Movies — Page 7

Sneak Peek at The Lone Ranger – with Johnny Depp!

Sneak Peek at the new Lone Ranger movie – with Johnny Depp!

Yep, you read that right – that guy on the left is Johnny Depp, in his new role in the pretty epic looking film update – The Lone Ranger. I have very few details, but it looks pretty awesome…

From producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski comes Disney/Bruckheimer Films’ THE LONE RANGER. Tonto (Johnny Depp), a spirit warrior on a personal quest, joins forces in a fight for justice with John Reid (Armie Hammer), a lawman who has become a masked avenger.

THE LONE RANGER will be released in May 2013 – How are we gonna wait that long??

Posted by Meagan Paullin on March 8, 2012 Filed Under: Fun Stuff | No Comments

Kids Change Everything! – #FriendsWithKids

Friends with Kids

I got an email about this movie this morning – and it looks SO good! How is it that I had never even heard of this? I just watched the trailer – and it looks so super funny. I figured, if I hadn’t heard of it – Maybe you hadn’t either? And since it comes to theaters this Friday, March 9th – I don’t want you to miss it!

How it all gets started…

Friends With Kids is a daring and poignant ensemble comedy about a close-knit circle of friends at that moment in life when children arrive and everything changes. The last two singles in the group observe the effect that kids have had on their friends’ relationships and wonder if there’s a better way. They decide to have a kid together – and date other people. {Admit it – you wonder if maybe that isn’t such a bad idea, lol.}

Where it gets funny…

Jennifer Westfeldt wrote, directed, and stars in the romantic comedy Friends
with Kids. She plays Julie, a Manhattanite whose biological clock is about to run out, so she convinces her longtime platonic best friend, Jason (Adam Scott) to father a child with her. They seem to have a much easier time juggling the responsibilities of new parenthood without the complication of being in a relationship with each other, which is in contrast to the two couples they are closest to. As their friends’ marriages implode, Julie and Jason’s happy equilibrium topples over as well when he falls for a hot young artist (Megan Fox) and she begins dating a successful businessman (Edward Burns).

The Happy Ending…

There are big laughs and unexpected emotional truths as this unconventional
‘experiment’ leads everyone in the group to question the nature of friendship, family and, finally, true love.

Learn More:

Friends With Kids stars some of my FAVORITE people – Adam Scott (“Parks and Recreation”), Jennifer Westfeldt, Jon Hamm, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Chris O’Dowd, Megan Fox and Edward Burns.
Written and directed by Jennifer Westfeldt (Kissing Jessica Stein).
Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions will release Friends With Kids on
March 9, 2012.

Posted by Meagan Paullin on March 7, 2012 Filed Under: Fun Stuff | No Comments

Free Lorax Valentine’s Printables!

Free Valentine’s Day Printables for Kids

Who doesn’t love Dr. Seuss, right? So many of my favorite books as a little girl were Dr. Seuss books…. My very favorite ever was There’s a Wocket in My Pocket! – There’s a line at the very end, “That’s the kind of house I live in, and I hope I never leave it!” – I have a big blended household of extended family living with me right now, and things get pretty crazy living with so many people, so I say this all the time, lol. I’m also really excited to see the brand new movie, The Lorax! Did you catch the cute clip during the Superbowl?

Get Free Lorax Printables for Valentine’s Day!

Head on over to the Lorax Blog to print out bunches of fun Lorax themed printables for Valentine’s Day – The kids can use them to make their own cards to hand out at school, and you can check out more fun clips from the movie too! Even bigger kids are going to get excited about this movie – It stars little mister heart throb Zac Efron, and everyone’s favorite girl-next-door, Taylor Swift. It also features one of my favorite funny ladies – Betty White!

You can find The Lorax on Facebook and Twitter – And learn some great “green” tips for your family on the Lorax website too!

{Disclosure: No compensation of any type was received for this. I am excited to see the movie, and know you’ll love it too! Happy Valentine’s Day!}

Posted by Meagan Paullin on February 11, 2012 Filed Under: Fun Stuff | No Comments

Finding Nemo 3D in Theaters – Take a Sneak Peek!

Finding Nemo in 3D!

I am so super excited about this – Did you know that Finding Nemo is going to be in theaters, in 3D!! – September 14th, 2012??!! Love it. This was one of my very favorite movies… Although I admit, I’m a sap, and always fast forwarded through the very beginning. I hated watching the family getting taken away. Take a sneak peek at the trailer…

Perfect Family Movie

Doesn’t that make you excited to see this again – especially in 3D? The animation in this movie is already so beautiful, I can’t wait to see how cool in looks in the updated version. It’s also super funny and entertaining – I’m a lot like Dory, so she’s my favorite :) And, it’s such a good message for parents – While we all want to hold on to our babies as tight as we can, our job is to teach them to fend for themselves, and eventually let them go. The whole, giving them wings to leave the nest thing. Yes, like I said, I’m a sap! This movie makes me cry every time….

Who else is super excited for this to hit theaters?

Posted by Meagan Paullin on January 25, 2012 Filed Under: Reviews | 2 Comments

Busy Moms Movie Night – #CouchCritics #CBias

“The phrase ‘working mother’ is redundant.” – Jane Sellman

December was such a busy month around our house. I took on way more projects than I should have – {I have much more enthusiasm than I do time, lol} – plus the traditional craziness of the holidays. By the time January rolled in, we were all pretty worn out, I was definitely over-worked, and we were all ready for things to get back to normal again. So of course, instead of that – we all got sick! Abby and I both have been sick for weeks now, so I figured that this was a perfect time for a lazy, mommy-baby, snuggle up movie night. I had just the movie in mind too – “I Don’t Know How She Does It”, with the always fun Sarah Jessica Parker, since it’s all about life as a busy momma. So we headed to our favorite Redbox kiosk up the road to get this “Girls Night In” started.

Things {as usual} did not go as planned

We live a ways out of town, so there is only one store with a Redbox anywhere near-by. And wouldn’t you know it – the movie wasn’t available! I wasn’t sure what else to get, since my heart was totally set on this movie. Then I remembered – Redbox.com! I hopped online, typed in the movie name and my zip code – and BAM, it showed me the closest three rental kiosks to go and pick it up. Awesome, right? You can even pay for the movie right on the site, to reserve your copy until you get there – so you KNOW you can get it. Perfect.

“A suburban mother’s role is to deliver children obstetrically once, and by car for ever after.” – Peter De Vries

We drove into town and found the next closest kiosk, and since I’d already paid for my movie online, I only had to hop out into the cold for a minute to get my movie – which was great, since it was starting to snow! Luckily, this Redbox is under the roof of the store, and tucked into a cozy corner, so it wasn’t tooooo cold. Getting the movie I had reserved was quick and easy as can be.

Easy Peasy and Ready to Roll

A few buttons to push, and out came my movie! I love Redbox. And I loooved this movie, in case you were wondering if it was worth the bit of extra trouble that I went through to get it. Here’s the basics – Sarah Jessica Parker plays a super busy mom named Kate, who is struggling to balance life as a mom, and as a businesswoman. {Um, can you say – totally relate?} Years ago, we grew up with our own moms telling us that we can “have it all” – a family and a career. I grew up thinking that I could be super woman. But – once you have it “all”, it’s a lot harder to manage than anyone told me it would be! This movie really focuses on those struggles that we all go through, whether you work out of the home or from your home, like I do. Being a mom, a wife, a boss, a friend – there are so many roles that we play each day. Watching Kate do her best to find the balance that we all search for made for a totally entertaining movie – Loved it.

Love Movie Night Too?

If you’re a Redbox junkie like we are – make sure that you’re following them on Facebook, and find them on Twitter, @redbox – You’ll find out about cool promotions, discount codes, and new releases!

{Disclaimer: This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias. Photos and movie review are 100% my own opinions.}

Posted by Meagan Paullin on January 16, 2012 Filed Under: Busy Mom Solution | 1 Comment

Use ‘Family Movie Night’ to Get Your Kids Talking

Family Movie Night

Family Movie Night from Walmart and P&G is such a great idea – It’s exactly what I hear so many moms wishing for, yet so many people haven’t heard of this yet. The idea is to make amazing movies that teach valuable lessons, share important values, and inspire children to reach for great things. P&G partnered with Walmart to get these great movies broadcast on network TV, for free, to make sure that every family gets a chance to enjoy them. One of my favorite parts of the Family Movie Night programming is that they ensure even the commercials are family-friendly. I find it so irresponsible when there are beer commercials, or other adult themed stuff, during programming that is meant for families.

