• Header Right Box

    Liz Johnson on FacebookLiz Johnson on TwitterLiz Johnson on InstagramLiz Johnson on PinterestLiz Johnson on AmazonEmail Liz Johnson

  • Header Left Box

  • Monday Movie – Post Grad, among others

    Over the Labor Day weekend I decided I was going to see 3 movies. I’d been eagerly awaiting two of them, so I was thrilled to have time over the long weekend to finally watch the movies I wanted to see. Plus I had some movie passes from my birthday, so 2 of them were paid for. By Friday afternoon I had my plan in place: A matinee after work on Friday, one after church and a pedicure on Sunday, and finally a noon-time showing (the super-cheap one) with Amy on Monday. I was stoked!

    Until I saw the movies.

    Friday, I decided to watch Gamer. I love Gerard Butler (as we all know), and a good action flick, so I coudn’t wait to see this movie. Problem is, this is not a good flick. While the plot was interesting and posed some thought-provoking questions about the lure of power, it wasn’t enough to make up for the gruesome violence, profuse swearing, and all around depravity (I think finally used this word right, dad!). I was so bummed.

    So I went into Sunday with higher hopes for All About Steve. I generally enjoy Sandra Bullock (as evidenced by my thoughts on The Proposal), and I love a good romantic comedy. But what I discovered was not much comedy and even less romance. Ugh! What’s a girl to do?

    85772_A_1Sht_R3:1 SHEET MASTER (CTP READY)Monday was my last chance. My final hope, if you will, to redeem my movie-going weekend. And then … there was Post Grad, staring Alexis Bledel, a favorite from Gilmore Girls. Amy and I had been talking about seeing this flick for weeks, but our schedules just weren’t lining up. Finally the planets aligned–or more acurately, Amy and I set up things in advance–and we got to see this cute story about a college grad who wants to work in publishing (I totally understand) but is thwarted by her class’s valedictorian at every turn.

    While definitely not a perfect movie–it’s rated PG-13 for several good reasons–it’s a really cute story about family and the importance of sticking together and being there for each other. Several times I found myself laughing hysterically. Then Amy would laugh, and I would laugh again because she was laughing. Back and forth we’d go, and it was just so funny.

    But I loved the lesson at the end–that it’s not so much about what you’re doing as who you’re doing it with. Family is important, and so is finding the right guy. 🙂

    So my Labor Day weekend movie marathon wasn’t a total bust, but it turned out that the movie I was least excited about was really the best. Wondering what that really says about my movie watching habits until next time. -LJ

    Movie Monday – The Proposal

    I miss good romantic comedies. You know what I mean? Movies that are really funny and just happen to have a bit of romance. Movies that make me laugh so hard I snort (not that I ever would snort). Movies with scenes like While You Were Sleeping’s  Bill Pullman falling down on the ice and his pants splitting down the back. And scenes like Lucille Ball losing her slip while on a date with Henry Fonda in the original Yours, Mine, and Ours.

    I first saw those two movies and lots of  other classic rom-coms while I was inthe-proposal high school. Since then, there’s been a bunch of duds and a few chucklers … but almost no snort-inducers.

    Until Saturday night.

    Ever since I saw a preview of The Proposal months ago, I knew I had to see this movie. I generally love Sandra Bullock movies, and I confess to having a little crush on her co-star Ryan Reynolds. So when I saw that there was a sneak preview showing on Saturday, I had to go. I dropped an e-mail to a bunch of girlfriends, and pretty soon, we had a whole evening of fun planned.

    We started at Katie and Stephanie’s new place for fondue. I’ve never had fondue before, and it was wonderful! Steph made an awesome cheesy dip to start with. We dipped bread, pretzels, apples, and even grapes in the cheese and it was awesome. The best moment was when Katie realized that she had dripped “cheese juice” on her shirt. Needless to say, there was much discussion of the new phrase, includingthe idea that if I ever start a band, I should call it just that. I can just see it now … “Now taking the stage … CHEESE JUICE!!!”

    For dessert Steph made an awesome chocolate fondue, and we dipped everything from brownies to marshmallows to strawberries. A-maze-ing!

    So then we headed to the movie. Arriving half an hour early, we should have no problem getting seats together. Right? Wrong. It was crammed, and the best I could find was 4 in a row. So I got the other 4 settled into their seats and sat in a lone seat several chairs over. And then a couple very nice ladies offered to move over so I could sit with the other girls. Thank you random kind women!

    the-proposal-3So the previews started. Nothing too memorable. And then the last preview before the movie started, and I was nearly rolling on the floor when Seth Green was singing a love song to a very large gorilla. It may sound strange, but it brought tears to my eyes. So funny!

    So then The Proposal starts. It’s the story of Margaret, a high-powered executive at a New York publishing house (I felt a connection already) and her assistant Andrew, a brow-beaten aspiring editor. She treats him like trash, and the rest of the office fears her. For good reason. And then she finds out that she’s going to be deported (“But I’m from Canada!”) and lose her job. Her only hope. Marrying Andrew so she can stay in the country.

    Andrew agrees to marry his boss. If she’ll give him the promotion he’s been working toward. But first their immigration agent demands they visit his family. Alaska, here they come. Quirky family, check. Beautiful scenery, double check. Softening hearts, check and check.

    Hoot out loud humor. At every corner!

    If it sounds trite, it easily could have been. But the laughter didn’t stop until nearly 3/4 of the way through. And by then my cheeks were hurting so bad, I needed a break. The funny bits from the preview were all there, along with a scene where Margaret tries to offer a puppy to an eagle in exchange for her cell phone. One of my favorites is when Margaret is in bed and Andrew is on the floor at the foot of the bed. They share a poignant moment, and then Andrew bursts out in terrible singing. My kindly neighbor in the seat next to me was laughing and clapping so hard, I almost peed my pants because of her. Trust me on this. You’ve got to see it.

    Now, of course, I have to add a caveat, that there is a scene where Andrew’s mom takes Margaret to a club (in the the-proposal-2name of laughs) that’s inappropriate for children … and well, I sure didn’t need to see it either. But fortunately it definitely keeps its PG-13 rating. And I definitely could have used a more fleshed out couple of subplots. The ex-girlfriend and father/son struggle story lines weren’t filled out completely, but I can definitely overlook that for the sheer fun of this flick.

    Not to mention, this is the first rom-com I’ve seen in ages where our hero and heroine don’t jump into bed together on the first date. It was quite refreshing, and so sweet. And still funnier than anything I’ve seen in a while.

    Still snorting just at the memories of some of those scenes. Can’t wait to see it again this weekend (when it fully releases) until next time. -LJ