Movie Monday from Hell-This is Spinal Tap!

WARNING TO ALL!!!! DO NOT READ/WATCH IF YOU GET OFFENDED EASILY. DO NOT LET YOUR MOTHER READ/WATCH THIS, OR YOUR DOG, ESPECIALLY YOUR KID!!!!
So I have debated over posting this film ever since I started this whole movie Monday deal, but I have been fighting the urge every Monday and I just have to do it.
I do realize my mom reads this, my conservative brother and his wife, and my father in law so I hope you do not think of me differently after this.

OK back to the film. This is brought to you by Christopher Guest ( Best in Show, Waiting for Guffman) one of is earlier films coming out in 1984. Spinal Tab is a mocumentary of a rock bad named Spinal Tap. The reason this film is controversial here on my blog is because 1. it is rated R 2. It is R for good reasons and 3. You will laugh and then you might feel guilty for laughing. Anyways there is no nudity or sex scenes which is very good because that is a BIG NO NO in my book, however the problem is that the language is just down right filthy and I don't necessarily mean "F" bombs (although there are a couple) I just mean the band mates talk filthy and the lyrics are filthy, singing songs about "Big Bottoms" and what have you.
It is all meant to make fun of the 80's hair bands that really do sing dirty songs about that sort of thing in cryptic messages, but these guys just come out and say it. This is why it is so gosh darn funny and why I almost wet myself being very pregnant with Linus first seeing it.
So I highly recommend this one if you are going through a nervous breakdown for any reason, it is good medicine!
PLOT: In 1982 legendary British heavy metal band Spinal Tap attempt an American comeback tour accompanied by a fan who is also a film-maker. The resulting documentary, interspersed with powerful performances of Tap's pivotal music and profound lyrics, candidly follows a rock group heading towards crisis, culminating in the infamous affair of the eighteen-inch-high Stonehenge stage prop.
RATING: R like I said for good reason, the language.
STARS: 4 out of 5
ONE LINER: " But this one goes to eleven"

Movie Monday-Cinema Paradiso

Here is another great foreign film introduced to me again by Colleen. This story is so sweet and genuine, I just LOVE love love the story and the relationships in the film. It goes to show that you can have a best friend who is any age.
PLOT: A boy who grew up in a native Sicilian Village returns home as a famous director after receiving news about the death of an old friend. Told in a flashback, Salvatore reminiscences about his childhood and his relationship with Alfredo, a projectionist at Cinema Paradiso. Under the fatherly influence of Alfredo, Salvatore fell in love with film making, with the duo spending many hours discussing about films and Alfredo painstakingly teaching Salvatore the skills that became a stepping stone for the young boy into the world of film making. The film brings the audience through the changes in cinema and the dying trade of traditional film making, editing and screening. It also explores a young boy's dream of leaving his little town to foray into the world outside.
STARS: 4 1/2 out of 5
RATING: PG-13?

Movie Monday-House of Usher

This may be one of many movie Monday's that will be of an Edgar Allen Poe story starring Vincent Price. It was hard for me to pick which one I wanted to do since there are so many and they are all so great! Vincent Price is my all time favorite actor and I also adore E.A.P. so the two combined is always magnificent!
This is one of Poe's considered "greats" and it truly is. The story is full of mystery suspense and of coarse it has a great twist ending.
PLOT: After a long journey, Philip arrives at the Usher mansion seeking his loved one, Madeline. Upon arriving, however, he discovers that Madeline and her brother Roderick Usher have been afflicted with a mysterious malady: Roderick's senses have become painfully acute, while Madeline has become catatonic. That evening, Roderick tells his guest of an old Usher family curse: any time there has been more than one Usher child, all of the siblings have gone insane and died horrible deaths. As the days wear on, the effects of the curse reach their terrifying climax.
RATING: PG-13?
STARS: 5 out of 5.
Here are two shots of the amazing Vincent Price as Usher!

Movie Monday-Drop Dead Fred

Here we have a film that I dedicate to my sister Heidi. Drop Dead Fred is for sure one of those "cult classics" not everyone would love this film, and not everyone would love this film like my sister Heidi and I do. We have so many inside jokes with this one (and well she knows what I mean about that). This is for sure a very fun and imaginative film for big kids. Although I frequently watched this as a child it is more for adults because of some cussing and a few other things. If you have not seen this I would highly recommend it!PLOT: A young woman who's attempting to find her place in the world battles with her controlling mother and a womanizing husband finds comfort and confusion with the appearance of her childhood friend. It is a zappy movie that emphasizes self-actualization.
RATING: PG-13
STARS: 4 out of 5, in my opinion, however rotten tomatoes gives it a 9%.


