Film Review - Vice 2018 (Spoilers and Commentary Ahead)

FYI - all of my reviews are done while watching the movie........sort of a play by play. I think my reviews are more about the story and less about the movie.  I'll try to keep that in mind going forward.

Vice (2018) stars Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell, Tyler Perry, Alison Pill and Jesse Plemons.  Bale plays the main character, former Vice President and all around asshole who shoots his friends, Dick Cheney.  

Gotta love a movie that starts off with this as the first thing you read:  The following is a true story. Or as true as it can be given that Dick Cheney is known as one of the most secretive leaders in history.  But we did our fucking best.

The movie kicks off going from a drunk Dick being pulled over by a cop early in his life to the day 9/11 happened.  

10:00 into the movie - From this viewpoint, I can now blame Lynne Cheney for everything that happens.  Or so it seems. I love a stand-up, take charge woman who isn't afraid of anything more than living the shitty life she's already living enough to stand her ground and kick the ass of those not living up to their own potential.  And she's well aware of the status of the world on why she's unable to achieve her goals herself as a woman..........so she'll build on this man she has.

Oohhh, another screen quote:  Beware the quiet man. For while others speak, he watches.  And while others act, he plans. And when they finally rest...he strikes. - Anonymous

20:00 into the movie - No windows but he has an office after working with Rumsfeld for a bit.  Steve Carell playing Donald Rumsfeld gives Rumsfeld more personality that I gave him credit for.  

OMG I didn't know that Lynne's mom was murdered!  Wow! To witness all of that as a child, then deal with no justice for her mom as an adult.....that's a lot.  It really really explains so much about who she became.

I should be writing the review but this trip through history is interesting. I'm also losing interest in the very boring personality belongs to Dick.  

40:50 into the movie - Once upon A Time.......there was Ronald Reagan.  Reaganomics, Mr. T, trump,

Paused the movie to use the bathroom and had these two thoughts.  #1 - Pausing a story on Dick Cheney to shit seems very appropriate.  #2 - we're at a scene where he's just had a heart attack. As someone who doesn't necessarily believe in a god, maybe that's his god trying to tell him to use that heart of his for more than just beating.  

At no point in this movie (mind you, I don't know how accurate it is) do I feel like he loves this country.  He and Lynne obviously love each other but it feels more to be the passion to be in charge of the place they happened to live.  

Oh wow, big turn just now in seeing how he feels about his daughter when she comes out of the closet.  He chose his daughter. That's a good dad moment!

Wait?  We're 49 minutes in and the information on the screen is saying that they gave up politics for the sake of their daughter, raised golden retrievers and lived happily ever after......followed by the credits for the movie?  There's still an hour to go.

I'm guessing that ^^^ would have been the decent, human with more than a beating heart would do.  

It's very weird that I always had this view of George W Bush of a silly, normal everyday guy with a well-connected family pushing him to be more than he actually wanted to be.  

This feels more like a documentary than a movie.  The acting thus far is only so-so. The movie seems boring but then it might just be the subject is boring and not the fault of the movie.  

There's a narrator throughout the movie.......at this point, curiosity got the better of me and I Googled it to avoid the moment of Lynn and Dick kissing in bed.  My heart was filled with fear, I didn't want to see this at all. Mercifully, it was exceedingly brief. The reveal of who the narrator is will probably go down as my favorite piece of this movie.  Genius. Pure genius. I will NOT reveal it in this review. Gotta keep something in the movie for you to be surprised by. However, I did add it as a link out......click where it says narrator and it'll link out to reveal that information.  

Ok, back to his daughter, Mary.  He really does love his daughter.  It's obvious he supports her.

While I am finding the movie boring, I love information.  Any information. So this information and the details of things I thought I knew (but didn't really) about that time in our history has been very eye-opening.  

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  1:50:00 into the movie - OBAMA IS PRESIDENT!!!!  

This old Dick was likely put ahead of thousands of others who were younger, healthier and MORE deserving of a heart transplant than this man on a purely physical/health level.  

