Whine and Cheese

I've posted in the past how I am the admin for the Cincinnati MovieBears FB group. I usually post a date/time for a movie on the third Saturday of each month. Then I coordinate a group dinner afterward. I'm not a planner, so this takes some effort for me. After years of doing it, it's not so bad, but I always feel a bit of anxiety in the process.

Some time back, I stopped posting polls to decide which movie we see. I quit doing it after a group of us ended up going to a movie that none of us had voted for in the poll. People love to vote, but the large majority rarely attend. Now, I select a movie that came out in the last couple of weeks and just throw it up to the group.

This morning, I posted an outing for "The Nun" for Saturday. Within an hour, I got this comment posted by a group member:

"I saw The Nun last weekend and the movie is terrible."



Okay, opinions are like @$$holes, we all have one and sometimes they stink, but I don't see the point in adding this comment for everyone to read. Coordinating this stuff is hard enough with my schedule without some smart@$$ queen putting a negative connotation to the event. I always question when I am about to add something snarky to the web, often deleting a comment as it's not worth adding to the drama of the world.

This time, I replied to his missive, asking, "So... are you suggesting that I cancel this?"

The wiseguy responded just a few minutes ago with this following:

"I’m just saying The Nun sucks, haha. I have a wedding that evening so I won’t be there either way."

So.. you were not planning on going, you just decided to warn everyone that the movie is bad so they won't go.

Dick move, douchebag... dick move...

In Lexington, KY, about 80 miles south of Cincinnati, there was superhero-themed bear run. You would think that I would have flocked to something like this, but I just am never comfortable enough to go. I'm not sure why, I should brave it, but I let it go.

It being the 3rd Saturday of the month, I scheduled a Cincinnati MovieBears outing. The Cincinnati MovieBears is a social group in the Cincinnati area where a group of bears go to a movie, followed by dinner, in the area. I've been the coordinator of the group now for several years. I pick the theater time, the theater, organize the restaurant for dinner, etc.

With near 70 degree temps and sunny weather, it was a perfect night to try a newer theater. We all went to see "Deadpool," which a lot of us had already seen, but wanted to see again. There is so much going on in the movie, so many new and dated pop culture references, both visually and in dialogue, that there is always something new.

At the 4 PM showing, the theater wasn't packed, but I think people wondered when an entire row of the theater was almost all taken up by a group of bearded men. Thirteen bears showed up for the movie, about twice the normal group attendance. The eye candy outside the group was good too, every girl seemed to come in with a bearded cubby, a bear, or a daddy bear. We had three new people come last night, one of them was a local daddy bear and his out-of-town partner Kelly, who was a stunningly beautiful bearded muscle bear. And he was so sweet too, which magnified his attractiveness. One of the other guys made a comment when he walked past, "Wow, I wish he was with us," I responded, "Oh, he is!"

The group loved the flick. We walked to the nearby restaurant who had a table ready for us (even though they don't take "same day" reservations). We were an easy group to handle, I think. One of the new guys bought my dinner for coordinating the outing, which was nice. Everyone had a good time, I think.

Our outings end usually around 9 PM, as it allows for guys to head to the bars if they want. I usually go to a coffee shop with some to hang out. Last night, I didn't do either. Organizing these events, especially getting restaurant reservations, sometimes puts a bit of stress on me, so I'm relieved when everything works out but I'm also a bit tired when it's done. I slept well last night.

So the Cincinnati Movie Bears went to see "Unfriended" last night. Well, two of us did. Obviously not a big turnout. Group attendance tends to tank on a horror movie and the fact I had moved the outing to a different theater didn't help. Still, I enjoyed the evening.

"Unfriended" is about a group of teenagers who engage in online conversation via Skype a year after one of their number committed suicide after an embarrassing video went viral online. During their conversation, they find an unknown person has joined their chat, who begins revealing unsavory truths about their friendships and then each of them starts dying in bizarre ways. "Unfriended" is a different kind of horror movie. About 99% of the action takes places online. The point of view is that of the sole protagonist during the whole movie as she clicks between different applications and types secret messages to her boyfriend. I felt it was pretty original, having an online "viewpoint" as the setting.

