Vicky Cristina Barcelona

This afternoon I went to see Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Based on previous reactions, I'm guessing most of you have never heard of it. It's a Woody Allen film that I had seen in some movie trailers, and I think I may have also read about it in a magazine. It seemed interesting, so I selected it as my movie of the week, and it didn't disappoint.

In simplistic terms, this movie is probably best described as a romantic comedy. My take on it is that it's a movie about love, and how everyone has a different interpretation of what "love" is and what they're willing to do to find true love.

The story begins with Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), two friends on their way to Barcelona for the summer. The movie is narrated, which some people may find annoying, but I thought it added to the movie's charm. The narration begins by explaining that Vicky and Cristina have very different views on love, Vicky being very practical and Cristina being more spontaneous and unsure of how she really feels. Vicky is engaged to someone who will provide her security, but is otherwise seemingly boring. They are staying with a relative of Vicky's, Judy (Patricia Clarkson) and her husband Mark (Kevin Dunn), who have what seems to be a perfect life in a beautiful home.

The adventure starts when Vicky and Cristina go to an art exhibit and Cristina is immediately enamoured with a man in a red shirt, who Judy explains is a painter who had a tumultuous relationship with his ex-wife. After the event at the art gallery, Vicky and Cristina are having dinner when they spot the painter, Juan Antonio (Javier Bardem), and he approaches them. Basically, he propositions them. He says he is going to another city for the weekend and invites Vicky and Cristina to go with them. Vicky immediately rebuffs his advances and his invitation, while Cristina is intrigued. They end up accompanying Juan Antonio.

It is from this point on that the story takes some twists and turns. Suffice it to say that both Vicky and Cristina have different types of encounters with Juan Antonio. For a while, Cristina and Juan Antonio seem to have a pretty good thing going. Until Juan Antonio's ex-wife, Maria Elena (Penelope Cruz), shows up, then all hell breaks loose. Really, it's not an exaggeration. In my opinion, Penelope Cruz stole the show. She was feisty and hilarious, and her exchanges with Juan Antonio were priceless. Those scenes alone were worth going to see the movie.

I'm not sure the movie ended the way I wanted it to, although I really can't imagine any other ending. I think it ended the way it probably should have.

One thing I appreciated about this movie was that it made good use of all of the characters, and I felt satisfied that their stories were told to their fullest. I've seen some movies recently where I felt like some of the characters were underdeveloped, so it was nice to feel "complete" walking out of the theater.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona is a great way to spend a couple of hours if you want to laugh and have a good time. While this is probably on the "chick flick" side of the movie spectrum, I hope men aren't turned off. The humor should appeal to just about everyone, and the men will probably also enjoy the women in this movie. And again, Penelope Cruz is terrific in her role as the somewhat psychotic ex.

Coming up next weekend (if all goes as planned): Burn After Reading.

Bottle Shock

On Thursday I had my mind set on seeing Tropic Thunder this weekend, but then a coworker who knows me all too well said, "I'm surprised you're not going to see Bottle Shock." I had never heard of Bottle Shock before the Hamster mentioned it to me, so she told me that it was about wine. She knows I liked the movie Sideways, so she thought I would like Bottle Shock too. On Friday, I found a review of it in the Advertiser's TGIF section, and my interest was further piqued by seeing that Alan Rickman is the star of the movie. Somehow I developed a little crush on him after seeing him as Snape in the Harry Potter movies, so I find myself interested in other movies he's been in.

Anyway, on to the movie...I was even more pleased to see some of the names listed in the opening credits. For example, Bradley Whitford -- unless you've watched West Wing, or the short-lived Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, you probably don't know who he is, but suffice it to say that he's a good actor and I would love to see him in more substantial movie roles than he's had so far. I was also surprised to see Dennis Farina listed in the credits!

Apparently Bottle Shock is based on a true story of the up and coming wine of Napa Valley in the mid-1970s. Rickman portrays Steven Spurrier, a Brit who owns a shop in France that specializes in educating people about wine. However, this business doesn't seem very successful, as the only person who ever seems to be in the shop is Maurice (Farina), an American who seems to be trying to get as much free wine as he can get. However, it is Maurice that points out that Spurrier needs to change his marketing technique.

In the mean time, in Napa Valley, we see Bill Pullman's character, Jim Barrett, and his very unmotivated son Bo, struggling to run Chateau Montelena. Spurrier shows up in Napa looking to find some decent California wine. As we see with his exchange with Jim, Spurrier expects California wine to be mediocre at best. The dialogue between the two of them is hilarious and is probably the funniest part of the movie.

