Star Trek

Star Trek… It was a movie I can not say that I was waiting for.  To be honest… it was not even on my radar as a “must see”.  And to continue with the whole honesty theme, I probably would not have seen it if not for Chance and I told him we would do a movie for his birthday… and the pickings for current movies are pretty slim….

so we went.  Actually – thanks to the times being wrong on line… we went an hour early to the show and did not know we were early until we asked why it had not started.  So we arrived for the 1:15 movie at noon.  Nice.  I have to say – once it started it was so worth the wait.

I am not a Treky.  I am familiar with the show, and a few of the key characters, thats about it.  Yet even I with my tiny knowledge of the show, had many laugh out loud moments.  I enjoyed the characters and felt they made a wonderful tribute to the show.  James Kirk was true to form with him ever watchful eye on all things female…. Spock, in my opinion, should get a standing ovation.  His performance was right on.  As they brought in some of the others from the original shows it was fun to see how they tied them into the film flawlessly.

I enjoyed this so much – I went again with Al on the same day as I seen it with Chance.  Al, who is a big time Treky loved it and I was glad to have the time to laugh with my husband during a really really good movie.

A+

Seventeen Again (and again…)

I told Chance we would go to a movie last week…. it was up to him to choose.  Chance didn’t think any of the movies looked good.  Justin had recommended Seventeen Again, the rating was right and while I figured it would be just another version of Big, Freaky Friday, 13 going on 30…

We go and I have to say I havent laughed this hard during a movie in a long time.  The best friend (Thomas Lennon) is hilarious and his geeky response to almost everything was fantastic.  I fel the made the movie.

Chance and I enjoyed it to much that I seen it again with Karol who also loved it.

This was not a repeat of the above mentioned body switching movies, thanks to the wonderful opportunity in the movie of Effrons character, Mark, now being able to attend High School with his own high school aged childrens and see what their life is really like.

While the movie is fun and light hearted there are a couple scenes with Effron (Mark) and his wife that were a bit… akward for lack of a better word.

Anyway – overall, highly enjoyable… fun high school flick with a lot of laughs and even a bit of a positive message.

Seven Pounds

On Saturday evening Al and I watched this movie, Seven Pounds.

Two years ago Tim Thomas (Will Smith) was in a car crash, which was caused by him using his mobile phone; seven people died: six strangers and his fiancée, Sarah Jenson (Robinne Lee).

Movie opens with Ben making a 911 call to report a suicide – his. Then we see Ben at the IRS building researching. Next his brother calles him, Ben asks if he’s smoking again – he says no. Hs brother asks if he took anything while he was staying there, Ben says no but he remembers giving him something.

A year after the crash, and having quit his job as an aeronautical engineer, Tim donates a lung lobe to his brother, Ben (Michael Ealy), an IRS employee. Six months later he donates part of his liver to a child services worker named Holly (Judyann Elder). After that he begins searching for more candidates to receive donations. He finds George (Bill Smitrovich), a junior hockey coach, and donates a kidney to him, and then donates bone marrow to a young boy named Nicholas (Quintin Kelley).

The movie, based around “Ben” is really an incredible thought.  Having been the cause of the accident that killed him fiance, as well as 6 others in another vehicle, “Ben” sets out to make ammends by helping others.  I find the whole thing a little ironic that I am currently teaching the Grace Class, yet in this movie – Will’s Character seams to feel he must pay everything to seek forgiveness and actually misses the point of Grace.

I did enjoy the movie – the selfless acts were a breath of fresh air to me.  I know there are better ways to serve others than to give your life to save them – but then again…. where would we be if someone had not given Themselves for us?

Overall – extremely enjoyable movie.

Slumdog Millionnaire

The story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions. Each chapter of Jamal’s increasingly layered story reveals where he learned the answers to the show’s seemingly impossible quizzes. But one question remains a mystery: what is this young man with no apparent desire for riches really doing on the game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out. At the heart of its storytelling lies the question of how anyone comes to know the things they know about life and love.