I love this picture of little "Lizzie." This was her response to her mother when she told her a somewhat twisted version of a Prince and a Princess.
Okay so I had to put this pic. up because it has to do with a one liner. Lizzie asks Fred what he thinks about her dress and he says," Ooh it looks like a big bruise."
Also with this picture, the quote to go along with it is so classic(Warning there is cussing).
Fred: The B!$%^ squashed my head! The mega B!%^*!!!!!
Here are some more ONE LINERS:
Fred: It's the B&$#@! The MEGA B*&%$, the B$%^#!
Fred: Dog poo, dog poo, yucky, yucky dog poop! Dog poop over here more on the side yucky yucky smelly dog poo!
This quote is in reference to young Lizzie's mean mother.
Fred: I'll eat her head. Lizzie: and I'll eat the rest of her. Fred: and then we will poop her all over her table!

Movie Monday- Shadow of a Doubt

Last week I dedicated my movie Monday to my sister Holly. So this week I decided to dedicate movie Monday to my brother Scott ( no worries Heidi you will be next week).
'Shadow of a Doubt' is film done by one of my favorite directors, Alfred Hitchcock. I dedicate this to my brother ( which he most likely won't even read this) because he is the one who got me into Hitchcock.
This has been called Alfred's best work, and I would agree, although I do have a few equally favorites of his. This film was made in 1943.
The reason I love Hitchcock so much is because his stories are so very well written. He can tell such a great story of mystery, murder, and even some comedy without making it gruesome like other films of this nature. I also love old spooky/mystery films and these are right up my alley. They just don't make good spooky/mystery films anymore, now days they are nasty a bloody and poorly written. So if you like your spooky/mystery films bloody then you may laugh at these old Hitchcock films. As for me they are a true gem!PLOT: Young Charlie Newton not only shares a name with her favorite uncle, but a special bond. At times she feels the charming man is the only one who understands her need to be extraordinary and that she is better than the tiny town she lives in. So, when life is too dull she calls on him to visit. However, upon the arrival of two detectives, one of whom becomes very close to young Charlie, and a series of unusual clues concerning the mysterious 'Merry Widow Murderer', her Uncle Charlie's behavior begins to change. Young Charlie starts to suspect that the man she once idolized is not what he seems and as her world shatters, she realizes that her life may be in danger.
RATING:PG
STARS: 5 out of 5!

Movie Monday- 9 to 5

I have to dedicate this movie Monday to my sister Holly. 9 to 5 was one of our favorites growing up (which is funny my mom let us watch this as young as we were). We had this one memorized (along with a few others). I remember how we loved the song at the start and knew all the words. we had some pretty good times watching this and cracking jokes about Dolly's big boobs. I do have to say how I really hate Jane Fonda, however she is a riot in this film.PLOT: Frank Hart is a pig. He takes advantage in the grossest manner of the women who work with him. When his three assistants manage to trap him in his own house they assume control of his department and productivity leaps, but just how long can they keep Hart tied up?
RATING:PG-13
STARS: 4 1/2 out of 5.
ONE LINERS: "Your a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot."
"You got a nice package you may as well show it off."
There is many many more too, so you will have to watch it.

Movie Monday-Raising Arizona

This is a Coen brothers (O' Brother where art Thou, Fargo) film, and one of their best at that. I found this film to be so super funny. It was especially funny to me since my sister and her husband were having a hard time getting pregnant (they eventually adopted-LEGALLY) so I had to make her and her husband watch it. The film has a young Holly Hunter staring with Nicolas Cage, who I am not normally a huge fan of. I highly recommend this one, especially to those having a hard time making babies, it will give you a good laugh!PLOT: It's the story of "Ed" (short for Edwina), a policewoman who falls in love with "Hi" (short for H.I. McDonnough), while she's taking his mug shots. She's infertile and he's a habitual robber of convenience stores, and their folksy marital bliss depends on settling down with a rug rat. Unable to conceive, they kidnap one of the newsworthy quintuplets born to an unpainted-furniture huckster named Nathan Arizona, who quickly hires a Harley-riding mercenary to track the baby's whereabouts and hits the road!
RATING: PG-13
STARS: 4 out of 5!
I love this picture! He is robbing a store for diapers.

