Thoughts on Grinchmas

Every year around Christmastime, Universal Studios holds a celebration called Grinchmas. During this event, visitors to the park can interact with various Whos and attend themed shows. You’ll be able to meet a range of Whos including; Cindy Lou Who, Mayor Augustus May Who, Martha May Whovier, and the Grinch himself with Max. Sadly, I have yet to go to this event, but I have kept myself informed through various videos posted on YouTube. I’ll continue to live vicariously through the experiences of others.

I think the choice to create an event based on a successful Universal property was a brilliant idea. Being as this is one of the only Universal properties set during Christmas, it serves as a great way to bring the wintery spirit to the otherwise warm climates of California and Florida. I feel like both parks have their benefits. Orlando has Seuss Landing which serves as the home of a meet-and-greet spot with the Grinch. Hollywood is my personal favorite, being that it was where the movie was filmed back in 2000. The movie was filmed on some of Universal’s soundstages, so some of the original set pieces are there for the guests to see. When on the tram tour of the backlot, the tram takes a turn to Whoville. Here, there is a short presentation with all your favorite characters from the movie dancing right in front of the original façade of Martha May’s house.

They also offer a longer show called the Whobilation Spectacular, with music from Manheim Steamroller. I think this is a fun show with some great added music.

My favorite thing was the Tree Lighting Ceremony. I say was because in the past couple of years, they’ve shortened a wonderful thirteen minute show into a three minute one-and-done. The old show had such an impact on me. It had the same charm that the movie exerts and made me insanely happy every time I would watch it. The new show has such a disconnection, in my opinion. I don’t understand why they changed it and I wish they would revert back to the way it used to be. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

This being said, I really enjoy some of the new additions. They now have an A Capella show with a Who boyband called the Whoville 5 or the Wholiday Singers. Storytime with Cindy Lou is a wonderful live reading of the original book that allows younger audiences to participate in the story. I love that they do this. I wish they’d bring back the celebrity readings. I’d love to see Jim Carrey and Christine Baranski make an appearance, since Jeffrey Tambor has already done so. My favorite of the new shows is Martha May and the Who Dolls. This is such a fun show with a whole lot of energy. It's so interesting to see the evolution of her dresses over the years.

I hope to go to Grinchmas someday and experience the magic for myself. 

The Wiz Live Review

The Wiz Live was the first NBC live stage production that I watched until the end. With The Sound of Music Live and Peter Pan Live, I found myself turning them off before they had ended. I think this is because I was familiar with the source material beforehand and the actors that had originated the characters. With The Wiz, I had seen part of the original, but it was a while ago and I did not remember any of the songs. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this production after the first song, but I was pleasantly surprised. I thought this was a wonderful and very well-rounded production. If you’re someone who enjoys anything and everything having to do with The Wizard of Oz, you’ll thoroughly enjoy The Wiz Live.

The casting for this was so perfect. I was familiar with a few of the actors, but this was my first time seeing most of them. I loved seeing Queen Latifah and Elijah Kelley back together, it was almost like a little Hairspray reunion. I thought Elijah was an amazing Scarecrow. Shanice Williams was an incredible find to play Dorothy, I always love when they get an unknown to play the lead role. One of my favorites was Amber Riley as Addaperle. I’ve loved her as a singer and actress for a while, being as I avidly watched Glee, so it was a treat to see her get to show off her vocal talents again. The rest of the ensemble was fantastic as well. I particularly liked the look and sound of the Munchkins. I wished Dorothy had enough time to share another song or two in Munchkinland.

The overall look of the sets and design of the costumes was brilliant. For only being a live, televised production, these set details looked ready for Broadway. They were colorful, bright, eccentric, and everything you’d expect from the land of Oz. Glinda’s dress was by far my favorite. Speaking of Glinda, I thought it was comical that she was the “normally named” of the witch sisters. There was Evilene, Evermean, Addaperle, and Glinda. I don’t think was intended to get a laugh, but it certainly did from me.

Being as this production was a musical, I have to touch on the music itself. I loved it, I really did. These songs really helped to ease the plot along, or rather to ease on down the road. The stand-out songs for me were You Can’t Win, Slide Some Oil to Me, and He’s the Wizard. He’s the Wizard has been stuck in my head for days now, so I decided to check out the original. I prefer the updated version. 