After Spurrier selects what he thinks is the best wine in California, he sets out to organize a tasting in France, where everyone thinks that if it isn't French, it isn't real wine. Spurrier wants to show people that there is more to the wine-tasting world than just French wine. Jim thinks the whole thing is rigged and that Spurrier just wants to make a fool out of him and everyone else in Napa, but Bo thinks that Spurrier should be given a chance, leading to some deeper issues where Bo gets to prove that he can be motivated.

The above is probably the strongest part of the story, and what happens during the Paris wine tasting is predictable, but still funny. What I felt was weak, and maybe even unnecessary, was the love story in the movie. There is an intern, Sam, who arrives, and while she kind of adds to the story, the love triangle between her, Bo, and Gustavo (played by Freddy Rodriguez, who has been on Ugly Betty -- he's the one I'm routing for in the Ugly Betty triangle, but I don't think things are going to go my way with that one), is weak. While the storyline about Gustavo is interesting, I don't think they developed it as well as they could have.

Some other underdeveloped and underused characters are Mr. Garcia (played by Miguel Sandoval who is the District Attorney on Medium) and Professor Saunders (Whitford). I was sad that Whitford only appeared for a brief minute or two. I felt that if they were going to do that, they might as well have just got a no-name actor to play that role! What a waste of good talent. At least Sandoval got a little more time and humor made his character stand out more.

Overall I really enjoyed this movie, especially knowing that it is based on fact. Since I went to Napa Valley last year, I have a better appreciation of it. Also, this movie touches upon accepting payment for wine tastings, something that is quite common now, but was almost unheard of in the mid-70s. That part is kind of funny too. While I wished some of the characters were better developed, and I felt like maybe they overedited the movie or something, I would still recommend it to anyone who wants to see something rather light-hearted and who has an appreciation for wine.

Charlie Barlett

"So when you're near me, darlin' can't you hear me, SOS..."

Oh, *ahem*...excuse me...I'm still on my Mamma Mia! kick, which has been renewed upon the arrival of the Soundtrack that I ordered from Amazon this week. I'm playing it for the second time straight and have been singing along for the past two hours.

Anyhoo, so once again, I have way more things to share than I have time to write. I haven't downloaded my pictures yet, so I'm going to stick to a movie review which doesn't involve pictures.

As I mentioned a couple posts ago, I love Netflix. Even when they make boo-boos, they make things right. If you've been living under a rock, a couple weeks ago there was some kind of major glitch in the Netflix distribution system which resulted in a LOT of people not receiving their movies for days. I was one of those people. The first movie I received following this glitch which left me movie-less for about five days was Charlie Bartlett. I know what you're thinking..."I've never heard of it." I said the same thing. I read about it in a magazine, either Time or Entertainment Weekly. I read so much crap that I can't remember where I read things anymore. And sometimes I just make stuff up. But Charlie Bartlett is real, very real.

Whatever I read or made up made the movie sound like it was pretty good. Besides, Robert Downey, Jr. (RDJ) is in it, so how bad can it be? When I looked it up on Netflix, it was listed as a comedy, a plus in my book. So I took a chance. I didn't regret my decision.

I watched in on Wednesday night and kept it so I can watch it once more before I return it. That's how much I enjoyed it. RDJ is not the main character in the movie, that would be Anton Yelchin who plays Charlie Bartlett, a teenager. RDJ plays a school principal. I have to say that I was extremely impressed with Yelchin's performance in this movie. I can see great things coming from that young man and I think he's someone to keep an eye on.

So Charlie is a bit of a misfit. He's been expelled from a number of private schools and his main goal in life is to be popular. And he obviously comes from wealth. After getting expelled for the umpteeth time, he and his mother discuss their options and it seems that public school is it. So he goes in looking like the spoiled rich brat that he is and everyone hates him and the school bully immediately selects him as his favorite punching bag. But Charlie finds his niche.

Charlie gets prescribed ritalin and quickly figures out that it makes you high. So what do teenagers like to do? That's right, get high. Charlie ends up selling his ritalin to fellow students, but he also ends up being the school psychiatrist. He actually listens to the students, in addition to "prescribing" them drugs. This of course makes him popular.

However, his new career gets him into a bit of hot water with Principal Gardner, whose daughter also happens to be a student at the school. I don't need to tell you that means that she and Charlie have a thing for each other, further adding fuel to the fire for Principal Gardner. Charlie's popularity comes at a price.

