I went to see Get Smart the other weekend. I actually love going to the cinema (sorry, theater) in America. It’s so quintessentially… something. There are hot dogs and neon lights and butter for the popcorn (mmm, butter).

Anyway, Get Smart! I actually thought it was good. I was a bit wary going in because I’d read something somewhere about Anne Hathaway and Steve Carrell being more like parent and child in their chemisty than romantically involved, but I actually didn’t think so at all! I thought it was totally believeable. I was pleasantly surprised!

The story was ludicrously hilarous, there were definitely those can’t-stop-laughing moments. Completely unrealistic, of course, but exactly what you’d want from this kind of movie. It moved quickly enough that it didn’t get old/repetitive/exactly like every other movie like this, ever. There were a few nifty twists and details, too. It’s worth seeing!

My current obsession is listening to Harry Potter audiobooks as I fall asleep. It’s so soothing… it has to be the Stephen Fry versions of course, because for one thing, he is completely fantastic and fabulousness itself, and for another, Harry Potter read in an American accent is just… wrong! :P I find it really strange here flicking through the US editions in the library and seeing Dudley and Hagrid say mommy and mom instead of Mummy Mum - and there are other subtle differences I’ve noticed, like maths to math, and holiday to vacation. Anything to have it understood, I suppose…!

We went to see 21 last weekend - what they’re claiming as America’s number one movie! It was pretty damn good, I have to say - I love Kevin Spacey, and he was awesome in this. The story was well-done and funny, but also believeable. Everyone in the cinema, as soon as we saw the opening shot of the Mass Pike (at least we think it was the turnpike), with a T on it, immediately went “it’s BOSTON!!”. Like, we knew the movie was set at MIT and everything, but it wasn’t until we saw that that it sank in that it was Boston!

ANYWAY! Good movie, lots of fun, and definitely worth seeing.

I’ve been meaning to write about this movie! I’ve seen it twice in the cinema, and it’s definitely going on the list to get the DVD of, when it comes out. The story was so charming and heartwarming, but with some pretty ingenous originalities. I like that. It was absolutely hilarious in points too. I love that.

• I love Claire Danes. She’s one of the few American actresses who can actually pull off a British accent (and I’m picky about that :P If they’re off, I spend the entire movie thinking about their accent!).
• Robert DeNiro playing a gay pirate! I mean, it’s just sheer genius, isn’t it?! (”Have YOU ever tried to get blood out of a silk shirt?! NIGHTMARE!”).
• I love that they used an unknown for the part of Tristan. Even with such a star-studded cast, it was a risk - but one that paid off, because there were no preconceptions about him, no expectations, and that added to his charm and innocence. He did it well!
• Michelle Pfeiffer looks absolutely incredible (well, obviously not in the witch get-up, but you know what I mean). I liked seeing her as someone properly gruesome, too - a nice break from the norm.
• Having Ian McKellen narrate was just classy. No matter how amazing a production is, he always seems to be able to add something. Something somehow unquestionably dignified and upright.
• The character that Ricky Gervais plays was just classic, and completely suited him. (”Two hundred?! Okay, YOU’RE havin’ a laugh!”).

Oops. Went on about it a bit more than I planned to! Basically, yes, I really enjoyed it!

So, this has caused quite a stir! Dumbledore is gay! I’m so happy she came out and said this. There are a lot of people now saying the character is tainted now, but that’s ridiculous - if you’ve loved Dumbledore through the 7 years of Hogwarts, you’re not going to stop simply because J.K. admitted she thought of him as gay. It doesn’t change the wizard he was.

Also! Neville marrying Hannah Abbott… that’s sweet, but I think I always wished he and Luna would end up together. But maybe that’s too much absent-mindedness/away-with-the-fairies-ness for one partnership! It’s definitely cool they end up running the Leaky Cauldron, though. Neville’s gone from the boy everything happens to (”why is it always me?!”) to the man who, in a sense, guards the portal to the wizarding world in London.

I wish I could have been at Carnegie Hall to hear the reading and ask questions! If I could ask J. K. one question, I think it would be “you mention Bathilda and dragons in Gringotts in book one, and Harry sees the opal necklace that later curses Katie in book 2. Did you plant these things deliberately, already knowing you’d come back to them, or did you flick back looking for things to pick up on as you needed them?”

“You needed something to keep you going for the next 10 years! …Oh, my god, the fan fiction now, eh?”

She’s awesome!

ETA: Check out the official Dumbledore Pride t-shirts! :heart: