Time Travelers Wife

Last Friday night a girlfriend and I were discussing what to see at the theater. One of the previews I had seen was The Time Travelers Wife. The scenes were very touching and somewhat heart-wrenching, two people very much in love and torn apart by circumstances beyond their control. I warned my friend that there might be tears, armed myself with a handful of tissues and off we went. Surprisingly, I stayed dry-eyed for most of the movie. Henry (Eric Bana) travels through time without warning due to a rare genetic disorder. Drawn from time and place to time and place he continually pops, unannounced, in and out Clare's (Rachel McAdams) life. Clare first meets Henry when she is 5 and he is in his forties. Then Clare introduces herself to a younger Henry when she is in college and he is working at the college library. The two eventually marry and have a daughter. Somehow Henry is able to visit them, via time travel, even after he's dead. Time travel stories are always hard for me to keep up with. The story jumps from era to era, with Henry arriving older or younger. Somehow he and Clare form a very romantic, though somewhat tragic, relationship. Ultimately, this is a great romantic movie definitely worth watching if you believe in true love that lasts a life time, not necessarily in chronological order. Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams have great chemistry P. S. Henry and Clare's friend Gomez, played by Ron Livingston, was a familiar face from HBO-TV's "Sex and the City" (Berger, one of Carrie's boyfriends).

Check it out... The library has over 260 time travel novels, but for more scholarly information about the possibility of time travel check out "Time Travel in Einstein's Universe : the Physical Possibilities of Travel Through Time" by Richard J. Gott (530.11 GOT).

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Julie & Julia

There was such "hub-bub" about Julie & Julia in my little group of friends that I just had to go see this film. So a few of us did. It was a diverse group, those who cook and those who zap frozen food in microwaves. Mdm. Streep was sublime (insert French accent here), she was Julia Child for a few hours. Julia's husband Paul, played masterfully by Stanley Tucci, was so supportive and understanding of her drive to be involved in something. I felt her need to be something more than just a married lady, understood the disappointment of not having a family, something both Paul and Julia wanted. Julia and Paul's relationship was one of loving kindness and shared support. Lucky for us she chose French cooking and wanted to share her joy with all America. Her exuberance (again so artfully played by Streep) was contagious. So even though I fall in the "zapping" form of cooking, I thoroughly enjoyed Julia's story. I have always liked Amy Adams performances in the past and having no idea who Julie Powell is, I was not as engaged in her story as I was in Julia's. Julie has no joy to share, with us or her husband. She doesn't appreciate Eric (Chris Messina)even though he is patient and loving despite his wife's "melt downs". Her self-centeredness and single-mindedness makes her unsympathetic. Despite the inequitable stories, I did enjoy this movie and suggest that you will as well, at least half of it.

If you are interested in "cooking with Julia"...Check it out... at the Nesmith Library: Cooking with master chefs. (641.5 CHI); From Julia Child's kitchen. (641.544 CHI); Julia and Jacques cooking at home. (641.5944 CHI); Mastering the art of French cooking, Vol. 2. (641.5944 CHI); The way to cook. (641.5 CHI); and of course an autobiography: My life in France. (B CHI)

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G Force

Now here's a movie you can take the kids to see and have a good time doing it! G Force 3-D is the story of three highly trained guinea pigs and one star-nosed mole who can talk thanks to the collar that allows humans to understand them developed by human scientist, Ben (Zach Galifianakis - TV's Tru Calling). Ben's lab is about to be shut down. In an effort to save the G-Force team they must prove themselves as spies. Although I have previously stated that 3-D is an unessential marketing ploy in animated films, in G-Force the 3-D was thrilling and even made me jump once or twice. Add the "cuteness" factor of watching guinea pigs playing 007 and you have a great family film. Although this is the old "save the world from the crazy millionaire" theme it was so much fun, probably because the actors (voices of Nicolas Cage, Tracy Morgan, Penelope Cruz, Sam Rockwell and Steve Buscemi)obviously enjoyed doing it. Take the kids, you will all be happier for it.

Check it out...The Nesmith Library has several books on guinea pigs as pets: "Guinea Pig" by Clare Hibbert (J 636.935 HIB); "Guinea Pigs as a Hobby" by Anmarie Barrie (636.932 BAR); "Guinea Pigs : Everything About Purchase, Care, Nutrition, Grooming, Behavior, and Training" (J 636.935 BEH) and "Guinea Pigs : How to Care for Them, Feed Them, and Understand Them" (635.935 BEH) both by Katrin Behrend; "A Petkeeper's Guide to Rabbits & Guinea Pigs : a Practical Introduction to Keeping and Breeding a Wide Range of These Popular Pets" by David Alderton (636.932 ALD); "Starting with Guinea Pigs" by Dietrich Altman (J 636.935 ALT); and "Taking Care of Your Guinea Pigs" by Helen Piers (J 636.935 PIE).

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Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

First of all you need to remember that Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is based on a Hasbro toy line. That being said, this flick is NOT for children. Sure the special effects are great and the action fast moving, but this is a loud, violent, sexist film not meant for children or many of the rest of us. Although the story is simple - good versus evil, listening to trite conversation (at best) and rude humor makes it hard to decide who is good and who is evil. The characters, the human ones (Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, and John Turturro), dish out trite dialogue like they were sharing words of wisdom. And although I loved listening to Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen, alias Eeyore of Winnie the Pooh) I was baffled by the addition of two characters that James Rocchi (Special to MSN Movies, MSN Entertainment) calls "the racist-caricature robots of 'The Twins,' who speak in thug slang and 'aren't much for reading' and talk about getting 'up in that ass,' and one of whom has, I wish I were kidding, a gold tooth". I think this film should be transformed into a plastic trash basket. At least then it would serve a useful purpose.
Check it out...we do have lots of Winnie the Pooh stories at the Nesmith Library, if you are interested...

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