A few weeks ago "Despicable Me" came out on dvd. One of the best parts about working at a video store is being able to see new movies for free before they are made available to the public. And so the weekend we got it I took it home. I had mixed feelings about it, I was excited because the previews looked funny and I had heard it was fun. But I had been tricked by hype before so I was a little wary. I watched it and loved it. I mean I LOVED it. It was fun and silly and funny. Steve Carell was hilarious. And the little girls in it were adorable. Adorable little cartoon funny girls. It was just such a fun movie.
Steve Carell plays this villian who is being out villianed by someone. His villian rival has stolen the Great Pyramid and now he is under pressure to do something equally as evil. He has these minions that are cute and yellow and speak some sort of other language that kind of sounds like a certain kind of spanish maybe. Anyway he hatches this plan to steal the moon. But he needs a loan from the bank of evil to fund it. However because his evilness is always a little flat, nothing really pans out for him, the bank says that he has to get them this shrink ray in order to get his loan. And so he does. But then his villian rival steals it from him. In order to get it back he has to come up with a plan to get into his rival's lair. The only way he can is to adopt three little girls. Fun times ensue. =D
This is a great film for families. It has a little bit of everything for everyone. There is humor and sweetness, jokes and just all around greatness. I recommend this film for people who enjoy funm sweet movies. "Despicable Me" gets a 10 out of 10. I loved it.
The much talked about action flick "Salt" came out. I took it home last weekend to see what all the hype was about. I know that not many people like her but I really like Angelina Jolie. I ended up feeling underwhelmed. It was really a pretty typical action film. Sure there was a twist here and there but really it was just her running around shooting people. I was a bit disappointed.
The story followed this CIA agent, Evelyn Salt (played by Ms. Jolie) who on the day of her anniversary has to interview a Russian defector. This man says that a Russian agent in deep cover in the CIA is going to kill the Russian president. He calims that the name of the agent is Evelyn Salt. This begins a whorl-wind adventure of non-stop action. Which is really all it is. An adventure of non-stop action. I even figured out all the twists before the end of the movie. It was a big disappointed in the whole thing. It just kind of fell flat.
I think that for lovers of action films though this might me a good title to catch. If what you want is just a veg-out mindless action movie with a twist or two in it this is the movie for you!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
The Best Part of The '80's
I have a love/hate thing with the '80's. I hate a lot of the fashions, the hairdos, the fact that coke became the cool, hip drug. But then there is a lot of the music, and of course above and beyond all else are the movies.
"Dirty Dancing," "Flashdance," "Footloose," "The Breakfast Club," "Sixteen Candles," "St. Elmo's Fire," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Pretty In Pink," and so many others. So many that I can't even name them all. But the thing that they all had in common was they made in the '80's and they were great. ARE great. They are so silly and sweet, fun and full of life. Many of them aren't the best acted in the world but there is something about them. The high school ones, especially the ones directed and/or written by John Hughes, have a certain amount of strange realism to them. An innocence and at the same time a strength and beauty. John Hughes really seemed to understand teens in the '80's. The thing of it is though that these films transcend the time. They still make sense for today. Or really for when I was a teenager in high school.
"The Breakfast Club," and "Sixteen Candles" became two of my all time favorite movies. Actually I kind of fell in love with all things John Hughes. Well I thought it was all things John Hughes. There was something about those two movies in particular that made me feel like things were really possible. I knew that they were movies and they all had movie endings but still watching those kinds of things portrayed on the screen made it seem like someone out there in the big land of holly was thinking of the younger generation. Anyway the point is these movies were really important to me. I watched many of them over and over again and I even own most of them.
I thought I was hip to all the things that John Hughes had taken part in. Then, while Christmas shopping, I came across this book called "You Couldn't Ignore Me If You Tried" all about John Hughes, the teen movies of the '80's, and the "Brat Pack." Which, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the monicker, is the group of young actors that were really hot at the time. Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwold, etc. This is obviously my book. I bought it and was so excited that I started reading it that night even though I am also reading "War and Peace." I was disappointed to find that the wrtiting is really pretty weak, even boardering on bad. But the material is super intriguing and it goes through the casting, and making of many of the teen movies of that time. It's really interesting. Awful writing but interesting. And informative because I am finding out that John Hughes wrote and produced a lot of movies that I had no idea about. So that opens up a whole new world of movies. And now that he has passed it is even more important for me to see everything he had a hand in. He left behind a great legacy. If you haven't seen his stuff I recommend seeing them. It's worth it.
There are of course many other films that John Hughes had nothing to do with. The ones that meant the most to me were the dance films. Especially "Dirty Dancing," "Flashdance," "Footloose," and "Fame," (what's with the titles starting in 'F')? And though "Dirty Dancing," was a period piece, set in the early '60's, the films were all centered around the world of dance. In many different ways. "Dirty Dancing" brought to life the world of the ballroom dancing in a hip way and the underground world of "dirty" dancing. Punctuated by the bright blush of first love. "Flashdance" brings to the screen the harsh realities of being young and on your own. Jennifer Beals plays a young girl who wants nothing more then to get into the school for performing arts so that she can dance. She works two jobs, one as a welder in a factory, and the other as a stripper. And the though the film has a dark tone to it, it is filled with amazingly fun '80's style dance sequences. "Footloose" brings a whole new chapter to the dance film genre. It takes place in a small town where dancing is forbidden. Kevin Bacon, who plays the super dark and twisty handsome dance rebel, comes into town and instantly falls in love witht he most unattainable girl available. The rebellious daughter of the town preacher. The misadventures and trials that he experiences lead to one fun dance sequence after another. The ultimate being "Kevin Bacon's" solo through out the abandoned warehouse. Lots of acrobatics and gymnastic moves. Greatest was transformed from merely a word to a physical thing. And then there is "Fame" which takes place through one classes journey from audition to graduation at the New York School of Performing arts. Though it centers on all aspects of the school the dancing is a giant part. And the outfits alone make it worth while. It's a dark movie but it is excellent and in a lot of ways beautiful.
My point in this is that these films of the '80's are still to this day an important part of our movie culture. It sounds strange but they are just as important today as they were when they were first released. In a different way maybe but they are still important. These films were the best part of the '80's. I say go forth and watch them. You will not be disappointed. At least that's what I think.
"Dirty Dancing," "Flashdance," "Footloose," "The Breakfast Club," "Sixteen Candles," "St. Elmo's Fire," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Pretty In Pink," and so many others. So many that I can't even name them all. But the thing that they all had in common was they made in the '80's and they were great. ARE great. They are so silly and sweet, fun and full of life. Many of them aren't the best acted in the world but there is something about them. The high school ones, especially the ones directed and/or written by John Hughes, have a certain amount of strange realism to them. An innocence and at the same time a strength and beauty. John Hughes really seemed to understand teens in the '80's. The thing of it is though that these films transcend the time. They still make sense for today. Or really for when I was a teenager in high school.
"The Breakfast Club," and "Sixteen Candles" became two of my all time favorite movies. Actually I kind of fell in love with all things John Hughes. Well I thought it was all things John Hughes. There was something about those two movies in particular that made me feel like things were really possible. I knew that they were movies and they all had movie endings but still watching those kinds of things portrayed on the screen made it seem like someone out there in the big land of holly was thinking of the younger generation. Anyway the point is these movies were really important to me. I watched many of them over and over again and I even own most of them.
I thought I was hip to all the things that John Hughes had taken part in. Then, while Christmas shopping, I came across this book called "You Couldn't Ignore Me If You Tried" all about John Hughes, the teen movies of the '80's, and the "Brat Pack." Which, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the monicker, is the group of young actors that were really hot at the time. Judd Nelson, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy, Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwold, etc. This is obviously my book. I bought it and was so excited that I started reading it that night even though I am also reading "War and Peace." I was disappointed to find that the wrtiting is really pretty weak, even boardering on bad. But the material is super intriguing and it goes through the casting, and making of many of the teen movies of that time. It's really interesting. Awful writing but interesting. And informative because I am finding out that John Hughes wrote and produced a lot of movies that I had no idea about. So that opens up a whole new world of movies. And now that he has passed it is even more important for me to see everything he had a hand in. He left behind a great legacy. If you haven't seen his stuff I recommend seeing them. It's worth it.
