All the movies since Janauary
So since I'm very behind on updating...I'm also very behind on movies.
But let me update first because I realized I didn't write about March in my last update. Well over Spring Break we went north for Carrie's wedding and it was a lot of fun, maybe the most fun I've had at a wedding yet. :-) It was at the clubhouse at Camden Yards and there were lots of fun baseball references. There were pennants on the tables, we had peanuts and cracker jack with the rest of the appetizers, and there was Boog's barbecue. While we were in town we checked out the Sports Hall of Fame, Geppi's Entertainment Museum, the Science Center, the Papermoon, and Nacho Mama's with different groups of people.
Mom and Christopher drove down with us back to Greensboro and hung out for a few days. While they were down we saw another play at the Triad Stage called Doubt which was pretty awesome. We also went to the zoo, it was a bit rainy but it was still cool. The giant seals were hanging out upside down, they were cute.
On Good Friday we traveled to Raleigh to see UMBC play in the first ever NCAA tournament game. We got to see Krissy again, they were a few seats down from us so we got to scoot down and hang out with them.
The only other thing that's going on is that Curtis and I are house hunting. Cross your fingers because if all goes well we should be signing a contract tomorrow evening. We had our eye on an awesome house but there is going to be an on-ramp practically in the backyard when they build the new highway.
And now for the movies: Dreamgirls, Pan's Labyrinth, The Machinist, The Game Plan, Rent, Live Free or Die Hard (possible spoiler), Cars, American Gangster, Epic Movie, The Full Monty, Outbreak, and Wristcutters: A Love Story.
Dreamgirls 2006 - Twenty-five years after its Broadway debut, the definitive girl-group musical, earning the most Oscar nods in 2007, finally makes its way to the screen with Bill Condon at the helm and a dream cast that includes Jamie Foxx and Beyoncé Knowles. A trio of women have high hopes for fame but end up paying a high price for it. Eddie Murphy plays James Early (in an Oscar-nominated role), and Jennifer Hudson took home the golden statuette for playing strong but slighted Effie.
Wow, this was a long time ago. I think I fell asleep in the middle of it. It was okay but I wasn't all that excited about it.
Pan's Labyrinth 2006 - In this fairy tale for adults, 10-year-old Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) stumbles on a decaying labyrinth guarded by Pan (Doug Jones), an ancient satyr who claims to know her destiny. With a new home, a new stepfather (Sergi Lopez) -- a Fascist officer in the pro-Franco army -- and a new sibling on the way, nothing is familiar to Ofelia in this multiple Oscar-winning tale set in 1944 Spain from director Guillermo del Toro.
This one was pretty cool, very sad ending and some parts were a little more gory than I usually like. Very original. Creepy, sad, and beautiful all at the same time.
The Machinist 2004 - Trevor Reznik's (Christian Bale) insomnia has crossed over into the danger zone. The man hasn't slept in a year, and his physical and mental health have eroded. His call-girl girlfriend (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the only bright spot in his quickly deteriorating world. But when cryptic notes turn up in his apartment and he has visions of a co-worker nobody else can see, is it reality or the next level of his sleeplessness that's to blame?
I caught this movie on the Sleuth channel and it was really good. I can see how people might say it's the same thing as Fight Club but if you watch it you'll see it's similar but definitely not the same thing. Christian Bale was so damn skinny it was unnerving.
The Game Plan 2007 - NFL star Joe Kingman (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is in his prime: He's rich, famous and one of the world's most eligible bachelors. There's nothing that can throw him off his game. Nothing, that is, except for the emergence of the 7-year-old daughter (Madison Pettis) he never knew he had. Now, with his team gunning for a title, Joe must find a way to balance crushing gridiron action with bedtime stories and ballet classes.
This was sooooo cute. Curtis and I were in the mood for a silly feel-good movie and we got one. I swear that one actor is the Rock's illegitimate child.
Rent 2005 - Members of the original 1996 Broadway cast star in Chris Columbus's adaptation of the award-winning musical set in New York's East Village. Based on Puccini's "La Boheme," the story follows a group of bohemians through life's ups and down as they face true love, broken hearts, HIV, drug addiction … and of course, paying the rent. Rosario Dawson, Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Jesse L. Martin, Taye Diggs, Idina Menzel and Wilson Jermaine Heredia star.
