Community (Season 3-Episode 13)

Greendale Community College had a new student. And he was called Subway. This due to the fact that the sandwich shop has opened up at the college.

Pierce and Shirley are out to force it to close, as they have their own business plans from the last episode. They tell Britta to lure the new guy into a trap. She instead ends up falling in love with Subway.

Jeff finds out after two and a half years at the college that every student is assigned one locker each. He opens it up to find a pile of notes and things. There is one note from someone named Kim that is a hate-note. Encouraged by Annie, Jeff takes off on a search to apologize to the girl who thinks he is inconsiderate. That turns out interestingly enough for him.

Yet the highlight of the episode was the part with Troy and Abed. They set out to build a pillow-fort. Troy ends up building a blanket-fort alone after a meeting with a previous acquaintance. Both Troy and Abed have quite a showdown, as the race develops for a Guinness World Record. That race will continue in the next episode. Watch out for some fort-building. With pillows and blankets!

The Firm (Season 1-Episode 11)

The last episode had ended with the McDeere family home being attacked in the clips from the future. However, Mitch and Ray manage to take the family out safely. Two weeks into the past, a lot of things about Sarah Holt are revealed. Ray does a little digging and meets up with her former husband. Turns out that Sarah was a medic in the army who had served in Afghanistan.

The former husband reveals that she was brilliant at her job but somehow changed during duty. She started to regret saving quite a few lives, and got affected by the warfare. The former husband gives a photograph that includes Sarah, along with her unit in Afghanistan. Mitch spots Kevin Stack’s face in there. The vice-president of Noble Insurance was the commanding officer of Sarah in Afghanistan.

Also, Mitch meets with a death row inmate, who is scheduled to be executed in three days. Turns out he has quite a peculiar wish. He was convicted for killing a man. The deceased left behind a wife and daughter. Now the daughter is dying due to a bad heart and the convicted wants to donate his own heart to help save her. There follows quite intriguing proceedings. And quite a thrilling end to the whole saga.

And there was a surprise for one of the characters. Tammy inherits a house from her deceased aunt. Ray wasn’t too happy with the idea of moving into a house, but gives in at the end. So, he and Tammy have moved into a new house. Quite a lot went on in that episode!  

Touch ‘1+1=3’ (Season 1-Episode 2)

The pilot had ended with Martin beginning to communicate with his son. This episode showed the father-son partnership growing stronger. At the start, Jake is taken back to the boarding care facility, only for him to run away again. He had provided a contact number for Martin to call and find. And Martin ended up in a pawn shop, owned by Arnie (you remember Mike Novich from 24?). It was good to see him and Kiefer together after 24.

Well, Martin saves Arnie’s life during a robbery. Then Martin and Jake follow the trail. Elsewhere, we have a stewardess running after a dog she has to transport to its destination. There is also an Indian guy, hoping to spread his father’s ashes in the baseball stadium. And we have a Russian criminal in the frame. Also his son. There were so many people, and all were connected. You really need to see the episode to find out how.

The end brought all the pieces together. Martin and Jake find Arnie about to commit suicide and save him just in time. Then the dog, Lyov, ends up running to the same scene with the stewardess following him. Turns out she is Arnie’s estranged daughter. What an ending! This father-daughter connection made possible by so many random individuals.

Community (Season 3-Episode 12)

This episode saw the return of Chang. He looks for reinforcements to his security team at the college. Abed gets into trouble due to his over-spending in hiring celebrity impersonators. The gang has to play a gig, impersonating real life celebrities. Jeff plays a handsome Seacrest, Shirley is Oprah, and Britta and Troy are the two versions of Michael Jackson.

Now during all this, Jeff has been put on anti-anxiety meds and he cuts a calm figure. Yet it is only Britta who realizes that taking the meds is a bad move. Owing to her psychology expertise (she’s taking the classes, remember!), Britta knows that Jeff’s anxiety keeps his vanity in check. Without it, his ego would take over and exactly that happens. Jeff creates quite a scene when that happens, ripping off his shirt and running off.

