Oh you, "She Devil" you!

She Devil (<-- IMDB link)

Oh my god.  This movie is amazing!  It stars Roseanne Barr and it’s probably from the late 1980’s (hair's a giveaway), but it is AMAZING.  It’s really funny, and kind of a women’s rights/activist movie, though that is very subtle. 

Rose’s (movie and real name) husband, Bob, (Ed Begley, Jr.) cheats on her with a best selling novelist, Mary Fisher, (Meryl Streep) who is much more “beautiful and thin” than her.  She knows this is happening, but swears that her husband will come back to her and that he is just going through a phase.  Eventually, they have a big argument about it, and he leaves during a dinner party that she throws for his parents (in which many things go wrong).  He ends the fight by calling her a “she devil,” whilst insulting everything about her.

Rose then creates a list of the things that he said were important to him, and she decides to embody the so-called “she-devil.”  The main plot is how she decides to destroy Bob's life.  She creates a list of the top four things he said was the most important to him, and one by one she ruins them, and it's quite ...exploding.  

The underlying point this movie is trying to make concerns women's rights.  Through a series of events, she ends up meeting a bunch of different women, empowering them by saying beauty isn’t skin deep, and telling them it’s okay stand up for themselves--but I should also mention that she is simultaneously setting them using them as pawns in her master plan.  She and a friend create a company where these “mistreated and underappreciated” women can learn how to be powerful and take control of their lives.  So it's kind of cool because while she is taking revenge on Bob, she becomes this successful business tycoon-type, creating other women like her.

I don’t want to give too much away, because it is a funny movie and I want you to see it.  Especially if you want to have a lazy, giggly Sunday.

Enjoy!

A Hymn For Anthropologists

I am a giant fan of Regina Spektor.  I want to learn how to play all of her songs on the piano, but her piano books are quite hard to obtain.

If you have ever listened to any of her music, you should be familiar with the complexity and the cleverness of her lyrics.

On her most recent album (that one -->)
she has one song that instantly made me think of my profession: archaeology.  As you may know, archaeologists find things and put dates on them, then they end up in museums where people can oogle them.

The song is called, "All the Rowboats."  I believe that she is in a museum and she is describing her experience there, starting with one painting that has rowboats.  She says at one time, "they keep hanging in their gold frames for forever and a day," meaning that even after humanity is gone the painting will probably still be around.  Of course I think the ending of humanity probably would depend on a cataclysmic event.

When she says she "hears them whispering" French, German, Dutch Italian and Latin, I believe she is referring to the cross cultural phenomena of locking things that are old and of value away to keep them safe.

She then goes on to sing about how the violins are stuck in these glass cases (coffins) and it's so sad and pitiful that they've forgotten how to sing.  The original intent and purpose of items in a museum, like a violin, is forgotten, and the music that instrument makes won't be heard again, so what is the point of keeping them locked up other than to look?  Probably one of my favorite lines from the song is "masterpieces serving maximum sentences."  It's just so clever and rings true.

This song is very well written and lyrically reminds me of Anais Mitchell's style.  As far as the album goes, it is well done like all of her work, but you can see that she is really trying to expand herself as an artist.  When I saw her in concert she said that she had been practicing her beatbox, and whenever you hear a beatbox on this album, it's her.  I love her so much and hope you enjoy her too.

Star Trek: Into Darkness

BUM BUM BUM!! Khan.

Scotty Running -
He does this a lot in this movie!

Need I say more?

As many of you Star Trek fans remember (or even if you don't), the first new Star Trek movie informs us that we are in a different dimension than that presented by the 1960s Star Trek.  As you may know, a different dimension doesn't mean necessarily that all the events are different, it just means that the outcomes of similar events will be different.  To explain this a little better:

Dimension 1:

Event A occurs,  Person 1 and Person 2 do stuff, person 1 dies

Dimension 2:

Event A occurs, Person 1 and Person 2 do stuff, person 2 dies

That is super simplified version of how the events affect the outcomes, but if you really want to see what I mean, watch the original movie (hold on to your pants; it's exciting), then watch the new movie.  But don't just watch the new one, see it in theaters.  But don't just see it in theaters.  See it in the IMAX.  In 3D.  3D HAS GOTTEN SO MUCH MORE AWESOME!!

