Entries Tagged 'movies' ↓

What’s not to like?

This is my kind of super hero flick:

Can’t wait to see it.

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No, I did not (sadly) get an Audi R8 or even a model replica of an Audi A8 for posting this message. I just liked it and wanted to share it.

At their urging, the following is a guest post written by my children:

You may have heard of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, the movie that came out Friday, February 12, 2010.

Many people have been calling it a Harry Potter knock off. To begin with, the book series is not another Potter. The only comparison one could make is that the main characters are two boys and a girl, and the male protagonist doesn’t fully know about his true powers until he goes somewhere away from home (Camp Half Blood/Hogwarts) to train.

Would Potter ever go to Vegas?!

We both read The Lightning Thief (along with the rest of the books in the series) at a young age and were captivated by how exciting it was. Both of us still consider it the best book we’ve ever read (tied with Stephen Colbert’s I Am America (And So Can You!) and Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird). We have also read the Harry Potter books and seen the movies and the Lightning Thief series differs in many ways. The Lightning Thief is a fun way for kids and teens to learn about Greek mythology.

The Lightning Thief brings Greek mythology to the modern world, with the gods and goddesses hidden at the top of the empire state building. Camp Half Blood is the where the demigods gather, the only place they are safe. Demigods are the offspring of a god and mortal, so they are half-human and half-god. Harry Potter, however, is about witchcraft and wizardry. Magic. Contrast that with gods and Greek mythology. Nowhere close to the magic that is described in the Harry Potter series.

Have you seen this promo, where water roars behind Percy?

Percy is the son of Poseidon (god of the seas, which must be noted because the naysayers probably didn’t even know that), not a recently-trained-in-magic Quidditch captain. The people who accused The Lightning Thief of being a cheap knock-off probably didn’t even know that the book was released in 2005, before five of the Harry Potter movies were released. Also, one could make the argument (an inane, ignorant argument) that The Half Blood Prince and Camp Half Blood have something to do with each other. Well, unless Snape’s dad was Zeus or Ares or any other god, they have no connection except for the words “Half Blood.”

Anyway, the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series of books was hugely successful, a New York Times #1 Bestseller and given five-star reviews by many, including the writers of this article. The people who criticized The Lightning Thief probably did no (or very little) research and just looked at the ad for the movie while tweeting “Am I the only one that thinks that Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief is a total Harry Potter cop-out? #iamnotamused.” (@clawtooth35) or “hilarious: billboards for ‘Percy Jackson and the lightning thief’ don’t even try to hide the fact that it’s a facile Harry Potter ripoff…” (@estherdbrazil) or “the lightning thief dd not lve up 2 my expctations. almost juvenile for my liking. it’s like harry potter with a better looking protagonist.” (@bookletjeff) Uh huh. To quote @pfpaul, “BF#1: “The Lightning Thief looks stupid. It’s exactly like Harry Potter. Different people, same names.” That doesn’t even… “what?!”

Exactly. Different people, same names?! No they don’t…oh, whatever.

We just disagree.

Go see The Lightning Thief.

Let us know what you think.

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Have you heard about this action/adventure movie starring a couple teenage guys and a girl who defeat villains in the midst of great special effects? You know, dark haired protagonist, no glasses. Wait…does he wear glasses? NO, he does not. He most definitely does not wear glasses. Were you thinking of Harry Potter, Ron and Hermione? Oh no, there’s a new group in town and they don’t have English accents. Sure, Chris Columbus, who directed a few of the Harry Potter movies also directed Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, but don’t expect another Potter.

First of all, can you imagine Potter using an iPhone or iPod Touch? Ever? HA!

These American kids know how to use technology! W00T!

Our kids loved the Percy Jackson book series and enjoyed the movie. They tire of the comparisons between it and the Potter series. Actually, I wish the promos would have downplayed the Chris Columbus connection and any other similarities.  Millions of Potter fanatics do not want anything to try to replace or follow Potter. Attempting to draw similarities was a mistake.

Instead, I recommend putting Potter aside and opening yourself up to something new or, at least something a little different, based on myth and legends.

If you’re looking for respectable teen action heroes for your teens or preteens, I believe this is your film (and I hope an entire series of films). In it, smart, brave, attractive kids discover their demigod selves and embark on a quest which eventually leads them to Zeus and Poseidon. In fact, it’s a fairly good introduction to Greek mythology.

Exercise caution with sensitive tweens or younger kids, though.  Ms. Dodds’ morphing into a flying fury and the minotaur chasing Percy and Grover were quite frightening scenes, though probably the scariest moments of the film. After those two, the intensity eases a bit.

Kids who have read the book series (or at least the first book, “The Lightning Thief”) will enjoy the movie but may quibble over differences and omissions. The parts of the book that were necessarily left out of the movie are not crucial to the storyline. My kids believe that the few aspects that were missing can be easily added in to future movies.

Logan Lerman (as Percy Jackson) strikes the right balance between seeming a little awkward with his new-found abilities and being as confident and strong as one would expect from a demigod. He’s more like Peter in Heroes than Potter at Hogwarts. No wands, just hands (and occasionally a sword).

The attraction between Percy and Annabeth was believable (I don’t really care that Annabeth wasn’t blond) and Luke was a terrific antagonist.

Bottom line? Get over Potter and give this movie a chance.

I heard all the hype but was not expecting much from the Twilight movie (based on the books by Stephenie Meyer).

After a friend of mine bought the book for me and handed it to me saying, “You have to read this book.  It’s fantastic!” Soapbox Girl and I read the first book in the series.  My daughter loved it so much that she devoured the next three books, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn within a week.

And tonight we saw the movie.

I’m happy to say that this guy:

looked better in the film than in any of the interviews I’d seen or articles I read about him.

Twilight is basically a love story – a passionate, unusual love story – which happens to involve vampires.  For various reasons, the actor portraying Edward Cullen (main character) had to be gorgeous and the female lead (Bella) had to seem vulnerable, smart and beautiful (but klutzy).

Check, check, check and…check.

Bottom line?

Great love story, fabulous chemistry between the main characters, action, suspense, beautiful cinematography and direction.  Worth a look!

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Note: Heed the PG-13 rating for some intense battles and mature theme.

I finally carved out some time to see SATC this past weekend.

My hubby and I (yep, he used to watch it with me) were loyal, regular viewers of the series with Sarah Jessica Parker , et al. So it was fun seeing the ladies up on the big screen. I wasn’t expecting much, considering most TV-to-movie attempts just don’t work (at least for me). But, at the end of the day, here’s what I got out of it.

Many women identify with at least one of the characters, whether it’s Samantha, Carrie, Charlotte or Miranda. I always saw a little of myself in each of them, but probably with a tad bit more Charlotte. Always positive, hopeful, and romantic.

In the movie, however, Charlotte (played by Kristin Davis ) was over-the-top uptight, particularly when she packed little pudding cups on a trip to Mexico because she feared the safety of the food and water. Come on now. Last I checked they have pills you can take to prevent acquiring Montezuma’s revenge . No need to starve or subsist on Jello pudding packs. A bit absurd… But then I realized why that stance was necessary. It ultimately gave Charlotte her “bad thing” for the year (see below). And that moment was hysterical. Really funny. Made Carrie laugh at a time when she wondered whether she would ever laugh again.

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