MMM: Monday Movie Meme: Dangerous Kids

Hey, I'm getting to do MMM instead of TMM. Confused? It's Nicole'sMonday Movie Meme.  I've been managing to get them up on Tuesdays... She's chosen for today's topic “dangerous kids”. I'm going two directions in this one.  Don't forget to click on the movie names for the IMDB page

Pretty in Pink

This movie came to mind immediately because dangerous doesn't necessarily mean dangerous physically, as in the examples Nicole chose. Dangerous can be psychological and emotional as well. This movie shows that concept very well actually. I know there are many out there who think that John Hughes movies from the 80's were crap and over-exaggeration of high school. I'm here to tell you differently. Molly Ringwald's character was persecuted just because she didn't have as much money as some of the kids who were rich and “ran” the school. They played psychological games with her, just to prove how much she didn't fit in.

I've experienced it. When I had to move from MD to CO for my senior year of high school, I didn't fit in at my small, Christian school. (I'd attended public school my entire school career). These girls wore dresses and heels and HOSE to school and wanted nothing to do with a girl who was tainted by public school, wore jeans and t-shirts, and would rather make friends with the less-judgmental guys. I give John Hughes props for telling some of the stories we'd frankly like to pretend aren't real.

Home Alone

I just love this movie. Not usually one for campy, I did enjoy the booby traps that Kevin sets for the bumbling burglars. Besides, I've always been a Joe Pesci fan. I'm sure that were some of those stunts to be performed for real, they'd have some serious head trauma at the very least, but it's kept light and funny and the smart kid shows that he can be dangerous if messed with.

So there you have it, two opposite movies, but I think you'll enjoy them both. They are both good for discussion when watched with the appropriate aged child/teenager. My boys are slowly warming to John Hughes and me wanting to talk all about them. It's amazing what a bowl of my famous popcorn and some twizzlers can do for their enthusiasm, though.

What movies do you think of when you hear “dangerous kids”?

You can write your own post, or just leave your ideas in my comments.

TMM: Tuesday Movie Meme: Museums

I think I might have to start permanently calling these posts TMM: Tuesday Movie Meme, because when Nicole posts her's on Monday, I'm usually too busy to get a post up right away. When I post, it's usually the night before, or some miracle leads me to churn something out between 5:30 and 6:30 am and up it goes. I've asked her oh so kindly to tell me the night before what the topic is, but that's cheating she says. Her whole deal is spontaneity. Fine, I can be spontaneous. Just a day late ;-)

Today's (well, yesterday's) topic is museums. Name movies that have to do with museums, whether real or not. I immediately knew what I wanted to write about.

Night at the Museum and Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian

I'm not a Ben Stiller fan, mostly because I'm not a physical humor fan, and the whole pizza scene in Dodgeball just was ridiculously unnecessary. But, my kids like movies, so I've suffered through a slew of bad Disney movies over the years. I was pleasantly surprised that I liked these movies. The premise is original, and the story is just plain fun. I was worried about the sequel because in general I'm not a sequel fan – 99% of the time they are far below the original on just about every scale. However, Battle of the Smithsonian turned out to ALSO have an original premise and a very satisfying ending. So don't dismiss these as kids movies. Go have some fun, giggle at absurdities, and enjoy some history come to life. Literally.