Movies 12/19-12/26
Yes, we watched several movies over break as a family, so I didn’t end up with much of my own movies through Netflix.
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Rating: 
T sent me into Best Buy a couple days before Christmas to “pickup a Christmas movie we don’t have.” There weren’t very many choices because (1) we already have most of them, (2) anything we don’t have is either for adults or kids age 3 or under. This was not a big hit with the family, but I enjoyed watching it again in HD. Very impressive blacks and color.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
Rating:
I started reading more mature books to the kids lately, starting with the Lemony Snicket series (thanks, Lib :), moving onto C. S. Lewis’ Narnia series, and am now on the Harry Potter series. I want the kids to hear/read the books before seeing movies, and it’s working very well. It’s especially fun to reread books I enjoyed in my younger years. Anyway, the later Harry Potter movies are much better than this one, but it is still very fun to watch the beginning of the series.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)
Rating:
I’m glad we waited to watch this on Blu-ray rather than pay hard cash to watch it in the theater. It was very good as the pilot to a weekly “cartoon,” but doesn’t hold up that well as a feature-length film. The plot felt just plain silly, though it was obviously geared towards children. Very cool battle scenes, though. I look forward to watching the first season when it hits shelves someday.
Monster Camp (2007)
Rating:
I added this to my Netflix queue after watching Fellowship of the Dice, which I really enjoyed (and added to my wish list, so others can borrow it someday). It’s about a group of people who play a somewhat real-life role playing game where they battle outside with fake armor and weapons. Interesting to see what they do, but fairly boring as a documentary.
Tinker Bell (2008)
Rating:
This is a stunning movie on Blu-ray. The plot is good for kids, but doesn’t hold up much for adults. The funniest part was the beginning where the narrator, obviously referring to these fairies/pixies, keeps asking “Who made the trees,” “Who makes spring come alive,” etc., etc. The kids sat there together immediately answering “God” to each question. Guess they’ve been listening. :)
Bionicle: Mask of Light (2003)
Rating:
This is all Lafe. We actually watched the 2nd and 3rd movies months ago, and finally found this at a reseller (couldn’t get it on Netflix). These movies are much better than they should be. If you have a young boy in the house, he’ll probably love them all.
Run, Fat Boy, Run (2007)
Rating:
I usually enjoy all of Simon Pegg’s movies, but this one just didn’t do it for me. There are a few laugh-out-loud moments, but not enough to raise it to a 3-star movie.
The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (2007)
Rating:
I preview most movies before letting the kids watch them. This one bored me to death for the majority of the movie, followed by about 10 minutes of excitement when the military started trying to kill the water “monster.” I felt the kids wouldn’t really enjoy how that all played out so decided to just send the disc back.
The Polar Express (2004)
Rating:
We watched this with the kids on Christmas Eve, which has become our tradition. We watch the movie, then go upstairs to leave cookies, milk and carrots for Santa and his reindeer, then read The Night Before Christmas and The Polar Express (yes, we watch it and read it). It’s still a fun movie to watch each year, though the animation of the characters talking still freaks me out a bit. It just doesn’t look right.
The Office: Season 4 (2007)
Rating:
This show continues to make my wish list each year. I can’t get enough of the antics of the cast. It was interesting to watch the extra on the disc where they interview all the writers of the show this year. I had no idea several of the characters on the show are actually the writers… makes them even funnier. :) Also, I finally convinced T to start watching these with me, so we made it through 1.5 seasons over break. I’m glad she enjoys it as much as I do… much funner to laugh like crazy when someone is there to share the moment with you. I always felt a bit insane doing it by myself. ;)
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