In Which I Go To A Movie Theatre

I am not being paid by Disney to do this review, but really I should be.

Mr. DayInTheLife and I took two of our kids to see a movie last night.  We are not movie theatre goers.  So I am proud to say that if this is the only theatre movie we see in all of 2015, we made an excellent choice.

Why Seeing a Pre-Screening of McFarland USA Yesterday Evening With My Family Was The Best Decision I've Made Since Earlier Yesterday When I Ate a Whole Not a Half of a Cinnamon Roll


"McFarland, USA poster" by Source. Licensed under Fair use via Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:McFarland,_USA_poster.jpg#mediaviewer/File:McFarland,_USA_poster.jpg

I encourage you to click the link, but if you are not inclined to do so here is the premise of the movie from The Google: 

 

Track coach Jim White (Kevin Costner) is a newcomer to a predominantly Latino high-school in California's Central Valley. Coach White and his new students find that they have much to learn about one another, but things begin to change when White realizes the boys' exceptional running ability. More than just physical prowess drives the teens to succeed; their strong family ties, incredible work ethic and commitment to their team all play a factor in forging these novice runners into champions.

 

1.  The boys' families in the movie are migrant workers.  Nearly all of our kids' grandparents were migrant workers at some point in their lives and just like the families in the movie they worked hard to ensure a better life for their kids.  I am not sure my kids knew what exactly migrant workers were until last night.  Now, they know.  Don't worry, I am not that naïve to think that a Disney portrayal of migrant life would nail it completely, but at least we are further along in the explanation than we were before the movie. 

2.  This movie borders on sappy a few times, but it is a great family movie that, unless you are completely heartless, will have you cheering.

3.  There is no sex, no violence, no drugs, and nothing really of questionable content.  And yet, it tells a pretty amazing story of perseverance in the face of incredible odds.

4.  I am an ex-teacher and I will always have a special place in my heart for teachers.  As rainbows and unicorns as this sounds, I truly believe teachers can change lives for the better.  Of course, there is the flip-side of that coin and I believe whole-heartedly in that, too.  This is a story in which the teacher/coach changes lives for the good.  And, yet (as you will see at the end of the movie when script is run about what happened to all the real life characters) life still happens and just because you are a high school phenomena does not mean you will not still make some poor decisions.

5.  I ran cross country track in high school.  I can't say this brought back any fond memories for me.  I mostly hated cross country track and I wasn't fast.  And, now I think you know I run because I love to eat.  Despite that, I thought about these boys today on my run.  I tried not to because I really hate sentimentality.  But I couldn't help it.  They made me not be so whiny in my head.  Me not whiny?  That's powerful stuff.

This movie made me happy.  It's the right stuff.  It's based on events that really happened that make for a great story.  It's about real people that worked amazingly hard and it paid off for them. 

McFarland USA premieres February 20.  Get yer' butts off the sofa and take some loved ones to see it!  You'll thank me after.

Thanks, hubby. Now we are all gonna die.

So, we celebrated our twenty-third wedding anniversary by going to see The Conjuring - a horror movie *based on fact*.  Because what says enduring love like that?

No spoiler alerts, but it's one of those movies about demonic possession that could happen.  Think The Exorcist, Insidious, Amityville Horror (all those happened just like the movie showed, right?).  And, like all horror movies it has a really scary doll in it along with a seemingly harmless childhood game (clap and find which is like hide-and-seek) that turns into an invitation to terror.

My personal creed after seeing movies like this is to not really "discuss" them or think much about them because I don't want to incite the demons.  Y'know?  Perfectly rationale.

But, it doesn't matter, y'all.  The demons are here and I didn't even open my mouth.

Hubby had the nerve (it's like he's screaming, "Come and get me.  I'm not scared.") to text me this yesterday: 

He texted it, so that means he was with it.  You are in imminent danger, hubby.

I nearly $hit my pants.

Then (after I had only semi-recovered from that) last night after making a running leap into my bed and quickly covering up with my blankets, I finally fell asleep.  ONLY to be awakened by Girl 3.

Girl 3:  Mommy, I'm scared.

Me:  Of what?

Girl 3:  I was playing hide and seek in a big box in my dream and it was really scary.  Can I sleep with you?

Perfect.  You guys - I'm sure my days are numbered.

They say the first 23 years are the hardest. So, I guess it's smooth sailing from now on?

Yesterday was my twenty-third wedding anniversary.  Don't do the math.

We celebrated by going to see a movie.  At the theater.  It was kind of hard to remember what to do at a theater since we haven't been to one in about as long as we've been married. 

I got two free movie passes from a parent of a child who was in my class back in January and we decided to use them yesterday. 

Here's how it went pretty much from start to finish.

1.  We had to decide on what movie to see (after a seven day decision making session on what to do had been made).  Here were our choices (as I remember them).

• Some movie about a Japanese-type monster who tries to take over the world that my 11 year old son saw a few weeks ago at a birthday party.  A birthday party for 11 year old boys.  So, that one was nixed pretty much right away.
• A Smurf movie.  Um, nixed.
• A movie with two guys facing in opposite directions each holding guns(?).  Yes, I think they were large guns.  So, an action film to celebrate 23 years of marriage (at least a few of them happy)?  No.  We have four kids, so that means we've seen just about all the action we can handle.
• A movie about a boy living with his divorced mom who has an asshat boyfriend played by Steve Carrell.  Hmm.  Could be good.  So, naturally hubby nixed it.  (Just kidding, hubby.  Kind of.)
• A vast array of foreign films.  See the thing about foreign films on your 23rd wedding anniversary (I'm guessing) is that you could wind up with subtitles (hubby hates them and I admit, it is kind of like work on your anniversary), or a lesbian love scene which (although, I'm sure hubby *might* not mind) could be a little awkward.
• The Conjuring.

So, yes.  We went to see The Conjuring which we both wanted to see.  Because what more appropriate way to celebrate 23 years of marriage than seeing a demonic horror movie that is *based on fact*?

2.  The last movie hubby and I saw together at the theatre was What Lies Beneath.  That was roughly 13 years ago and it might have also been to celebrate our anniversary.  There are a few things that have changed in movie theaters since then.

• I didn't step in gum.
• It apparently isn't awkward anymore to sit right next to someone you don't know. 
• I guess that's because there are large armrests now on every seat?  I kept waiting for someone to say, "Please put your trays in the upright position and prepare for take-off."
• The smallest bucket of popcorn you can buy costs more than the actual movie ticket and it could feed about eight people.
• There is a Starbucks in the movie theater.
• There is beer sold in the movie theater which in my opinion is depriving a lot of people of some good old fashioned ingenuity.  Kidding!  Kind of.

3.  Hubby and I acted like old people a lot. 

• We chose a matinee so that there would be no danger of falling asleep during the movie.
• We agreed to have 'a movie and dinner' rather than 'dinner and a movie.'
• We both brought sweaters and spread them on our legs.
• We whispered in hushed voices during several parts of the movie.  But, since we are both deaf we just ended up shouting to each other during the movie.
• We both commented when we saw small children at this movie, "My God.  Who would bring their kid to this movie???  What the hell is wrong with them???"
• We both wanted them to, "Turn it down for Pete's sake.  We're deaf, but not that deaf."
• We shook our heads at the party-ers in front of us who left about 12 empty beer bottles in their chairs after the movie.
• We both got up to pee.  One of us more than once.
• We both commented upon leaving that, "It feels like we've been in here forever."

4.  The movie was pretty good and I'm glad we saw it.  If you are an old timer here you know that we love horror movies and the more *based on fact* they are, the better. 

I wish I could give you a movie review and in fact I promised my sister a movie review on this blog.  But, I just can't. 

