Ever since television series have become available on DVD, a void in my life has been filled. Not only can I get caught up on television shows previously unavailable to my cable-free existence, I can watch an entire season in one sitting. It seems to be a trend, especially for networks such as Showtime and HBO, to center a series on a character one would ordinarily have a difficult time relating to. Think Sopranos, Big Love, United States of Tara. Dexter perhaps poses the biggest challenge as it focuses on the trials and tribulations of a serial killer.
I was hesitant to watch the first season because the idea seemed a little creepy, but having been familiar with Michael C. Hall from Six Feet Under, I decided to give it a chance. It's easy to find sympathy for Dexter as you learn about his past, and when he is not targeting his next victim, one can almost identify with his struggle to fit in with others -- that is until you are reminded that his struggle has to do with an inability to feel emotion. His killing ways are made palatable -— or as palatable as they can be -- by his code which allows him to only hunt other killers. Is Dexter good or evil? This is the question the series continually asks.
Right now there are four seasons available, and the fourth season is perhaps the most chilling of all. It features John Lithgow in a brilliant performance as Dexter's nemesis, the Trinity Killer. The Trinity Killer is a more prolific killer than Dexter, and he also happens to be a pillar of the community, a family man, and churchgoer. As Dexter hunts him, he also hopes to learn from him as he struggles to hide behind the facade of a husband and father himself. After the first three seasons, you come to expect the close calls and miraculous escapes, but the outcome seems less assured this time. It's not always clear whether Dexter has met his match or seen his future.
Just saw this movie, Lone Star (1996). It is not a current film, and I like to watch westerns. Don't know how I missed this one.
The plot was mostly about finding the killer of the racist sheriff, Charlie Wade (Kris Kristofferson), who terrorized most of the minorities in Rio County, Texas. Buddy Deeds (Matthew McConaughey) succeeded Charlie Wade after his death and became well-liked and respected.
After the accidental discovery of some human bones that belonged to Charlie Wade, Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper), the current sheriff and son of the late Buddy Deeds, becomes suspicious. He entertained the possibility of his father's involvement in the death of Charlie Wade. Sam Deeds had a difficult relationship with his father, the venerated former sheriff, so he pried deeper into solving this murder, bent on nailing his father, so to speak, as the killer.
It is a complex film based on a multicultural community dealing with racism, a place to belong and the possibility of redemption. There is also a little romance where Sam tries to rekindle his love for an old high school flame. The ending was surprisingly fair.
If you like westerns, you'll enjoy this one. It is a contemporary western with good stars.
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, directed by Edgar Wright, is a CRASH, SMAK, POW of a mashup of video game platforms and graphic twists, and yet stays the course towards finding genuine, battle-hardened love. This movie is visually outrageous; it’s like Yo Gabba Gabba for 20-year-olds nostalgic for yesteryear.
Kudos to Wright, whose matches on action and split-second cuts are spot on; the viewer goes on a "fickle, impulsive, spontaneous" ride and never gets left behind. Alongside Wright, Bill Pope, director of photography, provides the angles necessary to make the conflict both convincing and reminiscent of the viewer’s fighting game of choice. Also impressive is how Pope makes cold Toronto seem grungy but inviting and magical.
But how could a camera make the fight sequences look so good? Enter the incredible stunt coordinators: Brad Allan and Peng Zhang. Only they could make a TKO out of Guitar Hero-inspired battles of Kill Bill severity, with a dash of Pokémon quirkiness, set to the bold hues and fast-paced action of Speed Racer. Their stunt sequences even make Michael Cera look indomitable. I'm not usually a fan of Michael Cera's because he usually plays a one-dimensional character, but the editing is so well done that even his portrayal of Scott Pilgrim is fun, exciting, and proves to be a force to be reckoned with -- watch out Jet Li! There's a new action star on the rise!
Oh, and it's a love story as well. Actually, it's more of a teenage/post-adolescent romance with its fair share of drama, distress, daydreams, and nihilism. The supporting cast is great. There's a lot of talent on the roster who breathe life into the script. Are there cheesy moments? Yep. Is it surreal? Sure. Is it unexpectedly fresh and does it make you feel like unleashing some serious Star Power? Absolutely!
Anyway, to make a long story short, don't totally bail on this movie. You might just enjoy it. I would love to read the comments from the readers! Agree or disagree, your opinion matters.
What would you do to defend your right to read? Library War is a fun manga series from 2007 that responds to that question with action, comedy, romance, and an amazing cast of characters that are sure to become close to any reader's heart. Based on the novel series Toshokan Sensou and adapted into a TV series, Library War is set in a future where the Japanese government is cracking down on the media. With all political solutions exhausted, the libraries decide to militarize and fight back against this imposed censorship.
The story follows Iku Kasahara as she works to become the first female Task Force member of the Library Defense Force. While she was in High school, government soldiers came into the book store she was shopping at to enforce a recently released banning list. The book she was holding and about to purchase was on their list of books and she refused to give it up, even as the soldier tried to tear it from her hands. Saved by a member of the Library Task Force, her nameless "prince" becomes her own noble goal to help protect the readers of Japan. The Task Force members not only act as librarians as we know them, but are the library's main defenders and field operatives.
The strength of this series comes from the cast: the naive and energetic Kasahara, the other newbie and more stoic Hikaru Tezuka, the gruff drill sergeant Atsushi Dojo, Kasahara's roommate, the more information minded Asako Shibasaki and jovial branch Captain Ryusuke Genda are all characters that are given time to shine, even in their shorter screen time. Each of them are well fleshed characters, not only by their actions, but also their beliefs about what libraries should stand for. These aren't just people you’d want fighting for your right to read, but people you’d love to see working at your local library as normal staff as well.
Another notable thing about this series is the lack of a concrete villain. There is of course the Media Betterment Act and Committee and their own militarized force, but very few of them are portrayed as outright anti-library. The story takes care to show that the enemy is the policy, and not the people tasked with enforcing it.
The manga itself has more of a focus on the romantic side of the plotline, and a slightly bigger bend towards comedy. Sadly, the TV series and the original novels themselves haven't been officially brought to America yet, but look for future blog posts for information on when this incredible series brings them over. If you see this series in your library, be sure to give the first volume a read. You won't regret it!
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The price of the movie theater experience keeps going up so it only makes sense to spend more time watching movies at home where you can make up your own rules and not bother the stranger in front of you. With a group of like-minded friends and some free DVDs from Queens Library, you can even throw a theme party.
My friends and I often come up with ideas for such events that start with a couple of possible titles and soon morph into a three-day festival. The "I Love NY/I Hate LA" theme would now take about a week to do properly. Obviously some editing is required in picking the movies. I am always happy to offer suggestions for themes and films, but feel free to make them your own.
April is National Poetry Month and several films come immediately to mind.Hot off his Academy Award performance, James Franco can be seen portraying Allen Ginsberg in Howl (2010). It's an under-appreciated film about the writing and impact of the famous poem of the same name. Judging by its limited theatrical run, it's a good bet that you haven't seen it yet.Another film focused on one wordsmith with a New York connection would be The Basketball Diaries (1995). Leonardo DiCaprio portrays doomed poet, musician and junkie Jim Carroll.Both films deal with very adult themes, so put the kids in another room with the latest Pixar/Disney/PBS obsession while you hang with your own Beat crowd.
If watching real modern poets do their thing with a hip-hop flair is more to your taste, you can pick up the HBO series Def Poetry which ran for seven seasons between 2002 and 2007. All 45 episodes might be too much in one sitting, but you could always make a contest out of it. Winners get to act like Mos Def or Russell Simmons and host the next party.
Finally, there's the Citizen Kane of Hollywood poetry movies, Dead Poets Society (1989). Robin Williams and a cast of gorgeous young men (there are women at your party, right?) tear up textbooks, jump on tables and generally broaden their outlook on life via the wonders of classic poetry from the masters. The movie has action, comedy, drama and is a crowd-pleaser. To my taste the only thing better would be the scenes between middle-aged student Rodney Dangerfield and poetry professor Sally Kellerman in Back to School (1989). Now, what rhymes with Triple Lindy?
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Pink covers on a hardcover novel usually suggest a chick-lit book. The Richest Season by Maryann McFadden is much more than your typical boy meets girl story. The characters are older with the main character Joanna an empty- nester in New Jersey who misses her children.She is a corporate wife whose husband dictates one relocation move too many. After 25 years, she leaves Paul and flees to the one place she remembers being happy, Pawleys Island, South Carolina where she becomes a live-in companion of a dying woman, Grace. Life lessons about love, loss, and one’s own worth are woven into a well-written, fast-paced story with characters you can care about.
Memoirists can pick and choose the stories they tell, and while some have been known to outright lie or embellish (i.e. James Frey or Augustan Burroughs), Julie Klausner in her memoir, I Don't Care about Your Band: What I Learned from Indie Rockers, Trust Funders, Pornographers, Felons, Faux Sensitive Hipsters, and Other Guys I've Dated, is more open and honest about experiences that were painful and embarrassing than one might think she should be.Klausner, a comedy writer and performer, recounts her quest for love in New York City and many of the details she divulges are often hilarious and at times excruciating. She describes how after her first sexual experiences in high school she felt that the boys involved were doing her a favor. In her twenties she learns that ”when a guy dates you for three months and you still can’t call him your boyfriend, it’s time to figure out why it is you’re still hooking up with him.”In the process, she learns to stay away from people who are not able to meet her needs. Klausner’s sense of humor may seem a bit off-color at times and this book may not be for everyone, but women in their twenties and thirties, and particularly women who’ve dated in New York City, might “relate to the sad stuff that’s funny” and “marvel at the stories they’re grateful to experience only from the safe distance of a spectator.”
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day GeorgeCreelisel Carlbrun is the daughter of a poor farmer and a mother who is talented in sewing and embroidery.When they die, she and her brother go to live with their aunt.Her aunt hatches an elaborate plot to get Creel married, but she decides to leave her aunt’s home to seek her fortune in the King’s Seat, her country’s capital. On her way there she is waylaid by some bandits and is rescued by a dragon.What follows this wonderful beginning is a story of a young heroine who never gives up, eccentric dragons who are not violent but collect things that interest them, like stained glass windows, rare books or shoes.A pair of magic blue slippers plays an integral part in the story.Another appealing element in the story is a crown prince who is not a snob.This light fantasy with very little violence will appeal to girls aged 10 and up especially those interested in fashion as the author lovingly describes gowns that the talented heroine designs and makes.Readers can follow Creel’s adventures in the sequel Dragon Flight & Dragon Spear.
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Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography by Sidney Jacobson and Ernie ColónDid you like reading, Anne Frank the Diary of a Young Girl, but wondered what happened before they went into hiding and what happened after they were discovered in the Secret Annex?Then this is the book for you, it covers the events that led up to WWII, Anne’s parents, about Anne’s life before hiding, during that period, and what happened after they were discovered. The book is in an easy to read graphic novel format and really holds your attention.So pick up this book and read what the Diary left out.
