Cinderella Man and The Muppets : A movie review

I'm going to review 2 very different movies in this post; hope you like them.
Out of desperation for a movie to watch last night, we got "The Muppets" from Redbox.
Here's the synopsis from imdb :

When 3 Muppet fans learn that Tex Richman wants to drill under the Muppet Theater for oil, Gary, Mary and Walter set out to find the Muppets who have been split up for years so that they can put on one last show and save the Muppet Theater. Kermit the Frog now lives in his own mansion depressed in Hollywood, The Great Gonzo is a high class plumber at Gonzo's Royal Flush, Fozzie Bear performs with a tribute band called The Moopets, Miss Piggy is the plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, and Animal is at a celebrity anger management rehab center in Santa Barbara.

Let's settle one thing first : I am a Muppets Fan. Call me what you will. I love them, especially the great Christmas classic at our house : The Muppet's Christmas Carol (one of the best!).
I'll admit, I was worried to watch this, because, if you've seen the trailers, it looked pretty cheesy; and the singing definitely caught me off guard. I was not expecting that. But, I liked it a lot. It was super fun, very clean, and had sooo many cameos I was cracking up. Especially Jack Black and Emily Blunt's ones (Jack Black as himself and Emily Blunt as Miss Piggy's secretary); then I thought it was so funny because here are some of the best actors (Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Jason Segel, and, sure Jack Black) and haha, they weren't even trying. But in a good way. It was very good. 7.5/10 stars.

Now for my second review, Cinderella Man (synopsis from imdb ) :

During the Great Depression, a common-man hero, James J. Braddock--a.k.a. the Cinderella Man--was to become one of the most surprising sports legends in history. By the early 1930s, the impoverished ex-prizefighter was seemingly as broken-down, beaten-up and out-of-luck as much of the rest of the American populace who had hit rock bottom. His career appeared to be finished, he was unable to pay the bills, the only thing that mattered to him--his family--was in danger, and he was even forced to go on Public Relief. But deep inside, Jim Braddock never relinquished his determination. Driven by love, honor and an incredible dose of grit, he willed an impossible dream to come true. In a last-chance bid to help his family, Braddock returned to the ring. No one thought he had a shot. However Braddock, fueled by something beyond mere competition, kept winning. Suddenly, the ordinary working man became the mythic athlete...

Starring Russell Crowe and Renèe Zellweger, this is an Oscar worthy film.
I was seriously tempted to jump up in the air and scream when I was watching this, but being 11:30 at night, my mom would have probably killed me ;) the fights were very intense, and bloody, but if you've ever watched some of the better UFC (Ultimate Fighter Championship), it's not that bad.
The swearing was pretty bad. A lot of s-words, a**, uses of God's name in vain (and of Jesus Christ).
Sexual content?? Some kissing, but between Jimmy (James) and his wife, Mae.
And the thematic elements were intense, because it was in the Great Depression.
I love this so much. It was the very meaning of inspirational without being all goody goody, "I know it's going to be okay" type thing that seems to be in everything. Russell Crowe was outstanding as James Braddock, I mean, amazing. He is one of the best actors of the this time, honestly.
And Renèe Zellwegger will never cease to crack me up. She is awesome.
And their 3 kids were precious. So overall rating, 9/10 (1 star less because of the swearing), but I guess age would be 13 and up!! You should definitely watch it!
J.A.M.

Divergent, book 1, by Veronica Roth

You're probably thinking, finally! a book review! and, let me tell you, I am just as excited as you are.
The book is Divergent, by Veronica Roth. So here's the synopsis (from Amazon) :

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

I read Divergent off of the recommendation list for The Hunger Games. I am so glad I did. This is a new, total favorite. Veronica Roth's writing style is very gripping and enjoyable. Beatrice starts out insecure, but by the end, she is so darn strong, I loved reading her progress throughout the book. And then, bless my soul, Four. I think it's is 99.9% impossible NOT to fall in love with him ( and if you don't,well, you must a pretty weird person- no offense) . He is soooo........ incredible? intricate? I doubt there are any words that could fairly describe him. He is right up there with Peeta and Finnick, to be honest. And practically nobody passes Peeta and Finnick. And then there are the characters that I absolutely despise. I'm mostly looking at Peter and Eric. Ooohhhh.... Anyways, before anything bad happens, I'm going to move on to the content :
Violence : yuck. Someone -- I will not say who-- gets his eye stabbed with a fork. I have to say, I nearly lost my dinner at that point. Then a lot of gun fighting, and basically beating each others up. 7/10
Cussing : several uses of hell and For God's sake, and oh my God's. 4/10
Sex : There is one kind of awkward part, when Tris is groped, and some jerk! remarks about the size of her chest. Then there are 2 mentions of sex and several long kisses. 4/10
Another somewhat questionable subject, the Dauntless Faction has a lot of tattoos, piercings, getting drunk, and etc.. so that might be a big stopper for some of you..
--
Oh I love this book. I love it. I need to buy it. Okay, sure, it's not as good as The Hunger Games, but honestly, what is? So what I say : get this from the library, and read :)
9/10

And then summer!!!!!! I simply cannot wait for this last week .5. I can't wait to swim, read to my heart's content (any must reads??), and watch movies :) Oh, and of course, sketch.
I'm going to Texas later in the summer, and I am so excited!! There's a salt water pool (it's really neat) that we always get a membership to every year, so that is going to be a TON of fun. Do you have any plans??? Okay, well I need to go (finish up some school).
ADIEU!!

The Bourne Ultimatum

Hehehe. Sorry, that was me giggling from the over amazed effect I have been suffering lately from these films.Okay, here's the synopsis from imdb :


Bourne is once again brought out of hiding, this time inadvertently by London-based reporter Simon Ross who is trying to unveil Operation Blackbriar--an upgrade to Project Treadstone--in a series of newspaper columns. Bourne sets up a meeting with Ross and realizes instantly they're being scanned. Information from the reporter stirs a new set of memories, and Bourne must finally, ultimately, uncover his dark past whilst dodging The Company's best efforts in trying to eradicate him.

Absolutely fantastic! :D Edge-of-your-seat chase scene, tear wrenching flashbacks, and nail-biting fights. The acting from Matt Damon, Joan Allen, Julia Stiles, and David Strathairn is beautiful.
And it was so neat how they did the pacing and camera work. I just loved it, I was hooked from beginning to end.
Content : A lot of uses of God's name in vain (including Jesus Christ, and Godd*mmit) and one or two s-words, but no f-words. 4/10
The violence was pretty strong, especially one part that was disturbing and slightly startling, then another part when a man is snipped and you see, from a distance, a mist of blood, and later a pool underneath his head. There are intense car chases, then one fight scene that could be disturbing, resulting in someone dying. And the flash backs were fairly disturbing. 6/10 for violence, 7/10 for disturbing content.
Sexual junk: one flashback scene with rather passionate kissing. That's all. 2/10
....
I seriously love this trilogy. There is just a feeling to them that gives you chills (and sometimes not in a good way) that it's just so amazing. And the score is so neat. So I give The Bourne Ultimatum 5/5, and
the overall trilogy 10/5. Age recommendation. Mature 13 and up. There was some serious stuff in there.
J.A.M.
P.S.  Keep a look out for a review in August for The Bourne Legacy. I am so stoked!!

The Bourne Supremacy

Hey hey hey!!! So I know my blog title contains"book-corner", but I am in the middle of "The Three Musketeers", so I don't have very much to review (yet.). And yes, here is another movie review for The Bourne Supremacy, sequel to The Bourne Identity. Here's the synopsis from IMDB (mild spoiler alert) :

After escaping from the emotional and physical pain he previously encountered. Jason Bourne and his girlfriend Marie begin a new life as far away as possible. But when an assassination attempt on Bourne goes horribly wrong, Bourne must re-enter the life he wanted to leave behind, in order to find out the truth why they are still after him. 

OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH.
This was so amazing. Seriously, I liked a lot better than the 1st. There was a ton more action and about a billion trillion times sadder. And less language and no sexual content (unless you count a kiss) whatsoever. Again, Matt Damon is so stinkin awesome!! :) He is such an amazing and talented actor, I hope he decides to come back to the role (fingers crossed). Joan Allen, who plays Pamela Landy (um, what's the proper term... ?? you'll find out) was also, so good, I'm happy she's in Ultimatum(#3).
The violence was.... violent :) Yes, but mostly the same as the 1st( guns and hand fights, plus some explosions. And more blood at one point). And the chase scenes were amazing!!
Language there was, less than than the first, but there was 1 F-word (I barely caught it, so you may, or may not), and a lot of Godd**nit's (uses of God's name in vain) and maybe an S-word or two...
But it was so incredible. You must see it!
Until next time - J.A.M.

The Bourne Identity

 Hi!!!
I love this movie SOOOOO MUCH!! All of my family had seen it (my sisters LOVE the trilogy), and I watched last week, and I have fallen under the spell. Here's a synopsis I pulled from Amazon, which is extremely brief, but still better than IMDB.

Pulled from the sea with two bullets in his back, Jason Bourne discovers he has the skills of a very dangerous man and no memory of his violent past. Racing to unlock the secret of his own identity, he discovers the deadly truth: he is an elite government agent.

First off : Matt Damon (Jason Bourne) is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! (And he is also a very fast runner- see my review for Mission Impossible to get this).  So this movie is pretty violent, (mild(!) spoiler) when Jason is fighting a man with a knife, he uses a pencil as a defense; and it's slightly gross. Yeah, basically, I closed my eyes. There is a lot of hand combat (but it is so stinkin' awesome!!!!!), and some guns, etc, etc..

Now to Marie (Franka Potente) : Well, how would you react to a man giving you 20,000 grand, when you literally have no money, to drive him to Paris. And on the way, you find out he's an assassin. I personally, would probably.... freak. Definitely. But she, Marie, when Jason tells her she has her chance to get out of the car and go to the police and start fresh, (and this after watching him almost kill a like-wise trained man in self-defense), she reaches over, and fastens her seat belt. I love her. LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!

And, finally, the "bad guy", Conklin (Chris Cooper) : Good acting, and a really cool "bad" guy (because he isn't necessarily bad, just government). But I was happy about what happens to him in the end. I'm so evil. :)
Okay then the content : Aforesaid violence - 7/10. and sex/nudity? There was a scene that my sister skipped, but they only kiss passionately(don't ask how I know that), and that's all (unless you count the alternate ending, where they kiss pretty passionately). overall, 3/10 (I think). Then profanities there were; 2 uses of the F-bomb (one was muttered-so mouthed, basically) and I only caught it because I was watching his mouth, then a handful of sh*t, d*nm, and quite a few of God's name in vain. so 6/10.
And, like at the top, I loved it, and I really think an appropriate age to see it would be, if you're mature, 13, or 14. Total rating : 9/10 stars of awesomeness.