Showing posts with label Narnia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Narnia. Show all posts

Monday, June 8, 2015

Favorite Screen Characters Tag

     So I was tagged by Deborah O'Carroll for the Favorite Screen Characters Tag! Wahoo!! So exciting! :D Well, let's get on with it, shall we?

     I didn't take a whole lot of time to think back over all the movies I've watched (ha) ... so I'm not sure these are my absolute favorites; but they're definitely ones I enjoy!! :)


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Jack Thornton ~ When Calls the Heart: Seasons 1 & 2 (2014-)

     Jack has a great sense of humor, and is really a sweet, gentlemanly, strong guy. He and Elizabeth are so meant for each other (don't know why they can't see that yet!!!) *Ahem* Anyway, Jack-and-Elizabeth-scenes make the series. Brave and teasing mountie! Open your eyes, Elizabeth! ;D

~ "Elizabeth, please consider this an act of courtship." ~
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Peeta Mellark ~ The Hunger Games (2012) & Catching Fire (2013)

     I like his heart. So compassionate, loyal, and strong. Peeta loves Katniss despite her hard exterior and brokenness inside. He would give up his life to protect her ... He cares about what is truly important. Ah Peeta!! *sniff*

~ Peeta Quote ~

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Missy Davis ~ Love Enduring Promise (2004)

     I just really like Missy. She's such the picture of an innocent young woman having her first experiences with courtship, and finding true love. A strong, feminine, and sweet character who grows in wisdom and grace! (Love this movie!!! *grins*)

~ Scene from Love's Enduring Promise ~

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Willie LaHaye Love's Enduring Promise (2004) & Love's Long Journey (2005)

     Can't forget Willie LaHaye!! Now he's the picture of the perfect, mysterious, gentlemanly, dashing hero from a western romance, ;D Hehe. But really, his story with Missy is so sweet, and I just loved watching how their lives went in the continuing movies. Well ... for the first two movies concerning the LaHayes anyway. The Love Comes Softly movies do NOT follow the books, and I'm still quite miffed about that! Because if you've watched the movies, you know some terrible things happened to poor Willie, that did NOT happen in the books!! In any case, Willie is great, :)

~ Willie and Missy on their ranch ~

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Bilbo Baggins ~ The Hobbit 1 (2012), 2 (2013), & 3 (2014)

     Well, he's quite hilarious ... and endearing ... and courageous ... and persevering ... and just a wonderful hobbit. ^_^ Loved watching his journey. Loved journeying with him! Seeing him grow, and yet somehow stay the same hobbit inside. *Sigh* Dear Bilbo, :)

~ "I don't want any adventures, thank you." ~

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Anne Shirley ~ Anne of Green Gables (1985), Anne of Avonlea (1987), & Anne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story (2000)

     Anne is just so funny and spirited and full of hilarious escapades! :D I loved watching her life unfold (though it took her and Gilbert kind of long to finally get married!!) Such a sweet, classic story. Don't think I will soon tire of this series and our fiery, redheaded, endearing orphan!

~ Hehe ~

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Caspian X ~ Prince Caspian (2008) & The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

     Courageous. Humble. Strong. Good. Caspian is a leader. Narnia is awesome, and Caspian is just such a great prince/king! I don't know, but it was simply marvelous to watch him fight alongside the Pevensie siblings for Narnia and Aslan!! :) And then when he's a king and has his own ship ... Great adventures! Caspian is fun to follow! A dashing hero for sure, ;D

~ Kings and queen of Narnia ~

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Finnick Odair ~ Catching Fire (2013) & Mockingjay: Part 1 (2014)

     Finnick is hilarious ... charming ... ridiculous ... and hiding a broken yet noble, caring, and brave self inside. Loved watching him in both the 2nd and 3rd Hunger Games movies. Grand character!! Can't wait to see more of him ... though, do I hear right that bad things are in store?? :[

~ Scene from Mockingjay: Part 2 trailer ~

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Elizabeth Thatcher ~ When Calls the Heart: Season 1 & 2 (2014-)

     Yes ... she does annoy me sometimes when she allows Charles's (infuriating) attentions or gets all miffed over trivial things; but overall, I really like the character of Elizabeth Thatcher. School teacher in rugged town in the start of the 1900s, yes please! I love these type of historical films! There's just something so intriguing and heartwarming about the rich girl with a heart for children going out into the west. ... And meeting a handsome mountie ...  *Ahem* Anyway, Elizabeth is a nice young woman. Though she struggles with understanding who she is and who she loves sometimes, she is more sensible than her younger sister at least, ;) Hehe. Such fun! I really, really want to see a beautiful "ending" for this sweet woman and her dear Jack in Hope Valley!! <3

~ Elizabeth with younger sister, Julia ~

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Edmund Pevensie ~ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005), Prince Caspian (2008) & The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)

     Edmund's transformation is amazing to watch! After going down the wrong path, and then being restored by Aslan, Edmund comes back to the good side with scars, but lots of courage, determination, and genuine care for his siblings. He's a great character. Love his interactions with Lucy! His selfless bravery when standing up against the white witch! What a truly changed guy! Narnian warrior!! ^__^

"Don't suppose you have any matches, do you?"
"No, but ... would this help?"

