Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: I loved this film. It is probably the least true to the book of all the Harry Potter films to date, but I felt very little was tossed that really needed to be in there. I really didn’t miss the Dursleys or the house elves, and the way this movie was structured the bad guy doesn’t seem to come out of left field quite as much as he does in the book. And I liked the changes: I like Neville’s dancing and the study hall scene with Snape and the flashy entrances from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. My main complaint is that because they had to squeeze so much story into 150 minutes, many of the scenes, particularly in the beginning, are kind of choppy and feel very rushed. Many of the characters don’t get the screen time they deserve. However, the overall feel of the movie is excellent. There is quite a bit of silliness, which some have said is almost “too funny,” but I felt the humor provided a good balance with the much darker parts of the film, thus avoiding depressing the audience too much. I’m glad they kept the same set from Prisoner of Azkaban; the Hogwarts of the first two films always felt more like a Disney park than a real place. I’m also glad they finally made good use of the Weasley twins, who really are quite funny in the books but had been largely ignored in the films until now. Again, I loved this film. However, I would only recommend it to people who already like Harry Potter, as this is not a standalone movie at all. You really need the backstory of the prior three films to appreciate it.
On Writing by Stephen King
On Writing
Many writing books are either discouraging (you will never get published unless your father owns Random House) or full of shiny happy talk about creative orgasms (anyone can write brilliantly – just let it flow). King finds a happy medium between the two. While he does lay down some strict but reasonable ground rules about grammar, editing, and reading (if you don’t have the time to read, he says, you don’t have the time or the tools to write), he is also full of solid advice and real encouragement. This book was recommended to me as something every aspiring author should read. I concur.
Also posted on BookCrossing.
Zathura
Zathura: I was one of the eight or so adults who actually liked Jumanji, so of course Zathura interested me. And it did indeed share a lot of the same qualities: children stumble upon old board game, start playing, and everything comes to life with lots of pleasantly predictable action. There were also parts that were a bit too much like Jumanji, including some notable “surprises.” Near the end was a nonsensical plot twist involving the astronaut. We were so baffled we went to the local Barne to look up the book it was based on, which turned out to be a picture book that had no astronaut in it at all. Now, I’m all for altering the book’s storyline – even drastically – to make a better movie, but if you’re going to introduce a whole new character they should at least fit in there logically. That was my only complaint, which is admittedly a rather major one; otherwise it was a perfectly enjoyable children’s adventure movie. There’s a shortage of these. Too many children’s movies trip over themselves with sly winks or sappy memorabilia for the adults watching. Believe it or not, it is possible to make a good movie without any parts that children won’t understand. Zathura, despite its logical flaws, shows this. Here’s hoping Hollywood keeps trying.
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
Bird by Bird
However, this book did not fill me with the heaping piles of inspiration that other writing books have in the past. Some part of me is now filled with the newfound fear that I am neither brave enough nor honest enough to churn out truly excellent fiction. But in the end, perhaps that’s not really the point. After all, if you’re not writing because you want to write – if you just want to be published and receive all the attention and reassurance that you believe it brings (which it really doesn’t) – then maybe you should be rethinking this whole writing thing. To the artist, the creation of the art, however anxiety-ridden or frustrating or exhausting the process may be at times, is its own reward. Sure, it may never be published and nobody but your family may ever read it, but you still can change lives. Maybe even your own.
Also posted on BookCrossing.
A Void by Georges Perec
A Void
Also posted on BookCrossing.
Dead Poets Society
I watched Dead Poets Society the other night for the first time. I know – I’m a little behind the times. And surprisingly I have very little to say about it except that if you haven’t seen it, do. It’s a powerful and uplifting film, and for once I’m not using those terms ironically. It really is worth watching.
I close my eyes
His image floats beside me
A sweaty-toothed madman
With a stare that pounds my brain
His hands reach out and choke me
Truth is like a blanket
That always leaves your feet cold
Stretch it
Pull it
It will never cover any of us
Kick at it
Beat at it
It will never be enough
From the moment we enter crying
To the moment we leave dying
It will cover just your head
As you wail
And cry
And scream
The Kitchen God’s Wife by Amy Tan
The Kitchen God’s Wife
Also posted on BookCrossing.
fantasy novelist’s exam
The Fantasy Novelist’s Exam: This cracked me up, especially Question #33. People who like this will probably also enjoy Diana Wynne Jones’s Tough Guide to Fantasyland.
Doom
Doom: Light on plot but heavy on zombies leaping out from behind corners. In other words, pretty much what you’d expect. For those of you unfamiliar with the video game, a bunch of Marines get sent to Mars where genetic experiments have gone horribly wrong (shocking, I know – that never happens in movies). Much shooting ensues. Honestly, I was a little bored. There wasn’t quite enough suspense to be scary, and not nearly enough action to be exciting. On the bright side, there was a brief segment filmed in the first-person shooter style of the game that made me laugh pretty hard, so it wasn’t a complete wash. I didn’t really need to see this one in the theater, but it’s a worthy flick to watch in your livingroom over beer and pizza.