While this movie was very funny, it was also quite touching because of the relationships Charlie ends up forming. He is the only person who listens to everyone, and he offers his advice and tries to help people solve their problems. Charlie also has some of his own personal psychological things to sort out, so there's a lot of irony in this movie as well.

I'll leave my review at that because I think the movie needs to be watched to truly be appreciated. While there are a few heavy moments, for the most part it is very funny and a well-made movie overall. If you're looking for something to put in your Netflix queue, give Charlie Barlett a chance.

The Bucket List

I'm a big fan of Netflix, primarily because I'm lazy. I think I've stepped foot in Blockbuster once since I joined Netflix a couple years ago. Another plus is that you can keep the DVD as long as you want. They just won't send you a new one until you return the one you have. I've returned things the next day, and I've return things a month later. No one cares (except at about $9 a month, I really should watch at least 2 discs to make it worthwhile).

Yesterday I watched the Bucket List. I wanted to see it when it came out in the theaters earlier this year, but I was too busy at the time. A coworker confirmed that it's a good movie, he got it from Netflix a few weeks ago. I thought it was a good movie as well, and I'm not really sure why it didn't do better at the box office. Though I suspect it's because it's like a chick flick, except with guys starring in it.

A brief synopsis: two men, Edward (Jack Nicholson) and Carter (Morgan Freeman), are strangers sharing a hospital room and both are diagnosed with terminal cancer. Carter is making a "bucket list" - what to do before he "kicks the bucket." However, he actually starts this list before he gets the news that his cancer is terminal. Edward, a billionaire, really takes to the idea of the bucket list and urges Carter to join him to fulfill everything on the list. Money is no object.

To the dismay of Carter's wife, the two men take off around the world to fulfill some of the things on the list together, even though the items on the list were conceived individually. So Carter ends up doing some crazy things that are Edwards ideas, and vice versa. That's what adds humor to the movie.

I expected the movie to be extremely funny, based on the previews. And the funny parts were pretty funny, but it was also a very touching movie about friendship and dealing with death. Of course, part of it is dealing with death and making sure you'll have no regrets when your time comes.

The unlikely friendship developed between Carter, a mechanic, and Edward, a billionaire who happens to own the hospital they're in, adds to the depth of the movie. I was also very pleased to see Sean Hayes in the movie. He played Jack McFarland ("just Jack") in Will and Grace. I loved his character in W&G. He was good in the Bucket List too, although they probably could have made better use of him comically.

I thought this was a very good, multi-faceted movie. I would definitely watch it again. The DVD has a special feature that talks about a bucket list book, where celebrities wrote their own bucket lists. Proceeds from the book will go toward cancer research. I have to go look that up on Amazon. After seeing the movie, I want to create my own bucket list. You should too.

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2

I have always loved movies. They're kind of therapeutic for me. It's kind of an escape from reality for a little while, and I really appreciate the artfulness of movies, no matter how good or bad they are. There is usually SOMETHING interesting in a movie, whether it be the plot, the characters, the special effects, the acting, or the setting.

Since my significant other (who from here on shall be referred to as "Hedgehog") is living on the other side of the world until sometime mid-2009, I have tried to thinking of things I really enjoy that I want to focus my time on. Movies are one of them. I decided I would try to see one movie each week, and I've done that for about the past 4 weeks. This week I decided on Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2.

I watched the first Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants on DVD, probably a year and a half after it was released in theaters. I didn't have a desire to see it when it first came out, but then I discovered Ugly Betty and started to love almost all things America Ferrera. If you are also an America Ferrera fan, watch Real Women Have Curves. I ended up really enjoying the first Sisterhood movie. Again, not Oscar material, but I thought it was a really great story about friendship (although it is really bizarre that the same pair of jeans would fit four women with drastically different body types and heights).

When I heard Sisterhood 2 was being made, I knew I'd see it because I liked the first one and I also wanted to see America Ferrera since I still have to wait another month and a half to see her on some new Ugly Betty episodes, but I didn't really have high expectations of the movie. I mean, what else could they do? The pants had already been all over the world in the first movie, which took place after the four girls graduated from high school. Now it's three years later. What have the pants been doing since?

For those of you who are not familiar with the story of the first movie, the four friends decide to rotate the pants in one week intervals and send it off to the next person with a note about what happened to them while the were wearing the pants. This goes on the whole summer, with the friends sharing their life-changing experiences with each other as the pants go from one friend to another. The pants are supposed to bind them together, no matter where they are.

Sisterhood 2 is predictably the same, since the pants still travel from one friend to another. But this time, the experiences of the friends are different and more mature, although they do have their childish moments. I suppose part of the movie is the transition of the women into adulthood where they have to deal with more adult situations, and being able to confront their emotions head-on rather than letting them stew. Besides having their own personal struggles, the women struggle with each other, trying to find a way to maintain their friendships with each other on top of the stuff they're dealing with personally.

Besides the story of friendship and personal revelations, I just enjoy the scenery in the movie. There are scenes in Vermont, Yale, New York, Turkey, and Greece. (Well, I'm not really sure it was really Turkey, but that's where Bee, the tall blonde one, was supposed to be!)

I kind of doubt many guys will like this movie, unless you're extremely in touch with your sensitive side, or you think the main characters are attractive. The majority of the people in the theater were women, with a few husbands and boyfriends who were probably reluctantly dragged along. But if you're a woman, and you're in the mood for a chick flick, give this one a chance.

The Dark Knight

Before I start with The Dark Knight, I have to say that I went to see Mamma Mia! again today, and I enjoyed it even more than I did the first time! It's just such a FUN movie. It's definitely something I will buy as soon as it comes out on DVD.

On to The Dark Knight. There was so much hype about this movie, I was almost afraid to see it. Sure, I was intrigued, and I thought Batman Begins was terrific. Heck, I even liked all the "other" Batman movies with everyone and their brother taking turns playing Batman. I've decided that almost anyone looks pretty darn good in that batsuit. But I've always been a sucker for Batman -- he's my favorite superhero, although Iron Man may rival him in my book. Especially if it's Robert Downey, Jr. playing him.

But, I digress...as I was saying, I was almost afraid to see it. I was looking forward to it for a really long time, and with Heath Ledger's passing the hype multiplied exponentially. THAT is what scared me. I started to think that the movie in no way would live up to expectations, especially with people talking about how it was Heath Ledger's best performance, that he was a genius, blah, blah, blah. I was beginning to convince myself that everyone was just saying that Heath was great in it. But you know what? They were right.

I subscribe to Entertainment Weekly magazine, mostly because it keeps me informed about movies, tv shows, music, and books that are out there. I read an article about Heath Ledger's performance in The Dark Knight, including how his look as the Joker was in-part created by him. He decided to see what it would look like if he just started smearing makeup all over his face. This gave him a darker, mad look than Jack Nicholson's precisely-painted look in the 1989 version of "Batman."

Heath's performance was a far cry from Brokeback Mountain, which is probably what makes him shine as an actor. I found myself "looking" for Heath Ledger in the Joker's face. But all I could see was the Joker. I really believed that he was pretty psycho. Some of the facial expressions and quirks were really amazing. The movie was worth seeing just for his performance alone. However, there was another actor who really impressed me in this movie, Aaron Eckhart, who played Harvey Dent, an Assistant District Attorney. I've seen him in other movies before like "No Reservations," but I really enjoyed his performance in The Dark Knight. I don't want to give away too much for those of you who haven't, but intend to, see it, but suffice it to say that something occurs in the movie that really allows him to stretch himself as an actor and makes him shine.

As far as the plot goes, it's pretty good. Maybe not stellar, and it's fairly typical of superhero movies, but I have to say that I was shocked at the turn of events in this movie. I am normally the type that is pretty good at guessing where things are going and anticipating surprises, but there are a couple of things that happened in this movie that really surprised me. I kept thinking, "no, that's not right, something's going to happen to turn this around." But it never did. So that element of surprise really added something for me.

The short synopsis is that Batman, played by Christian Bale who I think has the greatest looking Batman lips ever, is trying to stop the Joker from wreaking havoc on Gotham City. In the meantime, Batman is trying to figure out if he can trust the new assistant DA, Eckhart, who happens to be dating his former flame, Rachel Dawes (now played by Maggie Gyllenhaal -- Katie Holmes played this role in Batman Begins). So, predictably, there is also a love-triangle in this story as well.

And if you want to play a little game of Six Degrees of Separation: Maggie Gyllenhaal is the older sister of Jake Gyllenhaal, who was Heath Ledger's lover in Brokeback Mountain. Which, by the way, is a movie I didn't "get." Don't get me wrong, my views on same-sex relationships are very liberal, and I don't mind it being the topic of a movie, but whether it was two men, or a man and a woman, I still didn't get it, nor did I get what the big deal was about that movie. I was glad that "Crash" beat it and won the best picture award during the 2005 Oscars.

Once again, I'm getting sidetracked. Suffice it to say that this is a good movie and you should go see it. While I am more likely to watch Mamma Mia! over and over and over again, The Dark Knight definitely has a broader appeal and seeing Heath Ledger as the Joker is worth the price of admission alone.

