"New Harry Potter Book"

Greetings earthlings, mae govannen, may the force be with you and all that.

So I feel like whenever J. K. Rowling writes anything, the internet does this:

So yes, in July, we will be getting a "new" "Harry Potter" "book" from J.K. Rowling.

OK, the air quotes around "Harry Potter" were unwarranted - the writing actually does feature Harry this time. But it's not exactly a book - it's a script; and while it is "new" in the sense that it hasn't been made available to the general public yet, we've been hearing about it for a while.

Yet somehow, and despite the fact that I knew all of this, I still experienced a split-second of overjoyed, excited euphoria when I saw the headline about the "new Harry Potter book" on a news media site. Then I remembered that J. K. Rowling's been working on this play called "The Cursed Child," which we've been hearing about forever and which will someday be opening in London: not exactly a "new Harry Potter book."

Does any of this make me less excited to read it?

Ha ha ha ha ha. ha. ha. HA.

Of course not.

Much like the internet fandom alluded to above, I will read anything J.K. Rowling puts out. And if it's about Harry Potter? You bet.

Now for the official newscast: the script of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a play by J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany, comes out in bookstores July 31. The production itself will officially open as a two-part stage play at the Palace Theatre in London's West End on July 30. Apparently the play contains some pretty massive surprises, because J. K. Rowling has started a campaign called #KeepTheSecrets encouraging playgoers to forbear from spoiling the plot's surprises for everyone else. Which makes me wonder: should I buy the script and read it? Or wait until the play comes to Oregon in like, five thousand years? Weigh in with what you plan to do in the comments.

For those of you thinking, "July 31st???? Give me some J. K. Rowling writing NOW!!!!" - The long awaited Pottermore installment on the American equivalent of Hogwarts is now available for reading. The school is Ilvermony, and if the name sounds Irish, that's because it was founded by Isolt Sayre, a witch of Irish descent. And there's a beautiful video on Pottermore to "whet your appetite" for the new writing. Also, you can now be sorted into your Ilvermony house. Though actually I'm not sure how I feel about that.... (#SlytherinForever).

Until tomorrow.

Rick Riordan's The Hidden Oracle

What happens when Rick Riordan writes a book narrated by Apollo?

Pure awesomeness.

And a lot of haiku.

Title: The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo #1)

Author: Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Publication Date: 3 May 2016
Number of Pages: 361
Purchase: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, AbeBooks, Powell's Books, ebay

What Goodreads has to say:

How do you punish an immortal?

By making him human.

After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disorientated, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favour.

But Apollo has many enemies - gods, monsters and mortals who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and he can think of only one place to go . . . an enclave of modern demigods known as Camp Half-Blood.

What I have to say:

Some of you may remember my review of The House of Hades that I posted on this blog a couple years back; which I ended with the request that Apollo return to the series. Like most Percy Jackson fans, I first met Apollo in The Titan's Curse (Book 3 of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series), and almost immediately he became my favorite character in the Percy Jackson universe. His sense of humor, strong personality, and huge ego endeared him to me as a character, and I loved that he disguised himself as a bum to help Percy and Co. succeed on their quest, because even though the Gods aren't supposed to interfere with demigod quests, Apollo wasn't going to let some Titan kidnap his sister and get away with it.

Plus, I've always liked Apollo as an Olympian, even outside of the Percy Jackson series. What's not to love about a God who single-handedly presides over poetry, music, medicine, truth, and the sun? And I always knew that if I were a demigod at Camp Half-Blood, I'd be in the Apollo cabin.

But I don't recall Apollo playing a prominent part in the rest of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (which is probably as it should be, I mean come on, if he featured in any of the other books he'd just steal the show and we'd have to rename it the Apollo and the Olympians series); and while he did appear briefly in the more recent Heroes of Olympus series, I always hoped we'd get to see Apollo again at some point. 

My request has been honored, and I couldn't be more pleased.

The Hidden Oracle is a masterful piece of artistry that would make Apollo himself proud.

