A. Peter Perdian's Blog, page 2

A Disappointing Search (movie comment)

Like many others, I like science fiction movies. Good ones, though, are few and far between. So we eagerly look forward to those films we anticipate will be excellent.

When Prometheus (2012) was released on DVD, I rushed out and grabbed a copy. I'd been looking forward to seeing it for some time. After all, Ridley Scott was the director and producer. It would have to great, right? Or at least good? Alas, no.

This movie was a big disappointment to me. What went wrong? The movie had plenty of talent—excellent actors and actresses. Great photography. Great special effects also. What the movie lacked, however, was a good script!

The writing was awful. How can one be drawn into a movie if the behavior of the characters is totally unbelievable? It stops you from letting your imagination soar.

Plot

The film is about the search for man's creator, which turns into a prequel for the original Alien movie.

Do I recommend this movie? No! Save your money. I give it 1 star out of 5.

Miscellaneous Stuff: Writing, Authors, Movies, etc.

This last week has been an interesting one. I've read four thought-provoking articles that I want to share. Plus I've seen an excellent movie.

The first article is about what is often termed Chick-Lit and how when a novel is dumped into that category—fairly or not—it's often looked down upon, not judged as a serious piece of writing. Since it's mostly women who write Chick-Lit, it borders on being gender discrimination.

http://www.slate.com/articles/double_...

The second article is about Cormac McCarthy's novel Blood Meridian and how the novel was born, how the book's earlier drafts envisioned a different story. It's quite an interesting article, but in summation, I think what McCarthy went through is symptomatic of what many writers experience to some degree.

http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/bo...

The third article deals with the dissing of genre fiction at the national book awards.

http://www.salon.com/2012/10/11/natio...

The fourth article has nothing to do with writing, but rather concerns the 'continuing' deplorable state of how women are treated in the military, where rape by their fellow soldiers is a constant danger. Worse, the Department of Defense seems unable (or unwilling?) to get a handle on the problem—as do many of the officers at company, battalion and regimental level.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10...

Now for some comments on the latest movie I've seen. It's a Polish movie (2012) titled, "In Darkness."

If not for the director's hand (Agnieszka Holland), this could have been a very depressing WWII movie. The subject matter is quite dark, a holocaust story based on events that took place in Lvov, Poland (now Lviv, Ukraine).

Though some of the scenes are fast-paced and action-packed, most of the film moves at a methodical pace, neither fast nor overly slow. It's a character study of a Polish sewer worker and crook (Robert Wieckiewicz) who reluctantly becomes responsible for a small group of Jews (women, children and men) hiding in the city's sewers, a act that puts his own daughter and wife at risk.

His relationship with the group is entirely monetary at first, but as the months go by, he finds himself growing emotionally attached to the people who depend on him for their survival. The Germans prove to be a secondary threat to him, as the Ukrainian militia under German command carries out many of the horrific crimes being committed.

The acting is excellent all around. Though Robert Wieckiewicz is the primary actor, there are a number of other actors and actresses with strong roles.
Most of the movie takes place underground in the city's sewers, so besides the subject matter being nightmarish, the film is also depressing from that aspect. Great photography, though.

In portraying what happened during this time period, the movie contains a lot of violence. It wouldn't be suitable for the very young.

Now holocaust films have been around for a long time, some excellent, some so-so. It's not a pleasant subject, especially when they're accurate. If you're up for it, though, I recommend this movie.

Plot

A character study of group of people thrown together in an enclosed space (the sewers), hiding from the Germans while waiting for the city to be liberated.

4 to 4.5 stars out of 5.

Der Spiegel interview with Rowling

There's been a lot of recent news about J.K. Rowling's new book, "The Casual Vacancy." Now I'd been looking forward to what her new writing endeavor would produce, but based on what I'm hearing about the subject matter, I'm not sure it's the type of story I'd enjoy. But who knows. According to reviewers, it's well written.

