Summer Movie Reviews :)

Hey Remarkable Readers,
A few of you requested that I start reviewing movies so I figured I'd do some mini reviews!  I've been to the movies almost every week this summer because my family gets free movie tickets on tuesdays :) .  I'll probably just do big combined posts during the year reviewing the movies of the season, so here's my Summer Movie Guide!

Brave
Release date: June 22nd

Starring: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connoly, Emma Thompson

Series: No

Rating: PG

Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.

I've always loved Pixar films.  Brave wasn't one of my top favorites, but I did enjoy it!  It was very cute and easily relatable.  The commercials were quite misleading though.  I won't give anything away, however I definitely didn't see any of the plot line coming.  I guess it's nice to be surprised once in a while, though!  I also thought that this movie might've been a little mature to understand for the target audience.  I really liked Merida and all of the characters in the movie.  Great Flick!

Katy Perry: Part of Me

Release date: July 5th

Starring: Katy Perry

Series: No

Rating: PG

A documentary that chronicles Katy Perry's life on and off-stage.

I loved this documentary so much that I went to see it twice in theaters!  At first, my father wasn't ecstatic about going to see it because he thought it'd be more of a "kids" movie, but he ended up loving it!  Our whole family really enjoyed seeing Katy's life story.  The documentary is filmed as a concert movie, documentary, and chronicling of her Teenage Dream tour.  I would go see this again.  After seeing the film, I've become a hard core fan of Katy's.  She really is inspiring and I admire her perseverance through all of the obstacles she's had to deal with.  The movie's also great for a laugh here and there!  A must see!

The Dark Knight Rises
Release date: July 20th

Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway

Series: Yes

Rating: PG-13

Eight years on, a new terrorist leader, Bane, overwhelms Gotham's finest, and the Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that has branded him an enemy.

I really liked the first in The Dark Knight series, so I was really excited to see this movie.  Luckily, this series is one of the few that I actually feel live up to the hype.  Although the movie is quite long and a bit difficult to follow, I absolutely loved it!  Anne Hathaway is also one of my favorite actresses so I loved her character in the film and of course Christian Bale always does a great job!  The Dark Knight Rises is a movie you'll want to see, for sure!


The Amazing Spiderman

Release date: July 3rd

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone

Series: Yes

Rating: PG-13

Peter Parker finds a clue that might help him understand why his parents disappeared when he was young. His path puts him on a collision course with Dr. Curt Connors, his father's former partner.

     Personally, I thought that the last film in the Spiderman series Spiderman 4 was a complete let-down.  I really didn't enjoy that one, so I wasn't expecting much of this remake as I'd thought that the series had gone down hill.  I was really surprised!  Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone had great chemistry together onscreen.  Although I did find Peter Parker to be a bit too quirky in this edition, I still really enjoyed this movie.

Step Up Revolution

Release date: July 27th
Starring:  Kathryn McCormick, Ryan Guzman, Cleopatra Coleman

Series: Yes

Rating: PG-13


Emily arrives in Miami with aspirations to become a professional dancer. She sparks with Sean, the leader of a dance crew whose neighborhood is threatened by Emily's father's development plans.

I've seen all of the previous Step Up movies before this installment and quite enjoyed them, but unfortunately this one was a let down.  The only part I really liked were the flash mobs.  Otherwise, the movie just seemed very unrealistic to me.  The characters didn't have chemistry and didn't seem real.  I didn't really like this movie much.  Even the dancing wasn't as good as the other movies.

Some Other Movies I've Seen

-The Bourne Legacy

Just Okay

-Men in Black 3

Thumbs Up!

-Total Recall

Thumbs Down!

   

The Hunger Games Book vs. Movie (Mrs. M)

Hello Remarkable Readers,

     Just to refresh your memory, I am Jessie’s Mom (Mrs. M) and I promised to write a review comparing the long awaited Hunger Games movie to the Book. I may have mentioned on this blog before that I am a big fan of Nonfiction books.  So when Jessica told me to read The Hunger Games, I was a little apprehensive. Needless to say I was completely hooked on the book after 3 pages, just like everyone else. I quickly became a big fan of the series and am now reading Catching Fire.  After finishing the first book, I waited with anticipation for the movie over the last month and must say it was worth the wait. I can honestly say that I think they did a really good job adapting the book to the big screen. After telling Jessie’s Dad about the book, he was actually interested in seeing the movie as well so we dragged him along for the big event. I am so glad we did. I wanted to get someone’s perspective who had not read the book. 

