2018 Movies

Hey everyone. I did a thing.
That thing was that I decided at the beginning of 2018 (yes, that's last year) I wanted to keep track of all the movies I watched, and what I think of them. 
You know, just for funsies. 
Here's the list.

It's long, I know.
Don't @ me.

(Note: Please do your own research before watching these, especially with younger movie watchers. Every movie title in this post links to the review from either Plugged In Online, or the Parent's Guide section from IMDB. Thanks, peeps!)

January:

January 1st: Priceless (2016)
Not my favorite Christian flick. I love the heart and inspiration behind it, but the story felt flat and slightly cheesy according to my standards. It kept me interested, so that was good, but that still didn't redeem it, in my opinion. 3/10

January 17th: Forrest Gump (1994)
A rewatch. Seriously considering naming this my personal 'favorite movie of all time'. There are some skip-worthy moments for sure, but I would say the movie as a whole is worth it. 10/10

January 20th: The Greatest Showman (2017)
As far as I'm concerned, this movie can be called "The Greatest Musical Amaris Has Ever Seen That Doesn't Annoy The Heck Out of Her". 8/10

Total Movies: 3

The Greatest Showman

February:

February 14th: You've Got Mail (1998)
So freaking cute. A great remake of the old 'Shop Around the Corner'. A few cuss words to watch out for, but mostly clean. 8/10

February 15th: The Young Victoria (2009)
Captured my heart completely. So, so beautiful. (Gimme that Prince Albert right now pls) 9/10

February 22nd: Walt Before Mickey (2015)
Wasn't sure if I should put this on the list, cause I didn't finish it. A huge shame. Not the hidden Netflix gem I was hoping it would be, and not worth my time at all. 0/10

February 23rd: Wonder (2017)
A very sweet movie. Probably wouldn't watch it again, tho. Just don't care enough. 6/10

February 23rd: Gifted (2017)
A very sweet little movie. The little girl was adorable. Some cuss words, a lil bit of sexuality, but mostly ok. 5/10

February 24th: Cast Away (2000)
1. 'WILLLLSOOONNNN'. 2. Out of all the FedEx boxes that got washed up on the island, he saved 'the special one' in the hopes of delivering it one day, 3. Kelly's picture inspired him to keep living. A Tom Hanks masterpiece. 8/10

Jebruary 25th: The Glass Castle (2017)
Frustrated me on so many levels, this movie. The characters, the story, the content, everything. The soundtrack was pretty, tho. And I love all the actresses who played the main girl. 4/10

Total Movies: 6.5

The Young Victoria

March

March 2nd: Bruce Almighty (2003)
VidAngel blocked out so much it was kinda hard to watch. Kinda funny during some parts. We had an issue of some false doctrine going on though. Sorry Morgan Freeman, but it doesn't say "be your own miracle" anywhere in the Bible. 2/10

March 4th: Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Way more morbid than I was expecting; but I somehow still liked it. The actors were good, the soundtrack, the cinematography, all beautiful. (Extra point because I also liked how it brought me back to the old days when I read 'Poirot Investigates' for school in 10th grade.) 9/10

March 7th: Sense & Sensibility (1995)
Didn't like it as much as Price & Prejudice, but it was lovely, just the same. 7.5/10

March 17th: The American President (1995)
Save yourself the trouble and just watch the trailer; the only good parts in this movie are in there. 3/10

March 22nd: Turner and Hooch (1989)
Sweet, adorable, hilarious. Theres is some content but it's worth a watch with a filter. 8/10

March 24th: The Imitation Game (2014) 
A re-watch. Still as good as I remember it from a few months ago. I'll reference you to this post for my full opinion. 9/10

Total Movies: 6

Murder on the Orient Express

April

April 5th: August Rush (2007)
It's so good. It's emotional, it's gripping, it's heartrending. Yet, these 'lost and found' type of movies always kinda frustrate me. There are always so many 'almost' moments. Kinda reminded me of one of those emotional dog movies. Still really good tho. 8/10
April 7th: I Can Only Imagine (2018)
Way better than I expected. It tells the story of MercyMe's Bart Millard, and the events that eventually led up to him writing one of the greatest Christian songs, I Can Only Imagine. Would highly recommend. 10/10

April 14th: Catch Me If You Can (2002)
My family and I really enjoyed this fascinating depiction of Frank Abagnale, who becomes a master con-man with fraud before he turned 19. We watched it with VidAngel, and I'm glad we did because I did NOT want to see some of the stuff I cut out. Anyways, if you've got a filter, give it a try! 9/10

Total Movies: 3

Catch Me If You Can

May

May 4th: The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015)
Wasn't great, but very beautifully put together. Story line kinda bored me. 3/10

May 5th: Paddington 2 (2017)
Saw this while babysitting. It was pretty cute, in spite of being a bit cliche. 4/10

May 25th: The King's Speech (2010)
I loved this one. It was written beautifully, acted with such talent, and the story had me very interested. 10/10

May 26th: Sherlock Holmes (2009) 
It was ok. There were too many 'convenient' things. The fighting and action sequences were a bit too choreographed, which I found annoying. I enjoyed RDJ in this movie tho. 6/10

Total Movies: 4

The King's Speech

June

June 12: Titanic (1997)
Third time watching. I love this movie and it still gets me right here in the feels every freaking time. 10/10
June 13th: The Money Pit (1986)
A bit funny during some parts, but too sensual and dumb to watch again. 2/10

June 13th: Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
An actual gem!! So sweet, adorable, and sad. It reminded me of what I like about old old movies. 10/10

June 16th: The Incredibles (2004)
This was my favorite superhero movie growing up (cause it was the only one I was allowed to watch haha), and I still really liked it when we watched it after all those years. 8/10
June 17th: The Incredibles 2 (2018)
I really liked it. It was kinda feminist (which I'm not), but I really enjoyed watching. 8/10

June 20th: Jurassic World (2015)
I feel like this movie is put together well and it's a fun experience for a family movie night, but over all it's not super great. 5/10

June 28th: The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966)
A re-watch. This is the best old Don Knotts movie, in my opinion. The ghost story used to really scare me as a child, but it's funny now. I guess that means I'm a grownup...? 7/10

Total Movies: 7

Breakfast at Tiffany's

July

July 4th: The 'Burbs (1989)
I didn't enjoy this one very much. There are way better Tom Hanks movies out there for anyone who wants to watch a classic.

July 9th: Big (1988)
Soooo cute and hilarious. It made my sister and I laugh and cry. We loved it. Watch out for a kid says the f word once, tho. 10/10

July 14th: The Bucket List (2007)
I kinda liked it because it was sweet and had a good message, but I kinda disliked it cause there was some sexy stuff and language. So idk. 5/10

July 16th: The Terminal (2004)
A great Tom Hanks movie. Super sweet and 10/10

July 17th: The Circle (2017)
This movie annoyed me. Is it supposed to be the future? I'm not sure I understood the ending? Is the movie saying that no privacy is good or bad? Why does Mae change her mind about who she stands for and what she believes in so much? So many questions?  1/10

July 19th: Big Eyes (2014)
Such a touching and beautiful movie. I loved Amy Adams. The setting was beautiful, the story was heart-gripping (ending with happiness!), the acting was great. Yes, yes yes.   9/10

July 19th: A Hologram for the King (2016)
It wasn't the greatest Tom Hanks movie. There were some sweet moments, but I wasn't fond of the ending, and plus I had to skip a couple of things which makes it hardly worth my time anyways. 3/10

July 19th: The Man With One Red Shoe (1985)
Another 'Not the Greatest Tom Hanks Movie' movie. A complete wasted evening, if you ask me. Too many dumb and sexual things. Even Carrie Fisher didn't make things better. 0/10

July 21st: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
Even if Western isn't my thing, it's easy to see why this is my Mom's favorite movie. It was definitely a classic, really gripping and kept me on my toes. I really enjoyed the experience, if I'm being honest. 8/10

July 28th: Hello, My Name is Doris (2015)
There were a lot of cute things about this movie, and I enjoyed those parts but on the flip side of things the ending kinda annoyed me plus there was some sexy stuff as well as language, so the good parts weren't worth it. 4/10

Total Movies: 10

The Terminal

August

August 2nd: Jaws (1975)
I really like sharks, and I really like this movie. I don't know why. 7/10

August 10th: Christopher Robin (2018)
It brought back good memories but on the other hand I almost fell asleep watching it because it was super slow. Really cute tho. 3/10

