Sunday, May 6, 2012
A superhero all-star movie featuring Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk makes a smash in theaters this weekend.
The summer movie season starts early, and this could be the biggest movie of the year. It is one of the most entertaining comic book blockbusters ever made -- Marvel's "The Avengers." Robert Downey Jr. is Iron Man; Captain America is Chris Evans; Thor is Chris Hemsworth, and The Hulk is Mark Ruffalo. The team is assembled thanks to Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury character. They need to stop a diabolical bad guy who, you guessed it, wants to rule the world. But they spend nearly as much time battling each other as they do battling evil. What's great about this film is the sense of humor it has without disrespecting the characters or the fans who have been waiting forever for this superhero mash-up. The main characters get plenty of screen …
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Teen heartthrob Zac Efron breaks out in his first real adult role as a war veteran who has come home looking for love in a romantic melodrama that is worth the price of admission.
Zac Efron plays Logan, an Afghanistan war veteran on his third tour, who comes across a picture of a woman who inspires him to search for her, stateside, in "The Lucky One." His search lands him at a kennel in Louisiana owned by Beth (Taylor Schilling) and her grandmother, Ellie (Blythe Danner). He gets a job there and, over a period of time, settles in, still not telling anyone his real reason for being there. As you might imagine, sparks start to fly. "The Lucky One" is a Nicholas Sparks movie. He's good at this kind of thing, writing books that turned into movies like "Message in a Bottle," "Nights in Rodanthe" and "The Notebook." This film, in my opinion, is one of his better stories. And, with an attractive young cast, it should be …
Monday, April 16, 2012
A member of American Legion Post 160 pays tribute to a man he only know through his garden.
I never had the privilege of either meeting or knowing the man. I never knew his name until this Saturday morning while returning from my usual attendance at the monthly country breakfast, American Legion Smyrna Post 160. However, as with countless others within Cobb County, I well knew and have admired his garden for many years. Anyone over the last twenty years who has ever traveled or traversed Church Road to and from South Cobb Drive, Smyrna, Georgia, knows of this man’s garden. One could not help but notice and gaze upon this sizable plot of land surrounded by thick woods upon which stood a grand tribute to gardening the old fashion way. There stately stood planted rows of every type vegetable to include tomatoes, stalks of corn, …
Sunday, April 15, 2012
The Three Stooges get a new look with some fresh new faces, and no one is laughing.
From the people who brought you "There's Something About Mary" and "Dumb & Dumber" comes the much anticipated movie about three morons in "The Three Stooges." It's Larry, Moe, and Curly 2.0. This time around Larry is played by Sean Hayes, Moe is Chris Diamantopoulos, and Curly is Will Sasso. The film is three episodes drawn into one 90-minute movie. The Stooges do what they can to try to save the orphanage they grew up in. This movie has been talked about for more than 10 years now and, sad to say, it's pretty anticlimactic. I was never a real big fan of the original Stooges, and it's pretty safe to say that these three were doing impressions rather than a performance. The eye-poking and slapping is so repetitive it's almost sad. This film…
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Break out the pie, the American Pie, that is. Its been nearly a decade since we last heard from the crew that made amorous behavior toward pastries so popular. Now they are back for the reunion.
The kids are back, rediscovering their youth, now in their thirties in "American Reunion." This is the fourth installment of the "American Pie" franchise, featuring pastry lover Jim (Jason Biggs), nice guy Oz (Chris Klein), and party animal Stifler (Seann William Scott). Each character is dealing with some sort of midlife crisis and relationship problem that builds up to an actually funny comedic payoff in the end. The supporting cast of secondary characters helps this film bring humor to sexless marriages, rehashed high school flings and dead-end careers … or, as I like to say, comic gold. This may be the best film in the series since the original, which came out back in 1999. Serving as a reminder of lost youth, many of these characters …
Sunday, April 1, 2012
A familiar fairy tale gets a new look with a fresh new story line, great young actors and an evil Julia Roberts you'll love to hate.