Iron Man

Ok, now that I've reviewed Mamma Mia!, I can go back to Iron Man, which I saw what seems like a really long time ago. Is it even still in theaters? Oh well. I liked it enough where I still remember some of the details.

I'm not much of a comic-book person, so I can't really tell you about Iron Man from that perspective. However, I can tell you that it was a great movie from many aspects: good story, good character development and interaction, and good casting. And it was just plain fun. And Robert Downey, Jr. is in it, so how can you go wrong? Who cares if he had a drug problem.

I have to say that the beginning of the movie is not what I expected, I guess because I'm not familiar with comics and Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.). But I don't think I'd be giving too much away by saying that the story begins with Tony Stark, the very rich head of a company that develops weapons, in the Middle East, confronted in a situation involving a weapon made by his company, Stark Industries. What happens to him because of this weapon is what leads him to become Iron Man. Iron Man's mission then becomes, ironically, to get rid of all such weapons, including the ones produced by his own company. This creates some problems with other people in the company.

I love that Terrence Howard is in this movie as Tony Stark's best friend, Col. James "Rhodey" Rhodes. His friendship with Tony is an interesting one, almost strange in its closeness, and he adds levity to the story. I also love that Gwyneth Paltrow is in this movie as Tony's assistant, Pepper Potts. I haven't seen her in a movie in a long time. And it took me quite a while to even realize it was her in this movie, with her red hair! Something about her demeanor in this film is much more alluring than I remember her being in other films.

I'll leave it at that since I don't want to say too much. Suffice it to say that there is something for everyone in this movie. You want action? You want romance? You want to see hot guys? Hot girls? A good storyline, especially for a super hero, comic book flick? You got it.

Oh, and one more thing. Stay until the VERY end of the credits. If you have to pee, go when the credits start rolling, but go back to the theater.

Mamma Mia! (The Movie)

I know I'm super-behind on the movie reviews, but I have to do Mamma Mia! first because I just saw it today and I'm really excited about it.

This movie has gotten mixed reviews. I saw the play in Las Vegas a couple of years ago and LOVED it, and I knew the movie could possibly be a let-down, so I didn't want to get my hopes up too high about it. And while I like Meryl Streep, I thought this might be a stretch, even for her. However, I was not let down at all! I liked this movie a lot, and would gladly pay another $6.25 (matinee price) to go see it again. Heck, I'd even pay the $8, or whatever it is, to see it again at night!

My theory about the people who didn't care for this movie is that they went in with different expectations. This isn't the kind of movie you go to see because you think Meryl Streep is going to be nominated for an Oscar for her performance, nor is it a movie you go to see because you think Pierce Brosnan is going to be giving a James Bond-type performance. This is the kind of movie you go to see because:

1. You love ABBA music
2. You want to see Pierce Brosnan just because he's hot, even for an older guy
3. You want to see if Meryl Streep can really sing
4. You enjoyed the play and want to see if the movie is just as good
5. You just want to relax, forget about the real world, and have a good time

I went to the movie for all of the above reasons, except maybe for #2 and #3. Well, partly because of #3. And well, yeah, I guess Pierce Brosnan looks pretty good too, for an old guy, but I'm kind of partial to George Clooney. In any case, if you go to see it just because you want to have a good time and don't really give a rip if the acting or singing is worthy of an Oscar or a Grammy, chances are you'll have a good time.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the storyline, the basic premise is that Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), the 20-ish lead character is getting married, and her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep) has never told her who her father was. It turns out that mom was a bit promiscuous in her youth, and there are 3 possible fathers: Bill (Stellan Skarsgard), Samuel (Pierce Brosnan), and Harry (Colin Firth). Sophie wants her father to walk her down the aisle, but because she doesn't know which of the three is her father, she invites all three of them to her wedding, unbeknownst to her mother. You can probably guess that this is where the chaos begins.

On top of all of this, Donna has a couple of wacky friends, Tanya (Christine Baranski) and Rosie (Julie Walters). For those of you who don't know who Julie Walters is, she plays Mrs. Weasley in the Harry Potter movies -- I couldn't even tell she was the same person in this movie! And she was really a show-stealer.

The story is set in Greece, where it was primarily filmed, so the scenery in the movie is beautiful. I felt that Meryl Streep was quite impressive as this is a very different role for her, and her singing was actually quite good! Pierce Brosnan's singing on the other hand, was not so great. Something about his tone was a little grating. However, he played his character brilliantly, and I felt that I saw a side of him (a goofball side) that I haven't seen from him before. Although his singing wasn't the greatest, I would still rather hear his real voice than a dubbed one.

