Movie Resolution List: More Done!

 So I had to be doing something in all this time I haven't posted (aside from working, which I really HAVE been doing!). Anyway, remember my Movie Resolution list? I've since watched the following:

On The Waterfront (#19)

Eh. It was ok. I'm really not a Brando fan, but it was watchable.






















 
Chinatown (#21)  

I've come to the conclusion that I really don't like 70s movies, as a rule (despite my all-time favourite movie, What's Up, Doc?, being from the 70s). Chinatown was slow and kind of dull. And it wasn't even set in Chinatown; they just talked about it a bit. Well done, Roman Polanski, I knew I didn't like your movies.



Duck Soup (#60)

Duck Soup was AWFUL. It was painfully bad. It was one of the most unfunny things I've ever seen. Which is a shame, because I quite enjoyed A Night at the Opera, and I had great hopes for this one.



Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid (#73)

This, on the other hand, was AWESOME. Full of funny lines and great adventure. I loved these guys! No wonder they made another movie with Paul Newman and Robert Redford (which I'm definitely watching ASAP); they work really well together. LOVED it.


The Bridge on the River Kwai (# 36)

I loved Bridge on the River Kwai! Alec Guiness is awesome in just about everything he does (just about...see next). Great story; the ending was a bit rushed, maybe, but overall it's fantastic!






Lawrence of Arabia (#7)

What a snoozefest. Seriously one of the most boring films I've ever seen in my life. Even Alec Guinness couldn't save it. Neither could the ever-awesome Claude Rains - nor Peter O'Toole, who is always good. I think I've seen enough riding through deserts to last me a lifetime. Soooo boring.



















So all I've got left to watch are:
The French Connection
A Streetcar Named Desire
Modern Times
Bonnie & Clyde
MASH

I can so do this! :-)

Friday Night movies

So on Friday night I went to go watch Sex and the City 2 with my BFF and some other friends. I tried to get hubby to come along, because I hadn't really seen him all week, but I wasn't particularly surprised when he pointed out that I'd have to pay him to watch that movie, and much as I love him, I wasn't prepared to part with perfectly good hard-earned cash so that he could sit in masculine agony beside me while Carrie stressed about her marriage, Samantha talked about - and had - sex a lot, and Charlotte and Miranda were basically filler. (Note: I thought all this before I saw the movie, and guess what? I was right! :-))

I'm not a huge Sex & the City fan, actually. But I am a huge Liza Minnelli fan, and knowing that she was in the movie was enough to get me there on opening night - where, as predicted, I was surrounded by fuckwits who spent the entire movie repeating the dialogue and adding pointless commentary of their own. But since I was only there to see Liza, I didn't turn around in my giant chair - Oh, Monte Casino, your cinemas delight me - and tell them to shut the fuck up, like I normally would have.

Liza was on on the first five minutes, and she was AWESOME, of course. The rest of the movie was just "Lalala, this is vaguely fun and entertaining, but I hope it ends soon because I have to work tomorrow" for me. PS - it didn't end soon. It was incredibly overdrawn. Sigh.

Oh, and by the way, am I the only person who thinks the fashion those girls purport to love is pretty much heinous? You'd have to pay ME to wear half those overpriced, designer outfits. Ugh.

So when I got home my husband had watched The Human Centipede while I was out, and tweeted the following:

I watched The Human Centipede. @katforsyth watched Sex and the City 2. I guess we both watched a horrible abomination tonight.

Heheh. If you don't know what The Human Centipede is (and I wouldn't blame you) you can go watch the trailer on Youtube. But be warned, it's a horrible, horrible concept, and you might have scary dreams about it. Or maybe that's just me.


So later on, while we were in bed, we got to wondering: if the girls from Sex and the City had to be made into a Human Centipede, who would be in the front and who at the back? Ok, actually my husband got to wondering, but I thought it was pretty funny. Because we're kind of quirky-gross like that. My theory was that Carrie would have to be at the front because she has to narrate, which I stand by, even though hubby pointed out that the narration is voiceover, so she doesn't actually have to physically be able to speak. I still think she needs to be the head, though, because she's the lead. And Samantha would be at the back so she can still have sex. Because that's what she's there for. True, she'd have to stop making crass comments, but hey, when you're a human centipede, you win some, you lose some.


And this is how we spend our Friday night pillow talk. I love us.

Oscar Predictions!

With just a few hours to go before Oscar lift off, here are my predictions. But first I have to say that for the first time in ten years, I will not be watching the Oscars as they are broadcast live. Except for that time two years ago when we had stock take on the morning of the Oscars and my boss wouldn't let me have the day off. But that was all conspired against me. This time I'm doing it on purpose.

It's always kind of a pain to get up at 2am and drive off to someone's house (usually BFF Ruby Slippers, who has satellite tv). But it's worth it to enjoy the show. However, when they put ad breaks between every single award, and play the same three ads in those breaks over and over over the 4 hour period, not to mention during the pre-shows, it kind of makes me want to stab my eyeballs with a fork. It's funny, really, that the Oscar bigwigs are always trying to find a way to make the show shorter and more interesting, and if they just took out ALL THE BLOODY AD BREAKS it would be, and people might actually watch it. And then they'd make no money. Ha.

Anyway, I'm still pretty Oscar-keen, so I'm getting up at about 6:30am and driving through to BFF's house. I should arrive as the show ends at around 7am, and then she'l give me the tape she recorded it on, and I'll drive home, eyes averted from all news headlines on the side of the roads, and watch it With No Ad Breaks. Bliss.

So here are my predictions:

BEST PICTURE
Avatar

BEST DIRECTOR
The Hurt Locker (Yup, I'm predicting a split here)

BEST ACTOR
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

BEST ACTRESS
Sandra Bullock, The Blindside

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Mo'nique, Precious blah blah

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

ANIMATED FEATURE
Up

ART DIRECTION
Nine

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Avatar

COSTUME DESIGN
Nine

EDITING
Avatar

MAKEUP
Star Trek

ORIGINAL SCORE
Sherlock Holmes

SONG
Crazy Heart

SOUND EDITING
Avatar

SOUND MIXING
Avatar

VISUAL EFFECTS
Avatar

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Up in the Air

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Inglourious Basterds

FOREIGN FILM
The White Ribbon


As you can see, I'm predicting a bit of a sweep for Avatar, as is, you know, THE WORLD, but aside from all the effects and CGI stuff and sheer beauty of it, I don't think it deserves too much. It was a visually stunning film with a tired old plot and very little heart and soul. Personally, having now seen 8 of the 10 best picture nominees (The Blindside hasn't opened yet and Precious only opened on Friday, and I didn't have the time) I think the best films are An Education and Up in the Air, but if we're equating groundbreaking and impressive with "good", then Avatar will win every time. But it won't stand the test of time, once every movie looks like that...

AFI Movies # 2, 3 and 4 done!

I'm totally on a movie roll this month. I've been trying to spend less time arbitrarily clicking round the internet, and more time watching movies I've been meaning to forever. Which is why I made that list of 15 movies on the AFI Top100 List to watch this year. I already posted that I'd watched Jaws. Since then, I've watched:

 

Which was rather sweet and quite fun. You have to be in the right mood for Chaplin (well, at least, I do), but when you are he can be such fun!

  

Which was about what I'd expected: typically 70s, angry protagonist in an imperfect world, and not my kind of movie at all. It's not bad, though, and I'm glad I watched it eventually.

This was pretty good. Maybe a bit too over-acted, but that's how they did stuff back then, and the 40s is one of my favourite movie decades. It's pretty much all about greed and how it affects one. Good stuff.

This leaves me only:

1) On The Waterfront (#19)
2) Chinatown (#21)
3) Duck Soup (#60)
4) Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid (#73)
5) The French Connection (#93)
6) A Streetcar named Desire (#47)
7) The Bridge on the River Kwai (# 36)
8) Modern Times (#78) .
9) Bonnie and Clyde (#42) .
10) M*A*S*H (#54)
11) Lawrence of Arabia (#7)

But right now, I'm off to catch up on my Oscar movies. Predictions tomorrow!

Movie Lists

Ha, so I've already broken one of my New Year goals - which was to post on here at LEAST once a week. Oops. Anyway, I thought I'd expand a bit more on some of my goals, and the first one that caught my eye was the one about watching 15 of the 40 AFI Top 100 movies I haven't seen. When I told Mr Ruby Slippers about this, he said it was a pointless endeavour, because "top" lists of anything are usually stupid, and influenced only by what the makers think people should think. Or something. Still, I think it's worth seeing some of them, especially the ones that are considered "important" films. Also, I like to see films just so that I can truthfully be able to say "I thought that was the most incredibly overrated film of all time" (*cough*BarryLyndon*cough) instead of, "Oh...I haven't seen that yet." But then, I am a movie person. :-)

So I thought I'd make a list of the fifteen films I intend to watch this year, and then I can cross them off publically on here as I watch them. That might motivate me a bit. :-)

For interest's sake, here is the full AFI list (the recent 2007 version). Everything I HAVEN'T seen is in red.

