Movie Review: Hoot

Hoot (2006)
Starring: Logan Lerman and Brie Larson
Characters: Roy Eberhardt and Beatrice the Bear
Directed by: Wil Shriner
Tagline: It's time to stand up for the little guys.
Grade: A+

I LOVE this movie. It was one of my very, very favorite books. And it has Logan Lerman in it which is an epic win. (This was his pre-Percy Jackson days...AKA pre-cool days.) Roy has just moved to a new town (in Florida). While there, he meets new friends, Beatrice and her step-brother, Mullet Fingers and also, the bully. Mullet Fingers tells Roy about this pancake house that was going to build their building on top of owl's nests. And they decide to fight against it. Add in music from Jimmy Buffet (who plays a teacher, too) and...Logan Lerman, this movie is awesome. Watch it...now.

Just finished: Footloose
Watching now: Sixteen Candles
Excited to see: Letters to Juliet

Movie Review: Man of the House

Man of the House (2005)
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones and Cedric the Entertainer
Characters: Ranger Roland Sharp and Percy Stevens
Directed by: Stephen Herek
Tagline: Protecting witnesses is a challenge. Living with them is impossible.
Grade: A

I like Tommy Lee Jones. He's a really cool actor (U.S. Marshalls, anyone?). This is one of my favorite of his movies. It's really funny and the entire cast is awesome, especially the cheerleaders (Christina Milian as Anne, Paula Garces as Teresa, Monica Keena as Evie [my favorite], Vanessa Ferlito as Heather, and Kelli Garner as Barb). This movie is about Roland Sharp, who's partner is shot at the beginning of the movie. The man that shot her also shoots a key witness in a crime. But this crime has witnesses, too. And they just happen to be Texas Longhorn cheerleaders. So, Roland has to live in a house with all of the girls to protect them until they can testify in court. The dialouge between the cheerleaders (especially Barb) and Sharp is pretty funny and the end is really cool (the cheerleaders end up putting their skills to a good use). I would reccomend this movie to anyone looking for a funny movie, one where you don't have to think about a lot. Those kind of movies are awesome. :)
-MOT

Just finished: Hoot
Watching now: Footloose
Excited to see: Bandslam

Movie Review: Casino Royale

Casino Royale (2006)
Starring: Daniel Craig and Eva Green
Characters: James Bond and Vesper Lynd
Directed by: Martin Campbell
Tagline: Everyone has a past. Every legend has a beginning. Discover how James...became Bond.
Grade: A+

Most James Bond movies are pretty cool...I mean, he's James Bond. But this one surpasses them all by so much, it's not even funny. And Daniel Craig is the best Bond by a long, long shot. You only have to watch a couple of minutes to see that. Basically...Bond kicks butt...and girls fall in love with him. The end. :D
-MOT

Just finished: Quantum of Solace
Watching now: Man of the House
Excited to see: Letters to Juliet

Movie Review: I, Robot

I, Robot (2004)
Starring: Will Smith and Bridget Moynahan
Characters: Del Spooner and Susan Calvin
Directed by: Alex Proyas
Tagline: Laws are made to be broken.
Grade: A

This movie is pretty awesome. Face it, anything with Will Smith is. He's just awesome. Anyway, this movie is set in the future, I can't remember what year, and in the future everyone in the world has robots that do everything for them. (How they're not fat, I will never know.) Detective Spooner doesn't like robots at all, they creep him out and he's totally against them, which results in him getting kicked off the force. Before he is removed, though, his friend (a scientist named Dr. Alfred Lanning, who is in charge of designing the robots) commits suicide. He and Calvin find a robot hiding in his office. The only problem is that Dr. Lanning has programmed him so that he doesn't have to obey the three laws. (Law 1: A robot cannot harm a human or, through inaction, let a human come to harm. Law 2: A robot must obey orders from a human, unless it contradicts with the first law. Law 3: A robot must save himself, unless it contradicts with either of the first two laws.) So, he's super strong and can do anything. They can't figure out why Dr. Lanning would create a robot like this until they start investigating his death. Then, all of the ugly pieces come together to create one awesome fight scene....Will Smith against a bunch of undefeatable robots?! Heck yeah! Good movie?? Yes. Oscar worthy? No. Do not watch this movie expecting to feel great, but do expect to go on one heck of a ride.
-MOT

Just finished: Casino Royale
Watching now: Quantum of Solace
Excited to see: Remember Me

Movie Review: Terminator Salvation

Terminator Salvation (2009)
Starring: Christian Bale and Sam Worthington
Characters: John Connor and Marcus Wright
Directed by: McG
Tagline: The end begins
Grade: A++

As anyone that knows me...knows...I love Terminator. Everything rocks...well except the third one. This movie completely makes up for the third one. It's awesome! The only one to take place in the future, the entire movie is a non stop trill ride. Starting with the awesome scene with John Connor all the way to the end, it's some of the best movie stuff...period. Another bright spot of the movie is Anton Yelchin as the young Kyle Reese. He's AMAZING! And so cute. He was perfect for the character and several times, he looked just like Michael Biehn as the original. And the Arnold cameo was awesome, of course. You couldn't have Terminator without him. Very surprising, very cool, and very...Terminator-y. :)
-MOT

Just finished: i, Robot
Watching now: Casino Royale
Excited to see: The Bounty Hunter

Movie Review: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Nick Stahl
Characters: Terminator and John Connor
Directed by: Jonathan Mostow
Tagline: The machines will rise
Grade: C-

Wow....first of all, what an original tagline. :/ The movie isn't much better. The story is weak, the dialogue is corny...it doesn't even look like the same series as the previous two. James Cameron said to stop and did they stop? NO! Stupid movie...and it's sad when this stupid terminator (who is a woman) is the bad guy. This confirmed people's belief in the fact that a woman couldn't be a terminator...until Cameron came along. Now, she's awesome. She's scarier than the original terminator. :) Anyway, the movie is about John Connor...being chased...by a terminator...being protected by a terminator...wait...haven't I heard this plot before??? Oh ya...the LAST MOVIE! Ugh...hasn't been a good night. I miss Alex Lambert. :'(
-MOT [also Alex Lambert lover. :(((]

Just finished: Terminator Salvation
Watching now: i, Robot
Excited to see: Eclipse, ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Movie Review: Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Starring: Linda Hamilton and Eddie Furlong
Characters: Sarah Connor and John Connor
Directed by: James Cameron
Tagline: It's nothing personal
Grade: A++

Another great one from Cameron. He rocks...it's established. T2 is no different. This time, it's John Connor who is targeted. He's 10 this time. His mother has been arrested and put in a mental institution, so he's all by himself. (Well, he has foster parents, but they're taken care of pretty early in the movie.) There is quite a bit of gore (it is Terminator, after all...and rated R) but if you're not too bothered by that, it's an amazing movie. It's one of the few that's as good as the first one. This is the last movie James Cameron was involved in...he wanted the movies to stop here, because they stop Judgment Day (the day where Skynet bombs the world and the Terminators take over the world) and you can tell it's the last one he made. You'd see why if you watched the third one. Anyway, if you loved the first one, you will love the second one just as much. And if you get the Special Edition, they include a scene that wasn't in the original version of the movie, and the scene involves Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) in a dream sequence. Overall...great, great movie. :)
-MOT

Just finished: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Watching now: Terminator Salvation
Excited to see: The Last Song

Movie Review: The Terminator

The Terminator (1984)
Starring: Michael Biehn and Linda Hamilton
Characters: Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor
Directed by: James Cameron
Tagline: Your future is in his hands
Grade: A++

This is one of my very, very favorite movies. I LOVE this movie. It's one action packed movie. Stuff blows up, people shoot other people, and the plot is so confusing that it literally blows your mind. (And The Terminator has to be one of the coolest movie characters of all time, besides John Connor and the amazing Kyle Reese). This movie is about a waitress named Sarah Connor, who's son, John Connor, will one day become the leader of the human resistance against the machines. (She doesn't know this when the movie starts, of course.) A Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) comes back to the year 1986 to eliminate Sarah...Kyle Reese, a soldier from 2029, comes back to protect her. She doesn't believe this when he tells her, of course. Neither do the police when they eventually capture them. They think he's crazy. So, when the Terminator comes to...well...terminate Sarah, Kyle is able to get away and grab Sarah in the process. They get away to a hotel, where they build bombs. Then, they...well, let's just say Kyle ends up being John's father...which is one of the confusing parts. When John meets Kyle in the future, Kyle is a teenager and John is an adult. Then they have an epic battle at the end and the movie ends with an alone Sarah Connor driving off into the distance, which is one of the coolest scenes of all time. The gas station guy says, "There's a storm coming," ..he's talking about the weather. Sarah answers back, "I know."...meaning Judgment Day. Then she drives off into the distance, with the storm (both real and metaphorical) brewing in the distance. My review of it does it no justice, so people really have to watch it for themselves. All I can do is reccomend it...very, very strongly.
-MOT

Just finished: Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Watching now: Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Excited to see: Dear John

Movie Review: Ferris Bueller's Day Off

Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
Starring: Matthew Broderick and Alan Ruck
Chracters: Ferris Bueller and Cameron Frye
Directed by: John Hughes
Tagline: While the rest of us were just thinking about it...Ferris borrowed a Ferrari and did it...all in a day.
Grade: A+

I love 80's movies...they're all awesome, but the best of the best are John Hughes films. He was one of the best directors of teen movies. It was like he truly understood what hard things went on in teen lives. He didn't just portray them as stupid, flighty girls or cocky guys...he actually gave them personalities...awesome ones at that. Between The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles, and this movie, there are some of the best characters in any movie...ever. And they're all teenagers...which is a major score for us. This great movie is about a teen called Ferris, who is an expert at ditching school. It's a perfect day outside, so he decides to ditch another day of school (this makes his ninth "sick"day). So, he decides to make this one count. He calls his friend Cameron, who's always sick, and they get Ferris' girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) out of school. Then they go on a spree across the city in Cameron's dad's Ferrari. They even get in a parade. Ferris is the coolest, most smooth talking person ever. And John Hughes did a really cool thing where he had Ferris talk to the camera, as if telling advice to the people watching. Overall, a really fun, really cool 80's teen movie from the master himself.
-MOT

