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Movies to look out for in 2016
As you may know, I’m a bit of a movie buff. I love most genres and to be honest, most movies. I love a trip to the cinema, a night curled up on the sofa, or just sitting and sewing while watching a good movie on Amazon Prime. I’m lucky really in that I get to go to the cinema quite often, so I figured I would share the movies I’m most looking forward to in 2016. Right now, I’d really love to go and see “Joy”. I think it was technically released in December but either way, I think I might even head off to the cinema by myself!
To be honest January’s movies don’t hold a lot of interest for me, so I’m going to skip right on to February. The first of the movies I’m looking forward to this year is the much awaited “Deadpool“. I absolutely love Ryan Reynolds and there has been a huge amount of build up and hype to this movie so it had better be good! To be honest I don’t know an awful lot about this anti-hero but I have seen most of the trailers and it looks hilarious!
March brings the release of “Divergent: Allegiant” and this is one I’m really looking forward to. While I’m disappointed that they decided to split the last book in two, I’m also glad that it means two more movies. This Allegiant movie is the first part of the last book and will release shortly, while the second will presumably be another year away. I have really enjoyed the Divergent series so far and hope that this won’t disappoint like Mockingjay Part 1 did. Plus, more chance to see Four? I think so…
April is another month that can be skipped for me. A live action version of “The Jungle Book” is being released by Disney but to be honest I haven’t even seen The Good Dinosaur yet, so I doubt that will be top of my list to see.
“Captain America: Civil War” is out in May, as is “X-Men: Apocalypse” and “Alice Through the Looking Glass“. I absolutely can’t wait for the Captain America movie, despite not having seen 2 yet (I must watch that this week”), but Iron Man is in this one and also it looks epic. I hate that Cap and Tony are going to be fighting it out for the majority of the movie, but I’m sure it will make for a good story line! Also the new X-Men movie looks awesome. I’m really loving these “younger generation” versions of the movies that they are making at the moment and love all the people they have cast in the roles. Apocalypse looks like one of the best so far and I’m excited to see how it turns out. Finally, Alice in Wonderland has the sequel, Through the Looking Glass being released. I was very late watching the last Tim Burton movie but I have to admit I enjoyed it. While I probably won’t be heading to the cinema for this one (unless it fall around my birthday) but I’m sure I’ll be watching it sooner or later.
June has the next Turtles movie coming out, but since I only saw the other on the plane home from Florida (and wasn’t fussed), I doubt I’ll be queuing to see this one. Also “Finding Dory” is out and while I’m sure it will be good (it’s Disney), with Finding Nemo not being anywhere near my top 10 (or 20) Disney movies, I don’t think I’ll be planning to see this either. “Independence Day Resurgence” is about the only movie that holds interest in June but that’s because I enjoyed the first one. I’m not convinced a follow-on will be any good but it looks packed with action so it might be worth a watch. Sadly there is no Will Smith and he was a highlight of the first one for me, plus there is Jeff Goldblum and he is most definitely a downside for me. That said, Liam Hemsworth is in it, so it might be okay, if only for him.
“The BFG“, “Ghostbusters” and “Star Trek Beyond” are all released in July but I think only Star Trek I’m looking forward to. While I do love Roald Dahl, there is already a BFG cartoon movie that’s pretty good and I’m not sure I see any point in re-making it. That said I haven’t seen pictures or a trailer so I will reserve judgement for now. Ghostbusters is something that I’m sure will get a huge cult following, mostly because of the original movies. However for me I’m never sure when they make another sequel, so many years after the last. Just look at Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull! So that just leaves Star Trek and while many people have had negative things to say about the more modern versions, I love them. I especially love Chris Pine as Kirk and so honestly you can’t really go wrong for me. This third one (of the newer versions) looks full of action and adventure (not to mention another lost enterprise) so I’m sure it will be great.
