Night at the Museum 2

V: Had no high expectations, and I thought it was pretty funny. We watched it with our girls and they liked it, too - and there wasn't anything offensive. It made for a very fun movie night. I don't remember the first one very well, but this one was a lot of fun. I laughed out loud when the little guys were stabbing peoples shoes in slow-mo during the final battle. 3 stars.

M: I agree. Funny, clean, a bit overly silly at times, but generally good fun. They did a good job having a villain that was both villainous and hilarious. A good show. Not amazing, but good. 3 stars.

Julie and Julia

M: To start, I am an Amy Adams fan. I liked her when I first saw her in the Office. I think she was brilliant in Enchanted. But, when placed on the same screen with Meryl Streep, you can't help but draw comparisons, and they were not favorable to our little Amy. Likewise, I found myself drawing comparisons between Julie and Julia, and I reached the same conclusion. Julia Child is practically a historical figure, the persona of cooking. Julie, as far as I can tell, wrote a blog and cooked Julia's recipes. That they ended up on the same screen is unfair to Julia Child. Julia is absolutely masterfully played by Meryl Streep. It was perfect. Amy Adams did a commendable job portraying Julie, but she is no Meryl Streep, just as Julie is no Julia. Plus, I don't know, but I am guessing that Julie, not Julia, got all the money for this movie, which makes it feel, to me, a bit exploitative. It seemed like if I wrote a report about Winston Churchhill, and how awesome he was, and they made a movie about my report. The part of me is played by Keanu Reeves, and the part of Winston is played by Sir Anthony Hopkins. Is it fair, how does it compare? Is it just me? Am I going too far? Anyway, I didn't think the storyline was all that interesting, or half of the storyline anyway, and I am always left a bit in the dark when movies start talking about how "cooking saved my life." But, Meryl Streep was brilliant, as was Stanley Tucci, who played Child's husband. For that, I give the movie 3 stars.

V: M is right that the Julia part is the best part. But I do think the Julie part is valuable, too. Julie, an average person, was trying to accomplish something with her talent, and leaned on an established heroine to do it. It is motivating on both ends, both women going for their goals. Julie was a good vehicle in telling the story of Julia. So I think the Julie half was fine. That having been said, I think they could have done this movie just about Julia and it would have been awesome. I loved all those parts. Streep and Tucci were absolutely adorable and delightful. I did find the movie to be inspirational and fun. 3 1/2

*As a side note, it was interesting to watch this movie from my perspective - (from what other perspective could I watch it?) - that of a woman, wife, and mother. Julia was pretty much free to explore what she wanted, having relative good wealth, and a supportive husband. Julie had a supportive husband, and a day job - so adding this large project ended up straining her relationship with her spouse. Neither had children. So you start to wonder how much do you do? At what point does following your dreams stop being virtuous and becomes just self-indulgence? Just because Julie discussed the problem in the movie doesn't make the issue disappear. And, apparently, the real Julie's marriage has fallen apart. Balance is one of the hardest things to achieve. And good timing. Hmmmm.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

V: Another film we saw on the plane - I think I missed the very beginning - and of course, kinda hard to hear in parts, blah, blah, blah. But, I thought it was pretty charming. I really like Francis McDormand (Pettigrew). Amy Adams plays a young singer trying to make it in London - laid it on a little thick at times, but okay. Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) plays one of her 3 (or 4?) lovers - and was really cute and likable. I like how it all turns out, so I say it's an enjoyable show to see. I'm sure it's better seen not on a plane. 3 stars.

M: Pretty good, for a flight movie. You should take any review of a movie viewed on a plane with a grain of salt. I did not really like Amy Adams character very much. She was overboard, and kind of slimey. But, the movie was pretty good, and Francis McDormand was great. 2 1/2 stars.

Enchanted

M: This is a fantastic movie. McDreamy (Grey's Anatomy), Jim's Pam-look-alike girlfriend (the office), and Cyclops (X-Men) all made appearances and all three were great. Particularly Amy Adams who was so sweet and funny and perfect for the part (maybe Jim should have stuck with her, see review of Blades of Glory). The prince, James Marsden, was pretty hilarious, and Patrick Dempsy made a very likeable leading man. The music scenes were great. This is a classic, for adults and children. Nearly a four star movie but a couple of overly silly things, think animal bowels, keep it from perfection. I also wasn't 100% sold on the ending. Having said that, I highly recommend. 3 1/2 stars

V: I also really liked this show. Many funny parts and great references to Disney movies past. Amy Adams as Giselle was so great - you could really picture her animated counterpart. Loved watching her change, too, as she grasped reality. The prince was one of the funniest parts. The chipmunk was the least funny when he could talk - so it was good he could only squeak for most of the movie. Songs were great fun. Very entertaining. 3 1/2 stars