''Hope will never be silent''

I am one of those people who is really bad about saying every single movie is my favorite.
I believe, though, it is fair to say a movie is my favorite of it's genre.
Milk is my favorite biopic.

Milk is based on the story of Harvey Milk, who was the 1st openly gay politician to be elected to San Francisco's Board of Supervisor's in the year 1977. He had failed to win the seat twice before, but he and his supporters on Castro never gave up hope. He broke down so many barriers against gay rights, and never stopped in fear of loosing his life. Harvey was a BIG contributor to the gay rights movement.

The movie chronicles Harvey Milk's life from his 40th birthday, up until his memorial a few days after his assassination.

Not only is this story amazing because it is so inspirational, but also because it's  being told by an all-star cast, including James Franco, Victor Garber, Josh Brolin, Alison Pill, Diego Luna, Emile Hirsch, and Sean Penn as Harvey.

I'm going to be honest, I had a serious thing against Emile Hirsch for the LONGEST time. Then I saw this movie, and I started liking him. I'm not sure why I didn't like him before, but he plays Cleve Jones, my 2nd favorite character in the story!

The movie came out in 2008, and won 2 Oscars.
One for Dustin Lance Black, for best writing/original screenplay.
The other for Sean Penn's performance.

Both very much deserved. (:

I also love the music for this movie. It makes me SO mad that Napster doesn't have the Milk soundtrack for free! I LOVE Danny Elfman, and all the music he composes. This is just another example of how wonderful he is!

The reason I wrote this particular blog post about this particular movie, is because 3 days ago was the 33 year anniversary of when Harvey Milk and Mayor Moscone were assassinated by Dan White.
This is in honor of one of the most inspirational men in political history.
Milk is a must see.

It's beginning to look/smell/feel a lot like Christmas!!!

So my little brother Vincent loves Frosty the Snowman. Watching it literally 15 TIMES today has inspired this blog post for the night. (:

I have always loved the holidays. I am in love with anything peppermint, the music, the feeling of the season, the togetherness of family. But as you can guess, my favorite part of the holidays are the movies that we get to watch! (:

When I was 5 years old, I remember going to the movie theatre down the street and watching How the Grinch Stole Christmas for the first time. I laughed SO hard, and to this day I still laugh at the same exact parts! Somehow, this movie has become one of the best quotable movies of my childhood (and occasionally teenage years!). My favorite part, you may ask?

This: http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=S6cAJHoUhiA

I do have other favorites though!
I grew up watching Irving Berlin's White Christmas, featuring Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney. I absolutely ADORE this movie! One of my favorite musicals! It's such a feel-good movie, with dancing, singing, romance, humor, and of course Christmas. I love the ''Choreography'' of the movie (and the song ;D ). I have to admit though, I am always annoyed with Vera-Ellen (who plays the character Judy). Why? Because in every single song/dance sequence she is in, she is constantly looking straight at the camera. I dunno, I'm a bit odd, but it really bothers me.
Otherwise, wonderful story line, and memorable music (:

I feel obligated to mention Meet Me in St. Louis.
It isn't necessarily just a Christmas time movie (trust me, I watch it year round!), but it has one of my favorite Christmas songs EVER in it. It is towards the end, when Judy Garland's character comes home from her family's supposed last dance in St. Louis (before they move to New York) and finds her little sister in her room, awake, waiting for Santa Claus to come. Judy sings ''Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'', and the scene brings me to tears every time. Such a sad scene, and such a beautiful voice!

The rest of the holiday movies I love are the common cartoons: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

My favorite CARTOON Christmas movie though has got to be Santa Claus is Coming to Town, with the voice talents of Fred Astaire and Mickey Rooney. I prefer the story of how Santa came to be, and the music is fun and light-hearted! (:

Two special ones that I forgot to mention but LOVE: A Christmas Story and Elf.
I literally only watch A Christmas Story on TBS, when they play it for 24 hours Christmas Eve to Christmas night.
Elf, well, I watch that ANY opportunity possible! (:

''Readers, this is the beginning of a beautiful Bloggership''

^^ I really wanted to kick off with some sort of famous quote. Casablanca seemed appropriate! (:

So if you don't already know me, my name's Alexis. I am 16 years old, a junior in high school.
I am apart of the theatre and choir department (LOVE performing arts).
But my one true passion is cinema. Many of my friends don't know this about me, but I am a complete movie buff. I watch every movie someone suggests to me, and love to critique them. Movie discussions are the best!

Even as a kid, I wouldn't have what adults would call 'normal' conversations. I would, as a 3-5 year old, speak in movie quotes. I was in love with cinema early on! (:

One of my most prized possessions is a book I FINALLY bought for myself over the summer, 1001 Movies to see Before You Die. I admit, I had only seen maybe 50 of them. But since I got the book, I've seen over 40 new movies, most of which I've enjoyed. But I'm definitely not afraid to say I don't like something.

A few months ago, I started thinking about college. I didn't really know what I wanted to do with my life, after high school. I knew I loved cinema, but I knew I didn't have the looks of a Hollywood actress, the music abilities to be a composer, or the guts to be a director. Then it hit me: Film Critic.

I am so sure of this, I can't believe I didn't think of it years ago.
But I am set now, and my ultimate goal in life is to be on the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. I am DETERMINED beyond all reason to make it.

So, this is where my journey begins. This blog. I've never really written a film critique before, and I'm a little nervous I'll admit. We all have a beginning though. And this, my friends, is mine. (:


Movie Fun Fact: My 1st Favorite Movie as a baby/toddler was The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh