The Luck of the Irish (2001)

The Luck of the Irish is another Disney Channel original movie from my childhood. It tells the story of Kyle Johnson who doesn’t know anything about his heritage or where he came from. In fact he doesn’t even know he’s Irish until his mother ends up shrinking to just a foot tall. It is here that Kyle learns that he is a leprechaun. When Kyle loses his lucky Irish coin to another evil leprechaun, he has to gain it back by participating in various games and sports and stop himself from shrinking down to a pint sized leprechaun of mythical proportions. It is a fun movie and worth  the time if you can find it.

A Wee Murder in My Shop by Fran Stewart

In A Wee  Murder in My Shop Scotshop owner Peggy Winn travels to Scotland to get some authentic wares for her shop. Upon stumbling on an adorable shop (that mysteriously has disappeared the next day) she walks out with a beautiful antique shawl. The shawl is haunted by the ghost of a 14^th century Scotsman that she calls Dirk. When her ex husband is found dead in her shop. Peggy and Dirk must come together to solve the mystery and keep someone else from being killed. It’s fun to see the contrast between Peggy’s modern sensibilities and Dirk’s 14^th century prejudices. It’s a study in contrasts and a great fun to read.

The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is the first in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. As far as I am concerned it is the best one out of the bunch and so it will be the only one I will review on this blog J. Pirates follows the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow and Will Turner, a blacksmith’s apprentice, who are striving for a. revenge against his former colleagues in the case of Jack and saving fair lady Elizabeth Swan in the case of Will. The antagonists is Captain Barbossa and the crew of the Black Pearl. They are cursed by the treasure that they had once sought to find making them basically undead. Orlando Bloom plays Will, and since he was just coming off the Lord of the Rings movies, they made him the star. His performance was eclipsed, however, by Johnny Depp as Jack. Depp plays Jack as this zany, slightly crazy misfit that believes in the right to be a gentleman of fortune. He is great in this role and is the saving grace in the subsequent films.

The movie is based very loosely on the Disney ride Pirates of the Caribbean. Since the movie’s premier, they have stuck Jack in various parts throughout the ride, but a careful view of the movie reveals many scenes that are pre-movie. I challenge you to find them J.

Now just to close. The Hillywood Show’s Tribute to Jack Sparrow because it’s funny!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0PhfbpNu-4

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins

Gregor the Overlander is the first in the series about Gregor and his little sister Boots. It is by the same author of the Hunger Games, and quite frankly I think it’s better written. It follows the adventures of Gregor when he discovers the mysterious Underland under his apartment building. Here there are talking giant rats, bats, and cockroaches, all which show up as allies in the series. Gregor learns that he is part of a prophecy that Lord Sandwich, the founding father of the tribe of humans in the Underland, wrote centuries ago. The prophecy demands that he go find his lost father that also fell into the Underland many years ago. It is a fun adventure in a strange and magical land that exists below our own.