Just finished: The Terminator
Watching now: Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Excited to see: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Movie Review: A Far Off Place

A Far Off Place (1993)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon and Ethan Embry
Characters: Nonnie Parker and Harry Winslow
Directed by: Mikael Saloman
Tagline: A far off land, a far off journey, a far off adventure
Grade: A++

I've loved this movie for a long time. It's just a great feel good movie. One of Reese's first movies. She's a great actress and Ethan Embry is great as Harry, the spoiled boy. The only other movie that he was in after this that anyone even heard of was That Thing You Do!, where he played TB Player (The Bass Player). At least he got a name this time. This movie is about Nonnie, who's parents are Americans, but she's been raised in Africa. Her dad works to get rid of poachers and, because of the work he does, he, his wife, and his wife's friend (Harry's dad, the two were visiting the Parkers). Nonnie, her dog Kensa, and Harry are helping Nonnie's bushman friend Xhabbo when all of this happens, so nothing happens to them but Nonnie goes back to the house and sees the evidence of what happened. So, they decide to cross the Kalahari ("The wind can do it, we can do it.") with the bad guys in pursuit. Then they find out that the bad guy isn't at all who they expected. Another great family friendly movie with lots of heart and even some star power. I would reccomend this to anyone who loves great heart warming movies.
-MOT

Just finished: Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Watching now: The Terminator
Excited to see: Tomorrow, When the War Began

Movie Review: Operation: Stormbreaker

Operation: Stormbreaker (2006)
Starring: Alex Pettyfer and Alicia Silverstone
Characters: Alex Rider and Jack Starbright
Directed by: Geoffrey Sax
Tagline: You're never too young to die
Grade: A

This movie is awesome. I've loved the books for a long, long time. (And yes, the books are better than the movie...but what books aren't?) Alex Pettyfer is just about the perfect Alex and Alicia Silverstone is a great Jack Starbright. And, the movie has Damien Lewis in it...with a Russian accent?!?!?! Epic win! So, the movie is about Alex Rider. After his uncle (who he thought was a banker, but is really a spy for MI6) dies, MI6 contacts Alex and threatens to have Jack's visa revoked. He goes on a mission to Cornwall to investigate an odd deal made by Darrius Sayle, a computer tycoon who has given a free Stormbreaker computer to every school in England. The Stormbreaker is an amazing new computer. But what the entire country doesn't know is that Sayle is actually trying to take revenge against his high school enemy, the Prime Minister, by releasing a form of the smallpox vaccine from the computers. Alex rushes out of the plant in Cornwall, with the help of some trusty gadgets, and saves the day...and gets the girl, speaking of which, Sabina doesn't come into the books until the third book...I wish they wouldn't have changed that, cause they changed her entire character. If they were to make another movie, I would be very surprised if they do, they'd have to completely change Sabina's character so everything makes sense...I guess I just don't understand why they have to change the books so much.
-MOT

Just finished: A Far Off Place
Watching now: Ferris Buller's Day Off
Excited to see: Eclipse :)

Movie Review: Unaccompanied Minors

Unaccompanied Minors (2006)
Starring: Dyllan Christopher and Gia Mantegna
Characters: Spencer Davenport and Grace Conrad
Directed by: Paul Feig
Tagline: Silent night...yeah, right.
Grade: A-

I like family movies...that should be fairly obvious by now. And this one is no different. While some of the lines are a little bad and some of the acting is sorry, it's overall a pretty good movie. It's about a group of kids traveling on planes without their parents (or unaccompanied minors) that get stuck at Hoover International Airport. The group, which consists of Spencer, Grace, Charlie Goldfinch, Beef Wellington, and Donna Malone, is chased by the airport's passenger relations officer, Oliver Porter. After they escape from the UM room, they are caught by Zach Van Bourke, Porter, and the guards. While the rest of the kids get to spend a relaxing night in the lodge, they have to stay in the abandoned room. They escape from the room, and continue to elude Porter...having a chase through the luggage sorting room is one of my favorite scenes. So, overall a good, heartwarming family movie. I would probably reccomend it to other people, esp as a family Christmas movie.
-MOT

Just finished: Operation: Stormbreaker
Watching now: A Far Off Place
Excited to see: Letters to Juliet

Movie Review: Just Friends

Just Friends (2005)
Starring: Ryan Reynolds and Amy Smart
Characters: Chris Brander and Jamie Palamino
Directed by: Roger Kumble
Tagline: Moments like this have been ruining friendships for centuries
Grade: A

