The Academy Awards Winners.

As many of you know (or don't know) I love movies, so that means I love the Oscars and the Golden Globes. Though I think its biased and gives awards to movies that half of us have never seen, but I still love watching it. I love the dresses and the tuxs. I love the that golden little man. However, last night I had to work, so I recorded it and watched it the minute I got home which was 5 am. Nice. I also took notes of who won and who won what. So sit back and enjoy while I dazzle you with the winners and a picture or two.



~Achievement for Art Direction:
Alice in Wonderland: Robert Stromberg and Karen O'Hara (Great movie btw)

~Achievement for Cinematographic

Inception: Wally Pfister (Have not seen it)

~Best Supporting Actress

Melissa Leo: The Fighter (have not seen it)

~Best Animated Short Film
The Lost Thing (Seen a little of it)

~Best Animated Feature Film
Toy Story 3 (LOVE THAT MOVIE)

~Best Adapted Screenplay
Social Network: Aaron Sorkin (Have not seen it)

~Best Original Screenplay
King's Speech: David Seidler (dieing to see it)

~Best Foreign Film
In A Better World: Denmark

~Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter (Haven't seen it)

                                            





























~Best Original Score Social Network, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

~Achievement in Sound Mixer
Inception: Hirschberg, Rizzo, and Novick

~Achievement in Sound
Inception: Richard King

~Achievement in Makeup
The Wolfman(haven't seen it), Rick Baker and Dave Elsey

~Achievement in Costume Design 

Alice in Wonderland: Colleen Atwood

~Best Documentary Short Subject

Strangers No More (have not seen it)

~Live Action Short Film

God of Love (seen it)

~Best Documentary Feature

Inside Job (wants to see it) 

~Achievement in Visual Effects

Inception

~Achievement for Film Editing

Social Network: Wall and Baxter

~Original Song

"We Belong Together" by Randy Newman, Toy Story 3

~Achievement in Directing

Tom Hopper, The King's Speech

~Best Leading Actress

Natalie Portman, Black Swan (haven't seen it)

~Best Leading Actor 

Colin Firth, The King's Speech

~Best Motion Picture

The King's Speech

Well, I hoped you enjoyed this little recap. ^.^ This was one of my favorite Oscars Awards. The hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco did a splendid job. Maybe someday I'll be on that stage. ;-D

<3 Carole Rae

Wuthering Heights Movie Review

Length: 105 mins
Released: 1992 (UK)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Rating: PG, some violence
Directed By: Peter Kosminsky
Where I Got It: Borrowed it from Library


This is the 1992 movie version of the classic novel 'Wuthering Heights' by Emily Bronte. Ralph Fiennes plays Heathcliff and Juliette Binoche playes not only Cathy, but Cathy's daughter Catherine (a little baffling). I've seen many versions, but I've always wanted to see this version, however the film kept eluding me. Maybe it was meant for me to make a review and post to you all. Who knows. The fates are funny like that.

 "Heathcliff is Cathy Earnshaw's foster brother; more than that, he is her other half. When forces within and without tear them apart, Heathcliff wreaks vengeance on those he holds responsible, even into a second generation"


Well, officially this has become my second favorite version, my first will probably always be the 2009 version with Tom Hardy (yum). However, I was HIGHLY pleased with this film. It had all the characters in it and the second generation being part of Heathcliff's revenge. In a lot of movies they just seem to "forget" about Cathy #2, Hareton, and Linton Heathcliff. I loved how they used many of the same quotes from the book. They had Heathcliff be mean and heartless at certain points, which was what he was suppose to be like. However, they made him into a bad guy that you feel sorry for. I loved it. They made the characters seem real and believable. Even grumpy-old Heathcliff, who is full of hate.

  

                                                                                                          Ralph Fiennes was a wonderful Heathcliff. He was cold, bitter, angry, and completely and utterly in love with Cathy. He played the character the way he was suppose to be played. Also, he is a hunk. Besides that, great job Ralph! Now Juliette Binoche played both the wild and vain Cathy and Cathy#2. I enjoyed her performance, she did wonderful as Cathy#2 better than the first Cathy. Cathy is suppose to turn vain, however she played her as if she didn't care about the nice things. It's hard to explain. She played her too innocent too. The perfect Cathy was Merle Oberon in the 1939 version. But now Cathy#2 is a completely different story. Juliette played her to a key. Sweet, but has a touch of wild in her, not much. She's more a Linton then a Earnshaw. Besides that, all the characters were represented wonderfully.

          I would have to grant this movie 5 stars! Yayy! Wooo! Everyone who loves this novel or just loves a good movie should track this movie down and watch it. I think I may even buy it...

              

New Puppies!

Yesterday, we got a new puppie! Well, a puppy and a dog. They're both collies. The puppy is named Titan and the doggie is his auntie and her name is Hope. Originally we were just getting the puppy, but the lady is retiring and giving her dogs away to friends and since she likes us she let us have on of her dogs. ^.^ They are sooooo cute. Hope was a showdog, won a couple ribbons too, she loves strutting around the house and posing. It's so freakin' adorable!

heres the puppies, Titan is sitting in the corner

here's titan. ^.^ He's a fighter and a cuddler.

Here's Hope, she loves to sit in her cage, but she loves running about and acting like a show-dog

I'll get better pictures, but those are good for now. They are being spoiled. =D

<3

Mistress of Rome Review

(I literally gobbled this one up. I wanted to read it all the time. Even when I had to go to school or work or hang out with friends I couldn't wait to get home and read it!)

Author: Kate Quinn
Title: Mistress of Rome
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 470
First Published: 2010
Where I Got It: My shelf (Amazon)



"First-century Rome: A World of depravity, blood, and secrets. The ruthless and enigmatic Emperor Domitian watches over all, fearing assassination from every direction...but not from the woman who fascinates him most.
     Passionate, musical, and guarded, Thea is a slave girl from Judea. Purchased as a toy for the spiteful Lepida Pollia, Thea becomes her mistress's rival for the love of Arius the Barbarian, Rome's newest and most savage Gladiator. His love brings Thea the first happiness of her life-but their affair ends quickly when a jealous Lepida tears them apart.
       As Lepida goes on to wreak havoc in the life of a new husband and his family, Thea remakes herself as a polished singer for Rome's aristocrats. Unwittingly, she attracts another admirer in the capricious and charismatic Emperor of Rome. But Domitian's games have a darker side. Many have tried to destroy the Emperor: a vengeful gladiator, an upright Senator, a tormented soldier, a streetwise child, a Vestal Virgin; but in the end. the life of the brilliant and paranoid Emperor lies in the hands of one woman: the Emperor's Mistress."

    Wow. I loved this novel. I really did. The way the author wrote this books was fantastic and simply and utterly amazing. It really sucks you into the time period. The characters seem real in some way. Most of them were real people. I love how she took real events and mixed it with her own imagination and events that could've been but still remains questionable. I was baffled at how the book would end and how the things would work out the way they were suppose to. The only thing I didn't like was Lepida, she was a little butt-head...to say the least, but I suppose every good book needs at least one character everyone hates and makes everyone's lives terrible.
     I do recommend everyone who loves history and romance and adventure to read this book. For this novel, I shall grant it 5 stars! Yayy! ***** I hope there is a sequel....

A New Giveaway at Historically Obsessed!

Yet again Miss Lizzy is giving away a fantastic gift! Follow the link to learn more and to enter. It's completely at random, so good luck! Follow the link:

http://historicallyobsessed.blogspot.com/2011/02/tudor-secret-by-cw-gortner-extra.html

The Roommate Review

Length: 91 mins
Released: 2011 (USA)
Genre: Thriller, Drama
Rating: PG-13, violence, some nakey scenes, sex scenes, language
Directed By: Christian E. Christiansen
Where I Got It: Seen it at the theater


The Roommate stars Leighton Meester, Minka Kelly, and Cam Gigandet (Twilight). Sara moves to the dorms at her college and after a little bit finally meets her roommate-Rebecca who seems nice, but a little...off. They become fast friends, but Rebecca becomes a little obsessed and very protective of Sara. Not much time passes when Sara and her new boyfriend Stephen realize that Rebecca is a tad-bit insane (thats the understatement of the year).

