A Few Favourite Films!

Hello!

I am a complete movie-whore... That sounds weird. I mean in the sense that I have watched soooooo many movies and I watch them over and over and over again. And probably again.

Obviously, there are a lot of movies in the world but here are a few of my absolute favourites (at the moment - this list will have changed in a few weeks!)

1.

The Avengers

Marvel. Superheroes. Thor. That is literally everything I need to say about this movie. Seriously.

2.

Brave

It's set in Scotland and, with my Scottish heritage, there is nothing I don't love about this movie. Especially the triplets; they're so frickin' cute!

3.

21

There's something about this movie that completely boggles my brain but it intrigues me so much that I love it.

4.

John Tucker Must Die

Until I went back to university, I had never even heard of this movie, then some of my flatmates and I watched it and I was like "Oh. My. God. How have I never watched this before?!" It's so good!

5.

The Little Mermaid

Everyone needs Disney movies in their life and this is one of my all-time favourites (along with Brave)! Not going to lie though, Ursula used to terrify me when I was little... Not anymore though... Not a lot anyway.

6.

The Holiday

A lot of people will say that this is the first sign of me getting into the Christmas spirit but this is actually the one movie that is set at Christmas time and I don't class as a 'Christmas movie'. Although I do probably watch it more around this time of year - it's something about all the snow; trust me, England rarely looks like that in the winter!

So those are the movies I've wanted to watch a lot lately, like a lot a lot. I only put The Avengers down but it's actually anything Marvel that I'm obsessed with at the moment, or in general - there is never a bad time to watch a Marvel movie! It's the one thing my brother and I can watch together and not argue about!

Katie x

21 Of The Best Feel-Good Movies!

Hello!

This week's been a bit of a down-in-the-doldrums week (if you don't have a clue what I'm going on about read HERE) BUT I have watched some of my favourite movies to help cheer me up and they are the perfect medicine. So, I thought I'd share them with you, just in case you're feeling a bit under the weather, or you just like having movie days!

Now, I have watched a lot of movies this past week... like, I've spent nearly every day, all day, watching movie after movie, after movie. After movie. There are a few of these that I haven't got round to watching yet, but they're on the list for the rest of my week!

1.

Mary Poppins

Without doubt, this is my favourite movie from my childhood! This is my go-to movie whenever I need a bit of a pick-me-up, I know every word to every song in this movie because... I'm not at all obsessed... Nooo. Okay, I am, but what is not to love about Julie Andrews?!

2.

The Railway Children

I used to always wish I could be a one of the Railway Children and for that, I will never stop loving this film. I don't mean the modern version one either, I mean the one with Jenny Agutter in it; she's my fave.

3.

Bride Wars

A seriously hilarious movie. Two best friends, a.k.a. two brides. Accidentally sharing the same wedding day. It's just... just... Go watch it! It's awesome!

4.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Another childhood favourite. Another one I can tell you every lyric to!

5.

Chalet Girl

I looooooove skiing, and this one is kind of to do with that. More snowboarding than skiing but meh, same thing! It's an English actor thing too which I find awesome because it's rare to find a good movie with English actors.

6.

We're The Millers

I already mentioned this particular movie in the last Mid Week Pick-Me-Up because it makes me laugh. A lot.

7.

Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory

First of all, don't confuse this with Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. I'm talking about the original one, not the one with Johnny Depp in it (sorry Johnny, I love you but this one's so much better). Second of all, I love the bubble scene of this one - the first time I saw it, I went round and told everyone they were "naughty boys"... Yep, I was a right goody-two-shoes.

8.

The Mighty Ducks

Ice hockey. I love ice hockey. Enough said.

9.

Bridget Jones's Diary

Just a super British movie and I know exactly how you feel Bridget, I feel ya!

10.

The Holiday

Literally one of the only movies that is set at Christmas time and I don't class it as a Chirstmas movie - go figure! Again, a bit of British-ness in it - I just love the English-y bits because most movies you can watch and see that they're really Americanised but this one has the best of both worlds!

11.

The Princess Diaries

I always thought that one day a long lost family member would come and find me to tell me I'm a secret princess, thanks to this movie... I'm still waiting...

12.

Rumour Has It

Jennifer Aniston is an amazing actress and I loved her when she played Rachel in Friends so I often watch her movies. Just going to ask the typically expected question of me here - how does she not age?! I'm sure she's immortal or something because I swear she's never changed! Anyway, the moral of this movie is, don't do what your mother did. Or your grandmother... 

13.

What To Expect When You're Expecting

Hilariously funny, I'd watch the trailer first if you are expecting to make sure it doesn't terrify you but I don't think it will because it just poses all of the most common scenarios that could happen to you when you're expecting a baby but it does it in a belly-laughing way!

14.

The Smurfs

Little insider knowledge for you here, I always get called Smurphs because my last name is Murphy, so I like Smurfs tons! I'm not quite a legitimate Smurf though - I'm not blue - although that's a great idea if I ever need a fancy dress outfit!

15.

Definitely, Maybe

Ryan Reynolds. Mmm, mmm, mmmmmm! Ahem, sorry for that little outburst! So, yeah, this movie has Ryan Reynolds in it and he reminisces about three of his past girlfriends, changing their names, as his daughter tries to figure out which is her mother and which is his true love. Awwww.

16.

The Proposal

This isn't another one with Ryan Reynolds in it... Noooo... Okay, I like Ryan Reynolds. Just as an actor though, of course... Another hilariously funny movie as he has to fake a relationship with his ever so slightly pushy, bossy boss.

17.

Shrek

Another little fact for you, my mama's name is Fiona and when the movie first came out, the younger children in the family started calling her Princess Fiona... As long as they were meaning the human version she said she didn't mind! Anyway, Donkey is just the cutest, annoying little thing ever!

18.

Tangled

My best friend loves Disney movie in ways that most little un's even don't, so she made me watch this and it's another one that just makes you feel all light-hearted and want to sing along to! Yeah, I do know a lot of the words...

19.

This Means War

One of the most amusing movies I've watched in a long time and it has Chris Pine and Tom Hardy in it. It also has the stunning Reese Witherspoon in it. I want two secret agents to fight over me - I can dream!

20.

Flushed Away

When this was originally released I lurvved it. I haven't watched this in several years but I did watch the trailer on YouTube and it's officially made it onto my list for watching over the next few days.

21.

Knocked Up

And another hilarious comedy to end with! A bit explicit, though, so be careful who you watch it around if you get my gist! I think you can guess what it's about from the title, so I won't bother trying to explain it without making it sound any less explicit than it is!

There are a lot more movies there than I planned on telling you about but I just kept thinking of another, after another, after another! I hope there weren't too many for you to take in there! Enjoy!

Katie x

The Book that Turned Me into an Emotional Wreck

Hello!

Almost exactly a year ago, I read The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It was possibly one of the most emotive books I have ever read and it took me quite a while to recover from it! However, I wrote a review as soon as I'd read it, mainly to try and keep it fresh in my mind as I had to make notes on it for my uni course. I've been looking through my laptop files and found it and I thought I should share it with you, because it really is a truly amazing book.

(Obviously, if I wrote this review at this time last year, it was done before I went to university. Sooooo, just pretend we're in 2013, rather than 2014 and I haven't started my first year of uni yet!)

I am an English Literature and Creative Writing student and, therefore, I have to read a lot and write a lot - both of which thrill me. However, before I go to university and my lectures start, there are a couple of books I need to have read and made notes on. One of which is The Kite Runner.

I have just finished it and, I can honestly say, I have never cried so much at one book in my entire life. In fact I think there are only a handful of times that I have cried at anything this much in my entire life.

It is one of the most harrowing and heart-breaking books I have ever read, without doubt, and I read tons. I've read things like Private Peaceful, which left me speechless and in tears. I even read The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, for my A-Levels last year, and if anyone has ever read this, they will know what I mean when I say it is the most depressing book in the world. The Kite Runner is an extremely close second to both of these, if it's not worse.

I think the difference is that, in The Road, there were only two main characters and that was it, everything that happened was simultaneous, they were living in an apocalyptic world for goodness sake, of course it wasn't going to be all rainbows and sunshine! But, in The Kite Runner it starts off making you think it's going to be exactly rainbows and sunshine and then things happen that make you feel like your chest is being torn open and someone is slowly squeezing the blood vessels around your heart, one by one, so you die in a horrifically slow, and painful, way... Wow, that was dramatic - maybe that should be in The Road. 

