Alright! This is more or less what I've been talking about the last three reviews. I was beginning to get worried that my constant reference to episodes that deliver was just blind confidence in a show that did not deserve it. Thankfully, this week's episode of True Blood, 'Hard-Hearted Hannah', fires on every conceivable cylinder. Everything that has been built up (albeit a little too slowly) the last few weeks is paid off in spades here. This is the kind of episode that is at once so captivating and weird that you can't help but chuckle after the cliffhanger ending gives way to the credits screen.
What happened this week then? Better yet, what didn't happen? Let's begin with Sookie and Bill. In an attempt to better find the captors of Eric's maker Godric, Sookie decides she'll infiltrate the Fellowship of the Sun and start reading minds to get to the bottom of the mystery. This seems well-intentioned, but the way Anna Paquin is playing Sookie its clear the whole thing comes from a fair bit of naivety as well. Bill is obviously worried something bad will happen, but acquiesces to Sookie after she reassures him things will be fine. Sookie sets off with one of the Texas vampire's humans; one whom, like her, has the rare perspective of being a human dating a vampire. It isn't long before both of them are tricked, and Sookie figures it all out a little too late. As things escalate from bad to worse, Bill's 'vampire-sense' goes off and he prepares to rush to her aid. Ah, but alas, Bill's maker who showed up at the conclusion of last week's episode ambushes him and we find out that no matter what apparently a vampire can never overpower their maker. Bill is left helpless and it seems Sookie's going to be doing a 'Lafayette' and getting used to a scary basement. We are also treated to a flashback wherein Lorena and Bill are shown in their evil heyday torturing a couple and then having sex in a pool of their blood. This is an excellent scene as it gives weight to Bill's claims he used to be a monster, and it also serves as one of the most visually graphic and disturbing things we've seen on True Blood. Still, it does wonders for Bill's character in terms of his backstory.
It's easiest to transition to Jason now because his storyline more of less skirts just outside of intersecting with his sister's this week. Tasked with building what amounts to essentially a giant stage/gallows used for cooking vampires in the sun and feeling guilt over his tryst with Sarah Newlin, Jason is oblivious to the events unfolding around him. Luckily, Sarah seems pretty determined to take out her marital woes on Jason in the form of illicit affairs in the Church. This may have an added bonus as it seems perhaps her guilt over what her husband is up to may cause her to let Jason in on the fact his sister is locked in the basement. I'm glad Jason's storyline is finally merging with the main one considering a few more episodes like the last few would have started to feel a little boring. It's good we're shaking it up.
Sam and Daphne are where we last left them on a pool table. It seems like Sam is more than a little smitten with his new waitress and for once it seems like he may have found a kindred soul. Meanwhile on the Tara front, it seems Maryann makes a much worse houseguest than hostess. Clearly fraying a little at the seams, we see a whole new, slightly disturbing side of her character. Tara and Eggs send off on a mission to get a part to fix the hot water heater in the house for Maryann, but are waylaid when Eggs starts to have a waking dream of sorts. They wander off into the woods following his hunches only to come upon a bloody campsite that looks like played host to some kind of nasty ritual. Eggs is understandably disturbed and they decide to head home. Driving down a rural side road, Andy is stopped in his tracks when a dog and... wait for it... a pig jump out in front of his car. The dog we recognize as Sam's go-to transformation while the pig should just give pause to anyone in the viewing audience. We cut to now human versions of Daphne and Sam where the latter audibly wonders why his companion changed into a pig this time. It's all very ominous, but so perfectly set up by the rest of this season that the viewer already knows where this is going. Following Daphne, the pair move closer and closer to a distant drum beat. Sam expresses his hesitance when Daphne finally pulls her double cross and he is nabbed by two black-eyed minions of Maryann (we can assume minions because its the same black eyed thing that happens to people at the crazy orgies).
The next scene is pretty much the culmination of all of the weird and unsettling things only being hinted at this season. Tara and Eggs show up only to find Maryann doing her vibrational dancing thing. Through whatever power she has, the two find themselves joining in the crazy sex-dancing-drum endeavor just as Sam is dragged into light with Daphne in tow. Taking her side next to Maryann, it's clear that Daphne has been working for her all along. After putting a minotaur head on Maryann, a knife is presented and Sam is told that its the "end of the line". We can only assume that he's on the block for one heart removal. The episode ends chillingly with Sam screaming and the audience wondering how the fallout of this episode is going to look in the subsequent week.
So basically this is one of those weeks where the dominoes are tipped and we get to watch the chaotic effects of all of the set up of the season. I suspect that next week will still be rolling with the momentum of this week, but likely it will hold longer on individual plot threads in an effort to flesh them out and exploit the dramatic weight. 'Hard-Hearted Hannah' is a wonderful episode that doesn't really take time to slow down, and it's a welcome adrenaline shot just when it was needed. Hopefully between this episode and the next plot moving one we will not feel the drag that we did with leading into this installment. Either way, True Blood is back to full form and we have a laundry list of new developments to look forward to in the coming weeks.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Picture: Sunny Even When It's Raining
Ok, this is one of the most surreal things I've ever seen. Click this image to enlarge it so you can see the rain drops. It was pouring rain to the point of flash flood warnings, and then the sun came out and lit up the city. Sadly, this picture doesn't capture what it was like to actually be there but I think it does a damn good job.
This image is pretty cool in its juxtaposition and I think that makes it special.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Review: 500 Days of Summer
To preface this review I believe it is of note that this is a movie that for various reasons I was highly interested in prior to its release. With this in mind, my first viewing of the movie was highly influenced by copious amounts of knowledge garnered both from interviews with the director and the cast, as well as numerous reviews from across the country. I must confess that with my head so packed with preconceived notions and perceptions, I feel another viewing is in order to fully appreciate the movie as a cohesive whole. With all of this in mind I will use the first half of this review to compare and contrast this movie with one of its predecessors and influences; Annie Hall. Due diligence and a genuine curiosity lead me to investigate the film before seeing 500 Days of Summer. Annie Hall is widely considered Woody Allen's best picture; a claim that until recently I was unable to verify. It seems sometimes popular opinion is correct as Annie Hall is at once a surprisingly timeless examination of human relationships, as well as a clever spin on a not-so-romantic comedy. This genre is not one that pops up too often in popular cinema for either the reasons that audiences are assumed incapable of tolerating anything short of a perfect ending, or an unenviable balance of humor and reality that may very well be tough to capture.
500 Days of Summer and Annie Hall share many things in common. For one, the films both begin with the admission that the focal relationships in question are unequivocally over and the male component is already on the other side. Each movie uses a fractured timeline in its conveyance of the emotion of a relationship, which is to say neither follows a primarily linear path. 500 Days of Summer uses the technique in a much more mannered way, informing the audience of the exact day (of 500) in which we find main character, Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Woody Allen in Annie Hall uses quick, jarring cuts to and fro throughout the relationship chiefly to juxtapose a moment either in the past or the future that is especially ironic when viewed next to an opposite from another time. There are many scenes in 500 Days of Summer that call back almost exactly to moments of Annie Hall. Specifically, a scene in which split screen is used to show Tom's expectations of a night at a party to the reality of how it actually happens. Webb noted that this scene in particular was a more modern spin on a scene in Hall when a conversation between Diane Keaton and Woody Allen is subtitled to juxtapose what the characters are saying with what they are thinking. If anything can be said about these two films as far as my comparisons are going, it's that one precludes the other and each attempts to reach the same endpoint via different means.
So, heaping these kinds of connections between a fairly new independent film and what is considered by many to be a classic film could be construed as being premature. In truth, when examining the subject matter in both films (that of a relationship that seems like everything and becomes nothing just as quickly with little reasoning) I find that both work in tandem towards similar interests. This is not to say the films are complimentary, or in some cases, even comparable. Simply the two take similar journeys and end up with different theses on the same subject. So what are the differences?
For one, 500 Days of Summer is much more concerned with cinematic style than Woody Allen's Oscar winning film, but not to the detriment of its story. 500 Days is told through music and bold camera work. In many ways its soundtrack is analogous to the way the current generation copes with many of the various foibles of life and love (that is to say, through music). It helps that said soundtrack is for the most part pitch perfect. A collection of offbeat, lesser known indie tracks perfectly supplements the moods Gordon-Levitt traverses throughout the film. This movie also employs an interesting twist on genre convention, focusing primarily on the male perspective in the story as well as putting said gentleman in the saddle of the hopeless romantic. It's basic role reversal, but it feels extremely fresh in this instance as movies rarely explore this interesting but no less real dynamic. Less of a romantic comedy and more of a coming-of-age tale, 500 Days of Summer deals with the realization that things like fate and destiny rarely align the stars in the ways we would like, and how naivety on this part can be the distinction between being a child or accepting adulthood. It warns of the danger of turning people into ideals, but does not abandon the audience completely to cynicism. Reassuringly, the film portends that ideals can be met with effort, or a lack of fear of putting oneself 'out there'. It never compromises on the hurt and pain of love and how it feels to lose it, but it's willing to offer a glimmer of hope with a wink to the audience before the final credits.
The setting of 500 Days is also unique in a few ways. For one, the director and cinematographer went to great lengths to capture the beauty of lesser known parts of LA. By doing so, Tom and Summer inhabit an almost postcard-world filled with vibrant colors and unreal focus. This elevates the narrative to an almost super-reality which is quite nicely anchored by some truly real emotional beats played out between the main characters. More than once while viewing this film I was struck by how accurate and real the interactions on screen were to life. Sure, this movie was taking place in an idealized setting, but the humans in it carry a certain reality and honesty I am hard pressed to identify in many other recent films of this nature. This is perhaps the film's greatest strength, and it allows the movie to play out in a way that is at once evocative visually of the way being in a relationship sometimes feels, while at the same time genuinely hitting these moments on a very personal level. These elements going hand in hand so well is something of a miracle, and it adds in spades to the charm of this story.
In the end, 500 Days of Summer is more an examination of what it means to grow up when something as tumultuous as love is the catalyst than it is of romance. It is a film of sometimes brutal honesty and tender humor that aims to almost empathize with the audience in shared misery, while at the same time trying earnestly to offer the hope that the world isn't as bleak as it can seem through the lens of our perceptions. It falls victim to one to three pitfalls of 'indie' movie making, but for the most part 500 Days of Summer is a challenging film that is not afraid to be honest about the harshness of life and love but will good-heartedly chuckle at it too.
500 Days of Summer and Annie Hall share many things in common. For one, the films both begin with the admission that the focal relationships in question are unequivocally over and the male component is already on the other side. Each movie uses a fractured timeline in its conveyance of the emotion of a relationship, which is to say neither follows a primarily linear path. 500 Days of Summer uses the technique in a much more mannered way, informing the audience of the exact day (of 500) in which we find main character, Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Woody Allen in Annie Hall uses quick, jarring cuts to and fro throughout the relationship chiefly to juxtapose a moment either in the past or the future that is especially ironic when viewed next to an opposite from another time. There are many scenes in 500 Days of Summer that call back almost exactly to moments of Annie Hall. Specifically, a scene in which split screen is used to show Tom's expectations of a night at a party to the reality of how it actually happens. Webb noted that this scene in particular was a more modern spin on a scene in Hall when a conversation between Diane Keaton and Woody Allen is subtitled to juxtapose what the characters are saying with what they are thinking. If anything can be said about these two films as far as my comparisons are going, it's that one precludes the other and each attempts to reach the same endpoint via different means.
So, heaping these kinds of connections between a fairly new independent film and what is considered by many to be a classic film could be construed as being premature. In truth, when examining the subject matter in both films (that of a relationship that seems like everything and becomes nothing just as quickly with little reasoning) I find that both work in tandem towards similar interests. This is not to say the films are complimentary, or in some cases, even comparable. Simply the two take similar journeys and end up with different theses on the same subject. So what are the differences?
For one, 500 Days of Summer is much more concerned with cinematic style than Woody Allen's Oscar winning film, but not to the detriment of its story. 500 Days is told through music and bold camera work. In many ways its soundtrack is analogous to the way the current generation copes with many of the various foibles of life and love (that is to say, through music). It helps that said soundtrack is for the most part pitch perfect. A collection of offbeat, lesser known indie tracks perfectly supplements the moods Gordon-Levitt traverses throughout the film. This movie also employs an interesting twist on genre convention, focusing primarily on the male perspective in the story as well as putting said gentleman in the saddle of the hopeless romantic. It's basic role reversal, but it feels extremely fresh in this instance as movies rarely explore this interesting but no less real dynamic. Less of a romantic comedy and more of a coming-of-age tale, 500 Days of Summer deals with the realization that things like fate and destiny rarely align the stars in the ways we would like, and how naivety on this part can be the distinction between being a child or accepting adulthood. It warns of the danger of turning people into ideals, but does not abandon the audience completely to cynicism. Reassuringly, the film portends that ideals can be met with effort, or a lack of fear of putting oneself 'out there'. It never compromises on the hurt and pain of love and how it feels to lose it, but it's willing to offer a glimmer of hope with a wink to the audience before the final credits.
The setting of 500 Days is also unique in a few ways. For one, the director and cinematographer went to great lengths to capture the beauty of lesser known parts of LA. By doing so, Tom and Summer inhabit an almost postcard-world filled with vibrant colors and unreal focus. This elevates the narrative to an almost super-reality which is quite nicely anchored by some truly real emotional beats played out between the main characters. More than once while viewing this film I was struck by how accurate and real the interactions on screen were to life. Sure, this movie was taking place in an idealized setting, but the humans in it carry a certain reality and honesty I am hard pressed to identify in many other recent films of this nature. This is perhaps the film's greatest strength, and it allows the movie to play out in a way that is at once evocative visually of the way being in a relationship sometimes feels, while at the same time genuinely hitting these moments on a very personal level. These elements going hand in hand so well is something of a miracle, and it adds in spades to the charm of this story.
In the end, 500 Days of Summer is more an examination of what it means to grow up when something as tumultuous as love is the catalyst than it is of romance. It is a film of sometimes brutal honesty and tender humor that aims to almost empathize with the audience in shared misery, while at the same time trying earnestly to offer the hope that the world isn't as bleak as it can seem through the lens of our perceptions. It falls victim to one to three pitfalls of 'indie' movie making, but for the most part 500 Days of Summer is a challenging film that is not afraid to be honest about the harshness of life and love but will good-heartedly chuckle at it too.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
DISCLAIMER: There are spoilers about the movie and the book in here that also may allude to some of the events of the final book. If you don't want to have even a hint of what's going to happen in the final book, you could probably read the first and last paragraphs and be satisfied.
If there were ever a series short of Lord of the Rings that desperately needed an extended edition when it hit DVD, it would be Harry Potter. Having already started to noticeably chafe under the time constraints of the last two installments, Half-Blood Prince feels like its fingers are brushing greatness and just missing by that much. It's a real shame because this movie more than many of the others before it treads new ground. For once the romantic interactions with the young cast feel real and genuine, unlike the stilted and forced scenes in Goblet of Fire's Triwizard Ball scenes. Unfortunately, these scenes are too few and far between in the course of this overstuffed movie.
Anyone who has read the books knows that Half-Blood Prince deals with a lot plot lines running almost on opposite ends of the spectrum from each other. The movie adaptation attempts to find the most common threads between the important elements and weave them into a nearly three hour movie. To some degrees the formula works, and when it does the movie fires in a way that its predecessors only hinted at. Sadly, for as much as it really clicks, the movie also fizzles at times as certain story beats just aren't played as dramatically as they should have been. For one, the eponymous 'Half-Blood Prince'; an element that by all rights should be front and center, meanders lifelessly in the peripheral of the film. By its portrayal here, one unfamiliar with the books or simply inattentive could not be blamed for wondering why the movie is titled such. Harry's scholastic success of direct consequence to the 'Prince' present in the novel is almost completely gone from the film. Much of the impact, especially that in the final moments of the film, is drained from the cinematic interpretation because of this omission. Besides the oversight of attention to the film's title, the movie never has enough time to explore any of the interesting things happening in its story. The book was bolstered handsomely by the budding relationship between Harry and Dumbledore as they struggled to crack the mystery of Voldemort's ultimate plans, and this was a thread that displayed prominently in the book serving as its spine. Besides the final half an hour of the movie and some early dialogue between the characters, you never get the impression of the respect and admiration the two share in the book.
Ron's Quidditch exploits only get a few minutes of screen time which is understandable. Less forgivable is the fact that after the one scene, we never even hear mention of his further successes that more or less defined Ron for me in the novel. I was also a bit disappointed with the fact that Alan Rickman opted to play Severus Snape a little less ambiguous than I felt he should have been. In the book version, you never really have an idea of what he's up to. Meanwhile from the early moments of the film while he takes the Unbreakable Vow, Rickman plays a not-too-subtle hesitance on his face which gives away his true motives to anyone looking close enough to notice.
Finally we have the issue of characterization; in this case most importantly of our main hero Harry Potter. In the book version of Half-Blood Prince the reader really feels the pressures dumped on Harry to not only solve a mystery that is WAY beyond his abilities at his age, but how in over his head he is when you consider that he now knows that he is the only one who can topple the nefarious Dark Lord. The success in the writing is that Harry also realizes this very thing and it builds his character. He takes on much more responsibility and grows more mature for it, if not in skill than in understanding. When the final moments of the book transpire, we actually believe him when he states he's not coming back to Hogwarts and that he fully intends to finish the work he and Dumbledore began. It's a shame that Daniel Radcliffe's Harry never conveys the fact that his life is fundamentally changing in ways it never has in years passed in the film. For all the strife and frustration Radcliffe is capable of emoting, it still feels like the film Harry Potter is simply reacting to the things happening to him instead of really experiencing them. It's hard to know if this fault comes down to Radcliffe or if the confines of the movie and its limits prevented him from really exploring the real alterations ravaging his character. Whenever he acknowledges the prophecy, you don't get the sense that this is a seventeen year old boy who somehow must figure out how to kill the most powerful evil in his world or how he's dealing with it.
Finally, I would like to mention my displeasure with the last act of the film. In the book, we are treated to an emotionally exhausting scene in which Dumbledore suffers greatly to retrieve what Harry and he believe is a Horcrux. This of course leaves the Professor near death with fatigue and when Harry returns them to Hogsmeade we are jolted by the appearance of the Dark Mark above Hogwarts and the success of Draco's mission. From here we get a much more intense encounter than that in the movie in which a helpless (petrified) Harry must watch Draco disarm a weakened Dumbledore and a seemingly heartless Snape kill him without a second thought. From here is described a magnificent battle between the Death Eaters and the Order of the Phoenix wherein the castle is torn apart. This is a crucial scene to the book and the overarching story because innocence is truly lost. Hogwarts for six books had been the safe zone of the story in which nothing disastrous could happen, and in one chapter it becomes as dangerous if not moreso than anywhere else in the wizarding world. It's jarring and it makes the reader feel the desperation and hopelessness of Harry as he chases Snape and is overpowered easily as an afterthought. In the film the whole scene plays much different. Besides Harry and a random guard-wizard, it would seem that no one in the castle had any idea that anything horrible had happened inside. In fact, the Death Eaters simply vandalize the castle before leaving and lighting Hagrid's hut on fire. There's no menace, there's no feeling of hopelessness, and the movie ends on a note of anticipation for the next installment instead of the emotionally spent and lost one of the novel. Sure, the book ended with Harry's vow to finish everything and not return to school, but there was a sense of finality to the proceedings because everything was different now. As far as the movie is concerned, this was just one more unfortunate incident in a line of incidents. I couldn't help but feel cheated by these moments I had so anticipated since first reading the book.
While this review went to great lengths to detail what I had issue with in this movie, I would be lying if I didn't outright say this is probably the second best HP film in the series. By at least having brushes with some real character moments and just glancing some of the epic moments from the book, this film does wonders in building suspense for the final confrontation awaiting in the final two movies. Unfortunately instead of wondering how this fairly average boy is going to ever stop all these bad things, the audience is left certain of his success just lacking the way it all will transpire. Overall I would suggest see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, but if you feel intrigued at all by the events on screen head out immediately and pick up the book. You won't be disappointed either way.
If there were ever a series short of Lord of the Rings that desperately needed an extended edition when it hit DVD, it would be Harry Potter. Having already started to noticeably chafe under the time constraints of the last two installments, Half-Blood Prince feels like its fingers are brushing greatness and just missing by that much. It's a real shame because this movie more than many of the others before it treads new ground. For once the romantic interactions with the young cast feel real and genuine, unlike the stilted and forced scenes in Goblet of Fire's Triwizard Ball scenes. Unfortunately, these scenes are too few and far between in the course of this overstuffed movie.
Anyone who has read the books knows that Half-Blood Prince deals with a lot plot lines running almost on opposite ends of the spectrum from each other. The movie adaptation attempts to find the most common threads between the important elements and weave them into a nearly three hour movie. To some degrees the formula works, and when it does the movie fires in a way that its predecessors only hinted at. Sadly, for as much as it really clicks, the movie also fizzles at times as certain story beats just aren't played as dramatically as they should have been. For one, the eponymous 'Half-Blood Prince'; an element that by all rights should be front and center, meanders lifelessly in the peripheral of the film. By its portrayal here, one unfamiliar with the books or simply inattentive could not be blamed for wondering why the movie is titled such. Harry's scholastic success of direct consequence to the 'Prince' present in the novel is almost completely gone from the film. Much of the impact, especially that in the final moments of the film, is drained from the cinematic interpretation because of this omission. Besides the oversight of attention to the film's title, the movie never has enough time to explore any of the interesting things happening in its story. The book was bolstered handsomely by the budding relationship between Harry and Dumbledore as they struggled to crack the mystery of Voldemort's ultimate plans, and this was a thread that displayed prominently in the book serving as its spine. Besides the final half an hour of the movie and some early dialogue between the characters, you never get the impression of the respect and admiration the two share in the book.
Ron's Quidditch exploits only get a few minutes of screen time which is understandable. Less forgivable is the fact that after the one scene, we never even hear mention of his further successes that more or less defined Ron for me in the novel. I was also a bit disappointed with the fact that Alan Rickman opted to play Severus Snape a little less ambiguous than I felt he should have been. In the book version, you never really have an idea of what he's up to. Meanwhile from the early moments of the film while he takes the Unbreakable Vow, Rickman plays a not-too-subtle hesitance on his face which gives away his true motives to anyone looking close enough to notice.
Finally we have the issue of characterization; in this case most importantly of our main hero Harry Potter. In the book version of Half-Blood Prince the reader really feels the pressures dumped on Harry to not only solve a mystery that is WAY beyond his abilities at his age, but how in over his head he is when you consider that he now knows that he is the only one who can topple the nefarious Dark Lord. The success in the writing is that Harry also realizes this very thing and it builds his character. He takes on much more responsibility and grows more mature for it, if not in skill than in understanding. When the final moments of the book transpire, we actually believe him when he states he's not coming back to Hogwarts and that he fully intends to finish the work he and Dumbledore began. It's a shame that Daniel Radcliffe's Harry never conveys the fact that his life is fundamentally changing in ways it never has in years passed in the film. For all the strife and frustration Radcliffe is capable of emoting, it still feels like the film Harry Potter is simply reacting to the things happening to him instead of really experiencing them. It's hard to know if this fault comes down to Radcliffe or if the confines of the movie and its limits prevented him from really exploring the real alterations ravaging his character. Whenever he acknowledges the prophecy, you don't get the sense that this is a seventeen year old boy who somehow must figure out how to kill the most powerful evil in his world or how he's dealing with it.
Finally, I would like to mention my displeasure with the last act of the film. In the book, we are treated to an emotionally exhausting scene in which Dumbledore suffers greatly to retrieve what Harry and he believe is a Horcrux. This of course leaves the Professor near death with fatigue and when Harry returns them to Hogsmeade we are jolted by the appearance of the Dark Mark above Hogwarts and the success of Draco's mission. From here we get a much more intense encounter than that in the movie in which a helpless (petrified) Harry must watch Draco disarm a weakened Dumbledore and a seemingly heartless Snape kill him without a second thought. From here is described a magnificent battle between the Death Eaters and the Order of the Phoenix wherein the castle is torn apart. This is a crucial scene to the book and the overarching story because innocence is truly lost. Hogwarts for six books had been the safe zone of the story in which nothing disastrous could happen, and in one chapter it becomes as dangerous if not moreso than anywhere else in the wizarding world. It's jarring and it makes the reader feel the desperation and hopelessness of Harry as he chases Snape and is overpowered easily as an afterthought. In the film the whole scene plays much different. Besides Harry and a random guard-wizard, it would seem that no one in the castle had any idea that anything horrible had happened inside. In fact, the Death Eaters simply vandalize the castle before leaving and lighting Hagrid's hut on fire. There's no menace, there's no feeling of hopelessness, and the movie ends on a note of anticipation for the next installment instead of the emotionally spent and lost one of the novel. Sure, the book ended with Harry's vow to finish everything and not return to school, but there was a sense of finality to the proceedings because everything was different now. As far as the movie is concerned, this was just one more unfortunate incident in a line of incidents. I couldn't help but feel cheated by these moments I had so anticipated since first reading the book.
While this review went to great lengths to detail what I had issue with in this movie, I would be lying if I didn't outright say this is probably the second best HP film in the series. By at least having brushes with some real character moments and just glancing some of the epic moments from the book, this film does wonders in building suspense for the final confrontation awaiting in the final two movies. Unfortunately instead of wondering how this fairly average boy is going to ever stop all these bad things, the audience is left certain of his success just lacking the way it all will transpire. Overall I would suggest see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, but if you feel intrigued at all by the events on screen head out immediately and pick up the book. You won't be disappointed either way.
Review: True Blood: 'Never Let Me Go'
This was a tough week for True Blood. While I feel that this episode finally moved things forward ever so much, it did so in a very plodding way that didn't yank the viewer along the way it has in the past. Granted, I personally appreciated the more substantial progressions on display more than the previous two weeks, everything felt stilted. By this I mean that each significant scene outstayed its welcome by two to five minutes and really had you squirming for a scene change. It was all a bit tricky to experience and a little too melodramatic (and not in the good way that True Blood has become accustomed).
Fortunately all of the major plot lines were touched on in this week's episode. Bill and Sookie continue their journey through Dallas. Sookie finds out that Barry, the telepathic bell-hop, is not too people friendly and not at all happy about finding kinship in another. Meanwhile Bill gets lots of time to whine and worry about Sookie. It wasn't very endearing to see the usually stoic Bill almost fumbling all over himself in his concerns about his human girlfriend. I've already started to hear others describe this episode as 'soap-operatic', and I hate to say it's hard to disagree. Every exchange this episode, especially between Bill and Sookie, seemed so dripping with melodrama and overemphasis. I have to wonder what the previous season and the subsequent episodes from this season were for if not to in a much less blunt way express how into each other these two have become. Eric meanwhile is starting to fray at the edges about finding Godric who, not too surprisingly, ends up being his maker. More interesting in this dynamic is the fact that Godric has the appearance of a child. This could play a number of ways in weeks to come; most unsettlingly in an oddly sexual way if tonight's flashback scene was to be interpreted such. Here's hoping Eric doesn't hop on the mopey express with Bill. These vampires are much more interesting when they seem so removed from modern humanity both dramatically and comically. Tara and Eggs seem snug as bugs after their steamy night together, and it seems that Tara has finally found some personal peace. That is until Maryann drops the curiously convenient bombshell that Eggs and she need a new place to stay and have elected to join Tara at Sookie's. Rightfully Tara refuses and is justifiably perturbed that neither Eggs or Maryann ever found it important enough to mention that the lavish house they were staying in was a rental. The seduction of Tara continues though as Maryann uses some of her demon/goddess/succubus ju-ju to give her a particularly vicious day at Merlotte's Bar. This causes her to consider the value of 'family' that Eggs and Maryann are tempting her with. Before long it seems Sookie will return to a full house and Tara's still on the dangerous path to... well, whatever Maryann's planned for her.
Jason continues his transformation into a Fellowship of the Sun puppet as he shines in training for vampire soldiering. All of this success finally lands him in exactly the situation we all assumed from episode one: a disastrous affair with Sarah Newlin in which she convinces the dim-witted Jason that God wants to reward him for his suffering. He's almost head-slappingly stupid, but fortunately it makes for entertaining television. Finally Sam and Daphne discover that they have more in common than working in the same place. Turns out Daphne is a shapeshifter too, and this attracts Sam faster than is possibly safe. Honestly, with the scars on her back that no one seems to want to ask about to the fact that she just so happens to be Sam's perfect match coupled with her sudden appearance do not a trusting foundation make. My two cents? She's either working for Maryann or she is somehow the evil minotaur/satyr from a few episodes back. Safe bet's on the former. We're also treated to a brief phone conversation between Jessica and Hoyt which is cute but only really a distraction at the moment in the bigger picture. Also Lafayette returns to work attempting to form the semblance of a normal life. This is one broken man compared to his former glory.
That's a lot of information for one episode, and if told differently it would have been infinitely more enjoyable. As it stands, while I found myself anticipating each successive scene I was also growing wearisome of each before it was over. The main detriment to this episode was its script it would seem. The dialogue didn't play right in context to the things happening and none of it rang true coming from the actor's mouths. Bill and Sookie were especially tiresome this week. If we wanted ten minutes of caressing and smoochy talk, we'd look to more romantic fair such as Twilight or an Anne Rice book. As it stands, True Blood fans want less talk, more action. We want more dramatic reveals, just shy of hokey happenings, and just enough character balance to anchor the whole shebang in believability.
Next week needs to do a few things which, judging from the preview at the end of the credits, it seems on track to achieve. Sookie is going to attempt to infiltrate the Fellowship of the Sun which means she will inevitably run into Jason which is great because it will give him some conflict. Jason is most intriguing when he has more than one voice inside his head manipulating him. The question will be if Sarah Newlin's persuasions will win out over his loyalty to his sister. Some headway in the Godric thing will be good too, and it looks like Eric is going to continue to mess with Lafayette until the poor man is a shaking shell of himself. Lastly with Bill's maker back in town, we're in for some intriguing developments between Sookie, Bill and Bill's oldest vampire relation. I have faith that this episode kind of got away from the writers and because of the stationary nature of the past two episodes they were forced to unnaturally push the proverbial players around the field in a way unlike the series norm. Of course, only next week will tell but if things really start to come to a boil on multiple fronts at once then we are in for more intrigue going forward. Count me in.
