Harry and the Half Blood Prince and Julie and Julia...

Yeah, I did get to see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I enjoyed it for the most part, despite some questionable changes from the book- the attack on the Weasely home had me thinking, WTF was that? And what the writers did to Neville Longbottom was lame- Order of the Phoenix, he's one of the heroes, now he's reduced to being background. Poor Matthew Lewis. :( I worry about how Neville's big moment in Deathly Hallows will be treated now! On the other hand, the main trio of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint continue to grow as actors, and Grint especially got to shine. I liked having Quidditch back, and the romantic triangle of Hermione/Ron/Lavender (hilarious girl!) was a wonderful break from the more serious themes. I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't a lot about Voldemort's background, and the Snape/Prince reveal was too low-key. And Dumbledore's funeral isn't shown. But altogether, the movie was fun and visually exciting (if a bit slower than the others).

I was really looking forward to Julie and Julia- the always great Meryl Streep playing Julia Child? I am so there. And I was very happy with the movie. It's based on two books- the blog adventure of Julie Powell (played by the always adorable Amy Adams), who challenged herself to cook every single recipe in Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year; and Child's autobiography. The movie goes back and forth between Child's life in France and her start in cooking, and Powell's often funny attempts to cook every recipe. "Lobster killer! Lobster killer!" One warning: Dan Ackroyd's Saturday Night Live skit about Child (which she supposedly loved) is even more disgusting on the big screen. "I've cut the Dickens out of my finger! Save the liver!" Ewwwwww (but LOL!).

I've only seen six movies this summer. Wow.

This teen of the 80s is very sad right now.

Writer/director John Hughes, who gave my generation movies like The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Pretty in Pink, died suddenly yesterday at age 59. Though he had mostly retired from the Hollywood scene, his influence can still be seen in younger filmakers today. I don't think we would have had Juno or Rushmore without the smart humor of Hughes' films. He got teenagers in a way most writers couldn't grasp.

Ferris Bueller is still one of my all time favorite movies. "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." RIP, Mr. Hughes, and thank you.