And Troy talks to Abed regarding the over-spending he had been doing. Now Abed is not one who likes to be told how he should act. And we saw just a little bit of annoyance between the two best friends.    

Banana Bread

I tried this a few days ago and it was quite good. A really nice banana flavor, and there is no white sugar. This recipe will make a small loaf, but I used just this many ingredients as I was trying out the recipe. You can always double it if you want to make it a second time.

Ingredients:

Flour- 1 cup

Baking soda- ½ tspn

A pinch of salt

Brown sugar- A little over a ¼ cup (you can increase it if you want it to be sweeter but it’s quite enough)

Butter- ¼ cup

Egg- 1

Bananas- 1 ½ cups (mashed)

Method:

1.       Take a large bowl and mix the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

2.       Take another bowl and cream together the butter and brown sugar. Beat the egg and stir into the mixture. Add the mashed bananas and stir well to form a blended mixture.

3.       Now add this mixture into the flour mixture. Stir to combine both the mixtures.

4.       Pour the batter into baking pan. Bake in a pre-heated oven. Mine was done in 35 mins. Ensure a toothpick inserted into the bread comes out clean before taking it out of the oven.  

The Help

This is an adaptation of a book by the same name. The story focuses on the plight of black maids in early 1960s. So many aspects of life back then have been explored. And there are some pretty memorable performances.

At the forefront is Viola Davis playing Aibileen. You would instantly fall in love with the maid, feeling her every emotion as her life plays out. Then, there is Octavia Spencer playing Minny. She is a tough one, and doesn’t mince her words when she decides to speak out. And ofcourse the one nice white girl, Skeeter played by Emma Stone. She is what you would call a rebel, deciding to pursue a career instead of grabbing a husband for herself and having babies.

Skeeter decides to put together a book, compiling true stories from the lives of different black maids from Jackson, Mississippi. It is a hard enough task to get the maids to agree on the interview, but events play out which convince them to stand up and speak for themselves. It was a moving story. Little tales told that left the biggest of impacts. A story revealing the realities of one of the most horrible times in American history. A tale in which ultimately courage and human spirit triumphed.      

Committed

A kind of a sequel to Eat, Pray, Love. Well, that had been the only reason I picked up the book. Otherwise, the topic wouldn’t hold too much interest for me. And the topic was…marriage.

You would think it would be boring. But I would still say that Elizabeth Gilbert weaved her magic there. She put forward her years of research into a book, neatly divided into appropriate chapters, and explained so much. It was all quite interesting. The woman really worked hard and went back into history to point out a number of interesting things. And well, she managed to convince herself into entering the matrimonial bliss by the end of the book, but admitted that it was only a matter of finding one instance from history that would help her out. And thus one skeptic was convinced.

As with Eat, Pray, Love, the amazing thing about Committed is also the way in which Elizabeth lays bare her life for us all. She has made her personal journeys, both physical and emotional, easily accessible to the reader. And that is what makes her works so good to read.

Apple-Cinnamon Cake

(Not my own recipe, but the original one has been tweaked a little to suit my taste.)

This is a truly tasty cake. Not at all heavy, and a wonderful flavor. You can adjust the amount of apple and cinnamon according to your own liking. Have it tasting just the way you want it to. :)

And really simple to make too. Here is the recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Flour- 1 cup

Baking powder- 1 tspn

Sugar- ¼ to ½ cup (adjust according to your own taste)

Salt- ½ tspn

Egg- 1

Ground cinnamon- 1 to 2 tspn (once again, you can adjust the amount yourself)

Butter- 5 tbspn

Milk- ½ cup

Apple- 1 (peeled and sliced)

Method:

1.       Take the flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl and whisk. Leave aside.

2.       Take another smaller bowl and mix half of the sugar with the cinnamon. Leave aside.

3.       Take a larger bowl. Add the remaining sugar and butter. Beat them using an electric mixer. Beat the egg slightly and add into the butter-sugar mixture. Beat the ingredients well.

4.       Now, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk. Beat after each addition.

5.       Pour half of the batter into the baking pan. Spread the slices of apple on the batter. Also, sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture onto the apples. Leave some of it for sprinkling over the top. Pour the rest of the batter and sprinkle remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture.

