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The Adjustment Bureau with Matt Damon & Emily Blunt

Posted on July 7, 2012 Written by ripitup

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The Adjustment Bureau starring Matt Damon & Emily Blunt. Image: collider.com

 

            The Adjustment Bureau starring Matt Damon & Emily Blunt

Dave Norris (Matt Damon) is a promising senate candidate for New York until a past college moment comes out and kills his chances. While he’s preparing for his defeat speech, he runs into the beautiful and interesting Elise, who has been hiding in the men’s bathroom from the security because she crashed a wedding.

Elise and Dave hit it off, with instant chemistry and compatibility. Their magical moment is cut short when David needs to the speech and she has to outrun the security. When he sees her by chance one morning on the bus, the magic is still there and now he has her phone number.

Unfortunately, fate has other plans. Literally. Agents of Fate, or The Adjustment Bureau as they call themselves, have already decided on Dave’s fate- it is to get elected in the next election- and keep getting elected until he becomes the president. They believe Elise is a distraction and he would never be that politically ambitious if they happen to get together. So they intervene-by kidnapping Dave and explaining the situation.

While David is determined to keep his free will, they take away Elise’s phone number and threaten to reset him, meaning they’ll erase his memories (and everything that makes him him.) if he happens to tell anyone about them. Disappointed and upset, Dave doesn’t seem to have much choice…That’s until he coincidentally runs into Elise three years later, and explains to her why he hasn’t called…

Of course it will be hard to maintain a relationship when the agents are determined to keep them apart. And it all comes down to one question: Which is stronger- free will or fate?

*

Do you believe in fate? If you don’t believe in fate…even just a little bit, the movie’s point might be obsolete for you. The movie isn’t for the 100% fatalists either. Agents represent the events we can’t control, coincidences are events even they can’t control, and then there is the freewill and the question of how strong it can be.

I believe in making our own paths, but I can’t claim that it is all my own doing. There’re many things that I can’t control or change, but I try not to stray from the path I’ve chosen for myself. And in that, I identified a lot with Dave. He’s honest, idealistic, passionate and a true romantic. He believes in fighting for what he believes in-no matter what the odds are.

The movie has shown a fun yet frustrating portrayal of things we choose vs. things we can’t, and overall it has a very positive message of what we can do with our lives if we want it enough.

I loved the movie, but why shouldn’t I? I’m a dreamer, a romantic and a stubborn writer who’s determined to make all her dreams come true. Oh, and I’ve always liked Matt Damon and Emily Blunt.

Written and directed by George Nolfi – based on Philip K. Dick’s short story Adjustment Team.

 

7 on IMDB. 8 for the entertainment value.

Other Emily Blunt Movies Featured

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen starring Ewan McGregor & Emily Blunt

Wind Chill starring Emily Blunt & Ashton Holmes

The Jane Austen Book Club feat. Blunt, Hugh Dancy, Maria Bello& Kevin Zegers

Other Matt Damon Movies Featured

The Good Shepherd

 

 

 

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: adjustment team, Emily Blunt, emily blunt movies, emily blunt the adjustment bureau, fantasy, George Nolfi, Matt Damon, matt damon the adjustment bureau, Philip k. dick, romance, the adjustment bureau, the adjustment bureau dvd, the adjustment bureau emily blunt, the adjustment bureau matt damon, the adjustment bureau movie, the adjustment bureau movie review

Haven starring Emily Rose, Lucas Bryant & Eric Belfour

Posted on October 13, 2011 Written by ripitup

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Haven starrng Lucas Bryant, Emily Rose & Eric Belfour.
Lucas Bryant as Nathan of Haven.

Young FBI agent Audrey Parker (Emily Rose) is sent to Maine on a mission to capture an escaped convict. However, the convict is already dead when she gets there, and despite the sheriff’s determination that it is an accident, he reluctantly lends her deputy chief/his son Nathan (Lucas Bryant).

Almost as soon as they start searching for clues, Audrey realizes that something isn’t quite right about the residents. Some of them have supernatural powers, such as mood swings affecting the weather or the ability to shove you a couple of feet with one little push. Oh, and her new friend Nathan can’t feel pain. Or anything else for that matter…

When the mystery is solved, another mystery-possibly one that can unlock Audrey’s past surfaces. She asks a couple of weeks from her boss, who lets her all too willingly to stay.

