Little Talks

This felt like a cheesy old Canadian-made movie. The premise is pretty simple: 3 guys get kicked out of their fraternity after being accused of theft, and dress up as girls to get into the "ugly girls" sorority while they try to prove their innocence. In the meantime, they learn not to objectify women. The humour is predictably crude, but much more implied than the content of current R-rated films like The Hangover . On top of all that, the most cliché part is that one of the boys falls for one of the girls in the sorority. I was half-asleep after a long night of movie-watching, drinking, and sleeping on a leather love seat (so basically I didn't sleep well), so I was not totally invested in this movie, but I did pay attention to the whole thing. It felt like a slightly inappropriate teen movie. It was cheesy; there was a relationship I rooted for and one that creeped me out (the guy in love with his brother in drag); there was a cliché (but important) mes...

Despite skipping church, my Christmas was pretty full. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Since it's already after midnight (and not really Sunday anymore) I'll keep this short. Have a blessed holiday season!

By the time I watched this movie, I felt like I was one of the last people to have seen it. Probably not true, but that doesn't change how I felt. The Hangover uses what has become the most over-used tension-making plot structure in the film industry: it shows the climax of the story in the opening scene, then goes back to the beginning and follows it through. Phil phones Doug's fiancé to say that Doug is missing. And then we find out how it happened. Honestly, that pretty much sums up the movie. Doug is getting married, so he takes his two best friends, Phil and Stu, and his new brother-in-law, Alan, to Vegas for his bachelor party. Alan is well-intentioned but not very smart, they get very drunk and high and do a lot of stupid shit (sorry, PG-13). Stu marries a prostitute. The men steal a tiger from Mike Tyson. They end up on the wrong side of a conflict with a Chinese mobster. And they do lots of other stupid things, get hurt, lose money, whatnot. Then they retrace all o...

Warning: This post contains some spoilers. The great thing about this movie is that you get to see Zefron (that's Zac Efron for those of you who don't know) in a more serious character, at least for a little while. This is, however, your typical R-rated comedy, although it felt maybe a little more subdued. Or maybe I was distracted by Zefron...it's hard to say. What I can say is that I never expected to see Robert De Niro in a movie like this. I'm used to his light comedic acting...this took it to a whole new level. Zac Efron plays a young man only days away from marriage, Jason, who is roped into taking his recently-widowed grandfather, Dick, to Florida. He is uptight and nervous, and his fiancé never stops breathing down his neck about all of the things he needs to do. And it turns out that his grandpa really just wants to party, and wants his grandson to participate in the fun. Well actually, the grandpa's real goal is to have as much sex as he can...that's...

Well it has been one heck of a semester! I haven't been able to think about posting anything, but the list of things I wanted to write about continued to grow regardless. I suppose I should resume my regular posting, but I've been wondering whether I should rethink what I post or how I do my posts. If there is anyone actually out there reading this stuff, please, leave me a comment and let me know what you think about my blog. I am always happy to have some constructive criticism. I'm just not sure at the moment if I'm motivated to go back and try to catch up on my list, but I'm simultaneously determined to do something about the long list of books and movies I've been collecting since the summer. We'll see what I do with this.

Hello friends. I know that I haven't posted in a while, but I've been very busy. Come the end of exam season in early December, I hope to be able to share so much with all of you, but I don't want to waste any more time than necessary right now. I would have forgotten yet again to post my Sunday saying if I hadn't come across this quotation just now, so enjoy:

Today I've gone with a bookish quotation: It's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada (so happy thanksgiving to all of my Canadian friends!). The sad thing this year is that the long weekend feels less like a holiday and more like a series of family get-together a and a chance to take time off of work. I've completely forgotten the spirit of the holiday, and this quotation really inspired me. We need to remember every day that being grateful for what we have is what brings joy. This week, let's all try to have appositive attitude.

Sorry to only be posting once a week, but I am swamped in school work. Over the last week or two, I've been learning a lot about how much God loves us, and how we really just need to spend our time with Him, really trying to develop a relationship with Him. I'm at that stage in my life when I want someone to share my future with, to spend my life with. Honestly, I haven't ever had a boyfriend (even though I'm now 20). But I realize that as much as I want to fall in love with an amazing guy, I want to fall in love with our amazing God. And I'm going to put him first. I can tell that God has some really big things planned for me in the next year or so, and I'm looking forward to discovering what that will look like. And I'm going to do that with God at my side all the way. So today I urge you to spend your time in God. This is a challenge that's aimed at myself as much as it is aimed at you. We send time on things that really don't matter. Take ...

