The Hunger Games (2012)

 I love this book! So first let me say. Read the book, just READ THE BOOK!

I went with my friends this past weekend to go see the Hunger games. My friend has been wanting to go for a while, we didn’t get a chance to go when my mum was in town so we went on Sunday, hoping to catch it before it went out of theaters.  And usually I don’t like when they turn great books into movies. You lose so much and it just is missing the depth that the novel provides. I know you can’t put everything on the big golden screen right…and some things have to go and this movie was no exception. So if you missed it in the first line. JUST READ THE BOOK!

Let me just say one thing….for them playing in the Hunger Games, they looked pretty full. I don’t think a single person playing in this movie ever went a day without food. For starving to death, they were pretty pudgy!

However, the movie was still good…and I still cried! J  And you should still see it. But please read the book first!

The zombie-apocalypse ended (ok, not really, but something apocalyptic happened) and America has now been renamed and reformed into a new nation known as Panem. The nation is divided into 13 districts The Capital, District 1, District 2 all the way down to District 12, the poorest one. Every year the Capitol requests s sacrifice, known as a Tributes from each district, one boy and one girl. Any one in district 1-12 between the ages of 12 – 18 is entered into a lottery known as the Reaping and this is how the participates for The Hunger Game are chose.  These participates travel to the capitol where they compete in a computer generated arena to the death…and only one survives, bringing back to their district fame and food!

Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) is a 15 (maybe 16) year old girl who has learned to survive in District 12 by working alongside her best friend, Gale Hawthorne (played by Liam Hemsworth) and sneaking out of the district hunting and foraging to provide for her sister and mother. She has been doing this since her father died in a coal mining accident years ago.

On the day of the Reaping, Katniss and her little sister Primrose (played by Willow Shields), get up and head to the town square. Katniss reassures her sister that everything is going to be fine. Prim is terrified; being this is her first year being entered into the competition. However everything was not fine. Prim is chosen and realizing that her sister would die in the Hunger Games, Katniss runs to take her sisters place as the female tribute. The male tribute is chosen next, and he ends up being a baker’s son named Petta (played by Josh Hutcherson)that Katness remembers gave her some burnt bread when her family was starving to death. She realizes to survive…she is going to have to kill the boy that saved her.

Katniss and Peeta meet with Effie Trinket (played by Elizabeth Banks) and Haymitch (played amazingly by Woody Harrelson) and board the train to the Capital. They quickly realize that Effie is not happy to be their representative and would much rather be the spokeswoman for a better district and Haymitch, a former District 12 Hunger Games winner and their mentor is just a drunk who has already decided they are both going to die in the Games.

**Side Note – I love Woody Harrelson! I didn’t know he was actually in this movie until he walked onto the screen! He really did a great job in this movie, like he does in ALL his movies J **

Realizing that their chances are slim, Katniss and Peeta dive into the rich food and eat themselves near exploding, they have never had, seen or even dreamed about such food and luxuries as they are now being treated to on the train that takes them to their death.  When Katniss and Peeta realize that Haymitch has already figured them as good as dead, they go after him and convince him that they want to fight and that he needs to help them. Drunkenly he tells them that the only way to survive is to get people to like them, if people like them they will sponsor them and if they sponsor them then Katniss and Petta will have the tools needed to survive the games.

Katniss grimaces…she is not a people person! But as they arrive in the Capital it becomes very apparent that Peeta is a people person as he waves to them from the window.

The next day Katniss meets her stylist Cinna, Cinna becomes a shoulder to help support Katniss during the competition. Cinna dresses Katniss and Peeta in the most amazing outfit for the Gala Parade, 2 black costumes on fire to symbolize the coal mining district of 12. Realizing that the crowd loves them, Peeta grabs Katniss’ hand and raises their interlocked hands to the crowd….and the audience eat it up…their competitors…despise it!

For the next few days the Katniss and Peeta train with the other tributes in a large gym. They learn basic survival and defense skills.  While honing their skills, they get the chance to learn a bit about the other tributes and mostly the Careers (from District 1, 2 & 4 ) who train for the Games until they are 18 and then volunteer. Cato, from District 1, shows himself to be the biggest threat and the predicted winner of the games.

** Side note – I am not sure why District 3 doesn’t have careers, but whatever!**

Haymitch finds out that both Katniss and Peeta have special skills, Katniss is very skilled with a bow and arrow thanks to her years of hunting in the woods with her father and them with Gale, and Peeta is extremely strong. Haymitch tells them not to give away their biggest skills until they are in front of the Game Makers.  

