So not Mia Thermopolis anymore

Mere weeks remain until the release of the final Princess Diaries book is released, but in the meantime, I caught Anne Hathaway in a decidedly un-Mia Thermopolis role: an addict just out of rehab to attend her sister's wedding.  Rachel Getting Married was superb.  I went to see it with my parents at the West Boylston second run cinema where it cost us $3.50 each.  Lynnie sure knows a bargain when she sees one.  The screen was tiny, but it was kind of the perfect place to see a movie like this.  It's a small, at times obviously dark -- given what's going on -- and super-intimate.  Director Jonathan Demme has taken a Dogme approach, only using music and sound effects that would exist in the scene.  I've seen Dogme films before at Doc, but it had been awhile.  Let me tell you, it is one thing to find yourself deeply affected because something sad is happening and the song playing in the background is orchestrated to just get you to cry.  It is quite another for the intensity of the acting to just cut away at your core.  Anne Hathaway was amazing, and while physically recognizable, she was no Anne Hathaway you have ever seen before.  I'm entirely rooting for her to win an Oscar for Best Actress.

I don't know what it is about Oscar season, but it sure makes me want to get out of my apartment/house and out to the movies.  So far, I've seen Milk, Doubt, and Rachel Getting Married, but there are many more that I'm dying to see.  In order:

1.  The Wrestler

2.  Revolutionary Road

3.  Slumdog Millionaire

4.  The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

5.  Gran Torino

6.  The Reader

7.  Wendy and Lucy

8.  I've Loved You So Long

That is a lot of movies!  And 1-6 I absolutely must see before the Oscars, so that's almost one a week until the end of February.  Sheesh.  This coming from someone who didn't see Dark Knight until the end of summer/early fall... and can't remember what movie she saw most recently before that one in the theaters.

Anyway, I never even posted about Christmas!  It was fun.  Crowded, different from last year, a little emotional because of my grandfather not being there at Christmas Eve, but definitely improved by the addition of some new folks.  Like the Colin guy!  Colin was a real trouper, putting up with a very relaxed schedule in Sturby, which turned out to be the calm before the storm.  A 13 month old Baby Kai adds a lot of intensity and challenges to normal holiday activities.  Like leaving the house to do things all together.  Also, opening Christmas presents.  An activity that usually was well over by 11 AM, well, this year we were still opening presents at 7 PM.  And this is without Grandma even coming out (with presents) since she wasn't feeling well.

I must admit, as much as I miss the little guy right now, I am super excited to sleep in a bed!  The whole night through!  It's been 3 nights on an air mattress in my brother's claustrophobic tiny room that just barely contained said double air mattress, and then 2 nights on the couch, praying the cat won't jump on my face at night.  Not one night did I get to sleep all the way through, thanks to the little guy who still doesn't sleep through the night.  I'm not complaining really.  I wouldn't want to not be spending all that time with the little guy... but I am really really stoked about having my bed and room back!