Leatherheads

Who: Bill & Melanie
What: Leatherheads
Where: On DVD from Netflix
Why: Melanie wanted to watch it.

Leatherheads tries to be two movies in one: A sports comedy and a romantic comedy. It doesn’t do poorly at either level, but somehow I felt that it should have been better. It certainly boasts some A-list talent.

In the 1920’s, college football was thriving, while pro football was little more than a joke with its loose rules and general disinterest from the general public. Aging player Jimmy “Dodge” Connelly (George Clooney) of the Deluth Bulldogs aims to change the pro’s poor perception by convincing popular college football player-- and alleged World War I hero-- Carter “Bullet” Rutherford (John Krasinski from The Office) to join the Bulldogs. Rutherford’s playing skills begin to bring in spectators and it attracts the interest of Chicago newspaper reporter Lexie Littleton (Renee Zellweger), who is out to prove that Rutherford’s war heroism is bogus. Soon, Littleton finds herself the object of affection with both Connelly and Rutherford. Who will she choose? And will she end up writing the potential expose of the decade?

Leatherheads was originally developed as a straight sports movie. When Clooney acquired the script, he made numerous changes mostly by adding the romantic comedy aspect. He also became the film’s director and co-producer. Given Clooney’s track record and coming right after his critically praised award-winning Good Night and Good Luck , it would be assumed this would be a wildly successful movie. But it was not. The film garnered mixed reviews and failed at the box office. Perhaps it was Clooney’s attempt at doing a combination sports/romantic comedy, or maybe it was Zellweger’s not-totally-convincing interpretation of a female newspaper reporter in the 1920’s (were there any female reporters during that time, and if so, were they writing about sports?).

Leatherheads is still a mildly entertaining movie and a decent choice when you can’t decide if you want to watch a film with romance or a film about football.

The Muppet Movie

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  The Muppet Movie
Where:  @ home - Jonathan owns it
Why:  I felt like watching it

Even though this movie was made in the 70s, it seems so timeless.  I mean, besides the 70s fashions.

This story chronicles how all the Muppets became friends and became movie stars!  Kermit meets a Hollywood agent in his swamp and decides to go to Hollywood to audition for a part.  On the road he meets Fozzie Bear (after Fozzie bombs at a comedy club).  Luckily Fozzie has a car, so off they go!

They run in the the Electric Mayhem band (Zoot is my favorite!), Gonzo & Camilla (a chicken), Miss Piggy and Rolf.  They also run into Doc Hopper, who is opening a chain of french fried frog leg restaurants, and he wants Kermit to be the spokesman.  Of course, Kermit is not interested, but Doc Hopper is obsessed!

Throw in a TON of 70s stars (honestly, I didn't recognize most of them - except Steve Martin and Richard Pryer) and a ton of classic songs ("Someday I'll find it, the rainbow connection ...") and you have a classic movie!

The X-Files: I Want to Believe

Who:LaRelle
What: X-Files: I Want to Believe
Where: my living room
Why: I love X-Files


Well I finally got around to watching this movie. I'm surprised it took me so long considering when the series was on tv it was practically my religion. Although I was kind of putting it off because I had heard very mixed reviews on it and that a lot of die hard fans were disappointed.
Well I wasn't disappointed at all. I thought the story was decent. Yes, it didn't really go too far into the supernatural stuff that the show used to....there were no ghosts, or monsters or anything like that......but the show wasn't always like that.
And the best part was just seeing Mulder and Scully on screen together again. David Duchovny (hottie!) and Gillian Anderson always had incredible chemistry together on the show, and they still have it. I wish that there would have been more "inside jokes", so to speak, related to the tv series. There were a couple of things at the very beginning related to Mulder's character, but it would have been more enjoyable if they had thrown more in throughout the movie.
I wasn't a huge fan when I had heard that Amanda Pete was going to be in this movie because she kind of annoys me...but she actually wasn't too bad. And Billy Connolly was very good in his role as a psychic priest.
So overall it was done pretty well. I'd definitely recommend it if you were a fan of the tv show at all. And even if you weren't it can stand alone, and is a decent thriller/drama type movie.

Zodiac

Who: Bill
What: Zodiac
Where: The Movie Channel-- offered free during January
Why: Portions of the movie were filmed near my hometown.

