How to Judge a Movie

After watching both Seven Pounds and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and upon finding that I, unlike the critics, enjoyed Will Smith more than Brad Pitt, have determined the criteria by which I judge movies:

Drama:

• does the protagonist have realistic obstacles to overcome?
• can I relate in any way to the dilemmas posed by the movie?
• does the movie affect me emotionally?
• does the movie provide fodder for philosophical/moral discussion?

All:

• do I understand what the characters want for themselves?
• can I willingly suspend my disbelief?
• do I like the characters?
• do I want the same thing as the protaganist(s)?
• is the movie realistic/reasonable with language & situational portrayal?
• does anything happen (externally or internally) that would be considered a crisis?
• do I have enough facts to wrap up important loose ends?
• does watching this movie add anything to my life?
• does this movie entertain me?

27 Things About 27 Dresses

It’s official. I love the movie 27 Dresses. I watched it yet again last night (simultaneously with another group of friends in a different ciy, I discovered. Crazy!). Here’s my list (from memory) of things I like, in no particular order. With some of the reasons why.

1. James Marsden is good-looking. There’s no way around that.
2. Kevin Doyle has great style. All casual with the sling back and the sneakers, but pulls of a dress shirt and blazer, just the same…
3. The taxi-cab scene at the start of the film – “Here’s $160. You know what you did.”
4. The bickering. All the bickering. I’ve realized that I actually really enjoy that type of fighting/flirting.
5. The line “I cried like a baby at the Keller wedding.”
6. The entire Benny and the Jets scene.
7. The fact that they both love looking at the groom when the bride shows up. That’s my favourite part too.
8. Jane really wants to be a good friend. She overdoes it, but I empathize because I think I can be similar.
9. The ridiculous dresses. I cannot believe people would have weddings like that – I know they’re fake, but honestly…based on reality.
10. Jane cherishes her parents’ marriage.
11. Jane cleans with Seventh Generation cleaning products. So do we.
12. Jane loves Tess, even in the midst of all their fighting. I really value the commitment to family.
13. Jane refuses to chase down George. I respect a woman who won’t throw herself at a man.
14. There is a great soundtrack.
15. The song Like a Star by Corrine Bailey Rae is perfectly placed.
16. Tess’ ignorance: “HELLO, PEDRO!” “Shagging flies? Sounds like fun…”
17. The freedom we all have to hate Tess, just a little, for being such a princess.
18. Casey. She is loud, she is obnoxious, and she is a great friend.
19. The yoga scene. “I don’t see any signs that say no talking!”
20. “To you it’s just another casserole dish, but to Tess it’s the dish she’ll bake Mom’s Christmas roast in.”
    “Tess cooks?”
    “Well, no. I’ll cook it. But she’ll be there.”
    “And this…this is the ugly rooster where George will hang all his umbrellas…”
21. Jane can’t say no. Sometimes I can’t either.
    “Jane, gimme 50 bucks.”
    “No!”
    “Jane, may I please have $50?”
    “No.”
    “Jane, (he takes her hand) I really need some money. Can you lend me $50?”
    “No?”
    “Ok. Can I have your drink?”
    “Sure. (he drinks) Oh, NO!!!”
22. Kevin calls Jane on her crap. I can’t quote this one…but something about how she keeps herself busy planning other peoples’ lives so that she isn’t forced to have one herself.
23. Just after the disastrous slideshow with Casey, “I know my moral compass doesn’t exactly point due north…but if I say something’s wrong, something’s wrong…”
24. Just after the disastrous slideshow with Kevin, “You wanna know the real reason I came here tonight? I came because I knew it would be hard for you and for the first time in a long time, I cared…You deserve someone who will take care of you…” (isn’t this what every woman wants to hear? or at least 95% of us?)
25. Jan makes a good villainous, callous boss. Turns out, I don’t think I like her as a human either (this is a terrible thing to say, I know. I just read a rather disappointing article last night, though).
26. The pancakes that their dad makes, with the strawberry smiles and blueberry eyes.
27. “Get over here.” (motions with his head) She comes. They kiss.

Another Mundane Weekend

Last weekend, I saw Douglas Coupland at the movie theatre. This weekend, I:

• watched back-to-back movies with my housemates (Everything is Illuminated & Punch Drunk Love). I enjoyed them both.
• played Ultimate in the rain. I have found that the solution to my hatred of being in the rain is to wear a hat with a brim. This keeps my face dry, and so long as I am having fun, I can endure without whining.
• read The Gum Thief by Douglas Coupland. It takes place at Staples in North Van. I’ve driven by there but never gone in. I liked this book, although my roommate and I had slightly different interpretations on what I’d consider a pivotal moment in Glove Pond, the book within the book…
• watched Dirty Dancing. For the tenth time or so. It is a bit dirty. But the dancing! Oh, the dancing…Patrick Swayze, can’t you stay young forever?
• went to a bonfire. Turns out UBC campus is even bigger than I knew, and it has a farm. Wowsers.
• went to church. No surprises here, but it was good. No babies in the nursery, and my brother got lost on his way in.
• lunch at Benny’s Bagels on Broadway (say that ten times fast). I’m going to become a regular here, I think. I really like it. Delicious food, yummy smoothies, free wireless…just about perfect.
• slept through an episode of McGyver with Jonathan. That show is just too ridiculous.
• watched Zoolander. Haven’t seen it in a year or so. Still know far too many lines for my own good. Still giggle at most of them. Still skip the two sketchy scenes.
• ate cereal & yogourt & peach for supper. I love breakfast at supper.
• blogged.

