Sorry, Lloyd Dobler, I’d Rather Date Walter Gibson

 When it comes to 80s movie boyfriends, I think we all can agree that Lloyd Dobler from Say Anything is close to the top of the list. How can you not like a guy who sends a girl cards in the mail and tries to win her over by holding a boom box outside her bedroom window? You may remember me mentioning that I tormented my college roommates with a poster of John Cusack in Say Anything. In my new apartment, it’s hanging next to Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (not my favorite of the films, but by far the best poster!).

Obviously I have excellent taste in 80s film stars.

But as much as I love Lloyd Dobler, he’s not my favorite 80s boyfriend. He’s not even my favorite 80s boyfriend played by John Cusack. My favorite 80s Cusack boyfriend is Walter Gibson in The Sure Thing.

Gib and Lance

Gib is a guy who after high school goes off to a New England college while his best friend Lance, played by an equally young Anthony Edwards, goes to school in L.A. Gib tries to go out with a girl at school, Allison, played by Daphne Zuniga (also known for her role as Princess Vespa in Spaceballs). He tries to hit on her using such great pick up lines as “Did you know that Shakespeare died of syphilis?” and sneaking her up to the roof of the library where he tells her about the constellations and how when he was six he wanted to be an astronaut – “You know, all the Tang you can drink” – then ruining it by repeating a convoluted speech his roommate told him works on girls.

All first dates should be at libraries.

When it doesn’t work out, Gib decides to take up Lance’s offer to come to California over Christmas break to hook up with a “sure thing”: a girl that will sleep with him no questions asked. He hitches a ride out with a couple that loves show tunes and, of course, Allison. Needless to say it doesn’t work out well and the show tunes couple leaves them on the side of the road to fend for themselves.

This is when you start to see why Gib is so awesome. First, he eats beer and cheese puffs for breakfast. Allison thinks this is completely disgusting, but he’s like Hey, I’m a dude in college. This is what I do. And it’s awesome whether you think so or not. He doesn’t actually say this but this you can tell this is what he’s thinking. He doesn’t care if you are a girl he has a crush on, he’s not changing to impress you.

Snowballs are a great breakfast food, thank you very much.

Then when Allison hitches a ride from an older guy in a truck, he sneaks in the back to follow her. The guy turns out to be a real creep, a weird guy in his late 50s pretending to be single that essentially tries to rape Allison – and might have gotten away with it, being in the middle of nowhere – but Gib gets in the cab with them (as if accepting a ride) and proceeds to act completely insane so as to distract the creeper and get Allison out of there. 

Creeper in a mint suit.

And she’s barely even grateful! Come on, Allison, Gib’s looking out for you, at least try to like him.

They finally get to a hotel somewhere, where they bond over a beer and he’s trying to be nice to her, and she has to go and call her boyfriend in California. Upset, Gib goes out to a bar, where he buys drinks for a couple middle-aged guys who are also sad and lonely.

"We're a couple of good-looking guys."

The kid is a freshman in college, and not only does he make friends with a couple of random dudes at a bar, he sings Christmas songs with them! At one point he only has $18.77 to his name and lends a guy at the train station a dollar because he asked for one. He may not be the most put together guy, but he’s generous.

One of my favorite scenes is a little while later, when they’re at a fancy hotel. Allison somehow left her money and schedule book in the previous hotel, so they’ve been hitchhiking all day with no money and nothing to eat and it starts pouring rain.

Of course.

When they try to pick a lock on a random trailer to find shelter, Allison finds she has a credit card in her purse, so they get dinner and a room at the only place around that takes credit: a really fancy place with wine and ladies walking around selling roses (Who does that? Is that an 80s thing?). They’ve been fighting the whole trip because she refuses to let him sleep in the same bed with her and makes one of them sleep on the floor (He keeps making the argument that “I’m not going to bed with you, I’m going to bed in a bed that you happen to be in also,” but it doesn’t work). Now that a few days have passed and she doesn’t hate him so much, she tells Gib they can both sleep in the bed, and this time he ruins everything by bringing up her boyfriend. He asks her to tell him about the guy, and she says “he’s directed”. Gib says, no, what’s he really like? “Is he funny? Does he make you laugh?” and she gets this look on her face like Oh my god, my boyfriend is the most boring guy on the planet. I’d much rather be with Gib but can’t because I’m too proud to admit it.

Awww.

 So then, in the morning, the camera pans over to show them snuggled up together, Gib with his arm around Allison. She wakes up and is happy and everything is great for about 30 seconds until he realizes what he’s doing. Gib gets defensive about not trying anything and jumps out of bed and stands around in a goofy dinosaur shirt trying to be gentlemanly. She’s like, Oh, it’s okay, I know you didn’t try anything, as if to say hello, I was there, I know what happened. And that’s when we know they love each other but they still have another 30 minutes of movie left until they figure it out.

In the end, [SPOILER ALERT] Gib doesn’t sleep with the “sure thing” because he really likes Allison.  She breaks up with her boring boyfriend and they finally get together, after he writes another story for the English class they have together, because even though he’s a nonchalant college guy, he’s also great at creative writing.

Everybody likes Lloyd Dobler. He’s a great guy. Buy why hang out with the nice guy when you could have a boyfriend like Gib, who watches out for you even when you’re mad at him, would give away his last $5 if asked, write essays about eating pizza without burning the roof of your mouth, and most importantly, makes you laugh?

Also, he’s 80’s John Cusack, he’s adorable!

The Male "Manic Pixie Dream Girl"

I just finished writing my book club post for A Room with a View, and had an idea that begged to be its own blog post, inspired by a spur-of-the-moment comparison of lead characters Lucy and George to Summer and Tom in (500) Days of Summer:

Summer is the type of character often referred to as a Manic Pixie Dream Girl (MPDG). MPDGs are not an actual female stereotype, but a character in films described as “that bubbly, shallow cinematic creature that exists solely in the fevered imaginations of sensitive writer-directors to teach brooding soulful young men to embrace life and its infinite mysteries and adventures [Nathan Rabin, here].” Basically, think of any film where a hipster/intellectual type believes his life will never turn around, but then he meets a crazy girl who does her own thing, and falls in love with her. She teaches him to love life, and likes him for being so sensitive and adorable and usually somewhat nerdy, and all is good in the world.

Some MPDGs in film history:

Natalie Portman in Garden State, Katherine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby, Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's, Mary Elizabeth Winstead in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Marilyn Monroe in Some Like it Hot

Then I got to thinking: is there such thing as a Manic Pixie Dream Guy? Is there a stock character that is caring and smart and kind of a bad boy that exists solely in the imaginations of writer-directors to teach melancholy soulful young women to embrace life and its infinite mysteries and adventures? And then it hit me:

Ryan Gosling.

Okay, not the real Ryan Gosling, but the fictionalized version of him that has spurned millions of “Hey Girl” memes all over the internet. Smart. Attractive. Sensitive. Swooned over by women everywhere. He is the male version of America’s favorite MPDG, Zooey Deschanel. (Sidenote: if someone made a quirky romantic comedy starring them both, scored with songs by bands like Mumford & Sons and Arcade Fire, and filmed it all in a sunny Instagram-like filter, would the indie world implode? Also, does anyone know a Hollywood producer I can pitch this idea to?)

I did a quick Google search to see if anyone else had thought of this yet (how has no one thought of this??) and the closest thing I found was a list posted by an anonymous user  in response to a question similar to mine [read it here]. Taking from their list and mine, some popular examples are:

Chris O'Dowd in Bridesmaids, Heath Ledger in 10 Things I Hate About You, Ryan Gosling in The Notebook, James Marsden in 27 Dresses, Jimmy Stewart in The Shop Around the Corner

I’m dubbing this guy the Adorkable Maverick Dream Boy™ (patent pending)*. He’s cute, smart, free-spirited, and wears button-down shirts, often plaid. He’s the guy who convinces the wallflower that she’s beautiful or makes the nice girl realize that the heartthrob she’s crushing on isn’t really her type. Best-case scenario he has an accent (British, Southern, Canadian, it doesn’t really matter). The AMDB might start out as the best friend or even the enemy but eventually escapes the friend zone to become the love interest. He tends to be the one that the girl realizes has been there for her all along and that helps her learn how to be the best version of herself. Much like the MPDG, the AMDB is primarily in the story to be the romantic interest of the lead character, although in both cases it is sometimes hard to tell who really is the focal point of the story.

Am I on to something here? Is there a case for a male version of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl, or is the Adorkable Maverick Dream Boy just wishful thinking?

*Not really, but if this term goes viral, I want credit at least on Wikipedia for coining it!

Top 5: Bridal Showers

I know lots of people getting married this year, and recently got to talk to a lovely friend of mine about her upcoming bridal shower and bachelorette party, and (understandably) her fears about them. For some reason our culture is all about embarrassing the bride-to-be and/or encouraging her to make a fool of herself, and my friend is hoping to avoid the ridiculousness (and luckily for her, Magic Mike won't be in theaters in September). One of her greatest fears is that her shower will turn out like the #1 on this list, so in her honor, today's top 5 covers the most memorable pop-culture bridal showers.

5. Lorelai on Gilmore Girls 

Although I can't find any Google Images to prove it, I distinctly remember watching an episode where the town of Stars Hollow throws Lorelai a bridal shower for her upcoming marriage to Rory's dad Christopher, where she sat in the gazebo surrounded by gifts, including a Hello Kitty toaster, which I thought was amazing. I can't remember anything else about the party except that awesome toaster, which is how Lorelai lands at the number 5 spot on the list. 

4. Monica on Friends 

When searching for bridal showers to add to the list, I knew I would able to turn to Friends to help me out. In true 90s sitcom fashion, Rachel and Phoebe wait until the last minute to throw together an awesome party for Monica by calling random people from her address book as guests. And then forget to invite Monica. 

3. Hannah in Made of Honor

I told you: kilts.

This rom-com starring Patrick Dempsey as the maid of honor in the wedding of the girl he loves took the year 2008 by storm. Put a handsome guy in a kilt during a wedding in Ireland and women everywhere are going to be watching. Dempsey played a character named Tom who was given all the maid of honor duties and attempted to throw his best friend Hannah the perfect bridal shower. Unfortunately he was tricked by a jealous bridesmaid into booking the wrong kind of entertainment, thinking the woman was a psychic but turned out to be selling something a little more intimate, if you catch my drift,  thus embarrassing Hannah in front of her family and friends. And her oblivious grandmother, who loved all the things the woman sold after mistaking them for something else.

2. Lillian in Bridesmaids

Giant cookie and chocolate fondue fountain.

This is quite possible the most epic bridal shower I have ever seen. I'm assuming that Kate Middleton had a pretty spectacular bridal shower, if British royals celebrate such things, but the one Helen threw for Lillian was over the top. Live butterflies in the invitations, horseback entrances, a couture Paris theme - not to mention they gave out puppies as favors. Puppies! And to top it all off, jilted maid of honor and protagonist Annie finally explodes after Helen takes over all her responsibilities, ends up in the chocolate fountain and is asked to step down as maid of honor. Not the best bridal shower, but definitely one of the most memorable.


1. Lily on How I Met Your Mother

This show is pretty hilarious as it is - how could it not, with Neil Patrick Harris and Jason Segal in the cast - but seriously, this is the funniest episode I have ever seen. Robin asks womanizer Barney what to get Lily as a gift and he suggests something highly innapropriate (let's just say the woman at the Made of Honor party would have been selling them) so Robin buys it as a joke. Then at the party, when she realizes how inappropriate it is, she switches the card with that of another gift - which just so happens to be her grandmother's hand-held sewing machine. The mix-up is awkwardly hysterical.