After days of training it is time for each tribute to show the Game Makers what they have to offer. One by one each tribute goes into a room until it is Katniss’ turn. She walks in and realizes that the Game Makers are all drunk and more focused on the luxurious food in front of them then seeing her ‘talent’.  Her first shot misses, disgusted and angry with them for ignoring her, for the games for everything she shots an arrow straight through an apple in the mouth of a roasted pig. The Game Makers leap back and stare at her in amazement as she sarcastically thanks them and leaves.  Effie is shocked and furious by Katniss behavior, but Haymitch, Peeta and Cinna love it! When the scores of the Tributes are shown that night on TV (score 1 – 12, 12 being the highest) Katniss scored the highest…11, Peeta only scored a 9.

At the Capital the plot thickens, the President, President Show warns the Game Makers that the Games are about reminding the Districts of the past, not giving them hope and that he better be careful

Now it is time for the audience to meet the Tributes, and one by one each tribute is introduced and interviewed by TV host and star Caesar.  Katniss, not being a big people person stumbles through the interview. She tells Caesar that she is here in place of her 12 year old sister and tries to get off the stage as quickly as possible. Peeta on the other hand loves the camera and within minutes has the audience laughing until he admits that he has a deep crush on Katniss and has had it for years. Katniss, furious attacks Peeta backstage, Haymitch separates them and tells them that he can sell them as star-crossed lovers. Katniss reluctantly agrees…since it might bring her sponsors and save her life.

Then the games begin! All the Tributes are injected with GPS tracking devices and set down in cornucopia inside the game. All around them are weapons, backpacks and survival gear…a bow and arrow. The horn sounds and the Tributes are off.  It is a blood bath as the Career tributes attack anyone going for the supplies. Katniss grabs a pack and does what Haymitch told her, run…for water. She barely escapes an attack by Clove (District 1) but she survives. She heads into the woods

Katniss finds water and as she fills up her canteen she surveys her equipment….a rope, coat and some food. Loud bangs can be heard in the distance indicating the death of tributes…13 in all died at the cornucopia and the  Games have just begun! An alliance is quickly formed between the Careers and Katniss is shocked when she sees Peeta with them. Hurt and betrayed Katniss decided that Peeta is on his own and she will kill him now! The Careers have one main goal…take out the biggest threat…Katniss.

Katniss decided her best chance of survival is to get as far away from the Careers as possible, and the next day she heads out. She walks away from them and suddenly the Game Makers realize that she is by the end of the computer programed arena and miles away from any other tribute. In an attempt to get her back in the game they start a forest fire and send fire balls after her, sending her running back towards the Careers. Katniss barley escapes and gets burned badly on her thigh. In order to stop the pain, she hobbles back to the lake and gets in…letting the cool water sooth her burn…until the Careers show up.

Running for her life, Katniss climbs up a tree, unable to reach her the Careers settle down under the tree for the night. Katniss ties herself into the tree and tries to figure out her next move. Suddenly a parachute appears sent from Haymitch….its medicine for her leg! Early the next morning Katniss awakes. The Careers are still below her but she has another visit, Rue, a 12 year old girl from District 11. Rue has been following Katniss since the beginning of the games and even in the training and she points to a large trackerjaker nest right above the Careers. Seeing her chance Katniss cuts the genetically mutated wasps down on top of the sleeping Careers. The Trackerjakers are venomous and can kill

The group settle for the night underneath the tree whilst Katniss once again ties herself to the tree. She is woken up later in the night by a parachute sent by Haymitch containing much needed medicine for Katniss' wounded leg. She applies it and her burn appears to clear up as if nothing had happened. Her attention is then caught by Rue, a 12 year old tribute from District 11 in a nearby tree. She is friendlier than anyone else Katniss has come across. The wasps form a cloud and sting the group forcing them to run to the water.  One Career dies, Glimmer.  Katniss manages to get out of the tree, but not without getting stung herself. As she begins to hallucinate she pulls the bow and arrow from Glimmer. Peeta comes running back to the camp site, sees Katniss and screams at her to run! Confused and drugged Katniss stumbles into the woods.

Katniss falls to the ground. After nights of hallucinations, Katniss awakens beneath a tree trunk with leaves covering the stings. Rue appears; two girls decide to team up and go on the offensive.  Rue tells Katniss that the Careers have all their food and supplies in the meadow and that is their main camp sight. Katniss forms a plan to destroy the Careers supplies. She tells Rue to set small fires to distract them while she goes and destroys their food. To keep in contact with each other they will use the call of the Mocking Jay, a bird that will mock your melody if it likes your voice and sing it back to you.

The Careers see the smoke in the distance and leave their camp. Only one tribute remains. As Katniss looks for a way to destroy the food a girl she has named Foxface appears runs towards the supplies, avoids the traps (mines), gets what she needs and runs away without being noticed.

Katniss realizes that she won’t be able to avoid the bombs, instead she shoots a bag of apples that fall to the ground and explode all the mines destroying the food. Cato, returning to the camp is so furious with the boy left on guard that he breaks his neck. Katniss realizes it is time to go. She heads back to find Rue, only to find her just in time to see a spear go through her. Katniss without even thinking sends an arrow flying into Rues assailants’ chest killing him on the spot. Rue dies in Katniss arms.

Back in District 11 (Rue's home), her father (we believe) is shown distraught and angered by his daughter's death and begins a riot against the Hunger Games. The Peace Keepers of District 11 arrive and kill Rue’s father dead.  President Snow is enraged at the rebellion in District 11 and wants to kill Katniss. Haymitch, realizing how close Katniss is to being murdered, pleads with the Game Keepers to keep her alive. The Game Keepers make an announcement in the arena, the rules of the Games have changed; there can be two winners of the Games as long as they belong to the same district.

Katniss realizing that if Peeta is still alive they have a chance to actually win the games sets out to find him. She finds Peeta  camouflaged by the river bleeding to death. Katniss helps him to a cave where neither of them will be found.  She tries to treat Peeta's wound she will need real medicine, medicine to expensive for a sponsor to purchase.  Suddenly a new announcement is made, at the cornucopia will be something for each tribute that they desperately need.  Katniss knows it is the medicine to save Peeta. Peeta begs her not to go, knowing it will be a blood bath again, but she kisses him and as soon as he falls to sleep she heads out.

Katniss makes a run for her bag, but Clover appears out of nowhere and jumps her. Fighting for her life the two girls roll around. Clove teases Katniss about teaming up with Rue. Suddenly Thresh (the boy from 11) lifts Clover off Katniss. He beats Clover to death and lets Katniss go…’just this one time, for helping Rue’.  Katniss gets back to the cave and gives Peeta the medicine.

Now that Peeta is able to walk, they decided it is time to get food. Katniss goes hunting and Peeta splits off to forage for berries. A canon booms in the distance and Katniss freaks thinking Peeta is dead, but it’s not. Peeta has gathered poisons berries without knowing it and Foxface stole them and ate them.

Peeta and Katniss head off to find Cato, who has just killed Thrash by the cornucopia! In the distance they hear a cry in the distance and suddenly giant mutated dog like creatures leap out at them. Katniss and Peeta run through the woods towards cornucopia. They leap to the top of it as the dogs circle around them below barking and howling. Cato suddenly appears on top of the cornucopia and attacks Katniss in fury. He tries to toss her to the dogs, but Peeta jumps to save her. As Peeta and Cato struggle, Katniss watches in horror. She prepares the arrow and aims it at Cato. Cato starts to laugh psychotically and starts to say that he knows the truth about the Games. Katniss shots Cato and rushes to grab Peeta before he falls to the dogs. Katniss and Peeta watch as Cato is torn apart.

The cannon goes off and the Game Makers make another announcement….the two victors rule has been revoked.

Realizing that one of them must die, Peeta begs Katniss to kill him so she can live. But Katniss has another idea in mind. She gives Peeta some of the poison berries and they both prepare to commit suicide. Either they both are walking out or neither. The Game Makers revoke their last announcement and announce them both victors!

Haytmitch is furious with them. He knows how upset the President is and he tells them if they want to survive they MUST continue to play lovers, but he still doesn’t think that will save them.

Peeta and Katniss give their final interview and travel back to District 12. Gale is there to meet her with Prim and Katniss’ mum. The Game Maker is forced to kill himself and President Show watches the victors wondering…

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengence (2012)

I have always been a huge Ghost Rider fan, basically from the first time I pulled his comic card from the pack he has always intrigued me. Maybe part of that has to do with girls deep down craving Good Guys with a Bad Boy streak. And  if one thing is true…Johnny Blaze/Ghost Rider has that. When the first Ghost Rider came out I was so excited and I loved it! When I started seeing the previews for the sequel, I was a little cautious. To be honest, sometimes sequels can suck…heck most of the time they do, and it is just Hollywood trying to rake in a few more million quick bucks while destroying perfectly good story’s in the process. Story’s that have already been written for them…they just have to turn it into life. I figure if I do it in my head when I read a book how hard can it be. And with Comic books I am convinced it is even easier…HECK the storyboard is already laid out for you. How lazy do you have to be.

Any way I devolve from my original point. 

I did decide to go see the sequel, and I had to go twice. Not because it was good….but because I had to make sure it was that bad and I didn’t miss something. I did not! 

