Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Slumdog Millionaire


It isn't hard to imagine what my opinion of this movie was. I'm with the 94% on Rotten Tomatoes that thought it was excellent. I was captivated by the way the story shows all sides of India and that so much of the background is true. I'm sure that many of the people who live in India were upset at this film. It shows the gritty underbelly and if they wanted a pristine image of the country to be presented to the world, this was not the movie for India. However, it shows how resilient and resourceful their people are and I think that speaks volumes more than a series of pretty pictures. I have a feeling that more people will be intrigued by the idea of India as a place to visit than will be discouraged from it after seeing this film.

What was most striking to me was the way in which this movie conveys the information that you would find in a heartbreaking documentary about a child's life in the slums of Mumbai, but at the same time it is uplifting, funny and heartwarming. Amazing. The careful balance of pain and pleasure that makes this movie not only one that that you should see but one that you will want to see again and again.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog



2 sec. review: LOVE it. No past tense here since I just watched parts of it again this afternoon.

This movie is wonderful. If you didn't find it during the writer's strike (way back when), don't worry, you can still find it on the web at www.drhorrible.com or on itunes or on amazon.com. So, go forth and view!

This is a creation of Joss Whedon and (what I assume are) his brothers. Joss is a known entity in the worlds of Buffy, Firefly and Serenity. Not being a great fan of any of those (haven't watched them yet - they are on my netflix [calm down]) I wasn't sure what to think about Dr. Horrible but I watched it anyway. Now I will certainly be a fan of those other shows! That is how much I LOVE Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

If you don't like musicals, don't watch it. If you don't like campy sci-fi, don't watch it. Otherwise, enjoy!! Even ye ol' Doogie Houser is quite wonderful in this movie - makes me want to watch "How I Met Your Mother" and I can honestly tell you that feeling has never occurred before!

So, "that's the plan. Rule the world. You and me, anyday."