During the late 1960’s-early 1970’s, there were a series of unsolved murders in the San Francisco Bay Area. The suspect identified himself as the “Zodiac” through a number of taunting letters mailed to local police and area newspapers. To date, the case technically remains unsolved, although there is strong evidence of who was the actual culprit.

Zodiac follows the intense investigation by the police and newspaper reporters, focusing primarily on San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal), who takes an interest in the case after deciphering some of the cryptic codes in the killer‘s letters. Also covering the story is Chronicle writer Paul Avery (Robert Downey, Jr.). Early scenes alternate between the reporters and the investigators that include San Francisco police detectives Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and Bill Armstrong (Anthony Edwards), Vallejo Police Officer Jack Mulanax (Elias Koteas) and Napa County Sheriff’s Officer Ken Narlow (Donal Logue). The latter half of the movie follows Graysmith’s near obsession with the “Zodiac” as he writes a book on the case, in which he concludes the killer was a man named Arthur Leigh Allen (played in the movie by John Carroll Lynch). Allen was identified as a suspect and interviewed by detectives in 1971, but despite strong circumstantial evidence, there was never enough physical evidence to charge him with the "Zodiac" crimes. Allen died in 1992.

At almost three hours, Zodiac covers a lot of detail and many years (1969 to 1991), but holds your attention. The period detail is impressive thanks to excellent digital photography and realistic computer-generated effects shots. There is some blood seen when three of the actual Zodiac murders are depicted early in the film, but these are more suspenseful than horribly graphic (it still may disturb some viewers). One way to approach the movie is by seeing it as an expanded R-rated version of Law and Order. So if you have the time and enjoy a good (true) mystery, Zodiac is highly recommended.

Slumdog Millionaire

Who: Liz
What: Slumdog Millionaire
Where: AMC at Pleasure Island
Why: I really wanted to see it,heard it was good and had the day off!
I absolutely loved this movie! It kept your attention, wasn't too violent, and had a compelling story. One older couple did leave towards the beginning, maybe they didn't like the subtitles. I didn't mind them, though from where I was sitting, I had to lean forward to see a few of them. It was really crowded for a Thursday afternoon!

This movie was about a "Slumdog", Jamal. Jamal and his brother Salim, grew up in some large city in India, they mentioned Mumbai and Bombay, but I couldn't tell where they grew up.
It starts out with Jamal being questioned about how he is winning at "Who wants to be a Millionaire". Apparently the police think he is cheating. So the movie tells the story of how Jamal knew all the answers with the flashbacks of his life.
When Jamal and his older brother, Salim are young, they live in a horrible slum and their mom gets killed and they go off and live on their own. They meet this girl, Latika, and she and Jamal bond. They are like maybe 10 and 11. Then they get picked up in a "orphanage" raid. This guy takes them to live on a "farm" with all these other kids and they have to go out begging for money every day. I don't want to give too much away, it was really intense and they got away, but just Salim and Jamal, Latika let go of Jamal's hand as he was on the train.........
The rest of the story is about the atrocities of Jamal and Salim's life and Jamal's quest to find Latika. I loved the way the present day and the flashbacks were interwoven.
It was mostly in English, except for when they are children and then most of those scenes are subtitled.
The ending was excellent, I won't tell you whether he wins it all or loses it all, but it's a movie, so you can probably figure that out!
Like I said, I really enjoyed this and can understand why everyone seems to like it!

Smokin' Aces

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Smokin' Aces
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  Nothing else to watch

Ok - can somebody explain this movie to me?  I understand most of it, but the ending was a little confusing to me.

Backing up, this movie was really good.  I really enjoy movies with 400 characters, like this one.  Also, I dare you to find Matthew Fox.  He's in 1 scene for about 5 minutes, and I didn't recognize him at all.

Ok, so there is a super mega mob boss who is offering $1 million dollar to any hit man who can kill Jeremy Piven (he plays such a great scummy Vegas loser).  So there are 4 sets of hit men who are on the case, as well as the FBI, who really need Jeremy Piven to testify against this super mega mob boss.

The hit men are awesome!  There is a crazy guy who loves torture.  A master of disguise guy.  3 low life Vegas bail bonds guys (they are way out of their league).  A set of girls (Alicia Keys is one), and a set of 3 INSANE brothers (seriously, they are insane).  Throw in Ray Liotta and Ryan Reynolds, and you've got yourself a drool-fest!

All these players head to Reno to find Jeremy Piven.  And I'll stop there ... I don't want to give anything away.  Since everybody gets to Reno when the movie is only 20 minutes in, you know nobody will kill him right away.  So there are a million twists and turns.  And the ending ... well, I'm going to need a little help with that.  Somebody explain it to me!

Hotel for Dogs

Who: Grandma Terry & Mitchel
What:  Hotels for Dogs
Where: Beloit Theaters
Why: Cause I'm the crazy puppy lady!

Ok, I just cant let a dog movie go by without seeing it and I'm usually never disappointed....And once again, I wasn't.   This story is about two kids, brother and sister, that are foster kids.   The  foster parents are Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Dillon, total losers!!!!   They have visions of being rock stars, and basically they are just skanky.   Of course they are mean to the kids.  They kids have taken in a stray dog, which is totally darling and  I want him, but they have to hide him from the foster parents.   The little boy is sort of an engineering genious and makes all these cute inventions up.  They have a run in with local dog catchers and all hell breaks loose!  Without giving the plot totally away, lets just end with saying things all work out....big surprise!   Lots of touching moments, absolute darling dogs, loved the long haired dachsunds and the Neopolitan Mastiff.  I give this two paws up!!!

Paul Blart Mall Cop

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Paul Blart Mall Cop
Where:  some random theater in Tampa
Why:  We had 4 hours to kill before a hockey game

I've seen this trailer 100 times.  I laughed every single time Kevin James slid behind that mall location finder, and he misses, so he does a bunch of little *squeak squeak squeak* slides.  But I was afraid all the funny scenes were in the trailer, leaving nothing for the movie.

Let me start out with, I was in a pretty bad mood, and I wasn't excited to see a movie.  This movie totally cheered me up.  I was laughing a lot!

This wasn't just a stupid movie about a stupid fat mall cop.  We really get to know Paul Blart (Kevin James), his daughter, his mom, his work situation, his medial issues, and I really felt for the guy.  Also, even though he is just a mall cop, he really enjoys his job, and he's really good at it.

What was weird was all the funny scenes from the trailer WEREN'T funny anymore.  But there was plenty of other funny parts.  I really like comedies, so I loved this movie!  It wasn't a stupid comedy, it had a lot of heart to it.  I highly recommend checking it out!

Valkyrie

Who: Jay and Liz
What: Valkyrie
Where: AMC Pleasure Island
Why: wanted to enjoy an afternoon movie


So we saw Valkyrie today. I really wanted to see “Benjamin Button” but it was showing too early to work out for us today. Jay suggested Valkyrie and I agreed. Well, silly me. I knew that it was historical, but I didn’t realize that it would be like I was back in history class. It was one loooong history lesson.
Tom Cruise played Colonel Staufenberg, a German colonel who wanted Hitler dead. The whole movie was how he tried to get that accomplished and the consequences of his actions, after he thinks the task has been completed. I, of course, am not a big history buff, so I had no idea that some German’s tried to kill Hitler while he was in power. According to the movie, some 15 attempts had been made to assassinate Hitler. The notes said that this was the last attempt prior to Hitler’s death. Jay knows his history and said Hitler fell out of power quickly because Staufenberger’s bomb killed a number of generals and this caused a lot of problems for Hitler.
The music was good and the woman who played Staufenberg’s wife was beautiful. I loved the way they wore their hair back in the 40’s. Um, Tom Cruise did a great job, too, even though this was really not my type of film. I didn’t mind that everyone spoke English without an accent, actually I like it better, I mean who can understand those crazy accents anyway? I really liked that Eddie Izzard was in the movie too, I enjoy him. It really was a good movie, if you like historical movies.

Buying the Cow

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Buying the Cow
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  We just finished tiling the kitchen, and we needed to lay down on the couch

This movie was very random.  I have never heard of it before, I just randomly found it on cable.

If you like Ryan Renyolds, and you want to see him naked quite a few times, then I highly recommend this flick.  Unfortunately cable made his butt all 'fuzzy', but it was still enjoyable.

This movie revolves around Jerry O'Connell and his girlfriend, the hot chick from Billy Madison.  Jerry can't commit, even thought they've been dating for 5 years.  The hot chick goes to NYC for a fashion related job, and tells Jerry to make a decision to propose, or she needs to move on.

