Movie Review: The Way

A couple of days ago, I checked the movie "The Way" out of my local library kind of randomly. It had been recommended to me a while ago, but I had never gotten around to actually watching it. So when I figured out that my library had it on DVD, I figured why not give it a try?

Before I get into my opinions of this movie, let me first give you all a very brief overview of its plot. Basically, the son of an eye doctor has an accident and dies while walking the Camino de Santiago trail. His father (the aforementioned eye doctor), travels to France to collect his sons body, but eventually decides to carry his sons ashes to the end of the Camino de Santiago. Throughout his journey on the trail, he meets other travelers who are all walking the trail for different reasons, and he undergoes a lot of personal growth and realizes what life is really all about. This is of course a very brief summation of what occurs in the movie, but hopefully any of you who are unfamiliar with the plot of The Way can now understand the general gist of it.
My overall impression of this movie was a good one, but not a great one. Overall, I really liked the plot of The Way, and I think the overall message that it's trying to get across to viewers is a really inspirational one that's lacking from a lot of movies today. However, all of this was not enough to launch it to the next level for me. Many of you know the feeling after watching a great movie; you walk out of the theater just thinking about what you watched, maybe blown away by some aspect of it, and you just cannot stop thinking about the movie for several days afterwards. This was not one of those movies for me. As soon as the end credits began to roll at the end of The Way, that was it for me. I don't want to make this movie out to sound bad, because it wasn't. It just lacked that magic spark that some movies have, and frankly there were certain parts of this movie that seemed a little slow and, for lack of a better word, bored me a bit.
So overall, I would probably not recommend this movie. If it's been on your "to watch" list for a while, maybe it's worth giving a chance. You very well may like it a lot more than I did. There is a lot of potential behind this film, but it just lacked the energy and uniqueness that makes a movie great.
Oh, and a total side note, but this movie has a really good song by Coldplay in it, called "Lost." It may be worth listening to if you're a Coldplay fan.
Rating: PG-13

Genre: Drama

Run Time: 121 minutes

Release Date: October 7, 2011

My Rating: ★★☆☆☆

To Plan Or Not To Plan?

I am a planner: I love figuring out the logistics of a trip that I'm going on months before I even set foot on the airplane that's flying me to my destination. In a lot of ways, I feel like this is a gift, because by planning things out I can often find the best travel deals, places of interest that I would not necessarily know about without planning first, and just in general I learn more about the place that I am visiting through planning for my trip.
However, there is a downside to this aspect of myself as well. There is something to be said for simply booking a flight to a faraway destination, and knowing absolutely nothing about where you are going. I feel like this way of traveling somehow makes you feel more ingrained in the culture and general flow of a place. You're no longer a tourist simply visiting and snapping pictures of the most famous sites; you need to rely on communication with people and locals around you to learn about the best places to go visit. In other words, you are more like one of the locals when you don't plan a trip somewhere.
But again, planning does have its positives as well, and I think that even a little bit of planning is a wise idea before going on any trip, if nothing else than for your own personal safety. So let me know, do you enjoy planning out your trips in detail, or letting life lead you to new and exciting ventures? Let me know!

Faster Isn't Always Better

In this modern day and age, it seems like people just keep going faster and faster. Multitasking in our society is looked at as a good thing, and the better you are at multitasking the more you can get done in one day. Caffeinated drinks are selling like hot cakes, and just in general our pace seems to be quickening at an alarming rate.
I think it's time that we, as a society, take a step back and allow ourselves to  s l o w   d o w n . . . there is nothing wrong with doing nothing. We tend to look at relaxing and allowing our bodies to rest as laziness, when in actuality a little R&R every now and again does us so much good, not only physically but mentally as well.
I understand that many people have busy lives and grueling jobs, or maybe you're attending school and have hours of homework to get done every night. But I urge everyone to just try and do things with a little more calmness; you don't need to be checking email while you're sipping a coffee and studying for an exam all at the same time. Maybe just take 5 or 10 minutes out of your day to enjoy that latte without having any other distractions detracting from the experience. I think that many people would highly benefit from this, and slowing down is something that should not be frowned upon but embraced. Let me know what your thoughts are on this topic!

Molly's Recipes: Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Banana Milkshake

This is the ultimate warm weather treat! Cold, rich and downright delicious, this recipe is perfect for a quick sweet fix on a summer evening.

Chocolate, Peanut Butter & Banana Milkshake:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup milk (make this recipe vegan using soy milk!)
1 frozen banana, peeled and halved before freezing
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon peanut butter
1/2 cup crushed ice (optional)

1. First pour your milk of choice into a blender. Add the two frozen banana halves, cocoa powder and peanut butter.

2. Blend all of the ingredients together for about a minute until the consistency is very thick and creamy.

3. At this point, add in the optional ice if you want to make it a slightly more frosty and less milky consistency. Blend until the ice is well incorporated into the mixture.

4. Pour into a small serving glass and enjoy immediately!

Serves: 1
Prep Time: 5 minutes

This is a perfect recipe to add your own personal touch to. You can sweeten it even more with added agave nectar or maple syrup, or perhaps add even more peanut butter for some added peanut goodness! Whatever you choose to do, share it with me in the comments!

Molly's Recipes: Easy Maple Apple Compote

I was craving a warm, fruity dessert so on a whim I decided to make a sort of improvised apple compote. I think it turned out pretty delicious, so I though I'd post the recipe here. You can make loads of changes to this recipe to make it your own, so let me know what you think!

Easy Maple Apple Compote:
Ingredients:
2 small/medium apples
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Begin by peeling, coring and dicing the two apples. Add to a small saucepan along with the water.

2. Heat on high until the water begins to boil, and then reduce the heat to medium until most of the water has evaporated and the apples are soft and tender.

3. Add the cinnamon and maple syrup to the pan, and continue to cook for a few more minutes until the remaining water and maple syrup have reduced into a thick syrup.

4. Pour the apples into a serving bowl, let cool for a few minutes and enjoy!

Serves: 1
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes