Australia

I wasn't sure what to expect from this movie. I heard the critics didn't like it, but that regular people did.

Anyway, overall I liked the story. It was very long though. Some parts definitely not necessary. Matt said there were several holes in the plot.

He's Just Not That Into You

First things first. I wouldn't recommend this show.

I think the idea of it wasn't bad. It is interesting/funny that a lot of people don't get it when someone isn't interested in them. But, there was too much included in this show that wasn't great.

I'll share the best part with you so you don't have to waste your time watching the whole thing. There's this girl who never gets it when guys aren't interested. She always believes them when they say they'll call (and they never do). A bartender (who by the way is the Mac guy from the commercials-I like him better as the Mac guy) tries to make her understand all of these signals she's missing. They become friends and she often calls him to interpret situations for her. One such call she makes he tells her the guy is definitely not interested, and says she should hang out in her date's bathroom for awhile (where she was calling from). She hangs up and looks around to see what she can do to bide her time. She finds Crest Whitestrips in the medicine cabinet and decides to whiten her teeth.

I'm sure that doesn't really give explain the situation well, but that part was funny.

Mall Cop

I thought this movie was hilarious. It was pretty evident that it wasn't the greatest movie of all time, but after I watched it, I just kept thinking of all the funny things Paul Blart did and said. Dumb things like "just kidding, I can't grow a beard, but my uncle can!" were repeated to people who had never seen it, and when they didn't laugh it was like, oh, guess you had to see that part. So yeah, Kevin James is funny, and I couldn't repeat any of his jokes at all, so you guys will just have to see it. And the movie wouldn't be the same without him riding his Segway the whole time. He's got moves. I loved it :)

Bride Wars

Matt really didn't want to watch this with me, especially after seeing that it had a 12% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But, he did read by me while I watched it last night.

The main characters have been best friends most of their lives, and both dream of having June weddings at the Plaza Hotel. Both get engaged around the same time, and the rush is on the get the planning done in time. The wedding coordinator's assistant messes up and books the weddings on the same day. This causes a rift in the relationship, with each girl trying to mess up the others wedding plans.

I thought it was a funny show, and didn't mind most of it (which means I think it would have been fine without a scene or two).

Duplicity

We saw this recently and picked it because it was the only option playing at the dollar theater during the time we had a baby-sitter.

I'm not really sure what to say about it. It was slow, but not in the normal slow movie sense. I can't really describe it. It had a hint of Ocean's 12-ishness about it. But, it didn't work for this show (whereas I love Ocean's 12).

I felt like Julia Robert's character was so mean to the main guy character. Not sure why he stuck around.

I did like the ending. It seemed the bad guys got what they deserved (well, maybe not completely, but at least they didn't get what they wanted).

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past

My review: Don't go see this. Ever. Unless you like movies about the sleaziest man alive, and more sexual references than you can count. The last 15-20 minutes of the movie were good, but the rest of it...not. Don't waste your money. Even if you get a chance to see it for free - DON'T.

Forever Strong

I saw this movie on my birthday back in February, and thought it was well done.  It is based on a true story.  The main character is a high school rugby star and has drug and alcohol problems.  He gets put in the Wasatch County Juvenile Detention Center (that threw me a bit because Wasatch County is not in Salt Lake--a detail it would have been nice to have correct).  It was a touching story about a coach that treated his players like family, and taught them to be strong off the field so they could be strong on the field.  It was filmed in Salt Lake, and I enjoyed seeing familiar locations.

Matt didn't think the acting was great, but I didn't notice anything bad with it.  I'd definitely recommend this film.

Bedtime Stories

My sister-in-law and I picked this up for my mother-in-law at the grocery store last night We've seen several things that say it's not supposed to be released until April 7th--someone at the store must have put it out early.

The story is about an uncle that has to watch his niece and nephew for a week, and the bedtime stories they make up together end up coming true (in a way) the next day.  We picked it up after the kids were in bed, so I'm not sure if they'd like it or not.  It was definitely more for kids than adults though.  By the end I was partially watching and partially playing on the computer.

P.S. I Love You

Matt's parents left this for us to watch the last time they visited.  I hadn't ever heard of it, so I didn't know what to expect.  If you read anything about it, you'd find out right off that the husband dies very early in the show (from a brain tumor I think).  Prior to his death he arranged for letters and things to be delivered to his young widow after his death.

This was a major tear jerker for me.  It is just over two hours long, and I must have cried for at least half of the show.  Afterwards when I was in the bathroom throwing away my sixth or seventh tissue, I noticed that my eyelids were totally swollen from all the crying.  Sheesh!

