Les Miserables

Hello, guys!

So... HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Through Christmas and New Years I've been busy reading like crazy, writing excessively, putting together 500 piece puzzles, playing boardgames and assembling legos.

I also kicked off the new year by going to see Les Miserables.

  Yesterday I walked into the movie theater knowing next to nothing about it. 

   I walked out of the theater like this. 

And sort of like this 

It was powerful, intense, heart-wrenching, tragic, and...AMAZING!

The plot was a story of redemption, forgiveness and bravery.
The characters each had a depth to them that went beyond a lot of movies' regular superficial portrayals. The characters were portrayed in a way that showed you the state that their souls were in.

 It made you admire and have compassion for each character, even if you didn't agree with what they were doing or saying. (Except for the Inn Keepers. They're scumbags). ;P

From an artistic standpoint, the movie was also beautifully made. The camerawork was amazing.

 Also, don't let the fact that this movie is a musical be the only reason you don't want to see it. I don't typically like musicals (although the only musicals I've seen are High School Musical, Dreamgirls, Mama Mia and the Cheetah Girls... ;) but I think the singing added a lot to the movie. It just sort of amplified the emotions the characters were feeling, and it was really moving.

^This part. D:

It's a movie that's tragically beautiful, making you sad and happy and feeling like you've just witnessed something special.

Also, Jean Valjean is a total boss.

Snow White and the Huntsman

We saw Snow White and the Huntsman on Wednesday.

Are you jealous? Well, you should be.

You probably wouldn't be jealous over the fact that we were late and missed the first 5 minutes of the movie, though. O_o We didn't miss *too* much, so I was still able to enjoy the movie without being lost from an essential piece of information.

But yes. As I said in my previous blog entry, it was cool, creepy, and kind of weird. But I still liked it.

For those of you who don't know the plot, here you go: "In the epic action-adventure Snow White and the Huntsman, Kristen Stewart 

plays the only person in the land fairer than the evil queen (Charlize Theron) 

[who is] out to destroy her. But what the wicked ruler never imagined is that the young woman threatening her reign has been training in the art of war with a huntsman (Chris Hemsworth)

 dispatched to kill her. Sam Claflin

 joins the cast as the prince long enchanted by Snow White's beauty and power." 
~Rotten Tomatoes

So here are my thoughts on the movie.

For a retelling of a fairytale, I thought the plot line was pretty creative. They were able to do a lot with it without totally straying from the traditional story.

The graphics/costume designs were also awesome.

^Costume designer Colleen Atwood, and two of the most elaborate costumes in the movie

The graphics added a lot to the movie, except I think that the forest part was a bit cheesy.

Ok, it was really cheesy. And slightly disturbing. Josh and I were laughing through the whole part. :P

I also thought the brother/sister interaction with Fin (Sam Spruell) and the Queen was a little creepy. His pixie bangs are short enough to be able to display "CREEPER" on his forehead. XP

And on a random note, I noticed that Kristen Stewart's acting was actually a little better in this movie. I mean, I still wouldn't crown her one of the best actresses of our time, but I think she's at least improving. I also noticed that she plays the "most beautiful" role a lot. I wonder if it gets to her head... :P

So yeah. I think if I were to rate this movie, I'd probably give it 3 stars. I didn't think it was awesomely spectacular, but I still liked it enough not to feel like I wasted money to see it. haha :)

And by the way... (SPOILER to those who might want to see it...) apparently Chris Hemsworth's kisses can wake the dead. ;)

Ok, ok, just kidding. XD