I've heard some people express disgruntlement with the fact that Rick Riordan seems to be going hog-wild writing books all over the place. I don't understand why that would make anyone feel disgruntled. If the quality of an author's books suffer because he's writing too much or is overconfident in his abilities, that's a justifiable cause for disgruntlement. But I don't find that to be the case with Rick Riordan's books. 

Yes, there were moments in the Heroes of Olympus series when I had this impression, but in The Hidden Oracle, I find Riordan to be more in command of his powers as a storyteller than ever before. 

This book may just be the best Rick Riordan book yet (although that first Percy Jackson book was crazy good, and Titan's Curse was amazing, read it in 24 hours I think, but I digress). 

It feels a little like Riordan has matured as a storyteller, but maybe part of that's just the different character: Apollo is an immortal who has lived for - centuries? millennia? He's seen civilizations rise and fall, he's been in and out of love more times than I think even he can count, and he's dealt with tragic loss. Now he's a teenager with acne. And his brain's a little fuzzy, but he still has more knowledge and experience than Riordan's average protagonists.

And I found him more powerful emotionally than the average Camp Half-Blood teenager. His character seems somehow deeper and more genuine than Riordan's usual protagonists. And don't get me wrong - I love the whole demigod team - it's just that I find Apollo to be a deeper character, if only because he's lived about a billion times longer and is, after all, a god.

Can I talk about the haiku now?

When I realized there was an Apollo-authored haiku at the beginning of every chapter in this book, I flipped out (legit - my mom asked what was going on and my sister told her not to worry, I was just fangirling). But oh, the haiku. Seriously, I don't think you're picking up on how awesome this is. Get excited, people.

Now that I've stopped flipping out (hahaha if only) maybe I can finally get down to - you know - talking about the actual book. 

(The dedication killed me).

When the story opens, Apollo is in a pretty big mess. 

Literally: the once glorious Olympian God of poetry, truth, and light wakes up in a dumpster in some back alley in New York. 

The context: due to his father Zeus's perception that the recent war which almost destroyed the Gods was mainly Apollo's fault (come on, he was barely involved and completely innocent), the King of the Gods decides to punish his son by turning him mortal until he has proven his worth anew. Luckily, Apollo befriends some demigods, among them a street urchin named Meg, the famous Percy Jackson, and some children of Apollo (try rooming with your own kids who are suddenly older than you and better than you at all the hobbies you invented); with the help of his demigod friends, Apollo seeks shelter in Camp Half-Blood and tries to begin the process of making things right again. There's a prophecy (there always is, right?), some mysterious backstory, and some run-ins with mythological beings. Ultimately Apollo must find and save the ancient Oracle of Dodona, the most powerful and sacred of all the oracles belonging to Apollo.

From here on out there might be some spoilers, but I won't give away anything big, just stuff like who dies, who comes back to life, and who kills the main character. Kidding, none of that stuff actually happens in this book.

Meg McCaffrey, the street urchin demigod who serves as Apollo's counterpart throughout most of the novel, is a child of Demeter, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think we've seen a child of Demeter before in the Percy Jackson universe. 

At first I thought having a child of Demeter - goddess of nature and harvest - as the secondarily main character was kind of boring, but then I got to like it, and now I think it was a really cool move on Riordan's part. Of course it's glamorous to be the son or daughter of Zeus, and it's cool to be able to control water because your father is Poseidon, or to be blessed with great wisdom because your mother is Athena, but having a deep affinity with nature because your mother is Demeter definitely has merit. Aren't the forces of nature the most powerful forces of all?

And the antagonist - if you want to be surprised, skip this paragraph - but he's Nero. As in the insane Roman Emperor who reportedly "fiddled while Rome burned" (though as he reminds Apollo, that's crazy talk; they didn't even have fiddles in ancient Rome). And what better antagonist than Nero, the insane Emperor who built a colossal statue of himself in the nude, could there be to Apollo's protagonist? The two characters are both reflections and polar opposites of each other. Apollo represents light, truth, and beauty; while Nero personifies disorder, corruption, and twistedness. And yet, at the same time, even Apollo has to admit that the two share an exaggerated sense of ego and have willingly let others die to serve their own "higher" interests. This is just one of the signs that Riordan has come into his own as a storyteller.

Another is the way in which Apollo's backstory slowly unravels: the author teases us with hints of things that have happened in the protagonist's past, pulling us along by giving out just a little at a time until, finally, we know the whole backstory and it so perfectly illuminates the present.

There are certain things you can do when the main character of your story is Apollo that you can not do with any other character. One of them is that you can throw out historical and pop culture references like there's no tomorrow - because Apollo has inspired all great artists, and some inventors as well. Also, he's been around forever. As an English major and a history nerd, I ate it up. 

Another thing you can do when your protagonist is the god of music and poetry is showcase the power of music in its purest and divinest form. The way Riordan writes about music as performed by Apollo is beautiful. It stands out from the rest of the novel by simple virtue of that beauty and power. One of my favorite scenes occurs when Apollo attends Camp Half-Blood music lessons only to wind up making everyone in the class cry because he's the god of music and he'll make you sob just by tuning his guitar.

I also loved seeing Apollo as a father interacting with his demigod children. Some of the other Olympian parents obviously care about their children, but they always seem rather distant, and sometimes they're just plain negligent. Not saying Apollo has never been a negligent father, but he seems more emotionally connected to his children than the other Olympians do. It's one of the things that makes him more real as a character.

Towards the end there was a plot twist that I never saw coming. Masterfully done, Rick Riordan.

And kudos to Rick Riordan's proofreaders!!!! If you remember the aforementioned review of The House of Hades, you'll recall that I expressed some frustration with the book's editors who failed to catch about six dozen typos throughout the manuscript. I only counted one or two in The Hidden Oracle. Good job, guys!

And that brings us to the end of the story, which was - it was good, people. It was good.

If I had any criticisms of the book, this is what they would be:

There's still that slightly frustrating tendency of Riordan's to make light of a desperate and/or emotionally tense moment in a book at the expense of destroying all the tension with one off-the-wall comment. I think it was less prevalent in this book than in the Heroes of Olympus series, but there were still a couple of times when I was really invested in the situation, and then the narrator said something kind of silly and lost my undivided attention. Part of the appeal of the Percy Jackson series was the zaniness, off-the-wall observations, and sarcasm of the protagonist. It worked brilliantly in that series, but I'm not sure Riordan has to put it on twenty-four seven in all of his other books, and I'm also not sure he knows that he doesn't have to. 

This brings me to an observation about the style of the novel. It's almost like the author is trying to straddle two different age groups. One is the group that understands the references to Woodstock, Heart of Darkness, and Irving Berlin and knows the expression "fiddled while Rome burned"; the other is the group that was the intended audience of the first Percy Jackson books. I am NOT trying to dis the original Percy Jackson books or be condescending towards younger readers and/or people who enjoyed those first books (I'm one of them, remember). I'm just trying to convey the only thing that I felt was a little off about this book. It's like Riordan is trying to cater to two separate crowds. Maybe it's because the original readers of his books are older now. I guess the fact that we're still reading him means he must be doing something right.

About halfway through reading this book, I realized how awesome it would have been if I'd haiku-tweeted my way through the novel - meaning I would post my reactions to certain parts of the novel in haiku form at regular intervals. But by the time I had the idea, it was kind of too late. Learn from my mistake.

There's not really anything left to say except to once more point out the pure awesomeness of The Hidden Oracle and express how much I am looking forward to the second book in The Trials of Apollo series. So have a look at some of my favorite lines from the book that will definitely not give away any spoilers except just one about that person who dies on page 302 (kidding again):

I took a deep breath. Then I did my usual motivational speech in the mirror: "You are gorgeous and people love you!" 

"If anybody gives you trouble, Kayla will shoot them. Then I'll curse them so bad they'll be speaking in rhyming couplets for weeks." My eyes watered... I couldn't recall the last time someone had cared enough to curse my enemies with rhyming couplets.

I confess I lost track of the specifics after he explained about the exploding chain-saw Frisbees. "And they'll be like, ZOOM!" He bounced up and down with excitement. "And then BUZZ! And POW!... You have to be really quick or you'll die, and it's awesome!" 

