The Oscars

As written in one of my earlier posts, I had a goal of seeing every movie nominated for best picture this year.  While I definitely didn’t make that happen, I did manage to see five out of the nine, with encouragement from my friend Nader.  While I’m watching the Oscar pre-show, I have decided to write my opinions on what should win this year for yall. J

First, let me fess up that I didn’t see Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Tree of Life, War Horse or Midnight in Paris.  The first three I didn’t really have a desire to see and I just ran out of time to see Midnight in Paris.  However, Midnight in Paris is definitely on my Netflix queue, and from what I hear, this movie would have made it pretty high on my Oscars list…

So on to the movies I did see: The Artist, The Descendants, The Help, Hugo and Moneyball.  I really enjoyed each of these movies, all for various reasons.  If I were in the Academy, here would be my votes:

5. Moneyball

Despite that I’m putting this movie in last place, I really really enjoyed it.  I wasn’t familiar at all with this story but I immediately googled Brad Pitt’s character as soon as I left the theater.  The story was heartwarming and I thought both Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill did a fantastic job.

4. The Artist

This movie has received high reviews since it opened and I completely understand why.  This was the first silent movie I had seen and honestly, I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.  It held my attention the entire movie and I really felt for the characters.  I think the silence actually helped me stay engaged in the movie as it required me to pay close attention to the film, even reading the actors lips at times.

3. The Help

This was the story I already loved.  I literally could not put this book down when I read it about a year ago.  I always worry that I won’t like the movie interpretation of books that I love, but I was pleasantly surprised by The Help.  While this movie may not have my vote for best picture, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer certainly have my vote for best leading and supporting actresses.

2. The Descendants

The call between spot number 2 and 3 was a tough call.  However, the reason I went with The Descendants over The Help was the family dynamics in this movie.  I thought George Clooney and his daughters in this movie demonstrated an incredibly moving performance of a family caught in the middle of betrayal and heartache.  Watching this family put their lives back together in the midst of crisis was touching. And the beautiful Hawaiian scenery helped.  J

1. Hugo

Hands down, this would be my choice for best film of the year.  This was the last movie of the five that I saw and it was simply amazing.  As cliché as it sounds, I laughed, cried, and wanted to watch the movie again as soon as it ended.  I wanted to adopt Hugo, encourage Isabel and save George Melies.  Upon learning the truth of the story about George Melies, I loved this movie even more.

So there are my thoughts.  We will see if the Academy shares my views tonight...

DC Adventures

So last weekend (now technically two weekends ago) I went to DC for what has become a bimonthly tradition.  There were multiple reasons for this trip.  Of course, I was able to see most everyone in dc that I love.  It helped that I would be able to celebrate Emily’s 26^th birthday with her, a tradition I didn’t want to miss. The weekend was made even better as it was the first time that Catie, Mary Tanner & I had been together in dc for an entire weekend since 2009.  So this was LONG overdue.

And as expected, we had a blast.  It made coming back to reality quite difficult.

Friday when we got into the district, Catie and I went to our old King & Spalding stomping grounds and had lunch at Breadline.  I’m glad some things never change.  After getting ourselves ready for the evening, we did the usual happy hour and dinner with the crew.  Trying to make the most of our dc reunion, Catie, MT and I met up with more friends and just had a fun night out.

Saturday we stayed busy despite the chill.  We had brunch at founding farmers (my favorite restaurant in dc!), shopped at eastern market,  went to the new(ish) Serendipity in Georgetown, and curled up to watch downton abbey.  Once we got ourselves moving again, all old roommates were reunited and we had dinner at Sushiko in Glover Park then headed to Policy to celebrate Emily’s birthday with the crew.  Policy is one of my favorite bars in dc and didn’t disappoint.

Sunday was my one day of winter this year and freezing.  So we went to brunch in the neighborhood and promptly came home and watched back to back movies.  Yes, we are really cool.  Then it was time to get in a few last dc goodbyes and head back to nc.

This was my third trip back to dc since I moved and it was definitely the hardest to leave this time.  For the first few days when I was back in Raleigh, I started thinking about moving back to dc after finishing grad school, even looking up some housing options on craigslist (one of my favorite pastimes).  But then as I settled back into life here, living in Raleigh seemed so normal and easy.

Sometimes it overwhelms me that I feel like I am constantly caught between two worlds.  When I start to think about where I want to be and what I want to do after grad school, the decisions keep piling up.  But it seems so silly to stress about those things.  So I have decided to change my attitude.  Instead of worrying about picking dc or nc in a year in a half when my MPA is done, I’m just going to feel blessed that I have two places to call home.  I'll let yall know how it goes. 

Downton Abbey & Literary Heroines

Over the past week or so, I have become slightly infatuated with the mini-series Downton Abbey.   For those of you that already know and love Downton, I’m sure you are beyond excited to read this blog post.  For those of you that haven’t yet watched, stop reading, go to pbs.org, and watch this show.  Then come back and read my post. J

Downton Abbey centers around a family, the Crawleys, in early 20^th century England.  The family includes the Earl of Grantham, his wife, and their three daughters.  When the family's heir dies with the Titanic, the entire family is pulled into chaos to find a new heir.  Eventually a distant relative from Manchester, Matthew Crawley, is found to be the new heir.  The show then continues in following the Crawley family, their household staff, and the people around them for the years ahead.

It is no surprise that my favorite character is the oldest daughter, Mary Crawley.  Mary is independent, stubborn, and a little rebellious.  But when it comes down to it, she is fiercely loyal, takes care of those she loves, and isn’t afraid to stand up for what she believes in.

Despite that fact that I can’t consider Mary Crawley a literary character (even though Downton Abbey is on PBS- that must count for something), she reminds me of my two very favorite literary heroines: Scarlett O’Hara and Emma Woodhouse. 

Scarlett has always been my favorite, since I read Gone with the Wind years ago.  I was recently reminded of how much I love Scarlett when we watched GWTW a few weeks ago for our girls movie night. Everyone wants to hate Scarlett.  She is selfish, cunning, and doesn’t let anything get in the way of what she wants.  Scarlett is the complete opposite of the meek and mild Melanie Wilkes.  However, the movie doesn’t portray the complexity of Scarlett’s character.  That her strong, stubborn front hides her desperate desire to be good, gentle and kind, just like her mother.  Despite her inner desires, Scarlett cheats, lies, steals and even kills to save her family and her family’s land.

My other favorite heroine is Jane Austen’s Emma Woodhouse.  I think Jane and I would have gotten along quite well, as she wanted to make Emma a heroine “whom no one but myself will much like.”  Emma is headstrong, spoiled, and impatient.  She constantly acts without thinking about the impact her actions will have on others.  However, despite not thinking through her actions, everything she does is meant to help her friends, family, and those she loves.

I see a theme in all these characters and really, I wish I could be friends with  each  of them.  Each of these characters wants to be respectful, kind and generally a good person.  But each of these heroines make mistakes.  Big mistakes.  Mistakes that stay with them throughout their lives. Fortunately, in Emma’s case, when she falls in love with her best friend they end up happily ever after.  Sadly, the opposite holds true for Scarlett.  

Despite not liking Mary’s character during most of the first season of Downton, my tune has changed.  Mary Crawley reminds me of a mix of Scarlett, Emma, Elizabeth Bennett, and Josephine March.  Mary’s story hasn’t played out yet, but I’m hopeful.  Needless to say, I’m cheering for you Mary Crawley!