Monday Mid-Morning Movie Demographic

Ever been to a matinee at 10:30 on a Monday morning?

I hadn't either until yesterday.

I thought it would be a good idea to take a few days off after the race so I could decompress. I've been obsessed with this thing for more than two months. I haven't been able to think about anything else and I just really needed a few days to get my mind right.

Since my son is employed at the AMC 18 I am able to see movies free of charge Monday thru Thursday (without him) and on the weekends (with him). I didn't really think that I would talk advantage of it because when would I ever go see a movie during the week? As it turns out, the opportunity presented itself yesterday.

I went to see Bridesmaids at 10:30 on Monday morning and let me just say this: alot of the jokes you see in the previews did not make the film. It was still hilarious and gross and crude and touching and sentimental and I actually shed a tear at the end.

I love to people watch and it causes me to wonder about people's backstories. I'm fascinated by people. I had quite a bit to contemplate while watching the Monday mid-morning movie goers. Like, what is the deal with the "beautiful" couple to my right. They both appeared to spend a fair amount of time at the gym. He was older than her but not in a dirty old man kind of way. She was wearing a dress that would have been more suitable for a night club with cleavage and heels to match. They couldn't keep their hands off each other. If I had to guess, I'd say they were dating for less than a year.

There was another couple to my left who were pretty young and started out with a seat or two between them. I couldn't even tell that they were together. By the time the movie ended they were sitting next to each other.

Then in front of me was a row of stay-at-home moms. They talked non-stop through the coming attractions and I thought for sure I would have to kick someone's seat if they didn't shut up when the movie started. They seemed to be so excited to be out of the house and interacting with adults. They were already planning which movie they would all see next and who they would get to babysit all the kids.

Then there was me. Sitting alone in a movie theater contemplating my next move. What am I going to do next? I like having a goal that I'm working toward. Now that the race is complete and I'm feeling all types of good, what is next? I'm slightly fearful that if I don't keep occupied I'm going to slip back into a rut. I suppose I should have thought about the next thing while I was still working on the first thing.

Anywho, I got up and ran for the first time since the race. First time I ran without pressure. Felt pretty good.

Eat Pray Love

This is for Sasha, the lurker

My most memorable quotes from the movie:

“I’m the luckiest girl in the world”
“You don’t need a man, Liz. You need a champion.”
“I don’t have to love you to prove that I love myself!”
“It’s okay to miss him. Send him love and light every time you think about him and then drop it.”

First of all, I am not a movie reviewer but I think I am qualified to talk about a movie that I’ve seen. Which basically, is all a review is, right? Right.

Secondly, if you haven’t read the book you may not like the movie or the character that Julia Roberts portrays. I read the book, loved the book and really enjoyed the movie. The book included more details than the movie did and I feel like the movie depended more on Julia and the locations to carry the movie without really delving into the reasons behind the trip.

By the way, Julia did not wreck the movie for me but I was terribly distracted by her upper lip.

I’m sure many women have said this, but I am/was Liz Gilbert. Unsettled and unsure. Needing to go deeper. Needing to … something.

Liz was not just some self-indulgent, spoiled woman who wanted to find herself. She was an unhappy woman who finally made the conscious decision to stop being unhappy. Can anybody relate to that? Have you ever been in an unhappy, unsatisfying situation but were terrified to make a change because change is scary? At least the present situation is familiar. We are so conditioned to not “rock the boat” that we just don’t do anything. Than before you know it, years have passed and you are still miserable. The misery is palpable and you feel like a zombie, the walking dead and if you don’t do something you feel that you will actually … die.

When you get to that point, you don’t think about the fact that other people are going to be hurt because all you want to do is stop your own hurting.

Liz made a decision.

And it all starts with a decision.

I haven’t really talked about the movie as much as I defend Liz’s right to take care of herself.

The movie. The dialogue was believable. The scenery was gorgeous. I love the scenes in Italy (eat) and Bali (love). Not so much in India (pray). I find it interesting that the “pray” portion took place in a not-so-pretty place. Prayer comes from within and has nothing to do with scenery.

The men in the movie: Javier Bardem (yummy),

James Franco, Richard Jenkins and Billy Crudup were just wonderful. They all played a very integral part in Liz’s journey. The flaky husband (Crudup). The rebound guy (Franco). The shoulder to cry on (Jenkins) and finally the real love (Bardem).

The film moved me. Funny in places. Sad in others. I shed a few tears … but I’m a big baby so that was expected. It’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea but I absolutely enjoyed it.

Watchmen

I don't read graphic novels or comic books. But I can't seem to get enough of this stuff on the big screen. If you haven't seen the Watchmen you should. Warning: It's almost three hours long and it's R-rated, so leave the kids at home.

Juno

I saw Juno over the holidays and I really enjoyed it. I thought it was funny and smart. But it left me feeling a little conflicted. The story is about a 16-year old girl who has sex with a boy that is not really her boyfriend and she gets pregnant. I went to see a movie about teenaged pregnancy with my teenaged daughter. Since it's a movie everybody lived happily ever after, of course we know in the real world of teenaged pregnancy there is no happily ever after.

Or is there?

On the way home from the movie my daughter asked me how old grandma was when she had me. "Twenty-six". Then she asked how old I was when I had her. "Thirty".

What the heck is she asking me all these questions for?

There was a scene in the movie where Juno's father and step-mother are having a conversation about Juno's situation and they said that they would prefer her to be expelled from school or on hard drugs as opposed to being pregnant at 16. I have mixed feelings. Actually, I don't have mixed feelings. I don't want my daughter getting pregnant if she's not equipped to handle the situation. This is why the movie left me feeling conflicted ... because I loved this movie but they portrayed Juno as someone who was equipped to handle the situation. I'm not buying it. Being a teenager is hard enough without throwing a baby into the mix. Juno decided that the best thing to do for all concerned would be to put the baby up for adoption. That I agree with. But how many times have you seen a young Black girl make that choice? Why do we feel this obligation to birth and raise a child that we are not ready to birth and raise? I'm just saying, I've come across many young girls who found themselves in that situation and it was as if they weren't aware of their options. They assumed their fate was sealed. Why are kids so determined to do things the hard way? I've told both my teenagers that there is an easy way to do things and there is a hard way. Be smart, stay focused and choose the easy way.

I'm rambling now and I know it so I'm going to cut this short. It was a good movie and if you haven't seen it you should see it.


With love,
chele