The first time I went to the Drive-in with my friend Dion. The movie had pretty much just come out and the place was packed. I was enjoying my first weekend free of 5K races and running in about a month so I was ready to kick back and have a few drinks. Well I ended up drinking a little more than I should have considering it had been a while, and I totally don’t remember the 2^nd half of the movie, and  what I do remember…wasn’t that good. So this past weekend, when the guy I am seeing suggested that we go to see Ghost Rider, I figured why not. So we packed my dog into the back seat and headed to the drive-in…and this time I watched the whole thing and I didn’t hate it, but it wasn’t horrible. 

**Side Note - Usually when seeing a movie twice…writing a blog is easy for me, but to be honest. I think I could pretty much tell you the entire story in about a page. Nothing seemed to really happened…and left something to be desired the day after. Heck the person I went with fell asleep…so that can’t be saying much. **

This story picks up a few years after the other ends. Johnny Blaze (played by Nicholase Cage) has removed himself from society and taking refuge. Trying to learn how to control the Rider inside himself, he has withdrawn…until Moreau (played by one of my girls fav actors…Idris Elba) seeks him out. Moreau is a non-traditional alcoholic monk and he believes that the Devil (Played by Ciaeán Hinds) is after a young boy. Moreau manages to convince Johnny to seek out the boy, named Danny (played by Fergus Riordan) and his mother Nadya (played by Violante Placido). 

Roarke has enlisted the help of Carrigan, Nadya’s Ex to help track them down and bring him the boy.  

**Side Note - Now why in the hell he would hire the chicks ex-boyfriend to fetch a kid that is not his is just strange. Maybe they were trying to develop some type of character development, but honestly any old psycho dude could have gone after the boy ** 

Carrigan thinks this task is going to be easy and when he does catch up with the pair fleeing for their lives Carrigan and his crew quickly overpower Nadya and begin to drag Danny to the car. In the distance the Rider realizes that something…someone is calling out to him and he is unable to stop himself from going to the aid of Danny in a blaze of furry. Flying by Moreau the Rider tracks the boy via some mental connection they have and he one by one starts to feed off of Carrigan’s crew.  

Fear shoots through the men as they try to push the boy into the SUV. Carrigan grabs a massive gun and as the Rider walks towards him…head flaming Carrigan sends the Rider flying. Carrigan turns and flees with his little remaining crew leaving Nadya screaming and the Rider incapacitated.

**Side Note - Now they have added a little bit of money into the Riders appearance, but not enough for anyone to jump out the seat in fear.  And to be honest…it didn’t look a million times better than the first movie, but I guess he did have some more flames coming out of places. But this is the first time we are introduced to the “NEW” rider**

Johnny Blaze awakes in a hospital. His wounds are healed but you can see what the years of the Rider have done to his body. As he dresses himself to leave he spots Nadya wondering the halls. I am not quite sure why Nadya was at the hospital…but Johnny follows her outside watching her. Nadya..a smart gypsie …senses him and rounds on Johnny with a gun aimed at his head, believing that he is one of those out to get her. Johnny has a little bit of a mental break down and tells Nadya to either kill him or let him try to help her. To weak to pull the trigger she and Johnny steal a truck with a flatbed…to put Johnny’s bike on…and head off to find out where Carrigan has taken her son. 

On the road you realize that Nadya somehow got pregnant with the devils span baby...and that is Danny and that is why Roarke wants the kid. Ummm. I guess that is believable if you believe in the virgin Mary and that then this is pretty much the same thing, just Satan instead of god…IDK. 

So the rest of the movie pretty much follows a lame ass story line! They track down the boy, Carrigan dies. Roarke brings him back as basically death…everything he touches dies…the rider wins and everyone lives happily ever after. OK. The movie sucked. And the more I write about it the more I realize I just didn’t like it. So don’t waste your money going to see this one. Save it for something else and just wait for this to come out on TV.

Paraprosdokian

My best friend sent me this list in an email a few months ago, and I thought it was great...so I forwarded it to a few friends. Since then, the comments have been coming up in my head over and over again at random times. So I figured I would share :)

1. Do not argue with an idiot; he will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.

2. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it's still on my list.

3. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

4. If I agreed with you, we'd both be wrong.

5. We never really grow up; we only learn how to act in public.

6. War does not determine who is right - only who is left.

7. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.

8. Evening news is where they begin with 'Good Evening,' and then proceed to tell you why it isn't.

9. To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal from many is research.

10. A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk, I have a work station.

11. I thought I wanted a career. Turns out I just wanted paychecks.

12. Whenever I fill out an application, in the part that says, 'In case of emergency, notify_________, I put 'DOCTOR.'

13. I didn't say it was your fault; I said I was blaming you.

14. Women will never be equal to men until they can walk down the street with a bald head and a beer gut, and still think they are sexy.

