If you don’t know already, I am an avid fanatic of The Hunger Games. It brings out the angsty teenage girl in me. That said, I have been watching the casting announcement of the movie adaptation like a obsessive stalker. Elizabeth Banks and Stanley Tucci have snagged pivotal roles in the flick and they just announced Woody Harrelson has been cast in the role of the beer-bellied and disgruntled mentor of Katniss (who will be played by Jennifer Lawrence), the heroine of the series. I have to say that TheHob.org is right on top of this news — and anything and everything else that has to do with “Hungry” news. The people who run this site are pretty damn dedicated. This makes me ask the question, “I wonder who would win in a smackdown between Hunger Gamers and Twi-hards?”

If you finished The Hunger Games series and are looking for a more “adult” chaser, chew on Warm Bodies — and I am not saying that literally. Written by Isaac Marion, the book is about zombies told from the point of view of a zombie. He falls for a non-zombie girl and — well — it’s quite offbeat and an excellent read. A movie adaptation has been set for 2012 and it stars Nicholas Hoult as R, the zombie hero of the book. It’s not as angsty as some other pop lit. Actually, it’s way more mature. Plus, if Stephenie Meyer likes it, it must be really good, right? RIGHT?

Bridesmaids opens in theaters on Friday. I’ve watched it twice. That should say something about how brilliant it is. I also watched it twice in hopes that Judd Apatow (the producer of the movie) would retweet one of my desperate tweets of praise about the movie. That makes me cool.

Throughout the entire (I repeat: ENTIRE) 133 minutes of the screening of Eat Pray Love, I had the pleasure of sitting next to a young woman who said, “That’s cute” every 15 minutes. Occasionally, she would repeat the dialogue said by the characters and then giggle to her friend. Other than that, she quietly vomited the words, “That’s cute” incessantly. Just when I was about to lean over and give her a hug and a slap, I realized that she may be on to something.

Eat Pray Love is, indeed, the powerhouse chick flick of the summer (supposedly). With Glee creator, Ryan Murphy conducting this cinematic orchestra that utilizes Elizabeth Gilbert’s book as the score, it does pack a decent, yet tiresome, punch when it comes to “you’re never too old to find yourself” movies – and a lot of that has to do with Julia Roberts, who steps into the bucket cap of the movie’s heroine.

Fresh off a divorce from her hollow ambitioned husband Stephen (Billy Crudup), Elizabeth (Roberts), a writer, starts her journey by shacking up with a young new agey actor/yogi David (James Franco) and then realizes, “Why do I always have to be with someone to make myself happy?” Or in her case, unhappy.

After this moment of self-enlightenment, she does what any normal person would do: plan a yearlong odyssey around the world to “find herself.” (On a writer’s salary? Are we sure this is non-fiction?) She plans to go to Rome, India and then finish the year off in Bali – all of which respectively coincide with the title of the movie/book: Eat. Pray. Love. Her wise and say-it-as-it-is girlfriend, Delia (played by the super-talented Viola Davis) asks, “What if it doesn’t work?” Elizabeth just shakes the question off and hopes for the best.

Funny – I asked the same thing when sitting down for the screening.

The large appeal of this movie is not that it’s geared toward women but because of the A-list roster of thespian wattage. Roberts can be in any movie and her American sweetheart stigma would draw herds of people both young and old (I loved her and her Irish accent in Mary Reilly). As an added bonus, eye candy comes in the form of Franco, Crudup and Elizabeth’s unexpected Bali love interest, Felipe (hunky Hollywood Spaniard Javier Bardem). You can even throw in Elizabeth’s Balinese adorable and toothless fortuneteller, Ketut (Hadi Subiyanto) into the mix if that’s your cup of tea. But all of this beefcake-ness is just the packaging. The content inside is what really matters.

The best-selling book that everyone claims to have read before it “got big,” is a firm foundation for a great hero’s journey, but the emotional connection I drew from the movie wasn’t necessarily Elizabeth-centric. I wasn’t engaged with her emotions. I clung on to the things that she was observing – not through her eyes, but through my own. I thoroughly enjoyed the food porn in Rome and loved the odd couple relationship she shared with “Richard from Texas” (played by the brilliant Richard Jenkins) during her spiritual ashram stop in India. Most of all, I nearly shed a tear when Felipe said a heart wrenching goodbye to his son as he left after a brief visit from college.

Ryan Murphy tends to have that effect on you. He sucks the emotion out of you like a dust buster (please reference any episode of Glee). Although it showcases the poignant sensitivity of the scene, you are kind of blinded by your emotions. You forget why you are watching the movie. It’s like eating chocolate-covered broccoli; the chocolate negates the whole point of eating broccoli. Not to say that everyone involved with this movie was great, but there’s only so much of Julia’s crying-induced veiny forehead I can take before I am transported to Truvy’s salon in northwest Louisiana and Shelby is shaking, trying to drink her juice while sputtering the words, “DON’T…TALK…ABOUT…ME…LIKE I’M NOT HERE!”

The point I am trying to make is that I wasn’t fully engrossed in each and every scene because Murphy tricks us into telling us how to feel first and then relate it to what’s going on with the characters. I like it the other way around. At times, this is acceptable, but it just becomes too demanding and exhausting – much like Elizabeth’s romp around the world. A quarter of the way through her stay in India, I heard myself sighing, “Oh shit – we still have to go with her to Bali.” It was almost like watching a slideshow of someone’s vacation.

The cast is strong and the director did a good job of making us feel what he wanted, but in the end, the girl sitting next to me during the screening hit the nail on the head: It’s a cute movie. But she also forgot to mention that it’s a really, really, really “dramedic” advertisement for the International Travel and Tourism Industry.

Now there’s this whole ordeal with Stieg Larsson‘s “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”. I was seeing it everywhere and considering I was fresh off of finishing non-fiction fare in the form of “Role Models” by John Waters, I thought it was time to see what all the hub bub was about.

So I started to read it knowing little to nothing about the plot. In the first 25 pages I was bombarded by all these Swedish countries and a very in-depth explanation of some corporate financial crimes that I am too dumb and too ADD to understand.

I did not sign up for an Eastern European geography class nor did I want to read about financial crimes. I just wanted to read (as the title suggests) about a girl with a dragon tattoo. In my mind, I thought the book would be about her and her too-cool-for-school escapades. I thought I would be reading about her likes (indie bands and shopping at Hot Topic), her dislikes (J. Crew and mean cheerleaders) and possibly read about her skills in martial arts (the dragon tattoo suggests deadly skills in mixed martial arts).

Again, my ignorance floated to the top.

I know I am just being impatient, so I am not writing it off. I wrote my feelings about this on my Facebook page (which, as we all know, is the foundation for all enlightening discussion) and got some really good support:

Yesterday, I had a little chat over the phone with a man named John Waters — you know, he’s the guy who made all those trashy, albeit brilliant movies like Pink Flamingos, Cry Baby, and A Dirty Shame

Nonetheless, I was interviewing him for a piece in the next issue of the One Eighty magazine in regards to his book “Role Models.” It was probably the most magical interviews I have ever had over the phone (coming in a close second is Ray J).

The issue won’t come out until September, but I just couldn’t wait to share some of the quotes he gave me which may not exactly suitable for the issue. For example:

I don’t trust anyone who hasn’t been arrested.

Genius. Stay tuned for more…including his thoughts on Justin Bieber.

Saoirse Ronan explores heaven in ‘The Lovely Bones’

The story: The Lovely Bones is about a 14-year-old girl who watches over her family from heaven after getting brutally murdered by a neighbor.

Is the book better? I read Alice Sebold’s novel a couple of years ago and it is better. Even so, I look at these movie adaptations as a different creature.

One big happy family: Saoirse Ronan (her name is pronounced exactly how it looks) gleams as the innocent Susie Salmon. Her family is the picture-perfect family of the bell-bottomed ‘70s. Mark Wahlberg plays Jack Salmon and Rachel Weisz fills in the shoes of her mom, Abigail. Susan Sarandon is the cherry on top as the eccentric smoke-like-a-chimney-drink-like-a-fish Grandma Lynn – but she does have a heart of gold. Rounding out the fam is Rose McIver as Lindsey Salmon and Christian Thomas Ashdale as Buckley Salmon.

What I didn’t like: Wahlberg does a decent job as the obsessive father who will stop at nothing to find his daughter’s killer and Weisz does the same as the disconnected mother – but rather than strongly support the story, their characters fade.

What I liked: The story. The book gives an intense story about a family in crisis and movie interprets it decently. To a certain extent, you feel the anticipation and urgency in wanting to punish this killer. You want him to get caught and you want him to suffer for what he did. Speaking of, Stanely Tucci is haunting as the murderous next-door neighbor, George Harvey. The word creepy does not do justice to his portrayal of this inhumane monster of a man. From his eerie handling of a jewelry charm to his quiet gaze of menace, he is villainous and convincing.

Honorable mention: I’d love to have a Grandma Lynn in my life.

Was that really heaven? I didn’t get Peter Jackson’s portrayal of heaven. It was like a toy box rather than serene and angelic. There was a definite disconnect that just didn’t make sense. Yes, I understand that heaven is up to different interpretations, but I just didn’t dig this.

Reece Ritchie is dreamy: In the short time Susie is “alive” on screen, she charms the audience – especially with her short-lived romance with her crush on the dreamy Ray Singh (Ritchie). It made me giddy like a school girl.

Cry factor? During emotionally heavy movies, crying tends to be like yawning. When you see someone else does it, you are inclined to do the same. The girl sitting next to me in the theater started crying during certain tear-jerking parts. I almost followed her lead until she started making out with her boyfriend. Then I just vomited.

Overall review: I didn’t hate it. As much as I hate comparing a film to its literary source – there was so much in the book that I wanted in the movie. What I saw onscreen was nothing I visualized in my head. Grade: C+

In case you’re wondering about Julie Powell’s original blog, here’s the web address for it: blogs.salon.com/0001399.

Her last entry is from 2004 and by now, her blog can be considered a “contemporary artifact” – or something like that.

More than that, I had this appetite to pick the brain of the real Julie Powell. Portrayed in the movie by the always delectable Amy Adams, Julie is 29-years-old and she, like many of us at that age (including myself), is lost.

Julie Powell, the author of the book, The julie/Julia Project. (AP Photo/Little, Brown and Company)

Julie sets a goal to cook all 524 recipes in Julie Child’s (played by Meryl Streep in the film) acclaimed cookbook, Mastering the Art of French cooking and blog about it. It wasn’t necessarily an “A-HA!” moment for the real Julie Powell, but it was more of a project for herself.

“I didn’t know much about Julia when I started the blog,” says Julie. “I immediately started to glean as much as I could. I read her biography My Life in France and one of the things I was struck by was that she started cooking later in life. She started to cook when she was 37 and that was one of the things that inspired me. I was 29 – I thought my life was going to be over at 30 because I haven’t figured out who I was! This woman – a literal and figurative giant in our culture– didn’t even begin that journey until she was in her mid-30s. That was refreshing for me.”

While all of this is going on in the movie, it flashes to Paris where Julia Child is trying to find herself as well, making an interesting storyline that is joined at the hip.

Julie’s project wasn’t really just a hobby, it became more for her. As she plowed through her recipes, she was slowly coming into her own. I had a chance to chat with the real Julie Powell and she gave me some insight into how it was like working with the director and screenwriter, Nora Ephron and why boning a duck can induce a sweaty brow.

When you were writing your blog, did you immediately see a parallel between Julia Child’s life and your own?

As I continued through that year (of cooking) and working on the book, I tried to learn more about her by reading her archived letters. My book is not built the same way as the movie. The structure in the book tells her story up to that moment when she goes to Cordon Bleu Cooking School which is the moment that changes her life; whereas my story is from that moment of deciding to cook my way though Mastering the Art of French Cooking and forward. I do think there are parallels and I think Nora (Ephron) brings them up in the movie very well.

From the moment you heard this was going to become a film and throughout the whole process, how have you been feeling? Is it surreal?

Clearly it’s surreal! Once Amanda Hesser wrote that article in the New York Times about me, my world exploded that day – the “surreality” has been ramping up since. From my book deal to the movie to Nora Ephron being involved – surreal has been kind of normal for me. I’ve gotten to the point where I accept each new bizarre development as an addition to the “crazy family.” (laughs)

When you were watching Amy Adams play you, were you getting all nostalgic?

