The first point I want to mention is that Forrest Gump came out 2 years after my beloved Golden Girls went off the air. Try not to be disappointed, fair blog followers, there will be other blogs with GG stories!
This is one of those movies that you see bits and pieces of, but unless you are intentionally trying to watch it, you probably won't sit there long enough to see it in its entirety, much like Gone With the Wind. I was expecting to see a couple of new parts, but, as it turns out, I had seen all of it. I know you (my followers) probably have a different opinion about this movie, but it just didn't do anything for me. I already hear you gasping, Ellie Rink. The movie didn't make me cry, but it did make me mad at the beginning. I hate it when people get teased. Seriously, I wish bullying was a more serious crime. If I could have three wishes, I think one of them would be that every time you said something mean to another person, you'd grow a hairy wart on the tip of your nose. Then, you'd think twice (at least twice!) before calling someone a "lint licker" or something else equally offensive.
But anyway, I digress (like Sophia Petrillo). I like how the movie included real clips of historical events. Very educational! It's always intriguing to me to see footage like that. It's not like they show it everyday. On another note, about halfway through the movie, I wanted to tell Robert Zemeckis, "Enough drugs already!" It's bad enough when you watch a movie and you can inference that someone has been doing drugs, but to see them actually do all those drugs-ugh! Sorry future children of mine, you will NOT watch this movie until you're at least 18.
In these kinds of fictional movies where the characters do impossible feats, I can't really enjoy them that much because I'm thinking, "That couldn't really happen!" or "That's ridiculous." I think that it's hard for me to mix real characters and fictional acts. For example, if this movie had cartoon characters instead of real people, it wouldn't bother me that the main character ran for two years. Does that make sense?
Anyway, sorry if my review wasn't to your liking. I wish I could have said BEST CLASSIC MOVIE OF ALL TIME, but I can't. When I told my Granny that I was watching it, she burst into tears and said, "That movie always makes me cry- that poor boy!" I'm beginning to wonder if I have a heart...... :S
And that's the way the story reads...
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
GONE WITH THE WIND
*sigh* Gone With the Wind. What is there to say about GWTW? This is a classic American movie for so many reasons. The thing that had the most impact on me was the complexity of Scarlett O'Hara's character. My exact thoughts were, "Scarlett is as complex a character as Elizabeth Bennett in 'Pride and Prejudice.'" You might disagree with me and you can speak your peace. But, women are all the same. Torn by emotions, dictated by feelings and distracted by matters of the heart. I enjoy movies like these where you can really relate to the characters. Now, I'm not saying I can relate to being married to multiple men that I don't love or selfish beyond reason, but I understand the thoughts she has (well, most of them, anyway).
Something else that really just exhausted me was the amount of trauma poor Scarlett had to go through. I wonder how many years pass in the movie. Since the war was only 4 years, it can't be much more than that. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. Since Scarlett was 16 when the movie began, she couldn't have been more than early 20's when it ended. Think of all the tragedy she went through by that age (the age most of us are!) Her mother and father died, her first two husbands died, her only child died, she had to shoot someone up close, she couldn't have the only man she really loved (Ashley), she had to deliver Ashley and Melanie's child, she got divorced, she got attacked by carpetbaggers, her beloved Tara was raided and Melanie died (the only woman that stuck up for her). Good thing she did have a fiery personality! I wouldn't have been able to live through all that.
Speaking of her fiery personality, wow! What a beast of a woman! We would not have been friends. I couldn't believe how selfish she was! Ugh, she made me mad. On another note, I could not believe those outfits they wore! They were so huge and I cannot believe people actually wore those. My friend Mindy (hi!) lives in Alabama and says that it has been so incredibly hot this summer and I can only imagine that it wasn't so different back in Scarlett's time. With highs in the hundreds every day, I can't imagine wearing that big frock! It made me appreciate my shorts and t-shirt I wore today. Mindy, I think you should comment about Fred Crane. When I was watching the movie, I was trying to figure out which one was him!
So, believe it or not, I have another Golden Girls reference. If you doubted my love of the Girls, you won't anymore. I was watching an episode tonight, one that I've seen a hundred times and I recognized a GWTW reference. Blanche received an offer on the house and while they were sitting at the table talking about it, Blanche decides she's going to have to go to bed and just think about it tomorrow. She says, "After all, tomorrow is another day," and Dorothy says, "Calm down, Scarlett, there's no need to be so dramatic." I LOVE THE GIRLS! If this project accomplishes anything, it will be that it helps me understand the Golden Girls jokes and references. Now, can anyone tell me what a Mrs. Kirkegaard reference would be about?