I watched this movie for the first time last night. I really liked it. It's funny, it's cute, and it makes you feel good (well, most of it anyway.) And Ryan Reynolds is one of the funniest and cutest fat people I have ever seen. He actually could pass as a fat person. Even the way he talks and how he moves his eyes cracks me up. The movie is about Chris, who was fat in high school and was in love with his best friend, the beautiful and popular Jamie. At a graduation party, his love for her is ousted when one of the jocks reads what he wrote in her yearbook aloud. He leaves and doesn't talk to them again for a long time. We then see him years in the future and he's thin and good looking, able to get any girl he wants. He gets stuck in his old hometown and goes back to see Jamie, with his current "girlfriend" Samantha James (Anna Faris) tagging along. While the movie has an unnecessary amount of dirty stuff (and really, really gross licking...ew) it's really good. And, of course, Ryan Reynolds makes it 100% better.
-MOT

Alias...White Collar....and Matthew Bomer :)

The show Alias rocks...I love to watch it. Sydney Bristow has to be like the coolest person ever. She can kick any guys butt...no matter how much bigger he is. And Will Tippin is amazing. So is Michael Vaughn...why does she get two guys that awesome and I get none?!?! It's not fair...

I also love the show White Collar. But, Matthew Bomer is in it, so no wonder I love it. He has got to be the hottest guy ever. And he's a great actor...loved him in Traveler...loved him in Chuck...now really, really love him in White Collar. Yeah...it's awesome.

Just finished: Unaccompanied Minors
Watching now: Operation: Stormbreaker
Excited to see: Valentine's Day :D

Movie Review: Unknown

Unknown (2006)
Starring: James Caviezel and Greg Kinnear
Characters: Jean Jacket and Broken Nose
Directed by: Simon Brand
Tagline: Trust no one. Fear everyone.
Grade: A+

This movie is awesome! It's been one of my favorites for a while. The language is pretty bad, but overall the movie is worth watching. One of the other stars is Barry Pepper, who is one of my favortie actors...which, obviously, makes this movie a win for that reason, too. :) Unknown is about five guys (Caviezel, Kinnear, Joe Pantoliano, Barry Pepper, and Jeremy Sisto) who wake up in some kind of warehouse having been knocked out by a mysterious chemical that also causes memory loss. They soon find an article in the newspaper that says a very wealthy buisness man and his financial advisor have been kidnapped. They realize that two of them are the victims and the other three are kidnappers. Even though they know this, they work together to take down the bad guys (with the exception of Jeremy Sisto...watch the movie to understand). This movie, even though they cuss like sailors, is well worth watching...as most independent movies these days are.
-MOT

Movie Review: Drillbit Taylor

Drillbit Taylor (2008)
Starring: Owen Wilson and Nate Hartley
Characters: Drillbit Taylor and Wade
Directed by: Steven Brill
Tagline: You get what you pay for.
Grade: A-

This movie is actually pretty enjoyable...yeah, not the best plot wise, but there are several parts that make me laugh really hard. Owen Wilson is one of the funniest actors I've ever seen and this is probably one of my favorite of his roles. And Josh Peck is in it, which makes it even better, cause I've loved him since Drake and Josh, which I've seen every (and I mean EVERY) episode of. I thought his role in this movie, the bully that torments the skinny, fat, and nerdy kids, was probably a good acting experience for him...because he's played the person on the other end of the bullying so many times. Anyway, the movie is about a homeless "veteran" who is hired by some kids that are bullied all the time to be their bodyguard. (One of my favorite scenes is when they're talking to all of the possible bodyguards. Not only is a guy from Psych one of the candidates, but Adam Baldwin (who plays John Casey in one of my very favorite shows, Chuck) is one, too.) They decide to hire Drillbit and he "trains" them in how to defend themselves. ("I'm going to teach you Judo...as in Ju-don't-know-who-you're-messing-with.") Then they "take down" the bullies in the most amazing and funny fight scene I think I've seen in a movie. All in all, a pretty good movie...I wouldn't exactly call it "family", but it's pretty close.
-MOT

Annoyance

So, I've realized fairly recently that I get annoyed easily...that's probably very noticable by the people that know me. lol Hopefully someday I will meet someone that has the personality of Michael Vaughn and looks like Ryan Reynolds...or he can look like Michael Vaughn and have the personality of Ryan Reynolds...I don't really care. As long as he isn't anything like my ex, I'll be good. Anyway, today was a snow day, which was awesome. You don't get many of those as a homeschooler, but sometimes, people are just lucky, I guess. We have first rehearsal on Tuesday, which should be fun. So, yeah looking forward to that and my younger sister's friend's (sorry for the confusion) birthday party on Sunday. Fun week! haha...ya.

