Strelitzia reginae

Posted on January 20, 2012 by

On the way to the clinic today, this nearly perfect Strelitzia reginae bloom — the third blue spike had already turned brown, but from this vantage point you don’t even notice — caught my eye.

Strelitzia reginae

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Etta James (1939-2012)

Posted on January 20, 2012 by

Etta JamesI was saddened to hear of Etta’s passing today and became more appreciative of her as a person when I heard her comments regarding Beyoncé and Barack on television and confirmed it with the Huffington Post.

“I can’t stand Beyoncé… [she] had no business … singing my song that I been singing forever.” She even slammed the President himself. “You know your President, right? You know the one with the big ears? He ain’t my President.”

God bless her!

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Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Posted on December 30, 2011 by
Rise of the Planet of the Apes

courtesy impawards.com

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
Rise of the Apes is an origin story in the truest sense of the term. Set in present day San Francisco, the film is a reality-based cautionary tale, a science fiction/science fact blend, where man’s own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy.

REVIEW
I kept thinking it was James Marsden, and at the same time, I kept thinking that doesn’t look like James Marsden. As it turned out, it was James Franco. I was surprised to learn that Tom Felton was in this movie; I think he was the evil caretaker.

I thought this movie was a great prequel to the Planet of the Apes series. Logically, it made sense and it as very entertaining and insightful. I really empathized with Caesar’s plight. While I don’t agree with animal testing and taking away their freedom, I think it is improper to humanize an animal, which can accidentally lead to misunderstandings in a human society. Look at what happened to Charla Nash!

Very good movie and very entertaining. Rated 7 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com.

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The Help (2011)

Posted on December 30, 2011 by
The Help

courtesy impawards.com

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
The #1 New York Times best seller by Kathryn Stockett comes to vivid life through the powerful performances of a phenomenal ensemble cast. Led by Emma Stone, Academy Award®-nominated Viola Davis (Best Supporting Actress, Doubt, 2008), Octavia Spencer and Bryce Dallas Howard, The Help is an inspirational, courageous and empowering story about very different, extraordinary women in the 1960s South who build an unlikely friendship around a secret writing project — one that breaks society’s rules and puts them all at risk. Filled with poignancy, humor and hope — and complete with compelling, never-before-seen bonus features — The Help is a timeless, universal and triumphant story about the ability to create change.

REVIEW
I finally got to see this movie which I had heard so many good things about and I think all the good things I heard heightened my expectations. As such, it was a good movie despite my inability to grasp the social agenda of this film. I did not find it as humorous as the trailers led me to believe. I think, if anything, the movie is probably more inspirational than anything.

Rated 7 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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Cowboys & Aliens (2011)

Posted on December 30, 2011 by
Cowboys & Aliens

courtesy impawards.com

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford star in this action-packed, scifi-western from the director of Iron Man (Jon Favreau) that critics call it “wickedly entertaining, unlike anything you’ve ever seen.” (Jake Hamilton, Fox-TV, Houston, TX)

A stranger (Craig) stumbles into the desert town of Absolution with no memory of his past and a mysterious, futuristic shackle around his wrist. With the help of mysterious beauty Ella (Wilde) and the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde (Ford), he finds himself leading an unlikely posse of cowboys, outlaws and Apache warriors to fight a common enemy from beyond this world in an epic showdown for survival.

REVIEW
I am not much for westerns, but I do love me some sci-fi and I think that is what kept me glued to the television while watching. That plus I kept trying to figure out what the hell was going on. I think because it was half a western, I had plenty of time to try and figure it out.

I found the premise of alien contact back in the days of cowboys and indians to be very original and while I have much faith in hunky Daniel to combat anything, I don’t think he could have managed without that fancy space age bracelet.

In the end, I thought the movie was entertaining and I managed to stay up for the whole movie. Rated 6 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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Adventures of a Teenage Dragonslayer (2010)

Posted on December 25, 2011 by
Adventures of a Teenage Dragonslayer

courtesy supamovs.com

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
Adventures of a Teenage Dragonslayer is a family adventure movie about a boy named Aurthur who sets out with his two friends, Tim and Natalie, to save the world from a fire-breathing dragon.This movie features stars Lea Thompson (Back to the Future), Wendie Malick (Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel), Eric Lutes (Caroline in the City) and Hunter Allan (Young and the Restless); it is a must see for all ages!

