TWILIGHT the movie - my review!

I should've already posted a personal review of TWILIGHT considering I got a chance to see it with Sifo on Thursday night for it's midnight screening at Jordan Landing. All I have to say about the experience is one word: "crazy". We arrived at the theater a few minutes after 9pm and I seriously thought we were the FIRST ONES THERE! (Come on!!! We were THREE hours early!) Come to find out we couldn't find where our designated line was supposed to start - as other post-midnight screenings had formed snaking lines throughout the theater's lobby. Confused and concerned that being the first in line really WAS the case, we finally asked one of the ushers there and LO AND BEHOLD - "they had started seating everyone TWO HOURS ago!!" ***thud!!*** Who in their right mind (Twilight Freak-fan or not) would be sold on the idea that waiting for a movie FIVE hours BEFORE it comes on is a GOOD one?? (Our three hours before showtime is just as bad but COME ON!!!)... Oh and did I mention the SEA of Twilight attire that was there? Prom dresses, full-fledged vampire costumes with the trimmings (cape *CHECK*, popped collar *CHECK*, shades??? *CHECK*, hot vampire?? ***PASS***) haha...

So in we go.... and after chattin' up a storm about random things, people, places, experiences, church; texting back and forth to other midnight screening goers like Lesina who took pictures of their waiting experience OUTSIDE for TWO hours of the Hurricane theaters (bless your heart - I hope it was worth it for you!) - - - it was finally time!

*** flickering lights **** AUDIENCE SCREAMS AND CLAPS *** flickering on the big screen **** MORE SCREAMS AND CLAPS **** ....then two hours later...and a few days to mull it over I'm back on my blog with the following:

Overall review
I think it is sligtly unfair to make a review of a movie that essentially has a fan-base of two separate origins. There are those fans (like me and many others) who derive their anticipation for this movie from having read the Twilight Saga in it's entirety.... (though it could be up for debate if that group alone can be divided further to form the "twilight readers" and "twilight believers" - ha!) - And then there are those who are just caught up with the hype!; Who have never laid hands or eyes on the books but were given recommendations to watch it! In that sense I'd like to keep my review completely unbiased -but- don't quote me on that too much because I have lots to say. Please note that whatever you think of the movie (because I know that the LOT of you HAVE seen it) - please be sure that "it" and the book are two SEPARATE things. If you've read the book - keep in mind that the movie could never have fully housed the complexity and depth of Twilight within the alloted time and budget it was given to work with. They did their best with what they had and highlighted key points of the book with the current CGI technology they were given to play with and were able to deliver the basic storyline and passion "to the best of their ability". It definitely played it's role well as a "compliment" to the book.

Twilight HIGH Notes
What I loved most about the movie is the portrayal of most if not all the CHARACTERS! I was impressed with how each actor (atleast those who've impacted twilight's reading fan base) was able to deliver and translate them into reality on the big screen. There are some lines they gave that were in a sense "cheesy" but I strongly feel that they did not disappoint! Kristen was an awesome 'Bella' and the relationship with her father was to a tee when compared to the books. The Cullens were just as mysterious and "beautiful" as I had pictured and each member suited their part perfectly. Though 'Jasper' was more in discomfort than I thought him to be. **ha ha**. I can't wait to see his character develop more in the upcoming sequels! It can be safe to assume that the "big three" namely: 'Edward' ***SCREAMS***, 'Carlisle' ***hyperventilating***, and 'Emmett' ***thud!*** - were indeed HOTTIES!.. ha ha! Rob Pattinson, Peter Facinelli and Kellan Lutz did these characters justice! And so the anticipation lingers!

Moving along - Jacob and his Dad were ..... well........ exactly who they were! I don't think we saw enough of them to pass harsh judgment but I think they did do a great job as well. Though I wish they could've atleast found a more 'REAL'-looking wig for the poor kid! Team Jacob - don't lose hope! He is EXACTLY like the Jacob in the book so don't go in expecting to see this freakishly HUGE and hairy hottie of a werewolf that is not supposed to grace us with it's presence until the upcoming shows! Because you know there will be!

Everyone else in the movie, from 'Bella's' friends to the creepy alley stalkers and not forgetting 'James' and his coven ('Victoria' and 'Laurent' - pronounced "Loo-raunt") - well they were just fine! Her friends seemed funnier than expected. That wasn't a bad thing. And 'James' was a great bad guy and his partner 'Victoria' left us hanging for more when they made her intentions evident that there SHOULD BE and would be more to expect in the very nearby future.

Aside from the "to a tee" character-portrayal, I also wanted to note that the CGI effects were pretty cool too. Oh and before I forget - they were able to work in alot of humor and sarcasm so don't be afraid to laugh alongside those obsessed teens sitting next to you! And don't forget to pick up your jaw as you admire the set of wheels that the 'Cullens' are rolling around in. And then pick it up again when THE kiss happens. :)

Twilight "so-so" notes
So you might've heard of all the negative hype around what movie critics have said about our beloved "Twilight". But don't be too let down by these.

