The Zachtastic Movie Blog

Well, hello friends! This is Zach's mom, Nancy Face! Today Zach sent his first set of mission photos, so I've posted them here with his captions, along with today's email! It will be his final one while at the Missionary Training Center. Enjoy! Me at the Provo Temple. All of those who came with me to the  MTC  on the same flight. I'm second from left. My companion Elder Baxter and me. My district - I'm wearing the black beanie. My zone, the Sunday before Christmas. Me, my branch president, and his wife. Me and Elder Pettingill, a good friend from  high school,  at the Christmas Eve Devotional. Me and Elder Davis,  one of   my  best friends  from  high school, at the Christmas Eve Devotional. Half of my district is going to Des Moines, Iowa - Sister Porter, Sister Froerer, Elder Baxter (District Leader), and me! The other half of my district is going to Charleston, W...

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a great day! Today all of the missionaries in the MTC have been given 20 minutes each to email. I guess that is what you get when you are one of like 3,000 missionaries at the Main Campus over Christmas, but  I will do my best to write a pretty good email. I don't really want to talk about the Nativity Story specifically, though; I would rather tell a story that has testified to me greatly about how great the gift of Christ is in our lives. So, I'm sure some of you may know that the MTC has something called the TRC. In a nutshell, it is the closest one could ever get to actually teaching an investigator. We are all assigned one person to teach, and although the MTC has told us that these people are actors that must remain in character at all times while on the premises, both Elder Baxter and I are convinced that our investigator is legitimate. His name is Christian. Don't let the name fool you though, because when we first taught ...

Hello! This is Zach's mom, Nancy Face! Zach asked me to update this blog with his pictures and emails while he is away for two years. His missionary portraits arrived on the very day he left for the Missionary Training Center in Provo, Utah - a bit ironic, but awesome! Here's Zach's first email after five days at the MTC! Well hello, everybody! The mission has already been great, and I've only been here in the Main Campus of the MTC since Wednesday. Everything was sort of a blur ever since I left my family at the airport. It was hard for me not only because I shed tears, but also because I've never flown by myself before. I made a couple of minor mistakes along the way, but everything else went quite well. I met some of the other elders and one sister heading off to the MTC with me (I was one of eleven missionaries heading up), and they were all pretty fun to chat with. The plane was tiny! It was 20 rows back, and the widest it ever g...

Well guys, it has been plenty of fun. I have very much enjoyed being able to review both movies and some video games for you all, and I hope my opinions have been useful for all of my readers ever since I started this blog. I've certainly appreciated the opportunity of getting to share my love for the entertainment industry with all of you. But now, it is time for me to say goodbye. You may or may not know that I am a Mormon, and I have been called to serve a proselyting mission in Des Moines, Iowa. I will actually be serving all across that state, while my area of work will also include some small parts of Illinois and Missouri. For the next two years, I will be completely separated from my family and friends (the only communication I can take part in with others is weekly emails) as I embark on an epic adventure to spread the good word of my religion with the people of the Midwest. I will not have the opportunity to watch any movies, play any video games, listen to secular mu...

For those of you who did not know, I am leaving on a mission on Wednesday. I will be serving in Iowa for the next two years proclaiming the good word of the Gospel, so I will not be seeing any of my family or friends during my time in the Hawkeye State. As per tradition, today I gave a talk to commemorate my final Sunday at home, and since not all of you had the opportunity to come and hear me speak I decided to repost it on here. I hope my words inspire you, haha. Well, the time has come. I have grown a foot or two, and now I am here ready to give the final talk before I go to the MTC. It didn’t even occur to me until about Wednesday that I am actually leaving, and with that I got pretty nervous. Actually, that doesn’t even put a pin on how I feel; it’s already daunting enough that I will be away from home for two full years, but it will also be quite a huge task for me to learn how to be an independent individual in that time. Nonetheless, I am very excited to be able to serve...

Now that I have revealed the worst of what 2013 had to offer audience members, it is now time for me to divulge on what was the best. While there certainly were plenty of disappointing and weak films released this year, there were also some very good ones. These ten films show us that there is still some genuine talent left in Hollywood, while that there is much to love about independent cinema as well. I just hope that this year isn’t signaling the downfall of the superhero film, for one thing, after having only living up to expectations ( Iron Man 3 being that film). Anyway, without further ado, here are the top ten films of 2013, with five honorable mentions first: Honorable Mentions All Is Lost (J.C. Chandor) Blackfish (Gabriela Cowperthwaite) Catching Fire (Francis Lawrence) Side Effects (Steven Soderbergh) Still Mine (Michael McGowan) #10 - Pacific Rim (Guillermo del Toro) ScreenJunkies called this either the most awesome dumb movie ever mad...