Just finished: Unknown and Just Friends
Watching now: Unaccompanied Minors
Excited to see: Takers

Plays

So, I'm in a lot of plays...I love being on the stage...as long as I have lines and I'm not having to do a speech or something. So we're doing a musical this time...Hello Dolly...woohoo...not. It kind of seems boring to me...we walk around in long dresses...singing old songs. Blah. I was in Bye Bye Birdie and it was the most fun I've had in a long, long time. The 50's were a fun time...the 80's were a fun time...1842 was not. So, yeah, not totally excited about this play. But I do get to hang out with two of my best friends (and the boy I have a slight, slight crush on...shhh) because we're all going to be in the ensemble. So I guess something good did come out of it. yay! :)
-MOT

Just finished: Drillbit Taylor
Watching Now: Unknown
Excited to see: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (Logan Lerman? duh. :D )

Movie Review: Catch Me If You Can

Catch Me If You Can (2002)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks
Characters: Frank Abagnale Jr. and Carl Hanratty
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Tagline: The true story of a real fake
Grade: A+

I love movies starring Leonardo DiCaprio. (As if someone couldn't tell.) He's a great actor and he's gorgeous (not everything, but it always helps). So, of course I loved this movie. And also, Amy Adams was in it and, like I said, I'm one of her biggest fans. Tom Hanks is pretty cool, too. (Anyone associated with Band of Brothers and/or Damien Lewis is automatically cool in my book.) The movie is the true story of Frank Abagnale Jr., who, after his parents get divorced, becomes a con man. He becomes one of the best and most famous con men of all time, impersonating a PanAm pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer...he even passed the bar exam after studying for only two weeks. Carl Hanratty is the FBI agent that chases after him for years. I really like this movie because, not only is the acting good and the story well written (even if it was a true story, someone still has to write it, right?), but it's also really fun. If you want a modern retelling (kind of), check out USA Network's White Collar. (which also stars Matthew Bomer...making it an automatic win...look at that, bringing up Damien Lewis and Matthew Bomer in the same post...that's a win too.)
-MOT

Hard work...and other stuff

I had a pretty good day today...I cleaned house, which is my job. I get paid pretty well. I just hate vaccuming. It sucks...like, bad. I also did school...til five...with a practice ACT in the middle of it...ya...hard work. And I have this slight crush on this guy...and yeah, he's cute. That's all. :)
-MOT

Just finished: Catch Me If You Can
Watching now: Drillbit Taylor
Excited to see: Green Zone

Movie Review: Big Fat Liar

Big Fat Liar (2002)
Starring: Frankie Muniz and Paul Giamatti
Characters: Jason Shepherd and Marty Wolf
Directed by: Shawn Levy
Tagline: The truth is never overrated.
Grade: A-

This is another one of those movies that people might not want to watch just because of the genre. Most people consider movies that don't have cussing or bloody violence to be bad. A lot of my favorite movies have violence and cussing (Stand by Me, anyone?) but a lot of great movies are family movies, like this one. The movie is about Jason, who lies all the time...about everything. One day, after sneaking in the window to the classroom with the help of his best friend, Kaylee (Amanda Bynes, who, as always, rocks and steals the scenes she's in), he realizes he hasn't written his paper that was due that day. So he makes up a whole story about how he was in the ER all night with his dad, who had choked on a meatball...which is soon proved to be false when his parents show up at school...his dad meatball free. His teacher gives him until 5:00 that night to write his paper...which he very fittingly titles Big Fat Liar. On his way to turn in his paper, he runs into Mr. Marty Wolf...a ruthless movie producer. After Jason accidentally leaves his story in the limo, Wolf sees it and decides to claim it as his own. Hilarity ensues, with Jason and Kaylee to sneak off to Hollywood and all of Wolf's enemies ganging up on him to force him to confess that he stole the story. All in all, a solid movie from the time when Frankie Muniz was in every movie that came out...like Agent Cody Banks (I also liked that one...but, like I said, I like pretty much every movie.) The clear "winner" of this movie is Amanda Bynes, who wins in all her movies. (See the amazing, AMAZING She's the Man.)
-MOT

More college stuff

So, I went to a meeting for John Brown University tonight and they told us some info. I had a lot of fun...and of course, my stupid ex-boyfriend showed up. Apparently he's decided he has to go there...I know he won't though cause he doesn't like working...or doing school...or doing anything besides watching youtube videos. So, I guess I'll just have to pray that something will happen so he won't go. Ugh....boys suck.

Just finished: Big Fat Liar
Watching now: Catch Me If You Can
Excited to see: Valentine's Day

Movie Review: Because of Winn-Dixie

Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)
Starring: AnnaSophia Robb and Jeff Daniels
Characters: Opal and Preacher
Directed by: Wayne Wang
Tagline: Discover what happens when you go looking for a miracle and a miracle comes looking for you.
Grade: A+

