Confessions of a Shopaholic

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by this movie. It was cute, fun, bright and clean. I have read the entire Shopaholic series and they kind of bothered me. Why I kept reading them, I'll never know! The movie condensed two of the books and what the author accomplished in two books, fit nicely into one movie.

The acting was decent, nothing Oscar worthy, but it was fitting for this type of light-hearted, family comedy. Of all of the main characters, the only real-to-life personality was the boss, Luke Brandon. The other characters, while bright and fun, were unbelievable.

The script was full of outrageous moments which, like the characters, leaned more toward the unbelievable rather than real life. It was full of laughs and good, clean humor though.  The moral of the story gets a bit lost in the slapstick comedy, bright costuming and beautiful people.  I think it took too long to get to the point - if you tell the truth, everything will work out.

Overall, I really liked this movie.  If you take it for what it's worth, you will not be disappointed and I think a lot of girls can empathize on a certain level.  Go see it!

Grade: A-

He's Just Not That Into You

I actually saw this movie the day it came out and have just been too dang busy to blog about it.

I love this movie.  I absolutely must go see it again because I need the lessons learned from this movie to become so engrained on my mind that I never get hurt by a guy ever again.  I wish all guys were just honest and upfront about what they're thinking.  That would have changed my entire dating past.  Sigh.

I thought the characters were well rounded and, in most cases, very likable.  The only issue I took with them is that the movie highlighted such a variety of relationship issues happening within a small group of acquaintances.  It wasn't too real to life but for the sake of the movie, I understand and it's fine.  I loved the casting for this one. It is a great ensemble cast and I feel that they all played their characters very well.

It is really funny because it is scarily true.  We (the audience) were screaming with laughter the whole time at the parallel most of us saw in our own lives.  I have long supported the theory that girls are not naturally crazy, boys make us that way and I think the movie supports us girls more than stinky boys.

It is funny, sad, depressingly accurate and just an all around good time.  I think boys should be forced to watch this to give them a bit more insight into us ladies and girls should be forced to watch it to come up with a new game plan for their dating life.  My game plan is almost ready, I just need to see it once more.

I highly recommend it!  

Overall grade: A+

Bride Wars

This is a really cute movie that *real* movie critics do not love.  I can't figure it out, I thought the acting was great, the plot was a little weak but not awful and it was funny!  

The story, while it was a bit exaggerated, was one that I think a lot of women can relate to.  You have a fight with your friend and after some time with bad feelings and possible property damage, you remember your friend.  You remember the good times, the love and who your friend really is.  This movie does a great job of illustrating that process.

Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson did great in their roles.  Hudson plays the Type A personality high-powered lawyer and Hathaway plays the super sweet teacher.  The story is that they have been friends since birth and I think their chemistry on screen makes that story line apparent. 

One thing I REALLY loved is that this movie is rated PG and rightly so.  There is only mild swearing and no sexual innuendos that I can remember.  I'm no prude but it is nice to see a movie that doesn't try to push the limits of it's rating to see how far it can go without being bumped up a rating.  I wish more producers would go for clean jokes but those are easy and audiences seem to like them.  

I recommend this movie!

Overall grade: A

Marley & Me

This was a really cute movie. Would I suggest it for a boy? Maybe, maybe not.  Before seeing it I was definitely curious how they could make a movie about a dog that wouldn't end up being Lassie or Benji.  It wasn't (luckily).

This movie is rated PG but I find that very odd.  I don't think it warranted a PG-13 rating because it doesn't necessarily fit into the typical PG-13 mold BUT it needed to be somewhere in between PG and PG-13.  I thought for a PG movie there was too much sex, innuendo and implied nudity. If you take the dog out of the equation, it was still a somewhat interesting story, but the dog suggests it is a kid movie but I don't think I would recommend it for children.  

I wouldn't call it a funny movie, but it was cute and charming.  I absolutely have a full-blown girl crush on Jennifer Aniston after watching it!  She is too cute in her role as a newlywed and then as a mom.  Owen Wilson is good in his role, I think his bachelorhood in real life comes through in the conflicts he faces in the movie.

It was good, but I definitely don't plan on seeing it again.  Well, let me retract that, I may watch it again so I can copy some of Jennifer Aniston's outfits.

Overall Grade: B+

Eagle Eye

Hmmm, where to start with this movie... First things first I suppose. I think that this is a one time watch. I would not buy this movie or even rent it and I am a chronic repeat movie watcher.  It was suspenseful, interesting and smart but I have zero interest in ever viewing it again.

The effects were great, the story was interesting and *somewhat* original and the acting was decent.  I don't think it required much artistic expression by the actors to portray their characters because of the lack of emotional range the script offered.

I feel like I've seen this movie before though, and that is a problem.  It's like they took I, Robot, Artificial Intelligence and a couple other movies, mashed them together and ended up with Eagle Eye.  We all know what's going to happen in the end, we just don't know exactly how it will come to fruition.  So, while the explosions and the ticking time bombs may stimulate the feeling of suspense, there is always that underlying feeling that you know what's going to happen in the end.  

Overall grade: C+

Seven Pounds

I feel like I emotionally and mentally connected with this film.  I am seriously considering adding this to my Favorite Movies list.  I did a dumb thing and saw this alone while in an emotionally fragile state.  Even if I was not effected by those two things, I'm fairly certain I would still adore this movie.

Will Smith is fantastic in this movie, he carries it with ease.  The other actors also did a wonderful job, especially Woody Harrelson.  I would say that this movie is not for the sort of person who needs to sit back and have a movie entertain them.  Like the idiot sitting behind me.  

It was heartwarming, inspiring and I don't think you can leave the movie and not take a closer look at your life.  I didn't feel like it was slow at any point in the film and I know this because I didn't check the time once.  

The only thing I didn't like was that within the first 5-10 minutes I was able to guess the entire plot.  I normally don't like when I can guess the plot but this was different because I wanted to see how everything was handled.  I still wish that the screenwriter would have held back a bit and not given so much information at the beginning.  Although, without that information I may not have connected with the characters as much as I did.

Overall grade: A

Nights in Rodanthe

I did not love this movie.  It was supposed to be a classic chick flick and it did not deliver.  When a girl goes to a movie that touts itself as being a heart wrencher, she expects to connect with the characters and actually care about what happens to them.  This subsequently leads to a lot of crying which fills some odd void that most girls have deep in the pit of our souls.  I promise.

Back to the movie.  I take issue with any Nicholas Sparks book that has been turned into a movie.  Not every bestseller should be immediately considered for film.  

The acting was good but I felt as though the script writer was coming at any angle to get the tears.  A good woman who was cheated on, a successful doctor who is soul searching and whose son hates him, etc.  They have the potential to be characters with whom you could connect with, but it just doesn't work.  I'm a sensitive girl and to not even come close to tearing up in a so-called chick flick is pretty disastrous if you ask me. 

Overall grade: D+