Role Models

Posted by Jill on July 2nd, 2009 in Netflix Rental

Synopsis:
Danny and Wheeler were just sentenced to 150 hours mentoring kids. Worst idea ever.
From the IMDB Profile

Notable:
Seeing Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd dressed up like members of the band KISS was hilarious.

Quote:
No, venti is twenty. Large is large. In fact, tall is large and grande is Spanish for large. Venti is the only one that doesn’t mean large. It’s also the only one that’s Italian. Congratulations, you’re stupid in three languages.

Rating: R for crude and sexual content, strong language and nudity

Role Models

This movie has a serious identity crisis… does it want to be gross-out humor or feel good family comedy? Because it definitely has moments of both, which might disappoint fans of each genre.

And also… what kind of crappy government system sends people who have been arrested for a littany of charges to spend copious one-on-one hours mentoring kids? That seems like a weird idea to me. If I were a parent, I’m not sure I’d want my kid to end up having some “criminal” as their full-time buddy for a month or so. (Even if we all know that the characters aren’t terrible people, it’s still just a weird concept.)

That said, there were several spots that made me laugh. And an ultimate message about being accepting of others and being yourself is good. Lots of things in this world contain that message, but the idea is never fully embraced in society.

Most of the actors do a pretty good job with their parts. I was a little disconcerted with the character played by Jane Lynch as she seemed a little bit too… repetitive and awkward. I got tired of her cocaine remarks. But Paul Rudd, like always, does a good job. And I find Seann William Scott truly entertaining.

My rating: 3.5 stars
***1/2

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The Proposal

Posted by Jill on July 2nd, 2009 in Movie Theatre

Synopsis:
A pushy boss forces her young assistant to marry her in order to keep her Visa status in the U.S. and avoid deportation to Canada.
From the IMDB Profile

Notable:
Ryan Reynolds nearly completely naked… Oh, and Sandra Bullock too. For those who are interested. ;-)

Quote:
I can’t swim!
Hence, the boat

Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, nudity and language

The Proposal

I found this movie charming… primarily because I think Ryan Reynolds is so great. He’s got this way of delivering lines that is so dry, but it conveys so many emotions at the same time. It’s awesome. But then, Sandra Bullock is usually pretty fun too. So with those two as the leads it couldn’t go that far off.

I would have liked a little more information as to what Ryan’s character’s family did to build their “empire” so I might know more about why he didn’t want to be part of it. I guess it wasn’t essential to the plot, but I was curious! What if they hand-collected horse manure and transformed it into something? I could see why he wouldn’t want to be in the family business then.

Betty White is a certified screen-stealer… she’s got real charisma. From her role in this movie to the press she’s been doing to promote it, she pretty much always makes me laugh.

But overall, I had fun with this movie and would watch it again.

My rating: 4.0 stars
****

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Spontaneous San Diego Trip - Day 4

Posted by Jill on June 29th, 2009 in Just Life

Our last day was pretty exciting as we had a morning breakfast date at the home of Bethany Actually!

Jill & Bethany

FINALLY we got to meet in person. She cooked her infamous aebleskivers for us while Annalie gave me a tour of the house. Kevin received the tour from Mr. Actually, Troy.

Breakfast was great, but the company was even better. I had so much fun with them and it was one of those great internet/blogger meetings where there isn’t any awkwardness at all. In fact, I had such a nice time I think I invited myself back to play again in the future. Probably a little bit of a social faux pas… but I think they’ll forgive me!

I plucked a couple lemons from their tree too. Now I need to make a lemon cake, because both Bethany and I love lemon cake. It only seems fitting to make that treat from those lemons.

Annalie was playing in the tub when it came time for us to leave, but she did manage to pull herself away to pose for pictures.

Jill, Annalie & Bethany

My pictures of Kevin and Troy didn’t turn out that well… I’ve really gotta LEARN the functions of my camera better so I’m guaranteed to get good shots that aren’t too dark or funny colors!

Troy & Kevin

After meeting Family Actually, we had to start making our way home. But not before driving to Carlsbad for the farmers market. I wanted to get some fresh produce, specifically avocados. We grabbed a slice of pizza at a place called Pizza Port, a funky joint with good lunch deals. We each got a big slice of pizza, a huge salad and a drink for $10 TOTAL.

We also stopped for some sweets, but I feel the need to do a full review on the place we went… so stay tuned! :-)

On our drive home we stopped for gas in Victorville, CA. The gas pump ate our credit card. ATE IT! So when my husband went to complain, the attendant said that he couldn’t open the pump but if we left him our name, phone, address and any other bit of information we could, he’d get it out of the pump in a few days for us.

Yeah, right… we’re going to just leave our card behind with all of our information to let you steal from us!

So we canceled the card. My husband had read a tip in a magazine recently about programming the customer service line for your credit cards into your phone. That way if you do have a problem, you have ready access to get help.

Then we drove to a different gas station in town, where some weird gas station attendant came out and told me that I could use his “special employee” bathroom that he’d “just cleaned,” which is uber-creepy… makes you wonder if he’s got some kind of creepy camera set-up in there. Or maybe I’m just over-thinking that!

The drive home seemed to take about 4 times as long as it took to get to San Diego. I guess that’s because I was dreading coming back to my “regular” life. But it’s a necessary evil. I had a nice time while it lasted!

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