39. Cars - So cute! I had actually never watched this movie. I really enjoyed it. I can see why all the young kids (particulary the boys) love this one. I went to Disneyland and actually went to the Carland area and it was adorable. Now it is all in context. What I found funnier was as I watched the movie I was like oh, I remember that from the ride. I know, I am one of a kind. (Also, I watched this as part of a Disney day experience, in which wine and glorious bread with an assortment of cheese was available. A grown up kids day, I like to think of it as.)
40. American Reunion - Not as awesome as the original, (come on, nothing can top American Pie) but had its moments. I think the cast are all too old to make the jokes as funny and new compared to the first one. But overall it was worth a watch. I liked that literally all the original cast members come back.
41. Machine Gun Preacher - I was not a fan of this movie. Don't get me wrong, the heart of the story about the cruelty and terrible slaughtering of people and the recruiting of young children of Sudan to be part of the armies, that was so shocking and terrible but one of those things that people have to see. We have to know what is going on in the world. And this probably seem terrible of me to say, as this was based on a true story, but I did not like the main character. He really bothered me from the moment the movie started. He was a drug dealer and druggie, and treated his girlfriend/wife like crap. Then he finds his calling to his faith, and goes to Africa to try and make peace with the messed up life he made himself by helping the Sudanese. However, his fight to save these people ends up warping his own mind and he becomes obsessed with it. He will kill and slaughter the same way, and it just angered me. The movie ends on a slightly happier note, but I was just annoyed by it.
42. Brave - I was so excited to see a disney movie about a Scottish family! That is my heritage! This was an enjoyable movie, and the plot was completely different than what I had anticipated the movie to be about. Which was refreshing. The triplet brothers were so cute and mischievous. Plus one of besties Ellen was here so I got to do a girl's trip to the movies to see a Disney flick. Super awesome.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Sunday, August 26, 2012
14. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
This book is literally what the HBO series TrueBlood was based on. It was a very silly book. I enjoyed it, but it was nothing fancy. Sookie Stackhouse was a funny southern character that has an interest in Vampires. As they have just "come out of the coffin" as it were and announced their real existence to the world. The novel is all about her weirdness, as she can hear people's thoughts and always felt like an outsider, but once Bill Compton comes into Merlottes, he is the first person she encounters that she can not hear, and that brings her peace.
The book as pretty much exactly like the first season of the show, and I am not going to lie, TrueBlood is my guilty pleasure. But what I thought was crazy, is that there is no such character named Tara!! She was a character they made up for the show! Other than that, everything else was pretty similar to the book. If you want a light read that is silly and easy going, than this is one for you.
The book as pretty much exactly like the first season of the show, and I am not going to lie, TrueBlood is my guilty pleasure. But what I thought was crazy, is that there is no such character named Tara!! She was a character they made up for the show! Other than that, everything else was pretty similar to the book. If you want a light read that is silly and easy going, than this is one for you.
13. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
This book I really just read because I saw the movie version, and it was the only book I recognized that I could get for free on my kindle. The movie was just okay to me, pretty boring and took me like 3 tries to finish watching it so I thought the novel would be better.
I liked how the novel went back and forth with Jacob in his present day self, old and left at some nursing home as his kids couldn't take him in, and then his flash backs to what his life was like back when he worked on a circus. The scenes of his life in the nursing home were so heart wrenching and real, reminded me of when my great aunt was in one and just the more lonely and senile she got, just because of where she was.
The book was a decent read, it kept me pushing through to hear more about Jacob and Rosie, the elephant. I actually felt that the elephant wasn't as big of an element in the book as it was in the movie, which is interesting. Especially as the book is literally titled Water for Elephants.
I liked how the novel went back and forth with Jacob in his present day self, old and left at some nursing home as his kids couldn't take him in, and then his flash backs to what his life was like back when he worked on a circus. The scenes of his life in the nursing home were so heart wrenching and real, reminded me of when my great aunt was in one and just the more lonely and senile she got, just because of where she was.
