1: THE BEAUTICIAN AND THE BEAST (1997)

If you're around my age (25), you probably grew up watching The Nanny starring Fran Drescher. I absolutely loved her in that, so whenever I saw this movie, I was in love!  Basically, Joy (Drescher) gets a job as a teacher for the children of a dictator in a far-away country. Drescher is playful and funny, as she always is, as she tries to tame the heart of a ruthless dictator. This movie is, of course, based off of the Disney classic "Beauty and the Beast." I really like it. You should put this on your next date night movie list.

2: SPANGLISH (2004)

Adam Sandler movies are usually pretty hit or miss with me. However, I have always really loved this movie. It follows Flor (Paz Vega), a Mexican immigrant, who begins working for John (Sandler) and his wife. John, a famous chef to the area, is finding life with his wife more and more difficult. John and Flor find themselves falling in love, despite John's having a wife. Things come to a head when John and Flor realize that John's wife is treating Flor's daughter like her own moreso than their plus-size daughter. ​This movie is a hit in my book!

3: 50 FIRST DATES (2004)

Another Adam Sandler movie that made it to my list is 50 First Dates. This movie follows Henry (Sandler), a heartbreaker who finds himself in a diner with Lucy (Drew Barrymore). Henry doesn't know that Lucy suffers from short-term memory loss.  Despite having to win her love each and every day, Henry goes on date after date with Lucy. This movie has always been really sweet to me because it shows that you can fall in love with the same person over and over again!

4: BABY MAMA (2008)

I know that a lot of people won't consider this movie a "romantic" comedy, but it is one to me! Kate (Tina Fey) is a hard-working single woman who desperately wants a child. She reaches out to Angie (Amy Poehler) who agrees to carry her child for her after Angie finds out her uterus isn't shaped well for child bearing. But things go wrong with Kate finds out that Angie is difficult to work with. But, through it all,  Angie meets Greg (Rob Ackerman) who makes her feel like the luckiest girl in the world. I have ALWAYS loved this film, and will continue to love it as a romantic comedy!

5: LAST HOLIDAY (2006)

I would be remiss if I didn't add Last Holiday to my list of under-rated rom-coms. The story follows Georgia (Queen Latifah) who hits her head and work, visits the doctor, and finds out she has a tumor that will eventually kill her.  After playing it safe all her life, Georgia decides to withdraw her savings and head to Europe for a last holiday to die for. However, unexpected news sends her work flame Sean Matthews (LL Cool J) on a cross-country trip to find her. ​I LOVE this film. It is one to watch, for sure.

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​1: HE DOESN’T ACTUALLY HAVE A SUPER POWER OR SPECIAL TRAINING

Tony Stark became Iron Man out of a necessity to escape captors. After that, he chose to use his brains to invent a suit that would help him fight evil. Unlike his counterparts who are either blessed with super powers or have years of training, Tony goes into a fight knowing that he is only human.

​2: HE IS CONFIDENT AND HATED FOR IT

​I feel like I closely identify with this because I sometimes feel that, as a plus size young woman, some of my opinions and ideas are discounted. I love that Tony Stark is unapologetically confident in his abilities. Why shouldn’t he be? He is a genius. ​I think if more of us acted like Tony Stark and exuded his incredible confidence, we would all feel a lot better about ourselves.

​3: HIS CHARACTER REALLY DEVELOPED IN THE MOVIE SERIES

​If you go watch Endgame and then go home and re-watch the first few Iron Man movies, you will see a distinctive change in Tony’s demeanor. Of course, he starts out cold and driven by money and fame. He changes after a boy is killed on his watch. After that, all he cares about is the safety of the world. I think his character changes because he rubs off of Steve Rodgers and vice versa. Don’t get me started on Captain America. He changed but, in my opinion, he went the opposite way.

​4: HIS INTENTIONS WERE GOOD FROM THE START

​A lot of people mistake Stark’s confidence for heartlessness. However, he cares about people and wants to help, even in earlier movies. There was nothing in it for him to save people or become an Avenger. Even if there was, he already was wildly famous and smart before the Avengers.

​5: HE MADE SOMETHING OF HIMSELF OUT OF TRAGEDY

​Tony Stark was a boy having an argument with his father when tragedy struck. His father and mother left and were killed, leaving a young and inexperienced Tony to take over the business. A lot of other people would cave under the pressure or might even tear themselves a part knowing that things ended badly right before their loved ones died.

​CONCLUSION

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​THE PLOT

​Billy Batson is a troubled foster care child who has bounced around from one home to another. He gets in to mischief when trying to find his mother, who he lost when he was only a small boy. The now 14-year-old ends up in a new foster home with a humble, caring family.   After sticking up for his foster brother, he is on a train when the wizard, Shazam, bring him to a magical realm where he gives Billy magic powers that are activated by saying “Shazam!” ​Batson fights the occasional crime and saves the occasional life between selfie sessions after YouTube videos of him go viral. In the middle of it all, will he have what it takes to keep him friends and stop the evil Dr. Thaddeus Sivana?

​ACTING | 5/5

Zachary Levi did an amazing job of playing the witty ad handsome Shazam! His ability to act like a pre-teen boy was astounding and worthy of some awards in my opinion! He did things like "floss" and charge people's phones with his lightening powers!

​THE STORYLINE | 5/5

​THE MEANING | 5/5

​SPECIAL EFFECTS | 5/5

​I can’t really complain about the special effects in this movie. I thought they were great! Animators gave Shazam the ability to shoot lightening from his hands, fly, and do a number of other acrobatic and superhero-y activities. It didn’t look fake to me like some movies can make it look!

FINAL RATING | 5/5

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PLOT

HERE'S WHAT I TOOK AWAY

SYMBOLISM

The first is the symbolism of the scissors, which play a major role throughout the film. Obviously, the shadows of the people above ground want to cut themselves away from their owners. Adelaide's "shadow" reveals this in a lengthy monologue toward the end of the film, physically representing this idea with paper dolls. The scissors are the weapon of choice for the shadows.

There is also the symbolism of the rabbits. Rabbits are a symbol of new life. At the beginning of the film, there is a slow zoom out from a cage with one rabbit inside that shows a room lined with several cages holding rabbits.  ​By the end of the movie, they have all been set free from their cages. This means that the rabbits were somehow similar to the shadows, since both were freed.

LESSONS I THINK WERE BEING TAUGHT

1. FAMILIAL ROLES

The first lesson I think was being taught had to do with the idea of family. You see the wife, Adelaide, who was very scared about this doppelgänger returning to harm her. Her husband doesn't really seem to care. On top of that, his exchange with the four trespassers on their property was more comical than intimidating.

2. OUR OWN WORST ENEMY

The next is that we are are own worse enemy, which is actually the tagline of the movie. I didn't know this until I looked it up, but I did have that vibe throughout the film. The way I would put it is that we have two sides to ourselves. As a religious person, this is easier for me to understand because my religion teaches that the side of yourself that you feed is the one that wins.

3. POLITICAL THEMES/GOING ABOUT THINGS THE WRONG WAY

4. EVERYTHING IS NOT WHAT IT SEEMS/PERCEPTIONS

As you know if you've seen the film, the Adelaide that we see as the protagonist is actually the original shadow. I didn't personally see this coming, but the whole thing makes sense if you sit back and watch the film. To begin, Adelaide doesn't talk for a while after her encounter with the shadow. We thought this was because of PTSD, but it was because she didn't know how to talk.

CONCLUSION

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CAPTAIN MARVEL DOESN'T FOLLOW SOCIETAL STANDARDS FOR HER GENDER

​As a woman, it is always refreshing to see heroes and fictional characters who don’t necessarily follow traditional and societal beauty standards. While Captain Marvel isn’t unattractive, her style is more relaxed! Additionally, she always likes to do the “boy” stuff like racing go-carts and skateboarding.

SHE KNOWS HOW TO SHUT UP THE HATERS

​At the end of the movie, when the traditional motif is met of the hero truly harnessing their powers, Captain Marvel doesn’t take crap from anyone. But the interesting thing is that she does this without cursing or stooping down to the level of the bad guys. I don’t want to give too much away, so I’ll leave it at that.

SHE ISN'T OVER SEXUALIZED

​While some women will say that sexuality and using sexuality to bring down bad guys is empowering, it humbles others like myself when there is a female superhero who isn’t used by a studio full of men to seduce the enemy with her body. Captain Marvel’s costume is conservative, though form-fitting, and she kicks but with her own power, not with the help of her curves.

SHE IS THE ONLY FEMALE MARVEL SUPERHERO TO HAVE HER OWN, MODERN-DAY FILM

​After doing a bit of searching, I think that Captain Marvel is actually the first female Marvel hero with her own recent movie, and that rocks! Wonder Woman was probably one of the firsts as of recently, but it is great that DC and Marvel fans now both have a female superhero movie to enjoy!

YOU'D BE SUPPORTING WOMEN IN THE FILM INDUSTRY

I don’t care what anyone says, that movie was amazing. However, I always notice that movies with female superheroes have a lower rating by critics than those starring males. I’m not really sure why. However, I know that myself and a number of other people, women included, look at those ratings to see if paying the money to see it in the theatre will be worth it.

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1. WHITE CHRISTMAS

I won't go into too much of a plot explanation on this one, as you can find plenty of it on my Merry Movie Monday post on the movie from last week. Click here to read the post.

2. ELF

Buddy the Elf finds out that he isn't really an elf, but a human man who snuck into Santa's present sack when he was visiting an orphanage. After learning of his parents, Buddy sets off to find his father in NY. Too bad his father is the modern-day Scrooge!

3. A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS

Check out America's favorite little gang in Charlie Brown's Christmas special. Charlie finds himself in a non-Christmasy mood and Lucy suggests that he break up his blues by directing a Christmas play.

4. HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS

The Grinch was abused and laughed at by the Whos in Whoville, so he made himself a home at the top of a mountain. One year he gets fed up with the Whos Christmas spirit and decides to dress up as Santa and steal Christmas from the town. But, will he do his dirty deed without having a change of heart?

5. HOME ALONE 1 & 2

Kevin is one of several children. In this first movie, he gets left at home alone when his family rushes to the airport to spend Christmas in Paris but leaves him behind. In the second movie, they are visiting somewhere else when he gets on the wrong plane to New York City.

6. JINGLE ALL THE WAY

A father, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, who spends most of his days away from his wife and son must fight a crazy mailman, Christmas characters, and bad guys to get a special action figure for his son.

7. THE CHRISTMAS CHRONICLES

This Netflix original features a little girl and her brother who run concoct a plan to trap Santa Claus. They climb into his sleigh and startle him as he is flying, causing him to crash thousands of miles away. Evading the police, escaping gangsters, and even rocking out in a jail, this movie will have you laughing and tearing up!

8. I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

Jake is a college student who was planning on spending the holidays away from home with his girlfriend, but she refuses. He decides to go home for Christmas but ends up trapped in the desert with no money or phone. He must travel across the country to get home in time for Christmas dinner.

9. CHRISTMAS WITH THE KRANKS

The Kranks always do it up big, like everyone else in their town, for Christmas. When their daughter says she isn't coming home for Christmas, they decide to skip it and go on holiday. The neighbors and townspeople lose it when they find out the Kranks won't be decorating or doing anything. However, everyone comes together with the Kranks' daughter decides to visit home after all.

10. THE HOLIDAY CALENDAR

This other Netflix original film was too cute not to add to this list. I hope you will head over to my Merry Movie Monday post dedicated to this film and read all about it for yourself!

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THE PLOT

ACTING | 5/5

THE STORYLINE | 5/5

THE MEANING | 5/5

THE EDITING | 5/5

CONCLUSION

5/5 SNOWFLAKES!

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THE PLOT

As Christmas season is set to begin, Abby's grandpa gifts her a family heirloom - an old advent calendar. Abby is shocked when the advent calendar seems to open up and present special figurines that seem to predict the future. She hopes that the figures are pointing her to true love. Will she get her Christmas wish, or will it all turn to disaster?

ACTING | 5/5

THE STORYLINE | 4/5

THE MEANING | 5/5

SPECIAL EFFECTS/ANIMATION/EDITING | 5/5

CONCLUSION

4.5/5 CALENDARS!

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THE PLOT

ACTING | 5/5

THE STORYLINE | 4/5

THE MEANING | 4.5/5

SPECIAL EFFECTS/ANIMATION | 5/5

CONCLUSION

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ADULT's HALLOWEEN MOVIE PLAYLIST

THE OTHERS (2001)

Grace, played by Nicole Kidman, is a very religious mother of two who is awaiting the return of her husband from World War II. She has moved her family to a beautiful yet slightly creepy manor by the English coast as they wait for the war to die down. Her children, Anne and Nicholas, suffer from a rare photosensitivity disease that means they must avoid the sun at all costs. For this reason, the curtains are always closed and the children are not permitted to go outside during the day. Three people come to the manor who claim to have worked in the home many years prior and come asking for jobs. Meanwhile, Anne begins to see ghosts, particularly of a child named Victor. He claims that the home belongs to his family. Being a devout Christian mother, Grace continually punishes Anne for saying that she's seen a ghost, but it becomes clear to Grace, Nicholas, and the home workers that they are no longer by themselves. There are others. I love this movie and think that it has a great twist at the end that you honestly won't even see coming. I hope you'll take some time this Halloween to check out this movie. The movie is an hour and 54 minutes long!

SWEENY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF Fleet Street (2007)

A London barber (Johnny Depp) is sent to Australia for 15 years to pay for a crime he didn't commit, all so an evil judge can steal his wife away from him. The barber returns to Fleet Street, now going by the name "Sweeny Todd." He forms a working relationship with Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter). ​Sweeny Todd kills his barbershop clients and sends their bodies down to Lovett who bakes them in to her meat pies and sells them to the community. Sweeny Todd is a musical. I remember seeing parts of this movie a few years after it came out, but I think I might track it down and give it another watch on Wednesday.  I have always really liked Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. I think they are both fantastic at what they do, so I'm excited to give this movie another watch!

ZOMBIELAND (2009)

Zombieland follows the stories of Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock, four people who are trying their best to survive the zombie apocalypse. ​Columbus actually presents a number of "survival tips" to help the viewer survive as well, providing a ton of comic relief throughout the movie. Throughout the movie, the group travels around Zombieland and end up at a theme park where Wichita and Little Rock used to go with their parents. They are swarmed with zombies at the park, and everyone must work together to get out alive.  I really like this movie. It features a ton of huge names, including Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin. There is also a short cameo by Bill Murray. I think I would classify this as a romance/comedy/thriller movie. If you like Zombies and a good few laughs, I would recommend watching this on Wednesday to get into the Halloween spirit!

THE BABADOOK (2014)

Amelia is a single mother of her 6-year-old son Samuel, who seems to be behaving badly and losing control of his temper frequently. She is left reading after the violent death of her husband. Samuel begins to suffer from nightmares that feature the Babadook, a monster that he thinks will surely come to kill him and his mother. A storybook about this nightmare creatures shows up in their house, and Samuel begins to fly off the rail. Eventually, Amelia decides to medicate her son, but she soon begins to see the signs of The Babadook all around her. I really liked this film. I don't think I had nightmares following this movie, but it was really creepy and gave me the shivers every now and then. I would recommend this if you are a fan of creature features. I do, however, think this is supposed to me more of a paranormal thing, however. Check this out for a good spooky on Halloween night!

THE SIXTH SENSE (1999)

Malcolm is a famous psychologist. At the start of the film, he is returning home from an event with his wife where he was being honored for his work. Suddenly, the night turns sinister when a man who was a previous client of Malcolms shows up at his home with a gun. Malcolm is shot. The film catches up with Malcolm in the fall when he meets with a new client named Cole, a young boy who struggles with unspeakable fears. His case was similar to that of the man who shot Malcolm.

CHILDREN'S HALLOWEEN MOVIE PLAYLIST

HOCUS POCUS (1993)

Hocus Pocus follows the story of Max and his sister Dani, who find themselves out trick-or-treating on Halloween in Salem. Max runs into his crush Allison and they decide to visit the home of the famous Sanderson sisters, witches who were hanged for killing the children of Salem to suck out their youth. Max lights the Black Flame Candle and the sisters come back to life. They are determined to use the night to lure trick-or-treaters to their home where they can suck the lives out of the children of Salem before sunrise. However, Max, Dani, and Allison work alongside a mystical cat named Binx to prevent the witches from regaining their youth. I can't say enough good things about this movie. It features some pretty popular people (Better Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy), great music, and a pretty awesome storyline. I'm upset that I actually haven't watched it yet this season, but I am determined to change that in the next few days. Do yourself a favor and watch this film with the kids this Halloween. You will love it, and so will they!

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS (1993)

Jack Skellington is the pumpkin king of Halloweentown, a land dedicated to all things spooky. However, he quickly becomes depressed at the mundane lifestyle of scaring people the same old way time and time again.  One day, Jack finds the entrance to Christmas town where he learns of Santa Claus. Determined to take over Christmas, Jack kidnaps Santa Claus and starts his plot to take over the beloved holiday. This is certainly a fun movie for younger children. This remains a favorite for many people my age, since it was made in our decade. It is still pretty popular and definitely a movie I would recommend checking out this Halloween.

CASPER (1995)

Casper is a friendly ghost living in a mansion in Main with his three goofy but mean ghost uncles. A paranormal investigator named James Harvey moves into the mansion with his daughter Kat to investigate the rumors surrounding the mansion. Kat and her father quickly encounter the ghosts, who are mostly rude and messy. They do all they can to get James and Kat to move out, but James stays persistent, determined to investigate them. Kat forms a close bond with Casper, who never really experienced love until he met Cat. James is also still reeling over the death of his wife. All the while, the previous owner's daughter and her side kick are plotting to get inside the mansion to steal the treasure that was left there. Will they get the treasure? Will James and Kat make it safely through their stay? Watch to find out.  ​I've always loved this movie. I hope you'll check it out to see how great it is!

THE ADDAMS FAMILY (1991)

You've never met a family as strange as this one. The family, made up of parents Gomez and Morticia Addams, children Wednesday and Pugsley, and Grandma. There are also other family members such as Lurch, Cousin Itt, Thing, and Uncle Fester (Gomez's brother). Fester had been missing for years, and a man named Gordon (the son of con artist and loan shark Abigail Craven) shows up to try and steal the Addams family fortune. He quickly falls for the family, but different situations begin to give away Gordon's true identity to the family. I've always been a huge fan of the Addams family. I always loved Morticia Addams and just how strange and funny the entire family could be. There are a few dark comedy moments in the movie, but nothing that a child would be too spooked by. I hope you'll check this one out as well during your Halloween movie marathon!

THE HALLOWEEN TOWN SERIES (1998-2006)

Marnie, Dylan, and Sophie find out that their grandma, who only seems to visit them for Halloween each year, is a witch. They follow their grandma to Halloweentown, where she lives all year, to discover a world of friendly ghouls, ghosts, and witches.  The siblings soon find out that their entire family is made up of witches and warlocks. But, not everything is great in Halloweentown. An evil warlock is trying to take over the human world so that creatures can rule it. The series continues with Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge, Halloweentown High, and Return to Halloweentown. I really loved this series when I was growing up, and I know you and your kids will love it as well!

CONCLUSION

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