6.       Place the cake in a pre-heated oven. Bake for about 25 mins or until the cake is golden brown.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

This is another one of those movies that are based on books. And I don’t quite know if the story plays out well enough on the big screen as on the pages as I haven’t read the actual novel. Let’s face it. The original books are always so much better than the movies based on the same books. At least I think they are. Anyway, this movie scored well.

There was quite a star-studded cast with Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock playing the parents. But it is Thomas Horn who plays the lead character here, Oskar Schell, a nine-year old boy. The story is intriguing and uplifting in quite a few places. Oskar’s dad dies in the World Trade Center on September 11^th, 2011. The two were quite close and needless to say, Oskar finds it pretty hard to let go. He stumbles upon a key in his father’s closet and sets out to find the lock the key fits into. It becomes a reconnaissance expedition for Oskar, just as the many he had experienced with his father when he had been alive. And so the story unfolds from there. And a pretty good one, it was.    

 

How I Met Your Mother (Season 7-Episode 19)

Barney and Quinn play an elaborate prank on the rest. In all this, we saw an intervention (rather, a Quinntervention). And we had the two homeless ones, Ted and Robin, fighting over the same apartment. There was also the bro-oath (or broth as Barney would say it). The episode ends well for everyone as Barney and Quinn move in together. And Robin gets a promotion. But she and Ted still have the issues and things don’t seem to be returning to normal for them anytime soon. Sad part, that.

Grey’s Anatomy (Season 8-Episode 17)

The episode was titled “One Step Too Far”. It was a happening episode after a little break. Catherine Avery was visiting with a young Dr. Maura. While Maura ended up getting cozy with Jackson, his mother spent the day flirting with Richard Webber. Now, we know that Richard’s wife Adele is now living in a care facility and the former chief is a bit lonely these days.

Then there was the MerDer twist. Derek tried to convince Meredith to return to neuro and work with him again. He put her on his service but the day ended with both of them realizing that they cannot hope to work together without it having a straining effect on their relationship. In all of this, Lexie suffered her first major blow in a surgery when her patient ended up being unable to speak as she woke up.

Alex realized that he was being used by a very smitten intern, who happens to be his little patient’s mom. And as Christina continued suspecting Owen, she confronted the nurse and realized that it was all a misunderstanding. A relieved Christina sat down to talk with her husband, but then he dropped the bomb. Owen has cheated on his wife. Wonder where it leaves the two of them.

Community (Season 3-Episode 11)

It was good to see the community college gang returning. There was a marriage proposal at the very beginning and we had Shirley marrying Andre once again. Pierce worked hard to invest his inherited money into a sandwich business with Shirley but that backfired. Jeff and Britta provided a few laughs. And who can forget Troy and Abed. The weird duo is back. There was the Dean, the Monkey and Leonard. Here’s hoping we don’t have to wait long before seeing them again.

Kahaani

The trailers running on TV had definitely grabbed my attention. It seemed like an interesting plot, with lots of twists and turns. Not to mention, any Vidya Balan starrer promises a lot these days.

I would say, the movie turned out as good as was promised. A thriller definitely. There was suspense right till the very end.

A very pregnant ‘Vidya’ was the lead character around whom the story revolved. But there were other memorable characters who made the film what it was in the end. ‘Rana’ was the ultimate good guy from the start. The cop who helped a distressed wife look for her lost husband in a strange city. Then, there was ‘Khan’, the second-in-command at the Intelligence Bureau. Not someone you would love, but potrayed brilliantly as someone who wouldn’t mind getting his hands dirty if it was in the country’s interest. And ‘Milan Damji’. The character invisible for most parts of the film but as important a character as any. And the setting for it all, the city of Kolkata, was an equally huge starrer of the film too.

A very good movie all-around.

P.S. For all of those Indian movies’ fans who love the singing and dancing, this one’s not for you! :P  

The Lorax

This was one cute movie. No, really. And not all fun and entertainment, it gave a pretty important message as well. Doing all this, in the most wonderful manner possible. There were colours, some really cute characters, and songs you would find yourself singing along to. Watching it in 3D was just the icing on the cake really.

