Black 'n' Gold Girl's Book Spot

I'm such a sap when it comes to Christmas movies -- the cheesier and mushier the better! For me, Christmas is the perfect time of year not just because of all of the holiday cheer and family traditions but because channels like ABC Family and Hallmark air a bazillion feel good movies. It's as easy to sit down on any given weekend following up to Christmas day and binge on tinsel-filled flicks as it is to binge on Netflix during the summer. Hey, it's okay to lounge around in sweats with a cup of cocoa (extra marshmallows, please!) once a year, right?

Is anybody planning to see the latest version of The Great Gatsby ? I have to admit that I've only seen the 70s version starring Robert Redford but I really enjoyed it. I'm a little afraid that this movie might be all flash with no substance. The trailers on TV make it seem like a modern day costume party, especially the soundtrack featuring artists like Will.I.Am and Florence and the Machine. That said, I have loved Carey Mulligan ever since Bleak House and Doctor Who and Leo is looking rather dashing -- and the costumes? STUNNING! ;-)  In case you haven't seen it, here's the trailer from Youtube. There are so many movies that are coming out this summer that I really have to be picky about what I see or otherwise I won't be able to eat for the rest of the year! I love movies as much as the next girl but food's pretty important. If you decide to give The Great Gatsby a try, leave a comment and let me know what you think and whether or not it's wort...

Oh. My. Gosh. Have you seen this trailer?! I absolutely love love LOVE The Hunger Games series and I think I'm looking forward to this movie even more than Breaking Dawn . Squee! What do you think? Is this a movie you're going to rush out and see? I know I am!

Okay so I don't get the Hallmark Channel but those of you who do are SO lucky! I did not know that they were making a prequel to the Love Comes Softly film series until I saw this online today @ Charleybrown's site, Enchanted Serenity of Period Films ! It's called Love Begins and it premieres on September 17 at 9/8c. Love Begins - About the Movie Clark Davis’ (Wes Brown) adventurous dreams of seeing the world are put into jeopardy after he and a friend start a fight which damages a local cafe. Through a plea deal with the Sheriff (Jere Burns) and café owner Millie (Nancy McKeon), Clark works off his sentence as a farmhand for the Barlow sisters, Ellen (Julie Mond) and Cassie (Abigail Mavity). Older sister Ellen doesn’t understand Cassie’s friendly nature with Clark; she agreed to the Sheriff’s offer only because the farm has become too much to maintain alone. Clark is slowing winning Ellen over, but suddenly suffers a traumatic head injury in a fall. After Elle...

Ohmygosh The Hunger Games is seriously the best YA series I've read since Twilight so the fact that it's also being made into a film series (hopefully better than Twilight ) has me really excited. Needless to say this trailer doesn't show a whole lot but still it looks like the movie is going to be amaaaazing! Thoughts on the trailer? The books? Any movies you're looking forward to in 2012?

I love historical films, books, tv series' etc. I'm kind of sick of reality tv and action films that seem so popular so when I saw this trailer today on Yahoo I thought, "It's about time!" With films like Jane Eyre and now The Conspirator I'm hoping period/historical films are making a comeback!

As I posted late last year one of my very favorite books, Jane Eyre is being remade yet again for the big screen. If you're a follower of news of the film like I am you've probably been disappointed in the lack of clips and sneak peeks other than the original teaser trailer release a few months ago. Well thanks to Charley Brown @ Enchanted Serenity of Period Films blog I learned last night that there were two brand new clips one being the very swoonworthy scene right after Jane saves Rochester from being burned in his bed!!!! If that scene is any indication for the rest of the movie, I think it's going to be awesome! Check it out below and see for yourself. Doesn't Michael Fassbender have the dreamiest voice?! I didn't post the other clip since I figured out the load time of this blog with a lot of videos is reaaaaally slow but you can go HERE to check that one out. JUST ADDED: THE PROPOSAL SCENE CLICK HERE!!!!!!!!!!!

From the Hallmark site : During World War II, Navy Lt. Neil Thomas bids Caroline, his pregnant young wife, farewell at Union Station. Before their son is born, Neil’s plane goes down in the Pacific and he’s declared MIA. Caroline is devastated, but her love never dies. And for the next 65 years, Caroline (Betty White) returns to Union Station on the anniversary of her loss to salute his memory. When a TV journalist (Jennifer Love Hewitt) learns of the touching story, she sets out to investigate what happened to Neil 65 years earlier. Caroline’s grandson encourages Caroline to cooperate, and soon the reporter and young man fall in love. Viewers will embrace Betty White and Jennifer Love Hewitt in this moving story of love lost and love found. The Lost Valentine, based on the book by James Michael Pratt, is directed by Darnell Martin, teleplay by Maryann Ridini Spencer and Barton Taney. My Thoughts: Ok people I am either the most sappy person I know or this movie was just that good. I th...

I absolutely adore Masterpiece Classic and look forward to it's premiere every winter season. This year Masterpiece is celebrating it's 40th anniversary with some spectacular new miniseries's including Downton Abbey starring Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovvern and the venerable Maggie Smith. Downton Abbey will air over 4 consecutive weeks with the first episode just having aired tonight and the last airing January 30. Period dramas are my favorite genre of tv and film to watch unfortunately it seems good pieces are hard to come by on American tv as of late so I get excited when the BBC creates an epic series such as this one. I must say from what I've seen of this series so far it's going to be amazing. I just love Hugh Bonneville and Maggie Smith, it seems like they're in every BBC period drama and it's easy to see why, they're amaaaazing actors. Hugh Bonneville as Lord Grantham is superb. He's the head of the huge estate and has to deal with t...

Squee! It's the trailer for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides starring Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Ian McShane and Geoffrey Rush. I am a HUGE fan of the series and even though Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom aren't in it it still looks AWWWWEESOMMMEEE! Can you tell I'm *slightly* excited?

I absolutely LOVE Jane Eyre , both the novel and the 2006 film version that I have seen starring Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens. Early next year a new version of the film starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender will be released! I just saw the trailer and I have to say that it DEFINITELY looks like it will be as good as or better than the 2006 BBC film! I am SOOOO excited!!!! Here's the trailer for you to enjoy!

North and South, BBC Production (2005 ) Thanks to my author friend Laura Frantz for opening up a wonderful comment based discussion at her blog following her on her North and South journey! Last week was her first time experiencing the characters of Margaret Hale, John Thornton, Nicholas Higgins etc. in all their small screen glory. All the comments throughout the week made me think of all the reasons why I loved this film and recommend it to everyone who loves historical romance. Not only are the actors terrific but the costumes, the setting and the overall plot of this movie make it one of my all time favorites. I guess I'm a sucker for Richard Armitage in a cravat too but that's just an added bonus. The dialogue is so well written that I probably wouldn't have minded if John was a total ogre in the looks department. Yeah right, who am I kidding? Sidenote: According to IMDB Richard Armitage was one of the first actors to audition for the role of John Thornton and was ...

I am a huge fan of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series and I've really been anticipating the release of the latest film adaptation, Eclipse . Last night I saw it with my very good friends Rachel and Shayne and I must say that I was not disappointed. I am thoroughly Team Edward but that does not mean that I don't have a soft spot for Jacob and this movie just solidified those feelings. Without giving too much away I was really glad that Bella, with a little persuasion, finally admitted her feelings towards him...whether they were warm and fuzzy, loathing, or lukewarm you will have to watch the movie to find out! And can I just say I really liked Jasper in this movie? I can't help it, I have a thing for that southern drawl! As for the big vampire/vampire/werewolf fight scene I was a little sad that it wasn't more realistic in terms of blood and gore. Not that I'm a fan of violence but if has to be in a movie it should at least be slightly believable. I d...

This spring I've been really surprised with some of the films that are coming out! I actually want to go see a lot of them, they look so cute! This week The Backup Plan starring Jennifer Lopez and Alex O'Loughlin (*sigh*) comes out. It looks like a super fun, romantic comedy with a twist. I loved JLo in Maid in Manhattan and The Wedding Planner so I'm excited to see how she does in this film. Here's the trailer!

Check out the trailer for The Wolfman starring: Benicio del Toro, Emily Blunt, Anthony Hopkins, and Hugo Weaving. Looks good huh? I'm sooo there!

Okay as you can see from the description underneath the title of my blog, I mostly feature fiction books that I have read or want to read and occasionally I'll post about the Pittsburgh Steelers, my favorite NFL team. Well today I felt that I had to post about a MOVIE that I can't wait to see! I'm not much of a movie goer because there simply aren't a whole lot of historical or period dramas/romances being released, but one film has really caught my eye, The Young Victoria starring Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend. It is the story of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and the struggles they face in their own relationship as well as being people of power in England. I can't wait to see this...if I can find a theatre around here that is playing it!