Original Video - More videos at TinyPic

Top 5: Books to (Re)Read Before The Movies Are Released

Some people get annoyed when all the new Hollywood movies are adaptations instead of originals, but I love it! I have so much love for my favorite books, and finding out that they are coming to the big screen means that what was once only in my imagination can be shared with the world. I can finally see the places I've been picturing and put a face to the characters I've come to love. Over the next year a lot of great novels are being adapted into movies, and these are the top 5 that I need to read or reread before they hit theaters.

5. Warm Bodies
Novel by: Isaac Marion
Opening: February 2013

 

I've been following writer Isaac Marion for years, first through his blog and later his Twitter account. Embarrassing story: I first learned about him through a note posted by band Relient K (a high-school favorite) on MySpace, back when it was cool to have a profile there. Don't worry, I've moved on from the band and the site, but I still loves Marion's work. I've read his short stories and a novel called The Inside about a young man who escaped reality by going to sleep and meeting a girl in his dreams - I loved it and hoped it would become a movie (this was way before Inception). Then in 2011 he published Warm Bodies, a zombie love story, which is being made into a movie with stars including John Malkovich and Rob Corddry. I own the book but haven't read it yet, and I'm already excited!

4. Anna Kerenina
Novel by: Leo Tolstoy
Opening: November 2012

This is a classic novel, telling a love story about a passionate young woman who abandons her stifling marriage for an affair with a count. I tried to read it once, my freshman year of college, and while I enjoyed the storylines surrounding Anna there was also a secondary tale about a young man writing a book about his experiences as a Russian potato farmer that I just couldn't get through. Maybe I've matured enough in the past seven years to be able to enjoy it now. The film stars Keira Knightly in yet another period piece (she is so good at those!) along with heartthrobs Jude Law and Matthew Macfadyen (her beloved Darcy in Pride and Prejudice). And the screenplay is by renown playwrite Tom Stoppard (Rozencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead). I'm thinking this is one I'll want on DVD.

3. Life of Pi
Novel by: Yann Martel
Opening: November 2012

I read this book one summer in high school and loved it. It's about a boy, the son of a zookeeper, who travels with his family on a boat from India and after a tragedy ends up alone in a lifeboat with a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger. Pi spends over 200 days lost at sea, and when he finally turns up on shore, tells fantastic tales of his trip, full of hallucinations, adventure, and survival. The once passage I can remember is where Pi ends up on a mysterious island with a foreboding tree that he belives to be carnivorous, with a particular hunger for humans. It was fantastically weird - very Salman Rushdie and Gabriel Garcia Marquez - and should make for an interesting film. The only star I recognize in the IMDb writeup is Tobey Maguire, who plays the author.

2. The Perks of Being A Wallflower
Novel by: Stephen Chbosky
Opening: September 2012

I read this title in high school, also - probably the same year as Life of Pi. There was one summer that I didn't have an assigned reading list from my English teacher so I created my own list, and this was one that I chose. It's a small but challenging novel about a boy in high school who is taken under the wing of a couple of upperclassmen. I found that it had a lot of parallels to another book about a troubled young boy, The Catcher in the Rye. Both were told from the boy's point of view and revealed and interesting and devestating twist at the end. I've always wanted to write a paper comparing the two books. The movie adaptation stars Emma Watson, Paul Rudd, Mae Witman (from Parenthood)  and Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson and a young Ashton Kutcher in The Butterfly Effect).

1. The Great Gatsby
Novel by: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Opening: Christmas 2012

Oh, The Great Gatsby! What sounds like a better premise for a movie than love, gin, and the jazz age in 1920s Long Island? It's been since high school that I read the novel, and I need to take the time to revisit the classic featuring Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. The Amazon.com description calls it "Spare, elegantly plotted, and written in crystalline prose," which sounds poetic in and of itself, and I know the book really was that wonderful. I am already anticipating delicious art deco sets and the glamorous fashions of the bobs, flapper dresses, and dapper suits. Title roles go to Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan (Pride and Prejudice, Drive, An Education), and Tobey Macguire.

Plus-Sized Heroines

I was poking around the Goodreads website today, adding some books to my “To Read” list, and saw an add for a new title by the author Liza Palmer. Palmer’s first novel, Conversations with the Fat Girl, is one of my favorites comfort reads about a plus-sized woman working a dead-end job, getting kicked out of her apartment, and watching her now-size-4 best friend have the perfect wedding. As a non-skinny person myself, I’m always glad to read about heroines who are normal sized instead of looking like underfed super models. (Seriously, there is nothing more annoying than reading the back of a book that sounds really good until you come across a line like “Can Amanda prove to the handsome doctor she is working alongside while tending to the poor in the Congo that despite her title as Miss Universe she’s more than just a pretty face, finally finding a man that loves her for her brains as well?” Come on, how many people can relate to that?) The page for Conversations showed some other novels like it, and after a few clicks I found myself at a list of 80 books with plus-sized heroines as recommended by other readers on the site.
   
I scanned through the list and found a few of my favorites (like Bridget Jones’ Diary and The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things) as well as a few that surprised me (Silence of the Lambs? Really?). I read through the descriptions of a few hoping to find some new treasures. What I realized as I read abstract after abstract was that while it was true that they all featured plus-sized heroines, the majority of them also featured heroines who were on diets in order to either a) like themselves or b) get a guy to like them.
   
Why is it that we can’t have normal-sized women without them having weight issues? In every novel I’ve read with a plus-sized leading lady, the woman was basically ashamed of her size and tended to eat her feelings. Bridget Jones judged bad days by how many sweets she’d eaten. Maggie in Conversations had a weakness for pink boxes from the local bakery. Even in The Earth… teenage heroine Virginia felt guilted into eating salads by the people who gave her evil looks when she stopped to get a slice of pizza at a NY street-cart. Honestly, I can’t remember the last time I read a book about a curvaceous lady who was happy with the way she looked.

The only average-sized princess
in movies happens to be green.

Hollywood isn’t immune to this concept, either. I can only think of a handful of films where the woman didn’t have to go through an ultra-slimming transformation in order to land the guy. Besides the aforementioned Bridget Jones, the only things I can think of are Queen Latifah’s romantic comedies (like Last Holiday), the musical Hairspray (plump teenager girl snags the heartthrob!), and Shrek – which, although animated and about ogres, featured a princess whose true love preferred her plump rather than trim. I considered adding My Big Fat Greek Wedding to this list, but the bride had to have a complete makeover before her crush would make a move. (I do have to give props to Melissa McCarthy, the fabulous actress from Bridesmaids, Mike and Molly, and Gilmore Girls, for always playing a “woman who happens to be chubby” rather than a stereotypical “chubby woman”. You go, Melissa!)

If the average American woman is a size 12, then why aren’t we publishing books and making movies about women like the majority? We have no problem putting average guys like Kevin James in leading roles, but where are the average ladies? I mentioned this before in my post about the movie Marty, but I would love to see a movie, TV show, or novel about a curvy woman who not only is content with the way she looks but ends up with a handsome guy who loves her for who she is and what she looks like – no makeovers involved.

Part of me feels like it is my responsibility to write stories and books with plus-sized leading ladies. Every storyline I come up with features an average-looking girl looking for, running from, or denying love. You know how writers say they have a story inside them that needs to be told? Maybe this is my story. Surely there are women and girls out there who would love to read about a heroine who looks just like them but doesn’t need to be on a diet to love herself. I know my sixteen-year-old-self would have appreciated it.


Princess Fiona photo courtesy of dreamworks.wikia.com

Top 5: Wedding Themes

I don't know what it is about weddings lately, but it seems that all of a sudden EVERYONE I know is planning their upcoming nuptials. I have already been to one wedding this spring, have three on my calendar, and know two couples who got engaged over the weekend. Apparently the entire world is twitterpated right now (or maybe it's a residual effect of Ring by Spring?) because even I have bridal on the brain! So far I've been able to suppress my desire to create a cliche dream wedding Pinterest board but that hasn't stopped me from keeping a hidden Gmail folder full of links to ideas. After searching through my archives, here are my current favorite wedding themes and trends.

