in the front, darker in the back where it was cut short.  And his body was just as spectacular as his head.  Big-boned.  Thickly muscled.  No fat.  His skin was golden even under the florescent lights….His eyes were an electric teal blue, so bright, so vivid, they were almost neon.” 

LEADING LADY:     Mary is “survivor of many hardships.”  When she meets Rhage, she’s just learned that the cancer she’s defeated once has returned.  She thinks she has nothing to offer any man, but Rhage knows that’s not true the instant she speaks his name—the musical lilt to his voice calms and comforts the demon inside him, drawing him to her immediately. 

BOTTOM LINE:       Rhage is like an Extreme Fighter with a soft heart and an endearing and genuine desire to protect those he cares for most, even from himself.  He can get his feelings hurt by careless words and inadvertent rejection.  However, he’ll kill anything that threatens those he loves.  And when he’s inspired, he’s one of the most passionate heroes I’ve read about.  Even when he has to drink blood from another woman because he can’t drink from Mary, he isn’t able to until Mary herself comes to terms with it.  Ward is able to craft Rhage so skillfully that the reader can even forgive the fact he sleeps with another woman after he’s fallen in love with Mary (and she knows it) because it really isn’t something he wanted to do.  Again, all I can say is – Wow!    

QUESTION OF THE DAY:  Have you ever surprised yourself by your ability to forgive and what gave you the motivation to do so?