This blog post is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
This is going to be short. I have seen this movie before and love it. It is a romantic comedy and the first 1/3 of the movie is disaster after disaster. I would have a cardiac. But it is funny and having seen the movie before, makes the craziness less stressful, in fact, downright enjoyable. I call this type of movie a "hockey stick"; learned the term from Dr. Eric Cole, a SANS Instructor. He is also the primary author of SANS' flagship course, SEC 401, Security Essentials, which is a tough course to maintain; ask me how I know, *smile*.
Think about the Nike Swoosh. From left to right it goes down, then hits bottom and works its way up. For me, the bottom is just before the bed and breakfast scenes. Now there will still be twists and turns, (lots of them), but they start to move up.
Eric taught me that any presentation to senior management should include a hockey stick, "We encountered some difficulties then made some adjustments to turn things around and now we are not only on the road to recovery, but we see an opportunity for further improvement ahead.
Well this is the hockey stick of love and it is a well done presentation. I treasure the scenery, the interplay and when the bus and coffee scene happens, I find I am rooting for the couple and the movie even throws in a romantic song. By the time they get to Dublin, I am really rooting for them. One of the things I like about the movie is how it depicts marriage, so many long time couples are in the movie, loved the kissing scene at the B&B.
I am deeply thankful to have this movie in our library and certainly intend to watch it again.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Green Mile - 1999
This blog post is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
I have not seen this or even read about it. For some reason, I thought was a war movie. I loved the way the older man in the nursing home, Paul Edgecomb (Dabbs Greer), gets out and walks, it grabs my attention and I want to know more.
The TV scene at night with all the residents of the home was interesting. The men are all on our left, women on the right, while Paul is sitting next to Elaine.
I really enjoyed the scene when young Paul, (Tom Hanks) first meets John Coffey, a giant of a man. Unlike the last movie I watched, Vanilla Skies, this one is making sense, and a genuine plot is emerging.
The mouse scene really cracked me up. When I was in college I was sharing a huge apartment with four other guys. One of them was not the tidiest guy in the world, in fact Chip's bedroom looked a lot like the storage room in the prison where the mouse would disappear. One day, a mouse came into our apartment. We were chasing it hoping to put back in the wild area, (our apartment was next to the Rappahannock river). Any way, we weren't able to catch the mouse and he made it into Chip's room, we all looked at one another and shrugged. Funny thing is we never did see the mouse in our apartment again.
The mouse in the movie does come back and in more than one way than one.
The execution chamber scene was really tough. The movie makes really easy to dislike Percy, (Doug Hutchinson), dude is messed up.
Things take an interesting turn after that. The plot still remains on track, but the character interactions continue to deepen and I keep getting sucked in. For ten years of my life I was an active member of a Kairos prison ministry team. It is fascinating, the first time you go in, they are all really big and scary. Then you start to get to know them. And you get to watch their interactions with each other. Prison or not, people form relationships and over time and through shared experience they deepen. I find I am happy when the good guys score and quietly cheer when the really bad people have really bad things happen to them.
The I'm tired speech really hit me between the eyes, I could completely empathize with John. The last 4th of the movie really pulls you in.
This is the part where I stop, it seems to be a good movie though a bit sad. But then, death row in the 1930s is going to have a lot of sadness; I think the actors and directors all handled it well. I really appreciated the touch Tom Hanks put into his character.
I am glad this movie is in my library and fully expect to watch it again.
I have not seen this or even read about it. For some reason, I thought was a war movie. I loved the way the older man in the nursing home, Paul Edgecomb (Dabbs Greer), gets out and walks, it grabs my attention and I want to know more.
The TV scene at night with all the residents of the home was interesting. The men are all on our left, women on the right, while Paul is sitting next to Elaine.
I really enjoyed the scene when young Paul, (Tom Hanks) first meets John Coffey, a giant of a man. Unlike the last movie I watched, Vanilla Skies, this one is making sense, and a genuine plot is emerging.
The mouse scene really cracked me up. When I was in college I was sharing a huge apartment with four other guys. One of them was not the tidiest guy in the world, in fact Chip's bedroom looked a lot like the storage room in the prison where the mouse would disappear. One day, a mouse came into our apartment. We were chasing it hoping to put back in the wild area, (our apartment was next to the Rappahannock river). Any way, we weren't able to catch the mouse and he made it into Chip's room, we all looked at one another and shrugged. Funny thing is we never did see the mouse in our apartment again.
The mouse in the movie does come back and in more than one way than one.
The execution chamber scene was really tough. The movie makes really easy to dislike Percy, (Doug Hutchinson), dude is messed up.
Things take an interesting turn after that. The plot still remains on track, but the character interactions continue to deepen and I keep getting sucked in. For ten years of my life I was an active member of a Kairos prison ministry team. It is fascinating, the first time you go in, they are all really big and scary. Then you start to get to know them. And you get to watch their interactions with each other. Prison or not, people form relationships and over time and through shared experience they deepen. I find I am happy when the good guys score and quietly cheer when the really bad people have really bad things happen to them.
The I'm tired speech really hit me between the eyes, I could completely empathize with John. The last 4th of the movie really pulls you in.
This is the part where I stop, it seems to be a good movie though a bit sad. But then, death row in the 1930s is going to have a lot of sadness; I think the actors and directors all handled it well. I really appreciated the touch Tom Hanks put into his character.
I am glad this movie is in my library and fully expect to watch it again.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Vanilla Skies - 2001
This blog post is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
This is my first time to see this movie. In the beginning of the movie I empathized with David, (Tom Cruise). I can remember when I would pick the grey hairs from my beard, like fast cars, and also have a Mustang GT 5.0. I was also a sleep deprived senior executive that didn't fit the mold.
The near accident scared the heck out of me.
By the time we get to the birthday party I was totally confused. When he chose to pick up
Brian Shelby's girl, Sofia Serrano (Penélope Cruz), I found myself not liking David anymore. The Cameron Dias car off the bridge scene was pretty strange and now I don't know what I feel. Actually thinking about turning the movie off.
The next few scenes are an emotional roller coaster for me, do I like David? No. I understand that he has been through a lot, but the movie starts to get to be painful to watch and listen to. Nothing like what David had to go though, but I have had some significant setbacks of late and yet try to be graceful to those around me.
Not going to go any further into the plot, but reality can sometimes be elusive. Will this stay in the library? I simply do not know, Kathy said it best, this is a strange movie.
This is my first time to see this movie. In the beginning of the movie I empathized with David, (Tom Cruise). I can remember when I would pick the grey hairs from my beard, like fast cars, and also have a Mustang GT 5.0. I was also a sleep deprived senior executive that didn't fit the mold.
The near accident scared the heck out of me.
By the time we get to the birthday party I was totally confused. When he chose to pick up
Brian Shelby's girl, Sofia Serrano (Penélope Cruz), I found myself not liking David anymore. The Cameron Dias car off the bridge scene was pretty strange and now I don't know what I feel. Actually thinking about turning the movie off.
The next few scenes are an emotional roller coaster for me, do I like David? No. I understand that he has been through a lot, but the movie starts to get to be painful to watch and listen to. Nothing like what David had to go though, but I have had some significant setbacks of late and yet try to be graceful to those around me.
Not going to go any further into the plot, but reality can sometimes be elusive. Will this stay in the library? I simply do not know, Kathy said it best, this is a strange movie.
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Magic of Belle Island - 2012
The is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
I have seen this movie once before, but I can't remember anything about it. I do know I enjoy watching movies with Morgan Freeman, he is one of my favorite actors.
Monte Wildhorn, (Morgan Freeman), was great, so it the story. I laughed, felt good, and even cried. I tried to figure out which of the Belle Islands this movie referred to, never did succeed. While trying to look it up, I found that the movie was filmed at Greenwood lake in New York.
As the movie opens, Henry, Monte's nephew is driving him to the isle. The first ten minutes have some touching moments, some fun such as Charlotte standing on the roof wetting it down, there was a fire on the other side of the lake. Henry says, There's something you do not see every day, a beautiful woman on a roof. Charlotte saying, "Girls its not polite to stare" and then they all resumed staring at Monte as he heads up the ramp after arriving at the lakefront cottage. As I write this, I am writing from a lake house and lake living has been a part of my since I was a boy, seeing the lake scenes. was very nostalgic for me.
As much as I like Morgan Freeman, it is hard to like Monte, he is such a grumpy guy. When I first saw Charlotte O'Neil, (Virginia Madsen ) in her strategic location next door to Monte, I found myself wondering is there was a possibility of a deep friendship, or even love, (after all age difference means what to who?). Though have to say, the first time they met, Monte did everything he could to alienate her.
Monte is watching his neighbor on the opposite side of the house play basketball and drop with what I think is a massive heart attack. Monte says, "That is why I always refrain from any sort of exercise."
As the movie progressives Monte starts to develop some relationships and mellow out and I start to like him. In particular I loved his talks with Ringo, er, uh Spot, the labrador he is taking care of.
The relationship between Monte and Finnegan is my favorite. They do have a special bonding and it is touching. The angry Finnegan approached by Monte is a wonderful scene and leads to a stronger appreciation for both characters. I start to feel a happy ending is within the realm of possible futures.
Not going to talk about some more scenes, but the movie is incredibly touching, they take us through the range of emotions and keep unveiling new plot bits.
I am thankful to have this movie in my lakehouse library and I want to see it several times in the months to come.
I have seen this movie once before, but I can't remember anything about it. I do know I enjoy watching movies with Morgan Freeman, he is one of my favorite actors.
Monte Wildhorn, (Morgan Freeman), was great, so it the story. I laughed, felt good, and even cried. I tried to figure out which of the Belle Islands this movie referred to, never did succeed. While trying to look it up, I found that the movie was filmed at Greenwood lake in New York.
As the movie opens, Henry, Monte's nephew is driving him to the isle. The first ten minutes have some touching moments, some fun such as Charlotte standing on the roof wetting it down, there was a fire on the other side of the lake. Henry says, There's something you do not see every day, a beautiful woman on a roof. Charlotte saying, "Girls its not polite to stare" and then they all resumed staring at Monte as he heads up the ramp after arriving at the lakefront cottage. As I write this, I am writing from a lake house and lake living has been a part of my since I was a boy, seeing the lake scenes. was very nostalgic for me.
As much as I like Morgan Freeman, it is hard to like Monte, he is such a grumpy guy. When I first saw Charlotte O'Neil, (Virginia Madsen ) in her strategic location next door to Monte, I found myself wondering is there was a possibility of a deep friendship, or even love, (after all age difference means what to who?). Though have to say, the first time they met, Monte did everything he could to alienate her.
Willow Tree, (Madeline Carroll), the oldest of Charlotte's daughters, shows up very early in the movie. She is your classic disaffected teen permanently attached to her smart phone. I suppose that I have a bias against rude teenage girls. One of my close friends and his wife came to visit us, (we have guests quite often, seeing as we live at a beach when we are not living on a lake). Anyway, they had one of these rude teens in tow and it was amazing how uncomfortable she could make us feel. But, Willow had her first, but not last, moment of decency and that was a turning point for Monte.
Monte is watching his neighbor on the opposite side of the house play basketball and drop with what I think is a massive heart attack. Monte says, "That is why I always refrain from any sort of exercise."
As the movie progressives Monte starts to develop some relationships and mellow out and I start to like him. In particular I loved his talks with Ringo, er, uh Spot, the labrador he is taking care of.
The relationship between Monte and Finnegan is my favorite. They do have a special bonding and it is touching. The angry Finnegan approached by Monte is a wonderful scene and leads to a stronger appreciation for both characters. I start to feel a happy ending is within the realm of possible futures.
Not going to talk about some more scenes, but the movie is incredibly touching, they take us through the range of emotions and keep unveiling new plot bits.