August 31st: Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Me and my sister impulsively decided to watch this one late evening after getting frozen yogurt together mainly so we could laugh at the funny emo segments. It's not a horrible movie, to be honest. But Marvel can do (and has done) a lot better. 5/10

Total Movies: 3

Christopher Robin

September

September 2nd: The Meg (2018)
It was no 'Jaws'. But I did like some of the character development, a few of the jump-scares, and the main character did a good job, in my opinion. Over all, it wasn't a bad movie, and I had a good time  cause I saw it in theaters with my brother. 4/10

Total movies: 1

The Meg

October

October 7th: Sleepless in Seattle  (1996)
It was sweet, but also unsatisfying. I really wished for some cute couple moments between Tom Hanks and the girl. 'Big' and 'The Terminal' are much better if you like romantic Tom Hanks. 5/10

October 12: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (2018)
I realllly loved this movie! And I hold the (apparently popular) opinion that this movie does the book justice. It's great if you like period dramas, romances, WWII movies, or just sweet movies. 9.5/10

October 15th: Larry Crowne (2011)
Sooo funny and cute. I still like 'Big' and 'The Terminal' better for romantic Tom Hanks, but this one is really close to those two. 7.5/10

Total Movies: 3

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

November

November 4th & 24th: Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
Absolutely loved it! It had some content issues, so I would read the Plugged In review for this one, especially before watching it with younger viewers. But apart from this, one of my favorite movies this year. The theater experience really added to the music, I felt like I wanted to get up and dance! It's hard to walk away from this movie not a Queen fan.10/10

November 22nd: A Knight's Tale (2001)
It had some pretty cute parts, and a few really funny parts, but nothing great enough to make me care to see it again. Heath Ledger tho. *nods* yes. 3.5/10

Total Movies: 2

Bohemian Rhapsody

December

December 14th: Letters to Juliet (2010)
I remember watching this movie when it first came out, and being the young, romance-loving person I was at the age of 12-14, I was absolutely obsessed at the time. This was my first time watching it again since then, and although Charlie was not as ravishingly handsome as I remember, the plot not quite so capturing, it was still really, really sweet. It brought back sweet memories, and I just  liked the story. It wasn't great, but I liked it. I also might have shed a small nostalgic tear or two. But you mustn't tell. 7.5/10

December 14th: That Thing You Do! (1996)
Didn't really go crazy for this one. The story kinda dragged on, and it was a little weird overall. I loved Liv Tyler's character, tho; and *spoiler* I loved how she got together with that drummer boi - super cute *end of spoiler*. 3.5/10

Total Movies: 2

Letters to Juliet

~*~

Grand Total:  
50.5 Movies

There you are, folks. Yeah, I know I should've posted this in January. But I'm not that late. Anyways, my plan worked! I watched way more movies in 2018! It was a good year.
Well, thanks for sticking around to the end, peeps.

I'll be back sometime on this blog.
When? I don't know.
But sometime.

-Amaris


Have you seen any of the movies on my list? What are your opinions of them? 

An Interesting Summer

Hello there, people!

This post is a peek into my Summer of 2018. The Summer in which I spent a lot of time NOT blogging. :P In fact, I've not only failed to write my own blog, but I've neglected reading blogs as well. So if I haven't been commenting on your blog posts lately, I apologize. I still love you all!

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

It's just been really busy and so much has changed in my life. Like, for real. I think I've changed more in the past 8 months or so than I ever have. Except maybe when I was a toddler. Hehe. :)

Anyways. My Summer has been an interesting time. For one, because it's the first Summer that I've owned a smartphone, and (I don't know if you've noticed this, but) smartphones have a way of influencing your every day life.
So, it's just been... I don't know, different. But good.

// Summer of 2018 //

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

// Movies //

As of August 15th (the day I am originally writing this post), I have watched 42 movies this year! That might not sound like much to some people, but it's certainly a lot for me! In 2017 I literally watched like, 10 movies.
But anyways! Here are just a few of my favorites from this Summer.

July 9th: Big (1988)

 This movie was literally so cute it had me and my sister laughing and crying. It's safe to say this is one of my favorite Tom Hanks movies. There is a bit of content, so I would read a review first. But it's literally, like, 3 things. :) We loved it. 

