What's On?

I don't consider myself much of a TV or movie watcher. Having younger kids (well really only Ellie now - Emma can see PG-13) makes it harder to get out and see movies that I am actually interested in. Sure, I get my fair share of Disney and Pixar and you can't really go wrong with any of those (I so loved Bolt last year - I just wanted to eat that little hamster up) but after awhile they get a little boring and I long to hear a cuss word or watch a steamy romance unfold.

As far as renting goes, we had a NetFlix account years ago and that was easy to do - order online then pop it in the mail when you're done and repeat- but while we were in Memphis, we cancelled our subscription and haven't started it back up since we have been home. We have a Blockbuster just about 10 minutes away from our house and that usually is the easiest source for rentals nowadays. We also have the premium channels on our FIOS TV. They were free for a certain time frame and we still haven't gotten rid of them although I find them to be pretty useless and now we are paying for them. I am thinking that is going to end soon. So even with the access to TVs, rentals and movies- I find that I don't really watch all that much. The last few weeks; however, have been an exception.

Perhaps it's all the snow we have had that makes wanting to pop popcorn and settle in for a movie more appealing or maybe it is because January/February is slower for me work wise and I have more leisure time or it just may be that I am enjoying being home more and going out less - whatever it is, I have watched a lot more television and movies over the last several weeks. I thought I would share all of this multimedia knowledge and give you my best Ebert/Roeper/Gene Shalit reviews without any of the normal thought provoking depth, insight or detail. That's just how I roll.

1. Julie and Julia - I watched this with Emma and Ellie as a rental. Ellie fell asleep halfway through. I am a huge Meryl Streep fan and think she is amazing at her craft. There isn't much that she does, that I don't like. The storyline was pretty smart switching back and forth between real time and Julia Childs time. The blog theme was also cool since I like blogs. We were both hungry at the end though...really hungry.

2. Coraline - Emma and I watched this on Starz. It was great. I love the Tim Burton-esque feel. Dark, witty and strangely endearing. Emma was scared in a few parts as we really got sucked into Coraline's world... the creepy aspects really came out in the end. The garden scenes with the giant bugs and beautiful flowers was my favorite part... really well done.

3. The Hangover - OMG... sooo funny. Steve and I watched this on New Years Day and we told Emma and Ellie they couldn't bother us. Dark and dirty and very funny. I love how we just kept getting glimpses of what happened and we had to piece them together and all along we wondered 'where is Doug?'... I haven't laughed at a movie like that since Wedding Crashers.

4. 9 - (not to be confused with Nine) Watched this On Demand with Emma... it was weird. We were cozied up in my bed watching it so perhaps that is why I feel asleep toward the end. It was a futuristic animation movie about the end of the world when all that remained were evil machines and these little hand-made dolls with different sewn on pieces and scraps that were highly intelligent. They were of course, fighting the evil machines... It was weird.

5. The Hurt Locker - I rented this for Steve during a recent snowstorm because it had such good reviews. I didn't like it. Steve didn't really care for it either. It's a movie set in current day Iraq about three soldiers that work on the bomb detonation squad. It's pressure packed and there are lots of explosives and some really sad images of war. It was not a feel good movie and really just a sad commentary on war. But hey, that's just what I got out of it.

6.The Blindside - Steve and I went while the girls were at school one day for an afternoon date. It was fabulous. Loved the film's message, loved the feel good - pay it forward positive emotion it invoked in me and I loved that it was about a family from Memphis. I had a personal reference point for some of the places they visited. Sandra Bullock was amazing and Tim McGraw was a nice surprise.

7. Tooth Fairy - The girls and I saw this at a recent birthday party for Ellie's friend Brennan. It was very cute and I loved the cat scene when he used his shrinking powers. It had family appeal and we all liked it regardless of our ages. The Rock wasn't too shabby to look at either even if he did wear tights and wings.

8. Weeds - this is a series on Showtime. It is a show about a middle aged mom that sells pot to make ends meet. It has been on for about 4 years now and has really evolved into a great drama. She isn't selling drugs anymore but oh so much more is happening... It has an adult edge with all sorts of inappropriate things going on. It is smart and well acted. This show is probably the only reason to keep the premium subscription channels.

9. For TV viewing I am currently watching American Idol with the girls. I can take it or leave it but it's something we can all do together and now that the contestants have been picked it will get more interesting. I am also going to admit my guilty pleasure. I watch the Housewives series on Bravo. New Jersey sucked me in and now I have watched Atlanta and Orange County. It's bad TV but I just cannot stop. Project Runway has returned as well and this show is good creative TV. I love to see how these designers tackle challenges...love it! What else... Oh... Glee will be back on Fox in April and that is a show we all watch....Steve included. It can be a little mature for Emma at times but I look at it as an opportunity to talk about certain topics... so looking forward to this coming back.

So that's quite a list, no? It's more couch potato time than I am used to but it's been enjoyable, especially with the winter weather we have had. I have about 5 books that are just collecting dust waiting for me to turn my attentions to them. I promise, I will get to you soon. I am just having too much fun watching TV right now.