Another Year, Another 3-plus hours to drag out the patting-on-the-back ceremony

Did anyone watch the Academy Awards last night? All of it, or part of it? I have to admit, I only watched a little bit. It's just too long! I think this is the first year that I had seen all 5 of the movies that were nominated, even before the nominations were announced. You can go to my past posts to see what I thought about each one, but briefly; 'Atonement' I liked it, but thought it was really sad and depressing, gave it 3 diamonds. 'Juno' I liked it more than I thought I would, liked the ending, gave it 3 diamonds. 'Michael Clayton' I guess I didn't review this one, I think I saw it before I started my blog. I really liked it, it was great, gives you hope that some people still do the right thing, Jeff & I both give it 4 diamonds. 'There will be blood' I thought it was interesting but sad, thought Daniel Dey Lewis was amazing, gave it 2 1/2 diamonds. And 'No Country for Old Men' Didn't like it all that much, it was too bloody and dark, gave it the lowest rating of all 5 that were nominated; 1 1/2 diamonds. So, I wish I had taken the time to post my predictions, I totally would have guessed 'No Country...' because it seems it always works that way, the ones that I don't like win. I often tell Jeff that if the critics like a movie, than I'll probably hate it, if they hate it, I most likely will like it!


I wish that 'Lars and the Real Girl' would have won for the writing of an original screenplay. Juno won that one, which would have been my second choice. 'The Golden Compass' won visual effects and I thought 'Transformers' should have taken it.


And these are the movies that were nominated for awards that are on my list to see, I actually haven't seen yet!;

'In the Valley of Elah'
'The Assassination of Jesse James...'
'Elizabeth the Golden Age'
'Away from Her'
'The Savages'
'I'm not there'
'La Vie En Rose'
'The Diving Bell and the Butterfly'


Any feedback would be great! And did ANYONE out there see 'Death Sentence'?

Another Day, Another Movie

*****"Be Kind, Rewind" rated PG-13. Jack Black, Mos Def, and Danny Glover. I went with EXTREMELY low expectations so I was a little surprised that it was kind of entertaining and funny. I knew it was about Jack and Mos reinacting the movies for the video store because Jack is magnetic and erases all of them, maybe that's why it seemed like it took forever to get to that point, but it had some pretty funny lines and Jack Black is fun. I really liked Mos Def! It was better than I thought it would be, though kind of corny. Jeff and I both give it 2 1/2 diamonds. P.S. I'd like to give a shout out to my friend from the cruise, Erika Bassett who I saw at the theater tonight! Kandis, Come over soon, you know I'll be there, and I still owe you a movie! My favorite movie pick right now; "Vantage Point" definitely.

Yes, I've been hiding in a cave...

What can I say? Haven't had much to blog about lately, so thought I'd post some cute pics from the cruise that I hadn't yet.

My cute mommy and girls

My kids with the comedians/jugglers "Howie and Bert"

During Keith and Lara's wedding I couldn't help but notice Lara's mom couldn't stop smiling. She was like this the entire time.

Bryce sadly looking at the ocean through the dining room window, knowing he had to go home the next morning

Another Day, Another Movie

****"Vantage Point" rated PG-13. William Hurt as the President, Dennis Quaid as his "body guard" that takes his job very seriously, he was CRAZY!!! And Forest Whitaker was awesome as usual. I really liked it. It was very suspenseful at times and intriguing to see all the different points of view. Not a whole bunch of political mambo jambo which was nice, but a little bit of terrorism. It had some good twists and was very interesting. I highly recommend it. Jeff gives it 3 1/2 diamonds, I give it 4.






****"Witless Protection" rated PG-13. Larry the cable guy and Jenny McCarthy... as a couple? Okay...? Well, Larry was stupid as usual but doesn't know it, he thinks he knows what's going on... surprisingly I guess he did, by chance. It had a few moments of funny, and was a little entertaining, but I got bored after awhile. Jeff and I both give it 2 diamonds.






****"Beau Jest" rated PG. It's almost like they were trying to do a sequel to 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'... NOT! It was extremely low budget. The girl just kept lying and deceiving until you were like "oh come ON already!" That got a bit annoying. If your Jewish I think you will enjoy it and even 'get it'. Draggy and slow, but good effort. Jeff is giving it 1/2 of a diamond,(a first) and I think it deserves 1 1/2 because 'Bob' is so cute.






