Toy Story 3 & Persons Unknown

Hubby and I went and Toy Story 3 today... I must be getting emotional in my old age!

10 years ago the only movie that got me teared up, let alone crying, was My Dog Skip and that was only because the dog in the movie looked very similar to the dog I grew up with for like 14 years (only she was black and white instead of brown and white with a shorter tail).

Now... it seems like more and more movies in the past few years have gotten me teary eyed. Whether it's a daddy-daughter emotional scene, movies involving beloved pets (I teared up near the end of Bolt), relationships (Up) and now toys, I can't help but get a little teary-eyed and have my lips start quivering. Fortunately I'm able to hold back before anything starts streaming down my face - I'd prefer not to cry in a movie theater thank you - with the exception of My Dog Skip.

Toy Story 3 was just as good as everyone has said it was - it had the great humor we've come to expect from the Disney-Pixar films as well as the emotional heartwarming/heartfelt story. While there were a lot of hilarious parts, some of the funniest came at the expense of Ken doll, as he's clearly metro-sexual with his huge and vibrant wardrobe despite the fact that he refuses to accept and admit that he's a "girl's toy." While I could see there being a handful of emotional parts that some would cry at, I think the biggest emotional scene came near the end, as that was when I started getting all teary-eyed and my lips started quivering - it was VERY emotional! I'm glad with how they ended it though - while it's left open for future installments, the way this one ended was on a good note!

The basic premise (you can read my full review here) is that Andy is now 17 and is about to go off to college. He hasn't played with Woody, Buzz, Jessie and the gang in years, as they've been stowed away and forgotten about in his abandoned toy chest. His mom tells him to decide what to do with his toys before he leaves - he can put em in the attic, donate them to the local daycare or throw em out. Some stuff happens and they accidentally end up at the local daycare, but soon learn things there aren't what they thought they'd be!

What I found neat, aside from all the fun easter eggs, is that the little boy that voiced Andy in the first one 15 years ago and the 2nd one nearly 11 years ago is also Andy at age 17. Just like him, I too have aged with the franchise, as I was 11 when the first one came out in 1995 and now it's 15 years later and I'm hoping *someone* gets me the trilogy box set for Christmas this year (my sis has the first 2 on VHS - I didn't run out to get them though as I heard there was going to be a 3rd and figured I'd wait for the box set - same reason why I don't own any of the Harry Potter movies yet - I'm waiting for the full box set after the final movie is released).

Also, watching the movie, having played the video game for the first one, I could see sooooo many different levels that are most likely in the video game for this one - having to climb and manipulate all the various objects to get out of the Caterpillar room and eventually the daycare and the landfill... It was pretty funny catching my mind picking up on these things while watching it! I almost want to get the game for Wii just see if I was right!

Regardless, go see it!!

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Also, has anyone else been watching this TV show called Person Unknown on NBC?

I saw the previews for it awhile back but missed when the original airdate was so hubby and I watched the first 2 episodes on onDemand last week and just watched the 3rd tonight.

It's pretty interesting!

The premise is that 7 strangers - devoted single mother Janet; mysterious jack of all trades Joe who reminds me of Christian Bale; marine McNair; pathological liar and mental patient Moira; Tori, who's the rich socialite daughter of the former head of the CIA; Charlie who has a bed-ridden wife and is played by Ferris Bueller's Alan Ruck (Cameron); and aggressive used car salesman Bill - are all kidnapped and when they wake up they're in a hotel in a mostly empty town that has constant camera survillence.

No one there knows for sure why they were taken from their lives and families and put there and despite their best efforts to band together to escape, their unidentified captor has thwarted their attempts thus far. I said the town is mostly empty, as there is a night manager at the hotel who states he was offered a job, accepted it and when he woke up he there in the town, as well as a staff of Chinese workers that run the only restaurant in town (which happens to be a Chinese restaurant) where the hostages get their daily meals. Also, there is a reporter that witnesses the camera footage of Janet being taken from her local park and thinks it's strange that the story is being written off as a mother abandoning her daughter when it's clear she was abducted - the more he dig into her background and case the more dangerous things become, as someone doesn't want him to know and expose the truth.

As intriguing as this series is, I'm glad that it's just a summer filler series, as there's only so much the characters can do in this deserted town to keep the show interesting. Plus, we're all dying to know why they're each there and who is holding them all captive!

This show comes across as part mystery mixed with drama and it's a little bit reminiscent of Saw without all the gore, as they were all kidnapped and are being held hostage and are being psychologically tormented (Janet is given a fortune cookie and a gun telling her she must kill in order to go free after hearing her young daughter on the telephone; pictures in an ice cream parlor haunt Janet; a random TV shows Bill an image of Charlie being violent; they all get a brief taste of freedom before it's pulled away from them; they get a gift of 3 gasmasks and have to decide who gets to use them, as buildings begin to be filled with gas... etc.) yet they don't seem to know what they have in common or why they are there.

It airs Monday nights at 10/9c and is also available on onDemand - this is a summer series I definitely recommend, as it's quite interesting!