Meanwhile, in Rivendell . . .

(Yes, I changed my blog look; and yes, it's a recycled one.  I was missing it. 😁) Comet (2014) ● R Speaking out of the reliable authority of one who has seen a whole two of his movies, Justin Long seems . . . to play a certain type of character rather a lot.  And that type of character is basically a word-I-can't-print-on-this-blog-on-account-of-the-children. So . . . there's that. Aside from that:  this is a visually gorgeous film about an extremely dysfunctional relationship.   Dumbo (2019) ● PG I covered this in my last post.  I had a few quibbles with it, but I liked it.  French Kiss (1995)  ● PG-13 Okay but I'm actually very happy about this.  I greatly enjoy rom-coms when I find a really solid one, but I don't find them as often as I'd like to.  This one was Highly improbable (as are most), but I honestly loved it.  I've already watched it several times and I can't wait to watch it several more.  Meg Ryan is The Actual C...

Let's see how many times I reference "tHe AeStHeTiC" in this post, shall we? 😊 These are ranked primarily according to personal enjoyment.  I've also taken what I see as technical quality into account, in some way, but the main determinant has been how I personally feel about them all. 😜 Minor spoilers throughout. ⸻ #11.   Aladdin I love Naomi Scott, "Speechless," etc.; but unfortunately I was underwhelmed by this.  I felt that parts of it were lacking, both in terms of narrative and technique.  Once again, that's my opinion, and I get why people like it.  It just wasn't an insta-love situation for me.    (Its position as my least favorite, despite the fact that other remakes have more flaws, could have something to do with the fact that the original  Aladdin has never been one of my favorites — and yet I somehow had higher expectations for this one than some of the others?  Idk.)  #10.   Lady and the Tramp I wasn't expe...

Heidi and Hamlette are hosting 2020's Legends of Western Cinema blog week!  I had a few ideas of things to write for the event, but due to how busy I am right now, I don't know how many of those ideas will be realized.  We shall see!  In the meantime, I'm glad there's a tag so I can at least be sure of contributing one post. 😉 1) What's the last Western you watched? The last one I watched was Rango , but in terms of new-to-me Westerns?  It's been quite a while, actually —  probably since I watched part of Tombstone .  2) A Western of any stripe (happy or tragic) where you were highly satisfied by the ending? I feel like there's an obvious answer that I'm missing, but the conclusion of  The War Wagon  was lots of fun.  3) The funniest Western you've seen? That one's got to be, once again, Rango .  I just cannot get over how clever the script is, and how eccentric and entertaining the story-world is.  4) What similar elements/themes...

That's right, my dudes:  I'm splitting this endeavor into two parts!  I'm really enjoying the process of writing this post, but it's taking longer than expected, and each individual type is requiring more exposition than expected, too.  Thus, the schism. 😛 In case it wasn't obvious, I'll be examining various characters from the fairytale television series Once Upon a Time , attempting to classify them according to the personality-typing model of the Enneagram.  But first, some housekeeping:   I'm not an expert on the Enneagram; I've read a decent amount of material on it at this point, but others definitely know more than I do; blah, blah, blah. The "core desires" I include at the beginning of each type description are taken directly from The Enneagram Institute 's profiles for those types.  I also quote those pages often throughout the post.  I may not be typing all the main characters that you would expect me to.  In the interests of ful...

Baby Mama (2008) ● PG-13 I like this.  Tina Fey and Amy Poehler make as fantastic a team as I expected they would, and I also love seeing Dax Shepard, Greg Kinnear, Steve Martin, and Sigourney Weaver in their roles.   That said, there are a few instances of what appears to be "casual racism"; and even though those instances aren't framed as good things, they aren't framed as dreadfully serious things, either.  So.  That makes me a little uncomfortable.  Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) ● PG-13 This is very heavy, and the narrative wasn't my favorite.  That said, it was an important one and I'm not aware of another film quite like it.  There were moments that were extremely moving, and lines that got caught in the back of my throat because they were so piercing.  ("This is my favorite thing" almost made me cry.) Also:  Quvenzhane Wallis is amazing.  It's official.  I'd liked her in  Annie  (2014), but the fact that...

Happy August!   I'm excited to be participating in the virtual book tour for Rachel Kovaciny's newest novel, One Bad Apple .  The latest installment in Rachel's Once Upon a Western series of Old West fairytale retellings, OBA sets Snow White in the midst of the Exoduster migration.  The book is told from the perspective of Levi Dalton, an orphaned white adolescent who is taken in by a Black wagon train along with his siblings and cousins.  I've already read it, and I can definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a compact, historical, textured take on Snow White.  However, I have to get this interview started, so I'll simply direct you to One Bad Apple's Goodreads page for more readers' thoughts.  {Be sure to also visit the other stops along the book tour , including a giveaway hosted by the author!} Meanwhile, the interview! ————— What was the easiest part of the writing process for this installment? The dialog? Dialog is always my favorite ...