Because here's the thing about a movie like The Conjuring:  You don't talk about it afterward.  You try to pretend you never saw it.  Because if you think about it too much (or God forbid talk about it), it could happen to you.   

The movie was good, we ate fattening bad-for-you food afterward, and we talked mostly about our kids.  Was it a great day?  Yes, it was.  After you've been married 23 years it's not so much what you do, but just the company of each other.

I love you, hubby.  And I hope we make it to 24! 

Waiting for Superman? Nah. I'm just waiting to find a $20 in my pocket.

I wrote this post a long time ago and today I was reminded of it when I was listening to NPR and someone made a reference to the movie.  So, since I am still in season 2 of The Killing, I decided to just finish this up and post it.

Disclaimer - I have never seen Waiting for Superman because I have a hard and fast rule against watching documentaries.  I watched Food, Inc. and then I felt compelled to completely change the way I eat.  So, I figure I've done my documentary deed for my life.

This isn't about the movie.  I want to watch the movie.  I've heard it's good. 

It's the title of the movie that intrigues me (but, again, not enough yet to actually watch the movie).

Waiting for Superman?  Well, I'm waiting for a lot of things, too.  But, Superman is not on my list.

1.  I'm waiting to win the lottery.  This is somewhat insane since I have never played the lottery.
2.  I'm waiting to figure out what to do with the rest of my life.
3.  I'm waiting for my kids to miraculously do their chores without being reminded.
4.  I'm waiting for my retirement so that I can learn to craft better.  Or craft at all.
5.  I'm waiting for a real job from which I can retire.
6.  I'm waiting for anyone to carry what's on the stairs (directly blocking every one's path) up or down the stairs to where that crap goes.
7.  I'm waiting on my family to learn that the toilet paper goes OVER the roll, not under the roll.
8.  I'm waiting on my family to replace the toilet paper roll.
9.  I'm waiting on my four year old kids to learn inside voices.
10.  I'm waiting for Cesar Millan to come over and train my dog.
11.  And on that same note, I'm waiting to be in a tight situation so that Jim Caviezel (John, not Jesus) can come and kick some a$$ on my behalf.

Person of Interest images.yahoo.com "John?  It's me, Ms. Day In The Life.  I'm waiting on you to come get me outta this jam."

Netflix - I can't quit you.

So, I really love a great movie, but I've had a somewhat capricious relationship with Netflix since we started seeing each other last February.  I've written about it here, here, and here. 

What's uncanny is that just about one week ago after a trip to Blockbuster (remember Blockbuster?) I said to hubby, "Y'know I am really sick of Netflix never having the movies I want to see.  Why don't we just cancel Netflix and pay Blockbuster a monthly fee and we can watch whatever we want.  Well, just nine of whatever we want, but we don't have any time anyway."

To which hubby answered, "Yeah, but then we'd have to drive.  And besides we don't have any time to watch nine movies a month."

I quietly agreed with hubby, but I continued to dis Netflix in my head for a week.

Then this past Friday rolled around and we watched this (on Netflix):

On the Netflix scale of stars I think it had a 3.  Apparently 3 stars means, "This movie kinda sucks, but if you cannot drive to Blockbuster to rent the movie you really want to see, go ahead and watch this."

Saturday I woke up decidedly pissed at Netflix and seriously considering breaking up.  Then Saturday night rolled around.

Hubby selected this movie:

and you are lucky I am still alive to write about it.

Today I am convicted in continuing my relationship with Netflix for at least a while longer. 

Holy cow, y'all.  If you want a scary movie - this is it.  It's the scariest I've seen since Insidious, which I really liked.

I started to watch the movie with hubby still finishing up a few things on his computer.  It started out with subtitles and immediately I thought, "Crap.  I have to read?"  But I was quickly (I mean within the first few seconds) drawn in.  If you don't click the link - it's set in (I think) Tokyo and it involves a group of friends.  The main character is one of the friends and he is a photographer.  (Are you scared already?  I was.  Cameras in scary movies.  freak.  me.  out.)  In a nutshell (and without a spoiler alert) he and his girlfriend must figure out how to deal with some freaky $hit that is happening to him.

