My Own Little Hatter

So, if you've been following this blog at all you know I have a certain...obsession...with the Hatter character from Syfy Channel's Alice movie. I need a twelve-stop program or something, I think! Anyway, Xander is well aware of my infatuation with Hatter, and he also likes to watch the movie. This week he started quoting me Hatter lines, with his version of a British accent to boot! Hilarious!

Now when he wants something from me, Xander promises me Hatter lines. Sometimes that works. Sometimes not. Still funny though! For your entertainment, I have a new video down at the bottom of the page with two of my favorites. Check out my funny kid!

A Raging Case of Hatter-itis

Okay, first off let me say that I've always been an Alice in Wonderland fan. I'd watch the movies that they made for tv - you know, the ones that were full of celebrities wearing animal costumes. I have the books. All good. And then I saw that Tim Burton was making a Wonderland movie and decided I'd skip it. Why mess with a good thing? Ha! Joe brought the DVD home from Blockbuster one day and I watched it beause there simply wasn't much else to do. And I was hooked.

Johnny Depp's Hatter was indeed Mad. But also heroic and vulnerable. I started reading some fan fiction based on the movie, and it just made me love the Hatter even more. I changed my Facebook pic, bought the movie on Bluray, and settled back to enjoy the best Hatter ever.

Until Joe brought another DVD from Blockbuster - the Syfy channel's miniseries take on Alice in Wonderland, called simply Alice. I looked at the cover, saw mechanized flying flamingos, and figured that was definitely not worth watching. Ha again! Xander wanted to watch it, so I watched with half-interest while we played some board games and things.

Andrew-Lee Potts' Hatter wasn't Mad, not really, but he was so incredibly awesome! First off, cutie deluxe. But I really loved his tough-on-the-outside, soft-and-vulnerable-on-the-inside take on this character. And the ending makes me melt each time I watch it (and that has been many, many times). You can bet your sweet bippy I'll be getting that for my DVD collection, and very soon. And thank the fan fiction writers who have given me much more Hatter to enjoy.

Joe says I'm obsessed. I say, "all your fault!" He brought both those Hatters into our house, so it's not my fault that I wanted them to stay. And if you haven't seen the movies, you might want to check them out. Or not. I don't mind keeping those Hatters all to myself!

Saturday at the Drive-In

Saturday was drive-in day, and it sure was fun! Joe, Xander and I went to Eli & Krissy's for dinner (BBQ!!) and then headed out to the Unadilla Drive-In. Once there we hooked up with one of Eli's work buddies and his family and friends, so we were quite a crew.

We got there at 7pm, and the first movie (Shrek 4) didn't start till about 8:45, so there were some boredom issues with the kids. They played freeze tag for a while, and some other kids joined in. And some of us played a game where we would guess the name and something bizarre about the people around us (for example - that guy over there in the green shirt, his name is Bud and he invented Post-its).

Finally, after several bathroom and concession stand runs, the movie got started. I can report that Shrek 4 was okay - funny parts, but not as good as the first two - and I enjoyed Iron Man 2. Not to mention all those good previews, my favorite part!

Xander fell asleep before the second movie started, and ended up in the car sleeping in his booster seat. Most of the other kids didn't make it through Iron Man 2 either. By the time the movie was over and we got all packed up, it was about 1am, and another hour before we got home. Yawn!

But I had fun, and I'd definitely go again. Long live the drive-in!!

Valentine Weekend

Valentine weekend was not good to me. I suffered from sinus congestion all weekend, and spent most of my time on the couch reading or napping and just generally feeling miserable. Not exactly the romantic weekend I'd been looking forward to!


But it wasn't all bad. Xander took a cute picture of Joe and I when I was still feeling partially normal. We exchanged our gifts on Friday night, since we had nothing to watch and had gotten each other movies. I got Joe Zombieland (he loved it), and he got me Season 1 of both Roswell and Pee Wee's Playhouse - he has been since regretting Pee Wee because that's all Xander has watched all weekend. LOL! Xander got some Legos and a Batman toy, so he was happy.

We all exchanged cards on Sunday, and then Xander made extra ones all by himself. He's getting pretty good at making hearts! He kept telling me, "I did the best job I could!" I reassured him that he did a great job. Especially yesterday, when he cleaned both his room and the living room. (Can someone tell me how I can get him to stop using the floor as his wastebasket? It's so frustrating!!)

All things considered, not a bad weekend. Hopefully I'll start feeling better soon!

Xander and His Many Movies

I will be the first one to admit that Xander watches too much television. But, honestly, is that a bad thing? When I was a kid that was all I pretty much did, besides reading. I can recall going to the video store with Mom and renting like six movies for the weekend. We were a TV family.


Xander's video and DVD library is getting unwieldy. (He spends a lot of time searching for movies, which is what he's doing in this picture.) Some of those movies are/were Joe's and mine - like the animated Hobbit and Labyrinth. Others were given to Xander, either on gift-giving occasions or when people like my grandmother were cleaning out their own collection.



I have to say this boy has some eclectic tastes in home movie viewing. This past week he's been watching a lot of He-man (not the lame 80s one, the updated 2003 version). His Scooby Doo library continues to grow, but he also likes watching Lord of the Rings, Star Trek (the new movie), Sleeping Beauty, and Laurel & Hardy's March of the Wooden Soldiers. About the only thing Xander won't watch is a "gray movie" aka one without color.


Do I worry that Xander watches too much TV? Sometimes. And I try to make sure he doesn't watch anything especially violent, gory and with inappropriate subject matter (he's been asking to watch Spaceballs). And most of the time his movies are just background noise while he plays. And hey...I watched endless hours of TV and I turned out okay!

Disney's A Christmas Carol - In 3D!

Joe, Xander and I went to see Disney's new movie A Christmas Carol, which has several characters played by Jim Carrey. Xander was very excited, because it was in 3D and also because he already knows the story of "Ebeneber" Scrooge.

I'm a big fan of this story, in all of its incarnations. I've got versions with Muppets, one with Susan Lucci (playing Elizabeth Scrooge), and my favorite George C. Scott edition. It's just such a great story! And I thought the new movie did a great job with it! There were some funny parts, but not as many as you'd think from a Jim Carrey film. There were some scary parts that had Xander covering his eyes. And the only thing I didn't really like was the way the Ghost of Christmas Present transitioned out of the story. Otherwise, it all kept very close to the original story.

The Bruno family as a whole recommends this movie. Xander is already asking when we can buy it on DVD. For me, it will be a welcome addition to the Christmas Carol collection I already have. Cause I never get tired of watching this story!

Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince

No work for me today! I took the day off to finish getting the house ready for Xander's party tomorrow, not to mention going shopping with Joe to get the food and stuff that we'll need. As an extra bonus, we're going to take in a matinee of Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince. I can't wait to see it!! Joe and I are big HP fans. Have you seen it yet?

Twilight - The Movie

I went to see Twilight when it came out in theaters last November. Krissy came with me because I'd gotten her sucked into the books. I never commented on the movie at the time, but I want to comment on it now because I rented it this week from Blockbuster and Joe sat down to watch it with me last night.



Let me first say that I love, love, love the four book Twilight series (written by Stephanie Meyer, just in case you want to check them out for yourself). Great characters, great stories. Krissy agrees. And I figured that the movie would be just as good. Wrong, wrong, wrong.


What really confuses me is that the filmakers knew they had an instant hit on their hands. The Twilight series has a ridiculously huge fan base. The fourth book is STILL #1 on the bestseller list and it came out about a year ago. So why they movie studio that put out the movie only gave them like a $10 budget is beyond me.


The special effects are mostly ridiculous. The cinematography is really annoying (stop with the twirling camera, please!). I just expected more. My wish for the next movie, New Moon, is that the Harry Potter people take it over. Make it shiny, spend the dough on effects because it DOES matter. With all the new and complex effects that will be popping up in New Moon, I shudder to think what they'll look like on $10.


Okay, I feel better now! And if you haven't read Twilight, get thee to a library and check it out! You won't be disappointed!