King Arthur Movie Tristan

title: The Help

genre: drama

release date: August 2011

starring: Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, Sissy Spacek

rated: 4 out of 5 stars








Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett
The Help is about African American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s.

Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan (Emma Stone) is a young recent college graduate who dreams of being a novelist/journalist. When Skeeter returns to Jackson after finishing school, she realizes that the family maid who helped to raise her, Constantine, is gone.

Her mother insists Constantine left on her own, but Skeeter, who loved her like she was family, knows better.

Skeeter sets out to write a book consisting of letters from the point of views of the maids. She sets out to interview 'the help'. The film is set during the civil rights era, and what Skeeter and the maids are about to do is not only illegal, but dangerous as well. This is a time when racism ran rampant and segregation was legal.






I found The Help to be an eye-opening, emotional film that had me tearing during some parts and laughing out loud during others. I think this film was perfectly cast and that the actors gave great performances.





I've had the book sitting in my TBR for way too long. I always like to read the book before watching the movie, but when a girlfriend of mine asked me to go see the film, I couldn't say no.




Among the maids, I found Aibileen Clark's (Viola Davis) storyline to be among the most emotional and heart wrenching. She had me teary eyed as she spoke about her son.
Aibileen brings to light what it is like to raise white women's children and make them feel important, while her own children are being raised by someone else.

"You is kind, you is smart, you is important."

I thought Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer) was a great character. She was strong and funny and pulls one hell of a stunt which she calls the Terrible Awful Secret, that I found to be the ultimate revenge. Way to go Minny.



When Skeeter finally finds out what happened to Constantine, I officially crossed the misty eyed line and went straight into all out waterfall tears.







The storyline mainly centers around Skeeter, Minny and Aibileen, but it also branches out to the other women in town and their maids. Hilly Holbrook's (Bryce Dallas Howard) way of thinking and behavior was really hard to believe. It's sad to think that people can be that ignorant.






I found some of the story to be unbelievable. I never really thought about how maids were treated back then, like they weren't even human beings.
Twice in the film there were references to Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind, and how no one ever really thought about whether Mammie really enjoyed her life as a house slave.




The Help is a story about change, courage, hope and friendships and I recommend it to anyone looking to get lost in an emotional story about a period in history that is sometimes too easily forgotten or has been brushed under the carpet.


That being said, I've pushed the book The Help up on my TBR pile. I will get to it very soon.

title: Inception

starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy

genre: science fiction/action/mystery

release date: July 16, 2010


rated: 5 out of 5

In a world where technology exists to enter the human mind through dream invasion, a highly skilled thief is given a final chance at redemption which involves executing his toughest job to date: Inception.


-quoted from imbd

Inception is one of those films that leaves you wondering and tad bit paranoid once it's finished.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays a man named Dom Cobb who is a thief that can extract secrets from the subconscious during dreams. By a sad twist of fate, Cobb is now a fugitive on the run and wants to find a way to get his record clean so he can get his two young children back. When he is offered one final job and a chance at redemption, Cobb takes it. He assembles a team of others to join him in planning an idea, instead of extracting one, within a chosen targets mind.





As good as he is with dream extraction, Cobb has a deep, dark secret about his deceased wife that interferes when he is inside others dreams. This interference is dangerous to all who are participating in the dream invasion process.






I just want to say, I loved this movie. Finally a movie that I enjoyed from start to finish and didn't get the feeling that it was too long, even though it was over two hours long. The storyline is unique, the special effects were great and the cast was awesome.

Leonardo DiCaprio is like a fine wine, he gets better with age. What an amazing talent, I always enjoy seeing him play such intense roles.

Cobb: You create the world of the dream, you bring the subject into that dream, and they fill it with their subconscious.

Ariadne: How could I ever acquire enough detail to make them think that its reality?

Cobb: Well dreams, they feel real while we're in them, right? It's only when we wake up that we realize how things are actually strange. Let me ask you a question, you, you never really remember the beginning of a dream do you? You always wind up right in the middle of what's going on.

Another thing I'd like to mention I gave a little squeal when I saw British actor/bad boy Tom Hardy in this film. I developed a Hollywood crush on Hardy when I saw him play the role of Heathcliff in the BBC's version of Wuthering Heights.






So, if you're in the mood for something with suspense, mystery and science fiction, you might enjoy Inception.

title: Moonstruck

genre: romantic comedy

release date: December 18, 1987

cast: Cher, Nicolas Cage, Olympia Dukakis, Danny Aiello

rated: 5 out of 5 stars







Taking place in Brooklyn Heights, Moonstruck is a movie about love and how it can make a huge mess of things, but in the end it's always worth it.





Loretta Castorini (Cher) is a 37 year old widowed bookkeeper living in Brooklyn.
She's dating Johnny Cammareri (Danny Aiello) and accepts his marriage proposal, not because she loves him but more out of his being a stable, good man that she can settle down and raise a family with. However when Johnny is called to his mothers deathbed in Italy, his mother makes him swear that he will never get married. While Johnny is in Italy tending to his sick mother, Loretta is busy making wedding plans. She goes to invite Johnny's estranged brother Ronny (Nicholas Cage) to the wedding. When Loretta finds Ronny, who works in a bakery, he's still bitter over the past. Ronny lost his hand in a freak accident where afterward his fiancee left him, and he blames his brother for it. This is one of my favorite scenes in the movie.

Ronny Cammareri: I ain't no freakin' monument to justice! I lost my hand! I lost my bride! Johnny has his hand! Johnny has his bride! You want me to take my heartache, put it away and forget?

Loretta and Ronny are drawn to each other instantly resulting in some of my favorite scenes and lines in a movie. I never get tired of watching Moonstruck. It's perfectly cast, and I like Cher and Nicholas Cage as the main characters. The scenes between these two are sweet, funny and dramatic.



Also part of the storyline is how Loretta's parents, Cosmo and Rose, are having issues. Rose knows Cosmo is keeping a mistress but she is patiently waiting for him to break it off. Loretta can almost relate to her father and his infidelity, because she herself is in love with her fiancees brother.









Another favorite scene is when Johnny comes to break off his engagement with Loretta, since he promised his dying mother he'd never get married. Loretta's response made me laugh so hard the first time I heard it, I was crying.

Johnny: In time you will see that this is the best thing.

Loretta Castorini: In time you'll drop dead and I'll come to your funeral in a red dress!

Moonstruck is a love story, and it's main point is that love isn't always perfect.

Ronny Cammareri: Loretta, I love you. Not like they told you love is, and I didn't know this either, but love don't make things nice - it ruins everything. It breaks your heart. It makes things a mess. We aren't here to make things perfect. The snowflakes are perfect. The stars are perfect. Not us. Not us! We are here to ruin ourselves and to break our hearts and love the wrong people and *die*. The storybooks are *bullshit*. Now I want you to come upstairs with me and *get* in my bed!

Moonstruck was nominated for six Oscars at the 60th Academy Awards, winning three for Best Original Screenplay, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress.

If you're in the mood for something funny, romantic and a little quirky, you might enjoy this one!

title: The Other Guys

release date: August 2010

genre: comedy

cast: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Keaton, Eva Mendes

rated: 4 out of 5

Two mismatched New York City detectives seize an opportunity to step up like the city's top cops whom they idolize -- only things don't quite go as planned.

NYPD Detectives Christopher Danson (Dwayne Johnson) and P.K. Highsmith (Samuel L. Jackson) are superstars in NYC. Paparazzi trail them, they date celebs, and everyone idolizes them. When these hot cop superstars need replacing, partners Terry Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg) and Allen Gamble (Will Ferrell) decide to step up. Terry and Allen are known as 'The Other Guys', these cops are on desk duty and sit across from each other. Terry has a short fiery temper and is itching to get back on the streets and Allen is more subdued and is totally content with sitting at his desk all day. Needless to say, these two don't get along, mostly due to Terry's bad attitude and Allen's goody-goody demeanor.



Terry takes advantage when he hears a police call and grabs Allen and the two head off to the crime scene...in Terry's Prius, blasting River Band on the radio :) Not that there's anything wrong with that, but in this situation, it was hysterical.

The two get caught up in a case that is more than what they bargained for. As they try to get to the bottom of what turns out to be a high profile case, they get themselves into some crazy situations, but eventually start to become friends.




Hubby and I went to watch The Other Guys on our date night. Both of us are big Will Ferrell fans (Anchorman and Old School are top favs) and this one looked like it would be really funny. We weren't dissapointed, this was a fun movie. It's got a good plot and some laugh out loud scenes. There's lots of great lines in it also, and Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg made for an awesome comedic team.




There's some great supporting characters in this film. I liked seeing Michael Keaton as Police Captain Gene Mauch, at first sight I didn't recognize him.

And hellooo Dwayne Johnson...a.k.a. The Rock! Does this man not age?




Eva Mendes was very funny as well and stunning as usual.







I do wish this movie would have been a little bit shorter, it was about 20 minutes too long for me. Or maybe it's just me, because the last few films I've watched in the theater have all seemed to be about 20 minutes too long for me...lol. But I still really liked this one.
All in all, this was a funny movie, and I'm glad I went to see it. I do recommend it!

I am a peacock, you gotta let me fly! -

Terry Hoitz

title: Sex and the City 2

release date: May 2010

genre: romance, comedy, drama

cast: Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon

rated: 4 out of 5




I went to see Sex and the City 2 with the girls on opening night. Being a fan of the show, I was eagerly waiting for this one.



Carrie Bradshaw has been married to Mr. Big for two years. She is worried that they are turning into a boring old married couple because Big likes to stay home and watch TV instead of going out on the town. Charlotte is dealing with her daughter's terrible two's and is worried her hubby is going to have an affair with the nanny. Miranda has a boss who doesn't respect her and she struggles between being at work and being at home with her family. Samantha is going through menopause. She just got an all-expense-paid trip to Abu Dhabi and wants to take the girls with her.


So the girls go to the Middle East and wind up getting into some hot water of course, mostly due to Samantha's behavior. Carrie runs into an ex...what are the odds of that happening? Oh well, I still enjoyed it. This movie was funny, had some great scenes and I'm glad I went to see it.



One thing I always liked about Sex and the City the series is that it really celebrated female friendship. I also enjoyed the fashion on the show. It's great to see that the two films based on the hit show, are really very good. The first Sex and The City movie came out 2 years ago, and was equally fun and sassy.




What about you? Are you a fan of the show? Will you watch the film?

title: Music and Lyrics


release date: February 2007

genre: romantic comedy

cast: Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore

rated: 4 1/2 out of 5





Alex Fletcher (Hugh Grant) is an 80's pop star who now lives off residuals from his former pop stardom and performs at theme parks and high school reunions.
Alex jumps at the chance to write and record a hit song with teen idol Cora Corman (think Britney Spears). Alex is good with melodies but isn't that great at writing lyrics. Sophie Fisher (Drew Barrymore) is filling in for a friend who waters Alex's plants. Alex finds out that Sophie has a natural talent for writing lyrics. The two begin writing the song for Alex and Cora's duet.


I randomly watched Music and Lyrics one Sunday morning when I was in the mood for a nice chic-flick. I'm so glad I did! This movie had me laughing out loud throughout. It's got an interesting storyline and a great cast. I'm a fan of both Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore and wondered why I hadn't watched this film sooner. Definitely one for the permanent DVD collection. I highly recommend it if you're in the mood for a sweet and funny romantic comedy with some great music as well.






Here's the movie trailer:







Here's one of Alex's hit songs. This cracks me up. Pop! Goes My Heart. It's catchy :) I always get a kick out of seeing Hugh Grant dance.