If you are not a reader and hate subtitles - don't worry - there isn't a lot of dialogue.  Because the dialogue that is there is powerful?  I don't know.  I'm not a movie critic.  Just know that hubby hates subtitles and he kept up just fine.

For a movie to really scare me, the main of elements of the movie have to have a basis in reality.  If I think to myself this could really happen then I am scared.  I also love the view that is from the main character's eyes (all you movie critics - tell me what this is technically called).  This movie fits the bill on both counts.  It could happen (that's also what I say about Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist) and I love the camera shots.  (Ha!  If you've already seen the movie see how I did that?)

After the movie, I had to wait downstairs until hubby was ready for bed so that I didn't have to brave the upstairs alone.  Then I had to do a 20 point check of the upstairs (closets and showers) before I made a running leap on to my bed (so that I was not grabbed by the ankles  by something under my bed).  After I was safely tucked into my bed (two hours later - kidding - kind of) I still had goosebumps.

Hubby said it wasn't all that scary to him (yeah, right).  But I saw him second glancing at all of our windows on the way upstairs.

If you love scary movies like I do - watch it.  You will not be disappointed.

Hello, Netflix? Are you busy tonight because I'm ready to give us another try.

So, you guys probably know that although I just started seeing Netflix in February - we've had our ups and downs since then.  A few weeks ago hubby and I stumbled upon The Killing.  I am pretty sure my niece recommended it to us, but my memory is bad so it could have been someone else.  Regardless, I am in love.  Season 1 (which I am sure all of you have already seen - because I live under a rock) centers on the murder of a teenage girl and two detectives who go about trying to solve it.  There are a lot of dirty politics (I crossed out dirty because is there a clean kind?) thrown into the who-dunnit, mob affiliations in the dead girl's family, and incredibly twisted emotional lives of both of the main detectives.  I.  love.  it.  all.

My love spelled out for your reading pleasure?  Yes.  (Spoiler alert, but I mostly ramble, so you're probably okay.)

1.  Old fashioned detective work, which you know I love.  No CSI-style high-gloss crime labs where no one ever hits the street because everything is on the computer.  Just cranky detectives who work their a$$es off around the clock.  In fact, it did kind of make me question whether or not detectives ever sleep.  I mean, really?  Can someone go 56 hours on no sleep and still like walk?  Because if I go on less than six hours of sleep consecutively for like more than four days I get all woozy and vomit-y and I am a B&TCH and a half.  So, basically I guess it's a good thing I never pursued my desire to be a cop/detective?

2.  Smoking.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I know smoking is the devil's work.  It's like sucking on a cancer stick.  And, for the record, I don't smoke.  Smoking in real life gives me a giant migraine and makes my eyes look like I am a huge drug addict.  But, smoking on the screen is sexy.  To me.  (Don't send me hate comments.)

3.  I hate Seattle even more than I did before.  It's set in Seattle and it rains all the f*cking time.  It is always raining.  In real life how do they wear make-up or have good hair?  I had a small desire to visit there again with hubby, but now it's gone.  So, hypothetical money saved!

4.  Detective Stephen Holder is hot.  To me.  He is this scruffy, ex-meth head (because is there any other kind of ex-meth head?), skinny, white guy.  He's Eminem-ish.  He's gotten clean and is a vegetarian.  But he eats pork rinds and smokes like a chimney.  I have a thing for guys who have a sordid past (as evidenced by hubby) and a crazy way of doing business.  And, Holder fits the bill.  I don't recall seeing Joel Kinnaman in anything before, but now I am kind of stalking him.     

5.  There is just a touch of mob activity and I love me some mob activity.

6.  The acting is really good.  I am not getting paid to write this (although they should totally be paying me), nor do I have any kind of degree in anything related to reviewing any kind of entertainment.  But, I am here to tell you - this is good acting.  The characters are evolved and deep and the acting is dramatic and well cast.  At first it was a little slow for me.  After watching episodes 1-5 (which I think we did in one night) I thought it could have all happened in one episode.  But now I'm used to it and I appreciate it (hmm, have I grown?).  And, also I think the rain makes all the $hit go slower.

7.  The last episode (13) of Season 1 made me want to shoot myself.  And, it was about 1:30 in the morning, so that was not a nice place to be mentally.  It was fraught with questions and inconsistencies and I just wanted to cry because I didn't know the answers (and because it was 1:30 in the morning and I was still wide awake).  All of the love that I had for The Killing vanished in the last 30 seconds of the last episode of Season 1.  But, then the next day when I could think clearly I found out that Season 2 was already playing on AMC and I might possibly be able to download it and watch it.  So, as I post this I am back in love and ready to gear up for Season 2.  If you're watching it now - don't tell me anything!

8.  Detective Sarah Linden played by Mireille Enos (and I kind of wish I could have another baby girl so that I could name her Mireille because after seeing that name in print for like days I LOVE it) makes me CA-RAZY because she is so warped in her private life.  I have found myself yelling at the TV at her.  Now, I never do that so that's how I know this $hit is good.

That's my amateur review, folks.  I hope you will give it a watch and if you do - let me know what you think.

In other news - I hope you had a great Memorial Day Weekend.  And, also - A Day in the Life is now on Facebook.  Check it out and friend me!  (If you want a new car - kidding!  That's illegal and I don't even have a new car.  But, I might send you guys some cookies or pictures of cookies or something.)  Please and thank you.

Apparently I am speaking a language no one else speaks.

It's Monday, I'm in a post-Christmasy-pre-summer funk (yes, I realize we are four months out from Christmas, so it may be a post-Easter funk) so this is going to be a short hodge-podgy type post.  I'll make it up to you when I am in better spirits.

In case you missed it:

1.  I no longer speak English, apparently.  Or, my kids all suddenly need hearing aids.  My kids have taken to not listening to a word I say.  Really?  Why do we have school after Spring Break?  I am miserable.  They are miserable.  We've missed the morning bus 9 out of the past 10 school days. 

It's just a sad case of I Want School To Be Over And It's Not.  I am not motivated at all to supervise homework.  And, you can imagine how enthusiastic the kids are about doing it.  Behavior has gone straight out the window (mine and theirs).  This morning lying in bed I actually thought, "How bad would it be to not take them to school today?" 

If you are Super Nanny, by all means feel free to give me some advice.  Lord knows I am not, nor will I ever be, in the running for Mother of The Year.  An outsider looking in *might* say, "That woman has lost all discipline in her household.  Send help."

2.  I am slowly forgiving Netflix.  Hubby and I recently watched Winter's Bone and True Grit - two movies I've wanted to see since they came out.  I loved both of them. 

True Grit.  Wow.  If you love the Coen brothers and Jeff Bridges, you are going to love this movie.  If you are not into that - skip it.  You won't like it or understand it.  Amazing acting and cinematography.  The Coen brothers have their usual way with dialogue and stark realities.  Jeff Bridges plays a drunk with all the nuances that he usually has when playing his characters. 

Winter's Bone.  I loved it, but I understand that it is not a movie for everyone.  It's about a girl who goes looking for her meth-cooking dad in order to try to make him appear for his court date.  It was kind of like Deliverance meets Trainspotting.  I liked the "mystery", the no-sugar-coating depiction of this kind of hard life, and the excellent acting.  The ending wasn't too bad, either.

