100 Movies in Theater

I just finished watching my 100th movie in theaters. 10 years ago, I would never have imagined that I would even come close to that number! But, how can I be sure that I watched 100 movies in theater already? I been keeping track for over a year now because I realized I watched too many movies and love staying organized.

How was it like watching 100 movies in a theater? I got to say that it went by fast and I hardly knew that I was watching so many movies, despite the fact that I kept track. I do know that my volunteering in 2009 for TUTD is the main reason that I watch so many movies. Before I volunteered at TUTD, I watched about zero movies a month and then it progressed to about 2-3 movies a month.

Although I watched so many movies in the past couple of years, they aren't always movies I enjoyed. I watched so many movies most people would not go and watch, but I watched anyway to review the movie or just to watch the movie. There has been rare cases, in which, I had the movie theater to myself and/or with a friend. I been to different theaters in Vacaville, Sacramento, and Davis. However, I haven't been to all the theaters around those areas.

I remember the first movie I ever watched in theaters and that is "Without a Paddle" and I watched it with my brother and sister. I remembered it being a cheap movie and the movie was hilarious. The last movie that I watched is "Skyfall". Although I was keeping track of the movies I watched up to 100, I decided to go with the flow and not watch most movies to get a certain number.

I made it a lifetime goal to watch 100 movies in theaters. I have reached that goal. But, I'm not ready to stop watching movies. Instead, I aim to reach higher and continue to watch movies. I know that my volunteer work with TUTD will end in a few weeks, but my movie watching will persist.

Movies I've Watched in Theaters

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	Date	Name	Where?	Why?
1		A Nightmare on Elm Street	G Street	TUTD
2		African Cats	F st	TUTD
3		Alice in Wonderland	SAC DT
4	12/26/09	Avatar	SAC DT	FUN
5		Black Swan	2nd Street
6		Bride Wars	F st
7	10/2/10	Case 39	??	TUTD
8		Crazyheart	Davis?	TUTD
9		Due Date	F st	Hang out
10		Eat. Pray. Love.	Tower????
11		Exit through the gift shop	Tower	TUTD
12		Fast 5	G st	TUTD
13		For the Colored Girls		TUTD
14	2/7/09	Gran Tarino	Davis 5
15		Gulliver's Travels		TUTD
16		Harry Brown	Crest
17	2/14/09	He's just not that into you	?	Hang out
18		Hoodwinked Too! Hood v. Evil	F st
19		How to train a Dragon	SAC DT
20	8/29/10	Inception	G st	TUTD
21	12/1310	Inside Job	Tower	TUTD
22	12/26/09	It's Complicated	SAC DT
23		Letters to Juliet	G st	TUTD
24	6/12/08	Man of Honor?
25		No Strings Attached		TUTD
26	10/25/10	Paranormal Activity 2		TUTD
27		Post Grad
28		Precious	Arden Century
29		Shrek 3D. Shrek 4 Forever After	UA EK	TUTD
30		Sex and the City 2	SAC DT	TUTD
31		She's out of my League		TUTD
32		Sorority Row	G st
33		Suckerpunch
34		The American		TUTD
35		Expendables		TUTD
36		The Fighter		TUTD
37		The Final Destination	SAC DT	TUTD
38		The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard		TUTD
39		The Kids Are Alright.	2nd Street	TUTD
40		SAW VI	F st
41		The Rite	PG-13	TUTD
42	8/20/09	The Time Traveler's Wife	Century Laguna	FUN
43		The Young Victoria	DVD	TUTD
44		Unstoppable	F st	FUN
45		Valentine's Day	UA Arden	FUN
46		The Lincoln Lawyer	Santa Monica Promenade	TUTD
47		Whiteout	DT	TUTD
48		Youth in Revolt		TUTD
49		The Art of Getting By	Century Laguna	TUTD
50		Transformers 3D	Century Laguna	FUN
51	15-Apr	Scary Movie 4
52		Horrible Bosses	Century Laguna	TUTD
53		Without a Paddle	Sunrise
54		Watchmen
55	1-Jul	Click	SAC DT
56		Priest 3D	F st
57		The Simpsons	Century Arden Ethan	FUN
58		Jumping the Broom		TUTD
59	20-Jul-11	Cowboys and Aliens	F st	TUTD
60		The Help		TUTD
61		Harold and Kumar Christmas	Arden Century	FUN
62	20-Dec	Young Adult		TUTD
63	Nov-11	Jack and Jill
64		Tower Heist		TUTD
65		My Week With Marilyn	Tower	TUTD
66		Fright Night		TUTD
67		Contraband	Tower	TUTD
68		The Grey	F st	TUTD
69		Carnage	F st	TUTD
70		The Devil Inside	F st	TUTD
71	Oct-09	Couples Retreat
72	11/28/09	The Boondocks II: All Saints Day	Folsom	TUTD
73		Wanderlust		TUTD
74	Mar-10	Silent House		TUTD
75	30-Mar-12	Hunger Games	Century Arden Ethan	FUN
76	31-Mar-12	Salmon Fishing in the Yemen		TUTD
77		American Reunion	F st	TUTD
78	28-Apr	The Five Year Engagement	F st	TUTD
79		Jeff, who lives at Home	Regal, Arden	TUTD
80	4-May	Marvel's The Avengers	F st	FUN
81	11-May	Dark Shadows	G st	FUN
82	18-May	The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel	Tower	TUTD
83	23-May	The Dictator	G st	Free Movie Ticket
84	3-Jun-12	Men in Black III	F st	FUN
85	24-Jun-12	Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter	Century Laguna	TUTD
86		The Intouchables	Tower	TUTD
87		Snow White and the Huntsman	G st	Fun
88	28-Jun-12	Seeking a Friend at the End of the World	Century Laguna	Fun
89	30-Jun-12	Magic Mike	UA Laguna	TUTD
90	8-Jul-12	Savages	UA Laguna	TUTD
91	8/5/12	Take This Waltz	Crest	TUTD
92	8/12/12	The Campaign	Century Arden Ethan	TUTD
93	8/17/12	Expendables 2	UA Laguna	TUTD/FUN
94		Ruby Sparks	Tower	TUTD
95	9/2/12	Farewell My Queen	Crest	TUTD
96	9/8/12	Lawless	Century Arden Ethan	TUTD
97	10/1/12	Looper	Century Laguna	TUTD
98	10/14/12	Seven Psychopaths	Century Laguna	TUTD
99	11/2/12	Wreck it Ralph	Century Laguna	TUTD/FUN
100	10-Nov-12	Skyfall	Century Laguna	FUN

