I had a week and a half off from work.   A stay-cation.  What did I do with all that time on my hands?  I went to the movies.  Three movies in five days to be exact.  Probably a good idea I’m back at work.  I need to earn money to pay for my movie-watching habit (if the ticket price doesn’t get you the snacks will.  $6.50 for a small popcorn – that I polished off during the previews – and pop?!)  But let me tell you about the movies I went to.

Jack Reacher.  The latest ego-boost vehicle for Tom Cruise.  Haven’t heard of it?  I only saw previews about a week before I went.  Plus, there was a little bit of buzz because the opening was delayed after the Connecticut shooting.  The first five minutes explains why.  It was a little unnerving to watch the shooter’s perspective and see the victims’ in the crosshairs of a gun.  Especially the children.   I admit I got a little more teary than I normally would have when the lawyer interviewed the victims’ families.

But would I recommend the movie?

Sure.  Why not?  If you liked Cruise’s Knight and Day (2010) you’ll probably like this.  Mainly because he’s almost redoing the same character.  The movie contained a whole lot of action with some humor thrown in. Cruise is at his bravado best but doesn’t take himself as seriously as his Ethan Hunt role. Some cringe worthy scenes to beware of.  The finger scene left an awkward feeling afterwards.  If you’ve seen it, you know what I’m talking about. You probably had your fists clenched the whole time to protect your fingers.   And the eye scene made my eye water.  Out of the three movies, I’d give this a 2.  As if in, the second movie I would go to.

Les Miserables.  There is a whole lot of singing in this movie.  I mean a WHOLE LOTTA singing.  I was warned.  But I really like the book (although I recommend reading the abridged version).  The nuts and bolts of the story are very moving.  It’s a powerful tale of the redemptive power of love.  It doesn’t get much better.

But would I recommend the movie?

Do you like musicals?  Do you like it when even the dialogue is sung?  Can you keep a straight face when actors act their hearts out – while singing?  Do you have the maturity to sit through almost three hours of singing?  If you answered yes, then yeah, go see it.  Let me warn you though, you may answer yes – especially to that last question but this movie will test you.  For example, Jean Valjean is hiding from Javert in the church courtyard.  At first he whispers.  That makes sense.  And then he starts singing.  The appropriate response is probably to appreciate his sacrifice to save Cosette.  And to keep your mouth closed.  The inappropriate response is to shush him for suddenly breaking into song while he’s supposed to be hiding.  The people in the theater probably won’t appreciate it.  Trust me.  You will get shushed yourself.

Let me sum it up like this, if I were to have a bucket list (which I don’t) I would probably take off seeing an opera (which I would never put on there in the first place).  Out of the three movies, I’d give this a 3.  This is the last movie I would go to out of the three choices.  In fact, I’d wait for it to come out on DVD so that I could watch it in the comfort in my home.  Where I wouldn’t get shushed.  And where I could do other things like write a blog while watching the movie.

Parental Guidance.  I was the most hesitant about this movie.  But I wanted to get my dad out of the house for New Year’s Day.  Plus, I needed to redeem myself a little bit for our last New Year’s Day movie.  Who knew We Bought a Zoo (2011) was about a widower?   Talk about bad timing.  So, when dad mentioned Parental Guidance looked good I resolved to make sure he saw it.  The movie is about that delicate parent-child-grandchild relationship.  It had humor and truth to it.  Billy Crystal’s face looked a little more relaxed and normal than when he hosted the Oscar’s. What?  Surely I wasn’t the only one watching the broadcast this past year wondering what happened.  Followed by, “That doesn’t look quite right.”

This movie has a hidden bonus.  Well, it would be hidden if I wasn’t about to expose it right now.  It happens in the restaurant scene.  We are introduced to a character named Mr. Cheng.  It took a moment.  He looked familiar.  I thought, “Is that…”

“It’s Long Duk Dong!” somebody behind me not so quietly whispered.

“Yeah,” I agreed in my head because I know how to keep quiet during a movie.  I learned that skill while watching Les Mis the other day. “It’s Long Duk Dong.  An old Long Duk Dong” (Sixteen Candles 1984).

I can’t tell you what was said during that scene because I spent the rest of the time thinking, “Long Duk Dong is soooo old!  And balding.”  It was a little more drawn out than that and yes, it took the rest of the scene for me to get my focus back.

But would I recommend the movie?

Actually, yes.  It may have everything to do with my low expectation rule (the lower the expectation the more I like the movie. Conversely the higher the expectation the more chance I’ll be disappointed).  Out of the three movies, this would have been the number 1 movie I’d go see.  Of course, if that were truly the case, I’d have higher expectations of it and would have been disappointed.  This would have lowered the rating.  Tricky system here, isn’t it?

What movies did you see over the holiday season?  Did you see any of the three I mentioned?  What did you think about them?