The sole member of his department, Eddie Marsan’s job concentrates on attempting to locate the next of kin for dead residents. Living an entirely solitary life himself that parallels the lives of the people he researches, it all gets disrupted when his last case is for a neighbor at the same time his job is being downsized for being too expensive and time consuming. It’s premise is very similar to the novel How Not to be Alone. The film manages to be a gentle reflection on loneliness and death. The film rests entirely on Marsan’s shoulders and he does an incredible job conveying the closed off loneliness of his character as he slowly begins to open to something more.

Against the warnings of his superiors, doctor Hugh Grant attempts to figure out the circumstances that brought a mysterious homeless patient to his ER. He soon finds his personal and professional life threatened on all levels as he gets closer to the truth. It’s a fairly middling medical thriller that is silly when it strays from the expected. For better or worse, it stays nearer the expected where I couldn’t be certain I haven’t seen it before. With Gene Hackman as the prime baddie backed up by David Morse in yet another law enforcement role, it does have an appealing cast and it’s nice seeing Sarah Jessica Parker in a more intelligent and more serious role than her usual.  

On advice from a friend, architect Lenny Von Dohlen buys a top of the line computer to get more organized. A mishap when he was trying to download an entire database from work causes the computer to become sentient and Lenny finds himself fighting with the computer for the affections of Virginia Madsen, the attractive musician who lives upstairs. There’s a quirky 1980s vibe to the film with a fun soundtrack, great visuals, montages, and a unique perspective on the forthcoming cyber age. Von Dohlen is excellent in the lead role showing off equal levels of intelligence and bewilderment at varying times.    

For over 60 years, Betty White has spent Valentine’s Day at the train station where she last said goodbye to her husband who went missing in action during World War II. When cynical journalist Jennifer Love Hewitt is assigned the story as a personal interest piece, she gets caught up in the romance and helps Betty learn what happened to her husband. I had very low expectations for this Hallmark movie, but went in just wanting to see White’s performance. It delivered on almost all points. It’s overly sentimental and dramatic with an added dose of unnecessary Christianity thrown in for measure, but Betty is quite lovely in the dramatic role of a grieving widow. Unfortunately Hewitt’s character and her story arc, as cliched as it possibly can be, is the main focus and is very limited in interest.  

Running away from her philandering, gold digging husband William Hudson, rich heiress Allison Hayes discovers a mysterious satellite with a later encounter causing her to grow to ginormous size. Society uses Hayes’s weaknesses against her. When she first encounters the orb, she is disbelieved because of a drinking problem and mental illness that are extraordinarily exacerbated by the gaslighting and abuse she receives from her husband. She uses her newfound power to take back what others have tried to steal from her. The special effects in the film are often low budget and dated, but have moments of incredibleness. Watching the enlarged Hayes moving through miniature sets is a fun experience.    

While under observation of company inspector Keith David, garbagemen Emilio Estevez and Charlie Sheen find the body of a city councilmen stuffed in a garbage can. The trio try to cover up their discovery while avoiding the killers and an inept pair of bicycle cops. Occasionally funny, the film starts off as a different take on the buddy comedy, but quickly devolves into inanity with David being forced into a Hollywoodized stereotype of an unhinged war vet, an unnecessary romance, and a ridiculous, over the top ending. I like seeing the Estevez brothers working together, but even while their shared screen time is long, it’s not their best pairing.  

Someone is stalking Kathleen Beller, leaving her ominous notes in her locker at school and crank calling her even at the home where she’s babysitting. I had really expected this to be a slasher flick, similar to When a Stranger Calls or Black Christmas , but it’s actually a poignant made for television depiction of rape and the gaslighting and disbelief that almost every single person surrounding Beller have with regards to her concerns. Things aren’t much better now, but it’s incredible what 1970s culture had to offer when this young girl, who anticipates what is awaiting her, asks and then begs for help. Every man in her life, except maybe her new boyfriend who tries to be understanding, is toxic and the women around them support it. 

Two planets are situated in extreme proximity to each other so that one’s inhabitants can look up and see the inhabitants of the other. Kirsten Dunst and Jim Sturgess live on opposite planets, but manage to develop a friendship by meeting at high points on their respective worlds. I had been curious about this for awhile, but bad reviews kept me away. The romance is a really generic take on Romeo and Juliet and the entire premise requires a complete suspension of belief, but it is a really beautiful film with vague ideas that kept it interesting enough.