Please comment on my posts. I love hearing your feedback. I intended this experience to be something that was shared between my friends/family and I. Would you like me to let you know what I will be posting about next so that you'll have time to watch it before I post about it? Just gimme some feedback and I'd be happy to give a heads up. Thanks friends, you're all amazing :) If you can't comment on here because you don't know how or don't want to get a gmail account, just facebook me a response if you want or call me!
And that's how the story reads.....
Something else that really just exhausted me was the amount of trauma poor Scarlett had to go through. I wonder how many years pass in the movie. Since the war was only 4 years, it can't be much more than that. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. Since Scarlett was 16 when the movie began, she couldn't have been more than early 20's when it ended. Think of all the tragedy she went through by that age (the age most of us are!) Her mother and father died, her first two husbands died, her only child died, she had to shoot someone up close, she couldn't have the only man she really loved (Ashley), she had to deliver Ashley and Melanie's child, she got divorced, she got attacked by carpetbaggers, her beloved Tara was raided and Melanie died (the only woman that stuck up for her). Good thing she did have a fiery personality! I wouldn't have been able to live through all that.
Speaking of her fiery personality, wow! What a beast of a woman! We would not have been friends. I couldn't believe how selfish she was! Ugh, she made me mad. On another note, I could not believe those outfits they wore! They were so huge and I cannot believe people actually wore those. My friend Mindy (hi!) lives in Alabama and says that it has been so incredibly hot this summer and I can only imagine that it wasn't so different back in Scarlett's time. With highs in the hundreds every day, I can't imagine wearing that big frock! It made me appreciate my shorts and t-shirt I wore today. Mindy, I think you should comment about Fred Crane. When I was watching the movie, I was trying to figure out which one was him!
So, believe it or not, I have another Golden Girls reference. If you doubted my love of the Girls, you won't anymore. I was watching an episode tonight, one that I've seen a hundred times and I recognized a GWTW reference. Blanche received an offer on the house and while they were sitting at the table talking about it, Blanche decides she's going to have to go to bed and just think about it tomorrow. She says, "After all, tomorrow is another day," and Dorothy says, "Calm down, Scarlett, there's no need to be so dramatic." I LOVE THE GIRLS! If this project accomplishes anything, it will be that it helps me understand the Golden Girls jokes and references. Now, can anyone tell me what a Mrs. Kirkegaard reference would be about?
Please comment on my posts. I love hearing your feedback. I intended this experience to be something that was shared between my friends/family and I. Would you like me to let you know what I will be posting about next so that you'll have time to watch it before I post about it? Just gimme some feedback and I'd be happy to give a heads up. Thanks friends, you're all amazing :) If you can't comment on here because you don't know how or don't want to get a gmail account, just facebook me a response if you want or call me!
And that's how the story reads.....
Thursday, September 16, 2010
CASABLANCA
Hola, followers! Glad you're here!
I promise that updates won't come this often in the future! It's just that this whole journey is kind of exciting and I'm still really motivated! Josh and I watched Casablanca the other night. Once again, I had no real desire to watch a black and white movie, but after reading the description, I thought it sounded like my kind of movie. I must say that I am not quite sure why Humphrey Bogart was such a "hottie." He smoked like a freight train! That's pretty much a turn off for me, what about my lady followers? Do you agree?
Anyway, besides that, I love how Bogart reflected on the time in Paris so soon into the movie. I hate movies where they don't reveal key information until the end, like Sherlock Holmes. I personally didn't like the fact that Ingrid Bergman cheated on her husband in the present time. In Paris, at least she thought he was dead. But, I won't hold it against her forever. I now understand the significance of "We'll always have Paris" and "Here's lookin' at you, kid."
Something else it reminded me of was the movie "Sleepless in Seattle." The song that Sam plays for Ilsa and Rick is "As Time Goes By." This is the same song played at the beginning (and end, I think) of "Sleepless in Seattle."
So tonight, I'm watching Golden Girls (as usual) and Dorothy and Sophia were spending quality time together at a resort or hotel in Disney World. Sophia wants a little time alone, so she goes down to the bar where she gets a drink, then proceeds over to the piano player where she says, "Hey, Sam, what's that you're playing?" And he says, "Oh, just a little something." She replies, "Stop it, you know what I want to hear." --"No, I don't."-- "You played it for her, you can play it for me." -- "But I don't think that I should..." Sophia interrupts and says, "If she can stand it, so can I. Now play it." He says, "OK, you're the boss." He proceeds to play a nice, soft slow version of "It's a Small World After All." When he finishes, she says, "Of all the saloons and gin joints in the world, she had to walk into mine."
