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media roundup post!
So I was thinking about doing that "my week in pictures" meme, but 90% of my day would be a FERPA violation, so, nope! Instead, here's a post about things I have recently watched and enjoyed. Feel free to share your feels and/or suggestions in the comments - I think the next thing in our netflix queue is The Fantastic Four, for reasons of Chris Evans and his stupid rubber face, but we are both very suggestible humans.
Movies:
My Week With Marilyn: Oh man, this movie made me so mad! I really didn't know anything about it except that it had Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe, so I went into it with no real expectations. The casting was spot-on - Michelle Williams was incredibly believable (and stunningly gorgeous) as Marilyn, Kenneth Branagh was hilarious and terrible as Laurence Olivier, Emma Watson is always and forever my favorite, and Judi Dench stole every goddamn scene she was in - but, ultimately, the whole thing read like creepy self-insert fic written by a fanboy stalker, and I prefer my movies to focus on something other than some dude's manpain. (edit: autocorrect apparently hates 'manpain'. I FEEL YOU, AUTOCORRECT.)
The Hunger Games: Complete opposite - this movie made me so HAPPY, oh my god, I loved every second of it. There were a few missing things that I noticed - Madge and the pin, the Avoxes, etc - but nothing that really threw me out of the film. And the stuff that they added in - with the game-controller room especially - was incredibly powerful in terms of how it gave us this whole side of things that the book didn't - things that the book couldn't give us, because of how tightly focused on Katniss it is. The added scenes actually added to the story - how cool is that? Gale and Peeta still both piss me off, but Cinna and Haymitch were so fabulous that it made up for how much I wanted to punch them both. ALSO, KATNISS.
The Artist: I loved everything about the movie except for the plot, basically! I loved the aesthetic of it, the use of sound, the casting, the feel of things…I just hated the twin 'stalking is super charming!' / 'let me curl up in a ball and be an asshole to everybody I know because I cannot get what I want!' narratives. Grrrr. I wanted to like this so much, but it really didn't do it for me.
Entre Les Murs: I watched this for my own edification, and now am watching it with one of my classes, and I still don't know what I think of it. It's an autobiographical film about a teacher in a middle school in the suburbs of Paris, so clearly it should be right up my alley, right? Only the main character (who wrote the book on which the movie is based, and also plays himself in the movie) alternates between being a decent teacher in a hard situation and making absolutely appalling decisions that make me want to punch him. Which - I guess the problem really is that he doesn't ever seem to acknowledge that he made terrible choices? Which makes me wonder if he's just not talking about it, or if he legit doesn't realize how badly he fucked up, in which case, ad;fklasjdf;a. I'm really interested to see what my kids think of this one.
Friends With Benefits: LOVED. IT. Seriously, there was not a single second of this movie that didn't have me absolutely shrieking in delight - I loved how they both got to be ridiculous neurotic douchebags with lines in weird places and odd little habits, and I loved how she was just as into having lots of sex has he was, and I loved loved LOVED the fact that, when they had the inevitable romcom communication breakdown, it was because they were dealing with things that were legitimately hard to communicate! Like, so many movies have a 'communication issue' that could be solved in two or three sentences - "hey, no, wait, this is my sister!", for example - but in this case, the problem was that neither of them actually knew how to use their words for the emotions they were having.
Also, oral sex for ALL the ladies. Om nom nom nom nom.
TV:
Project Runway All Stars: YES. That is all.
Parks and Recreation: I am…I think three episodes behind? I keep not catching up because, honestly, this season is grabbing me a lot less than the last season did, to the point where I'm semi-convinced that each episode is going to be the episode that makes me break up with the show for real. BOOO.
KORRA KORRA KORRA: I am legit so excited for this show that I cannot even express myself. Everything about the first two episodes - Korra! Tenzin! Korra! Lin Bei Fong! Korra! Mako and Bolin! Korra! Republic City! Korra! KORRA. - made me incredibly pleased with this beginning. Also, I want to read a Hunger Games / Korra crossover where Korra and Katniss team up and/or make out. YEAH, I SAID IT.
In other news, I'm wicked excited for the Avengers, I can't even lie. The fact that it comes out the same day as my last day of student teaching is just the cherry on top of the sundae of fabulousness that is that movie. MOVIES ABOUT SUPERHEROS AND BLOWING SHIT UP, PARTY OF ME. *\o/*
Movies:
My Week With Marilyn: Oh man, this movie made me so mad! I really didn't know anything about it except that it had Michelle Williams as Marilyn Monroe, so I went into it with no real expectations. The casting was spot-on - Michelle Williams was incredibly believable (and stunningly gorgeous) as Marilyn, Kenneth Branagh was hilarious and terrible as Laurence Olivier, Emma Watson is always and forever my favorite, and Judi Dench stole every goddamn scene she was in - but, ultimately, the whole thing read like creepy self-insert fic written by a fanboy stalker, and I prefer my movies to focus on something other than some dude's manpain. (edit: autocorrect apparently hates 'manpain'. I FEEL YOU, AUTOCORRECT.)
