In which I recommend you go see a movie (or two)

I recently saw two movies in the theaters of which I had never seen previews for: Drive and 50/50. I loved both of them and will review them with NO SPOILERS and recommend you go see them! And by "review," I guess I really just mean why I liked them, since I don't want to give anything away.

Drive

All I knew going into this movie was that it's about a stunt driver who moonlights as a getaway driver. Which is true, but it's much more than the action/chase scene flick you might expect from that description.

Aside from the fact that Ryan Gosling is incredibly easy on the eyes, Drive was a fabulous movie. It reminded me of Burn After Reading in a weird way- the way the first half of the movie has a certain tone and then all of the sudden something happens and it just spirals off... I won't elaborate too much so as not to spoil it for anyone. The difference between the two movies is that I loved Drive, but didn't really care for Burn After Reading.

What made the movie, though, is the soundtrack. The choice of music was clearly thought through, and each song was perfect for its scene. I really can't get over how good the music was.

50/50

I knew two things going into 50/50: it's about a guy who gets cancer and Joseph Gordon-Levitt is in it. The second thing

had a lot to do with why I agreed to see this movie; cancer doesn't seem like the subject of a fun Friday night movie.

But the movie was hilarious! It was also sad and emotional and above all, real. Like, these could be the reactions and conversations and emotions of real people. I laughed, I cried, and I came out feeling blessed that, at least for now, I'm healthy.

If nothing else, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen are stellar actors. And the girl from Twilight is pretty great too.

Maybe I Could Live in Minnesota Afterall (until Winter comes, of course)

Anyone who knows me, knows that while I loved Carleton, I was not as thrilled about it being in Minnesota. There are two main reasons: winter and distance from the ocean. I just spent two weeks in Minneapolis, and while I'm not about to move back, I was greatly persuaded. Here are three reasons why:

1. Minneapolis is easy to get around, and flat. I had to go downtown many days during my visit, and while there are busses, I opted to walk or bike since the weather couldn't have been nicer and I could enjoy the beautiful autumn air. Uptown (where Amy lives) is an easy distance of a beautiful cemetery, a number of lovely lakes, multiple fun bars/restaurants/cafes, and young people. Which brings me to #2.

2. Uptown is basically a grown up version of Carleton dorms. I swear half of all recent Carleton grads live in Minneapolis and most of them live in Uptown. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but my point is that there is a very active Carleton community, and to be honest, I love hanging out with fellow Carls.

3. There are a lot people who want me there. This may seem like a silly reason, but so many people tried to persuade me to move there during my visit. One friend even threatened to break my legs so I couldn't leave.

Bonus Reason: The Summit Brewery is in St. Paul. And I love Summit Beer. Both times I visited and toured the brewery I had a great time, especially sitting in the sun with their free samples and friends enjoying it with me. You can't get Summit beer in California, a fact that makes me very sad.