Beach season is almost here, and the look for summer is definitely Bohemian. Ethnic prints mixed with muted colors, fringe details and loose-fitting shapes work on everyone.

Well, it’s another B- week at the movies. If you’ve checked all the Oscar nominated films off your list, and you’ve seen Olympus Has Fallen and Oz the Great and Powerful, it might be a good weekend to park on your couch. Here are some options:

Versatile, comfortable and flattering, denim is not just for cowboys or weekend wear anymore. denim has undoubtedly become a staple in everyone's closet. And for spring, denim (and its sister, chambray) is more popular than ever, showing up in every shape and style. Pair your denim with white accessories for a fresh way to wear this much-loved fabric this season.

Well, we’re almost out of the woods. We made it through the January bilge and a February with nothing but Oscar re-releases that were worth seeing. Spring break is almost over, and the studios know that the time has come to start releasing some movies that people actually will pay to see. Here’s what we have (hopefully) to look forward to this spring:

Story: Homer Smith has received his honorable discharge from the Army in 1949 and has decided to see the USA, specifically the American Southwest. He has enough money saved that he can afford to take this scenic vacation, picking up odd jobs along the way for extra cash. While traveling through New Mexico, he happens upon a village where a group of nuns from East Germany lives just outside the city limits, on a hardscrabble farm where they grow their own crops.

OK. If your Oscar checklist is complete, and you are nauseated by the options at the cineplex—as well you should be—there is a silver lining. Not Silver Linings Playbook yet, but you have options. There are some great DVDs that came out this week, so if you want to stay in and hunker down with a good movie, these are my suggestions:

Let me start off by saying that had I written my traditional list of Oscar predictions—for which I have a remarkably accurate record. Well, I would have failed miserably this year. This had to have been one of the most unusual, scattered, unpredictable, Academy Awards I have ever seen. That being said, I am prepared to eat a little crow and perhaps do a little Monday morning-quarterbacking.

For 2013, Circle Of Concern elected new directors, officers and executive directors: president NANCY PARKER, VP DOUG SCHAEFFLER, treasurer ROD BISHOP, secretary CALVIN HOLDERBY. New directors are SUE HOFFMAN, HARRY LEMAY, JUNE SCHROEDER and GREG SHOEMAKER. CHRIS PALLOZOLA was promoted to executive director.

A telegraph key and $150 links St. Louisan Derek Cohn to Steven Spielberg’s Oscar front-runner, Lincoln. The movie has received widespread critical acclaim and has been nominated for 12 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

I’ve had a lot on my plate this week—not because there is more work to do at the office, or that my social calendar is busier than usual. Rather, I’ve been cramming to get ready for one of my favorite nights of the year: Oscar night. If you feast on films as much as I do, and appreciate the magic that goes into movie-making, there is no better way to celebrate the art than to enjoy the ride that is the Academy Awards.

February is finally here, which means Oscar season is finally here. Nevertheless, the hangover of the January curse still lingers. So I have compiled a list of dos and don’ts, if you are so inclined to head to the theater in the next couple of weeks. These are the dos.

The January movie curse continues. I don’t know how much of the blame for this film we can put on Peter Farrelly—the production credits have more names than I care to count. Nevertheless, his name is among them; and this movie reeks of his signature, sophomoric witless comedy. The lingering question about this movie is How? How on earth did they assemble that cast with that script? The film stars A-listers, Oscar winners and soon-to-be Oscar winners. I get that they have their eye on a beach house, but come on.

After the weekend I’ve had at the cineplex, I can say with confidence that unless you’ve got any of the Oscar winners you need to check off your list, stay home and download a movie. Here are some suggestions:

Story: Ralph takes the same walk every day, same park, same path, same familiarity. One day he goes crazy, changes his routine and becomes smitten with a beautiful woman strolling with her dog in the city’s dog park. Suddenly, the retired widower has a new spark and aggressively befriends the reluctant Carol.

It’s that time of year when A-list actors wait patiently by the phone and  pretend that awards mean nothing (and that approval from colleagues and fans is recognition enough), but hoping against hope that their agent calls to tell them they got an Oscar nomination. The nominations were announced last week, and I must say there were a few surprises…and not the good kind.

This movie comes with a tornado of controversy surrounding it. People have accused the film of being propaganda created and released in a calculated effort to aid in Barack Obama’s re-election. On the other side of the aisle, critics are claiming the film is 'pro-torture,' supporting the most extreme methods of interrogation. Is it? I don’t know. What I do know is that this thriller about the decade-long manhunt for Osama Bin Laden is one of the most intense, gripping films I have seen in a while.

The Baldwin Report

Every month of the year has a 'movie personality.' October is set for thrillers and horror, while February is the month for romances. December is family films and Oscar contenders, and July is action—we seem to enjoy seeing things explode in July. But what about January? There’s no big holiday in January to give it a movie theme. Award hopefuls all have been submitted. What kinds of movies get released in January? I will tell you the answer: bad movies.

OK, it’s January, a notoriously dark time at the cineplex: dark in terms of genre, in terms of quality and in terms of attendance. The good news is, if you want to curl up on your couch with a good movie, there are plenty of options out there. And should you be in the mood for a little light-hearted action, well the news just gets better and better. Here are the latest and/or most popular rentals: 

Across

The lists are fairly uncontroversial this year. I said fairly. Also, in the spirit of full disclosure, there are three films on the list that I have not yet seen. I just feel that confident. So, without further ado...

Would somebody give Bill Murray an Oscar already? When you look at his evolution as an actor—from hitting the blooms off mums with a gardening tool to this astounding portrayal of FDR—the mind reels. This film is getting mixed reviews, and I have to say I know why, but I couldn’t disagree more.

Overlooking gorgeous gardens, lush landscapes and the historic village of St. Albans, The Studio Inn and The Gardens at Malmaison event spaces offer outdoor beauty and elegance reminiscent of another age. “It’s like a fairy tale here,” notes owner Datra Herzog.

I always wanted to be some sort of 'buff'—turns out I am a movie buff. I also happen to love all things Hitchcock; well, most things Hitchcock, and frankly, I thought I knew quite a bit about the man. Turns out that wasn’t the case, and I have this film to thank for enlightening me. Hitchcock is quite simply an intelligent and brilliantly acted film about a genius and his many obsessions.