Movie Monday-Funny Face

Those of you who know me well, know that I adore old films. Especially Audrey Hepburn ones, and even better Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn. Funny Face has got to be in my top 2 favorite old films. Audrey is such a classic icon in this film. The music is so amazing (they even sing a song all about the color pink!) and the story itself is so much fun! So for those of you who have not seen this, it is a MUST.PLOT: Fashion photographer Dick Avery, in search for an intellectual backdrop for an air-headed model, expropriates a Greenwich Village bookstore. When the photo session is over the store is left in a shambles, much to salesgirl Jo Stockton's dismay. Avery stays behind to help her clean up. Later, he examines the photos taken there and sees Jo in the background of one shot. He is intrigued by her unique appearance, as is Maggie Prescott, the editor of a leading fashion magazine. They offer Jo a modeling contract, which she reluctantly accepts only because it includes a trip to Paris. Eventually, her snobbish attitude toward the job softens, and Jo begins to enjoy the work and the company of her handsome photographer.
RATING: PG
STARS: I give it 5 out of 5!
ONE LINERS: "I love your funny face!" and "You fill the air with smiles, for miles and miles and miles."

Movie Monday-Cry Baby

This classic film by the crazy John Waters (writer of the original Hairspray that inspired the play) is just hysterical! Johnny Depp is also so crazy and funny in it. Again this is one of my favorites filled with an awesome soundtrack as well. I have some great memories of watching this film with my girlfriends (because it is for sure a girl film).PLOT: Allison is a "square" good girl who has decided she wants to be bad and falls hard for Cry-Baby Walker, a Greaser (or "Drape" in John Waters parlance). Spoofing Elvis movies and Juvenile Delinquency scare films of the '50s, this movie follows the adventures of Cry-Baby who, though he is sent to juvie, is determined to cross class (and taste) boundaries to get Allison back.
RATING: PG-13
ONE LINERS: Okay so there are so many in this film and I can't even think of the good ones so you will just have to watch it and find them yourself.


Let me know what you think.

Movie Monday-The Triplets of Belleville!

This movie Monday I have chosen "The Triplets of Belleville." This film is such a gem and not many have heard of it, despite it's 2 Oscar nominations. The film was released in the U.S. however it is originally from France. The majority of the film has is told through pantomime which makes it unique. You never even notice the lack of talking since there is so much great animation not to mention the bizarre story of our sweet little Champion. The film also has an amazing soundtrack that got an Oscar nom.PLOT: An orphaned boy, Champion, is raised by his grandmother, Madame Souza. Her gift of a tricycle starts a craze for cycle-racing that becomes the cornerstone of their life together. After years of relentless training, Champion makes it to the Tour de France, the toughest cycling event in the world. Alas, Champion and a handful of other top competitors are mysteriously kidnapped by a pair of sinister crooks with hangdog expressions. Supported by her faithful sidekick, her fat and flatulent dog Bruno, Madame Souza sets off to rescue her beloved Champion. An epic adventure leads them across the Atlantic to a vast seaport metropolis named Belleville, headquarters of the notorious French mafia. Lost and confused in the threatening darkness of the great city, Madame Souza and Bruno encounter the Belleville Triplets, who, in their youth, were a glamorous close-harmony act. Now, these three batty old women are now a bizarre jazz combo. Mme Souza joins the band. At their very first gig, she discovers Champion is being held captive by the mafia Godfather himself! All hell breaks loose, and the chase is on!

RATING: PG-13 Despite the fact that this is an animated film it is not really for kids. It is not bad or anything it's just that it is about a guy who gets kidnapped and at the end there is some guns and such.

I had to put this picture in since it is one of my favorite parts. Champion has been training so hard and his sweet grandma is giving him a massage with the lawn mower.
Here is young Champion when he gets his first bike!

Movie Monday-The New York Doll

This week for movie Monday I bring you "The New York Doll." I thought this was a great documentary on The New York Doll's very own Authur "Killer" Kane who eventually joined the church later on in his life.
This film really made me realize that Heavenly Father really cares about the things that are important to us, even if they seem a little dumb. This guy always dreamed of playing with his band again when one day he gets a call from The Smiths' Morrissey (a personal favorite!) wanting him to rejoin the dolls in London. Kane is excited beyond belief, however he is so poor he had pawned his guitar and was paying a small fortune each month so they would not sell it. He only needed to pay $200 to get it out but he never had that much money at once. Then his generous ward members join forces and pay to get it out.
He later goes on to play with his band in London, fulfilling his life long dream since the band had split in the 1970's. Shortly after he is diagnosed with leukemia and passes away.
This is what I mean when I say that Heavenly Father really cares about what is important to us. He was able to fulfill his dream before he died.
This is a moving film and a very great story of a man's conversion to the church.
RATING: PG-13.


Kane worked for the church.

Movie Monday-Ponette

I am writing this Sunday night but most of you won't read it until Monday, so it is still Movie Monday.

I try to bring you films that are 1. Not too popular or have not been properly recognized or 2. My all time favorites.

So it is with "Ponette" it is in my top 3 favorite films of all time. Many of you may not have heard of it since it is a foreign film. But it did win many many awards at the Venice film Festival including Best actress to the 4 year old Victoire Thivisol, which is very well earned.

I saw this film 2 years after my dad past away and at this point in my life I was having a hard time with it, since I had just got married and was missing my dad. This was just the film I needed at that moment (thanks for the recommend Colleen). The message was such a powerful and beautiful one I bawled my eyes out for nearly 2 hours after it was over. I was not just crying because the film was moving but it was sort of enlightening to me.

I then attempted to make everyone else in my family watch it, but I don't think they got as much out of it as me. I highly recommend this film and more so to those of you who have lost a loved one. So you may expect to see me with a little Ponette someday if I ever have a girl. Here is the synopsis from wiki:

SYNOPSIS: Ponette's mother dies in a car crash, which Ponette herself survives with only a broken arm (she consequently is forced to wear an arm cast). After her mother's death, her father (Xavier Beauvois) leaves Ponette with her Aunt Claire (Claire Nebout), and her cousins Matiaz (Matiaz Bureau Caton) and Delphine (Delphine Schiltz). Ponette becomes increasingly withdrawn, and spends most of her time waiting for her mother to come back. When waiting alone fails, Ponette enlists the help of her school friend Ada (Léopoldine Serre) to help her become a "child of God" to hopefully convince God to return her mother.

Rating: I think it is PG but it could be PG-13 because of the subject matter.

Movie Monday-Whale Rider

This week for movie Monday I chose the film "Whale Rider." I feel like this film was highly overlooked. It is by far one of my all time favorites. The cute girl in it was nominated for an Oscar for this film with good reason. She gives an amazing performance especially considering that she was 12 years old. I love the story in this film, it is so beautiful with a beautiful message.Here is the PLOT OUTLINE ( I grabbed from wiki.):The movie's plot follows the story of Paikea Apirana ("Pai") at the age of 12 who is the only living child in the line of the tribe's chiefly succession because of the death of her twin brother and mother during childbirth. By tradition, the leader should be the first-born son — a direct patrilineal descendant of Paikea, the Whale Rider — he who rode atop a whale from Hawaiki. However, Pai is female and technically cannot inherit the leadership.

Rating: PG so a good film for all.


I hope you all watch it, because it really is a beautiful story.

Also please read post below, thanks!

Movie Monday-The Life Aquatic

Toady's movie Monday is in my top 3 favorite films, it is "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou."
This is most likely one of the most well written comedies of this decade. It is very quirky ( as are most Wes Anderson films, the man is a genius) and full of classic on liners.
However I must say this film does take a specific kind of humor. You either LOVE it or HATE it. Some may be easily offended as well.

PLOT: When his partner is killed by the mysterious and possibly nonexistent Jaguar Shark, Steve Zissou and his Team Zissou crew set off for an expedition to hunt down the creature. Along with his estranged wife, a beautiful journalist and a co-pilot who could possibly be Zissou's son, the crew set off for one wild expedition.
ONE LINER: I suppose my favorite one liner from the film would be this:
"Esteban! He ate him he ate him, Esteban was eaten by a shark!"
I have another but it may not be appropriate.
RATING: This film is rated R due to it's "F bombs" and a random shot of a weird lady's boob (in a non sexual way).

Without his sidekicks (Stiller and Vaughn) Owen Wilson is quite capable of some great acting! This goes foe all the Wes Anderson films he is in.
This would be Bill Murry at his best!

Kelly's Movie Monday!

I have decided that since Danny and I are HUGE movie buffs I would start "Movie Monday's." This is where I will share one of my favorite movies. So I will start with a favorite of Danny and I.


Pee-Wee's big adventure! Eccentric man-child Pee-Wee Herman embarks on the big adventure of his life across the US mainland, as he sets out to find his beloved bike, when it is stolen in broad daylight.
I am told that I had this film memorized at the age of 3 and mom had to hide it from me, see I was a Burton fan from the start! Later on when Danny and I were first dating he said that this was one of his favorite movies, at that moment I knew we were meant to be together. We watch this about once every 3 months or so.
This movie is packed with one liners and is so hysterical I don't know how anyone could not like it. Pee-Wee Herman (a.k.a. Paul Rubens) is such a classic character that every comedian should take some advice from this guy!This part in the film is so great! This was always my favorite part as a kid because Pee-Wee had such a cool house.
"DOTTY!" This is Dotty and she is in love with Pee-Wee, but he is so dumb he does not notice.
"Tell em' Large Marge sent ya" Possibly the most famous line in the film and when you see it you will know why.
"Boo ha ha"
I hope you will all check out this classic that brought two people together to make cute baby Linus'. Let me know what you think!