****"Charlie Bartlett" rated R. It was crude in some parts and had the 'F' word a half a dozen times, but having said that, it was hilarious! What can I say, I'm an extreme conservative about pretty much everything except movies, thats where my left wing comes out. Charlie is so cute and even though he's always causing trouble you can't help but love him. Robert Downy Jr. played the principal and was really good. I liked it. Jeff gives it 2 diamonds and I'm giving it 3.

Another Day, Anothe Movie

****"Spiderwick Chronicles" rated PG. I hadn't read the books so wasn't familiar with the story. I thought it was fun, scary and adventurous. It was great to see Freddie Highmore play the role of the twins who were complete opposites. I liked the storyline, especially the end. You have to keep in mind that it's a fantasy. Sometimes the goblins were a bit much, and some parts might be kind of scary for small children, but I think kids will really like it. Jeff gives it 3 1/2 diamonds and I give it 4.

Another Day, Another Movie

****"Step Up 2 the Streets" rated PG-13. If you go for the dancing you'll like it. Jeff liked the dancing but wasn't too impressed with the acting or story. I liked it, thought it had a good story and loved the dancing. I even thought it had a good moral to the story. Since my girls are so big time into dance that might be why I liked it so much, not sure if "normal" people will or not? (normal meaning people that don't spend; Erika, 9 hours a week at dance, and, Elise, about 12 hours a week dancing) Jeff gives it 1 1/2 diamonds, Erika is giving it 5, and I give it 3.






****"Jumper" rated PG-13. Hayden Christensen discovers he can "morph" to any location that he wants. It was an interesting concept, kind of fun. Made me wonder what I would do if I was in that situation. Samuel L. Jackson plays a guy that hunts the jumpers and kills them. I didn't understand the role of his mother, (Diane Lane) who wasn't in it but for a few minutes, but hated her at the end. It was entertaining and slightly suspenseful in parts. I liked it. Jeff did too, we both give it 3 1/2 diamonds.






****"Definitely, Maybe" rated PG-13. It starts out kind of crude, with the kids and parents at the school going crazy because the kids were taught sex ed that day, the parents were up in arms because they didn't know, and the kids were too because, well, basically they were too young to grasp the concept. So there was alot of graphic, descriptive words being used, but once you got past that it was good. It was fun to hear the stories of the different girls and how everything played out. I wasn't crazy about it at first but then really started liking it. Jeff gives it 2 1/2 diamonds, I give it 3 1/2.

Yay!...say WHAT?!!!

Yesterday I watched Mel's boys for a little while so she could go to the doc to check her heart. After, (the doc said her heart beat 2200 times pre-maturely in the 24 hour period it was monitored, she is scheduled for an echo cardiogram on the 20th.) we went to Cafe Rio and Jeff met us there. We had a nice visit and then all drove our seperate ways toward home. A little while after I got home, Jeff flashed a 100 dollar bill at me and said "look what I found at Cafe Rio! someone is so mad right now!" I had a sinking feeling for a second and said "did you really, are you serious? Where exactly did you find it?" he said "at Cafe Rio" and I said "I know, can you be more specific!" I'm sure he was wondering why I was being so snippy instead of excited as he said, "well, kind of by our table..." By this time I had checked my pockets really good and now knew for sure that it was the 100 dollars that he had given me (our last cash whatsoever) to buy the groceries for my meal exchange tonight. So as he's doing the victory dance singing "Yay!", I had to say "um, honey, that's the money you gave me this morning for groceries..." to which he stopped in his tracks and said "say WHAT!!!" I have been thanking my lucky stars that HE found it instead of someone else, even though I hated admitting to him that I had lost it! AWKWARD!

Another Day, Another Movie

****"Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins" rated PG-13. Martin Lawrence was really good and his relationship with his family was entertaining, especially with his "cousin" played by Cedric the entertainer. I think it's too risque' for kids, especially 13 year olds! There were a couple parts that I would not want even my 17 and 19 year old to see. It was kind of predictable, but really funny too. It did have a good 'moral to the story' in the end, though not really good 'morals' throughout. :) (that was a good one huh) Jeff gives it 2 1/2 diamonds because he laughed out loud a couple times, he really liked Martins sister in it, she was pretty hilarious. I'm giving it 2 1/2 as well.

