Books & Films / November 2003
Sunday, November 30th, 2003 19:54![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kittiwakeBooks Read
Who Killed Palomino Molero? - Mario Vargas Llosa
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
Cheap Date: Antidotal & Anti-fashion for a Secondhand State of Mind - Kira Jolliffe
Titus Groan - Mervyn Peake
The Richest Man in Babylon - George S Clason
Death in the Andes - Mario Vargas Llosa
Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter - Mario Vargas Llosa
Here are my first , second and third posts to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
50bookchallenge this month.
Cinema Trips
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Intolerable Cruelty
Bright Young Things
Love Actually
Cypher
"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"
It was basically a James Bond film with superheroes. A megalomaniac villain with a remote lairs kidnapping scientists to work for him, a secret service boss known as M briefing the heroes about the problem, futuristic forms of transport, yes it definitely sounds like a James Bonds film to me. I also wondered whether the name of the Phantom was a reference to the French silent movie series about Fantomas.
Nemo's submarine was a very cool shape 'the sword of the sea', and aerodynamic enough for me to believe it could go very fast, but it way too tall to have fitted under any of the bridges over the Venetian canals, and I don't think it could have been completely submerged in the London docks either. Also, the Venice carnival does not take place in August but in February/March & since the filmmakers had the carnival taking place at the wrong time of year, why didn't they take advantage of everyone wearing masks and costumes for Skinner and the Phantom? Also, I know that James Bond villains tend to have their secret headquarters in remote places, but surely the middle of Mongolia would have been way too inaccessible in Victorian times. It would be impossible for the Phantom to make sure everything was running smoothly as he travelled around Europe and there wouldn't be a good transport infrastructure for delivering the tanks and weapons to the buyers. Surely Mongolia wouldn't be snow-bound in August either?
My main problem with this movie is that it is very episodic with the scenes seeming to be bolted together. The "aren't I clever to recognise this reference" moments and the witty lines of dialogue (of which there are quite a few) seemed tacked on rather than flowing naturally. Oh, and finally, why do Hollywood baddies always have to be English! However, I didn't actually hate it and I think I really should get round to reading the graphic novel sometime.
"Intolerable Cruelty"
I liked the title sequence, animated Victorian decoupage, giving it a Pythonesque vibe. Darker and spikier than your average rom com, which isn't surprising for a Coen Brothers movie.
"Bright Young Things"
I don't think I've read "Vile Bodies", the book this is based on, so I wasn't irritated by the changed ending, but I did think Adam was the most annoying person out. Every time he had some money, he foolishly let it slip away, leaving poor old Nina wondering if he'd ever be able to afford to marry her (I found her a much more sympathetic character). Amusing in a brittle way.
"Love Actually"
I saw this film on a Saturday morning for nothing, as the person with the keys for the box office hadn't turned up so the cinema staff but the staff were letting anyone who turned up go in to see a film anyway, so as not to annoy their customers.
I have just looked Thomas Sangster (Sam) up on IMDB to find out what I'd seen him in before, and it was as Barney in last year's adaptation of "Stig of the Dump. I thought Bill Nighy was great, his unpredictable behaviour on his media appearances was great, calling Dec 'Ant or Dec' because he couldn't remember which of them he was and saying "Kids, this is a message from your Uncle Billy. Don't buy drugs. Wait until you're a rock star, and they give them to you for free! ", sounding as if he still almost couldn't believe his luck.
"Cypher"
A corporate espionage thriller from the director of "Cube", starring Jeremy Northam and Lucy Liu and set in a sepia-toned near future. The beginning reminded me of both "Brazil" and "Blade Runner". For once I guessed the twist before it was spelled out, which I failed abysmally to do in both The Sixth Sense & Fight Club. I'm actually quite surprised that it was on at Broadway rather than the mainstream cinemas.
Who Killed Palomino Molero? - Mario Vargas Llosa
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
Cheap Date: Antidotal & Anti-fashion for a Secondhand State of Mind - Kira Jolliffe
Titus Groan - Mervyn Peake
The Richest Man in Babylon - George S Clason
Death in the Andes - Mario Vargas Llosa
Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter - Mario Vargas Llosa
Here are my first , second and third posts to
50bookchallenge this month.Cinema Trips
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Intolerable Cruelty
Bright Young Things
Love Actually
Cypher
"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen"
It was basically a James Bond film with superheroes. A megalomaniac villain with a remote lairs kidnapping scientists to work for him, a secret service boss known as M briefing the heroes about the problem, futuristic forms of transport, yes it definitely sounds like a James Bonds film to me. I also wondered whether the name of the Phantom was a reference to the French silent movie series about Fantomas.
Nemo's submarine was a very cool shape 'the sword of the sea', and aerodynamic enough for me to believe it could go very fast, but it way too tall to have fitted under any of the bridges over the Venetian canals, and I don't think it could have been completely submerged in the London docks either. Also, the Venice carnival does not take place in August but in February/March & since the filmmakers had the carnival taking place at the wrong time of year, why didn't they take advantage of everyone wearing masks and costumes for Skinner and the Phantom? Also, I know that James Bond villains tend to have their secret headquarters in remote places, but surely the middle of Mongolia would have been way too inaccessible in Victorian times. It would be impossible for the Phantom to make sure everything was running smoothly as he travelled around Europe and there wouldn't be a good transport infrastructure for delivering the tanks and weapons to the buyers. Surely Mongolia wouldn't be snow-bound in August either?
My main problem with this movie is that it is very episodic with the scenes seeming to be bolted together. The "aren't I clever to recognise this reference" moments and the witty lines of dialogue (of which there are quite a few) seemed tacked on rather than flowing naturally. Oh, and finally, why do Hollywood baddies always have to be English! However, I didn't actually hate it and I think I really should get round to reading the graphic novel sometime.
"Intolerable Cruelty"
I liked the title sequence, animated Victorian decoupage, giving it a Pythonesque vibe. Darker and spikier than your average rom com, which isn't surprising for a Coen Brothers movie.
"Bright Young Things"
I don't think I've read "Vile Bodies", the book this is based on, so I wasn't irritated by the changed ending, but I did think Adam was the most annoying person out. Every time he had some money, he foolishly let it slip away, leaving poor old Nina wondering if he'd ever be able to afford to marry her (I found her a much more sympathetic character). Amusing in a brittle way.
"Love Actually"
I saw this film on a Saturday morning for nothing, as the person with the keys for the box office hadn't turned up so the cinema staff but the staff were letting anyone who turned up go in to see a film anyway, so as not to annoy their customers.
I have just looked Thomas Sangster (Sam) up on IMDB to find out what I'd seen him in before, and it was as Barney in last year's adaptation of "Stig of the Dump. I thought Bill Nighy was great, his unpredictable behaviour on his media appearances was great, calling Dec 'Ant or Dec' because he couldn't remember which of them he was and saying "Kids, this is a message from your Uncle Billy. Don't buy drugs. Wait until you're a rock star, and they give them to you for free! ", sounding as if he still almost couldn't believe his luck.
"Cypher"
A corporate espionage thriller from the director of "Cube", starring Jeremy Northam and Lucy Liu and set in a sepia-toned near future. The beginning reminded me of both "Brazil" and "Blade Runner". For once I guessed the twist before it was spelled out, which I failed abysmally to do in both The Sixth Sense & Fight Club. I'm actually quite surprised that it was on at Broadway rather than the mainstream cinemas.