I liked it and Curtis enjoyed it less because he's seen the actual musical a few times. Jesse L. Martin became awesome to me after this movie, I love him.
Live Free or Die Hard 2007 - John McClane (Bruce Willis) is back and badder than ever, and this time he's up against a ring of Internet terrorists. Now working for Homeland Security, the decidedly low-tech McClane calls on the services of a young hacker (Justin Long) in his bid to stop a shadowy group intent on taking control of America's computer infrastructure. Fear not, the information age plot still boasts plenty of good old-fashioned gunfights, smashups and explosions.
I was a little skeptical of this one at first but it was pretty badass as usual. I shouldn't have doubted Bruce Willis. It's pretty hardcore to shoot yourself so you can shoot the bad guy behind you (does that even work in real life?). But most of it was pretty preposterous. And I loved how they were trying to say he was on 695 (or was it 95) when he definitely wasn't.
Cars 2006 - Prepare to peel out with this revved-up animated adventure featuring classic automobiles, plenty of fender benders, guffaws galore and a Route 66 road trip with a crew that doesn't make pit stops. The star-studded voice cast includes Paul Newman, Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt and Cheech Marin. Nominated for the Best Animated Feature Oscar, Cars won Best Animated Film in the first category of its kind at the 2007 Golden Globes.
Very cute and thoroughly enjoyable. But the best part was after the credits when they were watching car versions of the other Pixar movies. I want to see Monster Trucks, Inc.!
American Gangster 2007 - From director Ridley Scott comes this tense crime thriller starring Denzel Washington as true-life Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas. Russell Crowe co-stars as the dogged outcast NYPD cop charged with bringing Lucas down. Ruby Dee (in an Oscar-nominated role), Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Brolin and Chiwetel Ejiofor lead the supporting cast in this powerhouse tale penned by Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List). Both the theatrical and unrated, extended versions are included.
Really good movie and usually I'm not interested in these long epics, they just don't hold my attention. Watching this movie made me think, "Damn, we are never going to not have a drug problem in this world."
Epic Movie 2007 - From the writers of Scary Movie comes this megaspoof of at least a dozen blockbusters. The story line follows four orphans (Kal Penn, Adam Campbell, Faune A. Chambers and Jayma Mays) who visit a magic chocolate factory where an enchanted wardrobe zaps them back to the land of Gnarnia where they encounter an eccentric pirate and a group of student wizards. As if that isn't enough, the quartet must find a way to defeat the White Bitch of Gnarnia.
Horribly bad as we expected but I was especially prepared for a movie that I didn't have to process at all. However...I don't get how projectile vomitting is supposed to be so funny.
The Full Monty 1997 - This raucous English comedy follows a group of unemployed British steel-mill workers who, broke and bored, devise a fabulous scheme to get off the dole: Become male strippers! Soon they're a sensation with the ladies, who encourage the men to show the "full monty" (strip down to the skin). This quirky 1997 sleeper is full of character and great humor.
I caught this one on TV late one night. It was amusing enough but pretty forgettable.
Outbreak 1995 - As take-charge Army virologist Sam Daniels (Dustin Hoffman) strives to thwart a global biological meltdown in the form of a killer virus that has infested a California community, he must also battle those who say the only way to stop the disease is to firebomb the town. Silver-screen luminaries Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, Donald Sutherland and Kevin Spacey join Hoffman in this edge-of-your-seat, doomsday thriller.
I think I watched this right after the Full Monty...it was definitely more suspenseful. Damn Sean Penn for stealing monkeys.
Wristcutters: A Love Story 2006 - Trapped in an alternate world populated by suicide victims, a band of souls tries to find an escape route in Goran Dukic's quirky fantasy. Although he took his own life, Zia (Patrick Fugit) isn't ready for such a grim hereafter, particularly when he learns that his ex-girlfriend also killed herself. On a quest to find her, he befriends a jaded hitchhiker and a Russian rocker, and together, they set out in search of a more appealing afterlife.
I loved this movie...no stars or smiles allowed in the afterlife when you kill yourself and watch out for the black hole beneath the passenger seat. The ending was a bit cutesy...I was hoping for something more, but overall it was quirky and I laughed so hard when Patrick's character fell out of the car.
But let me update first because I realized I didn't write about March in my last update. Well over Spring Break we went north for Carrie's wedding and it was a lot of fun, maybe the most fun I've had at a wedding yet. :-) It was at the clubhouse at Camden Yards and there were lots of fun baseball references. There were pennants on the tables, we had peanuts and cracker jack with the rest of the appetizers, and there was Boog's barbecue. While we were in town we checked out the Sports Hall of Fame, Geppi's Entertainment Museum, the Science Center, the Papermoon, and Nacho Mama's with different groups of people.
Mom and Christopher drove down with us back to Greensboro and hung out for a few days. While they were down we saw another play at the Triad Stage called Doubt which was pretty awesome. We also went to the zoo, it was a bit rainy but it was still cool. The giant seals were hanging out upside down, they were cute.
On Good Friday we traveled to Raleigh to see UMBC play in the first ever NCAA tournament game. We got to see Krissy again, they were a few seats down from us so we got to scoot down and hang out with them.
The only other thing that's going on is that Curtis and I are house hunting. Cross your fingers because if all goes well we should be signing a contract tomorrow evening. We had our eye on an awesome house but there is going to be an on-ramp practically in the backyard when they build the new highway.
And now for the movies: Dreamgirls, Pan's Labyrinth, The Machinist, The Game Plan, Rent, Live Free or Die Hard (possible spoiler), Cars, American Gangster, Epic Movie, The Full Monty, Outbreak, and Wristcutters: A Love Story.
Dreamgirls 2006 - Twenty-five years after its Broadway debut, the definitive girl-group musical, earning the most Oscar nods in 2007, finally makes its way to the screen with Bill Condon at the helm and a dream cast that includes Jamie Foxx and Beyoncé Knowles. A trio of women have high hopes for fame but end up paying a high price for it. Eddie Murphy plays James Early (in an Oscar-nominated role), and Jennifer Hudson took home the golden statuette for playing strong but slighted Effie.
Wow, this was a long time ago. I think I fell asleep in the middle of it. It was okay but I wasn't all that excited about it.
Pan's Labyrinth 2006 - In this fairy tale for adults, 10-year-old Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) stumbles on a decaying labyrinth guarded by Pan (Doug Jones), an ancient satyr who claims to know her destiny. With a new home, a new stepfather (Sergi Lopez) -- a Fascist officer in the pro-Franco army -- and a new sibling on the way, nothing is familiar to Ofelia in this multiple Oscar-winning tale set in 1944 Spain from director Guillermo del Toro.
This one was pretty cool, very sad ending and some parts were a little more gory than I usually like. Very original. Creepy, sad, and beautiful all at the same time.
The Machinist 2004 - Trevor Reznik's (Christian Bale) insomnia has crossed over into the danger zone. The man hasn't slept in a year, and his physical and mental health have eroded. His call-girl girlfriend (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the only bright spot in his quickly deteriorating world. But when cryptic notes turn up in his apartment and he has visions of a co-worker nobody else can see, is it reality or the next level of his sleeplessness that's to blame?
I caught this movie on the Sleuth channel and it was really good. I can see how people might say it's the same thing as Fight Club but if you watch it you'll see it's similar but definitely not the same thing. Christian Bale was so damn skinny it was unnerving.
The Game Plan 2007 - NFL star Joe Kingman (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is in his prime: He's rich, famous and one of the world's most eligible bachelors. There's nothing that can throw him off his game. Nothing, that is, except for the emergence of the 7-year-old daughter (Madison Pettis) he never knew he had. Now, with his team gunning for a title, Joe must find a way to balance crushing gridiron action with bedtime stories and ballet classes.
This was sooooo cute. Curtis and I were in the mood for a silly feel-good movie and we got one. I swear that one actor is the Rock's illegitimate child.
Rent 2005 - Members of the original 1996 Broadway cast star in Chris Columbus's adaptation of the award-winning musical set in New York's East Village. Based on Puccini's "La Boheme," the story follows a group of bohemians through life's ups and down as they face true love, broken hearts, HIV, drug addiction … and of course, paying the rent. Rosario Dawson, Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Jesse L. Martin, Taye Diggs, Idina Menzel and Wilson Jermaine Heredia star.
I liked it and Curtis enjoyed it less because he's seen the actual musical a few times. Jesse L. Martin became awesome to me after this movie, I love him.
Live Free or Die Hard 2007 - John McClane (Bruce Willis) is back and badder than ever, and this time he's up against a ring of Internet terrorists. Now working for Homeland Security, the decidedly low-tech McClane calls on the services of a young hacker (Justin Long) in his bid to stop a shadowy group intent on taking control of America's computer infrastructure. Fear not, the information age plot still boasts plenty of good old-fashioned gunfights, smashups and explosions.
I was a little skeptical of this one at first but it was pretty badass as usual. I shouldn't have doubted Bruce Willis. It's pretty hardcore to shoot yourself so you can shoot the bad guy behind you (does that even work in real life?). But most of it was pretty preposterous. And I loved how they were trying to say he was on 695 (or was it 95) when he definitely wasn't.
Cars 2006 - Prepare to peel out with this revved-up animated adventure featuring classic automobiles, plenty of fender benders, guffaws galore and a Route 66 road trip with a crew that doesn't make pit stops. The star-studded voice cast includes Paul Newman, Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt and Cheech Marin. Nominated for the Best Animated Feature Oscar, Cars won Best Animated Film in the first category of its kind at the 2007 Golden Globes.
Very cute and thoroughly enjoyable. But the best part was after the credits when they were watching car versions of the other Pixar movies. I want to see Monster Trucks, Inc.!
American Gangster 2007 - From director Ridley Scott comes this tense crime thriller starring Denzel Washington as true-life Harlem drug lord Frank Lucas. Russell Crowe co-stars as the dogged outcast NYPD cop charged with bringing Lucas down. Ruby Dee (in an Oscar-nominated role), Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Brolin and Chiwetel Ejiofor lead the supporting cast in this powerhouse tale penned by Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List). Both the theatrical and unrated, extended versions are included.
Really good movie and usually I'm not interested in these long epics, they just don't hold my attention. Watching this movie made me think, "Damn, we are never going to not have a drug problem in this world."
Epic Movie 2007 - From the writers of Scary Movie comes this megaspoof of at least a dozen blockbusters. The story line follows four orphans (Kal Penn, Adam Campbell, Faune A. Chambers and Jayma Mays) who visit a magic chocolate factory where an enchanted wardrobe zaps them back to the land of Gnarnia where they encounter an eccentric pirate and a group of student wizards. As if that isn't enough, the quartet must find a way to defeat the White Bitch of Gnarnia.
Horribly bad as we expected but I was especially prepared for a movie that I didn't have to process at all. However...I don't get how projectile vomitting is supposed to be so funny.
The Full Monty 1997 - This raucous English comedy follows a group of unemployed British steel-mill workers who, broke and bored, devise a fabulous scheme to get off the dole: Become male strippers! Soon they're a sensation with the ladies, who encourage the men to show the "full monty" (strip down to the skin). This quirky 1997 sleeper is full of character and great humor.
I caught this one on TV late one night. It was amusing enough but pretty forgettable.
Outbreak 1995 - As take-charge Army virologist Sam Daniels (Dustin Hoffman) strives to thwart a global biological meltdown in the form of a killer virus that has infested a California community, he must also battle those who say the only way to stop the disease is to firebomb the town. Silver-screen luminaries Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, Donald Sutherland and Kevin Spacey join Hoffman in this edge-of-your-seat, doomsday thriller.
I think I watched this right after the Full Monty...it was definitely more suspenseful. Damn Sean Penn for stealing monkeys.
Wristcutters: A Love Story 2006 - Trapped in an alternate world populated by suicide victims, a band of souls tries to find an escape route in Goran Dukic's quirky fantasy. Although he took his own life, Zia (Patrick Fugit) isn't ready for such a grim hereafter, particularly when he learns that his ex-girlfriend also killed herself. On a quest to find her, he befriends a jaded hitchhiker and a Russian rocker, and together, they set out in search of a more appealing afterlife.
I loved this movie...no stars or smiles allowed in the afterlife when you kill yourself and watch out for the black hole beneath the passenger seat. The ending was a bit cutesy...I was hoping for something more, but overall it was quirky and I laughed so hard when Patrick's character fell out of the car.