I actually didn’t spend time with Amy. I spent time with Nora early on when she was working on the script and it became her baby. When it came time to film, I think Nora, Amy and Chris (Messina), who plays my husband, Eric, all sat down and discussed how they wanted to approach it. They decided for clarity’s sake, they would develop the characters from the script and reading the book rather than meeting me. Amy Adams is a wonderful actress and I think she does a lovely job in the movie; but the Julie Powell of the movie is not me. It’s a fictional character that shares my name, history and experience. It’s a character in a romantic comedy. She’s “softer” than I am; nicer than I am – she doesn’t curse as much as I do (laughs). She sort of lacks a certain self-awareness that I, as a writer, had to have – and this is sort of necessary for the script and what Nora was doing. It was essential that I notice certain things about myself. Julie in the movie doesn’t need that in the movie. In fact, too much self-awareness in that character would get distracted and complicated in the movie.

Amy Adams playing a Julie Powell – apparently she doesn’t curse as much…

How did Julia Child’s book, My Life in France get thrown into mix?

When the movie rights were first bought by an independent producer named Eric Steel – he did that documentary, The Bridge. He’s this fascinating guy and we’re friends. He’s sort of a dark guy that likes to do these idiosyncratic things. It was going to be this little idiosyncratic movie. As soon as Nora came on and decided to weave in Julia’s book, we immediately knew it was going to be a different than my book – which is great. They compliment one another.

You started this blog in the infancy of the fad. How familiar were with blogging? And in the movie, Eric (the husband) says that blogging is a self-centered thing? What are your thoughts on that?

I was not familiar with the technology or the medium. The movie is almost a “period” piece. I knew less about blogs than the Julie in the movie knew about blogs. I wanted to be a writer. I was frustrated. I loved to cook so my subject matter was at hand. My husband suggested I start a blog and I was like, “I don’t know what that is.” It was some new thing. So I started it with zero idea of what I was getting into. It was a self-centered act – but using the word “self-centered” is disingenuous because (a blog) is focused on self, voice and tone. It was designed to help me. I had no idea what the medium could do. It was an online diary. I just got very lucky. I happened upon the medium in its infancy. I didn’t have to work very hard to get people to read me – I wouldn’t know how. (laughs) In its birth, for me, blogging was a way for people to sound their barbaric yawn and express themselves in any idiosyncratic way the wanted to. Now, blogging is a profession and a full time job. I think there are people who blog and there are bloggers. I’m a person who blogs. I just don’t have the wherewithal or fortitude to blog in the how it demands.

What was your favorite moment in that year of cooking?

Boning the duck. I was terrified. I was sweating. It was August and I bought this knife special. I was sitting there and I knew I couldn’t do it. It was the second to last recipe. When I did it; with minimal fuss it was like the skies opened up for me and the Hallelujah chorus played. It was really the pinnacle for me.

Julie & Julia is in theaters today.

The warm loving embrace. The smoldering eyes. The vampire in the moon. This re-cover is the cheesiest thing ever – and I love it.

I wonder if they changed the text of the novel to match the Harlequin romance vibe this cover is sending out. I wonder if Bella says stuff like, “Jacob’s warm manhood was no comparison to the frigid delight of Edward’s hard, cold, statuesque body. As I lay there in my moist cavernous room in Forks, I ponder the departure of my innocence. I can’t help but have my delicate fingers trace my bosom with thoughts of one of them throwing me down on my plush bed and wrestling the sheets that were once starched to perfection.”

Whoo. That even made me a little hot.

And P.S. Taylor Lautner’s hair is better short.

You know what? I remember reading this book as a child, but now I don’t even remember what it is about. I even gave it to my nephew as a gift thinking that I was a cool uncle. I feel like a farce.

Well…I know the gist of the story. Child has problems. He escapes into his imagination. And there are these furry wild things. Jonze’s take on the whole ordeal looks magical, endearing and, in a oddly fascinating way, kind of scary. As I child, I think I was more enamored with the illustrations of the creatures than with the actual story…and I think that’s what this movie is all about. Escaping into a fantasy and bringing out the inner-child in us to forget about these pesky adult responsibilities. I’m looking forward to it. *Sigh*…to be young again.

When the noms were announced this week I was NOT surprised that Shannon got the nod for his performance as the brashly honest certified lunatic in the suburban opus of depression and shattered dreams. It is well deserved. And I just wanted to take this moment to brag and say “I interviewed him.”

Click here to read the interview.

Thank you for appreciating my awesomeness.