PW Picks

And these are a few of our favorite things...

Each month, the PW team brings you our old standbys, best-in-shows and current obsessions in products and services for your body, home, wellbeing and more.

Favorite Summertime Movies

“All of Me”
Denise Grusin, Account Manager
If only I could have been born into the Reiner family! The only DVDs I own are directed by either Carl Reiner or Rob Reiner and it was hard to select just one as my favorite summer pick. But I highly recommend “All of Me,” the 1984 comedy starring Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin. The very goofy premise of an ailing spinster’s soul being mistakenly transported into her lawyer’s body is played out believably rather than in a slapstick fashion. The acting is simply brilliant. I only recently learned that the classic “back in bowl” scene with Steve Martin and Richard Libertini was mostly ad-libbed. I love those guys! And though I’ve watched this movie countless times, I still cry tears of joy at the last scene during the closing credits.

“Dirty Dancing”
Rachel Williford, Associate Editor
When I think “summer,” I think “classic.” For my generation, it doesn’t get any more classic than Dirty Dancing. Hot summer nights, hot summer swims, and of course, hot summer romances. Complete with the good girl/bad boy forbidden love story, this movie is the pinnacle of cheesy 80s chick flicks – it’s also a movie I’ve seen hundreds (yes, hundreds) of times, and still manage to get entranced by. What’s more refreshing than that unforgettable scene where Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze practice their “lift” in the lake water? I admit to, even today, getting a little teary during the final scene where rebel Johnny takes a not-so-innocent-anymore Baby for a fancy, albeit “dirty,” spin on the dance floor. (“Nobody puts baby in the corner…”) This is definitely my idea of a quality summertime movie.

“Bull Durham”
Kristine Hedlund, Publisher
Bull Durham is not only my favorite summertime movie, but one of my favorites of all time. Is it because of Kevin Costner? No, not really. Is it because it can be an assumed chick flick? I am not a chick flick movie watcher.

Bull Durham gets high ratings from me because it is about good clean minor league baseball. Susan Sarandon (Annie, a name typically given to women waiting for their baseball prey) takes the draft of each new season very seriously. Not only do the Durham Bulls bring their new talent in each year, but Annie uses each new season as her opportunity to catch and train one new player as her “summer fling.”
Sarandon is not given an easy choice. Will it be Nuke (Tim Robbins), the first-year rookie or Crash Davis (Kevin Costner), the experienced, once-in-the-big-show player whose age has sent him back to the minors?

Bull Durham is a movie that both you and your man will enjoy; America’s greatest pastime for him, and a steamy love scene on track 25 of the DVD for you. Trust me girls, you will love it.

“Cool Runnings”
Marrissa Meyer, Associate Editor
“Cool Runnings” is one of my all-time favorite movies. As its name hints, the movie takes place almost entirely at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics, but the real story begins on the tiny island of Jamaica, with a band of unlikely Olympians. Jamaican sprinter Derice Bannock was set to follow in the footsteps of his Olympic-medal-winning father when he is accidentally tripped during Olympic qualifying trials. Determined to make it to the Olympics, he starts Jamaica’s first bobsledding team. The team of unlikely heroes enlists the coaching help of washed up ex-bobsledder Irving “Irv” Blitzer (John Candy), and they begin their fight as the Jamaican bobsled team. The movie is hilarious, from start to finish, but what I really love is the message about overcoming adversity with grace, perseverance, and a healthy dose of laughter. “Cool Runnings” is a movie I’m always in the mood to watch, especially in the summertime.