Here we have, yet another 80s time warp film. You should be able to guess early on because none of the actors (including a very young Jim Carrey) are the remotely the same age as their characters. It's cool to see young Nicolas Cage playing a much older man, just a week after seeing Old Nicolas Cage playing a much younger man (in Ghost Rider). With this film, he shows a lot of versatility as an actor, reason again why he's such a star. It's really a must-see for any of his fans.

Peggy Sue (Kathleen Turner) is separated from her cheating husband Charlie (Cage). At their high school reunion, Peggy Sue has a freak out and goes back in time, where she has a chance to prevent herself from ever marrying Charlie. But she loves her kids, which is an obvious deal breaker, but she mostly ignores this fact.

Still I think it was a pretty good film, more fun and more relatable than most of the ones on this list. While somewhat lacking in polish and execution, it still manages to hit home. Much like Face/Off, Peggy Sue has a titular scene where she screams "But Peggy Sue Got Married! Peggy Sue Got Married!" and you gotta love it.

1. Raising Arizona
2. Leaving Las Vegas
3. Adaptation
4. Birdy
5. Wild at Heart
6. Color Out of Space
7. Peggy Sue Got Married
8. City of Angels
9. Gone in 60 Seconds
10. Matchstick Men
11. Vampire's Kiss
12. Face/Off
13. Honeymoon in Vegas
14. The Family Man
15. It Could Happen to You
16. 8mm
17. Ghost Rider
18. The Weather Man
19. The Croods

Undead and Unwed by Mary Janice Davidson

 

As an introduction to a new series, I thought it was pretty good.  I haven't read a ton of paranormal romance but I think Mary Janice Davidson put a fun twist on the whole thing.  Each chapter had me expecting a commercial break.  In fact, while most of the attempted humor had me groaning, it was easy to imagine this novel as a tv show coming on after Xena but before Charmed and Buffy.  

When I picked up this copy, I swore I'd seen the rest of the series waiting on the shelf.  Though last time, half price books didn't have any.  Maybe I was under a vampire's spell!

Phantom Pleasures by Julie Leto

It didn't grip me too hard but I powered through.  Nothing about this story is otherwise indicative of 2008's Saint Augustine.  The most important thing about that month and place is that four of the coolest young men on earth moved into a house together.  A dining room table was included. There were some dentures in a storage room above the garage, as well as a license plate advertising Studio 13 Disco.  

At the time of release, they had a promotional poster at the Old City Gift Shop.  I bet the book sold well to tourists of the exceptionally literate persuasion.  Phantom Pleasures, while somewhat entertaining, had the quality of story you might otherwise expect from a made for tv movie.  Too bad special effects aren't free.  They could have left out the special effects because in the end, it doesn't even matter.  Much like the story of our lives, most efforts and events have zero effect on how the story ends.  We will eventually run out of pages and have to figure out how to end things on a note satisfying enough to sell our next thing.  Honestly, I would expect a better recommendation from the Old City Gift Shop on Cathedral Street in 2008.