About Time (2013) - £5 on Amazon
I went to see this movie as a late 21st birthday gift/celebration last year. My Granny and I have birthdays 4 days apart which often coincided with the release of the new Harry Potter films so we would go to see them together as a birthday celebration. When my 21st birthday came around , there was no more HP films to see so she made me a voucher to pick anything that I liked. We waited 2 months to see a movie that we thought looked really good and About Time did not disappoint. The film stars Rachel McAdams and Domhnall Glesson and follows the life of a young man who is told on his 21st birthday (ironically) that he can time travel. All he needs to do is stand in a cupboard and think of a moment he would like to relive. He has many awkward encounters across the film that are easily or not so easily resolved. The time span of this film is actually quite wide as it covers a great deal of the character's big life moments. It's a rom com that's a good mix of funny and really incredibly sweet. I left the cinema with my heart warmed and I really could watch this film countless times and still enjoy it.
Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009) - £3.99 on Amazon
A slightly older film and one I personally often forget about. Confessions of a Shopaholic is focused on a young woman Becky Bloomwood who has a serious shopping problem. The whole film is basically about the mischief and situations that Becky finds herself in due to her extreme shopping habits. It's comical, maybe a little a silly in places, romantic and just a complete feel good film. Isla Fisher is fantastic as Becky and exactly how I pictured her in the novels (if you didn't know, it's based on a best selling book series) and Hugh Dancy is similarity great as Becky's love interest/boss Luke Brandon. This is a great romantic comedy for any girl this Christmas.
Just Like Heaven (2005) - £3.50 on Amazon
This is the oldest film in my gift guide but still a great one. I remember going to see this as a result of January sale shopping being terrible and a complete waste of time. Reese Witherspoon stars as the protagonist of this film, Elizabeth, who is in a car crash on the way to a blind date and subsequently ends up in a coma. She has an out of body experience where she has no idea about anything that has happened since the crash. Mark Ruffalo's character moves into her apartment after her sister rents it out and she harasses him on a daily basis about living in her place and not using coasters on her coffee table. He's the only one that can see her so the pair eventually begin to bond over the course of the film. It's quite a sad film but it does have its funny parts and is overall a really enjoyable film. I have loved Reese Witherspoon films for a long time so that makes it an instant winner for me.
The Lucky One (2012) - £3.00 on Amazon
Now I'm no Zac Efron fan but I really enjoyed this film when I first saw it in cinemas. It's one of those ones that you kind of forget about then remember it exists and you're keen to watch it again. Taylor Schilling also stars in this movie and in all honestly, I didn't make the connection when I first started watching Orange Is The New Black. watching the film now it is so obvious that it's her! The Lucky One is based around a young soldier (Efron) who finds a photo of a woman lying on the ground in a battlefield and immediately after, he survives a bomb blast. He believes that this woman (Schilling) is his guardian angel and is determined to find her. He becomes aware that she owns a business and he approaches her for employment as a means to get to know her. It's rather sad film in parts but it is excellent. It's also based on a Nicholas Sparks novel so if you're a fan of his writing this one's for you.
Side Effects (2013) - £4.34 on Amazon
My last two picks are out of the rom com category with the first one being the thriller Side Effects. This film stars Rooney Mara as the main character with Channing Tatum playing her husband. I am a big fan of both Rooney and her sister Kate Mara so I definitely was not going to miss this film. What girl also doesn't love a movie starring Channing Tatum? It was interesting to see him in a more serious role as he typically stars in comedies. I really cannot say much about the plot without giving the whole thing away as there is a fantastic twist. However, I can say that Mara's character, Emily, is given a new experimental drug by her psychiatrist (Jude Law) to help her depression. These tablets actually make her do crazy things in a sleep walk state which she has no recollection of. It's a really great thriller so I shall say no more!
My final pick is my favourite horror film of all time. I thought that not every girl may enjoy romantic comedies so wanted to throw this one in. Orphan stars Isabelle Fuhrman who plays a nine year old Russian girl called Esther who is adopted by a couple with two young children. Now, Esther is a sweet young girl who the couple are instantly drawn to when they visit the orphanage. Of course she it not what she seems and the mother (played by Vera Farmiga) begins to catch on that Esther is slightly disturbed. She was sitting on her own in the orphanage so they really should of caught on! For a family who already had many troubles, Esther creates nothing short of havoc for them and her actions get wilder as the film goes on. I wouldn't say this was scary as such, it's more of a an intense film. Like Side Effects it also has a great twist! Isabelle Fuhrman is exceptional in this film (you may recognise her as the tribute Clove from The Hunger Games) as she is actually really creepy.
Today in my advent calendar I received a nail polish and a chocolate snowman! I'm actually really excited to try out the nail polish as it's quite a Christmassy colour and I don't have one like it already!
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