It’s Tuesday, time for Slice of Life with Two Writing Teachers. Please join us with a slice of your own. Find other slices here. Thank you Tara, Betsy, Dana, Stacey, Beth, and Anna for your wonderful blog.
As a kid, Sunday nights were The Wonderful World of Disney. It offered the last bit of the weekend: a Sunday night movie. I loved them. Now no one turns into a regularly scheduled broadcast. We go to Netflix.
Sunday night, we sat, just the two of us, flicking through the seemingly endless selection of Netfilx movies and TV shows.
Nope, nope, nope, mindless, violent, seen it.
Flick, flick, flick.
Rinse, repeat.
Seriously there should be something.
We don’t give up. We have faith. So many there has to be one. Just one good story.
Determined, we forge on.
I make dinner. While husband continues the search.
I’m in the kitchen and I hear music.
“Decided on one, have you,” I say.
“Yeah, we’ll see.”
I bring plates filled with pasta and salad. Drinks on coasters, plates on our laps. I keep my expectations low.
Characters: divorcee (played by Virginia Madsen) three cute daughters, a alcoholic writer (played by Morgan Freeman) next door. Setting: summer time at an idyllic lake outside of New York City.
It pulls me in slowly, quietly.
The middle child wants to learn how to tell stories. For “punishment,” mom tells her she must learn three new words. The girl eats this up. (You had me at she wanted to learn to tell stories.) And who does she go to for help, the cranky, but eloquent, slightly drunk neighbor. Freeman’s voice is mesmerizing. He is amused by her and agrees to teach her to tell stories.
His first lesson: Look for what isn’t there.
Her vocabulary words: bamboozle, mentor and imagination.
Completely hooked. We sit. I find myself smiling.
Toward the end, I started to get choked up. Next to me, I hear sniff, sniff. A hand raised, a tear wiped..
The end, a satisfied sigh and, “Your kids would love this,”
“I was thinking the same thing. What’s the name of this?”
If you haven’t seen it, do. Maybe next Sunday night.
To Read To Write To Be 
Well you pulled me in! I may just have to see the movie! It can be hard to find the “right” one. thanks for having me along for the pasta and movie (low cal for me. :-)))
Saw happy that I stopped over to read! We have such a hard time finding movies that we want to see with all this streaming. I’m writing this one down. PS–I loved your description of trying to find one–so spot on!!
I loved reading about your journey through this movie, Julieanne – a summer watch-together treat, for sure!
I completely connected with the description of the mindless search through Netflix. My husband is incredibly picky and it seems like we do this every night. Thank you for the title suggestion. It sounds like a great one and we have not seen it. I will definitely be looking it up.
Yes, Sunday nights were special with the Wonderful World of Disney. I miss those days. Loved every bit of this and how you described the search and the reactions to the movie. Sounds like one to watch.
Love the introduction to this, Julieanne. I’ve never heard of it, & it sounds wonderful. Happy you found a good one!
You pulled me right along with you as you searched for your movie. (And you brought back memories of watching Wonderful World of Disney when I was a little girl). I’m glad you shared the title, because as I read your post, I kept thinking, “I wonder what the movie is. It sounds good.” I’ll be checking it out for sure.
Oh how I miss Sunday night movies. I remember getting so excited watching Tinkerbell fly across the screen. I can see it so clearly!! The Magic of Bell Isle sounds like quite a treat. I’ll be tuning in soon. Thanks for the great recommendation!!
Remember that I live in a timber . . . I have no clue what Netflix is. I am guessing it is a subscription service for movies but that is just my guess. Glad to have a movie recommendation! Loved the description of “choosing” . . . that did sound familiar!