Movies Shows and Movies

So, I've seen quite a lot of movies and shows over the past couple of months and I thought I'd share some thoughts on what I liked and what I did not like.

Theatre:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - Great adaptation of the book. Of course they cannot include absolutely everything and they had to change a few things to keep the plot rolling in a film. However, I was mad that they basically gave away one of the plot devices right near the beginning where in the novel you are surprised by a certain revelation. Yet I love that we are able to visually escape into the world of Hogwarts and our favourite magical students.

The Proposal - Honestly much better than I was expecting! I laughed a lot and besides a few cheesy moments (dog + eagle), this was a very entertaining, humorous, surprising romantic comedy. PS - I love Ryan Reynolds!

The Hangover - Again, this movie exceeded my expectations! Yes, it had crude, shocking moments, but all of the random, funny bits thrown together in a stew of a night we are all trying to piece together made up for any lack. (from a tiger in a bathroom, to Mike Tyson, to the naked Asian man, to the kooky lone wolf brother-in-law!) PS - Leave right as the credits begin to avoid the most gross parts!!

The Ugly Truth - Not one or my favourite movies of this year. I think Gerard Butler is great but that is about all I liked about this movie. Yes, I chuckled, and maybe smiled a bit, but there wasn't much substance or enough well-written comedy to save it from being just another summer flop.

Star Trek (film and IMAX) - After seeing this movie yes, count 'em three times, once in IMAX, I can honestly say I really enjoyed it every time. Yes I knew the plot and twists after the first viewing, but each time I came away with more details, more insight and more knowledge about this complicated time travel film. Yes, they also totally messed up the original Star Trek timeline and changed a lot of the main character's backgrounds but they made up for that meddling by creating a wonderful new Star Trek world for us all to play in. Kirk was played beautifully, Spock and Uhura's little side plot amused me, but a couple small details really annoyed me each time I watched it. Why in the world would they have had a heavily accented Russian giving all the ship-wide communications? And why in the universe would they ever have cast Winona Ryder as Spock's mother?!?! Both of those silly details get me all riled up! But the movie is an excellent sci-fi adventure, full of battle, comedy, emotion and mind-bending time paradoxes like most Star Trek shows seem to be riddled with.

GI Joe - All I have to say is: some good ideas, cool gadgets...this movie should never have been made. I was actually physically uncomfortable after only about 30 minutes...bad idea.

District 9 - Easily moving to one of my favourite sci-fi films of all time. I have been waiting for this movie to come out; I've read blogs, articles, mock-company websites and trailers all building up this underdog of a film that holds so much more than a simple alien vs human premise. I am very glad they used a non-name actor for the main role or Wikus, a South African 'ambassador' to the alien race that has been stranded on Earth for over 20 years. He begins on the outside, working for the force that is forcing the aliens to live in horrible conditions with little to no rights or comforts, though the aliens have been nothing but easy-going since arriving. But Wikus Van De Merwe (best name ever!), is soon dragged into the aliens life and world living in slum conditions and treated worse than beasts, shot down for no reason. I won't say anything more but I am excited to think there could be a sequel someday. The only drawback is the violence. This movie is basically a war film with a lot of violent warfare and bloodshed. Keep in mind that most of the gore is CG and not at all real (I mean aliens are not real, right?), but once you are in the movie's world, the harsh moments feel very real. Great film, wonderful thought-provoking themes and a good amount of unsettling after thoughts when we reflect the movie upon our own world as it is at present.

Time Traveller's Wife - I admit it...the book is fully superior in telling this unique story of a man who cannot control his physical jumping in and out of different times and the girl/woman he meets who becomes his wife. If you haven't read the book be prepared to need some explanations and helpful hints as the first half simply expects you to be able to guess how and why things happen. My only gripes are that the ending is not in the book at all and that Clare, the wife, does not complain or feel hard done by in the book as much as she seems to in the film. Enough said. Read the book instead.

Julie & Julia - One of the sweetest, real-life, and loveliest movies I've seen in a very long time! A true feel-good movie, even though it does feature 'melt-downs' and heartache and disappointments alike. This movie inspired me, encouraged me, and made me laugh. I highly recommend it!!

Rented:

Outlander - Very interesting genre mixing two very cool types of films; sci-fi meets medieval vikings. Dragon becomes alien and myth becomes reality. A good renter, love the premise and the back story and would even like a movie made about the main characters background. Good special effects and artistry.

Downloaded Shows:

Defying Gravity - from the makers of Grey's Anatomy, very cool new relationship drams/sci-fi show.

Better Off Ted - a mix of something like, The Office, Arrested Development and Bill Nye the Science Guy...no, really! And it's super funny, too!!! (I love shows where the main character speaks to the camera!)

Long Way Round - one of my new favourites already and I'm only a few episodes in!!! Ewan McGregor and his pal Charlie Boorman travel around the globe on motorcycles, 2 men, 2 bikes, 20, 000 miles!!! An awesome travel adventure where we get to see parts of the world never filmed or travelled through. Look it up!!