Overall, I thought the story was sweet.  There were some things that weren't recommendable in the show though.

Flash of Genius

I really liked this movie. It's the true story about the guy who invented the intermittent windshield wipers. You know, the ones where you can have a 3 sec, 8 sec, etc. delay. So he invented it, took his idea to Ford Motor Company, and then they took his model and never called him back basically. A couple years later he sees his wipers on the new Mustang, and the rest of the movie is him trying to get Ford to admit they stole his idea.

One of the reasons I really liked it, is because I get really into stories where something is insanely and tragically unfair. I remember crying in The Little Princess when I was like 9 for the same reason.

I would recommend it. It's pretty family friendly with maybe 3 swear words, although I'm sure it would bore children. It's a good one to watch with the hubby anyway.

HSM 3

I rented this for my five-year-old because she saw the other two and really liked them. Also, it's rated G, so I figured it would be "safe".

It followed suite of the others, and was CHEESY! I was a bit surprised that it was rated G with all the lovey-dovey stuff between the two main characters (there was even a bit of KISSING).

But, the kids seemed to like it, and joined in with the dancing sometimes.

Bolt

This is one of the few movies I went to the theater to see with the kids. My kids LOVED this movie. The hamster was particularly cute, as well as the pigeons. It was a very funny story of a dog who is in show business and takes it all very seriously. Then he gets thrown into the real world and realizes he really doesn't have super powers, and has a hard time dealing with it. It was so funny and had a good moral in the end. I recommend this one.

An Unfinished Life

This movie came out a few years ago. It is about a single mother who needs to get out of a bad/abusive relationship. She turns to the only family she has, her dead husband's father. Robert Redford is the man, he lives on a ranch in Wyoming, and his friend is played by Morgan Freeman. It was such a wonderful movie, and it really surprised me at how much I loved the characters. It was very funny, sad, endearing and in the end very very good. I hope you can watch this one!

Nights in Rodanthe

Don't laugh, I am doing a lot of posts, I can't sleep tonight for some reason...

This movie was sad! I like Richard Gere, and he and Diane hit it off pretty good in this movie. I just couldn't get that into it for some reason. It was adapted from a book by Nicholas Sparks (he wrote The Notebook too). The beach house it was filmed in was gorgeous, and it had some good conversations in it, but in the end, I didn't like it that much.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Prince Caspian... where do I start. I didn't see a post on this movie. We watched it in January and I am still thinking about it. I loved it. It had quite a few war scenes, and I am not quite sure if I'd let my kids watch it yet. The message of the movie was quite powerful. A lot of good lessons to learn from it, about believing in yourself, and believing in those you love.

The soundtrack was beautiful, and the scenery was amazing. I need to go to New Zealand. I highly recommend this movie :)

I am Legend

I haven't posted to this forever, and I read your comments all of the time. So I had better contribute. Mark and I watched this movie last night. First of all, I didn't realize it was a zombie-esqe movie. It was scary! Well, I am easily scared, mostly because you don't know what is going to jump out at you around the corner...

A so-called cure for cancer is found, but it turns out to be a horrid disease that spreads all over the world, turning people into these crazed zombies that want to kill everything. Will Smith's character's blood is immune to any of this and he searches high and low for a cure. Most of the movie it shows him roaming around a shut down New York with his dog. It was scary, and in the end it left me wanting.

Deja Vu

This is one of those movies that totally keeps you guessing all the way to the end. Many twists and turns that you never would have thought of. I enjoyed the movie, but parts of it we had to watch twice to figure out what happened. I can't really explain much about the movie without giving the cool parts away though.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom on the Crystal Skull

This was a lot like your typical Indiana Jones movies (but maybe it was just that song they play that ties them all together). I have to admit that Shia LeBeouf didn't bug me like he does in every other show I've seen him in. I think it was while watching this show that I saw a connection to MacGyver.

Anyway, it was descent. There were a few parts I closed my eyes for, but I have to say the way things turned out at the end were a bit crazy, and so much not Indiana Jones. I liked the bantering between the good guys. Kept the show from being too intense.

Seven Pounds

This movie was nothing like what I thought it would be (all preconceptions were based on Will Smith's appearance on Leno), but it was amazing.

The exposition is really hard to follow at first: You aren't sure what is a flashback or what's present time or what. It seems really confusing, however, if you're patient, it all begins to make sense and I think it was really effective.

I am fairly sure every person in the theater was bawling by the end, especially this one girl I saw in the bathroom afterward just sobbing. I cried. My mom cried. I heard sniffles throughout.

It really makes you think...and it's not light-hearted at all, even though that's what Will made you think when he came on Leno and showed the only scene that was even a little comedic in the whole movie. :)

Anyway, I really liked it. A fantastic story about guilt, love and redemption.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Before I say anything, I have to say, I loved this movie. I didn't realize until we got there that it was going to be 3 hours long, but I thought it was great the entire time. I didn't realize until it was over that it was adapted from the short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I'll have to read it.

If you've seen the previews, then I'm not giving anything away (especially since this is in theaters right now). The film is a love story, which by itself is pretty darn good. The twist, is that Benjamin Button ages backwards, or grows younger with time. That complicates things. This movie had so many thought provoking moments. The whole time I was thinking about how lucky I am to be able to grow old with the person I love. I guess that shows how into the movie I was.

The story, the emotion, the hint of magic, it was all spectacular to me, and I don't think there could have been better actors for the main roles–Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. Wow.

That being said, I wouldn't recommend this for kids. Not only because it might be confusing to them, but also the inevitable shirtless Brad Pitt makes some appearances (no complaints). There's sexy scenes in this movie, but in my opinion they were in good taste. There's some creepy parts and a little violence too. Also, even though there was romance, I wouldn't leave your husband at home.

Fred Claus

This was a pretty cute show that was in theaters last year, and just came out on video. It tells the story of how Nicholas became a saint (when you become a saint you and your family stop aging--did you know that?). St. Nick's brother Fred doesn't like him, and thus hates Christmas. He gets in a bind and ends up working at the North Pole for a few days to earn money.

Anyway, it was pretty good. The kids seemed to like it. One of the characters that worked at the North Pole was way too scantily clad. Other than that, it was a pretty happy movie with a good ending.

Twilight

I really enjoyed the Twilight novel, and the movie was pretty good. My friend and I wondered if we'd like the movie if we hadn't read the book, and I don't think I would have. Having read it, we could understand certain things that weren't said in the show. Many details were left out, but I couldn't think of anything major that wasn't there. I would see it again.

Many of the special effects were lacking, and the effect of sunlight on a vampire just made said vampire look sweaty. One may have thought the movie was a comedy with all the laughing that was going on (in the theater). There wasn't much character development. I think Jacob had three or four lines, and Jasper had one (well, maybe two) and several funny facial expressions. Oh, the scene where Edward saves Bella from the guys in Port Angeles was pretty good, at least how the car was driven. Not sure that I loved Robert Pattinson as Edward. He seemed like he was going to cry through most of the show, and the way he was talking (at least in the beginning) made him sound slow. The makeup was a little distracting too--not so much the white faces, but the red lips. Edward's were darker than Bella's, and it was very obvious that it was lipstick.

I'm really not trying to rag on it though. Condensing the long book to a two hour movie would be a challenge, and overall they did a pretty good job with the story.

I'd love to hear what anyone else thought about it.

Ray

This was an interesting movie about the life of Ray Charles. I didn't know much of anything about him, aside from the fact that he was blind and sang "I Just Called to Say I Love You.) -I think he sang that. Did he?-
Anyway, halfway through the movie, Nate and I looked at each other and said "Boy, I'm not really liking Ray right now." He was a junkie and a womanizer, cheating on his wife and cheating on his mistress (although, if you're the mistress, how could you actually think he wouldn't cheat on you when he's already cheated on someone else to be with you?) Sorry. Tangent.
The part about his brother just broke my heart.
I was surprised at how many songs of his I recognized. I had no idea he sang "Hit the Road, Jack."
It was interesting to see all that he did with his music, and that he never let his blindness hold him back.
All-in-all, a good movie.

Top Gear

This isn't your typical movie post, but my husband got a few seasons of a show called Top Gear from a co-worker. I'd never heard of it, but we've been enjoying watching episodes together. It is a car show, and a lot of the time the three presenters are talking about or driving super cars (I think that means expensive and fast). That's not really my thing. But, they also have these crazy challenges, and they are hilarious. One challenge was making amphibious vehicles. One of the guys used a Toyota pickup, one used some type of van, and the other made a sailboat out of a convertible. It was so funny, especially watching the one with the huge sails trying to get to the lake. The van ended up sinking, and the truck ended up on it's roof. Another challenge was buying cars in Miami for under $1,000 and driving across two or three states. They had several challenges along the way. One challenge was in Africa. One was racing motor-homes--that was pretty funny. Oh, the one making stretch limos out of regular cars was pretty entertaining too.

