Welcome to Wonderland.

Burlesque

Burlesque is a fun distraction that manages to be enjoyable despite an awful screenplay.

Christina Aguilera gives an acceptable debut performance. The role doesn't call for much, but she's believable as a small-town girl with a big voice. Her performance was certainly better than Britney's debut in Crossroads. She has great chemistry with the film's more seasoned actors, including forever diva Cher. The two powerhouses play off each other well. It's great to see two generations of divas working together and seeing a torch passed.

Stanley Tucci is magic as usual. Cam Gigandet is sooo nice to watch...because he's foxy. Alan Cumming is great but totally underutilized. Finally, it's great to see Kristen Bell play someone other than a cute, nice blonde. She's a great dancer but I wish we could've heard her vocal talents. But this isn't a normal musical and clearly it's all about Cher and Christina.

The film isn't really a musical; characters mostly sing when they are supposed to, not because the moment feels right. But that doesn't stop the musical numbers from being pretty awesome. Catchy original and timeless songs sung by The Voice, Christina Aguilera. And Cher's still got it.

The script is just a dis-ast-uh. Cliche and cheese combine and produce the mess of the Burlesque script. I don't think Steve Antin has much writing experience and it certainly shows. And he used way too many establishing shots. Don't worry Steve, I haven't forgotten for the tenth time that we're at the Burlesque Lounge.

Burlesque really reminded me how great it is to be a girl sometimes. We get to wear stunning outfits adorned in pearls, feathers and a whole lot of sparkle. We get to paint beautiful canvases with lipstick, eyeliner and eye shadows and create works of art. Though dancing in little outfits in front of men isn't for everyone, it can be very empowering for some women, and the women in Burlesque were certainly powerful.

If you need to turn your brain of for about an hour and a half, look at pretty colors, watch dance moves you'll never be able to do and hear vocals you'll never be able to mimic BUT leave feeling satisfied, then see Burlesque.

Jeremy Renner in The Town

For the most part, I liked The Town but Renner made it a memorable film. He plays an incredibly unpredictable character with a fire in his eyes that scared me. He left behind a path of destruction and was like a lit firework in each scene. His accent was sometimes hard to understand but I'll take that as his dedication to the role. Another excellent performance from an immensely talented man.

Netflix

Going the Distance-I love Justin and Drew. This looked cute.
Enter the Void-Supposed to be super intense but David and Anne loved it.
Battlestar Galactica-Netflix Instant. Supposed to be sooo good. An upcoming TV project.