Mrs. Doubtfire

Summary: 
After a bitter divorce, an actor disguises himself as a female housekeeper to spend time with his children held in custody by his former wife.

Plot:

This is a great story of a father who would do literally anything to be with his kids. It’s hilarious in all the right places and yet serious when needed. The story is inspiring, funny and very entertaining.

Characters:

This movie shows of all of Robin Williams’ talents as an actor-his natural talent, humor and his incredible talent with voices and accents. The characters are generally very likable, although they’re not perfect. They’re relatable and yet not boring, and I thought they were all wonderful.

Cinematography:

Good, for a movie that was made in 1993. Actually very impressive if one keeps that in mind. It never distracts from the story.

Who should watch this:

(PG-13) mainly for some rude humor, references to mature content and language. Any fans of Williams should have watched this already. If you enjoy movies that are different, yet relatable I would definitely recommend this one.

My rating:

I really, really enjoyed this movie. It made me laugh, and I started to care for the characters. 5/5

Quote:

[Trying to get false teeth out of glass]

Mrs. Doubtfire: Carpe dentum. Seize the teeth.

Great Expectations

Charles Dickens

Summary:

Pip is headed for an apprenticeship at the blacksmith's forge. Then an anonymous donor appears, and sends Pip to London to live as a gentleman. Great Expectations tells the story of a young boy’s life as he grows up, and learns about love, pride and friendship.

Plot:

This story is much like Dickens’ David Copperfield in that it tells the life story of a young orphan. This is a good story, it’s interesting and there are some surprises along the way. However, it’s not a story that inspired me, or had me jumping up and down with excitement. Maybe because I knew what surprises lay in store for me or because I knew the story after having read most of the book, but not finishing. Or because I watched a movie based on it. Dickens’ writing is marvelous, he creates mood and atmosphere, but doesn’t over-describe everything.

Characters:

The characters are all flawed. The nicest character is probably Pip’s friend Herbert Pocket, who is a very optimistic and generally nice guy. Pip, the main character, changes a lot during the novel, starting of as an innocent, naive little boy, growing proud and then learning some important life-lessons. I liked the fact that Pip isn’t a perfect, good guy. He’s just human, with faults, and that makes him very relatable. His love interest, Estella, is a very interesting character. She’s not only proud, but believes herself to be completely incapable of loving anyone. While she’s not a nice person, she is quite fascinating to read about. Miss Havisham, Estella’s guardian, and Provis (who has many names, but I’m just going with this), an escaped convict whom Pip helps as a little boy are also very interesting characters.

Who should read this?

10+, there are very little to no mature content, except some references to hanging, which are not at all descriptive. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who doesn’t enjoy classics or older books. It’s not an easy read, and I think it’ll be very hard to read in one sitting, but that’s just because it spans over so much time, not because the writing is hard to read. If you’re a fan of Dickens you should have read it already, since this is one of his most famous works.

My rating:

I really did like this book, although I prefer David Copperfield’s story. I’m giving it a 4/5.

Quote:
“So throughout life, our worst weaknesses and meannesses are usually committed for the sake of the people whom we most despise.”

Racing Stripes

Summary: 

An abandoned zebra grows up believing he is a racehorse, and, with the help of his barnyard friends and a teenage girl sets out to achieve his dream of racing with thoroughbreds.

Plot:

A very funny, heartwarming story about believing in yourself and chasing your dreams, no matter what other people (or horses) say. While there’s been many movies like this one, none of them centred around a zebra. This is a very sweet story with a great message.

Characters:

This movie has some great characters, funny, serious, sweet, you name it. The farm animals are the best, with the motherly goat ‘Franny’ and the little Shetland pony, Tucker (Dustin Hoffman) who is Stripes’ mentor. Then you get a pelican called ‘Goose’, a very stupid chicken, ‘Reggie’, and two very funny flies that sing. The main character ‘Stripes’ is great, not perfect, but self-assured. The humans, Channing (Hayden Panettiere) and her father are also very nice, you find yourself hoping they will make the right choices.

Cinematography:

Okay, the animals ‘talking’ weren’t handled as well as it could have been, although this movie was made a while ago, so it’s understandable. The rest was very well done.

Who should watch this:

(PG) for very mild rude humor, the content is quite clean. Fans of horse movies, or animal stories in general. If you prefer a deep, serious or ‘adult’ movie, don’t watch this. It’s quite immature, but fun and great for just relaxing.

My rating:

I really like this movie, it’s not perfect or my favourite, but I like it so…3/5

Quote:
Franny: What are you?
Stripes: I don't know.
Tucker: We can rule out "genius"

Ramona and Beezus

Summary:

The adventures of young Ramona Quimby and her big sister Beezus come to life in this all new film based on the best-selling books by Beverly Cleary. Ramona's vivid imagination, boundless energy, and accident-prone antics keep everyone she meets on their toes. But, her irrepressible sense of fun, adventure and mischief come in handy when she puts her mind to helping save her family's home.

Plot: 
This is a very cute movie that’ll have you laughing and crying. Funny and sweet, I really do like it. The story kept me interested and you start rooting for the characters. It’s colourful and playful and romantic, you almost feel as if you were in a little girl’s imagination yourself.

Characters:

The characters are great, especially the main character Ramona (great acting by Joey King), who is unintentionally funny and mischievous. She keeps getting into scrapes and just makes you laugh. Her older sister Beezus (or Beatrice, played by Selena Gomez) is slightly mean towards Ramona, but not a bad sister, all things considered. She’s quite sweet and just starting to fall in love and grow up etc. All the other characters are extremely likable.

Cinematography:

Good, very colorful. This movie has a happy atmosphere, almost like a theme park or something. It’s just colorful, slightly ridiculous and fun.

Who should watch this:

I think this is a  movie the whole family will enjoy. There are no mature content, and it’s just a fun, relaxing watch. If you want something serious or thought-provoking you probably won’t like this, but great for a family movie night.

My rating:

I really like this movie, it’s something I would watch when I just want something positive and uplifting to take my mind of things. 4/5

Quotes:
Beezus: Ramona, you're your own person. You don't care about coloring inside the lines.
Ramona Quimby: It really depends on the picture.

Every Day

David Levithan

Summary: 

Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.

There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.

It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.

Plot:

This is an intriguing story. The idea of someone (or something, but since A thinks like a human I’m going to make him one) jumping from one body to the next every day is very interesting. This book is very thoroughly thought through (say those three words quickly a couple of times...I dare you!) with all the implications of previously said idea shown and explained very well. I found it fascinating, if a bit strange at times. It’s really interesting to see people from the point of view of someone who’s seen almost every type of person and got to be almost every type of person at some point. There’re funny moments and sad moments and it’s very entertaining.

Characters:

The characters are great. They’re very diverse, although A only switches to bodies the same age as him, so they’re mostly in the same age group. There’re characters from all walks of life, some of them not so great, some very likable. The main, constant characters are portrayed very well. A knows a lot about people, since he’s been almost everything, while Rhiannon is a normal girl who just wants to be appreciated. You start rooting for them very easily, even when they do stupid things.

Who should read this?

13+, quite a bit of mature content, not to mention that the idea of someone (thing?) taking over people’s bodies may be objectionable to some people. If you’re looking for something different, this is definitely a good one for you. I wouldn’t suggest this to just anybody, since it is quite strange, but it’s a very good storyline and idea.

My rating:

I really liked this book, it was interesting, didn’t bore me, I connected with the characters. 4/5

Quote:
“I wake up thinking of yesterday. The joy is in remembering; the pain is in knowing it was yesterday.”