Until I make time for that I will give you the words of someone more talented than I.

]]> http://jenngw.com/?feed=rss2&p=603 0 http://jenngw.com/?p=571 http://jenngw.com/?p=571#comments Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:22:51 +0000 Jenn http://jenngw.com/?p=571 The Twilight Saga: Eclipse opens in theaters this Wednesday, but I have the awesome opportunity to see it tonight!

It’s strange isn’t it, that even though we’ve read this books there is still this part of us that wants to keep the movies a surprise?  So in an effort to keep things short… and as “spoiler free” as I can I am going to give you a quick run down of what I liked… and what I disliked… because like any true blue, “read the books before the movies came out”, Twilight fan… I found some faults.

But before any of that… there is something I have to say…

David Slade.  Thanks man.  I’m not gonna lie, I was a little worried when you were hired knowing how you “felt” about the series that I loved… but you did not disappoint.  I would like to apologize to you for ever having doubted you… but I highly doubt you’ll ever read this.  That shouldn’t stop me though.  So, again, thank you.  I’m sure you felt like you felt like you were on trial during the entire filming process… and that after the film was released if you were found guilty of… whatever you would have been guilty of had the book not come to life before us… you lived in of a pitch fork and torch waving mob of teenage girls at your door.

Well, David Slade, suffice to say I don’t think you’ll have to worry about the torches and the pitch forks.

Now, on to the good, the bad and the ugly… wigs.

GOOD:
Xavier Samuel.  Hello!  I was really moved by his performance in a way I honestly didn’t know was possible, I felt for Riley.  I wanted Riley to see the error of his ways.  Seeing Riley’s distress only added to my hatred of Victoria more.

The back stories.  While I would have like to see more (and I’m sure we will when the DVD comes out), I really enjoyed how the back stories were told.  Watch for the eyes in Jasper’s back story… the way it’s shot and the coloring (yay, Mr. Slade) the eyes are even more creepy.

Hey, Twitter… David Slade got the message about the importance of the leg hitch… loud and clear.

The wolves were GIGANTIC… and had so much range and emotion… some of the other cast members couldn’t probably take a hint from their CGI co-stars.

Seth Clearwater.  I love him.  LOVE him.

SPARKLES!!!  Edward’s sparkles were the best in this one.  Just sayin’.

The proposal.  Just you wait.

BAD:
Does Melissa Rosenberg write in all of the “likes” that Kristen Stewart says?

Bryce Dallas Howard.  Okay, SHE wasn’t bad… but still, shame of Summit for replacing Rachelle Lefevre.  Victoria’s on screen time is so short it seems like they were just being cruel in replacing her.

UGLY… WIGS:
About 5 minutes into the movie my mom leans over and says, “That wig looks AWFUL!”; she was right.  Bella’s hair look SO unnatural.  I can’t even begin to imagine how bad it looked prior to some of the reshoots… the only positive about the wig… Kristen only put her hands near her hair ONCE.

Alice looks like a soccer mom… really… it’s awful.

However, I do have to give props to the Rosalie wig folks… Nikki looked amazing and, for the first time, very natural in her role.

CONCLUSION:
The things you’ve read saying that this is the best movie of the saga so far aren’t lying.  There were scenes I noticed that weren’t there… but they didn’t feel “missing”.  All of the actors have really stepped up their game… and I firmly commend David Slade for the job he did in bringing those performances from his cast.  The parts of the movie that we only heard about in the book, but didn’t get to experience (the battle scene, the creation of the newborn army) are done superbly.  Fleshing out the characters of  Riley and Bree added so much more to the film.

I really enjoyed the film and can’t wait to see it again on Wednesday… but I really miss the simplicity of having a book that I love.  There is something lost in the hype.  I’m not trying to be all pretensions and “well, if everyone likes in now I can’t.”… but RPattz, KStew, TayLau and the “RobSten” drama have taken away my ability to get lost in the movies the way I did in the book.  However, this film, more than New Moon, gave me some release and there were moments that I was able to stop looking at Robert Pattinson and for a moment really see Edward.

“A poet once said that if a poem were ever reduced to two words, the best poem would be: ‘Thank You.’

Get your creative, albeit succinct, juices flowing: Write your two-word poem:”

in bloom.

2. Wipe any residual peanut butter from the knife onto the second piece of bread.

3. Scoop some jelly onto the other slice of bread. Again, the amount is up to you, but when in doubt, use less rather than more. Jelly tends to squeeze out the edges and drip if you use too much. Make sure to spread the jelly evenly.

4. Gently press the two slices of bread together. Always put the peanut butter and jelly sides together, otherwise it will be messy (besides not sticking together).

5. ENJOY!

However three interests in my life that have always been… and while the depths at which I immerse myself in them changes with the tide, there has always been an underlying desire to know more… have more… see more… experience more… and feel more…

Those things are:

Disney.

England.

American History.

I genuinely feel like I have no “talents”.  I was not born being exceptional at anything.  There are things that I am “good” at… but those things take effort and I have not devoted enough time to hone those skills.