Jerry's problem goes back to when he was 18.  He saw a pretty girl in an airport and it hit him like a lightning bolt.  He gave her his address, and they wrote letters back and forth all summer.  However, this pretty girl was only 11 (but looked 16).  When the 11 year old's dad found out, he put a stop to the letters.  Years later, Jerry can only think of this mystery lightning girl.  He's never had that "wham" feeling with any other girl.

As he's pondering what do to about his current girlfriend (who is super hot), he sees a different girl in a diner and more "lightning" hits him.  He can't believe it.  It's the same feeling (different girl).  Too bad as he runs to the bathroom to hyperventilate a bit, the girl is gone.

Hijinks ensue as Jerry tries to find this mystery woman.  Meanwhile, Ryan Reynolds is getting naked, another friend is getting married, and the girlfriend is getting a promotion and might move to NYC for good.

The plot thickens big time when we find out who the other friend is getting married to!  Will Jerry ever find this mystery cafe girl?  Or will he eventually track down this mystery airport girl?  Maybe he realizes his girlfriend is who he really wants to be with.  Stay tuned ...

Gran Torino

Who: Liz and Jay
What: Gran Torino
Where: Regal on I-Drive (Pointe Orlando)
Why:Jay wanted to see it
This was a serious drama! I went because Jay wanted to see this movie or “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (or something like that) and I refused to see it. I don’t like sci-fi and I draw the line at ridiculous movies that I think are pretty far-fetched! I wanted to see “Marley and Me”, I know, I am odd.
Anyway, so I agreed to see Gran Torino, as this was a choice we could basically agree on. I like Clint Eastwood, so off we went. We went to Pointe Orlando, since our son banned us from going to the Loop! He is 13 and doesn’t want to be greeting his old, obnoxious parents in the movie theatre or any where in the vicinity. You have to pay for parking at Pointe Orlando, but the movie theatre validates! Remember to bring your parking ticket!
I thought the movie was okay, I mean, I am definitely not a real critic, who “knows” her movies. I think they gave this movie high marks. I am not a big fan of random scenes in movies and a few scenes just didn’t make sense to me. I mean, Clint plays this hard ass guy and in one scene, he is totally out of character, going to the neighbors house and sitting and chatting and eating with the other guests. That didn’t make sense and the scene with the neighbor girl and her “date” walking down the street and encountering the “thugs” was sort of just thrown in there, too.
To me, it was simply a movie with some action and raw scenes. I wasn’t that thrilled.

Flubber

Who:  Amber
What:  Flubber
Where:  @ home off cable
Why:  I've never seen it.

I took a random day off work, and Flubber was on the tube.  I work for Disney ... Flubber is a Disney movie ... I figured it was my patriotic duty to watch it.

Robin Williams is a moron.  Twice now he's missed his own wedding b/c he's tinkering with experiments in his basement.  Ok - right there buddy, this relationship is over.  But, of course, his girlfriend gives him on more chance.

(I think the original movie was called "The Absent Minded Professor", so I guess Robin Williams had to prove how absent minded he can be.)

The private college he and his girlfriend work at is going bankrupt.  They will close soon.  Until - ta da! - Robin Williams creates flubber!  It's a gooey green substance that produces energy, or something magical that can make them rich.

Of course, there are some bumbling bad guys who try to take the flubber away (Captain Stollemyer from Monk and Shooter McGavin from Happy Gilmore, among others).  Robin Williams puts the bouncy flubber on the baskeball players shoes to help them win a game.  More craziness happens.

Although this movie wasn't all ridiculous laughs.  There were some touching moments between the 2 lovers (who are just trying to get married) and some robots.  Yes, I said touching moments between robots.  No, I'm not kidding.

Vacancy

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Vacancy
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  I wanted to see it.

This movie scared the crap out of me!  I think it scared Jonathan too.  I think he said it best when he said, "It was scary b/c it could really happen."

Luke Wilson and Kate Beckensale (I already forgot their movie names) are driving in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night.  Kate wakes up and asks where they are.  Luke explains that there was a wreck on the highway, so he took a shortcut.  Unfortunately their car isn't cooperating.  It breaks down.

They walk 2 miles up the road to a dumpy hotel.  They are the only people at the hotel.  The TV doesn't work, so Luke pops in a VHS tape that's sitting on the TV.  (seriously, who does that, and who watches VHS tapes anymore).  It's a horror movie, looks homemade and ghetto.  Wait a minute ... the movie takes place in the room they are in!  Wait a minute, it's not a movie, it's a recording of something real - somebody dying!

Side note:  These tapes are horrible to watch.  It looked really real, and it was gross.

When Luke and Kate figure out what's going on, they try to escape.  Unfortunately, the 3 guys who run the hotel have started to "hunt" them.

Unlike most horror movies, Luke and Kate are pretty smart.  They sit down and actually watch more horrible tapes, and figure out how the 3 guys work.  They almost escape a couple times, but it never works.

I'm going to stop now, because I don't want to give anything away.  Will Luke and Kate get away?  Will only 1 get away?  Will they suffer the same fate as a lot of other guests at the hotel?

This was a very unique horror movie.  It was also pretty gross, but if you like horror movies, I highly recommend it!

S.W.A.T

Who:  Amber
What:  S.W.A.T.
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  I like action stuff

This movie has Samuel L. Jackson.  He's so cool.

This movie was really LONG.  It took a while for the action to get going.  It was about 1 hour of character development, which I guess isn't such a bad thing.  Still, let's get to the action!

This movie followed 6 new S.W.A.T. team members thru their training.  Of course it's a rag tag group of guys (and 1 girl).  There's no way they'll complete their training and pass the imposible test!!!  (of course they do).

Then a European guy, who's wanted all over the world, ends up in their lap.  As he's being hauled off to some LA jail yells, "I'll give $100 million dollars to anybody who helps me get out of jail!"  So of course all the bad guys in LA are out to ambush the S.W.A.T. guys and help out this guy.  It was a pretty interesting twist on the typical action flick.

Did some of the S.W.A.T. guys take the $100 million dollar bait?  Stay tuned ...

Valkyrie

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Valkyrie
Where:  AMC Pleasure Island
Why:  Jonathan picked

Let me start by saying I had NO desire to see this movie.  I don't like war movies and I'm not a Tom Cruise fan.  I was going to split up from Jonathan and see ANY OTHER movie at the theater, but there was nothing!  Not one single thing I wanted to see.  So I sucked it up and saw Valkyrie.

And I actually enjoyed myself!

If you know your history (which I don't, and I knew this!), Hitler is not assassinated.  So you know from the get go that Tom Cruise's plan isn't going to work.  Yet the movie is still interesting to see how many people hated Hilter, and how many people tried to assassinate him over and over again.

This movie got a little heat because of how un-German Tom Cruise is.  However, the first 5 minutes kind-of clear up that fact.  It's hard to explain, but I actually enjoyed a 100% English movie.  No super fake accents or hard to understand dialogue.

What would've made this movie great for me, is to show a montage at the end of the real men involved.  For example, Tom Cruise was General Staffenburg.  I wanted to see who the real General Staffenburg was.  I love when "real story" movie actually show the real people at the end - like the football movie Invincible!

Marley & Me

Who: Monica & Andy, Mom & Dad
What: Marley & Me
Where: Hiram, GA
Why: We love a great doggie movie!!

Warning: Could be spoilers ahead~ Read at your own risk!

Marley is "the world's worse dog" as described by his owner. You know from the beginning that this movie is going to make you laugh. It is based on a true story and book by John Grogan. I tried to read the book at the beach, but couldn't get into it. (Which is odd because I love to read almost anything.) John (Owen Wilson) and Jenny (Jennifer Anniston) get married and move to Florida to start their lives together. They are both writers and work for local papers. They start their family with a lovable gold lab, named Marley!

The first hour is wonderful. If you have ever owned a dog, you will relate to almost every scene in this movie. It is hilarious and heart warming. I whispered many times "look familiar" to Andy?! I absolutely loved the first half. I laughed my head off, great fun!!

Possible Spoiler Ahead:
If you've owned and loved a pet (and even if you haven't), you know that they aren't with us forever. If you are a true pet lover, to you loosing a pet is like loosing a member of the family. I am not sure if it's because I'm emotional (aka: pregnant), we have 3 dogs of which one is getting very old and possibly near the end of her life or just that I can't take the passing of a pet in general. I absolutely fell apart the second half of this movie. I cried until I was into the blubbering ugly cry and couldn't hardly breathe, I got up to go to the restroom and try to compose myself.