I am thankful to have this movie in my lakehouse library and I want to see it several times in the months to come.
Friday, January 3, 2014
Minority Report - 2002
The is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
In the opening scene, they are working in their very high tech office. I gotta get me a workstation like that! I also love their removable media!
They are working furiously to locate a man about to commit murder. Finally they mobilize in high tech flying machines, the movie does a great job of building suspense. I have seen this movie once before, but still felt the intensity.
After the first four scenes, Captain John Anderton (Tom Cruise). is still a mystery to me. Do I like him? I think I like him more than the opposite, but there are so many mysteries.
The interaction between Anderton and the precog had plenty of startle factor.
Now we learn the system is not perfect. I had been thinking the FBI guy, ( that I thought was a jerk), when he questioned the integrity of the system,turned out to be right. The system, in terms of computers and network, may be perfect or nearly so. But as the FBI agent said, its the people, the flaws in just about everything. The stunt with the cars was pretty intense, but I was pretty sure he would not fall to his death, they need to chase him for a while I suspect.
The intense stunts, action, and Aderton's ability to improvise against overwhelming odds remind me of Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible.
The deadly plants scene is the last one to reflect on, I never get comfortable with moving plants that can poison or cut. And in the greenhouse, he learns about his one chance not to get put-away with pre murder.
I doubt I will watch this as often as Mama Mia, or Overboard, but I glad this is in my library and expect to see it again some time.
In the opening scene, they are working in their very high tech office. I gotta get me a workstation like that! I also love their removable media!
They are working furiously to locate a man about to commit murder. Finally they mobilize in high tech flying machines, the movie does a great job of building suspense. I have seen this movie once before, but still felt the intensity.
After the first four scenes, Captain John Anderton (Tom Cruise). is still a mystery to me. Do I like him? I think I like him more than the opposite, but there are so many mysteries.
The interaction between Anderton and the precog had plenty of startle factor.
Now we learn the system is not perfect. I had been thinking the FBI guy, ( that I thought was a jerk), when he questioned the integrity of the system,turned out to be right. The system, in terms of computers and network, may be perfect or nearly so. But as the FBI agent said, its the people, the flaws in just about everything. The stunt with the cars was pretty intense, but I was pretty sure he would not fall to his death, they need to chase him for a while I suspect.
The intense stunts, action, and Aderton's ability to improvise against overwhelming odds remind me of Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible.
The deadly plants scene is the last one to reflect on, I never get comfortable with moving plants that can poison or cut. And in the greenhouse, he learns about his one chance not to get put-away with pre murder.
I doubt I will watch this as often as Mama Mia, or Overboard, but I glad this is in my library and expect to see it again some time.
Take the lead - 2006
The is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
I enjoy watching Antonio Banderas, he has an incredible range of roles he can play intently. Kathy and I have seen this movie before. In this movie he is an accomplished dance instructor and the calmest most patient person I can imagine. Kathy was a teacher in an inner-city school teacher, so we empathized with the plot.
I am not going to make any attempt at the names of the students in detention. In the opening scene where we had the angry high school student with the ticket to the dance and they would not let him in, I felt for him and the social injustice, but then he took matters in his own hands. I served with Kairos, a prison ministry group for a number of years and can't tell you how many times I was speaking with an inmate that said, "I just made a mistake". Throughout the movie he has several opportunities to "make a mistake", but largely avoids serious legal problems.
He is patient through the gaining trust phase with inner city high school students and I would begin to wonder if he was ever going to get through to the students. Since I have seen the movie multiple times, this was a bit boring for me and I read my email waiting for the scene where he does the tango with the gorgeous, but somewhat bitchy blond pro dancer. Even though I have seen the movie before, it is still an emotional roller coaster, you are impressed with her skill and performance and then in one verbal comment, I no longer empathize with her. But it was surely enough for a state change with the students.
I enjoy watching Antonio Banderas, he has an incredible range of roles he can play intently. Kathy and I have seen this movie before. In this movie he is an accomplished dance instructor and the calmest most patient person I can imagine. Kathy was a teacher in an inner-city school teacher, so we empathized with the plot.
I am not going to make any attempt at the names of the students in detention. In the opening scene where we had the angry high school student with the ticket to the dance and they would not let him in, I felt for him and the social injustice, but then he took matters in his own hands. I served with Kairos, a prison ministry group for a number of years and can't tell you how many times I was speaking with an inmate that said, "I just made a mistake". Throughout the movie he has several opportunities to "make a mistake", but largely avoids serious legal problems.
He is patient through the gaining trust phase with inner city high school students and I would begin to wonder if he was ever going to get through to the students. Since I have seen the movie multiple times, this was a bit boring for me and I read my email waiting for the scene where he does the tango with the gorgeous, but somewhat bitchy blond pro dancer. Even though I have seen the movie before, it is still an emotional roller coaster, you are impressed with her skill and performance and then in one verbal comment, I no longer empathize with her. But it was surely enough for a state change with the students.
Pierre Dulaine, (Antonio Banderas), is now getting through to his dance students, ( also known as detention, because that is why they are there). I loved the way they move to the conclusion, little subplots add dynamic tension right up to the end when Rock arrives after the competition waltz has already begun to dance with LaRhette.
NOTE: In real life Pierre's program "Dancing Classrooms" continues to expand. We just closed on the sale of our house in Richmond VA and they were trying a kickstarter campaign to get the program started in the local area:
http://rvanews.com/entertainment/ballroom-dancing-making-a-difference-in-richmond-public-schools
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
While you were sleeping - 1995
The is not a review or a plot description, this is a record of how the movie made me feel.
I have seen this movie multiple times and love it and am a real Sandra Bullock fan as well. After the dramatic rescue where Lucy, (Sandra Bullock), jumps on the subway tracks to help Peter, (Peter Gallagher), who is thrown from the subway and is unconscious on the tracks. Lucy had managed to develop a crush on Peter who does not know she exists. I find I am rooting for Lucy and also quite aware that being with an unconscious man on an active train track is a bit scary.
They avoid getting crushed by the train. And at the hospital the drama begins, a rumor gets started that she is his finance and while she was careful about what she said, she did not stop the story. I feel conflicted, oh my this is not going to work out well.
In the deliver the furniture scene, Lucy and Jack, (Peter's brother played by Bill Pullman), take a long walk together and while we still have to conflict coming when Peter wakes up, I find myself rooting for the potential the couple has.
This is a comedy and the funniest exchanges are between Lucy and her boss Jerry. Kathy and I could not keep from laughing when they had their exchanges.
They do a great job of keeping the dynamic tension up until almost the very end. When Peter was willing to accept any and everything, I felt bored really, I think they could have eliminated that scene.
I do not want to go any farther for fear of spoiling the ending for anyone that has not seen the movie.
I have seen this movie multiple times and love it and am a real Sandra Bullock fan as well. After the dramatic rescue where Lucy, (Sandra Bullock), jumps on the subway tracks to help Peter, (Peter Gallagher), who is thrown from the subway and is unconscious on the tracks. Lucy had managed to develop a crush on Peter who does not know she exists. I find I am rooting for Lucy and also quite aware that being with an unconscious man on an active train track is a bit scary.
They avoid getting crushed by the train. And at the hospital the drama begins, a rumor gets started that she is his finance and while she was careful about what she said, she did not stop the story. I feel conflicted, oh my this is not going to work out well.
In the deliver the furniture scene, Lucy and Jack, (Peter's brother played by Bill Pullman), take a long walk together and while we still have to conflict coming when Peter wakes up, I find myself rooting for the potential the couple has.
This is a comedy and the funniest exchanges are between Lucy and her boss Jerry. Kathy and I could not keep from laughing when they had their exchanges.
They do a great job of keeping the dynamic tension up until almost the very end. When Peter was willing to accept any and everything, I felt bored really, I think they could have eliminated that scene.
I do not want to go any farther for fear of spoiling the ending for anyone that has not seen the movie.
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