1. "Citizen Kane," 1941.
2. "The Godfather," 1972.
3. "Casablanca," 1942.
4. "Raging Bull," 1980.
5. "Singin' in the Rain," 1952.
6. "Gone With the Wind," 1939.
7. "Lawrence of Arabia," 1962.
8. "Schindler's List," 1993.
9. "Vertigo," 1958.
10. "The Wizard of Oz," 1939.
11. "City Lights," 1931.
12. "The Searchers," 1956.
13. "Star Wars," 1977.
14. "Psycho," 1960.
15. "2001: A Space Odyssey," 1968.
16. "Sunset Blvd.", 1950.
17. "The Graduate," 1967.
18. "The General," 1927.
19. "On the Waterfront," 1954.
20. "It's a Wonderful Life," 1946.
21. "Chinatown," 1974.
22. "Some Like It Hot," 1959.
23. "The Grapes of Wrath," 1940.
24. "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," 1982.
25. "To Kill a Mockingbird," 1962.
26. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," 1939.
27. "High Noon," 1952.
28. "All About Eve," 1950.
29. "Double Indemnity," 1944.
30. "Apocalypse Now," 1979.
31. "The Maltese Falcon," 1941.
32. "The Godfather Part II," 1974.
33. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," 1975.
34. "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937.
35. "Annie Hall," 1977.
36. "The Bridge on the River Kwai," 1957.
37. "The Best Years of Our Lives," 1946.
38. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," 1948.
39. "Dr. Strangelove," 1964.
40. "The Sound of Music," 1965.
41. "King Kong," 1933.
42. "Bonnie and Clyde," 1967.
43. "Midnight Cowboy," 1969.
44. "The Philadelphia Story," 1940.
45. "Shane," 1953.
46. "It Happened One Night," 1934.
47. "A Streetcar Named Desire," 1951.
48. "Rear Window," 1954.
49. "Intolerance," 1916.
50. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," 2001.
51. "West Side Story," 1961.
52. "Taxi Driver," 1976.
53. "The Deer Hunter," 1978.
54. "M-A-S-H," 1970.
55. "North by Northwest," 1959.
56. "Jaws," 1975.
57. "Rocky," 1976.
58. "The Gold Rush," 1925.
59. "Nashville," 1975.
60. "Duck Soup," 1933.
61. "Sullivan's Travels," 1941.
62. "American Graffiti," 1973.
63. "Cabaret," 1972.
64. "Network," 1976.
65. "The African Queen," 1951.
66. "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 1981.
67. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", 1966.
68. "Unforgiven," 1992.
69. "Tootsie," 1982.
70. "A Clockwork Orange," 1971.
71. "Saving Private Ryan," 1998.
72. "The Shawshank Redemption," 1994.
73. "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," 1969.
74. "The Silence of the Lambs," 1991.
75. "In the Heat of the Night," 1967.
76. "Forrest Gump," 1994.
77. "All the President's Men," 1976.
78. "Modern Times," 1936.
79. "The Wild Bunch," 1969.
80. "The Apartment, 1960.
81. "Spartacus," 1960.
82. "Sunrise," 1927.
83. "Titanic," 1997.
84. "Easy Rider," 1969.
85. "A Night at the Opera," 1935.
86. "Platoon," 1986.
87. "12 Angry Men," 1957.
88. "Bringing Up Baby," 1938.
89. "The Sixth Sense," 1999.
90. "Swing Time," 1936.
91. "Sophie's Choice," 1982.
92. "Goodfellas," 1990.
93. "The French Connection," 1971.
94. "Pulp Fiction," 1994.
95. "The Last Picture Show," 1971.
96. "Do the Right Thing," 1989.
97. "Blade Runner," 1982.
98. "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1942.
99. "Toy Story," 1995.
100. "Ben-Hur," 1959.


There are actually quite a few on there that I really WANT to see, and I've just never got around to it. Why on earth haven't I seen Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid, for goodness' sakes? Luckily I have a couple of movie-crazy friends, and I'm pretty sure they can hook me up with the ones I want to see, which are:

1) On The Waterfront (#19)  ~ it doesn't sound that interesting, and Marlon Brando always annoys the heck out of me, but it won a bunch of Oscars, including best picture, which means I can cross it off THAT list too. And it's supposed to be good. I might enjoy it.

2) Chinatown (#21) ~ I hear it's good, and it has Jack Nicholson in it, which usually takes a movie up a notch. Unfortunately it's directed by Roman Polanski, and I'm usually not a fan of his films. Still, I'll give it a go. The plot sounds good.

