fairy tale Sunday

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chick-lit, dragons, fairy tale, fairy tales, quote, rom-com, romance, stories, sunday

I have always loved stories, especially fairy tales – good triumphs over evil and the princess always gets the prince – a happily ever after as certain as the once upon a time. As a pigtailed little girl this is how I thought life was – days filled with adventures and wonder, riding off into the sunset included.

But as an adult somehow we lose that innocence and quickly learn that good does not always triumph and many single princesses are slaying their dragons on their own. And while this doesn’t mean that the world isn’t still filled with adventures and wonder we often do miss our happy endings.

Maybe our yearning for some happily ever afters are the reason why every now and then we buy a chick-lit or watch a  rom-com , just to remind us of those fairytale moments we loved as little girls. And there is really nothing wrong with enjoying a little bit of tacky romance or shedding a tear over some fictional heartbreak.

In my books there is no better time to indulge in some make-believe than a gray Sunday afternoon, and that is exactly what I did yesterday. As the evening approached, and with only sports and violence on the TV, I curled up into my nest of trow pillows and watched some soppy Hallmark movies.

Yes – they where predictable; yes –  the music always gave me the cues on what to feel and who to like, and yes – the stories where trite and unrealistic – but also yes – I thoroughly enjoyed myself.  For me, it was the perfect fairy tale Sunday – time to allow the little girl inside to remember, but always knowing that Monday morning is just one sleep away – the real world just lurking around the corner, with some real life dragons waiting to be tackled.

Happiness is like those places in fairy tales whose gates are guarded by dragons; we must fight in order to conquer it.

Alexandre Dumas

Man Up – the latest British Rom-Com

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blind date, Film Review, Films, Lake Bell, Man Up, movies, Olivia Williams, reviews, rom-com, Simon Pegg

Simon Pegg and Lake Bell in Man Up

Of late there has been a lull in Rom-Coms, so it is refreshing to see Man Up hit the big screens this weekend.

Nancy (Lake Bell doing a good English accent) is a thirty-something, slightly depressed single who has given up on love. Arriving in Waterloo station Nancy bumps into Jack (Simon Pegg ) who mistakes her for his blind date Jessica, a twenty-something city-girl.

Before Nancy can explain, she isn’t who he thinks she is, Jack quotes Silence of the Lambs and Nancy decides to take her big sisters advice and be spontaneous. The newly formed couple stroll around London and get to know each other, or rather Nancy gets to know who he thinks she is.

But this is only the first of many accidental meetings and as Man Up speeds through the various stages of a relationship a few strangers cause for much excitement. Half way through the date Jack finds out he has been having a great time with Nancy – not Jessica- and the perfect date goes terribly wrong. His ex wife (Olivia Williams) complicates matters even more and by the time Nancy and Jack part ways again you can’t help but hope that the story isn’t quite finished. And of course it isn’t – the ridiculousness continues until it’s somewhat silly climax!

Over all Man Up is fun-filled film and delivers on what it promises – a good old fashioned Rom-Com. And while this film may be littered with slapstick moments and witty one-liners it never once tries to be taken serious. Simon Pegg does a good job as straight-laced Jack but the true star of the film is Lake Bell. She sparkles and shines, makes fun of herself throughout and is a joy to watch.

So if you are looking for a light fill to enjoy and quickly forget Man Up is your best bet – the perfect date-night or girls-night-out movie.

 

 

Think like a Man (Act like a Lady)

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Act like a Lady Think like a Man, Chris Brown, entertainment, Film Review, Gabrielle Union, He’s just not that into You, Kevin Hart, Meagan Good, Michael Ealy, reviews, rom-com, Steve Harvey, Think like a Man

Just like the dating book “He’s just not that into You” Steve Harvey’s bestseller “Act like a Lady, Think like a Man” has now been scooped up by Hollywood and turned into a motion picture.

Centring around a group of friends from an interracial Basketball team and the women in their lives the story follows how both men and women play the dating-game.

Entertainer Steve Harvey and his book link the stories together by unabashedly stereotyping the characters into categories: The Peter Pan type, the man who just does not want to grow up and take on responsibility; the Mama’s Boy, the man who always puts his mother first, the Hit-and-Quit-it guy, the man who stops being romantic once he has had sex, or the “cookie” as Harvey calls it and then there is the woman who acts like a man.

As each sub-plot plays out the book gives solutions to each problem, like the 90-day rule before she surrenders the “cookie”, or make him chose between his mother and you and so forth. Sadly the film fails to be original, the script is not very funny and the talented cast (Michael Ealy, Chris Brown, Kevin Hart, Gabrielle Union, Meagan Good etc) seems flat.

In many ways “Think like a Man” feels like an African-American version of “He’s just not into you”, it has the same structure of mix and match stories, the characters are only superficial and there is no real passion or twists to the plot. The solutions for the problems are either common sense or just a whole load of nonsense and it doesn’t help that Steve Harvey pops up throughout the movie pretending to know it all. More often than not it feels like one long advertisement for the book but just not selling it.

As rom-coms go “Think like a Man” is no worse than many out there, but if you are looking for laugh-out-loud moments or clever punch lines they are few and far between and you always see them coming.  Overall it may be better to spend the night at home with a box of cookies and watch on-demand TV.