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Friday Filter-Film “Changeling”

I know I am a bit behind in seeing this movie that came out in 2008. Thanks to Netflix, I can get with the program though.

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This is a film about a mother’s love. Angelina Jolie plays a single mother in the 1930s who comes home one day to find her child missing. She reports it to the LAPD and does a crack job at investigating. They find a boy who matches the description loosely, mostly just meeting “lost boy,” and says that he is her lost son. She insists that he is not, and that her son is still missing and to keep the investigation active. LAPD doesn’t want a scene or bad press, and ensures that the boy just underwent “dramatic” changes while he was lost and sent him home with her. The mother doesn’t ever believe this is her son, and continues to try to get the LAPD to see her truth. They end up sending her to a mental ward just to shut her up.

I won’t give any other parts away. You will have to watch to see whether she ever reunites with her son or not, and for what other surprises are thrown in.

I think why I waited so long to watch this is because I am not particularly fond of Angelina. I don’t really have a reason because she is a decent actress, she just doesn’t strike my fancy. It comes fairly close to my hatred of Nicholas Cage.

I will admit though, that I really enjoyed this movie. It was gripping and emotionally intense. It was a mystery story that kept adding layers as you go through the plot line. You have themes of a parent’s love, women’s issues, corruptness, and more.

The acting was really great. I felt the emotions they were portraying. A review I read said, “rarely is the truth pretty.” That is so perfect to describe this film. It’s not a pretty film. It is cold and dank mostly. But I still was in awe when it was over. It gave me chills.

What I was most impressed with was the way they filmed the scenes. Being set in 1928-1935, they depicted a pretty drabby time in our history. And you could see that in every way they shot the frames. There were no rosy tints or bright sunny colors. It was all blue and industrial. It really set the mood for other themes to come out more fully.

I love when pieces of a film come together. That is what is so great about the movies. Everything from the costumes, music, to the hue of the frames can affect our mood and how we react to the story. These can affect us just as much, if not more at times than what is being said by the actors themselves. So the contributors and masterminds behind this particular movie did a great job making sure all the layers intertwine for a power punch to the viewer.

Have you watched any good films lately?

Friday Filters offer a review that are my own opinions. I was not contacted by anyone associated with these works or compensated for my review. My review has not been influenced by anything other than my love for entertainment and art.

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Being Still

This week Tom has been out at the range with overnight training, so the dogs and I have had full reign of the house.

I have been taking advantage of the time to myself and making myself be still.

I don’t do still very well.

But a month long episode of nausea will make a person not want to move.

Because of my health concerns over the last month, my doctor has restricted me to no activity over walking or yoga for a few weeks. (A doctor restriction sounds a lot more serious than we believe it to be. I just need to slow down a bit to keep it that way. No worries friends!)

So I have to be still.

This is so hard for me, but it has been really good for me at the same time.

I have taken the time to breathe more, to sleep more, to not worry about connecting online as much.

It’s just me and the dogs.

While I like being busy and having things to do, it is so important for us to take time to be still. You can reconnect with yourself and listen to what your body needs.

So I am still here. I am just taking some time to be still.

Now if I can just get the dogs to be still, we would all be great in the Whitener household. Just kidding, I enjoy watching their energy.

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Talks with Tom #19

My husband often says some hilarious things that revolve around food and eating.

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Here are just two example of his statements.

Tom-I know what love is. I have eaten Cheezits.

(If you haven’t eaten White Cheddar Cheezits, this statement may not ring as true to you as it does for us. They are the bomb.com.)

On a separate occasion…

Tom-I have fluffy abs. They are like regular abs but better because they have a layer of meat on them. Regular abs are like a muffin. Mine are like a cupcake with icing.

(I am not exactly sure where he went from talking about a layer of meat to baked goods…)

These are the real conversations we have on a daily basis.

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Dear Grace and Crosby

Oh my lovely doggy babies,

It has been awhile since you have been on the blog, but you two have been ruling my Instagram. I know you both get tired of me snapping photos of you, but you are just too darn cute.

You both have been so good lately. Dad and I are so proud that we can leave you out of the kennels now while we are out and about. Let’s be honest though, you haven’t been perfect angels have you? Grace, you like to dig through Mom’s lady trash and strewn it about the upper floor. Let’s talk about how gross this is girl. And Crosby, you like to get on the counters and pull down dishes that may or may not have remnants of the last meal we ate. That’s how we have lost a shaker cup and a few Tupperware items. But we have more days that you don’t do any of this than the days we do, so there is a plus. And Mom and Dad have gotten smarter about where we put things and what doors need to be shut when we leave. It is usually our lazy fault when we forget that you usually decide to get into stuff.

You sure do seem happy when we get home though!

I am sorry we haven’t gone on many walks lately. There have been so many things prohibiting it. The freezing temps, my constant sickness, and Dad’s training, haven’t really been nice to us schedule wise have they? Hopefully here soon, I will start feeling better, and we can take advantage of the warmer temps. Unfortunately, it looks like it will be just us for awhile since Dad has a lot of training to do. We will try to get out as a family every weekend, especially to take advantage of the weather. We know you both love your time outside!

