“You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking how you'll escape one day, and how awesome it will be, and imagining that future keeps you going, but you never do it. You just use the future to escape the present.” “We need never be hopeless because we can never be irreperably broken.” “The pleasure of remembering had been taken from me, because there was no longer anyone to remember with. It felt like losing your co-rememberer meant losing the memory itself, as if the things we'd done were less real and important than they had been hours before.” "You like someone who can't like you back because unrequited love can be survived in a way that once-requited love cannot." "You can love someone so much...But you can never love people as much as you miss them." "'Some people don't understand the promises they're making when they make them,' I said. 'Right, of course. But you keep the promise anyway. That's what love is. Love is keeping the promise anyway.'" "I fell in love the way you fall asleep-slowly, then all at once." "My love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn't trade it for the world. You gave me forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful." "My thoughts are stars I cannot fathom into constellations."
“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” -Marilyn Monroe
"Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God." -Corrie ten Boom
"A DEFINITION NOT FOUND
IN THE DICTIONARY
Not leaving: an act of trust and love,
Often deciphered by children." -Markus Zusak
"His philosophy was a mixture of three famous schools -- the Cynics, the Stoics and the Epicureans -- and summed up all three of them in his famous phrase, 'You can't trust any bugger further than you can throw him, and there's nothing you can do about it, so let's have a drink." -Terry Pratchett
"As physicians, psychiatrists have the right to prescribe drugs or electroshock, to hospitalize patients, and to treat people against their will. They are the only mental health professionals who routinely exercise these powers." -from Toxic Psychiatry, by Dr. Peter Breggin
"It is remarkable, Hardin, how the religion of science has grabbed hold." -from Foundation, by Isaac Asimov
"There is indeed a peculiar charm both in friendship and in eros, about those moment when Appreciative love lies, as it were, curled up asleep, and the mere ease and ordinariness of the relationship (free as solitude, yet neither is alone) wraps us round. No need to talk. No need to make love. No needs at all except perhaps to stir the fire." -from The Four Loves, by C.S. Lewis
"The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, 'What? You too? I thought I was the only one.'" -from The Four Loves, by C.S. Lewis
"For it is the very mark of Eros [Lewis' classification of romantic love] that when he is in us we had rather share unhappiness with the Beloved than be happy on any other terms...Eros never hesitates to say, 'Better this than parting. Better to be miserable with her than happy without her. Let our hearts break provided they break together.' If the voice within us does not say this it is not the voice of Eros." -from The Four Loves, by C.S. Lewis
"Maybe we are not such fools as we look. But though we be, we are well content, so long as we may be two fools together." -from Lorna Doone, by R.D. Blackmore
Yet again, I have neglected my blog. I've pretty much just skipped out on blogging this whole semester, but I have only 1 final left to go tomorrow (in historical geology) so I thought I'd try to get back to writing on here again.
~
A few months ago, I finally read Battle Royale. I read it because on Goodreads, people kept saying that the Hunger Games ripped it off and that Suzanne Collins was unoriginal. I tend to disagree.
The starting idea may have been similar (kids being forced to fight to the death in a "game") but the execution was completely different.
The author of Battle Royale took a much much darker approach to it and made it...how do I put it...much more gory and violent than Suzanne Collins did. Also in Royale, it was a grade of school, so the competitors knew each other. The author of Royale also made the story much more complex by focusing on every single one of the competitors, whereas Collins took a much more personal approach with Katniss' first person narrative.
Which do I like better? Probably Hunger Games. I liked the characters much better and the writing much better. (though I am convinced that some of the triteness of the writing of Battle Royale came from being translated into English from Japanese.) The ending was also much more positive in the Hunger Games.
So, does anyone have any thoughts on the casting of Hunger Games so far?
My opinion on flash fiction...I have to confess that I had to go look it up on Urban Dictionary because I had no idea what it was!
Urbandictionary.com defines flash fiction as "A style of fiction writing characterized by intensity and brevity. Usually under a page in length."
With that being said, I would have to say that my opinion on it would probably vary with the different pieces I would read. It would probably be similar to my love/mostly hate relationship with free verse.
I love the idea of telling a story in six words or less, so I might like some flash fiction, but I would have to read more of it before I could really have an opinioin.
(by the way Q, if you know some good flash fiction on the internet, I'd love to read it.)
Moving on to Countess Madeline's request: "Hello! I think you should write a full review of Dawn Treader. I'd like to see your thoughts on the film."
Countess, are you sure you want to open that floodgate? All right, here we go!
As I said in my last post to start out, I thought it was an all right film, but a terrible adaptation.
Going into the movie, I had a somewhat optimistic view. Though we had received conflicting reports in the news about making the movie, I thought that changes made to the film couldn't ruin it overall for me.
They could.
