Can you guys believe that it's almost September?! Where did the summer go? As we begin to wind down our Summer Lovin' Series for another year, we're still excited to be celebrating the best of television, film, and books. Megan is the lone writer joining me as we discuss the pop culture that impacted and influenced us this week.
Let's get started, shall we?
What Jenn's lovin': Netflix's The Little Prince
Why she's lovin' it: Okay, I have to admit something — I have never read The Little Prince. I don't know why this book wasn't a part of my childhood, but apparently it just wasn't and I had absolutely no idea what I was missing! (I do recall, however, seeing the book cover on shelves and book fairs, I think, as a child so I guess that's something.) So while flipping through Netflix one day recently with a friend, I stumbled across The Little Prince movie and decided to watch it this weekend with very little knowledge as to what I was getting myself into.
I loved it.
I cried, I laughed, and I felt more hopeful and filled with childlike wonderment than I have felt in years. The Little Prince is really a two-act story: the first act is The Aviator introducing The Little Girl to The Little Prince and his journeys. It's a way to portray how this girl finds her innocence and her inner child after being forced into adulthood too early. The first act is a story of inner (and outer) character growth and emotional development. The second act is all adventure and reclaiming the childlike innocence in adulthood. When the elderly Aviator is hospitalized, The Little Girl makes it her mission to find The Little Prince and bring hope back to the old man again. What she discovers along her way is that love and innocence can be lost when we grow up. Adults cling to rigid methodology, rules, and facts in order to navigate their daily lives. The Little Girl teaches Mr. Prince how to remember what he lost and why his journey is so important to not only himself but the people his life has impacted. Along the way, we meet incredible and fun characters, and the entire film is filled with whimsy.
The 3D animation is GORGEOUS. Honestly, I don't even have words for how pretty most of this movie is, especially the way that The Little Prince's part of the story is stop-motion and therefore set apart differently from the rest of the film. Seriously, this film was just beautiful, from start to finish. The transition between the first and second act is just the teensiest bit clunky (it feels like the end of the film about half-way through), but that's honestly the only criticism I have. Everything else was lovely, both visually and from a storytelling perspective. Go watch the film on Netflix ASAP.
(Bonus, the film has an all-star cast voicing its characters. Including Paul Rudd. You're welcome.)
Bonus Lovin': Grace and Frankie
I started marathoning Grace and Frankie last weekend and I've become obsessed with it. Halfway through season two, I love that this is a show about a really complicated and really broken family. But more than just that though, it's about how these two incredibly different women learn how to rely on one another after their divorces (and husbands' affairs... with each other), but how that reliance turns to reluctant friendship and then camaraderie and, finally, into a full-fledged friendship. Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin are hilarious as the titular characters, while the rest of the cast is just as exceptional. In a lot of ways, this show is a dramedy (there are some moments that genuinely had me teary-eyed), but it's also an extremely fun example of a buddy-comedy. Cute, fun, and quirky, if you're looking for a new series to binge-watch, Grace and Frankie might be right up your alley!
What Megan's lovin': Ozzy and Jack's World Detour
Why she's lovin' it: Like most people in the early aughts, I loved watching the Osbourne family on the revolutionary reality show The Osbournes. It was wild television — a life so far removed from my own that I couldn't look away. This is what started my love for that family. I watched both Jack and Kelly compete on different seasons of Dancing With the Stars (where they made me cry like, a lot), would tune into anything any members of the family were on, and I'm hotly anticipating Kelly's upcoming book. So color me excited when I learned that Jack and Ozzy would be doing a show together on — of all networks — the History Channel.
Ozzy and Jack's World Detour follows the father/son duo as they trek across America entirely on their own and see some of the nation's greatest treasures — from Mount Rushmore and the Badlands to Jamestown. They also visit odd museums such as the funeral museum (where we learn where the terms "saved by the bell" and "graveyard shift" come from), NASA, Roswell (where Jack, an avid believer in aliens, tries to make his dad a believer), and Deadwood. They even spend an episode trying to figure out the great Alamo disaster of the 80s, and if Ozzy really did break any rules that night. It was a riveting episode.
As surprising as it may be to learn, both Jack and Ozzy are major history buffs. While the show is a bucket of laughs, it's also surprisingly educational. I learned a lot of facts over the course of the first few episodes that I wouldn't have sought out on my own, and that's something that I can totally get behind when it comes to programming. It's interesting to watch them learn about different things and also see what it is that interests them in this world. For instance, Ozzy knew quite a bit about tanks in WWII when they visited a military base that allowed them to test the tanks. It's about 32 different types of fascinating that you weren't expecting.
Ozzy and Jack's World Detour the type of feel-good program you look for on a Sunday evening. It has heart, you learn without realizing it, and it's just good family fun — as odd as that particular family may sometimes be. It'll have you laughing, it'll keep you interested, and it might actually make you want to go out and learn a thing or two about American history as well. I absolutely love this show and I think my family and friends are getting tired of hearing about it, so check it out and let's talk about it!
Bonus Lovin': Mechanic: Resurrection
I just really, really love Jason Statham and was so excited about this movie and it didn't disappoint. It was everything you want and expect from one of his movies and was so great. If you're looking for an action movie for date night, this is it!
What are YOU lovin' this week? Let us know in the comments below!
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