Barb's Pick: Good Hair

Chris Rock’s Good Hair is a fantastic documentary focusing on African-American hair. It’s funny, witty and interesting. There are compelling facts about real hair, fake hair and the hair industry as a whole. Chris Rock does a great job of educating and entertaining us at the same time.

Barb's Pick: Edward the King

Edward the King is a superbly acted, thirteen-part historical miniseries based on the life of Edward the 7th. "Bertie" waited six decades before becoming king and then reigned for only nine years. Annette Crosbie as Queen Victoria is outstanding, as well as Timothy West as King Edward the 7th.

Barb's Pick: Michael Jackson's This Is It

Michael Jackson’s This Is It is an homage to what a really superb entertainer Michael was. The music and dancing are fantastic, and the scope of what this concert production was going to be is exciting to see. I recommend you watch it in surround sound if you can!

Barb's Pick: Beulah Land

Check out the movie Beulah Land, an epic dramatizing the lives of two passionate families during the early to mid 1800s in Georgia. Follow the Kendricks of Beulah Land and the Davises of Oaks Plantations as both families love, prosper and live during and after the Civil War. 

Barb's Pick: Rockferry

Checkout this fantastic, soulful CD called Rockferry by Welsh singer Duffy. She has a retro-blues, 60's sound. Duffy reminds me of Dusty Springfield or Lulu. All the tracks are simultaneously soothing and rhythmic. This unique, expressive singer will definitely beguile you.

Barb's Pick: Appaloosa

Appaloosa, a western directed by Ed Harris, takes place in a dusty town suffering under rancher Randall Bragg, played by Jeremy Irons. Appaloosa officials hire two friends, renegade lawmen Virgil Cole and Everette Hitch, to arrest Bragg. The arrival of a young widow complicates relationships between all the menfolk.

Barb's Pick: Grey Gardens

Grey Gardens and The Beales of Grey Gardens are must-see documentaries.  We are pulled into mother Edith’s and daughter Little Edie’s fascinating relationship.  They also happen to be Jackie Kennedy Onassis’ relatives!  The pair lived in a deteriorated mansion in East Hampton with their cats, raccoons, and their captivating stories.

Barb's Pick: Tess of the D'Urbervilles

Tess of the D’Urbervilles is a wonderful new DVD adaptation of the classic novel by Thomas Hardy. Excellent acting and entrancing film-making turn this mini-series into a marvelous piece of work. Our spirited heroine, Tess, is hurt by one man and forsaken by another. The actress playing Tess is fantastic.

Barb's Pick: The 19th Wife

David Ebershoff’s intriguing, timely story, The 19th Wife, weaves together the past and present drama of polygamy in the Mormon Church. The author connects you with Ann Eliza Young, the nineteenth wife of Brigham Young, and a modern-day mystery in which another wife is accused of murdering her polygamous husband.

Barb's Pick: Centennial

Now on DVD, James Michener's Centennial is one of the best made-for-TV mini-series ever produced.  The acting is superb, the photography is amazing, the costumes and portrayals of the Native Americans are well researched and brilliant.  A great epic to watch with your family -- they don't make TV movies like this anymore.