Ahhh, I love the fall. The autumn. Though, really when watching new shows, the U.S’ fall = Aussie spring. Doesn’t matter. September/October is an exciting month in televisionary terms.

And in the interest of creating a buzz, and backing it up with content – rather than just a few teasers, ABC’s website gave viewers the opportunity to watch the pilot of No Ordinary Family, more than a month early of its premiere on September 28th – for the first 5,000 viewers that got to it. *rubbing hands together* Excceeeellllent.

Think of the Incredibles – think of it as live action, and with an exciting cast led by Michael Chiklis & Julie Benz, with supporting stars Romany Malco and Autumn Reeser. Its a family adventure, of finding super powers in a society when there is no such thing.

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The pilot itself isn’t short on excitement, and doesn’t dwell too much on exposition. Its a family drama, with the marriage between Jim & Stephanie not as exciting as it used to be, whilst the teenage kids JJ & Daphne experiencing the usual trials and tribulations of being a teenager. Then, cue a relucatant family holiday then turns to near tragedy – no radioactive spiders found here.

Cue, the action and discovery of super human powers, and testing them out.. which is totally the fun part!

The cast banters and bounces off each other beautifully, especially Jim, and best friend, partner in crime George who test out Jim’s newfound super powers playfully, whether it be catching a bullet, or leaping off a tall building. Not quite succesfully the first time around.. It has to be said, Chiklis could be reprising his exact role from Fantastic Four – its just this time around, you don’t have prosthetics. And he talks normally, no grunting.

This is definitely one to keep an eye out on, with such an exciting vibrant cast, and a family drama entwined with superpowers? I’m in.

What was I thinking? Two movies that were bound to be tearjerkers – oh, because they were both written by Nicholas Sparks (A Walk to Remember, The Notebook) but I’m just a sap for anything super romantic, epic, tragic.. whatever.

Surely there’d still be a fairytale journey on the way to whoever was meant to die (as there is always someone that dies in a Nicholas Sparks tale) so I went with Dear John starring Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum, and then the Last Song with Miley Cyrus and the boyfriend she met on set – aussie Liam Hemsworth. Boy – the two were poles apart.

Dear John tells of a man and woman seperated by the army at first, only to be temporary, then by a longer stretch due to the events that took place on September 11, 2001. All this, after an epic 2 week summer romance that featured a musical montage, and lots of hand holding on the beach.

I tried to write that in the epically tragic way it was meant to be told but to be honest – I’m not sure if there was chemistry lacking, or the fact that it is hard to relate, and get to know characters through letter writing alone. Then.. without giving anything away, there’s a pity marriage, and bad mistakes, and then a pity donation, and a pity hug. Once you see it, it will make sense, but it all just left me with the thought of… uh, Nicholas Sparks, WHAT were you wanting me to feel here? Who was I meant to feel sorry for? Or in love with? What life lesson should I have learnt here?

It just left me so dissatisfied, and practically disgruntled because I think the plot veered off, tried to be more preachy and over the top self-righteous, I wouldn’t recommend this on a girl’s night in movie night.

Then there was the Last Song. It had all the right elements – though I’m not entirely convinced that Miley Cyrus could ever succesfully play a ‘rebellious’ teenager. Sent off for the summer with her younger brother to spend time with her estranged father (Greg Kinnear) she refuses to play piano anymore (though Juilliard know about her) and spend any time with the family.

She then meets handsome volleyball playing, mechanic, aquarium volunteer Will, and swoon, she’s smiling again. Thus.. the romantic summer begins, and she starts seeing a different side of family. All the cliches are here, the epic musical date montage, and having a mud fight, seriously. Too. Much. Romance. I won’t go into too much here, or why it made me bawl my eyes out but for what it was, and what Nicholas Sparks always promises – pick this over Dear John.

P.S – the forehead kiss gets me every time.

Ruh roh.. another little obsession. Which is great timing because Glee has ended for the season (returning in September) and Dr Who finishes on the weekend.. for Lord knows how many months. (I am dreading this season finale for SURE – but more on that later) Pretty Little Liars was something I heard about more because Lucy Hale was in it – and I have loved her ever since Privileged (a show wrongfully short-lived). There was also the fact that its a teen drama (and you all know I’m still a teen at heart)

But.. one episode in and I’m IN. Like. FLYNN. So much drama, intrigue even within the first 5 minutes when one of the tight knit girl crew goes missing – but is she dead? Or playing a joke on all of them. Even a year after her disappearance.

