Tag: A to Z Challenge

A to Z Challenge “P” The Princess Bride “Storybook Love” #AtoZChallenge #ThePrincessBride

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Movies, Music16 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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The Princess Bride is a classic fairy tale adventure which shares a story within a story. It begins with a sick grandson (Fred Savage) and his grandfather (Peter Falk) who reads him the story The Princess Bride by William Goldman.

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As the story is told, we’re introduced to Wesley (Cary Elwes), a young farm boy, and Buttercup (Robin Wright), his one true love. There isn’t anything Wesley wouldn’t do for Buttercup.

Buttercup: “Farm boy, polish my horse’s saddle. I want to see my face shining in it by morning.”

Westley: “As you wish.”

Buttercup: “Farm boy, fill these with water – please.”

Westley: “As you wish.”

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Continue reading “A to Z Challenge “P” The Princess Bride “Storybook Love” #AtoZChallenge #ThePrincessBride” →

A to Z Challenge: “O” Out of the Furnace “Release Me” #OutOfTheFurnace #PearlJam #ReleaseMe #AtoZChallenge

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music9 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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My movie choice for “O” is Out of the Furnace starring Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, Woody Harrelson, Zoe Saldana, Forest Whitaker, Willem Dafoe, and Sam Shepherd.

The film is about two brothers who are both struggling to re-enter society due to different circumstances. Russell (Bale) has just been released from jail after serving time for driving while intoxicated which caused a horrific accident resulting in deaths. He returns home to his girlfriend, who has moved on with another man; his brother , who struggles  with demons from multiple tours he endured in Iraq; a dead-end job as a mill worker; and  a deceased father. Rodney (Affleck), Russell’s brother, is bare-fist boxing for money to help pay for his gambling debts to John (Dafoe), a bar owner/bookie he’s involved with. Russell tries to steer him in the right direction.

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Russell: “Come work at the mill. There’s nothing wrong with working for a living.”

Rodney: “Working for a living? I gave my life for this country and what’s it done for me? Huh? What’s it done for me?!!” Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: “O” Out of the Furnace “Release Me” #OutOfTheFurnace #PearlJam #ReleaseMe #AtoZChallenge” →

A to Z Challenge “N” Nacho Libre “Religious Man” & “Encarnación” #AtoZChallenge #NachoLibre #JackBlack

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music, Reads20 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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“N” was more difficult because there were a handful of movies with great music to share besides Nacho Libre including Napoleon Dynamite and Night at the Roxbury to name a few. All are funny movies, but nothing tops Nacho Libre in my opinion. Any movie with Jack Black is at the top of the heap for me.

The film begins with Brother Ignacio (Jack Black), a monk who grew up in a Mexican orphanage and now (as an adult) cooks for the children living there. The monastery doesn’t have much money and Ignacio is forced to use the same old ingredients repeatedly,  which doesn’t please the children. As a child, Ignacio always dreamed of being a wrestler, but he’s motivated even more now to make money for the children. He secretly becomes the luchador Nacho and pairs up with a man named Steven Esquelito who hates orphans, but joins in for the money anyways.

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Continue reading “A to Z Challenge “N” Nacho Libre “Religious Man” & “Encarnación” #AtoZChallenge #NachoLibre #JackBlack” →

A to Z Challenge: “M” Mystic Pizza “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” & “These Are The Times To Remember” #AtoZChallenge #MysticPizza

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music30 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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My film choice for “M” is Mystic Pizza starring Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts, and Lili Taylor. This movie is a coming-of-age story following three young girls from the seaside town of Mystic, Connecticut. Two of the girls are sisters and one is their best friend, but all three are just out of high school and work together at Mystic Pizza: a pizzeria  famous for a sauce with secret ingredients.

Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: “M” Mystic Pizza “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” & “These Are The Times To Remember” #AtoZChallenge #MysticPizza” →

A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “K” Karate Kid II “Glory of Love” & Cobra Kai “Don’t Look Back” #AtoZChallenge #CobraKai #KarateKid

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music, Series26 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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Anyone a Karate Kid fan? I grew up watching the movies and have been a fan since the very beginning. Believe it or not, there isn’t one Karate Kid film that I haven’t enjoyed, even the newer remakes with Hilary Swank and Jaden Smith. Nothing beats the originals though.

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In Karate Kid II, Mr. Miyagi (Noriyuki “Pat” Morita) returns to Okinawa because his father is dying. He agrees to take Daniel (Ralph Macchio) with him not knowing that trouble awaits upon their arrival with Miyagi’s former best friend Sato and his cronies. Mr. Miyagi is reunited with a past love, Yukie, and Daniel falls in love all over again with Yukie’s niece, Kumiko. Everyone struggles to make peace with Sato while Daniel runs into trouble with Sato’s nephew.

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This second film is beautiful with interesting additional characters and an all new plot. It was nice to learn more about Mr. Miyagi’s past and why he left Okinawa in the first place. I’ll never stop loving Mr. Miyagi with all of his life lessons.

Daniel-san, never put passion before principle. Even if win, you lose.

Overall, this is an excellent follow up to the first film. Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “K” Karate Kid II “Glory of Love” & Cobra Kai “Don’t Look Back” #AtoZChallenge #CobraKai #KarateKid” →

A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “J” John Wick “Killing Strangers” #AtoZChallenge #JohnWick #Movies #Music

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music, Thrillers22 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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Update:

I couldn’t post yesterday because my youngest son broke his arm after dancing on a slide. Kids will be kids! Of course it had to be his dominant arm, so it’s going to be an interesting couple of months. I’m hoping to keep up with the April challenge and some book reviews, but a hiatus may be on the horizon. I apologize if things get a little quiet, but I’ll try to keep up with everyone’s posts too.

My film pick for “J” had to be John Wick. Here’s a quick summary:

John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is an assassin who’s been in retirement since he married his wife Helen. After losing Helen to a terminal illness, John receives a puppy which was arranged by Helen before her death. This new puppy is helping John as he deeply mourns his wife and tries to move on. An encounter with a group of Russian mobsters leaves John beaten to a pulp after his vintage Mustang is stolen and his new puppy is killed. John becomes enraged, coming out of retirement, and setting out to take revenge on everyone responsible.

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John is a man of focus, commitment, sheer will, something you know very little about.

Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “J” John Wick “Killing Strangers” #AtoZChallenge #JohnWick #Movies #Music” →

A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “I” Innerspace 1987 “Cupid” #AtoZChallenge #Innerspace #SamCooke #Movies

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music, Science Fiction27 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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Innerspace is a favorite 80s movie and a great one for music.

In this Sci-Fi comedy, Lt. Tuck Pendleton (Dennis Quaid) volunteers to participate in a science project where he’ll be miniaturized. He’s put inside a pod and shrunken down to microscopic size before being sucked back into a syringe. The plan is to be injected into a rabbit, but things quickly go awry when the science project is hijacked. In an attempt to save him from being kidnapped while in the syringe, the head scientist injects Tuck into a human named Jack (Martin Short). Not long after, Tuck discovers that he’s actually inside a human man after he implants a camera into the optic nerve. Not only can Tuck see what Jack sees, but they can talk back and forth to each other as well. Together, these two have to find a way to get Tuck back out before Jack is taken out by the bad guys or Tuck runs out of resources.

Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “I” Innerspace 1987 “Cupid” #AtoZChallenge #Innerspace #SamCooke #Movies” →

A to Z challenge: Music From Favorite Films “H” Hell or High Water “Outlaw State of Mind” #AtoZChallenge #HellorHighWater

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Crime Thriller, Movies, Music, Western11 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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My choice for “H” was a little difficult–I had to narrow it down from about seven movies and songs, but finally chose Hell or High Water. This ended up being one of the best movies from 2016.

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Quick summary: Toby Howard (Chris Pine) and his brother Tanner (Ben Foster), who has recently been released out of prison, need to raise enough money to pay off the reverse mortgage on their mother’s ranch. She has just recently passed away, and now that oil was discovered on the ranch, they need to secure the future of Toby’s sons and ex wife by raising $43,000 dollars to pay it off. After they make two robberies, Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton (Jeff Bridges) and his partner deputy (Gil Birmingham) try to stop them from committing their final crime.

Continue reading “A to Z challenge: Music From Favorite Films “H” Hell or High Water “Outlaw State of Mind” #AtoZChallenge #HellorHighWater” →

A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “G” Gladiator “Now We Are Free”

On By MischenkoIn A-Z Challenge, Movies, Music17 Comments

I’ve joined in for the A to Z challenge this year which runs from April 1st to the 30th. My choice of theme is Music from Favorite Films. I’ll be sharing the songs in order of film title and will write a little about my thoughts on the movie as well.

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Gladiator is a movie I watched multiple times in the theater during the month of its showing in 2000. I wanted to take everyone I knew to see this movie. It instantly became a favorite, and nineteen years later remains in my top ten favorite movies of all time.

Continue reading “A to Z Challenge: Music from Favorite Films “G” Gladiator “Now We Are Free”” →