Posted on June 6, 2008 in Books, Movies
This is the most violent graphic novel I have read yet and probably one of the most violent books I have read in a long time. I am curious about the upcoming movie adaptation, so I decided to read the graphic novel I never heard of. It was not worth it. It was violent, dark, depressing, and dystopic. Funnily enough, I do not think it was intended as nihilistic as other modern graphic novels tend to be, but that message is not clear. I think Millar intended it to be a hero’s journey for villains, and it has been described as “The Watchmen for villains.” I do not know if we are suppose to feel for the amoral protagonist Wesley. I considered him too immoral to actually care about. It was just too dark for me. I would not recommend this graphic novel.
Having said that, I am looking forward to the movie (it’s a good movie year I think). It is going to be a lot different from the movie in terms of plot. I will probably like the movie a lot more than the books. Fox in the comic books is modelled after Halle Berry (due to Fox’s similarity to Catwoman), but I’m glad it’s not Halle Berry because I like Angelina Jolie more. Similarly, Wesley was modelled after rapper Eminem, but a big part of the reason I want to watch this movie is for James McAvoy. I actually do not take issue with Eminem as much as some other people, but it was creepy reading the comics with him as Wesley. According to this behind the scenes featurette, the first 40 pages of the book are copied fairly accurately into the movie. The movie is going to be violent and R-rated. I am not into violent movies per se, but I am into humor/mindless action flicks once in awhile. I won’t mind the violence in the movie as much as the comics which always tend to be more violent than the movies. Actually, If they kept the plot of the comics as it is, I highly doubt anyone would want to see the film. This comics plot really does not have a wide appeal. So, this is one of those rare cases where I will probably like the film more the original and want them to change as much as they can from it.
Posted on June 5, 2008 in Books
Have your book-tastes changed over the years? More fiction? Less? Books that are darker and more serious? Lighter and more frivolous? Challenging? Easy? How-to books over novels? Mysteries over Romance? – BTT
Well, if I compare it to ten years ago, then yes of course. I use to read more teen/young adult fiction, but now I don’t. I read more classics, challenging and darker books, but I still read a lot of fluffy books. In some ways, it seems I have changed, but in a lot of ways I have not; I still seem to like both easy and challenging books, fluffy and serious. I read far more nonfiction now than I did years ago. I probably also read less fantasy than I did as a kid, but I still read quite a bit of it. Most of my preferences have not changed drastically; I still like a lot of the same things that I did. Most of my tastes have expanded rather than reduced and the books account for it.
Posted on June 4, 2008 in Books
So, I have read all of Sophie Kinsella’s books. I am going to admit that the shopaholic series protagonist Becky Bloomwood can be grating, but for some reason, I keep reading the books. Kinsella still has the opportunity to make me laugh or chuckle once in a book, and I did really like Can You Keep a Secret?. I keep hoping I’ll like the others books as much, and I do prefer Kinsella over Meg Cabot most of the time. This book has a great concept: what if you did get amnesia and woke up to a totally different time in your life? I’ve wondered about it myself. The book has its amusing moments as Kinsella’s books often do, but I found the characters sometimes more grating than in her previous books. Though, I think I like the ending of this book more than in The Undomestic Goddess (which had less annoying characters but with ambivalent ending). These are fluffy chicklit novels; I don’t really expect a lot of depth from them. They don’t even take that much time. This book took me a couple hours of reading. They do allow a little distraction from daily life, and I will keep reading Kinsella’s books as a result.
Posted on June 3, 2008 in Movies, Musings
Adam’s Rib (01 05 08) – Isn’t it fun to watch onscreen couples knowing they are offscreen couples? The chemistry is marvelous. I love the pull and tug, and neither really right, but it’s such a nice little Hepburn/Tracy rom-com. Why aren’t there more rom-coms with married people like this anymore?
