Title: Brave
Director: Mark Andrews & Brenda Chapman
Starring: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, and Emma Thompson
Rated: PG
Released: 2012
Personal Rating: 3.5/5
Oscars: Nominated for 1
Plot: Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom
that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on
her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.
-------------------------------------------------
Different From Trailer
Now I am not the first to say so but I must: the trailer is highly misleading. When I saw the trailer I thought that it would be about a princess going on an adventure through a faraway land because she is making her own fate. Luckily I did listen to reviewers (and people who had seen the movie) so I knew that the trailer was wrong. I heard something about going on an adventure with a bear. So how does this affect my view of the movie? It made me disappointed but I didn't take off any marks because the trailer was different from the movie.
A Twist That You Can See Coming
If you can even pay a little attention during the movie, you can figure out who the demonic bear is. I don't know whether to be mad or happy that I guessed it. I'm happy because I figured something out but mad because usually the stuff I do figure out any idiot can do the same. I watched this movie with my Dad and I usually remain quiet (in such situations) because he doesn't seem to like me talking to the movie (which I actually like to do). However, when Merida figures this twist out I yelled out, "No shit!"
A Female Protagonist
Let me start off with saying that I am glad that this movie featured a female in the lead role. However, she was still not that strong of a character. Part of it was that she was a little annoying and the other part is that she didn't do that much. The biggest thing she did was give some half-assed speech about letting children decide their own fates and it didn't make sense why everyone quickly agreed to this. Maybe I am being a little harsh as she did also manage to turn her mother and brothers back into their normal selves. No matter how little she did, I am glad that she learned a little humility by the end.
Final Thoughts
This movie's uplifting tone and happy conclusion were good to me. This being due to me finishing The Casual Vacancy (by J.K.Rowling) around a week before and I wanted to see something uplifting. That being said, since I knew it was going to end happy I wasn't tense during many scenes. And when I was tense I wasn't as tense as I should have been. However, this doesn't make the film bad. It's just the type of film it is. But if you want a tense and gripping tale, this isn't the movie for you.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
S&N: The Rule of Logic and Playful Battle
I talk about The Rule of Logic and give a little Sneak Peek into Playful Battle.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
The Casual Vacancy (JK Rowling)
Title: The Casual Vacancy
Author: J.K. Rowling
Released: 2012
Rating: 6/5
Basic Plot: Barry Fairbrother dies in the town of Pagford. This sweet little town's darker side is shown.
------------------------------------
This Ain't Harry Potter
For all those who haven't yet heard: This is not a kid's book and far removed from the world of Harry Potter. The language used in this book includes harsh swearing as well as words you need a dictionary for. As well as a more adult tendency for the words, the situations reflect what the intended audience can handle. Among other things in this book: drug, sex, and rape are all shown. Though there is only one rape scene near the end of the book to the character who least deserves it. All I mean to say with this is that if you're a Harry Potter fan it doesn't mean that this is a book for you. Also, if you're a kid with a love of Harry's wizarding world: that hopeful magic isn't in this book.
Three Dimensional Characters
These aren't black and white characters. There are those who appear good at first glance but there is always some dirt hiding under their masks. The one character that I loathed (and didn't mind if anything bad happened to him) was Stuart "Fats" Wall. Besides him, every character had at least one good characteristic about them. It's almost scary with how realistic characters are portrayed (I'm talking more about their three dimensionality more than anything else) and made me disturbed every time I picked up the book. I must congratulate Rowling with this superb feat.
The Dark Tone of the Novel
This novel isn't happy. By the end there are a few 'happy' ends to a few subplots, but the majority of them don't have overly happy outcomes. Besides the ending (which I recommend getting a few million tissue boxes before you read), the novel is very dark in tone. Andrew (aka Arf) is the son of an abusive father; Samantha is married to a man she has lost sexual interest in long ago; Stuart (aka Fats) believes in doing what he wants over what is decent; and a character gets raped. So if you're looking for a feel good story: stay far away from this book.
Final Thoughts
I picked up this book because J.K.Rowling wrote it. I wasn't pretending to myself that this book would be like Harry Potter, but I wanted to see if Rowling was just a one hit wonder. While reading this book I could hardly believe Rowling wrote it because of how different the tone and feel of it was. I had heard that it was a sad book but I didn't realize how sad it would actually be. Maybe something is wrong with me because I like books/movies/comics that make me hurt, but I don't care. This book made me hurt so bad but the journey it gave was very much worth it. I would highly recommend this book to any mature person that wants to see how three dimensional characters are written. Finally, the book is a little hard to get into, but once you get past the beginning stage you'll be pleased you stuck with it.
Author: J.K. Rowling
Released: 2012
Rating: 6/5
Basic Plot: Barry Fairbrother dies in the town of Pagford. This sweet little town's darker side is shown.
------------------------------------
This Ain't Harry Potter
For all those who haven't yet heard: This is not a kid's book and far removed from the world of Harry Potter. The language used in this book includes harsh swearing as well as words you need a dictionary for. As well as a more adult tendency for the words, the situations reflect what the intended audience can handle. Among other things in this book: drug, sex, and rape are all shown. Though there is only one rape scene near the end of the book to the character who least deserves it. All I mean to say with this is that if you're a Harry Potter fan it doesn't mean that this is a book for you. Also, if you're a kid with a love of Harry's wizarding world: that hopeful magic isn't in this book.
Three Dimensional Characters
These aren't black and white characters. There are those who appear good at first glance but there is always some dirt hiding under their masks. The one character that I loathed (and didn't mind if anything bad happened to him) was Stuart "Fats" Wall. Besides him, every character had at least one good characteristic about them. It's almost scary with how realistic characters are portrayed (I'm talking more about their three dimensionality more than anything else) and made me disturbed every time I picked up the book. I must congratulate Rowling with this superb feat.
The Dark Tone of the Novel
This novel isn't happy. By the end there are a few 'happy' ends to a few subplots, but the majority of them don't have overly happy outcomes. Besides the ending (which I recommend getting a few million tissue boxes before you read), the novel is very dark in tone. Andrew (aka Arf) is the son of an abusive father; Samantha is married to a man she has lost sexual interest in long ago; Stuart (aka Fats) believes in doing what he wants over what is decent; and a character gets raped. So if you're looking for a feel good story: stay far away from this book.
Final Thoughts
I picked up this book because J.K.Rowling wrote it. I wasn't pretending to myself that this book would be like Harry Potter, but I wanted to see if Rowling was just a one hit wonder. While reading this book I could hardly believe Rowling wrote it because of how different the tone and feel of it was. I had heard that it was a sad book but I didn't realize how sad it would actually be. Maybe something is wrong with me because I like books/movies/comics that make me hurt, but I don't care. This book made me hurt so bad but the journey it gave was very much worth it. I would highly recommend this book to any mature person that wants to see how three dimensional characters are written. Finally, the book is a little hard to get into, but once you get past the beginning stage you'll be pleased you stuck with it.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Fringe "The Boy Must Live" Review
Do we trust September?
Labels:
Fringe,
Season 5,
The Boy Must Live,
The Final Season
Last Resort "Damn the Torpedoes" Review
I talk about this episode of Last Resort.
Friday, January 11, 2013
American Horror Story "Spilt Milk" Review
This episode wraps everything nicely and it's not even the season finale!
Oscar Nominees (2013)
I talk about the Oscar Nominees.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)