3rd Annual NetfliXmas

Welcome to the 3rd Annual NetfliXmas!

On a side note - it has been so long since I got on here, that I forgot my passowrd, and pretty much everything on this website has changed... Oops. I'll get better about posting on here, that is my New Year's Resolution for 2015!

Alright, so onto NetfliXmas.

"What is NetfliXmas?" you ask. Well, I have the answer.

I am obsessed with Christmas movies. I have seen some good, some bad, and some pretty darn ugly ones. But, I still can't get enough. So for the past two years, this year being the third, thus, 3rd annual, I embark on a quest to watch a whole lot of Christmas movies. 

Here are the rules:
1) First, I add every Christmas movie I can find on Netflix to "My List".
2) If I have already seen the movie, it does not get added to "My List".
3) I pick a Christmas movie using a random number generator.
4) I watch the movie in its entirety, no matter how bad it is.
    - Let me remind you that I have seen some pretty terrible Christmas movies in the years past.

5) I rate the movie on Netflix using their 5 star system.
    - Please see the sidebar for reference to how I rate each movie.
6) I get on blogger and write a short little blurb about each Christmas movie I watch and share my rating.
7) You read the blog post and decide if there is a new Christmas movie out there for you to watch!

OK - sounds fun, right? Good, because I've watched a handful of movies over the past few days and now I am going to share them with you!

Christmas Crush

This movie was originally a Lifetime movie that has now been added to Netflix. I dont know about you, but I love cheesy Lifetime movies. This was no exception! This movie was about a girl who has come back to her home town for Christmas and for her 10-year high school reunion. Even though she was voted Most Likely to Succeed in high school, her career has gone virtually no where and she doesn't have a college degree. Her only hope is to get back together with her old high school boyfriend, who she dumped at prom before running off to college. 

Added Bonus: This movie stars Jonathan Bennett, AKA Aaron Samuels from Mean Girls

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Hercules Saves Christmas

Talk about a strange movie. The concept of the movie at first seems cute, but the plot wraps itself up within ten minutes. Then, another challenge is presented, which again is wrapped up in ten minutes. Finally, the real problem is made apparent. The movie appears at first to be the story of a dog who saves a little orphan boy from being on the naughty list. Then, it seems like the movie is actually about saving a grumpy old man from losing the spirit of Christmas. But actually the movie is about an evil elf that wants to steal Hercules, the dog who creates the naughty and nice list, and it is up to the orphan and old man to save Hercules. So my question is, how is it that HURCULES saves Christmas, when he is the one who has to be saved? I wouldn't waste your time watching this.

Added Bonus: The mom from Double Teamed plays the evil elf's henchwoman.

Overall Rating: 2 Stars

Saving Santa

I would be lying if I said I thought I would like this movie. I had some pretty low expectations going into it. Everyone knows the saying "Don't judge a book by it's cover," but we would all be lying if we said we never did. And I did. The cover of this movie looked plain stupid, not to mention the bad animation. But, I gave the movie a chance and it actually wasn't half bad. The movie had some promise once it started. An evil dude wants to kidnap Santa to figure out how he travels the world in one night, so he can use the same technology in his shipping business. It is up to one elf, Bernard, to save the day. I don't want to ruin Santa's secret, but let's just say its pretty cool, and creates a bit of a Groundhog Day effect to the movie's plot. It's biggest downfall was when they felt the need to add in a big music scene.

Added Bonus: All-Star Cast! Ashley Tisdale (AKA Sharpay in High School Musical and Maddie in Suite Life), Tim Curry (Rocky Horror Picture Show), and Martin Freemen (The Hobbit and Sherlock)!

Overall Rating: 3 Stars

All American Christmas Carol

If you have never heard of The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens then you need to get in your car and drive to you local bookstore right now to educate yourself. For everyone else, this movie may seem a bit familiar. At first, the parallels aree hard to see, aside from the ghosts of present, past, and future. But, a closer look and you will find Tiny Tim, Scrooge, and Marley in unexpected characters. Set in modern day America, this story is far from "All American". This film should have been titled White Trash Christmas Carol. A mom, who is on the verge of losing her children to CPS must make a change in her life, with a little help from some familiar ghosts. Yet, at the end of the movie, i still have one question: did she get to keep her kids? I guess I will never know.