I won't give away any more of the story, because the premise already tells you that 3 possible fathers who don't know that they may be Sophie's father, a mother that doesn't know that these men are invited to the wedding, and 2 crazy friends, plus all of the other characters, is a recipe for a rollercoaster-ride of a story. And it's all based on music by ABBA! I find it amazing that they can make the songs tell the story and express the emotions so well. My only slight disappointment with the film is that I felt that the songs should have been longer. I'm not sure if it was overedited, but I think some of these actors could've really gotten into singing some of these songs and it might've made for a better movie than it already is (in my opinion).

So if you want to see a movie just for a good time, where you can forget about things for a while, and not leave the theater wanting to kill yourself, then go see this movie. Disclaimer regarding killing yourself...if you hate ABBA music, then this movie may want to make you kill yourself, and you probably shouldn't see it. Otherwise, you should be fine.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

To be honest, I can't remember when I saw this movie. I think it was sometime in the middle of May. Did I like it? Yes, I liked it well enough, but I think I liked the first movie (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) better. You could probably see Prince Caspian without having seen the first movie, but the first movie lends perspective.

Prince Caspian takes place several hundred years after the first movie, but with the same kids who've only aged the few years between the movies. I was sad to see that the beavers weren't in the movie. I'm not sure why they weren't in the movie when some other characters miraculously lived another few hundred years. Anyhoo, the kids are on a quest to first find Prince Caspian, heir to the throne of Narnia, and to overthrow the evil ruler. In addition to their endeavor to restore power to the rightful heir, there is also some debate and a sort-of search for Aslan (the lion).

I enjoyed the cinematography and some of the locale of the movie. There were also a number of moments that keep you on the edge of your seat, and a great battle scene. It was a good movie, clean and good for older kids, but it may be too violent for younger kids. It was worth seeing in the theater once, but if you didn't get the chance, I don't think you would be missing much if you only get to see it on DVD. Of the four movies I've seen so far this summer, I would rank this as my least favorite. Not because this is a bad or boring movie, it's just that the other movies, especially Iron Man and Kung Fu Panda, were more entertaining and are the movies I'd be likely to go back to the theater to see again, if I had the time.

Prelude to Movie Reviews

Okay, so one of my nine loyal readers reminded me what a slacker I am and that I owe you a few movie reviews. Way back when, I mentioned two movies. I think I'm up to four now:
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Iron Man
Kung Fu Panda
Get Smart

I have to forewarn you that I suck at remembering details. And cold, dark places, like movie theaters, make me fall asleep. I was just telling a friend, one who I'll be traveling to Disney World with, about all the good napping places in the parks such as the Tiki Room, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Great Movie Ride, Spaceship Earth, and the Universe of Energy. You know why they're good napping places? You guessed it...because they're cold and dark.

And you know why I'm writing this post that simply lists the movie reviews I owe you? Because I'm a slacker. And I'm gonna forget. You'll be lucky if I get anything right on the Prince Caspian review, so I would definitely check with at least two other sources before following my advice on any of these movies.

Okay, okay, I'll stop babbling now and start posting those reviews.

A Wedding, Two Movies, and the Greek Festival

Just for fun, let's try a different font and color today. I'd say it adds variety to my blog, just as my weekend consisted of various events.

Yesterday morning, I attended a beautiful wedding at the Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki. All of my experiences at the Halekulani have been wonderful, and it is the epitome of quality and excellence. Everything about the wedding was perfect...the courtyard setting, the service, and the food at the reception. I don't think I've ever been to a wedding where I actually remembered how great all the servers were. Most of all, the couple that were married are great people and couldn't be more perfect for each other.

Yesterday afternoon, I attended the Greek Festival at McCoy Pavillion (in Ala Moana Beach Park). I have never been to the Greek Festival before, so I didn't really know what to expect other than what I've seen on the morning news shows. While it was a bit smaller than I imagined, it was still a good value at $3 (and I could've used the ticket stub for entry today as well).

There was a variety of entertainment, including dancing and Greek music which was quite good. Although the picture to the left consists of just a few people dancing, it became almost like a disco later in the evening! There was one vendor selling Greek grocery items such as olive oil, capers, and other canned and jarred foods, one selling clothing, and another selling art and music. There were two very popular drink booths selling Greek wine and beer, and about 7 or 8 food vendors. The gyros booth was by far the most popular, with the second being a cafeteria style vendor selling food such as moussaka and spanakopita as a complete meal with rice, salad, and baklava. I decided on a salad booth where I had a combination Greek salad and pasta salad plate. While the Greek salad was good, I was a little disappointed that it was made out of plain iceberg lettuce, although the dressing and particularly the feta were excellent. The pasta salad, however, was very good! I ended up abandoning the iceberg and eating the feta together with the pasta salad!

