Meanwhile, in Rivendell . . .

Beauty and the Beast (2014) ● not rated I've been wanting to watch this movie for quite some time, and I was delighted to finally discover that it's available for free (with ads) on Tubi, where you can stream it without even setting up an account. Visually, it was even more stunning than I'd thought it would be.  Narratively . . . I don't know.  I loved certain aspects of the retelling, and didn't care for certain others.  The Beast character was extremely . . . predatory . . . in more ways than one.  That made me very uncomfortable, and I wish it was resolved more thoroughly.  But I still liked it overall, and I'll want to watch it several more times to see how my opinion evolves. Denial (2016) ● PG-13 This was excellent.  I wasn't very familiar with the realm of Holocaust denial before reading a review of one of Deborah Lipstadt's books (Lipstadt is the protagonist of the film, based on her memoir of the same name).  That review mentioned the movie ...

Once again, late but hopefully better than never.  I may write one more post about a couple of specific musings on 2020, but I'm not sure.  Either way, this will be one of the last retrospective posts I'll share about 2020; I'm feeling an urge to put it behind me for the time being (as I'm sure many are), and I want to move forward with new content.   And I think that, for me, part of executing that plan will mean not completing any of the tags I've been passed in recent months.  So, if you're one of the lovely people who tagged me lately — thank you so much!  Please know that I did read and appreciate all of the questions you posed, but for now I think I need to start afresh. 💛 ⸻ Arranged (2007) ● Not Rated This had some painfully unprofessional moments, but I found myself very invested in the two women and the way their friendship evolved.  The story also offered a different and thought-provoking perspective on (consensual) arranged marriage, which...

Did I drop off the face of this blog for a full month?  I sure did. 😂  School and work are both crazy right now.  Really looking forward to December when they'll calm down. 😅  Anyway, here's the new stuff I watched in September and October! ⸻ Adopt a Highway (2019) ● Not Rated I know it would have been unrealistic if it had ended the way we want it to, but DID I ASK FOR REALISM???  DID I ASK. (I did not ask.) (But this was a good movie anyway.) Barbie and the Twelve Dancing Princesses (2006) ● Not Rated You don't understand:  I've been wanting to watch this for at least a decade. 😂  Ever since I had the novelization as a kid and fell in love with the dresses & the aesthetic & what-not.  And I finally know someone who owns it, so I was finally able to see it!  Huzzah. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed the experience. 😍 Magic in the Moonlight (2014) ● PG-13 This was my first time watching a Woody Allen movie, and all pedophilic sexual...

(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...

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...

Dark Waters ● 2019 Technically, I probably only saw about half of this, all told.  But I still felt as though I'd gotten the full story, and I thought it was very good.  The last line made me feel a couple of #emotions, which I hadn't really planned on.  (And then the credit song was "I Won't Back Down," and Johnny Cash is just a solid idea in most situations, so, you know, I appreciated that.) Instant Family ● 2018 Stronger language than you're expecting in a "family" movie like this, but it was cute and well-done and seemed less cliché than most of its kind.  Byrne and Wahlberg were excellent, as usual.  So were Octavia Spencer and Tig Notaro. (Also, may I just say, the scene where the parents Go After the pedophilic janitor was very satisfying.) Life as We Know It ● 2010 *SPOILERS (I guess? you don't really care)*   This bothered me because I felt like the doctor was objectively a better fit for Holly than Messer was.  And on multiple l...

Emma. (2020) ● PG [should be PG-13, lol] I'm going to be talking more about this in another post, so I'll leave it at this: I like it very much.  Fight me. 😛 Howards End (2017) ● TV-14 *scratches head*  This was . . . this was . . . weird?  I . . . I have confusion.  The cast was fantastic (especially Hayley Atwell), but the story was . . . ?  As has been stated, a head-scratcher. Literally, Right Before Aaron (2017) ● TV-14 This was sublimely awful.  I loved watching it. [I actually did a whole rant review of it in video format and sent it to some friends.  It's too long to embed here, but if you're interested in seeing it, give me a shout and maybe I'll be able to email it to you. 😄] Set It Up (2018) ● TV-14 Awwww, I loved this.  There was more sexual content in it than I expected after reading reviews, so that was an unpleasant surprise, but it was still adorable, with (mostly) good messages and good ...