Blinded by the Light - My Review

My husband and I had the opportunity to see Blinded by the Light a couple weeks ago. It opens in theaters August 14, 2019. I'm glad we saw it, and it was better than I expected.

In talking on our way home, I said I'd give it 3 out of 5 stars, and hubby said he'd go with 4 out of 5 stars. It's not too often that hubby likes a movie more than me. I think the biggest detractor for me was the camera style. Some of the bike scenes made me a little dizzy. I did enjoy the story, the characters, and the music montages. I also have a soft spot for 80s-based movies. I remember the 80s vividly as my own growing-up years.

The story is about Javed, a British-Pakistani Muslim teenager, who changes his whole view of life in 1987 and finds inspiration when presented with the music of Bruce Springsteen by a fellow student at his high school. The movie is based on Safrad Manzoor's acclaimed memoir, Greetings from Bury Park: Race, Religion, and Rock 'n Roll.

Pokemon Detective Pikachu - My Review

I can't believe I forgot to tell ya'll about this one! A few weeks ago, Jack had a half day of school, and Maggie had a field trip for the afternoon, so the boy and I got another mommy/son date day. It happened to be the opening day of Pokemon Detective Pikachu! I bought the tickets the day before and surprised him by telling him after the mothers day tea at school.

I liked this movie way more than I expected! I ended up really enjoying the Pikachu character's snarky comments and personality. The voice of Ryan Reynolds really helped this. If I closed my eyes, I could picture Deadpool, right? LOL

Jack still keeps coming up and expecting me to remember details about Pokemon from the movie. Luckily, this information was not necessary to enjoy the movie. I didn't know much about Pokemon before, and the movie explained just as much as was necessary, I felt. 

I'd recommend this as a fun summer movie for the whole family to enjoy. I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars, and would totally see a follow-up, as long as Ryan Reynolds was still there. 

Wonder Park - My Review

Jack and I kicked off spring break adventures with a movie on the big screen. We hadn't been to the nice Emagine theater together yet (I'd been with Maggie, and he'd been with hubs...) so we got the adorably cozy love seat, some popcorn and candy, and hunkered down to enjoy the show.

He's been wanting to see Wonder Park since it opened in mid-March, and luckily nothing has come out since that he wanted to see more. I hadn't seen much publicity, so I wasn't sure what we were in for. Wonder Park was a really enjoyable film. I didn't really have much in the way of expectations, but this movie about the power of imagination was beautifully done.

Jack's favorite part was the expression of one of the evil chimpan-zombies as it watched June (our heroine) as he cut the last piece of glass holding her up in the air. He also loved the matter-of-factness of the porcupine character named Steve. Yeah - the excerpts of a seven-year-old can be a little tricky to explain.

Overall, I'd give this one 3.5 or 4 stars out of 5. I wasn't overly thrilled with part of the trite ending, but I don't want to give it away. I think you should make the time to watch or rent this one and watch it for a couple hours of happy distraction.

Lego Movie 2: The Second Part - My Review

I got to see my first 'big screen' movie for 2019 a little earlier than I was planning! Thursday night (yes, after our fourth snow-day in a row...) I was visiting other blogs and entering contests, and was lucky enough to win screening tickets for Lego Movie 2: The Second Part from Finding Sanity in Our Crazy Life. It releases to theaters this Friday, February 8, but the kids and I were lucky enough to enjoy it last Saturday, February 3!
We were already fans of the first Lego Movie, and were happy when the second part pretty much picked up where it left off. Remember when the sister's Duplos said they were there to destroy the rest of the Legos? Well, they did just that. The old Legos we know and love were living a dreary existence in Apocolypseburg, until things went from bad to worse. Invaders from outer space took Lucy, LEGO Batman, Benny, Unikitty, and Metal Beard as captives to go to the Sistar System and be part of a wedding.
Emmett meets the tough Rex and they embark together to save Emmett's friends from Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi. Can they do it? Can Emmett be as tough as Rex? Can things ever go back to when everything was awesome? You'll have to see the movie to really find out!
The kids and I really enjoyed the movie. We'd give it 4 out of 5 stars, and considered it to be as entertaining as the first movies. I look forward to seeing it more times so I can pick up on more of the excellent writing, where they slide in the side comments that the parents get in reference to older cultural icons (like talking about all the actors who have played Batman). I'd recommend this movie to fans of the first movie, and Lego lovers of all ages.