Still Reeling

I understand from a reliable source that certain people don't know what to think about particular movies until I review them, so... *Ahem*

...

... if you were expecting some catchy title or big razzle-dazzle moment right there, I apologize. Drew a total blank - I got nothin'. Just, you know, gonna start talking about movies. In no particular order.

Inception: Yep. Go see it. You are smart enough, you are cool enough, and darn it - people like you. Also, they like the movie, and with good reason. Just go. And when you go a second time, call me - I need to see it again, too.

Salt: In my opinion, don't bother. It's every other spy movie you've seen and thought was cool/dark/stylish, only it's not any fun. Yay Angelina Jolie for being a female action star, but... could you pick up some Bond-like repartee, or Bourne-style sheepishness, or ANYTHING to make us actually care about your character? Thanks. Just sayin'. I'd rather watch Knight and Day.

Knight and Day: It's so sad when actors' personal lives invade their professional personas to the point that audiences stay away from their films. (1 - I, ironically, blame the media. 2 - That first sentence had some awesome alliteration. Zing!) Tom Cruise may have hijacked the Crazy Train and gotten himself elected mayor of CrazyTown, but this movie is what we all used to love about Tom Cruise. It's wry, tongue-in-cheek, deadpan-with-a-twinkle, and has chemistry and over-the-top (but not TOO over-the-top) action. Even Cameron Diaz works in this movie. I KNOW, right? I saw it twice in the theater (matinees, but still) and I wouldn't mind seeing it again. It's violent but not gory, comparatively clean and still funny, and has a couple of niiiiice kisses and no sex. I'll go for the DVD, and I'll buy it still shaking my head that the film didn't do better on screen.

(And now I'm DYING to get a couple more "p"-words into that initial sentence. Presuppose? Persistent? Preclude? Postulate? Argggh!)

Nanny McPhee Returns: Ah, Emma Thompson. How I love and respect you! How I admire and revere your work and talent! And how befuddled I am by what you may or may not have been trying to accomplish with your latest opus to warts, oversized teeth, and the sparkly, pound-y magic of stern, riddilistic (I totally just made that up!), standoffish loving care! Nanny McPhee (the 1st) is a jewel, truly. It's odd, quirky, and completely beautiful. NMcP Returns ("Small 'c', large 'P'" - Say what? Is that the new "I did knock"?) is odd, quirky, and has moments of beauty scattered throughout a highly uneven and unstable "plot". Maggie Gyllenhall is completely charming and adorable. Rhys Ifans is not. The children are thoroughly engaging and delightful. The "henchladies" are not. The CGI works, against your better judgement - it's not quite real, it's not quite magical, it's just a little "off", but you'll smile anyway. Weird. Two bonus features: Ewan McGregor's cameo is absolutely swoon-worthy (Ewan! Where have you BEEN!?!), and in no other movie this year will your kids learn how to dismantle a WWII-era UXB (UneXploded Bomb). So, there is that.

And, in conclusion, a DVD review:

Date Night: I would happily watch Tina Fey and Steve Carrell rifff off of each other while reading the phone book (I was going to say "something dire like 'Canterbury Tales'" but then I imagined Carrell and Fey mucking with Chaucer and went a'quiver with delight) because, seriously, they make the perfect couple. The underlying thread of the story - their relationship - is really wonderful, and all the craziness that happens on top is outrageous, ridiculous, and very very funny. I'm not sure how all that escaped the critics. Good times right there, and all to be had for the price of a (free, if you know how to shop) Redbox rental (I know I have a coupon here somewhere).

* * * * *

Honestly, I haven't been to very many movies lately, and not much out there looks all that interesting. I'll probably drag myself out to see Despicable Me (and enjoy it) before too long, but other than that I'm just waiting for the second half of Glee Season 1 on DVD, Easy A, Voyage of the DawnTreader, and Tron: Legacy. I will most likely also see Legend of the Guardians: Owls of Ga'hoole, but ONLY for the artistic aspects and because I can't get away from that 30 Seconds to Mars song. YOU KNOW THE ONE.

Happy movie watching! Let me know your favorites, and feel free to leave any suggestions that I should see and/or avoid!

P.S. Yes, I put that third "f" in "rifff" on purpose.

P.P.S. The title of this blog post is now one of my favorite content-appropriate puns ever. It will someday be the name of my column or TV show.

P.P.P.S. You're hearing that song in your head right now, aren't you? You totally are.

Fwends

I'm coming in just under the wire today, so I'll skip the controversial, politically-charged, debate-generating, blood-spilling topic I had in mind and go right to something nearer the heart:

I have awesome friends. *insert shower of sparkly confetti here*

It's true. I have a real knack for cozying up to the smartest, coolest, most engaging people in the room and convincing them to let me hang around. Tonight was Girls' Night Out with a group of ladies I've known since high school, and they are opinionated, intelligent, cheerful, encouraging, interested, grounded, and have terrific senses of humor. We always have fun when we're together, generally spending the better part of the evening talking and sharing experiences. These are good people, some of the best people, and they're mine!

My friends tend to be funny, talented, creative, and involved. They care about others, and do their best to lead, teach, and support. They are some of the world's greatest story- and joke-tellers. They can take it, they can dish it, and they'll love you all the more for it at the end of the evening. My friends are people who make things happen, in their jobs, their families, their creative outlets. They express themselves well, and are always interested in learning something new. They'll be the first to help when help is needed, and are savvy enough to spot a scam before it hits. My friends fight for the ones they love, gleefully recount victories, and commiserate over defeats. My friends have fun, and feel good about themselves in the morning. My friends are people who help you want to be more and better than you are, and have every confidence that you can.

If you're a friend of mine, you belong with this group I've described. Sometimes I think one of my greatest talents is finding the best kinds of friends!

(I feel like this post should probably have a Disney soundtrack. Just choose your favorite "friend" tune and hum along.)

* * * * *

As a gift to the girls who share my North and South fixation (and as a tribute to the fantastically awesome, talented, hilariously sarcastic friend who sent me the link) here's an interview to brighten any fangirl's day. Enjoy!

Since When...

... did we start considering Pride and Prejudice a "young adult" novel? Was there a memo? I'm a fan of both, but never would have thought of putting Twilight and P & P in any kind of comparative category.

Check out Persnickety Snark's Top 100 YA Novels of 2010.

On one hand, I'm a little surprised by how many of the books on this list I've already read; on the other, it's always nice to have a hefty selection of new book choices that lots of other people like! (Ease up on the vampire stories, YA genre, and you'll have me for good!)

Preparations

I have my plane tickets - I'll be taking a red-eye to New York, and then changing airlines and heading to London (via Brussels) 12 hours later. Two days of travel, half the price of a direct flight! (And maybe a little Central Park thrown in, just for fun.)

I had my teeth cleaned today, plus a flouride treatment (just in case English dentistry lives up to rumor), which evolved into fillings in the afternoon. My numb lip for the rest of the day at least helped to keep the office giggling. (It's very weird when your nose goes numb too!)

My mother has insisted on self-defense classes before moving to one of the world's largest cities, and yesterday I showed up at a karate studio. The rest of my class consisted of two boys, ages 3 and 6, and their parents, who stepped in for "Buddy Week". I still managed to nearly lose my voice doing the vocalizations, did more sit-ups than I thought possible, am completely sore today, and made another dojo student burst into laughter during a focus exercise. If I'm ever mugged, perhaps I can make my attacker laugh into submission...

* * * * *

Apropos of nothing, "Nanny McPhee" really is a lovely, lovely movie. And how great is it that Emma Thompson AND Colin Firth are English? Really, really great.

Inspired By Recent Events

There are lots of things I would say to this guy:

Well, OK, not LOTS of things, as it would take me a while to get past the "guh" and the drooling and the fangirly squealing and by the time I worked up a semi-intelligent comment like "Hi" he would have already moved on to making the next BBC period drama (yesyesyes, PLEASE) and forgotten all about me (but only until I pull it together! In a few years!).

In the hypothetical (and highly desirable) situation in which we were in a position to talk like rational human beings, or better yet be very close chums who hang out and laugh about stuff, or best yet be dating (yesyesyes PLEASEPLEASEPLEASE) I would probably say things like the following:

23 Things Women (Particularly Single Ones) Would Like to Say to Men (Particularly Single Ones, But Married Guys Could Take a Lesson Too) -

1. Every woman could use one compliment a day.

2. We'd rather you didn't say, "I'll call you" if you really mean "goodbye." Just don't say anything — we won't think you're a jerk as we part ways for the night. And you know the saying that goes, "It's better to under-promise and over-deliver"? How about, just don't promise anything and don't deliver anything.

3. Most of us are not crazy or psycho. We can be emotional and hormonal.

4. If we catch you glancing at our chest when you're a foot away, we'll think you're rude and have no willpower. You can look, but from a distance.

5. Even the most confident among us can act needy and insecure at times. It happens when you start pulling away and we're not aware that that's what you're doing, only that you're acting funny. But oh, you should see how cool and independent most of us are when we're not dating someone.

6. Feminine hygiene commercials are silly, but don't complain about having to watch them. Try having to use them — for several days each month, I mean — for most of your life. When you complain, it makes you look insensitive. And weak. We have no sympathy.

7. Please don't yell when you think we're driving poorly, especially if we're from the west coast and we've never seen a rotary before. Just give us advice, help, or moral support. (P.S. If you stomp your foot on the ground because you think we should brake, well, it's just funny. We will brake if/when we need to.)

8. If you text, "Hows ur week goin?" we can either reply "good" and risk sounding curt (see #16) or we can send you a 400-word document. Don't put us in this position. Just don't text open-ended questions.

9. Texting a girl twice a week does not count as staying in contact. It's meaningless and a waste of everyone's time. Let her go.

10. Booty texts: weak.

11. If you're a mama's boy and you're looking for a wife, think about it: what woman wants to be #2? Consider setting boundaries and work on establishing some independence. You and your mom can have a loving relationship without being co-dependent.

12. After you do something bad, it would be so much better if you called us right away to apologize. You think it's best to wait a few days while we cool off, but what's cooling off is our feelings for you. Man up. The sooner the better.

13. The reason we're up in your grill about what time you're coming over, and the reason we're so good at communicating our own whereabouts, is that since the beginning of time our parents were making us report back to them about where we were and when we'd be home.

Most of the girls I knew, including my sister and I, didn't have the freedom the boys in our neighborhood had. Then in college, out of habit, we always told our roommates when we would be home (especially if we went to school in a bad neighborhood), and they did the same.

So that's why we're like that. We've been under tight surveillance since birth and it took a lot of work just to be allowed (FINALLY) to ride our bikes un-chaperoned to the movie theater. Now we're trained. If you don't like that we're this way, take it up with our parents.

14. High heels really hurt.

15. Teasing won't bait us. Attempting to wear us down is annoying.

16. 5-word emails seem cranky. Efficient, yes. Loving, no. Greet. Ask questions. Elaborate where possible.

17. If we say we're babysitting for a friend, we did not say we want to have a baby now and that we want you to be the dad. "I'm babysitting" simply means, "I'm busy being a good friend." You are paranoid and it's embarrassing.

18. Stop talking about marrying us until you actually give one of us a ring.

19. Please be aware of how serious and in love you sound. Just say, "I like you," not, "Let's fly to Miami next month." (I thought guys were supposed to be direct.) Sure, it sounds cooler (and less vulnerable) to talk a big game about Miami, but come next month, you won't remember saying anything about Miami.

20. If a girl has pretty eyes, she has probably heard men tell her that five thousand times. It's fine to repeat the compliment, but you'll make a much bigger impression if you find something else to compliment.

21. As far as having children goes, you have the luxury of time. Appreciate it.

22. Taking us for granted is probably the worst thing you could do after cheating and lying. Since women are very good at appreciating each other, your behavior looks kinda selfish to us.

23. The word is "cherish." Do you cherish her? (Me? Me please!)

Source: Msn.com

In this wonderful fictional situation, he'd respond by looking like this:

And well, he can't exactly help looking like this:

Gentlemen, take a lesson.

Counting Down

OK, I'm in.

I've got just over a month until I leave for England, to stay for a year at the minimum and hopefully at least three. The next 30 days should have some interesting updates as I get a little crazy with the remaining details.

SUNDAY SNIPPET

Big lesson for the day: Be prepared. Stop putting things off and scraping by at the last minute... I got a call at 8:30 asking if I would lead the music in Sacrament Meeting. My ward starts at nine, and I'd just gotten out of the shower. In an excess of zeal I agreed to help out, determined to get to church on time. I scrambled out of the house fifteen minutes earlier than usual, but still only a minute before the meeting was scheduled to start. I rushed in just as the counselor was announcing the opening song, and walked up on to the stand in time to open my hymnbook and start the song. Whew.

I REALLY have to get ready first, laze around reading or on the Internet later!

* * * * *

Good meetings today - the theme of Sacrament Meeting was Spiritual Priorities. The message was "Good, Better, Best": we have to stop allowing ourselves to be distracted away from the most important things, even if the other activities we choose to engage in are still good. We have more "discretionary" time than any other generation, and we will be held accountable for the uses to which we put that time. "We must not be caught up in the thick of thin things."

With about 34 days to go, I'd better take this advice to heart!

Watch out for falling turtles,

Cyd

Soul Sister

Tonight while I was driving home with the windows down, I was singing (nearly) at the top of my lungs - since that's what you do on a summer night, you drive around with the windows down whether or not you have air-conditioning and play rock star in your car. The thing you may not realize is that there are times when it's not just you and the radio. At a stop light I had just hit a chorus when I heard a voice from over my left shoulder hollering, "you've got a beautiful voice!" I turned to see a scruffy man in a John Deere cap in the next car over, both his windows down, grinning at me. I sized up the situation, took stock of the song, and sang louder.

Lesson one: Take your entertainment where you can find it, with the corollary: It's OK sometimes to participate in other people's fun, particularly if you are safely separated by two full cars (hey, he had no idea if I had mace or was a serial killer - gotta take a risk now and then!). Lesson two: SING. Sing loudly, enthusiastically, with style and attitude and only a passing consideration of accuracy as long as it's fun (which will pretty much be always). Lesson three: Make sure to show your fans a little love.


Watch out for falling turtles (especially if they look like Cher or a pop-y emo band),

Cyd



P.S. How much do you want to bet John Deere Cap is intimately acquainted with all the lyrics to the entire Charlie Daniels' Band catalog? You KNOW he's a superstar in his Subaru!