"Maleficent" Movie Review

Alright I know this movie is like a year old, but whatever. I'm still obsessed with it. I think this is my favorite movie Angelina Jolie has ever done.

I'll be honest- when I first heard they were making a movie from Maleficent's point of view, I was nervous. I love Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) and I love her story. I always have and I always will (here's to hoping I get to name my daughter Aurora). I was afraid her story would be ruined by Maleficent, but I was pleasantly surprised. 

I fully understand know why Mal was pissed at the king. King Stefan stole her wings while claiming to love her. Mal was a kind fairy (something I didn't see coming) and she showed Stefan kindness when he was just a nobody. They fell in love but his greed came first. It's so sad. Mal took her frustrations out on his daughter, Aurora. 

She was always there watching over Aurora, waiting until her 16th birthday when she would fall into a sleep she would never wake from since there is no such thing as true loves first kiss. The three flood fairies: Flora, Fauna, and Merrywether, were idiots and basically Aurora would have died many times has Mal and her bird/human sidekick Diabold not been watching over her. I didn't like that part very much, but I get why they did it. 

It was kind of funny watching Mal toy with the fairies while Aurora showed no fear of her. King Stefan was losing his mind which was weird and the Queen dies. When Aurora is older, she believes Mal is her fairy godmother and isn't afraid of her. 

They grow closer, although Mal clearly tries to keep her feelings at a distance. Aurora meets Prince Phillip in the woods and its hits as sweet and awkward as in the cartoon. She finds out Mal cursed her and she is taken by the fairies to her father's castle. She is heartbroken about Mak and Diabold and she is upset she can't see Phillip ever again. Of course she pricks her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and goes into her sleep. The fairies find Phillip and have him kiss her, but it doesn't work. Mal isn't surprised as she knows true loves first kiss is a lie. I didn't like that as it was one of the most iconic scenes in the cartoon, but the part that followed made up for it 

Mal tearfully apologized to Aurora as she realized that she couldn't save her "Beastie". She kisses Aurora's forehead and Lo and behold, the princess awakens! This was true loves first kiss. It was like the love of a mother for her child. 

The sweet moment doesn't last however when Mal is discovered by the kings men and captured. He knows (thanks to a young Mal) that iron burns fairies, so he has her chained with iron shackles. Aurora is locked in an attic like Rome where she finds Mal's wings. She grabs them and breaks out, getting them to Mal who takes over. She turns Diabold into a dragon and eventually they win. 

She crowns Aurora the queen of the Moors (the magical land where all the fairies and other creatures live). She, Diabold, and Phillip stand at Aurora's side and it's beautiful. 

I love that Aurora is just as kind and innocent as she is in the cartoon. I love the relationship between Mal and Aurora. They really are like mother and daughter by the end. Mal's emotional and mental journey throughout the movie is so intense and Jolie did a great job with her. Also. I totally ship Mal and Diabold! 

This was a great movie and will basically be the Sleeping Beauty live action movie, but it was so good that I might actually be ok with that. (Although I'm a little disappointed that thee was no iconic blue/pink dress).

I give this movie 5 stars.

Where's Natasha & Wanda? (and Clint & Pietro)

Dear Disney/Marvel/Whoever Is In Charge:

I'm writing this post in the futile hopes that someone- ANYONE from Disney or Marvel sees it. It is really depressing that there is no merchandise for the female characters. I don't understand why. Of course they want to go after the male audience, but what about the women? Yes we have a long line of Disney Princess and they're all great- I love them, but they aren't anything close to the Black Widow or the Scarlet Witch or even Princess Leia. Why can't there be Barbie dolls of the ladies? Why don't they get their own action figures. You want to go after the male demographic, but you could double your money by including the women. Little girls are just as persuasive, if not more persuasive, at getting their parents to buy them toys. Aside from the little kids, what about the grown women who would like some merchandise? A t-shirt, a collectable doll...whatever. Why don't we get any options. We have the Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Peggy Carter, Captain Marvel, Jane Foster (eventually), Maria Hill....and who else? There are a few others, but the pales in comparison to the list of male superheros.

Furthermore, why are Hawkeye and Quicksilver exiled from your merchandise along with the ladies? The biggest reason Hawkeye had such a large role in the latest Avengers is because of fan demand (unless that was another pretty lie from the studio). Think Quicksilver merch won't sell? Then I invite you to check your Twitter and Tumblr feeds. He is beloved. Hawkeye is beloved. Of course we love Thor, Iron Man, Captain America, and the Hulk- but we love other characters too. There are more than 4 Avengers. Why not include the others? It can't be because they lack superpowers i.e. Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. The Black Widow is a badass to the extreme and Hawkeye is really talented. Why can't we include all of them? I want to buy their merchandise items more than the main 4.

It's just not fair and it honestly breaks my heart.

Sidenote: please bring Quicksilver back. He is a valuable asset to the team and we love him/Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Seriously. Don't toy with us like this.


Sincerely,

Basically Every Woman on the Planet.

Book Review - "The Selection" by Kiera Cass

This book was so crazy. I mean nothing too crazy happens, but the love story is just-ah! It gave me so much anxiety and so many knots in my stomach (the good kind). I love America Singer and I would love to be her best friend. I also love her relationship with her younger sister May and how much she cares for her family (even when they're annoying).

I feel like America is kind of awkward. She's also blunt and wears her heart on her sleeve, but she's still a spitfire. She's so relatable. Another thing I love about her is how close she is with her maids. They are there to serve her but she is always looking out for them and when the palace is under attack, she is concerned for their safety. It's something both Maxon and I love about her.

I am team Maxon and not team Aspen. America deserves better. She deserves to be treated like a lady and taken care of. Plus, Maxon was willing to implement a system of getting food to the lower castes simply because America shared her opinion about their struggles. They are so cute together. The fact that he tells her he'd send everyone home if he knew she loved him, I just- I can't. I was squealing like a 13 year old girl. 

Overall, I love this book and can't wait to continue along with the series. I hope to see America's relationship with Prince Maxon grow and I want him to pick her. 

5 stars for America Singer!! (and May, Marlee, Prince Maxon, Lucy, Anne, and Mary)

"Avengers: Age of Ultron" Movie Review

Oh. My. God.


This movie was everything it was hyped up to be and more.

As a fan of Hawkeye (and Jeremy Renner) I was really really happy to see that he was in this movie a lot more, and you humorously see what an important part of the team he actually is.

You finally learn about the Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff)'s past and wow- I understand her a lot more now. I have always loved her, but this movie brings her to a whole new level.

The Maximoff twins, Pietro and Wanda (Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch), are a great addition to this movie. I didn't think I'd end up caring much about them, but holy crap did that change by the end of the movie.

We finally get a better glimpse into the Hulk (Bruce Banner)'s life. It's not much of a surprise that he views himself as a monster, but it's nice to begin to see the man behind the monster.

Thor doesn't have a whole lot of character development- he just seems to be in a good place and in a good place with the team (until Tony Stark screws things up).

Iron Man (Tony Stark) is his typical self in this movie, but we get a good glimpse at his non-egotistical side. He loves the team and will do anything to protect them.

Captain America (Steve Rogers) has his own growth through the movie. I think he is finally getting a handle on being a man out of his time.

We start right in on the action as the Avengers take down a Hydra base while looking for Loki's scepter and thinks take off from there. Everything about this movie was flawless, I'm not even kidding. There was plenty of humor and one-liners (from more than just Tony Stark) and a lot of running jokes (good job Cap). There were a lot of fight scenes which I thought would get old, but it didn't. Each fight had a purpose- there was no fighting just to fight or blow things up just because. Also, we meet The Vision and he is awesome. Tony messes up by creating Ultron it somewhat rectified by creating The Vision.

I want to say more, but I don't want to give things away so I'm going to do another post on this movie in a few weeks when more people will have had the chance to see it.

All in all, SEE THIS MOVIE - YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!