5. The Hunger Games-Inspired Wedding

Photography by
Courtney Clarke Photography

When it comes to creating a wedding around a movie or novel, I can tell you that recent phenomenon The Hunger Games wouldn't be at the top of my list. But the ladies over at The Wedding Chicks used the characters to inspire a beautiful rustic wedding with vintage glass, bows and arrows, and - what else? - wonderful artisan breads. I especially like the invitations with the line "together with the blessing of the Captiol"

See the entire photo shoot at The Wedding Chicks




4. Up-Inspired Wedding

When it comes to love stories, it's hard to beat Carl and Ellie's in Pixar's UP. Their heartwarming romance inspired couple Lynnette and Jimmy to design their entire wedding around the film. It's perfectly adorable, with balloons, picnic blankets instead of seating, even the hand-print mailbox. My favorite piece is the sweet bottle cap pin worn by the groom.

Photos by Wildflowers Photography

 See the whole wedding at the Disney Wedding Blog








3. The Princess Bride-Inspired Wedding

Why didn't I think of this?? For a movie that centers around a princess getting married, it sure doesn't get used as wedding inspiration much. Inconceivable. While this (like the Hunger Games wedding) is only a photo shoot, their details were fantastic - from swords at the end of each pew, to vials of iocane powder, white horses, and a cake declaring "as you wish", it captured the film fantastically. I love the peanuts as favors/snacks - although there is no mention of "wuv, twoo wuv," which I would absolutely have to include were I throwing a Princess Bride wedding!

View the entire photo shoot at Green Wedding Shoes






2. Bright Backyard Wedding

This colorful and whimsical event is exactly the kind of wedding I would love to have. It's fun and playful, with paper lanterns in the trees, chevrons, custom beverage bottles, mason jars, paper flags, and best of all, pompoms to throw at the newlyweds instead of rice or bubbles. Not to mention the circus tent and bistro lights! It looks like a fun wedding to attend.

See more of the wedding at Merriment Events

1. Bright DIY Wedding

Take the #2 wedding, combine it with this one, and you have the perfect Sweet Madness Dream Wedding: bright colors, vintage pieces, unique floral arrangements, and everything do-it-yourself. They even gave out custom-wrapped jars of peanut butter as favors! Talk about creative. The only reason this wedding earned the #1 spot, though, is because of those fabulous tights the bridesmaids are wearing. I can't wait to make my future bridal party do the same!

Check out the rest of the wedding at 100 Layer Cake

Blue Like Jazz

On Saturday, I went with a few friends from my church to a viewing of Blue Like Jazz in Columbus. I’ve been dying to see it since I first heard it was being made a year or so ago. I read the book in college at the recommendation of some upperclassmen and absolutely loved Donald Miller’s candor and laid-back but eloquent writing style. His books along with the works of Anne Lamott are part of what inspired me to spend my senior year working on a project about writing creative non-fiction.
   
Anyway, I’ve been following the movie production via Don’s blog and Twitter, and have been excited to see how a memoir comprised of short essays could turn into a feature film. I had a hard time explaining the gist of the movie to the friends I went with – who had not read the book – even after watching the trailer. So we took the trek from Mansfield to Columbus to a theater where it was playing.
   
There were only about a dozen other people in the theater (not the entire cinema, just the one where Blue Like Jazz was being shown) which was kind of nice and sad at the same time. I was a bit worried that my friend’s wouldn’t like it, but the film turned out to be very good. I really enjoyed their choices in the adaptation – like Don’s mother’s affair, his friend being a lesbian, and other changes – and thought it told the story well. In my opinion, it showed a much closer to real-life view of what Christians deal with in world than the majority of Christian films. I have often found that movies paint a rose-colored version of life and I really enjoyed that the film included drinking, partying, cursing, the whole nine yards. It didn’t shy away from things just because it’s a “Christian” film.
   
I looked up some reviews and it seems like most people felt that the movie was too lukewarm and not hot or cold enough to make anyone happy. A cursory reading of a review from the New York Post shows that secular viewers found the film nice but dodging real questions of faith by pretending to be realistic. On the other end of the spectrum, Christianity Today said the movie was a “quirky and genuinely funny indie” but didn’t talk enough about Jesus and salvation and that the ending was somewhat unsatisfying.
   