3.  I said I was slowly forgiving Netflix.  Here's my continuing beef.  Can we have some decent movies for kids?  Please?  Sheesh.  I've watched some doozies in the past few weeks and I am sad to say that I don't even remember their names.  The Spy Who Ate My Mother?  The Spy Next Week?  Everyone Is A Freakin' Spy?  My Mom Hates Spy Movies?  Seriously? 

Why can't there be more of this:  Shaun the Sheep,  Gnomeo and Juliet, Penguins of Madagascar?  Because I love that $hit.  Please, save me and if you know a great kid movie (ages 7-10, that doesn't have bad words, excessive violence, drug use, or spies) send it my way.  Before I am forced to stab my eyes out with sharp sticks while watching a spy.

4.  Cathe might not be an actual real person with real muscles that ache.  I mean I knew she was strong and all after doing Drill Max for one year.  Now, I think she might be a robot.  This woman can balance her body on her hands and then extend her legs out forward.  Yeah.  She is  a contortionist with muscles bigger than most men. 

It turns out Yoga and Pilates are like a form of torture and (I realize these two points are totally unrelated) I might be the only person in the world who can actually gain weight in my ABS while doing an Ab Circuit.  YEESH.  The DVD makes me eat.  It's true.  I thought I would be getting back with you with all the pounds and inches I'd lost.  Sadly, I am just here to tell you that my stomach might actually be bigger and I am ravenous all the time.

5.  Like I said, I've been in a serious funk lately.  If I don't post for a while - that's why.  Luckily I have the internets to make me laugh.  This little gem brought me huge snorts last week when I was feeling blue.  It came from a blog I enjoy a lot and have stalked for a while.  Thanks, Average in Suburbia!  It is NOT for the easily offended.  But, then again, if you are The Easily Offended, you may be in the wrong place.

Have a happy week!

               

Netflix: You win.

Apparently Netflix reads my blog.  Or, it could be that I have an amazing and talented (at what - we don't know yet) friend who recommended such a great show that I have to write a post about it.  Please and thank you - - this recommendation is that awesome.

A good friend and loyal blog reader, whose identity will remain protected, (Master of:  jewelry, fashion, and her pantry.  Not a master of: baking) recently suggested hubby and I watch Lilyhammer - a Netflix production.  Now, as you know, hubby and I have odd taste when it comes to TV and movies.  We are hard to please and I am notoriously bad about picking loser shows.  So, when it comes to taking people's recommendations I am a little gun shy.  I don't usually do it.  But, it was a boring Friday night, so we decided to watch it.

If you have not watched it, it is Fargo meets Goodfellas and I am in love.  I am not being paid by Netflix to write this, but I should be.  Lilyhammer stars Steven Van Zandt.  I never watched Sopranos, so I really was not that familiar with him.  What a shame because I love him.  In a nutshell, Van Zandt plays a mobster who testifies against a mob boss and ends up in Lillehammer, Norway in witness protection where he acculturates quite nicely.  He reminds me of hubby because he is a guy who could benefit from some anger management and who uses muscle to gently persuade people, but at his heart he is a lovable character.  The humor of the show is dry and mostly situational not forced (perfect for me).  I laughed so hard I snorted (which usually indicates a winner for me) and the storyline is just unpredictable enough to keep you watching.

That's all I am going to say about it because if you click the link above you can have almost the entire show without Netflix.  Thank you, friend for a good tip.

I would be remiss if I did not also mention one more show that hubby and I have fallen in love with.  Thanks to a comment from Leigh after I was bi&*%ing about a TV show I love being cancelled, hubby and I are now addicted to TV's Person of Interest.  With Jim Caviezel as one of the stars, there is plenty of eye candy and there is an amazing plot that makes you think as an added bonus.  Thank you, Leigh for a fabulous recommendation.   

Netflix and TV:  I am on my way to forgiving you.  Happy viewing, friends!

Leonardo DiCaprio: I'm still pissed. Netflix: You are not far behind.

So, you might know we got Netflix shortly after Santa brought us the Wii.  Now, I realize the rest of the living world has probably had Netflix for about 20 years, but it's new to us.  I am still a little amazed that I can flick on the TV (well, not really me, but the 10 year old boy because I have yet to learn how to use the Wii or Netflix on my own) and find an array of movies right there that I might want to see.  (Let me just say now that, among other things, Netflix furthers my attempts to never have to dress or bathe.) 

You might be thinking to yourself, "This is a good thing, right?  How can it go south?"  Well, that's what I am here to tell you.  Here, my friends, is how Netflix can go wrong.

As a preface to this post I should probably tell you that since I was born I have been notoriously bad at picking movies.  I just suck.  I could blame my horrible memory, but that's not really fair.  I think it's just in my blood.  Often times I will hear a review of a movie that sounds just fabulous and 1.  I really screw up the name of the movie and instead rent it's B counterpart, or 2.  I actually rent the correct movie only to find the person who reviewed it was apparently on hallucinogenic drugs that caused him or her to think it was a great movie.  Hubby knows this about me and tolerates it (but not without making comments about it occasionally when he's been forced to watch some movie worse than the sit-com Whitney).

Fast forward to us getting Netflix.  The first movie I watched was The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.  I am not being paid to say this, but I should be.  That was an awesome movie.  Fabulous acting, intriguing plot, and suspenseful to the end.  Despite that, my faith in my movie picking ability was restored with one movie!  I know, too good to be true. 

Then my second pick was Creepshow 2 circa 1980s based on the book by Stephen King.  Now, I love Steven King and I may have been confusing Creepshow 2 with the original Creepshow (which I think was actually a pretty good movie).  Plus, my love for Stephen King may have influenced my pick.  I have read quite a few of his books and of the movies adaptations I remember I loved Misery, Christine, Shining, The Green Mile.  Well, let me just say that Creepshow 2 is quite possibly The Worst Movie Ever Made Based on a Stephen King Book.  In my mind (and I am pretty sure hubby's) I was demoted back to Worst Movie Picker Ever.




It looks like it could be good, right?  Apparently looks can be deceiving.

THEN I picked Shutter Island.  I remembered that when that movie came out in 2010 (because I am still watching Must Sees from the 1900's) I really wanted to see it.  Well, this is how bad it is.  I fell asleep more than twice, woke up, continued watching and still was able to understand the plot.  Not only is it a horrible movie, it is like a train wreck.  You so want to look away, but something compels you to keep watching.  When the ending credits rolled I was shocked and bitter to learn Martin Scorcese is the director?!  In a nutshell:  plot that's been used a million times, bad acting, lighting that's tough for people over *30*, and scary people on par with Creepshow.  So, let me just say - had it been circa 1980 it could have beat Creepshow 2 for the Bad Movie Oscar.

The thing that angers me the most is that I should have known better.  I really am not a DiCaprio fan.  In fact, I'm kind of an un-fan.  I'm still kinda angry about Titanic.  Not really the movie itself, but how much I had to hear about it after the movie.  Y'know?  I could be one of about 20 people that hated Titanic.  You already know how it ends and that takes away half the fun.  And then there was Inception.  I fell sound asleep after taking a bathroom break and coming back to be lost as hell.  Revolutionary Road.  Didn't even see it, but the trailers made me gag.  I thought I had remembered all of the reasons why I do not care for DiCaprio and then hubby reminded me of What's Eating Gilbert Grape.  Hubby pointed out that that was a truly great movie.  I reminded hubby that it was because Leon had Johnny Depp to pull him through.  

I wasted two hours and eighteen minutes of my life that I cannot get back.  I finally went to bed after midnight and was grumpy and groggy all the next day.  Bottom line:  I'm still pissed.  It's going to take me a while to get over this one.  My movie recommendation (thank me later) - if you have two hours and eighteen minutes of free time this weekend do not watch DiCaprio and be cautious with Netflix.  Happy weekend and may all your movie picks be winners!