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 Review

WARNING, MAJOR SPOILERS! There is no way I could review this movie without talking about some major plot points. Please, see the movie first (but read the book beforehand)!

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 was the most anticipated movie of the year for me. I’ve been with this franchise since just before the first movie came out back in 2012. I’ve grown up and matured just like this franchise. So, having Part 2 come out was both exciting and heartbreaking. I don’t want to say goodbye! I’m hoping Suzanne Collins will allow Lionsgate to continue this franchise with either a prequel or sequel, but I would love a sequel that expands on life and the new Panem after the war.

*Check out this featurette on the movie!*

First of all, I loved this movie through and through. I’d seen a good amount of spoilers prior to seeing it just because I saw it a week after it originally came out. I was very surprised at how much I’ve enjoyed these last two movies considering that I didn’t like Mockingjay the book all that much. I loved that this really was a continuation and not a completely different movie, starting with Katniss healing from her neck injuries from Peeta strangling her at the end of Part 1 (good thing I’d watched it the night before). It brought you right back into Panem and I thought it was very well done. I just felt bad for Peeta the entire opening sequence. Poor, little, hijacked baby.

I’m glad they saved the majority of the action for the second half. I loved seeing Katniss and everyone else fully immersed in the traumas of war. I love that the Star Squad was Squad 451. I really love that allusion to Fahrenheit 451. I particularly loved the scene in District Two when Katniss went to help the man and he returned this gesture by pointing a gun to her head. Her speech after this was so amazing and I’m pretty sure had everyone on the edge of their seats. This cast never fails to impress me with their talent. I was completely overwrought by the sheer amount of action in the best way possible. It was all so fantastic and wonderfully acted.

I’d forgotten about the pods and some of the deaths, so they came as a surprise to me. Boggs, the Leeg twins, and Castor were deaths that I’d completely forgotten about since I hadn’t read the books in a while. The sewer scene was the most intense for me. By the time they entered the train tunnels to when the lizard mutts made their debut, I was shaking. I knew this was where Finnick met his end and I knew that there was going to be a jump-scare. I was so mad at the amount of times they faked the audience out about when the mutts were going to attack. Tension in that silent theater was certainly high! When Finnick was finally pulled to his death and eaten alive, I was incredibly sad. I really wish he didn’t die and he didn’t deserve to die. It was even sadder because of how happy he was during his wedding, which was also an incredible scene that I loved.

When the group took refuge inside Tigris’ shop, it was just like a pictured. The look of Tigris was amazing as well, it’s a shame she only had a few seconds of screen time. It didn’t make sense to me why Katniss and Gale tried to sneak into the Capitol with only hooded cloaks on. They’re going to the Capitol of all places, the one place extravagant makeup is widely accepted. I just couldn’t grasp why they wouldn’t try to disguise themselves as much as possible, especially since there were wanted posters everywhere plastered with their faces. This was a scene I particularly loved. I thought for sure that little girl was going to expose Katniss after looking straight at her. It broke my heart to see her screaming for her mother after the bombs dropped. Speaking of bombs, Prim’s death broke my heart as well. I thought it was done quickly, but that didn’t bring down the emotional impact. One of my favorite scenes out of the entire movie was Coin’s assassination. I was so overjoyed to see both Coin and Snow brought down. The way everything played out was almost too perfect and almost staged, from the placement of Coin above Snow to how her body was positioned after she fell from the balcony. I loved the mix of the score in the background with the visual. It all worked so well together.

Haymitch was one of my favorite parts. I loved that he, upon being approved by Suzanne, was the one to read the letter from Plutarch to Katniss, due to the real-life events. I thought it was a very powerful scene. One short scene that satisfied me the most was the goodbye kiss between Haymitch and Effie. When reading the books, I never thought a relationship would blossom between these two characters. Now, I’ve supported this pairing for 4 years. I felt this relationship was very necessary, as well as the addition of Effie to these last two movies. It drove me crazy that she didn’t go back to District Twelve with the rest of them. I loved the end of the movie so much and I was so glad they included the epilogue. Overall, I thought this was a brilliant adaptation and a wonderful close to this amazing story. 

The Good Wife 7x09 "Discovery" Review

-SPOILERS BELOW-

This was my favorite episode of the season thus far. I thought the case was interesting, I thought the conflicts between the characters provided some saucy dialogue, and I felt that this episode established some storylines that could have some exciting continuations.

I was surprised to see Monica back in Diane’s office. I wasn’t sure of her business there at first, but seeing her take up Diane’s offer rather upfront and assertive was a nice way to bring her character back to the show. This was not the first case this season to deal with racism by white men, but I thought this case was more appealing to watch as a viewer simply because it put all of the main lawyers back into the courtroom together. Chumhum (The Good Wife’s version of Google) has been the center of cases in past seasons and I always think they are fun to watch. This episode expanded on the fact that Chumhum is more than just a search engine, but offers a wide variety of systems and products to the public. This further helps the audience see why Chumhum is a top client for the law firm’s and is worth so much money as a company. They never have touched on Chumhum being a racist company, but I do feel that this episode showed that there is at least a touch of racism within their creative team.

Diane, Cary, Alicia, Lucca, and Monica all wrapped up in close proximity back in the courtroom. Tension is certainly still high and it is evident. I really felt like Diane got her game back, after last week with her struggling with everyone it seemed. I felt like Lockhart/Agos won the case due to their several pieces of evidence against the creator and boss of Chumhum. Alicia certainly seemed quite pissed off with how well the opposing side was doing. I didn’t feel like Jason did anything to help out with Alicia and Lucca’s fight. I was also surprised to see the two working so closely with Louis Canning, even working at his office with the other associates. I figured something was going on there, judging by past episodes.

I’m glad the Jason and Alicia possible romance was not forced upon us in this episode and neither was the new romance between Eli and Courtney. Maybe I was wrong about them, maybe a relationship would help Eli become less uptight. I hope next week’s episode is just as enjoyable as this one. 

The Good Wife 7x08 "Restraint" Review

-SPOILERS BELOW-

I was so happy that we finally got a Diane-centric episode. It’s really been long overdue. I just hate that she is continually having to fight against what she believes in. It’s really a shame that we haven’t seen her smile in a while. Ethan Carver and Reese Dipple should let Diane go back to her old ways, then maybe she wouldn’t have as many negative altercations with the judges. I would love to see her argue a case where her clients aren’t asking to transfer to Alicia, even though Alicia is becoming a very accomplished free-lance lawyer.

I really loved seeing Grace taking charge in this episode. I thought it was very innovative of her to find the recording of office noise online and then play that on as many computers in the house that she could find. If I was a potential client, I certainly would’ve thought that I was getting involved with a very busy law firm. Well done on your part, Grace. With all this work she’s been doing for her mom, I didn’t think it was out of the ordinary for her to ask for a set amount of payment. It’s only fitting since Alicia and Lucca are going to be asking for more money for their services from clients.

Something I felt that was quite unnecessary was the kiss between Courtney and Eli. I thought Courtney was going to be a character that would be off the show soon and I don’t think she’s a good match for Eli. I really don’t know how I feel about the relationship but I hope they don’t create a story arc out of it. I do want Eli to be happy, but I don’t think that a relationship for him at this point and time is the right thing. I wish they would stop creating these small relationships with new characters. They have other characters with established relationships, like Kurt and Diane, who haven’t gotten a chance to shine this season.

I don’t like where some things are going but I like some of the directions they are going in. The core, original cast needs a solid story arc that doesn’t always lead back to Alicia. It’s a bit silly of me to complain about too much focus on a main character, but I just really feel like they aren’t exploring some potentially great storylines and arcs. 

Thoughts on the Hunger Games Franchise

With the midnight premiere of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 tonight and the end of an era slowly approaching, it only seems right to share my thoughts on this franchise that I love to death (pun intended).

The Hunger Games first came into my life in 7^th grade. I have my 7^th grade LA teacher to thank for my obsession with this franchise. It baffles me to think that without having read the first book in class, I might have never read it at all. Around this time, the first installment of the movie adaptations was released. When seeing this the first time, I thought it was an amazing adaptation. Looking back, I see how flawed the first film is. Gary Ross is heavily to blame for this. With his directing style, I feel we lost major characters, plot points, and even some character quirks. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy the first film. The casting was absolutely fantastic and really upheld the wonder that Suzanne Collins had written. I love how they took what she wrote and added their own spins to their characters, like Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket.

Catching Fire is my favorite film of the franchise thus far. I thought it was a very faithful adaptation and really stood out to me through every aspect. There are just too many great scenes! I think Catching Fire was such a success due to the switch in the director’s chair. The franchise benefitted greatly due to the switch from Gary Ross to Francis Lawrence. It may seem a little out there to say, but I think his vision and direction for this film resulted in a perfect adaptation. I am so glad he went on to direct the rest of the films. This is my favorite cast from the 4 movies, hands down. Once again, perfect casting. I really love that over the course of two movies, they started to build a subtle relationship between Haymitch and Effie. I usually don’t like when things are heavily changed, but this one works so well. I really have no complaints about this movie. The arena is spectacular, the CGI looks very believable, and everything just meshes together so perfectly.

Elizabeth making fans scream.

Katniss or Jennifer?

Same, Effie, same. 

Of course, Finnick. 

Last, but not least, we end with the 2-part finale of this wonderful franchise that I have grown up with. Though Mockingjay Part 1 is not my favorite, and Mockingjay was my least favorite book in the franchise, the movie was still so amazing. The fact that they were able to make an entire movie that doesn’t end in 24 tributes stuck in an arena and have almost the entire thing take place in an underground bunker without losing the attention of the audience is simply amazing. It just proves how very interesting and compelling this story is. I can’t wait for Part 2!

There’s one last thing I’d like to touch on. The subtle symbolism in this franchise just fills me with joy. There are 2 specific examples of symbolism that stand out the most to me. The first being the TEAM motif that is spread throughout each book and movie. The way Suzanne Collins was able to engineer character names to display this is amazing to me and also very innovative. 

Trinket, Everdeen, Abernathy, Mellark 

The second being the relationship between Katniss and President Snow. We’ve always known Katniss as the Girl on Fire who always finds a way to foil the plans of President Snow, and eventually is there for his downfall. So, how is this symbolic? Fire always melts Snow. 

Enough said, right? 

Her Heart Grew Three Sizes That Day

Today is a very special day to me. It is the 15^th Anniversary of the live-action remake of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. I can’t believe it’s already 15 years old, and I’ve only been aware of it for about half of that time. Nothing makes me happier than to watch it on TV every December. It only seems appropriate that this would be one of the movies that holds a very special place in my heart. This is because Christmas has always been my favorite time of year and green has always been my favorite color. It almost seems too good to be true, but I love it so much.

It all started in 4^th grade, at least that’s my earliest memory. Something clicked in my young mind after watching it that particular time, making it my second favorite movie of all time. After that day, it became an obsession. That obsession has never left me. I’ve seen it a countless number of times now (I wish I knew the exact number, that would make me really happy), enough that I have the entire thing memorized from start to finish. I can also pinpoint the time-stops of certain scenes. When it is shown on ABC Family, I know when most of the commercial breaks will come due to the sheer amount of times I’ve watched it on TV. Despite all of this, I never get tired of watching it. In fact, when the credits roll, I almost want to watch the whole thing over again.

I now own several pieces of merchandise and memorabilia from both the movie and the cartoon. It may seem a bit excessive, but I own the movie on VHS, two copies on DVD, and the soundtrack. I feel you can never have enough of a good thing. The DVDs are quite special to me because of the long list of special features that are explored. I love behind the scenes featurettes and I love to learn about the creative process. I also felt the commentary done by Ron Howard was very informative and I learned a lot that I didn’t know. Every time I watch the movie, I spot something new.

So, just why do I love this movie so much? Well, it’s simple, it just makes me really happy. I don’t know how else to describe it. This is also the movie where I discovered my favorite actress, Christine Baranski. It’s still my favorite movie she’s ever been in and just another reason to love it. I consider this movie to be a holiday classic and I would recommend it to anyone.