{i watched it} Rock of Ages the Movie

I was lucky enough to get screening passes for the Rock of Ages movie and despite never seeing the previews (and having no idea of the storyline), I was really excited to see the movie based on the soundtrack alone. I am an 80s/90s rock girl and was brought up on all the great rock music of the time. I am a fan of musicals for the most part (although, not a fan of the Original Broadway Soundtrack as it felt way to “broadway” for me), however, I loathe Glee so I was a bit concerned that this movie would follow the Glee recipe (bad acting, decent singing, great songs being butchered). I must say, I was pleasantly surprised.

As everyone has said, Tom Cruise does an amazing job playing the part of a wasted, sex-crazed, losing his mind, big name Rock God. I was a huge Cruise fan up until a few years ago when he fell of my radar and started to show his age. I am now eating my words as he looks AMAZING! Cruise…in leather pants…tons of tattoos…YES PLEASE! A side note, he can sing! I had no idea.

The two younger actors in the cast, Julianne Hough and Diego Boneta, fell a little short of hitting the amazing mark. Both are great singers but just lacked in the acting and chemistry part. Hough is GORGEOUS and that girl can sing but the acting just seemed so forced. Boneta definitely has a great voice and isn’t hard on the eyes, but again…he could use a little acting work.

Russell Brand and Alec Baldwin were hilarious! I honestly was laughing so hard at times that I had tears streaming down my cheeks. The chemistry between these two was amazing…with a twist at the end.

I love Malin Akerman in just about everything she is in and Rock of Ages did not disappoint. Akerman has amazing comedic timing and her love scenes with Cruise left everyone in the theater laughing out loud. The chemistry may have been missing between Hough and Boneta but it was definitely there for Akerman and Cruise!!

The music in Rock of Ages was great…not too over the top “broadway” as it can sometimes get in musicals. The dancing was so over the top that it was hilarious. The wardrobe team did a great job of taking the hideous looks of the 80s and making them look current so as to not feel like a joke.

Overall…I LOVED the movie. If you love musicals, SEE IT. If you are indifferent about musicals, SEE IT. If you hate musicals, you will probably want to skip it…but come on…you will be missing a great movie.

{I watched it – Review} Silent House staring Elizabeth Olsen

My BFF Jackie and I have a thing for scary movies. We really can’t get enough of them and being that the hubs can’t stand them, Jac and I are always heading for a girls’ night when a good movie hits the theaters. We both had come across the previews for Silent House a couple weeks prior and had planned to see it as soon as it came out.

We got to the theater, grabbed some pizza and beer, spent some time flirting with the bartender for a bit {I was playing wingwoman}, and then headed in to grab our seats. Being that it had just come out 5 days before, we expected to have a full theater. This was not the case. We grabbed seats and when the previews began, we were two of the four people in the whole place. By the time the movie started, the total viewers had risen to 10. Not a good sign.

The movie began immediately without a long drawn out credit and title sequence. The entire movie is shown {and supposed to appear to be} one continuous take. Unfortunately, I had watched an interview with Elizabeth Olsen a few days prior where she explained that the movie was actually filmed in 10 minute segments and then edited to LOOK as if it was one continuous take, so I spent a lot of the time trying to ‘catch’ the edits…because that’s who I am.

To give you a bit of the plot concept: a young woman {I would put her at about 21}, her father, and her uncle return to the family lake house to fix it up and sell it. While in the house, Sarah {Elizabeth Olsen} begins to hear things, see things, and sense that someone bad is in the house. Since the movie is ‘one continuous take’, the entire plot story of the movie takes place in 88 minutes from start to finish…so Sarah’s entire horrific experience is supposed to only take 88 minutes, which is a little hard to believe when you think about all that happens but alas…

Over the course of the 88 minutes, you are introduced to the characters and learn a lot of their {shocking} past all while being thrust into darkness, silence, and a handheld camera.The title Silent House was right on as the movie was pretty much silent…very little score though out the film, and I will say, what little musical score there was, was pretty bad. The handheld camera/flashlight aspect of the movie reminds me of the Blair Witch Project (I am dating myself here) but done much better. There was only a small 5 minutes of the movie where the handheld thing started to get to me.

The first 60 minutes or so of the movie are pretty slow with a few scary moments but it was more about trying to figure out what was going on. Many times, I kept thinking, “Someone has got to be right over there!” but no. Nothing. It is dark. It is jumpy. There are a lot of shots of Sarah’s boobs in her conveniently fitted t-shirt. Around the 60 minute mark, you start to realize what you thought was happening, wasn’t quite happening. Yes, there is a BIG twist in the end. I won’t go into details but it really makes you leave the theater thinking, “What the Hell did I just watch?!”

