Released in 2012
Les Miserables
I can’t believe it has taken this long for a musical film adaptation of Les Misérables. Without the music you might as well just curl up in a dark corner and think horribly tragic thoughts until you run out of tears. The music in this story is what snow is to winter: it makes the cold bearable and beautiful. I have seen Les Misérables twice on the stage so I thought I was adequately prepared to see the film version. And by prepared I mean I knew that I would be ripped apart from the inside out.
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The Hobbit
I read the book less than a month before the movie … and I remember it being a lot cuter. However, the darker changes help it fit in well with the rest of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. As
I said, and I say every time, I’m not usually one to nitpick over how every
detail compares to the book. But half of this movie was unrecognizable from the
book. This is not to say that it is a bad movie. On the contrary, it’s pretty
fantastic, funny, inspiring, exciting, adventurous, and all the things a Lord of the Rings movie should be. But,
frankly, it doesn’t replace the cartoon version of The Hobbit.
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To Rome, With Love
An ill-received feature about a handful of different stories in Rome (that don't intersect. Thank you, Woody for resisting that currently overused gimmick.) However, they do intersect in theme. Each separate story contains elements of adultery and celebrity. But I can understand why it wasn't well received. Because the stories don't intersect, there is a disjointed feeling to the film; but, I kind of liked it. Like a Picasso or stained glass. It feels like an artistic endeavor which is a breath of fresh air from Hollywood - particularly during the summer time.
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Brave
Merida is an expert archer (are you thinking Hunger Games? Because I was thinking Hunger Games.) and has an adventurous spirit to match her hair. Meanwhile her mother is trying to turn her into a proper princess who will marry whichever suitor from the three neighboring clans wins the contest for her hand. Merida is furious and as many people do when they are angry, she acts rashly. She makes a deal with a witch in the woods without reading the fine print or asking the appropriate questions (are you thinking Little Mermaid? Because I was thinking Little Mermaid.) Long story short, her mother is turned into a bear. Naturally. The spell cannot be broken until mother and daughter swallow their pride, mend their relationship, and see each other’s points of view (are you thinking Freaky Friday? Because I was thinking Freaky Friday.)
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Perks of Being a Wallflower
Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great reminder of how wonderful and incredibly sucky high school was. It also reminds you that you haven’t felt anything as intensely as you did as a teenager in a long time – and how that is both a relief and a little sad. It is told through letters from the protagonist named Charlie written to an unknown person. Charlie is a wallflower, urged at the beginning of the story by his English teacher to “participate.” Charlie’s goal throughout is to move out of his position as observer and join the living. Doing so means making friends. They introduce him to the world of “good” music, Rocky Horror Picture Show, girls/dating, parties, drinking, drugs, and what it feels like to live your life and how once you start living you inevitably start making mistakes.
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Celeste and Jesse Forever
When the movie opens Celeste and Jesse are divorced but Jesse is still living in Celeste’s guest house and they still spend all their time together and still maintain a close relationship. And they don’t see a problem with this despite frequent warnings from their friends. It’s always smooth sailing until one or both people start dating someone new and the lines have to be redrawn. Breaking up the marriage was very simple when compared to having to break up the friendship.
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