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     So that's that!! Hope it was semi-enjoyable! :D As for bloggers that I tag ...


     Now, if you nominees find the time, do write a post about your ten favorite screen characters, and then nominate ten more bloggers! Be sure to comment below with the link to your post if you end up doing it! ^__^

     For those of you not nominated, comment and tell me which of my ten favorite you enjoy! ... Or maybe you don't enjoy any ... Oh well. Hehe, ;p

(All Pictures Found on Pinterest)

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Top 10 Movies I'm Excited For

     Just thought I'd share some movies I'm so excited to watch, and their trailers (if they have them)...

THE SILVER CHAIR (2016/2017)
 
CINDERELLA (2015)
 
 
BEYOND THE MASK (2015)
 
 
WHEN CALLS THE HEART: SEASON TWO (2015)
 
 
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (2016)
 
THE YOUNG VICTORIA (2009)
 
 
MOCKINGJAY: PART I (2015)
 
 
ALONE YET NOT ALONE (2013)
 
 
INTO THE WOODS (2015)
 
 
THE RECKONING (2015)
 
     Eep!! They're all just so EPIC and BEAUTIFUL! Yay for fairytales!! And I can't wait to see that Revolutionary War drama! And Narnia!!! :D :)
 
     Are any of the above on your want-to-watch list? Or have you watched any of them already? What are your thoughts? :)


Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Movie Review: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

 The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010)
 




~ Skander Keynes as Edmund Pevensie ~



















~ Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie ~



~ Will Poulter as Eustace Scrubb ~
















~ Ben Barnes as Caspian X ~













My Review (5 stars):

     It's a little different than the first two... the main thing being that Peter and Susan are in America, not England or Narnia with Edmund and Lucy. Then we meet Eustace Clarence Scrubb, who is hilariously portrayed by Will Poulter. Diving into Narnia, these three board the Dawn Treader and reunite with Caspian and Reepicheep. Aw, how wonderful. :)

     Why does everyone hate on this movie? I loved it! We have the same Edmund and Lucy, who are even more grown up. But that's to be expected and even anticipated; they have new struggles and little different adventures. Lucy is finally old enough to carry her own sword now, J. Plus we have the all-together entertaining Eustace; Will Poulter did SUCH a good job with him. He was perfect. We go back to Narnia... long waited for! And a lot of the tale takes place on a neat Narnian ship. New and fascinating places are explored. Altogether different concepts are brought up. There's a little more of the magic feeling. Peace has come for the people of Narnia, so there are no big battles; yet there's a mysterious evil out to destroy everything… so there's battles, just a little different from the first two movies.

     The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) explored the whole temptation thing; Enemy whispering lies in your ears that sound like logic; and having to “defeat the darkness inside yourself” to defeat the evil green mist. A pretty cool message overall.

     Loved journeying along with Lucy, Edmund, King Caspian, and Reepicheep, as always. Eustace even became a loveable part, :). Then he had to go turn into a dragon... I could have used more time with him as a boy; but... so goes the story. Speaking of that part, the dragon definitely had a computer-made look; but you get over it pretty quickly, at least I did.

     I would say Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) wasn't as violent as Prince Caspian (2008), and probably not as intense or gruesome either. Well, we do see a nasty-looking sea serpent near the end. But it probably has more eerie/creepy parts than any of the things above.

     It was good to see Edmund and Lucy doing so well together; you know, they don't have Peter and Susan this time. –But their relationship has really strengthened, and they're such a caring brother and sister pair. It's extremely fun to watch Eustace's story, see his redemption, watch him mature and make friends, all that. And Caspian, it was good to see him again, and watch him overcome certain struggles. He's the king now! Anyway, it’s an adventure from beginning to end, with wit and humor, and action and mystery.

     The end is so bittersweet, even more so than Prince Caspian (2008). Now its Edmund and Lucy's last time in Narnia, and watching Georgie Henley portray Lucy's grief just makes me want to cry! An altogether beautiful ending though, in a sad way. Aslan's talk was touching and amazing. Edmund, Lucy, and Eustace say good-bye... their actress and actors really just did a superb job. I just loved it. Really great. A wonderful movie in and of itself, but Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) just really leaves you longing to continue the adventure and watch Eustace journey back to Narnia. OH, when is The Silver Chair going to come out??!! :)

Movie Review: Prince Caspian

 
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)
 
 [The wonderful cast, *smiles*]
 
My Review (5 stars):
 
     The Pevensie children are a little older... some waiting anxiously to go back to Narnia; others, not so much. And in Narnia, it’s been hundreds of years since the Pevensies left, a new young man is introduced. Among the cruel Telmarines, a prince has been learning of the legendary Narnians from his old tutor.
 