The Hunger Games: Complete opposite - this movie made me so HAPPY, oh my god, I loved every second of it. There were a few missing things that I noticed - Madge and the pin, the Avoxes, etc - but nothing that really threw me out of the film. And the stuff that they added in - with the game-controller room especially - was incredibly powerful in terms of how it gave us this whole side of things that the book didn't - things that the book couldn't give us, because of how tightly focused on Katniss it is. The added scenes actually added to the story - how cool is that? Gale and Peeta still both piss me off, but Cinna and Haymitch were so fabulous that it made up for how much I wanted to punch them both. ALSO, KATNISS.
The Artist: I loved everything about the movie except for the plot, basically! I loved the aesthetic of it, the use of sound, the casting, the feel of things…I just hated the twin 'stalking is super charming!' / 'let me curl up in a ball and be an asshole to everybody I know because I cannot get what I want!' narratives. Grrrr. I wanted to like this so much, but it really didn't do it for me.
Entre Les Murs: I watched this for my own edification, and now am watching it with one of my classes, and I still don't know what I think of it. It's an autobiographical film about a teacher in a middle school in the suburbs of Paris, so clearly it should be right up my alley, right? Only the main character (who wrote the book on which the movie is based, and also plays himself in the movie) alternates between being a decent teacher in a hard situation and making absolutely appalling decisions that make me want to punch him. Which - I guess the problem really is that he doesn't ever seem to acknowledge that he made terrible choices? Which makes me wonder if he's just not talking about it, or if he legit doesn't realize how badly he fucked up, in which case, ad;fklasjdf;a. I'm really interested to see what my kids think of this one.
Friends With Benefits: LOVED. IT. Seriously, there was not a single second of this movie that didn't have me absolutely shrieking in delight - I loved how they both got to be ridiculous neurotic douchebags with lines in weird places and odd little habits, and I loved how she was just as into having lots of sex has he was, and I loved loved LOVED the fact that, when they had the inevitable romcom communication breakdown, it was because they were dealing with things that were legitimately hard to communicate! Like, so many movies have a 'communication issue' that could be solved in two or three sentences - "hey, no, wait, this is my sister!", for example - but in this case, the problem was that neither of them actually knew how to use their words for the emotions they were having.
Also, oral sex for ALL the ladies. Om nom nom nom nom.
TV:
Project Runway All Stars: YES. That is all.
Parks and Recreation: I am…I think three episodes behind? I keep not catching up because, honestly, this season is grabbing me a lot less than the last season did, to the point where I'm semi-convinced that each episode is going to be the episode that makes me break up with the show for real. BOOO.
KORRA KORRA KORRA: I am legit so excited for this show that I cannot even express myself. Everything about the first two episodes - Korra! Tenzin! Korra! Lin Bei Fong! Korra! Mako and Bolin! Korra! Republic City! Korra! KORRA. - made me incredibly pleased with this beginning. Also, I want to read a Hunger Games / Korra crossover where Korra and Katniss team up and/or make out. YEAH, I SAID IT.
In other news, I'm wicked excited for the Avengers, I can't even lie. The fact that it comes out the same day as my last day of student teaching is just the cherry on top of the sundae of fabulousness that is that movie. MOVIES ABOUT SUPERHEROS AND BLOWING SHIT UP, PARTY OF ME. *\o/*
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I have not yet seen The Hunger Games, but I rly rly want to, I've heard VERY similar things about My Week With Marilyn, and also, I heart your FACE. :D
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The Hunger Games was EXCELLENT and you should watch it asap and then come have feels! And My Week With Marilyn is a wash - just find some stills of Michelle Williams in costume and make a creeperface; you'll get just as much pretty with 100000% less fury.
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(for the record, I just want you to know that this read in a hardcore Boston accent in my head, it was hilarious)
I may have totally bought tickets to an all-day Avengers marathon (Iron Man, Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America) on May 3rd that ends in a midnight screening. It's twelve hours long. I am so very crazy, and so very excited. :D
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I would totally do an all-day marathon! Unfortunately, that's my last full day of student teaching, and something leads me to believe that my CT would be a liiiiittle bit annoyed if I blew that off to go watch things explode. le sigh! But best of luck to you and your marathon!
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One of the best things about the marathon is that it's at this place (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamo_Drafthouse_Cinema), which means I'll get food and beer brought to me all day long when I want it. \o/ I think the movie is going to be badass enough as it is that you won't be disappointed by the lack of marathoning, though!
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For the Hunger Games, do you think it's important to have read the books first? It looks so great, but I'm worried about missing things...
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The Hunger Games: It's hard to say, given that I did read the books first, but I think it would be relatively accessible to somebody who hadn't read them - they added in a lot of stuff to help contextualize the story, and I think it helps a lot; the end result is incredibly strong. And if it doesn't make sense, you can just read the books and then watch it again! :D? :D?
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