Fortunately all of the major plot lines were touched on in this week's episode. Bill and Sookie continue their journey through Dallas. Sookie finds out that Barry, the telepathic bell-hop, is not too people friendly and not at all happy about finding kinship in another. Meanwhile Bill gets lots of time to whine and worry about Sookie. It wasn't very endearing to see the usually stoic Bill almost fumbling all over himself in his concerns about his human girlfriend. I've already started to hear others describe this episode as 'soap-operatic', and I hate to say it's hard to disagree. Every exchange this episode, especially between Bill and Sookie, seemed so dripping with melodrama and overemphasis. I have to wonder what the previous season and the subsequent episodes from this season were for if not to in a much less blunt way express how into each other these two have become. Eric meanwhile is starting to fray at the edges about finding Godric who, not too surprisingly, ends up being his maker. More interesting in this dynamic is the fact that Godric has the appearance of a child. This could play a number of ways in weeks to come; most unsettlingly in an oddly sexual way if tonight's flashback scene was to be interpreted such. Here's hoping Eric doesn't hop on the mopey express with Bill. These vampires are much more interesting when they seem so removed from modern humanity both dramatically and comically. Tara and Eggs seem snug as bugs after their steamy night together, and it seems that Tara has finally found some personal peace. That is until Maryann drops the curiously convenient bombshell that Eggs and she need a new place to stay and have elected to join Tara at Sookie's. Rightfully Tara refuses and is justifiably perturbed that neither Eggs or Maryann ever found it important enough to mention that the lavish house they were staying in was a rental. The seduction of Tara continues though as Maryann uses some of her demon/goddess/succubus ju-ju to give her a particularly vicious day at Merlotte's Bar. This causes her to consider the value of 'family' that Eggs and Maryann are tempting her with. Before long it seems Sookie will return to a full house and Tara's still on the dangerous path to... well, whatever Maryann's planned for her.
Jason continues his transformation into a Fellowship of the Sun puppet as he shines in training for vampire soldiering. All of this success finally lands him in exactly the situation we all assumed from episode one: a disastrous affair with Sarah Newlin in which she convinces the dim-witted Jason that God wants to reward him for his suffering. He's almost head-slappingly stupid, but fortunately it makes for entertaining television. Finally Sam and Daphne discover that they have more in common than working in the same place. Turns out Daphne is a shapeshifter too, and this attracts Sam faster than is possibly safe. Honestly, with the scars on her back that no one seems to want to ask about to the fact that she just so happens to be Sam's perfect match coupled with her sudden appearance do not a trusting foundation make. My two cents? She's either working for Maryann or she is somehow the evil minotaur/satyr from a few episodes back. Safe bet's on the former. We're also treated to a brief phone conversation between Jessica and Hoyt which is cute but only really a distraction at the moment in the bigger picture. Also Lafayette returns to work attempting to form the semblance of a normal life. This is one broken man compared to his former glory.
That's a lot of information for one episode, and if told differently it would have been infinitely more enjoyable. As it stands, while I found myself anticipating each successive scene I was also growing wearisome of each before it was over. The main detriment to this episode was its script it would seem. The dialogue didn't play right in context to the things happening and none of it rang true coming from the actor's mouths. Bill and Sookie were especially tiresome this week. If we wanted ten minutes of caressing and smoochy talk, we'd look to more romantic fair such as Twilight or an Anne Rice book. As it stands, True Blood fans want less talk, more action. We want more dramatic reveals, just shy of hokey happenings, and just enough character balance to anchor the whole shebang in believability.
Next week needs to do a few things which, judging from the preview at the end of the credits, it seems on track to achieve. Sookie is going to attempt to infiltrate the Fellowship of the Sun which means she will inevitably run into Jason which is great because it will give him some conflict. Jason is most intriguing when he has more than one voice inside his head manipulating him. The question will be if Sarah Newlin's persuasions will win out over his loyalty to his sister. Some headway in the Godric thing will be good too, and it looks like Eric is going to continue to mess with Lafayette until the poor man is a shaking shell of himself. Lastly with Bill's maker back in town, we're in for some intriguing developments between Sookie, Bill and Bill's oldest vampire relation. I have faith that this episode kind of got away from the writers and because of the stationary nature of the past two episodes they were forced to unnaturally push the proverbial players around the field in a way unlike the series norm. Of course, only next week will tell but if things really start to come to a boil on multiple fronts at once then we are in for more intrigue going forward. Count me in.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Guest Review: Moon
Please welcome my first guest reviewer today; Adam Loferski. Adam's an avid Star Wars fan, and a decisive mind when it comes to entertainment media. Basically we share a lot of interests. Here's his inaugural review:
Strap yourselves in for this sci-flick, because this ain't your momma's Tom Hanks space film. Moon is nothing short of incredibly thought provoking. The plot is fairly simple: Astronaut Sam Bell, played by actor Sam Rockwell(The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford), is finishing up his three year contract on the moon for the energy company, Lunar Industries. His job is to oversee the harvesting of Helium-3 from the surface of the moon, collect it, and send it back to Earth for mass usage. Now if you've seen the trailer, you already are at least partially aware of this, but with only a couple weeks left, Sam begins to have bizarre hallucinations. After three years of smooth sailing in his figurative shuttle, the proverbial thrusters come off. It doesn't take a rocket scientist (puns used to be the highest form of comedy -- Danny) to figure out what happens next.
Before I go and start revealing too much, lets jump straight to the acting. For all intents and purposes, this movie has just two actors. We'll start with Sam Rockwell. Now for full disclosure, this is only the second movie I've seen him in, but I think it would be very fair to say that he is a highly underrated actor. Throughout the course of this movie Rockwell is essentially alone on a remote moon-station. His only real-time companion is a robot named GERTY, voiced by Kevin Spacey. Not to diminish Spacey's efforts here, which were actually quite good, but this movie is essentially a one man show. Such a device might turn many casual movie goers away, but they would be missing out on a great performance. He is real, he is relatable. Hell, you might even shed a tear for him after a certain phone call he places late in the movie. Spacey's voice acting may evoke a slightly less emotional response from viewers. He does a fantastic job of making every line void of human emotion(shockingly reminiscent of his performance in Se7en). However, he still managed to take a moving robot with little more than a changing yellow smiley face and turn it into a memorable character.
Moving behind the scenes, one will find that this movie was directed by Duncan Jones. What? Never heard of him? Maybe it's because this is his first film. No, you've had to have heard of him before. Maybe this will refresh your memory. Zowie Bowie; aka Son of Bowie. Yes, that Bowie. David Bowie. Yeah his son is an emerging director that goes by Duncan Jones. So maybe this low budget film director isn't such an underdog after all coming from that gene pool. Does that make his story any less gripping? No. Jones deserves every bit of praise and applause for this film that gets sent his way. Working with only about 5 million dollars, Jones managed to punch out this memorable sci-fi flick in a mere 33 days. Now it must be said that if one pays close enough attention, there are some rather obvious influences to his story. I've heard 2001: A Space Odyssey is one big one, but since I've never seen it, I can't actually agree. However, I will say that I caught some obvious Blade Runner influences throughout, though I won't explicitly mention them. Does this borrowing of themes and such diminish the quality of the film? Hardly. Keep in mind that this is a Sci-Fi film. Rarely, and I mean RARELY, is anything in the realm of Sci-Fi truly and fully outside the influence of any of its predecessors. Moon nevertheless remains enjoyable despite its influences, and that's what makes it an excellent movie.
Before I get into exactly what I enjoyed so much about this movie, I feel like I must state that there will be some massive spoilers in this paragraph. If you haven't seen the film, skip this one. Now, as this is essentially my first review, it strikes me as relevant to tell you exactly what I look for in a movie. First and foremost, movies are obviously meant to entertain an audience. If it doesn't do that in one fashion or another, then it has failed. Secondly, I'm enthralled by movies that make me think, preferably about questions of human nature, emotions, life and death. That's not to say that I don't enjoy a good comedy as much as the next guy, but I would more prefer to leave a movie theatre feeling something profound. Moon did that for me, and I suppose that's why I liked it so much. The movie raises some seriously pertinent questions. As it states in the beginning, Helium-3 is used on Earth for over 70% of the planet's clean burning resources. Finding environmentally friendly energy sources is an important task for scientists today, but Moon begs the question, "At what cost?" As one will find out from watching the movie, Lunar Industries cloned the original Sam Bell, and has used clone after clone, 3 year life span after 3 year lifespan to keep their Helium-3 harvesting profitable and labor effective. This saves them probably billions of dollars in astronaut training and shuttle costs. The company's manipulation of these clones is very simple, yet quite brilliant. They implant memories and periodically send them messages from Bell's wife and the company HQ. The clones experience Sam Bell's original three year stint over and over again. Moon handles the somewhat cliched clone issue in a relatively different manner than some other sci-fi films. The audience isn't really aware that Bell is a clone until almost midway through the movie. Therefore, the audience is sold on the idea that Bell is first and foremost a human. For me, even after the reveal, I found it hard to even think of Bell (either one of them) as clones. Both were individuals, and fully human in every way. One might say, to evoke the classic Blade Runner quote, that Bell is more 'human than human'. He seems to understand what it is to live, to love, to yearn for home and the company of others more than anyone; especially more than the company for which he is employed. That's what really got my mind thinking about this movie. Duncan said in an interview that he wrote this movie as a kind of tribute to the sci-fi movies of the late 70s, where the characters were first and foremost human beings in an alien world. I believe he accomplished that feat in his one man movie about what it's like to be used, to find out that your life didn't actually happen, or to find out that you may not be as unique as you thought. It's universally and classically unsettling to think that we would destroy the very thing that makes us human in the name of science, however noble the end goal might be.
I have to mention that the music for this film was absolutely moving. It was done by Clint Mansell (Requiem for a Dream). Essentially, the same notes play throughout the various scenes, with the melodies varying slightly. It really does a fantastic job setting the mood and tone for this film. Its simple, yet gripping, music that will almost certainly have you humming it on your way out of the theatre.
Overall, Moon is a fantastic little movie that is well worth the admission fee. It's entertaining and gets your mind working in ways that other summer movies, like Transformers, simply will not. If this film is any indication of Duncan's future work, keep an eye out for him. Until then though, go see this movie. You might just leave and never look at the moon the same way again.
Strap yourselves in for this sci-flick, because this ain't your momma's Tom Hanks space film. Moon is nothing short of incredibly thought provoking. The plot is fairly simple: Astronaut Sam Bell, played by actor Sam Rockwell(The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford), is finishing up his three year contract on the moon for the energy company, Lunar Industries. His job is to oversee the harvesting of Helium-3 from the surface of the moon, collect it, and send it back to Earth for mass usage. Now if you've seen the trailer, you already are at least partially aware of this, but with only a couple weeks left, Sam begins to have bizarre hallucinations. After three years of smooth sailing in his figurative shuttle, the proverbial thrusters come off. It doesn't take a rocket scientist (puns used to be the highest form of comedy -- Danny) to figure out what happens next.
Before I go and start revealing too much, lets jump straight to the acting. For all intents and purposes, this movie has just two actors. We'll start with Sam Rockwell. Now for full disclosure, this is only the second movie I've seen him in, but I think it would be very fair to say that he is a highly underrated actor. Throughout the course of this movie Rockwell is essentially alone on a remote moon-station. His only real-time companion is a robot named GERTY, voiced by Kevin Spacey. Not to diminish Spacey's efforts here, which were actually quite good, but this movie is essentially a one man show. Such a device might turn many casual movie goers away, but they would be missing out on a great performance. He is real, he is relatable. Hell, you might even shed a tear for him after a certain phone call he places late in the movie. Spacey's voice acting may evoke a slightly less emotional response from viewers. He does a fantastic job of making every line void of human emotion(shockingly reminiscent of his performance in Se7en). However, he still managed to take a moving robot with little more than a changing yellow smiley face and turn it into a memorable character.
Moving behind the scenes, one will find that this movie was directed by Duncan Jones. What? Never heard of him? Maybe it's because this is his first film. No, you've had to have heard of him before. Maybe this will refresh your memory. Zowie Bowie; aka Son of Bowie. Yes, that Bowie. David Bowie. Yeah his son is an emerging director that goes by Duncan Jones. So maybe this low budget film director isn't such an underdog after all coming from that gene pool. Does that make his story any less gripping? No. Jones deserves every bit of praise and applause for this film that gets sent his way. Working with only about 5 million dollars, Jones managed to punch out this memorable sci-fi flick in a mere 33 days. Now it must be said that if one pays close enough attention, there are some rather obvious influences to his story. I've heard 2001: A Space Odyssey is one big one, but since I've never seen it, I can't actually agree. However, I will say that I caught some obvious Blade Runner influences throughout, though I won't explicitly mention them. Does this borrowing of themes and such diminish the quality of the film? Hardly. Keep in mind that this is a Sci-Fi film. Rarely, and I mean RARELY, is anything in the realm of Sci-Fi truly and fully outside the influence of any of its predecessors. Moon nevertheless remains enjoyable despite its influences, and that's what makes it an excellent movie.
Before I get into exactly what I enjoyed so much about this movie, I feel like I must state that there will be some massive spoilers in this paragraph. If you haven't seen the film, skip this one. Now, as this is essentially my first review, it strikes me as relevant to tell you exactly what I look for in a movie. First and foremost, movies are obviously meant to entertain an audience. If it doesn't do that in one fashion or another, then it has failed. Secondly, I'm enthralled by movies that make me think, preferably about questions of human nature, emotions, life and death. That's not to say that I don't enjoy a good comedy as much as the next guy, but I would more prefer to leave a movie theatre feeling something profound. Moon did that for me, and I suppose that's why I liked it so much. The movie raises some seriously pertinent questions. As it states in the beginning, Helium-3 is used on Earth for over 70% of the planet's clean burning resources. Finding environmentally friendly energy sources is an important task for scientists today, but Moon begs the question, "At what cost?" As one will find out from watching the movie, Lunar Industries cloned the original Sam Bell, and has used clone after clone, 3 year life span after 3 year lifespan to keep their Helium-3 harvesting profitable and labor effective. This saves them probably billions of dollars in astronaut training and shuttle costs. The company's manipulation of these clones is very simple, yet quite brilliant. They implant memories and periodically send them messages from Bell's wife and the company HQ. The clones experience Sam Bell's original three year stint over and over again. Moon handles the somewhat cliched clone issue in a relatively different manner than some other sci-fi films. The audience isn't really aware that Bell is a clone until almost midway through the movie. Therefore, the audience is sold on the idea that Bell is first and foremost a human. For me, even after the reveal, I found it hard to even think of Bell (either one of them) as clones. Both were individuals, and fully human in every way. One might say, to evoke the classic Blade Runner quote, that Bell is more 'human than human'. He seems to understand what it is to live, to love, to yearn for home and the company of others more than anyone; especially more than the company for which he is employed. That's what really got my mind thinking about this movie. Duncan said in an interview that he wrote this movie as a kind of tribute to the sci-fi movies of the late 70s, where the characters were first and foremost human beings in an alien world. I believe he accomplished that feat in his one man movie about what it's like to be used, to find out that your life didn't actually happen, or to find out that you may not be as unique as you thought. It's universally and classically unsettling to think that we would destroy the very thing that makes us human in the name of science, however noble the end goal might be.
I have to mention that the music for this film was absolutely moving. It was done by Clint Mansell (Requiem for a Dream). Essentially, the same notes play throughout the various scenes, with the melodies varying slightly. It really does a fantastic job setting the mood and tone for this film. Its simple, yet gripping, music that will almost certainly have you humming it on your way out of the theatre.
