For those of you following along you may remember the name Knuckle Draggers from my interview with actor and producer, Paul J. Alessi.

The World Premiere of his latest movie, Knuckle Draggers, was on Sunday at the Newport Beach Film Festival. I was fortunate enough to get one of the last vacant seats for this sold out show.

“Knuckle Draggers takes a realistic, but comic look at how the behaviors of men and women have evolved very little since the caveman times.” -director Alex Ranarivelo

First let me be honest in saying that after seeing the trailer I thought I might be just a bit too old or too married for a movie about dating and the evolution of man when it comes to relationships. I was more than pleasantly surprised to find out after watching the film that I was wrong. I loved this movie.

With a stellar cast including Ross McCall, Paul J. Alessi, Amie Barsky, Danielle Nicolet, Justin Baldoni, Jennifer Alden, and Omar Gooding this movie wins in the acting department.

The script was comical and heartfelt. I heard laughter from female and male voices from the audience, and although parts of the movie are spent comparing women’s ideas of mates to studies done on monkeys, women enjoyed the film giving kudos to Paul as they left the theater.

The music choices by composer Austin Wintory complimented the scenes and were never overpowering. I liked the way he mixed music with a primitive element and Spanish guitar to make it “ultra romantic”.

Actor & musician Omar Gooding played the role of Russell. Two of his songs, My Shine and Ghetto Star from the album, Tradin’ War Stories, were featured in the movie.

Paul’s passion for this film was evident not only by his on screen performance but the way he worked with the press, cast and crew, also mingling with movie-goers at the World Premiere.

This housewife gives Knuckle Draggers the movie 4 out of 4 waffles.

Housewife in Hollywood Talks with Cast of Knuckle Draggers from SuzanneHIH on Vimeo.

Housewife in Hollywood Talks with Cast of Knuckle Draggers from SuzanneHIH on Vimeo.

You can see Knuckle Draggers at another screening Thursday April 30th. Click here for schedule & ticket information at the Newport Beach Film Festival.

When I was 8 years old I watched Return from Witch Mountain in the movie theater. I remember going home after the show pretending I had telepathic power and wishing my hair was the length of Tia Malone’s.

In the movies Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) and Return from Witch Mountain (1978), Kim Richards was Tia Malone and Ike Eisenmann was her brother Tony Malone. Race to Witch Mountain starring Dwayne Johnson came out today and you can spot cameos with Kim Richards as Tina the waitress and Ike Eisenmann as Sheriff Antony.

Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann were two kids that were all over the small and big screen during the 70’s and 80’s. Both of them were in at least one episode of the TV show Little House on the Prairie. In fact they were all over the boob tube back in the day, from Fantasy Island to CHiPs.

After hearing the news of a remake I decided to take my kiddo to see Race to Witch Mountain. She’s the same age I was when I watched the second movie in this Disney series. She had a blast watching all the action, wondering what would happen next and of course right when we got home from the show she started to practice her telepathic power with our Chihuahua.

I thought the movie was action packed, and I loved the casting they did, including the appearance of Cheech in Stony Creek. It was fun seeing Garry Marshall as an alien expert author. Dwayne Johnson is perfect as the taxi driver turned action hero named Jack Bruno. My kiddo pointed out that the leading lady in the movie was the same actress from Night at the Museum. I responded by telling her she was correct, then I preceded to ask if she knew her real name is Carla Gugino and that she also starred in the film Watchmen. Sometimes a mom needs to show her kid she knows a thing or two.

Annasophia Robb and Alexander Ludwig play the roles of Seth and Sara, the two “alien” teens on a mission to save their planet. Race to Witch Mountain is a fun family film. This housewife gives the movie 4 out of 4 waffles!

My mother in law invited us to see the live show Walking with Dinosaurs  at the San Diego Sports Arena.

This arena has been around since 1966, and it’s in great need of some refurbishment. Hopefully the 20 bucks we paid for parking will go towards a facelift for the exterior and fill some of those potholes in the parking lot.

The touring show called Walking with Dinosaurs The Live Experience presents 15 awe-inspiring dinosaurs. Based on the award-winning BBC television series  and brought to life by The Creature Production Company.

The event itself was amazing. The dinosaurs were so lifelike with their attention to detail, fascinating robotics and incredible use of puppetry. We traveled through time with a narrator that literally walked with the dinosaurs, sometimes even running away from them. It was difficult to hear everything the narrator said and this would be my only complaint with the show.

The use of abstract backgrounds, and stage props such as inflatable foliage was a smart way to take these remarkable creatures on tour.

This show could easily be considered edutainment because so much information was given to us within the hour and a half performance. We were never bored. We sat attentively wondering which dinosaur would make an appearance next. When T-Rex finally made her debut she was applauded with the same enthusiasm Madonna would acclaim.

My mother in law was impressed with the show. My husband was entertained even though he knew he was missing the first half of the Charger game and my 7 year old said, “That was totally awesome!”

This Housewife in Hollywood gives Walking with Dinosaurs The Live Experience, 4 out of 4 waffles.

Check their official website for tour dates.

I took the one hour and forty minute drive to see War, Inc. yesterday, at the Landmark Theatre in LA. My sister-in-law went with and we were a bit shocked by the international airport appeal of the place. We hadn’t been to the Landmark before and because it featured mostly Indy films we were expecting a lot less grandeur and a bit more bohemian flair. We did appreciate the array of authentic treats from around the world at the concession stand, and the vinyl first class seats in the theater were very comfortable. It wasn’t the place I pictured this political satire to be playing, but the house was packed and it wasn’t the revolutionary types I anticipated. It would have been nice to see more of a rebellious under 35 year old crowd but they might have waited for the later show. With all the bulletins John Cusack sent out to his Myspace friends, I thought I’d be surrounded by more than a few empty seats but this wasn’t the case and a good sign that America is ready for what this film has to say.

Many reviews are giving Hillary Duff thumbs up and I agree but I think John Cusack, and Marisa Tomei, kept the movie going. Joan Cusack is great for comic relief throughout the film. I’d be laughing at her character, dialogue, and contorted expressions but within a beat the idea would change and I’d be pondering the current world we live in, finding myself going to a not so happy place but being knocked out of it again by something wittingly funny or downright silly. Montel Williams lends his voice talent to Guidestar, the KITT like device Cusack’s character confides in while contemplating his current position in life.

While watching this movie, questions arise about where we are now and where we could be in the future. Although some of the ideas seem completely fictional, their eerie brush on realism is what jolted my mind into our existing state of affairs. You can’t help leaving War, Inc. without checking up on our political agenda, including the politics of corporations and media at large.

This housewife pops up 3 out of 4 waffles for this film! But don’t listen to me or any other wannabe movie critic, check out War, Inc. for yourself and write your own review.