Its alllmost like Gossip Girl, with an unknown enemy plotting to reveal all their secrets, but less superficial, bitchy and not all about the fashion. Even better, the eye candy is like whoa. Ezra Fitz (awesome name, played by Ian Harding) is the teacher you shouldn’t want to get with Aria (Lucy Hale’s character) but.. its just meant to be.

Then there’s Spencer’s (Troian Avery Bellisario) sister’s new boyfriend, a British hunk named Wren (played by Julian Morris). WREN! Ezra and Wren. Seriously – awesome names. Can you tell I’m a little smitten? And folks. This is the first episode.

More to come on future episodes.. watch this space. xoxo. Wait. Wrong show.

To mark the start of my inagural ‘Hot Man Movie Marathon’ on the weekend with my squimpering kindred spirit Jenna (Squimper = squeal and whimper in one!) Ryan Gosling was our first pick of the night. Who can forget him in The Notebook? But as we’d both seen it many times, and didn’t want to start the night with tears, Jenna introduced me to Lars & The Real Girl, a movie I’d definitely heard all about especially with the premise involving this.

A delusional young guy strikes up an unconventional relationship with a doll he finds on the Internet.

It sounds completely bizarre, and like it would be entirely ‘arthouse’ doesn’t it? After watching the film, or even throughout it I realised that whilst the premise on the surface was entirely ‘far fetched’, Lars & The Real Girl could be one of the most touching, heart-warming films about the difference between first impressions, and truly understanding someone.

Ryan Gosling completely immerses himself in the role. From the first moments where he is introduced as Lars, the extremely shy, nervous brother-in-law of a compassionate and coaxing sister in law (played beautifully by Emily Mortimer) who just wants him to come to dinner, you forget its Ryan Gosling. You forget that he was Noah in that unforgettable role alongside Rachel McAdams in The Notebook. And that role, that film is iconic. So.. that is saying a lot!

Lars lives in the garage of his family home; where his brother Gus (played by an understatedly stoic Paul Schneider) and pregnant wife Karin live, increasingly concerned that Lars is spending too much time on his own, as he’s painfully shy and avoids any sort of physical touch or human contact. Despite this, he has an admirer in Margot at the workplace.

Via another co-worker who seemingly has no trouble in sharing internet porn with Lars on any given weekday, he introduces Lars to the Real Doll website; anatomically correct life size ‘dolls’ that can be just as good as any girlfriend! (Note the sarcasm here..)

Here comes the quirky part. Lars orders a real doll, names her Bianca, and adopts her as his girlfriend. The scene where he introduces it/her to Gus & Karin is priceless. Because to Lars, she isn’t a doll. She’s a real girl. And she has a back story, a history, oh my; her luggage was stolen, she has no clothes and so forth. Patricia Clarkson, as the Dr/Psychologist is brought in to help Lars, under the guise of ‘treating’ Bianca medically in order to understand the delusion Lars is believing and this relationship is developed so subtly and wonderfully.

Whilst this movie could have turned into some obscure, bizarre play on a premise which involved a guy in love with a ‘doll’ which in any other movie might have just been a ‘sex doll’ – the warmth and beauty of the film that envelops the viewer as they’re watching is that they become as much a part of Lars & Bianca’s relationship, as much as the townsfolk do- all for the love of Lars. What makes this film such a lovely surprise and why I urge anyone to see this quickly is that the ‘doll’ itself isn’t the focus. Don’t make that mistake. Don’t be so quick to judge. Quite soon what you will realise is that the film is about the mistakes that can be made from first impressions, and that no small deed goes unnoticed.

Go. Rent or buy this movie now!

Last week, three new shows premiered on different networks, hoping for the attention of an audience that does make up its mind rather quickly (especially a scatterbrain like myself).  Each show had an enticing cast, a ‘different’ premise, and therefore could be the new ‘IT’ show of the upcoming season. I think though, there is only one clear winner, and um.. one very big loser.