If you've never seen Casablanca, you would have no idea what the above dialogue was about. I just think it's really ironic that after I watch the movie, the Golden Girls has a reference to one of the most famous scenes.
Anyone else have thoughts? Anyone think they are going to go rent it now? It's not a bad movie. I have to admit, I was dozing, so we paused it until I was more awake. It wasn't because it was boring, though. Well, not entirely because it was boring. It is actually a political movie as well, I'm just not that into that part. I like the love story part! (Until, of course, I found out she was unfaithful!) Josh really enjoyed the war time patriotism. He'll comment.
And that's the way the story reads....
I promise that updates won't come this often in the future! It's just that this whole journey is kind of exciting and I'm still really motivated! Josh and I watched Casablanca the other night. Once again, I had no real desire to watch a black and white movie, but after reading the description, I thought it sounded like my kind of movie. I must say that I am not quite sure why Humphrey Bogart was such a "hottie." He smoked like a freight train! That's pretty much a turn off for me, what about my lady followers? Do you agree?
Anyway, besides that, I love how Bogart reflected on the time in Paris so soon into the movie. I hate movies where they don't reveal key information until the end, like Sherlock Holmes. I personally didn't like the fact that Ingrid Bergman cheated on her husband in the present time. In Paris, at least she thought he was dead. But, I won't hold it against her forever. I now understand the significance of "We'll always have Paris" and "Here's lookin' at you, kid."
Something else it reminded me of was the movie "Sleepless in Seattle." The song that Sam plays for Ilsa and Rick is "As Time Goes By." This is the same song played at the beginning (and end, I think) of "Sleepless in Seattle."
So tonight, I'm watching Golden Girls (as usual) and Dorothy and Sophia were spending quality time together at a resort or hotel in Disney World. Sophia wants a little time alone, so she goes down to the bar where she gets a drink, then proceeds over to the piano player where she says, "Hey, Sam, what's that you're playing?" And he says, "Oh, just a little something." She replies, "Stop it, you know what I want to hear." --"No, I don't."-- "You played it for her, you can play it for me." -- "But I don't think that I should..." Sophia interrupts and says, "If she can stand it, so can I. Now play it." He says, "OK, you're the boss." He proceeds to play a nice, soft slow version of "It's a Small World After All." When he finishes, she says, "Of all the saloons and gin joints in the world, she had to walk into mine."
If you've never seen Casablanca, you would have no idea what the above dialogue was about. I just think it's really ironic that after I watch the movie, the Golden Girls has a reference to one of the most famous scenes.
Anyone else have thoughts? Anyone think they are going to go rent it now? It's not a bad movie. I have to admit, I was dozing, so we paused it until I was more awake. It wasn't because it was boring, though. Well, not entirely because it was boring. It is actually a political movie as well, I'm just not that into that part. I like the love story part! (Until, of course, I found out she was unfaithful!) Josh really enjoyed the war time patriotism. He'll comment.
And that's the way the story reads....
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
DIE HARD- CLASSIC MOVIE NUMBER ONE
OK, so Genna, Ellie and I decided to kick of the American Classics Tour by watching Die Hard with Bruce Willis. They tried to get me to watch Harry Potter, the little scuzzes, which isn't even American! Agh! I guess the one thing I want to say before I get into my critique of Die Hard is that although this is a project that I chose to do on my own, there are still some movies that I don't want to watch and books that I don't want to read (or reread). Why, you ask? I've been asking myself this same question and I've decided that there could be several reasons. I'll list them below.
I might not want to watch a movie because....
1. I've never heard of the actors.
2. The time period seems boring or I anticipate the cinematography to be lacking.
3. My dad likes it; therefore, there's no way I will.
4. Josh likes it; therefore, there's no way I will.
5. I might not understand the language and I hate feeling stupid.
6. I think the characters look stupid (Star Trek) or are simply too weird (LOTR).
I'm sure there's more reasons, but those are the main ones. Anyway, another thing I wanted to go over before my review are my rules. I reserve the right to alter, add to or take away from the rules whenever and however I please :)
Rule #1 Although I am being advised, primarily by Chris Peters (thanks!), I choose the movies/books that I watch/read.
Rule #2 Going along with Rule #1, I will not watch "Classic" movies that I find offensive. Sorry, Silence of the Lambs.
Rule #3 There will be no timeline as to when my project will be completed. I will do my best to keep my blog updated often, so that my readers (you guys!) won't lose interest. On that note, please, live vicariously through me and my blog!
Rule #4 I will do my best to finish all books/movies that I start. However, you might find a blog that simply states "Blah."
Now on to my review. As I stated earlier, I began this "crusade" by watching Die Hard. It was available and my friends and I considered it to be "classic." The words I would use to sum up my thoughts about Die Hard would be...f***, impossible stunts, awesome "American" accents, muscles, exhausted.
Let me explain all of the above. First of all, I chose the "f" word because it was used A LOT. Seriously, I want to know how many times that word was used. I asked, probably halfway through the movie, what the rating was. I don't know why I even asked. It was obvious. Impossible stunts and muscles are self-explanitory (how did the hanging dude get down?). The awesome American accents came from the Germans. How do you fake an American Accent? I can't even fake a New York accent or a New Orleans accent. When you fake an American accent, which dialect do you fake? Kentucky? Wisconsin? (Seriously, I want an answer to that.) And the last word, exhausted. How long was this ordeal in Die Hard? He had to have been exhausted. Seven and a half hours at school does me in and I barely exert energy! Much less get shot and have physical altercations every half hour.
So, there ya have it. Critique numero uno. Up next? Casablanca, starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. We watched it last night, I just have other things to do now. This blog is ridiculously long.
KUDOS: Goes to Genna and Ellie for starting this adventure with me on Sunday! And also to my hubby, Josh. Poor thing, it's not even on his bucket list to do this! Oh yeah, I forgot to mention.....this whole thing is all because of my (potential) bucket list. More about that later.....
And that's the way the story reads....
(My signoff!)
I might not want to watch a movie because....
1. I've never heard of the actors.
2. The time period seems boring or I anticipate the cinematography to be lacking.
3. My dad likes it; therefore, there's no way I will.
4. Josh likes it; therefore, there's no way I will.
5. I might not understand the language and I hate feeling stupid.
6. I think the characters look stupid (Star Trek) or are simply too weird (LOTR).
I'm sure there's more reasons, but those are the main ones. Anyway, another thing I wanted to go over before my review are my rules. I reserve the right to alter, add to or take away from the rules whenever and however I please :)
Rule #1 Although I am being advised, primarily by Chris Peters (thanks!), I choose the movies/books that I watch/read.
Rule #2 Going along with Rule #1, I will not watch "Classic" movies that I find offensive. Sorry, Silence of the Lambs.
Rule #3 There will be no timeline as to when my project will be completed. I will do my best to keep my blog updated often, so that my readers (you guys!) won't lose interest. On that note, please, live vicariously through me and my blog!
Rule #4 I will do my best to finish all books/movies that I start. However, you might find a blog that simply states "Blah."
Now on to my review. As I stated earlier, I began this "crusade" by watching Die Hard. It was available and my friends and I considered it to be "classic." The words I would use to sum up my thoughts about Die Hard would be...f***, impossible stunts, awesome "American" accents, muscles, exhausted.
Let me explain all of the above. First of all, I chose the "f" word because it was used A LOT. Seriously, I want to know how many times that word was used. I asked, probably halfway through the movie, what the rating was. I don't know why I even asked. It was obvious. Impossible stunts and muscles are self-explanitory (how did the hanging dude get down?). The awesome American accents came from the Germans. How do you fake an American Accent? I can't even fake a New York accent or a New Orleans accent. When you fake an American accent, which dialect do you fake? Kentucky? Wisconsin? (Seriously, I want an answer to that.) And the last word, exhausted. How long was this ordeal in Die Hard? He had to have been exhausted. Seven and a half hours at school does me in and I barely exert energy! Much less get shot and have physical altercations every half hour.
So, there ya have it. Critique numero uno. Up next? Casablanca, starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. We watched it last night, I just have other things to do now. This blog is ridiculously long.
KUDOS: Goes to Genna and Ellie for starting this adventure with me on Sunday! And also to my hubby, Josh. Poor thing, it's not even on his bucket list to do this! Oh yeah, I forgot to mention.....this whole thing is all because of my (potential) bucket list. More about that later.....
And that's the way the story reads....
(My signoff!)
Sunday, September 12, 2010
The beginning of something beautiful (hopefully!)
I'm going to keep this initial blog short and sweet.
I am on a quest to read all "Classic American Literature."
Also on this quest, I will watch all "Classic American Films."
Hence the name "American Classics Tour."
Let's get this thing started! (More to come later-most definitely!)
I am on a quest to read all "Classic American Literature."
Also on this quest, I will watch all "Classic American Films."
Hence the name "American Classics Tour."
Let's get this thing started! (More to come later-most definitely!)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)