Today God reached out to me at a service I don't normally attend. Today I am turning my life around more than I ever have, and giving it all over to Him. The joy I have been seeking in God is close, I can feel it. I am going to get that relationship back. I would like to spend more time with God tonight while I'm still up, so I'll keep this post brief. While reading Matthew 6 I thought I would just pick out a verse to share with you all, but so many of them spoke to me, and I think that they are things that a lot of you need to hear too, so I have several for today. But if you get the chance, just go read the whole chapter for yourself. Looks like over the past couple of weeks my blogs didn't actually post. Sorry friends!

Well, as you can probably tell, I've been a little busy with school. I've been trying to come up with of thoughts to add to my weekly quotations, or things I want to share with you, but today I'm blanking. I guess I could tell you that at work today, the customers were either super funny and friendly or they were so lost that I had trouble not sounding annoyed when they couldn't understand what was happening. I could tell you that I'm really trying to make my life God-focused, and I'm trying to figure out who it is that God wants me to be. All good things, but I don't really know what more to say to all of you. I hope as you go into this week that you all learn something new about yourselves. I hope too that you don't just go through life, letting it carry you along with the flow, but take time to make something happen this week - small or big, it doesn't matter, just get out there and do something. I hope that no one is stressing out too much abo...

[Warning: If you haven't seen Tangled, this may contain spoilers...but seriously, it's based on a classic fairytale so how much big stuff can I really spoil for you?] You may or may not be aware, but I'm a huge fan of the Disney movie Tangled (see An Ode to Tangled ). I think it's a great retelling of a classic story that, while adding some fun and modern elements, goes back to the roots of this German fairy tale including some elements reminiscent of the original fairy tales. But I digress. If you've seen the movie, you might remember a certain quaint, but sketchy pub called the Snuggly Duckling. I suddenly realized (not for the first time) that this sounds an awful lot like the title of another well-known fairy tale, The Ugly Duckling. And it got me to wondering: why call it that? Why put that reference in this movie? (Of course, Disney also more obviously referenced the story in Lilo & Stitch , so they clearly like that story.) Looking at The Ugly Duckl...

It's amazing how quickly school can take over one's life. I went from 3 to 4 posts a week to just my Sunday post. I will try to continue my list before it gets uncontrollably long again, but reading, assignments, and work are definitely going to interfere with that. My post today is inspired by my friend. It is for everyone out there who worries about what they are going to do and what is going to happen. It is also for those like me who like to plan ahead. It's for those who suddenly realize that they need to start planning, but don't want to believe how real or urgent the future can be, at least not yet.

Well it's a long weekend here in North America, thanks to Labour Day. Unfortunately, for a lot of people (myself included) that also means back to school. That's right! Tuesday is the first day of another school year. I'm reasonably optimistic, but I wouldn't say I'm super excited to go back. I miss learning, believe it or not, and I like the routine. But it's nothing special. However, I'm hoping that might change a bit this year. I want to be more involved in campus, and to do more than just work or slack on my work, you know? I've decided to find joy in serving God on my campus. I've been involved with a Christian ministry at my school for the past two years, but I'm going to be pushing myself out of my comfort zone a bit and trying to really interact with others and share the gospel. Pray for me to have the boldness to take this step of faith, and an attitude which will reflect God's love to those around me who may not know Him personall...

[Warning: Some Spoilers] It's odd, but the first thing you notice when watching the Neighbors  movies back-to-back is that the sequel is so much shorter. Odd, but noticeably different. I was shocked when it ended. In this movie, the frat has abandoned the house. A group of girls at the university decide to make their own sorority outside of the Greek system (or whatever it is), since sororities are not allowed to throw parties. These girls are strong feminists who want equal rights, and they want to have parties that are fun for them, where they aren't just objectified for their sex. I  liked the sentiment, but the girls drove me nuts. So the girls have one problem: rent money. That's when Teddy steps in. He is feeling left out because all of his friends have their lives together, and Pete is getting married. But poor Teddy feels like the frat and his brothers are still the only important things in his life. Plus Pete asks him to move out now that he's getting married. ...

