Winter weekend nights have always been perfect for movies at home. But which ones? Um – how about those set in winter?

Getting all comfy on the sofa, chaise – alone, with a special someone, or the whole gosh-darn family (critters included, maybe not on the couch)! Movies equal popcorn! So pop some up, gather everyone’s bevvy of choice, maybe even light a candle or two. Then once everyone’s all settled in – often after a few choruses of “Hey! Are you coming in to watch the movie with us or what?” Heheheheheh ... 

OK, so you pick up the remote control and ... wait, did anyone actually put a movie in the DVD player? After the eye rolls and laughter, someone actually gets up to put in the DVD ... but, which one? Did everyone forget to vote on which movie you were all going to watch? Yeep. So it’s time to review all the winter movies in the home collection. Here it goes for mine ...

“The Narnia Chronicles: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe” (I always want to spell it Ward Robe in the title, too). I remember reading this book to my girls – my youngest, in particular, really loved it. Adventures in snow-covered Narnia, Tumnus the faun standing near the light post ... such an iconic image that, the daughters and sons of Adam and Eve: Susan, Lucy, Edmund and Peter; the evil white witch; Aslan ... and, Turkish delight. The cinematography of the 2005 movie is so beautiful, it will rekindle that child within you.

But then there are the Harry Potter films – depending on the ages of the kids (if any), the two earlier films would suit. The scenes inside Hogwarts with the floating candles near the ceiling in the dining hall and, well, the magic make for great fun. We watched the first film a while back, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” those kids were just 10 or 11 years old. And quidditch – how cool is that sport? Riding on broomsticks chasing after the Golden Snitch ... no acrophobics at that school! “The Hobbit” and the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy create a different magical setting filled with the adventures of hobbits – including Gollum, wizards, elves, fairies, dwarves, trolls, spirits, a dark lord and other engaging characters. These could be a bit intense for kids under 10. The cinematography in all of these films is outstanding, and sometimes breathtaking ...

No kids? Looking for a comedy? How about “When Harry Met Sally?” – Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal are sheer perfection in this classic directed by Rob Reiner. Another comedy, perhaps lesser known, was one I first saw as a late night movie after Johnny Carson in 1969, “The Fearless Vampire Killers or Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are In My Neck” directed by Roman Polanski. Filmed in Italy and the UK, the cast includes Sharon Tate, the beautiful daughter of the innkeeper who is kidnapped by the village vampire. Polanski plays Alfred, the not-too-bright assistant to Professor Abronsius, who is hunting vampires. Here’s a cult classic if ever there was one.

Three winter-based Stephen King novels: “Misery,” “Storm of the Century” and probably one of the best horror films of all time, “The Shining;” How can you go wrong with a crazed, seriously abusive fan of an injured novelist, a creepy blizzard that blows in a creepier stranger, and a haunted hotel in Colorado? All of them will have you right rigid with anticipation, catching your breath, and wincing – the last mostly due to Kathy Bates in “Misery!” Am I right?

Two historically-based films, “Dr. Zhivago,” and Warren Beatty’s “Reds” top this list for me. Most of us have seen “Zhivago,” but perhaps not “Reds.” Beatty won the Best Director Oscar for this 1981 film that starred Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Gene Hackman, Maureen Stapleton (as Emma Goldman) and Beatty, among many others. Beatty plays American journalist John Reed in Russia in 1917 covering the Bolshevik Revolution; Keaton plays the American journalist, activist and feminist Louise Bryant; and Nicholson portrays Eugene O’Neill. It’s a powerful film of Reed’s book, “Ten Days That Shook the World.” Freedom of speech; women’s rights – including birth control, the economy, socialism, disillusionment, romance, and so much more. The acting is superb by all the lead actors. Stapleton won an Oscar for her portrayal of Goldman. I think this is Beatty’s best work. I saw it in the theater, TV and, finally, on DVD. Oh! Having a few tissues nearby might not be a bad idea if you watch this one.

Most films can be streamed if you don’t have them in your home collection. So, choose a weekend, the movies, the snacks ... and kick back with your loved ones for a ride (or two) on the cinema express.

“I think cinema, movies, and magic have always been closely associated. The very earliest people who made films were magicians.” – Francis Ford Coppola