I’ve heard people refer to “The Notebook” as cheesy, as a ‘chick flick’ (a label very few of my colleagues can stand because of its negative connotation), as predictable and sappy. So “The Notebook” doesn’t exactly take a brain surgeon to guess how the story is going to play out. And it does unapologetically play on your emotions, practically begging you to squeeze out a few tears. But here’s why I enjoyed “The Notebook”: it’s a movie you can relax and let flow over you. It’s also one of the few films out there that tells a complete story. There’s a well-defined beginning, middle, and end.

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Audiences have sat through torturously bad sequels, remakes, and newly concocted drivel this year without a mass revolt. Studios are lucky ticket buyers haven’t organized and made a stand against $100 million-budgeted chunks of garbage. And now we have the third film of a gross-out comedy series competing for our hard-earned cash. Please pass the Tylenol.

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Peter Gibbons, thanks to a hypnotic suggestion, decides not to go to work at the same time his company is laying people off. When layoffs affect his two best friends, they conspire to plant a virus that will embezzle money from the company into their account. Written by Foggy

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Holmes and Watson investigate a series of bizarre and apparently unconnected murders, and the death of a possible suspect. The trail leads to a society of hypnotists and a mysterious, glamoruos woman. The fiendish Dr Moriarty, though reported hanged in Montevideo, is belived to be involved. Written by Michael Crew {m.crew@bbcnc.org.uk}

This light-hearted romantic comedy centers tells of love sought, found, lost, and found again, revolving around the lives of two college students in New York City. Sophomore Al Connelly (Freddie Prinze Jr.) meets the girl of his dreams, freshman Imogen (Julia Stiles), and true love abounds. The two engage on a whirlwind courtship–they pick a song, eat a cake together, even make love. But Imogen’s fear of lost youth causes her to push away from Al, and they go their separate ways. Al attempts to rebound from the relationship, determined to forget Imogen, and he goes to desperate measures to do so. The story is told from the points of view of both Al and Imogen. Written by Allison L. Venezio {YankeeSNL01@aol.com}

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In Beaufort, North Carolina, a prank on a student goes terribly wrong and puts the student in the hospital. Landon Carter, a popular student with no defined plans for the future, is held responsible and forced to participate in after-school community service activities as punishment, which include starring as the lead in the school play. Also participating in these activities is Jamie Sullivan, the reverend’s daughter who has great ambitions and nothing in common with Landon. When Landon decides he wants to take his activities seriously, he asks Jamie for help and begins to spend most of his time with her. But he starts to develop strong feelings for her, something he did not expect to do. The two start a relationship, much to the chagrin of Landon’s old popular friends and Jamie’s strict reverend father. But when a heart-breaking secret becomes known that puts their relationship to the test, it is then that Landon and Jamie realize the true meaning of love and fate. Written by Anonymous

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Jude Law charms his way through this updated version of the classic 1966 Michael Caine film, “Alfie.” And it’s solely Law’s charisma and the edgy, bad boy quality he brings to this remake that makes this “Alfie” watchable.

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In the 1960s, Frances “Baby” Houseman, a sweet daddy’s girl, goes with her family to a resort in upstate New York’s Catskill Mountains. Baby has grown up in privileged surroundings and all expect her to go on to college, join the Peace Corps and save the world before marrying a doctor, just like her father. Unexpectedly, Baby becomes infatuated with the camp’s dance instructor, Johnny, a man whose background is vastly different from her own. Baby lies to her father to get money to pay for an illegal abortion for Johnny’s dance partner (Johnny is not the father). She then fills in as Johnny’s dance partner and it is as he is teaching her the dance routine that they fall in love. It all comes apart when Johnny’s friend falls seriously ill after her abortion and Baby gets her father, who saves the girl’s life. He then learns what Baby has been up to, who with and worse - that he funded the illegal abortion. He bans his daughter from any further association with “those people”. In the first deliberately willful action of her life, Baby later sneaks out to see Johnny - ostensibly to apologize for her father’s rudeness - and ends up consummating her relationship with Johnny. A jealous fellow vacationer sees Baby sneaking out of Johnny’s bungalow the next morning and in an act of retribution, tells management that he is responsible for a theft the evening before, knowing he would not furnish his real whereabouts. In an act of bravery, Baby states that Johnny is innocent, and alibis him by confessing that they were together all night. This revelation causes a huge rift in the family and Baby makes an impassioned speech to her angry and bereft father. At the closing night performances, and although he has been fired and banned from attending, Johnny returns and takes the stage to tell everyone about the woman whose faith in him and whose courage changed his life. They do one final show-stopping dance together. Baby’s father learns that Johnny was not responsible for his partner’s pregnancy and learns to accept that although his beloved daughter is transitioning to womanhood, she will always love him. Written by Amanda W, amended by Linda C.

Camden College. Sean Bateman is the younger brother of depraved Wall Street broker Patrick Bateman. He’s also a drug dealer who owes a lot of money to “fellow” dealer Rupert Guest, as well as a well-known womanizer, for he sleeps with nearly half of the female population on campus. Lauren Hynde is, technically, a virgin. She’s saving herself for her shallow boyfriend, Victor Johnson, who’s left the States to backpack across Europe. Her slutty roommate, Lara, has the hots for Victor as well. Paul Denton, who used to date Lauren, is openly bisexual and attracted to Mitchell Allen (Thomas Ian Nicholas), who’s dating Candice to prove to Paul that he’s not gay. Sean loves Lauren. Paul loves Sean. And Lauren may love Sean. Written by Will

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John LeCarre’s spy thriller is brought to the big screen. A British spy (Pierce Brosnan) is banished to Panama after having an affair with an ambassador’s mistress. Once there he makes connection with a local tailor (Geoffrey Rush) with a nefarious past and connections to all of the top political and gangster figures in Panama. The tailor also has a wife (Jamie Lee Curtis), who works for the Panamanian president and a huge debt. The mission is to learn what the President intends to do with the Panama Canal. But what the two do is concoct a tremendous fictional tale about former mercenaries who are ready to topple the current government and are willing to work with Britain and the US to do so. Written by John Sacksteder {jsackste@bellsouth.net}