Movie Madness

Christmas vacation was very uneventful at the Haines household this holiday season. We didn't go anywhere — and I mean anywhere. We didn't entertain, except for a small afternoon get-together with our close friends from church on the 16th, and Chris's sisters and their families on the 30th. I didn't do any Boxing Week shopping, although Chris did on Boxing Day, but that is a story for a whole other blog. We did, however, enjoy time together in our own home, among our own things, especially in our newly finished basement.

For two years we had been promising our kids (and ourselves) a cool basement, with an awesome TV with surround sound, and an Xbox 360 with Kinect. This was in great measure a reward for Chris finishing the work mostly on his own. His framing and my painting, along with hiring a very reasonable worker to fill in our gaps, basically paid for the extra large TV, furniture and accessories that adorn our cozy family room.

So the past two weeks we have enjoyed them together. And although Chris and I do enjoy watching the kids exploring their new Xbox games (and joining in now and then), this has primarily meant family movie nights. And as a family we have watched a bunch, together and separately. I'll give a short list, although at this late hour, as I'm watching the end of The Amazing Spider Man with my boys, I won't promise it is exhaustive.

1. The Avengers — Chris and Connor and I had already seen it in the theatre, and we had to twist Janelle's arm to join us. But she LOVED it! She giggled and cheered and remained wide awake until the movie ended at midnight. We got to experience the 3D feature of our TV, which we had previously only tried with Hugo. We hadn't set out to buy a 3D TV, but were seduced by a deal when we bought it, and I have to say, the 3D is excellent, far better than any we've seen in a theatre. So the kids each got a few 3D movies for Christmas, and it has been fun to check them out. The Avengers was a great way to start. We all loved it, and I know it is one that will remain in our movie library to be enjoyed many times and for many years to come.
2. Madagascar 3 — Janelle got this one for Christmas, and it was also in 3D. She loves all the Madagascar movies. I remember her as a tiny little girl dancing around in front of the TV in our basement on Crocket Street singing "I like to move it, move it!" We don't all get the same pleasure from the movie that she does, but her enthusiasm for it is contagious, and that makes it a family favourite.
3. Brave — The kids and I saw this one in the theatre this summer, and I picked it up for Janelle on Black Friday for next to nothing. Connor was at his buddy's house for a post-Christmas sleepover, so Chris and Janelle and I settled in to watch her movie. Janelle and I enjoyed it as much as the first time. I love that it is a love story between a princess and her mom. Chris wasn't overly impressed with the movie, but he did love that Janelle held his hand all through it. She is Daddy's girl.
4. Whales and Dolphins 3D — We all watched this one the afternoon of New Year's Eve. This was the only disappointment we've had with the 3D on our TV. The movie is really interesting, but the transitions were very disorienting. I kept wanting to take off the glasses. Like all of our 3D movies, it comes with both a 3D disk and a 2D disk. I look forward to viewing it again in 2D.
5. The Lorax — Janelle had been dying to see this one. Connor saw it on a rainy day at camp in August, but she had only seen it in French at school. I missed this one, which the rest watched while I cleaned the house for our Haines family party. I can only share the kids' reviews: "So cute!" (Janelle) and "Sooooooo boring!" (Connor). Shocking.
6. Moneyball — I brought this one home from my Black Friday shopping spree in Indiana and put it Chris's stocking. He picked it one night last week. We both enjoyed it. Really interesting subject matter, and Brad Pitt not looking like a homeless man. Highly recommended.
7. Secret of the Wings — Janelle's movie. She watched it and loved it. Connor endured it while putting together some of Janelle's Lego. I skipped it.
8. Raiders of the Lost Ark — Chris, Connor and I watched this perennial favourite on New Year's Day. I can't say a bad thing about that movie. We all love it. Doesn't everyone?
9. Say Anything — There is a second hand CD/DVD/Video game store nearby where we often trade in our movies and video games. They have a 2 for $6 rack, and we've picked up quite a few previously missed movies there. We figure $3 is cheaper than renting or OnDemand, and we can watch it on our own timeline. A few months ago Chris came home with this throwback to the eighties that neither of us had seen, and we pulled it out two nights ago. It wasn't bad. It was fun to check out the clothes and hairstyles that we can hardly believe we had any part of, and John Cusack gave a really good performance. The lead actress was terrible though. I can understand why I've never seen her in anything else. Glad I saw it, but I'll be happy to trade it back in at the video store.
10. Tin-Tin — Connor found Tin-Tin on Netflix one day last week. I only saw a few minutes of it, but Connor was very impressed. He said the graphics were "Crazy", and insists we need to make it our next family movie night. Today he even spent a Christmas gift card on the Tin-Tin Xbox game.
11. Prometheus — Before we went to Indiana for Thanksgiving in November, Chris had been complaining that he missed this movie and that he was sure I'd never watch it with him. I found it in one of the super-cheap bins at Walmart in the middle of the night on Black Friday, so I knew I had to bring it back to him. I kept it for Christmas and he pulled it out on New Years Day morning. I stayed in bed and watched a couple of episodes of  The Gilmore Girls (my latest obsession). As he had predicted, there was no way I was going near that movie. I asked later if there was anything about it I would have liked. Chris very honestly said no.
12. Crazy Stupid Love — This is another one I picked up in a cheap bin on Black Friday. Last night was my turn to pick, so I pulled it out. We both thought it was a very cute movie. Definitely worth the $3 I paid for it.
13. The Amazing Spider Man — Tonight's pick. This time we could not persuade Janelle to join us, and I skipped the sad parts while I talked to my parents on the phone and put my girl to bed. The boys seemed to enjoy it, and I know this one won't be making a trip to the second hand store. However, Chris said after it was over "It has good bones, but I still think I prefer the first Spider Man series".
14. Star Trek the Motion Picture — In the time it took for me to write this blog post, the Spider Man movie ended and Chris pulled out his well-used copy of the first Star Trek movie, just to see how it looks on his new big screen. He fast forwarded through and saw his favourite parts, and then moved on. I only included it because it provided the soundtrack to the writing of this post.
15. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade — Connor has finally found his way to bed and Chris has popped in this last (and my favourite) movie in the Indiana Jones trilogy (I know there is a fourth, but does it really count?) We won't watch the whole thing, only the first few minutes, but it is fun to see old favourites, as well as new favourites, in our cozy new family room.

As you can see, there has been movie madness at the Haines household this Christmas break. In part it is because we all enjoy watching movies together, but in part it has been making this new part of our house feel like home. We're making memories together here, not just in watching movies. We opened Christmas stockings here. We played a rousing game of Charades the other day (Connor and I won!) It has become a favourite room of our house. And it has made all the sweat and tears over this project worthwhile.

We still have a cabinet full of unwatched movies that we've picked up either at the second hand store or Black Friday sales. Lawrence of Arabia, Crash, Avatar, The Ides of March, Funny Girl, Mean Streets, an entire boxed set of Clint Eastwood movies, plus many more, all waiting to be watched at our house. And those are only the DVDs! The choices on Netflix are practically endless. We plan to scale it back to one movie a week, though. Anyone care to join us?

Favourite Christmas Movies

There's nothing like family movie night, and there's nothing like a good Christmas movie to bring on the Christmas spirit! Last night after we got home from the basketball game, the kids decided they wanted to watch Elf, so I dug into the back of the entertainment cabinet and brought out all of our Christmas movies. We all love Elf. We watched it with the kids last year for the first time, and just like then, this time we were all rolling on the floor laughing. It is hilarious! So many one-liners that are just perfect, that we all repeat over and over again. When I came downstairs this morning the kids were watching it again, and this afternoon when Connor and I came home from church, Chris and Janelle were enjoying it again. I'm sure it isn't the last time we'll see it this holiday season. We love it.

After lunch Chris settled into the Lazyboy for a nap, and the kids were starting to act a little stir crazy. It was pouring rain outside, and I wanted to get most of the Christmas decorations up, so I decided to put on another movie for the three of us to watch while I worked away at decorating. This time I chose The Polar Express, another of my favourites. I loved it originally as the beautiful picture book by Chris Van Allsburg, and was thrilled when Tom Hanks and Robert Zumekis made it into such a great movie. Connor shared memories of his Polar Express day in Grade Three, when his class wore their pajamas to school, made train tickets, drank hot chocolate, read the story and watched the movie. There is one part of the movie that frightened Janelle a couple of years ago and she wouldn't watch it last year, but I thought this year she might be ready to try it again. She flinched at that part, but otherwise, she loved it. And I did get some decorating done, but not as much as I had hoped. I spent too much time watching the movie!

There are many other Christmas movies I love: Miracle on Thirty-Fourth Street (the original), It's a Wonderful Life, How the Grinch Stole Christmas (the cartoon), to name only a few. Christmas isn't Christmas without a viewing of each of these at least once a season. Today I'm thankful for great Christmas movies. What are your favourites?

Speechless Over "The King's Speech"

Wow.

Perfect casting. Inspiring story. Heartbreakingly moving. Beautifully crafted.

What more can I say about this incredible movie? Well, I'll give it a try.

From the opening moments when my heart ached for this dear man trying desperately to utter just a few words in front of a crowd of thousands, at his father's insistence, I was hooked. From that first scene until the very end I loved every single minute. No exaggeration. This is a wonderful movie. If it had not won the Oscar it would have been a crime.

But it did win the Oscar! And so did Colin Firth, whose portrayal of Bertie, the future King George VI, could not have been more poignant. He made me want to cry and laugh and cheer, sometimes all at once! I was able to completely leave behind every previous notion of Colin Firth as a confident and articulate actor, and truly feel that he was trapped behind such a profound stammer that the words simply had no way out of his mouth. The nominations of all the principal actors were well deserved. Geoffrey Rush was endearing as the speech therapist, Lionel Logue, and watching the friendship blossom between these two men, the first friendship Bertie had really ever experienced, was just beautiful and utterly believable.

I think the portrayal that fascinated me most, for personal reasons, was Helena Bonham-Carter's Elizabeth, Duchess of York. I have no memory of King George VI; he died long before I was born. But I am very familiar with his wife. Growing up, I was very much a "royal watcher". On July 29, 1981, I got up at 6 a.m. to watch Charles and Di's wedding, and again in 1986 to see Andrew marry Fergie. Two years later, I stood in line for hours in a park in Summerside, PEI, to shake Princess Diana's hand. I watched every documentary and tv movie on the royal family that I could find. So I am very well acquainted with the Queen Mother, and I think Helen Bonham-Carter must have channelled her to give such a pitch-perfect performance. The accent and inflection in her voice was exactly like the Queen Mother; the way she carried herself was perfect; I swear she even had the same twinkle in her eye that I remember catching so many times in photos or on film. I had no trouble believing that this was Elizabeth, Duchess of York, 75 years ago. Bonham-Carter's portrayal made the love story between Elizabeth and her husband all the more lovely. I've grown to think of royal marriages as somewhat cold, but the movie showed theirs to be anything but. This was a woman who adored her husband, and whose heart ached for him as he struggled to speak.

I am thrilled that Tom Hooper won the Oscar for Best Director. He truly created a masterpiece. Every shot was beautifully framed. The colours, the costumes, the spare yet opulent (oxymoron?) sets. It all contributed to a wonderful atmosphere, one that set the viewer up to be inspired. When the newly crowned king finished his first wartime speech at the end of the movie I wanted to stand up and cheer. I just felt so full of triumph! What a way to start a war!

I don't know what else to say. I am speechless. If you haven't already, go see this movie.

Wow.

Oscar Night

I've shamelessly admitted to many things on this blog. A couple of weeks ago I shared my affinity for Valentine's Day. Everyone who knows me understands that I'm a sucker for Christmas. I've even confessed to a minor case of shopoholism, in that I become absolutely giddy over finding a great deal. But I don't think I've ever come clean with my genuine fascination with Oscar Night.

I'm not sure when it started. I don't think I ever cared at all about it until at least university. I do remember that the ceremony used to be held in April, because I remember watching the show while studying for exams. I'm not even sure exactly what it is that I love about it. Many things, I guess. The dresses are a big part of it. I love to check out what the starlets are wearing and either gush or dish. I love to make my predictions and wait breathlessly while the envelope is opened. I love the speeches, picking out whether or not the winners remember to thank their loved ones at home. I love the big production numbers, the sets, the honouring of industry pros from days gone by. I really love the whole evening. And last night was no exception.

My husband doesn't get excited about the Oscars like I do, but he does indulge my obsession. No, we don't get dressed up in tux and ball gown, but we do find ways to make the night a little bit special. Last night, we got the kids tucked into bed on time, and then Chris went out to pick up Chinese food. He got home about 10 minutes before the big show began, which felt really early here in the Eastern Time Zone. We had both filled out our Oscar ballots and I was ready to keep track of who would get the most correct predictions. We had only seen two of the movies nominated for Best Picture (well, I had seen three, having taken the kids to see Toy Story 3), but it didn't matter. We make our predictions primarily based on media buzz. I started out doing extremely well, and Chris.... well, not so much. By the time 10 awards had been given, I had 8 right and Chris had 3. Competitive nut that I am, I couldn't keep the smile off my face! The second half I wasn't quite so successful, although I did correctly choose Best Actor and Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress and Best Picture. I missed on Best Director, though, underestimating the dominance of The King's Speech. I ended up with 14 right out of 24, and Chris got 8, leaving me the clear winner! Woohoo! And thanks to the Eastern Time Zone, I was in bed by midnight!

As for my review of the show, I was pretty satisfied. The dresses were lovely; there weren't many really ugly ones this year. The hosts were so-so. I thought Ann Hatheway did a great job, if perhaps a little over-the-top in parts. James Franco just didn't seem comfortable in the role, and his resulting performance was a little blah. I missed the highlights of each nominated movie, which were obviously cut this year in the interest of time. I found that it really felt a bit rushed. I noticed in a few parts that it was really meant to be seen on a widescreen TV, but we were content to watch on our nine year old 27" CRT. As for the winners, for the most part I was very happy with the choices. I haven't seen the movies of any of the major winners, although I am dying to see The King's Speech, but I assume the winners were deserving. Although I chose Melissa Leo to win best supporting actress, I really hoped young Hailee Steinfeld would take the prize for her beautiful performance in True Grit. More than any other, I was thrilled that Colin Firth won for Best Actor. I've loved him since he was Mr. Darcy in the Pride and Prejudice BBC mini-series, and I'm really very surprised he hasn't won before. Chris and I saw The Social Network and Inception, and both nominations were well-deserved, but I think when we do see The King's Speech we'll agree that it was the right choice for the Best Picture Oscar.

So there's my confession and my review. I know many of my friends think I'm crazy for being such an Oscar nut, but some of you understand. I look forward to seeing some of the movies I've missed over the next few months as they come out on video. Clearly, I don't get out much, and I don't mind seeing them in the comfort of my cozy living room. And maybe, when the basement is finally finished, on a larger than 27" TV!

Girls Night In

The boys are out at a London Knights hockey game with our neighbour and his son, so Janelle and I had a "Girls Night In" tonight. I let her choose our activities for the evening. She decided to start with two games of "Go Fish" (the Finding Nemo version). Chris teases me about not being able to let the kids win, and I must admit, it is difficult. I won both games, but Janelle didn't care. She celebrated my victories right along with me. But she was ready to stop at two games. Then she decided we'd watch Flicka, one of the movies she got for Christmas (a $1.99 Black Friday bargain!). So we turned on the fire and turned out the lights and cuddled up together on the couch. She was engrossed in the movie, but every once in a while she'd come out with some profound and adorable comment. It was precious! The movie was okay, but the company was awesome. Now Janelle is sound asleep and I'm basking in the glow of her snuggles. I can't think of a better way to spend an evening with my girl.

We'll have to send the boys out more often.

There's No Place Like Home!

I have long been embarrassed to admit that I had never seen the classic film "The Wizard of Oz". Oh, I have certainly seen parts of it on many occasions over the years. I may even have seen it on TV as a child, but I don't remember it. I really couldn't have told the whole story until today.

It was a rainy day. It was a "stay in our pjs and watch a movie" day. I had picked up a bunch of dvds at the library last week for the kids to watch on the trip to Indiana. This was one that they hadn't chosen to watch, and when it came time to take the dvds back, I couldn't bear to return it without seeing it first. So I renewed it, and when I woke this morning to a dreary day, I decided this was the time. I announced to the kids that we would be watching "The Wizard of Oz" together, and what do you think their unanimous response was? "Awwww, nooooooo! That's an old, boring movie!" I had to beg! I had to Put My Foot Down! I had to bargain with them! Finally I said "Just watch 15 minutes, and if you don't want to watch any more, you don't have to", after which I added "and I'll take you to the indoor playground this afternoon if you at least try to watch it with me".

So we tried it. Fifteen minutes into the movie Connor said he didn't want to watch any more, but when Janelle said that she did, he agreed to watch it if I'd let him make popcorn. So we sat there, all three of us snuggled under an afghan on the love seat, watching this most classic of movies. All through I kept thinking "I'll have to remember that to mention in my blog". It did remind me of "Casablanca" in that there are so many lines that are so well-known they sound like cliches, even in the movie! "Lion and tigers and bears, oh my!" "I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." "Follow the yellow brick road!" But I don't remember all the lines I wanted to quote; all the phrases full of deeper meaning that I wanted to share. To be honest, I was so cozy that 3/4 of the way into the movie I nodded off and missed the vanquishing of the Wicked Witch of the West. At supper tonight the kids had to tell Daddy all about how Dorothy won in the end, because I missed that part. But I did wake up in time to take note of the line that resonated most with me: "There's no place like home". So true! Even if Oz is a wonderful place (even if London is a wonderful place) there will never be any more wonderful place than home. And next week, I get to click together my ruby slippers (or drive in my ruby van for 16 hours) and go there!

And now that my sweet children, who just might have been thankful that I bribed them into watching that "old, boring" movie, are finally tucked into bed, I think I'll go watch the last half-hour. Just so I can say I really did.