Do we really understand

what He went through...for us, because of us? When Mel Gibson's 'Passion Of The Christ' came to theaters Jeff and I saw it and were very moved. Jeff decided the other day that he wanted Brandon to see it, so we rented it and watched it Sunday. It really puts into perspective what He went through for us. I don't think Brandon or Elise could have ever truly understood or imagined it until 'seeing' it played out like that. Yes, it is VERY hard to take, but it helps you understand better than just reading it. Elise had the same reaction as I did the first time I saw it, which was "just stop! why don't they stop! and why isn't anyone doing anything?" She cried and Brandon was just really moved as well. When it was over he said to Bryce, "It makes you realize that it's not too much to ask of us to spend 3 hours at church huh?" It does kind of leave you dazed and emotionally drained for awhile, and I think everyone should see it. Seriously, reading about it doesn't do justice, and I think it was really well done. My man Jim Caviezel (from The Count of Monte Cristo) plays Christ and is absolutely amazing! Go watch it and have a very moving, spiritual experience!

Another day, Another Movie

****"Fools Gold" rated PG-13. Okay, I could stare at Matthew McConaughey all day thank you very much! He and Kate Hudson do make a cute couple. I was hoping that they didn't show all the good scenes in the previews like some movies do and I wasn't disappointed. There was some substance to it. It was fun and even a little interesting with all the treasure hunting stuff. My husband is like a treasure hunter in a sense. While on our cruise recently, he and Bryce were excited to go to the Mel Fisher museum in Key West and see all the treasure found from the Atocha ship that sunk in 1622 and was discovered in 1985. In the beginning of the movie, a gal on a boat flashes her breasts for a second. Hello! Is there supposed to be nudity in a PG-13? It's sad that they have to do that. It's really for just a second, if you knew when it was you could close your eyes. It's when Mathew gets rescued by a speed boat after being thrown overboard with the anchor. Jeff is giving it 2 1/2 diamonds. I enjoyed it and give it 3.

Another Day, Another Movie

****"There Will Be Blood" rated R for some violence I guess, but it didn't really have any until the end, the very end. There really wasn't any language either, it so could have been rated PG-13. It was really slow but interesting. I really was liking it until about 3/4 of the way through it. Daniel Dey Lewis is an amazing actor and I liked him until the end. I guess it just shows you how money and power can make you lose sight of what's important. I think it's worth seeing. Jeff and I both give it give it 2 1/2 diamonds.

Another Day, Another Movie

****"The Eye" rated PG-13 with Jessica Alba. It was kind of slow and draggy and kept you wondering where they were going with it. It wasn't super scary, maybe a little eerie. It did all come together in the end, but it just wasn't as good as I thought it would be. Joel and Lisa hated it. Brandon and Venessa liked it. Jeff gives it 1 1/2 diamonds, I'm going to give it 2 1/2 for good effort.






****"Over Her Dead Body" rated PG-13 with Eva Longoria-Parker. I think I liked it more than I thought I would. Eva was really cute and the gal that played the other love interest was darling, her name is Lake Bell and I think we'll be seeing alot more of her. It was fun and funny, in fact at one point Lisa and I were laughing so hard we were crying. I liked it alot. Jeff is giving it 2 1/2 diamonds. Me, 3 1/2.






****"Strange Wilderness" rated R. I wasn't going to admit I saw this but I feel it my duty to let you know how stupid and terrible it is. Alot of you don't have to worry because you don't see rated R movies, and this one is the reason why. Everyone else, don't waste your time or money! Just trust me. It was SO STUPID!!!

That's It...

I'm moving to Phoenix! My bags are packed. This is what we woke up to this morning. The last couple of winters have been pretty mild so I guess this one is making up for it. The top 3 pics were taken from my front door. The last one is of Venessa's car, that's as far as she got. We are officialy snowed in. I don't want to hear one word from my cousins in Cali, Arizona or Texas unless it's really nice. Do not tell me what the temperature is there!