Sunday, January 13, 2008

Home Alone 2, and some things that suck

Apparently I should have included Home Alone 2 on my list of movies with scenes that make me cry every single time -- I just realized this when I was watching it on cable for the 958th time this morning. And towards the end, there's the part where his mom finds Kevin standing in front of the tree at Rockefeller Center, just after he's made a Christmas wish to see her. I hate to be all "the Home Alone filmmakers were really good," but they were, because in this scene, the obvious thing would have been to have Kevin shout, "Mom!" and the mom shout "Kevin!" and have them run straight to one another and embrace. But instead, it happens a little bit differently -- she comes rushing up to where he's standing and stops about three feet away from him, and they look at one another, then Kevin apologizes, and she apologizes. And then they stare at each other some more, and then finally they embrace. And this entire time, certain among us are getting all weepy. Awesome! I can't believe I left this off my original list. What was I thinking?

Strangely, I have reserved judgment on Pearl Harbor for a long time, mainly because I was still in the midst of being hot for Ben Affleck at the time it came out, and also because it was so pretty ("Ooh, look, shiny things!") -- oh, and I was pregnant, so it seemed good because it played upon one's hormonal emotions. But last night, during half time of the Patriots-Jags game, I got bored of the commentary and switched over to Pearl Harbor on another channel, just to see what it looked like in high-def (seriously, that's what went through my head). And finally came to realize that Pearl Harbor is indeed a shite movie. Kate Beckinsale is quite lovely to look at, as is the scenery, and the casting of Dan Aykroyd as an adviser to the President was a really interesting choice, but let's face it -- Josh Hartnett can't act, and Ben Affleck is out of his depth in his attempts to be deeper than a romantic hero. However, if I had been, like, sick at the time, I bet I would've been all, "Pearl Harbor is the best movie ever!" Sick people and pregnant women -- that's who this movie is good for. Otherwise, it sucks.

Another thing that sucks is that song by Sara Bareilles -- I have no idea what it's called and am far too lazy to check, but it's the one in heavy rotation on The N and VH-1 right now, and is also featured in the ad for Music On Demand. She's banging away on a piano and singing something like "I'm not gonna zsazsazsazsa a love song something something." This song sucks. What sucks the most about this song is that it's very sneaky and it might suck you in to thinking you actually like it -- it's very dangerous. You have to overcome this one on an intellectual level. You actually have to learn to hate this song just because everyone else loves it. It's got the kicky piano chords, the plucky heroine with a not altogether unpleasant voice, slightly indecipherable lyrics, and then... it becomes very bland. Because of the very same qualities which first make you think it's okay. But it sucks.

Other things that suck:

- The ending to Once. Totally amazing movie, and then... they don't get together in the end. I know, I've been totally brainwashed by chick flicks and books with standard happy endings. If there's sexual tension, people should hook up -- that's what I believe. But they didn't. Thank God he bought her a piano, and thank God for the beautiful music, or this would be the worst movie ever.

- Acid reflux.

- Car repairs that were originally going to be $165 (woohoo!) and after all was said and done, are practically a million dollars. Well, maybe not a million -- but definitely the bulk of my paycheck. And yet all the repairs I've made to my car over the last year are still less than a third of what car payments would have been. So it's a very tough call. I mean, I do hate my car. I wouldn't mind a new car. It's just that the thought of a car payment sends me into a blind panic.

- Freezing feet. I thought my new lined Crocs would help with this, but no.

- When they show part of the "reveal" in commercials for What Not to Wear. Now I know this week's makeover is going to feature a dress I already hate.

- Weight Watchers new ads trying to pretend they're not a "diet." Okay, maybe you're not a "diet" using the common definition of the word rather than the nutrionist's definition, but you're still a weight loss program. Don't lie.

- Having to go places on Sunday. I hate this. I especially hate having to go someplace early on a Sunday. Sunday should be my day where I get to lounge about on my sofa doing nothing all day long. Even the bible says that Sunday is to be a day of rest! Instead, I have to get in the shower and get ready to go someplace by 11am or something. Blech. It's almost like having to go to work.

And on that note, I have to go get ready. We're going to a movie premiere today. Our friends Kyle and Steve made a documentary. I'll let you know more about it after I see it, but I'm sure it's going to be good.

3 comments:

kt said...

i tried to watch once with my friend last week and we couldn't even make it to the end. i do love the frames though, and i have actually met Glen Hansard. the best thing about the movie was the music and even that wasn't enough to hold it together.

i may do a things that suck list on my blog too, as i seem to have a lot of them lately.

Stacey Peterson said...

yeah, that song sucks.

you know what else sucks?? finding a good cd you want to buy on the british itunes store, and realizing that even though you can sit there and sample all the songs, you can't actually BUY it. grrr....

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

This post just cracked me up!