Once the movie ends, you would find yourself wanting to go out there and plant a tree. Get some seeds and find some ground. And don’t be fooled into thinking that this is only a movie for kids to enjoy. It’s for all ages. No one can regret watching this. Do not give it a miss!

Here is a link to the official movie  site: Loraxthemovie

The Firm (Season 1-Episode 10)

The latest episode has come out and, as always, was exciting throughout. We had Mitch McDeere defending a woman accused in the kidnapping of a three-month old. And as the story unraveled, there were surprising developments. Not to mention, the case was all over the media and Mitch’s face on the TV screen. So much for staying low after coming out of witness protection.

Abby also took quite a gamble as she reported a set of parents for hitting their son. And just as she looked set to be sued, Claire convinced the kid to come out and admit to being hit so his parents can get help and counseling.

Also, the bigger stories moved forward too. Tammy and Ray, both made progress in the Sarah Holt case. And on the other side, Joey Morolto revealed that he has a plan in place for Mitch. The show is moving forward at full throttle. And we do not have just one storyline to look forward to till the next episode. There are so many threads unraveling.   

Grey’s Anatomy Returns March 15th

After having us wait for a few weeks, Grey’s Anatomy is finally returning this Thursday. And there are quite a few things going on in the lives of our favourite doctors.

Jackson Avery’s mother is making a return and rumour has it that she will be looking to get closer to Richard. And her son has a new date, maybe letting go of Lexie finally. Christina is still suspicious of Owen and thinks he’s cheating on her. While Derek and Meredith seem to be putting all their troubles behind as Derek tries to convince his wife of working with him in neuro again.

Can’t wait. Here are a few sneak peeks into the next episode, straight from the official site of abc.

Midnight in Paris

The movie opens to different scenes of Paris, and it is quite evident that we are about to witness a love affair with the city itself. Owen Wilson’s character leads us around the historic city, taking in the surroundings. He plays a successful Hollywood writer who is going through some life-changing moments as he looks to abandon his career for writing a novel. And he would love to settle down in Paris, of course.

Anyway, the movie moves along nicely. We are taken into the 1920s, when Paris was home to numerous beloved writers and artists. Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Picasso to name only a few. It really was intriguing to see all of those characters come to life.

The 1920s had been considered the Golden years of the city by the writer. But he meets another character who happens to think the 1890s were the sparkling years. And that is where the writer learns an important lesson. And so do we.

Another question comes to mind then. Where do you believe you would find contentment? Some decades into the past, or maybe a few in the future? Not many of us feel like we belong in the present, do we?

Enjoy the trailer: Midnight in Paris-Trailer   

A Case of Exploding Mangoes

I had heard about the book since it came out but never really got around to reading it. Finally did, and it was explosive. Taking a real life situation, that is, till now, one of the biggest national mysteries, Mohammed Hanif has woven a tale that captivates its audience from the get go.

Brilliantly written and imagined, Hanif has turned me into a fan and I will most definitely be checking out his second book out recently. As for this one, it was funny and clever. Entertaining of the highest order. Laid bare so many of the conspiracies that had arisen after the fateful crash killing Zia and all on board. Hilarious. And unputdownable!

Eat Pray Love

I know I’m a few years too late, but I only read the book recently. And I loved it! From the first page to the last, Elizabeth Gilbert had me engrossed in her tales from her year of travelling. From Italy to India to Indonesia, I could share her experiences and feel just as good about them.

It really was ‘One woman’s search for everything’, and I would recommend it to women of all ages. ‘Liz’ expressed herself so wonderfully in the book that it really was a delight to read. It never really takes on a boring approach, even when touching upon the serious things in life.

Reading it, I could feel like a part of Elizabeth’s life as she moved from Rome to the Ashram, and ultimately to Bali. Absolutely loved the tone of the book and the author really did capture and hold me completely till the end. Few books can do that.