1:59:03 into the movie - another bit of information to read on screen - Lynne and Dick split time between their homes in Wyoming and Virginia.  In 2016, Liz was elected as Wyoming's sole delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives. Mary Cheney was asked in 2015 whether she and Liz had mended their relationship.  She replied, " I don't have to answer that". So it's apparent that in this family, personal careers come before family. What a sad fucking existence. thank goodness there's only 12 minutes left.

1:59:32 into the movie - shocker - more info to read on screen - 4,550 US soldiers were killed in the Iraq War with over 32,325 casualties.  Suicide among American service members has increased by 31% since 2001. More than 600,000 Iraqi civilians died as a result of the war. ISIS is responsible for an estimated 150,000 civilians in Syria and Iraq with more than 2,000 murdered in international terror attacks.  Who is responsible for these numbers. Cheney by his manipulation and Bush by his head in the sand during?

2:02:00 into the movie - I'll just let you read it yourself when it comes on the screen but just note there's another information bit.  Let's just say any republican pissed off about HC's emails should study this screen for one hour and then give a reason as to why this is ok.  

My take away from this movie - fear anyone that wants to be president and all the people around them.  It's been hard to write a review for this and keep my personal opinions out of it. I apologize for any offensiveness (kind of) if you only wanted a review of the movie.  The movie itself is interesting, enlightening and depressing. I think that's what they wanted it to be so job well done. The acting was ok, but all the attention Christian Bale has received is well earned.  

3 shots out of 5.  Although this movie did make me wish I had a lot of more liquor.  

Film Review - Black Panther 2018 (Spoilers and Commentary Ahead)

FYI - all of my reviews are done while watching the movie........sort of a play by play.  Beware of opinions that probably don't matter to the quality of the movie.  I just can't keep my opinions to myself.  And remember, the shorter the review, the more into the movie I probably was.  LOL read on McDuff. 

The intro was way different than I had expected, although I don't know what I was going to expect anyway.  From Wakanda to Oakland to Nigeria to Wakanda.  

The cinematography is fucking amazing.  It shows the beauty of Africa.  

You've gotta love how this showcases the strength of black women.  That they are shown to be warriors is how we all want to be seen.  Strong, valued, intelligent, capable and competent.  

How do I get Lynn Whitfield to be my mom?  

27:36 into the movie - Prince T'Challa ceremony to be king has brought a challenger wishing to keep him from the throne.  This fight will be to the death or yield.  I'm amazed again at the cinematography.  The ledges of people in beautiful garments surrounding by the natural beauty of the waterfall and landscape make you really appreciate what most of us never get to live with in our daily existence.  

It's great to see how they show these individual tribes are still doing their own thing, maintaining who they each are and respecting each tribes' right to be who they are.......all while maintaining Wakanda.  Oh that the rest of the world could be this way.  

OMG his father's death!  It's really something to see him buried alive while showing the death of his father, King T'Chaka.  Now he's in heaven, but he's alive.  This low key feels like the Lion King.  Awwww his dad! 

This entire South Korea scene is a really good action sequence.  Lots of fighting, lots of great choreography.  They did a wonderful job on this. Incredible camera work.   

So the King is a murderer?  Of his own brother?  Wow!

In reality, (can I say that in a completely made up story) this is the story of a son fixing the mistakes made by his father.  This is a story of family, heritage and protecting the future while making it easier for those not considered equal.  

Favorite Quote:  "Bury me in the ocean, with my ancestors that jumped from the ships, because they knew death was better than bondage."  This is also the saddest quote ever. 

The score is over the top and fits perfectly.  It pulls me through each scene keeping me on the edge of my seat.  

I'm so much more impressed with the women of Wakanda than I am with Black Panther.  

I stepped away from this review for a little bit to let it marinate.  I wasn't overly impressed with the movie itself.  But in thinking it over, I'm impressed by the story, the amazing revelation of what a nation such as Wakanda could teach the world.......bringing the world to its knees in science, in faith in mankind and in the lesson that selfishness has ruled us for too long.  The lesson that people of color can be the teachers and professors in a world that's peaceful because of their knowledge and experience.

4 shots out of 5 for Black Panther 

My Promise to Me - Can I Keep It This Time?

Tomorrow is Saturday, January 26, 2019.

Today, I'm out of shape, I'm sore, I'm sick, I'm worn out, I'm sluggish.

Tomorrow I'll be all the same things I am today.

Tomorrow I just want to be a step or two closer to NOT being out of shape, sore, sick, worn out and sluggish.  I just got out of the bathtub.  I found out I couldn't really fit it in it.  Getting out was a struggle and I'm in actual pain now from getting myself out of that tub.  I'm way too fat.  I just weighed myself.  222 lbs.

My birthday was this past Monday, Jan 20.  I'm hoping I can use turning 48 at such an unhealthy weight and phase in my life into being the best 50-year-old me I can possibly be.  But I have some other goals I'd like to meet along the way.  In order to get there, I need to make some promises to myself.

This will be my 5 promises to me for every day.  Why?  Because I should be able to do this for myself.  Fuck the world, fuck the family.  I just don't want to be like this anymore.

1.  100 oz of water a day
2.  30 minutes of solid movement
3.  yoga / meditation
4.  eat what I need before I eat what I want
5.  my day planner

Let's see if I can do this.

Goal #1 - I want to be down to 200 lbs by April 30, 2019.  Once I can achieve that goal, we'll set up a new one for 190 lbs.  I ain't religious......but god help me.  LOL

I'm hoping that not just focusing on the weight loss will happen eventually.  But I feel like I'm always in pain and sluggish because of all the weight.  The movement and yoga and eating healthy will undoubtedly improve my overall health.......maybe it'll help with this funk I've been in for the last few months.  I need goals.  I'm listless and tired of myself.  New me, new tomorrow.....blah blah blah.  Fuck that.  I won't spend so much time whining......just get up and do it.......you know.....like Nike says. 

PrettyUnlimited - Episode 23: The Secret Life of (Davenport) Pets

After surviving the Tipsycast, Anna and Khris spoke about their extended family...of pets! Get brief histories and hilarious stories about the dogs and cats that have marked moments in our lives.

The Pretty Unlimited theme music was produced by Rediculus for Platformz Music. 

Film Review ~ Green Book 2018 (Spoilers and Commentary Ahead)

FYI - all of my reviews are done while watching the movie........sort of a play by play.

Green Book (2018) stars Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen as a classical pianist who is black and a bouncer turned driver who is Italian.  It's based on the book The Negro Motorist Green Book.  This true story from the perspective of the driver (Tony Vallelonga) as passed down to his son, Nick.   Tony takes a job to drive for Don Shirley.

So going into this movie, that's about all I knew.  And though I'd heard of Mahershala Ali, I've never seen him in anything before this movie.  I'd never heard of the story or of Viggo, either.  I like seeing new talent for the first time and anything that starts off "based on a true story" is always a favorite.



And roll em'!

Opening the story, it's obvious that Tony is racist as all hell.  Two maintenance workers are in his home doing repair work.  Tony's wife offers them a drink as a thank you for their work and then they leave.  Tony can do nothing but eye the two drinking glasses over and over.  Eventually, he picks them up in disgust and throws them in the trash.  Why?  The two workers are black.  Then his family sits down to dinner beginning with a family prayer.  Very much a hypocrite.

The Interview - Tony has no job for the next two months and needs work as he's got a family to support.  He hears of a job and goes to check it out.  In doing so, he's thrown a curve ball to realize that he'd be working for a black man.  He lies about his views (duh) on black people.  Dr. Shirley is not impressed but he needs someone to protect him as well as drive while on tour in the deep south during the 1960s.

Obviously, he gets the job.

30:45 into the movie - Tony is still an asshole.  Oh, and he doesn't know to just shut the fuck up. His bubble is very small that he lives his life in.  He's so busy spouting off his own opinions as though they're facts.

38:42 into the movie - Oh My Goodness. The first time we're able to hear his music.  So dramatic.  It pulls at your emotions until you find yourself lost.  Even Tony is humbled.

Tony and Dr. Shirley are in the car listening to the radio.  It's astounding to Tony that while the Dr. has heard of these singers, Dr. Shirley has never listened to them.  Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke, Little Richard, Chuck Berry.  Tony says "these are your people" to the Dr.  It makes you realize that while he's a prominent, successful pianist, he's probably lonely.  No one looks like him, no one plays like him, no one really talks to him as a friend.  Lessons are beginning on both sides of this relationship.

48:00 into the movie - Tony defends the hell out of the Dr.'s contract to play on a Steinway.  SLAP!!!!

LMAO - KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN (restaurant) IN THE STATE OF KENTUCKY!!!  (Why is this so damn funny to me?

1:12:00 into the movie.  I think more and more Tony is beginning to realize just a bit of what a black man needs to deal with just to get through each day.

1:22:00 into the movie.  I wonder if Tony will ever realize how much better his marriage will be because of the letters that the Dr. has helped him write to his wife during this tour.  I hope he's grateful.

The end of the movie.  It ends with smiles and gratitude and new beginnings.

I was initially going to say that this movie was not special because it felt very typical of any movie where race is the underlying lesson. But it is special.  Not because it's a movie but because this was the lives of two men and the building of their relationship.  Maybe I should say friendship.  They did have something tangible and real.  It stood the test of time.

One of the things that shocked me the most was learning of Sundown Towns.  Click the link so you can learn how fucked up our country IS.....not was......this is still happening today.  Read it.  Then ask yourself why more people don't hate us all.  One of those moments where being ashamed to be white hit me very hard.

Things I took away from this story.
There is no big moment of epiphany in this movie.  There is one scene where the Dr. just can't take Tony's ASSumptions anymore.  He asks him.......if I'm not black enough, not white enough, not man enough.....where do I fit in?  This movie seems to be about a relationship that would never have been possible without this tour.  Two men with little in common finding that they don't need common ground to find respect and understanding.  They've built a life long friendship based on honesty, integrity and in just learning about someone much different from themselves.

The reality, it's really showcasing the lonely life of an intelligent, talented, gay, alcoholic, black man who has no one.  No one to share anything with ever.  Imagine that for a moment.  Close your eyes.  Picture your life with no one around you.  No family.  No friends.  No one that looks like you.  No one that shares your interest.  No one to confide in.  No one that confides in you.  No one to say hello, good morning, good night, I'm lonely.  Just no one.

There's mention of a moment 6 years prior to this tour, that Nat King Cole was asked to perform.  He would be the first black man to be invited to perform in Birmingham, AL ever.  Here's the result.

Dr. Shirley was a special man with enormous talent.  Tony was NOT a special man until he learned to accept Dr. Shirley........and to enjoy the person he became in this process.

Genius is not enough.  It takes courage to change people's hearts.

Here's the Trailer!  Enjoy!!!  I give it a solid 4 shots out of 5.

The Time Between the Golden Globes and the Oscars 2019

I'm in the go-between time of the Golden Globes and the Oscars where I'm realizing all the movies and tv shows I never bothered to watch are up for awards.  I've decided to watch one movie/show per day (that might be too much, right?) and review each one.  There are two reasons I'm doing this.

The first reason is there are so many important things to watch.  Shows with a great message, maybe some lessons on how to improve how we live our lives.  Or many just how we view the world outside our own little bubble.  So few of us actually live outside of a bubble, but I don't think we really take the time to reflect on it.  Reflection brings guilt.  Guilt for things we just can't change........and guilt for things we could change but are just too uninclined to be bothered with.

The second reason is that there will likely be more Google searches going on over the next month or two and maybe one or two new readers would come across this page and feel that what I say might not be important, but at least it'll (hopefully) be entertaining.

Here's my list.  I took a peek at the Golden Globes website for these picks.  My goal is to watch everything that was nominated including those shows/movies that weren't nominated but had a participant (actor, writer, production, etc) nominated for working on that project.  (HOLY SHIT THIS LIST IS LONG!!!!)

Movies & TV Shows
Green Book
Vice
The Favourite
*Mary Poppins Returns (seen it - review coming soon)
*Crazy, Rich Asians (seen it - review coming soon)
Bohemian Rhapsody
Black Panther
BlacKKKlansman
If Beale Street Could Talk
A Star is Born
The Wife
A Private War
Destroyer
Can You Forgive Me?
At Eternity's Gate
Boy Erased
Eighth Grade
Tully
The Old Man and The Gun
Stan & Ollie
First Man
Beautiful Boy
Roma
Shoplifters
Spiderman: Into The Spider-Verse
Incredibles 2 (might be a good time to watch the first one, huh?)
Isle of Dogs
Mirai
Ralph Breaks the Internet (here we have the one entry I don't want to watch since I hated the first one)
Capernaum
Girl
Never Look Away
A Quiet Place (my husband talks of this movie often)
*Dumplin (FUCKING LOVED IT!!!!!)
The Americans
Bodyguard
Homecoming
Killing Eve
Pose
The Kominsky Method
The Good Place
*Kidding
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Barry
American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace
The Alienist
Escape at Dannemora
Sharp Objects
A Very English Scandal
Dirty John
The Tale
Seven Seconds
Picasso: Genius
Patrick Melrose
Outlander
*The Handmaids Tale
The Americans
Ozark
Homecoming
GLOW
Will & Grace (nope, not happening.  I just never liked the show......ok, I'll try)
Murphy Brown
Who Is America?
*Atlanta
West World
Succession

Ok, a few of these I have actually seen.  Not many though.  I'll add an * in front of the ones I've seen.  I just need to do a review of them.  This might not go well.....I tend to dislike a lot of stuff.  Cross your fingers.  All total, this will take me over 100 hours to do this.  LOL - we'll see how it goes.  I've got the Women's March of NJ coming up in 11 days.........I'll just do the best I can and keep plugging away at it.  Up first?  Green Book.

Hungry! Yes! Wait? Am I?

Today is Monday, December 10.  It's my last day at work before my annual layoff.  Typically, I would be planning out my volunteer time which increases a lot over this time frame.  But, I left the leadership role I had in Art All Night - Trenton so I can concentrate on being available more for my son as he started middle school.  It was really the right choice because although he's doing well, he is needing a lot of help. 

This time though, I've decided to concentrate on me.  I want to use this time to see if I can get my weight down and make healthy improvements in my day to day existence.  Today's been pretty good.  I'm the only one at work so I used the time to sneak a work out into my day that wasn't planned.  Then I went for a walk at lunchtime.  I even did a 7-minute mini workout when I got back from that walk. 

(New goal.........skinnier shadow!!)

Now, I just finished lunch (3/4 of a cup of Panera Bread's baked potato soup).  I'm on my 7th cup of water.  And I feel like I'm hungry.  But I don't know if this is really I'm hungry or just I want to graze on something.  Or maybe this is from the walk?  I have no clue.  But I'm pushing through it right now by writing this instead of eating.  LOL, hopefully, this works. 

I'll wait until 3pm to eat the banana I brought for a mid-afternoon snack.  I might sneak a diet coke.....one of my favorite things to have.  I haven't had any soda in about 5 days.  I'm working on a set of specific goals for January and February.  Hoping I can get myself on point.  Realizing that snacking between meals is a big problem for me.  Now..........how do I fix it? 

PrettyUnlimited - Episode 11: The Halloween Spooktacular

Tis the season for ghost and goblins! In this special two-hour Halloween themed episode, we run through a number of Top Fives, from our favorite Movie and TV monsters to our favorite scary movies, creepy voices, Halloween candy and...serial killers? Keep the light on! 

Big shouts for the PrettyUnlimited theme music that was produced by Rediculus for Platformz Music.

PrettyUnlimited - Episode 09: Make Me Laugh

This week's episode is hilarious! Well, it's about things that we find hilarious. For fans of our top fives who also love comedy, get ready for our picks for the five funniest TV shows/specials we've ever seen!

The Pretty Unlimited theme music was produced by Rediculus for Platformz Music.

Weigh In Day (August 12, 2018)

Today is weigh in day! 204.1 lbs. Not too bad, but unfortunately, I drank and ate too much on vacation a few weeks back + I've been slacking on everything at home since then. So that's a loss of 2.5 lbs since last Sunday but it was just weight I had regained last month. I need to lose 1 more lb to be where I was before vacation. So here's the whole package:

204.1
Left Bicep 14.5 down .25"
Right Bicep 13.75 same
chest 44.25 down a full fucking inch!
belly 42 down a full inch!
hips 45 down a full inch!
left thigh - 26 same
right thigh - 26 same


Last week I half-assed my workouts. Part of it is laziness (most of it actually), part of it is knowing how sore I'm going to be (scaredy cat) and part of it is this fucking humidity (dripping sweat feels like bugs). Ugh. But it's mostly me being lazy. So this week, I'm setting up a plan in my calendar with what I want to do. I also downloaded Lose It! app to see if I like this one better for tracking my food and exercise.

Sunday - no workout but a fair amount of walking since I have errands to go do today. Plus I'm on my feet meal prepping for a couple of hours.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday - My strength training day - I'm going for the 3 rounds of my own workout that I made to target areas I need help with then I'm going to go use a strength training video that's on YouTube. Tons of free workouts all over YouTube.
Click here to see the workout I'll be doing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DrOlw2yEHc

Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday - Cardio days. I plan to go walking. One hour on this bridge next to my house. It's very steep on both sides. So I'm hoping to get out there for one solid hour each day REGARDLESS of the weather. I need to do this because we bought a treadmill (and an exercise bike) but we are still in the process of cleaning out our gross basement and can't put it down there yet. Once that's done, (about a month or so from now) we'll be able to get that space together for cardio and strength training. Our living room floor is too bouncy and me jumping around knocks things off of shelves. How fucked up does that sound?

Anyway, my only other goals for the week are to meet my calorie goals for the WEEK, drink 700 oz of water for the week, and to NOT eat and unhealthy snack before dinner all week. That's my weak moment, right when I get home from work, I'm starving. I have to reign that in. Good luck to all of you who are dealing with these struggles. The only challenge is me.

ELF Cosmetics (Eyes Lips Face) Series (1st)

I've been using ELF for about 5 years now and since I'm finally starting to get time to do my own thing, I thought it'd be a great way to talk about how much I love ELF, even if I'm not a fan of all the products.  And the prices are well worth letting me try out all the products I want to try.

Someone else helped me trip over ELF through a friend of a friend of a friend.  I don't even remember that chick's name.  Ah, well.  Online shopping is a favorite past time of mine so this was right up my alley from the rip.  Second, was that they don't use animals to test or any animal bits or pieces in their products.  Awesome!  I'm not a huge makeup purchaser since I've been trying to simplify my spending, space, routine and life in general.  But I'll be sharing my thoughts on the products I do buy.

Website - https://www.elfcosmetics.com/

First up!  Lips.  Ok, it might not be a good idea to start off with the negative shit but it is what it is.

Aqua Beauty Radiant Gel Lip Stain - Thoughts?  It's shit.

$4 ~ The color (I picked Dewy Berry) wasn't crazy bad but when I think stain I think of a vibrant color that's going to stay put.  I don't blame that on them as that was just my own personal thought.  But it does neither.  The color was more like a tint and the stain aspect just didn't happen for me.  It doesn't go on even either.  That drove me bonkers.  I mean, this is just stuff to smear on my lips so why doesn't it go on evenly and why is it purposely fighting me in my battle for an even coat?  WTF?  But all that aside..........it fucking tastes gross.  And the smell is just like the taste and right under my damn nose.  Ugh!  

Click here to see what it looks like so you won't make the same mistake I did.  

AQUA BEAUTY RADIANT GEL LIP STAIN 

Ok, that's it for today's lesson in stank ass stains.  I'll be looking for another stain through ELF when my next paycheck kicks in.  See ya later, alligator.