Then there is Duke (Eric Balfour), the charming, and not-always law-abiding guy who Nathan isn’t fond of.

The sheriff is impressed by case-solving skills, so Audrey joins Nathan in his office.  They become good friends, with implications that maybe we might expect more in the future.

But our main concern in Haven is not if Nathan and Audrey will get together. We want to know about Lucy Ripley, who looks exactly like Lucy- and looks to be the same age as Lucy. Yet she was here when Nathan and Duke were just kids and they don’t remember anything about the day (the day The Colorado Kid was murdered)….

*

Loosely based on Stephen King’s The Colorado Kid, Haven has found a nice balance between the micro events we deal with each episode and the clues as we try to solve who Audrey is, and also learn that maybe things about Nathan and Luke aren’t so straightforward either. The effects could have been better, but the drama/mystery /relationships are well balanced. Some episodes are better than others, but overall it is great for anyone who loves his supernatural without the horror or extreme romances.

As much as I love my vampires and werewolves, it is refreshing and fun where the supernatural come from humans who are just “troubled”. We are curious to see why it started, and how it is all related to Lucy.

Favorite Episodes

–          Season 2, Episode 6-  Audrey Parker’s Day Off offers the appropriate reference to Bill Murray’s Groundhog Day, it had the right amount of comedy, mystery and drama

 

Fun Facts about the Show and the Cast

–          Haven is set in Maine, USA but shot in Canada.

–          Emily Rose (Audrey) and Eric Balfour (Duke) are American and Lucas Bryant is Canadian.

–          Broadcasted on the same network as (the North American version of) Being Human.

–          Original Beverly Hills 90210 (1990-2000)’s Brandon  Jason Priestly appears in 4 episodes, serving both as a “troubled” guy and a love interest for Audrey.

 

–          Wrestler Adam Copeland  is a frequent co-star.

 

 

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: drama, emily rose, eric balfour, fantasy, haven, haven cast, haven tv series, haven tv show, jason priestly, jason priestly haven, lucas bryant, mystery, stephen king the colorado kid, the colorado kid, TV shows

Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath

Posted on August 22, 2011 Written by ripitup

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Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath
Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath. Don't freak out by how ridiculous Sam Witmer looks in the picture. He is actually really good-looking.

Vampire Aidan (Sam Witwer) works as a nurse and survives on the blood he takes from the hospital. He doesn’t kill people…most of the time.

Werewolf Josh (Sam Huntington) hates being a monster and is a neurotic mess when he is human. He works at the hospital, and is friends with Aidan. They know about each other’s condition, and they are each other’s only ally.

Aidan, by nature, is the opposite of Josh. He is cool, confident and sociable. But he also wants to feel more normal, so he talks Josh into getting a place together. Their new house, unfortunately comes with its own ghost, Sally (Meaghan Rath).

Josh is at first reluctant to extend the monster friendship, but Sally has nowhere to go, and has the ghost skills of Patrick Swayze’s Sam (from the movie Ghost) when he first died.

Aidan, being more comfortable and friendly, welcomes Sally to their group and Josh also ultimately bonds with Sally. For the most part, the friendship is the only thing they have close to being human.

And of course, in addition to our wonderfully grey protagonists, we also have highly annoying and sadistic villains. For instance, the vampires are run by a vampire called Bishop, who also has a day job. As a cop. And yes, they can compel people.

 

Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath
Being Human starring Sam Witwer, Sam Huntington and Meaghan Rath. From left: Sam Huntington, Meaghan Rath and Sam Witwer.

Screw IMDB’s horror label. Sure, it has some its very dark moments (such as when Aidan loses his cool around a human or when he has sex with a vampire. Then the bloodbath is something to write home about.) But the occasional darkness and some thrills aside, Being Human doesn’t have a scary bone in it, and this is fine. Because it is immensely entertaining, occasionally very funny; with cool one-liners and some pop culture references. And it doesn’t have a romantic love story at heart. Love, guilt, regret, courage, fear, friendship, jealousy and lust equally dominate the season.

And it has violence and nudity, just not in the caricature-like, exaggerated way that True Blood does. And I love Being Human for that.

And our good vampire is neither Damon (raising hell for the sheer fun of it), nor Stefan (the impossibly strong reserve and self-control) of Stefan. He slips and harms people, but he doesn’t do it for fun. He just loses control, and feels bad afterwards. But he doesn’t feel as bad as Angel (who only fed on animals) after going “vegan”.

And he can walk outside without shining, and without having to wear a ring. He doesn’t hate/fear werewolves out of principle. Aidan is well… a breath of fresh air.

**

Yes, it is the North American version of a British show. I chose to watch this for two reasons: 1) It felt darker and more compelling, and 2) It is not all that under its original version, where user rating is considered. The original is rated at 8.2, and this one is at 7.6. Which should say enough if you consider the British comedy Coupling (a show I adored) is rated at 9, and its American version is at 3.6.

So it might be annoying to some fans of the original, but for those who haven’t, it really is pretty cool and awesome, currently lacking all the pitfalls of other vampire shows, even of the ones that I liked.

Go Being Human! May you get many seasons, and all your seasons be just as good!

(It is returning for season 2!)

Currently, my rating is 9/10- and that is if I have to be harsh: )

 

My Favorite Lines

Josh: (sarcastic) I’m awesome. I mean who wouldn’t want to meet their weredad?

*

Sally: (on realizing what her new roommates are) You are not going to go all Twilight on each other, right?

*

Aidan: She learned everything about being a ghost from Whoopi Goldberg.

*

Aidan: (when Sally recites from Bon Jovi) Are you trying to scare us with Bon Jovi?

My Favorite Episode: 7

I love all episodes, but episode 7 is just marvelous.

Josh goes home with his sister and tries to persuade his parents that he is not crazy and he doesn’t think he is a werewolf. And Aidan comes to rescue, portraying a healthy lifestyle for Josh. Unfortunately, food has garlic, his fangs come out, and Marcus, Aidan’s ultimate enemy, comes to attack Josh’s family.

The expressions of Josh’s family as he tries to make weapons out of furniture, hide Aidan’s situation and fight off Marcus are just priceless!

We also learn some sad but important facts about Aidan’s past.

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: being human, being human 2011, being human North American, being human North American cast, fantasy, Ghost, Meaghan Rath, Sam Huntington, Sam Witwer, thriller, TV shows, vampire, werewolf

Coming Soon: Beastly starring Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Hudgens, Neil Patrick Harris & Mary-Kate Olsen

Posted on December 28, 2010 Written by ripitup

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Beastly starring Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Hudgens, Neil Patrick Harris & Mary-Kate Olsen
Beastly starring Alex Pettyfer, Vanessa Hudgens, Neil Patrick Harris & Mary-Kate Olsen

Kyle (Alex Pettyfer) is one of the most popular kids at school. How can he not be? He is hot ,rich & superficial.  He is also an arrogant jerk. When he pisses off the wrong girl – Kendra (Mary-Kate Olsen), she casts a spell on him that makes his biggest nightmare come true- she makes him really deformed and ugly, making his soul take over his looks. She gives him a year to find someone to love him the way he is or he will stay like this forever.

So Kyle becomes a recluse, hiding from the world. He only keeps in contact with Will (Neil Patrick Harris), a blind instructor.

When he meets the beautiful and nice Lindy (Vanessa Hudgens) as his new self, he decides to be all that he can be with her. He believes that there is no way she can ever fall for him, but he does his best to make her happy.

Unfortunately, he is running out of time. Will Lindy fall for her before the year is over?

**

Based on the novel by Alex Flinn, written and directed by Daniel Barnz; Beastly fantasy/romance/drama is coming to the theaters in 2011. I have to say the trailer looks intriguing – it is a modern touch to the Beauty and The Beast story. I am not really big on Vanessa Hudgens but she didn’t annoy me in the trailer

As for Mary-Kate Olsen, it is good to see her work separately from her twin sister Ashley Olsen. I really enjoyed their Full House (1987-1995) when I was younger but they dragged the whole cute twins act for too long – making movies on the theme. Beastly seems like a fine story to enrich Mary-Kate’s roles.

I have always hated arrogance and meanness, regardless of the person’s looks. So it will be fun watching Kyle’s character get some life lessons.

Yes, nothing much will probably come to the table but I did like the effects and the make-up they put on Alex. So yes, I will see this movie.

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: alex flinn, Alex Pettyfer, Ashley olsen, beastly, beastly movie, beastly novel, daniel barnz, drama, fantasy, Mary-Kate Olsen, Neil Patrick Harris, olsen twins movies, romance, Vanessa Hudgens

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