I know a lot of people are biased towards this kind of movie because it's a "kids movie" or maybe because it's too "sentimental". Well, this movie is both, but it's not overly so. There's no profanity in it, it's PG after all, so parents can feel safe letting their kids watch it. The movie is about a girl named Opal, who has just moved to the small Southern town of Naomi, and her father, the Preacher. He's never given a name, nor is Opal given a last name. She doesn't have any friends and misses her old friends until she finds a dog in the supermarket, which she claims is hers and names him Winn-Dixie, after the store she was in. And throughout the movie, because of Winn-Dixie, she makes several friendships with people of several different ages. I loved the book, and the movie stuck pretty close to the book, if I remember right, so of course I loved it. This was the first movie I saw AnnaSophia Robb in and have loved her ever since. She is especially cute in this movie...even her voice is adorable. I loved everything about this movie, from the actors (look out for AnnaSophia, Courtney Jines as Amanda Wilkinson, and Elle Fanning as Sweetie Pie Thomas) to the adorable dog playing Winn-Dixie. Overall, a great family movie with lots of heart.
-MOT

Epiphany

So, I had an epiphany today in church...which I don't think people have very often. It was an interesting experience. I suddenly realized that I'm going to go to college, I'm going to meet someone that's 10 million times better than my ex-boyfriend, and I'm going to get a good job. My ex-boyfriend, however, probably won't go to college, and if he does, he won't stay long. He'll probably end up working at Chick-Fil-A for the rest of his life. It was then that I realized that he's not worth my time...so, I've decided that I'm not going to be stressed by him or anything he does anymore. And I feel much better. :)
-MOT

Just finished: Because of Winn-Dixie
Watching now: Big Fat Liar
Excited to see: Frozen

Movie Review: Titanic

Titanic (1997)
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
Characters: Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater
Directed by: James Cameron
Tagline: Collide with destiny
Grade: A++

Anyone that knows me knows that I love this movie. I've loved it for a long time and I've probably watched it 30 times. It's one of my very favorite movies and everyone who has seen it knows why. It's an amazing movie (and I'm also obsessed with everything Titanic, so that helps a little). But the story, as well as the beautiful graphics of the ship that look so real, is amazing. The movie is about a rich girl (Rose), who is on the ship with her mother and her evil fiance, and a poor boy (Jack), who is only on the ship because he won two tickets in a lucky hand of poker. They meet on the stern of the ship when she tries to commit suicide and he stops her. Over the next two days, they fall in love, even though she keeps warning him that it probably won't work. But, of course, their love is doomed, as is the ship. When the ship sinks, they try to get to the lifeboats but most of the people in the water can't. As much as I don't like a sad ending, this was probably the only "realistic" ending. Anyway, the movies is great...although it probably isn't for everyone, I love every kind of movie, and I always give movies a chance. So, if people do that for this movie, instead of just ignoring it because it was the biggest grossing movie of all time, I think most of them would actually like it...plus it has Leonardo DiCaprio....I'll take him over some blue guy anyday.
-MOT

Friends

So, I pretty much have the best friends in the world. I know everyone says that, but it's actually true. Now that one of my best friends is working, it's pretty hard to get together. So, between my pretty hectic school schedule, her working schedule, and my other friend's rock climbing schedule, it sucks. But when we hang out, we have so much fun. We make videos of us goofing off and we make parodies of movies and shows. Anyway, that's what I wanted to talk about today. Kind of boring, but I'm in a boring mood....the only thing that takes the boredom away is watching my favorite show about other friends, which is correctly titled Friends. Chandler Bing = the funniest (and my favorite) character ever. Phoebe Buffay = crazy and awesome. Joey Tribbiani = the epitome of cool. Rachel Green = what character had more stylish clothes or better hairstyles? Ross Geller = kind of whiny but I loved his relationship with Rachel. Monica Geller = the character I relate to more than any other character...ever. Anyway, that show rocks. :)
-MOT

Just finished: Save the Last Dance and Titanic
Watching now: Because of Winn-Dixie
Excited to see: The Last Song (Nicolas Sparks is amazing)

Movie Review: Save the Last Dance

Save the Last Dance (2001)
Starring: Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas
Characters: Sara and Derek
Directed by: Thomas Carter
Tagline: The only person you need to be is yourself
Grade: B+

I love dance movies. I love dancing, so obviously I would love movies in which the characters dance. This was a pretty good dance movie, not one of the best, but still pretty good. I might be biased because my favorite dance movie is Step Up and Step Up 2 The Streets, which are both amazing. But this one was still pretty awesome. The movie is about a ballerina (Sara) who has to move in with her father, who lives in a pretty rough neighborhood, after her mother dies. There, she meets Derek, who is a very smart guy that wants to be a doctor. Sara decides that she wants to learn how to dance in a club, instead of just ballet. As he teaches her to dance, they start liking each other, which starts a lot of talk. One of the things I didn't like so much about this movie was all of the racial stuff, which I thought took away from the main point of the movie. Another thing I didn't like so much was the lack of dancing. There are a couple scenes, which are very short, where Derek is teaching her how to dance and a couple of club scenes. Other than those and the very long scene at the end, when Sara auditions for Julliard, there's not a whole lot of dancing. So, overall, a pretty good movie...it's a movie that involves dancing, I just wouldn't exactly call it a "dance" movie.
-MOT

College problems

Okay...so, there's a college I want to go to, it's called JBU. It's an awesome school and I've wanted to go there for a couple years. But then, all of a sudden, my ex-boyfriend, who has major problems, wants to go there. Today he got "accepted", which I have doubts about because he's dumb as dirt....he's as dumb as the dumbest kind of dirt. I personally think he's lying. And I also think he forged one of his letters...but no one believes anything I say, cause I'm a kid. So, yeah. Life sucks, then you die. -Jacob Black...that's excessively true right now.