I know that you all miss Dad when he is gone. You all whimper and pounce up at any loud truck that goes through the cul-de-sac hoping it is Dad coming home. And the way you all love on him when he is here shows me how much you cherish your time with him. Crosby, you do a great job ensuring that he is clean too with your constant licking.

Things are going to continue to change around here, and I know you two will be troopers and make the best of it. Grace, you have been through a deployment before. I know it was hard on you. I watched you lay on Dad’s clothes so many times hoping he would come home soon. Crosby, you have no idea what is in store for you, but you a pretty laid back, so I am sure you will do fine. On the plus side, you have each other now, and I know that helps during the day for you two to comfort each other. Although this time around will be different for all of us for so many reasons. So with the deployment and all the other changes that are going to occur in the upcoming months, I know you two will be just fine! And I know you will be a huge comfort and rock for Mom!

Speaking of you two together. You all just crack us up. You really have embraced each other as companions. You groom each other, you play together, and you take turns eating. I am usually rolling with laughter when you two groom each other. It is a cross between the sweetest and grossest thing I have witnessed. I often feel that I should leave you two along for your privacy. As far as sharing toys, Crosby, you tend to steal them from Grace quite often. However, I think Grace likes the chase and lets you do it sometimes because she never seems to put up a fight when you come in to grab the toy. When you cuddle together on the couch or chair upstairs it just melts my heart. I just love that you two are getting along so well.

We have figured out a pretty good sleeping routine. You both sleep in the middle of us. Grace you take the spot up by our heads and are sure to snuggle in real close to one of us. Crosby, you sprawl out at the foot of the bed like you own the place or something.

Crosby, you don’t seem to like the neighborhood kids. You bark at them every day when they are coming home from school. I know you are being a good guard dog, but I think we can handle a few 3rd graders.

Grace, you still sometimes will get jealous when Dad and I are giving Crosby some love and not you. We love you just a much, and please know that we haven’t forgotten about you!

You both make our days, and there is so much love for the two of you! We couldn’t be happier that you came home to us.

Love,

Mom

PS. We are not always nice parents, and sometimes we like to tease you. Our latest tricks are to enitce the whimpers out of you two. Crosby, we have learned that you do not like Maroon 5 since you bark every time Dad sings their songs. Your whimper gets me every time because it sounds like you are going hoarse and trying to force out a grunt or cough. And Grace you just don’t like being teased and want us to pay all of our attention to you, so you cry if you don’t get your way. Plus I think that it annoys you that Dad can imitate your whimper to a tee.

See example.

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Friday Filter: Band of Brothers

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Right before Tom deployed, I found this TV series on sale and scooped it up. I knew that I was going to love it so I figured I would buy it before I even saw it.

Then Tom deployed, and I decided that it was in my best interest to wait until he returned home to watch it.

I knew if I watched a series about the brutal truths of war plus the added fact that the unit is 101st Airborne, (Tom’s division), it was just a recipe for disaster for my emotional state.

We finally got around to completing the series this week. It is short with only 10 episodes, but each one was jam-packed with goodness.

WWII was my favorite period to study. I took every elective in this time period during college. I was enthralled by the facts and details that they threw into this mini-series.

It was a pretty great cast, and the acting was pretty stellar which made you feel like you were watching a documentary almost more than a show. They did a great job with the scenery and the details of the costumes. They really picked up on the subtleties of the time.

I appreciated the realness of the series. They showed how leadership can affect the troops, how things are communicated, the morale, the conditions, and even the deaths and wounded. This was not an easy war for our men, and many were there for years.

If you imagine the things that are seen in that amount of time….mind boggling.

My favorite part was that they had the real soldiers the story was based on do interviews and tell snippets of their tale. So you saw men in their 60-80s talk about the harsh realities of war before each episode began. I mentioned this the other day to Tom too while we were in the pharmacy and seeing all the older gentlemen there picking up their meds. Some of these men have done unimaginable things, and yet they lead perfectly normal lives now and are sweet old men. (At least the look like sweet old men.) During these segments you saw these soldiers years later get choked up and laugh about memories. You saw real emotion in their eyes and their lip quivers.

I also really liked how they showed the relationships and how the war affected them over time. You watched them go from training days to when they heard the war was officially over. So you see growth and all kinds of transitions occur over that time.

I love when a story impacts you and shows you that rawness of humans. And this series did just that.

I will say it is not the easiest show to watch, but it is a great show to watch. I loved it for what it was. The history told in these 10 episodes was awesome, and better than any textbook. Although, I will say it was better for me maybe because of the context that I have from all those textbooks. However, I am sure you would enjoy it just the same.

Also it won a lot of awards, so other people think it is good too. Just saying.

We love watching war documentaries/shows in our house. Obviously.

Do you have any to recommend to us? Have you seen Band of Brothers? What did you think?Have you ever bought a movie/series without watching it?

Friday Filters offer a review that are my own opinions. I was not contacted by anyone associated with these works or compensated for my review. My review has not been influenced by anything other than my love for entertainment and art.