Watching the movie, I felt like the writers of the script were high the entire time they wrote it and didn't really care about the integrity of the themes of the book. The convoluted mess of an adaptation tried to go for a more "epic" Harry Potter type film, but in doing that, it felt like a cheap fantasy film made for young children with a mindless story and shallow characters. (for the most part)
This review by glumPuddle on NarniaWeb expresses most of my frustrations well, and though I wouldn't go so far to say that I won't look forward to the next film (if it is made) I will be more pessimistic about it.
With all that negativity out of the way, I will say there are some things that I did enjoy about the film.
(spoilers will probably follow)
1. The look of the actual Dawn Treader ship I really, really loved. The purple sail was all I had hoped it would be, and the whole ship was beautiful. With that being said, I wish they had had more sweeping majestic shots of it.
2. Will Poulter's performance as Eustace. Try as they might, they couldn't ruin him for me.
3. Eustace's relationship with Reepicheep.
4. Caspian with facial hair. (ok, that's not super important to the film, but I felt like it was one of the more redeeming qualities of it)
5. The one part in the movie I can think of with verbatim words from the book where Aslan says that in our world, he has another name, and that the children must learn to know him by that name. That part....made me cry. (in a good way)
There was probably more that I enjoyed, but those are the main good qualities. (in my opinion)
Now to the really bad....
The really bad, I thought, for the most part wasn't was they put in, but what was left out.
The whole "quest" thing....ok, I'm going to skip the whole part about the seven swords to defeat the green smoke thing. I wouldn't have minded it so much had there not been a total lack of the true purpose of the voyage. (in the book) The true purpose of the voyage in the book was about the honor of finding the seven lords and fulfilling an oath and about the longing for Aslan's Country.
In the movie...there was hardly any of that.
When I think about it, I can't understand the thought process for alot of the scenes that they ruined or left out entirely. For most of the instances, they took something incredibly clever and meaningful and dumbed it down to fit the formula of a typical action movie.
For excample, the whole scene at the Lone Islands and slave traders was completely ruined. Instead of the clever plot to reclaim power without any fighting whatsoever, what do the script writers do? Make it an action scene.
Another example: the irony about how Reepicheep figured out how to defeat the sea serpent? Completely lost.
And though the Dark Island was creepy and all with the poor spirits sacrificed to ol' Smokey, (good to know he lived beyond the crappy ending of Lost) it never truly scared me like the Dark Island did in the book. I don't remember exacly what they said in the movie, (something to the effect of thoughts becoming realities) but that doesn't have the psychological impact of this exchange: (this is not the exact exchange, but I don't have the book in front of me at the moment)
Lord Rhoop: We must sail! Turn back! This is the island where dreams come true!
Capt. Drinian: What could possibly be the matter with an island where dreams come true?
Rhoop: No, no, not dreams as in fantasies or daydreams, but dreams. Dreams! Nightmares!
Listening to the dramatized version when I was a kid, I remember there was a blood-curdling pause before everyone sprang into action to get the heck out of Dodge. It scared the living daylight out of me.
Whereas the movie, it was somewhat creepy, but then Edmund says something to the effect of, "Oops! I thought about a sea serpent! We're screwed!" and the scene goes right back to its intended direction of action, action, action.
This probably sounds more like a rant than a review, so if it's not your cup of tea, I apologize.
Closing thoughts: for me, the bad outweighed the good. Prince Caspian managed to be a great adaptation (with its few quirks) as well as a great film, and I felt that Dawn Treader had so much potential to be great (it is, after all, one of my favorites of the books) but as a building is only as good as its foundation, to some extent, a movie is only as good as its script, and this one was bad.
If anyone would care to give his opinion, please comment! Once I wrote a controversial post about Lord of the Rings that had about twenty comments of back and forth debate, and I loved it.
Next time on Cease Repining: to balance out a negative review with a positive, Lady Brainsample will write about Tron: Legacy.
I have excuses, but probably nobody wants to hear them. College, theater, tae kwon do, etcetera.
Assorted thoughts:
Mockinjay was great, but I liked the first two books better.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie was a TERRIBLE adaptation of the book, but an ok movie.
Rosencranz and Guildenstern Are Dead=Awesome movie.
Wonders if putting the status, "I really miss being a hooker..." would result in something bad.
Those of you who don't know, I played Violet in the play It's a Wonderful Life last month. You say, "I didn't think she was a hooker!"
Well, in the play version's alternate world she is. And it was very fun/challenging to play a sexy character and actually get to attempt to seduce George on stage.
Hence the status.
I would really like to start writing on my blog again, so if anyone has any requests for rants, reviews, or other such scribblings, please comment!
For years and years, we geeks have always had mixed feelings about books being made into movies. We're picky about how something is adapted, and often have rants about how such-and-such aspect was not true to the book, and how they really didn't need to cut whatever scene, or how they ruined some sort of character.
Now, the people that told us to shut up about things that could have been better about Lord of the Rings (movies) because they were so busy with Orlando Bloom's dreamy eyes are the same people who get annoyed with the Twilight movies because they omitted certain scenes or didn't portray a character "properly."
Those who are long-time readers of my blog may recognize the main idea of this post, because I've posted this interaction exercise thing before.
But hey, self-plagiarism is style as Alfred Hitchcock said, and I felt like doing it again with different characters.
Write down the first ten book characters who come to mind. Try not to use more than one character from any given book.
Character 1: Sam from Lord of the Rings
Character 2: Caspian from PC and VotDT
Character 3: Ender from Ender's Game, etc.
Character 4: Peeta from the Hunger Games
Character 5: Justin from Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
Character 6: Charles Wallace from a Wrinkle in Time
Character 7: The Scarlet Pimpernel from...well, guess
Character 8: Archie from the Nero Wolf books
Character 9: Jo from Little Women
Character 10: Erik from Phantom of the Opera
Now answer the following questions, based on the characters you wrote down above. Absolutely no going back to change the characters you've chosen!
Characters 4 through 10 are on Survivor. Who gets voted off the island first? Perhaps Archie because no one appreciates his witty commentary on everyone else.
What are the chances of characters 1 (Sam) and 8 (Archie) falling in love with each other? Nil to none.
Character 2 and character 3 get into a cat fight. Who wins and why? Though I can't imagine why Caspian and Ender would get into a fight, I would say Ender.
Of the other nine characters, who is character 7 (The Scarlet Pimpernel) most likely to have a crush on? Probably Jo.
What would happen if character 4 (Peeta) got turned into a vampire? Well, then the Hunger Games books wouldn't be the Hunger Games books, they'd be called Twilight...
Two of the characters are twins separated at birth. Which two are they? Erik and the Scarlet Pimpernel
Characters 1, 2, 3, and 9 are stuck in an elevator. What do they do to pass the time? It'd be very uncomfortable for Ender and Caspian, considering they were in a cat fight earlier. Because of that animosity, Sam would get fidgety, and Jo would just read a book.
What would happen if character 8 and character 5 were roommates? Justin is a rat....so I don't think Archie would even realize he was Justin's roommate.
What do character 10 (Erik) and character 6 (Charles Wallace) have in common? they are both very, very smart.
So I wanted to post something profound...or intelligent...or along those lines. But nothing of that sort came to me. Instead I've been drowning in the prop list for the Foreiegner. Ah, yes. I've been sort of absent from the blog world as of late, so I haven't mentioned the news. I am stage managing my very first play! It has been completely awesome for many reasons, but one of the more humorous ones has to do with my age... See, I'm the second youngest person in the cast/crew (the only younger person being the sound operator) yet I get to boss around (nicely, of course...) a bunch of adults. It's awesome...
Books...
I have read and finished three sequels, so on Lady Brainsample's Mini Review Day, I'll discuss sequels in the Hunger Games series, Oracles of Fire series, and Ender's Game series.
.
Bones of Makaidos: Took me a while to get into, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. Bryan Davis tied up all the loose ends I can think of from the series very well.
Catching Fire: Took me in on the first page and kept me in its clutches to the very end. Very, very frustrating ending because it completely sets itself up for the next one, but very enjoyable nonetheless.
Children of the Mind: I really love how after Ender's Game and the Shadow series, Orson Scott Card focused less on action and more on character and philosophy. But...(spoilers follow) Ender dead?? What?!?!?! And how can this be the conclusion when there are so many other things that need to be explained such as whatever happened to Bean and his kids? Orson Scott Card takes too long in writing....
With all: I highly recommend reading each of the previous books in the series before taking on either of these books, especially for Bones. Each of them are great series, so it's worth reading them all.
Final bit of news: two new EJC films up. One of them made to showcase my friend with an amazing Gollum voice, the other completely unscripted to showcase each of my dear friends who play the piano very well.
Without further ado, presenting
So...I saw Inkheart today. I have to say I'm not...enthralled with it, let's say? Don't get me wrong, there were some elements of the movie that I liked alot. But I'll get the bad out of the way first. The movie didn't seem to have the same charm to it that the book did. I'd like to quote WORLD magazine's review of the movie because they put it better than I could:
I also agree with their asessment of Eliza Bennet, the actress who played Meggie: she was a good actress, but because she's 16 and Meggie is supposed to be 12....it didn't quite work out for me. The Shadow...I had hoped they would come up with some way to make it NOT LIKE THE BALROG. Yes, they're both huge things make up of shadow and flame, but come on, they wouldn't be THAT similar. At least the Shadow didn't have a flaming sword and whip...
Now that we've got the bad out of the way, the good. The acting was excellent, I think. Yes, I may have thought of Smeagol a few times with Andy Serkis as Capricorn, but that's because I'm a geek! I make those connections. Andy Serkis was brilliant as Capricorn; Basta and Mo looked JUST like I imagined them; and Paul Bettany did a surprisingly good job as Dustfinger. (good thing too, since he's my favorite character) But, the one who gets the prize for being JUST like the book character is Helen Mirren (however you spell it) as Elinor. The locations and sets and feel of the movie also fit very well with the story. I loved how they did the color schemes with Capricorn's castle with all the different shades of grey and black then different things being dark red to stand out. Nice touch.
Overall, it was an ok movie, but I'd rather go read the book.
So, I realize I haven't blogged in over a month...not for lack of wanting to, though. So for this randomish blog post, I will discuss some random things. ~ First, My Fair Lady has been going extremely well. The set changes have been going smoother, the music sounding great, and my hat hasn't fallen off during a show as of yet. The crowds have grown significantly, but we haven't had a full house yet. Oh well, we still have two shows left. ~ I have REALLY enjoyed the Ender's Game series by Orson Scott Card. I'm in the middle of Xenocide right now, and I'll be rather sad when I finish Children of the Mind because it'll mean I need to get ahold of some new audiobooks. If I had to choose, I'd say my favorites so far are Ender's Game, Shadow Puppets, Ender in Exile, and Speaker for the Dead. ~ And so this post is not completely lame, I will leave y'all with some favorite quotes:
"The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid." -Jane Austen
"If we couldn't laugh, we would all go insane." -Robert Frost
"The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it." -Terry Pratchett
Well, I am still a terrible blogger, but I'm posting for once with lots of little random things on my mind.
This morning was the fiasco of taking all our animals to the vet, which went surprisingly well for us. Because we have six cats and two dogs, we have a proper procedure to carry, otherwise the cats will smell the danger and disappear the morning of the visit. One week before D-Day we get all the cat carriers down from the attic and set them out in plain sight to get the cats accustomed to them. Two days before D-Day, we move all the cat bowls into the small bathroom so that they get used to eating in a place that can be closed up. And finally, the morning of, we cram all the cats in there to be put in carriers. This year went perfectly, heh heh....
Mini-Review Time:
Broadway: The American Musical. Awesome, AWESOME Broadway documentary hosted by Julie Andrews.
Oklahoma: 1990somethingorother London version Forgive me, but I like this version better than the original movie. (for those thinking, "Oh, it's just because of Hugh Jackman playing Curly," well, it's partially that, but it's also everyone else playing their roles and alot of how the lyrics to the songs were interpreted differently, especially 'People Will Say We're In Love.') This was also the first version of Oklahoma that I know of in which the main actors danced their own parts for the dream ballet as opposed to the doubles used in the movie and most stage productions.
Bones of Makaidos, by Bryan Davis FINALLY HERE!!!!! I pre-ordered this book months before it came out in May, but because of our stupid post office, I didn't get it until about a week ago. I'm only about a hundred pages into it, but absolutely loving it. For those who haven't read Bryan Davis at all, don't start with Bones. Start with Eye of the Oracle, move on to the Dragons in Our Midst series, then finish off with the rest of the Oracles of Fire. Don't try to start in the middle.
Speaking of starting in the middle, I have something to say: NEVER EVER EVER EVER read a summary for a book in a series if you're still on a book behind it...especially an Orson Scott Card book. Whilst I was putting Shadow of the Giant on my iTunes, I accidentally read the summary on the back and was consequently spoiled as to a certain....well, thing. (I don't want to spoil it for you too)....I wasn't supposed to know about yet in Shadow Puppets. Nuts..... But oh well, it didn't ruin the book for me.
Final mini-review: The Complete Calvin and Hobbes: Read it. That's all I can say.
Ok, as to my theater exploits, as you all know I am currently in two plays, Annie and My Fair Lady. (playing the parts of Miss Hannigan and a chorus, respectively) I've come across a fact: in both, I am playing at least one drunk character. For Annie, Miss Hannigan is hung over almost all the time, and in My Fair Lady, during "With A Little Bit 'O Luck" I am right on the edge of being drunk. (the way our choreographer put it was that I was a bar waitress who worked 24 hours a day.) But don't worry, I get respectible parts in Lady too. In Loverly I'm not drunk, and in Ascot I am most definitely sober. Snobbish and high class, but sober. I just wonder what I'll be doing in "Get Me To the Church on Time." Oh boy....
In the April 25th issue of World Magazine, they issued a contest for people to send in their favorite last lines of a book. I sent in one of mine, but it was a tough choice because I have quite a few favorite last lines. So, in a contest of my own, I'll list all my favorite last lines and in comments, y'all can try to guess the books and authors they're from. (just a warning, some of these will be very obvious, but oh well....) The first person to come up with all ten will win...well, nothing except bragging rights.
1. "And Rose drew him in, and sat him in his chair, and put little Elanor on his lap. He drew a deep breath. 'Well, I'm back,' he said."
2. "But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in _____ had only been the cover and title page; now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before."
3. "'Well!" said Peter. 'We have had a time.' 'Bother!' said Edmund. 'I've left my new torch in Narnia."
4. "To begin perfect happiness at the respective ages of twenty-six and eighteen is to do pretty well; and professing myself, moreover, convinced that the general's unjust interference, so far from being really injurious to their felicity, was perhaps rather conducive to it, by improving their knowledge of each other, and adding strength to their attachment, I leave it to be settle by whomsover it may concern, whether the tendency of this work be altogether to recommend parental tyranny or reward filial disobedience."
5. "'We want no proofs; we ask none to believe us! The boy will some day know what a brave and gallant woman his mother is. Already he knows her sweetness and loving care; later on he will understand how some men so loved her, that they did dare much for her sake.'"
6. "When the sea goes down, there will come from the mainland boats and men. And they will find ten dead bodies and an unsolved problem on Indian Island."
7. "He came across this entry. It said: 'The history of every major Galactic Civilization tends to pass through three distinct and recognizable phases, those of Survival, Inquiry and Sophistication, otherwise known as the How, Why and Where phases. 'For instance, the first phase is characterized by the question How can we eat? the second by the question Why do we eat? and the third by the question Where shall we have lunch?' He got no further before the ship's intercom buzzed into life. 'Hey, Earthman? You hungry, kid?' said Zaphod's voice. 'Er, well, yes, a little peckish, I suppose,' said Arthur. 'Okay, baby, hold tight,' said Zaphod. 'We'll take in a quick bite at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe.'"
8. "None of those things, however, came out of my mouth. All I was able to do was turn to Liesel Meminger and tell her the only truth I truly know. I said it to the book thief and I say it now to you. A LAST NOTE FROM YOUR NARRATOR. I am haunted by humans."
9. "O cruel, needless misunderstanding! O stubborn, self-willed exile from the loving breast! Two gin-scented tears trickled down the sides of his nose. But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother."
10. "From behind them suddenly, closer than they imagined, they could hear the roar of Humperdinck: 'Stop them! Cut them off!' They were, admittedly, startled, but there was no reason for worry: they were on the fastest horses in the kingdom, and the lead was already theirs. However, this was before Inigo's wound reopened; and Westley relapsed again; and Fezzik took the wrong turn; and Buttercup's horse threw a shoe. And the night behind them was filled with the crescendoing sound of pursuit..."
So there you have it, my favorite book endings. In addition to submitting answers to where my quotes are from, I'd also love to hear y'alls favorite book endings.
Often when I read a book, I'll go briefly glance over the wikipedia article about it to get a sense of when it was written and that sort of thing, but then there will sometimes be a section toward the bottom. An innocent little section that seems to say, "Don't come look at me...I'm of no importance. I'm only rumor! Why would you want to hear about silly ruomors?" This section is often called one of two things:
Film or Adaptation
...........
So for this ranty-ish blog post, I wish to discuss the suspicious mutterings of movies to be made out of a few books I've looked into recently.
First of all, The Book Thief. In my opinion, this will be a VERY VERY VERY hard book to adapt. I mean, it's narrated by Death, for crying out loud! What also makes me think this a hard book to adapt is the language. The Book Thief was a book I savored partially because of just how it was written.
Next, another Jane Eyre. I'm sorry, I have to be suspicious of new version after the Toby Stephens/Ruth Wilson tv mini-series. It was done so well and acted so perfectly that I'm afraid anything that comes after it will disappoint me. Not to mention it's Ellen Page that's going to be playing Jane. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Ellen Page. I thoroughly enjoyed her performance of Shadowcat in X-Men, but....I'm just not sure about her playing Jane. Not to mention a newer version make by Hollywood will probably get rid of the Christian undertones of forgiveness, redemption, and everything else. Be on your guard, Hollywood.
Ok, this one I'm not so cynical about: The Hunger Games. First of all, the subject matter would translate into a film pretty well, and secondly, Suzanne Collins herself is adapting it. Score!
Notable mentions for film adaptation discussion: Fahrenheit 451 (apparently they want to try again...not sure this one will go anywhere) The Screwtape Letters (now THIS could be really good) The Hobbit (ok, I know this one isn't rumor, but I had to mention it)
Anyone else got any other adaptations to add to the discussion? I'd love to hear them! And don't forget to vote on my polls!
I recently had the pleasure of reading Six-Word Memoirs on Love and Heartbreak which had an excellent submission by the most excellent blogger Miss Erin, so...just for fun I'm going to write some of my own six word stories. Now, do understand I'm not even going to pretend to be as good as the people in this book. But someone once said write what you know, so that's what I'm doing.
The further I delve into J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, the more I fall in love with it. The books are central to the obsession, of course, but around the books is also the extended universe of the movies, the musical, and things like that. And it's always so heartening and encouraging when they do the adaptions well. Take the song Now and For Always from the musical based on the book:
Great song right? Well, it's even greater to a hard-core fan when he examines the correlation between the lyrics and the original book.
"Sing me a tale of Frodo and the Ring!
Fearless and bold,"
"Tired and cold!"
"A sword at his side, an elf-blade called Sting,
Crossing a miserable land.
Wouldn't retreat, just follow his feet,
Now and for always."
Then later:
"Sing me a tale of the bravest of them all,
Comrade and guide, at my side.
Stout-hearted Sam who wouldn't let me fall,
Holding my life in his hands.
True to the end, no finer friend,
Now and for always."
Compare that to an (abridged here) passage in the book the Two Towers:
Sam: "Still, I wonder if we shall ever be put into songs or tales. We're in one, of course; but I mean: put into words, you know, told by the fireside, or read out of a great big book with red and black letters, years and years afterwards. And people will say: 'Let's hear about Frodo and the Ring!' And they'll say: 'Yes, that's one of my favourite stories. Frodo was very brave, wasn't he dad?' 'Yes, my boy, the famousest of the hobbits, and that's saying a lot.'"
Frodo: "But you've left out one of the chief characters: Samwise the stouthearted. 'I want to hear more about Sam, dad. Why didn't they put more of his talk, dad? That's what I like, it makes me laugh. And Frodo wouldn't have got far without Sam, would he, dad?'"
"Now, Mr. Frodo, you shouldn't make fun. I was serious."
"So was I. And so I am."
AHH!!! I can't ever stop geeking out about how awesome that passage is and how well they adapted it for the song. I can't speak for the whole musical because I haven't seen it and have only heard the soundtrack, but that song is just amazing....
But, on the other side of the equation are the things that they didn't do so well. ((from here on out is highly opinionated ground, just to warn you)) There are many examples, some of which are forgivable, (like the elves showing up at Helm's Deep) and some which are unforgivable. (Arwen in general, Haldir dying, Frodo leaving Sam on the stairs at Cirith Ungol, Anduril not coming it when it was supposed to)
But the one unforgivable change I specifically want to discuss is Faramir's character.
Faramir is my absolute favorite character in the whole book, so as I've been re-reading the book, I have been very disappointed with a lot of the changes that were in the movie. Many of these changes are humorously illustrated in this great fanfiction story.
We can laugh at the story and how the different Faramirs compare notes, but more seriously, the movie did miss alot of things. As Mom put it, "The people who wrote it didn't seem to GET his character."
The wikipedia article discusses the book fans' negative reaction to the change and notes,
"Co-screenwriter Philippa Boyens and actor David Wenham defended the changes to Faramir's character in order to increase dramatic tension: Faramir's "sea-green incorruptible" nature in the book would not have "[translated] well filmically".
I remain in the group of fans that is "unimpressed and unconvinced" with their pithy justifications. He was "sea-green incorruptible" because he was educated and wise. The book tells us that when Mithrandir (otherwise known as Gandalf) was around, Faramir always loved to listen to him talk and study with him. He probably took that studious wizard-like habit with him long after he saw Mithrandir and kept studying.
I personally think that he thought about what he would do if he came across Isildur's bane. He probably knew that anyone who used it became corrupted and evil and decided what he would do if he ever got the chance to have it. He says before even knowing what Frodo carries,
"I would not take this thing, if it lay by the highway. not were Minas Tirith falling in ruin and I alone could save her, so, using the weapon of the Dark Lord for her good and my glory." Then once he does know about the ring, by way of Sam's slip, he says, "Even if I were such a man as to desire this thing, and even though I knew not clearly what this thing was when I spoke, still I should take those words as a vow, and be held by them. But I am not such a man. Or I am wise enough to know that there are some perils from which a man must flee."
Another "what were they thinking?" moment for me was the removal of one of the greatest lines in the trilogy that was spoken by Faramir.
"War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."
WHAT WERE THEY THINKING????????
I could go on and on and on about how much I love Faramir and how most of the movie's changes are deplorable, but I've only scratched the surface of his character in the Two Towers. I'll save Return of the King and other things for another post.
But before I shut down entirely, I want to leave y'all with one of my favorite passages in the entire book. This is right after Sam's slip, and Faramir has told them he's not going to take the Ring from them.
"Frodo had felt himself trembling as the first shock of fear passed. Now a great weariness came down on him like a cloud. he could dissemble and resist no longer.
'I was going to find a way to Morder,' he said faintly. 'I was going to Gorgoroth. I must find the Mountain of Fire and cast the thing into the gulf of doom. Gandalf said so. I do not think I shall ever get there.'
Faramir stared at him for a moment in grave astonishment. Then suddenly he caught him as he swayed, and lifting him gently, carried him to the bed and laid him there, and covered him warmly. At once he fell into a deep sleep.
Another bed was set beside him for his servant. Sam hesitated for a moment, then bowing ver low: 'Good night, Captain, my lord,' he said. 'You took the chance, sir."
'Did I so?' said Faramir.
"Yes sir, and showed your quality: the very highest.'
Faramir smiled. 'A pert servant, Master Samwise. But nay: the praise of the praiseworthy is above all rewards. yet there was naught in this to praise. I had not lure or desire to do other than I have done.'
'Ah well, sir,' said Sam, 'you said my master had an elvish air; and that was good and true. but I can say this: you have an air too, sir, that reminds me of, of-well, Gandalf, of wizards.'
Last night as we were walking downstairs to get some popcorn, the subject came up of the Frog and Toad story where Toad doesn't want anyone to see him because he looks funny in his bathing suit. This naturally led to my getting out all of our old Frog and Toad books (by Arnold Lobel, by the way) and reading that story in particular first. Then I went on and came across some interesting things... I have become like Toad. Yes, I'm very serious.
In "The Letter" Toad sits on his porch and is sad because he never gets any mail. This parallels the time of morning in which I check my email and am depressed because I never get any emails that aren't fowards or church related. The story goes on with Frog writing a letter to Toad to make him happy. That parallels some of my friends who have either A) sent me random emails that have made me feel happier or B) sent me packages even though I'm about to see them in a week or so.
In "The Story" Frog is sick, so he asks Toad to tell him a story. Toad does all sorts of things like walking up and down his porch, standing on his head, pouring glasses of water over his head, and banging his head against the wall, but in spite of all those things he cannot think of a story. Honestly, I've done some crazy things to try to think of material for scripts or to think of ways to fix things done wrong in the scripts. I am Toad again.
In "A List" Toad makes a list of things to do today. That right there is a major part of my life. I make lists all the time. Lists of favorite things, lists of things to do, lists of books to read, lists of people to pray for. You name it, I've probably made a list related to it.
In "The Dream" Toad has a strange dream in which he performs. But, after doing many wonderful things, he loses Frog, who had been watching in the audience. As anyone who knows me well knows, I have bizarre dreams all the time. Like last night I dreamed I was in a plane crash, and a couple nights ago I dreamed something about a fake cast list that was actually a means of sending a message from one set of spies to another.
In "Christmas Eve" Toad waits for Frog to come over, but he gets worried and starts imagining what could have happened to Frog. Finally he decides to get a rope to get Frog out of the hole, a light so that Frog can see in the dark woods, and a frying pan to hit the animal that's chasing Frog. Just as Toad leaves the house, Frog is there, just fine. I have imagined something happening to people who are late more times than I can remember... And my fears have always been unreasonable. They've gotten to their destination just fine.
Finally, just my habits are Toad-like. Toad: "Now, seeds. Start growing." "Drat!" "We shall eat one very last cookie, and then we will stop." "I am going back to bed."
Frog: "Come out and see how wonderful the winter is!" Toad: "I will not. I am in my warm bed."
Frog: "The sun is shining! The snow is melting. Wake up!" Toad: "I am not here."
So here I am. I probably wouldn't be exactly who I am if it hadn't been for Frog and Toad. Books really can shape your life, whether you mean for them to or not. So what about y'all? Have there been any books you've grown up with that have affected you in any way, shape, or form?
First Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, now Anthem by Ayn Rand.
I didn't exactly mean to read it all in one sitting before going to bed last night. It just sort of...happened. But I'm ahead of myself...
Yesterday Mom and I were on the way home from the Post Office and the library, and she said, "Ok, we're listening to Anthem." (backstory: Instead of doing book reports, Mom and I take turns choosing classics to listen to in the car and we discuss them.) So we did. And it was fascinating. It's written from the point of view of Equality 7-2521, a man part of a communist world. Everyone exists for the good of all. There is no individuality. The word "I" is non-existent.
I (Tasha) was hooked.
When I got home, I immediately scanned the library and found the paperback. That night, as already revealed, I read the whole thing. That's pretty special. Yes, it may be considered only a 'novella' by some, but I haven't read like that in a long time. It was...awesome. I almost cried when reading a lot of the parts with Liberty 5-3000. AND it had a happy ending. Well, not happy per se, but hopeful. Again, a lot like Fahrenheit 451. Not completely happy, but hopeful.
One note: at the end with all the ego parts, I disagreed with some of the conclusions that Ayn Rand came to, mostly because I'm a Christian and she was an atheist. Let me explain....
*here be spoilers*
At the end, Ayn Rand comes to this conclusion: "And now I see the face of god, and I raise this god over the earth, this god whom men have sought since men came into being, this god who will grant them joy and peace and pride. This god, this one word: 'I.'"
I (Tasha...) agree with Ayn Rand that individual freedom is indispensable and that the rights of "the many" should not be placed ahead of the rights of the individual, but I cannot agree that 'I' am a god. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can give me peace and joy. Only God can make us complete. Only the God of the Bible is God. He is the only great I Am.
*spoilers be over*
So to close: look upon that dark society well. Unless individual rights are embraced and protected (especially Second Amendment rights, but that's another topic for another time) we will become like that. Only part of a collective. A Borg lost in a sea of never-ending cubes. A slave to society. Never to be regarded as an individual.
"I guard my treasures: my thought, my will, my freedom. And the greatest of these is freedom." -Ayn Rand
Well, as anyone who reads my blog has probably noticed, I've been out of (blog)town for awhile. To kick in the New Year (a little late....) here's a book meme!
Science Fiction, Fantasy or Horror? Hmm.....I like all three to an extent, but if I had to choose, it'd have to be fantasy. I don't like not being able to sleep because of fear (that's why I hardly read Poe at night though I love his stuff), and with almost every single sci-fi book I've read, they've slapped me with alot of information about stupid futuristic technologies that didn't make sense.
Hardback or Trade Paperback or Mass Market Paperback? I don't really care. As long as it's readable.
Amazon or Brick and Mortar? I do not know what Brick and Mortar is, so I'll have to go with Amazon.
Barnes & Noble or Borders? I'm a teenager without a job, so I go with Half-Price Bookstore.
Hitchhiker or Discworld? *sticks out virtual thumb*
Bookmark or Dogear? Bookmark..
Asimov’s Science Fiction or Fantasy & Science Fiction? Ummmm......I'm not sure what the question is.
Alphabetize by author, Alphabetize by title, or random? Well, I actually do *cough* have an inventory file, so first I categorize by genre, then by author.
Keep, Throw Away or Sell? Keep. Unless I didn't like the book, then I donate it to the library.
Keep dust-jacket or toss it? Keep it.
Read with dustjacket or remove it? Depends....if the dustjacket annoys me, I take it off.
Short story or novel? I'd have to say novel.
Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? I try to stop at chapter breaks, but it doesn't usually work that way...
“It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time?” Both.
Buy or Borrow? *cough* Um, both? I borrowed the Book Thief from a friend, but then went out and bought my own copy.
Buying choice: Book Reviews, Recommendation or Browse? I do all three.
Lewis or Tolkien? NO! You can't make me choose!!!!
Collection (short stories by the same author) or Anthology (short stories by different authors)? Collection.
Tidy ending or Cliffhanger? Cliffhangers, even though they keep me up late.
Morning reading, Afternoon reading or Nighttime reading? Depends on the book.
Standalone or Series? I tend to like series.
New or used? Used books have character.
Favorite book of which nobody else has heard? Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien or Chosen, by Ginger Garret.
Top 5 favorite genre books of all time? I'm not sure I understand the question.
Favorite genre series? I don't understand this one either....
Currently Reading? Ohhh various.....*exasperated sound*
I tag: anyone who wants to fill this one out.
EDIT: As one proof that I did something other than play backgammon this past Christmas vacation, here is A Film About Amnesia. I warn you, it is very, very silly.
First of all, anyone who has not seen the Princess Bride MUST MUST MUST go out and see it before reading this review. I do not want to spoil such an awesome movie. And yes, I do mean anyone. I recommend this movie to any and all.
True to my word, I did watch Princess Bride yesterday, and it made me so happy. I seriously think that if I ever had to choose one SINGLE movie as my favorite, PB would be it. It has everything: "Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Poison. True love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beautifulest ladies. Snakes. Spiders. Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death. Brave men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passion. Miracles."
(by the way, that's actually the corresponding quote from the book. I'm making this a joint review)
The Princess Bride is probably the only example of a movie I know of in which I am completely happy with the transition from book to movie. Granted, I did see the movie first, but after reading the book, I didn't get one of those, "How in the world could they have changed such-and-such?" feelings after reading it.
In fact, let me tell you story about me and the book. You know how in the movie, the Grandfather is reading the story to his grandson while the kid is sick? Well, they have that in the book except that the author William Goldman made it so that he himself was the grandson listening to his grandfather read this 'book' by 'S. Morgenstern.' There were other parts of the modern part of the story that made references to Florin and Guilder and all those different things actually existing.
I believed it! I wanted to go to Florin to see the Fire Swamp and Cliffs of Insanity and the Princess Bride museum. I wanted to go to the Morgenstern library. Months later, I looked up the book on wikipedia for some reason, and I went into shock. It revealed to me that the whole part about the grandson and Florin being a real country was all just a plot device. That's it. There was no Morgenstern, no grandfather, no Florin. I almost literally broke down because it was so heart breaking. Thankfully, it didn't scar me for life. It just made me really really annoyed for about a month.
But anyway. I really enjoyed watching the movie again because I was able to catch details I hadn't caught the first ten times seeing that movie. One thing I focused on this time through was what each character's obsession/first love/main mission was. Every single main character had one.
Westley's obession is, of course, Buttercup. In the beginning, all he wants to do is SHOW her how much he loves her. Instead of just saying, "I love you," he shows his love. Buttercup asked him to fetch a pitcher that must have only been twelve inches away from her. His actions speak louder than words as he walks over to her and gives her the pot, whispering, "As you wish." Though he was captured by the Dread Pirate Roberts and eventually became Dread Pirate Roberts, he never lost sight of his goal: to get Buttercup back which he does at the end.
Inigo's main mission is to avenge his father and kill the Six Fingered Man. The book talks about how Inigo had always imagined how it would play out with pleas, bribe attempts, and all sorts of other fun, but then decided to go for the simplest thing: "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." This is an obsession. He spent about twenty years just training with the sword and strengthening himself. He's so good he even fights extremely well left handedly.
I could go on and on and on with character analysis, but this review is getting a tad long. I'd like to hear from y'all. What is your favorite moment from the book or movie? And what do you think a character's obsession is?
I conform to non-conformity. I am myself because everyone else is taken. I am a paradox wrapped in an oxymoron smothered in contradictions in terms. I am who I am and say what I feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.