Overall, Moon is a fantastic little movie that is well worth the admission fee. It's entertaining and gets your mind working in ways that other summer movies, like Transformers, simply will not. If this film is any indication of Duncan's future work, keep an eye out for him. Until then though, go see this movie. You might just leave and never look at the moon the same way again.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Review: Away We Go
I had no biases or ideas coming into Away We Go. I didn't see any trailers and I didn't read any reviews or articles. The only thing I did know going in, which I forgot until the credits rolled, was that it was directed by Sam Mendes. Some of you may know that he directed Revolutionary Road with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, Jarhead with Jake Gyllenhaal, Tom Hanks' Road to Perdition, and American Beauty. All of these are good films to varying degrees with the exception perhaps of Road to Perdition which was kind of hit or miss as far as I was concerned. His high point was Revolutionary Road, which was at once one of the most real and depressing movies I have ever had the (dis?)pleasure to see. Anyways, as I mentioned before, I forgot that he directed Away We Go so why I went to such great lengths to recount his past films is beyond me.
I'd start by saying Away We Go is largely a harmless film. What I mean by this is that it never presents a specific conflict to be overcome or put our chief characters in a position that one wonders how they will survive. This isn't a bad thing, but I imagine that the movie leaves itself open to multiple interpretations. The story revolves around Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) discovering in an uncomfortable opening scene that they are going to have a baby. Shortly after informing Burt's parents (Verona's are dead, a plot point addressed half heartedly throughout the film), they discover that said parents are moving out of the country a month before the birth of their grandchild. This is shocking to the pair as they have apparently settled into a life devoid of connections outside of Burt's wacky parents; played to hilariously unnerving effect by Jeff Daniels and Catherine O'Hara. The obvious move? Fly across the country to 'test drive' different locations and friends/family until they find a place that they feel comfortable. Life lessons, unpleasantries, and acceptance follow closely in their wake as they both learn to put focus on their lives one experience at a time.
Right off the bat, the premise of the movie seemed slightly shaky to me. Deciding on a new place to live with more friends or acquaintances makes sense, but flying across the country and awkwardly meeting with estranged friends and family? It's hard to swallow, especially taking to light the fact that the apparent sub-middle class surroundings they call home don't exactly scream extra money to afford such an extravagant experiment. Needless to say, the movie is spared this slightly incongruous element by the amount of heart the filmmakers are able to inject into the story. This is thanks in no small part to both Krasinski and Rudolph. The former puts in what amounts to my favorite performance by the Office actor; infusing his character with some genuine emotions and for once non-generic delivery. Maya Rudolph was an x-factor for me and she defied my perceptions of her and created a likable and real character in spite of it. It helps that the two actors have a believable chemistry so much so that the film does not have to labor to convince you that they are good together. It's also worth noting here that this movie also contains the one performance I've ever enjoyed from Maggie Gyllenhaal. She's surprisingly funny and her timing is spot on here; she makes her character.
So they set off on their journey, and each encounter is significantly weirder than the next. These scenes almost push the envelope of believability, but the central couple plays well as the proverbial 'straight man' so that the insanity on screen is appropriately shared with the audience. The movie doesn't do much to provide a point to its proceedings besides one vignette to the next. Despite all this I believe that a discernible meaning to it all can be plundered from all of the experiences our characters happen upon. The movie seems to deal with the inevitability of life and the things that happen to everyone. Burt and Verona visit different sets of people whom have all experienced life and dealt with it in different ways with the exception of Verona's sister who helps them realize they've been lucky together. They experience the unhappy couple who are not dealing with parent and adulthood very well. They meet the couple that seems to have a perfect situation, but secretly struggle with dark personal demons that at once cement their bonds and test their emotional strength. They also view the remnants of a couple destroyed by the pressures of what Burt and Verona are venturing into. It's at this juncture that they learn the most important lesson: there's no telling what the future will bring suffice it to face it together and to use the lessons of the past.
Away We Go ends up being much lighter fare than some of Mendes' previous efforts and ends up falling victim to some 'indie movie' tropes, but has enough heart to still be worth seeing. I imagine that people closer to the age of the principal characters will find many more lessons about adulthood than someone in my shoes, but the movie is still worth it in a much more general sense of growing up. There's a sense of inevitability to the proceedings in this film and to real life by proxy. The audience is left with the same feeling as the characters in the final scene: We can only do what we can do and hope that it gets us through until life throws the next curve at us. Overall though, Away We Go is a heartfelt movie that will leave you with a sense of hope even though it doesn't outright promise that life will always yield it.
I'd start by saying Away We Go is largely a harmless film. What I mean by this is that it never presents a specific conflict to be overcome or put our chief characters in a position that one wonders how they will survive. This isn't a bad thing, but I imagine that the movie leaves itself open to multiple interpretations. The story revolves around Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) discovering in an uncomfortable opening scene that they are going to have a baby. Shortly after informing Burt's parents (Verona's are dead, a plot point addressed half heartedly throughout the film), they discover that said parents are moving out of the country a month before the birth of their grandchild. This is shocking to the pair as they have apparently settled into a life devoid of connections outside of Burt's wacky parents; played to hilariously unnerving effect by Jeff Daniels and Catherine O'Hara. The obvious move? Fly across the country to 'test drive' different locations and friends/family until they find a place that they feel comfortable. Life lessons, unpleasantries, and acceptance follow closely in their wake as they both learn to put focus on their lives one experience at a time.
Right off the bat, the premise of the movie seemed slightly shaky to me. Deciding on a new place to live with more friends or acquaintances makes sense, but flying across the country and awkwardly meeting with estranged friends and family? It's hard to swallow, especially taking to light the fact that the apparent sub-middle class surroundings they call home don't exactly scream extra money to afford such an extravagant experiment. Needless to say, the movie is spared this slightly incongruous element by the amount of heart the filmmakers are able to inject into the story. This is thanks in no small part to both Krasinski and Rudolph. The former puts in what amounts to my favorite performance by the Office actor; infusing his character with some genuine emotions and for once non-generic delivery. Maya Rudolph was an x-factor for me and she defied my perceptions of her and created a likable and real character in spite of it. It helps that the two actors have a believable chemistry so much so that the film does not have to labor to convince you that they are good together. It's also worth noting here that this movie also contains the one performance I've ever enjoyed from Maggie Gyllenhaal. She's surprisingly funny and her timing is spot on here; she makes her character.
So they set off on their journey, and each encounter is significantly weirder than the next. These scenes almost push the envelope of believability, but the central couple plays well as the proverbial 'straight man' so that the insanity on screen is appropriately shared with the audience. The movie doesn't do much to provide a point to its proceedings besides one vignette to the next. Despite all this I believe that a discernible meaning to it all can be plundered from all of the experiences our characters happen upon. The movie seems to deal with the inevitability of life and the things that happen to everyone. Burt and Verona visit different sets of people whom have all experienced life and dealt with it in different ways with the exception of Verona's sister who helps them realize they've been lucky together. They experience the unhappy couple who are not dealing with parent and adulthood very well. They meet the couple that seems to have a perfect situation, but secretly struggle with dark personal demons that at once cement their bonds and test their emotional strength. They also view the remnants of a couple destroyed by the pressures of what Burt and Verona are venturing into. It's at this juncture that they learn the most important lesson: there's no telling what the future will bring suffice it to face it together and to use the lessons of the past.
Away We Go ends up being much lighter fare than some of Mendes' previous efforts and ends up falling victim to some 'indie movie' tropes, but has enough heart to still be worth seeing. I imagine that people closer to the age of the principal characters will find many more lessons about adulthood than someone in my shoes, but the movie is still worth it in a much more general sense of growing up. There's a sense of inevitability to the proceedings in this film and to real life by proxy. The audience is left with the same feeling as the characters in the final scene: We can only do what we can do and hope that it gets us through until life throws the next curve at us. Overall though, Away We Go is a heartfelt movie that will leave you with a sense of hope even though it doesn't outright promise that life will always yield it.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Review: True Blood: Shake and Fingerpop
To start off, I have no idea even after watching the whole episode what 'Shake and Fingerpop' means. If it's a dance, then perhaps it was being performed at the crazy dance party/ orgy at the end of this episode. I don't know.
This episode, like the one that aired two weeks ago ('Scratches'), ended up being a little too transitional for me again. While it definitely moved things further forward than last episode, it certainly stayed closer to the teasing aspect of its entertainment. We don't learn anything new about Daphne or why she has those crazy scars on her back. We are teased that she apparently knows what Sam is, which is to say a shapeshifter. Other than that, though, things stay frustratingly vague as to what's going on right under the surface. Bill and Sookie end up getting to Dallas where danger is already on their doorstep. Sookie is almost abducted, but saved at the last moment by Bill. Jason continues his tenure at the Fellowship of the Sun retreat, and I'd be remiss to say that I wish we had Jason among the regular cast again. While there are definitely some intriguing angles happening with him, it would be nice to see the interplay with the regular cast again.
Tara finally decides to move out of Maryann's, but finds herself crying and sad on her birthday as she is left alone. Of course, Maryann conveniently shows up to bring a party which almost immediately turns into another out of control dance-sex party. This time though Tara is much more emotionally susceptible and falls for the allure of it all much easier thanks in no small part to "Eggs". The whole thing spins out of control and gets very primal, but I feel like we've seen this scene at least three times now. This scene goes a little bit further in revealing new plot points, but they're so few that I hope we aren't treated to many more of these scenes without appropriate payoff. I get it; people's eyes turn black everyone is half naked and someone always ends up in a sex scene (in this case, Eggs and Tara). Oh yeah, and Maryann vibrates like crazy and chants in some bizarre language. Don't get me wrong, it's all very interesting, but we need a few more answers at this stage lest it all start to feel like treading water.
This episode was high in the humor department, and surprisingly, it came mostly from the vampire cast members. Bill's attitudes while teaching Jessica how to glamour someone, and his interactions with Eric are priceless. Something about how antiquated and proper the vampires are is at once fitting and hilarious. The episode ends like most others with a dramatic reveal or twist. Luckily this week's episode has a much more compelling twist than last. In a hotel room in Dallas, Sookie answers the door to find Jessica has ordered a human 'snack bar' which seems like the vampire equivalent of... I guess blood prostitution? Anyways, as Sookie is pondering the morality of Jessica's action, the audience gets to hear her thoughts much in the same way she hears other characters on the show. The bellhop is revealed to be able to hear the thoughts and a humorous and intriguing dialogue transpires between the two in their heads. The bellhop runs off and the episode goes to credits. As far as we've known so far, Sookie has been uniquely special on the show, so it will be fun to see what happens when she meets someone just like her.
Overall, I very much enjoyed 'Shake and Fingerpop' even though it felt like it was swimming in the same waters as 'Scratches'. It was good to get some more story, but I for one am hoping that the next episode really drops some bombshells to shake up the plot once again.
This episode, like the one that aired two weeks ago ('Scratches'), ended up being a little too transitional for me again. While it definitely moved things further forward than last episode, it certainly stayed closer to the teasing aspect of its entertainment. We don't learn anything new about Daphne or why she has those crazy scars on her back. We are teased that she apparently knows what Sam is, which is to say a shapeshifter. Other than that, though, things stay frustratingly vague as to what's going on right under the surface. Bill and Sookie end up getting to Dallas where danger is already on their doorstep. Sookie is almost abducted, but saved at the last moment by Bill. Jason continues his tenure at the Fellowship of the Sun retreat, and I'd be remiss to say that I wish we had Jason among the regular cast again. While there are definitely some intriguing angles happening with him, it would be nice to see the interplay with the regular cast again.
Tara finally decides to move out of Maryann's, but finds herself crying and sad on her birthday as she is left alone. Of course, Maryann conveniently shows up to bring a party which almost immediately turns into another out of control dance-sex party. This time though Tara is much more emotionally susceptible and falls for the allure of it all much easier thanks in no small part to "Eggs". The whole thing spins out of control and gets very primal, but I feel like we've seen this scene at least three times now. This scene goes a little bit further in revealing new plot points, but they're so few that I hope we aren't treated to many more of these scenes without appropriate payoff. I get it; people's eyes turn black everyone is half naked and someone always ends up in a sex scene (in this case, Eggs and Tara). Oh yeah, and Maryann vibrates like crazy and chants in some bizarre language. Don't get me wrong, it's all very interesting, but we need a few more answers at this stage lest it all start to feel like treading water.
This episode was high in the humor department, and surprisingly, it came mostly from the vampire cast members. Bill's attitudes while teaching Jessica how to glamour someone, and his interactions with Eric are priceless. Something about how antiquated and proper the vampires are is at once fitting and hilarious. The episode ends like most others with a dramatic reveal or twist. Luckily this week's episode has a much more compelling twist than last. In a hotel room in Dallas, Sookie answers the door to find Jessica has ordered a human 'snack bar' which seems like the vampire equivalent of... I guess blood prostitution? Anyways, as Sookie is pondering the morality of Jessica's action, the audience gets to hear her thoughts much in the same way she hears other characters on the show. The bellhop is revealed to be able to hear the thoughts and a humorous and intriguing dialogue transpires between the two in their heads. The bellhop runs off and the episode goes to credits. As far as we've known so far, Sookie has been uniquely special on the show, so it will be fun to see what happens when she meets someone just like her.
Overall, I very much enjoyed 'Shake and Fingerpop' even though it felt like it was swimming in the same waters as 'Scratches'. It was good to get some more story, but I for one am hoping that the next episode really drops some bombshells to shake up the plot once again.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Science/Biology: Color Illusions
Stare at the black dot in the following picture for 30 seconds without moving your eyes, at which point the frame will automatically switch to a black and white version of the same picture... or is it?
Here's one more to try out:
Ok, so why are we seeing a color version of a black and white picture? It's pretty cool and you'll notice that it changes back to black and white as soon as you move your eyes from one spot. The trick is pretty interesting. Have you ever looked up at the sun for a little while and when you look away and blink you see what is called an afterimage? Of course. Well, unlike the sun (or the camera flash or the lightbulb... whichever) the 'afterimage' is black or essentially the opposite of the color you were staring at. The same premise is at work here. Colors have the same reaction, though we aren't as aware of it normally as we are here in these illusions.
The initial state of each of the above illusions is in fact a negative image (that is color-reversed) of the full color picture. After that image is metaphorically burned into our minds, the picture switches to the black and white version of the same picture, sans color. At the same time, our brains are still displaying the 'after image' of the original negative image. Now, like the sun or the flash bulb, our minds display the reverse of what it saw; the reverse or correct colors. So now when we are seeing a full color picture, we are actually seeing a combination of two different images. The effect wears off as soon as we move our eyes and unalign the two images.
Our eyes are more sensitive to detail in black and white images. We are much more likely to pick up these details thanks to the stark contrast between white and black. With colors, specifically the after image of the negative image, the detail is not as precise. Therefore, the detail from the black and white image is overlayed with the color information from the afterimage and our brains think they are seeing a color image!
These illusions were apparently first discovered and compiled by one John Sadowski, so credit here is being given where it is due.
Here's a much more interesting one that includes more colors than just sand and sky: Click!
Here's one more to try out:
Ok, so why are we seeing a color version of a black and white picture? It's pretty cool and you'll notice that it changes back to black and white as soon as you move your eyes from one spot. The trick is pretty interesting. Have you ever looked up at the sun for a little while and when you look away and blink you see what is called an afterimage? Of course. Well, unlike the sun (or the camera flash or the lightbulb... whichever) the 'afterimage' is black or essentially the opposite of the color you were staring at. The same premise is at work here. Colors have the same reaction, though we aren't as aware of it normally as we are here in these illusions.
The initial state of each of the above illusions is in fact a negative image (that is color-reversed) of the full color picture. After that image is metaphorically burned into our minds, the picture switches to the black and white version of the same picture, sans color. At the same time, our brains are still displaying the 'after image' of the original negative image. Now, like the sun or the flash bulb, our minds display the reverse of what it saw; the reverse or correct colors. So now when we are seeing a full color picture, we are actually seeing a combination of two different images. The effect wears off as soon as we move our eyes and unalign the two images.
Our eyes are more sensitive to detail in black and white images. We are much more likely to pick up these details thanks to the stark contrast between white and black. With colors, specifically the after image of the negative image, the detail is not as precise. Therefore, the detail from the black and white image is overlayed with the color information from the afterimage and our brains think they are seeing a color image!
These illusions were apparently first discovered and compiled by one John Sadowski, so credit here is being given where it is due.
Here's a much more interesting one that includes more colors than just sand and sky: Click!
Review: The Time Traveler's Wife
As some of you may or may not know, depending on how often you bother to read this blog, I've been in the process of reading The Time Traveler's Wife. Initially I planned on writing chapter by chapter reviews to bolster my resolve to finish the book, but I quickly outpaced the speed and determination I had to keep up with myself. Either way, this is my comprehensive review that will be a blanket assessment of the book, but feel free to check out the first two parts of my "review".
Now, on the surface this book definitely telegraphs itself as pure chick-lit. Thankfully, for me at least, the science fiction twist of time travel makes this novel accessible to people like me. To be honest, it's more of a front for a guy to read a romance novel written by a woman that more often than not dwells on the complexity of feelings, love, and what it all means than it does on how cool it is that one half of the couple is quantum leaping through time. It's all good though; we're all adults here... for the most part. As I just mentioned, the author of this book is a woman (with the entirely rad name of Audry Niffenegger) so it's safe to say that she captures the female voice of Clare much more accurately than she does Henry. This is not to say that Henry's characterization as a male is off, simply when it comes to the complexity of each of their innermost monologues I imagine Clare's is more akin to that of the fairer sex. Henry reads well, but admittedly I found his thoughts and observations to be a tad more 'matter-of-fact' than I would think of my own and when he does choose to go deeper, it's only ever so much too melodramatic. These are such minor discrepancies that while reading, most people will take little notice of their existence.
I've outlined the premise of the novel in painstaking detail over the last two posts concerning this book, but for consistency's sake I will go over it one more time. Henry is a person with a genetic affliction that causes him to randomly jump through time; most often to impactful moments in his own timeline both past and future. While offering a unique view of his life and those around him, he finds himself naked and exposed everytime he travels and this lands him in all kinds of trouble as one would imagine. Time traveling also gives him a very fractured life, often living moments in his past that won't occur until his future (if this sounds puzzling, jump back to my last two posts and just skim some of the chapter summaries). Clare is the woman of his dreams, his true love, and the woman he's destined to be with. Clare first meets Henry as a six year old and he is in the later years of his troublesome life. These initial moments essentially entwine their lives forever, but I found it interesting later on that these moments that made Clare Henry's do not occur in Henry's life until he has already lived a long life with her. It's an interesting game of chicken/egg, but it makes for an interesting mental quandary. The two eventually meet in what can be considered their mutual present where Henry is only eight years older than Clare and from here the book layers and loops itself catching up with Clare's past while becoming Henry's future and all the while binding these two people together in a very passionate if not disruptive love for the ages.
The phrase 'love for the ages' sounds as corny to me as it probably does to you reading it, but it definitely applies. In some cases its hard to accept how strong and unshakable this attraction is, so much so that I found myself once or twice looking for a more concrete foundation to go on. It dawned on me later that Niffenegger has gone to great lengths to be as symbolic with this story as she is literal. What I mean here is that the whole lynch pin of this relationship is based on waiting. Be it Clare literally waiting weeks as a child for Henry's next appearance, to Clare waiting to meet Henry in her present so they can begin their lives together, finally to Henry waiting to start traveling back in time and having all the momentous meetings with his child-version wife she always holds in such high regard. As all of these wonderful things are already fated to happen, waiting is all either person has to do to realize the rewards of such a love. So while they may not always be perfectly happy, Henry and Clare have the rare promise that everything will work out. 'Good things come to those who wait' has never been more true than this novel. Of course this raises the question of whether these two would ever have worked out without the predetermined nature of their love, or if indeed everything happens the way it ought to and even knowing the turns of events does not change what they mean. It's a real hell of a brain churn, but it makes for a magnetic story that deals with heavy and epic themes of love, destiny, fate, and the strength of each on simple people's lives.
Clare and Henry share a scene about halfway through the book on a swingset and Clare narratively makes reference to how as they swing in opposite directions they meet in the middle. This is obviously a thinly veiled metaphor in this context for the entire book. Like on the swing, spatially the two are together but apart meeting briefly in the middle and appreciating each other fully. Fortunately for the author, this metaphor worked wonderfully for me and lent a tragic sense of give and take and even inevitability to the entire proceedings. Indeed fate and destiny are important facets of this novel. Often Clare and Henry postulate that if Henry is coming from the future and telling her how her life will transpire (albeit vague for details), does she truly have free will or is she mechanically dancing to steps she never had a hand in crafting? It's a wonderful question explored many ways throughout the story. The simplest explanation given for the conundrum comes from Henry as he states that things will just happen the way they're meant to happen. This is not to be mistaken with being slave to fate, but rather the decisions you will make will always be the decisions you will make because you are uniquely you. It's a heady statement to comprehend to be sure, but a meaningful one. Essentially the author states that the things we do and experience are not important for the reasons we do them but for the experience of doing them. Does this rightly remove them from fate or is it simply a method of ignoring it? That's left up to the reader. In the end, even having knowledge of the future it is suggested that this factors into one's decision making and the results remain the same.
Fate shows its hand much more prominently in the final acts of the book as the pieces of Henry we've read throughout the novel start to come together and we notice frightening gaps in information where once there was a bounty. For instance, the reader may notice that the oldest Henry from the future we ever encounter in the pages of the book is forty three. Already this leaves a looming and dark question mark on a book that has thrived on the fact that everything would be relatively okay because in a sense it's all already happened. This translates onto our main characters wonderfully as they too slowly come to the same conclusions and the book winds itself inevitably and heartwrenchingly towards a future the reader and the couple inside cannot avoid. Henry and Clare live a volume of life together and share experiences most will never have the opportunity, eventually capitalizing on all of the 'waiting' potential and realizing the true love they only banked on for so long. As everything comes full circle, a sinking sense very similar to Henry's view on the future naturally blossoms in the reader -- that what will happen will happen regardless, so that in the final moments of the book as the pieces come together we are at once accepting and saddened greatly by the fulfilling completion of a novel's worth of complexity.
In the end, The Time Traveler's Wife was at once an uplifting and devastating book for me. Equal parts hopeful and profound as it provides the basic human nutrition that love is a force beyond our comprehension (like time traveling, get it?) and that it does eventually conquer all obstacles in time. In it's own way it doesn't exactly say anything new in the pantheon of love stories, but through the use of a slightly extraordinary metaphor (time travel) it connects us organically to inherit notions inside most of us. I was left with comparisons to my own life, the inevitability of life, and the notion that the future will transpire as it will no matter how hard I try to change it. This is at once a liberating and devastating message that's as true to life as it gets. Regardless of your gender or your aversions to a such-titled novel, I would highly suggest The Time Traveler's Wife to anyone looking for a profound statement on love, life, and our places in each.
Now, on the surface this book definitely telegraphs itself as pure chick-lit. Thankfully, for me at least, the science fiction twist of time travel makes this novel accessible to people like me. To be honest, it's more of a front for a guy to read a romance novel written by a woman that more often than not dwells on the complexity of feelings, love, and what it all means than it does on how cool it is that one half of the couple is quantum leaping through time. It's all good though; we're all adults here... for the most part. As I just mentioned, the author of this book is a woman (with the entirely rad name of Audry Niffenegger) so it's safe to say that she captures the female voice of Clare much more accurately than she does Henry. This is not to say that Henry's characterization as a male is off, simply when it comes to the complexity of each of their innermost monologues I imagine Clare's is more akin to that of the fairer sex. Henry reads well, but admittedly I found his thoughts and observations to be a tad more 'matter-of-fact' than I would think of my own and when he does choose to go deeper, it's only ever so much too melodramatic. These are such minor discrepancies that while reading, most people will take little notice of their existence.
I've outlined the premise of the novel in painstaking detail over the last two posts concerning this book, but for consistency's sake I will go over it one more time. Henry is a person with a genetic affliction that causes him to randomly jump through time; most often to impactful moments in his own timeline both past and future. While offering a unique view of his life and those around him, he finds himself naked and exposed everytime he travels and this lands him in all kinds of trouble as one would imagine. Time traveling also gives him a very fractured life, often living moments in his past that won't occur until his future (if this sounds puzzling, jump back to my last two posts and just skim some of the chapter summaries). Clare is the woman of his dreams, his true love, and the woman he's destined to be with. Clare first meets Henry as a six year old and he is in the later years of his troublesome life. These initial moments essentially entwine their lives forever, but I found it interesting later on that these moments that made Clare Henry's do not occur in Henry's life until he has already lived a long life with her. It's an interesting game of chicken/egg, but it makes for an interesting mental quandary. The two eventually meet in what can be considered their mutual present where Henry is only eight years older than Clare and from here the book layers and loops itself catching up with Clare's past while becoming Henry's future and all the while binding these two people together in a very passionate if not disruptive love for the ages.
The phrase 'love for the ages' sounds as corny to me as it probably does to you reading it, but it definitely applies. In some cases its hard to accept how strong and unshakable this attraction is, so much so that I found myself once or twice looking for a more concrete foundation to go on. It dawned on me later that Niffenegger has gone to great lengths to be as symbolic with this story as she is literal. What I mean here is that the whole lynch pin of this relationship is based on waiting. Be it Clare literally waiting weeks as a child for Henry's next appearance, to Clare waiting to meet Henry in her present so they can begin their lives together, finally to Henry waiting to start traveling back in time and having all the momentous meetings with his child-version wife she always holds in such high regard. As all of these wonderful things are already fated to happen, waiting is all either person has to do to realize the rewards of such a love. So while they may not always be perfectly happy, Henry and Clare have the rare promise that everything will work out. 'Good things come to those who wait' has never been more true than this novel. Of course this raises the question of whether these two would ever have worked out without the predetermined nature of their love, or if indeed everything happens the way it ought to and even knowing the turns of events does not change what they mean. It's a real hell of a brain churn, but it makes for a magnetic story that deals with heavy and epic themes of love, destiny, fate, and the strength of each on simple people's lives.
Clare and Henry share a scene about halfway through the book on a swingset and Clare narratively makes reference to how as they swing in opposite directions they meet in the middle. This is obviously a thinly veiled metaphor in this context for the entire book. Like on the swing, spatially the two are together but apart meeting briefly in the middle and appreciating each other fully. Fortunately for the author, this metaphor worked wonderfully for me and lent a tragic sense of give and take and even inevitability to the entire proceedings. Indeed fate and destiny are important facets of this novel. Often Clare and Henry postulate that if Henry is coming from the future and telling her how her life will transpire (albeit vague for details), does she truly have free will or is she mechanically dancing to steps she never had a hand in crafting? It's a wonderful question explored many ways throughout the story. The simplest explanation given for the conundrum comes from Henry as he states that things will just happen the way they're meant to happen. This is not to be mistaken with being slave to fate, but rather the decisions you will make will always be the decisions you will make because you are uniquely you. It's a heady statement to comprehend to be sure, but a meaningful one. Essentially the author states that the things we do and experience are not important for the reasons we do them but for the experience of doing them. Does this rightly remove them from fate or is it simply a method of ignoring it? That's left up to the reader. In the end, even having knowledge of the future it is suggested that this factors into one's decision making and the results remain the same.
Fate shows its hand much more prominently in the final acts of the book as the pieces of Henry we've read throughout the novel start to come together and we notice frightening gaps in information where once there was a bounty. For instance, the reader may notice that the oldest Henry from the future we ever encounter in the pages of the book is forty three. Already this leaves a looming and dark question mark on a book that has thrived on the fact that everything would be relatively okay because in a sense it's all already happened. This translates onto our main characters wonderfully as they too slowly come to the same conclusions and the book winds itself inevitably and heartwrenchingly towards a future the reader and the couple inside cannot avoid. Henry and Clare live a volume of life together and share experiences most will never have the opportunity, eventually capitalizing on all of the 'waiting' potential and realizing the true love they only banked on for so long. As everything comes full circle, a sinking sense very similar to Henry's view on the future naturally blossoms in the reader -- that what will happen will happen regardless, so that in the final moments of the book as the pieces come together we are at once accepting and saddened greatly by the fulfilling completion of a novel's worth of complexity.
In the end, The Time Traveler's Wife was at once an uplifting and devastating book for me. Equal parts hopeful and profound as it provides the basic human nutrition that love is a force beyond our comprehension (like time traveling, get it?) and that it does eventually conquer all obstacles in time. In it's own way it doesn't exactly say anything new in the pantheon of love stories, but through the use of a slightly extraordinary metaphor (time travel) it connects us organically to inherit notions inside most of us. I was left with comparisons to my own life, the inevitability of life, and the notion that the future will transpire as it will no matter how hard I try to change it. This is at once a liberating and devastating message that's as true to life as it gets. Regardless of your gender or your aversions to a such-titled novel, I would highly suggest The Time Traveler's Wife to anyone looking for a profound statement on love, life, and our places in each.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Review: Public Enemies
This movie had three things working in its favor from word one for me: a) I have an unabashed bias and interest in anything during the depression era, from music to style to atmosphere; b) a really cool trailer that paints the movie as a kinetic heist movie-turned cops-on-our-heels thriller; and c) both Johnny Depp and Christian Bale leading a movie as two sides of a coin of good and evil. That's a lot of positives nesting in my brain walking into a theatre and, as with King Kong by Peter Jackson, I was fully aware it may slightly slant my opinion of the movie.
So how does Public Enemies fair? Middling at best, I would have to somewhat sadly say. This film absolutely does not know what it wants to be, and chiefly because of this it misses almost every impactful beat it may have achieved. From the promotion of the film we are lead to believe that perhaps this is a character piece on John Dillinger (Depp) and the struggles and mental battles he wrestles with as the age of the FBI dawns and organized crime as it stood began to crumble. I recalled the effectiveness of the Brad Pitt movie The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford more than a few times while watching this film, and it's clear by merits of character study alone that the former outdoes the latter in both acting and clarity of purpose. It would be hard to pin this on Depp alone, though it is tempting. In order for the audience to be drawn in, the chief character be it villain or hero must have a magnetic quality that makes the viewer anticipate screen time with the character. Depp's John Dillinger does not have that at all. Throughout the entire film he plays one beat, and it's hard to tell what the character is supposed to be thinking throughout it all. Besides one scene where he visibly breaks down crying, there are no cues as to his general mindset. As I said, I don't know if Depp can be blamed for this completely. It almost seems to me that he didn't really have all that much to work with in the first place, and the dialogue and emotions he has are based on a very shaky foundation to begin with.
This foundation comes in the form of the first act of the movie which moves so fast that it undermines itself by carrying no weight. The movie touts the early scenes as the "Golden Age" of crime, yet we are treated to essentially one bank robbery that makes it seem that Dillinger and company are untouchable. After that it's pretty much into the just out of harm's way chase of being one step ahead of the authorities. Mixed in with these rapidly contracting options, the film sees fit to shoehorn in a love story for Dillinger. Whether it's meant to be love at first sight, or a commentary on his impulsive attitude the film never clarifies. Instead, a chance meeting, a nice dinner, and some bold words from Depp (over the course of maybe 35 minutes of film) are all we have to go on to assume this man would do anything for this girl. It's a bit much to swallow and it asks a lot of the audience.
As it may or may not be clear, the movie spreads itself thin trying to be a few things. At first, it seems that we're going to get to see the twilight days of John Dillinger's rampage of fun-filled crime as the real world catches up. As I said, the character focused approach is neglected and undernourished. Secondly, the movie seems it may be a historical piece about the end of crime in the Great Depression and how J. Edgar Hoover (an entertaining Billy Cruddup) establishes the FBI as a force to be reckoned with. Again, the movie is too concerned with jumping between moments like this and on Dillinger, and then on the various other characters laced throughout. It may be assumed that perhaps this movie means to make more of the tragic love story. Again, this is only a half realized notion as the movie focuses so little on this facet that whenever the director feels the whim to revisit it, the audience is disinclined to care very deeply. The problem with this film is that it does not know what to be, and to be honest because of this it is hard to decide what it would have worked better as. Personally, I lean towards a character study much like the aforementioned Assassination of Jesse James..., but then in comparison it would feel a lackluster competitor.
To be clear, the movie is entertaining. The final half of the film manages to evoke a sense of fascination at a man who simply will not give up in the face of insurmountable opposition. Of course, this makes the inevitable fate of the character that much more predictable, but you may find yourself unaffected by this and more interested in how exactly it all plays out. The supporting cast does a decent job with what can best be called bit parts. Baby Face Nelson in particular sticks in your mind, but it's hard to accept the character as the actor plays it more as parody of what a gangster was instead of getting to the reality of the person. It comes off very cartoonish.
Finally, it would be a mistake to neglect to mention Christian Bale. In one of my personal favorite performances from the rising actor in recent years, Bale delivers a kind of performance I felt he hasn't in quite some time. It's at once refreshing and, like Dillinger, never given enough time to develop past the initial traits we are fed in the early moments. Because of this very fact, after the credits begin to roll and we are informed that the real life counterpart for Bale's character killed himself a year after the events of the movie, the reaction is more of confusion than sadness. Bale's character is so marginalized that the fact he may have commit suicide comes as a complete shock because the characterization in the movie never once suggests in a meaningful way that he's being greatly affected by his work. It's a shame because one feels that the character may have been much more intriguing in a more focused film.
In the end, see Public Enemies if you're looking for a mildly entertaining diversion from the huge summer blockbusters currently dominating the theatres. Don't expect anything special, and don't expect to be drawn into the drama in the way you might hope for walking into the cinema.
Book: The Time Traveler's Wife: Pages 109-230-something
Wow, I'm really ripping through this book, huh? I feel like the last part of this review was a little tedious and overlong, so I will attempt to be perhaps a little more about the summary in this outing. This will be helpful because I've also covered a lot of ground.
"Christmas Eve, One (Always Crashing in the Same Car)"
This is a brief chapter where a 40 year old Henry finds himself at Clare's home on Christmas Eve, and offers up a rare glimpse into his past for the ever vigilantly curious Clare. He regails her of the story of the death of his mother on Christmas Eve when he was six years old. A combination of nervous driving on his mother's part and unfortunate conditions cause a highway collision in which Henry's mother is decapitated and in which he avoids a similar fate thanks to a random time jump.
This is a rare and important detail for the book as it informs Henry's aversions to driving and Christmas Eve, which are dealt with in more detail further in the book as we are exposed to a younger and 'current' Henry before he starts meeting childhood Clare. We are also informed by Henry that he has traveled back to the moments around the crash numerous times and has viewed it from almost every conceivable angle; a Hell in every sense of the word. It also gives a glimpse into the psyche of the time traveler and the reasons behind his strained relationship with his father; not to mention his all around "fuckedupedness" (from the book, I swear to God). It is, chronologically, also the first Christmas Clare spends with Henry (as Henry is 40 and has presumably spent many with Clare). It's not an altogether happy occasion, but it offers an informative glimpse into the rhythm of their narratively confused relationship.
"Christmas Eve, Two"
This section is a logical progression of the last chapter where we are now shown through Henry's narration the reaction he has to Christmas Eve. He's 25 and much younger and presumably less equipped to handle the post traumatic survivor's stress associated with the death of his mother 19 years earlier. After aimlessly wandering the Chicago streets and taking a generally glass-half-empty approach, Henry finds a local bar and proceeds to drink his problems into oblivion. As with real life, the problem becomes alcohol poisoning and before long he's waking up in a hospital with a pumped stomach, a seedy bartender whom he occasionally has sex with, and the realization that he indeed has an actual death wish (most likely to escape from the traumas of his life as well as the complications of his condition).
The second half of this section deals with a 17 year old Clare growing ever more concious of the fact that she and future-Henry are approaching a two year gap in which the next time they meet he will be current-Henry and have no knowledge of their meetings. Clare is spending the day doing the crossword with her grandmother and after a brief walk to the meadow they end up chancing on a 40 year old Henry. He introduces himself to Clare's grandma and then he disappears after which grandma raises some pointed and pertinent questions for Clare. It seems that the dangers and pitfalls of dating someone who blinks in and out of your timeline are constantly presented to Clare, but she chooses to ignore them. This speaks largely to the passion a person like Clare must have, but also speaks more broadly to the irrationality of love and the things one will ignore to achieve it. Clare, and by extension, the reader are left to question whether her actions are foolish, impassioned love or genuine emotions.
"Eat or Be Eaten"
This section introduces us to two of the more prominent characters for the next half of the book; Gomez and Charisse. Right from the get-go Gomez is singled out as an intriguing character. One gets the impression that he's up to no good, or simply has an unrequitted if not unnoticed lust for Clare. Either way Henry seems to take no issue with it. The chapter sets up Henry as a stupendous chef, Gomez a borderline anarchist, and the group as a whole to be something of a eclectic Bohemian collection of humans. The chapter name itself sets up an almost primal feeling that plays out over the section between Henry and Gomez primarily (though other characters get swept up) to establish dominance and to size each other up. The relationship, even as it evens out throughout this portion of the book, never quite sits comfortably as if both are at once intrigued and keeping the other around to keep an eye out. Gomez is threatened and therefore dwarfed by Henry's unique existence, while Henry is threatened by Gomez' lack of effort and carefree nature. It reads at once both comfortable and tenuous which is an interesting dynamic to explore.
The rest of the section deals with Gomez meeting a future Henry who knows and imparts tidbits of wisdom about his future to him and disappears, thus proving that he does indeed time travel. Gomez shares a conversation with Clare at first apologizing, the agonizing over future-Henry's secretive nature, and finally warning Clare to distance herself from her future and inevitable counterpart. We also get an intersting insight from Clare that even if she wanted to, distancing herself from Henry would be impossible as their lives are inextricably entwined. Indeed, when one steps back and takes in the bigger picture it is clear that both Clare and Henry's pasts and, by extension, futures (which in some cases are their pasts) are so tangled that it is questionable if either can paradoxically exist without the other. This brings into play again the question of fate and that, even if she wanted, is it even possible to change the fact she will be with Henry one day?
We are next treated to an amusing scene in which current-Henry is woken early in the morning by his future self; the two of which seem to have become extremely comfortable or even blase in their reactions to one another. Current day Henry even seems to resent his more confident, together future self and is torn between that resentment and the fact that one day with time he will be everything he currently resents. It's moments like this that make The Time Traveler's Wife such a fun read. A Violent Femmes concert is attended and we are shown that present day Henry is not yet entirely the man Clare loves and that he indeed has a darker and less morally light past than we may have believed. Interestingly, it's a future Henry whom reassures Clare of his past self's dedication to her and the eventual corrections he'll make to be with her.
"Christmas Eve, Three"
This section details both the first time Clare and Henry spend a Christmas together (discounting the previous one where future-Henry traveled backwards to 17 year old Clare), and sets up all sorts of potential disasters. These dilemmas are present in any relationship, but the hook here is the amplification they enjoy thanks to the peculiar condition Henry has of evaporating into time at any given moment. This event also plays as an indicator of Henry's devotion to Clare as he has never spent the holidays with a girlfriend or as sober as he ends up being. Clare's family responds reasonably well to Henry, if not a little unfairly because Clare's older brother Mark has just brought home his recently engaged, pregnant girlfriend as well. Henry does a good job of dodging most of the awkward moments, and after a time the reader sees the cracks in the facade Clare's family tries so hard to conceal. Overall, the scene plays out more or less normally. Clare's family one by one warms up to Henry in unique ways, Clare's mom seems to be a slight alcoholic with anger issues, and Henry sneaks every night into his girlfriends bedroom. Pretty standard stuff.
Standout moments include the fact that even though none of Clare's family has ever met Henry, some of them seem vaguely familiar of him. There is even a tantilizing throwback to "After the End" earlier in the book where Mark and his dad seem distressed that they are seeing Henry again ("After the End" was the vague appearance by Henry confronted by Mark and his dad in which both the reader and Clare have no idea what happened). Of course Henry tries desperately to stay in the present and only travels once in Church for a thankfully brief moment to his own apartment in the future. The future Henry calms him and tells him everything will be fine. There is also a scene at a party where Henry admires two young kids dressed in old school punk attire and muses why someone so young would harken back to an older age of their own free will. Not for a lack of love for the genre (he takes great interest in the children's interests), but it seems he begrudges their right to choose the era of their appearance as he obviously cannot. The section ends as Clare breaks down on the drive home, embarassed of her mother's behaviour and Henry calms her as he has (and will) lived with much more awkwardness.
"Home is Anywhere You Hang Your Head"
Henry has decided to propose to Clare, but first he must confront his estranged father and ask his permission and for the rings his mother wore. This chapter is more or less straight forward in which we learn that his father is not so much an angry, drunk, wretch of a man so much as he is Henry but for the loss of the love of his life. What begins as anger and resentment both on Henry's and the reader's parts, turns to pity and sadness as we realize that Mr. DeTamble has lost the ability to play music and his last tangible connection with his dead wife. He inquires about Clare and after listening for a time, decides its time to give up his wife's rings. Henry leaves his father, and one gets the impression that the elder DeTamble is a possible foreshadowing of Clare or Henry without the other. It's also hopeful that his dad will get his life together as Henry reveals that sometimes he still sees his mother happy and alive in the past, and suddenly Mr. DeTamble has a connection again.
Author's Note: Ugh, I was doing the whole chapter by chapter thing, but I am at the end of the book and this was just feeling tedious and a bit redundant. So, what I've decided I would do is that when I finish I will write one more post about this book and make that a comprehensive review. But since I have been writing this post for two days while still reading, I may as well have something to show for it. Overall, this chapter by chapter thing was a good learning experience.
"Christmas Eve, One (Always Crashing in the Same Car)"
This is a brief chapter where a 40 year old Henry finds himself at Clare's home on Christmas Eve, and offers up a rare glimpse into his past for the ever vigilantly curious Clare. He regails her of the story of the death of his mother on Christmas Eve when he was six years old. A combination of nervous driving on his mother's part and unfortunate conditions cause a highway collision in which Henry's mother is decapitated and in which he avoids a similar fate thanks to a random time jump.
This is a rare and important detail for the book as it informs Henry's aversions to driving and Christmas Eve, which are dealt with in more detail further in the book as we are exposed to a younger and 'current' Henry before he starts meeting childhood Clare. We are also informed by Henry that he has traveled back to the moments around the crash numerous times and has viewed it from almost every conceivable angle; a Hell in every sense of the word. It also gives a glimpse into the psyche of the time traveler and the reasons behind his strained relationship with his father; not to mention his all around "fuckedupedness" (from the book, I swear to God). It is, chronologically, also the first Christmas Clare spends with Henry (as Henry is 40 and has presumably spent many with Clare). It's not an altogether happy occasion, but it offers an informative glimpse into the rhythm of their narratively confused relationship.
"Christmas Eve, Two"
This section is a logical progression of the last chapter where we are now shown through Henry's narration the reaction he has to Christmas Eve. He's 25 and much younger and presumably less equipped to handle the post traumatic survivor's stress associated with the death of his mother 19 years earlier. After aimlessly wandering the Chicago streets and taking a generally glass-half-empty approach, Henry finds a local bar and proceeds to drink his problems into oblivion. As with real life, the problem becomes alcohol poisoning and before long he's waking up in a hospital with a pumped stomach, a seedy bartender whom he occasionally has sex with, and the realization that he indeed has an actual death wish (most likely to escape from the traumas of his life as well as the complications of his condition).
The second half of this section deals with a 17 year old Clare growing ever more concious of the fact that she and future-Henry are approaching a two year gap in which the next time they meet he will be current-Henry and have no knowledge of their meetings. Clare is spending the day doing the crossword with her grandmother and after a brief walk to the meadow they end up chancing on a 40 year old Henry. He introduces himself to Clare's grandma and then he disappears after which grandma raises some pointed and pertinent questions for Clare. It seems that the dangers and pitfalls of dating someone who blinks in and out of your timeline are constantly presented to Clare, but she chooses to ignore them. This speaks largely to the passion a person like Clare must have, but also speaks more broadly to the irrationality of love and the things one will ignore to achieve it. Clare, and by extension, the reader are left to question whether her actions are foolish, impassioned love or genuine emotions.
"Eat or Be Eaten"
This section introduces us to two of the more prominent characters for the next half of the book; Gomez and Charisse. Right from the get-go Gomez is singled out as an intriguing character. One gets the impression that he's up to no good, or simply has an unrequitted if not unnoticed lust for Clare. Either way Henry seems to take no issue with it. The chapter sets up Henry as a stupendous chef, Gomez a borderline anarchist, and the group as a whole to be something of a eclectic Bohemian collection of humans. The chapter name itself sets up an almost primal feeling that plays out over the section between Henry and Gomez primarily (though other characters get swept up) to establish dominance and to size each other up. The relationship, even as it evens out throughout this portion of the book, never quite sits comfortably as if both are at once intrigued and keeping the other around to keep an eye out. Gomez is threatened and therefore dwarfed by Henry's unique existence, while Henry is threatened by Gomez' lack of effort and carefree nature. It reads at once both comfortable and tenuous which is an interesting dynamic to explore.
The rest of the section deals with Gomez meeting a future Henry who knows and imparts tidbits of wisdom about his future to him and disappears, thus proving that he does indeed time travel. Gomez shares a conversation with Clare at first apologizing, the agonizing over future-Henry's secretive nature, and finally warning Clare to distance herself from her future and inevitable counterpart. We also get an intersting insight from Clare that even if she wanted to, distancing herself from Henry would be impossible as their lives are inextricably entwined. Indeed, when one steps back and takes in the bigger picture it is clear that both Clare and Henry's pasts and, by extension, futures (which in some cases are their pasts) are so tangled that it is questionable if either can paradoxically exist without the other. This brings into play again the question of fate and that, even if she wanted, is it even possible to change the fact she will be with Henry one day?
We are next treated to an amusing scene in which current-Henry is woken early in the morning by his future self; the two of which seem to have become extremely comfortable or even blase in their reactions to one another. Current day Henry even seems to resent his more confident, together future self and is torn between that resentment and the fact that one day with time he will be everything he currently resents. It's moments like this that make The Time Traveler's Wife such a fun read. A Violent Femmes concert is attended and we are shown that present day Henry is not yet entirely the man Clare loves and that he indeed has a darker and less morally light past than we may have believed. Interestingly, it's a future Henry whom reassures Clare of his past self's dedication to her and the eventual corrections he'll make to be with her.
"Christmas Eve, Three"
This section details both the first time Clare and Henry spend a Christmas together (discounting the previous one where future-Henry traveled backwards to 17 year old Clare), and sets up all sorts of potential disasters. These dilemmas are present in any relationship, but the hook here is the amplification they enjoy thanks to the peculiar condition Henry has of evaporating into time at any given moment. This event also plays as an indicator of Henry's devotion to Clare as he has never spent the holidays with a girlfriend or as sober as he ends up being. Clare's family responds reasonably well to Henry, if not a little unfairly because Clare's older brother Mark has just brought home his recently engaged, pregnant girlfriend as well. Henry does a good job of dodging most of the awkward moments, and after a time the reader sees the cracks in the facade Clare's family tries so hard to conceal. Overall, the scene plays out more or less normally. Clare's family one by one warms up to Henry in unique ways, Clare's mom seems to be a slight alcoholic with anger issues, and Henry sneaks every night into his girlfriends bedroom. Pretty standard stuff.
Standout moments include the fact that even though none of Clare's family has ever met Henry, some of them seem vaguely familiar of him. There is even a tantilizing throwback to "After the End" earlier in the book where Mark and his dad seem distressed that they are seeing Henry again ("After the End" was the vague appearance by Henry confronted by Mark and his dad in which both the reader and Clare have no idea what happened). Of course Henry tries desperately to stay in the present and only travels once in Church for a thankfully brief moment to his own apartment in the future. The future Henry calms him and tells him everything will be fine. There is also a scene at a party where Henry admires two young kids dressed in old school punk attire and muses why someone so young would harken back to an older age of their own free will. Not for a lack of love for the genre (he takes great interest in the children's interests), but it seems he begrudges their right to choose the era of their appearance as he obviously cannot. The section ends as Clare breaks down on the drive home, embarassed of her mother's behaviour and Henry calms her as he has (and will) lived with much more awkwardness.
"Home is Anywhere You Hang Your Head"
Henry has decided to propose to Clare, but first he must confront his estranged father and ask his permission and for the rings his mother wore. This chapter is more or less straight forward in which we learn that his father is not so much an angry, drunk, wretch of a man so much as he is Henry but for the loss of the love of his life. What begins as anger and resentment both on Henry's and the reader's parts, turns to pity and sadness as we realize that Mr. DeTamble has lost the ability to play music and his last tangible connection with his dead wife. He inquires about Clare and after listening for a time, decides its time to give up his wife's rings. Henry leaves his father, and one gets the impression that the elder DeTamble is a possible foreshadowing of Clare or Henry without the other. It's also hopeful that his dad will get his life together as Henry reveals that sometimes he still sees his mother happy and alive in the past, and suddenly Mr. DeTamble has a connection again.
Author's Note: Ugh, I was doing the whole chapter by chapter thing, but I am at the end of the book and this was just feeling tedious and a bit redundant. So, what I've decided I would do is that when I finish I will write one more post about this book and make that a comprehensive review. But since I have been writing this post for two days while still reading, I may as well have something to show for it. Overall, this chapter by chapter thing was a good learning experience.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Picture: Strange Bedfellows on the Fourth of July
Woke up to this little monster with his head on my pillow this morning. Not a bad person to share a bed with, all things tolled, and I began my fourth of July.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Book: The Time Traveler's Wife: Pages 1-108
Author's Note: It dawns on me that this book has no chapters, only titled sections. So I put page numbers.
The Time Traveler's Wife is a book that has interested me for some time, and on the good word of mouth I've received I decided to give it a chance. This is a book that probably speaks to different people in different ways. For women, I imagine that the main hook is the deeply romantic tale of two people who are at once distanced and brought closer together by time itself. The story is a fairly complex dissertation on the power of true love and how it can overcome even the most outlandish of circumstances. Granted this is a generalization of how women may see things, but let's face it... I'm pretty dead on here.
For me, and perhaps the greater male gender in general, this book is interesting for the more (for lack of a better term) sci-fi elements contained within. Make no mistake, the love story is the central draw and the reason the novel exists, but the complexities of two people meeting at various different stages of one of their lives is at once fascinating and enjoyable. Personally, I would be remiss to exclude the fact that I am also turning each page to see how these two people end up together. I think any reasonably well adjusted human being finds comfort in the display of love as an all-conquering emotion, to say nothing of how it sometimes also makes life unnecessarily complicated.
For this "chapter by chapter" review, I will try and focus on each section of the novel.
The Man Out of Time "First Date, One"
This is a very interesting introduction to the concept of the novel. Though unbeknownst to the reader, the author Audrey Niffennegger writes this chapter the opposite of how she will write the rest of the book. This section deals with a 20 year old Clare meeting a 28 year old Henry. This is important because Clare will not meet Henry until he is 36, when she is 6 years old. Essentially, Clare has known Henry (a FUTURE Henry) since she was 6 years old, and some form of future Henry has known all of what was to transpire in her life ever since. The irony of "First Date, One" is that for once she has met present day Henry and he is uninformed. The other treat for the reader is that while reading the chapter one does not know that this is decidedly opposite of the rest of the book, but only upon looking back do the details reveal themselves. This is a technique that the author uses throughout the story; mentioning seemingly minor details that later either happen to one of the characters or plays a large part of the story.
This section goes a long way to demonstrate the way that each characters knowledge of each other doesn't necessarily always coincide with the other's and the general give-and-take of their relationship moving forward. Henry is presented here as a man with a very specific impairment; time traveling without a moment's notice, and he is understandably a bit disorganized and skiddish for it. Still, he is honestly committed to living as normal a life as possible. Clare, seen here in an obviously more adolescent-transition stage, seems to relish the flirtiness and 'power' that comes with the things she knows about her future husband. We learn fairly early on that each character has chosen (in either the future which is technically the past since it's "happened already" or the past when Henry was from the future) to withhold certain informations about and around the other as a means not to complicate their lives any more than they would have to. This is an effective literary tool which allows the author to be vague, as well as surprise the reader and her characters when they are given missing pieces to an almost complete picture.
The chapter deals with their rare "first date" (one which is presumably the first date for Henry with Clare but not vice versa), and how even though Henry has just met the girl he clearly feels a deep connection thanks to her intimate foreknowledge of him. The dinner they have is distracted at best as they try to root out how comfortable to be considering Clare has been presumably close to this man her whole life, though he hasn't done that yet. One thing leads to another and they end up back at Henry's apartment where they sleep together in what at once feels natural and awkward given the circumstances. It's revealed that, for Clare, this is the first time she is able to openly share this relationship with Henry in an honest and natural way with the world (as a time traveler story would likely get her committed). At once this scene is the end of Clare's time getting to know an older version of Henry, the beginning of Henry's knowing of Clare, and technically the continuation of a relationship that has existed for 14 years. Pretty cool.
"A First Time for Everything"
This is a very interesting chapter in which we learn three things: that Henry commonly meets up with himself at different eras in his life; the first time he ever time traveled; and briefly how it is he survives when he finds himself stranded in new times with few resources.
We are treated briefly to a story of Henry's five year old self enjoying the Field Museum of Natural History on his birthday to begin. This both informs the character's love of knowledge and learning (he's a librarian later in life) but also expresses the wonder he inherently possesses which will make the fantastic nature of his 'impairment' all the easier to cope with. We then cut to a narration of Henry later in life and he finds himself back at the same museum years in the past, only now he is much older. Here he will meet his five year old self upon his first involuntary trip into time. In the first of many paradoxical scenes we learn it is Henry who helps his young self come to terms with the disorienting nature of his condition, and that he remembers the encounter vividly from when he was five years old. We also get glimpses of the older Henry's proficiency in picking locks and going to rather illicit means to procure necessary items for survival (even when that survival involves indoctrinating the fragile child version of himself with the faculties needed to handle what's going to happen to him). It's a very sweet scene of a man and a child sharing a night that each remembers and will remember for the rest of their lives.
"First Date, Two"
This section deals with the first time Clare meets Henry. She is six years old at this time (Henry is 36). Of course Henry knows a lot about Clare as he is from their mutual future, but he does not know yet the first time he meets her as a child (the technical first time he meets her is when he is 28, as seen in "First Date, One"). That just so happens to be the day he finds himself in. It's a very delicate scene for both the characters and the reader as we are essentially presented a naked 36 year old hiding and being discovered by a 6 year old. It plays reasonably well and Henry is able to convince his future wife that he is indeed from the future, and that if he is to continue traveling back in time he will need her help and companionship. These are fun moments in this book because we get to learn things the characters assume, but have never experienced yet. For instance Clare remembers the times as a girl she met Henry and got to know him, but the 36 year old Henry in this section has never had that initial meeting, but knows it has to happen (because the Clare who is his wife has told him it will/did). Seeing it play out is a rare mix of what is arguably destiny or fate -- two topics that are sometimes touched on later in the book to much discussion.
Here we learn the set up of how Henry will travel back to dates he tells Clare (because she wrote them down as she grew up he can tell her when he comes back when he came back), and how she will wait for him and provide shelter, food, and clothes. We also get the first few forays into the Clare coming to terms with the fact that she knows someone who knows how her life will play out no matter what she does (a concept that is expertly handled for the character as she matures and realizes the ramifications of such a friend).
"Lessons in Survival"
This is a fairly simple chapter in which an older Henry imparts on his nine year old counterpart the skills he has learned (from himself when he was nine -- a veritable mobius strip of continuity) in order to stay alive when he travels to dangerous and bewildering times. It involves the two learning to pick pockets and properly dupe unwitting marks as well as dealing with the moral ramifications of existing in such a way.
There is a fairly poignant scene later in the section in which Henry the older must reveal to Henry the younger that they are indeed the same person. Ultimately this serves to dishearten the younger as he finds for the first time that he is truly alone (without some mystical protector who guides him through his endeavors -- young Henry was under the impression that old Henry was in fact a fellow time traveler and that there were others like himself), and that he is unlikely to ever find someone like himself to lighten his burden. It is a testament to the author that these scenes, while absolutely fantastical in nature, can still resonate so personally given their unusual context.
The rest of the section deals with two 15 year old Henry's engaging in what I suppose could be considered masturbation (he is the same person only a few weeks older in one instance) and how their father deals with that. We get some more musing between Clare and Henry on just how real Henry is (that is to say she wonders reasonably if he may be a figment of her imagination); Clare gains obviously deeper attractions to Henry and begins to pry about their future; and over chess they have conversations about the nature of fate, how God is involved if he exists, and if their lives are already set in stone and they are just living out a script. These are all interesting vignettes as the questions and encounters are just as easily shared by the reader as they are with the characters. If anything the extraordinary circumstances of the novel cause the reader to become more mentally engaged in the complexities of the proceedings, and that's as admirable as it is entertaining.
"After the End"
This section opens with a very cryptic scene in which a 13 year old Clare awakens to find a 43 year old Henry in the meadow confronted by her angry father and brother. Not much more is revealed as to the 'how' of the situation, except a foreboding that something significant happens that both Clare and the reader are not privy to. The section title "After the End" also suggests a tone of finality.
The rest of the section covers a quiet moment where Henry accidentally reveals to Clare the way her mother will eventually die, and the inevitable sexual overtones their relationship begins to manifest as Clare reaches the age of 16. We are also shown an instance in which an adult Clare has only informed Henry of vague details of a brutal act committed upon her when she was young that an older Henry helped exact vengeance for. The section is concluded with a scene where the two briefly flirt with the idea of seeing if they can affect the future by changing the past.
Overall, The Time Traveler's Wife is a very intriguing book. The writing is very tight and makes it easy to designate the various layers of complexity that make up its narrative. It is also a book that forces you to retain details as you go due to the nature of time travel. It definitely has me turning each page with anticipation and enough curiosity to wonder where this is all going to end up, and frankly it would be hard to ask anything else of a novel these days.
The Time Traveler's Wife is a book that has interested me for some time, and on the good word of mouth I've received I decided to give it a chance. This is a book that probably speaks to different people in different ways. For women, I imagine that the main hook is the deeply romantic tale of two people who are at once distanced and brought closer together by time itself. The story is a fairly complex dissertation on the power of true love and how it can overcome even the most outlandish of circumstances. Granted this is a generalization of how women may see things, but let's face it... I'm pretty dead on here.
For me, and perhaps the greater male gender in general, this book is interesting for the more (for lack of a better term) sci-fi elements contained within. Make no mistake, the love story is the central draw and the reason the novel exists, but the complexities of two people meeting at various different stages of one of their lives is at once fascinating and enjoyable. Personally, I would be remiss to exclude the fact that I am also turning each page to see how these two people end up together. I think any reasonably well adjusted human being finds comfort in the display of love as an all-conquering emotion, to say nothing of how it sometimes also makes life unnecessarily complicated.
For this "chapter by chapter" review, I will try and focus on each section of the novel.
The Man Out of Time "First Date, One"
This is a very interesting introduction to the concept of the novel. Though unbeknownst to the reader, the author Audrey Niffennegger writes this chapter the opposite of how she will write the rest of the book. This section deals with a 20 year old Clare meeting a 28 year old Henry. This is important because Clare will not meet Henry until he is 36, when she is 6 years old. Essentially, Clare has known Henry (a FUTURE Henry) since she was 6 years old, and some form of future Henry has known all of what was to transpire in her life ever since. The irony of "First Date, One" is that for once she has met present day Henry and he is uninformed. The other treat for the reader is that while reading the chapter one does not know that this is decidedly opposite of the rest of the book, but only upon looking back do the details reveal themselves. This is a technique that the author uses throughout the story; mentioning seemingly minor details that later either happen to one of the characters or plays a large part of the story.
This section goes a long way to demonstrate the way that each characters knowledge of each other doesn't necessarily always coincide with the other's and the general give-and-take of their relationship moving forward. Henry is presented here as a man with a very specific impairment; time traveling without a moment's notice, and he is understandably a bit disorganized and skiddish for it. Still, he is honestly committed to living as normal a life as possible. Clare, seen here in an obviously more adolescent-transition stage, seems to relish the flirtiness and 'power' that comes with the things she knows about her future husband. We learn fairly early on that each character has chosen (in either the future which is technically the past since it's "happened already" or the past when Henry was from the future) to withhold certain informations about and around the other as a means not to complicate their lives any more than they would have to. This is an effective literary tool which allows the author to be vague, as well as surprise the reader and her characters when they are given missing pieces to an almost complete picture.
The chapter deals with their rare "first date" (one which is presumably the first date for Henry with Clare but not vice versa), and how even though Henry has just met the girl he clearly feels a deep connection thanks to her intimate foreknowledge of him. The dinner they have is distracted at best as they try to root out how comfortable to be considering Clare has been presumably close to this man her whole life, though he hasn't done that yet. One thing leads to another and they end up back at Henry's apartment where they sleep together in what at once feels natural and awkward given the circumstances. It's revealed that, for Clare, this is the first time she is able to openly share this relationship with Henry in an honest and natural way with the world (as a time traveler story would likely get her committed). At once this scene is the end of Clare's time getting to know an older version of Henry, the beginning of Henry's knowing of Clare, and technically the continuation of a relationship that has existed for 14 years. Pretty cool.
"A First Time for Everything"
This is a very interesting chapter in which we learn three things: that Henry commonly meets up with himself at different eras in his life; the first time he ever time traveled; and briefly how it is he survives when he finds himself stranded in new times with few resources.
We are treated briefly to a story of Henry's five year old self enjoying the Field Museum of Natural History on his birthday to begin. This both informs the character's love of knowledge and learning (he's a librarian later in life) but also expresses the wonder he inherently possesses which will make the fantastic nature of his 'impairment' all the easier to cope with. We then cut to a narration of Henry later in life and he finds himself back at the same museum years in the past, only now he is much older. Here he will meet his five year old self upon his first involuntary trip into time. In the first of many paradoxical scenes we learn it is Henry who helps his young self come to terms with the disorienting nature of his condition, and that he remembers the encounter vividly from when he was five years old. We also get glimpses of the older Henry's proficiency in picking locks and going to rather illicit means to procure necessary items for survival (even when that survival involves indoctrinating the fragile child version of himself with the faculties needed to handle what's going to happen to him). It's a very sweet scene of a man and a child sharing a night that each remembers and will remember for the rest of their lives.
"First Date, Two"
This section deals with the first time Clare meets Henry. She is six years old at this time (Henry is 36). Of course Henry knows a lot about Clare as he is from their mutual future, but he does not know yet the first time he meets her as a child (the technical first time he meets her is when he is 28, as seen in "First Date, One"). That just so happens to be the day he finds himself in. It's a very delicate scene for both the characters and the reader as we are essentially presented a naked 36 year old hiding and being discovered by a 6 year old. It plays reasonably well and Henry is able to convince his future wife that he is indeed from the future, and that if he is to continue traveling back in time he will need her help and companionship. These are fun moments in this book because we get to learn things the characters assume, but have never experienced yet. For instance Clare remembers the times as a girl she met Henry and got to know him, but the 36 year old Henry in this section has never had that initial meeting, but knows it has to happen (because the Clare who is his wife has told him it will/did). Seeing it play out is a rare mix of what is arguably destiny or fate -- two topics that are sometimes touched on later in the book to much discussion.
Here we learn the set up of how Henry will travel back to dates he tells Clare (because she wrote them down as she grew up he can tell her when he comes back when he came back), and how she will wait for him and provide shelter, food, and clothes. We also get the first few forays into the Clare coming to terms with the fact that she knows someone who knows how her life will play out no matter what she does (a concept that is expertly handled for the character as she matures and realizes the ramifications of such a friend).
"Lessons in Survival"
This is a fairly simple chapter in which an older Henry imparts on his nine year old counterpart the skills he has learned (from himself when he was nine -- a veritable mobius strip of continuity) in order to stay alive when he travels to dangerous and bewildering times. It involves the two learning to pick pockets and properly dupe unwitting marks as well as dealing with the moral ramifications of existing in such a way.
There is a fairly poignant scene later in the section in which Henry the older must reveal to Henry the younger that they are indeed the same person. Ultimately this serves to dishearten the younger as he finds for the first time that he is truly alone (without some mystical protector who guides him through his endeavors -- young Henry was under the impression that old Henry was in fact a fellow time traveler and that there were others like himself), and that he is unlikely to ever find someone like himself to lighten his burden. It is a testament to the author that these scenes, while absolutely fantastical in nature, can still resonate so personally given their unusual context.
The rest of the section deals with two 15 year old Henry's engaging in what I suppose could be considered masturbation (he is the same person only a few weeks older in one instance) and how their father deals with that. We get some more musing between Clare and Henry on just how real Henry is (that is to say she wonders reasonably if he may be a figment of her imagination); Clare gains obviously deeper attractions to Henry and begins to pry about their future; and over chess they have conversations about the nature of fate, how God is involved if he exists, and if their lives are already set in stone and they are just living out a script. These are all interesting vignettes as the questions and encounters are just as easily shared by the reader as they are with the characters. If anything the extraordinary circumstances of the novel cause the reader to become more mentally engaged in the complexities of the proceedings, and that's as admirable as it is entertaining.
"After the End"
This section opens with a very cryptic scene in which a 13 year old Clare awakens to find a 43 year old Henry in the meadow confronted by her angry father and brother. Not much more is revealed as to the 'how' of the situation, except a foreboding that something significant happens that both Clare and the reader are not privy to. The section title "After the End" also suggests a tone of finality.
The rest of the section covers a quiet moment where Henry accidentally reveals to Clare the way her mother will eventually die, and the inevitable sexual overtones their relationship begins to manifest as Clare reaches the age of 16. We are also shown an instance in which an adult Clare has only informed Henry of vague details of a brutal act committed upon her when she was young that an older Henry helped exact vengeance for. The section is concluded with a scene where the two briefly flirt with the idea of seeing if they can affect the future by changing the past.
Overall, The Time Traveler's Wife is a very intriguing book. The writing is very tight and makes it easy to designate the various layers of complexity that make up its narrative. It is also a book that forces you to retain details as you go due to the nature of time travel. It definitely has me turning each page with anticipation and enough curiosity to wonder where this is all going to end up, and frankly it would be hard to ask anything else of a novel these days.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Comics: Batman, Robin, and a Cry for Justice!
Batman and Robin Number 2
Writer: Grant Morrison, Artist: Frank Quietly
For those unfamiliar, Batman and Robin is the flagship title of the recently relaunched 'Bat-family' line of Batman related comic books. Writer Grant Morrison was the architect of the last several Batman storylines before this relaunch and was also responsible for taking Bruce Wayne off the table (I use this terminology as death is never really death in comics. The seeming death of Bruce Wayne was actually a cosmic trip through time in which he must live a succession of increasingly unhappy lives; re: Omega Sanction). Anyways, after a brief event comic titled 'Battle for the Cowl' we find Dick Grayson (the original Robin) wearing Batman's mantle aided by a new Robin in the form of Bruce Wayne's biological son, Damien.
The first issue of Batman and Robin established writer Grant Morrison's new outlook for the character of Batman. No longer dark and brooding, instead we have a new Dynamic Duo lead by the fairly light-hearted Dick Grayson and joined by the arrogant, all-too-serious Damien Wayne. Essentially a role reversal, we now have a more Batman-ish Robin and a Batman who was Robin. Add to this a new take on Gotham and an overall flavor of storytelling which is at once an homage and mashup of the Adam West 'Batman' of the 60's. This all comes off as a breath of fresh air in terms of Batman storytelling. After almost a century of Bat-tales, it gets understandably hard to spin a new Batman tale without the taste of a past story tainting it. Now, though, we are treated to a new kind of Batman and it brings with it a kind of excitement at the possibilities this new status quo could portend.
The second issue of this new direction opens to the new Batman and Robin's first official 'night out'. They reveal themselves to the police (who, for obvious reasons, don't outright realize there's a new man behind the mask... they suspect though) and it's about four seconds before the Circus of Strange (a new group of villains who's game is to be circus freaks who deal in crime, naturally) is bombing and storming Gotham Police Central. Faced with an obese fatlady, a siamese triplet, and an guy named Phosphorus who appears to be ablaze at all times (think a tragic, wimpy Johnny Storm), the new team's got their work cut out for them. We get the impression that Dick assumed that the Batman-Robin team would work the same as it always had, and he quickly realizes that this is not the case. Damien is clearly only along for the brawl and to attempt to be the hero he admired his father for being. Dick is thrown off by, of all things, wearing a cape; a commodity he did away with long ago. Both fighters find themselves in danger before too long as Batman finds himself against too many opponents and Damien finds himself out of his weight class. They both manage to get themselves out of their respective jams, but not without aggravating an already present rift. Damien does not respect Dick as Batman. He thinks that he's just play acting as his father's noble role. Dick does not understand why Damien won't defer leadership to him without question. Needless to say, Dick views this all as a failure and after a pep talk with Alfred finds new footing.
People who can't stomach anyone BUT Bruce Wayne being Batman will be happy here as Dick Grayson, Damien, and Alfred all postulate the same attitude within these pages. In the end, Dick discovers that perhaps he can't be the same Batman Bruce was, but he can perform (as he did with his parents in the Flying Graysons) as the character of Batman in his own way. It's a wonderful moment in the book that aknowledges that things aren't the same in the Batverse, but that there's room to get the job done. Meanwhile Damien stumbles right into a trap and the issue ends with a renewed Dick speeding his way to save his stubborn young ward.
Grant Morrison's subtle character analysis through interactions is in full force here. He balances entertaining action with amusing banter in such a way that it doesn't feel like the characters are being forced down our throats. It's much more audience friendly than Morrison's previous Batman arc -- Batman RIP. I would also be mistaken not to make mention of artist Frank Quietly's art. He has a very unique style that some find too "wrinkly" to be for superheroes, but anyone who's read multiple Eisner award winning All Star Superman will know it has a charm that is perfect for the slightly campy-but-gritty world Morrison is sewing with this new book.
If you're not familiar with the deep history of Batman, or simply fear reading comics because the long publishing history will drive you away; now is the time to jump on board. Only two issues in, the Batman universe is in a new territory that is as fresh to people who have been reading for decades as it is to new readers. Don't miss your chance.
Justice League: A Cry for Justice! Number One
Writer: James Robinson, Artist: Mauro Cascioli
Justice League: A Cry for Justice! explores the premise of "justice" and why the heroes in such a named league never actually dole out any of it. Lead by Green Lantern Hal Jordan, his frustration with the fact that heroes tend to sit around waiting to be attacked instead of proactively seeking out the evil doers and punishing them finally boils over in an explosive way. Severing ties with the Justice League of America, he and longtime friend Green Arrow set off into space to start finding the worst of the worst and striking at them before they strike first.
The rest of the issue jumps from scene to scene exploring the characters that will become this new Justice League and why they also thirst for justice. Writer James Robinson does a good job of making each character's motives seem deep seeded and believable. It will be interesting to see how these various, colorful characters come together and how they each deal with the obvious darkness that may come from a desire to enact vengeance without provocation. Of course the real star here is artist Mauro Cascioli. His hand painted artwork jumps off the page with insane amounts of detail that almost (ALMOST) make you feel comfortable being caught reading the comic in a public place.
The issue as a whole serves as an introduction to what this series is going to be all about. According to the letter from the writer in the back, this story will have major repercussions for the DC Universe at large so it's good to see that we'll have a strong cast of characters here in the beginning to follow through to the end. All in all this is an effective book as it manages to entertain, inform, and satisfy the urge to read something worth the time it takes. As it stands now we've only got the outline and premise and it will fall to the ensuing issues to really flesh out the concept. In short: Worth the money, but only serves as a promise right now of something greater. Keep an eye out to see if it delivers.
Writer: Grant Morrison, Artist: Frank Quietly
For those unfamiliar, Batman and Robin is the flagship title of the recently relaunched 'Bat-family' line of Batman related comic books. Writer Grant Morrison was the architect of the last several Batman storylines before this relaunch and was also responsible for taking Bruce Wayne off the table (I use this terminology as death is never really death in comics. The seeming death of Bruce Wayne was actually a cosmic trip through time in which he must live a succession of increasingly unhappy lives; re: Omega Sanction). Anyways, after a brief event comic titled 'Battle for the Cowl' we find Dick Grayson (the original Robin) wearing Batman's mantle aided by a new Robin in the form of Bruce Wayne's biological son, Damien.
The first issue of Batman and Robin established writer Grant Morrison's new outlook for the character of Batman. No longer dark and brooding, instead we have a new Dynamic Duo lead by the fairly light-hearted Dick Grayson and joined by the arrogant, all-too-serious Damien Wayne. Essentially a role reversal, we now have a more Batman-ish Robin and a Batman who was Robin. Add to this a new take on Gotham and an overall flavor of storytelling which is at once an homage and mashup of the Adam West 'Batman' of the 60's. This all comes off as a breath of fresh air in terms of Batman storytelling. After almost a century of Bat-tales, it gets understandably hard to spin a new Batman tale without the taste of a past story tainting it. Now, though, we are treated to a new kind of Batman and it brings with it a kind of excitement at the possibilities this new status quo could portend.
The second issue of this new direction opens to the new Batman and Robin's first official 'night out'. They reveal themselves to the police (who, for obvious reasons, don't outright realize there's a new man behind the mask... they suspect though) and it's about four seconds before the Circus of Strange (a new group of villains who's game is to be circus freaks who deal in crime, naturally) is bombing and storming Gotham Police Central. Faced with an obese fatlady, a siamese triplet, and an guy named Phosphorus who appears to be ablaze at all times (think a tragic, wimpy Johnny Storm), the new team's got their work cut out for them. We get the impression that Dick assumed that the Batman-Robin team would work the same as it always had, and he quickly realizes that this is not the case. Damien is clearly only along for the brawl and to attempt to be the hero he admired his father for being. Dick is thrown off by, of all things, wearing a cape; a commodity he did away with long ago. Both fighters find themselves in danger before too long as Batman finds himself against too many opponents and Damien finds himself out of his weight class. They both manage to get themselves out of their respective jams, but not without aggravating an already present rift. Damien does not respect Dick as Batman. He thinks that he's just play acting as his father's noble role. Dick does not understand why Damien won't defer leadership to him without question. Needless to say, Dick views this all as a failure and after a pep talk with Alfred finds new footing.
People who can't stomach anyone BUT Bruce Wayne being Batman will be happy here as Dick Grayson, Damien, and Alfred all postulate the same attitude within these pages. In the end, Dick discovers that perhaps he can't be the same Batman Bruce was, but he can perform (as he did with his parents in the Flying Graysons) as the character of Batman in his own way. It's a wonderful moment in the book that aknowledges that things aren't the same in the Batverse, but that there's room to get the job done. Meanwhile Damien stumbles right into a trap and the issue ends with a renewed Dick speeding his way to save his stubborn young ward.
Grant Morrison's subtle character analysis through interactions is in full force here. He balances entertaining action with amusing banter in such a way that it doesn't feel like the characters are being forced down our throats. It's much more audience friendly than Morrison's previous Batman arc -- Batman RIP. I would also be mistaken not to make mention of artist Frank Quietly's art. He has a very unique style that some find too "wrinkly" to be for superheroes, but anyone who's read multiple Eisner award winning All Star Superman will know it has a charm that is perfect for the slightly campy-but-gritty world Morrison is sewing with this new book.
If you're not familiar with the deep history of Batman, or simply fear reading comics because the long publishing history will drive you away; now is the time to jump on board. Only two issues in, the Batman universe is in a new territory that is as fresh to people who have been reading for decades as it is to new readers. Don't miss your chance.
Justice League: A Cry for Justice! Number One
Writer: James Robinson, Artist: Mauro Cascioli
Justice League: A Cry for Justice! explores the premise of "justice" and why the heroes in such a named league never actually dole out any of it. Lead by Green Lantern Hal Jordan, his frustration with the fact that heroes tend to sit around waiting to be attacked instead of proactively seeking out the evil doers and punishing them finally boils over in an explosive way. Severing ties with the Justice League of America, he and longtime friend Green Arrow set off into space to start finding the worst of the worst and striking at them before they strike first.
The rest of the issue jumps from scene to scene exploring the characters that will become this new Justice League and why they also thirst for justice. Writer James Robinson does a good job of making each character's motives seem deep seeded and believable. It will be interesting to see how these various, colorful characters come together and how they each deal with the obvious darkness that may come from a desire to enact vengeance without provocation. Of course the real star here is artist Mauro Cascioli. His hand painted artwork jumps off the page with insane amounts of detail that almost (ALMOST) make you feel comfortable being caught reading the comic in a public place.
The issue as a whole serves as an introduction to what this series is going to be all about. According to the letter from the writer in the back, this story will have major repercussions for the DC Universe at large so it's good to see that we'll have a strong cast of characters here in the beginning to follow through to the end. All in all this is an effective book as it manages to entertain, inform, and satisfy the urge to read something worth the time it takes. As it stands now we've only got the outline and premise and it will fall to the ensuing issues to really flesh out the concept. In short: Worth the money, but only serves as a promise right now of something greater. Keep an eye out to see if it delivers.
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