The book was a decent read, it kept me pushing through to hear more about Jacob and Rosie, the elephant. I actually felt that the elephant wasn't as big of an element in the book as it was in the movie, which is interesting. Especially as the book is literally titled Water for Elephants.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
12. Sun Storm by Assa Larsson
This was a crazy book. Pretty short but had me hooked from the start. This was originally a story written in Swedish I believe and so its translated into English. Certain sections and the writing can be off with meaning and flow, but otherwise I found it to be an intriguing thriller with the "who is guilty" constantly wracking your mind. A lot of questions remain unanswered for me, and the end isn't a neat bow tying everything up nicely. A lot of it is still open-ended leaving you to piece together exactly what happened. I think in the end Sanna was the most guilty person in the whole novel, but that you can decide for yourself.
The character's I thought were very believable. Many of the men seemed to have issues with woman and looked down on them constantly throughout the story. The prosecutor, the pastors, most of the men in the novel. There were many different people's perspectives and views you were able to see, which made the book very interesting. You got to hear inside most of the main characters heads exactly what they thought and were feeling which gave more questions and less answers at the same time. Very interesting way of writing.
If you liked the "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" this is a lighter dose of a thriller/mystery type of novel and would be a great dip in the pool of such types of books.
The character's I thought were very believable. Many of the men seemed to have issues with woman and looked down on them constantly throughout the story. The prosecutor, the pastors, most of the men in the novel. There were many different people's perspectives and views you were able to see, which made the book very interesting. You got to hear inside most of the main characters heads exactly what they thought and were feeling which gave more questions and less answers at the same time. Very interesting way of writing.
If you liked the "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" this is a lighter dose of a thriller/mystery type of novel and would be a great dip in the pool of such types of books.
11. 50 Shades of Grey by E.L. James
This book took me a long time to get into. I honestly took like 2 months to get through the first 8 or 9 chapters. Then I was like a woman possessed and read the rest of the book within 3 days. This book was very ridiculous in some ways, but also made me laugh and enjoy the risque elements I would never have otherwise.
The plot was a little ridiculous, and the main character annoyed me a little. She was whiny and at times also moody and reminded me of a teenager in love. I mean I know she was only supposed to be 21, but I don't know it seemed more like a high school novel with crazy sex scenes thrown in. The writing was nothing special, and the beginning chapters I found really boring. Then half way through it is revealed Mr. Grey's sexual preferences and the book gets semi interesting and pretty unbelievable.
If you want an easy book to read with a basic love story and the sex write out there in the novel, then this would be the one for you!
The plot was a little ridiculous, and the main character annoyed me a little. She was whiny and at times also moody and reminded me of a teenager in love. I mean I know she was only supposed to be 21, but I don't know it seemed more like a high school novel with crazy sex scenes thrown in. The writing was nothing special, and the beginning chapters I found really boring. Then half way through it is revealed Mr. Grey's sexual preferences and the book gets semi interesting and pretty unbelievable.
If you want an easy book to read with a basic love story and the sex write out there in the novel, then this would be the one for you!
Thursday, August 2, 2012
The Dark Knight Rises - Movie Time
38. The Dark Knight Rises - What can be said about this movie? It was a great ending to the trilogy. Christian Bale's voice when he's in the batman suit is still pretty hilarious to me but other than that, I found him to be a believable Bruce Wayne/Batman. Anne Hathaway as Catwoman was interesting and I found the dynamic between the two of them witty and fun. The plot kept me intrigued, as it spans a decent amount of time. This movie had a decent twist and kinda kept me guessing as to what was really going on. Sad to see this Batman trilogy come to an end, and even worse the tragedy in Aurora, Colorado. This trilogy will always have the dark stains of Heath Ledgers death and this fatal shooting in Colorado. Very sad and crazy how people in this world can be....
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
10. A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
This was an interesting novel that starts on one person, Bennie, and then circles out to encompass the lives of many different people who directly and indirectly came in to his life. There were some really interesting parts of this book that i really enjoyed. There were perspectives told from first person and third person. Each chapter was told through another characters eyes, which made it both interesting and chaotic. Sometimes it would take a few pages to determine who it was that was telling the story and how we know who they are. It kept me intrigued the whole way through.
The only thing that I didn't like was that once the story was told through a specific person's eyes, it never went back to them again. I can't get into much detail, but it was overall an interesting book. They are supposedly making an HBO series out of the book which I would probably watch.
The only thing that I didn't like was that once the story was told through a specific person's eyes, it never went back to them again. I can't get into much detail, but it was overall an interesting book. They are supposedly making an HBO series out of the book which I would probably watch.
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