Game of Your Life

Game of Your Life is the newest Family Movie Night program, and is on this Friday night, December 2 on NBC at 8pm ET/7pm CT. As a partner at Mom Central, I got the opportunity to check out this new movie early, so I could share a review with you guys. Well…. I don’t want to spoil any surprises, but I can tell you that you will NOT be disappointed in this one. The kiddo’s all piled onto my bed with me to watch this, and it actually kept everyone’s attention. {Well, except for the one time when little guy hit bigger guy with his toy truck, and then baby girl fell off the bed. Thank goodness for the pause button. But no one was hurt in the viewing of this movie, and the little bump was cured with more popcorn, so all was well….} Here’s the “official” movie description…

“When gamer Zach Taylor lands a scholarship to an exclusive video game design program, his future looks promising…as long as he can survive the freshmen project that will eliminate half the class. But when Zach learns that his father is in financial trouble, he has to make a choice that will affect his future and the lives of everyone around him.”

Did someone say, “Video Games??”

My oldest nephew was completely excited to learn that you can go to school and learn about video games. He now tells everyone he is going to start reading more, because he has to get ready for college {he just turned 8} – His seriousness is pretty funny, but I am delighted to see his excitement about school – he’s never mentioned college before. So THANK YOU Family Movie Night, for helping that little idea grow in his brain!

Great Message & Great Entertainment

Just like the other Family Movie Nights we’ve tuned in to, this movie gave us a lot of great things to talk about when it was over. We started out talking about school, and why it’s so important to study and pay attention in class. We talked about family, and the different ways that we all help each other out. We live in a really blended house right now, with my brother and his two boys joining my boyfriend, me, and Abby – plus my mother, and her 4 little dogs. And my dog. And the fish. {I know, right? It’s very tough on my organizing OCD, but I manage, lol.} So we talked about how lucky we are to get to spend time together, and help each other – and brainstormed new ways that we could show everyone how much we appreciate them. We talked about how the choices each of us make every day affect the rest of us – good and bad. The kids shared so many great thoughts, it was wonderful to listen to their ideas. Loved it.

All of that from a movie?

Yes sir – which is why I recommend you check it out this Friday night, and enjoy a fun movie with your family! You can learn more about Family Movie Night on their website, or follow them on Facebook, so you never miss a great show!

Remember, “Game of Your Life” – Catch it this Friday night, December 2 on NBC at 8pm ET/7pm CT.

{Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of P&G and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate. But as always, all thoughts, ideas, and opinions here are 100% mine!}

Posted by Meagan Paullin on November 30, 2011 Filed Under: Reviews | No Comments

Movie Review: The True Story of Puss ‘N Boots

Title: The True Story of Puss’n Boots

Actors: William Shatner, Yolande Moreau
Directors: Jerome Deschamps, Pascal Herold
Rated: G (General Audience)

The anticipation…

I received a free copy of this new movie to review as a Team Mom with Child’s Play Communications – and the kids were super excited when we got this in the mail! I had to make them wait over 2 weeks to watch it, since I wanted to watch it with them so I could share it with you guys – and I swear, little guy asked me every darn day if we could watch the cat movie yet! So, this past weekend we finally made a movie day, and I snuggled up on the couch with little guy and baby girl to check this out…..

What we loved:

The animation in this was gorgeous. I’m still amazed sometimes that when I was a kid we had Atari’s and Looney Tunes, and the kids now have Wii’s and these realistic graphics! The scenes are so pretty, full of color and texture, and just perfect. There was enough action and adventure to keep little guy intrigued through the whole movie, and Abby giggled and danced along with the princess during the singing scenes – so adorable, and made the whole movie worth watching!

What I didn’t Love:

This movie features William Shatner, who I have to admit, I am a big fan of! My mom and I used to watch Star Trek together when I was a little girl, and I thought he was soooo cool. I was hoping he’d use his regular voice as Puss ‘N Boots, and was a bit disappointed that he didn’t – but the kids loved it, and I guess that’s the important part. I think the movie could’ve gotten a few more big kid fans like me though, if they’d had him use his real voice :) And, while the movie kept the kids full attention the entire time, and totally entertained them – I’ll admit, it confused me a bit. The story was quite a bit different than the fairy tale as I remember it, {again, not something that the kids would notice} the King and Queen were a bit odd, and it just felt a little strange at points. BUT – since the kiddo’s loved it, and it’s a movie for them, and the animation is so great – I give it two thumbs up!

How to find it:

You can purchase The True Story of Puss’n Boots at Amazon for $17.49, and it’s available for rent at most Redbox rentals. You can also visit the official Puss ‘N Boots website for more info, and some fun interactive features!

{Disclaimer: As I mentioned, I received a complimentary copy of this DVD to review as a Team Mom for Child’s Play Communication to review, so that I could share my thoughts with you – but as always, I speak the truth :) All opinions are 100% my own!}