"You guys go," Will told me. "The chariot is only designed for three, and after that shadow-travel, Nico is going to pass out any second." "No, I'm not," Nico complained, then passed out.

A sonnet I could have handled. A quatrain would have been cause for celebration. But only the deadliest prophecies are couched in the form of a limerick.

For more of the same

Read The Hidden Oracle

Plus it has haiku 

Until tomorrow.

The Little Prince gets release date and new trailer

Dear blog readers,

I thought you might be interested to know that The Little Prince movie now has a release date of August 5th.

Also, there's a new trailer.

That's all.

Sincerely,

Erin

Cap & Bucky: A Love Story

Captain America: White

Title: Captain America: White

Authors: Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale

Published: 2016 Marvel

Rating: T+

Synopsis: For Steve Rogers, the hardest thing about being a man out of time is being a man without a best friend. As Captain America comes to terms with his loss, he longs for the black-and-white moral simplicity of world war II . . . Bucky Barnes charging fearlessly into battle at his side. The Howling Cammandos right behind. Odds against them, lives on the line, taking the fight to the greatest evil of all. 

First, I would like to start with a quote from Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely the screenwriters of Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Captain America: Civil War, and Agent Carter. 

"No adventure is complete without a love story. And, yes, these books have one - the longest, most tortured one in Marvel history, in fact. We're talking about Steve and Bucky, without smirking or innuendo or raised eyebrows. Platonic though the relationship may be, from the meet cute to the tragic separation, their bond has all the elements of a classic romance. These two men love each other - as any pair of friends who faced exclusion, combat, inhumanity, and death would. Their bond stretches across half of the twentieth century. The loss of it gnaws at Steve throughout modern day, and it slices his heart in half when the Winter Soldier rears his tormented, homicidal head. . . Steve and Bucky are each other's soulmate, if you will, because no one on Earth understands what either of them has been through as well as the other does. . . . Soldiers fight for their country. They fight for themselves. They fight for each other. And sometimes they die for these things, too. The ones who don't carry the memory of the ones who did for the rest of their days. Steve Rogers is no different."

This book starts just as Cap comes out of the ice to learn that he slept his life away in the ice, it then explores the early relationship of Captain America and Bucky Barnes, from the moment Bucky finds out just who Steve is, through one of their exciting adventures with the Howling Commandos. Throughout the story Steve's thoughts are shown in blue as he muses over his best friend and all that he lost. 

Yes, the adventure is quite riveting, but the story is really about Steve's emotions and love for his best friend James Buchanan Barnes. 

One of my favorite scenes is when a plane carrying the Howling Commandos, Cap and Bucky explodes over the Atlantic. The terror in Bucky's and Cap's eyes are painfully clear as they reach for each and miss. As they go down into the water modern Steve interjects a thought which I believe to be the theme of the story: 

        

Steve is knocked out as he hits the water and sinks slowly in the dark. Up top, Bucky is losing it, and although the commandos tell him Cap is probably hanging on to wreckage somewhere else he doesn't believe it, and dives under to save his partner. At the same time Steve's thoughts are present in blue: 

         "In the deep it got darker and darker. But I never felt alone knowing you were there. Somewhere. That was the part that no one understands. Or could understand. In war, you forge friendships. Bonds with the most unexpected folks. Like a 4F from Brooklyn and an orphan kid hanging around a Virginia Army training camp. Captain America and Bucky. When we lose someone we have a tendency to hold onto things in their memory. Meaningless things to anyone else. . . I know a little something about holding onto things long after you should We get attached to these things when it's the people we lost that we should stay attached to. Their hopes and dreams become ours to carry on."

Cap is saved by Bucky, and the story continues - bringing them behind enemy lines in France. It is there that they meet their french contacts and while Bucky wants to take down the Red Skull right then and there, the crew decides against it, and instead focus on Baron von Strucker. Just as they are about to set their plan into motion Cap realizes that Bucky is missing, and putting two and two together races after him into the dark. Unfortunately he arrives too late. The Red Skull is hanging off of the Eiffel Tower, which is rigged with explosives, dangling Bucky who is wrapped in barbed wire and more explosives. Cap has to make a decision, save his partner, or save the Tower and much of Paris from blowing up. 