[Warning: Possible Spoilers] Honestly, I thought it was called Bad Neighbours , but according to my dear friend, Google, that is the movie's title outside of North America. I'm guessing then that I learned the title while watching Zac Efron and Seth Rogen on the Graham Norton show. First thing you should know: this movie is full of explicit content aka "adult humor." I don't mind this, but ironically, I find an over abundance of these jokes to be somewhat childish. Second thing you should know: there is a really cute family element to this film. Mac and Kelly, recently new parents to a little girl, Stella, are trying to find a balance between the fun and partying of their old lifestyle and the responsibility of having a child. They are resisting the eventuality that they will becoming boring people whose lives revolve around their baby. But they still want to be good parents. And then the Delta Psi fraternity moves into the house next door, and a feud forms. They ...

I am super excited this week because, after talking with my best friend last night, I was inspired to write once again. It has been ages since I have had the drive or the ideas. My best friend is great because she pushes me to come up with ideas even when I think I have none. She can fish out all of the creativity hiding out in the back of my mind. When I started writing, all of my work was done in collaboration with her. Now, she is my support system, my encouragement, and my biggest fan as I strive to become a published author. I only hope that I can be the same for her. I hope that if anyone out there is an aspiring writer who is feeling stuck right now, that you might find the motivation to push through that and keep writing. Just write as often as you can, even if you think it's no good. Get the bad ideas out, and the good ones will come eventually. They always do. What do you find helpful when you get writer's block?

Well I had a weekend with my girls where we just binged a bunch of stupid-funny movies, but I think we all got a little tired of them by the end. Nonetheless, I have now seen a whole selection of these light-hearted, somewhat inappropriate films. The first is Wedding Crashers . As I begin to write this post, I realize that the plot is simple and rather predictable. Two friends, John and Jeremy, crash weddings to find women. They attend the biggest social event of the season, the wedding of the Treasury Secretary's daughter, and set their sights on her sisters. Except, John breaks a rule and falls for Claire. As a result, the men must keep up the lie they created while joining the family for a weekend at their estate. Jeremy is frustrated with his friend, and scared off by his clingy new girlfriend, Gloria. John, on the other hand, must compete with Claire's current boyfriend. John finds out that Sack, the boyfriend, really isn't a nice guy: he cheats, and he was only inter...

[Warning: Spoilers] And we're back to our regularly scheduled programming. Today's movie is The Watcher. A thriller/suspense film more than a horror movie, The Watcher tells the story of retired FBI agent Joel Campbell. Having moved from LA to Chicago, he is going through therapy after his last case. He seems to struggle with mental and physical side effects, presumably from PTSD. He is withdrawn, and doesn't share much, even with his therapist, Polly. He also exhibits symptoms that seem like withdrawal. He becomes weak, he has a lot of headaches, and sometimes gets sick to his stomach. One day a young woman in his apartment building is killed. Joel rarely checks his mail, but as he finally goes through the growing pile, he finds a picture of the victim that had arrived three days prior. Thus, he alerts the local police. They decide that it is the same killer that he had last been chasing in Los Angeles, but he turns down the FBI's request to have him return to the ...

[Warning: Spoilers | Also not advised for children] As it turns out, my blog list was missing several movies from my horror marathon with my friends. Along with The Midnight Meat Train , I forgot American Psycho . We figured that this was one of the classics, but it was not what any of us were expecting. We kept confusing it with the classic Psycho . It turned out that we actually knew nothing about the story. Patrick Bateman is a middle-class, American businessman. His life is the ideal. He strives for a perfect appearance, and has a friendly demeanour, but the soul seems completely absent from the shell that is Parrick Bateman. He himself makes comments about being emotionless, hollow, and robotic. All that matters to Patrick is keeping up appearances. He wants to be the best businessman in his office. He is engaged, but it seems that this is only because it is respectable for a man of his age and class. He is having an affair with his fiancé's best friend, since he thinks his fi...

I've decided that these posts might be more interesting, for all of us, if I share some thoughts or updates with you all. First, I want to tell you about what happened when my family was watching TV earlier. A shoe commercial came on, showing a woman's feet while she walked up a stack of old books. My sister said she really liked the shoes, and I suddenly realized that I didn't know what the shoes looked like because I was paying more attention to the books. So that tells you what kind of people we are. Well, right now - just like everyone else in the world - I am reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I figured that it was only fitting to share a Harry Potter quote. I love this quotation because it inspires us to step beyond our circumstances to become what we know we can be, rather than what others believe we are. This statement is also extremely significant for the eighth book. Believe it or not, this has a great spiritual message too. Even though we are bo...

