What I'm Watching:

1. Glee
2. Top Chef
3. The Vampire Diaries
4. Castle
5. The Secret Circle
6. Dexter
7. Parenthood
8. The X Factor
9. Psych
10. Parks and Rec
11. Suburgatory

To be amended.

Sorry for the lack of pictures lately! I haven't been going out or doing anything much recently which is sad but reminds me to live my life a little more.

Currently Watching

44gb of Top Chef goodies.

To Watch: Holiday Film List

1. White Christmas
2. Home Alone
3. Love Actually
4. Serendipity
5. A Charlie Brown Christmas
6. Elf
7. A Christmas Carol (adaptation tbd)
8. A Christmas Story
9. The Family Stone
10. The Holiday
11. I'll Be Home For Christmas
12. It's a Wonderful Life
13. Jingle All the Way
14. Miracle on 34th Street
15. Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale
16. The Santa Clause
17. The Year Without a Santa Claus
18. A Muppet Christmas
19. Christmas Everyday
    
    Semi-Holiday Themes:
20. The Time Travelers Wife
21. Definitely, Maybe
22. Just Friends
23. About a Boy
24. Catch Me If You Can
25. Rent
26. The Shop Around The Corner
27. You've Got Mail

Do you have any recommendations?

Film Review: Rugrats Go Wild (2003)

Film: Rugrats Go Wild (2003) 
Directed by: John Eng & Norton Virgien
Rottentomatoes.com Rating: 40% 
My Rating: 8/10

Read the end to skip spoilers and read my recommendation.

Warning:  Potential Spoilers
As a twenty-two year old born in '89, Rugrats and Wild Thornberrys were the shit. It should have been a sign to my parents early on that my obsessions with these shows and others like it that I would be an avid TV viewer.

The film follows the Rugrats gang and family on their attempt to go on a fancy cruise. Unfortunately, Stu booked a small rental boat instead and the gang run into stormy weather and find themselves stranded on a deserted island, or so they think. The island happens to be the same one where the Thornberrys are stationed to capture new material for their nature show. Both camps eventually meet up to find the adventurous babies that attempted to find their own way off the island.

Anyway, the film got bad reviews on RottenTomatoes but it's not like I'm saying my taste in film is for everyone but I am not ashamed in what I like and I do not shame people (at least publicly) for what they like. That being said, I enjoyed this blast from the past. These cartoon moms are so amazing; they are intelligent, caring, and strong. The babies! The babies are so cute. I don't think there was enough emphasis on friendship but it was cute nonetheless.

My recommendation: Watch it! It's on Netflix Instant Watch

The Holiday Season Is Just Around The Corner

I don't know about you all, but I get so excited about potentially good holiday films. Love Actually, Just Friends, and Serendipity are some of my favorite films of all time, in fact. They might not be Oscar worthy, but they are feel-good holiday fun. There are probably more holiday films I love like the classic, Home Alone or The Shop Around The Corner (or the present-day version, You've Got Mail), but if I named them all, that would take more work than one post. Maybe it can be a new goal! List and watch my favorite holiday films. Sounds like a plan to me.

Anyway, what I posted above is the trailer to the film Arthur Christmas which is due for release in theaters in November. The film looks cute and hopefully it receives some decent reviews or I might not watch it until it's released on Netflix or something. I'm excited for it. I think it's only around the holiday season when I can appreciate films meant for family/child audiences.

Film Review: Real Steel (2011)

Film: Real Steel (2011) 
Directed by: Shawn Levy
Rottentomatoes.com Rating: 58% 
My Rating: 5.5/10

Read the end to skip spoilers and read my recommendation.

Warning:  Potential Spoilers
Real Steel follows the journey of ex-boxer-turned-robot-trainer Charlie Kenton (Hugh Jackman) and his Max Kenton (Dakota Goyo) as they train Atom, a sparing robot that was discovered in a junk-yard, to be the next Robot boxing Champions.

The film is classic Hollywood: Charlie starts off alone and struggling to make some money off of robot fights to pay of the debts he owes as well as stay within the fighting world. Then one day, Max Kenton is put into his temporary custody after his mother's passing and the two set off together on a journey to fight robots and make money. Once the two discover that Atom has a lot of potential in the ring, we eventually see Charlie lose his lone-wolf status as he grows closer to his son through the robot's successful bouts.

Personally, I found this film to be very superficial in terms of the relationships between Charlie and Max, as well as Charlie and Bailey Tallet (Evangeline Lilly) who is Charlie's long-time friend and love interest.
The audience is expected to warm up to Charlie even after he sells the custody of Max to his ex-girlfriend's sister for $100,000. And although we do see the two getting along, it is hard for me to believe Charlie's selfish ways have been put to rest. If Atom was not successful in his fights, I imagine Charlie and Max would have a completely different relationship. Alas, Atom was a tough fighting robot that aided in mending their distraught relationship.

Charlie and Bailey were in a tough spot in their relationship as well. Charlie couldn't make payments and although Bailey found Charlie charming, she know he wasn't reliable. But, after Atom started winning fights and making money, they're relationship started to get better and Bailey began to believe in Charlie once more. The film made me think that money really does help with just about everything.

The good thing about the film were the robot bouts; they were exciting and fun to watch. If the film had more fights featuring Atom, I think I would have been happier.

My recommendation: wait until it comes out on DVD or on Netflix.

Film Review: Drive (2011)

Film: Drive (2011) 
Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn
Rottentomatoes.com Rating: 93% 
My Rating: 8.5/10

Warning:  Potential Spoilers
When I went to see Drive, I really didn't know anything about it except that it was starring Ryan Gosling as the Driver. The only thing I knew was the Rottentomatoes rating and the high recommendations that some of my friends (that I have good faith in when it comes to film) gave me. Unlike my mom, fifteen or so minutes in, I realized it was not your classic mainstream Hollywood film. [And apparently I was correct. The film was featured in the Cannes Film Festival.]

Instead, it had a more art film elements: the protagonist was not easy to warm up to, there was a lack of dialogue, there was more focus on the style, etc. - I knew how to watch and appreciate art cinema because of my time abroad when I attended the Locarno Film Festival in 2010 while studying World Cinema and Film Festivals. That being said, my mom did not know how to understand it and would have probably appreciated a film like Moneyball instead which is probably a Hollywood-style film.

Anyway - the film is great. Gosling's character acts as a stunt driver in during the day but at night becomes a hired getaway driver for various criminal activities. He eventually forms feelings for his neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son. Sadly, Irene is married and her husband that is released from prison and gets caught up in some bad business with local Los Angeles crime bosses. In the Driver's attempt to help Irene's husband, things get complicated.

The cast is quality. Gosling gives a convincing performance as the broody and dangerous but has-a-soft-spot-for-lonely-women-and-children Driver and Mulligan presents herself well as the neighbor who just wants to know more about this quite mystery man that lives down the hall. [I have heard about the controversy surrounding Mulligan being cast in a role originally meant for someone of Latina descent and that does disappoint me greatly.] I think if this film did not have Gosling as the lead or if it wasn't played by another well-known actor, I don't think mainstream audiences would have flocked to the theaters to see it.

The cinematography in this film was gorgeous - the lighting of the film is some of the best I've seen in a while. The mood-lighting in some of the scenes towards the end are extremely strong. The cinematography wasn't the only star either: the soundtrack to the film is amazing. Overall, great film but not necessarily amazing. I sort of was left with this feeling of disconnect which is actually very familiar - much like how I felt after seeing many films in Locarno.

My recommendation is that if you go see Drive, realize that it is not your typical Hollywood film but instead contains many stylistic elements of an art film. Sure, there is quite a bit of violent scenes and action sequences but before you get to those parts one must understand that there is a lot of pause in between.

Film Review: 50/50 (2011)

Film: 50/50 (2011) 
Directed by: Jonathan Levine 
Rottentomatoes.com Rating: 92% 
My Rating: 9/10

Warning:  Potential Spoilers
This film starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt is fantastic. It appeals to your every inch of your heart and produces the waterworks - at least for me, it did.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Adam Lerner who is diagnosed with a rare spinal cancer at age 27 with a 50/50 chance of survival. The film follows the changes he goes through from the beginning of his illness up until...well you will just have to see it to find out.

What I liked most about this film is that it isn't your generic I-have-a-possibly-fatal-illness-I-have-to-do-everything-I-wouldn't-or-couldn't-have-done-otherwise-films. Adam doesn't really change. But the relationships with the people around him do in the most organic ways.

Most of the film involves Adam in a two-shot or in scenes with just one other significant person in his life. The charismatic duo of Adam and his best friend since puberty (perhaps earlier), Kyle (Seth Rogen), allowed us to see the more lighthearted side of the process.

Seth Rogen is great in this film and it is perhaps my favorite work from him thus far. Although he acted much like other characters he has been cast as in the past, we see some real vulnerability towards the end that doesn't seem as forced because the scripted called for something the audience to relate to.

Some of the most poignant scenes involve Adam and his mother Diane (Anjelica Huston). These scenes are short but they stuck out for me the most. I seriously cried in almost every scene featuring these two together.

The chemistry between Gordon-Levitt and Anna Kendrick who plays Katherine, his therapist, is there. The scenes between them are subtle and I did not feel like the potential relationship between them was being shoved down my throat, which I think is beneficial to the film because it allows the audience to focus less on if and when they get together but on Adam and him dealing with his situation. Anyway, they are sweet and cute. And most importantly, real.

Lastly, Gordon-Levitt is great in this. He makes Adam likable and I was empathetic throughout the film hoping the best for him. This is wonderful for me because I have kind of steered clear of Gordon-Levitt since his Inception and 500 Days of Summer jump in fame because like with Ryan Gosling (who is starring in almost every quality(?) film lately), there is such a thing as too much of a good thing.

Go see it. Bring some tissues.

