A Little Step into My Head

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I was trying to decide what movie to highlight for today when I noticed 'Austenland' in the new release section on iTunes. I figured that there really wasn't a better day to give it a whirl then today and I've just finished watching it now! You may recall that I shared the trailer with you  some time ago. Let's talk about the movie shall we? 'Austenland' was an enjoyable watch! I feel like I must warn up front that it was a touch more crude than I would have liked. Honestly, I don't ever like crudeness in movies. It was unnecessary and childish but thankfully easily forgotten. In the movies favor, I think that the good was enough to outweigh the bad. Moving on! The story is rather simple. Jane is a thirty something American woman who is dangerously obsessed with all things Austen. Specifically, Mr. Darcy. She decides to spend her life savings to go to a themed, role-play based vacation in England where every guest...

So I found this trailer and I thought it was kinda cute! Since it's around Christmas I am giving myself a blog break. So, it's just the trailer today!

Happy Saturday! Today I come laden with trailers. These trailers, at first glance, seem rather generic but if you watch them all the way to the end I think you'll find your curiosity stirring within you. That's what happened to me anyway. I hope you will feel the same. First is 'How I Live Now'. This trailer starts out looking like a commonplace Indie flick and then there is a serious tonal change. Let's take a look shall we? At first I was very confused by how it looked modern day and the war references didn't make sense. I did a little digging and this movie is based off a novel about an American going to Britain just as a war breaks out. It looks interesting to say the least! As long as there isn't too much angsty teenage romance that is. All I know is that the trailer drew me in. If it proves to be good is yet to be seen. Next, is 'Winter's Tale'. This one starts out looking like a common Chick Flick Romance movie and then BLAM! Plot ...

Hello all! I have a movie review for you today. The movie is 'The Sapphires'. As you may remember, I  recommended this movie previously in a post.  Let's just say I wasn't disappointed! 'The Sapphires'. A movie about four Aboriginal girls in Australia. Three sisters and one cousin. These four girls can sing incredibly well together. They have a few things stacked against them though; They're black in the 1960's and they aren't polished as a music act. They can't do anything about the black bit, but upon meeting an enthusiastic man who agrees to be their manager, their career begins to really grow. This manager switches them from Country/Western music to Soul and teaches them some choreography. Oh, I almost forgot to mention one last thing! They go out to perform for the US troops in Vietnam. That ups the stakes a bit, doesn't it? This movie is simply great! My favorite thing about it is the characters. They are very unique, believab...

I finally got around to seeing 'Silver Linings Playbook'! I know that I am incredibly behind the curve on this one. I don't care though! I never see movies in the theatre when they are 'R' for nakedness. It's just too awkward. Anyway, I feel like it would be redundant for me to talk about how great the story and acting are. I mean, just look at how many awards it won. That being said, I do have some things I would like to go over. Firstly, I know a lot of people who have been on the fence about watching this movie because of content. Watch it. I would say that someone over 15 (and maybe have them look away at one key scene) should be able to handle this movie. There are a lot of 'F' words. 75 in fact, according to IMDB. They are sprinkled evenly throughout the entire movie so there is no escaping it. The nudity really isn't that bad. It's in a flashback. You see a naked woman from behind through a mildly foggy glass shower. You also see her b...

Hello everyone! I have found a delightful yet probably quite sad trailer for today. It is staring one of my favorite actors, Sir Michael Caine. Here is the trailer. It's set in Paris and it's about love, loss, and new friendship. I love it! The tears will fall, but I'm sure there will be plenty of smiles as well. I just get the feeling that when the movie fades to black, I will be happy. That's the mark of a good film, I think. What do you think? Yay or nay from you? Also, a brief side note. I am currently adventuring around the U.K. at the moment. Because of this my posts will be strictly once a week until I return home. Just a few weeks and then my posting will become more frequent. If anyone is interested, I can do a brief post about my trip once I return. All you have to do is ask! I'll be back in a week with another post! Talk to you then.

I have two trailers today. I actually laughed out loud to myself when I realized how different they are and that I was going to post about them at the same time! No one can honestly accuse me of having ordinary taste, that's for sure! I am going to start with 'Escape Plan'. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone, together, escaping from prison. Trailer first! It just looks so fun! I can't help myself. Seriously, I know that they have worked together on 'The Expendables' but those movies were too much for me. I can't get into them. This looks like it's a bit closer to my speed. It won't be super thought provoking and whatnot but this time I don't care! I love a good action romp and I think 'Escape Plan' will fit the bill quite nicely. Now, in the complete opposite part of the cinema world, we have 'Austenland'. Yes, it's a Jane Austin movie, sort of. Just to be clear, I am not one of those Austin obsessed g...

I have a bit of a different review today. I have just finished watching 'Once', a modern Irish musical set in Dublin. The movie is about an Irish street musician/vacuum repairman who meets a Czech woman. This Czech woman and Irish man develop a friendship and decide to record a demo album for the Irish man to take to London so he can try and make it big time! It's an incredibly real story with many charmingly human moments. The movie is considered a musical. They sing plenty of full songs throughout the film. These songs relate how they are feeling and aid in the story progression. What sets this one apart is that when they sing it makes sense. They don't break into song in a coffee shop and have a big dance number. They will be sitting in the studio singing the song while working on writing it. Because of this shift in style I honestly forgot about the fact that is was a musical even though they were singing all the time! It just felt like a movie about musicians. ...

Last night I tore open my Netflix envelope and sat down to watch 'Anna Karenina'. Having read the book, I was expecting to be disappointed, angered, and generally hate every second of the film. I was wrong! This movie was one of the most satisfying 'book to movie' translations I have ever witnessed. Being a person who is nearly never satisfied with Classic Literature in movie form, that's a massive compliment. Let me make some specific points. I have to start with the cinematography. It was filmed almost like a play. The characters were living out their Russian lives while their surroundings were sets that would swirl and change as they walked from place to place. A lot of the time the characters would be backstage  for a scene or in the audience of the theatre while snooping on what is happening on stage. I expected this to be an over artistic distraction but I really enjoyed it! It made it possible for the story to be abridged to movie length without losing valu...

Hi all! I have found a delightful little gem. Today, we will be talking about 'The Scapegoat'. This movie turned out to be an unknown happy surprise hiding in the back of Netflix! 'The Scapegoat' is a movie about two men who, by chance, meet each other and realize that they are exactly identical in appearance. One is from a wealthy aristocratic family who runs a foundry while the other is a poor schoolteacher. Johnny and John, respectively. At first I was expecting a 'Prince and the Pauper' storyline but I was happily surprised! After an evening of chatting and deciding that they have no familial ties, the poor man falls asleep. In the morning he wakes to discover that all of his belongings have been stolen and replaced with the things of the rich man and there is a butler at the door prepared to drive him "home". He is now thrust into the life of his rich counterpart. Naturally, at first he tries to explain what has happened but the entire household...

Hello again! Today I am going to talk about 'Warm Bodies'. I watched this movie in the theatre yesterday and was overjoyed at what I saw! As you may remember, I wrote about the trailer a little while ago. I'm glad to say that my good impressions of the trailer were more than accurate. I adored this movie! No joke! Yes, I have a paralyzing fear of zombies, but this movie has SO LITTLE zombie violence that I was able to forget about the fact that the main character was, in fact, dead. Just in case you don't know what the heck I am talking about, 'Warm Bodies' is a zombie comedy where a young male zombie feels some pity or sadness on a young girl while massacring her friends. He than rescues the girl from certain death. The unlikely pair come to understand each other and many adventures follow. The idea is that the zombie is regaining his human emotions and curing himself, and the cure is capable of spreading. All you need is love right? Wasn't he adorab...

