Beauty and the Beast

Beauty and the Beast was magical. I didn't see it opening weekend, like I (and my husband) wanted to. Instead, my sisters-in-law wanted to have a girls weekend, us and our daughters. They loved it. We all thought it was wonderful. But I can't talk about it because my Hubby wants to see it too. I'd go again. It might be a bit too scary for our son though. There are some intense scenes. My daughter did get upset at a couple parts, if you've seen the cartoon, you know which parts I'm talking about. It was still good though, she said the movie was amazing and it was okay that she got upset because she was worried or sad for the characters.  My one sister-in-law admitted to tearing up at the end too.

Everything is taken a step further. A step more danger, a tick more excitement, a little more depth and story. We learn about Belle's mom, we find out more about the Enchantress, and how it is important to treat everyone with kindness and compassion. Every character was a bit more than before. I want to watch it again. I enjoyed the actors, the sets, the costumes, the songs. I thought everything was seamless. More than my enjoyment, for this movie, my daughter loved it and that's what I was really looked for when we went to see it. I'm so happy that she did and I look forward to more of these live-action adaptations.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 1

This past weekend, I did what a million other people did. I went to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. WARNING: Gushing may ensue. I loved this movie. Days later, I’m still thinking about it. It was simply amazing. I completely understand why they’re making this book into two movies (unlike other books that should only be one movie). It wouldn’t do justice to the material that would have to be cut out. Could we really watch this movie without seeing all the intense and emotional scenes or the ones that make you laugh out loud? There is just so much happening in that final novel.

I don’t want to spoil anything for what I imagine are the few people who haven’t seen the movie yet. I’ll just say that I loved all the Harry Potter books and all the previous movies. I’m not the person who dresses up, but I am definitely a big fan. So, go see it if you haven’t. If you already have, are you going to see it again? I might.

*Side Note: I’ve been feeling under the weather / overwhelmed, so I haven’t been keeping up with my usual blogging habits. No Top Ten this week, or Short Story Monday and likely no Blog Hopping, Literary or Crazy, among other things I’ve been wanting to do/post the past couple weeks. I hope to be up to my normal standards soon, but I’m not sure when that will be. Plus, the holidays are fast approaching and real life will just have to take priority. Of course, I had to get my Harry Potter post up. In case you didn’t notice, I love Harry Potter.

Word of the Week!

This week’s words are varied in their meaning and sources.

From Alice French’s Spring and Summer.

Muskeg: An acidic soil type common in Arctic and boreal areas. It makes sense that this word was used since the short story took place on the Canadian tundra. A better description of muskeg can be found here.

From the blog, Stargazing.

Barnet: British slang for hair. From rhyming slang, Barnet fair hair (whatever that means). Stargazing was quoting the British Sun, who wrote an article on Emma Watson’s new hair, which apparently has to do with her attempt to land the lead role in The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo. [Aside: Am I the only one in the world who hasn’t read this book?]

From the blog, Sleep Talkin’ Man.

Numpty: Also British slang. It’s another word for “moron”. If you haven’t checked out the Sleep Talkin’ Man blog, I suggest you do. It’s hilarious.

I feel like all of the words can be a part of my vocabulary. I think I like “numpty” the best. I feel like I can use it here and no one would know what I was saying.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows

Bloody brilliant! It was so good! I can’t stop talking about it. I can’t stop thinking about it. What a fabulous end to a fantastic story. I almost cried at one point. Harry is such a magnificent character. They are all wonderful, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Lupin; such amazing people. You want them to be real. I can’t really say much more without giving too much of the story away. Just read it. It’s not like I expected at all. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows is a marvelous end to J. K. Rowling’s series. I want to read it all again!

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Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix

I enjoyed Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix. It wasn’t as amazing as I thought some of the previous movies were, but it was good. I think it might have to do with the director. It was a new guy. The story was good, the characters as charming as ever. There was just some kind of spark missing.

I think they did a good job of paring the movie down from the book. The Order Of The Phoenix is the longest (thus far) of the Harry Potter novels. The minor changes only served to better the story, but there were parts of the movie that dragged. During the battle scenes, there was a sense of danger, but during other sequences that should have been ominous, there was no impending feeling of evil. Fred & George were fabulous though. Those long glances from Ginny were definitely foretelling. I felt a little bad for Cho though. I guess I’ve gotten attached to these characters…