TV Review: Suburgatory 1.01

Tessa: It was presumptuous. It was inappropriate. And it was by far...the prettiest thing I owned. So maybe these moms weren't all bad. And maybe, sometimes, underneath a pair of giant synthetic breasts, you can find a giant non-synthetic heart.

TV Show: Suburgatory (ABC)
Episode: 1.01 Pilot and 1.02 Bound

IMDb summary: A teenage girl moves from the city to the suburbs.

One of the most promising pilots of this fall has been Suburgatory which follows the life of single dad George Altman (Jeremy Sisto) and his daughter Tessa (Jane Levy). George uproots their lives in Manhattan and moves them out into the Suburbs of New Jersey for a better life. The two immediately encounter a different lifestyle than they are used to such as the Stepford-like but scantily clad mothers and sugarless-red-bull addicted teens on pretty much every corner.

What's refreshing about the show is that Tessa and George might be the most charming father-daughter duo on television at the moment. Also, Tessa reminds me a bit of Jaye Tyler of Wonderfalls - at least how I would imagine Jaye to be when she was in high school. That's always a plus.

Suburgatory plays on a lot of the negative stereotypes of the suburbs for laughs but it also presents the positive. Like Tessa and George, I imagine the audience discovering the suburbs is made out of a lot more heart than we think.

It's not laugh-out-loud funny but it does have a lot of charm.



[Screencaps from rawr-caps.tumblr.com and edited by me.]

Film Trailer: The Rum Diary

Film Trailer: The Rum Diary (2011)

IMDb summary: Paul Kemp is a freelance journalist who finds himself at a critical turning point in his life while writing for a run-down newspaper in the Caribbean. Paul is challenged on many levels as he tries to carve out a more secure niche for himself amidst a group of lost souls all bent on self-destruction.

While browsing RottenTomatoes, I saw the ad placement for The Rum Diary starring Johnny Depp. I am a fan of Mr. Depp but the main reason I would see this film is for Amber Heard who currently stars in The Playboy Club. I love her.

The film looks fun but I'm not too excited about it. I probably won't even see it. Haha.

TV Review: The Secret Circle 1.01 and 1.02

TV Show: The Secret Circle (The CW)
Episode: 1.01 Pilot and 1.02 Bound

IMDb summary: The "Secret Circle" series follows 16-year-old Cassie, who moves from California to live with her grandmother in New Salem and falls in love with a mysterious boy named Adam. But, when she enrolls in high school there, she realizes that he, she and all the other elite students at the school are witches! She befriends their leader, Diana, but soon discovers that Adam and Diana are dating, which leads to a whole bunch of complicated drama.

That summary sounds pretty juvenile compared to the opening scenes of the Pilot of The Secret Circle which has quite a few of my Tumblr friends interested.

The show is based on the books by L.J. Smith which I have not read. Smith is also the author of The Vampire Diaries which has also been made into a television series that I (usually) enjoy. I love supernatural themes: witches, werewolves, vampires, fairies, and more. So, I gave it a chance. I was further pulled in because I recognized the actress Cassie, Britt Robertson, who also had a main roll in Life Unexpected, a past CW show.

The summary doesn't mention the other main characters: Faye, Nick and Melissa. Faye (Phoebe Tonkin) has been cast as the "bad" girl along side her best friend, Melissa. The audience hasn't learned much about Melissa and Nick yet.

Anyway, the show has a lot of production value which is one thing I like about the CW network prime time shows. I also like that there is larger amount of women witches on the show and they are powerful. What I don't like is the probable love triangle between Adam, Diana, and Cassie. I find love triangles to be so tiresome, especially two women and a man triangle. They are frustrating because they usually result in one of the women appearing as the core of the problem without putting any blame on the man. We'll see how this triangle goes.

But what I really want to talk about is all this lesbian drama. Seriously, these girls all have sexual  chemistry and tension bouncing off the walls. I hope that's not just my head-canon.

Film Review: Contagion (2011)

Film: Contagion (2011) 
Directed by: Steven Soderbergh 
Rottentomatoes.com Rating: 84% 
My Rating: 7.5/10

Warning:  Potential Spoilers
Contagion is a beautifully shot 1hr. 46min. film. It presents each infected location as if it is another character - at first pristine and then finding itself infected by the virus...then dead. Although it was beautiful, the lack of dialogue did made it go quite slowly.

The cast is quite wonderful. There is not a lot of dialogue from the film but the actors and actresses are able to convey the tense situation with ease. The editing team did a wonderful job of keeping us updated on the separate individuals in the film. Although I do wonder what happened to Marion Cotillard's character at the end.

An issue that was brought up in the film that always worries me when I think of the possibility of such a disaster is: who gets the privilege of receiving care, food, vaccines, and more first? Many of the scenes that took place in the United States presented the before and after of the suburbs but never brought us into neighborhoods that have a more poor and ethnic populations. It's a question to think about.

Anyway, what I really got from this film is the need to wash my hands and invest in gallons of sanitizer.