EXTRA! EXTRA! New Horizons For The Blog.....

       
 You have noticed that my last post was strange as it had nothing to do with what I'm usually known to write about, which is movies. Well, I've got some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that this blog will no longer focus to movies anymore. Why? It's because another blog of mine, Classic Cinema Reviews For Kids, has been dedicated to that job already and I'm also bored at reviewing current movies when other people are doing that job perfectly. My heart isn't into reviewing current movies anymore, so I've decided to stop doing it on this site.
     That doesn't mean that this blog's going away. In fact, I've got something better in mind. The good news is that this blog will now be an account of what I'm doing in my life and how I'm responding to it. I have come up with more ideas on what to do, and I'm excited to share them with the world.

Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy Entry on Homework

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy Entry:

Homework

By Matthew Floyd for  Mr. Tromble's class 11/13/12

 

 

          Earthlings are well known for creating stupid inventions that other extraterrestrial beings with superior knowledge will laugh at, as being either too cruel or too childish. As of this time of this current publication, only one invention has been identified as both cruel and childish at the same time. That invention has been called homework by Earthlings. Homework can come in many formats. It can be a simple piece of paper that asks ridiculously hard questions on a simple lesson or it can be a big piece of paper known as a project that tells what that subject is to a bunch of people who already know what the heck it is. Despite its many forms, homework still has the same purpose, which is to teach the young about the subject that they recently learned about. While completing, they are expected to do so without their teacher’s help or their understanding on the subject. This in theory should help the child learn the lesson by heart. The truth of the matter is that it causes the child to become illegally insane with anxiety attacks, abuse, stress, over excess of sweat, curved spines, loss of imagination, sudden gain of adulthood, and a hatred towards teachers or parents. It may also cause the child to resent school and be opposed to the system.

       Upon completion of their education, the students receive a shiny piece of paper that tells their future employer that they survived school and they need a job. Therefore, the child has grown into an adult and decides to be proud of homework for he thinks that working on it helped him earn that shiny piece of paper. (Other alien races have determined that homework had nothing to do with gaining a love for learning and remembering. Sadly, they're too polite to spoil the Earthling's shallow realization on homework.) The Earthling decides to celebrate by forcing people younger than himself to do homework, therefore making the cycle go on and on until the Earth was blown up by the Voogons. Fortunately, a similar pratice of homework has caused bloody student rebellions on other planets, so the practice has been replaced with the child receiving a programmable memory implant attached to their hand called computerization.

Top Five Movies Of 2012 So Far....

    Hey there, everyone! Since half of the year is over, most critics has decided to make a best of the year so far list because they are a) bored, b) want people to see these movies, or c) want to put a best of the year list out so if the world exploded tomorrow, their boss wouldn't yell at them for being too late with their list. Since I'm a critic, I've decided to follow tradition for I haven't written a post for a while. So to make it up for lost time, here's my top five movies of 2012 :
         #5.  The Hunger Games
         #4.  Salmon Fishing In The Yemen
         #3.  The Secret Life Of Arrietty
         #2.  Bully
         #1. Moonrise Kingdom

Summer Preview 2012 Part I

Tim and Moby from Brainpop are just excited to see these ba.. I mean good movies.

           Yeah! Summer's almost here! Well, at least for Hollywood. (For now.) The summer season, or the time to release big budgeted films to make millions of dollars, will begin on May 4th with The Avengers! Sadly, I'm not going to review that one for I didn't get to see the other films about superheroes. I'm guessing that they will reveal more about the heroes, which will be crucial to the plot of the movie, and I'm not going to Wikipedia to find them out. However, anything can happen for I previously had no intention to see and review The Hunger Games. ( Of course, an associate of mine came towards me, and pleaded me to go see it. Thanks a lot, guys.) Maybe one of them will beg me to review that movie. You'll just have to wait and see. Or you could comment below.
              Anyway, here's the other films that will fill up the month of May along with both my mom and my predictions. Enjoy.
May
 4:  The Avengers : I have no intention of seeing it for reasons above. If I do see it, I hope it's not a disappointment like most of the films last summer. However, I do like a good action flick from time to time, so maybe this one wouldn't suck. Predicted Grade: I have no idea, but I hope it's higher than B+. My mom's predicted grade: A+ (She really loves action movies.)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel: This looks an inspirational British comedy drama about several British retirees going to India and changing their lifestyles. My only concern is that it might have too many characters in it that the director doesn't care how to connect them together in a story, just like Contagion last year. (Only that had people dying not thriving.) Predicted Grade: B+  My mom's predicted grade: B+
11: Dark Shadows:  To be honest, I have only seen one Tim Burton movie, and that was 2005's Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. I sort of liked it, but I thought the director messed up the essential book and original movie by adding in way too dark moments to it. However, I've been trying to find time to watch his other films. Sadly, life has been unfair to me for I often forget to watch one of his other movies. (Please help!) This one looks kind of fun in its dark, twisted way with smuggled messages about family and love. However, I'm usually scared by dark films like this, and sometimes the jokes/story are too weak. But hey, it has Johnny Depp, whom I've heard that he is going to play Dr. Seuss pretty soon, so I would have to get used to him.  Predicted Grade: B- or C+. My mom's predicted grade: She has no idea, but definitely higher than C. (She thinks this is weird.)
18: Battleship: No! No! Why did Hollywood had to mess up one of the great board games ever?!? Here's how:  Just Make a movie based on a classic non weird military game, and have bloodthirsty/ unfairly portrayed racist aliens play the humans in a game of it. I'm not kidding. Predicted Grade: D for stupid dog .. wait doesn't JeremyJahns own this rating. D'oh! My mom's predicted grade: A+ (Even her common sense loves action movies.)
25: Men In Black 3: Since Hollywood is borrowing story lines from movies that have basically the same story as each other, I've decided to borrow this statement from Lights Camera Jackson, who stated that  "J goes back in time to 1969 where he meets a younger K ...and guess what? - There's another alien invasion!" This quote read my mind for I think the idea's overdone, stupid, unoriginal and simply not funny! If an alien invasion took place back then, most of the current "Earthlings" wouldn't be alive today for their parents/grandparents would be apparently dead!Holy cow! Predicted Grade:  D+. Sorry, Will Smith, but if this preview is right, I might have to cry. My mom's predicted grade: No intention of seeing it at all, but probably from her look on her face when she saw the trailer, a C-.
25: Moonrise Kingdom: Finally an independent film that I hope doesn't suck like these other previous two. Here's a funny film which has an original plot, great acting, fantastic music, impressionistic cinematography, and it happens to be directed by Wes Anderson, whom I've never seen a movie of his. I'm not kidding, and just like Tim Burton, I always do not have enough time to watch any of his movies. But, here's my chance to see one up close! Predicted Grade: A- My mom's predicted grade: B
           The last movie I previewed seems to be evidence for Christy Lemire's opinion that modern Hollywood is falling flat on its face with its movies, while non-Hollywood features are becoming better and more memorable as the years go by. Case in point: I'm so excited to see two films being released here in May. One is First Position , which is a documentary about this ballet contest that is super important to the young people attending it. The other is The Intouchables. No, it has nothing to do with the Brian De Palma film. Instead, it's about this loving relationship between this really sick man and his caretaker. These movies' trailers are just stunning to watch that they are masterpieces. So far.

The Hunger Games (2012) B

May The Odds Ever Be... Oh Shut Up!

                   I'm not a fan of sports. To me, they involve competition and it advocates that in order to win you have to beat the heck out of someone or pulverize another team. I'm not that type of blood thirsty person. Sadly, our entire culture devotes itself to that kind of bleep. Sorry that I had to say it because it's true when you consider the fact that a very popular movie has the plot of a whole country obsessed with a fatal sport. It's called Fun-In-A-Box from The Cat In The Hat. Just kidding. It's really called The Hunger Games from Suzanne Collin's book of the same name.
            To be honest with you, I haven't read the books. I just found them too gruesome and they're not my cup of tea. In fact, I would probably wouldn't have watched this if you guys didn't tell me to review this. So let's get started.
            After a catastrophic war  destroys North America, a new nation comprised of twelve districts emerge from its ruins to be called Panam. (No relation to the airplane industry that was ahead of my time.) Sadly, all of the districts are ruled by the insanely rich/evil Capitol. How evil is it? Well for starters, it decrees that every year, every district will send "one courageous man and woman" to an arena where they will  all fight to death on a televised show. (In other words, it's like if The Truman Show, The Most Dangerous Game, 1984,The Minotaur Myth, The Lottery, and basically every adventure story were invited to party where Battle Royale was its theme.) Simple really.
          Anyway, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers to go fight when her sister, Primrose, is chosen. What follows is her preparation and training for the big battle, which happens for half of the movie. She also falls in love with her fellow tribute named Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). Then, the battle begins, and I pose this question to you: Will she live or will she die? If she lives, does that mean that she have to watch her love one die?
          To say it again,  I've never been a fan of the original book, since it was too disturbing for my taste. Yet, I love the fact that kids are willing to think about issues even more. Issues like feminism, religion, class system, governments, war, and of course how they will get over the fact that Suzanne Collins used to write for the popular T.V. series, Little Bear. (I'm not kidding on the last statement.)
               I hate the way that in the beginning, the director decided to use hand-hand camera , which really is annoying. No one wants to feel seasick from the cinematography. I also agree with Light Camera Jackson's opinion that the ending is a "a cop-out ending." Sorry for the spoiler, but I had to do it. I really hate those kind of endings. Plus, I also agree with Roger Ebert who wished for more social commentary, which would made it even more interesting. Does that mean that you should skip it? Nope.
            The directing awesome, the sets remind me of Metropolis, which is a high compliment, and it's so suspenseful that my knees were shaking all of the time. In fact, I'm very glad that Suzanne Collins co-wrote the script, for it always help if the original creator wrote the script. (It makes it more fun for the reviewers and audience.) But, my favorite part of this is the acting! All of the acting were great, and for some reason I was always interested with Elizabeth Bank's character, which I have no explanation for. Maybe because she looks good in those clothes.
          The real scene stealer is Jennifer Lawrence! She had the strongest acting and she was lovely and feisty as Katniss. Yet, she's got a heartbreaking side as she will do anything for her sister's survival. Plus, most reviewers/fans have noted that they knew that only she could pull the role off perfectly as Clark Gable did with Rhett Butler in Gone With The Wind.
        Note for those non fans , like me : This movie will not change your opinion of the books. It's just too disturbing/violent , and since most non fans have that idea, you will not be won over. However, there are exceptions , like my mom wants to know what happens next. So, that makes a fan who will probably see this movie for the 74th time. For non fans: May The Odds Ever Be In Your Favor.
    8/10

My new blog on classic cinema is up! :)

I won't spoil it by telling you what's on it, so go to http://matt-comicaltales.blogspot.com/. Enjoy! :)

Top 10 Worst Arthur Episodes Ever ,Part 2

Here's my top five worst episodes that Arthur have premiered on television. Enjoy!