Anyway, I don't think I'm doing it justice, but I think it'd be worth a few minutes to see some of the challenges on YouTube. I have no idea what seasons we've been watching, and I'll admit that some of the things said by the British are quite shocking. But, if you are bored, check it out.

The Aviator

Interesting movie. The first half of it Nate and I kept looking at each other like "What is going on? Is there a plot to this movie at all?" The second half got better, but I was really close to just leaving the room.
This movie is about the life of Howard Hughes (not to be mistaken for Hugh Hefner, which I always seem to do for some reason.)
Howard is a very interesting character. Very smart. From what I understood through the movie, he had a whole lot to do with the airline business as we know it today (OK, as we knew it before they all went bankrupt...) He was also mentally ill.
Would I recommend the movie? Eh...probably not. It was very long - like about 3 hours long - and like I said earlier, the first half of the movie was just weird. Plus, there was an overabundance of swearing. Not cool.

Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader

I couldn't find an image for this one. We were in a bit of a shock when the show started though. A new Red Box opened up not too far from our house (it's on the way home from work for Matt), and we heard it had Prince Caspian. We thought it was one of the new versions. Turns out it was a BBC version (from the 80's I think). The costumes were hilarious, and I laughed for quite awhile watching Aslan walk (you know, with the two guys wearing his costume).

Good reminder to make sure you have the version you want.

Be Kind Rewind

We found this on iTunes last week, and thought we'd give it a try even though we'd never heard of it (mostly because it has Jack Black). It was pretty dumb. A couple of friends find themselves in trouble when the one erases all of the VHS tapes in the video store the other is in charge of while the boss is away. Jack Black is the trouble maker. He became magnetically charged after a failed attempt to destroy a power plant (or some such place). They made their own versions of the movies to cover themselves, and these "sweded" versions became very popular and the store was doing much better business.

It was a pretty lame show. Just not much to it, and the ending was one of those where it ended and I though, that was it?

Baby Mama

My neighbor lent this to me last night. I had seen a few previews for it quite awhile back, and didn't think it looked great. But, having recently become a Tina Fey fan for her "political" work, I decided to give it a try.

The show is about a 37-year-old career woman who has never married. She has come to realize that she wants to be married and have a child, but the marriage prospect isn't looking promising. So, she looks into adoption, but that doesn't seem to be an option (at least not very soon), and she tries artificial insemination. When that doesn't work a doctor tells her she'd have a one in a million chance of getting pregnant. She looks in a surrogate mother, and decides to go that route. The agency she uses guarantees the surrogate will be thoroughly checked out for the small fee of $100,000.00. The surrogate she gets ends up being anything but the type of person she'd want, but they move forward with it.

Anyway, it was better than I thought it would be, and parts were even touching (I'll admit I cried a little). I asked Matt what he thought when it was over, and his response was, "eh".

Nim's Island

I had heard about this movie quite awhile ago, and saw that it was available at Red Box tonight. It is based on a book, and is about a young girl who lives on an island with her scientist father. He leaves on an expedition (I guess that might be the right word), and she (Nim) doesn't want to go with him for the two days because she's certain that her sea turtle's eggs are going to hatch. A huge storm comes up while he's away, and she's left alone to defend their island. She gets some courage from email correspondence from her hero, Alex Rover. He is the brave character of many of her favorite books. He is actually a fictitious character made up by author Alexandra Rover (who happens to not be brave or courageous--she's really agoraphobic).

Anyway, it was a cute story. Some parts were a little intense for my five-year-old, but she wanted to keep watching.

The Dance

This was in the (small) movie section at our library. I hadn't heard about it, but when I picked it up I noticed it was by the people who did The Best Two Years. I thought that was a great show, so I figured this one must also be very good.

Unfortunately, it did not live up to my expectations. The cinematography was very good, but the story wasn't. The main guy in The Best Two Years is home from his mission and going to Harvard (I think that was the school). He's been home a few months, and is sort of struggling. One of his professors (who I'm pretty sure was his mission president in the last movie--but not sure if he's supposed to be the same guy) talks him into going to a single adult dance. He doesn't have a date, but finds an old girlfriend of his brother, and talks her into going. She's not a member, and wears a dress to the dance that isn't within the standards. The professor and his wife are the chaperons (or something--they're there), and apparently they've been married for years and just sort of ignore each other most of the time. There's another single guy there that has a divorcee come to the dance with him.

Anyway, I just didn't think there was much to the story.