Have you seen The Hunger Games? If so, what’d you think?

I went to see The Hunger Games yesterday. I enjoyed the book much more than the movie. However, the movie did follow the book’s storyline, for the most part, with a few added changes.

Just like in the book, the 12 districts randomly selects a boy and a girl during the reaping, to play in the Hunger Games. A total of 24 kids, aged 12-18 will fight in The Hunger Games until there is supposedly one lone survivor. I’m not going to bother repeating the plot since I already talked about this, in depth, on the link above when I reviewed the novel.

The movie made a few significant changes. The Gamemaker played more of a role in the movie than in the book. I don’t recall seeing the Gamemaker very much in the first book. (Although, the new Gamemaker is a prominent character in the second book.) Also, there’s a number of scenes with the Gamemaker and President Snow in the movie. I don’t recall seeing much of President Snow in the first book. (Although, you do see him a number of times in the second and third books.)

I felt that the character of Rue was not as deep or developed as in the book. However, in their defense, I know it’s hard to place every little thing from the book into the movie.

Also, there were a number of scenes that they added to the movie which showed the people controlling the game. I don’t recall seeing this in the book – the Gamemaker and his underlings, actually seeing them put things like fire and wild dogs into the players world. We see the book totally through Katniss’s point-of-view, so all of this background/behind the scenes stuff is not shown in the book.

The movie was just okay. I thought it had some suspenseful moments, but, I doubt I’d want to see it again. If I had to make a recommendation, I’d say to read the book before seeing the movie. The book has much more depth – more meat – in the story than the movie.

Have you seen The Hunger Games? If so, what’d you think?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

SPOILER:

I was surprised that they didn’t have Peeta to lose his leg at the end of the movie. This happens in the book.

Inception – A Movie Review by Cecelia Dowdy

***NOTE – THIS IS A REPEAT OF AN OLD BLOG POST!

Can you imagine, being in the midst of a dream, and not knowing if you were asleep or awake? What would you do in that situation?

I saw this movie last summer with my husband and all I can say about it is you have to pay attention.

One thing I didn’t like was that they used the Lord’s name in vain a lot and that didn’t set too well with me.

I did find the story intriguing, especially since they had the dreams in four layers, a dream within a dream within a dream…

Cobb just wants to see his kids again, and he can’t go home because he’s WANTED. He’s a professional dreamer and he can get information about others via their subconscious – in their dreams. A project comes along, a very intriguing and difficult project involving the subconscious and if he’s able to complete this project successfully, he’ll be able to go home to his kids, whom he hasn’t seen in a long time. In this project, instead of stealing secrets imbedded in the subconscious mind, he’s supposed to plant an idea into someone’s mind – Cobb needs to cause the breakup of a huge conglomerate if he wants to abandon his fugitive lifestyle and go home.

It’s kind of cool to see people dreaming and how they see their longings in their subconscious mind. It’s also kind of weird to see the dream and then to see others “interrupt” your dream since they’re not supposed to be in that private part of your mind.

This is definitely a guy flick. I could imagine that a lot of females wouldn’t care for this movie. I enjoyed the action in the movie, but, I must warn you, there is a lot of violence in this flick. The special effects were amazing and I really got caught up in the story.

Can you imagine being caught in a dream for fifty+ years? Frightening! Dreams and reality become muddled and then it messes with your mind.

This movie was very deep and, like I said, you need to pay attention to every word or you might miss something.

Seeing this movie reminded me about the fascination I’ve always had with dreams. When I was in high school, I wrote a paper about dreams and the subconscious mind. In the book of Daniel, God speaks to others through their dreams and He provided vivid messages while Pharoah was asleep.

It’s hard for me to talk about this movie further without giving spoilers. If you’ve seen this movie, I’d like to know what you thought about it. I’d like to see it again to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I think I got the whole story, but I’ll admit that this was one of the most intense movies that I’ve seen in recent years.

So, have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it? Also, if you were in the midst of a dream and not sure if you were asleep or awake, what would you do?
~Cecelia Dowdy~

I blogged about this movie last Christmas. Have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it?

When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

This movie is incredible! The scenery is vivid and moving and the music is great! We watch this movie every year and we never grow tired of seeing it.

A young boy finds himself doubting the existence of Santa. A train pops up in his front yard on Christmas Eve – a train to the North Pole. On the train, he meets an interesting cast of characters, including a young girl and a boy from the wrong side of the tracks. A series of mishaps and life-threatening moments occur, giving this story an edge over the sweeter Christmas movies. This is a nice, enjoyable story and if you haven’t seen it, you should give it a try!

Have you seen The Polar Exress? If you have what did you like about it?
Merry Christmas, everybody!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Popcorn photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos.

Have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it?

I watched this movie as a requirement for the Michael Hauge event that I recently attended. I consider this one an old favorite, especially among romance fans.

When Sam’s (Tom Hanks) wife dies, he feels as if a part of his heart has died too. He’s left to raise their son, Jonah, alone. They relocate and Jonah, concerned about his dad’s grief, calls into a radio help line, openly broadcasting his dad’s dilemma. The phone call spurs lots of attention and Sam receives letters from countless single females. Annie (Meg Ryan), mesmerized by Sam’s plight, is determined to interview him for a newspaper story. Recently engaged, she doesn’t want to admit to herself that her fiance is a totally wrong match for her.

Sam starts dating a woman and Noah is determined to make his dad see reason. He wants Sam to give Annie a chance, in spite of her living several hundred miles away.

Although this is a romance, the couple is apart during most of the movie and they only see each other, from afar, a few times. In spite of that, the movie is cute, whimsical, mesmerizing and FUNNY!! I also liked Rosie O’donnell’s character. She’s Annie’s best friend and is determined to see Annie hook up with Sam. Sam is determined that the current woman he’s seeing is the right woman for him. Annie is determined to convince herself that her fiance (who’s a really nice guy, just not the right guy for her) is her perfect mate. The tug of war between their emotions has you rooting for them, wanting them to admit to themselves that they’re made for each other.

Have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Popcorn photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos.

***Note, this movie is secular and has vampires and werewolves.

I couldn’t resist going to see Breaking Dawn – Part One. I went to a ten AM show last Monday. I posted a review of this book here, and was comparing the book to the movie the entire time.

This story was dark, haunting and riveting. The special effects were amazing and it was especially hard to see Bella suffer physically after she gets pregnant with Edward’s baby.

Bella and Edward (a vampire) send out invites to friends for their wedding. Jacob (an Indian man who can change into a werewolf) is Bella’s best friend and Edward’s natural enemy. Jacob gets upset about the nuptials, phazing into a wolf, running into the woods.

After the wedding, Bella and Edward go on their honeymoon to a secluded island. They make love for the first time and the results are terrifying. Bella gets pregnant and Edward didn’t realize that a vampire could impregnate a human. They return to the mainland and lots of action-packed adventure happens after that. The wolves (the pack that Jacob belongs to) want to destroy the baby and there’s a war between the wolves and the vampires as the vampires try to protect Bella and the unborn child. While pregnant, Bella must drink blood to nourish the baby. I cringed when she did this!

This movie was so intense. It also makes you think that the vampires and werewolves really exist. It’s haunting to think of never being able to die (except for some circumstances – the wolves can kill the vampires) for hundreds of years, being trapped in this human life, never growing old?

I thought this movie was the most intense of all of the Twilight movies. I seldom watch movies with science-fiction/fantasy elements. I find movies with regular settings and regular people more appealing. However, watching movies like this gives me a break from the norm.

Have you seen this movie, if so, did you like it?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Popcorn photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos.

Good Will Hunting starring Robin Williams and Matt Damon

***Note, this movie has a lot of profanity, but it’s a good, well-developed story.

Have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it?

I really enjoyed this movie. I’d seen it a long time ago but didn’t remember a whole lot about it. I watched it again recently because it was recommended for the Michael Hauge Workshop I recently attended.

Will Hunter is a mathematical genius, yet he works a blue-collar job as a college janitor. His life takes an interesting turn when he’s arrested and jailed. A math professor at the college where Will works offers to bail him out. The professor knows that Will is a genius because he accidentally found out when he saw Will solve an impossible mathematical problem on the blackboard. Will solved it during his janitorial shift, not knowing he was being watched. The professor agrees to mentor Will after he’s released from jail and Will must also go through therapy as part of his release agreement. Robin Williams plays the role of Will’s therapist.

I think I liked this movie so much because Will was afraid to open up and be himself. He’s an orphan who’s been hurt in the past. When Michael Hauge gave his workshop, he talked about how a person’s essence is hidden and you might see it revealed in bits and pieces throughout the film – the character must be living in his/her essence by the end of the movie. Well, Will’s mathematical ability is a huge part of his hidden essence. There’s also a romance in this movie. Will meets Skylar at a bar when he’s out with his friends. The relationship between Will, Skylar and Will’s therapist is complicated and realistic.

My one pet-peeve about this movie was the profanity. The language grates on your nerves, but, after awhile, you get used to it. Overall, a good, emotional movie that you’ll enjoy.

So, have you seen this movie? If so, did you like it?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Popcorn photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos.

This story is about King George VI. Since he’s destined to take over the throne after his brother abdicates (his brother has an affair with a divorced woman), George (nicknamed Bertie) has to make public speeches. The only problem is, George has a terrible stutter – he’s had this stutter since he was a youngster. He’s been to several specialists and doctors and none of them can help him with his stutter. His wife finds Lionel, a speech therapist and “doctor”. Lionel gets to the heart of Bertie’s problem – using psychological means – stuttering seems to be an emotional problem for Bertie. The working relationship between Bertie and Lionel buds into a true friendship with a few pitfalls along the way.

I thought this movie was good, but not great. This film received lots of acclaim, so, I thought I’d like it more than I did. It held my interest, but, it’s not a film that I see myself watching again. The characters were somewhat engaging and you’ll find yourself sympathizing with Bertie. If you have the time, I’d recommend watching this film, but, I figure there are probably lots of others out there that I’d enjoy more than this one.

~Cecelia Dowdy~