So not too long ago I was able to go and see Dear John with a close friend and I loved it! I was such a beautiful story! I want to see it again. I thought I would try my hand at a review of the movie, but I’m not sure how it will turn out?

The movie Dear John is based off the the book (same name) by Nicholas Sparks. Nicholas Sparks has also written books such as The Notebook, A Walk to Remember, and the latest (about to be a movie too) The Last Song. I personally haven’t read the book Dear John, but after seeing the movie I think it will be the next book I am getting. The story revolves around John (played by Channing Tatum) and Savannah (played by Amanda Seyfried) and their romance. It starts when they meet during John’s leave from the military and evolves over the next two weeks till John has to go back. They both agree to keep in contact through letters for a year till John is relieved of his duty to the military. However, after the year 9/11 happens and John feels the need to reinlist. The rest of the movie shows whether or not John and Savannah’s romance can survive and how it will affect each other. Dear John is rate PG-13 for some sensuality and violence.

Some of the big issues would be (this may contain spoilers):

Violence:
The reason violence is included in in the rating is because one John (played by Channing Tatum) is a soldier and part of movie shows him overseas whether in Africa or the Middle East.

Two the movie opens with John getting shot by two bullets. Blood is shown is a slow motion way as John is hit.

Three about a fourth through the movie John gets in a fight with some of Savannah’s (played by Amanda Seyfried) friends, who are drunk. While trying to stop the fight another friend of Savannah, Tim, is elbowed in the face by John. We later see Tim’s swollen black eye from the hit (John does apologize for it saying that he didn’t know it was Tim who came behind him).

Sensuality Part:
Nicholas Sparks claims that he doesn’t put premarital sex in his books, however, the movies seem to have them. Though if compared to other movies that have come out Dear John is minor. Dear John contains several kisses, some more passionate, between John and Savannah.  One of the first kisses is shared between John and Savannah as she sits on his lap under a shelter as it is raining.

The interesting thing is that leading up to that kiss Savannah tells John that she “doesn’t sleep around,” yet about halfway through the movie she gives herself to John before he leaves for overseas. This moment takes place in a barn where it is dark. We see John’s bare chest and glimpses of Savannah’s undergarments. Other sensitive parts are covered for view by arms or hair. They kiss passionately but we never actually see them have sex, the scene closes before anything else is shown.

There is also a scene that shows John and Savannah tickling and wrestling with each other while in John’s room.

Language:
From what I remember there was several uses of the sh**, d*mn, h*ll. There were also several misuses of God’s name and Jesus’ name.

Age group I would recommend this for: 17+
Because this movie does contain some sexuality I would recommend it for an older teen audience and up. Teens need to see love that can be true and happy without having sex. So many movies today show that if your “in love” you should have sex. I couldn’t disagree more being what the world says is “being in love” really means “lusting after.” However, Dear John does do a good job at showing a self-sacrificing love (more John’s than Savannah’s). Being a 19 year old girl I of course love romance movies and it is hard to find them nowadays without a ton of sex, but I think that Dear John is a movie that can be shared between mother and daughter or between your friends.

Overall:
Overall I think that this was a great movie that showcased John’s selflessness and love that he had for Savannah. At the same time it shows John’s relationship with his father and how it evolves of the film and John’s feeling of duty that he has to his nation after the 9/11 attack. I think I cried more over what John went through and how he acted during the trying times.  The movie definitely has tons of moments that will make you cry! I would recommend this movie to anyone who one loves romantic dramas, loves Nicholas Sparks’ books/movies, and who needs a little cry. This is a movie with love, sacrifice, pain, happiness, and lessons that could be learned from John, but I don’t want to ruin it for you. So go see it!

Okay so I just watched this movie a couple of nights ago and it was absolutely AWESOME!!! I cried through most if not all of the movie! This movie is about a relationship between a husband and wife who are going through a extremely difficult time. But on top of being about the relationship between spouses, it is also about relationships between friends, co-workers, parents, and most importantly God.

The people who made this movie did a phenomenal job and most of the actors and crew members were volunteers from the local church! That is just amazing! You could tell by some of the special features that they were very God-centered or focused while filming this movie, and were more concerned with reaching a lot people through the movie’s message. The main message of this movie is, “Never leave your partner behind,” which in an of itself is important and nowadays so many people do not take marriage vows seriously. When saying, “For better or for worse” you are making a promise, a commitment. This movie really deals with this issue as well as with our relationship with God, another relationship that people take for granted.

I would definitely recommend this movie for anyone! It is amazing and very touching. Younger children may not understand the message they are trying to get across (or may not understand why everyone is crying, because you will be crying!) so it may be better for teens and older just because they will be able to grasp the meaning of relationships a little more. But it is a movie that should be added to your movie collection!

I am a music fanatic! Lately I have been into more of the dance/electronic pop kind of music. A lot of the mainstream artists have been using that sound, so I was excited when my Dad found the new Krystal Meyers’ cd. After listening to the whole cd, there is not one song on it that I don’t love!

Track Listing:

• Make Some Noise
• Love it Away
• Shine
• S.O.S.
• Feel So Right
• My Freedom
• Beautiful Tonight
• Up to You
• You’ll Never Know
• In Your Hands

One of my favorite songs on this cd is “Love it Away.” In this song Krystal Meyers assures us that God’s love will take away our pain and fear, God is always there for us.  Similarly, on “S.O.S. she cries for God to save her from her pain and problems, and recognizes that “Precious time is taken away/And all that I can do Is pray” and that God alone “can save our souls.” On the song “My Freedom” Krystal Meyers knows that God is the only that save her and free her, “Will you come and wash over me/Like only you can/Will you be my freedom?”. Kinda of going along with that Krystal Meyers puts her life in God’s hands in the song “In Your Hands.”

The more upbeat songs “Make Some Noise” and “Shine” talk about either “We were born to make some noise” and “Nobody’s going to get in the way of my shine.” I really see the song “Make Some Noise” as an anthem for Christians in a way that we need to take a stand in our faith and in our society. We need to “make some noise” or to “shine” and not let the world get in our way or tear us down.

On the other hand Krystal Meyers touches on things that every teenager goes through: love, break-ups, and self-esteem. “Beautiful Tonight” deals with self-esteem and the struggles to be “beautiful” and fit in with the world, “I’m becoming quite a liar/Does that make me beautiful tonight.” The song “Feels So Right” is Krystal Meyers love pop ballad. I think that it is great when Christain artist write “love songs” because it is something we all feel and go through but it is in a way the is, I guess, innocent.” On the other side of love is break-ups, which is what the song “Up to You” is all about. This is another great one when it comes to relationships because no where in this song is she extremely bitter or angry towards the guy but “but at the end of the day I never wanted it to be this way/but I’ll leave it up to you.” That is a big difference when compared to other mainstream atrists who look for revenge or are bitter towards their ex.

This is definetly a cd I would recomend to anyone who enjoys artists like Superchick, Miley Cyrus,or any artist with a strong influenceof 80′s electronic pop.

So I thought that since I listen to sooo much music, in many different genres, I thought I would start giving my thoughts on either an entire CD or a song that I think is worth sharing. These will be completely my opinion on the song/CD and will be music that I listen to (I probably won’t have any songs/CD that I myself wouldn’t listen to). This is my way of sharing the music that I love, listen to, or feel should be shared.

I would love to give my opinion on different books that I have read or am going to read, but I read very slowly and not very often so there will not be many of these. But I will try! Again these will be my opinions and what I thought was good or bad about the book. But the books are more of a hope, not an actual “yes I am going to do them.”

*First CD review will probably be posted tomorrow: Krystal Meyer’s Make Some Noise CD

So sometime yesterday the cover and the release date for the Twilight DVD was released. I am totally excited that I don’t have to wait an eternity for the DVD to come out. That was one thing with The Prince Caspian movie, it was eight months after the theater release that the DVD came out. That is too long for me, especially since I usually don’t see movies in the theater and I have to wait for the DVD release. So for Twilight’s DVD release I only have to wait until March 21st. YAY!!!

So here is the newest news from director Chris Weitz on who exactly is going to play Jacob Black in New Moon:

Dear Twilight Fans,

I’m very happy to announce that Taylor Lautner will be playing Jacob Black in NEW MOON, and that he’s doing so with the enthusiastic support of Summit Entertainment, the producers, and Stephenie Meyer.

The characters in Stephenie’s books go through extraordinary changes of circumstance and also appearance; so it is not surprising that there has been speculation about whether the same actor would portray a character who changes in so many surprising ways throughout the series.

But it was my first instinct that Taylor was, is, and should be Jacob, and that the books would be best served by the actor who is emotionally right for the part.

I think that fans of TWILIGHT, the book and the movie, will be surprised by the Jacob Black that Taylor will bring to the screen in NEW MOON; and I’m looking forward to working with him and the rest of the cast in realizing the film.

Very Best,

Chris Weitz

I think that this is pretty cool! I am still a little concerned because Jacob is supposed to grow so much and look like he is 25 years old, but I definitely think that Taylor Lautner is “emotionally right for the part.” So I think that he will do a great job as Jacob Black and I am totally looking forward to seeing the movie hopefully at the end of the year!

So I just saw the new Twilight movie and absolutely loved it!!! I think they did a great job.  Me and my dad were talking after we saw the movie about whether or not they would make New Moon (the next in the Twilight Series) into a movie.  I think it would be awesome to see because the Volturi would be in it!  So anyway as I got home today I got an e-mail (I signed up for e-mails from Twilight/Summit entertainment) that contained the following (the best part is in the bold print!):

To all of our wonderful, loyal and fantastic fans -

Thank you from the entire cast & crew for your amazing support of Twilight. You’ve blown away all of our expectations, and we feel so honored to have made a film that means as much to you as it does to us.

Without your passion, interaction and support, this film would not be where it is today — the #1 movie in America!

From every city, every stop, every interview we have done, you’ve made this an unbelievable, nearly surreal experience…and so cool that we were all in this together.

We just heard from Summit that we’ll be moving forward on New Moon. We look forward to sharing this next chapter with you!

Kristen & Rob

AHHHH!!!  So I guess my hopes and wishes came true!!!! I can’t wait until this one comes out or even just to see who they will cast for the members of the Volturi!

Okay so my Ipod headphones died several months ago so I went and bought a pair of Phillips headphones to replace them. But I have found that certain brands, Phillips being one of them, don’t fit my ears (I have small ears). So I took the Phillips back and bought a pair of Sony (one of the few that fit my ears) headphones and they worked fine, but only for about a few months and then they too died. I was hesitant to buy the same pair, even though they I knew they fit, because they didn’t last long and I put my headphones to work! I have tried a few brands and different styles (In-ear or noise canceling). Right now I am trying two different styles and brands, Sony MDR-ED21LP (the black ones) and Apple’s Ipod headphones (the white ones).

Sony:
Pros: Seems to have a clearer and better sound, stays in your ear better
Cons: Starts to hurt after wearing them for long periods (which I always have my headphones), if you sleep with them in they push in farther and hurts

Apple Ipod:
Pros: Can have them in all the time, good sound, stays in your ear ok
Cons: On certain songs they can buzz at certain points (And I love LOUD music), has a more muffled sound compared to the Sony’s

So I have no idea which ones to choose or if I should take them back and try something different. If you have any suggestions or have a pair of headphones that you love let me know and I may try those out.

So it has been forever since I last listened to DC Talk and their song “Jesus Freak.”  Well ever since I got an Ipod video nano for Christmas, I have been able to put a lot more songs on it then my previous mp3 player (Ipod – 4G) so I decided to put two DC Talk songs on, “Jesus Freak and My Friend (So Long)”.  I never had really listened to the lyrics for the song “Jesus Freak” until recently and I when I had I busted out laughing at the first verse!

This just absolutely made me laugh:

“I saw a man with tat on his big fat belly
It wiggled around like marmalade jelly
It took me a while to catch what it said
Cause I had to match the rhythm
Of his belly with my head
jesus saves is what it raved in a typical tattoo green
He stood on a box in the middle of the city
And claimed he had a dream”

But my favorite line in the song “Jesus Freak” is:

“People say I’m strange, does it make me a stranger
That my best friend was born in a manger”

I love that line! 

So just the other day my mom was watching the redneck/hillbilly comedy and was watching a Korean comedian with a southern accent (interesting combo?!?). Anyway for a non-Christian comedian he was very clean. He had this one thing he said he learned from his wife (who grew up in a small Alabama town) that you can insult anyone as long as after you insult them you saw “Bless their heart”. Then you are clean, it makes a clean slate like you never said it. You should definitely check him out on YouTube.