74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Body of Lies


Yes, another Leo movie. But this one is definitely not my favorite. Not even close. I felt more like I was watching Tom Cruise than Leo, and I think I have to blame that mostly on the writing and directing, because Leo doesn't typically overact as much as I felt he did in this one.


Basic plot: Leo is CIA working in Jordan and other areas of the MidEast trapping terrorists and working on American diplomacy with international leaders while fighting "the man" (Russell Crowe) who is back in his luxurious Northern Virginia life.


It has twists and turns in the plot that lots of other movies do, this time the setting just happens to be modern day terrorism. Meh, not impressed.

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Chocolat

Let's just say it's a good thing we don't have much chocolate in our apartment, otherwise I would have likely eaten it all after watching this movie.

It's one from a few years ago that I just never got around to seeing at the time the buzz was going around about it. Chocolat has a very serious plot line with very weighty themes and character conflicts: Religious Legalism v. Pagan Indulgence; Domestic abuse; politics; and the list goes on...

But amidst these heavy ideas, there is, simply: Chocolat. And its effect on this small French town in the late 1950s. There is the young Catholic priest who loves Elvis Presley music and is conflicted over the council given to him by the town's political bully. There is the endearing older couple who spark a Winter romance through sweets from the chocolatier. There is the young boy who restores the broken relationship with his grandmother...

Honestly, I thought chocolate was a great symbol of grace in the movie. Yet, true to Hollywood norms, the conclusion of the movie taught the worldly view that tolerance = anything goes, which twists true grace in such a way that it tugs at my heart a bit.

It is a delightful and thought provoking film.

And now I want some chocolate with chili pepper.....

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Leo may be a great actor, but this movie was booooriiiing. It wasn't even as scary/creepy as the previews made it out to be. And can I just pause there for a moment? Why, world, why do studios continue this move to make previews in one of these two extremes:

A) Showing all the good/funny/plot revealing parts of the movie in the preview so that actually watching the film is very disappointing

or

B)Splicing scenes from the movie together in such a way that they end up promoting an entirely different film than the one that is actually playing?

It makes trailers like this one seem almost believable...



All that to say...movie did not equal preview.

Moving on....





FINALLY I saw this movie. I liked it. Really enjoyed Geoffrey Rush's character and thought he did a fantastic job. Colin Firth also did good work. I won't say this is the best movie of the year (I think my vote would be The Fighter), but it was good and I recommend it.

I did have this thought though --- *spoiler alert* (even though I think I was the last one to actually see this so there's a very small risk of me spoiling anything) --- If I had a speech impediment and was going to do radio addresses, I would have used the playing music trick for the really important ones until I had trained enough to get over the impediment. No one listening would know and there wouldn't be weird phrasing....just sayin.

But anyway, good movie. Interesting story. Final Thought: Guy Pierce looked younger than Colin Firth

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

With faces like those, voiced by Will Ferrell and Brad Pitt, how can you resist?

This was a pretty cute movie, fairly funny. Not the best ever, but a decent movie.

I must say their web ads were more impressive to me than the actual movie -- solid advertising is what got me hooked on wanting to see this movie:

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Yes, it is this face that I used to watch on "Even Stevens" on the Disney Channel. And yes, I was arguably too old to be watching it, and enjoying it. I don't know whether it's just because we didn't have the Disney Channel growing up, or if I just cling to childhood humor, but in college I started getting hooked on the made-for-tv Disney movies (Motorcrossed, anyone?). That lead to me often flipping over to that channel, and often found me landing on Even Stevens. Shia LaBeouf played the younger, goofball brother on the show, and I loved it. I thought he was funny and entertaining, and made the show pretty likable.

Flash forward a few years, and I now have a full fledged crush on Shia. Much to my chagrin, I think most of the movies he's been in are kinda terrible (see: Disturbia, Transformers) but I still see them anyway. So, when I heard that Wall Street was getting good reviews, I tried not to get too excited.

But then I really wanted to see the movie because of its cultural relevance - set amidst the real life economy of 2008 in the US. So, last weekend I was able to watch the movie, and I must say, I was really impressed. Shia did a great job and though it was slightly predictable at parts, I'd say still worth seeing. It's no Even Stevens, but I'll take it.

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

So my friend Maggie and I went to go see this gem and there was only one other female in the theater. Needless to say, we were the most audible of the audience: Laughing at clever Coen brothers' lines and squirming at the violent and grotesque parts.

As Maggie put it on Sunday "The more I think about this movie the more I realize how much I enjoyed it."

It really was that good.

Do yourself a favor and check it out.

I might even check the book out if I get around to finding time to read much again.

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Well, I wasted no time getting to work on this list.

Last night I stayed in and watched "The Other Guys." One of my friends told me that they were sure I would like it. I am more and more skeptical about Will Ferrell movies as time goes on (I'm not going to say 'sellout' or 'typecast'.....just that there's shall we say...repetition...in some of his roles.)

But, Mark Wahlberg is becoming a new favorite of mine, and the premise of this movie did seem pretty entertaining, so I went for it.


Um, it's hilarious. Laugh out loud by yourself in your apartment so that your neighbors are probably wondering what the heck is going on up there hilarious.

It's not the greatest movie ever made, but it's really funny.

It's so ridiculous and over the top, that it's entertaining. Ya gotta just go in with no cynicism.

And I wasn't sure how Marky Mark would do in a comedy, but ever since I saw this:



and this:




I have a hard time not laughing when I hear him talk. His character in this movie just yells a lot and is indignant most of the time, and I half expected a "say hi to your mothah for me" slip out.

So, next time you need a mindless, funny movie that you can bond with coworkers over by quoting in the office kitchen, try this one. If you don't mind language and violence and some crude conversation....hey I didn't say it was very redeeming. I said it was funny.

74. Make a list of movies I’ve wanted to see, and rent/watch them all

Alright so here is my list within a list. Movies I want to see. If I didn't go ahead and make one, I'd never get started.

Schindler’s List
The King’s Speech
True Grit
The Other Guys
Wall Street
Toy Story 3
Megamind
Shutter Island
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
Body of Lies
Chocolat