I usually hate seeing 3D movies because I end up with a headache, and let's face it when they first started coming out they sucked.  This movie didn't suck and it was totally worth the 3D ness.

If you are a nit-picky movie goer, you will notice a lot of things wrong with this movie; like how in the end it's just wrapped in a nice little package with a pretty little bow.  But you have to keep in mind, it's a movie, not a TV show, and there is no lengthy time for super explanatory endings.

However, if you like to be entertained by movies (like me), you will really enjoy this movie.  There is a lot of action packed fights, Spock-humor, and stunningly handsome leads.  Scotty and Chekov (no idea how to spell his name) play a larger part in this than the TV show, and they are so funny and do their parts justice.

If you are a Pine nut, a Quinto fan, Saldana, Karl Urban (Damnit Spock I'm a Doctor, not a physician), or whoever you follow, they all did a wonderful acting job and you will like this!  Not to mention the hard work of all the animators, directors, etc., make the movie so entertaining.  And Benedict Cumberbatch (what a lengthy name!) did such a good job at playing Khan.

My recommendation is to watch this movie and judge it for yourself; if your disappointed it's your own fault.  You have to remember that Gene Roddenburry isn't alive anymore, so it doesn't have his touch, but it's a good taken on it's own and separate from all the TV series.  Enjoy!

Book #7: A Storm of Swords: George R.R. Martin

Hello fellow avid readers.  There is a lot that I have to say about this book; it may contain spoilers if you haven't read it.  It may contain spoilers if you are watching the TV show.  I don't know because I haven't watched it yet - I was waiting until I finished the book, and now the moment has finally arrived.  I'm not usually one of those "I have to read the book before I see the movie types."  In fact, I started reading the books after I started watching the TV series, but OH MY GOD THE BOOKS ARE SOOOOO GOOD!!!  The writing is clear, concise and easy to get through - it's just lengthy as hell.  For example, this book is over 1100 pages, and that doesn't take into account all the good extra stuff about the houses found at the end.

You would think that by the time you get to the third book in a series the plot gets boring, but no. There are about a thousand twists that occur in this book that I was completely blind sided by.  From the second book, we still get to see the story from Davos, Caitlin, Tyrion, Sansa, Arya, Samwell, Jon, and JAMIE.  We get to see the story from another Lannister - the broken hero with reasons, who nobody listens to.  He does one major bad deed in his life and it follows him around his life; but he is broken, and we get to explore his transformation into the new Jamie Lannister. It's definitely interesting and unexpected.  There may be other characters' points of view, but I can't remember off the top of my head and my book isn't near me.

First, I am going to give a few character summaries and what they went through during the course of this book, and then I will give you what I thought a main theme of the book was.  So again, SPOILERS MAY BE CONTAINED WITHIN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES.

Sansa:  Oh, Sansa.  Where to begin?  A lot happens with her, remember she is only 12/13 years old, so she is still very young.  However, we do see some character growth and we see her becoming more of an independent thinker.  Thinker, would be the key word.  She doesn't really act on any of her thoughts.  She plans to act but she always hesitates, which puts her in a sticky situation.  Although, maybe if she would act impulsively she would have died at the end of the story.  But she doesn't.  She does get married though, and you will never guess to whom, but it's definitely a shock - she's kind of a bitch to him to, and he tolerates it.  Absolutely nuts.

Arya: Arya is as scraggly as a girl as ever.  She is 8/9 in the story (I always forget with her) and she kills like it's nobody's business.  I don't even think she questions herself as to whether or not she is doing right, she just knows what needs to be done.  She doesn't yet realize that she is a Warg, but she is shifting into her wolf's skin when she sleeps.  Following catastrophic events, she falls into a deep depression and the most unlikely of heroes helps her out.

Tyrion:  Craziness.  Plots, twists, turns, scheming.  He does it all, and it ends up biting him in the ass.  Oh, but don't worry, he gets revenge in the end.  Like seriously, the last 2 or 3 pages of the story, but it is definitely a game changer.

Cersei:  Well, she really isn't in the story.  Except for like little background decisions, and we see how she just really, really wants to be a boy, and should have been a boy because she has more scheming things than anyone.

Samwell: I love Sam.  Everyone loves Sam.  Sam almost dies, but ends up saving some people.  Does he find his courage?  He claims no, he claims Gilly gives him courage, but by the end of the story you can't help but notice how ballsy he really is.

Jon:  Jon also almost dies, A LOT.  He is a cloak-changer, a warg, a lover, a killer but you definitely see him develop his leader skills.  I just hope he can save everyone from the Others.  (I also can't wait to see some of the scenes in the TV show 'cause I know they're gonna be steamy!)

Jeoffry:  He gets married!  There are a lot of marriages in this story.  Possibly one for every death?  But he marries someone not really in the story (well the first two), and she seems like a super badass and she comes with a lot of weaponry.  But ya know during this story Jeoff is his usual ass self.  And he's only 13.  Could you imagine what type of king he's going to be like?  I feel like another Mad King is in the making.  Oh and guess what, JEOFF is the one who sent the dagger to kill Brandon. To impress his "father," King Robert.

Petyr:  He is a sneaky son-of-a-bitch, and I kind of wonder how much control he really has over everything in "the game."  At the end he reveals some of what he's had his hand in...and I can think of someone he will put his hand in.  (ewwwww, gross, sexual!)

I don't know, there are so many characters in this book.  Some that die, some that seemingly die, one that came back from the dead.  It seems like there are weddings and feasts and betrayals left and right.  It's insanity.

Oh yeah!  That reminds me - so the Lord of the Light plays a huge role in this book, and it's really complicated and I don't want to go into it, but Stannis and Melissandre are definitely the ones in the background that are (I predict) gonna kick some major ass.  Also, Stannis is the rightful heir to the throne, so super big motivator...

One thing that occurs over and over in this book is that author is not afraid to kill main characters.  I believe that eight of the main characters die in this story, which is what usually doesn't happen in books.  The first couple were a real shock, and you would think by not the shock value fades.  I think this is a real unique approach to writing because we are taught from childhood that if you are "good" and you fight "evil" you will live a healthy and prosperous life; real life isn't like that at all.  What I also love about this book is how much philosophy of good and evil you can take from this book.  If you have ever taken a philosophy class that is one of the great questions to ponder, what makes "good" and what makes "evil?"  Is it the agreement of the majority of society creating the rules to govern what is good and evil?  Is it something that just is?  Is something more inherent that we just "know" to be right?  Whatever you think it is, you have to acknowledge the possibility that a person can be seemingly evil, but do good deeds; a person can also seem good in the eyes of others, but do evil things to create the overall good for the majority of people. It all depends on what side of the coin you are on as to how you view people/things as good and evil.  And that brings me around to my original point.  This book brings into light the reasons and intentions behind a lot of the "bad" characters actions and you see how they were things gone awry.


Ciao for now!

Murder, anyone? Book #5

Red Herring: A Joe Gunther Novel by Archer Mayor

Fact: Archer Mayor is a real life “Richard Castle.”  I am not even kidding.  Besides being a novelist, Mayor is a state medicolegal death investigator, a volunteer firefighter/EMT, AND a detective.  For the Sheriff’s department.  Awesome.

However, there is a big difference between the author ‘Richard Castle” and Archer Mayor.  I mean, besides the fact that Mayor is a real person.  That difference is this book is very well written (books like “Nikki Heat” suck in terms of literature).

Now, I’ve not really read a lot of mystery/murder books.  In fact up until this book, the only ones I’ve ever read have been Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s novels (Sherlock Holmes).  I’ve also concluded that maybe this isn’t my genre of book, but as I mentioned before, this one is well written.  It kind of reminded me of a TV crime show episode, just happening at a slower pace.  Until the last two chapters, then all of a sudden shit hit the fan, and it was super intriguing.

This story takes place all over Vermont, but it focuses in Brattleboro.  A murder happens to a little old lady.  Seemingly she was raped; but was she?  Another person commits suicide with a brand new cord, and a stool that is too short?  A kid, seemingly with a belly full of booze, takes a corner too sharp on his way home from work in West Leb to Thetford, or does he?  How are these people connected, and what is going on that is devastating to such a small place right before a very important election?  These questions and more will be answered if you read about this mystery that is plaguing the poor countryside of Vermont.

If you enjoy mystery novels, you should definitely check out Archer Mayor and his Joe Gunther series.  If not, check it out anyway.  It’s a relatively small book and shouldn’t take more than a week to read if you have the time.

A MUST READ!! (Book #4)

The Casual Vacancy: J.K. Rowling

This book is not like J.K. Rowling’s previous books.  And in case you have been living under a rock this past decade, she is the brilliant writer behind the Harry Potter Series.  Let me be clear, she is not necessarily responsible for the movies (I dunno about the logistics behind the movies); people tend to have mixed reviews about the movies.  But I have found that people who have those mixed reviews haven’t read a single book.  Or they read the first book and claimed that it was childish—but as any avid Potter fan will say, “when you read the books you start at age 10, and you grow up with Harry and his friends…”  Well, something to that effect.  Anyway, that is part of the genius behind Rowling.  Her characters are complex people who grow up and learn from things that have happened to them; they make mistakes and don’t necessarily choose what seems like an obvious solution.

This book takes place in the British country area of Pagford and Yarvil.  There is a definite sense of realism and modernity, with the characters aptly using things such as social media, (i.e., facebook).

“The Casual Vacancy” is a social commentary on today’s society; and it’s not big picture (super political level/whole country), it’s little picture (small town, neighborhood sort of thing). Now, I am not too familiar with everything that is going on in the UK, but throughout the world there is a lot of socio-economic turmoil; a huge deviation formally known in the US as the 1% versus the 99%.  People are constantly pre-judging everyone that appears to come from a “lower class,” and as a result people kind of get stuck in their economic situation.  What I love about this book is how it emphasizes the roles that are forced on children and how they react to this illusion world that their parents live in; there are actions to their consequences, but it is definitely satisfaction to see their parents idealistic world fall apart.

Spoiler alert : Barry Fairbrother dies (but it’s okay you will read it in the first chapter).   As the book progresses, you get the sense that he is part of the “1” that fought for the “99.”  He tried to make people see past their own prejudices and stereotypes, by showing that with nurture and support anybody can do anything; but if there is a whole town of people, including your own family, telling you that you are a worthless whore, you will start to believe that is all you can become. 

What Rowling did with this book, was take this one fighter for the unwanted and she killed him.  It is really interesting to see what kind of effect this has on this small community of Pagford (and to a lesser extent Yarvil).  It seems as if Fairbrother was the lynch pin of the town, and if you take away the lynch pin, shit hits the fan, as you will see when you read this book.

Hopefully, this intrigued you enough to want to read the book.  If it didn’t, you should read it anyway, because it is well written, captivating, and interesting even if you don’t get a lot out of it…which you should, because otherwise you suck.

Book # 3: Persepolis 2...say whaaaat?

Book #3: Persepolis 2: Marjane Satrapi

I am fairly sure, my avid readers, that you are thinking what I am thinking—another book, really?  Before the end of January (well, by the time you read this/I post this it will be February)…

However, as this book is a graphic novel, it isn’t what you would consider a slow read.  The graphics are very enjoyable, though, and you should take the time to look at them.

“Persepolis 2” is actually a combination of the original books 3 and 4, but when the book was translated from it’s original language, they (the omnipresent they) decided to combine into one book.  This book isn’t a newer one; in fact it is kind of funny how I stumbled onto this find.

So there I was, sitting in a steam sauna, steaming it up, waiting for 15 minutes to go by when I noticed a magazine.  I picked it up, glanced through it and saw a review for “Persepolis.”  Seems interesting enough.  When I looked at the date when the magazine was printed it was from 2007 (obviously the gym’s magazine was a little dated); the book was originally translated in 2004.  I ended up putting it on hold at my local Multnomah County library the next day.

All of the "Persepolis" books are really interesting to read.  I believe that when the author wrote it she wrote it to inform white people that not all middle easterners are terrorists - of course she doesn't say it quite so forthright in her interviews, but I do have an English minor and I can read between the lines: this book is for all the ignoramuses out there who are internally racist.  Now of course I know this doesn't apply to all you who are reading this; you are much more cultured.  And a lot has happened in the last 10 years, so that there are more people who understand culture and its various functions, even though we cultured may sometimes be more silent in the crowd.

With that tangential rant in mind, you should read this book.  It is really well written and captivating.  The author goes through many trials in her life, including identity crises (moving form an eastern culture to a western culture, growing up, etc.,), and several devastating losses that no child should endure, but happens more often than people care to admit.

Enjoy this book, and if you have any recommendations for me I'd be happy to read them.

Peace and read with fervency!