The Blind Side

Sorry about the extended absence in posting! Life has been very busy and I haven't had much time to try new things, let alone review them. There are a sad number of movies on my 'need to see' list.

Also, I know that pretty much everyone on the planet has already seen 'The Blind Side', but I wanted to make sure to review it for anyone who is still holding out!



One Word Description: Inspiring

Family Appropriate: Again, I would agree with the rating on this one! The only objectionable parts are some scenes where Michael is back where he grew up, not such a nice area of town. These scenes really help you understand where he's coming from, but might be a little too scary for small children.

Basic Outline: This movie is a true story about the Tuohy family and a young man named Michael Oher. Michael gets into a private school because they assume from his build that he will make a good football player. Leigh Anne Tuohy decides to take him in for one night and discovers a polite, good kid who doesn't have much of a chance in life because of where he comes from and all the things he doesn't have (like a home and a family). She decides to help him and the whole family starts to make Michael one of them. They help him with school, with football and help him with some of his other dreams, like getting a drivers license. He truly becomes a member of their family.

For anyone who thinks this is another sports movie and you don't like sports movies, think again. It is so much more than that and it really will be worth your time to give it a try.

Sandra Bullock won an Oscar for her role in this movie and for once I agree with the Academy's choice! This is not her typical movie at all, but she is absolutely amazing! About a week ago, Leigh Anne Tuohy and Michael Oher were on 'Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'. After watching that, I am even more impressed. I felt like I already knew Leigh Anne Tuohy because Sandra Bullock really acted exactly like her. Even her stance and tone of voice were accurate, it was incredible.

Recommendation: If you see nothing else this year, see this movie.

Yours, Mine and Ours

One Word Description: Surprising

Family Appropriate: Definitely!

Basic Outline: High school sweethearts, Frank and Helen, meet at a high school reunion. They have both lost their spouses and have very large families. On a whim, they decide to get married. This seems like a great plan, until they try to get their very different families to live together. He's in the Coast Guard and runs his house like the military and she's a free-thinking, almost hippie, artist. Their kids decide this is not going to work out and set out to break their parents up.

I know this one's been out for a while, but I thought I'd review it for anyone like me that didn't bother with seeing it. I was very pleasantly surprised by this movie. I expected something more along the lines of "Cheaper By The Dozen", which was not my favorite. It was surprisingly funny and had a good solid plot line!

I have also heard that the original version of the movie, starring Lucille Ball is excellent. I have not seen it yet, but hope to do so soon. If you've seen both, please leave a comment and tell me which one you like best and why!

Recommendation: Watch it!

Wheat bread that feels like white

One word description: Fluffier. Yummier!

Here's the best trick I have found to getting kids to eat homemade whole wheat bread. I add one TB of dough enhancer to each cup of wheat flour. It improves the texture, taste and strength of the wheat bread. It makes it light and fluffy. One can is about $6 at a health food store and lasts quite a while in the fridge. I noticed you can even buy it online now.

Allergy note: it does contain whey and gluten.

Another trick is to buy white wheat kernels. White wheat is less bitter than red wheat and makes a whiter flour. It is more money than red wheat and does not store as long. I often mix white and red wheat 50/50.

Recommendation: Use the enhancer in any bakery item: cakes, quick breads, cookies, etc to improve the flavor and texture.

Gilligan's Island DVD

One word description: CLASSIC

Family appropriateness: Yes! Ginger's saucy personality and being chased by head hunters are as bad as it gets.

Summary: 7 castaways clever adventures. My kids pick Gilligan over every Disney DVD we own, every time. DVD price is under $15 a season now (avg 32 episodes/811 min). 25-minute episode length is perfect when the kids want to "watch a movie" right before bed.

Recommendation: Get it while you still can.

Did You Hear About The Morgans?

One Word Description: Good

Family Appropriate: If all your family members are over 13. This one hold pretty true to what the rating says. There is talk of infidelity that has occurred in the past and a few swear words, but nothing else objectionable.

Basic Outline: Meryl and Paul Morgan are separated, he's trying to earn her love back and she's not interested. They happen to be walking together and witness a murder and are, unfortunately, seen by the murderer. For their safety, they are put into witness protection, together. As you can imagine, funny situations occur when a couple who have lived in New York their whole lives and aren't particularly happy together are relocated to Ray, Wyoming. One of my personal favorite lines:"This is Ray." (two seconds later) "That was it." All in all, it was funny, fairly well done and made an enjoyable evening.

Recommendation: Don't rush out right now, but watch it when you get a chance!

Fablehaven

FAN-TAS-TIC

Genre: Fantasy

Target Age group: 9-15(ish), but great for adults too!

If you have not yet read the Fablehaven series, do it now. If you started the series and have not finished, start again. It's worth it.

The books center around two siblings, Kendra and Seth Sorenson. In the first book, they discover that their grandparents are caretakers of a preserve for magical creatures, called Fablehaven. The first book deals with demons and uprisings within Fablehaven. This is all kind of preliminary and sets up the real story that starts in book two.

Starting in book two, Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star, they learn of two warring societies, The Society of the Evening Star and the Knights of the Dawn. The Society of the Evening Star is trying to open a demon prison called Zzyzx and The Knights of the Dawn are trying to stop them at all costs.

In order to open the prison, The Society of the Evening Star must collect 5 artifacts that act as keys to open the prison. These artifacts are hidden at preserves around the world. Since preserves are falling right and left, The Knights of the Dawn decide to find the artifacts themselves, in order to better protect them. Most of the series details the adventures of Seth and Kendra as they help find and guard the artifacts.

I just finished the final book, Fablehaven: Keys to the Demon Prison. I can't tell you much about what happens here without giving away what happens in other books. Just know, that this is Brandon Mull's best work by far! He ends the series with a few nice twists and turns, some great new characters and just good writing in general. I thought he worked everything out quite nicely in the end. This book has a little bit of everything: lots of fantasy (obviously), action, romance (just a little), mystery, it's all there.

The first book in the series was also Brandon Mull's first book. It's a good start, not the best thing I've ever read, but a good start. You can definitely watch his writing style mature and solidify and the series progresses. So, I say again, if you stopped after book one, start again!

Recommendation: READ THEM!

Bandslam

One Word Description: Cute

Family Appropriate: Yes!

Basic Outline: Will Burton moves to New Jersey, hoping to get a fresh start on life. He meets some new friends right off the bat, Charlotte and Sa5m (the 5 is silent). In New Jersey, there's a competition every year called Bandslam and, as Sa5m puts it, it's Texas high school football big. Will ends up managing Charlotte's band, bringing together a bunch of kids who never would have been friends. There are, of course, a few rocky spots in all these friendships, but the movie is essentially about all of these kids finding friends and finding a place in life. Is it cheesy? Absolutely. Is the acting stellar? Not really. Will is played by Gaelan Connell, who has never been in a movie before, so all things considered, I thought he was pretty good. If you are ok with cheesy teenager movies like I am, then you will enjoy this one!

Recommendation: Watch it!