Actually, it still is your fault that the Nostalgia Critic hates us

                      The Top Ten Worst Arthur Episodes Of All Time Continued
 #5.  I Owe You One ( 12-07) -  After learning about interest, Buster realizes that he owes his friends about a million favors, and he agrees to do them all for them. What a mess this episode turned out to be. For example, the characters teach kids about interest in a really sloppy way. Seriously!  I got so confused about interest while watching it, and it's nothing like that at all. Plus, if Buster is doing work for his friends, are they owing him money? Unfortunately , it doesn't answer it but raises another question; why does Buster always appear in the horrible ones?  I mean there's a lot of inconsistencies and boring plot lines in here that will put kids to sleep. If there weren't four more horrible ones, this would have been #1 already.
#4.  Nicked By A Name (14-03) The main reason why this episode sucks so badly is because it has no idea of what it wants to be. Does it want to be a quirky little episode about Brain giving all of his classmates new nicknames, thus giving him complete control of their lives or does it want to be another let's talk about bullying episode in which name calling hurts the soccer team? Without any sense of framing or set goals, a narrative can't fulfill the honor of telling a story as the plot will have no relevance to the viewer. Plus, Brain comes up with the most ridiculous names ever using an esoteric method from an advertising book. Don't laugh for I did the same thing in my pre-school class. Oh wait. I used my English to French dictionary to pick out nicknames for my classmates, not from an advertising book.
#3.  In My Africa (14-09)   Brian's cousin moves in from Africa, and D.W. is struggling to learn about the country. So, they decide to make a song about it! What's the point of this episode? Kids don't want another lesson in Africa, and the song doesn't make any reference to how they can help others there. Instead, it sugarcoats everything and makes Africa seems like an over educated gasbag. What a shame. This episode had so much potential but they messed it up with this silly song about Africa. Okay, the song's not as bad as others, but really we want life lessons from this show! Maybe this episode should have talked about moving problems or helping out others in Africa or getting used to one's cultural identity. Sadly, they decide to sing about Africa's wonders and deal with bullying which is a cliche in Arthur now. What a shame.
#2.  Whistling In The Wind (15-02)   Timmy Tibble is really upset because his brother can whistle while he can't. So how does he solve it? By punching the living daylights out of him so they can both get their middle tooth knocked out, involving them to whistle very badly. Whoa. Whoever thought that violence is acceptable in solving everyday problem, must be fired immediately because it really doesn't in real life. After all, they did do an episode on how to resolve conflicts peacefully. Remember? Now, they expect us to believe that revenge and violence will make you the same as him.What in the world are they they teaching kids? Maybe they should have taught to accept each other's differences. That way, they can't hurt each other, causing physical and social problems! Oh my gosh!
           The worst Arthur episode of all time is ........ Get Smart (16-04). The entire sixteenth season is just horrid to watch as there was a different company making them now. Unfortunately that same company also did Max And Ruby. Classy, guys. The sketchy animation is horrid, the "modern" storylines involving a ripoff of the I-Pad often don't work in the context of the show, the characters are unrecognizable, and the worse thing about the new season is that the creators don't care about their subject matter as they treat it if it was made for stupid little children. Even then stupid little children are smarter than what adults give them credit for. The one episode that really got under my skin and also made me give up on Arthur was Get Smart.  Oh my goodness, it's terrible. I don't know what they did to the show, but when you watch it, your childhood is officially over as one of the greatest shows ever has been brought down to levels of  unreachable stupidity that I won't ever forget as long as I live. Period. Just watch it on Youtube and you'll understand why I'm scarred for life. No, wait. Don't do it for you will be scarred for life as well. :(
       Remember the good old days when the script had life lessons that everyone could relate to, great wit, character depth, and realistic situations. Well, it's gone unless the staff goes back and re watch the classic episodes of Arthur, like Arthur's Eyes, D.W., The Picky Eater, and You Are Arthur. The reason why these episodes and hundreds like them were great was because the sophisticated and timeless themes remained relevant with its viewers even when they reached adulthood. Let's pray for Arthur's salvation from crap.

Top Ten Worst Arthur Episodes Of All Time Part 1

                 Now, I know that I'm supposed to do only movie reviews, but while I was looking up on my brand new computer, I checked out Arthur, one of my favorite T.V. shows of all time. To my surprise, PBS has decided to put some of the " Let's Talk To Some Kids" segments on its website. I felt so happy because they're finally recognizing why Arthur is a great show, and it's because of its honesty, originality, and humor. Tragically, they've been messing it up with horrible episodes, especially in the later seasons. So in honor of its 15th year, I decided to do a top ten on its worst episodes! Have fun.

Poor Arthur......

                      The Top Ten Worst Arthur Episodes Of All Time (Or In My Opinion)

 #10. Bleep (8-10)  D.W. overhears an angry teenager say a bad word in a store, causing her to investigate what that word means without getting herself into trouble. My major concern with this one isn't the messages or animation or writing, but the actual "bad words" themselves. Earlier in the episode, Arthur explains what the bleep means in television and then imagines what would happen if he had the bleep machine. So, basically all of the words that his friends are being bleeped aren't bad words, but they must be bad words for they are getting bleeped. What are you trying to teach kids? Then, after D.W. learns an actual bad word, ( censored), she says it a couple of times, and so does her friends. Oh come on, Arthur! Why can't you just use a word that's recognizable as a word that kids shouldn't say, but is okay not to be censored, like imbecile? This one made me very uncomfortable, seeing toddlers saying bad words in a kid's show. What the bleep! Sorry, I just wanted to make a point.
      # 9.Misfortune Teller ( 1 -23) In this one, Prunella's older sister, Rubella, gives a cootie catcher to her at-first snobby sister. ( She matured throughout the series.) However, all of the kids become possessed with it after some of its predictions come true. This episode seems like one that has a great message of living life, but I just found it pretty ridiculous and stupid that no one in real life would believe. Kids are smarter than adults take them for, and they know the difference between reality and fiction. Even if the predictions come true, they know better than to believe that it had something to do with it. ( Trying to have fun with guessing is the main reason why cootie catchers are still made, despite my hatred of it.) Also, I found the kids more meaner than all of the others. When Muffy tries to give Prunella her cootie catcher, the latter selfishly refuses it. What a mean jerk! Finally, there are more goofs in this episode, than in any other one. You can find them on http://arthur.wikia.com/wiki/Misfortune_Teller.  
#8.  To Eat Or Not To Eat ( 15-05) Buster is in the mood to munch down on the newest candy bar when he checks and tries to find out the ingredients in it, leading him deeper into a conspiracy. Despite its promising plot, it failed because of three reasons. 1) The mystery subplot in which Buster imagines himself as a detective from old movies. Aw come on, guys! He already is a detective! I also found it offensive since the whole sequence is in color, while most of the detective films of the olden days were filmed in black-and-white, which worked perfectly for the mood. If color was made for them, the mood would be dumb. Alas, this sequence is dumber since Buster's talking to a candy bar dressed and talking like a dame! He must be on drugs already. 2) We already know this information because most of America's shows did an investigation into ingredients. Also, we already know not to trust in ads from an earlier Arthur episode! 3) Kids don't care about the ingredients because they just want something to eat. Just look at any snack's ingredients and it's full of junk, but kids do eat it and don't mind it! Plus, Brian tells Buster that the candy includes some radioactive elements. If that was to happen, then everyone who eats it will get poisoned and die! Get some sense, Arthur!
#7.  Buster The Lounge Lizard (15-04)  Buster brings his toy into school, but since it's highly sensitive to all five senses, it somehow gets into the teacher's lounge. Then, they try to get it back, which I still don't get it. I mean why they can't just ask the teachers to search in there in the first place. This episode raises a lot of other questions. 1) How in the world did Buster's toy become highly sensitive?!?   2) If Binky only wanted to help to get his toy back, is he becoming a bully? 3) If Mr. Ratburn can give that toy back, why didn't he give back the phones, and all other toys back? After all, they were also highly sensitive! 4) If Mr. Ratburn explained that teachers are normal people in Mr. Ratburn Moves In, why do the kids still imagine them as weird beings? This show must have Alzheimer's, otherwise it would remember this piece of logic. Sadly, none of these questions are answered, and there are still lots of other questions on my mind about this stupid episode, but I will not go on my rant ,yet.
#6.   Buster's Best Behavior (4-09)  Buster wants to be someone else, and Arthur wants to be like Buster. Ironically, they get everyone really piss... I mean frustrated..... about their behaviors, so they learned to be yourself. Aw come on, you guys. We already did this throughout the entire series, and all of them are better than this poor excuse of an Arthur episode. In fact, I'm going to borrow from and give credit to Arthur Wiki. After all, you're borrowing from everything else! Take the script for example, as it gives out sparkling dialogue as this: "Wow, you guys really beat us!"  How about this:  "Wow! My really good lines are now replaced by ones that could make the writers get fired. Great one, guys." I mean, come on! You could have done something really better than that really dumb line! It also can take the place of a Lars Von Trier's film with its depressing storyline. Okay, they don't die, but I feel miserable from watching the characters suffering unfair punishments. Buster's whole entire life is dedicated to "telling jokes", while Arthur's life is summed up as "going on and on about sisters and pet dog." Wow, life is really rewarding them. Not!
       I'm coming up with the top five worst Arthur episode ever, so stay tuned!

My opnions on the Oscars!

Last night, I prayed that the Oscars didn't suck like last time, which was painful to watch, except for the winners. Luckily, Hollywood learned its lesson for it did an entertaining look at why the movies are so important, while giving out some great wins.
The feel of the entire show was magical, as everyone pulled it off with wit, charm, and finally great presenters and hosting. Last year, I thought I would look at the show in shame, for the hosts,(Anne and James), really sucked. However, Billy ruled the night and restored my hopes. He's the perfect host. He can act,dance,sing,and make the audience laugh and cry @ the same time. Though the music destroyed his opening tribute to the nominees, his grace saved the day.
Just as the host improved greatly, so did the presenters. In fact, everything improved. (Except for the microphones.) From the interviews on how to make a great film to the circus performance, and even the brief cameos of the dog and the Muppet reminded me of the good old days, when we actually cared about the Oscars. (Even though I saw those on YouTube.)
I was also happy for the winners, even though I was pretty pissed off that I lost to my brother's girlfriend. (I got 13 right, while she got 15 right.) Here's my thoughts on the winners:
Best Score: Even though I'm happy for The Artist, I do have to point out that it uses a lot of Vertigo in there. I remembered that last year that they prevented True Grit from entering in because it had used some old hymns. If The Artist can win even if it uses Vertigo for nearly 1/3 of the score, why can't True Grit at least got a nomination?
Best Song: I'm very happy about The Muppets winning.
Best Original Screenplay: I'm very happy about Woody Allen winning for the awesome adaptation of Midnight In Paris.
Best Adapted Screenplay: Roger Ebert's smarter than me, for I picked Moneyball instead of The Descendants.
Best Foreign Film: I'm very happy about A Separation, so now i can see it.
Best Visual Effects: Don't be pushy with me. Even though The Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes looks great, Hugo's effects were stupendous, as it gathered four other awards in the visuals department.
Best Documentary: I have no idea why Buck wasn't nominated, but I still got it wrong when The Undefeated won.
Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer won as everyone predicted, so he finally got one, and everyone used him like a free space. So, it was a win-win for everyone. Yay!
Best Supporting Actress: Octavia, you rock! Your scene stealing performance in The Help got you an Oscar! :)
Best Animated Film: Rango won, which adds to the growing list of why I should see it. Oh why haven't I checked this one out!?!
Best Director: Michel's brilliant direction amazingly won over the Academy as they gave him his first Academy Award. What a great award for a great movie. Hint. Hint.
Best Actress: This was the biggest surprise as I excepted Viola Davis to win, but was I surprised to learn that Meryl Streep won for The Iron Lady. Even though I'm happy that she doesn't have to sit through another show without winning, I'm really upset that Viola didn't get her deserved award. :(
Best Actor: Even though I was tragically devastated about Viola not winning, I was thrilled about when Jean won Best Actor, becoming the first French actor to win Best Actor, and he deserved it, my bon amis. (I think that's how you say good friends. I think. Never mind, let me just write my good friends.)
Best Picture: 2011 was a great year for movies, except for the ones that sucked. However, most of the nine Best Picture nominees were great. ( Okay, I've seen only seven, but give me a break.) However, there must be only one winner, and the winner is Winnie The Pooh! Just kidding. It was The Artist, which is one of my favorite movies of all time. Have a good day, but did you know that The Artist is the first silent film to win Best Picture since the 1st ceremony began. Congrats to all of the winners. :)

P.S.  I am still grieving about my loss , but at least  I did get one of the short films right! Yes! :)

The Oscars Predictions

Hi there! I'm so sorry that you haven't heard from me since my last review, but things have been really busy this past month. But luckily, tonight's the night to learn which films will be taking the gold. That's right. Tonight's the Oscars! It will be on ABC @ 7pm for the red carpet and all. ( Sorry, ONCE UPON A TIME fans, but it will not be on tonight on ABC.)
Enough of me chattering. Here's my predictions on who will win the Oscars.
Best Picture: The Artist. Just because it's a great movie. Period.
Best Actor: Let's just wait a second. Still stuck between Clooney and Jean.
Best Actress: Viola Davis for her brilliant performance in the Help.
Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer's is the shoe in for this, but it could be an upset if Jonah Hill wins.
Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer for The Help. The reason is because she's just awesome as Minnie.
Best Director: I have to say sorry to Martin Scorese. Even though you won Best Director @ the Golden Globes, Michel Hazanavicius for his masterpiece, The Artist, will win. Sorry, but I did enjoy your film, Hugo.
Best Actor: Finally, I've come up with one. The winner will be Jean because he's awesome. However, I will not be surprised if George wins.
Note: I will write my reviews for the rest of the nominees this week. :)

Midnight In Paris (2011) *** 1/2

I love you Paris!

          After my hometown, Paris has got to be one of my favorite cities ever. Its magic, beauty, and great food have always made me feel romantic about it. That's coming from someone who hasn't been there yet! :( Luckily, there's Woody Allen's masterpiece, Midnight In Paris.
            Gil, a successful screenwriter, and his fiance, Inez, goes to Paris for a trip. However, Gil (Owen Wilson) wants to stay there, but Inez (Rachel McAdams) wants to go back home. She also discourages him from writing his first novel, and spends a lot of time with a charming, yet inaccurate "pseudo-intellectual" , who's played so brilliantly by Micheal Sheen, that you want to take him along for your vacations. Unless he's arguing with the tour guide and annoying everyone. Not a good idea, then.
         Feeling stressed out ( and drunk), our budding/doomed writer goes on a walk through the streets of the enchanted city. Through a bit of strange and wisely unexplained magic, he finds himself time traveled back to the golden days of Paris, when famed writers like Hemingway, and Fitzgerald were admiring Paris. A time when Picasso  was painting famous masterpieces for Gertrude Stein. A time when....okay, I'll stop. It's just that I know all of the famous people he meets when he goes back to his favorite period. Yeah!
        Soon, he falls in love with the magnificent Adriana, (Marion Cotillard) which makes big trouble with Inez. Especially, if she can't go back in time, which makes her think that Gil is becoming weird. After all, he has been walking a lot at midnight, and strange things have happened since last night. I could tell you more, but I want you to experience this charming, lovely little film for yourself.
        Everything about this movie is as perfect as it already can be. The music scores a truer portrait of Paris than most other wanna-bes, like you Monte Carlo. The cinematography, costume design, and set designs were very accurate for the time period of both now and then.
           However, the comedy in here might be a little too rich for some viewers. While I could identify most of the historical figures, (I'm a history fan), I only chuckled at 67% of the jokes. That's because Woody Allen wants the viewer to observe and feel the city of lights as it illuminates into their deepest translations of their souls. Yet, he should have the jokes more apparent, for this is after all a comedy, and comedies make people laugh.
          Yet, this is a very superb comedy. The reason why I personally love this flick is because for three reasons. My first reason is that all of the actors and actresses played their roles with such enchantment that the audience falls in love with their personalities. Owen Wilson, and his leading girlfriends can play comedy and romance at the same time with wonderful grace, and they convinced the audience much more than the stars in Water For Elephants. At the same time, all of the icons that Gil meets are played just as wonderfully by Kathy Bates, Alison Phil, Corey Stooll, Tom Hiddleston, Sonia Rolland, Adrien Brody, and many more. If they do have movies in Heaven, then all of the people played to amazement would have loved this dearly.
           My second reason is Woody Allen, whose script and direction combines the right amount of ideas and illusions that whenever the words are spoken, they seem to flow along with the music of Paris, as it echoes with joy. In fact, that's my final must-see reason. This film is a love poem of all the great and astounding sights of Paris, which makes it even more special.
     

Oscar Reactions!

                  The little golden guy seems to really love old fashioned films, as Hugo led the race with 11 nominations. The Artist came in close second with 10. I'm so happy that they have so many chances of winning. Yet, I was still upset and confused at some things.  Here's my other reactions:
Snubs:
     Steven Spielberg directed two essentials this year, War Horse , and The Adventures Of Tintin. However, he got snubbed when he didn't get a nod for Best Director. :( 
      The Best Animated Film category officially said goodbye to Disney and Pixar this year, when Winnie The Pooh, and Cars 2 weren't nominated, even though the two films were very good family films. In fact, I treated my baby cousins to see Winnie The Pooh, and we both loved it. At least, Disney has War Horse and The Help to fall back on. 
      Why in the world are there only 2 songs in Best Original Song Category!?! Was the Academy even listening to the song fulled movies, or were they listening to The Voice? They were probably listening to the t.v. show because they had 39 potential choices for getting nominated, and only 2 got picked. 
         Most critics, (including me), loved the great documentaries Buck and Project Nim. Ironically, the Academy members must not have seen those for they didn't get even nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Oh well. At least, they get to join Hoop Dreams, The Thin Blue Line, The Interrupters, Roger & Me, Touching The Void, Fahrenheit 9/11, The Hindenburg Newsreel Footage, These Amazing Shadows, Waiting For Superman, and Crumb on the list of great documentaries that were ignored by the Oscar. 
            The Best Acting awards seems to hate Leonardo Dicaprio, Micheal Fassbinder, Tilda Swinton, Andy Serkis, Charlize Theron, Albert Brooks, Ryan Gosling, Micheal Shannon, and Seth Rogan as they didn't get deserved nominations. Maybe, they can form the "Snub Club" in honor of today. 
   Surprises ( Both Good And Bad):
    I was delighted to see The Help, War Horse, Midnight In Paris, The Artist, and Moneyball all get nominated for Best Picture, for I have seen and loved those. I was equally delighted that Hugo, The Descendants, and The Tree Of Life were also there, since I now have another reason to my ever going list of why I should see them. The biggest surprise is that Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close got nominated, even though Rotten Tomatoes has a rating of 48% from critics. However, I haven't seen it, so I will probably check it out.
       I was very happy that the Academy decided to nominate obscure and hard-to-find films in the category of Best Animated Feature. In fact, two of them I've never heard of were nominated. They were Chico & Rita and Cat In Paris, which means that I will probably review them.
      A Separation from Iran was nominated for Best Foreign Film, which excited me because some of my brother-in-law's family came from Iran, which gives me a different perspective. I will  also probably have to find it now and review it.
        Though I loved most of the nominations, (like Demain Bichir for A Better Life and Meryl Streep's 17th nomination for The Iron Lady), I was annoyed at one of my least favorite films getting nominated, and that is Transformers: Dark Of The Moon. It's just too loud, too cynical, and it's too destructive for a movie to even exist! And I've seen it all in the trailers, for I will never see this terrible film. Don't worry for Melissa Mccrathy, Puss In Boots and Harry Potter will get revenge, because they are nominated, and a lot of people just love them so much.
          For the upcoming weeks, I will do a review for most of the nominees, except for Bridesmaids, which I saw and was asked not to review it. :(  Thankfully, I will do a review for the Best Picture nominees. Enjoy as you wait to see the ceremony on Feb. 26th on ABC. :)

      

Shout-Out! January 15th

       I've got a lot of very important news. 1) My reviews for January 8th to January 16th will be posted this week, 2) Most of the people who voted on my blog would have given the top dramatic award to War Horse. Yes, it was an excellent film, and we all knew who would win the top comedic award; The Artist. However, congratulations to the 12% of voters , (or the one) who correctly picked The Descendants as the winner. Your prize is this shout out! :) Finally, for my reviews, I'm changing it from movies in 2011, to have this moth have a special theme. This month, while I'm doing my regular reviews, I'll do some special ones for movies that do with the theme of movie's best firend, classic books and the law! Have fun!

The Artist (2011) ****

This Review Has Been Made "With Pleasure"

            January 7th is my birthday! That means that I always see a movie with my family in the theater, which is a rare occasion for us. Last year, we saw one of my favorite films, The King's Speech. Now, I've got another film to add on that important list.
                 You mostly heard of The Artist because it was made in black and white ,96% silent, and it was made in 2011, the year where sound and color dominates everything else. Yet, it stands out from all of the other movies because it has a compelling story, great acting, great directing, and a lot of montages to old film, which is one of my favorite passions. After all, in order to learn about today, you have reflect on the past.
          It's set in 1927 Hollywood, where action idol George Valentine (Jean Dujardin) is the talk of the town. Then, he bumps into an up and coming star, Peppy (Berenice Bejo), whom he treats kindly. However, sound hits theaters, and George's career is ruined after he makes a bomb. Ironically, Peppy's career begins to really rise as he falls. Yet, she still remembers him after everyone else forgets.
          During this masterpiece, I remember cheering for the characters, because they were played pitch perfectly. Oh wait, this is a silent movie, so pitch is out of the question. Let's just say that all of the acting in here is perfect. Jean's Canne Festival award winning role makes you really realize how comic and sad life can be in all types of business, even show business. Early in one scene, after being kissed by Peppy, his wife seems to question him about the girl. ( Yes, he's married.) In response to this, George does a fun little comic act with his dog, Uggie, which makes his wife even more angrier that she stomps off. He looks at her departure dreamily, and then turns to his dog to finish the act. This shows that George was trying to put a questionable situation into a comic situation, which made his wife upset. After he does this, he asks his chauffeur to get some pearls for her. This also shows that he wants to make up for what he did to her. Tragically, this late act may have been one of the reasons for his downfall, whom Jean is able to play with such realness and sophistication, that you care for him.
          Berenice's role is also perfect as a woman who also shows the same material as her male counterpart. For example, while rising to fame, she goes to see George's new silent film, Tears Of Love. Since her new film is a talkie and even more popular, the film is a disaster. After the bankrupt George goes home, she visits him with her boyfriend. She tells him that she loved his movie, yet her boyfriend arrives, exclaiming that he's honored to meet George, because his father loved his works. Peppy is embarrassed by this, who decides to go home. Berenice is able to play a rising star who has such emotional feelings for the man who helped her, that you want to cry along with her.
         At the same time, her chemistry with George is terrific that you feel like that they really do have feelings with each other. Spoiler Alert: In one scene, George convinces the studio boss to let Peppy into the movie, and later in the movie, Peppy convinces that same boss to let George be in her movie. This shows that they care for each other and wants to work with each other.
           The rest of the movie is also superb as the actors. Uggie ,who's always perfect in everything, always steals the show as George's comical/ cute/ heroic dog.  John Goodman,  James Cromwell, and Penelope Ann Miller act very realistically in the movie that you fell like you would see them in a classic film. By the way, this movie plays like an old movie. This is not only an entertaining glimpse of Hollywood, but its music, set design, actors, actresses, costumes, and everything else seems to be honoring other great films, such as Vertigo, Sunset Blvd., The Mark Of Zorro, and Top Hat.
        Congratulations for making such a brilliant film with no flaws ( in my opinion), that has made my first essential grade, an A. However, the only complaint I do have is that after the movie was over, I was the only one in the audience who clapped at the end, and it was packed! It seems so sad that no one clapped for it, yet I think that they were soaking its brilliance in, thus honoring a truly wonderful movie.
          

Water For Elephants (2011) ** 1/2

First Bella, Now Renee.....

             I've actually never been to a circus before, though I always wanted to. All of my friends who had seen one told me that it was a very magical event in their whole entire lives, and that they would never forget it. Well, Water For Elephants captures that amazing circus experience, and much more.
           In the drama, Jacob Jankowski (Robert Pattinson) almost gets his veterinary college degree, when his parents get killed in a car crash. Since this is the Great Depression, he is kicked out of his house, and finds work at the Benzini Brothers Circus as a vet for the animals, including a smart elephant. ( Looks like movies always finds a solution.) While he's there, he falls in love with the star attraction, Marlena, who's gorgeously played by Resse Witherspoon. As always in these movies, they fall in love, which really upsets her husband, August. He's also the circus owner, animal trainer,Marlene's husband, the main evil antagonist, the ringleader, and played by Oscar winner Christoph Waltz. Uh-oh.
          This film was filmed in the old-fashioned sense of entertainment, in which life is very magical, and everything is cotton candy, popcorn, champagne, and elephant dung. For example, I kept being mesmerized by the beautiful circus scenes, especially when Resse does something extraordinary with the horses and the elephant. It's just so amazing and perfect, that I wish I saw it in a real circus.
      However, it also shows viewers the darker side of show business, and nothing comes close to representing darkness than its villain, August. Throughout this entire movie, I could remember hating this evil, greedy, temperamental, psychologically troubled, hypocritical, wickedly charming, and loathing brat. There I wrote it, and I feel better. If an actor plays someone so malicious and you write bad words about him, he's doing a really good job.
          Fortunately, we've got our romantic couple to lean on for support, and they did really great acting. We could feel the inner demons that they suffer from, and we really sympathize with them. The chemistry between them was okay, but not like the Spencer and Kate playful love type at all. At least, it worked for the movie's magical tone. The only real complaint was that I found Jacob really bland/average. (America, please don't hate me. I know that he won the Teen's Choice movie award, which he deserved, but that's how I felt what his character felt like. I felt like that role could have been played better by Leonardo DiCaprio.) However, Resse was great and perfectly cast as the female love, and she really brings out her best in this role.
        The rest of the acting was terrific, and Rosy the elephant is wonderful and smart. In one scene, she took out her stake, and went to drink some lemonade, and then she went back to her spot, and made it look that it never happened. :) The art direction was appropriate for the time period, the filming was awesome and I learned a lot more about circuses than I did before.
              However, there just seem to be too many cliques in Water For Elephants. In fact, I could do a side by side comparison with the movie Titanic (1997), and I'd get the same results. For both films, there's an old guy tells story, a big disaster, and a love affair that's smack dab in the middle of it. The only real difference is the time period and setting. Another problem I had with this was that it was very predictable. Even though I never read the book, I could already tell what was going to happen, and predictability always frustrates me.  Grr.
          My major concern comes from Roger Ebert's review, in which he states that this is " pure family entertainment". Sorry, Roger, but you're wrong. This had way too much sex, violence ( Rosy, Jacob, and Marlene gets beaten a lot during this movie), and drinking to be allowed as a family film. I think the reason why he said it was because of the musical score by James Newton Howard. The haunting score reminds us of our childhood, where the magic of circuses was and still is everywhere.
   

War Horse PG-13 (2011) A-

Another Great Poster For Another Great Spielberg Movie

            In 1918, it must have been a tragedy for millions of people when they heard that their loved ones had died in World War One, then known as "The Great War". It must have been equally tragic for those animal lovers in Britain who learned that 8 million horses died in the terrifying war.  War Horse, which is based on Micheal Morpurgo's bestseller and the Tony- award winning play, tells the story of a horse who saw the destruction up close.
    Spoiler Alert: Albert (Jeremy Irvine) 's beloved horse , Joey, is sold off to the British Army because his family is ridiculously poor, even though they have a goose that they could have sold to Celia Foote in The Help. However, thanks to a ill-advised attack against the Germans, Joey gets to experience life on the German side. However, he runs away with a fellow horse to temporarily live with Emile (Cecile Buckens) and her grandfather (Niels Arestrup) before working as .....you get the picture. By being with a lot of different owners, we , along with Joey, get to have an understanding from all sides that war  always hurts, and that noone desreves to be in one..
       Both the acting and the directing was excellent as always in Speilberg's movies. Emily Watson, Jeremy Irvine, Niels Arestrup, Cecile Buckens, Peter Mullan, Tom Hiddleston, and countless others were great, as they play people that you care for and cry for when bad things happen to them. Of course, the audience always cries at the deaths of the horses , ( no , I'm not telling if Joey lives or not), because they were brillant and naive characters stuck in history's epic sweep.
       As for Spielberg, his trademark faces and angles bring this beautifully cinematographic war drama to great understanding.  John William's music is always perfect, and despite a couple of bad editing, ( after all this is Spielberg's first film with digital editing, so you can't blame him), the flow and feel of this movie was like seeing a beautiful, yet sad epic. Yet, the real star of this whole picture is the horse.
                Joey plays the role so perfectly, and with such great tragedy, that if there was an Oscar for best animal performance, he will be a strong contender for it. I read in a review by Roger Ebert, that the way Spielberg decided to make Joey a voice for the countless others who died in the war, reminded him of the way he did the same with the survivors in Schindler's List, symbolizing how significant both of them were. Well, Mr. Ebert is right , because the way Joey acted is just enough to make a person weep with dignity as they did in the mentioned film above. The survivors from both movies, ( no, I'm telling you whether Joey lives to see Albert or not) tells the audience that even though history was horrible, we can make sure that its mistakes never happened again. Thank you.
           On my grading scale, War Horse gets an A-. Steven Spielberg has been known for making great films. Is this his greatest film? No. However, this may be a contender for Spielberg's one of his great movies list. Just make sure that you have a lot of tissues when you see this. It will make your heart feel like it will burst , which epics are made for doing.

Buck (2011) PG A-

A Great Man And A Lot Of Other Horses

            Heroism isn't just people doing the right things. It's about people (or animals) sacrificing to help someone out, even though bad things may have  happened in the hero's life. Buck tells a story about one of those heroes that we love to talk about and listen to.
           In this inspiring documentary, Buck Brannaman ( better known as "The Horse Whisperer) is explored with great honesty and hope, as his father abused him and his brother when they were just kids. After his harsh childhood, he started to start his clinics which helps a lot of troubled horses and their owners. We also get to see how Buck lives out his lonely life, traveling all over the country to present his clinics, in which he overcame his shyness to do so.
            What struck me most in this movie was how horrifying his childhood was. However, he managed to help out so many people, by just doing the things that he wished his dad had done to him: being kind. He has helped so many people and horses that you know the reason why he's called a genuis.
         Buck also has his own philosophy in which you should treat horses as you would treat yourself or anyone else.  For example,  when a deeply troubled/ psychotic horse refuses to treat his owners with respect, even though Buck just taught him respect, his owners decide to take the horse back and put it to sleep. However, as Buck is leading his horse back to the trailer, he doesn't whip or treat the horse like it's worthless. He instead treats it with a firm but gentle hand. This scene shows us that Buck still is a man who wants to help others, even though they've done bad things to others.
          Though this movie's chronological order was out of place and it's pacing was slow, Buck's good character--- no wait, let's say awesome character---  kept me loving his personality. Thank you, for helping us all understand that you should always help out others.
          I'm going to give an A-, which is a tribute to a real hero.
     9/10

Contagion PG-13 (2011) B-

Spoiler: Wash Your Hands!

                Note to users: After seeing Contagion, make sure that you wash your hands with a lot of soap and water,for you will never take touching a less serious thing ever again.  The reason is that this movie is about a virus that can kill you and many movie stars! :0
              After visting Hong Kong for a business trip, Beth (Gwyneth Paltrow) goes home and unexceptedly spreads a very deadly/contagious virus all around the world, thus killing her and 26 million others.  (Sorry fo the spoiler alert, but I had to do it, because that happens from the first moment of Contagion.) Anyway, this film centers its attention on a world that panics and decays as scientists tries to get a vaccine.
              Contagion works in the old fashioned style of the very popular disaster movies ,( Earthquake, The Towering Inferno), by telling the tales of a lot of people who are stuck in this situation, and seem to be played by famous stars. Matt Damon plays the husband of Beth, and he changes from a carefree man to a scared father. Kate Winslet plays a doctor who investigates the virus, Laurence Fishborne plays an officer who tries to keep the public calm, Jude Law plays a freelance reporter who tries to panic the public, and both Marion Cotillard and Jennifer Ehle play scientists who try to prevent the disease from spreading. Along with director Stephen Soderbergh's masterful direction, the cast is superb and very believable that you want to congradulate  them. Oh wait, they are in a pandemic movie. :(
                This film also presents a very compelling and accurate prediction of what would happen if a Black Death type happened in our modern, connected society. That makes it even more creepier, which is what Soderbergh wants us to do. Well done. I also liked the way that certain characters try to help out others in a collasping world. For example, before one of the main characters dies, she gives out her coat to a fellow victim, so he can have extra blankets.
              Despite the good, this movie manages to cough up some bad moments. It was really thrilling at the beginning, but in the middle, it got very boring and slow. Thus, it wasn't very thrilling or scary. That mistake is almost a death threat, because we the audience don't want to get uninterested or we'll leave the theater! Another probelm was that Contagion seemed to be missing important parts, which we will never knew what happened. For example, when one character finds out that a certain stricken village has been given a fake medicine, she rushes out from the airport to try to save them. Before we find out what happens, the movie switches other to another scene! Come on, Soderbergh! We knew that you got to tell us what happened to her!
            The ending was really amazing, as it shows how the virus got onto poor Beth. In fact, this whole movie tells us a very important lesson--- be careful what you do, or dreadful consquences will happen. Contagion tells us that when we touch, we're spreading germs, which made the film an even more threatening and important film to watch.
           Contagion gets a B-, which means that one day, as more and more people get freaked out by it, health classes will be showing this unique warning.
        7/10