Overall…Jac and I both rode home in almost silence with both of us saying, “Wait…what?”. We were both in agreement that Silent House is either the BEST scary movie we have seen or the WORST scary movie we have seen. The problem is… we still aren’t sure which way it went.

Did it have scary moments? YES.

Was it disturbing? YES.

Was the film style unique? YES.

Will I watch it again? PROBABLY NOT.

Am I upset that I paid money for it? NO.

Have you seen Silent House? What were your feelings on it? Love it, hate it, or feel eh?

 

 

The Oscars {the good. the bad. the ugly.}

I forced the hubs to sit and watch the Oscars with me (even though I’m not a huge fan) so that I could see all the gowns. Then I sat through the whole thing looking at People.com and choosing my good, bad, and ugly. So…here they are. I can’t wait to compare my favorites with Jac’s! (in no particular order)

the good:

Love this. She looks gorgeous.

This one I would LOVE if I could justt cut the sleeves off. I don’t see the point but I love the rest. I’m digging the white this year.

This was a good choice for an “older woman”. Cover up the arms…but keep it sexy yet simple…in a jaw dropping color.

Love the color. Love the shape.

This dress just fits Cameron so well. Gorgeous.

This was a bit of a stretch but I am LOVING the yellow! Its such an unexpected color. Not so sure about the black but I’ll let it slide.

Gorgeous. Love the color…and the shape.

I’m usually not a fan of the weird shoulder straps but this one works for me.

This dress could not fit her any better. It’s like a second skin…but in the best way possible. Love the nude sparkle look.

Love love love the sparkly white.

Such an unexpected color and yet still very stunning and fit for the Oscars.

I’m loving the nude with sparkles. This feels very ballerina/princess like but not in a childish way.

Love the white (again) but the shape and structure in this gown is what did it for me. So different.

Nothing too exciting here but in the royal blue color, it works.

Such a good shape on her. (Just for the record, Melissa McCarthy…THIS is how you do curves!)

LOVE the simplicity of this dress. Layers and layers of gorgeous sheer fabric. LOVE.

the bad:

This dress looks like something created for a 90 year old…not a young girl. The sleeves are bad, neckline is bad, fabric is bad. Bad.

Again with the sleeves. What is with them this year? Not loving the sleeves, the neckline, or the bust area.

I’m not sure what to say about this one. Why the gold trim? Why the weird white top? Why?

Okay, I get that Melissa is a bigger girl…but why so much fabric?? Show so of those curves…and lose all the extra layers…they are just making you look larger.

I like the color of this dress…but the rest, I’m not loving. The one shoulder strap needs to be cut off and I don’t like the band at the bottom.

Another dress that is way too old for a young girl. It looks like a weird crocheted dress for a wedding in the 70s.

Not a fan of the racing stripes down the middle. The rest is okay…but not digging the stripes.

I’m just not feeling this. It isn’t terrible…just not good. The diamond shoulder pads are my biggest issue.

the ugly:

Do I really need to explain why this is bad?

I don’t get the middle metal/diamond plate thing. Just. Don’t. Get. It.

The sleeves. The sparkles. The bra?!?! What were you thinking??

This dress would be good without the weird gold shirt thing on the top. Really?? Sure, cover the shoulders…but not like that!

First, the violet hair has got to go (and that’s from a girl with PINK hair!). I would like the dress without the sleeves, maybe? But this is not good.

Review: The Woman in Black

Okay, here’s the thing…if you like scary movies for the sheer fact of being scared, jumping out of your seat over and over, and screaming, you are in the right place. If you are looking for a movie that will make you actually think about the plot line and try to figure something out, you may want to pass.

The plot line is okay, although lacking those twists and turns that I long for. The acting is actually really good. Being that I have only seen one Harry Potter movie and didn’t enjoy it, I didn’t once think of Arthur (Daniel Ratcliff’s character) as Harry Potter but if you are a big Potter fan, I could see host his might be an issue. He has defiantly grown up and was believable in this adult role.

Personally, I like my scary movies to make me think…to leave me thinking about the movie for days to come. This movie did not do that. Being that I saw the movie 3 days ago, I am actually having a hard time remembering all that it entailed.

Overall, as a scary movie it wasn’t bad. Trust me, I have seen my fair share of bad scary movies…however it won’t hold a candle to those psychological thrillers that leave you wanting more.