3) Duck Soup (#60) ~ I actually really want to see this one. I love the Marx Borthers. I just haven't been able to get hold of a copy.

4) Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid (#73) ~ Young, gorgeous Paul Newman and Robert Redford. In an adventure getaway caper. I'm there. And yes, I do already know how it ends.

5) The French Connection (#93) ~ A classic I keep seeing clips from everywhere. It looks like a good plot, so why not?

6) A Streetcar named Desire (#47) ~ I really have to watch this. It's just that I did the play at university, plus a bunch of other Tennessee Williams plays, and I really, really dislike his work. But bloody hell, if I sat through 'Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf' I can get through this.

7) The Bridge on the River Kwai (# 36)  ~ I've been meaning to watch this for ages. Secret? Ssshh. I already have a copy. I'm such a procrastinator.

8) The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (#38) ~ Another one of those "it's famous, it looks good enough, it has quotable lines, why haven't I seen it?" movies.

9) Modern Times (#78) ~ I can watch Chaplin. In small doses, maybe, but he does have a quality about him. I enjoyed The Gold Rush, so I'm keen to see how this one turns out.

10) Bonnie and Clyde (#42) ~ Kind of middle of the road for me, but I reckon I'll enjoy it once it's there.

11) M*A*S*H (#54) ~ I'm starting to push it here as thing appeal to me less. It looks ok, though. And it can't be too bad if they made a soin-off TV show (that was how it went, right?)

12) Taxi Driver (#52) ~ I should TOTALLY have seen this. It just doesn't appeal to me. But I really should, and will!

13) City Lights (#11) ~ Ok, I can do two Chaplins.

14) Lawrence of Arabia (#7) ~ Sigh. It's high on the list, and it's famous....and stuff. I'll try.

15) Jaws (#56) ~ Hopefully this will now be too naff to scare me, which is why I've avoided it all my life. And it's famous, I should have seen it.


So...That's that. If I can make it through these 15 movies I'll probably never see any of the others, most of which I'm avoiding because I don't like the subject matter/plot (Raging Bull, Rocky, Do the Right Thing, Spartacus, Easy Rider, The Wild Bunch, Apocalypse Now, Nashville...) But hey, you never know.

In case you're interested, my picks for "WTF is this movie doing on any kind of Top List??" (that I've seen) are: The Godfather, The Last Picture Show, The Maltese Falcon, Snow White (being groundbreaking doesn't mean you're brilliant, IMO - in that case include Star Wars and Toy Story as well), Network, Raiders of the Lost Ark (it's fun, but it's Indiana Jones, for goodness' sakes!), and Blade Runner.

My picks for "hell to the YES for including this!" are: Singin' in the Rain, The Shawshank Redemption, Sunset Blvd, Bringing Up Baby, Some Like it Hot, It Happened One Night, All About Eve, The Wizard of Oz, The Sound of Music, Forrest Gump and The Sixth Sense. And perhaps Swing Time, though I have to say that Top Hat would have been a better choice if they wanted a Fred & Ginger movie.

Did I mention I'm a film nut? Does anyone else make lists of movies to watch, or lists of movies they've seen?

On being a cinema snob

I used to be a huge film-goer. I'd see practically every movie that came out on circuit (unless it was a horror or something with the Wayans Brothers). I just saw random stuff because it was there. When I first met Mr Ruby Slippers, we used to go to the movies at least once a week, if not more. It was what we did together, because we're both movie nuts. But gradually it kind of started tapering off. Partly that's because the last year or two, or three, have produced some pretty crap movies. But mostly it's because we hate the way people behave in the cinema.

Yes, I'm a cinema snob. I don't believe you should talk during a movie, EVER. Unless you're dying and need to alert someone. People who sit there and have a chat during a movie that they've paid good money to see completely mystify me. If you wanted to have a fat chat, you could do it at home without paying for two tickets and popcorn. And spoiling it for everyone else who paid for their tickets because THEY actually want to see the movie, and not listen to you talk talk talk.

Anyway, the reason I bring this up now is because of something that just happened on Twitter. The movie INVICTUS opens here today, and of course everyone is keen to see it because it's about...um, South Africa. Actually I have very little idea what it's about, other than the Springboks winning the World Cup in 1995 and Nelson Mandela being there. I don't know how you make a whole movie out of that, but anyway. I couldn't care less about sport if I tried. I think the way people get worked up about sport is quite insane. Do you know what I was doing when the Boks won that game in 1995? I was at the opera with my family. Yep, we watched The Merry Widow (ok, I was at the operetta) instead of watching our country win a sports competition. Because we don't care.

