October 2013 Media Inventory

Movies:

Lincoln: Pretty good film. I was disappointed it only focused on a small part of Lincoln's story, but it did tell a compelling story, and I love anything to do with Civil War history.

Ramona and Beezus: Such a cute film, and the beginning of my "Comfort Movie October Fest." I especially love the added romance between Aunt Bea and Uncle Hobart - it's like Ramona for adults!

The Words: I thought this was going to be a lot better than it was. Then I was going to settle for it being just a little better than it was. Then I was disappointed that it turned out to be so... pointless.

Puss in Boots: Meh. I lost interest at Humpty-Dumpty. Wish they would do the fairy tale.

Monsieur Lazhar: Of all the films I've seen about inspirational teachers, this was pretty solidly in the middle.

Ballet Shoes: I liked this a lot more than I thought I would. Sweet, interesting story, great acting and characters, and of course, ballet.

The Princess and the Frog: I love this movie! If I'm being honest, the plot is really just sort of so-so, but the look and characters and music are just incredible. I still have all the songs running through my head.

Mud: Continuing with my Louisiana theme... Some fine acting in this film - the conflict and story got a little muddled (ha!), but the acting was excellent.

Wreck-it Ralph: Another super great recent film. There are so many fun and creative details.

Seven Samurai: It had been a long time since I saw this film, but I was in the mood, and very much enjoyed it. I'm glad I watched it at home this time and took my time (I think I watched it over three days).

The Syrian Bride: Great film. Touching, informative, and interesting all at the same time. I loved the family members' individual struggles and dynamics. I just wished there were more of it.

Sons of the Great Bear: My first and probably last experience with German westerns. Weird. I still can't believe I actually watched all of it.

Cinderella 2: Around this time in the month I became obsessed with Disney. I'd never actually seen this movie, so, you know, now I can say I've done it.

Robin Hood: Yes, yes, yes - I approve very much of this film. See my entire post on it below.

Cinderella 3: A little more interesting than Cinderella 2, but still... oh let's be honest. The sequels are always worse.

Arthur Christmas: Fantastic film, and just what I needed to start feeling all Christmasy at this time of year.

Proof: This movie struck me as the sort of movie that would make an okay play and a pretty dull movie - and so it did.

Moneyball: Excellent film that makes me care about baseball, money, and of course, Brad Pitt.

The Jungle Book: I specifically was craving this film. What I noticed about it this time was how haunting and layered and meaningful some of the music is - "Trust in Me" in particular seemed this time to have more sinister, deeper implications than I'd ever noticed before.

World War Z: Not quite what I was expecting from a zombie film. It seemed somewhere in between telling an epic disaster story and a character's personal journey, and didn't quite succeed at either (though Brad Pitt, as always, delivered his usual excellence).

Meet the Robinsons: Cute. Fun. Creative. Colorful. Entertaining.

The Little Mermaid: I was... not impressed. I didn't grow up watching this movie, and watching it now only reaffirms my beliefs that the only parts worth remembering are the songs.

The Adventures of Robin Hood: Matthew had never seen this before - a situation which I simply HAD to rectify. Although I didn't discover and popularize this film in my family until my teenage years, the lines, characters, and adventures all seem an integral part of my past. It doesn't even seem outdated or cheesy to me - just awesome.

Anne of Green Gables: Because I love Anne and it's always been too long since you've seen this.

The Orphanage: Wonderfully and beautifully scary Spanish film with a sweet and poignant message about motherhood as well. I liked it so much I took Matthew to see it later in the same week.

The Thin Man: A classic murder mystery/screwball comedy. There were definitely some good moments of acting/dialogue, but the overall murder plot seemed almost an aside to the comedy and an excuse for cleverness. The end didn't quite explain and resolve itself in a satisfying way.

Books:

The Ladies no. 1 Detective Agency: Beautifully written and insightful book that is both simple and deep. I want to read the later books in this series eventually.

The Castle of Crossed Destinies: A bit like King Arthur meets Canterbury Tales meets postmodern poetry. It's sort of frustrating and sort of fun.

Wit: A Play: I felt I related a lot with this play about a poetry professor who is dying of cancer and struggling to deal with it and her life's study of John Donne's poetry. I'm writing my paper on it, so I should have a lot more to say about it in two weeks.


Portuguese Irregular Verbs: Oh academia - so delightfully ridiculous and humorous and serious you are! I want to read more funny books about touchy and snooty professors.

Something Wicked This Way Comes: I thought this would be a fitting read for Halloween, and I was not disappointed. Strange mix of the real and the fantastic that I wasn't sure would work, but it did. There are so many themes in the conflicts - good versus evil, weak versus strong, and normal, simple, averageness versus unknown, supernatural, specialness, to name a few. I'm keeping my eye out for the film now.