     I felt that they did leave out some key elements from the story (which did bug me a bit) because I did not think Mr. M would get  the entire premise of the story.  In the end, he did, so I guess I over analyzed it.  I felt they left out too many details about Katniss’ dad, detail about her relationship with Gale, and how she became such a good hunter.  They also changed how Katniss received the Mockingjay pin and didn't talk about Katniss' Mother at all.  According to Mr. M, he was able to figure a lot of the details out from certain hints in the movie.  They also completely left out the details of how the Mocking jay birds came to be and there significance to Katniss. While I know they had to cut the movie down to a certain amount of time, I think if I were Suzanne Collins that would have bothered me, heck I am not her and it bothering me. ;)

     On another note, I did think the scenery was very well done.  The one scene that appeared exactly as I had imagined in the movie, was the reaping. Then again, I was a little disappointed by the “girl on fire” scene during the tribute parade. I know several other people were disappointed with this scene as well. I just expected more from such an important scene.  Most of the other scenes were very well done. The cornucopia scene at the end of the story was also a bit disappointing; I just envisioned something so much more from a scene that was so important to the storyline.

      I thought the movie was well casted, my only disappointment was Effie Trinket, I just expected so much more from such an interesting character.   They also failed to mention Effie's name in the entire movie!  I also felt they should have let us get to know the tributes that Katniss and Peeta  were up against, a bit more personally. I felt like we really did not get to know these characters very well through the movie.  The book definitely offered much more detail about each of them. My favorite character portrayal was by far Haymitch. I thought he was so well casted. Woody Harrelson played a terrific part. Katniss, Peeta and Gale were all well casted, I can see why Katniss is so torn between those two guys! I can’t even decide if I am “ Team Gale” or “ Team Peeta."  Too much pressure for sure!

      I must say overall I really did like the Movie, and judging by the reaction of the crowd at the theatre Saturday night, so did everyone else. If I had to choose The Movie or the Book, I could have guessed that I would have chosen the book from day one. I think the story is so original and well done.  Tt lost a litte bit in the translation.  The Movie was enjoyable none the less.  I am really looking forward to reading Catching Fire and Mocking Jay. I am equally as hopeful that we will see two movies to follow this one. Overall, I give the movie adaptation of The Hunger Games a 9 out of 10. 

Safe & Sound Music Video

Get More: Taylor Swift, Safe & Sound, Music, More Music Videos

I was so excited to watch the premiere of this video!  At what point in the movie do you think they'll play the song?  I can't wait for the Hunger Games Movie!  Loved how she had the mockingjay pin!  What did you guys think?

TGIF: Book to Movie Adaptations

TGIF is a feauture hosted by Ginger over at Greads!  Each week, a question is asked and bloggers can post about their answers!

This Friday's Question:

Book to Movie: Which book turn movie do you feel did the best adaptation? What about the worst?

     As far as picking the worst book to movie adaptation goes, I chose I am Number Four by Pittacus Lore.  I could go on for hours about how every second of that movie was nothing like the book.  Don't get me wrong, I loved the movie but, it really upset me how none of it was like the book.  I actually read the book the day before I went to see the movie, so it was fresh in my head!  
     Another awful movie adaptation was Beastly by Alex Flinn.  I've never read the book and I plan on doing that soon but, the movie was awful.  I'm not really sure what the best book to movie adaptation is.  I'm drawing a blank on that one, sorry! 


What are your favorite and least favorite book to movie adaptations?!  Let me know in the comments!

The Hunger Games Trailer

I know you've probably all seen this already but, for those who haven't, here is the highly anticipated trailer for the Hunger Games!



So-Is it what you expected?!