There are of course many other films that John Hughes had nothing to do with. The ones that meant the most to me were the dance films. Especially "Dirty Dancing," "Flashdance," "Footloose," and "Fame," (what's with the titles starting in 'F')? And though "Dirty Dancing," was a period piece, set in the early '60's, the films were all centered around the world of dance. In many different ways. "Dirty Dancing" brought to life the world of the ballroom dancing in a hip way and the underground world of "dirty" dancing. Punctuated by the bright blush of first love. "Flashdance" brings to the screen the harsh realities of being young and on your own. Jennifer Beals plays a young girl who wants nothing more then to get into the school for performing arts so that she can dance. She works two jobs, one as a welder in a factory, and the other as a stripper. And the though the film has a dark tone to it, it is filled with amazingly fun '80's style dance sequences. "Footloose" brings a whole new chapter to the dance film genre. It takes place in a small town where dancing is forbidden. Kevin Bacon, who plays the super dark and twisty handsome dance rebel, comes into town and instantly falls in love witht he most unattainable girl available. The rebellious daughter of the town preacher. The misadventures and trials that he experiences lead to one fun dance sequence after another. The ultimate being "Kevin Bacon's" solo through out the abandoned warehouse. Lots of acrobatics and gymnastic moves. Greatest was transformed from merely a word to a physical thing. And then there is "Fame" which takes place through one classes journey from audition to graduation at the New York School of Performing arts. Though it centers on all aspects of the school the dancing is a giant part. And the outfits alone make it worth while. It's a dark movie but it is excellent and in a lot of ways beautiful.
My point in this is that these films of the '80's are still to this day an important part of our movie culture. It sounds strange but they are just as important today as they were when they were first released. In a different way maybe but they are still important. These films were the best part of the '80's. I say go forth and watch them. You will not be disappointed. At least that's what I think.
Monday, December 13, 2010
The Last Vampire Series
Many years ago a man named Christopher Pike wrote a series of books that turned into The Last Vampire series. It was broken into six small novels, and then later turned into two larger volumes. This was how I first encountered it. My dear friend owned the two Last Vampire series collector's volumes. After she read them I was given the chance to enjoy them. I loved them. To say the least. I loved them so much that I committed one of the biggest book lover faux pas' that can be committed, I stole the books from my friend and kept them.
The story follows Sita, alias Alisa Perne, the last vampire on earth. When her "secret identity" is threatened by a local PI her temper gets the better of her and she kills him. Because of the detailed knowledge the detective had Sita worries about who hired him to find out about her. In order to do this Sita must take drastic measures and befriend the detective's son, Ray. And so she enrolls herself into Ray's high school. What begins as a simple, for her, assignment to gain information turns into the adventure of her long life.
Each book brings about a new set of challenges, a new set of rules, and many surprises. The books are all really good. And through it all there are characters that enliven the book even more. Now in order to fully give my real opinion about these books I have to give a little something away. The end of the very last book takes such a turn that the books really and truly end. Sita is able to change the way she lived her life which wraps the books up. It was a good ending.
I have read and re-read this series through out the years. And in many ways they have been a great comfort to me. The thing that I always went back to was Sita's struggle between her desires and doing what was right. I feel that a lot. I know that a lot of people feel that, a lot. So it's a fun thing to read a book about a very powerful creature that struggles just like us mere mortals. The writing is good, the characters real, the adventure is always edge of your seat. And many of the ideas that Sita believes in about Krishna and who God is are different and interesting. It's nice to see a different point of view on those sort of things in a vampire novel of all things. These are just some of the many reasons that I have always loved these books.
Then just within the last couple of years they have reprinted the books and entitled the series "Thirst." They have put annoying pictures on the front covers. It's a little disappointing but what can you do? I am torn about these new reprintings. I am glad that they have come out so now more people will get to read them, but because of the new covers and the new title it looks kind of stupid. Also I have discovered the reason for the reprinting. Christopher Pike has come out with another book about Sita and there is another one coming. Somehow impossibly there is more. I was stunned. I couldn't believe it. And only true fans of old will know what I am talking about. But trust me it is ridiculous that this has happened and is happening.
Because I was so shocked I read the book just to see how Christopher Pike did it. And it was just stupid. For most of the novel I was bored and confused and felt that there were just too many enemies. There was a very small window when it was like the good old books. But even Sita wasn't the same. She was annoying and whiney. I was highly disappointed!
So in conclusion I have to say go and read the first two volumes. Ignore the stupid new name "Thirst" and the really annoying pictures on the covers and go read them. Those are good. The are fun and full of life. Ignore the new ones.
The story follows Sita, alias Alisa Perne, the last vampire on earth. When her "secret identity" is threatened by a local PI her temper gets the better of her and she kills him. Because of the detailed knowledge the detective had Sita worries about who hired him to find out about her. In order to do this Sita must take drastic measures and befriend the detective's son, Ray. And so she enrolls herself into Ray's high school. What begins as a simple, for her, assignment to gain information turns into the adventure of her long life.
Each book brings about a new set of challenges, a new set of rules, and many surprises. The books are all really good. And through it all there are characters that enliven the book even more. Now in order to fully give my real opinion about these books I have to give a little something away. The end of the very last book takes such a turn that the books really and truly end. Sita is able to change the way she lived her life which wraps the books up. It was a good ending.
I have read and re-read this series through out the years. And in many ways they have been a great comfort to me. The thing that I always went back to was Sita's struggle between her desires and doing what was right. I feel that a lot. I know that a lot of people feel that, a lot. So it's a fun thing to read a book about a very powerful creature that struggles just like us mere mortals. The writing is good, the characters real, the adventure is always edge of your seat. And many of the ideas that Sita believes in about Krishna and who God is are different and interesting. It's nice to see a different point of view on those sort of things in a vampire novel of all things. These are just some of the many reasons that I have always loved these books.
Then just within the last couple of years they have reprinted the books and entitled the series "Thirst." They have put annoying pictures on the front covers. It's a little disappointing but what can you do? I am torn about these new reprintings. I am glad that they have come out so now more people will get to read them, but because of the new covers and the new title it looks kind of stupid. Also I have discovered the reason for the reprinting. Christopher Pike has come out with another book about Sita and there is another one coming. Somehow impossibly there is more. I was stunned. I couldn't believe it. And only true fans of old will know what I am talking about. But trust me it is ridiculous that this has happened and is happening.
Because I was so shocked I read the book just to see how Christopher Pike did it. And it was just stupid. For most of the novel I was bored and confused and felt that there were just too many enemies. There was a very small window when it was like the good old books. But even Sita wasn't the same. She was annoying and whiney. I was highly disappointed!
So in conclusion I have to say go and read the first two volumes. Ignore the stupid new name "Thirst" and the really annoying pictures on the covers and go read them. Those are good. The are fun and full of life. Ignore the new ones.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Four for the Price of One
My computer has been not working latley, hence the no entry for awhile. And so because of this there are many reviews to fit into one entry. Forgive the mish mash of it all but it is the way it is.
First I would like to talk about "Eat Pray Love" both the book and the movie. I was told over and over again that I needed to read the book. That it was exceptional, moving, and very insightful. But I was reluctant to because when people tell me "you have to watch this, you have to read this, it is the best thing ever!" I tend to truly believe them and I more often then not end up highly disappointed. So I put reading it off. And then when I heard there was going to be a movie made I got this urge to read the book first.
I was blown away by it. I don't know if I really needed something like that in my life at the time or if I was just in need of a good read either way the book really spoke to me. I found a lot of beauty to her story. And something that I really liked about it is her totally neurotic and slightly egotistical self. She wasn't afraid to be totally crazy and raw. I liked that. I enjoy when people know that they are crazy and just embrace it rather then try to cover it up. It was a beautiful tale that she told. And her journey was full of life. In all the terror and pain there was great wisdom and beauty that was discovered. I recommend the book to people who would like to discover how one woman took her journey. I know that many people, especially since the movie has come out, have been doing EXACTLY what she did. I do not recommend this. That is foolishiness incarnate. We all need to discover our own paths and take our own journeys. However sometimes learning about someone elses helps us start looking for our own.
On to the movie. I knew that there would be things that would be tweaked and cut and changed. That since it was a Hollywood movie it would of course be somewhat Hollywoodized. Now I am a vetren of books-to-movies watching. I know that things have to be changed to make it into a watchable, money making film. However with this transition I was hoping that they would try at least a little bit to keep a tiny bit of the integrity of the book and the story. I guess I was foolishly hoping they wouldn't Hollywoodize it all the way. But they did. And it made me sad. There were some nice parts, and the scenery was amazing. Julia Roberts was great. She always does a good job. But for me because the book was so important to me the movie fell flat. And because of that I say to all those who felt the book ment a lot to them stay away from watching the movie. Unless of course you can go into it with no preconceptions what so ever. Which we all know is practically impossible. I just think that this was one great book that really shouldn't have been made into a movie. They should have left well enough alone.
I have two more movies I want to talk about. One being "The Expendables," and the second being "Inception." "The Expendables" is a ridiculous action film that really is nothing other then action. It of course stars all the old action stars from the 80's. Sylvestor Stallone, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Steve Austin, Eric ROberts, and Dolph Lundgren. To name just a few. Plus an excellant camio by none other then Arnold Schwarzenegger. It's a true action film in the sense that all it is, is explosions, car chases, fighting lots of adreneline. The thing that is the really great part is watching these old guys try to do these wild action things. It was truly a very funny film. It was a good movie in the sense that it was so bad. Don't mistake me. That happened with one of my managers she believed that when I said it was a good movie I meant that it was a quality film but it is not. It is just a hilarious ridiculous action fest. That is all. However everyone should watch it for that exact reason! So go forth and watch.
With "Inception" I was slightly disappointed. It was an interesting story. A well acted film. Christopher Nolan did an excellent job. Ellen Page and Leonardo Dicaprio were fantastic. But it just didn't do it for me. I wasn't as impressed as many others were. I found it slightly anti-climatic. It just didn't excite me as much as I was hoping it was going to. I can't really describe what was missing or why I wasn't all that impressed but there it is. At the same time I think that it's a movie that is worth watching. Especially the scenes with Marion Cotlliard. She was truly amazing.
There they are. All things I wanted to talk about but haven't been able to due to my lack of computer. Again sorry about the mish mash. But I had to do what I had to do. More soon.
First I would like to talk about "Eat Pray Love" both the book and the movie. I was told over and over again that I needed to read the book. That it was exceptional, moving, and very insightful. But I was reluctant to because when people tell me "you have to watch this, you have to read this, it is the best thing ever!" I tend to truly believe them and I more often then not end up highly disappointed. So I put reading it off. And then when I heard there was going to be a movie made I got this urge to read the book first.
I was blown away by it. I don't know if I really needed something like that in my life at the time or if I was just in need of a good read either way the book really spoke to me. I found a lot of beauty to her story. And something that I really liked about it is her totally neurotic and slightly egotistical self. She wasn't afraid to be totally crazy and raw. I liked that. I enjoy when people know that they are crazy and just embrace it rather then try to cover it up. It was a beautiful tale that she told. And her journey was full of life. In all the terror and pain there was great wisdom and beauty that was discovered. I recommend the book to people who would like to discover how one woman took her journey. I know that many people, especially since the movie has come out, have been doing EXACTLY what she did. I do not recommend this. That is foolishiness incarnate. We all need to discover our own paths and take our own journeys. However sometimes learning about someone elses helps us start looking for our own.
On to the movie. I knew that there would be things that would be tweaked and cut and changed. That since it was a Hollywood movie it would of course be somewhat Hollywoodized. Now I am a vetren of books-to-movies watching. I know that things have to be changed to make it into a watchable, money making film. However with this transition I was hoping that they would try at least a little bit to keep a tiny bit of the integrity of the book and the story. I guess I was foolishly hoping they wouldn't Hollywoodize it all the way. But they did. And it made me sad. There were some nice parts, and the scenery was amazing. Julia Roberts was great. She always does a good job. But for me because the book was so important to me the movie fell flat. And because of that I say to all those who felt the book ment a lot to them stay away from watching the movie. Unless of course you can go into it with no preconceptions what so ever. Which we all know is practically impossible. I just think that this was one great book that really shouldn't have been made into a movie. They should have left well enough alone.
I have two more movies I want to talk about. One being "The Expendables," and the second being "Inception." "The Expendables" is a ridiculous action film that really is nothing other then action. It of course stars all the old action stars from the 80's. Sylvestor Stallone, Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Steve Austin, Eric ROberts, and Dolph Lundgren. To name just a few. Plus an excellant camio by none other then Arnold Schwarzenegger. It's a true action film in the sense that all it is, is explosions, car chases, fighting lots of adreneline. The thing that is the really great part is watching these old guys try to do these wild action things. It was truly a very funny film. It was a good movie in the sense that it was so bad. Don't mistake me. That happened with one of my managers she believed that when I said it was a good movie I meant that it was a quality film but it is not. It is just a hilarious ridiculous action fest. That is all. However everyone should watch it for that exact reason! So go forth and watch.
With "Inception" I was slightly disappointed. It was an interesting story. A well acted film. Christopher Nolan did an excellent job. Ellen Page and Leonardo Dicaprio were fantastic. But it just didn't do it for me. I wasn't as impressed as many others were. I found it slightly anti-climatic. It just didn't excite me as much as I was hoping it was going to. I can't really describe what was missing or why I wasn't all that impressed but there it is. At the same time I think that it's a movie that is worth watching. Especially the scenes with Marion Cotlliard. She was truly amazing.
There they are. All things I wanted to talk about but haven't been able to due to my lack of computer. Again sorry about the mish mash. But I had to do what I had to do. More soon.
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