Southland

I went into this not knowing a thing about it, honestly. Just that it was Ben McKenzie, the oh so broody Ryan Atwood from The O.C as a cop. I was in! At least for the pilot, I’m not all about the actors! As soon as it started, grainy camera footage, quick-cut editing, it really reminded me of Homicide: Life on the Street. And that’s not a bad thing! I just hadn’t seen that style in a while. Then, with an accompanying cast of Regina King, Shawn Hatosy, and Tom Everett Scott to name a few; the only word I could think of was gritty, confronting and riveting. A cop drama that is less soapy, and sugary about life on the dangerous L.A streets. Ben McKenzie plays Ben Sherman, a rookie just out of the academy partnered with a tough talking cynical cop that thinks he should quit, that he must be weak and because he’s too quiet, he’s Canadian. It tails them on an ‘ordinary’ day, as well as shadow LA detectives played by King and Everett Scott. As I said, its definitely not a smoothly edited show, but that adds to the ‘COPS’ like feel of following real police officers. The 40 minutes flew by so quickly, it definitely had my attention and despite such an ensemble cast, I was enthralled, and cannot wait until the next episode.

The Unusuals

Again, another show that I had NO idea about. I just knew it was premiering the same night as Southland and it had Amber Tamblyn in it, who I have admired since Joan of Arc and her role as Tibby in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants films. Following on from Southland I had no idea this cop show would be a comedy! In her interview with MyTakeOnTV , Amber Tamblyn referred to it as an “eccentric procedural”. That is quite apt! And actually reading that gave me comfort, because it gave me context. Watching it immediately after something so serious.. it relaxed me a bit more and I could have a laugh at Amber Tamblyn’s character being pulled off a street corner to work with a more seasoned cop, and as she changed out of her hooker wear, removed  ‘chicken fillets’ from her bra. Gold. Quite an ensemble cast as well,including Adam Goldberg & Harold Perrineau, though I don’t recognise the others. A standout would be Kai Lennox as Eddie Alvarez, who refers to himself constantly in the third person. I’m thinking he’s like.. ‘The Todd’ of ‘The Unusuals’. I quite like the cast, and the banter they have with each other already. To give a bit of an idea; one of the cases in this episode is chasing a cat killer. Yes. Cats.

This is one I’ll watch again for sure, but it might take a bit of warming up to get into the quirky humour of the show comfortably.

Harper’s Island

This is the clear loser of the three. It actually took me several tries to sit still, as I felt it was so.. cringe-inducingly soapy that I found cleaning to be more exciting. (But if you take a look at Gnomeangel’s website you will see she has a differing opinion. (We often do, lol). But even with Christopher Gorham playing another Henry, and Katie Cassidy, formerly known as Ruby from Supernatural, it was just.. painful. The premise is that a wedding party go to this island, where 7 years earlier 6 people were brutally killed and hanged. Now a return to the island, and apparently, the show kills off one wedding guest per episode. Like, a game of Cluedo on TV? (Deja vu?) But.. from the opening introduction, the music is like a C grade TV movie, or a daytime soap. There are TOO many characters, and I can’t care about them at all. Even Henry! Sorry, I’ll stick with you as Henry on Ugly Betty. Hary Hamlin is back again, as a slimy older guy chasing after younger women. *shudder* (He’s reprising Aaron Echolls from Veronica Mars it seems).

This is one I will be really surprised with if it lasts up until the killer is actually revealed. Really surprised.

I caught up on quite a bit over the weekend! Two new movies (check out ‘On Silver Screens’ for the list of new movies of 2009) and a few new episodes of my favourite TV shows.

One Tree Hill 6×19 – Letting Go

This show has never failed to tug at the heart strings. Whether it be the cuteness that is Jamie Scott, how far Sam has come under Brooke & Haley’s watch, or the sadness of Mouth & Millie’s breakup, lately what has been the reason for the playing of the saddest ballads, has been the bittersweetness of Julian’s love declaration to Miss B Davis.

You’d think that it was enough for one tearjerking ballad per episode but couple with that Peyton & Lucas’ pregnancy risk (in that they have been advised its dangerous for Peyton to carry the baby to term, and her life is in probable danger.)

Oh, man, the decisions that they’ve had to make!
What makes it worst is reading rumours or could it be real news that Hilarie Burton or Chad Michael Murray or both, may not be returning, and thus seeing these latest episodes feels like watching Titanic; you know there won’t be a happy ending. So I can’t even think of it; one minute Lucas is saying that he can’t bear to live without her, especially if she makes the decision to keep the baby to risk her life, but then they’re sullenly saying they’re having the baby, with Peyton looking paler, and more sombre each day. (Her best friends don’t notice?!)

