"Adventures are never fun while you're having them."

Yesterday I saw "Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader".
Can I just tell you -- I love, love, love these movies.

While I didn't see the second one (though I will this week - thank you "On Demand"), it wasn't difficult to pick up on where it left off.

Not only do I love the fact that the children learn strength from within and while there's action - it's not gratuitious or violent; but what I truly love is the religious parallel that is so very present. The subtlety of it is what makes it so powerful.

Aslan is the most magnificent animated creature; and his character is the one that moves me to tears. Interestingly enough, that's more than likely the effect he's supposed to have - given the symbolism he represents. But I think the fact that he's so realistic looking, and is so stunning - and with Liam Neeson's voice -- he's just so powerful -- and yet such a small part of this particular movie.

It was a fantastic take....and I hope that this isn't the last movie from this series of books. There are 7 in the collection, and if they are done in the same manner as the previous three - I look forward to each and every one.

Holy Resolutions Batman!

So, one of my resolutions was accomplished today. Well, one and a half - actually.

Not only did I take a half day today -- but I actually went to the movies!
G & I went to see "The Fighter".
Really a good movie; but wow - the buzz surrounding Christian Bale is no joke. He was fantastic.
And for those of us who are from the Boston area and are familiar with Dicky Ecklund & Micky Ward can truly appreciate the performance. Top notch, without doubt.

And then.....
after the kids went to bed, we watched "The Book of Eli". I love Denzel anyway, so I figured it would be good, but such a thoughtful and creative movie. I really enjoyed the premise and all the analogies and comparisons to the Catholic religion, as well as our own humanity and often times - lack thereof.

Two movies in one day.
Looks like I'm off to a good start, eh?

And they're off....

We saw Secretariat tonight.
First off - I loved the cast. Diane Lane, she was good - but I love, love, love John Malkovich - as well as Nelsan Ellis (Lafayette from True Blood) - and of course, the star himself: Secretariat. Or at least the horses who portrayed him.

It's a Disney Movie, so it was a feel good movie which is great - I just wish Steven Spielberg had done it, because it could definitely have been a complete tear jerker, but in the happiest of ways as only he can do.

Of course, watching a based on fact movie waxes nostalgic on this girl - so I figured I'd share with everyone the most amazing footage of the actual Triple Crown victory, which is absolutely amazing to see.

Check it for yourself!

Whatsa happenin'...hot stuff...?

It's been a few days since I posted; it's funny, sometimes I feel like my mind is a sieve. I have all these great things I want to blog about - and then they completely slip my mind. How great could they have been, right? Clearly, if I can't hang onto them in my head for a day or two - then certainly they can't be that noteworthy.

Sort of like this wine I'm drinking. Dare I say - terrible. It's a wine that a producer out in California would like me to carry if they can get distribution. They sent me 4 different varietals - and this is my first try. Let's hope at least one of the other three is better than this one. Ugh.

So let's see. I've got a few tidbits retained that I can share with you. And they go like this:

1. With the good - there is the bad. I saw two movies over the weekend - not at the theatre, but at home. The first one was "The Hurt Locker". Definitely a great movie....though, truthfully not sure why that was the name of the movie as a whole. I could've come up with better names but clearly I'm not the Academy Award winner in the room, so.... we'll leave it at that. The other movie was...well, let's just say that it has officially knocked "Eye of the Beholder" out of the spot of being the worst movie ever. It's called "Moon", with Kevin Spacey and Sam Rockwell. It was nothing short of awful. The premise seemed pretty cool.... but it fell beyond flat. It was horrible actually! Do yourself a favor, and don't ever see it. You can't get that 90 minutes of your life back....

2. Who wants to be on Food TV? I do! They (being Food TV, that is) added a last minute audition spot for "The Next Food Network Star" here in Boston and so I figured "what the heck?" and I went. Rumor has it that the cast is pretty much set - there are only a few spots left open for contestants so I knew that my chances were pretty much slim to none. But I went anyway - and it was really sort of fun. I mean, you go with no expectations - and you hope for the best. We're supposed to hear if we're wanted for an on-camera audition, and I'm not holding my breath. I'm sure they're looking for someone with a better culinary background, but it was fun to try anyway. There's a high about auditioning, and truly - that's probably the last one I'll be going on.

3. So, it looks like we may be moving. No place far - we're staying in the same town we're in - great school system, good friends, fantastic commuting location. But there are different things we need in in a house, and neighborhood. Our house officially went on the market today. Woohoo! Now if we can only find a house we like....