The End.

TOY STORY 3 opens today and I am THRILLED!  Both of the first 2 TOY STORY films are among some of my favorite movies of all time… and TOY STORY 2 is hands down my favorite Pixar film.

There is no person on this planet that I want to see this movie with more than my nephew, Ryan.  When he was just a wee little man I would spend the days with him while my brother & sister-in-law were at work.  I remember showing him Toy Story and that little guy instantly became Buzz Lightyear’s biggest fan!

I can’t believe that his is eight years old now and that today is his last day of 2nd grade!  When I realized that Ryan, his younger sister Tara & I all had half-days today I knew exactly how I wanted to spend my afternoon off… with those kids… at the movies… with Buzz, Woody and the rest of the toys!

“Hello?”, a distracted voice answered.

“Hey, Jay, it’s me.  What’s going on?”

“Yeah, hey, uh… nothing.”, the voice on the other end of the phone continued to sound as if whatever was going on directly in front of him was obviously more important than talking to his fiance half way across the country.

“Okay.”, replied Gemma as she stood staring blankly into her own green eyes in the mirror of the over lit hotel bathroom, “Listen, I was just checking my bank statement online, did you use my credit card?  The one I keep in the dresser drawer for emergencies, I saw a few charges on there from the day I flew out to New York from the gas station around the corner from us, the pizza place and the video game store.”
“I don’t think so.” replied Jay.  It was at that moment that Gemma could hear the explosions in the background, the men screaming out orders and the guns firing erratically.

“Really?  Okay, well then I’m going to have to call the bank and tell them my credit card was stolen Jay.”

“Fine, yeah, Gem, I used your friggin’ card.  What the hell did you expect me to do?  You went to New York City for a week and before you leave you drop on twenty on the table and expect me to get by on that?”

She could hear the familiar sound of the video game console controller hitting the floor.  This was always Jay’s first move when ever she tried to talk to him about something while he was playing one of his games.  First it was the controller on the floor and then he’d toss of his hands in a mock “you got me” fashion.  She imagined him in the house she rents, sitting on the couch she purchased, tossing up his one free hand in the same fashion as he gripped the cell phone his mother had paid for with his other.

“Jason,” she began before she abruptly cut off.

“Oh, I must be in real trouble now,” he spat at her, “you’re using the full name.  What’s next?  Are you going to tell me you aren’t my mother?  That I should get a job?  Well, I tried getting a job, but no one is hiring, you know that Gemma.  Then you go off the New York City and leave me here with the puppy.  If I had a job, Gemma, who would take care of him?  Taking care of this dog is a full time job!”

Gemma could no longer look herself in the eye.  She turned away from the mirror, crossed her ankles and slumped down the the bathroom floor.  She’d listened to this rant so many times before and each time it seemed to get more and more ridiculous.

“Jay”, she began in a soft, calming tone, “it’s not like I came here on vacation.  It’s a business trip, I have to be here.  And I honestly thought $20 would be enough for you to get by on, besides, it was all I had to spare before I left.  I just don’t appreciate you using my credit card without my permission and then lying to me when I ask you about.”

“I didn’t friggin’ lie to you!” Jay screamed through the phone at her.  The scream didn’t startle or surprise her though, she’d grown frighteningly numb to it.  Then came that all too familiar silence.  Gemma took the phone away from her ear and looked down at it.  It looked back at her and blinked “Call Ended.”

She placed the phone down on the floor next to her and entangled her fingers at the roots of her shoulder length chestnut hair.  She squeezed her fists tighter and tighter.  Her anger surged as the pain of her pulling at her own hair grew more intense.  It all finally came to a crescendo as Gemma let out the softest scream she could manage into her knees.  She quickly untangled her hair from her fists and looked up as she took a deep breath.

There were no tears, she just couldn’t conjure them no matter how angry or hurt she was.  They just wouldn’t come anymore.  Gemma’s tears knew better than she did, they knew not to waste anymore time on him and they wished everyday that Gemma would take their cue.

All week I’ve been covering for the producer of the morning show, while she enjoys time sunning on the beach and reading a book in North Carolina.  So, I’ve been working for her from 5:30 to 10am and then 10am until about 1:30 in my normal job.  For some reason when I get home I can’t bring myself to do anything but lay in the grass and read a book.  I’ve had no desire to look at a computer screen during my free time.

I was just going to do one post with everything I’ve missed, but Day 15 is “Part of a Story” so I’m going to have to post that separately later.

Without further ado…

Day 14: A Non Fiction Book:

I’ve started reading:

It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that I am IN LOVE with this book.  There are some funny things in it’d I’d like to re-post and see if my British readers agree.  It’s also giving me basic in sites and details on points in British history I wasn’t familiar with.  I adore it.  It’s only aggravating my insatiable Anglophilia.

Day 16: A Song That Makes You Cry: (or you know… 3)

Forgiven // Sanctus Real

For No One // The Beatles

Hear You Me // Jimmy Eat World

Day 17: An Art Piece:

Alice in Wonderland statue in Central Park

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