[Warning: Spoilers | Also not advised for children] I am finally getting close to current on my blog list (things I want to write blogs on), which is both exciting and scary. Once I catch up, I'm not sure what I'll write about. We'll have to wait and see. However, what I noticed is that The   Midnight Meat Train  was missing from the list. I'm just unsure of whether leaving it off was accidental or intentional on my part. I don't recall. But I figured that since I blog about every movie I see that I should include this one. Warning: it's an odd one. You may have noticed an increasing amount of horror movies in my recent blogs, and you will see more to come. My sister and best friend have decided that this is our new thing, and we watch horror films almost every time we get together now. But we don't really know what's good. This one said it started Bradley Cooper and Brooke Shields, so it seemed promising. I'm not sure if this was the right choice, t...

[Warning: Spoilers] Based on the Stephanie Meyer novel of the same name, The Host  tells the story of a future in which an alien species, having conquered (or perhaps the better word is re-colonized) most other planets, have come to earth. These aliens, called Souls, are unique in that they need a host body, since their form is like a large, silvery centipede, but almost more fluid. The main characters in the story are Melanie, a girl who fought to escape the invasion, and Wanderer, the alien who is placed in her body. Melanie is strong and she fights to stay alive and to get back control of her own body. The girls (Wanderer and Melanie) fight, but ultimately learn to get along. Once Melanie is taken, the Souls attempt to use Wanderer to locate the rebel community of humans to which Mel belonged. However, Wanderer (aka Wanda) runs away to join the people, who she knows to be the only real family she or Mel might have. The Souls continue to hunt her and the hidden society of rebels,...

Based on a Roald Dahl book, this movie is understandably quirky and sweet, and perhaps a little freaky. Matilda is the unwanted second child to Harry and Zinnia Wormwood. Her father is a car salesman who scams his customers, and her mother spends her days at the bingo hall. Her brother is a spoiled brat, but her parents ignore her. They care so little that they don't even know how old she is and they leave her home alone as soon as she is big enough to walk and (sort of) take care of her self. Luckily, she is a genius child. At the age of three, she discovers books and spends every day at the library, bringing home wagon-loads of novels, and she falls in love with reading. When she is old enough to go to school, her parents reluctantly send her to Crunchum Hall Elementary where there is a scary and downright nasty headmistress, Mrs. Trunchbull. The woman hates children, but Matilda's teacher is the opposite: sweet, encouraging, and loving towards her kids. The teacher, Miss Ho...

[Warning: May Contain Spoilers] I had no idea what to expect from this movie. The commercials didn't indicate much about the plot, and the concept of an all-animal human-esque world seemed interesting, but it was hard to know what Disney was going to do with the idea. I began this movie with reasonable optimism. I figured it had to be decent since it was Disney, and because if all the hype being built up around it. But this was the first of their movies to have no human characters, and somehow that made me curious and perhaps a little hesitant about the potential storyline. So for anyone who hasn't seen it, and who may have been just as unsure a I was about what to expect, let me tell you what this movie is about: Judy Hopps has always had dreams of being a police officer, but everyone tries to discourage her because she is a rabbit. She is small and sweet, but when her friend is being bullied by a young fox, she takes him on. Years later, she successfully becomes the fi...

So I found two quotations to share today, because I saw them both and couldn't decide which better communicated my feelings. I think the message is even better when you put them together, anyways.

[Warning: Spoilers] The Shining is one of those classic horror films, a Stephen King story of course, and so it seemed like a movie that needed to be watched. The concept of this movie is basic enough, but it was actually a little confusing. I found myself constantly screaming or asking questions. It was not what I expected from a classic horror film, but I'm starting to think that what I assumed was the "classic" format doesn't really exist. So the movie focuses on a family of three. Dad Jack gets a new job as the caretaker of a hotel in the mountains that is closed during the winter, so they live there in their own and keep up maintenance. This means that the only other people there are his wife and son, Wendy and Danny. Based on the manager's comments, the hotel has, at least once in its past, driven the caretaker crazy. Several years back, the man killed his own family, and the ghosts of his young daughters are later seen by Danny. Danny, as well as the cook f...

[Warning: Major Spoilers] This is the story of a medical student, Gabby, who moves into her new place next to an annoying neighbour and his troublesome dog. She believes his dog got hers pregnant, and she gets angry with him for playing loud music while she is trying to study. Predictably, there is chemistry. The problem is that Gabby is engaged to a doctor named Ryan. Over time Gabby bonds with her neighbour, Travis, and his friends and family. She also discovers that Travis and his father are the local vets. Gabby is particularly fond of Travis' dad and sister, and becomes part of the family. She and Travis fall for each other. You'd think that the choice is which man to marry, but you'd be wrong. When Gabby's fiancé returns to town, she spends most of her time with him again and Travis is upset. She gets very mad with him, but tells Ryan about her affair with Travis and her fiancé breaks off the engagement. Travis goes to Gabby's family home and asks her paren...