           "The mission was so clear in my mind I couldn't lose you. It was never about black or white or good or evil. The mission. The orders. I couldn't lose you . . . 

 . . .Keeping you safe, James. In some ways, that's all I ever wanted to do throughout the war. I hope you'll understand why your death will always be my greatest failure." 

Cap of course is able to save both Paris and Bucky (because he's cool like that). As he's punching the Red Skull in the face (it's really quite satisfying) his thoughts continue to race across the page.

          "I got into this war - this uniform - to stop men like the Red Skull. Was I naive to think that one man - particularly if it were me - could make a difference? Or is that why I wear the flag of the greatest country there ever was? Because no matter the odds if we don't fight for those who can't - who will?"

The adventure is finished and Cap and Bucky ride away on their motorcycle, and it cuts back to present day. Fury and Cap stand in front of a memorial to Captain America and Bucky Barnes. Cap is full of so much grief and self loathing that he couldn't keep his partner safe. In a moment of anger he throws his shield knocking of the head of his statue leaving only Bucky. His last remarks are as follows:

         " I'm sorry, James. I wish we could bring back the dead. Maybe someday we can. I'm now living in the future like those comic books they sold during the war. Flying cars and everything. Isn't that where you said anything could happen? For now you're gone, Bucky. And all I have left are the memories of a young man who only wanted to win the war."

I think the end is the most heartbreaking. Because we know that Bucky isn't actually dead, but it would almost be better if he was - his reign as the Hydra controlled Winter Soldier is, I think, one of the most tragic and heart-wrenching events of the marvel universe. Last night my family and I watched Captain America: The Winter Soldier, in two days Captain America: Civil War comes out, and as I write this I'm wearing Captain America sweat pants. Honestly, no other Marvel series causes me the emotional pain of the Captain America films, maybe because they're so well done, maybe because the characters are so developed, maybe because the past of Cap and Bucky is completely unlike any other Marvel character. Whatever it is, I love these characters. 

I admire Cap's moral strength and integrity, as well as his ability to take down anyone and anything. I love Bucky's loyalty and caring, he was Steve Roger's friend long before there was even a hint of Captain America. Yes, they're just fictional characters, but that doesn't mean you can't learn from them. 

I realize this review has been long, but I feel like I can never be done talking about Cap and Bucky. Did I enjoy the book? The answer is an enthusiastic yes, with tears on the side. Marvel readers who want a fun exciting story, may not enjoy this, but readers who actually feel invested in the characters and their feelings, will, I think, find this as wonderful as I did. 

My hat is off to both Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. If you haven't yet read their other "Color" books - Daredevil: Yellow, Spiderman: Blue, and Hulk: Gray, I suggest you do. This comics are different from anything else I have ever read, never have authors been so invested in the emotions and thoughts of their characters, and never has grief been illustrated so well in the Marvel universe. 

My Rating: 

So you think you can dance? You obviously haven't seen Newsies.

Disney's Newsies
Broadway's Smash Hit Musical
http://www.newsiesthemusical.com/

Starring Joey Barreiro, Morgan Keene, Zachary Sayle, Daniel Switzer
Music by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Jack Feldman
Book by Harvey Fierstein
Choreography by Christopher Gattelli
Some Other Stuff by Some Other People

April 21, 2016
Keller Auditorium, Portland, Oregon, USA


Right now I feel like Katherine Plumber - the young reporter and heroine of Newsies; I can't figure out how to begin this review. So let's just start with what I'll inevitably end up talking about anyway: the insane dancing in Newsies.

The dance numbers are the Newsies trademark and without a doubt the most incredible part of the show. When you go to see Newsies you go to see News Boys performing crazy dance routines - and you're not disappointed. The best dance numbers are featured in the songs "Carrying the Banner," "Seize the Day," and "King of New York." My favorite is the "Seize the Day" dance break, which, by the way, you can (sort of partly in a very simplified version) learn to do yourself by watching the tutorial video on the Newsies website.

