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Interesting news from this weekend. On Saturday morning I turned up at Robin Hood lanes in Edmonds for the second annual Bowling With Celebrities benefit for M.S. Helping hands– a non profit group set up to refurbish old medical supplies and give them to the needy. For instance, let’s say you have a relative with M.S. but they can’t afford a new wheelchair or scooter, you’d call in M.S. Helping hands and more than likely, they can hook you up with whatever your needs are at a reduced cost or even free for that matter. Truly an amazing group and a very worthy cause. 

So there I was, bowling with with the likes of former UW Husky and Seattle Seahawk Michael Jackson, Local Musician Michael Powers, and a bunch more. let me explain, I am not, nor have I ever claimed to be a good bowler; regardless, the event was a blast, twice as large as last year, and a great success. And, the bonus! Whilst bowling I met a number of interesting folk with interesting backgrounds, in particular was the group  that I started the morning bowling with, Jay, Devon, Maddy, Janna, and Lisa. Dressed to kill and ready to bowl, they stormed the lanes and braved the hardwoods, providing for much entertainment. As it turned out Devon happened to be a cartoonist…heh…and with bowling not always being a fast paced sport, there was idle time for him to scribble out a few little drawings; one of which included a great shot of a what looks like a 12 year old Jonas Brothers fan dreaming of yours truly…cracked me up. At first I didn’t think I wanted the picture, but then after re-thinking how funny and priceless it really was, I grabbed it before I left. Here it is, awesome:

 

Teen Heart Throb, By. Devin Badoo

UP
After spending a busy life full of adventures with his wife, 78 year old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen (Ed Asner) sets out for one more journey– a trip to paradise falls he had promised to take his recently deceased wife on but never got the chance. In an 11th hour fury to make good on his promise Carl attaches thousands of balloons to his house creating a variation on the hot air balloon concept. All appears to be going well until Carl realizes he has a stowaway named Russell (Jordan Nagai) on board his flying house. Together Carl and Russell make it to Paradise Falls only to discover an elusive and rare type of bird. The very bird that the great explorer Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer) has been searching for all his life. With Muntz and a pack of trained dogs hot on their trail Carl and Russell must save the bird and get back home safely, but can they do it? A heavy and moving plot, almost sure to elicit tears. Pixar has created a gem of a plot that touches many difficult and real life themes. Yet, despite the heaviness, everything is so perfectly handled with kid gloves, the end result is a richness that can be appreciated on multiple levels of intellect and humor. This is a must see film for the summer. Available in 3D in some theatres, UP is rated PG.

Drag Me to Hell
Director of Evil Dead and Army of Darkness, and…uh….oh yeah Spider Man, Sam Rami returns to his horror roots in this latest tale of malevolent witchery. Christine Brown (Alison Lohman), a banker/loan officer, is looking to move up in the business but is facing stiff competition for a management position. When an old Gypsy woman comes to the bank in need of an extension on her mortgage Christine must make the tough decision to grant the extension or not. Opting not to grant the extension the Gypsy curses Christine who now has 3 days to lift the curse, impress the parents of her boyfriend Clay (Justin Long), and get the management position she’s dreamed of. Can she pull it off, or will Christine be dragged to hell? A very back to basics film for Rami in many regards, but with more money. Full of gore and scare plus the campy humor one expects of a script written by Rami and his brother Ivan. Creativity in the cinematography department adds to the experience as well. Fans of the Evil Dead series will also enjoy a few nods and a wink to the franchise. Destined to become another cult classic, fans of the genre need to see this film. Drag Me to Hell is rated PG-13.

Terminator Salvation
When convicted killer Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington) donates his body to science he has no clue that in 15 years he’ll be re-animated as a Terminator; a machine used to hunt and destroy leaders of the human resistance in the year 2018. Specifically Marcus is to be responsible for the destruction of John Connor (Christian Bale) and Kyle Resse (Anton Yelchin). But will Marcus accept his new fate, and will the machines succeed with their dastardly plan? More importantly will this cliche plot give you a satisfying feeling after you’ve watched the film? In short, no. The film is comprised of re-hashed ideas, and sad attempts to pay homage to previous Terminator films. Massive plot holes also deflate this beast further. Additionally, none of the acting really proves to be a stretch for the actors, Bale in particular. The one shining spot happens to be the special FX. Perhaps worthy of a rental at a later date to stay up to date on the story line. Terminator Salvation is rated PG-13.

Night at the Museum: Battle of The Smithsonian
Former night guard for the Museum of Natural History Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is called back into action when several of the exhibits along with a magical Egyptian tablet that turns exhibits to life after dark are moved to the Smithsonian archives for permanent storage. But can Larry move the exhibits back where they belong before Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria), Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest), Al Capone (Jon Bernthal) and Napoleon Bonaparte (Alain Chabat) unite to dominate the world? Assisted by Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) and Teddy Roosevelt (Robin Williams) Larry clearly has his work cut out to do. Not really a lot of fresh ideas in this script, but it almost doesn’t matter because of the jovial nature of the film. Decent acting, and semi clever family friendly humor keeps the film moving nicely, plus the handful of cameo appearances from actors and historical figures manages to muster a few chuckles as well. Worthy of a matinee. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is rated PG.