While I was at McCoy Pavillion, which is a pretty attractive area with a number of water features, I decided to practice my photography skills and test out the new lens I recently purchased for my Nikon D50, a 55-200 mm AF-S VR. I was playing around with various settings, which I am still familiarizing myself with. To the right is a picture I am particularly fond of because of the way the water drops appear to be suspended in mid-air.

Because I was so busy yesterday, today was my "chore" day, which consisted of doing laundry and some minor household cleaning. While waiting for my laundry, I watched a couple of movies that I would occasionally tell myself that I wanted to see, but never really made it a priority.

The first one was Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, which was on one of the HBO channels. I missed the first 3 minutes, but from what I gathered, the mother of one of four teenage girls passed away, further establishing a strong bond between the friends. I was pleasantly surprised with this movie for a number of reasons, and found myself wishing that I had seen the movie when it debuted in 2005. However, the movie is probably more special to me now because of two of its stars, and the timing of my viewing. One of the four girls turns out to be America Ferrera, who stars in one of my favorite new television shows, Ugly Betty (which is deserving of its own post, perhaps when the new season begins in September or October). Her father in the movie turns out to be Bradley Whitford, one of the stars of the ill-fated Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (cancelled after one season) and formerly of The West Wing. His performances and humor in The West Wing turned me into a fan.

Aside from my admiration of these two stars, the movie was really well-done. It's a chick-flick, but a very good one demonstrating the meaning of true friendship and learning to deal with personal insecurities. The four friends, aged 16-17, go into a store where one of them decides to try on a pair of jeans, and she makes the others try on the jeans too. Ferrera, who is chubbier than the rest of them, is urged to try them on too, despite her obvious weight difference. But lo and behold, they fit! They agree that the pants are magical.

The four, going their separate ways on their summer break, decided to make the pants into their very own Travelocity gnome by taking turns with the jeans, and sending a letter together with the "traveling pants" to the next person about their most exciting experience while wearing the jeans. Their separate journeys take them not only to far away places, but also to new experiences of self-discovery and personal challenges. I will leave my description at that, but suffice it to say that this is a good movie that sends a great message of belief, friendship, and self-respect to its viewers.

After I completed Traveling Pants, I decided to watch a movie I ordered from Netflix a while ago that has been sitting around thanks to my now-defunct DVD Recorder, which is a long story that I won't bore you with. The bottom line is that I was able to watch it on a decent DVD player that does not skip. I guess I should tell you what movie it is: Little Children.

I can't even remember why I ordered it, but I think I read good reviews about it and some of the actors received Oscar nominations, including Kate Winslet, who is the female lead. Although it's probably not something I would want to buy, it was a very good movie that is also full of life lessons. Kate Winslet plays a stay-at-home mom (SAHM) that doesn't quite fit in with the other SAHMs that show up at the park every day. Winslet is kind of homely and doesn't always get things right like the other "perfect" and somewhat-snooty SAHMs at the park. Then the "prom king" walks in, ruffling the features of the snooty SAHMs, who dare Winslet to get his phone number. The "prom king" is played by Patrick Wilson, who I've never heard of before, but I would guess will be making quite a name for himself if he plays his cards right. Wilson plays a stay-at-home dad, and his wife is portrayed by Jennifer Connelly. It becomes pretty obvious early in the movie that Winslet and Wilson are both bored with their lives, and that something is going to happen between them.

In addition to this, the story gains complexity with the addition of a creepy man in the neighborhood who has been known for indecent exposure. A former cop is particularly obsessed with hunting down the possible would-be child molestor. The story is complex enough to keep the viewer interested, without giving them a headache like some other movies I can think of (Memento comes to mind). The other thing I found very interesting about this movie is how it is narrated in some parts, almost like a children's story. This is appropriate because in a way, it is childish. I don't mean to say that the movie itself is childish, but the characters, although grown and most with children, are adolescent in so many ways: naming mister mom the "prom king," the former copy bullying toward the child molestor, daring Winslet to get the prom king's phone number, and so many other things. I will also end this review here because I don't want to give away too much to any potential viewers. My overall comment would be that this is a good movie that kept me glued to the tv. I could NOT predict the outcome of this movie until it actually happened, and there were times when I was experiencing feelings that never game to fruition (which is a good thing).

