Brave Movie Review
So I finally watched
Brave! I've been wanting to see this since it came out in theaters, but it was one I just kept missing or not getting around to. My sister even rented it from Redbox when it first came there, but the copy we got was scratched and wouldn't play. :( So, we finally tried again and this time it worked!
And I gotta say: I LOVED this film! It was so great!
Princess Merida, voiced by the fabulous
Kelly Macdonald, of the fiery orange locks, has a spirit to match her hair and hates being made to be proper. When her parents tell her she must marry, and she has only the sons of the three powerful nobles to choose from (let's just say none of them are exactly swoon-worthy) she sets off to forge her own path of destiny.
While this has practically no romance in it, it's a great mother-daughter relations kind of show, and you don't get a stronger heroine/role model for tween girls than Merida. While of course Merida ought to have the right to choose whom she marries, she's, shall we say, less than sensitive about her family's position of power. Because of her "selfishness," disaster ensues. I really liked that, when she finally learned true sacrifice, and was willing to do it, even though it was hard and meant unhappiness for her, that was the moment when things changed and that sacrifice was no longer required of her. That happens so often in life and I was so pleased to see it depicted in a Pixar film.
Now, let's talk about the hilarity, shall we? There are two bears in this film. The first, near the beginning, is mean, fierce, and all kinds of man-flesh-happy. We don't like him. The second one is much more entertaining. I'm not going to tell you who the bear is, as it's a key part of the plot, but let's just say it might be a person in bear form. So we have a grizzly that can't talk, but makes human hand (paw) motions and expressions. So funny!
Then there's the king. Voiced by the perfectly chosen
Billy Connolly, he's a large man who loves his food, his family, and his fights. And he's
such a guy's guy. Pretty much everything he said, I feel over laughing. His expressions were really funny too.
I won't say much about the witch in the woods Merida meets, except that I liked her a lot. A combination of the cliche and the refreshing, I found her both funny and intriguing.
Probably my favorite part of the film was Merida's three younger brothers. They had the same fiery red hair as she does, but their little trouble-making, half-pint triplets that run around stealing cakes, tying people's shoe laces together, and just wreaking havoc in general. They were so adorable and so funny, you just couldn't be mad at them, even though they caused a lot of trouble.
In short, if you want a fun adventure with lots of laughs, a strong heroine, and some surprisingly deep and refreshing life lessons,
Brave is the film for you!
Thoughts for Thursday--Einstein
Thoughts for Thursday is a new meme hosted by Musings on Fantasia and LKHill. In this meme, we share thoughts or quotes that we know or have recently come across. Each week there is a specific subject or theme. These can be quotes from books, quotes by famous people, (quotes by YOU, perhaps ;D). Anything from anywhere is game, though we do ask that you keep your quote to a few sentences at most. Don't quote, for example, entire passages of a book or essay. These can be funny quips, cool sayings, hair-raising antidotes, movie lines, any kind of quote you can think of!
Just have fun, collect awesome sayings by awesome people, and try to be inspired!
Today's subject is quotes by Albert Einstein! Now this guy was a genius, not just at physics but at life. Usually I go through quotes on a certain subject and find my favorite. Often, I'm even hard pressed to find enough for the post. Not so with my buddy Alby. Everything he ever said was deep! I didn't use all the quotes I wanted, because the post would have gone on and on, but even these barely scratch the surface. I have different ones at Musings on Fantasia.
"If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales."
"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."
"Creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
"Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind...All religions, arts, and sciences are branches of the same tree."
"When you are courting a nice girl and hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That's relativity."
"Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."
What do you think? Which is your favorite? Do you have one to add?