July 16th: The Terminal (2004)

 It's not surprising that me and my sister loved this Tom Hanks movie as well. We loved it so much we even watched it a second time the next week to show it to Mom! Thankfully, this one is even cleaner than 'Big' and definitely worth the cuss word or two.

July 19th: Big Eyes (2014)

 Oh my goodness, I just adored this movie. It was so sad and heart wrenching, and I just wanted to hug the main character and the story was so FRUSTRATING but it ended up ok which was amazing! I also loved Amy Adams in this movie. I'm pretty sure the only reason it got the PG-13 rating, was because of one really loud f-word. But other than that, I loved this one. 

July 21st: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly (1966)

Even though Westerns aren't my thing, it was really enjoyable to watch this one because not only is it a timeless and iconic classic, it's also my mom's favorite movie of all time (which I don't really understand because she doesn't even like Westerns...??? Who knew..). It's also the first R-rated movie I've ever seen without a filter. Not sure if that counts for any accomplishment, but. *shrug*

Not my photo- taken from Pinterest

 // I Taught At Vacation Bible School //

...and it was such a good experience. I learned so much and made a really good friend through it! Me and my friend, Maggie, wrote the lessons from scratch to teach the kids each day (we taught the lessons as well as wrote them, me and Maggie), instead of using curriculum lessons!

Maggie and I began meeting about twice a week at her house starting late in April to figure out/write the lessons.
We knew that God was telling us to teach the kids stories that inspired them to fall in love with God, instead the idea of being saved and going to heaven. Heaven, after all, is just a side bonus. The real reward is serving God with your life.

But anyways! After weeks (months...?) of studying and preparing our props and our lessons (we had skits and props and visuals to go along with our custom lessons of course!) the VBS in July went very smoothly.
It was truly so fulfilling to be used by God in such a way!
I know I would rather come up with my own lessons for kids anytime rather than just read from a curriculum script, because then I will be able to teach from what I have already learned about God.

Photo credit: me

// I Dyed My Hair //

... for the first time ever! Unfortunately, it didn't come out according to the picture I showed the salon worker. It doesn't look bad, but definitely different than what I asked her to do. The color that she used is growing on me, however, and I'm able to dress 'the new hair' up to look pretty good.
I also got it cut as well as colored, so it's been fun having low-maintenance hair again!

Photo of me taken by me, taken from my Instagram

// I Started Drawing Again //

...and I also created a Tumblr to post my lil drawings on! It's quite a small ordeal (I have 0 followers right now XD), but I mostly created it to motivate myself to keep drawing! I've been practicing mostly eyes lately, and if you follow my Instagram, you've probably seen a few examples.
I kind of explain the reason for taking up drawing again in the synopsis of my Tumblr blog:

"My whole life, I would be off and on with drawing. Here and there I would get a burning, passionate motivation to draw, so I would. For awhile. The Summer of 2018 I decided to take drawing more seriously and enhance my skills through more consistent practice, and I figured a blog would help motivate me. I hope you enjoy what you see, feel free to comment but please be nice... I am learning. Thank you!"

Drawing by me, photo by me, taken from my Tumblr.

If you like drawings of eyes and have a Tumblr account, go follow me! :)

---

Well, that's about it. I didn't do a whole lot of note-worthy things this Summer, but to wrap things up, here are a few more small things I did that might be interesting.

-I went to an outdoor theater for the first time ever!! It was such a blissful and relaxing experience. The breeze the night we went was absolutely wonderful!

-I have been getting to know the area I live in. You might remember my family moved back in May. I was quite unfamiliar with the area surrounding our new apartment, but the past couple of months I've been discovering more things around here. There are some great restaurants as well as a movie theater almost next door to us!

-I went to our local Science Center to see an exhibit about Apollo 11 and the Moon! They had the entire Apollo 11 Command Module there on display. It was pretty neat, and I learned a lot. The moon is kind of my thing, so it was very fun. :) We also saw a very informative and cute documentary about pandas, because they have a giant IMAX theater at the Science Center.

---

Not my photo - Taken from Pinterest

As you can see, it was a good Summer. I am still working at my job at the embroidery shop, and I'm going to be serving at my local AWANA club as the Sparks Director. I am looking forward to Fall and Winter!

Thank you for reading!

-Amaris

Living in February // 2018

A few highlights of February

It's been raining. A lot. Has anyone else gotten quite a bit of rain lately? The funny thing about rain, I've noticed, is the effect it has on people's moods. Lots of people get grumpy when it's raining. They don't like rain, they don't like to drive in it, they don't like the wet.
But me? I love rain. As a matter of fact, this month, when it WASN'T raining, I was listening to rainymood at work.
Try it; it's pretty great.
(I'm listening to it right now.)
(I'm at work right now.)

~*~

 ~*~

I've been getting into soundtracks again. Namely Pride & Prejudice (2005) soundtrack (love that one), and The Young Victoria soundtrack. And the people at work have been listening to The Greatest Showman soundtrack before open hours... at full volume. Can't decide if I'm mad or glad about that.

~*~

I've watched a few movies this month. 
At the beginning of this year, I decided I wanted to try to watch more movies. As opposed to 2017, when I watched, like, five.

February Movies // 2018

You've Got Mail (1998) - A very sweet romance taken from the old movie 'Shop Around the Corner'. But with Tom Hanks.
#it's a great idea to email strangers, kids

The Young Victoria (2009) - So, so beautiful. I loved the story line. I loved Prince Albert. The soundtrack was also great.
#can i have a time machine now

Walt Before Mickey (2015) - I don't really have an opinion because I turned it off because it was boring. And the acting was just bad.
#where's benedict cumberbatch when you need him

Wonder (2017) - A very sweet movie of a little middle school kid. Plus, the dad was hilarious. I will probably show this to my children one day.
#glad i was homeschooled tho

Gifted (2017) - I could do without the language and a certain 'scene', but overall, I loved it. And Chris Evans being a perfect uncle is... well, perfect.
#what even is math

Cast Away (2000) - A very sad, classic movie. I loved 'Wilson', and Tom Hanks was great, as usual.
#i'm so sorry wilson

The Glass Castle (2017) - Too much content for me to enjoy very much. But I loved all the actresses who played Jeanette, and I liked her strong character.
#someone's cornbread ain't done in the middle

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 ~*~

I've been painting a lot. Not as in 'Van Gogh' (I wish), as in 'houses'. Almost all of my work clothes have paint all over them. To get the house ready for sale, we are painting every room white. It's been fun, but tiring.
But I found I actually like painting bathrooms (but ONLY bathrooms). Who knew.

~*~

I finally cut my hair down to my shoulders. It's been hard to manage lately, since I had really frayed ends, but I couldn't find the time to cut it myself because I was so busy. So, I finally I took it to the hair salon and had her chop it all off.
If I was in the habit of posting pictures of myself, I would show you a pic right now.
But I'm not.

~*~

~*~

That's about it. Here's just a few more things that aren't important enough to talk about.

Randomness: 
 
*When your friend asks you what's your favorite Tom Hanks movie is, and you realize you've seen ten of them. Out of like 50.

*Decorating the showroom at my job for St. Patrick's day is fun. And really glittery.

*I like to pay attention to the cinematography in movies.

*Thinking up lots of ideas for a (sorta) big Blog Project I have in mind (what's that? I'm hinting?)

*Acting dumb when sales people call on the phone is fun. (for me)

*Kids are messy (but great)

*I like a lot of marshmallows on my hot chocolate.

*Just for kicks, I tried to get onto my old Webkinz account. Boy, things have changed.

~*~

 ~*~

That is all, friends. Spring is coming, and lots of changes for me!
Wish me luck.
I hope you have a good March!!
-Amaris

When You Get a Vacation And All You Want To Do Is Watch Movies...

So, I house-sat this week. (You know. It's like babysitting, but with a house). And after going to work everyday, I had free time. Yes, that glorious thing that I didn't have a lot of this past Summer. So what did I choose to do with said free time? I watched movies. Movies were my vacation, so to speak. You might remember that I mentioned that the only movie I watched all Summer was Spider-Man: Homecoming. So you might consider this marathon my "catch up".
Any-who, I watched some movies, I have opinions, here they are.
(FYI, I had never seen any of these before).

Father of the Bride (1991):
(trailer)

I guess I had high expectations for this movie, which would explain why it fell a little short for me. I mean, it was cute, (mostly) clean, and very sentimental, but I didn't find very funny (in fact, most of the things that I think were supposed to be 'funny' just annoyed me, such as the father complaining so much about the wedding). Nor did the movie interest me a whole bunch. The movie did a good job making fun of the kind of things that your typical 'father of the bride' would experience (such as stress concerning wedding expenses and 'losing his little girl'), but I guess that's one of the reasons I didn't resonate with it too much. It wasn't all bad, though. It had pretty moments. And I did laugh a couple of times.