That's about it for my weekend. Next weekend is another wedding, and possibly another festival (the Okinawan Festival at Kapiolani Park)!

Hair Spray Movie Review

Hair Spray was a great movie in many different ways: the music was great, the cast was full of talented people, and it was just a very lighthearted, fun film, that sends a message of "can't we all just get along?" A word of warning: it is a musical. I know some people don't like it when almost the whole movie is full of singing -- to be honest, although I saw the '80s version of Hair Spray with Rikki Lake, I have a horrible memory for things I only see once, and I didn't really remember much of what the movie is about. I expected it to be mostly dialogue with a song here and there, but it was mostly singing with a few portions of dialogue.

Why did I want to see Hair Spray? Mostly because of how hilarious John Travolta looks dressed as a woman! I also learned that Christopher Walken was in the movie, and because I think he's kinda creepy, I just had to see how he fit into this picture. I was not disappointed, and I actually enjoyed the movie much more than I thought I would. I think I would even consider getting the DVD, because I like to have funny, heartwarming DVDs in my collection. The singing was so great and the songs so fun, that I would also like to get the soundtrack.

Here's a link to the official movie site: http://www.hairspraymovie.com/

Nikki Blonsky stars as Tracy Turnblad, who immediately left me with a great impression with her opening rendition of "Good Morning Baltimore." Blonsky exudes a wonderful, fun-loving spirit, and made me believe that she is someone I would want to be friends with. John Travolta is Edna Turnblad, Tracy's mother, who suffers (obviously) from weight issues, but handles them in a much less optimistic way than Tracy does. Christopher Walken is Wilber Turnblad, Tracy's father. Suffice it to say that Walken and Travolta share some interesting and hilarious moments in the film!

Other notables are Queen Latifah and Michelle Pfeiffer, as well as Brittany Snow (from the tv show, American Dreams) and Alison Janney (one of my favorite characters in the West Wing series that ended last year). Amanda Bynes is also in the movie as Tracy's best friend Penny.

The movie begins with Tracy's quest to become a regular on the "Corny Collins Show," but turns into a quest for acceptance and equality on many levels. Tracy's demeanor is one that doesn't allow failure as an option. She doesn't see her weight as an obstacle to achieving her dreams. Her ambition extends beyond her own personal goals, and she is resolved to help others be able to realize their dreams as well.

I would recommend this movie to anyone that enjoys a feel-good movie, a musical, or a comedy. While some men may think this is a typical chick flick, my guess is that most will find the antics of John Travolta and Christopher Walken worth being dragged along to the movie by a wife or girlfriend.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Movie Review

Let me start by saying that this post will not contain any spoilers for those who haven't read the books yet and really don't know the story until they watch the movie, although I will make the assumption that you've at least watched the four previous movies.

On Sunday morning, I went to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (OOTP) at 9:30 a.m., the first show of the day. Unfortunately, we were in a relatively small, and surprisingly packed (for a Sunday morning) movie theater.

I anxiously awaited the commencement of the movie as we watched the previews. Then, the theater turned black and the movie started in the typical, ominous Harry Potter fashion. The opening scene did the book justice in portraying a dark mood, and it made improvements to some of the scary creatures we saw in the previous movies.

As I watched the movie with the eyes of someone who has read all the books multiple times, I often found myself complimenting the casting of characters and accurate depiction of places we haven't seen in the previous movies. Considering that OOTP is the longest book, and the shortest movie so far, the movie flowed pretty smoothly.

However, as the movie ended and I walked out of the theater, all I could think was, "ehhh." With the previous movies, I felt really excited about how great a job they did with the characters, sets, effects, and story (even though I felt that Azkaban was a bit choppy and left some gaps), and I was ready to go buy another ticket and watch the movie all over again right then and there. OOTP left me a bit disappointed. Because I promised I wouldn't post spoilers, I won't be specific, but while they touched on most of the main storylines of the book, that was it -- just one touch and *poof*, it was gone as soon as it arrived. Surely they could've spared an extra 10-20 minutes to provide a little more depth to some of the stories?

Sure, the effects were great, and I really enjoyed some of the individual scenes like the flying and the climax toward the end of the movie, but the movie as a whole didn't do it for me. Will I go see it again? Sure. But instead of having that feeling of exhilaration and want to remember more of the details, I am finding myself thinking of the next time I view the movie, which will probably be on Friday night as I await the midnight release of the 7th book, as more of something to do to kill time.