wimbledon wouldn't be wimbledon without a rain delay
While I vaguely understand why people may not have loved Brave, I think the only thing that resonates with me is being tired of the princess story as a vehicle for morals or whatnot. That tiny reservation aside (and it's tiny, because what does Disney do if not princess stories? It's nice to see them stick with their most well-recognized and best beloved storytelling framework but tell a different story with it), I loved Brave.
I love, of course, that it's Pixar's first female protagonist. I loved that it's a mother-daughter story. I love that there is no romance and not because romance is inherently bad or demeaning, it's not because Merida chooses her True Love over an Arranged Marriage - it's only because Merida isn't ready for it and that's okay! She doesn't need romance in her life right now, but that's not to say she rejects it forever. She's living life for herself, giving herself time to be "free", to grow up, to reach a point where she'll know whether or not she wants to find that significant other, whether or not she'll fall in love.
That was really refreshing to me, because I feel like I spent a lot of my own life trying to do that - figure out that dating/romance was not something I had to do just because everyone else was doing it and society seemed to expect it of me; it was something I had to grow into, if I wanted to at all, when I was ready.
(STILL NOT SURE IF READY; BUT DAMN THAT WEDDING SURE MAKES ME NOT WANT TO BE SINGLLE.)
That aspect aside? Oh god, the mother-daughter relationship. The mother-daughter relationship. I haven't read a ton of reviews about it and I hope what people are getting out of it isn't that "Mother Knows Best" - it's that both sides have valid feelings and do love each other but, oh lord, the conflict. As celerywench said, "Oops, we accidentally walked into the story of our lives" re that initial mother-daughter clash and frustration and ugh. Feelings.
I love my mom. She has not, however, turned into a bear and we have not gone through An Incident of Revelation where we have magically learned to understand each other and cease fighting over things, but I think growing up in general (and her accepting that I'm growing up/have grown up in some ways) has helped. So has no longer living at home, yeahhh.
Anyway, let's not get into all my issues. Suffice to say the mother-daughter relationship really got me in the heart. My favorite Disney movies have always been the ones about family relationships (Lilo & Stitch, Finding Nemo) more than the princess ones. Although I am going to be cynical and say at least some people out there find Finding Nemo a touching family story about father-and-son relationships but mother-daughter relationships are just women having too many feelings. So trite! So unoriginal! Yeah, okay.
WHATEVER, DUDES. Brave was also freaking hilarious and absolutely beautiful. SO PRETTY. I WANT TO SPLASH IN STREAMS AND GO HORSEBACK RIDING AGAIN. UGH, MONTANA. UGH, SCOTLAND. WHY SO FAR AWAY?
I also watched Magic Mike! It was fun! There was way more plot than I expected. Waaayyy more plot. Not necessarily in a bad way, except for the fact that I did not go for the plot. Although WTF were those abrupt transitions? I do have to give the movie props for having a lot of natural interactions and conversations between people - sometimes a little awkward, sometimes with more chemistry, but a lot of the conversations I could easily see real people actually having. You know how some movies have really easy quips and sassy comebacks and it's fun and easy except you know most people could never pull that off in real life? This wasn't that!
Also Matthew McConaughey was excellent in his (obnoxious) role.
Channing Tatum is only attractive to me when he's dancing. He was actually really good? So that was fun.
Less spoilery, the trailer for Pitch Perfect, a movie about an a cappella group, makes me really want to see it. :D
IN OTHER NEWS: It would be great if Murray, bearing years of British pressure on his shoulders, finally won Wimbledon. It would be most excellent, considering Rafa and Nole are out. Boo, Feds.
I love, of course, that it's Pixar's first female protagonist. I loved that it's a mother-daughter story. I love that there is no romance and not because romance is inherently bad or demeaning, it's not because Merida chooses her True Love over an Arranged Marriage - it's only because Merida isn't ready for it and that's okay! She doesn't need romance in her life right now, but that's not to say she rejects it forever. She's living life for herself, giving herself time to be "free", to grow up, to reach a point where she'll know whether or not she wants to find that significant other, whether or not she'll fall in love.
That was really refreshing to me, because I feel like I spent a lot of my own life trying to do that - figure out that dating/romance was not something I had to do just because everyone else was doing it and society seemed to expect it of me; it was something I had to grow into, if I wanted to at all, when I was ready.
(STILL NOT SURE IF READY; BUT DAMN THAT WEDDING SURE MAKES ME NOT WANT TO BE SINGLLE.)
That aspect aside? Oh god, the mother-daughter relationship. The mother-daughter relationship. I haven't read a ton of reviews about it and I hope what people are getting out of it isn't that "Mother Knows Best" - it's that both sides have valid feelings and do love each other but, oh lord, the conflict. As celerywench said, "Oops, we accidentally walked into the story of our lives" re that initial mother-daughter clash and frustration and ugh. Feelings.
I love my mom. She has not, however, turned into a bear and we have not gone through An Incident of Revelation where we have magically learned to understand each other and cease fighting over things, but I think growing up in general (and her accepting that I'm growing up/have grown up in some ways) has helped. So has no longer living at home, yeahhh.
Anyway, let's not get into all my issues. Suffice to say the mother-daughter relationship really got me in the heart. My favorite Disney movies have always been the ones about family relationships (Lilo & Stitch, Finding Nemo) more than the princess ones. Although I am going to be cynical and say at least some people out there find Finding Nemo a touching family story about father-and-son relationships but mother-daughter relationships are just women having too many feelings. So trite! So unoriginal! Yeah, okay.
WHATEVER, DUDES. Brave was also freaking hilarious and absolutely beautiful. SO PRETTY. I WANT TO SPLASH IN STREAMS AND GO HORSEBACK RIDING AGAIN. UGH, MONTANA. UGH, SCOTLAND. WHY SO FAR AWAY?
I also watched Magic Mike! It was fun! There was way more plot than I expected. Waaayyy more plot. Not necessarily in a bad way, except for the fact that I did not go for the plot. Although WTF were those abrupt transitions? I do have to give the movie props for having a lot of natural interactions and conversations between people - sometimes a little awkward, sometimes with more chemistry, but a lot of the conversations I could easily see real people actually having. You know how some movies have really easy quips and sassy comebacks and it's fun and easy except you know most people could never pull that off in real life? This wasn't that!
Also Matthew McConaughey was excellent in his (obnoxious) role.
Channing Tatum is only attractive to me when he's dancing. He was actually really good? So that was fun.
Less spoilery, the trailer for Pitch Perfect, a movie about an a cappella group, makes me really want to see it. :D
IN OTHER NEWS: It would be great if Murray, bearing years of British pressure on his shoulders, finally won Wimbledon. It would be most excellent, considering Rafa and Nole are out. Boo, Feds.