Just as you think something good is happening in The Kite Runner you learn different; it changes at a blink of the eye. I feel like all I've done since I hit the seventy-ish page mark is cry, and cry, and cry. And cry some more. And then a bit more. And, yeah, you get the gist. I don't want to give anything away but the point of view is that of a little boy and it's like you're growing up with him and his family. However, you go from liking him, to despising him with so much hatred in your body that you don't know what to do with yourself, to thinking he's okay, to disliking him again, to feeling sorry for him and forgiving him, to being happy for him, to thinking he's an idiot and an asshole (pardon, my language - this book has done bad things to my mental state) to then liking, maybe even loving him again, to blaming him and I'm currently in between blaming him and possibly, maybe, liking him a little bit again. Maybe edging more towards the liking bit actually, after reading the last words:

""For you, a thousand times over," I heard myself say."

Anyone who has already read this book will understand just how cry-worthy this sentence is, of both happiness and sadness - I can't decide which emotion wins over.

The fact that this book has made me feel so many different feelings in the space of a day and a bit just shows how well written the book is. I may not like the book enough to read it again but that's because it's turning me into an emotional wreck, not because it's not expertly written. In fact, to invoke this kind of reaction in a person it has to be well written and has to make you love and hate parts of it strongly enough that it takes over your emotions. Or at least that's what I think. I know that I will never forget this book as long as I live, it has had that much of an effect on me.

For any literature student, you will realise how weird this is because it's kind of a law in novels that you should feel the most proximity with the character whom's point of view it is from, but that isn't necessarily the case in this book. All of my feelings, closeness, everything, lie with the character Hassan in this book. Completely and utterly. I would rather watch every other person in the world (of the book, obviously) suffer than watch anything happen to him. 

The things that happen in this book are scarily close to things that happen in real life and are happening all around us; I think that's part of the reason it provokes such a big reaction from me. The things that some of the characters suffer in this book happen to people in everyday life in certain countries. 

I'n sorry if this was a boring, rambly review about something you really don't give a damn about but I needed to get that out of my system. Also, if you do like to read, then you should read The Kite Runner, you just need to either have a heart of stone or a super-size box of tissues. Oh, and don't read it in public places - I made that mistake and got some funny looks at the tears streaming down my face. My remedy is to have a nice book, that I know is very happy, waiting on the sidelines for the minute I finish this one! Or if you're more of a movie person, I suggest something like Mary Poppins or Cinderella ready to watch afterwards.

It really is one of the best books I've ever read though. It just hurts you a little bit inside; it gives you a completely different perspective on the world though and you can't help but love certain characters.

Katie x

The Best Jobs

Hello!

I officially have a job! Hallelujah! I was definitely in desperate need of one; the small remainder of my student finance (all £30 of it) was quickly dwindling away!

Just like nearly every person in the world, there were a lot of different vocations - if that's what you can call them - that I wanted to take up when I was younger! So, here are five of them:

1.

A writer!

The first thing I wanted to do was the thing I still want to do now, so I guess I never really changed my mind. The only difference is, I no longer think every story has to start with "Once upon a time"... Not going to lie though, still holding out for this one!

2.

An astronaut...

What can I say, I liked to dream big... Just for the record though, I still think I could be an awesome astronaut! So if all else fails, you'll find me on the moon!

3.

A Disney princess <3

I'm sure every little girl had this dream! I used to have all of the different outfits of each princess and I'd dress up and pretend to be them. I still have the same problem now as I had then though - I can't walk in heels to save my life. Not the best start to a Disney princess life *sad face*.

4.

The classic hairdresser.

Not going to lie, I really did like that dream, until I realised that not every hairdresser got to do the hair of princesses. Needless to say, that revelation shattered my dream.

5.

A sandwich filler...

Don't ask me where this one came from because I have no idea. I just... I can't even... I was a weird child. (I do make one mean sandwich though - maybe this is my true-calling!)

If this has made me realise anything, it's that my dreams just got smaller and smaller as I got older. I went from wanting to be an astronaut to a sandwich filler - I don't even know what to say. I'm lost for words. Bye.

Katie x