Go see Fast 7…now please :)

 

furious-7-posterI didn’t know Paul Walker, at least not personally. Like most of us, I was introduced to him through his movies, where everyone seems larger than life and generally awesome. I have been a fan of his since I saw him in Varsity Blues, and was stunned like the rest of the world to hear of his sudden passing.

Then we started to really get to know who the man behind the brilliant blue eyes and magnetic smile was. We learned about his humanitarian work and his charity, about his devotion to his daughter, and the family he created with his Fast and Furious cast mates. It was through these friends that we realized what we truly lost-not just a fun actor, but an amazing human being.

I start this review with this observation because I wanted this movie to be everything they have been saying it would be. Not just action and adventure with beautiful people in gorgeous locations, but a tribute to person they themselves taught us to love. Fast 7 did not disappoint.

The movie is fun to watch and filmed well. The action scenes are frequent and ridiculous in the best ways possible. Not one fight scene or car chase felt out of place, which makes the quiet moments even more impressive. There are exchanges between Dom and Letty that remind us that Vin Diesel and Michelle Rodriguez can actually act, simple interactions with Paul Walker’s Brian and Jordana Brewster’s Mia that make us feel their love and fear for the safety of their family, along with lighter moments provided mostly by Tyrese Gibson and Ludacris that never take you out of the movie. Mix in the new additions of Nathalie Emmanuel, Kurt Russell and Jason Statham and you get a crazy good, well rounded cast that makes every over the top moment believable.

While watching the movie you may notice the moments where one of Paul Walker’s brothers stepped in to help complete this movie for him. I thought that it may be distracting, but it was quite the opposite. The movie is almost completely seamless in its efforts to give us as much Brian as possible, and on the rare moment that you find yourself wondering if that scene was Paul Walker or one of his brothers, you realize that it doesn’t matter. The dedication it took to bring this movie to the big screen makes those few moments fade into the background. I truly believe that if we didn’t know of Paul Walker’s passing we wouldn’t have a clue that it wasn’t him in every scene.

At the end of all the crazy action adventure is a tribute to both the character Brian, who is retiring in the movie universe, and the actor who portrayed him for over a decade. Vin Diesel says good bye to both in a moving voice over that will make you cry. Or at least swallow a lump in your throat. It is intimate and beautiful and reminds us that to the cast and crew of this franchise, they were more than friends, they were family.

Go see this movie. Go see it if you like action, adventure, beautiful people or epic fight scenes. Go see it if you want to pay tribute to someone who touched the lives of so many people through his generosity and his acting. Or go see it just because it is the best movie out right now.

Just bring some tissues.

A cuddly nightlight friend.

wpid-wp-1428322927167.jpegNew from Hog Wild, the people who have been selling the ridiculously fun Poppers, comes Brobo. Brobo consist of five characters that serve as friend, flashlight and nightlight for children ages 18 months and over.

I was introduced to Mumu, who, according to his tag, enjoys “Kung Fu, checkers, vacations, music and break dancing”. He is a little over 12 inches tall with a super large head and smaller body. Mumu’s shape and soft fabric body is perfect for hugging, with the head making the perfect pillow for a quick nap.

The Brobo line is meant to be a nighttime friend for little ones that may be fearful of the dark. In the torso of each Brobo is a LED light that is controlled with a simple swipe of the critters right hand over the light.wpid-wp-1428322960579.jpeg The first swipe produces a bright, flashlight light that can be used to illuminate a small space (like under a scary bed or inside the monster closet), while another swipe of the hand dims the light to make it a perfect nightlight for keeping shadows at bay.wpid-wp-1428322971118.jpeg  The LED is cool to the touch and there is a five minute auto shut off. The light is powered by 3 AA batteries, with the battery pack secured in the oversized head by a Velcro opening. There is an on/off switch on the battery pack if you decide you want to turn off the light completely.

Brobo is a fun addition to the Hog Wild product line, with an appeal to both children and adults who remember “Glow Worms”, but with the added appeal of being super soft and huggable. The only improvement I could see would be to make the night light setting a little less bright, although to a child that feature may be the most appealing. At around $30, Brobo would be an excellent addition to any child’s plushy collection.

Stress relief with Popper Pig!

Love Poppers: Love Popper Pig

Everyone has that day. The weather was miserable, work was obnoxious and the commute home was practically a disaster. Then, as you walk into your house you realize t

hat you forgot to stop at the store for dinner. So when you see the Valentine’s day themed Love Popper Pig that was given to you from the fun people at Hog Wild, you of course pick it up, arm it’s mouth with one of its little foam balls and squeeze its belly to shoot your husband. This then breaks into a Popper Pig battle because the husband is armed with his own Pig, and ten minutes later you realize that acting like a kid is actually a great stress reliever.

Hog Wild has a whole line of Poppers, all armed with small foam balls that are placed in the mouth and launched by squeezing the critters stomach. The more force you use, the faster and further the ball flies. They come with six soft foam balls and a net bag to keep them together when you are not in the middle of a fierce popper battle. The balls are soft, so using them indoors with supervision shouldn’t be an issue, and because the balls are bright white, they are easy to find if being played with outside.

Hog Wild offers a huge variety of poppers, from animals to aliens, with most of them being about 12 inches tall. They also offer key chain poppers so you can release your frustrations of being an adult on the go.

Or I guess you could give them to the children in your life. So that the epic battles are not completely one sided.