Pic Spam: James Franco

This guy is in so many movies right now. James Franco is a fine looking man AND a good actor. I really want to see "127 Hours" and "Your Highness" seems like a lot of fun. Here are some nice pictures (really, this guy had too many)and the third picture is my favorite.

50 Books Challenge - # 2: Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane

Title: Gone Baby Gone
Author: Dennis Lehane
Story: Boston private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro are hired to find four-year-old Amanda McCready, abducted from her home without leaving a trace. Despite extensive news coverage and dogged investigation, the police inquiry has uncovered nothing. The case is rife with oddities: Amanda's indifferent mother, a couple with a history of paedophilia and a shadowy police unit. As the Indian summer fades, Amanda McCready stays gone - vanished so completely that she seems never to have existed. When a second child disappears, Kenzie and Gennaro face a local media more interested in sensationalizing the abductions than helping to solve them, a local police force seething with lethal secrets, and a faceless power determined to obstruct their efforts. Caught in a deadly tangle of lies, and determined to unravel a riddle that is anything but child's play, they soon discover that those who go looking for the missing may not come back alive.
Start: january 4th 2011
End: january 12th 2011
Comment: It's a very good story but some parts weren't as interesting. I really liked both Patrick and Angie and the ending was very surprising. It got me thinking, what would I do in a situation like that. It took me a long time to finish it, because I couldn't keep my attention at all times. I'm glad that I finished it eventually, because it's an OK book.
Rating: 3/ 5

Lovely Ladies

Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson, two of my favorite actresses. They star together in "The Other Boleyn Girl", which is great. And they are a great on screen duo. I made a wallpaper with those two lovely ladies. I have it on my desktop and you can use it for your own computer if you want. Here it is:

2011 Movie Preview

At the start of every year, movie websites take a look at all the movies coming out that year. Their are a lot of movies coming out and seriously it looks kinda great. I made a list and devided it in three categories.

Movies I definitely want to see

- "Unknown" (Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones and Frank Langella);
- "Hall Pass" (Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Jenna Fischer and Christina Applegate");
- The Adjusment Bureau" (Matt Damon and Emily Blunt);
- "Paul" (Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig and the voice of Seth Rogen);
- "Tree of Life" (Brad Pitt and Sean Penn);
- "Larry Crown" (Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Brian Cranston and Nia Vardalos);
- "Captain America: The First Avenger" (Chris Evans and Hugo Weaving);
- "Cowboys & Aliens" (Harrison Ford, Daniel Craig, Olivia Wilde, Paul Dano and Sam Rockwell);
- "The Muppets" (Jason Segal, Amy Adams and the Muppets);
- "New Years Eve" (Robert De Niro, Jake Gyllenhaal and Ashton Kutcher");
- "Sherlock Holmes 2" (Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Stephen Fry and hopefully Rachel McAdams)


Movies I might give a shot

- "The Dilemma" (Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Winona Ryder, Jennifer Connolly and Channing Tatum);
- "The Green Hornet" (Seth Rogen, Cameron Diaz, Jay Chou and Christoph Waltz);
- "Just Go With It" (Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, Brooklyn Decker and Nicole Kidman);
- "Your Highness" (James Franco, Danny McBride, Natalie Portman and Zooey Deschanel);
- "Scream 4" (Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, Emma Roberts and Hayden Panettiere);
- "Bridesmaid" (Kristen Wiig, Rose Byrne and Maya Rudolph);
- "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" (Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush and Ian McShane);
- "Green Lantern" (Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Tim Robbins and Angela Bassett);
- "Contagion" (Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Winslet)

Movies I will not see

- "The Mechanic (Jason Statham, Ben Foster and Donald Sutherland);
- "The Roommate" (Leighton Meester and Minka Kelly);
- "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never" (Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus and Jaden Smith);
- "The Lincoln Lawyer" (Matthew McConaughey, Ryan Phillippe and Marisa Tomei);
- "Fast Five" (Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson and Jordana Brewster);
- "Friends with Benefits" (Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake)

Best of... Christian Bale

He is not only one of the finest men in Hollywood, he's also a magnificent actor. He really doesn't have any limits, he does everything to prepare for his role. I think he's one of the best of his generation and he hasn't really gotten any credit for that. Here are his best films.

"Empire of the Sun"
He was only just a kid, but even back then he proved his acting abilities. It's a great movie and Bale is endeering in this picture.

"Little Women"
This movie is not so much about him, but I always loved it. Four young girls living with their mother while their dad is fighting in the Civil War. Beautiful story.

"American Psycho"
I think his best role so far. He is really a mad man and unstoppable. And I really thought he was a slick dude in this one, but he does it perfectly well. I love the scene with the chainsaw, classic!

"Equilibrium"
I always loved this film. I know a lot of people think it's a bit like "The Matrix", but it's actually a lot cooler (don't shoot me please). And Bale's performance is again great. I love the gun fighting scene at the end and the scene where he hears the music.

"The Machinist"
This is one of the examples why this guy doesn't have any limits. How much weight did he lose here? He looks very creepy, but it's a very good movie. And wonderfull acting by Christian Bale. Seriously, why wasn't this guy nominated for an Academy Award yet?

"Batman Begins"
I like this one better than "The Dark Knight", because its atmosphere is a lot darker, the way it was ment to be. It's not one of Bale's best roles though.

"Rescue Dawn"
Wow! That was my first reaction after seeing this one for the first time. Bale was awesome, very strong performance. I really loved this film.

"The Prestige"
Fantastic movie, I think my favorite on this list. Great story, with a big WTF-moment in the end. And really, I never sympathized Jackman's character in this film, I was more drawn to Bale. But then again, he does that to me.

"The Dark Knight"
Off course I put this one up on the list. Again, not his best role, but so much fun to watch. I think we all know that it was Heath Ledger who stole the show in this one.

"Terminator Salvation"
He's a good John Connor. It's definitely not the best in the series, but I really enjoyed watching it.

I haven't seen "3:10 to Yuma", "I'm Not There", "Public Enemies" and "The Fighter" yet. I actually really want to see the last one. And I'm hoping he will get an Oscar nomination for that. It's a posibility, because he got nominated for a Golden Globe. Maybe he finally gets the credit he deserves, for he is a fantastic and brilliant actor.

50 Books Challenge 2011 - # 1: The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Title: The Lovely Bones
Author: Alice Sebold
Story: Susie Salmon is a teenage girl who, after being raped and murdered, watches from Heaven as her family and friends struggle to move on with their lives while she comes to terms with her own death.
Start: january 1th 2011
End: january 3rd 2011
Comments: Beautiful story and very well written. Sebold really did a good job telling the story from Susie's point of view. Sometimes I had to put the book down, because it was a little too much. For instance the part where Susie gets murdered. Heavy stuff. I didn't like what happened to Mr. Harvey at the end. Too abrupt, but that's the only critical note. Overall it was a fantastic book.
Rating: 4,5/ 5

Movie Tip #44 - Shutter Island

Director: Martin Scorsese

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, Patricia Clarkson, Emily Mortimer, Max von Sydow, Jackie Earle Haley

Description: 1954. U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane and is presumed to be hiding on the remote Shutter Island.

Review: We all know that all the films Scorcese made with DiCaprio kinda turn into gold. So does this one. "Shutter Island" is one of those thrillers that literally messes with your head. It seems like a standard story, a crazy escapee that they have to track down. But nothing is as it seems. You don't know who to trust and what actually is going on on that creepy island. DiCaprio delivers a nice, strong performance and so does Ben Kingsley. His character surprised me the most, because he turned out to be someone completely different than I thought he would be. Emily Mortimer, Michelle Williams and Mark Ruffalo also know how to draw the attention of the audience. I think this is one of the best ensemble casts of the year. All in all this is a very intriguing psychological thriller, that actually gets you to think and I realize that there aren't a lot of movies like this anymore. A truly unique and well written story (a novel by Dennis Lehane) directed by a true genius and performed by a strong cast. Two thumbs up!