This weekend’s Pizza Toppings at Corner Pizza:
For me, spinach salad.
Movie:
Sully
Dinner was good, and the film was great. I had my doubts about whether to see it (since I’m mildly afraid of flying), but I’m glad I did. Tom Hanks was terrific, and the story unfolded very well. If you see it, I think you’ll feel good about pilots, New Yorkers, and just about being an American. And don’t miss the credits at the very end – they almost make the movie!
My verdict: A+
This weekend’s Pizza Toppings at Corner Pizza:
Movie:
45 Years
The pizza was vegetarian, and it was good. The movie was terrible.
When we walked out of the theater, I said to my husband, “I’d give it a D.” Another couple who was nearby heard me, and the woman said she’d give it an F.
I hate to be negative about movies or books – after all, someone wrote it, produced it, and believed in it. As an author, I don’t want to criticize someone else’s work. Maybe I’m just not sophisticated enough for this film, but in my opinion, it was not very good.
Two reviews I read (afterward) say it better than I can:
“Is it extraordinarily well acted? Yes, but it’s the emotional equivalent of slamming your hand in a door for 90 minutes. Glacierly paced.”
and
“Hugely disappointing, dreadfully slow moving and boring. Honestly one of the worst movies I’ve seen in years.”
Perhaps the plot (or lack of it) bothered me even more because:
In short, this was a sad movie, with few redeeming qualities.
As for the pizza, we agreed ahead of time on poblano peppers and corn. I wanted something red (but not meat), and he suggested sliced tomatoes. “They’re two squishy,” I said, so we picked portobellos. It was yummy, and I enjoyed the evening with my husband.
This weekend’s Pizza Toppings at Corner Pizza:
Movie:
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
This isn’t the movie we planned to see on Friday night, but I’ll get to that in a minute. The pizza toppings were my choices this time, and I don’t know why the photo is so dark/shady. I tried to lighten it, but I liked it best in the original. Maybe it turned out this way because it gets dark earlier now.
Speaking of early, all the movies we were interested in seeing were showing at 7:00, so my husband arrived home from work a tad bit early so that we could make it. With it being the Friday before Thanksgiving, traffic was lighter than normal, so we actually had plenty of time. (When did people start traveling for the holiday on the Friday before, though?)
We had planned to see Bridge of Spies with Tom Hanks (a friend recommended it, and we knew The Hunger Games would be out longer). But, in anticipation of seeing this movie, we watched Part 1 at home the other night. When we were in line for the tickets, with the ending of that film in my head, I asked my husband if he wanted to pass on Spies and see this instead.
He did.
It was good, and well done. Unless you don’t like that kind of thing, you’ll probably enjoy it, and I’m not a science fiction reader or fan myself. But by the time it was over, I found myself feeling thankful that the trilogy is over. I’ve read the first book only, and do plan to read the other two. I don’t know when, though, because I have a ton of books (and a wide variety of them) on my TBR (to be read) pile on my nightstand (and on goodreads.com)!
And I still want to see Bridge of Spies! Happy Thanksgiving!
This weekend’s Pizza Toppings at Corner Pizza:
Movie:
Mr. Holmes
The Pizza: I know…corn?
It’s the second time we’ve had it on a pizza this year, and maybe because my husband grew up eating Jersey corn in the summer (always after the meal, not during), he selected it. I picked the ground beef because I didn’t want to go vegetarian, and we chose the green olives together.
Kind of like a summer meal with a martini.
Someone I met at a reception for my books (and book signing) asked me earlier this week if the pizzas at Corner Pizza are as good as those at Fellini’s. I haven’t been to Fellini’s in a few years (though I met the founder, Clay Harper, through a family member who knows him). So…I don’t know the answer. But I’m sure that Fellini’s pizzas are quite good.
So was ours, this weekend.
The Movie:
Lots of people loved this film, and my husband wanted to see it, so we did. I found it a little long, sad, but a moving story nonetheless. Ian McKellan was great, and if you’re a Sherlock Holmes fan, you’d enjoy this movie. (My husband is one, but I’m not.)
Maybe, like corn on a pizza, you just have to have a taste for it.
This weekend’s Pizza Toppings at Corner Pizza:
Movie:
I’ll See You In My Dreams
My husband and I are as fond of Arugula as anyone else is – but neither of us had ever had it on a pizza before. Interestingly (to me, since I don’t know how to cook – and my husband seemed bemused at my surprise, since he does cook), the chefs added it after the pizza had been baked. So it kind of felt like a (substantial) garnish.
I guess if they hadn’t done that, it wouldn’t have worked out too well. But I was all prepared for something warm and wilty, like spinach.
In any case, it was the vegetarian pizza we had agreed on last week. The arugula made it feel kind of salad-y, too, and it was colorful, light and tasty. Afterward, we headed to the cinema, and here’s my review of I’ll See You In My Dreams:
I’ll start with what I liked (in order):
What I didn’t like:
Basically, the story.
In short, it was sad – sadder than I thought it would be. I felt for Carol (Blythe Danner) and wanted her to find happiness. What she decided on at the end just didn’t quite do it for me.
I’ve read that some people found the movie touching, even witty, and I didn’t think it was a bad movie. But I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had hoped I would.
Maybe it’s like Arugula, in that you kind of have to be in the mood for it. And you might just love it.
JULIA MCDERMOTT 