Friday, August 31, 2012

Groundhog Day (PG)- Bill Murray


I heard about this movie a lot over the years. Apparently it's a classic. My husband really likes it too and was surprised when I said I had never seen it before. So we set a day to watch it. Well, I think the movie was very predictable. Murray's character is a real butt and wakes up to the same day over and over again, and we all know what he has to do to stop being trapped- he has to be a nicer person, have a change of heart. Although it was predictable, I think this was a pretty fun movie nonetheless. I think it's cute how he goes so far to learn about the girl he likes, although kind of creepy at first. It was also kind of frustrating to watch the same scene happen over and over again. But I liked the humor. I don't know if it was that great for it to be a "you haven't seen that?!" kind of movie, but it was still cute. 


Friday, August 24, 2012

Mad Men- Season 1


I have been hearing such good things about Mad Men for awhile. I listen to Carson Daly in the mornings on my way to work, and one morning he went on a rant about how good this show was. My husband even heard good things about it from twitter and the articles he reads, so he got it for us to start watching. I didn't know anything about Mad Men, so I really didn't know what to expect. I was hoping for something that kept me at the edge of my seat and made me want to watch the next episode right away. I mean, that's what a drama is supposed to do, right? But I was totally let down. It's an hour long show, and I feel that it just drags on and on. I guess I had set my expectations really high for Mad Men, and maybe another factor for not being impressed with it is because my husband and I had just finished Homeland (which I will write about later) and that show was super interesting and left us on a cliff hanger.

For Mad Men, I don't really see the point of the show yet; I haven't really caught on. I feel like there is no plot. It basically just shows how people lived in the 1960's. It shows the life of five different main characters, and one episode shows a different story about a different character, so it doesn't really pick up with the same story each episode. Like one episode will be about Don Draper and his slutting around, and then the next episode will be about Peggy and Pete with hardly anything with Don, or if they do show Don, it won't include his slutting around, just about his work or something. Super lame. It kind of reminds me of the first season of Smallville. In Smallville, the first season is about Clark figuring out all of his powers so it goes by super slow and is kind of boring. And the same for Mad Men. I figure they were probably just introducing the characters and building up stories around them. There have been a few moments during this season where it really caught my attention and got me excited, but then I was just let down with the next episode because it doesn't finish the story, but it doesn't leave me wondering either. 

Here's what I think about the main characters. First there is Don Draper. He's a married man with kids, but his story is that he is a major slut and basically thinks with his weener instead of his brain when it comes to women. Then there is his wife Betty who is so overwhelmed with how she looks and if she's skinny and pretty and blah blah blah. She doesn't want to be a housewife but a model instead. I can't stand either of them. Although, I do like the episodes with her in them rather than the ones with just Don. Then there's Pete, who works under Don Draper, and he sleeps around with Peggy, who is Don's secretary, and messes with her mind, because Pete is also married and uses Peggy as back-up. Pete is just a butt-hole, and I feel like he's just going to do something ridiculous every time he is in the show. I get anxious when the shows are about him. Peggy is super ugly, and I always feel scared for her because I think the others are going to do something awfully mean to her, but I kind of like her and how she stands up to people. But my favorite character of the whole show is Joan. She's the leader of the secretaries at the place where everyone works, and she is just so sassy? I don't know if that's the right word, but she is super confident, independent, and at first I thought she was going to be the B of the office, but she ends up to be a very good secret keeper and helps others out although she seems mean about it. I guess the other main character is Sterling Cooper, who the office is named after, but he's just as slutty as Don. Their stories are pretty much the same. They disgust me. 

Anyway,  that's pretty much my analysis on this show so far. I don't really care for it, but like most other TV shows, it probably gets better later. My husband and I finished this season about two months ago? maybe? But we have yet to start season 2...


Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Red Brick Pizza


My husband and I decided one weekend to walk around Downtown Brea and try something new. It's a pretty short street, but there are quite a few restaurants to choose from. We didn't want to spend too much money or else I would have wanted to go to Tacos & Tequila. They had a live band in there and it looked really fun. Anyways, our choice was between Red Brick Pizza and Fresca's Mexican Grill. We couldn't decide what we wanted to we did that "pick a hand" game, and ended up with the pizza place. I'm usually quite iffy about pizza places because 1) they charge way too much for a sliver of a piece of pizza and 2) it doesn't feel me up and I regret spending the money when I could have gotten a 20 piece nugget for five bucks. But on this particular night, I wasn't really craving Mexican food, so I'm glad the hand picked pizza. 

Red Brick was super good. It wasn't too expensive, and that pizza was filling and delicious. The only other place I like better than this one is Nicolitalia in Provo, UT. Apparently, these restaurants are actual Italian pizza places, which is what my husband told me after I devoured my food. I also love to drown it in Parmesan cheese because of the texture in my mouth. So good. I would definitely want to go back some time. 

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Breaking Bad- Season One


I haven't written about TV shows on here before, but seeing as I was requested to write about Breaking Bad, I thought, why not? I have tons of shows I like to watch. So here goes...

(Oh, by the way, this entire post will probably have spoilers. I don't think I can write much about it without giving some stuff away for those who haven't seen it yet.)

When I first started watching this show, I thought it was going to kind of be like CSI where there would be a new case and new characters each episode, so when I found out it was this same old ugly man, I was a little disappointed. Also, I apparently watch the uncensored versions of the episodes, and if you decide to watch this show, DO NOT watch the uncensored ones. It shows this ugly old man doing his wife, and I just don't like seeing a wrinkly old butt, not to mention this guys butt. For some reason, he just grosses me out. And yeah, I know old people like sex too, but I just like to pretend that they don't. Makes life more pleasant for me.

Anyway, so I understand the whole reason for Walt "breaking bad." He's poor, he has a baby on the way, and he's dying due to cancer, leaving his family with nothing. He's been jipped out of making a lot of money by some friends of his, and he just seems to be bitter and unhappy. So he goes into a business of selling meth with one of his old students, Jesse. I actually really like Jesse's character in the show. He tries to act like he's a bad-a, but he's really not. He's a dumb kid who gets caught up in bad stuff because he has no other way of making money, and everything bad just keeps happening to him. Besides the drugs and stealing, he seems like he just wants to be a good person. He's nice to his family and friends, and I actually kind of feel sorry for him because Walt is so mean.

So Walt and Jesse get into trouble with this drug dealer Krazy-8. First, Krazy-8 and his cousin try to kill them, and instead Walt does some crazy chemistry stuff that is supposed to kill Krazy-8 and his cousin instead. Now they have the problem of disposing the bodies. But then Krazy-8 turns out to still be alive, and now they have the problem of having to kill him because if they don't, Krazy-8 will go after them and their families. And then the other body is still deteriorating, so Jesse decides to put it in the bath tub upstairs in his house and put acid on it. But then the acid destroys the bath tub and the floor, and the nasty blood and guts falls through the bottom and lands all over the hallway downstairs and it is just super disgusting. This is the part of the show I didn't like. It kind of reminded me of those movies like "Meet the Fockers" where things just keep getting more and more complicated. One bad thing after another keeps happening and they can't move on to what they need to do because they are stuck cleaning up the messes they have made with these other two stupid fools. I almost stopped watching it at this point because I really find it annoying and frustrating when bad things just keep happening. But I kept watching...

After they are done with these people, they have to find another drug dealer so they can sell their meth and make some money. This is where the worst character of the entire show comes in: Tuco. Maybe I hate him so much because he reminds me of the stupid Mexicans I grew up around. He just acts sooooo stupid, I can't even describe it. Like when he sniffs the meth, he jumps around and yells like an idiot, like it's an immediate reaction, like he's possessed or something. He puts on a big show. I guess I feel like he is just super over-dramatic and fake. As much as I don't like him, I love this part of the show because it's where Walt grows some bigger cojones and starts taking charge. He's already killed a man and he's becoming less and less scared to take bigger chances with these gangs. 

The whole time Walt is going through this stuff, he isn't telling his family anything obviously. He keeps using his cancer as an excuse that he wants to be alone, and I'm always afraid his wife Skyler is going to catch on eventually. This show is funny in that it makes me hate Skyler because she keeps bugging him about where he's at everyday, and I just want her to leave him alone and stop nagging him. I keep thinking, dude, if you were dying, you would probably want to be alone sometimes too, so get off his nuts. It's like I want him to succeed. Maybe that's not a good thing. It's also interesting because Walt's brother-in-law Hank is with the D.E.A. and Hank's in charge of trying to find the maker of all the meth, which is Walt. I love Hank's character. The best description I can think of for Hank is MAN. He takes care of his family, and offers to take care of Walt's family if the case may be, and he loves to act like the big tough guy. He is the big boss man cop who jokes around with all his friends at work. He knows his stuff and likes to brag about it, but he does it in a fun guy-ish way. He's a light-hearted guy who tries to keep peace with his wife and Skyler, and just wants to keep his family happy and safe. He likes to take care of other people before himself, which is portrayed more in the second season. I think he's my favorite character so far.