To be completely honest, there were some things in the movie that didn't really leave me with a warm, fuzzy feeling either. But without getting into too much of it - I think it's because my expectations were based on seeing the ENTIRE book on screen. How unrealistic is that?

Some things to note and possibly debate...are: some usage of the exact lines from the book which came across a little cheesy. Ha-ha. Not bad - not entirely what I expected but it could make a little smirk crawl across your face. Also, don't be too alarmed by the questionable quality of the movie. There is alot of darkness, trees and what I've termed "GQ shots" and brief talking scenes. Just remember when you walk in to see it - they probably only had enough of a budget to pay for the electricity bills of their shoot. So if you want to see a sequel and one with better quality - GO see it (again)!

Another thing I wish they did some justice to was more of EVERYONE. I wanted to see MORE Cullens, Quileutes, high school friends. The way they are developed in the book has more depth that I wished they DID have time enough to do it. But oh well - Too bad, So sad! *tear*. Just wait for them in the upcoming movies. I also hoped there was more emphasis on the 'meadow' scene and Bella's Lullaby; and maybe some more depth to the development of 'Edward' and 'Bella's' relationship - but overall it satisfies to some degree. Sa said he loved it! And he jokingly asked if I was half-expecting Edward to look like Jesus during his Second coming in the meadow! How rude! (But I think I was!.. who knows - I'm just glad it didn't look completely FAKE!)

All in all - I hope there is less negative you take away from the experience and that you leave with more anticipation and somewhat of a satisfaction that the long awaited has met most if not ALL your expectations - now that it has FINALLY materialized it's way onto the big screen!

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I hope that you liked the movie! and If you haven't watched it, "Do enjoy!". I wanted to also note that TwilightMOMS.com posted that Summit Entertainment has given the GREEN Light on moving on with New Moon! So hopefully this next wait won't be as bad as the first! (Who am I kidding!?!?) - Sifo probably already has tickets to see it!!! Ha-Ha! =)

And so ends my review...

Team Edward, Emmett and Carlisle all the way!!!!!

Until my next entry - keep blogging!

QUICK shout out!!...

I usually like to acknowledge baby news and all other sorts of "good news" happening in our family or extended families and friends... but I usually do it LATE!... And this here entry is NO exception!!!

I wanted to quickly say Happy Birthday to Anthony and Seuao!!! They share the same birthday!!! How small of a world is that!?!! You guys still look 18yrs! (in your dreams! =))

Maila recently celebrated her birthday this past Saturday and Lesina did likewise yesterday!!! I think Cordelia hits a big milestone on her upcoming birthday this Thursday.... (Didn't you hear??? _ _ is the new 20???.. =)) I don't know what she's got planned during the day but I'll be missing in action that night because.....................

Sifo and I are going to see the Midnight Screening of TWILIGHT!!!!.... (<<< does that count as a shout out??) -who cares?-

I also wanted to mention the baby news!...(NOT MINE - - - - ha ha)
But last time I listed everyone expecting a baby - - - and now there are brand new bundles of joy EVERYWHERE!!!...(Is there something in the water??? - there's definitely something in HOLLYWOOD water what with everyone having Twins but that's really no interest of mine now)!

Firstly CONGRATULATIONS to our friends Asi and Julie Farani who are expecting to have a baby BOY early next year! (I should probably go down there and get me some Anaheim water so I could have a better chance of _______ a ___ ) Sorry I don't want to jinx it! Oh and I didn't want to forget my cousin Tala and her hubby Bo who are also expecting baby number 2 soon! I'm sure Lole is ready to be a big sister!!! I'm so happy she's also finished reading the entire Twilight saga! You guys rock!

And Secondly....... Here is a list of all the proud parents and their new additions to their families!

Maila and Diarra ---- baby Marley
Anton and Tavi ----- baby Ryce
Seuao and Rachael -- baby Tessa
Charles and Linda --- baby CJ

Hope I didn't miss anybody!!!...

love you all...

p.s... also wanted to note ...(even though this is EXTREMELY silly) - two hunks that used to be on the Soap Opera "Passions" are now on Days!!! haha... "Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald" - who makes anyone melt in those hot latino eyes! and the former "Ethan Krane" - still a stud but doesn't pass for a 20-something year old son of Jon Black!...haha...
oh and they are the ONLY reason why Cordelia texts me from work... gotta get the "Hot Menz" update!... :)

I hope someone I know and loves me will win the Lottery soon and buy me some better hobbies!... (I was gonna say "life"...but I love my life though I can do with more uplifting, wholesome entertainment during my 3-5pm daily slots when my girls are taking their early evening nap :P)

Have a great week people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BANGS!!

Last Sunday Sa's cousin Charles and his wife Linda and their kids (Keili, Patrick and CJ) came up to visit and hang out with us. I had asked Linda if she could trim my hair since she's an expert when it comes to hair styling and she kindly obliged! What I thought would only take 15minutes tops - turned out to be about an hour or so long and I felt so bad for Linda because we were in the garage and it was really cold that night! Can someone tell me WHY I opened the garage door even though I knew this?????

So anyway - she trimmed my hair a couple of inches. I'd estimate about FOUR inches...*tear drop*....and then she cut me some bangs!!!... Now frankly I DON'T do bangs! I've had VERY BAD experiences with them ALL MY LIFE!!! So to even agree to this was almost like re-living my mom's experimental days with my hair back in the day. TRUST ME! - oh the trauma!

But fastforward to 1hour later... I absolutely loved it!... I loved it so much, I asked her to frame my face just a tad bit more to make it blend in and although my hair disobeyed the direction they were being combed in - I've been adamant in making it behave with a trust ol' bobby pin! Now although I love my new 'do'...I actually want my bangs a little shorter... *hopefully I won't get scissor-happy BEFORE Linda can come up to give me a shorter fringe. Hopefully that will be a picture that is BLOG-worthy!....but until then... here's a shot of me with my new bangs!...

tala fou...

So it's been a while since my last entry - I know I'm completely slacking! But we've been a little busy lately....

1) First of all there's still the potty training I'm working on with Coretta. Two words: "Stubborn Baby". She knows what's going on but she's not a happy camper when it comes to patience. So on goes the training!!! - Success shall be mine! :)

2) Secondly, Sa is now taking up a new "adventure" of sorts. And until we find out for sure where this goes... it's gonna be his own little project. I should add though, for the sake of those who have SOME idea of what I'm talking about - - - Sa shocked me with his potential. I think it's because of how well he keeps it all under wraps with all the funny stories and crazy comments. But the boy has talent. "and I'm not just saying that" (said the director at the audition)... Now if he can just get past being so darn SHY infront of family!!!

3) We've had some random family visits these past weeks. First it was fun to see Glen and Charles again. They only spent a few hours with us but it was enough to get in all those Bernie Mac jokes and Laughing Samoans fob quotes! I'm still sorry we didn't give in to Glen's subtle hints to buy or subscribe to his Security system he was selling but that's only because Sa already gave in to Cordelia and the Hyla Air Purifier/Vacuum that she sold us a few weeks back! Besides - we already have a Security system... with all it's primitive settings! =)

4) I would've listed this with the previous event but it covers more than just a visit from family. We recently attended CJ's baby blessing and his proud parents Charles and Linda were glowing on his special day! His uncle Jared and aunt Vee and cousin Cailyn all drove up from Arizona to support him as well. It was fun to be there even if it was brief. Baby CJ is so darn adorable! We hope the Arizona Palepois' enjoyed the ride back!

5) MAJOR REWIND! - I totally forgot this and I was NOT going back to rearrange my list. HALLOWEEN!!! So Sifo and I took our girls trick-or-treating around our neighborhood that night and it was pretty interesting! It was a little tiring though because we had TWO 2year olds and a 1yr old and they weren't all hyped about having to WALK everywhere but as soon as our older girls saw what it took to get candy - they were pretty happy about it! I didn't have time to buy my girls costumes because I waited too long, so I just smeared their faces with facepaint and lugged them out the door. Their cousin Sina was dressed up as Tinkerbell though! I put some pictures of them on my bebo page for all to have a look. Click HERE

6) I also didn't want to forget to mention that Cordelia, Jane and I made it to their friend Logo's baby shower the night before Halloween. We met up with Lesina and Carsen there and got to have a little fun playing Lesina's games for the shower. We were SUPPOSED to dress up for it but I didn't get to buy anything or be creative enough with my own wardrobe to look like I tried. Jane did go to the party as a Missionary (that got alot of cracks lol - she's such a trooper) - - - so Cordelia and I decided we would be her investigators for the night. Oh the irony!!!...haha =)

7) Our baby Heiress is beginning to mouth off just a TAD bit too much these days. "NO" and "DOP" are part of our daily conversations now. My, my, my - how these babies develop!

8) We just received our first REAL (like on-the-ground) snowfall. It was really pretty but also freezing! But still pretty!

9) SAVE THE BEST FOR LAST. So if you haven't heard already - Sifo is the biggest Twilight fan I know. To be certain of that (nevermind the endless browsing and viewing of twilight fansites; or the fact that she's read and re-read and re-read Twilight some more over and over again; or that she's got the latest preview on her bebo page (she used to have a bebo skin and all that was Twilight-themed as well)...etc) - - - this chick bought two tickets to see the midnight pre-screening of Twilight for the 20th of this month!!! Can you guess who the lucky person is that gets to go with her???..... ME!!!... lol...Anthony can't go because he didnt finish reading Twilight (ha-ha) and I'd probably fight him if he wanted to try and go... though I might give in considering his birthday is the same week! We'll see! But I don't doubt that I'm sorta excited just because I hope the movie is just as good as the book! Can't wait!

ANYHOW - Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner and I'm pretty excited. I don't think there's an apparent reason for it but I think it's because our girls are more aware of the traditions here. I would've put up pictures but they're either already on bebo or on someone else's camera! (hint hint Cordelia and Sifo!)

Meanwhiles enjoy the rest of your year people!... Hopefully I'll check in again before then!