Suicide Squad or The Missed Opportunity by DC Filmmakers

I honestly don’t know how to give a concise sum up for this review.  I don’t.  I tried.  I asked around.  I don’t know.  It wasn’t a terrible film, I guess, but it certainly wasn’t a good one.  I feel like this film, even more than Batman vs Superman, shows just how little DC understands why the Avengers worked.  If you’re not willing to put in the work for your ensemble pieces, then you’re not going to get a quality product.

That was my predominant thought, over and over again, as I watched this.  Gee, I would have liked to see a movie about this guy.  Gee I would have liked to spent more time with Harley and the Joker before she went crazy.  Gee, I wish I cared more about June and Rick, but they just don’t give me enough time.

Put in the work, DC.  You could have broken new ground here.  No one, literally no one, has done this sort of thing.  You could have applied the Avengers formula to villains, and if you think that wouldn’t have sold you clearly don’t understand your own product.  I would have watched the hell out of at least four of the possible origins this film offers.  But we didn’t get that, and so I didn’t feel emotionally bonded to anyone on screen.  You cut down your own stakes by treating your main characters with as much disregard as their jailer.  And now you’re reaping the results.

Pete’s Dragon

Pete’s Dragon?  Harmless, predictable, and pretty to look at.  That’s my take away from it.  I didn’t love it, I didn’t hate it.  The kids in the audience seemed to really enjoy it and that’s what matters at the end of the day.  The things I found overdone were clearly brand new to them.

That being said?  This movie was definitely not straining itself in anything other than visual effects.

I think that’s the thing that disappointed me about this the most.  It took zero risks.  To start with, they completely threw out the original film.  The only thing the two have in common are that there’s a boy named Pete and green dragon named Elliot.  That’s it.  The settings different.  The conflict is different.  The whole plot is different.  So if you’re going to do that, why would you then waste so much time being every other kids movie I’ve ever seen?  There was real potential here, and they didn’t even try.

Okay so what WAS the plot, since clearly it’s not the original?  Spoilers from here on out.

The Little Prince

I have been looking forward to this movie for so long.  I teared up during the trailer.  I called Paramount idiots for pulling the plug so close to release.  Now I see why.  I can only imagine what the test audiences had to say about it as they left those theaters.  How it’s getting such good reviews now I have no idea.  I almost feel like everyone on the internet watched a different movie than me.  This is among the worst films I’ve ever seen, and I haven’t seen a kids film miss the point of its source material this badly since The Lorax.  I want to be painfully clear, the only reason I gave this two stars instead of one is that the parts that actually DO deal with the Little Prince’s actual story are gorgeous, touching, visually interesting, and wonderful.  If you want my advice?  Wait a couple of weeks for someone to cut those together on youtube and just watch that.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Last night, I finished Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in the wee hours of the morning, and I sat for awhile, wondering how I felt about it.  And I wasn’t sure.  I slept on it.  I thought about it all this morning.  And I’m still not entirely sure.  Overall?  I think it was a little…meh.  That’s not to say BAD.  I think it was a very enjoyable play.  I think it would be amazing to watch on stage.  If they can pull off even half the magic they describe in the stage directions then there is no amount of money I wouldn’t pay to see this.  How was it as a read, though?  Well…I guess I just don’t consider it Harry Potter.

You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day

I had two dominant feelings while reading this book.  1.) Omg, she’s me.  And 2.) Omg, she’s (insert internet bestie who really should read this book).  Felicia Day is all of us, and for that, we really should thank her more often.

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, it should be noted that I was already a huge fan of Felicia Day long before this book came out.  The fact that I had to work on a day when she was signing this not far from me is endlessly a source of heartbreak for me.  My mother was supposed to go and get my book autographed, but forgot.  I’m not saying I cried, but I definitely thought about having a nice little cry about it.

Ghostbusters

While I normally like to write my reviews on the day I see the film, with this one?  I wanted to wait a bit.  I wanted to let the immediate, knee jerk reactions settle before I put my thoughts down in writing.  And you know what?  I’m glad I did.  Because now that I have, I can look at the flaws the film had, that I initially overlooked in my euphoria of WOMEN BUSTING GHOSTS! and talk about this film objectively.

And what is my objective opinion?  WOMEN BUSTING GHOSTS IS AWESOME!

Black Lives Matter in Cincinnati Ohio

Today, I attended a Black Lives Matter march in Cincinnati, Ohio.

To say I was moved by what I saw there doesn’t begin to cover it.  There should be better words, better explanations for our emotions.  Then, perhaps, I could convey what I saw and what I felt in a concise way.  We need better words.

The Legend of Tarzan

This was everything I’ve ever wanted from a Tarzan film.

Tarzan has always been one of my very favorite stories.  It was my favorite Disney film and that lead me to reading the original works.  The books are…very much a product of their times.  They give a very pro-imperialism message while giving one of the more racist portrayals of native Africans that I’ve been unfortunate enough to read.  They also had a fundamental lack of understanding of life in the jungle, up to and including what animals actually lived there.  Jane Porter is little more than a pretty bauble to be obtained, spending most of the narrative whining, fearful, and wanting to go home.  She is very fickle in her emotions and spends the story being guided by the two male entities in her life.  I tell you these things because when I say that this film fixed everything that had been wrong with the original Tarzan stories, I want you to understand what that means.

30 Day Book Challenge

Day 4 – Your Favorite Series

Okay so I’m a tiny bit late, but cut a girl some slack.  I had a big day of tattoo getting and then work!  Even managed to do a little writing today.

SO my favorite series.  Is it a cop out to say Harry Potter?  I think it really takes the top slot, for obvious reasons that if you don’t understand I’m not sure I can help you.  But there are some honorable mentions:

A Series of Unfortunate Events

I love this series not for the story it tells, but for the story it doesn’t tell.  I LIVED for the moments we got to get clips of Lemony’s life, or of the children’s parents lives.  The dedications were everything to me.  And the way it ended, without really ending at all?  Utter perfection.  This may be intended for children, but the overall scope of the thing is fucking amazing.

Outlander

If this series has an actual name, I’m not aware of it, but I’m referring to the series of books that began with Outlander by Diana Gabaldon.  Now, I say this knowing I haven’t read the last couple of books.  I’m woefully behind in all my reading, really.  But Outlander is one of my most reread books of all time.  Also my most loaned out.  The history, the love story, the danger, the characters, it’s all perfect.  It all feels so real that I have, on more than one occasion, had to remind myself that these people aren’t real and these things didn’t actually happen.  It’s a series well worth reading or, failing that, definitely go check out the Starz mini series.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Okay, first things first, let me take care of today’s 30 Day Book Challenge.  Today’s topic was a book you’ve read more than three times and there are a couple of books that meet that criteria.  Most of them are on my best books list, for obvious reasons.  There’s 10th Kingdom, which I read so many times it fell apart.  There’s Outlander, which I frequently have to rebuy and then reread, because I’ve loaned my copy out to other people.  Elfquest vol 1 will always have a special place in my heart.  Same for The Black Gryphon.  Oh, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.  I’m sure there are others, I do tend to reread books a lot, but those are the ones that spring most readily to mind.  Now, on to business.

It’s my birthday!