Best of 2012

So, 2012 was really the year of action movies.  I love chick flicks, but there weren’t many worth mentioning this year (maybe Salmon Fishing in the Yemen or One For the Money, but they didn’t make it into my top ten).  Here’s my top ten list, which are in no particular order (and bear in mind that there are many movies from this year I haven’t seen yet):

The Avengers-Robert Downey Jr + Chris Evans + Joss Whedon + Mark Ruffalo + Chris Hemsworth = Total and complete awesomeness!

The Dark Knight Rises-This movie blew my mind.  Anne Hathaway was amazing.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey-I love Martin Freeman.  I can’t wait for some Benedict Cumberbatch and Lee Pace in the next ones.

Les Miserables-I love music and I love Hugh Jackman.  I was kind of blown away by the singing and acting in this movie.  I anticipated being disappointed, but I wasn’t.

Brave-I have been told I am Merida, but that’s mostly just for my crazy, curly red hair.

Wreck-It Ralph-I thought I would hate this movie, but it just wasn’t to be.  Loved it!

Pitch Perfect-With a little less puking and a little less sex-talk, this movie would have been just about perfect.  Like I said, I love music.

The Hunger Games-I’m so glad they downplayed the violence.  Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson were great.

People Like Us-I know that this wasn’t a super popular movie, but I quite enjoyed it.  Chris Pine and Elizabeth Banks were completely believable as siblings.

The Life of Pi-This movie was amazing.  I don’t know if I will ever watch it again because it took such an emotional toll on me.  I mean, a girl can only cry so much.

Honorable Mentions:

John Carter

Skyfall

Mirror Mirror

Rise of the Guardians

Trouble with the Curve

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

E’s Favorite Varnishes

(These are not necessarily polishes that came out this year, just ones that were reviewed by us this year)

Sephora + Pantone Rose Dawn (Sleeping Beauty)

All That Glitters Book Smart Beauty (Beauty and the Beast)

Zoya Anthea (Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan)

Duri Unexpected Kiss (Flipped)

OPI Mermaid’s Tears (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides)

Butter London Lady Muck (The Princess Bride)

Sephora by OPI Who Let the Dorks Out (Sydney White)

OPI Ocean Love Potion (Ponyo)

OPI Skull and Glossbones (Peter Pan)

OPI Out of This World (John Carter)

K’s Favorite Varnishes

Butter London Victoriana (The Young Victoria)

Color Club Gift of Sparkle (Ramona and Beezus)

Zoya Blaze

a-england Princess Tears (Tangled)

Sephora + Pantone Universe Purple Parachute

Revlon Whimsical (Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium)

Cirque Dark Horse (The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad)

Pretty Serious Creature Crush

Hare Polish The Monster (Monsters Inc.)

Barielle Falling Star (Stardust)

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Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time & Revlon Sandstorm

Prince of Persia is a great movie.  Okay, maybe great isn’t the right word—enjoyable is probably a better description.  Yes, there are cheesy bits and the plot is a little meandering, but regardless of its flaws, I wish Prince of Persia had been more successful; I would have loved to see where they would take the story and characters.

Dastan is the adopted third son of the King of Persia, and he is a bit of a reckless show off.  He and his brothers invade a sacred city under the advice of their uncle.  During the battle, Dastan comes into possession of a remarkable dagger that has the power to turn back time.  He meets Princess Tamina, a guardian of the sands of time, and they form an immediate dislike for each other.  After Dastan is accused of murdering his father the King, he and Tamina set off on an adventure to prove his innocence and end up on a mission to save the world.

This movie is filled with action, and I think Jake is quite good as an action hero.  The best parts of the movie however is the constant bickering and mounting attraction between Tamina and Dastan.  Only after they stop trying to sabotage each other and work together do they ever really start to accomplish either of their goals.  The chemistry between Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Atherton really makes this movie for me.  Well, that and Jake himself.  What I can say?  It’s those eyes—those eyes.  Completely beautiful.

Also along for the ride are Alfred Molina as an ostrich-racing entrepreneur and Steve Toussaint, as his knife-throwing companion.  Ben Kingsley, who seems to love playing the bad guy, is kind of forgettable as the villain.  It’s pretty obvious from the very beginning that (spoilers!) the king’s brother turns out to be after the crown.

Revlon’s Sandstorm is an absolutely gorgeous color.  It is one of those shades that I just think looks marvelous on me.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t crazy about the formula.  I have no idea how old this polish is, but it clumped quite a bit.  This led me to believe that it was a quick drying polish, which was not the case.  I ended up with lines all over on my left hand nails.  I do have to say that the coverage was quite good though, since I almost could have gotten away with one coat.  I decided to go for two to try to smooth everything out.

Kind of like Prince of Persia, Sandstorm wasn’t perfect, but I still enjoyed it. ~E

Daredevil & Revlon Devil’s Lure

I know. Daredevil is hardly anyone’s favorite superhero movie, but you know what? I like it. I kind of have a thing for blind heroes…and Ben Affleck…you know, before he got all scruffy and director-y.

This is the story of Matt Murdock (Ben Affleck), a blind lawyer by day and hardcore vigilante by night. Because of his blindness (caused by some toxic sludge when he was young), his other senses are hugely enhanced and he can zip around the city without fear. Matt has made it his mission to make criminals pay whenever the legal system lets them off the hook, and his personal life has suffered because of his commitment. When he meets heiress Elektra Natchios (Jennifer Garner), he is instantly smitten by her feistiness and her comparable martial arts skills. But when Elektra’s father is murdered and Daredevil is blamed for it, Matt has to protect Elektra while she tries to kill him.

This is Ben and Jennifer’s second movie together (the first was Pearl Harbor, in case you were wondering), but this is the one that brought them together after the disaster that was “Bennifer” (y’know, when he was with Jennifer Lopez…I guess technically he’s still part of a “Bennifer”). Their chemistry is really good and their fight scenes are awesome. Colin Farrell is appropriately creepy as villain Bullseye (Colin was born to play badguys–he’s got those crazy eyes) and Michael Clarke Duncan (I miss him) chews the scenery and chomps cigars as ubervillain Kingpin.

This is by no means The Avengers caliber, but it’s not dreadful either. I think it was a bit ahead of its time. Dark superheroes are all the rage now, and they don’t get much darker than Daredevil.

This is Revlon’s Devil’s Lure, a dark maroon creme that matches Daredevil’s costume. This picture is 3 coats and it’s still a bit spotty and extremely bubbly. I wasn’t entirely impressed, but I find that Revlon’s polishes are usually hit-and-miss, especially older ones like this. ~K

Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium & Revlon Whimsical

So, I know I’m in the minority here, but I love Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. It’s a movie about loss, but handled with so much care and dignity, that the loss is transformed into something triumphal.

Mr. Magorium (Dustin Hoffman) owns a magical toy store (and I do mean magical) and lives every day of his very long life to the fullest. However, when he decides that it’s time for him to retire (from the store and from life) he has to convince the store’s manager, Mahoney (Natalie Portman) that she is special (and magical) enough to keep the Emporium going without him. Aiding in this task are Eric (Zach Mills), a lonely 9-year-old with an amazing hat collection and Henry (Jason Bateman), Magorium’s stick-in-the-mud accountant (or “mutant” as they call him).

The score is beautiful (lots of waltzes…I love waltzes) and the production design is truly astonishing. Dustin Hoffman is having a ton of fun and takes his role more seriously than he seems to take a lot of his roles these days. Natalie Portman is adorable and makes Mahoney sparkle. Zach Mills turns the childlike wonder up to 11 and makes me wish I was 9 again (wow…there were a lot of numbers in that sentence…). And for my favorite…I don’t know what it is about Jason Bateman, but I love him! The moment when his character finally loosens up and let’s himself have some fun is wonderful.

This movie might not be for everyone, but if you can turn off your grown up brain and remember the fun of being a child, you might just love it as much as I do.

Revlon’s Whimsical is a very cool polish. It is a pale blue jelly base with pink and blue hexagon glitter, smaller silver hexagon glitter and tiny opalescent glitter. This picture is 3 coats, and as you can see, it’s very sheer. Someday I’ll try putting it over something, but I kind of liked the sheer look as well. ~K