I won’t dwell on that too much in case you haven’t heard, or don’t know too much but somehow, more heartbreaking than possible death is saying goodbye to love, and risking it all to stay where home equals friends and new family. Julian told Brooke Davis that he loved her. Luckily, she didn’t react with a ‘thankyou’ or something as embarassing, instead she played it cool, ignored his phone calls a bit, even when the movie folded, and found out that he was leaving town; and still whilst she told him that she cared for him so much, and you could just SEE that she wanted to say it back, he bought her and Sam plane tickets to go with him.

Ugh. Heartbreaking. If I could show you a bunch of screengrabs where he’s sitting, dejected in the airport terminal, waiting for her.. then he sees her and he just beams, he’s so ecstatic.. but she’s there to tell him she’s staying in Tree Hill; oh, the pain! Heartbroken. He was (and I am!) Will he come back? Is that the end of Brulian? (Almost sounds like Creme Brulee!) I personally am hoping that Sam & Jack can pull something off, because Sam and Julian had such a cool little bond that could be explored more, and well.. yes, they knew each other for a month but Julian and Brooke were just.. adorable together. He gave her his Letterman jacket! *swoon*

I suppose this is the beauty of buying DVD box sets; I can pine away after Julian long after Brooke has said goodbye.

With only under a handful of episodes left in the season, it has been increasingly tense, and its just building to what I know is going to be an absolutely crushing blow for one or more of our favourite characters.

Note the star rating below is for the post; not the episode. Click away :)

I have a Mr Men figurine on my desk, which is Mr Scatterbrain. Its magenta in colour, and it shows the creature scratching his noggin. It really fits me, and how distracted I often get and how I can be talking, and having a conversation with someone then mid-sentence, stop to say ‘oh, pretty!’ or ‘Oh, look!’ and so I’m never just focussed on one thing. Well, it takes a special focus.

Anyway, I do have a point. Its approaching, its coming up – really, it is. As much as I am behind on other shows that I do enjoy, like Supernatural, Reaper, Chuck and I love them SO much and recommend them to friends and coworkers but every now and then I take a break, and try something new, and then go back to it when I have an itch.

So I decided to give a reasonably new Canadian supernatural-drama a go, in The Listener, about a young paramedic named Toby Logan who could hear people’s thoughts.  It doesn’t sound entirely original but I seem to be drawn to TV shows where the lead character has a special gift (or curse) and uses them to help others (The Pretender, Kyle XY, does Supernatural count?).

The first episode introduces Toby, played by the captivating Craig Olejnik (dark hair, piercing light eyes.. I’m IN!) and his gift which he has trained himself to be able to switch off; seemingly by a spot of Tai Chi. Or just.. concentrating really hard Hiro style. He generally tunes out and can go about his business in his new career as paramedic but lately, the voices are becoming calls of help he cannot ignore. On the ride to work one day, he hears one of these calls, what seems like a vision, and ignores it whilst his paramedic partner Osman suggests he may have had an aneurysm; then oh, look to the right and there’s a car crash. The very same visuals Toby was seeing.

A young woman is trapped in a car, it looks set to explode and Toby manages to pull her from the wreck but she claims to the ambulance and police when they arrive that she was alone. But on the passenger side of the car. But Toby has to keep to himself that he saw a child in the car.

I’ll leave the plot at that (because I don’t want to ruin it for you!) but I must say, I will keep watching. Toby is an interesting character because of the fact that previously he has ignored others’ thoughts, he hasn’t been altruistic and selfish in order to know too much for his own gain. He’s also not big and buff, and he can genuinely be vulnerable to the evils of the world, but by giving in to the call of help, and risking suspicion from the police. Because who is he? A mid 20s paramedic who seems to have lots of hunches.

I can’t help it, I’m a sucker for a good guy.

Note that the star rating is for you to rate the post – its not my rating for the TV show!

I think this could have just become my favourite Australian film.  I was curious about it just because it seemed to get a lot of acclaim, yet still.. before renting it out, I didn’t really know anything about the background; only just what was on the DVD sleeve. From the first 10 minutes, I was captivated, and it drew me in, and its hard to find the right words to really convey why. Rhys Wakefield, Toni Collette, Erik Thomson, Luke Ford and Gemma Ward play an amazing ensemble. Though its Rhys & Gemma on the cover; the story and the heart of the film is Rhy’s character Thomas’ relationship with his autistic brother Charlie, played by Luke Ford. Constantly giggling, and gesturing to communicate in a loose sign language, the film doesn’t show Thomas as being embarassed, or mortified to be seen in public with his brother.