15. Behind every successful man is his woman. Behind the fall of a successful man is usually another woman.

16. A clear conscience is the sign of a fuzzy memory.

17. I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn't work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.

18. You do not need a parachute to skydive. You only need a parachute to skydive twice.

19. Money can't buy happiness, but it sure makes misery easier to live with.

20. There's a fine line between cuddling and holding someone down so they can't get away.

21. I used to be indecisive; now I'm not so sure.

22. You're never too old to learn something stupid.

23. To be sure of hitting the target, shoot first and then call whatever you hit the "target".

24. Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

25. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

26. Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.

27. A diplomat is someone who tells you to go to hell in such a way that you look forward to the trip.

28. Hospitality is making your guests feel at home, even when you wish they were.

29. I always take life with a grain of salt. Plus a slice of lemon, and a shot of tequila.

30. When tempted to fight fire with fire, remember that the professionals, the Fire Department, usually uses water.

31The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

I don’t know how many of you have read the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, or even seen the other versions of this movie. My mum got me the book a while ago and I could say like I do in every blog I write where the adaptation of the book is different than the movie, that the book is better. …and I could rant about how frustrating it is that they miss so many things and jump around. Just because I am not doing that for this book – to – movie adaptation, do not think I don’t want to go off on my normal rant. I do…but sometimes…like today I feel like I am preaching to an empty church. So all I am going to say is…if you haven’t read the book. Read it. It is better than the movie.

Anywho. My friend Lenny recently purchased a Kindel. I know…a little behind the times, but the man is in his 60’s and retired so the Kindel was a surprising. But one of the first books that he downloaded was the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and he loved it, so when we started seeing the previews, we knew we had to go see it. So the two of us set off for a Saturday matinee (let’s face it, movies are getting to darn expensive these days!)

The movie starts with Henrik Vanger (played by Christopher Plummer), retired CEO of Vanger Industries opening a gift on his birthday.   He has received yet another pressed flower from an anonymous sender. Placing this one among the rest (that we assume he has gotten over the years) he makes a phone call to the retired Inspector Gustaf Morell (played by Donald Sumpter).

We move from a small town to a metropolitan city. Millennium magazine co-owner Mikael Blomkvist (played very well by Daniel Craig) is being harassed by reporters and paparazzi as he lives the courthouse after losing a big libel law suit against the corrupt businessman Hans-Erik Wenneerstrom (played by Ulf Friberg)

**Side Note – I had to look up how to spell these damn names! There was no way I knew them off the top of my head, and I so didn’t feel like butchering a bunch of names!**

Going up against Wenneerstrom was a stupid move on Mikael’s behalf. Wennerstrom is rich and powerful and will dragging Wenneerstrom into court…Wennerstrom dragged Mikael’s name through the mud. He destroyed Mikael’s reputation and took all of Mikael’s life savings.  Mikael knows that there is own one way to save his company and he signs over full owner ship to his co-owner and on again off again lover (even though she is married) Erika Berger (played by Robin Wright). Erika tries to talke Mikael out of it, but they both know that if he says…Millenium is done.

Henrik Vanger’s attorney Dirch Forde (played by Steven Berkoff) arrives into the city and meets with the head of Milton Security. For the results of a background check that Milton Security has run on Mikael Blomkvist. Against the CEO of Milton Securities advice, Forde has requested that the person who did the background check to come into the office personally so he can meet her. In walks Lisbeth Salander (played by Rooney Mara). Lisbeth is a young girl in her early twenties with tattoos and piercings all over her body. Forde however is not bothered by this and proceeds to question Lisbeth on how she managed to get all of this information on Mikael, but Lisbeth is cool and collective.

A few weeks pass and it is Christmas eve, Mikael is celebrating the holidays with his loved ones (including his lover and his lovers husband) when he receives a unexpected phone call from Frode, telling him that he has a job from him and asking him to come to Hedeby Island to meet with Henrik Vanger himself. At first Mikael refuse saying it is the holidays, but he quickly realizes that he doesn’t have many job opportunities knocking down his door and agrees to drive up and meet with Vanger.

The drive to the small Island town is calm, but once Mikael arrives things quickly turn. Henrik tells Mikael that he would like to hire him to investigate a 40 year old cold case, his niece, Harriet Vanger who disappeared from the island. Henrik is convinced that Harriet was murdered, he needs closure. Before she died, Harriet would always give Henrik a pressed flower for his birthday…a tradition that he is being spited by whoever murdered her by continuing to send him flowers on his birthday to this day. Henrik is convinced that someone inside the family murdered Harriett. Mikael listens to the requests and is cautious, the case is 40 years old and he knows he is not an investigator, but Henrik is offering to much money and Mikael agrees to stay in a cottage on the island under the pretense of writing a biography about Henrik and his life. In addition to the very substantial sum of money that Henrik is offering, he also offers Mikael revenge. He claims to have incriminating evidence on Wennerstrom that would take that old man down. Eager for the money and the revenge, Mikael waste no time getting started. 

