Thursday Thirteen #16 ~ Thirteen Recent Movies I Have Enjoyed and/or Want to See

I know this is late, but I thought, what the heck? Thirteen recent movies I've seen and enjoyed and/or want to see.

1.) Shooter - This is the one with Mark Wahlberg as the sniper. It was a good movie. Only gripe was that Danny Glover sounded like he was talking with a mouthful of gauze. Anyone else notice this?

2.) Transformers - Honestly, I knew this movie was going to rawk when I saw the "teaser" that was leaked on the internet of a VW Bug transforming. That's all you saw. It was fricken' sweet. I never watched the cartoon growing up, but I have been assimilated.

3.) Ratatouille - Despite having no clue how to spell it, this movie was excellent. I loved it. However, do NOT go to see this movie before you've eaten. It will only make you hungry.

4.) Ocean's 13 - Okay, I really liked this one. A friend of mine took me out to the movies to see this (after she made me watch Ocean's 12 at her house) and I really enjoyed it. Even though it had some actors in it that might push your annoying button (please, not another word about "Brangelina!"), it was very amusing.

5.) 1408 - Even though DH told me most of the stuff in this movie before I saw it, I still wanted to see it for the John Cusack factor. LOL It was very good, and I love it when a movie does some different things to get you thinking outside the box in regards to telling a story.

6.) Evan Almighty - A cheesy flick about God descending from On High to recruit another "Noah". Being a Christian, this movie intrigued me because of that little clause in Genesis that mentions God never flooding the earth again. "I will set my bow in the sky..." However, this movie does a great job of portraying "God" without offending religious doctrine at all. It's even got some great, thought-provoking moments in it that makes me wonder if Morgan Freeman and Steve Carell are truly God-fearing Christians themselves...

7.) Letters from Iwo Jima - This movie was excellent. I love Chow Yun-Fat anyhow, but this movie was great. Even though I was reading sub-titles throughout, it was very interesting to see the other side of things, and realize, they are soldiers, just like you are, fighting a war they might not believe in... Great stuff. Kudos, Clint Eastwood.

8.) Flags of our Fathers - Again, another Eastwood Iwo Jima story, but about the American side. Rather than tell the same story from the side of the Allies, Eastwood instead focuses on the famous flag that was raised, and the photo that was taken of it. The men who raised it were instant heroes, but they didn't feel like heroes, they just raised the flag because they'd been ordered to. There's no honor in that. This film dove into the superficial-ness of fame when they got back home, and I really enjoyed it as far as war movies go.

9.) The Astronaut Farmer - This movie was kinda far-fetched and didn't have much in the way of backstory (which I wish they did a bit more), however, it focuses on the power of your dreams, and how never to give up on them. While I agree with the basic premise, I don't necessarily agree with the methods of acheiving the dream, such as sacrificing your family, for instance. It's a good movie, don't get me wrong, but it does smack a bit of being selfish when trying to accomplish your dream regardless of who you hurt along the way.

MOVIES I REALLY REALLY REALLY WANT TO SEE BUT THAT ARE NOT OUT YET

10.) The Golden Compass - DH read this book at the urgings of our friends after watching the movie trailer. I love Sam Elliot, so the movie had me at Sam. LOL But I love steam-punk-esque-fantasy type stories, and this looks right up my alley.

11.) Stardust - This is another steam-punk-esque-fantasy story with witches and flying machines and women falling from the sky... LOL It looks EXCELLENT, and I cannot wait.

12.) The Spiderwick Chronicles - My dd has the first book of this series, and I really want to see how they bring it to the screen. I haven't read the book, but it looks interesting to say the least.

13.) The Wolverine and the Rose - Okay, no, my book hasn't been slated for a movie (I wish), but with the recent cropping of fantasy movies, I can only hope, right?? LOL

Luckychickenluckychickenluckychicken :P

And there you have it! :)

~~Becka, the Ever-Optimistic