The movie is not going to be for everyone. In fact an elderly couple left about 1/3 of the way through the movie. When the movie ended, the ushers told us that the lady had told her it was the worst movie she'd ever scene. I have to wonder if there was a generational issue there, as I would guess that she wasn't accustomed to the different applications the main character used and the speed at which she moved from app to app.

While I enjoyed the movie, I don't see it as one I'd watch over and over again. When we went to dinner, we hashed out the movie and our only real complaint was that the "embarrassment" of the viral movie (including the online commentary to it, which sadly I could see as VERY real) just didn't seem to be serious enough for someone to commit suicide over. The rest of it was pretty entertaining if you can handle the oddity of the way it's put together.

Before I get started, I've noticed today that when I respond to a comment, the user pic resets to my default no matter what icon I choose for the posting. Is this happening to anyone else? If I go back and edit the comment, I can reselect a different icon and it works. Weird.

So last weekend, the Cincinnati MovieBears and I went to see "The Maze Runner." A young man awakes to find himself in an elevator, arriving at a camp full of young men. None of the men have any memories prior to their arrival at the camp, except for their first name. The camp is surrounded by a maze that select members race through to map when the doors open in the morning. They must hurry back before the doors close at dusk or remain trapped in the maze overnight, which no one has apparently survived. When the new guy breaks the rules and rushes to help a fallen man, he gets trapped on the other side and learns a lot about the maze and why they are there.

The movie was okay. It's trying really hard to be the next "Hunger Games" series, but it never really sold itself to me. A lot of the bears in attendance agreed that it probably doesn't have the momentum that other series have.

Last night, I watched a Netflix horror DVD called Nurse 3D, about a nurse-by-day/serial-killer-by-night type who fixates on a young nurse and starts framing her for different crimes. It has a five minute cameo by Kathleen Turner and supporting roles by Corbin Bleu and Judd Nelson. The lead actress is Paz de la Heurta who was HORRIBLE. Her only redeeming quality is that she apparently has no problem with full-frontal nudity as she's naked for significant parts of the movie. Her voice is childlike, she can't project feeling, and her sole expression is boredom. The fact that she not only has the lead role, but does a great deal of voice-over in other scenes means she's wrecking large chunks of the movie. Sadly, everyone else is really good in the film, but it doesn't save the flick. The chick fights were fun though. Overall, it's a movie to be heckled.

Tomorrow night, a buddy and I are going to see "Annabelle," which looks to be good. I do love the Halloween season. :)

Oh how I hate to see a weekend end. I love sleeping in and Monday just feels so harsh when that alarm clock goes off. And this weekend was one of the best in a while.

Late Friday night, Steve (rootbeer1) came to town to hang out for the weekend before heading into Tennessee to see his mom. He arrived late, but we went to dinner so he could enjoy his first 3-way at Skyline Chili. I insisted he wear protection (aka a bib) before diving in.

We got up a bit late the next morning and drove down to Big Bone Lick State Park for a quick look-see and a souvenir tee-shirt.


Steve and I at Big Bone Lick State Park

We hit Skyline Chili again for lunch so he could try a "5-way" and a cheese coney. Afterward, we crashed at my house for a couple of hours before going to the movie theater. The Cincinnati MovieBears saw "Man of Steel. I think the overall feel was that the movie was GREAT and Henry Cavill is quite the burly Superman! YUM!

It was a big turn out with 19 bears in attendance, our second largest after the 25 that showed for "Hairspray" some years back. Regrettably, it's too large a group to find a restaurant to serve all of us, so dinner was "on your own." I fear my decision to do that might have irritated some, but I didn't see a good way around it.

A group of us, including Derek (_decibel_), Chris (kybigstew), and Brian (cincycub), went to the Italianfest at the Levee and snacked around. Afterward, a few of us went to the bar and had a beer followed by a trip through Goettafest in Covington. Steve and I ended the night with a slice of pizza at Godfathers before crashing back home. Needless to say, my diet was blown to pieces on Saturday, but it was a great day. :)

Steve headed to TN the next morning and I did laundry, called Mom, etc. I do hate to see a fun weekend end.