Goodreads Book Review - The Spectacular Now

The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I picked this book up because the movie adaption is probably my favorite movie of the year so far so I figured the book must be fantastic, and I wasn't disappointed. I enjoyed the hell out of this book. It's remarkably well-written. The main character's voice is enthralling and endearing, something absolutely necessary for a book written entirely in the first-person; however, for all that Sutter is enthralling and endearing, you also can't help but feel bad for him and all his delusions. The only complaint I have about the entire book is the depressing-as-all-hell ending. I much preferred the movie ending, but I can't hold that against the book. It's just a matter of personal preference and takes absolutely nothing away from just how damn good this book is.



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Goodreads Book Review - The Godborn

The Godborn by Paul S. Kemp

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


As a follow-up to The Companions, this novel is pretty week, but as a stand-alone, it's... well, it's okay. It's definitely not for the uninitiated; if, like me, you going into this without having read all the other Erevis Cale novels, you're going to feel like you're swimming in the Bermuda Triangle for awhile. That's one of the books big problems. The other is that it takes entirely too long to go anywhere. After a very riveting prologue, the book spends way too much time being about powerful people talking about their plans without really saying or doing anything. I mean, the titular character doesn't do anything for almost 120 pages! What gets it three stars though is that once it picks up, it really picks up. The action becomes riveting and the drama even more so as those plans they spent so much time talking about start reaching their conclusions. Add that to the enjoyable and mostly well-developed characters and you have a three-star book that, if not for pacing problems, would easily have been rated four stars, or maybe even higher.



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Goodreads Book Review - Winter's Bone

Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is a very visceral, powerful read. It's stark and depressing with characters that feel both real and a little larger-than-life all at the same time. This is all due to the way Woodrell commits to the writing style he chose to use. The rough mountain language used by the characters isn't limited to just dialogue; it's in every sentence he writes, and it leads to the reader feeling fully immersed in the story he's telling. And Ree Dolly is one of the easiest characters to root for I've ever come across, due to her "sand," as other characters say. She's tough and hardened but still full of love, and you just have to both feel for and root for her.



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Insidious Chapter 2

I have a very trusted barometer I use for just how scary a horror movie is: how many sleepless nights it gives me. By that barometer, 2011's Insidious was easily one of the scariest movies I've seen in years, giving me three sleepless nights before I got over it. Following that, then, Insidious Chapter 2 wasn't nearly as scary as the first one, resulting in only one sleepless night for me, and that sleeplessness could also fairly be attributed to a night of drinking an abundance of cocktails made with a Red Bull substitute. But just because it wasn't as scary as it's predecessor in no way means it was a bad movie; quite the contrary, actually. And I'll tell you why, and stay almost entirely spoiler-free while I do so. You're welcome for that, by the way.

First though, why wasn't it scary? The answer is through no fault of its own but instead due to what I call The Law of Diminishing Returns of Horror Sequels. What scares us about horror movies... and I'm not talking about the cheap jump scares here... is the unknown; we're afraid because we don't know what's going on. Freddy is terrifying in the first Nightmare on Elm Street because we don't know what his deal is. He becomes less scary once we know what's going on. The same can be said about just about any horror franchise, and Insidious Chapter 2 is no exception. We know the ghosts from the Further are trying to inhabit the father and son is this family so they can live again, and we know they're after those two because they have the power to "travel" into The Further while they sleep. That knowledge takes some of the fright out of it, and if you're anything like me, most of the rest is taken out by the knowledge that this can't possibly happen to you (because let's be honest, the reason The Exorcist is still to this day possibly the most terrifying movie ever is because, if you're remotely spiritual, you believe somewhere in your mind that shit can happen...). But again, just because the fear isn't there doesn't necessarily mean the sequel is bad.

And Insidious Chapter 2 isn't bad at all, partly because it seemed like the writers and director knew that with the mystery behind the fear gone they'd have to focus on something different to make a good movie. Instead of focusing on the question of what's going on and how it's happening, they focus on why and explore the mystery behind events. Instead of just trying to make us afraid of the spirit that was trying to possess the father in the first installment, they look into who, what, and why that is, and they tie it into the first installment in very tight ways some of them very surprising and satisfying. Which isn't to say the movie is perfect; they try to throw some humor into it in the form of two of the supernatural experts and in almost every instance it falls flat, serving not to amuse but to distract and it just breaks up the tension. But I can forgive that because the rest of the movie makes up for it.

It's probably obvious I really enjoyed this installment, probably more than I enjoyed any horror sequel in a long time. I just have one real gripe with it, and here's where the one spoiler I'll throw at you comes in: this horrifying, Tiptoe-Through-The-Tulips motherfucker wasn't in it...

...or was he? Insidious Chapter 3 is happening, after all.

And now, because I can't let that be the last image any of us sees, here's future Hollywood It Girl and star of my favorite movie of the year so far, The Spectacular Now, the adorable and amazingly talented Shailene Woodley.

Goodreads Book Review - The Silver Linings Playbook

The Silver Linings Playbook by Matthew Quick

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is one of those very rare times when I actually thought the movie was better than the book... but this review is about the book, so I'll stick to that. I enjoyed the plot and the characters, although as the story is told from Pat's perspective, all the characters except him and maybe his mother really get stuck with the short straw in terms of characterization. The other drawback to the first-person narration is that since it's Pat's and he's basically nuts, it's a very simple and very repetitive writing style that can get a little boring. The novel also has a very abrupt ending that is sort of anti-climactic after what comes before it, but overall it was still an enjoyable enough read... that was completely eclipsed by the movie.

Sorry. Couldn't resist.



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New Shows Review: ABC Wins, CBS Loses. Twice.

I'm going to keep this one short and sweet today. I've seen three new fall premieres since last time, two on purpose and one because I had half an hour to kill last night and there was absolutely nothing else on. So let's get down to business.

I'm not really going to review S.H.I.E.L.D. because the point of a review is to possibly sway the opinion of people who aren't sure if they want to see something. Let's face it, there really aren't any such people when it comes to this show. Everyone who wants to watch it already is and have been waiting for it with bated breath since it was announced, and the people who aren't already watching it never will. So Instead I'll just say that while I loved it, there is still room for improvement, and I'm sure it'll get nothing but better as time goes on. ABC wins.

I wanted to like this. I really did. I've given everything Sarah Michelle Gellar has done since Buffy a chance, and this was no different. And it really was no different as, just like everything else she's done since Buffy, it was just awful. Robin Williams overacts his way through the whole affair as is his wont. Comedy has never been SMG's strong suit unless she's playing against the right supporting cast, and this supporting cast just falls flat. Plus, it has Hamish Linklater in it, and I just have an irrational dislike of him now after his turn as Jerry Dantana in The Newsroom. CBS unfortunately loses on this one.

I had absolutely nothing to watch last night so I ended up giving this a shot, even though I hadn't planned to originally. I should have stuck to my gut. I didn't laugh once. From the inane and overdone voice-over narration to the caricatures they parade out as characters to the forced male camaraderie that just grates, there is absolutely nothing good about this show. CBS definitely loses here.

So far, out of five new shows, the only survivors are the aforementioned S.H.I.E.L.D. and the surprisingly good Sleepy Hollow. There are still a few more to go, but it's looking like a pretty weak fall season so far...

Goodreads Book Review - William Shakespeare's Star Wars

William Shakespeare's Star Wars by Ian Doescher

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is kind of impossible to review. It's A New Hope, written as a Shakespearean play. There are a few editorial errors, but other than that, it's exactly as brilliant as you'd expect, with in-jokes to a whole slew of other Shakespeare plays and inside knowledge of the rest of the SW universe. It's worth reading for fun, and I would absolutely kill to see this performed.



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