If you're not sure what I mean by insane dancing, imagine a bunch of guys doing back-flips, sustained pirouettes, mid-air splits, spinning on newspapers, tap-dancing on tables with spoons, basically any and every incredible dance move you can imagine but didn't think was possible for mere mortals to perform - and then picture the Newsies doing it: 'cause they do.

Then picture them doing it in turn of the 19th century New York dress, and picture all of them as really good looking. That's Newsies.

Oh yeah, and they also sing.

Joey Barreiro as Jack Kelly in Newsies

I saw Joey Barreiro as Jack Kelly (the star of the show) and he was amazing - at his curtain call the applause rose ten decibels and everyone in the audience gave him a standing ovation. Of course he was a great dancer, and he played Jack Kelly with all the charisma, inner turmoil, and passion that the character demands. Also he had this small talent called being able to sing - really sing. When he belted "Santa Fe" (his big solo) from the rooftop, it was perfect.

Zachary Sayle as Crutchie with Joey Barreiro as Jack in Newsies

I also LOVED Zachary Sayle as Crutchie, Jack's best friend and brother in all but blood. I actually think Sayle might have been the best actor in the cast, and that's including all the "adult" cast members. His "Letter from the Refuge" song was perfect - with just the right blend of understated suffering and wry humor that the scene requires.

Davey was played by understudy Daniel Switzer, who apparently usually plays Race. Switzer did a fairly good job, but I wasn't crazy about him, and Davey is usually my favorite character. Part of that could have been the writing, though; I felt like Davey's character wasn't as fleshed out as it could have been, and he wasn't really allowed enough of a character arc throughout the show. As a point of comparison, in the Newsies movie (1992), Davey's character undergoes a dynamic transformation from the smart but timid and responsible oldest son to the fearless strike leader who has the guts to put his own words across instead of letting Jack speak them for him. I am definitely not suggesting that the musical should have been more like the movie; I'm just saying I would have liked a little more Davey.

The musical focused a lot on Jack's inner struggle to do the right thing for the Newsies, and that's great; but I felt like a couple of the main supporting characters had to take a step down and become less interesting so Jack could have the spotlight the whole time.

Morgan Keene as Katherine Plumber with Joey Barreiro as Jack Kelly in Newsies

And then there's Katherine Plumber, the show's heroine and Jack's romantic interest. I'm sure it's a fantastic role when played well, but I couldn't get behind Morgan Keene as Katherine; and I don't think it was just jealousy over the fact that she was surrounded by Newsies all the time. Her singing voice was great, but her acting style and speaking voice kind of drove me nuts. She was too whiny, I think, and most of the time she spoke in a sardonic tone of voice that I found irritating. At the very least, I wasn't convinced she was a match for the indomitable and dynamic Jack Kelly.

The Newsies

Everyone else in the cast was fine. Of course all the Newsies were great, Anthony Zaas was hilarious as Spot Conlon, though he didn't get enough stage time, and all the adult actors were good. The choreography and lighting were amazing, the set brilliant, and the orchestra perfect. Unfortunately, the music was just slightly too loud, which sometimes made it hard to discern what the actors were saying. I seem to remember this being a repeated problem with shows at the Keller Auditorium, so I don't know if it's just the venue or what.

Another thing (I don't know if it's a criticism or not), the show seemed to move REALLY fast - as in when Act I ended and the lights came on in the theatre, my sister and I turned to each other and said, "what? already?" As I said earlier, I think the show could have benefited from a little more character development and a little more conflict, or maybe just conflict that was drawn out a little longer than it was. But I think there might have been a very good reason for this, which is that the musical is geared towards a younger audience. It's still a really fun show if you're older, but I think the way the story unfolds is meant to cater more to kids than adults, and (though I can't technically speak as a kid) I think it hits the mark spot on in this respect.

The Newsies in "King of New York"

Finally, I want to give a shout out to the audience for having an awesome level of engagement and enthusiasm throughout the whole show. There was laughter, applause, and audible drawn-out gasps throughout, and an overwhelming ovation at the end. Maybe part of that is just the show's dynamics; but it helps to have a good audience.