Lately, I have been on an Al Pacino binge. I have watched through all the 'Godfather' movies, 'Serpico', and 'Author Author'. I'll admit that the fact that the latter two are on Netflix instant played a major role in my watching them. I am not about to say that I love all of Pacino's movies, I read through the list and there are several that look pretty bad. But of the five that I have seen, I've loved him. I am going to focus on 'Author! Author' for several reasons. First, I feel like blogging about how great 'The Godfather' is would be redundant. (For the record 'The Godfather' is in my top five). Second, I feel like 'Author! Author!' is unique because there are very few comic roles that were filled by Pacino. Lastly, 'Serpico' was my least favorite of the bunch. It was a good cop movie, very engaging and entertaining, just not something I feel like analyzing! So, without further lead up, let's get to bus...

All right, I have decided to express my affection for Jamie Bell. I have seen several of his movies but there are three that stand out in my memory.  Ever since I first encountered him years ago I have been highly interested in how his career turns out.  I've never been disappointed with any of his performances! He is always convincing, emotionally gripping, and funny in an understated way. I hope all the best for him in the future! Now to talk about movies. I am going to go through these chronologically, so first is 'Nicholas Nickleby'.  If you know your literature you probably recognize the title. 'Nicolas Nickleby' is based on the book by Charles Dickens. Naturally, that means the story is bleak, grey, and somehow uplifting. There is an awful lot of crying paired with an awful lot of laughing. This is one of my go-to girl movies. Not super girlie, I know! The movie follow Nicholas as he copes with his father's death and the new responsibility of caring...

The time has come to review 'Les Misérables'! This movie is expansive and beautiful. It's a true  epic. As we all know, this 2012 version is a musical. Everyone has a different opinion of musicals and their  tastes vary greatly on the subject. This musical is the kind where they sing  everything . No, I don't mean they burst into song every few moments after a snippet of dialogue. I mean nearly every, single, word is in song. I found this complete musical immersion very enjoyable! That, paired with the fact that the songs were sung live by the actors, (as opposed to in a studio and lip syncing) made every moment heart-wrenchingly emotional. Watching the characters fight back violent sobbing to sing the songs of woe makes the whole thing more real and relatable. While we're on the topic of the music, every song was amazing! I didn't dislike a single one, which is rare for me. Every actor, Russell Crowe included, beautifully sang their songs while...

I have found two trailers that intrigue me enough to write about them. I'm not sure whether they will be good but I'm just so curious about them! First we have 'Warm Bodies'. Let's watch the trailer first. So, before I get started, I want to say that I have a horrible fear of zombies. I have ever since I was a little kid. Over time I have tried to face my fear to cure myself with 'Shawn of the Dead' and 'Zombieland'. I thought that if I saw the funniest ones I might get braver. Honestly, I'm still freaked out about them, so the fact that I am considering this movie is a really big deal! Okay, back to business. My first though is, "Summit is making this? So they ran out of vampire and werewolf love stories so now we are trying zombies on for size?" Not the best impression though soon I am intrigued. The presence of John Malkovich is encouraging, but his movies aren't always gold. Admit it though, you're curious. I'm h...

Hello all! I have decided to let you know my three favorite French films. I don't really know why, but I watch a LOT of foreign movies. I could list all the countries but it would be a long, boring list. I have studied the French language for more than 4 years so I have a special soft spot for French language films. There are three that stand out in my memory and I want to recommend them to the world! First is "Le Papillion" (The Butterfly) I absolutely adore this movie! It is the story of a slightly grumpy man who, against his wishes, ends up trekking through the French countryside in search of a rare butterfly! Throughout the story you get so very attached to both the characters. Through the ups and downs of their adventure you see them grow attached to one another. Think Disney-Pixar's "Up". It's a similar dynamic. All in all it is a beautiful, heartfelt movie that I would recommend! Second is "Heartbreaker". "Heartbreake...