Which, if you paid attention to the film, was the point. The title comes from Don’s realization that life, like jazz, doesn’t resolve cleanly – and that’s what makes jazz wonderful. So it makes sense that the movie doesn’t have a nicely-packaged ending. And in response to the New York Post, the point of the film wasn’t to answer all of religion’s questions, but to show Christians (and non-Christians) that life doesn’t become perfect because of faith. I thought it was excellent, enjoyable, and would definitely watch it again.

Top 5: Defictionalized Products

They say art imitates life, but it seems that more and more often life is beginning to imitate art. Case in point: the phrase used in the title of this post, "defictionalized products": it refers to items used in books or movies that became so popular among fans that it was created in real life (hence, no longer fiction). People have become so enthralled with entertainment that we get super excited when what was once imaginary comes to reality. One of my favorite stories of art creeping over into life comes from the 1993 film Demolition Man with Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes and Sandra Bullock. The movie is set in 2032, in the city of San Angeles, which was created by combining San Diego and Los Angeles after a massive earthquake in 2010. Apparently only one restaurant chain survived the post-earthquake Franchise Wars and went on to become the fanciest place to go for a meal: Taco Bell. In the 90s when this movie was made, the Taco Bell logo looked like this:

The logo was redesigned for the movie to make it look like it was from the future, and appeared like this:

And the pink-and-purple logo was so well-received that the company actually changed their entire branding to that look, leaving us with the current logo:

Straight from fiction to real life! I love it when that happens. But enough about Taco Bell - below are my favorite products that made the leap to the real world. 

5. The Batphone

In the classic Batman TV show starring Adam West, Commissioner Gordon would call the caped crusader on his private line, ringing in to a red blinking phone. Now you can actually buy this phone - which doesn't call out but blinks on incoming calls - for a mere $125!

4. Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans 

As Harry Potter fans know, Every Flavor Beans literally come in every flavor - and I don't just mean the traditional fruit and spice varieties, but also such favorites as grass, fish, earwax, and vomit. When the films started to be released, this tie-in product was also released in stores. I had some in 2005, when I went to a midnight showing of Goblet of Fire with a group from college. No one was brave enough to eat more than one.

3. Red Swingline Stapler

In the cult classic Office Space, underappreciated character Milton constantly complains about others taking his red stapler from his desk. He gets so frustrated that he threatens to burn down the company - and does. Fans loved the quotable Milton so much that not only did his oft-repeated phrase "I believe you have my stapler?" make it onto officer vernacular but the company Swingline received so many requests for the red stapler that they released a limited edition one at office supply stores in 2002. For the filming of the movie they just took a regular stapler and spray-painted it.

2. Nike Mags

In the second installment of the Back to the Future franchise, Marty McFly travels to the year 2015 and wears a pair of awesome sneakers with automatic shoe laces. They became so popular that Nike released a pair that looked similar to them in 2008, and even inspired a guy to invent his own self-tying laces. Then in the fall of 2011 Nike released the Mags - an exact replica of the shoes worn by Michael J. Fox in the film, complete with LED lights. The shoes were auctioned off on a special Ebay account with all proceeds going to the Michael J. Fox foundation,  supporting Parkinson's research.

1. Wonka Candy

In 1964, British children's author Roald Dahl published the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the story of a poor little boy who gets to tour the fantastical candy factory of the eccentric Willy Wonka. It was later adapted to film in 1971, considered to be the classic favorite featuring Gene Wilder as Wonka, and again in 2005 directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp as the chocolatier. The book and films featured amazing edible treats, including fizzy lifting drinks, chocolate rivers, and hot ice cream for cold days. With the release of the first film in 1971 The Willy Wonka Candy Company began selling Wonka Bars and created other types of popular candy, including BottleCaps, Nerds, SweeTarts, Pixy Stix, Laffy Taffy, Fun Dip, Runts and Spree. Bought by Nestle in the 1980s, now all packages of Wonka candy include a reference to the original book and author Roald Dahl. Other products inspired by the film include the recent release of lickable wallpaper installed in a London elevator. (I also believe that Extra's line of dessert gums featuring flavors like strawberry shortcake, key lime pie, and orange creamsicle and apple pie were influenced by Wonka's whole meal in a single piece of gum, and keep hoping they'll come out with a blueberry pie flavor so I can say, "You're turning violet, Violet!" - although I'm not sure I'd chew it for fear of plumping up like Violet Beauregarde and having to be rolled to the Juicing Room).

