Mom's the Word with Hollywood Suite

Nearly every night around Henry’s bed time, I get my popcorn ready, grab a cup of peppermint tea and I spend some quality alone time while Matt gets a little shut eye before his graveyard shift (5 nights a week, in fact). So you’d think I would have this TV/Movie thing down by now, right? Nope. I turn on the same subscription thing we’ve got and watch either a documentary or a few episodes of a show. That’s it. And it’s not that I don’t relish my time alone, being able to watch what I want without having to negotiate with the hubs, but I found out recently that I’ve been really missing out on something much better than what I’ve been doing. It’s called Hollywood Suite and it’s not only surprisingly right up my alley, I think it will be right up yours, too.

Hollywood Suite is basically designed for parents like me and you. We love movies, but let’s get real – between kids, work schedules and money, getting out to the movies can seem like a virtual impossibility most nights. But watching movies on TV is probably the worst thing to do because they cut everything good out, either for time or “vulgarity” and there’s another commercial every 8 minutes. Commercial-free, to me, is really the only way to watch movies. But, there are really few options these days. We live in one of the remaining neighbourhoods in Toronto with a full-service video store…but rentals are $6 a piece! Nevermind HD or BluRay. So, it’s either of these two options or online-only subscription services. Which are inexpensive, but what if my game console breaks? I can’t watch movies on my tablet.

This is why I’m embarrassed to say that until recently I had no idea what Hollywood Suite had to offer – they give us commercial free movies over four channels PLUS an on-demand channel for cheaper than an online subscription service. WTF, me? Hollywood Suite was invented for me and I totally had no idea what it was or why it was valuable until very recently. I could be watching so much more than depressing documentaries or FX shows that are 5 years old. And nights that Matt is off? Bigger bowl of popcorn and I might consider letting him choose what we watch.

And it’s pretty clear that they have parents in mind in their programming because they do theme days and weekends — upcoming? Mom’s the Word, a Mother’s Day movie marathon with 12 different movies running across the four channels on Mother’s Day. But they aren’t just Mrs. Doubtfire or some over-the-top-we-think-moms-like-this-in-a-stereotypical-way kind of movies. These are actually good. Across the four channels this upcoming Mother’s Day, Hollywood Suite is offering these twelve movies:

Warner Films – Dolores Claiborne, The Exorcist, Striptease
MGM – Throw Momma From The Train, Baby Boom, Mr. Mom
Sony – Hush, A Cry in the Dark, Stepmom
AXN – The Juror, The Manchurian Candidate, Silent Hill

See what I mean? How wickedly warped would it be to watch a triple bill of Dolores Claiborne, The Exorcist AND Striptease (full disclosure, I love Striptease in all its super cheesy glory)? And Throw Momma From The Train? That’s my idea of a “Mother’s Day” movie.  If these are your idea of great film fare (and really, who wouldn’t love these classics, even Dads should be pleased?), I think Hollywood Suite is just the package for you. And to share all the comedy, drama and warped love of film, I’ve got a contest for you, courtesy of Hollywood Suite…and it’s just in time for Mother’s Day. Sweet.