lokis_mistress Reviews

The Idea of You (2024)

Hathaway Is Better Than This

[6/10 · 15 May 2024]

I adore Hathaway. Was very excited to see she had a new movie because it's been awhile since Hollywood had anything that I was interested in watching. And ten years ago... this would have been a fantastic movie. It's just, unfortunately, a bit late to the older woman attracts hot fancy guy party. It's just not a new story anymore. And if that's all the story's got, then there's not really anything new to tell.

Every part of this movie was formula, from Coachella to feminist mother / daughter besties to flashy exes who have ego issues. Literally the script wrote itself. But it's 2024, we aren't sitting around the pool being catty at the older woman anymore. We are asking her how she danced to Smalltown Boy in the 80s. If these women are feminists they are going to own their happiness AND their mom's happiness and not go sulking to daddy to make a point. Have any of the writers MET Gen Z?

I suppose my disappointment is in the waste of a good cast and decent budget. Things are shifting and the people who are trying to sell us on a couple hours of relatable fantasy need to step up their game and make more of an effort to be AHEAD of the curve. Maybe hire younger, less "experienced" writers moving forward. 'Cause this "new" was SO seventh grade.

Bad and Crazy (2021–2022)

Are Korean Police Just Idiots?

[5/10 · 31 December 2023]

To be fair, this is not the worst cop kDrama out there. I've seen plenty worse so I gave this a solid 5 for having a good cast and some worthy plot highlights. But that makes the sloppy writing and lame plot holes an even worse offense.

In fact, the entire kDrama industry seems to exist to make Koreans look naive and clueless. How many times can a lead actor and every other supporting actor enter a dark alley (or junkyard) on their own, defenseless, without any plan or backup on alert, or anyone else knowing where they are, all while knowing three gangs, a drug cartel, a murderous high ranking government official or assassin or corrupt police detective/chief/prosecutor and a handful of random informants all have a price on their head?

There was some real potential here. Most notably a fantastic cast. I simply don't understand why Korean writers think it's totally ok to have a reasonably intelligent detective connecting dots while simultaneously throwing themselves headlong into utterly asinine situations... on repeat. In literally every movie. I mean, these things must cost a reasonable amount to produce, no? Please... try harder. Give your talent something to work with.

The Uncanny Counter (2020–2023)

Kind of Mostly Pretty Good

[7/10 · 24 August 2023]

So close. Really, it's so, so close to being really good. Not AMAZING like some of the K-dramas I've seen, but they can't all be genius. There are some great ideas, the character development is fantastic and works well for the plot, which isn't always the case. Great acting for the most part, especially from Kim Se-jeong, Yoo Jun-sang, Lee Hong-nae and even Choi Gang-il. I'll be looking for Hong-nae in other series to see what else he can do. The writing and direction is excellent until the last few episodes, which is REALLY frustrating. I heard they lost the original writer around episode 12 and that makes sense because it just gets lazy from there out. Had they retained the original writer I think this would have been brilliant. The industry should learn from this. It was riveting for ten episodes, even with so much going on, then the FF button came in handy after that.

Note to actors: crying and wailing is not the only way to convey emotional turmoil. In fact trauma and conflict was SO well portrayed by Yoo in this that he is going on my favourite actors list. He played his character incredibly well and his range was brilliant even though his character didn't actually need to be to keep the show good. 11/10. Se-jeong was a treat, especially after seeing her in Business Proposal as a completely different character. Very dry, however anything but boring. Really, every supporting character was fantastic. And I really think that Byeong-kyu's issues were a director led flaw rather than his own. If you're directing a show with this many layers, you need to know when to play each emotional card and to which extent. It can't always be either 3 or 10.

