by Beth Cronk, Litchfield head librarian
Christmas is almost here! As
you enjoy days off from work and school, I know many of you will be looking for
some movies to watch. Following are some
of our newest additions. Look for them on
our new releases shelf or place a hold to make sure you get them, since new
usually means popular.
Dolphin Tale 2 is a family-friendly story about an
aquarium that needs to find a new companion to share a pool with Winter, the
dolphin from Dolphin Tale. While the
reviews aren’t as glowing as they were for the original, critics say it’s a
good old-fashioned movie that adults can enjoy with kids. It stars Harry Connick, Jr., and Ashley Judd.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is the sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, continuing the
story of Caesar and the other genetically-modified apes. The human population has been nearly killed
off by the virus that made the apes intelligent, and the fight is on to see
which creatures will dominate the earth.
Critics were overwhelmingly positive, calling it intelligent and emotionally
rich. It’s a special effects-laden movie
that isn’t all about the special effects.
Have you seen the Golden Globe-nominated movie The Theory of Everything about Stephen Hawking? It will be a long time until that comes
out on DVD, but you can check out A Brief History of Time, the 1991 motion
picture that was just re-released on DVD.
This documentary examines how Hawking has lived with ALS while doing
pioneering work in astrophysics.
Guardians of the Galaxy was one of the huge hits of the year.
Marvel has done it again, this time with superheroes that most of us had
never heard of: Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot. The movie begins on a sad note and then turns
into a wacky space adventure. Audiences
and critics loved it. If you like funny
action movies, don’t miss it. (Grove City Library also has Awesome Mix Vol. 1 on CD.)
The Hundred-Foot Journey is based on the novel by Richard
C. Morais. This romantic comedy tells
the story of a young Indian immigrant in France. He is a naturally talented chef who plans to
open an Indian restaurant near a classical French restaurant. The owner of the French restaurant vehemently
opposes it. Naturally he falls in love
with one of her employees.
Love Actually isn't a new movie, but it’s a new addition
to Litchfield’s collection. It’s a 2003
cult classic that many people watch at Christmas time. As you watch it, you might wonder if every
British actor is in the star-studded cast. It’s like a short story collection, with nine different
storylines that intersect. Some are
funny, some are sweet, and some are sad.
Nearly all are preposterous, but fans of the movie don’t care.
The Maze Runner is the movie adaptation of the James
Dashner YA novel. The first book in a
dystopian series for teens, it’s been compared to The Hunger Games and the Divergent series but with a boy as the main character.
In fact, nearly all of the characters are boys. The consensus seems to be that the movie is
reasonably faithful to the book, and a good movie on its own.
The Pioneerland libraries will be closed December 24-25 and
January 1. We will close at 5 p.m. on
December 31. We will be open regular
hours all of the other days around the holidays. Go online or give us a call to request the movies
or books you’d like to find, or stop in to see what’s on the shelf. Have a very merry Christmas!