My rules to "365 Days Of Movies"

Since you hopefully have seen two of my reviews so far, I decided to post the rules or what to expect when I do my 365 days of movies.
       #1. I can break anyone of these rules, but I have to tell you what I'm breaking.
        #2.  I cannot review any of the movies that I had seen prior to reviewing. Dolphin Tale and Forks Over Knives were ones I hadn't seen at all, so they were acceptable. However, I can break this one without telling you. :)
        #3. I can write my review one day after the day I see the movie.
        #4.    I must get my homework done first before I can watch a movie or write a review.
         #5.    I can't write bad words!
        #6.     I can review a movie from any time period, so don't be surprised when I review two movies from 2011, and then comes up a review of a movie from 1924. Hint, hint.
         #7. You can recommend movies to me, but I can refuse one until further notice.
         #8. I can't write reviews of T.V. shows. So, bye-bye Murder ,She Wrote, Once Upon A Time, Lost, The Twilight Zone, Seasame Street, Jeopardy, Wheel Of Fortune, Arthur etc.
      #9.   I have to give credit to whom I'm borrowing the quotes from. I can never break this one.
       #10. This is not  a review of what's playing in theaters, yet.
        #11. You must bring me ice cream on my b-day. :)
         #12.   I can get rid any rule I make up, like I just did with #11.
          #13. I must do a top ten for movies that were made this year, made years before that I saw this year, and the worst ever.
         That's my rules. Have fun.

Forks Over Knives (2011) PG D

Warning! This movie will make you bored to tears!

              When I sat down to watch "Forks Over Knives", I thought that this was going to be a fun, educational experience, just like Morgan Spurlock's "Supersize Me". However, I lost my appetite for it.
               The problems with this film I could list for you, but I'm going to be nice to it. This time. So, I'm going to tell you what it's about first. The film's premise is that cancer and other deadly diseases are influenced by what we eat. Studies show that if we continue to eat meat and animal-based products, it would seriously affect our bodies. (What! No cheese or milk! Anything but that!) However, if we switch to a vegan diet, we could reverse all of our health problems , and live healthier lives. The proof comes from several stories of people who have tried this diet, and got healthier.
                 Sounds cool, huh? Well, the way the director made it isn't even fascinating. For starters, the movie feels and looks like the sophistication of a horrible PowerPoint slide, complete with no documentary footage involved. It's like a health class essay report, only without any wit or new facts. However, the real problem is that it's boring and unremarkable at the same time! I could remember falling asleep twice during this darned movie, because it drags on and on with "inspirational stories" and "shocking facts" that's not even inspirational or even shocking. (Thank you news programs and teachers because you taught us everything about food safety.)
   For you future filmmakers, please do not overstuff your films with too much information. Forks Over Knives is just lecturing about why we should stop eating meat, and start being vegans, and by the way, it never makes a convincing point. I heard from a critic named Christy Lemire that after she saw this, she ate a cheeseburger. :)
           At the beginning of the film, it leaves out a message urging viewers not to take a vegan plan without consulting doctor supervision.  In honor of that advice, I decided to upload my own message. "This film has left me unconvinced of my eating habits, and I urge the viewer to skip it for I'm giving it a D. Now, I'm going to eat a turkey with cheese sandwich with carrots. Yes, I do like veggies."

          P.S.  I talked to one of my friends after I saw this piece of junk. I told her about my review when she commented that some of her friends tried out the diet that this movie inspired, and they didn't gain anything extraordinary from it!  No healthier lives or happier lives! (Either this movie sucks or they did the diet wrong. I'm guessing that it's both or one of them.) Now, I know that you are supposed to eat healthy food, and I shouldn't get upset over a harmless "documentary" about veggies. However, you should actually see Supersize Me . (See the intro above.) You will enjoy it even more because it was fun and you actually learned how to take care of your body. If you don't want to see it, well enjoy the movie that has a lecturing on a fad diet that I personally believe has nothing to do with the miracles of veganism.
      3/10 

Dolphin Tale (2011) (PG) B+



We humans always loved our dolphins

         According to an old legend, when some people fell off a rainbow bridge, a goddess transformed them into dolphins before they got killed in the water. Cool. But what's even more cooler is this movies, which tells an even more impressive tale.
          "Dolphin Tale" tells the true life story of Winter, a dolphin who had to have her tail amputated in order to save her life from an accident. However, she might die from a muscle bulge from swimming without her tail. So, the entire hospital staff that's taking care of her have to save her by putting on a prothestic tail, which had never been done before.
            This movie is also about this lonely kid named Sawyer, who's worried about his cousin going into the military, and is more concerned about Winter--- whom he found--- than summer school. ( Oh, come on. I know that you would care more about animals than school.)  Soon, he starts to have a loving and caring relationship with Winter.
          Even though this movie has some cliques, like the annoying bird that somehow always appear in family movies these days, this movie is solid and makes you care about the characters in here. Plus the actors are really good. Ashely Judd ( Sawyer's mom), Harry Connick, Jr. ( the manager of the hospital), Morgan Freeman ( the man who helps with the new tail), and Nathan Gamble (Sawyer) all play convincing, yet loveable roles. Even Winter ( who's played by herself) is a great actor. The cinematography was perfect, and it reminded me of flowing water. That was cool. :)
          Despite these good things, this movie isn't perfect. There were too many subplots than the average movie, and some of them didn't even happen in real life! They include : money problems ( boring), war veterans ( oh no), school troubles ( d'oh ), and a minor storm called a hurricane. Yikes!
         Watching this "tail" reminded me of my life. When I was two, I got autism and severe gross motor problems. I couldn't walk, talk, or do anything "normal". Luckily, thanks to God and my whole entire family, I managed to get all of these priceless gifts back. Just like moi, Winter had a lot of trouble, and she was helped out by a lot of people. Thank you, Winter. :) I'll give Dolphin Tale a B+, which means see it!
      8/10

"365 Days Of Movie Reviews"

Hello, everbody. My name is Matthew Floyd. :)
              Last year, I was inspired by critics like Roger Ebert, Peter Travers, Lights Camera Jackson, Christy Lemire, etc. They really helped me pick out which movies should I see or skip. In honor of them, I decided to do a New Years Resolution for 2012, that I would watch a movie for each of the 365 days of the year, and then write a review about it. I was going to do it on Facebook, but I realized that the comments I write about will be also avaible to the people who made them, which may be troubling, escipally if it's a bad review. :0  So, I decided to do a blog! Have fun reading my reviews and I hope that the movies I chose will be awesome.