Beach trips & summer sequels

No summer is complete without a trip to the beach. As I keep my fingers crossed for some sunny weather, here are some particularly memorable beach trips from TV and film.

  • For some reason, the 2006 summer flick Aquamarine is the first that comes to mind when I think of beach movies. The whole things does take place by the water! Starring 2000s celebs, Sara Paxton, Emma Roberts and JoJo, the film tells the story of two friends who meet a mermaid. In the end, they prove the power of love with their friendship. It's basically an early draft of Frozen, set at the beach.

  • In a season four episode of Gilmore Girls, Rory and Paris escape the New England cold and drive down to Florida for spring break. Neither girl is a party animal, but they push past their introvert tendencies and wind up having a little too much fun during the week. They both bail and come home early, but not before spending a day or two relaxing on the beach.

  • Whenever The Brady Bunch went on vacation, things tended to go awry. When the family traveled to Hawaii for a handful of episodes, the boys come across a cursed idol that brings bad luck. In true Brady-fashion, things work out and the episode ends with a party. 

As Seen on Screen

This weekend I saw the musical event of the summer! The movie no one asked for but everyone gave thanks for! The movie with a weird eyeroll-inducing tagline! The movie that took out Meryl Streep and somehow got better! Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again! First things first, the sequel ignores select timeline/background elements previously assigned to Donna, so you're going to have to get onboard with plot inconsistencies. Once you get past that, you're in for a real treat. The Mamma Mia sequel is all about fun, despite the sad premise. It alternates between telling the origin story of a young Donna (played by the infectious Lily James) and present-day Sophie, who is trying to throw a spectacular grand opening party for the hotel to make her mother proud. Young Donna meets her three suitors over the span of a few weeks post-graduation, while she's searching for a place where she feels like she belongs. She lands on Kalokairi and immediately senses the magic there, bringing her two best friends, Tanya (who at a glance looks exactly like her counterpart, Christine Baranski) and Rosie, along for the ride. In present-day, Sophie, who is rocking the same beachy-waves as Young Donna, works with Sam (1/3 of her fathering team) to put the opening party back together, despite some unfortunate weather, and Tanya and Rosie show up to support their best friend's daughter. The real party starts as the entire cast comes together for the final chunk of the movie, reuniting during a triumphant reprise of Dancing Queen. But make no mistake, the sequel does not rest on a rehash of songs from the original. While a couple reappear in different ways throughout the film, many new ABBA songs successfully work their way into the mix. They're less familiar, and I can't wait to listen to the soundtrack over and over, until they are just as familiar as the first film's hits. The island scenery, highlighted in the flashback and present day scenes, make me want to head off to Greece to roam a magical island and swim in the blue waters. I can't forget to talk about Cher, who gets a diva-worthy entrance towards the end of the movie, and seems game to go along with the Mamma Mia's goofier elements. Christine Baranski and Rosie Mulligan are still hilarious together and are the perfect duo, sprinkled throughout the film, and watching Sophie's dads pal around together is always fun. The entire cast looks like they're having the best time, and their energy and enthusiasm makes the whole film work. I want to watch them hang out and sing ABBA songs together every day. If you're looking for a summer pick-me-up, this is the perfect one to choose. As you leave the theater hoping for more, never fear, the soundtrack is available for you to dance around to for the rest of the summer.

Haven't You Heard?

Earlier this summer on a very hot day, my boyfriend and I took refuge at the movie theater. We decided to see Incredibles 2, the highly anticipated sequel to the 2004 Pixar hit. I was a fan of the first film and the story of two siblings learning to use their superpowers, and I was eager to see where the sequel would pick-up. Surprisingly, Incredibles 2 picks up within minutes of the first movie's conclusion. With no recap to fill in the gaps, the audience had to be very familiar with the original film for a seamless intro to the sequel. I definitely spent a few minutes reminding myself that superheroes are illegal in this universe and that no one is aware of Jack-Jack's powers. Once you get back into the world of the Parr family, the film slowly picks up speed. In this installment, we follow Elastigirl's journey, as she's named the face of the pro-superhero campaign, thanks to a generous sponsorship from the mysterious Deavor siblings. Left on his own, Mr. Incredible is responsible for taking care of the family. Unfortunately, he didn't learn his lesson from the first film. Throughout these sequences, Mr. Incredible struggles to keep up with the drama in his children's lives and begins to grow bitter that his wife has the spotlight. After Elastigirl successfully completes a mission, she calls her husband to celebrate, expecting him to support her. Mr. Incredible spends most of the call ignoring what his wife is saying and gritting his teeth in jealousy. These scenes were difficult to watch and I sat in the theater hoping that the pay-off would come at the movie's conclusion and Mr. Incredible would apologize for not living up to his namesake. But that redemption arc never comes. Instead, the film moves on, pretending that never happened, which makes me think they didn't realize how alarming it was in the first place. Just because Mr. Incredible may show up in the end for his wife, doesn't mean we should ignore the problematic tendencies he has to value his powers and fame over her success. As Incredibles 2 moves towards its conclusion, things pick up again when Violet and Dash begin to use their powers and race off to rescue their parents. It's a shame that this family camaraderie doesn't extend throughout the rest of the film. That being said, the movie still has funny moments throughout and isn't bad, by any means. Overall, it's a fun sequel and good escape from the heat, but it definitely struggles to remain exciting throughout and doesn't top the unique original. Until the saga fixes its Mr. Incredible problem, it will continue to re-tread old ground.

Required Reading

I still can't stop thinking about the RBG documentary from months ago, so I've been eager for any additional Ruth Bader Ginsburg content that I can get my hands on. The New York Times published an article about an interview she did to accompany the Off-Broadway play, The Originalist, about her late colleague Antonin Scalia. The article talks a little bit more about the friendship between the two wildly different justices, which the documentary also examined. My favorite part of the piece? RBG dubs herself a "flaming feminist." This is RBG content I'm looking for.

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