Julie & Julia (one down, four to go)

I thought Julie & Julia was pretty fabulous. Being a vegetarian, the dishes weren't exactly as mouth-watering as they may have been for other viewers, but I could still appreciate how pretty all the food looked. But what really caught my eye, of course, were the people and the places. Queens in 2002 is hardly ancient history or very different from today so far as I can tell, but I always enjoy seeing cramped apartment lifestyles, not gonna lie. Of course, the scenery that stole the show was definitely Julia Child's story, mostly the Parisian parts. Although, the tidbit of suburban Massachusetts life toward the end was also a kind of sweet nostalgia.

But the real show-stealer was Meryl Streep, no surprises there. As I said over dinner last night, putting it down now, Oscar nom (and perhaps another win) for Meryl right there. No doubt in my mind. Of course, it would also be wonderful to see the rest of the fabulous cast recognized (when Jane Lynch appeared as Julia's sister Dorothy, it was WONDERFUL, I was very excited to see her; I'd only realized she was in the film when the opening credits were rolling and boy oh boy she and Meryl Streep looked like they were having SO much fun inhabiting their larger than life personas (both personality and size wise, of course)). Julie Powell was easy to roll your eyes at and label as a bitch, but I've always thought Amy Adams is a wonderful actress and despite being frustrated with Julie at times, I certainly thought she was relate-able on many levels. I mean, in an age such as this, whoever has a blog or even a facebook or anything where they can post their thoughts and feelings want validation for them? Isn't it beyond thrilling when someone recognizes your thoughts are worthy to read? And it is so very easy to let that inflate your ego, to take over your life, and I can sympathize with Julie for falling into that trap. It's not as if it takes a particularly vain person to have it happen to, Julie isn't by nature a narcissistic person, but she, like the rest of us, just wanted appreciation and when she got it, she became addicted to it like a drug, and anytime she didn't have anything to show off or if she got negative feedback, it crushed her.

Anyway, I apologize for rambling on far too much about this and surely repeating myself, but I think those who call Julie Powell as a character a bitch are not understanding why she acted as poorly as she did at times. Granted, I myself am a self-centered bitch, so maybe I simply want to show how it's not Julie's fault so I can accept my own nature. xD

Regardless, Amy Adams and Meryl Streep did a fabulous job, and Jane Lynch, and Stanley Tucci, and simply everyone was just so much fun to watch in the movie. I deeply enjoyed myself.

On another note, I am a preview freak. The more trailers that come with a movie, the better, even if they're movies I have no intention of seeing (this is not counting horror trailers, because horror trailers scare the living bejeezus out of me and are usually way way way frightening). And I was BEYOND thrilled to see a preview for The Lovely Bones during Julie & Julia. I hadn't seen a preview for it yet, but I'd read the novel several years ago, the summer before my freshman year of high school, and stayed up until 9am to finish reading it. The preview did NOT disappoint me in the least. I forget many of the finer points of the novel, but it all looked so good, I had to bite my tongue very hard to keep from crying just from the trailer. I am very, very excited for the movie. Hurrah Peter Jackson!

As for his production credit in District 9, I still haven't gotten to see it yet, but I am set on seeing it this Tuesday. And today, in a bit less than three hours, I will see Tarantino's glorious Inglorious Basterds. I am very excited for that. Beyond that, I plan to see Taking Woodstock (having been filmed in my area, most people I know are planning to point out their friends' cameos as extras) this Friday when it comes out (I leave Saturday midday to return to school), and the other movie I am determined to see before I return to school is The Hurt Locker. I also have The Class on DVD from Netflix to watch... and I have a lot of packing still to do having just gotten home from Venezuela.

So I better end this entry now and prepare myself for massive movie exposure! I love it!

PS: Saw the Mad Men season 3 premiere finally. Although it felt a bit slow (but that might just be because it's been a while since Mad Men's been on), I attribute that to SO much catching up. I was slightly sad to see so little Peggy, but it's fab seeing her with her own secretary. The Brits seem a bit off, Pete's as entrancingly yuppie/obnoxious/self-centered as ever, Betty's all preggers, Sally should totally be a lesbian, and Salvatore Romano remains one of my favourite characters on the show. HIGH FIVE Bryan Batt, because you are beyond fabulous and so wonderful to watch as one of the show's many fascinating characters. And a less pronounced high five to Joan for being BAMF.

Stealing From My Livejournal Part XXIII

As I use my livejournal for little else except for movie rants and decided to switch over here, I thought I'd recruit some older posts so as to show a history. I'll bother with new ones as they come to me.



From January 22, 2009:

"FUCK YOU HOLLYWOOD.

(And your non-love for The Dark Knight!)

I'm surprised you bitches didn't leave Heath Ledger off in ignoring it for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay. I am so furious with them right now. The Reader is a good film, no doubt, but seriously! The Dark Knight is even better. Stupid freakin' prestige, biased against the giant blockbuster just because it is a blockbuster and not caring that on top of that you have one of the best movies of the year. You just cost yourself big time, Academy. Considering that Best Supporting Actor is the first category announced at the Oscars, I'm betting a nice portion of your viewers will come for Heath and then leave after he wins (and if he doesn't, I'll know just how lightly you take "comic book movies").

I'll admit there were a couple pleasant surprises in the nominee list:
Amy Adams for Doubt, which was personally my favourite performance in the whole movie. I'm glad Wall-E nabbed a much deserving Best Original Screenplay nod. Richard Jenkins got a nomination over Clint Eastwood and Leonardo DiCaprio for Best Actor for The Visitor. In Bruges got a Best Original Screenplay nomination.

And a couple surprises almost as bad as The Dark Knight snubs:
Sally Hawkins is ignored for Best Actress. Kate Winslet was pushed up to Best Actress for The Reader (not so much a bad surprise, but a surprise nonetheless - I think this makes her the front-runner in the category, but I could be wrong).

...I'm just so pissed off about ignoring The Dark Knight so strongly. Here's to hoping it makes a comeback in the smaller categories. Man, am I pissed at you Academy. And sorely disappointed. The Dark Knight was a gem of a movie. Fuck it, at least they made money, but I'm sure if I were in the shoes of anyone who took part in The Dark Knight, I'd want more. I'd want someone to see my hard work, my brilliant film, and give it a little more notice than just having paid for it.

It deserved better. Shame on you, Academy."

Stealing From My Livejournal Part XX

As I use my livejournal for little else except for movie rants and decided to switch over here, I thought I'd recruit some older posts so as to show a history. I'll bother with new ones as they come to me.




From January 7, 2009:

"The acting in Doubt was all kickass. But I found the movie to be, overall, kind of boring and monotonous. If there hadn't been such a fabulous cast, I would have been bored senseless and hated the movie, I'm sure. But all four actors were fabulous (and honestly, I think Amy Adams did a better turn than Viola Davis, but the latter is getting all the praise leaving Amy Adams to get shafted on occasion... not that Viola Davis wasn't excellent, but Amy Adams was my favourite part). Anyway, my point is that it deserves all the acting attention it has been getting but aside from showcasing some great talent, it was nothing fabulous.


Also rented and saw Kung Fu Panda. Absolutely adorable, but I keep hearing how fabulous it is and, well, it's good but not that good."