Basically, the entire show keeps you on pins and needles. I always think something bad is about to happen no matter what they are showing. Even when they just show him lying in bed, I think something is going to bust through his window, or some member of a gang is lurking in another room ready to take him or his family captive. Things that happen are totally unexpected, and the stuff that Walt and Jesse end up doing, you just would never think they would actually go through with it, or even get away with it.

It's a really good show and I'm pretty much hooked. I'm almost finished with the second season so another update should be coming soon.


Monday, August 13, 2012

Die Hard (R) - Bruce Willis


When I was younger, I think I remember my mom saying that she hated Bruce Willis, and ever since then for some reason or another, I've never been a Bruce Willis fan. I wasn't too excited to watch this movie for two reasons: 1) It's an old movie; 1988. The fashion is old and ugly, and I just don't like it. And 2) There's Bruce Willis.  My husband and I had been watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and we came across the episode where Ross, Joey, and Chandler get super excited to watch Die Hard, and my husband was like, "Oh yeah!! You gotta watch that!" So we did. 

To be honest, I kind of liked it. It was full of action that kind of gets your heart pumping, and makes you want to yell, "don't go in there!"  And there were also the times where you are like, "ughh, if he would have just known, it would all be over." But then there are those times where you're like, "hahaha yeah, right. I thought this guy was dead?!?" Some of it was predictable, especially the end. There's also a lot of humor; a lot of funny one-liners. And some of it was super cheesy, like with Carl Winslow, who also plays a cop in this movie, not just in Family Matters, which I thought was super funny. What I also thought was funny was my husband. He kept trying to make me guess where I knew the bad guy from. I couldn't figure it out for the life of me, but he kept saying, "just wait, you'll get it." And then I did. It's Snape from Harry Potter! 

Good movie. I think I'd watch it again.


Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Woodland Cafe

There really is no picture for this restaurant since it's a rinky-dink hole-in-the-wall. I guess I could walk the two minutes from my work to take a picture since it's right down the street, but that's just too much of a hassle. And speaking of rinky-dink hole-in-the-wall places, and knowing my love for them, you can imagine how excited I was when I got to eat there with my husband for lunch. 

This place has a variety of food: Burgers & fries, salads, Philly cheese steaks, and even a Teriyaki plate, and it is all pretty cheap too. I usually just start out with the basics when I first try a place because it should be easy to get it nice and delicious, so of course I got the burger and fries. I mean, if the burger and fries are really good, then the other food should be pretty good, right?  But unfortunately, I was super disappointed. Especially in the fries. If you know me, you know that fries make the meal. I absolutely love to eat at places with good fries. (If you want to see my list of places with the best fries, look here.) Usually, if the fries suck, then I won't even enjoy the burger that much. And these fries sucked. They were too dry even after I put a lot of salt on them. And even though the burger was greasy (which for some weird reason, I like that), it had no flavor to it. Maybe I had my hopes up too high. It's easy to say I won't be going back.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

True Romance (R) - Christian Slater

I am actually embarrassed to write about this movie. My husband and I have decided to watch "Sunday Stinkers" which means that we pick a movie that we haven't really heard much about, or we pick one that we kind of want to see even though we've heard bad things about it. Well, a couple of Sunday's ago, we watched this one, and first of all, I felt super bad because I didn't know it was rated R, and I know I shouldn't watch them anyways, but watching it on Sunday made me feel uncomfortable. Ha. I swear I'm not only a Sunday Mormon! Because of this movie, we decided that no more "Sunday Stinkers" would be rated R. 

Anyway, because I knew nothing about this movie, I really didn't know what to expect. I kind of thought it would be a lovey movie seeing as that is what the title says, but now that I think about, why would my husband suggest this movie unless there was disgusting gruesome scenes and blood? Actually, he probably didn't know that it would be as bad as it was, but he heard about this movie from his guy co-workers, so I'm sure he heard that there were some "cool" actions scenes or what not. However, they were not cool. It was super gross. Maybe not as bad as Drive, but still nothing I wanted to see. 

Some good things about this movie: It was funny to see Brad Pitt in this movie, apparently when he first started out. Also, I kind of liked the girls character. She was a bad-a when it came to her keeping her mouth shut and taking a beating/ basically killing someone when she was being asked questions. And the last thing I liked was that even though the stuff they did was stupid and ridiculous and immoral and awful, they did it for their love for each other, which I guess is the point of this movie. 

Don't ever watch it.