     The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is actually the third book (not counting the prequel) in the Chronicles of Narnia series; but it’s the second Narnia movie, unless they decide to make The Horse and His Boy for this movie series someday.
 
     I know a lot of people say that Prince Caspian (2008) is way different than the book, and they didn't like it. But I rather loved it. But of course, I actually watched the Narnia movies before ever reading the books. Yeah, crazy, right? But I just wasn't in a circle that loved the Chronicles of Narnia books I guess. Anyway, I've read them now and really enjoyed them, but the movies came first for me, and so I love them! :)
 
     My few complaints would be these. One, Peter has gotten rather prideful and cranky, which yes, doesn't happen in the books I believe. It's kind of frustrating that they just had to make a conflict between him and Prince Caspian. They're both strong, courageous men—why do they have to compete? However, Peter's attitude did tie in with the whole scenario of him doubting Aslan in this movie, and it really made the ending parts all the more meaningful.
     Complaint number two, the romance between Prince Caspian and Susan. Okay, that definitely didn't happen in the books. Why would it? All these obvious staring moments, some flirtatious teasing, and a bittersweet kiss... all add up to? Nothing really. A relationship just can't work between the Narnian prince and normal-world-bound Susan. And furthermore, Prince Caspian marries Liliandil, the star. So why put in this ultimately-adds-up-to-nothing romance between these two? The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005) didn't have any romances, and it was great, everyone loved it! So was a little romance worth it? It wasn't all that bad; I just don't like to see romantic affection in relationships when it can come to nothing. –When Prince Caspian actually has a future wife out there waiting for him. Anyway, I'll stop ranting now. It doesn't actually bother me all that much; but if I have a complaint about Prince Caspian (2008), it would be that.
 
     Loving Edmund in this movie. No more fraternizing with evil anymore. He stands up against darkness, even while trying to go along with Prince Caspian and Peter; and it’s great to see! He's a wonderful character, really. Lucy is loyal, sweet, and brave as always. Peters is protective, as before; and aside from his bit of arrogance shown, it was good to see him again too. It was lovely to meet Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes). His accent was neat. I don't remember how he was in the book, but he learns humbleness in this movie, and it really becomes him. It was great to watch his story. Susan was even more beautiful and warrior-woman like in this movie than the first. It was quite epic to watch her, fighting and otherwise; and it might just make me want to don a medieval dress, grab a bow and quiver of arrows, and step into Narnia, ;) She was courageous in battle, yet feminine, and determinedly fighting against evil. I think Anna Popplewell portrays the person of Susan quite well.
 
     It was weird, yet fascinating how when the Pevensie children come back to Narnia a second time, in this movie, hundreds of years have passed in Narnia. It’s also kind of sad, as Mr. Tumnus, Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, and everyone else from Narnia in the first movie are long dead. –Except for Aslan of course. But to try to think of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy having grown up to their 20s-30s in Narnia, then went back through the wardrobe and became little kids again; and now they’re back in Narnia looking at their adult-size clothes they don’t fit anymore… it’s strange, and sad, and funny all at once.
 
     Prince Caspian (2008) is definitely more violent than The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005). –Especially the part of Caspian confronting Miraz, holding a sword to his neck. It's all quite intense, and after straining forward against the sword's tip, we see a line of blood trickling down Miraz's throat. And there’s a lengthier scene of a gross vulture creature and nasty werewolf... which was quite creepy, yet an important part of the story.
 
     All in all, it was a great tale. I love all the new characters introduced, including Prince Caspian, Reepicheep, and Trumpkin. The parts with Aslan were awesome as always. So many meaningful things he says, so many meaningful things implied. The part where Trumpkin finally looks at him is a favorite scene of mine. Oh, and the song in the end... "I'll come back, when you call me, no need to say good-bye..." so bittersweet! It always makes me want to cry. For one, Peter and Susan aren't coming back! *sniff* But that's all part of the Narnia tale. So what's not to love about this movie? It's great!
 
[Arrival in Narnia]
 

[The lovely warrior woman, *smiles*]




Movie Review: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005)
 
     Yes, I know I'm a little bit obsessed, but hey, it's a really good movie! I recently watched the three Narnia movies over, so I thought I'd review them. So here goes...
 
["Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy."]
 
My Review (5 stars):
 
     What could be more fascinating than stepping into a wardrobe in the Empty Room of a huge mansion you've been sent away to stay at and finding yourself suddenly in an enchanting, snow-laden forest? Reality slips away and a beautiful, unknown world lies before your eyes. Yet here in a barely-imaginable land, some things become clearer than ever.
 
     This movie (2005) brings to life the classic fantasy tale by C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Though I haven't read the book in quite a while, I believe the movie pretty closely follows the original storyline.
 
     I love the cast of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005). I don't mind that they're older than the children actually are in the books; I can relate with them better this way, :). They all play their characters so well; at least in my eyes! It was so fun to watch them interact, both in England and Narnia.
     Peter (William Moseley) is such a protective big brother to his sisters, though not quite as gentle with his younger brother. He's not so sure about being a hero—but is mature enough to do what needs to be done. I love that he's such a big brother; it's so sweet to watch.
     Susan (Anna Popplewell) is very much the “big sister”, always taking care of her siblings, and trying to be sensible and logical. From the beginning, she's a little wary of Narnia, considering her personality. But I think this makes her relatable. Not everyone could step into Narnia ready to take up a sword and fight an army. And this attitude makes her crying at the stone table ever so much more meaningful.
     Edmund (Skander Keynes) is a typical little brother I think. He finds delight in teasing little sister, Lucy; and has an ornery attitude a lot. But he's struggling with a darker side too, which causes him to wreak havoc in Narnia. However I can't help but love him. He messes up, but after redemption, he at last comes to really appreciate his family, and truly love someone other than himself.
     Lucy (Georgie Henley) is the endearing youngest of the family. Her adorable smile and childlike faith... her mischievous comments and braveness... make her forever a beloved character of The Chronicles of Narnia series. The Lucy and Aslan moments on screen are so beautiful, and I love to see them in each movie.
     Another character I would like to mention is Aslan. I just have to mention him, of course; him playing such a monumental part in the story. First of all, I have really liked Liam Neeson as his voice. I don't know anything about Neeson actually, but he makes a good voice for Aslan, I feel. I love the scene where the children first meet Aslan, and he steps out of his tent, so majestic, so powerful, so good. It's a breathtaking moment really. The movie producers did a great job with creating Aslan on screen. This mighty lion captures the essence of who Christ is, and it’s really awesome to watch. This is for sure an epic fantasy with an awesome Christian allegory. The scene of Aslan's sacrifice has made me cry. To watch him walk willingly up the line of disgusting, dark creatures that spit in his face, mock him, disgrace him. His magnificent mane is shorn; and the witch leans down before killing him and whispers, “So much for love”. How agonizing! Yet Aslan endures this all without resistance. It's a pretty amazing, even eye-opening, portrayal of Christ's sacrifice for us.
     That's what makes The Chronicles of Narnia a different kind of fantasy than others. While others make the main characters tough and all on their own, fighting darkness or evil or whatever with their own strength and wit; Narnia has Aslan. He's the real hero; though the children must learn to fight as well.
 
     The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005) has some pretty epic battles scenes (love the part where Edmund breaks the wand), a few most tender, make-you-cry moments between the siblings, and also some tense parts.
 
     That would lead me to another thing I wanted to mention. The audience. This movie has some intense scenes: Edmund's meeting the witch, one-on-one fighting with Jadis, among a few other ones. Nothing extreme, but for younger children, I would recommend caution. There are also quite ugly creatures, though they're not shown for long.
 
     But there are many beautiful moments to make up for this. The coronation for one, :).
 
     Overall, a magnificent, epic fantasy... one that I will never tire of! It just enchants me.
 
[The Pevensie children]



Friday, July 18, 2014

The Silver Chair??

     Seriously guys.... they're making the fourth film to one of my FAVORITE movie series, and I didn't know about it?? :P :)
     But, for real, is this true?

 
     I've done a little bit of research, and it seems they are indeed developing The Silver Chair, fourth Narnian film (sixth book in The Chronicles of Narnia book series). http://www.christianpost.com/news/narnia-4-movie-in-development-the-silver-chair-next-in-c-s-lewis-series-105912/ or
     I'm sooo excited!! Though its been a few years since The Voyage of the Dawn Treader came out, Narnia hasn't let go of me yet! :) Fantasy is my favorite... so I'm just thrilled to see this.
     Has anyone else heard anything about this? If so, what do you think? Does Narnia captivate your heart, or do you prefer something like The Hobbit when it comes to fantasy? (I do enjoy The Hobbit films as well, by the way.)
     Anyway, I just wanted to share this, because it makes me smile! I just finished watching The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and I was wishing I could continue the tale on screen, so I looked it up on google, and found the picture above.
     Oh my heart, what would we do without fantasy? Can't wait to watch this! :) :)