Lisbeth although a genius in her own right is a ward of the state.

**Side Note - Guess that is one of the reasons they gave her all tattoos and stuff…make her seem more like a rebellious teenager or something, anger at the gov’t**

Anyway…she goes over to her guardian’s house, this old man, only to realize that he has had a massive stroke. She calls the police, but with her ward in the hospital, the state moves her guardianship to someone else. That someone else is a lawyer by the name of Nils Bjurman (played by Yorick Van Wageningen). Now Nils is one sick puppy…or should I say sick dog.  He takes control of her money, when she asks for some money to pay her bills, he forcers her to suck his penis. Afterwards he polite explains that if she doesn’t do what he asks, he will have her labeled incompetent and locked way for the rest of her life.  Discussed she leaves, furious at what she had to do and pissed as hell at him for making her do it!!!

 Lisbeth is not a simple cookie and she devises a way to get payback. A few nights later she shows up at Nils apartment. She says she has run out of money again. Nils politely invites her into the house and leads her back to the bedroom. Lisbeth puts her book-bag down on a chair and while Nils is in the bathroom, she adjusts it so that it is facing the bed. Nils walks back out and suddenly he is on top of her. He knocks her unconscious and by the time she comes too again the sick freak has her tied to the bed spread eagle. Seeing her eyes open Nils leans forward pulls her shirt up over her head and rips her pants down her. He forces himself on her and rapes her while she screams out in pain and agony. Like I said…sick freak! But Nils is unaware of what our little tattooed genius has done…recorded the entire thing from a camera in her book-bag.  After Nils is done he gives Lisbeth a check for 10k and sends her on her way.

Over this time, Mikael had made himself somewhat at home in the run down cottage on the island. Although Henrik has invited Mikael onto the island, the rest of the family is extremely standoffish and he soon realizes that it is not only a cold case he has to solve, but what is going on with this dysfunctional family. Every single family member on the island either hate, doesn’t speak to or is work against another family member.  Mothers not talking to kids, kids not talking to parents and brother and sisters not hating each other for years. None of them are responsive to Mikael’s questions, especially when he brings up Harriett and the past.

**And they say only poor people can have crazy dysfunctional homes!! HA**

Mikael starts to go through Harriets old things and he comes across a list of names and numbers.  Unable to figure out what the significance of this is, he calls the retired chief investigator who tells him that the number are phone numbers, but they ran that lead down and nothing came of it. Mikael doesn’t quite believe this, but he lets it drop…until his religious daughter comes to visit and she asks him why he has bible verse written out next to people’s names.

After his kid leaves, Mikael begins to look it up and finds that each verse from the bible describes a different method of killing someone for a specific sin.

**Isn’t religion grand…you can really see how it is all about the forgiveness there. **

Lisbeth isn’t taking the rape well, the poor outcast dysfunctional unloved girl is already messed up enough, but this has pushed her over the edge. She goes back to Nils house, but this time with a plan in mind. She knocks on his door and as soon as he opens it she steps in and tazers the living crap out of him. Like HARD CORE! He falls to the ground passed out. Lisbeth drags him down to his bedroom while he wets himself after losing control of his body functions and she ties him up at the foot of his own bed. Sitting on his chest she smacks him away. Calmly (and a little crazy like) Lisbeth explains to the pig that the other night she had just expected him to force her to give him a blow job again, and she had come prepared…she had recorded it…and instead of recording a forced blow job, she had gotten rap. Now if he ever wanted to stay out of jail, send her to jail, try to force her to do anything like that again, or try to have her labeled legally incompetent…the contents of that video would leak all over the web! Realizing that he is trapped he begins to beg, but she doesn’t listen. Instead she pulls out a tattoo gun and writes on his chest I AM A RAPIST PIG across it…and then she sticks a lamp up his ass. Justice is served.

Mikael is infatuated with the mystery. He believes he has found the trail of a serial killer who is using god to back up his crimes. However Henrik has fallen ill and Frode and Martin Vanger (played by Stellan Skarsgaard) Henriks nephew & current CEO of Vanger Industries have taken over things. Frode suggests that Mikael leaves the case and goes home, but Martin is convinced that his uncle would have wanted Mikael to keep going. Mikael requests a research assistant to help him and Frode knows just the girl for the job. He recommends Lisbeth and tells Mikael that she did a background check on Mikael before they hired him. Shocked Mikael asks to see the results, he realizes that Lisbeth hacked his computer but sees her talent and goes to offer her a job.