Penelope (05 05 08) – Produced by Reese Witherspoon, this is a cute, quirky flick with a very great cast. They shot it in the UK so there are quite a few brits, but only some of them kept their accents (Simon Woods, Lenny Henry, Russell Brand) while the others adopted American accents (James McAvoy, Burn Gorman, Nick Frost). The movie also stars Christina Ricci as the eponymous character, Catherine O’Hara, Richard E. Grant, and Reese herself. Sweet, short, and it has James McAvoy.
Hellboy (08 05 08) – I had the chance to watch this on a flight in 2004, but I dismissed it having heard mixed reviews. Since then, I’ve heard positive things about this film, and with the sequel imminent this fall, I decided to watch it. It’s my second chance at watching Guilerrmo del Toro after Pan’s Labyrinth. I can see his distinct dark fantastical style in both movies. Also, both films have fascists. I do think this film’s script is not the best comic book adaptation, but it really makes up for it with the characters. The romance is kinda sweet albeit rushed through the film. It’s fun and quirky too; I look forward to the sequel.
A World Without Thieves (09 05 08) – This is a Chinese movie starring Andy Lau; it’s okay. Lau’s wig is ugly, and all the females in Chinese movies are bone thin. They shot some of it in Eastern China, but it’s not exactly a strong script and some of the poignant, spiritual scenes are flat.
Message in a Bottle (11 05 08) – I refuse to read another Nicholas Sparks novel, but I actually like the casting in all the movie adaptations. I didn’t even recognize Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright Penn) in this movie. Kevin Costner wasn’t that bad, but he is no Ryan Gosling. I love Paul Newman. That is all.
Cranford (4, 11-12 05 08) – What is it about Elizabeth Gaskell that makes her books so adaptable to screen? I have yet to see an adaptation of Gaskell’s novels I did not like or am indifferent too (same can not be said for the Brontes and Ms Austen). This is actually based on three Gaskell novels, and the creators have weaved the stories so effortlessly and beautifully. The acting is magnificent. There is a lot of humor, a lot of death, but a lot of warmth too. Wonderfully done.
Todo sobre mi madre (All About my Mother) (12 05 08) – None of the Almodóvar movies I’ve seen so far are all that realistic in plots, but the important thing is that they all have raw and real emotional, beautifully written, acted and shot. I like the ambiguity and the humanity of all his characters; nothing is clear cut, and there is love and feeling amidst it all. I can understand why many think this is still his most mature film to date. This one has so many layers and themes with All About Eve and A Streetcar Named Desire attached to it. Almodóvar is love.
The Forbidden Kingdom (17 05 08) – So you don’t watch these movies for plot consistencies, dialogue or even characters. It’s all about the action sequences and the cinematography in China is very well done. Still, I am not going to lie: I cringed at some of the plot turns. Why did Sparrow speak in third person?!
Lust, Caution (19 05 08) – REVIEW.
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (30 05 08) – A supernatural romance where Gene Tierney (Mrs. Muir) and Rex Harrison (the ghost Captain Gregg) fall in love. It is rather sweet, and I found myself relating to Mrs. Muir’s solitary nature. I am pretty sure this was the first time I’ve seen a Tierney film, and like the third time I’ve seen Harrison. They have such nice chemistry too. I have not watched George Sanders in a lot things, but he does play assholes really well.
Total: 10.
Posted on June 2, 2008 in Books
Considered by many scholars as the last play written solely by Shakespeare, I found the Tempest an interesting mix of genres. While other plays are more obvious about their genres (be it tragedies, comedies, or romance/coms), this is considered a romance. While the romance of Miranda and Ferdinand does feature in a couple of scenes, I would not consider it a romance as compared to Romeo and Juliet. It is comedic, but also very subdued and serious at parts. Prospero is very manipulative; he seems to be in control of everything, even the courtship between his daughher Miranda and Ferdinand. There are images and themes of colonialism, servitude, and slavery, even in the romantic scenes between the lovers. Indeed, Prospero’s control of the events in the play are even meta especially in regards to the ending where he asks the audience to applause. The island’s magic and phantasmagorias can be viewed as a play within a play. I did not warm towards Prospero early on because he did not seem like a real character in the play, more a conniving puppet master moving characters toward his goal. He controls how one views the past and how the outcome will be. I think about Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series interpretation of Shakespeare as he wrote The Tempest. A reflective, older man who has spent his life connected to the themes of stage, dreams, imagination and creation, moving characters and stories around, but keenly aware like Prospero at the twilight of his life.
Posted on June 2, 2008 in Books
This update includes books read in April and May. The latter was a pretty good month for books. I read 11 and quite a few counted towards challenges. New challenges are in bold.
Current Challenges
- Book Awards (9 of 12) – None. I only have June left.
- William Shakespeare (3 of 4) – I read Othello and The Tempest. Nearly done.
- Non-Fiction Five Challenge (1 of 5) – Read Hungry Planet. May to Sept.
- Graphic Novels (8 of 6) – Read The Best American Comics 2006, Jimmy Corrigan
- Decades 08 (5 of 8 ) – Read Cranford, The Count of Monte Cristo
- In their shoes (3 of ?) – Read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle.
- Russian Reading (2 of 4) – Slow and steady does it.
- What’s in a Name? (4 of 6) – I read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Hungry Planet, The Tempest
- TBR 2008 (1 of 12) – This is pathetic. I really need to work on this.
- Man Booker Challenge (1 of 6) – Same.
- Chunky Challenge (3 of 4) – Read The Count of Monte Cristo, Twilight, Outlander
- The Obscure Challenge ( of 1) – Read one obscure book before the end of the year.
- 342,745 Ways to Herd Cats or tl;dr (3 of 3) – Three books read from lists of favourites of other participants; read The Count of Monte Cristo, Twilight, and Outlander.
- 1% Well-Read Challenge (2 of 10) – Read 10 books from the 1001 List in 10 months. I read Cranford, The Count of Monte Cristo. See below for book count.
- Reading the Nobels (1 of 5)- Must work on this, but I do not have many Nobels at hand.
- Notable Books – None
- Pulitzer Project – None
- Booker Project – None
Personal Challenges
- 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die – The challenge will help this out: 84.
- TBR Pile – Books that I own and have not read. None in awhile.
Pending Challenges
- Classics Challenge ( of 6) – July to December 2008. Five classics and one bonus “modern” classic.
Completed Challenges
- Something About Me – There was no minimum; I read 4 books.
- Second Chances (3 of 3)
- Book to Movies (3 of 3)
- Summer Reading Challenge, Round 2
Posted on June 1, 2008 in Books
This week, I finished reading Outlander, The Tempest, and Remember Me?. I read the latter two yesterday and the reviews will be up this week. I am determined to finish Gilead this week; I’ve put it off for long enough. I am doubtful about when I will finish Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell though since I just got a mini boat load of nonfiction requests from the library. I am running behind on the Book Awards Challenge so I must get started on The God of Small Things, Anil’s Ghost or Little, Big as well.
With the Twilight series and Outlander, I realized my reading trends have been inclined to the romantic these past two week. I do not often read many novels that are particularly romantic or with romance as the focus. Funnily enough, they are supernatural romances. I even watched The Ghost and Mrs. Muir on Friday. I not do these things consciously; I do notice little reading trends mostly in regards to the story themes (solitary, introspective, romantic, sad, funny, etc). Though, it just seems romantic books have been coming towards me these past two weeks. Does that often happen to you where little themes arise from books?
I have a friend who is not particularly bookish that only waits for books to come to her. As a book worm, I seek and aquire books greedily. I collect them and I covet them at rapid rates. I always have several ideas what book I could read next, but she is very fly-by-edge-of-your-seat kind of girl. She is finally reading the Harry Potter books even though I recommended them to her seven years ago. For her, books come to her in a haphazard way. Though, I do think a lot of books come to me, just in much greater numbers. Where do most of the books we read come from? For me, a mix of friends and literary merits (prize lists, classic books).
Happy Sunday!
Literary Links:
Lost Titles, Forgotten Rhymes – How to Find a Novel, Short Story, or Poem Without Knowing its Title or Author