However, hands down the biggest issue with this was the many, many plot holes. Many. Many many. Viewers are too intelligent to just let a few storyline slips go, and this was a LOT of oopses. You can't simply level up a side without context to keep the story going. Lazy. You DEFINITELY can't just randomly level up one side, then the other, then the first side again etc and hope nobody notices. For example, bringing in some random artifact with no backstory that could have been used to deal with the issue in the first place and saved a lot of headache? Lazy. Bringing in a new, well thought out character that was hinted at early on is a good move. Having a solid group of intelligent, familiar and talented individuals consistently making stupid mistakes just to draw the story out is bad. Bringing back a plot thread that the audience had all but forgotten about though, that's good writing.

This is one of those shows that you want to hand back and say "do one last revision because if you fix these simple mistakes, you'll have something brilliant to show for it"... Is it worth the watch? Yes. But go in with low expectations so that you're pleasantly surprised, rather than the other way around.

Falling Into Your Smile (2021– )

Fantastic Display of Propaganda

[5/10 · 22 November 2022]

Prrrrrettty sure these 10/10 reviews are bought. I'm not sure who could sit through these episodes and say "best acting" or not remark on how boring the story is. I would have loved a plot based on Esports, even if I'm not a gamer, and obviously there was a large animation budget because those parts are extremely well done. However everything else was painful to watch.

I'm not supremely well versed in Chinese culture, but I'm aware that it's much more conservative than American. But there's a large difference between including cultural references or being true to cultural ideals... and straight up trying to educate people to behave a certain way. When your script reads like a "best practices" manual for behaviour that is so obviously not realistic, you've lost any chance at a good story arc. The female lead living with guys in a male dominated industry could make for a fantastic story. But the writing was horrible.

The female lead is obnoxious, petulant, unintelligent and without an ounce of style, and completely dependent on everyone around her to function. Yet these characters all find her behaviour endearing and completely acceptable. In reality she should probably be medicated. Maybe the idea was to try to make her seem strong willed?

No. The bff was strong willed, and an excellent actress. The lead was pathetic. There is zero possibility that a sulky, unsophisticated and useless girl moves into a professional gaming environment and needs to be coddled, WHILE ALSO sulking, hurling insults, needing everything explained AND having a mediocre personality. Running hot and cold and pushing her weight around the second she walked in the door would have had them packing her bags for her immediately. She can either be badass and impressive OR a lost puppy. But the writers need to choose.

The male lead was actually quite good. No complaints. The others were expectedly silly as supporting characters, but a huge opportunity was missed with half of them being really good at their roles and utterly underutilized.

Redo this with a different female lead and actual writers whose previous work was not "Chinese propaganda writer" and it may be a decent show. Maybe. Send them back to school to learn about plot development, decently complex character arcs and connection to the audience. And give your audience more credit. Otherwise why waste such an obviously over inflated budget?

Designing Miami (2022)

FINALLY. It's about time.

[8/10 · 27 September 2022]

I've been waiting for a decent design show for what seems like years now. And this one delivers.

It's completely bizarre that people who've only watched the first one or two episodes are leaving negative reviews. If they were aware of what a fireplace in Miami looks like they would understand that ethanol doesn't give off heat. I mean, it's Miami. And they DO explain this eventually.

I've never considered myself a fan of Miami style, I've always thought it would be outdated and tacky. It's great to see that what they did highlight from Miami design around the area is the Art Deco and the colour. I'm really happy that even though the properties were all extremely high-end they showed a variety of different areas and clients. I am also thrilled to see a designer that doesn't believe that a slat wall is anything other than a trend at a time when that trend is on its way out. Was stunning eight years ago in Korea, which puts it past the "best by" date. A good designer avoids this (but also delivers if the client insists).

I love that both designers have very different styles but they don't spend the entire show arguing about them. Even though they had a bit of personal and family drama it was kept to a minimum and didn't overshadow the point of it what a design show should look like. I even had to applaud the team members for not overdramatizing every little thing.

Overall a fantastic design show AND reality show (at a point where I'd long since given up on them) and I hope people ignore the ignorant and watch this... because I'd like more please 😊👌

Something in the Rain (2018)

Nope.

[6/10 · 16 August 2022]

As a 1.5 hr movie this would have been a well cast, wonderfully filmed love story with a compelling sub-plot and decently interesting plot for a romance.

However, after hour 4 of listening to the same two songs (and the same 30 second song clip at that...) chime in at the same poorly timed intervals, it is unfortunately loses its flavour quickly. Loved the ongoing drama at the office but this too wasn't really utilized to its potential.

For future directors... if you are going to use the "she's older" trope, please do it justice and actually use a reasonably interesting age gap. Also... a guy repeating that his girlfriend is pretty but not crediting her with much more than that, is just sad writing.

This film was lazy in writing and direction. Very well acted but the actors weren't given much to work with in context. A near miss but a miss nonetheless.

Search: WWW (2019)

People Missing the Point on This One

[8/10 · 7 April 2022]

The reviews on this are interesting. So many really high ratings which speaks to the quality of this movie, but also so many complaints that show that it went over the heads of many.

The acting and casting of this film are fantastic but it was the subtlety of the magnificent cinematography that was the true star. Without being too artsy or try hard this movie had some truly incredible scenes. The director gets full points for not always needing to rely on an overloaded script to convey a rather complex message. This is likely one of the reasons that some viewers found the pace to be slow in parts. It's to convey that what is happening emotionally is not on the surface.

The concept of three equally engaging, completely separate but also entwined lead stories was a brilliant style. Not sure why so many people prefer formula writing. What's the point of a storyline that follows the rules?

The character development is wonderfully complex and diverse and in fact it RELIES on the formulas of the drama genre to tell pieces of the story that don't need explaining. Explaining the obvious would insult the intelligence of the viewer.

The strength of the female leads is noted in other reviews but again so much is missed. Rather than using obvious tropes of "strong women do this" the strength is actually told by the male leads, which is perfection. The women develop a supportive relationship but don't need to necessarily like each other. Their mutual level of respect is enough and THAT is something that we definitely need to see more of in film.

The story's most "non-formulaic" aspect might be the distinct age gap, which the entire point of tension for that couple revolves around. Arguably the lead couple, they share a lot of screen time that is focused on the tug of war this dynamic creates. I think the reason many viewers find this frustrating is simply being used to relationship drama being dramatic. External rather than internal. This story shows lack of movement because it IS frustrating to be in that situation. You are stuck between a rock and a hard place. However while a typical drama creates tension that's derived from dealing with unfair circumstances and often society based expectations to wrestle with, this situation legitimately creates logistical challenges.

I'm not sure why the emphasis was placed on marriage rather than family but this is a very real situation that many experience who didn't get married and start a family in their twenties. If you never found "your One" and didn't have kids by 35 then you face real challenges in new relationships. Even if you have always wanted children but never found the S. O. to pair up with, you rearrange your priorities. Period. You have to. So if you are suddenly faced with a S. O. that is still very much in the running for the white picket fence, and WANTS that, what do you do? You must weigh the need to be with them with the need to give those you truly love the opportunity to find their own happiness. When you are that much older you KNOW you know things they don't know yet so the burden is on you to carry the weight of that choice.

Anyway, this entire show was superb. One of my top three for sure.

Single's Inferno (2021– )

Finally They've Done It Right

[7/10 · 29 December 2021]

This is the first time I haven't turned one of these "speed dating on a desert island" or "find love in three days plus gimmicks" shows off in the first or maaaybe second episode. And once again it's because there is an authenticity to Korean culture that is so refreshing. Where is the backstabbing?! Where is the snide double edge remarking?! Where are the testosterone heavy but bikini clad competitions that are meant to create random and poorly placed drama to exclude the idea of well developed personalities...?!

Thankfully none of it found its way to this show. Instead the focus is on real world emotions and responses between the contestants. Even the ones who are expected to be obnoxious are good people, just higher maintenance. These shows don't need to be full of jerks to be good. Well done.

School of Chocolate (2021)

FINALLY... They Get a Reality Show Right.

[8/10 · 27 November 2021]

Honestly, I hate these shows. The horrid "other" host, there because they don't think the expert being an expert is 'dramatic' enough... the annoying af editing that shows everything NOT important to the task... the oh so dramatic PAUSE whenever a decision is made... the weirdness of the tasks that couldn't even be created in such a short time frame by seasoned pros... sending people home based on ratings politics over skill (yes showrunners we know this is happening)... and obnoxious attitudes enhanced in the editing room for the sake of those politicized ratings. Normally you can't get me to click within an arm's length of a reality show.

But this is chocolate. And Chef Amaury.

This show is quite honestly just good television. There is drama because it's a kitchen, but moments that would normally have operatic infused faux momentum attached are handled instead with a relative storyline and properly paced editing. The host IS the teacher, and he is not only fantastic but he is KIND and he knows his stuff. The outtakes are there but not spliced with nostril closeups of the most dramatic players or contrived crying scenes.

Mostly my favourite part of the show is that you feel like you are actually a fly on the wall (heaven forbid) of a French patisserie academy and you are getting a glimpse of their year end assignments. Difficult to execute but with purpose and a properly laid out game plan. There is a competitive air but not one that overshadows the group dynamics that would authentically create both drama and emotional up's and downs.

Most of all the point of the show is not dropped to the floor of the editing studio in post. It's the perfect mix of seeing a master at work and being given ample opportunity to ask "what would I do in that situation if that were me?" which is a lot of why people watch a REALITY show in the first place. Perhaps we need a new approach. We can have True Reality (True Crime is doing well, right?) and R. Drama... "reality inspired" drama, for those who like Real Housewives, Selling Sunset and those Kardashian wannabes. Because I reeeeally hope we see more of this.

It's Okay to Not Be Okay (2020)

This is a 10. And I don't give 10s.

[10/10 · 31 August 2021]

The big takeaway here is that every writer and director ever, not only in the kDrama arena, needs to watch and learn from this show. The arc is perfection. The acting is brilliant (and if there is a scene or two that gives you any pause, there is a reason for it and you don't have to wait five episodes for it to play out). Even for the supporting actors the roles are wonderfully well portrayed. The costuming and sets are fantastic. And I adored the score. I think it not only made the film but also was the best soundtrack I've experienced in a kDrama.

The direction and writing are superb. Pulling together a suspense slash love story in a setting that puts mental health at the forefront makes for an extremely slippery slope, and adding in a fairytale metaphor could so easily have been the recipe for disaster... but on the contrary the storyline was executed absolutely beautifully. Every single "typical" move was thrown out the window and even the small details were attended to.

The way the storytelling blurred the lines between "acceptable" neurodiversity, stigma and those of us who deal with the fallout of childhood trauma in our everyday lives without being too heavy or overdramatized was SUCH an incredible breath of fresh air. This is the way a show should be put together.

He's All That (2021)

I'd like to apply for the writing position at Netflix pls...

[4/10 · 31 August 2021]

... because I definitely can't do worse. The weird thing was, there were TINY SPECKS of relatively ok randomly thrown into this. It's ALMOST as though there was one writer in a group of 5 that had a good grasp on what this movie COULD have been, but wasn't really heard among the others. I picture my 14 year old actual teen in there trying to explain the audience to a bunch of old guys clapping themselves on the back and howling as they come up with such clever ideas as the bf turned ex getting caught in the act. NOBODY WILL SEE THAT COMING.

However, seeing the turning of the tables of the beyond stale makeover trope had the potential to be refreshing. Lead guy being actually good at things rather than a "loser" was a good play. Him being pretty confident but uninterested in the superficial school atmosphere was less cringe than other standard plots.

The idea that it was actually her that needed the makeover was well done. Just SUPERBLY POORLY EXECUTED. Figure out who that one writer was and keep them on. Fire everyone else. Stat.

A Love So Beautiful (2020–2021)

Couldn't Stop Watching

[8/10 · 11 August 2021]

This is one of my top ten Kdramas for sure. And that's weird, because I just tried to explain it to my sister and all I could really think of was "its about this silly girl who is sweetly obsessed with her completely indifferent neighbour. And then there are some other great side stories." But there was no HEAVY DRAMA to report. No crazy out there story that draws you in each episode because you MUST KNOW WHAT HAPPENS Next. She's like... then why have you gone through a box of Kleenex?

What it is is one of the most well written, superbly acted, incredibly authentic stories about how beautiful the nothings in life can be. The complexity of the characters without needing horrific scenes involving alcoholic or abusive parents, drugs, suicides or orphanages is a massive testament to how well every single character is written and acted. Even the sub-sub-characters are memorable.

Even by KDrama standards, this relationship moves at an ultra snails pace. But it's not at all difficult to let it play out in its own time. With 24 episodes not a single one was wasted, or rushed. The pace was perfect. And even though we completed the arc, I'd watch it again and would most definitely watch a second installation.

When you realize how many of the actors are new to the game you have to give HUGE bonus points to the casting department (and utterly forgive any and all blips that resulted in extra takes! Thank you for the blooper reel 😊).

Get this cast and crew together again. The whole crew. From music to writers to editing and every detail in between, this team is magic.

Moxie (I) (2021)

Great Concept But Terrible Execution

[28 March 2021]

The best part of this movie was the inclusion of Seth the Shrimp. The worst part was the writing and directing. This would have been a fantastic movie 10 years ago if they had recast Mitchell and the teacher and spent a fraction more on editing. For 2021 however we need to do better all round. Still, happy it was made.

Love Alarm (2019–2021)

May Be Hard for Teens to Follow, But Stunning

[8/10 · 25 March 2021]

That probably sounds harsh, but I think this plot is a bit nuanced for those simply looking for a love story where the pretty heartthrob gets the girl. Which is tricky, because a show about relatively far fetched tech used by youth to find love is a plotline built pretty much for teens.

I should point out that I was also disappointed in her final life choices and really would have liked the second season to turn out differently. However once the whole story is told it is pretty spot on. And it's a remarkably beautiful journey.

A truly stunning drama and even though it took watching till the end to completely love it, it turned out to be in my top 5 for sure. It avoids most of the typical kdrama pitfalls and actually wraps up every potential loose end, which some of them fail to do. Beautiful storytelling but also gorgeous cinematic structure and locations, a fantastic group of secondary threads and even multiple mediums used effectively.

Really happy with the ENTIRE cast and crew. Complex, well thought out characters, (every single one of them, even those who didn't need to be). They may not make sense to youth who haven't experienced a lot of what the story covers (there are some pretty serious topics woven in) and only see the story at face value. Their choices will seem unrealistic at times. But anyone who has been close to some of these situations and watched them play out will know that in fact this is very true to each character. And in the end, although her choices were maybe not the popular ones, the female lead's actions are both accurate and they paint a stunningly beautiful piece of art.

Triple Frontier (2019)

Waste of Fantastic Bro Cast

[4/10 · 25 March 2021]

Same as what everybody else is saying. You don't have to be a military genius to see that half of these decisions were poorly made by the writers. Too many plot holes to bother finish watching, which sucks because this was a stellar cast. I even didn't mind Affleck in it and I'm not a fan. Kinda bored of the stereotypical military brotherhood movies at this point as well. There was huge potential for this to be levelled up to blockbuster hit... if only the writers had set foot outside the box.

Was It Love (2020)

Why All The Whining?

[3/10 · 21 March 2021]

There was so much potential here. Sigh.

I'm caught between loving Kdramas and being utterly annoyed by them. Loved how this took a past love triangle (... square?) into the present with the potential for a balance of both proper drama (mafia boss guy) and comic relief (nauseating arrogant fool ex) but lost me at the lead character.

If that's normal behavior for a Korean woman, then WHY are the supporting women in these movies so unbelievably cool? The best females in this movie are her assistant and her entirely fabulous bar owner/landlady friend. (Also her daughter, major credit and huge talent!!)

I'm finding this over and over again in these films. Why the constant winging and whining? Why the melodrama in completely unwarranted scenarios? Why the lack of intelligence in obvious situations? Why the hysterics in perfectly normal circumstances?

If this woman has worked ANYwhere for 5 minutes, she knows that she needs to be professional or at least credible. A list of top tier guys giving a frumpy, bossy, totally unprofessional, inexperienced PRODUCER her first movie opportunity ever? Ummm... No.

Sitting through episode after episode of watching a single mom play out three amazing guys and one loser... then ending up with the loser as a "happy ending"? Again, really painful to watch. From about the 4th episode on I just got angry- with everyone... from the actors to the stylists to the writers... just ended up reading about them instead of watching. As a single mother who has actually gone through this plotline, I guarantee there were better ways to tell this story.

Leap! (2016)

Unexceptional.

[4/10 · 9 June 2019]

As a dancer I may be biased, but I feel really strongly that this film missed almost every mark. Three minutes in I was able to tell my 7 year old niece exactly how the movie was going to play out and found myself pointing out how this character was *not* actually the heroine but rather a poor example of how one should treat people and how you do NOT chase your dreams. The eye rolling became painful.

The few decent ideas within the movie were lost somehow in the editing or flow... the idea that the music box dream would eventually play out so she could discover her passion's source and answer her "why" was the entire point of the story arc, but you didn't realize that until you were actually watching it and even then you had to be paying attention or it was missed. The creepy eyed guy saving her was a great twist but played out without enough oomph.

For me the most disappointing aspect was that it almost seemed to take the inherent beauty of the storyline: the idea that ballet is magical and exquisite; turn of the century architecture and references to epic artistic monuments; classical music and cultural history... which are sorely lacking and is incredibly needed in today's plastic ridden upbringing... and cheapened them beyond repair. ANY dancer would be offended by the idea that a person can gain enough momentum in a week's worth of training to be even remotely adequate and goes way beyond artistic license. Half of the dancing was weird and mundane "modern" type garbage that you expect from the lower quality X's Got Talent auditions and the bubble gum pop music that was used instead of the classical was horrendously unfortunate on all levels. The idea of introducing the storyline of Victor in Gustav Eiffel's shop could have been brilliant and brought out so many wonderful ideas, but was utterly wasted, as were most of the characters' back stories.

One has to choose their narrative. Are you catering to a less cultured, heavily top 40s radio laden group of easily influenced teeny bopper sheep with a story and actors they already know and feel safe with? Or are you offering something that introduces a higher level of intrigue, both from quality storytelling and true artistic merit? Such a terribly missed opportunity.

Literally, Right Before Aaron (2017)

Just So Bad.

[3/10 · 2 November 2017]

I think I have written maybe two reviews in my life, and that's because movies were SO AMAZING that it needed to be said. In this case, it's just... so... not... worth... watching. There is no other way to say that whoever's fault this ridiculous waste is should be dragged across hot coals. I adore Justin, and I'm learning to like Cobie... DEFINITELY as a comedy duo they should have clicked and this had all the potential to be a great movie that was needed. Love the backdrop of San Fran and that lifestyle... really, I'm thinking chalk this up to supremely bad writing, directing and editing. Absolutely zero redeeming qualities here. I am surprised that halfway through filming Justin didn't stand up and walk off set in protest.

The Game (1997)

Best Movie Ever.

[10/10 · 14 September 2013]

I saw this years and years ago. I just watched it again for the second time as I have always said it was genius and highly recommended it, and I wondered if I would watch it now and think it was silly as we so often do with changes in maturity levels and experiences.

Honestly still one of the best concepts ever. In fact, even though the ultimate point of this movie is the twisting and turning and epic ending, and this time I watched it with the understanding of the plot, I STILL enjoyed it immensely and would still recommend it as highly. The actors are all brilliant, even the supporting roles, and the idea is something that I think is one of the best concepts Hollywood has ever come up with. I don't think they could ever remake this without ruining it and "Hollywoodizing" it, so I am glad it was made as well as it was the first time.

The only movie so far that I have given 10 / 10

Mirror Mirror (I) (2012)

Great costuming and Sets... Meh movie.

[6/10 · 22 December 2012]

I am a Julia Roberts fan, so if you aren't then you might want to move on. However, I have to say, that looking for something fairytale and magical without being too girlie to watch with the family (two boys, six and nine) isn't always easy. They really liked the humour and how quickly the plot moved, as well as that it didn't follow the story they know exactly. There were just enough twists without making them totally question which story it was. I enjoyed Lily Collins immensely and don't actually think I've seen her in anything before. She reminds me a great deal of Audrey Hepburn in the way she looks and some of her mannerisms. Sean Bean is always brilliant, without question. I do feel that his performance was ruined by the song at the end. Not an issue that there WAS a song, just that the genre seemed REALLY out of place. Too bollywood. Just because that's your usual style, doesn't mean it should make an appearance in every movie you make, and really.. the way the audience finishes a film is the way it will be remembered. More care should have been taken to preserve what flavour there was. With a different song, and better choreography and camera work, that could have been a rather fabulous ending. Very colourful and fairytale-ish.

All in all it was an enjoyable film. Not stellar or life altering and definitely for a younger audience. For me, hands down, the highlights were in the sets and costuming. Without a doubt Mirror Mirror gets top marks for those. Major fail on Snow's last gown... but she has sort a Bjork feel at the end, so maybe that's what they were going for? Either way, not a total loss.

Easy A (2010)

Brilliant. An easy A. (Snicker, yeah... I did that.)

[8/10 · 15 November 2012]

This movie is by and far the best teen movie in existence. Not only because it was cast beautifully, but because the writing is witty and intelligent and the characters are interesting. Not too much of any one thing and keeps you actually interested in the storyline and the characters themselves. Emma Stone is one of my new favourite actresses and this role was MADE for her. She is utterly adorable, but not in that way that teens are generally portrayed in film. She lets you believe that she could be her anonymous self, but instead of the typical "nobody turns bimbo/mini-skirted/Prada'd/mean girl" star of the teen comedy/drama, this movie offers a fresh and more genuine version of the heroine's transformation. She finds herself as she finds popularity and has a good grasp of what's really going on. The bottom line is that seventeen year olds aren't idiots, they are just lacking much in the way of real world experience... but they are so often given lame roles in movies like these. This one lets you believe she's seventeen, and she has to deal with all the normal high school crap, but in a far more believable fashion than usual. And with a fabulous script, all the characters come to life.

Olive's (Stone) character is largely supported by her great relationship with her eccentric but genius family. Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson shine in their parental roles. Their report is a brilliantly modern and refreshing journey away from what has become such a common cliché of dysfunctional family dynamic that I think teens are starting to believe that they are supposed to act like idiots around their parents. My own teen years looked far more like Olive's than anything else I've seen, and Stone's character portrayal allows a teen to believe that it's actually OK to be intelligent and have a confidence level that is parallel to high school rather than dependent on it. Or defined by it. All in all, a great film for anyone, not just the teen genre.

The House Bunny (2008)

Dear GOD, make it stop.

[2/10 · 15 November 2012]

I don't know what to say. I suppose as soon as I saw that it was Halfwit Productions I should have turned it off, but I was willing to give anything with Emma Stone and Kat Dennings in it a chance. The only real positive thing I have to say is that I like the colour scheme in the house reno. Uuuummmmmm.... yeah, no... that's it.

Oh, LOL... I have to have at least ten lines, so... let me see. I must have something else I can say about it. OH, Hefner did a GREAT job! I was most impressed with his acting capabilities. I thought it was nifty that he played himself. And their hair... they had great hair. For the most part. Right. K, that should do it.