I couldn't seem to get over it and continued to cry on the way home. I couldn't (can't) appreciate the first hour of the movie any longer after having been so upset by the second half. It was portrayed in a very real way. It took time, showed what the family went through and was very realistic. I know that pets aren't going to be with us forever, but I have to say that in a funny and heartwarming movie, I didn't want to be reminded of it.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Who: Monica & Mom
What: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Where: Hiram, Georgia
Why: We both like Brad Pitt and had time on our hands.

I usually love anything starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett is pretty great as well. I should have known when I saw it is nominated for 5 Golden Globes that it wasn't going to be my kind of movie.

The movie take places from the end of World War 1 into the 21st Century. There is a bit of back and forth, putting the story and characters together. I wasn't quite prepared for where the story was being told from either, but I'll let you see that for yourself. The main location is set in New Orleans in an assisted living house and then throughout parts of the world where Benjamin Button travels.

Bejamin is born a little different from the rest of us. He is born the size of a baby, but looks and has the medical conditions of a senior citizen. As he "grows", he gets bigger and younger. The movie is the story of his life, his travels and those he meets. Love, friends, people in your life all come and go for a season. He appreciates things in a different way of course. That part of the story I liked and could have went with, from there it was all downhill for me.

I didn't like this movie at all! It seemed forever long. (159 minutes to be exact) I thought there was so many parts that could have been left out while leaving the story intact. (You need an extrodinary movie to keep me focused for that long) I didn't like the circumstances in which the story was being told and wish it could have had a different reason for the narrative. I guess if you understand Benjamin's "condition" you also know that the ending is going to have to be different than you might like.

I love movies, but this just wasn't my kind at all.
Good luck!

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspien

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  The Chronicles of Narnia:  Prince Caspien
Where:  at home - Jonathan got the DVD for Christmas
Why:  I've never seen it

Let me just start out with, I'm not a huge fan of Narnia or Narnia-type movies.  In fact, Jonathan saw this in the theater by himself, while I went to go see Zohan (by myself).

This movie wasn't half bad, it's just not my cup of tea.

With in the first 5 minutes, the kids are whisked back to Narnia, which I was happy about.  Why waste time in England?!?  Turns out Prince Caspien is in trouble (people who want to be king are trying to get rid of him and steal the throne), and he blows a magical horn to bring the kids to Narnia.

Once they are there, they realize that Narnia has gone to pot, and try to figure out what happened.  Turns out the land of humans (where Prince Caspien lives) have made the Narnian extinct ... or so they thought!

The 4 kids, and Prince Caspien (totally shocked to see 'real live' Narnians!) wage a war to regain their independence.  They are tired of hiding in the woods, pretending not to be alive.

One big war after another, everybody lives happily ever after.

If you were a fan of the first movie, then I recommend you check this one out.  If you haven't seen the first one yet, then this movie might not make any sense.

Waitress

Who:  Amber & Jonathan
What:  Waitress
Where:  @ home - recorded off cable
Why:  Jonathan picked it

I was surpised when Jonathan picked this movie.  I think he thought it was a comedy.  It was kind-of funny, but it was way more drama than comedy.

Jenna is a waitress at Joe's Pie Diner.  She is a pie making genius (makes crazy named pies called "Earl's a Jerk Apple" and "Mermaid Marshmellow"), but she's stuck in a loveless marriage.  Her husband Earl is a total jerk, but he does show flashes of niceness.  It's an odd character, he's controlling (Jenna isn't allowed to have a car and she has to bake for him 24/7), but he does love her.  You have to hate him, but you're torn at the same time.

The opening scene shows Jenna and her 2 work friends in a bathroom.  Jenna is holding a pregnancy test ... it's positive!  She is upset.  She's trying to save money to run away from Earl.

I don't want to give a lot away, b/c it's a really cute movie.  Jenna deals with the pregnancy the smart way, she eats properly, goes to the doctor all the time, but she's not excited about it at all.  Don't tell her "congratulations", that's for sure.

Did I mention she does to the doctor all the time?  That's because her doctor is really cute.  Dr. Palmater thinks Jenna is cute too.  Too bad he's married.

Will Jenna run away from Earl?  Is the doctor really married?  Will Jenna win the pie contest, and win a bunch of money?

One sad note, one of her pie co-workers is the writer of the movie.  Unfortunately she was murdered before this movie aired at the Sundance Festival.  She was a great actress and obviously a great writer.