I wasn't sure what I was looking for today, but this just seemed right.

The Complete Sherlock Holmes  is a collection of all of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (and it is a Barnes & Noble exclusive as far as I can tell). These stories make it clear why Sherlock is the father of all detective work, but I found it was underwhelming for such a major classic. Doyle begins with some interesting and dynamic characters who go on some fascinating adventures all to solve peculiar cases. However, towards the end of the collection the stories get dull and redundant. I feel that it largely stems from the fact that Doyle no longer wanted to write stories about the beloved detective. Frankly, it is reflected in the nature of his prose and the similarities between so many of the cases. I would sum up Sherlock stories as an above-average detective and his caring military doctor companion trying to figure out how a crime has been committed behind closed doors. A lot of cases run along that vein. A few, especially towards the end, change per...

Clearly I've had more time for movies this summer than I have had for books. It makes me sad to think about, but at least I have been lucky enough to come across some pretty good ones. The storyline is simple, but powerful. Jacob, ex-veterinary student, joins the circus and ends up becoming a favourite. He is specially tasked with caring for the circus's new elephant, Rosie. Jacob falls for Marlena, the horse-back acrobat who is working out a new act with Rosie. However, Marlena is married to the ring master/circus owner, August, who turns out to be rather abusive, both to his people and his animals. Everyone is property to him, but they are also liabilities, so when he can't afford to keep his entertainers and staff around, he dumps them off the train in the middle of the night. In the end, Jacob helps Marlena to realize how scary her situation is and the two escape together. Without revealing too much, I will let you know that this film ends as most romances do, with the ...

[Warning: Spoilers] This movie was a bit of suspense, a bit of a thriller, a mystery, a ghost story, a crime drama, and more all wrapped into one. And it was fantastic! Leonardo DiCaprio is always so talented, and his portrayal of U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels is no exception. He and his partner Chuck (Mark Ruffalo) come to an island that houses a mental hospital, including a ward of dangerous criminals. They are investigating the disappearance of one of the patients, but Teddy is also interested in the place because it houses (or used to house) an arsonist who he holds responsible for his wife's death. Teddy is super suspicious about what kind of treatments are being used on the island, and the disappearance begins to look more like a piece of a larger conspiracy. Teddy keeps having headaches, coupled with terrible flashbacks and dreams, but it seems to him over time that the medication he is being given for the headaches is making the visions worse. To make a long story short, t...

I've seen some weird movies in my life, but this is probably the weirdest. It's spoken about like it is a classic film, although of what genre I was never certain, nor am I really any closer to figuring out that detail.  The title makes it sound like a scary movie, but it's not. Perhaps they are joking that it is scary, since it does begin with some cliché horror motifs, and it is a little freaky at points. However, it really isn't creepy and there aren't suspenseful or jumpy moments. It is, in fact, a musical, and I suppose one might say a comedy. It is framed as a crime story, following the odd occurrence of a couple who got lost in the woods on a stormy night and ended up at a strange mansion. It is not clearly explained to begin with, but you discover throughout the movie that the inhabitants of the elaborate house are aliens, called Transvestites, from the planet Transxual in the galaxy of Transylvania. Janice and Brad, newly engaged, go up to the house looking...

[Potential spoilers; read at your own risk] This movie is full of suspense, but it's not nearly as scary as you'd expect. While watching it, you feel like so much could go wrong. And, in a way, it does. However, in the end everyone is kind of able to go on as if nothing had happened, except that they are never going to forget that it did happen. The movie focuses on a young couple, Simon and Robyn, who have just bought a new house in the husband's hometown. There, they meet a man named Gordo who was bullied by the husband in high school. Gordo becomes fixated on his bully managin to have such a perfect life. However, we learn it is not all perfect since the couple lost their first child and are hesitant to keep trying to have another. Gordo also becomes attached to, and perhaps fascinated with, Robyn. He keeps leaving gifts for them and visiting with them, but the couple get scared by how obsessed he is with them. As time moves forward, they seem to keep their distance from...

I have issues with some of these posts because the blog and/or the app decide not to save the photo files properly. So this week's Sunday Sayings is the last one that failed to post correctly.