Davis Feminist Film Festival

I've been interning for the Davis Feminist Film Festival (DFFF) ever since Winter Quarter. I have to say that I enjoy this internship. There were not many hours required each week, so the work load was very manageable. I like the group of interns that I worked with. We helped each other out and helped put on some of the events and tabling.

The preparation for the event came down to the two festival dates, April 12 & 13. I didn't attend the first festival date since my other internship conflicted at the same time. I also had to watch Jeff, who lives at home for my volunteering before it stops showing in theaters after Thursday night. However, I did make it for Friday. I arrived pretty early, so I volunteered to watch the Silent Auction. There were some great items up for auctions.

My tickets for the show! A different color for each of the nights. Each night had a different lineup.

The brochure for the list of lineups. The brochure also included information about the Davis Feminist Film Festival. Also, the interns are included in the brochure, so my name is in there! There was also a survey included, but I didn't have my brochure since I put it in my car before the films began.

I missed a film or two since I volunteered to watch the Silent Auction. When I got in the theater, it looked nicely occupied. I think it had a great turn out. But, I heard Thursday had a better crowd.

After we had intermission, the directors of the event did a thanks and acknowledgement. They mentioned people who made the film festival possible. In addition, the interns who were present were invited to the stage and given flowers. A few others were also invited on stage to get flowers. All of us interns did not expect to get the flowers, but it was appreciated.

I liked the films that were shown and thought that it was a great lineup. I think I liked The Frog film best. For the last film that was shown, the director was there and was available for Q&A after the show.

The end of the 2012 Davis Feminist Film Festival meant that most of the work for my internship are already done. But, I still look forward to connecting with other intern. I'm still open to help out the festival and with anything that can be done ahead of time for next years festival.

Volunteer for TUTD

I don't think I actually became involved in volunteering until I reached high school. High school was when I became more seriously involved in clubs, organizations, and academics. I've continued my involvement with volunteering through university, but my volunteering with one of the projects that I been working on will soon have to end. I been volunteering for TUTD (Thumbs up!, Thumbs Down!) project ever since 2009. However, me and many other youth volunteers will soon no longer be able to contribute this awesome project because we will either move on to university or begin careers. But, that does not mean that I still don't want to be involved in the community, as I continue to look for ways to be involved.

TUTD is comprised mainly of youth volunteers who are between the ages of 14-22. This project does need volunteers who can watch rated R movies since many of the volunteers are high school students and aren't 17 yet. I get to work with other youth members during the Hackademy awards through presentation and voting for the different categories of awards. We provide each other tips and it's a great opportunity to work with youth from Sacramento and Davis.

During the meetings, the volunteers have also been awarded some great items for just being volunteers. During training, you are immediately provided goodies to help with volunteering, which includes a notebook, pen, and notebook with useful information and tips. There's also refreshments, including water and lemonade, popcorn, candy, and other light snacks during the meetings.

Because of TUTD I've watched tops movies in theaters and on dvd. I watched movies that I would not have watched if I was not volunteering. I learned about exorcisms, which I had no idea about. But, watching 3+ plus movies related to exorcisms changed that. I reviewed 30+ movies in theaters and 5+ dvds for TUTD and there's more to come. I had the opportunity to see movies that I really wanted to watch after seeing the trailers, such as Fast 5, Wanderlust, and American Reunion. I was introduced to some good movies and didn't expect it before watching them, such as The Help, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

TUTD provided me the opportunity to work on an issue of tobacco and its usages. I grew up disliking tobacco and I certainly do not like it anywhere near my household or near me. As part of my volunteer task, I get to watch movies and look out for any signs of tobacco. I also look at the portrayal of tobacco from actors and actresses.

Volunteering for TUTD led me to look at movies more critically. It made me more aware of tobacco in my surroundings. TUTD was the reason why my interest in watching movies grew. I not only wanted to watch movies for reviewing, but also I wanted to watch movies for my entertainment. Since my movie watching grew, I am close to watching over 100 movies in theaters, which I am keeping track of through excel.

If you are curious about TUTD or know someone who may be interested, please check out the TUTD website. You can also check out Scene Smoking, which has the reviews for the top ten movies and dvds. TUTD is recruiting new movie volunteers for 2012-3 and I want the project to have a strong support and volunteerism. In addition, the Youth Advisory Board is a program for youth of the age of 14-21, which has a yearly application available to sign up.

The Grey

Yesterday night, I watched The Grey. I decided to show up to the 10:10 showing since I didn't want to sit around a lot of people and annoy them if I had to write during the film. However, there were more people than I expected for a late showing. Maybe it was because we were in the small room. It could have been because they are a fan of Liam Neeson. Perhaps, it was because it was the second day that the film was released.

I looked at a couple of trailers before watching the movie and thought there couldn't be any tobacco in the film, but there was tobacco. When Ottway (Liam Neeson) first entered into the room where all the other guys where you can immediately notice the type of people he is surrounded with. In that room, there were men fighting with each other, hanging out, and someone who smoked cigarettes while Ottway walked by. I was especially surprised when someone started smoking a cigarette after they were hunted by wolves. I mean, a lot of resources aren't available to them and they are out in the woods and someone has to bust out a cigarette out of somewhere. I did not know the name of the character who smoked until much later in the film. On IMDB, it says his name his Hendrick (Pete). However, later on in the film he reveals his real name to Diaz when Diaz decides to stay and enjoy the view. So, it was Pete who enjoyed puffs of cigarette with his buddies in a camp fire. Since he enjoyed cigarettes in that manner, he portrayed cigarettes as a way to provide him relaxation and to get rid of some tension.

I like how Ottway decided to collect the wallets of everyone that had one. I think that is a good way to help remember those who died or were murdered. It flowed with what happened in the movie and became a symbol in the movie.

This movie provided me an interest in wolves, such as how to avoid them and how they interact in case I ever get caught in a similar situation as Ottway. But, I think the film, African Cats got me more interested in animals and their behaviors. 

I heard someone say "oh really?" when the end showed. I understand what that person meant because I think things could have gotten more exciting in the film at that particular moment. But, I think the film ended in a way that makes sense. I agree with the ending because although it's not the way he wanted things to happen, it was a way to connect and remember something valuable about his past. I don't want to give out the details of what happened in the end though.

