M:I 4 Ghost Protocol

Have you seen this movie? Jeremy and I watched it on Thursday. I loved it. My only regret is that we didn't go see it in the theater so we could enjoy watching Dubai on the big screen with other UAEians. There is something so fun about seeing a place that you live/know well presented in a movie, and I thought MI4 did a great job using Dubai as a backdrop for so much of the film. They might have stretched the truth (slightly) with the intensity of that sandstorm, but that amazing shot where they're driving out of a seemingly endless desert and the Dubai skyline shows up out of nowhere - totally real.

Those colorful boats loaded up with all kinds of cargo on Dubai Creek - also totally real, along with insane people driving the wrong way on the roads sometimes. And even though it's a little cliche, it is also true that there are sometimes camels on the road.

Anyway, well done Mission: Impossible for both entertainment and use-of-Dubai reasons. Go see it if you haven't already.

On the topic of movies set in places we've lived: The Sum of All Fears was fun to watch in Russia since we got to hear everyone in the theater laugh at Ciaran Hinds' horrible Russian (but bless him for trying). The Saint is super fun to watch after you know Moscow because you see how fast and loose they played with the locations (and protocol for entering the American Embassy). The Bourne Supremacy makes me nostalgic for Russia even as it terrifies me with that visceral car chase scene. Aaaand I guess a lot of movies are set in Russia...?