Due to an evening of no Amazing race on for our Sunday evening ritual, we instead watched a  movie I have been wanting to see, Slumdog Millionaire.

I love the story line.  Right from the start I was roped into the plot of this young mans story that tied me closely to experiences I have seen or heard of in Honduras.  I could imagine the life of this young boy and his brother as they struggle along trying to stay alive with no parents or guardians to help them through the young years in a hard environment.

Great movie… I am thinking that this is the best movie I have seen in 2009.  It pulled at my heart and I love the direction the director takes in explaining how Jamal who’s life had been so amazingly hard, wound up on a game show about to win more money than most of us will ever see.

A+ Highly recommended!

Paul Blart: Mall Cop

Chance and I went to a movie on Thursday during the kids spring break this past week.  Chance had choice and he chose Paul Blart: Mall Cop.  In his defense, the choices were not great at Movies 10 for myself and a 13 year old.

“Paul Blart is a mild-mannered, dutiful family man who works as a security guard in a New Jersey mall. For years, he has applied to become a cop, but he always fails the physical exam because he is overweight. One day, a gang of organized criminals put the mall under siege and take hostages. Blart becomes trapped inside, and because of his sense of duty, refuses to leave. He thus becomes the police department’s eyes on the inside and attempts to stop the criminals on his own.”

The movie wasn’t horrible… there were actually a few moments of laughing out loud.  It was just one of those overly stupid movies that are filled with too obvious humor.  Yet, for a Thursday afternoon matinee with my favorite Kinship Partner, it was ok.

For me probably a less than average rating… I will probaby never see it again, but Chance enjoyed it and that is truly what mattered.  (Besides – we had China Buffet afterwards and that brings the outing up many notches!)

Changeling

My friend Heidi has been raving about this movie, Changeling.  I was not able to catch it at the movie theater but upon seeing Heidi last Sunday she let me know it was now out on DVD.

On Saturday I sat down and was able to watch this movie.  This movie is based on a true story.

Inspired by actual events that occurred in 1920s-era Los Angeles, Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling” tells the story of a woman driven to confront a corrupted LAPD after her abducted son is retrieved and she begins to suspect that the boy returned to her is not the same boy she gave birth to. The year was 1928, and the setting a working-class suburb of Los Angeles. As Christine (Angelina Jolie) said goodbye to her son, Walter, and departed for work, she never anticipated that this was the day her life would be forever changed. Upon returning home, Christine was distressed to discover that Walter was nowhere to be found. Over the course of the following months, the desperate mother would launch a search that would ultimately prove fruitless. Yet just when it seemed that all hope was lost, a nine-year-old boy claiming to be Christine’s son seemed to appear out of thin air. Overcome with emotions and uncertain how to face the authorities or the press, Christine invites the child to stay in her home despite knowing without a doubt that he is not her son. As much as Christine would like to accept the fact that her son has been returned to her, she cannot accept the injustice being pushed upon her and continues to challenge the Prohibition-era Los Angeles police force at every turn. As a result, Christine is slandered by the powers that be, and painted as an unfit mother. In this town, a woman who challenges the system is putting her life on the line, and as the situation grows desperate, the only person willing to aid her in her search is benevolent local activist Reverend Briegleb (John Malkovich).

I wept.  This movie was so emotional, what Christine went through is beyond every mothers worst nightmare.  I felt so much for this woman and can not even begin to imagine what it must have been like to live this.

Highly recommended and truly one of the best movies I have seen in quite a while.

Thanks Heidi for the reccomendation.

He’s Just Not That Into You

Al and I went to He’s Just Not That Into You on Valentine’s Day.  I love many of the actresses in this movie and just couldn’t find any of my girl friends that had time to go see it with me – so I asked Al… and he said, “That sounds like fun.”

“Ahhhhhhh”

So we went and it was good… funny and lighthearted.  One of the main characters (female) threw herself at every guy that gave her a second look and while that is the base of the movie (He’s not that into you…) it was sad to see someone so desperate for love.  (Yes, I do realize I am probably reading more into the movie than necessary…)

The movie really showed different relationships – good and bad… and they had funny references to how we communicate now with e mail, texting, cell phones, home phones. answering machines, etc…  it is actually kind of scary to see all the ways a girl can get dumped in this day and age and makes me very thankful I am not out in the dating world!  Yikes!!!

Overall a fun movie not to be taken seriously…. I enjoyed it – but part of that may just be due to the fact that it was Valentines Day and I was out with my husband knowing after the movie -

we get to have Chinese!

Push

Friday evening, Chance and I took in the movie Push. The pickings were slim for myself and a 13 year old but this choice was ok… if for no other reason comic relief. I think for me, in this run of “funky” movie with sci fi skills that seem to have saturated the big screen, the “how they came to be” is quite delightful.

In Push, the movie stats with a back story of how this tribe of genetically transformed citizens have been made into an army of phychic warriors that dispose of those who chose not to participate in the Division (the government agency heading the way). This alone was enough to make me giggle – seriously, who makes this stuff up??? The movie was action and fast moving, not a great story line and it took me until this afternoon to realize that the whole point of the movie was to rescue this woman (Watcher) who had been captured and at the end… that never did happen.

…. Oh no…. is that an opening for a sequel?????

Bottom line – Chance and I enjoyed laughing at the movie…. but overall content, not so great. Probably a D+ rating.

Fireproof

The long awaited for movie…. we missed it in the Theater’s but actually had a chance to sit down (Al and I) together and watch it Saturday evening at home.  In a word… WOW.

We both really enjoyed this movie and I find it interesting the conversations that come up when watching a movie like this – not just for us, but I have heard other couples share that they had deep conversations from seeing this movie.  I found it almost laughable that at the start of the movie – I instantly see the woman’s point of view…. and Al quickly sides with the man’s view.    It is amazing how as the movie goes on and you dive deeper into the underlying things happening in their marriage that your opinion (at least mine did) waivers to seeing both sides needing to give.

I LOVED the Love Dare.  I thought that was a great idea and totally gave Cameron a lot of credit for pressing on through the days even though Erin was completely unreceptive… cruel even.  (I understood that she was deeply pained by his self centered attitude and addiction but still found her incredibly harsh).  I look at the scene and wonder if faced with the same could I be that strong to go through 40 days….

The movie overall I found fantastic.  I would have to agree with other reviews I have scene that the beginning is a bit shaky…  almost forced as they bring us up to speed in the movie… but once it gets going, I found it a real winner and Al and I both took a lot out of this movie.

AA++

Underworld

In all fairness… I am going to make an attempt to review this movie, Underworld.  Al thought it would be good and I am always up for hanging out with him so I went along.  I personally didn’t like the movie.  I found it too gory, too over top top, and creepy.

In the movie’s defense, I can only relate this to the last (and only other) Vampire movie I have seen, Twilight.  Which in comparison, was not gory, not over the top but pleasantly imaginative, and certainly not creepy but entertaining.  Twilight may have ruined all future vampire/werewolf movie for me…..

I would probably rate this a guy flick….  a bit too bloody for my taste.  The only thing I can say I took away from the movie, was oddly – a couple “Christ like” scenes that kind of made me wonder where they were going.  One would be the lashings they give the Werewolf/Lycan? character… (forgive me, nobody’s character name stuck for me in this movie).  Then in the end, there is a statement where it is proclaimed, “It is finished.”  Whoa.  I looked on line a bit to see if anyone else had any thoughts on this theme sneaking into the movie but I found nothing.  Maybe it’s just me….

Anyway – we went in to this movie not knowing it was a third in the movie theme.  We had no idea.  Al enjoyed it… and the final word on that being spending time with Al is priceless so at least there is that.