Saw a few movies this weekend. Here’s the scoop:

Night at the Museum 2: Battle for the Smithsonian

I like it a lot. There were some fantastically funny parts, and it is a GREAT family movie. Maybe I liked it more because my 7 year-old was sitting next to me laughing his heart out, or maybe it was just funny. I don’t know–but I LIKED it. Hank Azaria stole the show as the Pharaoh-bad-guy-Kamunrah or whatever. He is hilarious!! I highly recommend it…good for all ages.

Terminator: Salvation

I’m trying to figure this one out all the way…but this movie kinda stunk. It has all the special effects you need (plus some more) and a great franchise behind it, but what do we need, people? What MUST be good for a movie to be a winner?? PLOT, PLOT, PLOT!! If the script stinks, the movie stinks. No amount of special effects or great actors can pull you out of a poorly written script.
Bummer, cause I liked the first 3 movies A LOT.

Then Mike came over and we watched TAKEN on DVD.

A complete surprise.  This movie came out of NOWHERE and earned somewhere around $145 million at the box office…and has received stellar reviews.
And you know what?
IT’S AWESOME.

It’s PG-13, so it doesn’t have the gore of an R rating…and all the ingredients are there for a fantastic “Bourne Identity”-type thriller/action movie.  And Liam Neeson brought all the KickButtJackBauerness that was necessary for this secret-agent-dad-on-a-manhunt role.  In fact, if Keifer is arrested (again) and thrown into the slammer, Liam should replace him at CTU…hmmmm…

I loved it. 

Coming soon?
UP

ATTENTION BLOG PEEPS:

Just one more week until the best album in the universe is released! (ooo–iTunes link here)

Yes, it’s true that me and a few of my friends are singing in the choir on here…in the background…way…in the background. AND it’s true that I orchestrated half of the songs on here–but that’s not why I think it’s great. If I had never been involved with it at all, it would still be my NEW FAVORITE ALBUM.

Travis has a unique and wonderful way of making art with music.  His artistic choices are genuinely passionate and heartfelt.  I could tell when I heard his early albums “Unashamed Love” and “Alive Forever” way back in the early 2000′s (HAHAHA the early 2000′s…I know that just sounds ridiculous!) and honestly, the album “Alive Forever” completely changed the face of worship in our church.  God used that music to spark something in the hearts of our worshippers, and I’ve reaped the benefits with my choir and worship teams in the years since.  If you’ve heard any of his music, you probably know exactly what I mean.  If you haven’t, you are missing out.

In these days when the pressure is ON from all sides to have a product that is marketable, an instant hit, and produced with less time and money than is reasonable–it is refreshing to hear an album that is full of artistry, passion, and heartfelt worship. 

I can’t wait.

(P.S. – the Live DVD comes out in October…)

A few weeks back on American Idol, Simon Cowell told Kris something along the lines of, “Now is not the time for humility…we’re looking for a star”.  (I’m paraphrasing, of course).

Hm. Guess you were wrong, Mr. Cowell…cause…um…Kris won, if you didn’t notice.

It gave me hope that America isn’t always taken with the person that is most sure of themselves, and in a culture where confidence and bravado often leads to success–whether you’re in the entertainment industry or looking for a promotion at Burger King–this time the HUMBLE one wins. Bravo.

Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with being confident in who you are or what you do.  The issue arises when you become too sure of yourself, and grows exponentially when you feel the need to make fun of others in order to make yourself feel better.  The people I respect the most are the ones that are gifted and talented at what they do, have a quiet confidence and a teachable spirit, and don’t tear others down. This attitude shows tremendous character, imho, and I like to be around these people…

Congrats, Kris on your win. And this time it just so happens that America wins too.

It’s May, and you know what that means–it’s time for all of our favorite TV shows to wrap it up for the year, and for those not-so-bad-but-below-par summer TV shows to begin! (The only summer show that might be an exception to this is Wipeout…which is awesome….as aforementioned).

Here are the season finales of the 2008-2009 year…going in order from my most favorite to least favorite.

1) BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
This aired back in March, but it was still the best season finale of the season finale season. An amazing end to the series, and fulfilling to all of us patient and loyal fans. When it comes to the art of TV and filmmaking, this was the Mona Lisa…err something.

2) LOST
What can I say? It was brilliant storytelling. From the first scene of the finale to the last, it kept me on the edge of my couch. It is unequaled in every way.

3) 30 ROCK
This show is super funny consistently in a way that has you laughing at a joke for so long that you’re still laughing while they’re telling another one…it really clips along…and there is no end to the amount of HUGE guest stars. This year we had Oprah, Jennifer Aniston, a re-occuring character played by Salma Hayek, and many, many more. But this episode catapults to the top of the comedy-finale-food-chain due to the old-90s style finale song, “Kidney Now” (which is available for download on iTunes, btw) AND due to hilarious lines like, “Clay Aiken, your cousin Kenneth Parcell already told me you’d do it…” HAHAHAHA. Kenneth Parcell’s cousin is Clay Aiken…HILARIOUS.

4) SNL
Ingredients for a hilarious SNL finale are as follows:
Host: Will Farrell
Musical Guest: Green Day
Sketches: Celebrity Jeopardy, Lawrence Welk Show, etc…
Guest Stars: (a billion of them) Tom Hanks, Norm MacDonald, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph…and SO many more…
It was the best show of the season, NO doubt…just fantastic entertainment and laughss. What makes SNL a never-ending phenom? It was all there on this night.
PS–did anyone else notice that it looked like Darrell Hammond’s last show? NO!!!! And word out is also that Don Pardo (the announcer) is retiring as well. Nothing is confirmed about either of these things, but I’ll be sad if either happens.

5) THE OFFICE
Loved seeing all the branches together for the company picnic, not to mention the reuniting of Holly and Michael. PLUS, meeting Dwight’s new friend, Ralph was a DELIGHT! “Ralph is my best friend. We met in a shoe store. I heard him asking for a shoe that could increase his speed, and not leave any tracks.” HAHAHAHAHA. Of course…
Oh, and there was a pretty cool moment at the end, too.

6) BIG BANG THEORY
Nothing much to say, except that I liked it more than the ones listed below…

7) HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER
Eh. It was OK. If Neil Patrick Harris weren’t on the show, it probably wouldn’t be worth watching. That dude has amazing comedic timing.

8) SURVIVOR TUCANSAMTEENS
HAHA. I will never know that actual name of that place, no matter how many times I hear or see it. No matter. It’s over. And let me say this about Survivor–it’s the best–but the only part of the finale that you really need to see are the challenges and the final tribal council. I always fast forward through the walks where they remember all their former tribe mates. I just don’t have time for that nonsense. But it is always great to have a winner! Yipee…the “achiever” part of me is quite satisfied to have it over and to move on to next season. I feel so accomplished now that someone finally won…

9) 24
Sorry, Jack Bauer. But it didn’t feel like it was all the way done…like…I needed another ten minutes to see you come out of your coma or something. Blarg. The Tony thing was a nice surprise, and added great depth to his character, but the ending just left me going, “What?! That’s it??”

10) AMERICAN IDOL
What’s that? It hasn’t aired yet? OH WAIT. IT DOESN’T MATTER.
Danny Gokey is out, therefore, it’s gonna be a LAME finale. End of story. (Period, Paragraph).

You know what else is happening this summer? (now that Star Trek is over with…as awesome as it was…)

WIPEOUT!

This show is killer-cool, especially to watch with your kiddos–and I am pretty sure TWO different ladies I know are going to be on this season.

Check it out on Wednesday nights, starting May 27! My Tivo will be set as soon as possible…

Also, my sister is gettin’ married this weekend! Congrats sis…

It’s true that I’m a little bit biased when it comes to Star Trek.

And yes, it’s true that I’m completely predisposed to love this movie. Everyone is waiting for this review not because you all really want to know what I think about the film, but because you want to be able to poke at me and further prove your theory that I always like the movies I go see…well, you’re wrong…remember, I only TALK about the ones I like…

But here’s the deal.

This movie is freaking AMAZING. I don’t care if you have ever seen an episode of Star Trek, or not. YOU WILL LOVE THIS FILM. It’s perfect storytelling; it has majestic big-budget effects and on-screen wonderment. It has a great plot with actors that are taking on characters that have previously only been played by ONE other cast…and these new actors absolutely ROCK IT.

If you’ve been a fan of Star Trek since the beginning (like my parents), or you’re a Star Trek newbie (like Jack Cottrell), you’re gonna love it. You’re gonna absolutely love it.

Money back guarantee.

P.S. Karl Urban steals the show with his incredible McCoy.  DeForest Kelly is somewhere smiling…

Today Noah goes to a PSYCH class at a college nearby as an example of a real-live kid with autism! Wahoo…

However, our case director asked us if we could bring some video of when he was younger, because the class probably wouldn’t believe he actually has it. Hm. Encouraging…
So I went back into some early footage of Noah…and I was FLOORED at how he behaved…I mean…he has come SO far in the past 3-4 years. It was astonishing to watch the old video tapes. I was emotional.
And of course I am incredibly thankful for all that have helped us along the way…and thankful for how well Noah has done.
He’s probably going to a regular 1st grade classroom with little to no assistance.

His progress is just phenomenal.

I compiled a video to show his actions and behaviors at different points in his life, up to as recent as a year ago.
This video will probably mean the most to those of you that see and know Noah now…

Summer has begun…at least in movie-land.

I’m going to see Star Trek on Thursday night AND I CAN’T WAIT!
But for those of you that say I only give positive movie reviews, I’m posting about a few movies I’ve seen lately but haven’t reviewed because…well…you know…they’re nothin’ to write home about.

I LOVE YOU MAN
If you’re familiar with any of the comedies that have been coming out in the past few years in this style (40 Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall) this movie is similar except without the nudity. The content is raunchy and full of sex stuff, and not good to fill your mind with. That said, Paul Rudd’s performance as an extremely awkward guy that is too nice to have “guy friends” is pure hilariousness. There are some funny catch phrases and situations that arise in the film–and Paul clearly shows his prowess as a leading man.

GRAN TORINO/CHANGELING
I hadn’t seen any movies directed by Clint Eastwood until this year (oh-except Million-Dollar Baby). Both movies were clearly well made–and Clint has a style about his directing that is unique, FOR SURE. The movies were somewhat interesting, but also slow. That said, no plot point seemed unwarranted or poorly set up–it was ALL good. I’m telling you…WELL CRAFTED. But just because something is well crafted doesn’t mean it’s good or not boring. I’m not sure how I feel about either of these movies, really. I enjoyed Gran Torino’s redemption story, and Changeling had a nice twist at the end, I suppose…but they are not Daniel’s typical feel-good movie. There is meat to these films…meat that some might find delicious, but must be an acquired taste.
Side note: Clint composes the music to both of these films, which is sparse and minimalistic. He’s not a great composer. I didn’t like it. Sorry, Clint. But hey, I guess when you’ve been in the industry for 50 years as and have the respectability that he has, you can pretty much do whatever you want.

17 AGAIN
Best part of this movie was definitely the best friend of the main character, Ned. Ned is an uber-geek, complete with a house full of toys, video games, cardboard cut-outs of all kinds of Star Wars characters complete with those expensive Lightsabers…total awesomeness and the ultimate Nerd Nirvana…I loved him and the relationship with The Office’s Jan…
Zac Efron did a nice job, and it was fun to see Matthew Perry again…but without Ned, the movie would have been a total dud.
There was a good message to it about family, and would be nice to see on DVD…totally rentable.

X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE
Loved it. But not as much as I’m going to love Star Trek. I JUST KNOW IT.
Hugh Jackman rocked in this movie. Special effects were dyn-o-mite! And it has everything a summer tentpole movie needs…good plot, good actors, big budget effects…it is a definite must see in the theatres!

Looking forward to:

STAR TREK (May 8)
Terminator Salvation (May 22)
Night at the Museum 2 (May 22)
Up (May 29)
Land of the Lost (June 5)
The Proposal (June 19)
Transformers 2 (June 24)
Harry Potter (July 17)
GI Joe (Aug 7)

This past semester Christy has been in classes on Thursday night from 2pm until about 10pm. This means “Daddy Night” at the Semsen household, which translates into “Spaghetti and Movie Night with Popcorn”. We have gone on a Daniel-sentimental-movies-from-when-I-was-a-kid marathon (including gems like “Escape to Witch Mountain” and “The Brave Little Toaster”), and this week we landed on Back to the Future, part I.

Now, it is difficult to really remember movies you haven’t seen in twenty years, except for that feeling of I liked it or I disliked it. It has been quite the experience to go back and watch these old movies. I have a completely new perspective on the films, and I’ve also REALLY noticed the way movie making has changed since I was Nathaniel’s age.

For instance, we had to shut off “The Brave Little Toaster” after about 25 minutes due to the fact that it was FREAKING ME OUT because it was so scary! I mean–I remember being slightly frightened as a child–but I was frightened NOW while watching this thing. It had a level of scary that you would never see on screen in any Disney/Pixar film or Dreamworks picture. There was an evil clown in the toaster’s dream. AN EVIL  CLOWN FROM HELL. I looked at Nathaniel when that came on and he was covering his eyes (a good move) and Noah turned to me and said, “Dad. I don’t like this movie. Can I go play DS?”

“Yes, Noah. Let’s ALL go play DS…this movie is freaky…” (click)

This week Christy got home early from school and we didn’t get to Back to the Future until today…and after watching this film again, I can safely say that it stands the test of time. The only thing that took me by surprise was the amount of swearing that it contained. It’s rated PG (in 1985 standards) and there were many, many times the characters used foul language…ugh.

Dear Robert Zemeckis:
The Back to the Future trilogy ROCKS. It is by far one of my favorite movies/trilogies of all time, right up there with the other great studio franchises-Star Wars, Trek, and LOTR. You could have made a fantastical family film IF THERE WASN’T SO MUCH DARN CUSSING in the movie!! Really? Really? Did you have to leave in all of those expletives? Huh…because I just went to see the summer movie-tentpole “X-Men: Origins” and it had less cuss words than I could count on one hand. And it’s rated PG-13…hmmm…weird. You know what other movie was surprisingly clean a couple years back? Live Free or Die Hard! Yes, the previous 3 Die Hard movies were laced with F-bombs, but the PG-13 Theatrical Release of LFoDH (not the unrated DVD version) was squeaky clean. Even the f-bomb catchphrase was muffled by a gunshot at the end, leaving us with only, “Yippee-Kay-Yay, Motha (BOOOOOM)”…yeah…soooo even though there are no f-bombs in BTTF, there is still an unnecessary amount of cussing.
And you don’t need it.

So take your time machine, go back to 1985 and fix THAT so I can enjoy this movie with my almost 8 year-old without cringing every time I hear a foul word…

Sincerely,
dsemsen from xanga land

Now on to Back to the Future II…