REVIEW
I love dragon movies, so I naturally selected this movie, having an idea that it might be a bit juvenile, though entertaining enough for me to watch it through to the end. I think what surprised me the most was the script and acting, which I found a little underdeveloped. As such, I would only recommend this movie for tweens that are interested in the fantasy genre.

Rated 4 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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Water for Elephants (2011)

Posted on December 25, 2011 by
Water for Elephants

Courtesy Internet Movie Poster Awards

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
As a young man, Jacob Jankowski was tossed by fate onto a rickety train that was home to the Benzini Brothers Most Spectacular Show on Earth. It was the early part of the great Depression, and for Jacob, now ninety, the circus world he remembers was both his salvation and a living hell. A veterinary student just shy of a degree, he was put in charge of caring for the circus menagerie.

It was there that he met Marlena, the beautiful equestrian star married to August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. And he met Rosie, an untrainable elephant who was the great gray hope for this third-rate traveling show. The bond that grew among this unlikely trio was one of love and trust, and, ultimately, it was their only hope for survival.

REVIEW
I am a big fan of Reese Witherspoon and I enjoyed this movie for it’s beautiful storytelling presentation, despite it not really falling within one of my favorite genre types. Robert Pattinson really got to show a range of emotion in this film, as compared to the Twilight movies and once you get past his alien features, he is quite handsome to look at. There were some aspects of the movie that were a little disturbing to me, but I still liked it.

Rated 7 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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Apollo 18 (2011)

Posted on December 25, 2011 by
Apollo 18

courtesy impawards.com

SYNOPSIS: IMDb.com
Decades-old found footage from NASA’s abandoned Apollo 18 mission, where two American astronauts were sent on a secret expedition, reveals the reason the U.S. has never returned to the moon.

REVIEW
Knowing nothing about how and what the government spends my tax dollars on, I knew nothing of this undercover mystery. I was aware of conspiracy theories that the government space program never landed on the moon, but nothing about a suspected alien life form on the moon.

I think the inclusion of “actual footage” made this movie more interesting than it really was, despite compromised quality. The movie also proved what I have been saying all along: people who work for the government are misled into believing that their government cares about them.

Whether this is based on true events or not, I don’t know, but I sure found the concept very interesting, in addition to the fact that the United States of America does not travel to the moon anymore.

Rated 6 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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The Hangover Part II (2011)

Posted on December 2, 2011 by
The Hangover Part II

Courtesy Internet Poster Movie Awards

SYNOPSIS:  Movie Website
Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and Doug (Justin Bartha) travel to exotic Thailand for Stu’s wedding. What could go wrong? Director Todd Phillips’ explosively funny follow-up to his award-winning smash hit demonstrates that though what happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, what happens in Bangkok can hardly be imagined!

REVIEW
Just as I suspected…the exact same story as the first. How original (stated with much sarcasm). I can’t believe people paid upwards of $10.00 to view this in a movie theater. As it was, I barely even watched it as I handcrafted during the entirety of the movie. All I really remember was a lost brother-in-law, recreating the night before and an excessive amount of noise.

Once again, I only watched this because my nephew rented it and even then, I did not find it appropriate for him to watch, but then again, I am not the one responsible for his upbringing.

Rated 1 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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30 Minutes or Less (2011)

Posted on December 2, 2011 by
30 Minutes or Less

Courtesy Internet Movie Poster Awards

SYNOPSIS: Movie Website
Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) is a small town pizza delivery guy whose mundane life collides with the big plans of two wanna-be criminal masterminds (Danny McBride and Nick Swardson). The volatile duo kidnaps Nick and forces him to rob a bank. With mere hours to pull off the impossible task, Nick enlists the help of his ex-best friend, Chet (Aziz Ansari). As the clock ticks, the two must deal with the police, hired assassins, flamethrowers, and their own tumultuous relationship.

REVIEW
Let me start of by stating that I like Jesse Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari (Parks and Recreation), which is probably the only saving grace for this film.

The laughs in this movie are forced and definitely do not combine well with the drama this film presents. Additionally, it seemed as the movie plot was abandoned in the end. The guy that plays the son of the rich father is so unpredictable it borders on disturbing and that, again, did not jive well with the humorous aspects of this film.

I never have been a big fan of this genre of film, but my nephew rented it from the DVD store and I though I would check it out. This is a movie I definitely would not even pay to rent.

Rated 4 out of 10 stars on IMDb.com

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