Lisbeth still reeling from the rape has thrown herself into drugs and sex. She doesn’t want to come up for air and has no reason to…until Mikael knocks on her door. At first she believes he has come to hurt her since she did hack into his computer, but Mikael explains that he wants her help. He would like to hire her as an assistant to find a serial killer targeting woman. Well considering she had just been raped by a freaking pig….she agrees….heck wouldn’t any woman asked at that moment in their life! Lisbeth tells him she will meet him at the cottage.

Back on the island, Mikael is spending more time trying to figure out what happened to this family to make them so dysfunctional and what happened to Harriet. While out exploring one of the last places that Harriet was seen alive a hidden gunman sends a shot roaring by Mikaels head. He realizes his life is in danger and that the murder is still here…living on the island after all these years. He hurries back to the house to find that Lisbeth has already arrived and has begun to make herself at home. She has put up surveillance cameras and hooked up to a high power wi-fi…along with doing a bunch of other IT tech stuff to make computers and hacking easier.  

Mikael welcomes Lisbeth into the home, and gives her the couch, but this doesn’t last long. Lisbeth, intrigued by this man…who doesn’t seem to want to rape her or hurt her strips down and seduces him.

But Lisbeth and Mikael don’t spend all their time in bed, they begin to dig deeper into the murder/disappearance of Harriet and the murder of the other woman from around the area. Mikael and Lisbeth come across some old photos of the last days of Harriet’s life. She is attending a parade, but unlike the on-lookers around her, she is looking as something that frightens her. Mikael tracks down a woman who had taken some picture son that day and finds out that Harriet was watching a man across the street, a man that Mikael now believes is the killer.

The time has come for them to dig even deeper into the financial and corporate history of the company. Mikael asks Martian for access and soon Lisbeth uncovers a corrupt connection between the company and murders not just on the island, but all over the world dating back to the early 1940’s. In every town there is a Vanger….a woman is murdered.  

So I am going to stop relating the story here.  As the plot unfolds you don’t see all the twists and turns, but the murderer is slowly revealed and when it hits you, you ask yourself…how did I not see that coming!  If you have or have not read the books or see the original movie, this one is still worth watching. I hate to give away the ending to those who have not seen it and for those of you who have read/watched it, you already know.

But I must say that I am not a fan of Mikael. I think he is a dog, like most men and used Lisbeth, this poor broken girl in a despicable way.

Overall, I am glad I went to see this movie, but it was really strange sitting in a mid-day matinee surrounded by a bunch of blue hairs while a young woman is raped on the big screen. Made me just a little uncomfortable.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)

While my mum was in town over the holidays we went to go see Sherlock Holmes with my friend Jeanette.  My mum had been looking forward to this movie for a while; we went to see the first Sherlock Holmes (2009) together, so it seemed right to see the second one together.  Many people did like the first one, and those people did not like the second, but both my mum and I really enjoyed it.

Personally I am a huge fan of Robert Downey Jr. Talk about an actor who was down on his luck and pretty much gone from the Silver Screen, that man came back with a vengeance and is now is pretty much everything. He is a wonderful actor and he is doing so very well.

But back to the story…Sherlock Holmes (played by Robert Downey Jr.) has become obsessed with Professor Moriarty (played by Jared Harris). He has basically hidden himself away in his house, drinking himself to death as he investigated seemingly unrelated crimes all across Europe convinced that they all lead back to his arch enemy Professor Moriarty.

Sherlock has become not only obsessed with Moriarty, but he is also still infatuated with Irena Adler (played by Rachel McAdams) who he has continued to maintain a relationship with, even though she is a criminal and works for Moriarty. Personally, I believe that not only is he in love with her, be he believes that through her…he will find Moriarty.

The movie begins with Holmes following Adler. He follows her to a funeral, where unbeknownst to her, Moriarty has set a death trap for an old man and anyone else who happens to be in the vicinity.  Holmes manages to rescue an old man from an explosion, only to find that Moriarty had sent backup to poison him if Adler failed.  

Moriarty has become frustrated with Adler and her continued feelings for Holmes; Moriarty requests a meeting with Adler. Selecting her favorite restaurant Adler agrees, taking precautions knowing she cannot trust Moriarty. But Moriarty has already decided Adler’s fate and even with all of her precautions, Moriarty poisons Adler in the middle of a restaurant…which, unbeknownst to Adler, he has strategically filled with his own minions.

Although Dr. Watson (played by Jude Law) has always been Holmes sidekick in solving crimes, he has taken a new direction in life. He is now engaged to be married to Mary (played by Kelly Reilly) and Holmes is not taking the news as well as a best man should. Instead he is ignoring the fact that the wedding is just a few days away and instead continuing to focus all his attention on Moriarty. 