Top 5: Fictional Crushes

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months, you're probably aware that The Hunger Games opened in theaters this weekend. From what I've heard it's raked in $155 million on opening weekend - coming in at the third largest of all time, after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and The Dark Knight. Not to shabby, huh? After seeing the film, and reading this great article on Hello Giggles about embracing you inner teenager and all her giddiness, I was inspired to choose a fun topic this week: fictional crushes.

The real reason women
watch this show.

We all have them - movies that you say you love for the storyline, but really it's just because the leading man is swoon-worthy. You know Grey's Anatomy wouldn't be as popular if it weren't for McDreamy and McSteamy. Below are my top 5 (current) fictional crushes. Who are yours?

5. Edward Rochester, Jane Eyre (2011)

Michael Fassbender as Rochester

If you know anything about me at all you know I love the story of Jane Eyre, and with that comes a love of Rochester. He's your typical Romantic male lead - dark, brooding, and emotional. Kind of a jerk sometimes, but that's just a ruse to cover his emotional side. In the newest Jane Eyre the actor playing Rochester was perfect. He managed to pull off wearing a vest, a scarf, even a cotton nightshirt with ruffles. It takes a special kind of guy to make a nightgown look manly.

4. Peeta Mellark, The Hunger Games (2012)

Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark

I may have only read The Hunger Games in the past month, but if you've read the series, you can probably agree that Peeta is the perfect guy. He thinks of others before himself, he refuses to let the games change him, he endures torture to protect what is right, and is exactly what heroine Katniss needs: a level-headed good guy who just wants what's best for her. He's also had a secret crush on her for like ten years. How adorable is that? Plus it doesn't hurt that he's pretty adorable himself.



3. Lloyd Dobler, Say Anything (1989)

John Cusack as Lloyd Dobler

Admittedly I have a weakness for 80s teen movies, but honestly, how can you not like Lloyd Dobler? He's witty. He teaches kickboxing to little kids. He can be friends with girls and not want to make out with them. He's a good brother and uncle. He sends his girlfriend a love letter in the mail. And when she breaks up with him, by giving him a pen, of all stupid things, he shows up at her house and plays their song outside her window to try and win her back. Basically, he's the perfect 80s boyfriend, with the boy-next-door looks to go with it. I have this movie poster and hung it in my apartments all through college, probably to the chagrin of my roommates.


2. Max/Johnny, Penelope (2006)

James McAvoy as Max, or Johnny, or whoever he is

Penelope is one of my favorite go-to feel-good movies. Christina Ricci is a loveable lead character, a girl cursed with a pig-nose and looking for a guy who will love her for who she really is. The one guy who gives her a chance is named Max, who comes in singing, picking her favorite book off the shelf, and generally sweeping her off of her feet with charm and an indie musician image. She runs away, and he's not really who he says he is, but in the end it doesn't matter, because he has pretty eyes and great hair.


1. Mr. Darcy, Pride and Prejudice (2005)

Matthew Mcfayden as Mr. Darcy

First of all, Fitzwilliam Darcy has been a heartthrob since Pride and Prejudice was first published in 1813. He's shy, thoughtful, intelligent, happens to be wealthy, and says things like "I love you most ardently." I mean, seriously? Who does that? Second, to anyone who says Colin Firth is the only Mr. Darcy, I say, meet Matthew Mcfayden. He makes 19th century sideburns look attractive. In the rain, even. I say I like this film because it's beautifully shot and Lizzie is such a strong female character, but let's be honest, it's all about Darcy.