Just Finished Reading: (catch-up edition)

The internet here wasn't working for a few weeks, which totally sucked. Thank the lord, however, because it magically started working again today. In the time that the internet has been broken I have read three different books. Instead of writing three separate blog posts about each different book, I have decided to combine them all into one big one, so here we go...

Pride and Prejudice

This is my second Austen book that I have read, but unlike Emma, I already knew pretty much everything that was going to happen. I have seen both the 1940 and the 2007 film versions of this novel, and really liked both of them. The book was definitely worth the read, however. I never thought that I would be a Jane Austen fan, but reading this and Emma really make me want to read her other novels.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

I actually bought this book for my little sisters for Christmas, but neither of them have read it yet. I decided to have a crack at it because its a book that I've always wanted to read. I ended up reading it all in one day (which is something that I never do.) What I love about this particular book is that it has really cool illustrations by Camille Rose Garcia. Every single one of her illustrations in the book is just awesome.

Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn

I've actually had this book since I was in high school, but never read it until now. It was a really interesting read, and it was cool reading about how she lived through a war and how she got started in show business. The entire time I was reading this it made me really want to watch Roman Holiday, Sabrina, and Breakfast at Tiffany's (because those are the movies of hers that I own...) and made me really want to rent The Children's Hour. One thing that did kind of bug me was that the author seemed to go on tangents about other actors, like Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly. I really like them, but I'm reading this to learn about Audrey, not them.

Spotlight On: Audrey Hepburn

This week's spotlight is on one of Hollywood's most radiant, talented, graceful, and beautiful actresses to ever appear on film. I have been a big fan of Audrey's ever since I saw Breakfast at Tiffany's when I was in junior high. I have only seen a handful of her films, but she was amazing in everything that I saw her in. Here are the films of hers that I have seen.

Roman Holiday (1953)

In Roman Holiday, Audrey plays a princess who is bored with her completely scheduled life. So, one day, after taking her sleeping pills, she decides to run away. A journalist, played by Gregory Peck, thinks that she is drunk and decides to help her. Eventually, he finds out who she is and decides to write a story about her while he shows her around Rome. Then they fall in love...of course. This is the movie that won Audrey her Oscar and it really showcases both her charm as well as her comedic talents.




Sabrina (1954)

I actually saw the remake of this with Harrison Ford before I was this one. I have to say that this one is much much better. Audrey plays Sabrina Fairchild, the daughter of the chauffer for the rich Lareby family. She is in love with the younger son, who doesn't notice her at first. After she comes back from Paris, however, he starts to notice, which causes problems for his family. So Linus, played by Humphrey Bogart, decides to woo Sabrina to get her to stop loving his brother.



Funny Face (1957)

This a film where Audrey is paired yet again with a man who is a lot older than her. This time it is Fred Astaire, who I really loved in Swing Time. While Audrey doesn't have the greatest singing voice in the world, she has been great in the few musicals that she has done.



Breakfast At Tiffany's (1961)

This is the film that Audrey is most known for. She plays a call girl named Holly Golightly. Apparently, Truman Capote wanted Marilyn Monroe to play her and thought that Audrey was all wrong for the part. Looking at her previous films you can kind of see where he is coming from because this is completely casting her against type. Nevertheless, now we can't see anyone else playing Holly Golightly.



My Fair Lady (1964)

What's odd about this film is that Audrey's singing voice is dubbed by another woman whose voice is nothing like hers. Regardless of this, Audrey is great as Eliza Doolittle, the cockney flower girl who is being transformed into a girl fit for high society.



Wait Until Dark (1967)

Audrey Hepburn is the last person I'd ever  think would be in a horror film. Here she plays a blind woman who is being terrorized by people who believe that she has a doll full of drugs in her house.

My Favorite Movie Kisses

In honor of tomorrow being Valentine's Day, I am making a list of my favorite movie kisses. I have never been a huge fan of romance films, but these are the kisses that left an impression on me.

The Kiss (1896)

The one that started it all....this is the first kiss ever put on film.



The Gold Rush (1925)

I saw this movie for the first time a few days ago, and I thought that this was the cutest thing I had ever seen. I'm pissed because the only version of The Gold Rush that I could find on Youtube was the reissue where this end scene was cut out. Since you can't watch it I will try to describe it for you. Charlie Chaplin's character has just become a multi-millionaire and this group of journalists are writing a story on him. While on the ship, he sees his love Georgia and they decide to put her in a picture they take of him. So they stand them next to eachother with their faces really close together, but before they take the photo, he leans in and kisses her.

Gone With the Wind (1939)

It is the kiss that convinces Scarlett to marry Rhett. I just love it because she is spending the whole scene laughing at his marriage proposal, but as soon as he kisses her shes like, "okay..." You'll find better videos of this one Youtube, but this is the only one that I could find that I could embed.




Notorious (1946)

I love this one because it's sneaky...The Production Code at the time said that kisses could be no longer than three seconds, so instead of having a really long kiss, they had a bunch of little ones.



From Here to Eternity (1953)

I'm not going to lie...I have never actually seen this entire movie. I have seen this kiss several times on other movies and always thought that it was a really nice kiss...




On the Waterfront (1954)

This is probably the sexiest kiss on my list and not just because it has the beautiful Marlon Brando. I love it because the music swells up in the scene, but as soon as he kisses her it just stops and all you hear is their breathing....



Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

This is such a good movie! I love Audrey Hepburn, and this is probably my favorite romance film. I love this kissing scene because its when she realizes that she loves him, it is in the rain, and they have her pet cat between them. It is just a really good scene.

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Even though she said that she'd just as soon kiss a Wookiee as kiss Han Solo, this is the moment when Leia finally gives in to his charms.




Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Not the most romantic kiss in the world, but it is still quite memorable...



Moulin Rouge (2001)

I love this movie so much!!! It came out when I was 11 and I was in love with Ewan McGregor and thought that this was the greatest movie of all time. My favorite part was always when they sang the Elephant Love Medley and then kissed after it was over...



Spiderman (2002)

This is definitely one of the most creative kisses I've seen on film, and I just love it!



Wall-E (2008)

CUTE!!!!!!!!