When Dr. Watson and Holmes arrive at Watson’s stag party, Watson is furious when he realizes that Holmes didn’t invite any of his friends. The only person Holmes did invite was his own brother Mycroft (played by Stephen Fry). Determined to have a good time regardless Dr. Watson storms off and joins in on a nearby Poker game.  Holmes on the other hand didn’t not pick this location by chance, he is in fact trying to locate a gypsy names Sim (played by Noomi Rapace) who he believes is somehow connected with Moriarty.

Holmes arrives just in time and manages to save Sim from an assassin…although he does get his butt kicked pretty badly in the process.  But even though the fight and the heavy night of drinking, both Holmes and Watson make it to the church with no time to spare…and Watson gets married and heads off for his honeymoon with his new wife.

Side note: although the movie does seem slow at times, the fight scenes are really fast paced and very good in this movie.

Becoming annoyed with Holmes and his constant interrogation of his associates, Moriarty finally meets with Holmes. He warns him (in such a savvy sophisticated way) that if he continues to investigate him, he will have to start to target those closest to Holmes, his best friend and constant companion, Dr. Watson.

Realizing that he has but his best friend and his best friend’s wife in jeopardy, Holmes stows away on the train alongside Watson and Mary and just in time. Watson and his new wife are attacked, and Holmes steps in to the rescue. Knowing there is only one way to keep Mary from harm’s way. Holmes knocks Mary off the train into the river below. She is picked up by Mycroft and taken to safety. Enraged by Holmes pushing is new wife off a moving train and convinced that this is all Holmes fault between fighting for their lives, Holmes and Watson argue over what is going on.

The two men manage to fight off the attackers and arrive in France. Holmes and Watson track down the gypsy to find out more about her brother Rene. Holmes believes that Moriarty is targeting her because of her brother and believes her to be a loose end in his ultimate plan. Sim only agrees to talk with the men because Holmes saved her life. She is convinced that her brother would not work with Moriarty but she agrees to help them. She takes them to a hideout where a local rebel organization that Sim and her brother were working with is located. She explains to Holmes and Watson that she and her brother left the organization once serious violence started to be done. She claims that her brother would never go back to work with the group.

Walking around the hideout, Holmes realizes that Moriarty was in fact working with this group and he has used them to build a bomb he believes is designed to take out an opera house in the middle of the city. Holmes is not the only one to realize the organization has been used and set up as the fall guys, the leader of his group confesses what he has done in working with Moriarty to Sim and then he takes his own life.

Holmes, Watson and Sim rush to the Opera house only to realize that Holmes was wrong. Moriarty tricked him and he blows up a hotel instead. A hotel full of powerful leaders in the midst of a peace treaty that would end war across Europe for decades!

As the rubble clears, Holmes and Watson sneak in to inspect the bodies. Holmes notices that the bomb was actually just a cover for Moriarty’s gunmen and left hand man, Colonel Sebastian Moran (played by Paul Anderson). Moran had only had one mission…to kill one specific party member, the owner of a large arms factory in Germany, and Moriarty had recently purchased a large number of shares.

Curious as to why Moriarty had wanted to kill this man Homs and Watson do a little digging and realize the man was in fact an arms factory owner in Germany and Moriarty had recently purchased a majority investment in the company.

Living Sim behind, Watson and Holmes head to Germany to investigate what Moriarty’s end game is. Watson and Holmes get separated at the factory and Holmes is captured and taken to Moriarty. In the standard “Bad Guy Speech” Moriarty reveals that he plans to start a World War, which will ultimately increase the demands for products that his companies make…making him extremely rich.

**Side Note – Really!? Really?! Start a World War to sell your guns. This dude is seriously wacked out of his mind and should have just been put down like a mad cow there and then…but the movie needed to go on**

 Watson has a Texan standoff with Colonel Sebastian Moran and manages to keep the crazy sniper at bay until he can rescue Holmes and the two escape the factory and Holmes announces they are going to the Peace Summit.

At the summit with Mycroft, Holmes realizes that Sim’s brother, Rene, is no longer wearing his own face, but has actually undergone an experimental surgery that changed his appearance. Knowing that Rene could be anyone, Watson and Sim walk around looking at all the party guests while Holmes goes off to play a deadly game of chess with Moriarty.

I am going to stop here, so you can go see the rest of the movie for yourself and find out how it ends. No spoiler alert this time.

I really did enjoy this movie and so did my mum.  I think this movie makes you think and it has a lot of twists and turns. Keeping you on your toes and wondering what is going to happen next. I am not sure that I enjoyed it as much as the first one, but I would not be upset if they make a 3^rd.