Five Things I Loved about Brave

I saw Brave last week with my mother, sister, son, two nieces, and nephew. It was a fairly wild crew, but fun. Much like Merida’s family in Brave, we all have our moments.

I’ve actually read mixed reviews of the movie, which surprised me. I think people have come to have such an exalted view of Pixar that nothing but perfection will do for some. I loved Brave. Was it perfect? Probably not, but I’m having a hard time pin-pointing things I didn’t like. The plot was compelling, the characters—particularly Merida and Elinor—were relatable, and it was technically brilliant.

So, without further ado, here are Five Things I Love about Brave:

1. The hair. Call me shallow, but I’m a curly girl. I’ve had curls sprouting from my head since I was a baby. Not tame, soft curls. We’re talking mane-like thick curls with a mind of their own. Straightening works… oh, for about three hours (yes, professional straightening) so I don’t bother. And really, I don’t want to. These curls have become a signature that I love, so I’m very happy to say that FOR ONCE, a princess does not have luxurious softly waving tresses. Merida has HAIR. Bless those curls.
2. The setting. Ah, Scotland. The movie is visually arresting partly because of the wild setting the Scottish highlands are. It’s gorgeous. If you’re a person who debates seeing things on the big screen or waiting for the DVD, take my advice, see this one in the theater. You’ll be glad you did with all that scenery.
3. The family. Like most Pixar films, this movie has family plastered all over it. No character exists in a vacuum, especially not Merida. She has a clan of loving and diverse people around her. None of them are perfect, but they love each other anyway. The relationship between Merida and her mother, Elinor is spot on and captures the particular tension that exists between mothers and their daughters on the verge of adulthood. Well done there, writers!
4. No romance. For you die-hard romantics out there, you may be a little disappointed, but I don’t think so. It’s refreshing to see a female protagonist in a children’s movie not end up with a suitor at the end. Frankly, it’s become commonplace to insert romance into movies aimed at all ages and it doesn’t need to be. I love romance. I write romance! But it doesn’t need to be in everything, and it was refreshing to watch a story about a teenage girl that didn’t focus on her love life.
5. Merida! She was… a brat. She was bold. She was reckless and passionate and fearless and real. She was a girl who started the movie in one place that often (from an adult perspective) made me roll my eyes, and she ended the movie in a different place. She grew and matured through her adventures. She was forced to see the consequences of her actions and view her world in a broader context than she had before. And growing that way is brave.

On a kid note, every one of them was riveted. Don’t tell me that little boys don’t like movies with female protagonists, they love them if the characters are more than cut-out princesses who take up space on the screen and twirl. Go. Take the kids. Take the husband for a date night. Pixar makes family films, so everyone in the family will enjoy this one.

And if you have curly hair, wear it bravely.

P.S. I’ve posted the new cover and synopsis for the first short story in my new series, Cambio Springs, here if you want to take a look. The short should be out at the end of this month if all goes according to plan.

Top Five Family Movies (that won’t make you want to gouge out your eyes)

Phew! Second book is out, which means that I can get back to posting inane writing advice and random opinions about television, music, and movies. Now, Christmas is coming (according to my local Target, it’s been Christmas season for about three months now) but soon, the kids will be out of school, which means that parents everywhere, in addition to searching for that Lego Ninjago set that their kid just had to have that apparently every other kid in the country also had to have (just me?) …besides that, parents will be tearing their hair out trying to find things for their kids to do instead of bugging them.

Now, if I was a wholesome, smart blogger, I’d give you all sorts of uplifting, but thrifty, crafts that your kids can do. Ideally, you’d also be able to use these as Christmas presents for grandparents. Sadly for you, I am not that wholesome, so I’m just going to give you…

The top five family movies that won’t make you want to gouge your eyes out! (Because we all know that Christmas vacation really means letting the kids watch entirely too much TV.) Without further ado…

Five Things Pixar Taught Me About Writing

When you’re a parent, there are a few things that save your sanity when your kid is bouncing off the walls: a solid lock on the bathroom door, a quality set of noise-canceling headphones (my go-to baby shower gift), a shot of brandy in the sippy cup (you know your grandma did it, and your dad’s just fine—mostly), but for all you responsible purists—I mean parents out there . . .

There’s Pixar.

Ah Pixar! Those beautiful, merciful people who produce movies that don’t make me want to run screaming or bang my head against the wall. Thank you for treating children like real people who can understand subtlety.  Thank you for including that wicked humor that makes kids say to their parents, “What? What are you laughing at?” (You know Joss Whedon was one of the screenwriters for Toy Story, right?)

Thank you for telling a good story.