Just finished: The Thing Called Love
Watching now: Save the Last Dance
Excited to see: Dear John :)

Movie Review: The Thing Called Love

The Thing Called Love (1993)
Starring: River Phoenix and Samantha Mathis
Characters: James Wright and Miranda Presley
Directed by: Peter Bogdanovich
Tagline: Stand by your dream
Grade: B

This movie was pretty good. It wasn't the best one movie I've seen, but it had River Phoenix in it, so I was willing to give it a lot of leeway. He's one of the best actors ever, and one of my very favorites, so that's why I watched it. And he was great. The movie about a girl from New York (Miranda) that moves to Nashville to pursue her dream of being a country music singer. Once she gets there she meets a "cowboy" from Connecticut (Dermot Mulroney), a Southern belle with an unfortunate name (Sandra Bullock, ah! lol), and a Texan boy that's actually doing pretty well in the song writing business (James). River was amazing (as usual), Samantha Mathis was ok, but kind of annoying, Sandra Bullock was awesome and funny, as always, and I've liked Dermot Mulroney since Young Guns. I also liked the ending, where she ended up with the guy she was meant to be with instead of making some stupid ending. I don't like stupid endings. So overall, I guess it was a pretty good movie, but I wouldn't reccomend it over other movies. But River Phoenix fans would probably enjoy it. But it also makes me sad that this was his last role in a movie and the role wasn't spectacular like his role in Running on Empty or, my favorite movie of all time, Stand by Me.
-MOT

Dating...and other stuff

So, as I said in the last post, I recently dated I guy that I know now I shouldn't have. Because of that, I have decided not to date guys until college. Hopefully, they will at least be more mature than most my age are. (Although, they still won't be mature...I guess that's too much to ask.) Anyway, nothing happened today except my math tutor, Roy, came over today. Which translates into a pretty boring day, I guess. I listened to Sterling Knight's new song Starstruck, from his movie of the same name. It should be pretty good, Disney Channel movies have been getting better lately, but even if it isn't I'll probably still like it...cause Sterling Knight is pretty cool. Anyways, as I was watching a movie called The Thing Called Love I was reminded of a song that I knew of but didn't like until my personal favorite Idol besides Carrie Underwood, otherwise known as Allison Iraheta, sang it on American Idol. It's called "Blame it on Your Heart", which of course everyone knows of. Anyway, the beginning of the song goes:

"You've got a thing or two to learn about me baby
Cause I ain't taking it no more and I don't mean maybe
You don't know right from wrong and the love we had is gone
So blame it on your lyin cheatin cold dead beatin two timin double dealin mean mistreating loving heart.

Well all I wanted was to be your one and only
And all I ever got from you was bein lonely
That dream has laid to rest
Cause you have failed the test
Hey blame it on your lyin cheatin cold dead beatin two timin double dealin mean mistreating loving heart."

That's what I love about country songs so much: they dig into guys. lol but it's true. And a lot of times that's what guys need, cause they're only going to do it to the next girl they meet. And I'm the kind of girl that wants to help the next girl, because I know how hard it's going to be for her when she realizes he really isn't the boy of her dreams. But it always helps to know which breakup song to listen to. I believe Taylor Swift has all the answers. :) If you're mad, you can go for "Picture to Burn". Or, if you're in a softer mood, "White Horse" or "You're Not Sorry". If there's a boy that's cheated on you, you can listen to "Should've Said No" and if there's a boy that promised to always love you, but changed his mind, "Forever & Always". She even has you covered if you want to listen to a song about loving a great guy ("Hey Stephen"), Romeo and Juliet ("Love Story"), loving the guy that doesn't love you back ("You Belong With Me"...and the video has Lucas Till...you can't lose!), a guy that you adore ("Jump Then Fall"), or a song about being so in love with a guy, that it makes you brave and want to "dance in a storm in my best dress fearless" ("Fearless"), which is a personal favorite of mine. Funny enough, even though I've had all this trouble with this stupid, stupid boy my favorite Taylor Swift song is Love Story...I guess I'm just a hopeless romantic at heart...now I just need to find my Romeo....Romeo Romeo where for art thou Romeo?? Romeo?!?!?!...stupid boys. :)
-MOT

Just finished: The Thing Called Love
Watching now: Save the Last Dance
Excited to see: Knight & Day

Movie Review: Never Been Kissed

Never Been Kissed (1999)
Starring: Drew Barrymore and Michael Vartan
Characters: Josie Geller and Sam Coulson
Directed by: Raja Gosnell
Tagline: A comedy with class
Grade: A++