The movie went by pretty quickly for being a movie that is an 1 hour and 57 minutes long. After the movie, I walked out and I heard a few "good" comments and no other comments.

Carnage

I remembered watching the trailer for Carnage a couple of months ago. I didn't think that movie was exciting since it is just parents arguing with each other about their children.Then, the parents start to get angry with one another.

Although I wouldn't have chosen to watch Carnage, I just came back from watching that movie. I was actually suppose to watch that movie a couple of weeks ago, but it was not showing in the area. I think it was this week when they started to show the movie more widely. But, I still had to drive to Sacramento and go to Tower since that was the closest place that played the movie. The other place was in Roseville, which is much farther and I don't really know where the theater is that area.

After watching Carnage, the movie was what I expected. I really wanted the Cowens to leave the Longstreet home. Each time the Cowens tried to leave they were convinced to go back and for ridiculous reasons. I really hoped that they would leave the home, but I guess they were stuck there trying to resolve a problem or create more problems for themselves. Things seemed alright with the couples in the beginning of the film, then, after staying longer the couples became more frustrated with one another.

I reviewed the movie for volunteering. From what I had seen in the trailers, I didn't think there would be any tobacco, but there was and it was cigars. I did not seem that they were lighted though. The husband, Michael Longstreet (John C. Reily) actually offered cigars to the other husband, Alan Cowen (Christoph Waltz), but Cowen didn't take a cigar. After showing Cowen the cigars, Longstreet takes one and holds one around. But, he doesn't light the cigar. He puts it in his mouth and holds it like he wants to smoke it, but he doesn't smoke since his wife opposed smoking in the house. I don't understand his need for holding a cigar, but he does choose to hold it after things became stressful. I think he just wanted to use the cigar as a way to escape the negativity in the room since he seems to be a positive and humorous guy.

Tower Cafe And Sophia's Thai Restaurant

Tower plaza

Today, I went to Tower Cafe. I noticed that they were fixing their sign. I think before it was quite faded and you could barely notice the Tower sign. They made it more red and noticable. I been wanting to try the Madame Cristo for a while and I was finally able to. So, the Madame Cristo is a french toast sandwich with ham and a egg on top of it. On the side, there is potato, but it totally tastes like french fries. Usually, I dont like onions with it, but damn how Tower makes it tastes like french fries I really dont mind. I just put the onion on the side of the plate. The plate does not seem much, but I had a half of the Madame Cristo sandwich and I was already full. It can actually be quite filling. Before, I went to Tower Cafe and ordered a french toast and shared it with my sister. And, both of us could barely even handle one piece of french toast. It looks real light and like garlic bread, which is appetizing. But, their french toast is kind of heavy. Maybe its because I am one of those people who are light on desserts and can only handle a little at a time. Okay. I must admit that I just dont like their water. Once I noticed that I became too full to handle anymore of their food, I just drank their green tea.

Madame Cristo

I have to say that drinking tea again today made me realize how much I love drinking tea. I dont understand why there arent many teahouses here like there are in Japan or China. Tea just makes you feel so good and go "ahh". I had three refills of hot water with their green tea. I honestly wanted to get more refills, but I was going to see a movie afterwards. While I was enjoying the hot tea, I noticed how the desserts that the cafe had in display. Some of them looked quite appetizing. Some look quite pricy. I saw gold on some of them, but it looks rather delicious. I also noticed that I was the youngest person in there. Everybody else seem to be around middle age. After eating, I went next door to watch a movie. Again, I noticed that I was the youngest person in line. Everybody else was probably middle aged or seniors. I guess that is the usual crowd for the Tower plaza. After watching the movie, "My week with Marilyn" I learned a lot about her. I didnt know that she was a actress. I also learned more of what other people thought of her. It was really interesting. There was tobacco in the beginning of the movie and as it moved towards the end there was less showings of tobacco.

