5th movie of 2013, "The Impossible" ****

Before i give my thoughts on this movie, a special Happy Birthday to my Mom. "A month after Christmas, January 25th, is how you'll remember my birthday" she told me once. I think when i learned this little trick, she was already vacationing in Florida during her birthday. Either way, Happy Birthday Mom, sorry you didn't get to have good italian food, but now you have leftover New England fish food and also a buquet of edible arrangements that my sister Melissa so nicely thought of ordering. Now, i do know that if you're reading this today, it's already the 26th, but me, Mike and Justi called and talked to her yesterday. I'm just wishing her a Happy Birthday again in my own little way. Hey, i know you wanted to go to the real movies mom, perhaps if you can, you should check out "The Impossible". Onto my review.

Damn did i love this movie. I did not think, based on everything in the trailer, that this movie would affect me so much, but it totally did. "The Impossible" is a true story of a family that goes to a beach resort in a small asian country for Christmas, and the day after Christmas, a tsunami destroys everything. You got the husband and wife (Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts) and their three boys, ages 12, 8 and 5 i think. Ewan is in the pool with the two youngest boys when the tsunami hits, and the oldest boy and the mother is out of the pool when the giant wave comes by to destroy everything. This seperates the family, and we are left with the story of the mother, Naomi Watts, who is so great, she fully deserves the Oscar she was nominated for in this role, and the older son Lucas.

I feel that this movie got robbed during the Oscar nominations. This movie is filled with amazing special effects that are not just crappy CGI. It's the most subtle thing in the world and highly believable. I have no clue if it's all small models, or maybe they created a 5-star resort hotel and did a man made tsunami to destroy. All i know is that when that wave hits, i was on the most terrifying roller coaster ever, complete with all the dirty muck that really did occur. Just jump to the 40 second mark of the trailer to see what i mean:



So might say that the trailer above gives the whole movie away, but because it's based on a true story, i think we can figure out what will happen in the end anyway. "The Impossible" is not about the end, it's about the journey. The mother-son relationship, the thousands of lives lost, everything destroyed, the help of others who are struggling alongside you. This movie is so emotional and beautiful, my eyes were constantly set on waterworks.

Typically, i see movies alone. I was talking to my sister Christa last week, and i told her what movies i wanted to see. She didn't care to watch "Les Mis" but was cool with seeing this movie. So, that was how me, Christa, and my niece Justi all went out to Fitchburg to Cinema World to see "The Impossible". By the way, in case my dad is reading this, or most likely, my mom is reading this and can tell my dad, the lady that works the ticket booth and the guy who used to be the manager both say hi and our very jealous you guys now winter in Florida.

It was a semi-packed theater, but we got our seats, and there was no distractions in terms of loud popcorn eating, people whipping out their cellphones to create that flashlight effect, or old people coughing really loudly. My new personal annoying pet peeve is the slowly opening of a piece of hard candy that just bounces sound everywhere in the theater. That crinkle crinkle of cellaphane is so goddamn annoying.

I don't want to give any surprises away in this movie, but i will warn you there is so extreme scenes to watch. They don't bullshit that tsunami. You see really graphic images that had me and everyone else in the theater squirming a bit. It's a neccessary evil to portray what this family went through. It also had the most intense and disturbing scene that kinda involves throwing up. Yet still, it's a PG-13 movie that made me wish i could hug my mom when it was all over. Obviously my mom is nothing like Naomi Watts, and goddamn, she better win some Oscar gold in a couple of months.

In other news, it's really been cold. I'm still hurt about how my Pats lost in the AFC Championship game. That's really why there is a bye week. So people can take enough time to get over the lost and then EVERYONE will be able to watch the Super Bowl as the amazing big game that it is. I don't know much, but i think the Ravens will win, but i'll be rooting for the 49ers to pull it off.

More quick thoughts on whats new:
--Still delaying the watching of "Les Miserables" because everyone keeps saying it's just not that good.
--Bought myself some new boots for the winter that happen to be waterproff.
--I really hate the cat that is living with us because it meows way too damn loud and often.
--Tonight Paul invited me to his place for a UFC viewing, and i'm pretty damn sure i'm going.
--In less than two weeks, i'll be in Atlantic City for the first time ever. I'm excited to go to someplace new and gamble, and have a great time with my brothers. This will also be the first time i've ever did a road trip longer than the occassional drives up to Maine for a summer resort stay.
--It's period close week at work. Have to work tomorrow, need to call now in case they need me for today. I hope they don't. After this week, Pepsi goes crazy slow until Memorial Day. I actually enjoy the slow times of the year, i can go to the movies more often.

Brian's Big Thought of the Day:

I got bored and checked to see when i first starting doing my Big Thought segment. It happened in August of 2005. I'm thinking of doing an entry that is just a cut and paste of my best Big Thoughts ever, and also see if i ever repeated myself.