As you can probably see, I LOVE this movie. Movies like this make me happy. I think everyone can relate to Josie in some way or another. And Mr. Coulson has to be the hottest teacher, like, ever. Of course, I might be biased because I love Michael Vaughn....I'm obsessed with Alias, but who isn't? Anyway, the basic idea of the story is that a shy copy editor for the Chicago Sun-Times who was very unpopular in high school (Josie) goes back to high school as an undercover reporter. When she gets there, she's still unpopular. So, after a while of being snubbed by the popular kids, her brother, who was popular in school, decides to step in. He tells her that all she needs is for one kid (the right kind of kid) to think she's cool and everyone else will be too scared to disagree. So, he goes back to high school with her and everyone thinks she's cool. While she starts hanging out with the popular kids she starts liking the popular guy in school, Guy Perkins, because he reminds her of the boy she liked in high school, Billy Prince. But the guy she's supposed to be with is the Shakspeare teacher, Sam Coulson. He's not allowed to like her, though, because she's his student. In the end, she writes a fantastic article about having never been kissed in that special way, she's never found that person that, when you kiss them, you realize you never want to be with anyone else. At the end, of course, she finds that guy and the film ends by showing pictures of the cast and crew in high school as the credits roll.
This movie is one of my movies I watch when I'm sad or not feeling good. It makes me laugh, feel good, and extremely happy, which is everything you need when you're feeling down. So, yes, I would recommed this movie to anyone who has a taste for good 90's movies...or movies in general.
-MOT (I've also decided that I'm not going to add my tag about movies onto the posts with reviews unless something has changed since the last post.)

So...

Let's see...I said I'm going to write about feelings. So, here's how I'm feeling. It's pretty normal for a 17 year old girl, I guess.
There's a guy that I went out with....I liked him a lot when we were going out...not so much anymore. Sometimes, I want to stab him with something sharp...not kill him...just hurt him very badly. Maybe put him in the hospital for a while. And I swear, I'm not violent. That's just how stupid and aggravating he is. And my problems with him isn't that he's too goofy (which he is) or that he's around all the time (which is also true). It's that he hangs out with my friends. They wouldn't even know him if it weren't for me and now he considers them his friends and thinks they'll be loyal to him. They're still nice to him...part of me is happy for that because I don't want people to think I'm bitter, but the other part of me wants them to hate him and be mean to him. I don't know why. I don't like it when people are mean to other people...but I wouldn't mind every once and a while someone slapping him or something....like, maybe me slapping him. haha Anyway, that's all I kind of feel like talking about. If I post anymore, I might get mad...or even madder. Wait...is that a word?

Just finished: Never Been Kissed
Watching now: The Thing Called Love
Excited to see: When in Rome

Movie Review: Say Anything...

Ok...so I've decided to review a movie.
A) Because I like writing
B) Because I'm bored
C) Because the title of this blog is, after all, Musings of a Movie Obsessed Teenager
D) Because I love talking about movies
So, here goes...

Say Anything... (1989)
Starring: John Cusack and Ione Sky
Characters: Lloyd Dobler and Diane Court
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
Tagline: To know Lloyd Dobler is to love him. Diane Court is about to know Lloyd Dobler.
Grade: A

I think it's fitting that the first movie review I write is about an 80's movie. There is no way to measure the love I have for 80's movies. Most of my favorite movies are made up of them. But I love this one in particular. It actually didn't interest me at first. But I watched it because I had gone to a lot of trouble to record it and I didn't have any other movies to watch. Now, I'm so glad I did. Because now, I love, love, love Say Anything...
The movie is basically about an unpopular guy (Lloyd), who also happens to be a wonderful guy, is in love with the beautiful and smart girl (Diane). It's pretty predictable, right? Wrong. Not only does she end up loving him back, but there's even a sort of "mystery" involved. **Spoiler** Diane's father is being investigated by the IRS. At first, you just think it's an unnecessary diversion from the main point of the movie. But it soon becomes what brings Lloyd and Diane back together. In the end, she (kind of) reconciles with her father and heads off to England, with Lloyd there to support her. Which, I think is a good ending.
Not only does this movie have a great ending (Woo! for happy endings), it also has several unexpected turns...*insert ghostly sound and cackle* Not that kind of unexpected turn, but still.
-MOT

Just finished: Say Anything... (still)
Watching now: Never Been Kissed (still)
Excited to see: Dear John

Contrary to popular belief...

I know that no one will ever read this. I'm not one of those bloggers that gets on here to become famous or to spout off their beliefs about everything. I have no desire to become like the woman from Julie and Julia (although that was a great movie...I might be a little biased, though. You're looking at Amy Adams' biggest fan.) But anyway, that's not what I'm trying to do. The only reason I started blogging is to get my feelings and the thoughts I have out. It helps me to write things, so here I am. Writing to make myself feel better. Hopefully, it will work. But I don't know how this will turn out or if I'll ever even do this again. So, let's see how this goes...

Just finished: Say Anything...
Watching Now: Never Been Kissed
Excited to See: Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief