Thursday, July 14, 2011

"Don't You Point That Drama Llama At Me!"

I hate drama. I know it's ironic since I like acting and all that, but I really just can't stand it. It's just petty. If you disagree with me or are upset with me, just tell me and I'll work on it. Don't sneak around behind my back and create angst. That being said, let us move on to the art of drama!

I watched the movie "Se7en" last night. It is very creepy, disturbing, and definitely rated R. Brad Pitt + Morgan Freeman = YES. The acting was superb and the production was great despite the age of the film and the fact that I was watching it on VHS. It's a gritty '90s look with just the subtlest hints of noir in it. And there's a couple other stars who appear as well: Gwyneth Paltrow & Kevin Spacey. I made the mistake of watching it all alone at late o' clock. It was even dark (which is strange for AK in the summer). It scared the crap out of me. I suggest it only for those who are okay with movies like "Silence of the Lambs" or "Pan's Labyrinth." It's pretty intense, but very good if you can handle it.

Another movie I recently watched was "Get Low." It's a drama about an old man who's going to die soon and is getting everything ready for his death, including a funeral party to be held before his death. It's set somewhere around the 1920s in the West and stars Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, and Sissy Spacek. It's pretty good, if not one of my preferred genres or favorite movies. I liked it.

I also watched "Braveheart" for the first time. It requires no review; it's that epic.

The weather has been lovely, and I've been driving around a lot in it. Nothin' like a drive on a sunny day while blasting "Bat Out of Hell." I wish goodness to you.
Love,
Caty

P.S. Castiel & the Trickster are the best characters ever. I <3 Supernatural

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Foghat Disciple

I've been taking kind of a slow ride lately; trying to get ready for college and working as much as possible and giving myself lots of free time to just enjoy what I've got and look forward to what's coming. I've watched some truly terrible movies recently, but it was worth it because I got to watch them with my brosef. They were hilarious. Among them were: "Critters," "Critters 2," "Critters 3," and "Leprechaun."

The first Critters movie was alright, but an obvious rip-off of the hit "Gremlins." I preferred the sequel, because it was all-out ridiculous and there was a red-head with a mullet. "Critters 3" was absolutely awful. Even Austin didn't like it, and he's no critic.
Now, "Leprechaun" was still pretty lame, but Warwick Davis (who also played Willow and pretty much every cool dwarf-person in Hollywood) is worth the lack of acceptable script/acting. Jennifer Aniston is also in it. I'm nit sure if this was her first movie, but it was when she was still a brunette (and before she learned how to act apparently).
To make it even better, all of those movies were made during the height of the Cheesy '80s.

Something I do recommend, though, is the TV series Supernatural. It's pretty awesome. Towards the end of the series, they take a few liberties with Christian Doctrine, but I think they do a good enough job of making it obvious that they're not serious about what they're saying about the Bible. It's a great show.

Anyway, I hope you are doing well, whoever and wherever you are. I love you, and wish the best for you. Live fully.

Caty

Sunday, June 12, 2011

"Best Laid Plans, etc."

Well, I wrote a hefty blog post today to make up for my lack thereof the last month or so, but a glitch in the Spell Check erased it and I don't have time to write it again before Church today, which is more important. Maybe I'll write again this evening since I have this nifty new laptop now.

At any rate, I love you all and hope your Sundays are fantastic.
Love,
Caty

Friday, April 22, 2011

The Show Must Go On!

I confess; I failed to meet my deadline this week. Granted my car broke down, I have a show next weekend, and I have to send off all of my college and scholarship information... no biggie. The fact of the matter is, I could've made a post even with all of that going on. It would've been lame and said something like "Can't talk; I'm working like a madwoman!" But it would've been better than nothing.

I've only watched one new movie recently, and that was "Knight & Day." I gotta say, I liked it. Tom Cruise played a different character (for once), and Cameron Diaz is just charming... well at least I think so. The whole movie was pretty much cute, with awesome action sequences thrown in. It seems as though it was pretty much designed as a date movie, to keep both the boy and girl happy. There wasn't really much acting called for, because it's kind of a fluff movie, but I would recommend you watch it if you're in a happy-go-lucky mood. Oh, and if you like classic cars, there's quite a bit of stunt driving with one of the more famous models toward the end of the movie. :)

In Ecclesiastes, not much has happened. My favorite thing thus far has been Solomon advising people to be content with what they have. That's also more or less the only new thing he's said between chapter 3 and chapter 6. However, these chapters do seem much more personal, somehow. It's almost as though Solomon's pain comes through the pages, begging me to sit and enjoy life. It's not really anything that the words say, it's just this feeling that I get. I feel kind of bad for him.

Well, thanks for reading. I hope you have a great day!

Love,
Caty

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

What's That "Whooshing" Noise?... Oh Crap, That's Spring!!!

Well, it's seems that time is out of whack lately. It seems like spring is still far away, but it also seems like so long before the bell finally rings at school, or a new day finally starts. I've come to hate going to sleep, and to love to start my day (though not the waking up part). I feel stronger now that I know I'm weak, and wiser now that I know I've been dumb. I want to light up people's days, and not have to feel like holding my head up is in any way comparable Atlas holding the World upon his shoulders. I feel giddily melancholy and pensively exuberant. This, strangely enough, is normal. I am a paradox in a box, and I like it that way.

Moving on to more broad topics, I have not watched any movies of late. I know, it's a shocker! I've watched some TV series, though, so you can stop reaching for the phone to dial for help. I watched Red Vs. Blue (a charming little series), and Dr. Who. There are few shows that resonate with my soul like Dr. Who does. It's happy and poignant, lovable and teriffying. It is life. Sure, the situations are unrealistic and amazingly science-fictionesque, but the way people respond to different crises is amazing. The acting, production, and script of this show are all brilliant. And it's been going since the '60s!!! It's also clean, with no cursing or sex of any kind. The basis of the show is that the good guys win. This is not to say that people don't die. In fact, my favorite characters seem to always die... I hate that. What it means is that no matter how hopeless a situation may be, there is always hope and that no one life is worth less than another. I love it so :)

Now, Ecclesiastes is a weird book. It's like Solomon's own personal diary, where he writes down his emo rants. Not really, but closer to reality than you'd think. Solomon pines away because he sees life as meaningless. He says that being wise doesn't matter, because both the sage and the fool will die; he also says that living is pointless, because you're going to die, but you might as well enjoy it while you've got it. The best parts so far (and I've only read through chapter 3 as of yet) are when he realizes that true joy comes from God. He says that all God does is final, and all he does has been done, and will be done. It's like a cycle-thing... Honestly, it really matches up with what I've been reading in Donald Miller's book, "Blue Like Jazz." The stuff you want most isn't really worth it, and it'll probably kill you anyway. I usually love Solomon, but I guess I'm just not in the mood for him lately, so I've been cutting my Bible reading with Mr. Miller. I recommend it, it's great work.

I hope you're doing well, whoever and wherever you are.

Sincerely,
Caty

P.S. Sexy Carrot

Thursday, April 7, 2011

So Much Hiatus, So Little Rhyme

Hello dear blog-followers!

I apologize for my consistent lack of ability to post regularly. I realize that I haven't posted since about December. To me, it feels like Christmas was last week, and Spring still seems far off. However, I am wrong. It's April, and I'm just lousy at keeping track of time. The weather is about the same as it was in December though, and maybe that's why I'm having trouble believeing that it's really "spring."

I've gotten into obsessively organizing my music lately, and it's been eating my life. I have over 7 days worth of music, and that's not even counting all of the music that I want to add from my parents' collection (2 full CD books' worth). However, I have decided that every Wednesday, I AM GOING TO POST SOMETHING! If I fail to post, and didn't say I was going to be unable to ahead of time, please send me hate-mail. How often do you get to do that, eh?

Now, on to business. I haven't actually watched that many movies lately. I did watch some, though (how could I not?) Among the goodies were RED, Stardust, Paranormal Activity, and Megamind.

RED was everything that The Expendables wanted to be. They had a star-studded cast that featured everyone and didn't just have cameos of people who you thought were going to be leads (*cough* Arnold *cough*). Not only was it well-casted, but it was well-performed (nobody was just calling it in), well-produced (with copious amounts of explosions, and a lighting style that I just love), but it was also remarkably tasteful, which is something we rarely see in action movies anymore. It's based on a comic book series, and knows it. There's nothing too serious here, and the laws of physics are definitely bent a little bit sometimes. So long as you're not uncomfortable with a little blood and some awesome shoot-em-up/beat-em-up scenes, this is a great movie!

Stardust isn't actually that good, I admit. But I like it, and that counts for something. It's cheesy and extremely predictable, but has an innocent air and playful quality that I adore. How this is managed when the sub-plot involves brothers trying to kill each other off for the crown, I'm not really sure, but it is! And Robert DeNiro will make anyone laugh at his bit-part. I love this movie, and I now own it.

I'm not going to say much about Paranormal Activity other than if you let yourself be drawn into the story and just stop being a critic, it'll scare your pants off. I was genuinely impressed, even though my family heckled it the entire time I was watching it.

Finally, we come to Megamind. Will Ferrell, why couldn't you just let me hate you?! The strategy of using a famous comic actor as a cartoon's focal point began back with Jack Black and Kung Fu Panda. I'm not saying it never happened before this movie, I'm just saying that it never happened spectacularly well before this movie. I love Jack Black, so I knew that "Panda" was gonna be awesome. When I heard about Despicable Me, I was a little wary, because I'm not a big fan of Steve Carell. Correction, I wasn't a fan of Steve Carell. Now I think he's great! While I still don't really like Mr. Ferrell, I do respect him a little more now. The music is also awesome. Megamind was unique, lovable, and uplifting. I highly recommend it.

Cinema now aside, I was reading my Bible today and came across the end of Proverbs, and the literal Proverbial Woman. I struggled with the part where it says "she gets up before dawn to make breakfast for her family." I like my sleep.... A LOT. But this woman puts her comfort aside, and tends to her family foremost. Would I be willing to do this for my own husband and children someday? I hope so, I just might need to invest in some dtronger coffee. I start Ecclesiastes today, and from what I read in the foreword, it's going to be intense! And just what I've needed...

I hope that y'all are doing well, and I mean it about the hate-mail! Have a wonderful week!

Cordially Yours,
Caty

P.S. "You know the drill." "OH NO! NOT THE DRILL!!!"

Friday, December 10, 2010

All Quiet On The North-Western Front

Hello, all. Boy, December just snuck up on me. Anyway, I would like to say that the heavy snowfall was better than the combination of wind and below-freezing temperatures. Yes, I realize that it snows at below-freezing temperatures, but it's so cold now that it CAN'T SNOW. That's excessive, in my personal opinion. My feet have not been comfortably warm in weeks, because the rubber in my shoes keeps freezing and staying frozen throughout the day. It's kind of lame.
Anyway, moving on from personal problems to the topics for the day. "Tangled" is a very cute movie that  recommend. I can't say much about it other than it was charming and is something that everyone can enjoy.
I did not get to see "Burlesque" but a trusted movie-critic friend of mine said that the acting was lame. They did say that the singing and dancing were good, and that it's a great movie to make fun of. I'll rent it in six months and give you my take on it.
A movie I have owned for over a year,and just watched again recently was "Christmas With The Kranks." If you have ever been stressed out about Christmas, this is a wonderful movie to watch. From botoxed Tim Allen, to overbearing boss-man Dan Aykroyd, this movie is a hoot. If you're going into it expecting "theatre" though, you might be disappointed. It's meant to entertain, and from what I can tell from both cinematography and general set-layout had a really low budget. It's just fun. I enjoyed it.
Now, I'm going to be late for rehearsal if I jabber any longer. I bid you adieu, and Happy Holidays!
Caty

P.S. I watched the last episode of Monty Python. I need another series, right NOW.