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Movies premiering on M-Net Stars in February, 2008:


Wedding Band
Monday, 4 February at 19:30

1990 Directed by Daniel Raskov . Fran Drescher, William Katt, Joyce Hyser, Pauly Shore

When it comes to weddings, Marshall, whose band plays at weddings, and Karla, his wedding planner girlfriend, are experts. But their own wedding?

When Karla proposes, Marshall almost immediately gets the jitters. Karla starts planning the wedding of her dreams, which means it’s going to be bigger and better than anything she’s planned to date. Marshall wants to run, and he gets the chance when his agent lands the Shakers a touring gig. But what will it do to the romance?


Dragonfly
Monday, 11 February at 19:30

2002 Directed by Tom Shadyac. Kevin Costner, Susanna Thompson, Joe Morton, Linda Hunt

After losing his wife in a South American bus accident, an emergency room doctor is suddenly inundated with mysterious signs - mostly dragonflies - that seem to indicate she's trying to communicate something to him. What’s more, some of his young patients seem to be saying the same thing. Are these signs really from his late wife, and if so, what is she trying to tell him?


Sluggers Wife
Monday, 18 February at 19:30

1985 Directed by Hal Ashby. Michael O’Keefe, Rebecca De Mornay, Randy Quaid

Darryl is an outfielder with the Atlanta Braves whose career has hit a slump. But things start looking up when he meets Debby, an aspiring rock singer. They fall passionately in love, and while Debby is there for him, Darryl hits home run after home run

The Braves are soon on their way to the World Series, and everyone is happy - except Debby, who is tired of being her man’s inspiration when she would rather be inspiring the world with her music.


Marrying Man
Monday, 25 February at 19:30

1991 Directed by Jerry Rees. Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, Armand Assante, Robert Loggia

Playboy millionaire Charley goes to Las Vegas with his buddies for one last fling before marrying a movie mogul’s sweet daughter, and ends up in the bed of sexy nightclub singer Vicki.

Vicki’s mobster boyfriend catches them red-handed, but instead of shooting them, forces them to get married.

Charley and Vicki soon discover that although they can’t stand to be together, they can’t stand to be apart either, and they end up getting married again and again.


Beautician and the Beast
Tuesday, 5 February at 19:30

1997 Directed by Ken Kwapis. Fran Drescher, Timothy Dalton

Boris Pochenko, boorish ruler of a small Eastern European country, needs an American tutor to discipline his kids and to show his people that he is ready to embrace capitalism. However, Joy Miller turns out to be like no tutor he’s ever met.

With her beehive hair, long painted nails and day-glo stretch pants, she’s more like a beautician from Queens. As the feisty teacher takes over the running of the castle and sorts out his kids’ various problems, Boris finds it harder and harder to keep up his boorish ways.


Speechless
Tuesday, 12 February at 19:30

1994 Directed by Ron Underwood. Michael Keaton, Geena Davis, Christopher Reeve

A comedy about two political speechwriters, one Democrat, one Republican, who bump into each other at a New Mexico convenience store while looking for something to help them sleep. They find it all in a night of loving in a car - before going back on the campaign trail.

Verbal fireworks ensue when they discover what the other does for a living, and things get even more complicated with the arrival of their two exes.


Pretty In Pink
Tuesday, 19 February at 19:30

1986 Directed by Howard Deutch. Molly Ringwald, Andrew McCarthy, Jon Cryer, James Spader

Andie lives with her sadsack father and earns pocket money by working in a record store. Her best friends are Duckie, a nerd who adores her, and Iona, a girl who hasn’t settled on a dress style yet.

Andie has a crush on Blane, one of the rich kids at school, so when he asks her to the prom, she’s over the moon. But complications arise when Blane’s snobby friend Steff tells him he’s mad to be dating a girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Will Blane cave in and allow Duckie to take Andie to the prom or will life throw everyone a curve ball?


Shirley Valentine
Tuesday, 26 February at 19:30

1989 Directed by Lewis Gilbert. Pauline Collins, Tom Conti

Shirley Valentine is a feisty, funny and frustrated 40-something Liverpool housewife who talks to herself. Sometimes she talks to the wall. Occasionally, she talks to an unseen audience. That’s because her husband and kids hardly notice her. So when Shirley gets a chance to go to the Greek islands with her best friend Jane, she grabs it. Soon, an ageing Greek stud is making the earth (make that a boat) move for her and Shirley is rediscovering herself all over again.


Born Yesterday
Wednesday, 6 February at 19:30

1993 Directed by Luis Mandoki. Melanie Griffith, Don Johnson, John Goodman

Billie Dawn is a beautiful blonde whose lack of education hasn’t bothered her rich wheeler dealer boyfriend Harry, until he arrives in Washington, where he wants to impress some senators with his new construction plans.

Billie makes gaffe after gaffe – even mistaking the fall of the Eastern Bloc for a building disaster -until Harry can take it no more. He offers journalist Paul $500 a day to “smarten her up”.

Paul accepts, not because he wants the money, but because he smells a scoop.