Touch

The show premieres on 22^nd of March worldwide. The pilot episode has already been aired and the show promises to be an interesting one. Well, we’ll get to the storyline later. The first reason I got to know about this show was because I read somewhere that Kiefer Sutherland was starring in a new series. And after 24 had ended, I know I am not alone to say that most of us had been waiting for the return of Jack Bauer in some other role.

Anyway, Kiefer returning was the reason I took an interest in the show. But the pilot episode has turned me into someone who will definitely be tuning in for the show. It has a different storyline to what you would usually encounter and is going to explore fate and the connections between human lives.

You should check out their Facebook page for any and all updates before the series actually begins. Here is the link: http://www.facebook.com/#!/TOUCHonTV 

And while you’re doing that, do watch the pilot episode as well. It will leave you hooked like me.

The Firm

For those of you who still haven’t heard about it, there is a new series based on a John Grisham novel. Now I have been reading Grisham’s works for quite a while and it was quite some news that his best-selling novel, The Firm, will be inspiring a whole TV series. So I’ve been following it since the start and it is quite an exciting one.

Fast paced and an intriguing storyline where the past and future all twist into one. There are clips from the future and then we are carried weeks into the past to show us what really happened.

As with all of John Grisham’s works, the story is based on a lawyer. Mitch McDeere is the lead character here, but his working partners, Ray McDeere and Tammy, hold defining roles without whom the show would not be what it is.

The Firm has completed nine episodes till now, and already we have witnessed quite a lot of things happening. It is going strong, as the story unravels itself. Can’t wait for the next episode.

Here is the Facebook page for the show:  http://www.facebook.com/NBCTheFirm

Community returns on March 15th

The comedy show centered around a community college returns March 15 after a hiatus. There were even reports floating around about it being cancelled by the network. However, things must have worked out as the show is returning.

So time to welcome back the crazy gang. Troy and Abed, we missed you most of all.

Check out the Facebook page of Community: http://www.facebook.com/nbccommunity

How I Met Your Mother (Season 7-Episode 18)

Now, anyone who has been following the season knows that Ted has once again professed his love for Robin. And when it became apparent that Robin does not reciprocate his feelings, Marshall asked her to move out of Ted’s apartment. All this has resulted into Robin being homeless and she moves in with Lily and Marshall for a few days. What ensues is a nightmarish time in Long Island for Robin as her hosts practically hold her hostage.

Meanwhile, Ted turns the now-empty bedroom in his apartment into a hobby room and takes up one ridiculous hobby after another. And who can forget Barney. He has his heart broken when he falls for a stripper. And he does so seriously.

The episode ends nicely enough though. Barney and Quinn (the stripper) get together again. Robin and Ted meet up as well and agree to move on, both admitting to let go of things that have no chance of working out in the future. And the biggest surprise came at the end. Ted has moved out of his apartment, leaving it for Marshall and Lily. Their new life begins in their old home. And Ted goes out, looking for change.

One step closer to finding his kids’ mother! :D

Check out the Facebook page for the show: http://www.facebook.com/#!/HowIMetYourMotherCBS

The Ides of March

The Ides of March was awaited with anticipation. And I would say that it didn’t disappoint. Starring an ensemble that included George Clooney, Ryan Gosling and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, the cast alone lured one to check it out.

The movie eased forward and the twists that came depicted the political chaos that ensues before any major election. A man who seemed to be ‘the right one’ for the job and had all the correct ideas to propel him towards the White House eventually, seemed to be getting hard done by the political lobbying that matters so much more than the actual voting. But then came the point where it all turned topsy-turvy as a truth was revealed.

It was quite ironic that the hopeful candidate could only march towards a victory after his mistake caught up with him and he was forced to surrender himself to being blackmailed. Forced to go with the flow and play the political games. I guess we all know that’s how things work in politics.

The movie was based on the play “Farragut North”. It was directed by George Clooney himself. I quite liked it. Time well spent. J

Check out the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McCt-_yYLpo

Hello!

I start this blog today because I feel like writing about fun stuff. Enough with the doom and gloom. It’s time to simplify life and lighten up my writings. So here I am, with Rattle Tattle. Here you will find me writing about movies, television shows, books, music and food. I may find something else to write about as well. So long as I’m having fun!

Read on and enjoy.