Reminiscing in the past

"So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." - Gandalf, Lord of the Rings, the Fellowship of the Ring

Above is probably one of my favorite quotes from the series (which I am currently attempting to read for the first time). I felt like I should document the fact that the Lord of the Rings films are my favorite movies of all time. Some may have thought Harry, but not even close (Harry wins the book battle) because I can probably watch any of the three movies at any time. For some reason I decided I should pay tribute to that fact, which is quite remarkable considering the films are all three hours long. Fun fact, for my 13th birthday party (or two weeks before 8th grade) I had a Lord of the Rings themed party. Some may think that would mean plates, hats, napkins with Gandalf's face plastered on them. But no. The lucky 10 friends I invited had the pleasure of watching all three films in a row (not extended version, but I have done all three extended in one day). We had a sleepover and by an hour through the second movie I think everyone was done, except me. Hey, it was my party so I could do whatever I want. So we continued watching all three magical, magnificent, cinematic genius films in my cozy basement. I hope that demonstrates my love for these films.

I would now like to give a nice shout out to my mother and brother for making me see the Fellowship of the Ring in theaters after many protests and complaints on my end. Half way through the film I was in love. I am eternally grateful to them. I have three great memories with each film as they came out, each in December. For the first film I remember my parents coming home on New Years Eve, after they saw it for the first time, in amazement. I thought they were exaggerating on how good it was. I remember driving to the movie theater after agreeing to see the film as my brother was trying to give me a basic summary (since he read the book). I remember hearing about Orcs and me going "huh?" convinced it was going to be really stupid. But then it was just pure awesomeness. The casting, the acting, the sets, the realism of Middle Earth, the special effects, the makeup, the direction, there are very little flaws in all three movies.

We move on to the second film, my obsession only growing. I clearly remember a Wednesday evening with my brother and sister (who had now been under the curse like the rest of us). My brother was playing a Lord of the Rings video game when my sister was like "Let's see it again." I couldn't believe my ears, it was a Wednesday night and I was in 6th grade. I didn't know it was allowed to go see a movie on a weekday (my parents were in the city) and we did. We went to the movies, we were the only people in the theater and it was extremely fun because we were able to just talk aloud our thoughts on each scene. It was fantastic.

The last movie was much anticipated. My brother and sister (both in high school) were going to see the midnight showing (this is before these were a regular thing) and I wanted to go with them. Considering I was very young, I think 12, my mother would not let me go. Of course I would have been with my siblings but that did not matter. I was heart broken, I had this incredible desire for it to be my first midnight showing movie. I guess I was not persuasive enough and was not allowed, especially since it was a during the week. That next day, which was a Wednesday because all Lord of the Rings movies came out on Wednesday's, my mother picked me up from school. She surprised me with buying tickets for a 4 o'clock showing and we saw the movie together. There are no words to describe how awesome this movie is (if you haven't seen it, get off your butt and go rent it). I suppose the 11 Oscars it won (to tie the most ever with Ben-Hur and Titanic) is evidence of how epic they really are.

Even though they may not have the box office numbers like Harry Potter or Twilight. They may not have the biggest fans in the world like Star Wars or Star Trek. But, in my opinion, I think that they are the best movies ever made based off a book. Now, I haven't read the books, but the attention to detail and thought (after watching the extended special features on all the films) I think these movies are the greatest. Peter Jackson may never live up to his Lord of the Rings success (cross your fingers he does with the two Hobbit films) but the three films he made could possibly be, in all aspects, the best three movies I will ever see in my entire life.

With that some side notes from Hollywood.
1. I am a little bitter but must give my congrats to Captain America for winning the box office this week, but I mainly think it's because Harry made so much money in the first week that it would be hard to have that happen again the next weekend. I am also excited to see next weeks winner, with Crazy Stupid Love and Cowboys & Aliens coming out (both of which are getting good reviews so far).
2. I would like to say I am anxiously awaiting the revamped Spider-Man movie. It may be because Andrew Garfield is really good looking or because I am in love with Emma Stone and her sense of humor, or it might be because Sally Field is in it and you really can't go wrong with Sally Field. To watch a cool interview with director and cast from Comic-Con click here and if you want to watch the trailer check it out here.
3. I hope you like Snow White cause there is gonna be a lot her next year. There are two films in production, scheduled to come out next year by two different production companies: Relativity and Universal. The first will be The Brothers Grimm: Snow White, which will feature Lily Collins (Blind Side) as Snow White and Julia Roberts (I hope you know her) as the Evil Queen. The other is Snow White and the Huntsman featuring Kristin Stewart (Twilight) as Snow White, Charlize Theron (Monster) as the Evil Queen and Chris Hemsworth (Thor) as the Huntsman. I for one am interested in seeing both films, especially seeing Roberts as an evil queen.

With that I say... Live long and prosper.