Lone Survivor

This weekend I went with my little brother and mom and to see Lone Survivor……….

I cannot even begin to describe the feelings this movie brings out in me. Sadness, anger, desperation, fear.

This movie is based on a true story. Something that always makes a movie more powerful in my opinion. To watch and see what these people went through is a powerful thing.

I thought the movie was well done. I am no movie critic or a critic of a true story. But as a movie goer it was well done. I was on my the edge of my seat the entire time. This movie had me stressed out I couldn’t even enjoy my popcorn. This movie is not for the faint of heart. There was plenty of language and A LOT of violence. So it’s definitely not meant for the younger audiences’.

I also don’t think it’s for any veterans that have not come to terms with everything they have gone through and I say that with the HIGHEST respect possible. I say that because I have a cousin who is a veteran and I’m glad we didn’t invite him. This movie made me want to hug my cousin and never let him go. To protect what is left of him after he came home from war.

One thing I wont forget about seeing this movie is this little old man sitting behind me. I believe he was a veteran. And he came alone. Throughout the movie I listened to him breathe. He would cough and make noises like he was in pain. He would let out a loud sigh and he tore at my heart. What was this man reliving as he watched what was up on the screen?

When the movie finally came to a close and people started to walk out of the theater, I turned and I looked at the old man. He had his face buried in his hands.

I’m not very brave or else I would have hugged that old man. I look back now and I wish that I did. There was not a dry eye in that entire theater. And when we started to leave our seats not ONE word was spoken. I’m not exaggerating at all. People were wiping their tears away before they had to be out in the light. You heard people quietly sniffling. It was a touching moment for sure.

This was a wonderful movie that gives us an IDEA of what our troops are faced with. God Bless our Troops. God Bless them all cause only God knows how much they truly deserve it.

Frozen

So Ive been feeling that blogging itch and couldnt quite figure out what it was I wanted to blog about so I thought, “Hey why not start blogging about movies?”

The first movie I want to blog about is the newest Disney phenomena, Frozen!

If you havent seen it by all means please do! But just be warned this blog MAY contain a few spoilers. So the movie Frozen.

First thing is. Wow it is absolutely STUNNING. It is definitely one of the most prettiest movies. The amazing animation and the lovely snow scenes and the characters are just so lovable its hard not to wish you lived in the world of Disney.

Elsa and Anna. Two very different girls bound together by sisterhood. Being the best of friends young and growing apart. I loved that the movies main focus were the sisters. It wasnt about finding true love and it wasnt about the girls needing to be rescued by a hero. No it was about SISTER love. It was such a beautiful idea! Im really loving how strong the female characters have been these past few Disney releases. Rapunzel beat up people with her frying pan. Merida competed to win her own hand. And now there is Elsa and Anna.

This movie is all about a journey of self discovery and also facing our fears and and accepting who we are. Looking at our faults as a good thing instead of a negative thing. Its about self sacrifice and loving unconditionally. Im about to go see it for the second time with my mom. I honestly cant get enough of Frozen. Such a wonderful and uplifting tale. I encourage all who have an inner child or who actually have children to go and take your kids to see this! I guarantee you that you and your kids will walk out loving it.

Insurgent and Allegiant….wow

So like I said I will write a blog about both insurgent and Allegiant. But I will combine the two and shorten it up a bit.

Sooooo I dont even know where to begin. Insurgent basically follows Tris through one horrible thing after another. She has no sense of self preservation to the point of it being ridiculous and suicidal. Her brother betrays her and she loses more friends. And wellllll its just so in depth there is no way for me to relay the correct amount of info that you would need to understand completely. All in all it was a great book. Again I struggled with Tris and her lack of respect for her own life. But maybe that just says something more about me then her. I am definitely more selfish then she will ever be.

Allegiant raises a lot of eyebrows Im sure. It talks about certain things that have been at the center of debate for a long time. And even though Veronica Roth stated that she didnt want to get into politics with her books I think she does. Allegiant confronts the issue of “damaged genes” and the government trying to “correct” them. Stating that the reason people do evil things or lack certain emotions is because they are damaged. The government has authorized “experiments” which are cities that have no idea what exists on the other side of the fence. And the people who conduct these experiments just sit back and watch as cities tear themselves apart. Ok Im getting way to deep here. Its far more complicated then that. But you get the idea.

I know that this issue has been brought up in our time and it has made us stop and wonder. I wont get into my personal thought on it today. But it makes you stop and consider different ideas.

 I wont reveal the ending either. If you want to know then read the books (really easy reading here folks) or wait for the movies. But I will say this. I had a few tears in my eyes. It wasnt what I was hoping for and being the softy that I am when the characters hurt so do I. The series all in all was a good one. Made me want to learn how to fight and use a gun. Made me sad and cry. And it made me smile. It was nice to see a Strong young girl be the heroine. Even though her up and downs drove me nuts. Tris will forever have a place on my favorites list.

This is the time now that I grieve. Another story is over and an another adventure has come to a close. Its always like a friend goes away for a long time when I finish a book. Time to find a new one. Time to move on and start another adventure.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Its been a long time since I’ve read a book that completely sucks me in to the point where the only time I put it down is if I have to use the bathroom. I don’t even stop to eat. I just eat and read. This morning I kept reading while cooking. Yes I’m that dedicated. lol.

Anyway, so I randomly purchased the book Divergent. I’m sure most of you have heard that this book is going to be a “major motion picture”. When I see movies coming out and havent read the books yet. I usually try to read the books before I see the movie. Cause you know, the books are always better? By the way, I have yet to see a movie that trumps the book. I have however read horrible books and the movies were just as bad.

I’m getting off track. So I purchased Divergent and read the first few pages the day I got it. Instantly I must say that I was intrigued. It kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time.

So for those who still want to read the book just to warn there will be spoiler alerts ahead:

So the story is about a young girl named Beatrice who lives in one of 5 factions:

• Abnegation: the faction of selflessness. They put others before themselves. They don’t believe in vanity and they dress in modest gray clothing so as not to draw any attention to their bodies and all that jazz. They don’t even look in mirrors for goodness sake. They get to sit in front of a mirror every 3 mths in order to get their hair cut and even then they don’t look in the mirror.
• Amity: the faction of peace. They strive to avoid conflict at all costs. They are the only faction that laughs, plays and shows any type of affection. They wear bright colors like red and yellow and they work out in nature. In crop field and orchards. They are against all types of violence and they have a “serum” that they give the members of their faction that MAKES them feel happy and keep the peace.
• Condor: the faction of truth. They believe in the truth and nothing but the truth. they do not lie about anything. They wear black and white because they don’t believe in gray areas. They only see things as true or false, black and white.
• Erudite: the faction of knowledge. Made of people who are constantly seeking knowledge. Intelligent people who enjoy learning of new things always. They wear at least one blue article of clothing because it has been proven that the color blue as a calming effect. They are very serious and focused.
• Dauntless: the faction of power, strength and bravery. This faction is the most intense out of all. They take unnecessary risks and death is just another part of life for them. They are the security for the other factions. They do patrol and protect everyone from outside the Gate. What is out there no one knows….YET. You must be able to conquer your fears in order to make it in the dauntless. They wear black and usually have multiple tattoos and piercings.
• Factionless: The factionless are not necessarily a faction. The factionless are made up of people who were unable to make it past initiation of one of the five factions. Whether it be dropping out of initiation, or failing to complete the tasks required. These people usually end up doing the jobs that now one wants to do. Janitorial, garbage man etc. For the most part they are homeless and rely on the Abnegation for food and clothing.

So our main character is named Beatrice and she belongs to the faction Abnegation. But something isn’t right. She doesn’t feel like she is truly Abnegation. When a young person in a faction turns 16 they must go through a placement test. For most initiates the placement test is simple they are put through a simulation and must make a few choices, the result of these choices leaves them with an IDEA of what faction they can transfer to. They have an option. They can choose to stay in their current faction or they can choose to transfer. For Beatrice however it’s not as simple. She takes the placement test and goes through the simulation but its different. She doesn’t follow protocol. When she emerges from the simulation she is secretly informed that she is Divergent. She must keep this fact a secret. She must not trust or tell anyone. So the story progresses and then on the to the ceremony where the initiates choose. So Beatrice ends up choosing Dauntless. Her father is pissed and her mom just smiles are her. This will be the last time she will be with her parents as their child. Now she is Dauntless and an adult.

So she has to run out of the building with the Dauntless and then jump on a moving train. She then has to jump off a moving train onto a roof then jump off a roof into the unknown. She chooses a new name, Tris, and is soon known as “the girl who jumped first” and it’s just complete chaos. So the story progresses and she begins her Dauntless training. And as the story gets going of course she meets a guy how makes her all nervous and junk. His name is Four. She ends up getting bullied a lot cause she comes across weak and fragile. She slowly progresses up the charts and ends up in the top 10. All those that are fall short of the top ten become factionless. So Beatrice, now known as Tris, gets stronger.

She forms relationships and ends up enjoying her time in Dauntless. Phase one of Dauntless training is all about physical. Second Phase is all about mental. They inject you with a serum that makes you go into a simulation and you must face your deepest fears. Tris is in the simulation with Four watching over the whole thing and he soon realizes that she is Divergent!  What?! Oh NO! Shes supposed to keep it secret! The whole thing about being divergent is that you are self-aware during the simulations where as a normal person would not realize they are in a simulation. So Tris is capable of changing her simulation on a whim and she can also wake herself up.  So anyway turns out Four is divergent too. Whoa couldn’t see that one coming. They both fall in love. Awwwww. And discover that the Erudite are planning an attack on abnegation. They start to think of a way to warn them. In the process of this all she has to take one final test and face the Fear Landscape. Where it is a simulation but you yourself are completely aware and you are not drugged or anything. The landscape around you takes shape and changes itself to match your fear. So Tris had no worries about being noticed in these simulations because she is supposed to be self-aware. After she passed with flying colors they inject her with a “tracer”. Totally normal. It’s a new thing that the Erudite came up with to help Dauntless keep track of all their members. Well turns out NO! It’s a way to CONTROL the Dauntless members and march them off to war and kill over half the Abnegation faction. Oh so annoying.

The war begins and Tris and Four are the only ones not under the influence of the serum due to their awesome divergent brains. They try to fight their way out but are soon caught. SUPER LONG STORY SHORT. Tris is rescued by her mother who is also Dauntless and also part of a small portion of the population that knows the real reason they are all there. Oh yeah and she’s Divergent. Four is injected with a different serum and goes nuts and almost kills Tris. Tris loses both of her parents in the fight and she stops the simulation and manages to rescue Four as well who is also known as Tobias Eaton. The son of Marcus Eaton who supposedly beat the snot out of his kid so much so that he transferred to Dauntless. (sorry I forgot to mention that.) They escape with Marcus, Tris’ brother Caleb and one of the Dauntless Traitors Peter. Yeah you heard right. Some of the Dauntless were in on the whole thing. Horrible. They escape to the Amity faction where they recover for some time. But it is soon short-lived and they must decide their next course of Action.

Keep in mind that A WHOLE CRAP TON of pieces of the story missing this is just an overall look at this story. So I loved the first book. Absolutely could not put it down. I recently finished the second book. Also could not put that down. And I’m currently getting read to start the third book.

It was a great book and I totally recommend it. It was a nice change of pace from some of these other books that have been talked about these past years. NO love triangle as of yet. Cant imagine one forming in the last book so that was a nice change. The girl is a strong-willed, independent, fight back type of girl. The guy is the protector but he is always a tough guy who doesn’t sugar coat things. The love between the two is generally sweet but sometimes takes a turn for the “oh gosh she just needs to stop being so whiny and communicate for once.” Its one thing I hope that someday we can get away from stuff like that. To have a really strong female character suddenly fall apart and become someone who is irrational and crazy is upsetting. I want someone who can handle the heartbreak in a normal healthy manner instead of relying on a kiss to make everything seem ok. Instead of acting out and screaming and very nearly killing yourself because you just want to be dead. Or even avoiding the whole deep dark depression. Cant we have just one healthy-minded heroine that handles the situations with grace and understanding. Someone who can look at what has happened and cry, then heal, then move on. Characters that are actually capable of communicating and having decent conversations instead of fighting and then making out. It can get to be ridiculous.

I’m really looking forward to seeing how the movie does. It should definitely make for a great film. But like I said before. I have yet to see a movie that is as good as the books!

Anyway that is my summary of the book Divergent. When I get the chance I will do the same for Insurgent and  Allegiant. Stay Tuned!