Category Archives: Movies in Bed
Movies in Bed: Annie Rebooted
Post by Mark T. Locker.
I’ll be honest with you: the only reason this movie came into my house at all was because my son REALLY, REALLY wanted to see it. I don’t really know why but he seems to enjoy musicals. It was sitting on the shelf at the library and he saw it so we got it. I had very low expectations of this movie. For one thing, I’m tired of reboots. For another thing, it’s a reboot of Annie. But I have to say, this movie was not terrible. I give a lot of credit for that to Quvenzhané Wallis, the remarkable 12-year-girl who took on the role of Annie. Known for her roles in more serious movies such as Beasts of the Southern Wild and 12 Years as a Slave, I can only imagine it was a nice change of pace to do a feel-good musical starring Jamie Foxx. She takes on the role of the warm-hearted, selfless girl with aplomb and she’s pretty easy to love as a protagonist.
The story is adapted to a more modern environment, moving Annie and her friends from an orphanage to a foster home and unfortunately replacing Carol Burnett with Cameron Diaz. She’s fine but she’s no Carol Burnett. And the millionaire Daddy Warbucks is updated to cell phone mogul/mayoral hopeful Will Stacks. Like so many kids’ movies these days, the main grown-up is learning that work isn’t everything and sometimes the thing that makes you happiest is right in front of your face.The least plausible part of this movie is the story of Stack’s political advisor, the bad guy who will stop at nothing to get his boss elected, even if it means destroying Annie’s life in the process. It’s your out-of-the box villain whose greed is comically inflated.
Nevertheless, my kid had a great time watching this and I was drawn in despite my initial reluctance. Great family movie to watch on a weekend night.
Movies in Bed: Wet Hot American Summer: first day of camp
Post by Mark T. Locker.
This is where it all begins, people! I’m sure everyone has taken my advice and ran home to watch Wet Hot American Summer to prepare for this much-anticipated follow-up.
Fourteen years have elapsed since the camp counselors oversaw the last day of camp. Fourteen years later, we are given a prequel. It is a pretty clever concept: the counselors, who were all too old to be believable in the first place, are now in their 40s and posing as teenagers. What’s amazing is they got the entire crew back together to put this eight episode miniseries together. All the questions you never had will be answered here: what happened to the cook that unhinged him so? Why is there a can of vegetables that talks to him? Why on earth does an astrophysicist live next door to the camp?
As far as reboots go, this one is not terrible. I’ve made it further than I did with the Arrested Development reboot, let’s put it that way. It’s still a fun and silly show and they are doggedly averse to plotlines which is good and bad. There seem to be about ten different subplots and I keep forgetting about some and then there are others I wonder about that aren’t being addressed again. Maybe that’s the point. Maybe they are doing it on purpose for their own entertainment.
Everyone has fallen nicely back into their old roles, and clearly everyone is having a fantastic time. It’s fun enough to watch all the way through, though it can’t possibly hold a candle to the original. Still, it’s worth watching and makes a fun and ridiculous way to wrap up a long day before going to sleep.
Movies in Bed: Harry Potter for Grown-Ups?
Post by Mark T. Locker.
Way back in 2004, debut novelist Susanna Clarke introduced us to the world of 19th-century English magic in the wonderfully long and dense and fantastic novel Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. And now, 11 years later, the BBC has finally graced us with a series based very faithfully on the nearly 800-page novel.
The world of English magic in the 19th century is a magical world vastly different than the one we imagine. While magic indeed existed and had been practiced widely in the past, no proper gentleman would deign to do such a thing now. This did not mean, however, that there were no magicians’ societies. On the contrary many learned men were members of such societies. However, these were devoted to the study and appreciation of magic. Never for the practice!
There was one man who continued to practice in his deeply secluded and book-laden home. This man was Mr. Norrell. Once discovered, he became something of a celebrity, despite his rather unpleasant demeanor. When he takes on an apprentice, one Jonathan Strange, he is greatly troubled to realize this man’s intuitive skills far outmatch Mr. Norrell’s highly academic approach.
The BBC television series has released seven episodes. So far, they have remained very true to the story and the tone of the original book. Filled with awesome displays of magic, lots of repressed Victorian-style drama and strange, mysterious, dark forces, this series has quickly become my favorite bedtime watching. It’s captivating enough to keep me awake but not too flashy to keep me up past by bedtime trying to quiet my brain. Highly recommended for lovers of period pieces, miniseries, and awesomely unique approaches to magic.
Movies in Bed: Justice League vs. Bizarro League
Post by Mark T. Locker.
Okay, I admit it: I have a soft spot for the LEGO universe. I think their cartoons and movies are fun, entertaining, and kind of hilarious. I also enjoy their video games and my son is (like every other child on Earth) a big fan of the building blocks. Naturally, when a new mini-movie came out, he was dead-set on watching it and I was a total pushover about it.
LEGO Justice League vs. Bizarro League is silly, action-packed, and even a little bit meaningful. If you don’t know about Bizarro Superman, here’s what you need to know: he was a Lex Luthor creation, meant to equal Superman but he ended up being this weird, backwards version of Superman who does everything backwards. Tell him to put something down and he’ll pick it up. You get the idea. He is a major headache for Superman. But when Bizarro Superman decides to make his own version of the Justice League, it goes out of control and they are sent to some faraway planet to live their Bizarro lives.
My favorite is Greenzarro, the backwards Green Lantern who can only conjure a giant green teddy bear, that he uses to comfort him in the face of danger.
There is a whole plot line involving alien planets and someone named Darkseid who is mining the Bizarro world of all Bizarro Superman’s “friends”.
This is a great movie to watch when you realize it’s much later than you thought it was and still wanted to squeeze in a family movie night. It’s only about 45 minutes long.
Movies in Bed: Labyrinth
Post by Mark T. Locker.
Pardon me while I pull myself together. I just went to see what year Labyrinth was released, which gave me palpitations. Next year, the iconic movie, starring David Bowie and a bunch of Muppet-esque creatures, turns THIRTY YEARS OLD. Ouch.
Well, let’s just put that aside until next year.
I don’t know about where you live, but in Portland, summer marks another Movies in the Park series, with a different city park hosting a viewing of a movie. They range from new blockbusters to classics such as Wizard of Oz and everything in between. I’m pretty sure that Labyrinth is on the docket every year.
Starring David Bowie as the Goblin King Jareth, and Jennifer Connelly as discontented 15-year-old Sarah, the rest of the cast is made up of dozens of whimsical, weird, and sometimes creepy creatures from mind of Jim Henson, who pretty much single-handedly created my childhood. When Sarah has to watch her half-brother Toby, she is deeply resentful. So much so that she takes a page from the play she is studying a part for, Labyrinth. She tells the Goblin King to come and take him away. And he does.
Suddenly remorseful (who would have thought it would actually WORK?) Sarah now must find her way through an insane Muppet-laden labyrinth to get to Toby, in the goblin city at the center. On the way she meets friends, strange strangers, and a few who are out to get her.
If you haven’t seen this 80’s classic, or haven’t seen it in a while, it’s great movie to watch on a picnic blanket with a spread of snacks, or in bed with a bowl of popcorn.
Happy watching!