And at the end of this review, let me just say it one more time: THE DANCING.

All in all, Newsies is an exhilarating amount of fun, a definite family musical, and entertaining across ages, featuring inspiring characters, a good message, and dance scenes you never knew could happen.

So if you get the chance to see it, I'd say, yeah, seize the day.
(You knew that pun was inevitable.)

Until tomorrow.

Must be a Thursday....

Hello friends, Romans, countrymen, Narnians, rebels, and free peoples of Middle-Earth! (If that didn't cover you, consider yourself included by default.)

Apparently my resolution to post every first Thursday took a month off. So here, a little late but still on a Thursday, is a post of relatively-random miscellany.

First, some Little Prince news: Netflix has taken over the rights to the film and will be releasing it... at some unknown future date. This means - barring a small miracle - we won't get to see it on the big screen. (sigh). If you have any further news on the movie, pleASE TELL ME!!!!!!

Second, I'm seeing Disney's Broadway musical Newsies in Portland tonight and will try to get a review of the play posted by my first Thursday deadline in May. However, I make no promises. You can go on strike if you want, but it won't make anything happen faster.

Third, I recently became aware of a program known as VidAngel which allows you to watch clean versions of PG-13 and R-rated films. The website (www.vidangel.com) lets you set your own filters, after registering, so you can choose how much you want to edit out of language, sex, nudity, violence, disturbing images, and Jar Jar Binks (yes, it really does let you edit out Jar Jar Binks; also the new scenes in the original Star Wars trilogy).

Though it might take a couple uses for you to figure out where you should set your preferences to ensure you don't see the bad stuff while also not missing out on key plot points like main characters dying (apparently my graphic violence filters were too high when I watched The Matrix), it's great for film enthusiasts (like me) who don't watch R-rated or even sometimes especially sketchy PG-13 rated films. I finally got to watch The Grand Budapest Hotel and for those of you who like Indie films with an original story, clever script, and high degree of artisanship - plus great actors - the film is a must-see. Also, it's hilarious.

Finally, enjoy some photos from my sister and I's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Party. She'd just finished reading the first three books in the "trilogy" for the first time, and wanted to see the 2005 movie starring Martin Freeman, despite my warning that the film is a vast disappointment (though brilliantly cast).

Our menu included Babel gold-fish, non-alcoholic Pan-Galactic Gargle Blasters (if you want the recipe I'll try to remember how I made them), and ... some other snacks that had nothing to do with Hitchhiker's Guide - you'd be surprised how difficult it is to come up with HHGTTG themed snacks (yes, I got tired of writing the whole title out; from this point on you will see a number of different abbreviations, none of which really work). We also carried towels.

On a second viewing, the movie wasn't as bad as I remembered it being, but then again, my expectations were below ground-level. My sister and I agreed that the first third of the movie was great and we were laughing our double-heads off, but around the middle, the film took a dive, to be partly redeemed in the last third of the movie. Whatever else I can criticize about the H2G2 film (and there's a lot), I can say nothing at all against the casting. Martin Freeman as Arthur Dent, Zooey Deschanel as Trillian, and, of course, Alan Rickman as Marvin the manically depressed robot are all brilliant moves. Not to mention the actors who play Ford and Zaphod, also perfectly matched up, and Stephen Fry as the voice of the Guide. Seems like a recipe for success. Ah well.

Until tomorrow.

Victor Frankenstein: MEET YOUR MAKERS

This poster. There are better ones but I picked this one because it cracks me up.

Title: Victor Frankenstein

Director: Paul McGuigan
Screenplay: Max Landis

Starring: James McAvoy, Daniel Radcliffe, Jessica Brown Findlay, Andrew Scott (or Prof. Xavier, Harry Potter, Lady Sybil, and Moriarty)
Release Date: 25 November 2015 (but it took FOREVER to release onto DVD)
Length: 1 h 50 min

Rating: PG-13 for macabre images, violence and a sequence of destruction (that's seriously what it says)

Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Well, after waiting a ridiculously long time for the film's release on Amazon, I finally watched the new Victor Frankenstein movie, starring Daniel Radcliffe, James McAvoy, and Jessica Brown Findlay. I expected it to be awful, and it wasn't, so that right there was enough to make me happy. But I was also impressed by a few things in the movie that I want to briefly comment on.