One word can sum up the movie: DAMN. I was a little grateful that I decided not to dorm up this year. * wipes sweat from forehead* It was defiantly a thriller and not for the weak of heart. There was a little bit of blood and violence. (a tiny spoiler) I have to knock off one star, because that crazy Rebecca chick killed a kitten. I know it was to get the point across that she's a crazy person, but I hate when they kill poor helpless animals in movies. Overall, it was a very good movie. I think that the girl who played Rebecca deserves an Oscar. It was just amazing how she portrayed her and how well she did. Out of five stars, I give it ****. I do highly suggest that anyone who likes a good thriller should pick up this movie or head out and watch it on the big screen.



<3

Delay...

Sorry for all those looking forward to my Review on the present movie of the week. That will be post-poned. There was a mix up, they sent me the 1970 Wuthering Heights instead of the one with Ralph Fiennes. Dang! So I'll just post my review for The Roommate and that'll be the movie of this week, because now I have to wait a few days for the right version. Poo, I know. Sorry. I'll be posting the review for The Roommate sooner or later.

~~CR~~

The Fellowship of the Ring Book Review

(It took me a little bit to finish this one.)

Author: Jrr Tolkien
Title: Lord of the Rings: Followship of the Ring (1st in series)
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
Pages: 398
First Published: 1954
Where I Got It: My shelf (box set)

"The dark, fearsome Ringwraiths were searching for a hobbit, Frodo Baggins knew there were seeking him and the Ring of Power he bore, the Ring of Power that would enable evil Sauron to destroy all that was good in Middle-earth. Now it is up to Frodo and his faithful servant, Sam, with a small band of companions, to carry the Ring to the one place it could be destroyed: Mount Doom, in the very center of Sauron's dark kingdom, Mordor."

Alright. The last time I read the book was when I was 14 years-young. It was a hard read for me back in the day. It is a little hard to read, to be honest, for those that have no clue whats going on and have never heard of the Lord of the Ring trilogy. However, there is a prologue which helps. Even I the prologue-hater, decided to give it a go. It helps a lot. 

   Its a great book! I simply love the tale and the characters and the world and everything that has anything to do with the book and movie. There is such deep meaning in the words. The world of middle-earth is composed of many different types of beings. Elves, dwarfs, hobbits, men, and so on. This story tells of a dark time in the world and how a band of different beings come together to see the destruction of the Ring that belongs to Sauron the king of evil (thats what I call him in my head). Its a beautiful tale of love, friendship, and trying to save all that's good in the world. The only thing I didn't like about it was Tom Bomabil's part (I don't know why I don't like Tom) and the Boromir's hair is brown instead of red like in the movie. Hahahaha. Oh well.

   The story isn't finished yet, this is a trilogy! There is The Two Towers and The Return of the King. I can't wait for the next one since it was my favorite movie...The Two Towers. I love them all. I recommend that everyone read Professor Tolkien's books. They are a classic. Out of five stars, I grant The Fellowship of the Ring 5*s. *****. Yayy!

<3 

Red Riding Hood Movie

I seen the trailer a couple days of go. I am SO excited! I don't care if no one wants to go see the movie with me, I'll go by myself. It's looks amazing! I will defiantly make a review on it when I do see it. It comes out March 11 2011 and it stars Amanda Seyfried (as Little Red), Gary Oldman, Billy Burke (played Charlie in Twilight saga), Max Irons, and many more. A very talented group of actors. It's bond to be a CLASSIC! Here's a trailer from youtube for those unlucky people who haven't seen any of the trailers yet:

Also, either tomorrow and later tonight, I'm going to post a review on The Roommate, because I've been "forced" (haha) to see it with a couple of my gal pals. I've been itching to see that.

<3

Historically Obsessed: Michelle Moran's Madame Tussaud Giveaway

Historically Obsessed: Michelle Moran's Madame Tussaud Giveaway: "Giveaway time GIVEAWAY time!!! Yes Michelle Moran has offered up to one lucky winner a beautiful pair of Marie Antionette earrings that are ..."

CHECK IT OUT! It's a giveaway at Historically Obsessed. Yayy!

Review for Orchid Affair

(I was so excited to read this, because The Pink Carnation has returned in full! This is the 8th book in the Pink Carnation series.)

Author: Lauren Willig
Title: The Orchid Affair (8th book in Pink Series)
Genre: Historical Fiction, adventure, Historical Romance
Pages: 405
First Published: Janurary 2011
Where I Got It: My Shelf (Barnes&Nobles)


Summary: "Laura Grey, a veteran governess, joins the Selwick Spy School expecting to find elaborate disguises and thrilling exploits in service to the spy known as the Pink Carnation. She hardly expects her first assignment to be serving as governess for the children of Andre Jaouen, right-hand man to Bonaparte’s minister of police. Jaouen and his arch rival, Gaston Delaroche, are investigating a suspected Royalist plot to unseat Bonaparte, and Laura’s mission is to report any suspicious findings. At first the job is as lively as Latin textbooks and knitting, but Laura begins to notice strange behavior from Jaouen—secret meetings and odd comings and goings. As Laura edges closer to her employer, she makes a shocking discovery and is surprised to learn that she has far more in common with Jaouen than she originally thought. "

I found this an excellent read. I think it may have landed as one of my favorite Willig novels. I thought I had everything figured out and whatnot, but the ending took me by surprised, which is very unusual, because I'm very good at guessing the ending of books and movies. Some say its a 6th sense of mine, I suppose. The characters blossom and change and morph and are complex. Especially Jaouen. However, the only reason I was upset at this one was because things happened WHY to quickly in the middle and some of the responses to certain pieces of information baffled me. Other than that I can not complain. I will grant this novel 4 *s

Wuthering Heights~~Happy Valentines...

I LOVED this book and I've seen the majority of the movies. I haven't seen the 1992 version of it. My favorite, so far, is the 2008 with Tom Hardy. I have high expectations for this film. I'm in love with the story and I hope they didn't take too many liberties with it. *fingers crossed* I like Ralph Fiennes, so it won't be too horrid.

Here's a trailer:

I tend to forget every year....happy Valentines Day.

<3

There is Good in the World

Though I don't have many followers as of right now, I want to do a theme. My theme for a little bit is going to be "There is still good in this world". I got the idea last Thursday when I got a flat tire on the freeway. It was the first time something like that happened to me. Here's a quick run down on what happened:
I was on my way to class in Flint. I was about a mile away from Lapeer and I guess I hit something or whatever, but my passenger back tire was destroyed and shredded. I pulled over and got out to change my tire (mind you I can change my own tire) however, I couldn't find my spare dummy. Darn! I didn't know it was under the rug in my trunk. So, I called my mom who was home at the time. While I waited for her a State cop pulled over and asked me questions. He didn't offer to help or anything, but oh well. He left.
About 15 minutes later, my mom pulls up. She finds my tire, but we can't find the tire-rod thing. Great. We sit in her van and call up Steve, our car-guy. However, another guy in a jeep does a couple illegal turns and comes to my rescue! He fixes my tire and when I asked for his address and his name so I can send him a check or a thank-you card, he walks away and says, "No, just remember to help someone in the future." He drives away. 

Thats the tale. And me being a Lord of the Ring dork, I remembered what Sam said in the movie version "That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's worth fighting for." I would like to know some stories about the "good" in this world. Heres a video of Sam and his ultimate speech:

The Hobbit casting

I'm not 100% sure how 100% accurate this website is. but its hasn't lead me astray yet, so I'll take its word. I'm a LOTR nut and dork and I was excited to hear that production for The Hobbit is closing in and the casts, for the most part, have been made. There aren't many American actors in this one, but I'm still excited.
"CAST LIST SO FAR (As of November 1st, 2010)
MARTIN FREEMAN – BILBO BAGGINS CONFIRMED
RICHARD ARMITAGE – THORIN OAKENSHIELD CONFIRMED
AIDAN TURNER – KILI CONFIRMED
ROB KAZINSKY – FILI CONFIRMED
GRAHAM MCTAVISH – DWALIN CONFIRMED
JOHN CALLEN – OIN CONFIRMED
STEPHEN HUNTER – BOMBUR CONFIRMED
MARK HADLOW – DORI CONFIRMED
PETER HAMBLETON – GLOIN CONFIRMED
JAMES NESBITT – BOFUR CONFIRMED
ADAM BROWN – ORI CONFIRMED"

It is rumored that Viggo Mortensen and Ian McKellen will be making an appearance in the film. I hope so. I'll try and keep everything up to date. ^.^ Yahoo.


<3

Review on 27 Dresses

Length: 111 mins

Released: 2008 (USA)

Genre: Comedy, Romance

Rating: PG-13, language, some innuendo and sexuality

Directed By: Anne Fletcher

Where I Got It: Borrowed it from Library

The movie is about Jane who has always, always been a bridesmaid. She has a little problem of always trying and making everyone else happy, while she remains alone and in love with her boss, George. Then comes along Kevin, a seemingly marriage-hating man (who knew). He turns out to be an article writer who specializes in weddings. The breaking point in the story is when her "gorgeous" (who I think looks like a bulldog) sister, Tess comes into the picture. George and Tess fall head-over heels in love.Of course poor Jane is asked to be the maid-of-honor to their wedding and Kevin is called in to do an article for the "next perfect" wedding. Sounds like a blast...                                                                        

REVIEW: It was a cute movie. I really enjoyed the beginning of the movie, because it was different and shows the real Jane and how wedding-crazy she is. Insanity. I loved this movie. It's not Oscar worthy, but it was a good watch. James Marsden and Katherine Heigl seem an unlikely pair, but there is some chemistry there. This movie was hilarious, heart-warming, made you think about your own life, made you want to hit one or two of the characters, and it had its moments of sadness. The only thing I didn't like in the movie was the singing at the bar part, I don't know why, maybe its because I'm not a big fan of the song, lol. ****, four stars goes to this movie. I recommend it to all. Cheers.

<3 Carole and etc 

Would I Watch Again:

Yup. Since it a couple times already. 

New page/idea

I've come up with a new idea...since I'm addicted to movies and whatnot, I've decided to have a weekly movie watch&review time. Yayy! Of course there maybe times when I don't have time for movies, so there might be a delay...sorry in advance. The idea came around when I was randomly searching my city library. I just picked a movie off the shelf and volia! The idea struck me. I should have a Random Movie/Review thing. In honor of this fantasic idea, my first Watch/Review will be on that movie I randomly picked: 27 Dresses. I've seen it once before, but it was during Thanksgiving so I really didn't get to watch all of it. =D I hope everyone enjoys my Movie of the Week idea.

Here's a trailer of 27 Dresses:

~<3Carole~

^.^ Finishing my Mid-term Paper

I don't think anyone cares, but I just finished my mid-term paper about Imperial Dreams of the United States. It was interesting...to say the least. It took FOREVER and a half. Theres still a couple things I have to edit on it before Thursday, but it's done. Yayy! Once my official official copy is done, I'll post onto here. I don't know why, but I'm fiercely proud of my paper. Also, I have to read it out-loud in front of my class. I'm kinda afraid. Oh well. It's a little history lesson for all you historical lovers like yours truly.
<3CR 

Historically Obsessed...

Lizzy at her blog, Historically Obsessed, is having a book give-away. It is at random and you could possibly win 'Pale Rose of England' by Sandra Worth. Follow the link to be able to sign up for it.

http://historicallyobsessed.blogspot.com/2011/02/hfrt-pale-rose-of-england-by-sandra.html

<3 Carole Rae

Newbie

I wanted to give thanks to Lizzy from Historically Obsessed, because she inspired me to create another blog. Thanks!

Don't worry your little heads, more will be added to my blog, I just need to figure all this stuff out.

<3Carole