It's more than just a remake of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Sure, the evil queen banishes her stepdaughter to the woods to avoid the attention of Prince Charming. Don't expect the same outcome in "Mirror Mirror." Julia Roberts is well-suited to play the evil queen. Lily Collins plays the role of Snow White, and Armie Hammer is, of course, the Prince. A great supporting cast around these three makes this a film for young and old to enjoy. Adopted by a group of rebellious but kind dwarfs, Snow White transforms into a brave young woman, determined to save her country from the Queen. With the support and commitment of new friends, Snow White reclaims her birthright and wins back her Prince…with a few twists. The movie is fun to watch. …
Sunday, March 25, 2012
A best-selling young-adult book becomes a movie and is bound to be a hit. It's a survival-of-the-fittest reality show that leaves you craving for more.
It's one of the most anticipated movies in some time, and we have the scoop right here. It has all the elements of a big hit -- teen romance, violence, and action. Mix in some rising young stars and you have "The Hunger Games." Jennifer Lawrence isn't a household name yet, but she will be. Known to this point for her critically acclaimed role in the film "Winter's Bone," Lawrence plays Katniss, one of two people from her district who must play a nationally televised game, in which there can be just one winner -- the last one living. Equipped with knives, swords, bows, arrows, and other weapons, the massacre begins. This futurist tale takes place in the country of Panem, after an apocalyptic war. The country is split into 12 districts, with…
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Celebrate St. Paddy's Day throughout Metro Atlanta with Irish whiskey, BBQ, Beer & Bourbon, Naked Wines and more.
March is the month for that favorite party, the time we celebrate Saint Paddy who chased the snakes out of Ireland and converted the heathen. But March 2012 is a month of much more. There are craft beers to seriously contemplate, Pisco Sours to sip in honor of Peru, the High Museum of Art’s magnificent wine tastings and auction, orgasmically grown wines to try. It all starts this weekend with a fine fest celebrating beer, barbecue, babes,and bourbon although not necessarily in that order. March 3, from noon-6 p.m. on that Saturday, Daisy Duke and The Boots Girls will be dancing while you taste it, sip it and pork it, all to live music at Atlantic Station at the Atlanta Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival. Get your favorite designated driver. They…
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Real Navy SEALs lock and load for the big screen, but will it have enough firepower at the box office?
Active-duty Navy SEALs, whose names have been changed to protect their identities, take on some bad guys in one of the most realistic action war movies ever in "Act of Valor." The film aims to put the audience "in the boots" of real Navy SEALs. Even many of the bullets used in the film were "live fire." Without a real plot, though, the film relies on a first-person narration style to explain what's going on for most of the 90-minute movie. Drug dealers, bang. Terrorists, bang. People shooting at SEALs, bang. Anyone who gets in their way is "DOA." All you really need to know is that the SEALs are the good guys and they are out to get the bad guys, plain and simple. I suspect that most people who go see this film aren't really worried about …
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Special Ash Wednesday services are being held to commemorate the upcoming forty days of Lent.
Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent in Western Christianity, is quickly approaching. For those who might not know, Lent is when observants commit to a form of fasting or choose to temporarily give up other forms of luxury. In particular, Ash Wednesday derives its name from the practice of placing ashes on the foreheads of those who so choose as a sign of mourning and repentance to God. The ashes used are typically gathered after the palms from the previous year's Palm Sunday are burned. Lent is observed by Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Anglicans and some Baptists. It is increasingly being observed by other denominations as well. According to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus spent forty days fasting in …
G. Singleton
10:59 pm on Thursday, April 19, 2012
I always called him "Paw-Paw". I stopped many years ago to talk and get some garden advise and he always was the nicest man- never met a stranger. I wondered if the garden was just for his family, but he said "Come on down to the house and I'll show you my tomatoes". I met his family and now have become friends with them too. He did sell me some tomatoes but he gave me beans, potatoes, corn and … more ›