Can't Buy me Love
Wednesday, 13 February at 19:30

1987 Directed by Steve Rash. Patrick Dempsey, Amanda Peterson, Seth Green

Patrick Dempsey plays geeky science student Ronald who is tired of being on the outside looking in. One day, he offers Cindy, the prettiest and most popular girl in school, his entire life savings - $1 000 - if she’ll pretend he’s her boyfriend for a month.

As she needs the money to buy her mom a new coat, Cindy accepts, on one condition: no kissing. Sure enough, the kids take notice, and soon Ronald is wallowing in all the attention but his friends and family aren’t impressed with the new Ronald who's gone from geek to creep.


Falling In Love
Wednesday, 20 February at 19:30

1984 Directed by Ulu Grosbard. Robert De Niro, Meryl Streep, Harvey Keitel, Dianne Wiest

Frank, a construction foreman, is happily married with two kids. Molly is married, with no kids, and a dying father to worry about. One Christmas Eve, they meet by accident, and something passes between them. They meet again for coffee, then lunch.

Their flirtation gradually grows into something deeper, and now they must work out if they are prepared to throw away everything they have to follow their hearts.


Green Card
Wednesday 27 February at 19:30

1990 Directed by Peter Weir. Gerard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell, Bebe Neuwirth

A mismatched couple get married for all the wrong reasons. He’s a French composer who needs a Green Card to remain in America; she’s a plant-mad American who needs a husband in order to land her dream New York apartment. The idea is to go their separate ways after the wedding, but when immigration officials start sniffing around, they have to pretend they’re really in love.


Murphy's Romance
Thursday, 7 February at 19:30

1985 Directed by Martin Ritt. James Garner, Sally Field, Brian Kerwin

Emma, a single mother, moves to a small town in Arizona with her son, hoping to start life anew as a horse trainer. When she meets Murphy, the local pharmacist, there are sparks - but their romance is complicated by the arrival of Bobby Jack, Emma’s irresponsible but charming ex.


Runaway Bride
Thursday, 14 February at 19:30

1999 Directed by Garry Marshall. Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Hector Elizondo, Joan Cusack

Ike is a New York newspaper columnist who writes columns slagging women off. When he hears a story about a woman who keeps on leaving men at the altar, he pens an unflattering story about Maggie and gets a few things wrong. Maggie complains to Ike’s editor, and Ike is fired. A disgruntled Ike then decides to go and meet this serial jilter, who has just become engaged again. With any luck, she’ll dump this man too, and he’ll have an even bigger story.


Violets Are Blue
Thursday, 21 February at 19:30

1986 Directed by Jack Fisk. Sissy Spacek, Kevin Kline, Bonnie Bedelia

Gussie's chosen career over family, and is now a famous photographer. She arrives home after 15 years to see her ageing father and Henry, the boy she left behind. Henry is now the editor of the local newspaper. He is also married with a son.

Gussie and Henry are both excited and nervous around one another. She sees the devoted husband she never had; he sees the exciting career woman he never had. Will they follow their hearts, or face up to reality?


Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights
Thursday, 28 February at 19:30

1992 Directed by Peter Kosminsky. Ralph Feinnes, Juliette Benoche, Janet McTeer, Sophie Ward

Set in rural England in the early 19th century, the film follows Heathcliff, an orphaned foundling who is brought to Wuthering Heights, where he is treated more like an outsider than a member of the family.

The only person who treats him as an equal is Cathy, the landowner’s daughter. As they grow up together, they fall passionately in love, but Cathy chooses status over love, and marries a neighbour.

Enraged, Heathcliff leaves Wuthering Heights, to return several years later, a richer, but deeply embittered man, with just one goal: to destroy his enemies.


An Officer and a Gentleman
Friday, 1 February at 19:30

1982 Directed by Taylor Hackford. Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Lou Gossett, Jr, David Caruso

Zack Mayo' a troubled young man who arrives at naval flight school for 13 weeks of gruelling training. Just how gruelling soon becomes apparent when he meets Sgt Emil Foley, a tough as nails drill instructor who drives the recruits until they pass, or pass out.

Life gets interesting when Zack and his new friend, Sid, meet two local girls at the regimental ball. Zack and Paula hit it off, and Sid and Lynnette get close, but the romances hit a snag when Zack turns out to be commitment shy and Lynnette shows her calculating side.


When A Man Loves A Woman
Friday, 8 February at 19:30

1994 Directed by Luis Mandoki. Meg Ryan, Andy Garcia, Mae Whitman, Ellen Burstyn

Michael is an airline pilot who is happily married to Alice, a high school counsellor. They have two young daughters, Jess and Casey. Michael is aware that his wife drinks, but has no idea just how much until a series of alarming incidents prompts Alice to admit that she’s an alcoholic.

As she embarks on the long road to recovery, entering rehab and attending AA meetings, Michael realises that he doesn’t really know this new, sober, more competent Alice.


Steel Magnolias
Friday 15 February at 19:30

1989 Directed by Herbert Ross. Sally Field, Julia Roberts, Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Darryl Hannah

Six women of different ages and temperaments meet regularly in a Louisiana beauty salon to gossip, laugh and bicker. Julia Roberts plays Selby, a young woman who is determined to get married and have a baby, despite her mother M’Lynn’s objections.

The other women are sassy Truvy, the salon’s owner, her assistant Annelle, cranky Ouiser and newly widowed Clairee. The film follows the women as they bond through the good times as well as the bad.


Deep End Of The Ocean
Friday, 22 February at 19:30

1999 Directed by Ulu Grosbard. Michelle Pfeiffer, Treat Williams, Jonathan Jackson, Whoopi Goldberg

Beth is a married mother of three, whose middle child, three-year-old Ben, disappears from a hotel lobby while in the care of seven-year-old Vincent.

Despite an intensive police investigation, Ben is not found. Eight years pass.

One day, a boy who looks remarkably like Ben - the way Ben would have looked at 12 - knocks on the door, and asks to mow the lawn.


Splash
Friday, 29 February at 19:30

1984 Directed by Ron Howard. Tom Hanks, Daryl Hannah, John Candy

Madison is a beautiful mermaid with the ability to grow legs. She’s using them to find John, a human she saved from drowning, not once, but twice. She wants to return the wallet the New Yorker left behind on the beach, and get to know him a bit better.


Terms Of Endearment
Saturday, 2 February at 19:30

1983 Directed by James L Brooks. Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson. John Lithgow, Jeff Daniels, Danny DeVito

Aurora is a classy, snobby widow who is devoted to her daughter Emma, but disapproves of her choice in men. When Emma marries Flap, a poor college lecturer with a roving eye, Aurora is incensed, even more so when Emma starts popping out one baby after another.

They move to another town, but Emma continues to call her mom. Meanwhile, Aurora, after ignoring her handsome neighbour Garrett for as long as she can, agrees to go out with him- and finds herself warming to the rogue.


No Small Affair
Saturday, 9 February at 19:30

1984 Directed by Jerry Schatzberg. Demi Moore, Jon Cryer, George Wendt

A 22-year-old aspiring rock star gets followed around by a 16-year-old amateur photographer. Set in San Francisco, the movie focuses on the boy’s attempts to give the singer a career boost by taking her pictures and putting them on hundreds of taxi cabs.


Frankie & Johnny
Saturday, 23 February at 19:30

1991 Directed by Garry Marshall. Al Pacino, Michele Pfeiffer, Hector Elizondo, Nathan Lane

Short order cook Johnny and dowdy waitress Frankie find love against the odds.

When Johnny, who has spent time in jail for fraud, meets Frankie, it’s love at first sight, despite the fact that her hair is as greasy as the chips. They are meant for each other, he tells her. But Frankie doesn’t want to know. She’s been hurt once too often, and now all she wants to do is stay home and watch old movies.


Cousins
Sunday, 3 February at 19:30

1989 Directed by Joel Schumacher. Ted Danson, Isabella Rossellini, Sean Young, Loyd Bridges

Easygoing Larry and shy Maria, who are both married, meet at the wedding of his uncle and her mother and hit it off at once. When they discover that they have something in common - their spouses are both cheating on them – they decide to exact a gentle revenge on the two by pretending to have an affair of their own. But as they meet at successive family gatherings, they fall in love for real.


Punchline
Sunday 10 February at 19:30

1988 Directed by David Seltzer. Tom Hanks, Sally Field, John Goodman

Steven's a medical student with a talent for stand-up. Lilah's a housewife and mother of three who hasn’t told her family that she yearns to do stand-up. The two meet at a comedy club and Steven gives Lilah an invaluable tip: tell stories from your own life. She does, and her routine is transformed. Suddenly, the mundane becomes very funny.

Steven watches her, and starts falling in love. But he is also falling apart. When will he be discovered? And when will his father discover that comedy, not medicine, has taken over his life?


Country
Sunday, 17 February at 19:30

1984 Directed by Richard Pearce. Jessica Lange, Sam Shepard

A Midwest farming family face ruin when their harvest is partially destroyed and the Farmers Home Administration, which manages farmers’ debt, announces they are putting their farm up for auction.

Gilbert crumbles under the pressure and starts drinking, and it falls on Jewell to do something to save the farm that has been in her family for three generations. Not an easy job when she also has to be the rock for her angry father and her three anxious children.


Paradise
Sunday, 24 February at 19:30

1991 Directed by Mary Agnes Donoghue. Melanie Griffith, Don Johnson, Elijah Wood, Thorah Birch

There’s trouble in the sleepy fishing village of Paradise. Ben and Lily Reed, a once loving couple, can barely talk to one another after the sudden death of their three-year-old son. Where Ben immerses himself in activity, Lily just waits for the days to pass.

When a pregnant friend sends her shy 10-year-old son to them for the summer, the Reeds more or less ignore the boy, forcing him to befriend the local tomboy.

As Willard and Billie talk, play and get to know the locals, a transformation takes place in several lives.

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