From Time to Time, 2009

From Time to Time is a 2009 British fantasy drama film directed by Julian Fellowes, who also wrote the screenplay based on The Chimneys of Green Knowe, the 1958 children's novel by Lucy M. Boston. The film stars Alex Etel, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, Eliza Bennett, Carice van Houten, Dominic West, Hugh Bonneville, Douglas Booth and Kwaye. Set during the Second World War and in the nineteenth century, the story follows thirteen-year-old Tolly, who is sent to stay with his grandmother at the family's ancestral estate, Green Knowe, in Cambridgeshire. There, he begins seeing the ghosts of people who lived in the house generations earlier and discovers a hidden history involving family secrets, a missing treasure, an old friendship, and a devastating fire.

TRAILER 

Plot

Near the end of the Second World War, thirteen-year-old Tolly is sent from Manchester to spend Christmas with his grandmother at Green Knowe, the old country estate that has belonged to his family for generations. His father, David, is away fighting in the war and has been reported missing, while Tolly's mother has gone to London to await news about him.

Green Knowe is a vast, old-fashioned manor filled with family portraits, hidden rooms and memories of generations who lived there. Tolly's grandmother, Mrs. Oldknow, is struggling financially and fears that she may have no choice but to sell the family home. Tolly becomes determined to help preserve the house.

Mrs. Oldknow begins telling him about the family's history. One of the most important stories concerns her ancestors Thomas Oldknow and his wife, Maria. Maria was extravagant and reckless with money, and her gambling and spending had placed the family in serious financial difficulty. Their children included Sefton and Susan, a blind girl who lived at Green Knowe many years earlier.

On his first night in the manor, Tolly begins to hear strange sounds and sees the apparition of a young girl. His grandmother recognizes the description: it is Susan, the family's long-dead daughter. Tolly soon realizes that Green Knowe is not simply an old house—it is a place where the past remains extraordinarily close to the present.

Tolly's experiences become even stranger when he discovers that he can somehow move between his own time and the nineteenth century. When he crosses into the past, he witnesses events that happened more than a century earlier as though they were unfolding around him. Some of the people from the past can see and communicate with him, while others cannot.

Among the people Tolly encounters is Susan, who becomes his guide to the mysteries of Green Knowe. Although she is a ghost, Susan is not frightening in the conventional sense. She is a lonely child whose story is still connected to the house and to the secrets that were never properly resolved.

Tolly also discovers the story of Jacob, a young African boy who was brought to Green Knowe by Captain Oldknow. Jacob had hidden aboard the captain's ship in order to escape being sold at auction. Captain Oldknow takes him home and makes him a companion to Susan. Their friendship becomes an important part of the history Tolly is trying to understand.

As Tolly continues moving between the two periods, he witnesses the complicated relationships within the Oldknow family. Sefton, the family's young heir, is involved in the family's problems, while Maria's extravagant behavior has placed valuable possessions and the family's future at risk. At the same time, the servants are caught in circumstances they cannot control, including the danger that Fred Boggis could be taken away and forced into military service.

The greatest mystery surrounding Green Knowe concerns a collection of valuable jewels belonging to Maria. The jewels disappear, and their disappearance becomes intertwined with the darkest episode in the manor's history: a devastating fire that threatens to destroy the house.

Tolly becomes increasingly determined to discover what really happened. With Susan's help, he follows clues hidden in the house and learns that the truth about the missing jewels and the fire has been concealed for generations.

Eventually, Tolly discovers the lost treasure and uncovers the truth behind the fire. Susan reveals that John Caxton, the sinister servant, was responsible for setting the fire. Caxton appears to have died in the blaze, leaving the mystery unresolved for generations.

By uncovering the truth, Tolly succeeds in recovering the lost treasure and helping to save Green Knowe from being sold. The supernatural experiences have also allowed him to understand his family's history in a way that his grandmother's stories alone could never have shown him.

But Tolly's discoveries are accompanied by a painful reality in his own time. His father, who has been missing since going to war, is ultimately confirmed to have died. The boy must therefore return from the mysteries of the past to the grief of the present.

The story ends on a more comforting note when Tolly sees the ghost of his father. His father reassures him that everything will be all right, giving Tolly the emotional closure he needs.

At the same time, Mrs. Oldknow finally accepts Tolly's mother into the family, overcoming the resentment she had previously held toward her son's marriage.

Through Tolly's journey between the living and the dead, the past and the present, From Time to Time becomes a story about family secrets, memory, loss and the enduring connection between people who lived long before us and those who come after them. The ghosts of Green Knowe are not simply there to frighten Tolly—they are the remnants of unfinished stories, allowing him to uncover the truth and finally bring peace to the house and to himself.

Rating: 10 Stars

Mona Lisa Smile, 2003

Mona Lisa Smile is a 2003 American drama film directed by Mike Newell and written by Lawrence Konner and Mark Rosenthal. The film stars Julia Roberts as Katherine Watson, Kirsten Dunst as Betty Warren, Julia Stiles as Joan Brandwyn, and Maggie Gyllenhaal as Giselle Levy. Set in 1953, the story follows Katherine Watson, an art history instructor who accepts a teaching position at Wellesley College, a prestigious women's college in Massachusetts. There, she finds herself confronting the conservative expectations placed on her students, many of whom are being prepared primarily for marriage rather than professional careers.

TRAILER 

Plot

In 1953, Katherine Ann Watson leaves California to begin teaching art history at Wellesley College. She arrives expecting to teach some of the brightest young women in the country, but quickly discovers that her students have already memorized the prescribed textbook and course material before attending her first class. Rather than simply repeating what they already know, Katherine challenges them to look at art differently and to think for themselves.

Katherine's approach immediately conflicts with the traditional atmosphere of Wellesley. The college expects its students to follow established social conventions, and marriage is considered an important part of their future. Katherine, however, believes that her students should consider possibilities beyond becoming wives and homemakers.

One of Katherine's most outspoken students is Betty Warren, who strongly believes in the traditional role expected of women. Betty is also influential among her classmates and writes editorials for the college newspaper. She becomes openly critical of Katherine's teaching methods and particularly objects to Katherine's suggestion that women should pursue lives and careers beyond marriage.

Another student, Joan Brandwyn, is more conflicted. Joan is engaged to Tommy Donegal and dreams of becoming a lawyer. Encouraged by Katherine, she applies to Yale Law School and is accepted. Katherine sees the opportunity as an important step toward Joan's independence.

Betty, meanwhile, marries her fiancé, Spencer Jones, while still attending Wellesley. During Betty's absence on her honeymoon, the atmosphere in Katherine's class becomes more relaxed, and the students begin to engage more openly with her ideas.

Katherine also develops relationships with people outside her classroom. She becomes close to fellow professor Bill Dunbar, an Italian history professor who has a reputation for relationships with female students. Giselle Levy, one of Katherine's students, has previously been involved with Bill and remains emotionally attached to him. Katherine eventually begins a relationship with Bill herself.

Katherine's personal life is also complicated by the arrival of her boyfriend, Paul Moore, from California. Paul proposes marriage, but Katherine does not accept his proposal, and the relationship ends.

Meanwhile, Katherine continues encouraging Joan to pursue her ambitions. When Joan decides to marry Tommy instead of attending Yale, Katherine is disappointed but accepts that the decision belongs to Joan. Joan explains that choosing marriage does not necessarily mean that she has abandoned her ambitions, because she genuinely wants the life she has chosen.

Betty becomes increasingly unhappy in her marriage. She discovers that Spencer has been unfaithful to her, although she initially refuses to accept that her marriage is falling apart. Her frustration causes her to become increasingly hostile toward the people around her, particularly Giselle.

Betty also interferes in the relationship between her cousin Charlie and Connie Baker, one of Katherine's students. Betty convinces Connie that Charlie is involved with another woman, causing Connie to end the relationship. Eventually, Connie discovers that Betty lied to her, and she and Charlie reconcile.

Katherine later discovers that Bill has lied to her about his past. He had claimed to have served in Italy during the war, but she learns that he had actually been stationed at the Army Languages Center on Long Island. Realizing that he has deceived her, Katherine ends their relationship.

Betty's marriage eventually collapses. After Spencer's affair becomes impossible for her to ignore, Betty leaves him, although her mother pressures her to forgive him and preserve the marriage. Betty confronts Giselle, who knows about Spencer's affair. Instead of continuing their hostility, Betty breaks down emotionally, and Giselle comforts her.

As the school year comes to an end, Katherine's art history course has become extremely popular. The Wellesley administration offers her the opportunity to return for another year, but only under conditions that would restrict her teaching methods, including requiring her lesson plans to be reviewed in advance.

Katherine refuses to accept those conditions and decides to leave Wellesley.

Betty, who has changed significantly during the year, writes an editorial dedicated to Katherine. She acknowledges the impact Katherine has had on her and her classmates and recognizes that Katherine taught them to look at the world differently.

After Katherine leaves the college, her students follow her on their bicycles as she departs, giving her an emotional farewell. Katherine leaves Wellesley, having challenged her students to think independently and decide for themselves what kind of lives they want to lead.

Rating: 10 Stars