Meanwhile, in Rivendell . . .

Hiya, people!  WELL, I finally got around to replying to y'all's lovely comments (actually, I'll be doing that as I write this, hehe). Coming off of Cinderella Week, I thought p'raps a nice new commentary on some lovely red carpet dresses might be in order.  Shall we? Sadly, I'm not a huge fan of most of what Hailee Steinfeld wears for the red carpet, but THIS DRESS.  Phew.  T'is beautiful:  a gorgeous color for her, the accents seem to fit her personality well, and the styling is also awesome. I usually prefer a full-on, floor-length gown for the red carpet, but this is adorable.  Well done, Bailey, well done!  (Also, did you guys know that Hailee Steinfeld and Bailey Madison are friends?  The pictures of the premiere of Romeo and Juliet are rather precious.)  Anyway, I love the detail at the top of the dress, and the twist the mini cape puts on it. Beautiful!  I love the styling choices Cate Blanchett made. ...

*wherein Olivia will insert many pictures of various Cinderellas staring thoughtfully off into the middle distance* I never really considered Cinderella to be one of my favorite princesses, so I've been a little surprised at my own enthusiasm for this Cinderella Week.  It got me thinking, what is it about the story of Cinderella that so appeals to us?  What is it about it that so appeals to me ?   So here I am to importune you further with farfetched, rambling philosophic conjectures, lovely pictures, and hopefully some fun :) One thing I've realized that I love about the story of Cinderella (at least, in some of the versions) is how imaginative she is.  She daydreams a lot, and she lets herself!  She knows it doesn't keep her from faithfully and thoroughly performing her duties, so where's the harm?  As someone who spends quite a lot of time inside my own head, I like that :D  Isn't it fun to let your mind ponder the intricacies of Pauline ...

Once upon a time, on the north shore of Long Island, not far from New York, there was a very, very large mansion--almost a castle... I first stumbled into watching this movie rather casually.  I vaguely remembered having seen pictures of it in random places, so, since I was babysitting, had neglected to bring any movies of my own, and now  had an hour or so to kill before the parents got back, this movie in their collection caught my eye.  I gave it a quick Internet check-up (because I had heard funny rumormongerings--that's not a word--of it being about a witch, and ain't nobody got time for dat), received the all-clear, and decided to give it a try.  And since it's a sort of Cinderella tale, it works for this week ;)  Oh, and another thing:  yes, this is a remake of the black-and-white Audrey Hepburn/Humphrey Bogart film of the same name.  I haven't seen the original yet, so I don't know how it compares. Here's the synopsis, taken from the ...

Here are my answers to  the tag Heidi has posted !  Be sure to check out the post in the link--Cinderella Week has officially begun !!! :) 1. In the vast array of fairytale heroines, what particular character qualities most define Cinderella? I would say hope, kindness and imagination. 2. What are some of the deeper, big picture differences you see between retellings where both stepsisters are nasty and others where one is nasty and one is kind? How do you think the two takes differently develop/illuminate/affect Cinderella’s character and also the overarching story itself?   I prefer retellings where one stepsister is kind ( Ever After for the win!).  For one thing, I rather feel that this balance between nastiness and kindness is more realistic--isn't there a good chance that an exacting mother's personality wouldn't have affected at least one sister?  When both stepsisters are awful, frivolous wretches, we have no choice but to dislike the entiret...

Hello, lovelies!  Here is a contribution to Heidi's epic Cinderella Week--I'm here to talk about the story of Ella Enchanted . Let us jump right in, shall we?  Comparing the book and the movie, dontcha know.  Oh, and I watched the movie before I read the book.  (The order in which you experienced a story can have a great bearing on your opinions about it, can't it?)   Spoilers will be given free reign!!! Now, Ella is not my favorite character, to be blunt.  She's okay, but she's a bit too…oh, what's the word…feisty isn't quite the thing…she's just a bit too-- much for me.  Her personality doesn't jibe well with mine, and all that.  And she says practically everything she thinks (rather lacking in tact, what), which bothers me.  For instance, I know she sensed immediately that Hattie was insincere, and I know she was going through a lot at the reception to her mother's funeral (well, duh), but was it really necessary to say some of ...