There's probably more...but I'll wait until another day. Besides, if I say it all today - whatever will I have to share tomorrow?

I know I can be colorful; I know I can be gray...

I just got through watching the end of "Rock Star" for oh, I don't know - the hundreth time.

I love, love, love that movie.

Jennifer Aniston is absolutely adorable in it; and I think what I love best about it, is that it's just this great little story of how someone loses themselves - but then finds their way home.

Something that doesn't always happen, unfortunately.

Top 10 list for today

So, I'm thinking that each Monday unless I have something fabulous to say - I'll try posting a top 10 list. Could be any random topic, and I'm not sure how long it will last for; but I'm starting today. Feel free to add your own top 10 list if you so choose!

Top 10 Movies I could watch over, and over and over again:
(With the caveat that I may have forgotten one, or that the list might change from time to time! And this list does not reflect any order of preference.)

1. Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. (And it has to be the original.)
2. The Cutting Edge (Toe Pick!)
3. The Usual Suspects (And like that "poof", he was gone...)
4. Meet the Parents (Really, you can milk anything?)
5. Back Draft (And you watched him dance with the animal....)
6. As Good as it Gets (When you first entered the restaurant, I thought you were handsome... and then, of course, you spoke...)
7. Primal Fear (There never was an Aaron, counselor. Come on, I thought you had it figured there at the end.)
8. A Few Good Men ("I strenuously object?" Is that how it works? Hm? "Objection." "Overruled." "Oh, no, no, no. No, I STRENUOUSLY object." "Oh. Well, if you strenuously object then I should take some time to reconsider.")
9. Legends of the Fall (I'll wait for you. However long it takes. I'll wait for you forever.)
10. The Godfather Saga (It's condensed, and in chronological order. LOVE it.)

Maybe far away...or maybe real near by....

So, it's a dreary Saturday morning - and maybe my plans of taking the kiddies Strawberry picking today might have to wait for another Saturday. We're holding out hope though. Right now though, we're watching one of my very favorite movies from my childhood "Annie". She has the DVD, but never really got it - but now that she's soon to be 6 -- she's loving it. (And I am so loving Carol Burnett in this... she was amazing.) What thirty something girl didn't grow up wanting to be "Annie" in the musical? I know I did. I even auditioned once....but, clearly did not get the job. Could be because holding a tune doesn't compare to true singing; but when you're a child, you're convinced you sound amazing.

Speaking of the Princess Petunia, she's got her first loose tooth hanging by a thread! Ready to meet the Tooth Fairy at any moment....

Yesterday, I got a new refrigerator. Our old one (truly not that old, I think we bought it 5 years ago?) leaked freon everywhere in my kitchen and we lost all of our food in the fridge and freezer. You just don't know how much money you have in your kitchen until you have to replace it all. Anyway, it's a beautiful French door one with the bottom freezer and I am just loving it.

And it shines....like the top of the Chrysler Building.

Two thumbs up and 5 stars.....

Let me preface this review by stating that I am not, in the slightest -- a Jim Carrey fan.
I am, however - a huge fan of Gary Oldman, and Robert Zemeckis.

"A Christmas Carol" is by far, the most artistically spectacular movie I've ever seen. The animation is second to none; similar to the "Polar Express" - the technology used in this film was so far beyond where "Polar Express" left off -- it's mindblowing. There are some moments that even in extreme closeups you question whether it's actors or animation that you're looking at.

The adaptation is pretty true to the Dickens story; there's some embellishment of sorts but for the most part it's almost the way I remember the book. Lets face it, England in the 1840s is rather dark and Dickens isn't the shiniest and happiest of authors -- but the magic of Zemeckis brings you right there and for a few moments in time you forget that you're in a theatre, and it's the new millenium.

My only real critique is that there's little interaction between Scrooge and Crotchet; I seem to remember a bit more detail into their relationship so that the connection to he and Little Tim made more sense than it did in the movie. I found that I needed to explain why he was so interested in that family, because to younger children who haven't read the classic yet - there was no true obvious tie between the two people; so I felt that the one glimpse we had of them working together was really outlined as an obvious assumption to those of us who grew up with the story all of these years.

Definitely not a movie for those under 8; Princess Petunia is no shrinking violet and at 5 1/2 - she was definitely startled and scared at times. She stuck it out, but as I said - Dickens isn't shiny and happy so even the prettiest of scenes are dark for little ones. That being said, this is absolutely a fabulous family movie -- and seriously, a great date night film.

We might even go see it again!