It may not involve vampires, werewolves or damsels in need of constant rescuing, but The Blind Side will put viewers in a Thanksgiving mood this holiday season.
The film didn’t stand a chance against the latest installment of the Twilight saga, New Moon. Still, The Blind Side, directed by John Lee Hancock and starring Sandra Bullock, offers a feel-good experience that will remind people of the importance of generosity.
Though based on true events, the story risks coming across as sappy and overdone, but the film’s cast – particularly Bullock – makes this movie worth seeing.
Bullock plays Leigh Anne Touhy, a woman whose philanthropic nature compels her to take in an African American teenage boy and help him turn his life around. Though this role strays from her usual tendency to play the quirky romantic heroine in chick-flick comedies, Bullock portrays the strong-willed, determined woman beautifully, right down to her fake southern accent.
And though she never falls into a mine or stuffs donuts down her evening wear, it’s refreshing to see her deliver a powerful performance worthy of the Oscar buzz surrounding it.
So no, The Blind Side may not tell a sordid, teen-angst love story complete with a vampire counterpart. But in all honesty, that’s just one more thing to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
healthy restaurant impresses fast-food lover
In a city with nine McDonald’s, six Taco Bells and four KFCs, it’s refreshing to eat lunch at a restaurant that serves fresh, healthy food that doesn’t come prepackaged or covered in grease – even if you’re a fast-food junkie, as I am.
Buffaloberries in downtown Sioux Falls makes serving healthy food its mission. In fact, the restaurant calls itself a “select ingredient bar” because, as its Web site states, “each ingredient has been carefully chosen for proven health benefits.”
When I ate at Buffaloberries for the first time last weekend, I’ll admit I was skeptical. I have a nasty habit of rejecting anything that sounds even remotely healthy. But I was determined to give Buffaloberries a try, mostly because I had heard the food wouldn’t even taste as though it were good for you – which was good enough for me.
All my doubts about the restaurant vanished once I saw the menu. As it turned out, the trouble would not be finding something I liked, but choosing from among the various menu options. From a selection of salads, soups, pizzitas (single-serving pizzas), pastas and sandwiches, I finally decided on a cup of tomato basil bisque soup and a Tuscan chicken melt – though I was seriously tempted to try the bison melt.
My boyfriend, who accompanied me on my journey into healthy restaurant options, ordered a pepperoni pizzita, which, interestingly enough, is nitrate-free and made on whole wheat pita. This pizzita, like many other menu items, also comes in a gluten-free option.
When the food arrived, I found myself a bit jealous I hadn’t ordered the pepperoni pizzita. My sandwich came with an excessive amount of black olives and red peppers, neither of which I particularly like. Still, once I scraped off the olives and peppers, the sandwich was tasty, albeit a bit spicy, and my boyfriend exchanged half of his pizzita for half of my sandwich.
The pizzita was clearly the better choice. Unlike pizza from Dominos or Little Caesars, this pizza didn’t require three or four napkins to soak up the excess grease. But my tomato basil bisque soup didn’t impress me, mostly because it had too much basil and not enough tomato. On the other hand, this could just be years of bias toward Campbell’s tomato soup talking.
In addition to its healthy food mission, the restaurant also makes it a priority to practice sustainability by using biodegradable packaging and supports fair trade of coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate. Signs in the restaurant also advertise the recyclaholics program, which works to eliminate waste and raise awareness about recycling.
The one downfall to Buffaloberries, as with most businesses in downtown Sioux Falls, is its hours. The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and is also open Friday evenings from 5 to 8 p.m. Though the menu is geared toward lunch options, it would be nice to see this establishment open for regular dinner hours as well.
Despite this one disappointment, Buffaloberries is a restaurant to keep in mind when deciding whether to eat lunch at McDonald’s or Taco Bell. It has something for even the unhealthiest of people, and let’s be honest: Your love handles will thank you for it later.
Buffaloberries in downtown Sioux Falls makes serving healthy food its mission. In fact, the restaurant calls itself a “select ingredient bar” because, as its Web site states, “each ingredient has been carefully chosen for proven health benefits.”
When I ate at Buffaloberries for the first time last weekend, I’ll admit I was skeptical. I have a nasty habit of rejecting anything that sounds even remotely healthy. But I was determined to give Buffaloberries a try, mostly because I had heard the food wouldn’t even taste as though it were good for you – which was good enough for me.
All my doubts about the restaurant vanished once I saw the menu. As it turned out, the trouble would not be finding something I liked, but choosing from among the various menu options. From a selection of salads, soups, pizzitas (single-serving pizzas), pastas and sandwiches, I finally decided on a cup of tomato basil bisque soup and a Tuscan chicken melt – though I was seriously tempted to try the bison melt.
My boyfriend, who accompanied me on my journey into healthy restaurant options, ordered a pepperoni pizzita, which, interestingly enough, is nitrate-free and made on whole wheat pita. This pizzita, like many other menu items, also comes in a gluten-free option.
When the food arrived, I found myself a bit jealous I hadn’t ordered the pepperoni pizzita. My sandwich came with an excessive amount of black olives and red peppers, neither of which I particularly like. Still, once I scraped off the olives and peppers, the sandwich was tasty, albeit a bit spicy, and my boyfriend exchanged half of his pizzita for half of my sandwich.
The pizzita was clearly the better choice. Unlike pizza from Dominos or Little Caesars, this pizza didn’t require three or four napkins to soak up the excess grease. But my tomato basil bisque soup didn’t impress me, mostly because it had too much basil and not enough tomato. On the other hand, this could just be years of bias toward Campbell’s tomato soup talking.
In addition to its healthy food mission, the restaurant also makes it a priority to practice sustainability by using biodegradable packaging and supports fair trade of coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate. Signs in the restaurant also advertise the recyclaholics program, which works to eliminate waste and raise awareness about recycling.
The one downfall to Buffaloberries, as with most businesses in downtown Sioux Falls, is its hours. The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and is also open Friday evenings from 5 to 8 p.m. Though the menu is geared toward lunch options, it would be nice to see this establishment open for regular dinner hours as well.
Despite this one disappointment, Buffaloberries is a restaurant to keep in mind when deciding whether to eat lunch at McDonald’s or Taco Bell. It has something for even the unhealthiest of people, and let’s be honest: Your love handles will thank you for it later.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
disney rings in christmas early
For Disney, Christmas comes a little earlier every year.
The release of Disney’s newest film, A Christmas Carol, opened nationwide last weekend – a full three weeks before Thanksgiving and the official start of the holiday season. Though the film’s holiday spirit may seem a bit premature, it didn’t stop A Christmas Carol from securing top honors at the U.S. Box Office its opening weekend with $31 million.
The movie, which follows the classic story by Charles Dickens, stars Jim Carrey as the voices of Ebenezer Scrooge and the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future. Directed by Robert Zemeckis (The Polar Express), the film takes a new twist on an old classic by venturing into the world of 3D cinema.
This approach, though it may seem unconventional for the time-honored Christmas tradition, proves valuable. Unlike the countless other movie renditions of Dickens’ novel, Zemeckis’ version immerses viewers in the film, making them feel as though they, too, are flying over London with Scrooge or feeling the wrath from the Ghost of Christmas Future as he eerily points to Scrooge’s dead body.
Scenes like this prove the film has a darker side that isn’t seen in previous versions like The Muppet Christmas Carol. Between creepy ghosts, dead bodies and a grave marking one’s descent into hell, this interpretation has some parents refusing to take their children to see the film.
And this criticism is perhaps warranted. At times, the special effects and grim subject matter may prove too much for younger viewers. The film earned a PG rating for a reason – it’s not a traditional feel-good family film along the same lines as Zemeckis’ The Polar Express. Scrooge’s problems are real, and each spirit that visits him will make viewers feel slightly more uncomfortable than the last, especially with the added 3D effects.
Still, the classic Christmas tradition rings true in A Christmas Carol, and for those parents who won’t let their children see the film – well, bah humbug to them.
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