Its more that he’s frustrated with the people around them that give them weird looks, or assume that noise = violence. Including the nosy neighbour that sprays Charlie with a hose through the fence for simply humming, and playing in the back garden. Or the pre-pubescent idiots that introduce themselves to the new family on the street by asking if Charlie is a ‘spastic’.

And whilst Thomas always shows Charlie love, and support, and smiles at his mother making shapes out of his shampooed hair in the bath; he constantly wishes he was normal. He constantly wishes that its simply a phase, and that one day he will get the attention that his parents ravish upon Charlie. Jackie comes into the picture, and let’s just say Charlie is introduced in quite possibly the most unpredictable way in which Thomas wouldn’t know how to talk to Jackie the next day; but Jackie is drawn to both of them somehow. She sees some horrible things, but she sticks with them. There’s a shocking turning point which I will not spoil, but the emotions that had accumulated within me up to this point, made it all the more poignant and cathartic, bringing a gasp, and tears all at the same time.

The film is about acceptance, and growing up despite circumstances. Some circumstances never change, but family doesn’t. I had a giggle, I laughed, I was moved, and I cried a whole lot for different reasons, and it just had me transfixed. I think this will appeal to people for different reasons also, but it has some really important lessons for anyone who needs some perspective on how disabilities affect not just the disabled, but the families and friends that support them.

So, I’m late on the Oscar bandwagon but I’m getting momentum (this year, I’ve already seen 15 new movies, whew!). In any case, I was really interested in seeing this 1920s drama based on the true story of Christine Collins, a single mother who comes home from work to find her 9 year old son Walter missing, nowhere to be found. Of course, she calls the police straight away, and the police immediately are in a huff, almost exasperated telling her that all little boys are rebellious, he’ll come back home. But she’d have to wait at least 24 hours before reporting him as missing. She isn’t a wallflower, or precious single mother; she constantly talks to the police (or in their eyes, ‘harasses’ them) for answers, and prods them to keep searching.

Several months later; a boy shows up. Immediately, we do know the boy isn’t Walter. He looks a little bit like him; but its not him. The police make a big song & dance about it and hooray, they’ve found a boy! When they promote the renion, and pay for his return as he’s been found interstate; she pauses, she hesitates. That is not my son, she says. The Captain in charge of the case, played quite well by Jeffrey Donovan (of Burn Notice fame) tells her, oh, its been a few months , he’s grown.

She takes him home reluctantly, and something is off. His manners are off, he is shorter, and upon running a bath for him, he’s also been circumcised. Something Walter was not. Of course, she reports it; someone else must be missing a boy. Walter is still missing.

From here, the film turns into more than a drama; what is it? I can’t even describe it. A thriller? No, not quite. A suspense? Possibly, but what makes it chilling is that it is true. For publicising the fact, and getting Walter’s teacher, or dentist to support her claims that the boy returned to her was not Walter; the police have her committed. Shock therapy is introduced, and upon talking to other not-so-crazy women, she discovers there are many women that had spoken out against the LAPD, and found themselves committed for their efforts.

With help from an activist priest, played by John Malkovich, who recognises that she just wants to find her son, he sets about in also promoting her plight, and speaking out quite passionately against the corruption of the LAPD.

Then.. the film diverges into another, when a boy taken into custody for being suspected of being an illegal immigrant, confesses to being an accomplice to several molestations, and murders of young boys by his uncle; once of which is said to be Walter. The killer is captured quite easily (seemingly) and Clint Eastwood has said that whilst the killer’s story could have easily been a movie, and he was certainly.. charismatic and chilling enough for it to be a story; he was more interested, and would only come on board if the movie focussed on Christine’s story.

Angelina plays her with so much credibility, and with so much rawness, I can see why she said that she hesitated in accepting this role, considering she has 6 young children of her own. The fact that she continued searching, even when there didn’t seem to be hope, even when the killer gave her no closure in knowing whether Walter was a victim or not; she never gave up. The Oscar nomination was absolutely correct for Angelina. (At least more worthy than Brad Pitt was of his nomination for Benjamin Button, I’m afraid to say)

The 1920s setting alone is gorgeous, and I love that Angelina in her role as telephone switchboard manager was on rollerskates; why isn’t that still around? The costumes were stunning, Clint Eastwood’s score was understated and delicate, and the supporting cast was so strong. When Ebert reviewed Changeling, I love that he says when the boy that poses as Walter is questioned as to why he impersonated the boy; when he gives the reason as to why, you almost want to hug him. The supporting cast that play the boys, and Jason Butler Harner as the killer Northcott are stand-outs and make this a compelling must see.

I feel as if the subject line, the book, the movie is something I will remember for a very long time.  I should preface that this won’t be a straight out review – it could entirely veer into some embarassing – no. I won’t go there. But it will be a book vs movie review because there are some interesting lessons to learn from both.

The book is written through letters, with headings such as ‘If he’s not calling you..’, or ‘If he’s not sleeping with you…’ through to ‘If he’s not asking you out..’ and so forth. And then letters from supposed women giving examples of guys they’ve met but oh? Maybe they’ve lost their phone. Oh! They probably don’t have credit, and they can’t text back. Or he’s just too busy. He’s a big shot! Too busy! And then the author comes back with; uh.. hello? If he’s into you, NOTHING will stop him.

It totally makes sense! Yet we make all these excuses. Because.. I don’t know why? Don’t ask me. I haven’t yet met someone to make me not be told by my sister that I need to read this book for a bit of tough love.

Then comes the movie..what was it going to be like? Such an ensemble cast with Ginnifer Goodwin, Justin Long, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connolly, Bradley Cooper, Scarlett Johansson,  Drew Barrymore.. oh man. What. A Cast of eye candy.

That in itself was reason for me to see it, I can’t lie. And I could see from the trailer that it was moments of dating, or long term relationships; waiting by the phone, waiting for a ring, avoiding temptation, all of the things both men and women go through I suppose in hoping that they’ve found the right ‘one’.

When you have such an ensemble cast, you can expect that there have to be ‘lead’ storylines, and the others are just supporting. In my opinion, the strongest stories was Aniston and Affleck as Beth and Neil – a couple living together, happily for 7 years, no ring, no engagement. WHEN was it going to happen? All of the pressure from her family to get married, or what did it mean, did he NOT want to be with her? Was it just convenient?

And there is Goodwin and Long – Gigi and Alex. Gigi is the hopeless romantic girl, the eternal optimist and the one you have to shake your head at, constantly waiting by the phone (but I SO want that pink phone she has in her apartment!), or thinking her cell phone has lost reception, or maybe she missed the call altogether. Or she was in the shower. And despite not being called, or waiting for so long.. she happily moves on; whilst asking bar owner Alex for advice, seeing as he told her bluntly about her first date with Conor (Kevin Connolly) the one that ended with a polite ‘nice to meet you’ ; He’s NOT interested.

Throughout the film, Alex teaches Gigi all about the ‘Rules’ as described throughout the book, guiding her through some awkward first dates, or ‘auditions’ and just how NOT interested these guys are. Oh, and the remarkably romantic exceptions she hears of, are merely those; exceptions.

Then there is Bradley Cooper & Jennifer Connelly.. and Scarlett Johansson. Oh man, ever since Alias where Bradley was Will Tippin, Sydney’s best friend; I’m so happy he’s had some recent success with this role, and in the Yes Man. But I digress. Cooper and Connelly play Ben & Janine, married, renovating their apartment, but there’s something missing. A spark? I’m not sure if its the character.. but I just found Janine to be cold, and lacking of any real ‘warmth’ to her. But then, sorry to say – next to Scarlett Johannsson as Anna. She. Is breathtaking. And the chemistry she and Ben share, phwooar! And.. they play James Morrison’s You Make It Real. And during another sweet scene, Keane’s Somewhere Only We Know. I am such a sucker for a great movie soundtrack.

All of the characters mix together, indirectly, or directly, and are friends with each other, or Anna knows Conor, and then Conor meets Drew Barrymore, and so on and so forth and for about a 2 hour film.. or was it over; I didn’t look at my watch once. Not once. I had a great laugh, and during some moments was worried there wouldn’t be a happy ending, or when there were amazingly romantic scenes, or heck.. Ben Affleck doing the dishes, I’m sure I let out a loud girly whimpering sound. Or at the scene where Gigi was nervously trying to get a guy’s attention, or Beth getting embarassed by a distant cousin saying she has a few miles left on this ‘model’, I and a few others in the cinema surely groaned and laughed awkwardly, possibly because we’ve all been through it.

It just completely won me over, and although it is a movie with some tough love.. it still makes me feel okay that I’m a completely romantic sooky la la.