“Suicide Squad” is pretty much the only movie of interest to me in August. Until about a year ago I didn’t really know much about the Suicide Squad storyline but with watching “Arrow” and some extra knowledge from Chris, I now think I understand a lot of it. Not to mention Lily’s favourite “Harley Quinn” will be in it and also Will Smith, so it’s go to be worth a watch. Also Villains. You know?
Neither September or October have much of interest for me though I spotted “Bridget Jones’s Baby” which might be worth a watch (eventually) and maybe “Gambit” too. November has “Doctor Strange” which I don’t know much about but the stills look pretty cool. More importantly though it has “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” which again I don’t know much about but absolutely can’t wait to see. Whether it will be cinema worthy or whether curiosity will just drive me to see it at the cinema anyway, I don’t know – but I hope for good things! Sadly December holds nothing of interest yet either but I believe there is a Star Wars spin-off set to be released and since Chris is into Star Wars, I guess we might see that.
There are a few I haven’t mentioned that I either don’t know enough about to comment on, or I’m not sure when they’re being released. I guess time will tell if any others start to appeal throughout the year, but at the moment – these are my top picks.
Superhero Movies – the good and the not so good!
The last superhero movie I saw was Avengers – Age of Ultron and it was awesome. The other day, when Nat and I went to see the new Hunger Games movie, I got excited seeing the trailer for Deadpool which is finally out next year. Also with things like The Flash, Arrow and even Super Girl all currently airing on the TV, I thought I would share some of my favourite superhero movies.
Batman
I really enjoyed all the Batman movies that have been released to date, though I’ll admit the Dark Knight series was definitely my favourite. Christian Bale was by far the best Batman in my opinion and Heath Ledger at The Joker was just amazing. I’m really unsure about the new Superman Vs Batman that is planned for release as I’m just not convinced on Ben Affleck as Batman.
Spider-Man
I’ve watched all three original Spider-Man movies but only one of the recent ones. I did enjoy Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man but I have to admit that Andrew Garfield was my favourite in the end. I don’t honestly know why I haven’t got around to seeing The Amazing Spider-Man 2 yet, especially as I love Emma Stone. It’s on my to-do list though.
Superman
No one will ever beat Christopher Reeve as Superman for me. I love Brandon Routh in Arrow these days but his role as Superman in Superman Returns was just dreadful. I haven’t even seen Man of Steel but it’s certainly not on my “must see” list. And like I mentioned above, I’m really not sure about Superman Vs Batman.
Iron Man
Way before the first Avengers movie, Iron Man (and its sequel were released). Iron Man is by far one of my most favourite superhero movies as I just love Robert Downey Jnr’s portrayal of him. The first Iron-Man movie is my favourite, followed by the third. I didn’t really think much to number 2, but it doesn’t change my love for Iron Man.
Thor
Still on the theme of Avengers, Thor was another movie that I had high hopes for, based on its main actor – Chris Hemsworth. I have to admit I loved it and again enjoyed Thor in the Avengers movie when it finally came out. I’m sad to say I haven’t seen the second movie yet. It was even on the plane, on the way home from Florida, but I chose sleep over Thor (though technically Robert Downey Jnr in The Judge before that).
Captain America
Based on liking Iron Man and liking Thor, I fully expected to like Captain America too. Sadly I didn’t though. I like Chris Evans and I thought he was great, but the movie just didn’t really float my boat. I’m not one for war movies or soldiers so that didn’t help. I’m also not great with movies set in the past. I did however enjoy the character of Captain America in the Avenger movies and I’m sure I’ll eventually get around to watching Captain America 2, though like Man of Steel, it’s not high on my list of priorities.
(The Incredible) Hulk
I hated both these movies. Seriously. I used to love the TV series of The Incredible Hulk but both movies have been bad! The first one, titled just Hulk was by far the worst, Edward Norton giving a bit more credibility to the second one, The Incredible Hulk. Having seen Mark Ruffalo as Hulk in the Avengers movies though, I do wish they would make a spin off movie for him. I’ll keep my fingers crossed!
Daredevil & Elektra
In all honestly, these are two completely separate movies and should have their own paragraph. However I didn’t like either so I don’t want to waste too much time writing about them. Daredevil was marginally better than Elektra but I wasn’t keen on Ben Affleck or Jennifer Garner. Both movies felt a bit cheap and low budget, though Colin Farrell as Bullseye was pretty awesome.
X-Men
I’ve always been a lover of the X-Men movies and have watched each as they’ve come out. The third was my least favourite though and I have to admit to slipping a little behind recently. I haven’t seen either Wolverine movie, or Days of Future Past but they are all on my to-do list. X-Men First Class is probably one of my favourites, though I love Patrick Stewart and he was definitely missing for me. Hopefully Days of Future Past will solve that for me.
Green Lantern
I absolutely love Ryan Reynolds and as such I enjoyed the Green Lantern. That said I think it could have been better and I wasn’t a big fan of Blake Lively’s part. That said, knowing Ryan Reynolds is also Deadpool makes me excited for that being released. I’m saddened to see they are making a reboot of Green Lantern in 2020 though as I don’t think that’s necessary.
Guardians of the Galaxy
Before this movie was released, I have to admit to knowing nothing about this particular storyline. That said I thoroughly enjoyed it and hope they plan to do more spin-offs. All the characters were great and the girls even enjoyed watching the movie. We have three out of the main four characters as Disney Infinity figures too.
There are several other movies that I haven’t mentioned such as; The Green Hornet (hated it), Fantastic Four (liked but not loved, no idea why they rebooted but haven’t seen it), Ghost Rider (love Nicholas Cage but wasn’t especially won over by this, haven’t even seen 2), Hancock (meh), Catwoman (meh, meh) and so on but I would be here for days if I listed them all! As a huge fan of the superhero genre I’m sure I’ll be seeing a lot more as they’re released and even catching up on those I’ve missed. Let me know what you think of the ones I’ve mentioned, or even those I haven’t!
Hello May – a birthday wishlist
I love May. It’s probably my favourite month of the whole year. Why? Well my birthday is in May for a start, but that’s only the initial reason to feel a connection to the month. I also love what happens outdoors – the flowers pushing through and blooming, along with the trees growing blossom. The picture above (Hello May) is actually a photo I took earlier today, of a tree in Saxilby on the way to the girls school.
Since it’s now 26 days till my birthday, I figured I’d share a birthday wishlist as my post for today. In all honesty, I don’t really want for anything (except a lottery win) but I guess if I was given a little money to treat myself with, these are the things I’d like.
So first let’s start with Lumiere. He was one of my “regret not purchasing” purchases, from Disney World. The whole time we were on holiday I was keeping an eye out for things I might like to buy – or things I might like as a birthday present from my mum and my sister. I saw a few things that I would have liked, but actually didn’t end up getting and Lumiere was one of these. Selling for $50 in the park, he is £60 on the Disney Store website. I truly wish I’d brought him home with me, though I just couldn’t justify the spend.
Next comes this beautiful Beauty and the Beast “Rose” necklace. It sells at TruffleShuffle for £25.99. I’ve never been one for gold jewellery so this is the first thing to have truly appealed, I also like the 14k version much more than its expensive counterpart. I love Disney Couture jewellery though and could easily have made a wishlist, solely of that.
This Daryl Dixon Pop Funko figure is really the only non-Disney item on my list. I love Daryl in Walking Dead and nothing is more representative of him than this motorcycle Pop Funko figure. He’s not easy to find in the UK though so places like Amazon.com and Hot Topic are really the only options for purchasing him.
Disney Villains Monopoly is another of my “regret not purchasing” items. I was so close to getting this game on at least 3-4 occasions, but I knew we’d be short of room in the suitcases, so just couldn’t justify it. Buying it online really isn’t an option, as its just so expensive. However I also found a cool version of this called “My Disney Villains Monopoly” which would be way cooler to have (but way more expensive too).
Again from TruffleShuffle comes this awesome Iron Man usb memory stick. I don’t really need any more memory sticks but how could you not want this? I love Iron Man and finally purchased a plush of him in Florida, so this USB would add to my ever growing RDJ shrine (yeah I know, that’s creepy…).
ANOTHER regret not buying item is this book “The Beast Within”. I saw it in a shop near Gaston’s Tavern and was so close to buying it, except that I didn’t really want to carry it around with me. I later saw another one called “Fairest of them All” in Hollywood Studios and would have loved that too. I have however found them on Amazon and they’re only £10 ish. To be honest I’ll probably treat myself to those, as soon as I get a little money free.
This second to last item is my big regret not buying item, but only because I can’t find it for sale anywhere (which makes me feel like I can never buy it, unlike the others which are just all expensive to buy elsewhere). I didn’t know what the design was called, which shop I saw it in, or exactly what it looked like – so even adding it to this wishlist took me a lot of research. The design is by Jerrod Marayama and the shop I saw it in was called D-Street at Downtown Disney. To be absolutely honest I loved so many of his things (a collection called WonderGround), even princess related ones, but this villain print (World of Evil) was by far my favourite. There was both an art print and a notebook that I liked, but I think the notebook would win out. I’ll have to keep my eye out on Ebay I think, though it’s not there at the moment.
Finally my last item is yet again Beauty and the Beast themed (running theme you might notice). I have so many Disney Traditions that are Beauty and the Beast and this is one of the few I don’t have. I do however love loads of Disney Traditions ornaments so I wouldn’t be fussy of which I got. This particular ornament just represents my love of them all, though it would be great to have this one too as its another step closer to owning all the Beauty and the Beast ones!
A complete (and constantly added to) wishlist of all the things I currently love, can be found on My Greedy Book. If you don’t know what “My Greedy Book” is, you should definitely check it out as I genuinely think it’s one of the best wishlist facilities I’ve come across. In fact, you can read all my thoughts on “My Greedy Book“, over at my personal blog.
Movie Review: Avengers – Age of Ultron
Before I start to tell you about my Florida holiday, I want to tell you all about the latest movie I saw – Avengers: Age of Ultron (it’s Marvel/Disney though so it’s okay). On Friday, Nat and I went to the cinema – as we often do – to see the newest Avengers movie and both of us really enjoyed it!
As with all my reviews, no spoilers. However that always makes it difficult to tell you very much. What I can tell you is that it’s long!!! It’s not a complaint, but definitely a warning. Nat and I both went to the toilet before it began but only half way through, needed it again (TMI??) We did take a drink in with us (which we probably shouldn’t havbe) but yeah… warning!
In all seriousness though, I personally loved this movie. I’m a great lover of superhero movies anyway and on Friday I actually wrote about the good and the not so good superhero movies, over at Twice the Mum (and later republished on my own blog). This new Avengers movie would definitely be around the top of my list – if not for any other reason than RDJ as Iron Man is epic (as always). I tried to avoid any trailers or reading too much about the plot, so it was really nice to go into the movie not knowing much about it. I loved the concept and idea for the movie, though at times I felt a little lost, but I also loved the new characters getting gradually pulled into the plot (and it made me realise I really need to watch X-Men: Days of Future Past!). It was nice to see Hawkeye take more of a role this time and of course its nice to see all the Avengers working as more of a cohesive team. I’ve never really liked Scarlett Johansson but actually in the Avengers movies I find her fairly tolerable. As I said before, I loved Iron Man and he has now become my clear favourite (I was torn between him and Thor before). I especially loved Iron Man’s Hulk version. The ending with Hulk was a bit frustrating but not altogether surprising, I’m glad to see there is an Avengers 3 on the cards though – even if rumour has it that RDJ will be sliding out of the franchise at that point!
For anyone who likes an action movie, especially Superhero, I’d say it’s a must-see. At the cinema it holds so much more effect too – with the load noises, big screen, dramatic effect etc. That said, I’ll be getting it on DVD to watch again when it comes out, especially as the kids will want to see it. I loved this Avengers movie though truth me told, I probably love the last one a little bit more.