I've just got totally off the subject. The point is, I'm actually pretty keen to see Invictus, if only to see Matt Damon putting on a heavy Afrikaans accent, and Morgan Freeman trying to emulate Madiba's unique voice. And see local places that we don't usually see in movies (I loved District 9 for this - I loved it anyway because it was excellent - but it was great seeing Johannesburg on screen!). So today on Twitter some guy says, "Are you a South African? Then you've bought tickets for INVICTUS, opening nationwide tonight, the movie every SA-n must see? Yes? Good."

To which I responded, "No; I'm waiting because I don't see movies with the talking masses."

His response: "  do you ever go to stadiums or are you generally living with Heidi's grandfather in a mountain hermitage?" AND "think you should make an exception here. Be an enthusiastic citizen of your own country, belong to a sense of community"

At which I, of course, took offence. So apparently I must go and PAY good money to sit through a movie on a Friday night, which will be filled with loud talkers and silly teenagers and people loudly mocking the attempts at the South African accents on screen? Because this will somehow give me a sense of community?? (Yeah, a sense of 'I hate my community') Because if I don't go, then I'm living like a hermit (and why is that a bad thing, anyway?)? 

If I don't want to see a film about a sport I despise amongst a crowd of people whom I will begin to despise as the opening credits roll, and they all start talking, playing on their cellphones, and laughing, WHY DOES THIS MAKE ME A BAD PERSON???


*Rant Over*


And yes, I AM going to see Invictus. Just at a time when the cinema is mostly empty. And that won't be this weekend at any time. Should I apologise for that? Cos I'm not going to.

That Guy Thursday #6

I've been so neglecting this blog lately! I even forgot to do a That Guy Thursday yesterday.

So, one day late, here's That Guy, who, today is That Gal:

Ok, you probably know who this is. Some of you are going, "Hey, it's Stiffler's Mom!", aren't you? Or "It's Elle's friend in the Beautyshop from Legally Blonde!"

In case you aren't, but you know her face anyway, her name is Jennifer Coolidge. She was also on "Joey", which I never watched - I didn't want to spoil Friends with a bad spinoff -  and appeared in Lemony Snicket, Down to Earth, American Dreamz, and tons of tv shows.

Top Ten Movie Lists

Ages ago, I decided to do a bunch of top ten movie lists. And then never completed it. If you've noticed my wedding theme at all, you might have spotted that, well, I like movies. So it's pretty hard for me to narrow stuff down into a list of favourites. Therefore, thus and ergo, the only way to do it is have a ton of categories! I present you with Ruby Slippers' Top Ten movies (times many, many lots, etc):

ROMANTIC COMEDIES

1. The Mirror Has Two Faces
2. Just Like Heaven
3. Love Actually
4. Return to Me
   
5. Down With Love
   
6. Sleepless in Seattle
7. Bridget Jones' Diary
8. Wimbledon
   
9. My Best Friend's Wedding
10. Notting Hill
    

COMEDIES

1. What's Up, Doc?
2. Foul Play
3. Snatch
4. Ruthless People
   
5. Clue
6. Much Ado About Nothing (bit of a stretch but it is a comedy of sorts)
   
7. Dogma
8. The Addams Family
9. Clueless
10. Junior
    

DRAMAS

1. Sense & Sensibility
   
2. Stranger Than Fiction
3. American Beauty
4. The Truman Show
5. The Prestige
   
6. Dead Poet's Society
   
7. Fight Club
8. The Majestic
   
9. Being John Malkovich
10. V For Vendetta
    

ACTION/ADVENTURE

1. The Princess Bride
2. Back to the Future
3. Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (ignore the 2 crap sequels)
   
4. Peter Pan (2003)
5. Hook
6. Stardust
7. Galaxy Quest
8. Jumanji
9. Mirrormask
10. Catch me if you Can (another stretch but it is adventure-ISH)
    

MUSICALS

1. Singin' in the Rain
2. Moulin Rouge!
3. My Fair Lady
4. Chicago
5. In the Good Old Summertime
6. The Wizard of Oz
7. Mary Poppins
   
8. The Sound of Music
9. Hairspray
10. Top Hat

ANIMATED

1. Beauty & The Beast
2. Team America: World Police
3. Wall-E
4. The Little Mermaid
5. South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut
6. Ratatouille
7. Shrek
8. Aladdin
9. Hoodwinked
10. 101 Dalmatians

CLASSICS

1. It Happened One Night
2. Bringing Up Baby
3. Rebecca
4. Some Like it Hot
   
5. Pillow Talk
6. Stage Door
7. Monkey Business
8. Jezebel
   
9. Sunset Blvd
10. Witness for the Prosecution
    

OTHER MOVIES I LOVE BUT CAN'T FIND A CATEGORY FOR:

1. Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey
2. The Parent Trap (1998)
3. Three Men & a Little Lady
4. Father of the Bride
5. Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events
6. The Butterfly Effect
7. Centre Stage
8. Frequency
9. Se7en
10. Pride & Prejudice (1995)
    

I guess most of these would be "family comedies", perhaps? Pride & Prejudice is technically a miniseries, not a movie. And is Frequency a drama with a sci-fi twist? Ditto The Butterfly Effect? And I couldn't leave Se7en on a list of serial-killer cop dramas all by itself...

I have to warn you this is just the tip of the iceberg of movies I own.

Alice

So I've been a bad blogger. Sometimes, you know, I just don't feel like it. I can't think of anything interesting to say, I've got nothing specific to post about, and I've been busy with my photography business and getting stuff moving along with it. I will tell you that I might be going to do something really huge. And, of course, it might not happen, so I can't say what it is. Just that it would mean a complete life change and a wonderful learning experience. But it depends on so many factors coming together.

Anyway, yesterday BFF Ruby Slippers emailed me in excitement that she'd seen pictures from Tim Burton's new Alice in Wonderland film online. Now I'd conveniently forgotten all about this, mostly because I've tried to block Tim Burton from my mind ever since the heinous, hideous mess that was his humungously disappointing version of Sweeney Todd. Seriously, if any of you saw that film and thought that's what Sweeney Todd is LIKE, you had better go and rectify that now. If Stephen Sondheim were dead, he'd be turning in his grave. So go and watch either this version or this version. And if you still don't like Sweeney Todd, well then, you clearly just don't Get It.

Anyway, to get back to the original point, I'm extremely intrigued by the new promo pictures from Alice in Wonderland. My first thought was "Oh, great, Helena Bonham Carter's going to be pale with dark eyes and wild hair. You know, like in every other Tim Burton movie she's been in."

Even the one where she was animated. :-)

But I'm really intrigued by her somewhat freakish and slightly computer-generated look in the new movie:

And here's Anne Hathaway as the White Queen:


And Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter:


What I'm REALLY keen for are pictures of Alan Rickman as The Caterpillar and Stephen Fry as the Cheshire Cat, but I can't find any as yet. But look at the film visuals:



Aargh, I want that last one painted on my wall. Minus the freakish Tweedledum and Tweedledee, of course.

And this is Alice:

Now from what I can gather, it's more of a SEQUEL than a retelling of the original Alice. Seems that Alice, as a 17-year-old, finds herself coming back to Wonderland after many years. Hmm. Sounds like Tim Burton has borrowed heavily from American McGee's Alice (which has been in movie development hell for years), as well as the novel The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor (which I loved).

Either way, I'm keen for awesome fantasy gorgeousness. Is this a good time to admit I've never even seen the original animated Disney version, nor read the full novel? I know, I know...

Loves & Loathes

So not much is up at the moment in the usually-mad world of the Ruby Slippers'. So I thought I'd do a little post about things that I'm loving at the moment, and things that are just ticking me off!

At the moment, I lurve:

1) Salmon & Avo California rolls.

YUM. I don't know why I'm so addicted to them at the moment, but I could eat a pile of these babies everyday. Salmon plus avo plus seaweed plus those little seeds must be the best flavour EVER. (this pic isn't right, but it's the closest I could find. I like it when they have seeds on the outside!)

2) Woolworths double cream coconut yoghurt.

I've basically been eating this for lunch nearly every day for months (with fruit, of course, but not together!). I have a weakness for anything coconut. Best drink I ever had was a coconut shake in Thailand.

3) Monopoly.


Mr Ruby Slippers and I have been playing this a bunch lately. I brought over my old set that I got for my 7th or 8th birthday, and it still works. :-) Tonight we played two games... One All.

4)The soundtrack of Sweeney Todd (Broadway cast with Patti Lupone; not the putrescent mess that was the Tim Burton film. Ugh.)

What an awesome musical. If you hated the movie but expected to like it, try getting hold of one of the dvd concert versions with either Angela Lansbury or Patti Lupone starring with George Hearn. Both are excellent.


And I'm Loathing:

1) People who close the stall doors in public toilets so you think someone is in there. Seriously, are you just trying to make people wait in line so you can point and laugh? It's people like you that make other people push on the doors when you are in there, because they think it's possible no one is. And I hate that, especially if the catch is a bit iffy and the door doesn't stay closed properly.

I don't have a picture for this.


2)Cooked raisins.

I'll eat them out the bag (raw, I guess, though that seems an odd term for a dried fruit), but by golly I do not like them cooked in buns (see above), apple pie, etc. Uuuugh. They get all bloated and disgusting. Shudder.


3)Electric Gates that close automatically after a few seconds. They terrify me. I've had a few narrow shaves with these bastards, and I find them completely unnecessary. What, so you have one in case you possibly forget, one day in the future, to close the gate? Isn't it far more likely that someone's car will get pranged by by the stupid thing closing on them?


4) Car guards in parking lots. I'm sick of them saying hello and goodbye in that wheedling tone and expecting me to give them money. Gah. Could we just have a parking lot safe enough not to need guards??

Funny how you can't find pics of the bad stuff...

Movies watched! I keep forgetting about this:

Star Trek - Pretty good. I used to date a Trekkie, so I saw all the recent films, and this one was definitely better! I got a bit distracted trying to count every time there was flare, though.
Into the Woods - the Sondheim musical in concert. LOVED it.
Bride Wars - Hey, it wasn't as bad as everyone made out. Watchable, but probably not rewatchable.
My Fair Lady - One of my top musicals of all time. I hear they're doing a remake; whyyyyyy??
The Wizard of Oz - Ditto, except for the remake bit. It has Judy and it's magical. That's all there is to know.
The Princess Bride - Not really; I just watched the commentary on the new edition. This was my favourite movie for years, and it's the one I can quote pretty much by heart. Which led to me quoting lines while Rob Reiner was talking...

(It looks like I've fallen off a bit here, but in between this I did watch seasons 3, 4 and 5 of The Nanny, and a bunch of other tv...)

Have a good weekend, everyone!

A Flashing Sign

Ever since I went mad and quit my job to do photography (yes, that is to be said with an ironic twisted smile) I've always had this idea that if I got into dire financial straights, I could return to my previous-previous job (that is, two jobs ag0) at a big chain bookstore. Maybe just parttime, but I know they're always looking for people, and they'd be happy to have me back because I was totally good at my job. Book knowledge coming out of my ears (not, I hasten to add, because I've READ that many books, but I'm really good at recalling details).

So tonight my friend Simone and I went out for a chick flick. In this case, Confessions of a Shopaholic.* And afterwards we stopped in at our old bookstore (we both used to work there, but she got out before I did) to say hello to some of the nightstaff we used to know. And while we were there this bizarrely rude man came up to us (we were standing at the counter talking to the night manager) and started asking odd questions, and then getting angry when no one could understand what he wanted. He stormed out and then stormed back in again, pointed at random customers and asked "Who's that? Who's that?" and then stormed off towards the back of the shop when one of the staff answered, "They're customers...?"

A few minutes later he came back and said rudely at all of us, "I'm going now. Thanks for all your help!" I didn't see why Simone and I, who were standing on the outside of the counter and clearly not staff, should be included in this, so I said - politely, honestly - "Actually, she and I aren't staff; we were just talking to them." And he came back right up to us and said, "Why did you lead me to believe you were staff, then?" (???????) And Simone said, "Well, some of the people standing here are staff, but we aren't." And he gets right in her face and goes, "I suppose you think it's fun to belittle people like that, huh? Does it make you feel better?"

Seriously, What The Fuck.

Funnily enough, Simone was one of the more polite people we ever had on staff, so this was pretty weird and uncalled for. But this man was clearly off his rocker. A few clowns short of a circus. A couple of sandwiches short of a picnic. A few grapes shy of a bunch. Lift not going anywhere near the top storey. Oxen most of the way out the kraal. Etc.

And what did this say to me? In a giant, flashy, neon sign:

I AM NEVER WORKING RETAIL AGAIN, AS LONG AS I LIVE.

So there goes that back-up job. Oh well. I would have had to have been pretty desperate, anyway.

*This reminds me, I was supposed to be listing the movies I watched in every post, and I forgot. Go away now if you don't care. :-)

Everything I watched since the last time I did this:

Neverwhere - Actually a miniseries which I gave Mr Ruby Slippers for his birthday. I love the idea (I'd read the Neil Gaiman novel ages ago) but the effects were pretty, well, budget-friendly.
French Lieutenant's Woman, The - Nice Enough, but ultimately unmemorable. Meryl is fab, though (when isn't she?)
Eulogy - This was supposed to be as good as Death at a Funeral. It wasn't.
Hoodwinked - Always fun! If you haven't seen this, go rent it! It's so cute.
Calendar Girls - Hilarious Brit-com. Love it.
Shaun of the Dead - See above. Even funnier.
What's Up, Doc? - One of my favourite movies of all time. I watched this to perk up the night before I shot my first wedding.
Easter Parade - Guess when I watched this. It's Judy Garland, and is therefore a treat.
Minority Report - I really enjoy this movie. Great futuristic sci-fi action.
Little Mermaid, The - Twenty years since I first saw it, and I still love it.
Presenting Lily Mars - It's Judy Garland, and is therefore a treat.
Mermaidia - No funny looks. I borrowed this from Tanja's daughter. It has a very My Little Pony sweet simplicity, and I lurve under-the-sea stuff.
Honey I Shrunk the Kids- Fun family comedy classic.
For Your Consideration - As offbeat as Christopher Guest's comedies usually are.
Lost in Austen - BRILLIANT. It's actually also a miniseries, but it feels like a 3-hour movie. I can't begin to say how much I enjoyed this. If you like Pride & Prejudice, rent this!
Wild Child - What can I say, I like school movies. It was fun but average.
Twilight - Better than I expected, but not as good as the book.
Mame - RIP Bea Arthur. You were the best thing in this tired-feeling movie. If you don't watch it very often it's okay, though.
Wolverine - Hugh Jackman runs around naked. SOLD. (Actually it's fun but not great).
Last Chance Harvey - Meh. It should have been funnier, but ultimately it's a lacklustre drama. I just love Emma Thompson, though.
Confessions of a Shopoholic - Light and frothy, and barely sticking to the books, it's sweet but forgettable.

THE END

Movies watched

I think I'm going to add a little note at the end of each post from now on, saying what movies I watched since the last time I posted, and a few word in-depth critique of them :P . Since this is the first time, I'll do movies I watched this week.

In Bruges - Really funny, but a tad heavier than I expected.
Rachel Getting Married - Excellent.
I Heart Huckabees - Completely bizarre. Don't think I liked it.
The Wicked Lady - Awesome fun melodrama with the delicious James Mason.
Life With Judy Garland: Me & My Shadows - Watched it a bunch of times; Judy Davis is brilliant.
Australia - Enjoyable; cried my eyes out with the Over the Rainbow theme.


And yes, I am one of those movie geeks who keeps a list of everything she watches.

It's beginning to feel a lot like...Christmas movies.

Well, I'm definitely not going to be able to start my wedding recaps until after Christmas. We received some, but not all, of our photos, and though I could start with the getting ready ones, I want to edit some of them in photoshop first. Tanja doesn't really do much post-editing on her photos, and the perfectionist and photo blog junkie that is me feels like messing around with some of the pictures and making them go MY way! At any rate, it's too busy now, so I'll start after Christmas, I promise.

Quick question: I am such a photoshop novice that it's quite pathetic(I'm learning as I go). I cannot for the life of me figure out how to make a photo sepia. Is it somewhere normal, or do you need a special extra thingy? I even went to the help tutorial, which wasn't. ;-}

As it's the night before the night before Christmas, I'm about to continue with my longstanding tradition of watching Christmas-themed movies. These are some of my personal favourites that I make sure to watch every year:
Such a sweet movie. Mara Wilson is adorable, and it never fails to make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Despite the fact that I love classic films, I've never seen the original. I just love this one too much.

So funny. I'll admit Juliette Lewis is more annoying than a movie starring Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy (and that would be unimaginably annoying), but Madeline Kahn (RIP, Love her) is hysterical, and it's generally a totally fun movie.

Ok, who doesn't love Love Actually? My favourites are Liam Neeson and his stepson, Bill Nighy, and Hugh Grant with Martine McCutcheon. Not that I don't love the rest. Except Laura Linney, who has always bugged me a bit. Ah well.

I think I've been watching this movie every Christmas since I was about twelve. I just love it. Does anyone else tear up at the end when Macauley Culkin sees the old man next door reunited with his family?

Ah, Judy. Need I say more? It's not exactly a Christmas movie, but it's the Christmas scene that's so memorable. Have yourself a merry little Christmas...sniff.

Kate and Cary. Love these two together! It's a really sweet, fun movie.


And some other happy, lovely, warm & fuzzy movies I love to watch around Christmas-time, even if they're only Christmas-themed in parts. Or not at all!








Yes, I know, you're seeing a trend here. But seriously, it's ALWAYS a good time to watch Judy Garland...but Christmas is even better. :-)

Happy holidays, festive season, Christmas, etc, everyone!