Added Bonus: Stars one of the characters from Orange is the New Black (but don't ask me which one) and Rita from Bridesmaids

Overall Rating: 3 Stars

Call Me Claus

The world is ending and it's all Santa's fault. That is, unless he finds a replacement Santa in four weeks. Every 200 years, a new Santa must take over, or the world will end, and the current Santa has only one option left. The only problem, Lucy Cullins hates Chrismtas. Santa has to do everything he possibly can to get Lucy to become the next Santa and reinforce her lost love for Christmas. Honestly, cute idea in theory, but I really did not like this movie. Whoopie Goldberg plays Lucy, and frankly, she is brash and annoying. Also, why is Santa now a girl? Lucy's transformation from Christmas-hater to new Santa seemed rather abrupt to me as well.

Added Bonus: Whoopie Goldberg and Victor Garber. Plus, that great 90s movie feel to it.

Overall Rating: 2 Stars

Switchmas

Cheesy, but cute. Two kids swap places at an airport to go to each other's respective vacations. Jewish Ira wants nothing more to celebrate Christmas in a snowy paradise, and Mikey is tired of the snow, and would rather spend the week in Florida. So they switch and pretend to be each other. Has a bit of a Parent Trap feel, without the divorced parents. The movie's biggest flaw was the random animated numbers reflecting Ira's Christmas thoughts. However, worth the watch if you want a quirky Christmas movie.

Added Bonus: Dad from Wizards of Waverly Place

Overall Rating: 3 1/2 Stars

Eight Six

My goal for this year is to watch at least one movie from The Book a week. So far so good, for the past three weeks I have watched a movie from the book on each respective Sunday! So the new total is 86 (thus the title of tonight's post) out of 1001!

First was A Room With A View. I love love loved this one! It's definitely a classic starring some absolutely phenomenal actors - two of whom are two of my absolute favorites: Dame Maggie Smith and Helena Bohnam Carter. This was one of Carter's first films, and the film that put her on the map. Although I have to admit, as an avid Harry Potter fan, it was weird at first to see McGonagall as Bellatrix's nanny, but I soon got over that. This is the story of a young woman (Carter) who falls in love with a man while traveling with her nanny. However, once she gets home, she is soon engaged to another man. As fate would have it, things are not always as they should be, and the young woman's true love comes back into her life, complicating her impending engagement. Definitely a much see, and I hope to read the novel that inspired the movie soon. 4 stars.

Last week's movie was Beverly Hills Cop! I had heard much about this movie so I had pretty high expectations. While I thought it was very funny (my favorite being when Eddie Murphey's character puts a banana in the tailpipe of a cops car) and very deserving pf its spot in the book, I don't think I could handle another minute of Eddie Murphey's ANNOYING LAUGH. If you can get past the laugh, then watch this movie. It has a wonderful soundtrack - an essential to any self-respecting 80s/90s movie. I guess I should maybe tell you what the movie is about, right? Basically a hot-shot Chicago cop takes a "vacation" and goes to LA to investigate his friends murder. But no description can do justice to the raw humor that makes this movie what it is. 3 stars.

Finally for this weeks movie. DRUMROLL..... Say Anything! This. Movie. Is. A. Classic. I think that pretty much sums it up. It is a movie of big romantic gestures, cheesy one-liners, and a corrupt dad who only wants best for her daughter. Unlike most gooey romantics, this movie is told from the perspective of the boy - John Cusack. Ironically, his sister in the movie is played by his real-life sister Joan Cusack, which I thought was pretty cool. Lloyd (John Cusack) is kind of a no-nothing loser. He has no ambition and just did alright in school, but he has found that he has fallen for the school valedictorian, Diane Court (played by Ione Skye). No one thinks they will ever become anything. In fact, when Llyod first asks Diane on a date, she has to look him up in the yearbook after saying yes. But Llyod doesn't stop for anything, especially after Diane breaks up with him before she leaves for college in Europe. Most people associate this movie with Lloyd holding a boombox over his head underneath Diane's window, but that wasn't even my favorite part of the movie. My favorite part was actually the last scene - which I don't want to ruin for any of you who haven't seen the movie, so go watch it and find out what happens. All I have to say is, this is one for the books, and one everyone would see at least once in their lifetime. 4 stars.

Yes, This Blog Still Exists

Wow.... It's hard to believe it's been almost 9 months since I posted something. I could've had a baby in that time... (BUT I DIDN'T - just thought I'd clarify this is a joke.) But, I figured, now is the best time to start it back up again, yea?

So here's to starting fresh and actually posting on here more than once every year...

Went and saw Labor Day today, staring Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet. First I want to preface this saying that, of course, I read the book about 2 weeks ago. I wasn't expecting to like the book (or the movie for that matter), but I really enjoyed the book. It was well written, and pretty realistic. So, I had some high expectations for the movie - especially because Rose (Titanic reference of course) can do no wrong. The movie and the storyline itself were very accurate in terms of the book. However, the movie was just kind of ok. I'm giving it three stars, because I enjoyed it, but all of the emotions and acting just felt pretty surface level. I never felt the deep emotional attachment to the characters that I felt while reading the book. It was good for a one-time see, but it's not something I'll be jumping out of bed to buy on DVD/BluRay anytime soon.

Take it or Leave it, that's just my opinion.

You'll be hearing from me again soon, I'm sure!

SUMMA TIME!

Summer has officially begun!!!! I'm hoping this means tat I will finally catch up on all my TV shows and that I can greatly condense my Netflix Instant Queue! This also means there will be many more blog posts! Yea I hope you're all excited for this!!!

First movie review of the summer BABYYYY!!!

Alright, so tonight I watched Hello Sister, Goodbye Life which is the typical ABC Family movie. It's an older one (2006) and stars Mean Girls' Gretchen Weiners as the main character. Basically, Olivia (Gretchen Weiners) is forced to raise her younger step-sister after her father and step-mom die in a car accident. Olivia is only 21 years old, and sill in college and is forced to choose between raising her sister and going to live in Italy with her hunky boyfriend. I bet y'all @10 that you all guess the ending right! It's a very predictable movie, but it also has a lot of cheesy, feel-good moments. It's not one of ABCFam's best, but it is definitely a stereotypical ABCFam movie. Watch it or not, that's your choice, but overall, the movie was bearable! (3 Stars)

Also, I have discovered this wonderful new app, thanks to the lovely Jacob Triska, called Miso. Basically, any time I watch a movie or TV show, I "check-in" and it will let my followers know what I am watching! So if y'all want to follow my every movie watching move I highly recommend getting a Miso!

And Y'all Thought Twilight Was Bad...

Today, I'm reviewing two AWFUL love stories. Both of these will make you appreciate the Bella-Edward-Jacob love triangle. Trust me.

First we have Chungking Express, a move I had to watch for my Film class, and is regarded by many as one of the best films in the world. It even made it into "The Book". However, after watching the movie, I had absolutely no idea what it was about, and I was extremely confused. Then, we had to read a 80 page book about the movie for my class, and even after reading that I still didn't understand the premise of this movie. That's an Art Film for ya... After much contemplation, however, this is what Ive found it to be about. Set in Hong Kong, it's a love story following two cops (Cop 223 and Cop 663) who both fall in love with different people, but it doesn't work out for either of them. However, it's much more complicated than that because you have people with similar or the same names and they all look alike. Sorry, not trying to be stereotypical, but they really do look very similar and I couldn't keep any of the characters straight. One of the girls (I believe her name was May) was a major stalker and kept breaking into Cop 663's house and changing all his possessions and cleaning.. WEIRD. (2 Stars)

The next movie is actually the newest movie based off of one of Stephanie Meyer's novels, The Host. First off, I read the book and actually highly enjoyed it. It was a very interesting story line, and I thought the movie had a lot of potential, but it was literally one of the worst movies ever. Do y'all remember when I watched LOL and told you that some movies are so awful, but you can only enjoy them if you see it with a group of people? Yea well this was one of those movies. I want to apologize to my friends for dragging them to this movie with me, because it wasn't worth the $4.50 we paid to see it. Also, I promised that I would give them a shout out on the blog for coming and enduring those two hours. I'm actually glad they came with me, because we talked and made fun of this horrible movie the whole time. So, Tanner, Gus, Alex, Nick, M.H., Matt, and Ashli, THANK YOU and I cannot apologize enough for making y'all come with me. Also, y'alls comments throughout the movie were better/funnier than the movie itself, especially yours Gus. And whoever told us to "Shut Up" during the movie should be thanking us for our wonderful insight. Yea... We were those people. The group that everyone hates.

The basic premise of The Host is that aliens have invaded Earth and they take on human host bodies. One alien, Wanderer (Wanda for short) is in the body of a girl name Melanie, who was part of the human resistance. Melanie still has some control over her body and soon she has Wanda out looking for the family Melanie has left behind. Soon, Wanda has fallen in love with Jared, who was Melanie's lover, but Ian has fallen in love with Wanda and Jared still loves Melanie. Talk about an intense love triangle... So, like I said, the movie had a lot of potential, but they ruined it with voice-overs to show the communication between Melanie and Wanda in their head, and TERRIBLE acting. I am not a fan of the girl who portrayed Melanie/Wanda. And she had literally the worst "Cajun" accent the entire movie, and cannot act to save her life. I'm talking worse than Kristen Stewart in Twilight... So if you really feel you must go see this movie, wait until it's on Netflix and make sure you watch it with all your closest friends so y'all can make fun of it the whole time. Either way, you are going to hate yourself for watching that movie... (2 Stars)

They're Baaaaaaaaaack

I can not reiterate enough times just how much I love scary movies, y'all! I seriously love them so much. AAAANNNDDDDDDDD I watched a new one just for y'all this weekend.

Now, a while back, I did a review fr a scary movie called The Evil Dead, which is a cult classic that helped start the whole campy-horror genre back in the 70s. For those of you that haven't read that review (or you just need a refresher) I. HATED. IT. I gave it the worst review ever and swore to never watch that movie again. Well.... Guess what. I watched it again.

Sam Raimi (the director) has remade The Evil Dead and it came out this past weekend (But now it is Evil Dead, dropping the "The" from the title) and it made claims that it would be one of the scariest movies you will ever see. So my friends convinced me to go see it with them, despite my warnings of how awful the original was. However, before I went to see it, I decided to rewatch the original so I could adequately compare the two just for y'all. Look at the sacrifices I make for this blog... Take note of my dedication.

Anywho... Rewatched the original and it was just as corny and stupid (and definitely not scary) as I remember it being. Then, I get to the movie, and after the first 10-15 minutes I start to think, "man, this is actually going to be very legit". And it was for the most part. I still didn't think it was scary, but keep in mind that scary movies don't freak me out at all. For someone who gets scared during Horror Films, you will probably cry a bit. Also, I have a very HIGH gore tolerance and there were scenes that honestly made me want to puke. this movie was EXTREMELY GORY.

Now that all of that has been said, this movie was still extremely corny like the original one, but I'm loving some of the zombie pick up likes such as "Come and kiss me your dirty B****" or "I can see your dirty f***ing soul". Oh, did I mention this movie likes its expletives???

Now, in comparison to the original, the basically kept the concept of the movie the same. The girl still gets raped by a tree and turns into a zombie killing all of her friends and what not. However, they did change the ending and the sole survivor may not be who you expect! Also, the premise behind the story has changed a bit too. The characters are at the cabin not for a vacation, but to help their friend quit using drugs.

Overall, I was much more impressed with this movie than the original - but I didn't exactly have high expectations. It could've used a lot less gore though... (3 Stars)

Marketing and Advertisement!!

Hey y'all! I know I haven't posted in a while, but I've been crazy busy with school!

However, I am going to start posting regularly again, and I really want to try and get the word out to everyone so they all know about my awesome blog!!!

So here's what I ask of you! Tell all of your friends to follow this blog on Twitter @1001MovieQuest and to join the facebook group http://www.facebook.com/groups/thequestfor1001movies/! Let's get the word out there people!

Thanks y'all are the best! I'll have more movie reviews for you later!

OOOHHHHH and also LES MISERABLES IS OUT ON DVD/BluRay SO GO AND BUY IT RIGHT THIS SECOND.

That's all.

<3 <3