Mad (@) TV

Sometimes I get mad at TV & the movies & the media in general. Especially at the following things, and possibly in the following order:

• when the couple that you want to be together shouldn’t be together because they are committed to other people
• extra-marital affairs that are not discouraged or shown to be damaging to anyone
• women who fight with their spouses rather than for their husbands
• female empowerment through sexiness (see the book Female Chauvinist Pigs)
• storylines that lack a hint of redemption
• girls who are clearly below a healthy body weight and portrayed as the norm
• gratuitous violence

Things I Didn’t Plan

This weekend, I didn’t plan on (but ended up) doing the following things:

• watching The Bank Job and hanging out with the almost-new housemate.
• cleaning the fridge. (next weekend: the freezer)
• breaking a glass shelf from the fridge into tiny little pieces by dropping it into hot water.
• holding the hands of many, many people – as I checked their IDs & stamped them to get into the WUGC beer garden.
• skipping the WUGC party to watch Battlestar Galactica, a show I have previously had no desire to see.
• watching four back-to-back episodes of Battlestar Galactica.
• going to Tomato’s for lunch.
• saying yes to two separate dares during the span of lunch.
• reading Portugese Irregular Verbs.
• napping on the couch. Oh, glorious couch.
• watching four more episodes of Battlestar Galactica, which brings me up to the end of the 3rd season. And now we know 4 of the Final 5!!! (ah ha ha ha – as if I even know/care!)

Wiki What!

I love Wikipedia. My recent, and rather enlightening, searches have included:

• absinthe (to see what all the fuss is about)
• Savage Garden (in search of their hit song Crash & Burn, whose title I couldn’t remember)
• Guts (a flying disc game)
• The Bank Job and subsequently the Baker Street Robbery (to get to the truth…or whatever is available online)
• Beth (song by KISS, in search of the lyrics…)

Movies & Family & The List I Didn’t Write

(I was going to do a top 3 best-looking teams at WUGC, but refrained myself.) I watched Martian Child the other night, and I loved it. Although, I agree with Wendy – when you know a movie is filmed in Vancouver, it is hard to determine where it’s supposed to take place. Anyway. Families in movies. Here are some of my favourites, off the top of my head.

Martian Child

Chronicles of Narnia (both of them)

Swing Kids

Life is Beautiful

The Incredibles

What else am I missing?

A Box of Assorted Thoughts

1. It should be illegal to be up before 8am on a Saturday.
2. After 3 months of no earrings, I still have holes!
3. The more people you have, the longer it takes to get anything done. Especially decisions. This is a well-known fact.
4. I really like the new Maroon 5 album. And the (now) old Feist album.
5. Sometimes, curiousity doesn’t kill the cat, but it makes the cat wish it didn’t accidentally find out as much as it did.
6. I am glad I did the Grouse Grind today, but I doubt I will ever do it again.
7. It is hard to talk in generalities when one desires to avoid specifics.
8. Mystic River is a well-done but disturbingly tragic movie.
9. I really think Sean Penn is a great actor.
10. Sometimes a good soak in the bath is nice for no particular reason.
11. Overanalyzing “signs” is a dangerous thing.
12. I haven’t posted the rest of my favourite Narnia quotes. And I probably won’t.
13. Is it possible to feel both restless and peaceful at the same time?

How Could I Resist You?

We all know how much I was looking forward to seeing Mamma Mia. Here are the top 5 reasons why.

• Colin Firth
• Pierce Brosnan
• ABBA sing-along
• Colin Firth singing
• Pierce Brosnan in a snazzy suit

I also got:

• More ABBA singing-along
• Pierce Brosnan singing
• Colin Firth playing guitar
• Pierce Brosnan AND Colin Firth in ABBA-esque sequin-covered jumpsuits while dancing. Or doing the man-equivalent of dancing.

Oh, and Meryl Streep? Amazing. She sings, she dances, she ages gracefully. I want to be her (to quote Nadine).

Swoon-worthy

Jane Austen is quite possibly one of my literary heroines. I won’t list twenty reasons why, but I will list the men her heroines fall in love with…if you have never read (or watched) any of her stories, I encourage you to do so.

7. Henry Tilney, whose home in Northanger Abbey may be haunted.
6. Captain Frederick Wentworth, once rejected suitor of Anne Elliot, due to the Persuasion of her family.
5 & 4. Edward Ferrars and Colonel Brandon, who marry sisters in Sense and Sensibility.
3. Edmund Bertram, the younger son in Mansfield Park. First great movie quote:

Surely you and I are beyond speaking when words are clearly not enough.

2. George Knightly, an older and wiser friend to Emma. At some point, one of them says:

If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more. But you know what I am. —You hear nothing but truth from me.

and of course,

1. Fitzwilliam Darcy, aka Mr. Darcy of Pride and Prejudice fame. His killer line:

In vain have I struggled. It will never do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.