1/5 stars

Leap Year (2010):
(trailer)

You know how you just keep hearing about a certain movie, so you just want to go ahead and watch it so you will stop wondering about it? That was "Leap Year" for me. It was pretty good, I think. It was your typical sweet romance story, and even though the entire plot line was basically one big huge cliche, it wasn't your fluffy, cheesy, irritating type of chick flick. The events were carried out pretty well, in my opinion. I found it quite enjoyable, cute, and best of all, not boring or entirely predictable. There were a few innuendos, as well as some kissing (because duh), but nothing too sensual, thank heavens. I would probably even watch this again in a few years, that's how not bad it was.

4/5 stars

Jurassic Park (1993):
(trailer)
This movie was a lot like Jurassic World (which I enjoyed in theaters as a new release), except there was no Chris Pratt. There was a lot of running from dinosaurs, being eaten by dinosaurs, trying to outsmart dinosaurs. You know. I really liked how real the raptors looked (comment if you know what song that's from), I thought all the actors did a splendid job, and the whole family-type relationship between the kids and Mr. Grant made me happy. But overall, nothing really wowed me. I can see how it's a Steven Spielberg classic, but other than that, there was nothing that really makes me want to see it again. I did really like the soundtrack, surprisingly. Even nowadays, when soundtracks don't do a lot for me. But hey. *shrug*
3/5 stars

The Walk (2015):
(trailer)
YOU GUYS. THIS MOVIE WAS SO ADORABLE. It tells the true story of a (borderline certifiable) French dude back in the 70s who wanted to walk a high-wire between the two buildings of the World Trade Center. This movie has everything... a tiny bit of romance, humor, a good plot that keeps you moving forward, a touch of suspense... everything. Plus, it was adorable, as I have already mentioned. Philippe and Annie's relationship was completely ship-worthy (look at me, using fangirl terms.. oh how things change), and I just love how the whole story was carried out. It was a good old-fashioned enjoyable movie. It was great, honestly. I am totally buying this on DVD. Watch out for some cuss words, but there really isn't much besides that (hooray because that means it's great for family movie night). I also really liked the soundtrack to this movie as well.
 Basically, I loved this movie.
5/5 stars 

Doctor Strange (2016):
 (trailer)
"While heroes such as the Avengers protect the world from physical dangers, we sorcerers safeguard it against more mystical threats."
 There is more out there in our universe to believe in than the material things, the tangible things. It is not all as it seems. You all know I'm not the biggest fan of Marvel movies. I watched Doctor Strange, and... I'm still not. However, this movie didn't seem like a Marvel film. It seemed... different. Somehow. Unconventional, perhaps? Any-who, I enjoyed it well enough. It kept me un-bored, which is good enough for me. Spider-Man is still my favorite, but Doctor Strange was not bad.  There is a bit of spell-casting nonsense to watch out for, of course, but the the focus on spiritual warfare, and the dangers of going astray from what is right are a clear theme in this sci-fi flick. But there is a good dose of language which annoyed me, as usual.
Let's be honest, though. I'm a bit partial. I feel like you could put Benedict Cumberbatch in ANYTHING and I will automatically enjoy it. He's just an amazing actor. I also have to mention how I really loved Stephen and Christine's relationship. I loved their (thankfully clean) moments. They were so precious.
3/5 stars

Forrest Gump (1994):
(trailer)
"My mama always said, 'Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.'"
This movie surprised me in two ways. First of all, it was way more dirty than I had anticipated (which made me really sad and annoyed), but the second surprise is that... I actually loved this movie. I loved it. It was so cute.
 It made me laugh... and cry (like, actually cry).
I'm really sad that there was a lot to speak of in the way of 'content'. A lot of language. A lot of crude behavior, including indecent bedroom and party scenes. Let me just say, if you have one of those movie filter thingies, use it. I beg of you. Because people should see this movie. It's a classic. It's hilarious. It's heartwarming. It's Tom Hanks.
But... I don't recommend anyone seeing some of the stuff in it. I wish more of Tom Hank's movies were clean because I really enjoy his acting. Honestly, right now I can't even think of one Tom Hanks movie I haven't liked.
 Overall, "Forrest Gump" was really good. (But bad... but good.)
...
 But bad.
...
 (*whispers* but good).
5/5 stars (NOT FOR CLEANLINESS)

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008):
(trailer)
I've wanted to watch this ever since I read the book for a WWII class I took in high school. The book was very good, and very sad, and so was the movie. We follow the 'explorations' of a young German boy, Bruno, who is trying his darnedest to understand why Jews are the 'bad guys', and why his family is so tense about it all. There's more than that, too, of course, but basically this is a WWII movie that will leave a person touched, saddened, and very sombre at heart. There was nothing amazing that really stood out for me, exactly, but the movie was good. And I would definitely recommend the book, too.
Also, I have to shout out to the actress who played Bruno's mom. She did an extraordinarily good job at her part, I observed.
3/5 stars

Mulan (1998):
(trailer)
If I ever told you guys how many Disney favorites I have not seen, you would be shocked. I could never call myself a 'Disney person' or 'Disney fan' because I simply have seen enough Disney movies to qualify for that. So anyways, to help fix that, I watched one Disney movie in all of my marathon. I chose "Mulan". I thought the movie was really cute. It made me laugh, it wasn't boring, it wasn't entirely cliche, either. The cricket was the best. :) You also wouldn't believe how many internet memes and references I now understand because of watching this movie. Like the whole "dishonor on your cow" thing? I never understood that. Until now. Thanks, Mulan.
3/5 stars

  La La Land (2016):
(trailer)
"City of stars... are you shining just for me?"
Ah yes, that musical 'masterpiece' that called a classic before it's even 5 years old. It took me awhile, but I finally watched it. Can I just say, it was a good movie, but I'm very under-impressed. That's probably because I'm not one who likes musicals. They are weird (I mean, I'm weird, I know... but this is different). Also, (even though I hate to put down a fellow human being) I'm not a huge fan of Emma Stone's.
But I'm putting it much more negatively than it actually was for me.
Lemme put it this way. I thought it was really sweet. It was dreamy. It was relaxing. It's a classic. It was nostalgic. It was pretty, it was beautiful. But I just... didn't like it too much.
 It was unconventional, but not in a way that I necessarily like. It's the same classic problem I always have with musicals. "Can we stop singing and get back to the story? I'm bored. It's a pretty set, but... I'm bored."
There were a lot of things I did like about it. The soundtrack was golden. That jazz piano... *magicallll* I've always liked jazz, ever since I heard some in a talent show when I was a child. And this movie certainly gave me a good dose of it.
I must mention before I end this review, that there are quite a few swear words. They are sprinkled everywhere that I kept tripping over them, including an f-word. (y u gotta do dis, hollywood)
2/5 stars

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013):
(trailer) 
"I am alone... my mind drifts like the snow."
It was sweet, and very cute. I always like Ben Stiller. It's the story of a guy who needs to save his job at LIFE Magazine, but he has a problem; he's a daydreamer (which isn't a problem exactly...), and he lost something very important to the magazine. And I've always had a special place in my heart for 'underdog' characters.
The movie wasn't amazing, though. It wasn't wonderful. Just sweet. There were a few cuss words, but nothing else.
3/5 stars

~*~
And now, for fun, just a really quick list of favorites out of all that I watched.

10.  Father of the Bride (Sorry, Steve. You last)
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9. Jurassic Park (because "how real the raptors looked...")
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8. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (because I'm a daydreamer too, buddy)

7. Mulan (because of Mushu... who was hilarious)
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6. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (because that ending, man)
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5. La La Land (because that piano music got me)
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4.  Leap Year (because #dat accent tho)
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3. Doctor Strange (Ok I gotta confess: because Benedict Cumberbatch)
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2. The Walk (because I thought it was adorable... which you should know by now)
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1. Forrest Gump (by far... even though it was..."bad"... #dontkillmemom)
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By the way, at the end of writing this, I realize that my two favorite movies from this list are directed by the same person. Huh. Way to go, person. :)

Also I just realized how long this post is. Hm. Sorry bout that. Thanks for sticking around till the end! Hey, let's do one of those YouTube things... If you read all the way to the end, comment "Galaxies". Hehe.
#so fun
G'bye.

-Amaris