First, let's just get out of the way all the random BBC cameos. Was there anyone in this movie who hasn't worked for BBC? I don't think so. It was like a Muppet movie but with all BBC cameos. That was fun. 

Second, the physical appearance of Frankenstein's Monster. (It's probably not a SPOILER that the Monster gets created, but if you want the reveal of its physical appearance to be a surprise, skip this paragraph.) This is always a vital but difficult aspect of any Frankenstein adaptation: how to portray the Monster. Obviously, the most iconic is Boris Karloff's uncanny blend of life and death in the 1931 black and white Frankenstein. Other adaptations have gone out of their way to avoid making the Monster look too much like Boris Karloff's, but it's nearly impossible to replace an icon, and no other adaptations have ever succeeded in supplanting Karloff's Monster's place in pop culture. The makers of Victor Frankenstein obviously understood this, and so they didn't try to replace Karloff's Monster: they built on it. Frankenstein's Monster in this film is reminiscent enough of Karloff's to evoke that cultural touchstone in the viewer's mind, but different enough not to look like a direct copy. I found that stroke brilliant and sensitive. (Also the moment when someone mispronounced Frankenstein's name as "Fronk-in-shteen" = score.)

Thirdly, I really liked the focus on Igor as another of Victor Frankenstein's "creations." Since the focus of this movie wasn't on the Monster but rather on Igor, the makers of the film had to find another way to evoke the Frankenstein creation myth, and I thought it was very well done with the character of Igor. Victor took him from the circus and changed him from a misused, animalistic hunchback to a civilized, refined human being. At one point in the film, Victor claims that he created Igor. We can debate whether or not that's strictly true - just as we can debate whether it's true for Frankenstein's Monster.

The setting, costumes, visuals, and feel of the movie were imaginative and fun. It had that steampunk fantasy feel, but not to the point where it was overdone. I probably could have done without the demon monkey monster, but there had to be some element of horror in the film (since it was Frankenstein) so I guess maybe we needed the demon monkey for scares; the rest of the film was a little morbid but not really frightening. 

On to the acting. James McAvoy and Andrew Scott (the film's villain) are both fantastic actors, and it shows no matter what role they're in. McAvoy was perfect as the obsessive mad scientist and Scott was great as the similarly obsessive God-fearing policeman. Is there a mirroring going on there? I hadn't thought of that. That's kind of cool.

Jessica Brown Findlay (of Downton Abbey fame) is also great, though I'm not sure the role really let her show off her full acting talent, but that's OK. I can't exactly say the same thing for Daniel Radcliffe. I love him but I'm not going to lie and say he's a great actor. Harry Potter he could do, and did great, but this role naturally demanded a large spectrum of emotions and transformation, and Radcliffe just isn't really suited to that. A more seasoned and skilled actor could have played the role with about twenty times more pathos, complexity, ambiguity, and depth.

Also, the relationship between Igor and the female lead (played by Findlay) was a little hard to swallow. I can see them being friends, definitely, but it was hard for me to believe that Findlay's gorgeous and intellectually mature character would want to have a romantic relationship (and a bit more than that, too) with Radcliffe's sympathetic but rather flat character. That said, I liked the relationship that existed between Frankenstein (McAvoy) and Igor (Radcliffe). That one was a little more believable, and pretty well played overall.

Lastly, a small complaint: why does Victor Frankenstein always have to have a neglectful father and a brother who died young? Can we get some more creative plot points, please? It's becoming boringly predictable. I know not every Frankenstein adaptation has these elements, but most of the ones I've seen/read recently have. The dead brother plot point was well done in Kenneth Oppel's Frankenstein prequels, but now it's just getting to be a cliche. Frankenstein's brother doesn't have to die for him to be interested in creating life. Maybe he's just naturally curious. Or maybe there's some other reason; we can try to be a little more original than that.