The Mee Room (blurry because its dark and my video camera has no light)

 Later, I came back to Davis. I went out with my housemate and she decided that she wanted to Thai food, especially some Thai tea. I suggested Sophia's Thai place because there is free refills on Thai tea. We showed up at Sophia's and there is a wait of 30 minutes. We were given the "machine?" that would notify us of the wait. We went out of the area and into Bath & Body works to make up for time. After passing a couple of businesses, the "buzzer?" made some beeping noise and kept repeating something for about 5 minutes. It stopped after a while. We came back around 30 minutes and still ended waiting for about 10 minutes. We were finally seated in the Mee Room? Its the room that you get to sit on cushions. It was much darker than I remembered at Sophias. Maybe its because I usually go their around the

Beef Pad thai

afternoon or so. The darkly atmosphere made me and my housemate very tired. I ordered the pad thai and my housemate ordered the drunken noodles. It wasnt as good as I remembered it. I think the first time that I went there it was quite delicious. It might have just been tonight that things taste differently. I got full real quick. I dont know what it was. It might have been the dark environment. It could have been that Madame Cristo that I had for brunch. Whatever it was it stopped me from eating halfway through the pad thai. Its been four hours since I ate that thai food and I am still full. I guess I got my

Shrimp drunken noodles

moneys worth. Afterwards, I went late night grocery shopping at Savemart supermarkets. It was the emptiest that I have seen it. I guess it was also the latest time that I have been grocery shopping there. I spent around $25. I usually dont spend that much when I go grocery shopping. Actually, its because I have a big problem. Most of my life my family or other people have usually done the cooking for me. All I had to worry about was getting snacks or drinks. And, I have no problem buying those. In fact, those are the items that are most easy for me to pick out. At times, I tell myself that I am only going to get food. I might end up with microwavable products. Sometimes, I might walk down the aisles only to have nothing in my grocery bag. University has taught me to become more independent that I have to take care of myself more. I need to learn to shop for meals instead of snacks. Buying groceries for meals has been a big problem for me and I hope to break that struggle soon. It might not be while I am in college, but hopefully when I am in my mid 20s.

Three in a week

This week alone I have watched three different movies in theaters in Davis.

I watched African Cats by myself on Monday. I was really surprised that I was the only one in theater watching African Cats. I thought that it would be difficult to achieve this goal so soon. But hey, one of my lifetime goals of having a theater all to myself is completed! I was able to sit anywhere I wanted and enjoyed the theater all to myself. Although the movie focused on felines, there were several exciting moments in the film. When I left the movie, I came out with a new perspective on wildlife. I learned more about lions and cheetahs. I find it interesting how they are different. Hmm... I think I would be a cheetah if I were to be a animal. Just because I believe I am independent and can teach things that I am a expert at to others.

I watched Hoodwinked Too! Hood Vs. Evil with my housemate, Nancy, since she wanted to see a 3D movie and that was the only one available last night. Again, we were the only ones in theater. When we got in the theater, Nancy wanted to get popcorn and she bought the large size. It was $7.00, so expensive for popcorn. Since it was a 3D movie we had to wear glasses during the film. It was annoying at first, like always, but I got used to wearing the 3D glasses as the movie continued. There were some funny parts of the movie, but I wished there were more entertaining part of the movie.

Today, I watched Fast 5. Oh, and I scored free small popcorn for being a regal card member. Boy, does it pay of to be a member or to have more cards and use them consistently. I cant wait to score a free movie or soda soon. I found the beginning of the movie to be intriguing. I wished I would have watched all the Fast and Furious movies. I watched one or two before, but I dont really remember much, except for the characters. I was hoping that I got to see some races with the nice looking cars here, rather than the cop cars chasing them. Well, they did have a couple of races in the film, which managed to touch on my desire to see thrilling races. I cant wait for the next movie in the series to come out.

Santa Monica beach, pier, and promenade

The Saturday of my stay we took the bus to Santa Monica promenade. First, my friend wanted to eat. We ended up deciding on McDonalds. We brought some food to eat to walk on the pier and the beach. The beach had a ferris wheel and other kinds of activities going on. Next, we walked the promenade and browsed a few shops. After a while we decided to watch The Lincoln Lawyer. When we walked in the movie theater was filled. The only seats we could find were the ones that were all the way in the front.The only other time that I remember the theater being that full was for a showing of Avatar. We explored more shops including the new side of the promenade, which is the mostly the high end shops. Before leaving we decided to get dinner. We went to Wolfgang Puck Express and ordered a pasta and for dessert we had Pinkberry. It was Chen's first time and she loved it!