Elf

Happy Holidays, Everyone! My family celebrates with silly Christmas movies and lots of tissues (because I always get sick).

Santa!!! I know him!

Buddy (Will Ferrell) was adopted by Santa (Ed Asner) after he crawled into his present sack from the orphanage. Papa Elf (Bob Newhart) raises Buddy to be an over-sized elf in the North Pole. As Buddy grows up, his size also grows to be a problem with bedding, toilets, and he can only make 85 Etch-A-Sketches a day (gasp!). Buddy overhears that he isn't just a "special elf"--he's a human. He sets out on a journey to New York to find his father, Walter Hobbs (James Caan), who isn't as nice as gumdrops and sugar plums. Buddy's elfish ways clashes with the rush of New York, but he finds his way to his family and Jovie's (Zooey Deschanel) heart.

Ahh...there's nothing better than watching Elf to get in the Christmas spirit. Its hard not to laugh at the charming Will Ferrel in a hilarious elf costume...in New York City. Buddy brings the child out of everyone; from spinning in revolving doors to stashing free handouts, he is easily a lovable character. Pair him up with Mr. Grumpy Walter Hobbs and Cute Jovie and we have a great Christmas movie. The story is gumdrop-sweet and unbelievable, but what the hey--it's Christmas. Anything can happen.

The Karate Kid

Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) moves to Beijing because his mother's, Sherry (Taraji P. Henson) job. Dre experiences  culture shock and even encounters bullies, such as Cheng (Zhenwei Wang), who is jealous of Dre's smooth [American] moves on Little Miss Mei Ying (Wen Wen Han). After a kung-fu-butt-kicking from the bullies, Mr. Han (Jackie Chan) saves Dre, revealing his own kung-fu prowess. The bullies are instructed by Master Li, who promises that his boys will leave Dre alone if he or Mr. Han fights them. Dre and Mr. Han work together to prepare for the kung-fu tournament using unusual methods for training. No waxing the car, though. Just hanging a coat over and over and over...

Jaden's character was sheet thin--almost invisible. Jaden was able to rely on his cuteness in The Pursuit of Happiness, but that safety net is taken away in the Karate Kid. We learn a little about Mr. Han; we learn a little about Mei Ying, but Dre is just a kid with fancy poses. Actually, everyone was poorly developed. Mr. Han busted out a tragic car crash memory and reminisced for five minutes. His dispute with Master Li was left unfinished by the end of the movie. Dre's mom has a shady job, if she even has a job in Beijing. Mei Ying and Dre's "friendship[?]" was super awkward. What made Mei Ying fall for Dre? Was it his braids or his embarrassing dancing? Who knows...the script called for some romance and that's that. 

Awwkwaard...

The Karate Kid could entertain little children, trapping them with flashy kung-fu, popular music, and cheesy jokes.For everyone else: If you want kung-fu, watch Chinese wuxia. If you want culture shock, watch Lost in Translation or something. If you want child romance, go hide in a corner. 

I'm going to hang up my coat now. I have some bullies that need addressing.

"Attitude!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

There are plenty of better alternatives to Turkey...like good ol' toast with butter.

Actors

Isn't it weird how we idolize people that are good at being someone they're not?

But then again, fame comes with a price.

Kick-Ass

Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) is a nobody in his school. He's the geek that hangs out at the comic book store. He's the weirdo that decided to become a superhero, Kick-Ass, overnight. Unfortunately, he doesn't have superpowers and he ends up in a hospital, stabbed and hit by a car. He gets fixed with metal-reinforced bones and a damaged nervous system that makes him almost invincible...and his ego a bit inflated. Kick-Ass meets Hit Girl (Chloë Grace Moretz) when she kills Frank D'Amico's gangsters when they were getting ready to beat up Kick-Ass. Hit Girl's father, Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage), wants to bring Frank D'Amico (Mark Strong) down because he framed Big Daddy as a drug dealer (back in the day when he was a cop). D'Amico thinks that Kick-Ass killed his men and goes after him. Kick-Ass meets Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), another amateur superhero, and they team up. Little does he know, Red Mist is D'Amico's son and has ulterior motives to their friendship. 

Kick-Ass Team

What's that about child profanity and violence? Oh that's right...it's awesome. It's a fictional movie and rated R, so little kids wouldn't be running around swinging butterfly knives in the playground (unless their parents are idiots and let them watch Kick-Ass). Kick-Ass was very entertaining with a great soundtrack to match. The comedy kept the more grim scenes in balance, and it got me laughing a few times. The  choreography was fresh and super cool. Honestly, Hit Girl's action scenes blew me away. Chloë was perfect as Hit Girl--a sweet girl and brilliant killer. Aaron Johnson was a lovable dork in Kick-Ass. The storyline gave enough time and thought into Dave's character development, and Aaron was able to bring comedy and seriousness together without shocking the audience with a bipolar movie. I was surprised to see Christopher Mintz-Plasse play a non-dorky role (not that there's something wrong with McLovin). Soo...movie producers: Chris is versatile! Good thing Nicholas Cage had a mask on for most of the movie; his contemplative-eyebrow-face wasn't there to distract. The ending bothered me; Kick-Ass felt like it ended too early. Maybe a little tweak here and there would have made a perfect movie (to me, at least). 

The hovercraft was disappointing. 

Happy Halloween!

Remember, you're never too old to trick-or-treat...as long as you're cool enough to hang with the little kids.

"I got a rock"

The Beatles.

Usher on Justin Bieber: "You haven't seen the best of him. He is a pop craze like The Beatles. They started out as pure pop artists and look what they became over the years."

HAHAHAHA Bieber?? And the Beatles?? You serious?
Bieber will never be nearly as influential as The Beatles' legacy. Case dismissed.