Anyway, if you're a fan of the Harry Potter books, you may find this Der Spiegel interview with J.K. Rowling of interest. I did. She talks briefly about her new book as well as her past Harry Potter books.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/z...

Oh, and if you're interested in what's happening with one of the stars (Emma Watson) of the Harry Potter movies, here's a brief update.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/peo...

Two Movie Comments (SWH & S)

Over the last few days, I've taken a couple of short breaks from my writing to watch two movies. One of the films turned out to be excellent, the other less than so-so. Of course, keep in mind that these are only my opinions—and you may disagree.

Let's start off with the one I didn't care for, Snow White and the Huntsman (2012).

When I picked up this movie, I had no preconceived notions, having only seen the trailers. I was looking forward to watching it, to a pleasant evening with some homemade popcorn.

Sadly, that wasn't the case . . . and I watched both the extended and the theatrical versions.

I'm not sure what went wrong with the movie. The talent was there, but the actors were either overacting or underacting. Even with fairy tales, you have to be drawn into the story. That didn't happen here. The storyline was unbelievable and the writing just so-so. In other words, it was boring.

Plot

This was a variation on the Snow White fairy tale, a bad variation.

I give the film 1.5 stars out of 5.


Now on to my comments regarding the second movie I watched. It was Shooter (2007). Now this film has been out for a little while, but I've just gotten around to viewing it.

First, let me acknowledge that I haven't read the book the movie is based on. Hence, I had no preconceived notions of what to expect, no mental comparisons between the book and the movie.

This film grabbed me from the very beginning. It's an action-packed and fast-paced thriller. It never lets up. I found the acting to be superb, the principal hero (Mark Wahlberg) and principal villain (Danny Glover) were excellent, as were all the actors.

Though I'm not given to conspiracy theories, this movie carries it off nicely. The storyline is totally believable, especially given what's going on in the world today—where betrayal by those you believe in seems common.

The movie is violent, not for the young or squeamish. It's all about the chase. Yes, in some ways, this is a chase movie. But it's also so much more than that.

Plot

A preeminent sniper is betrayed, a hunter becoming the hunted.

I give the film 5 stars out of 5.

Two Movie Comments (CC & E)

Note: I also posted these comments under the European folder for movies.

This last weekend I watched two DVD French movies. One was marginally fine, whereas the other one was a disappointment. Anyway, here are my comments, starting with the marginally fine one.

Certified Copy (2012)

I found this film to be somewhat interesting. It's a slow moving drama, a character study of the two main actors (Juliette Binoche and William Shimell). The question the movie poses is are the two leading characters married. As the movie progressed, the answer seemed obvious to me.

The dialog between Binoche and Shimell was excellent, very crisp, sometimes insightful and at other times sniping. I liked it. The scenery and photography was also excellent.

If you're looking for action, however, there is none. Nor is this a story with a resolution.

Plot

Who knows? Maybe it's the disintegration of a relationship? Or maybe it's a typical day in the life of a bickering couple?

I give the movie 3 stars out of 5.


The other movie I saw was Elles (2012), which also stared Juliette Binoche. Though I couldn't find any reviews before watching the movie, I assumed it would be satisfactory since it was one of the nominees at the Berlin Film Festival.

This is a film in which Juliette Binoche plays a magazine writer doing research for her next upcoming article. While doing in-depth interviews with two of the subjects of her article, she's also juggling being a mother and a wife.

As best I could make out, the magazine article is about Parisian college students having to depend on prostitution for paying their way through school. The two women who portray such students in the film are almost vignettes within the overall context of the movie.

Though this is meant to be a character study of Binoche and (to a lessor extent) the two female students, I never connected with the story. Perhaps subtitles aren't always adequate. At times the movie seemed to border on being soft-porn.

Plot

A writer too wrapped up in her project, blurring the lines between her own life and those of her research subjects.

I give the movie 1.5 stars out of 5.

Writing Update and A Music Comment

Originally, I'd anticipated publishing my next novella between October 1st and November 1st. That schedule has slipped. The new tentative date is December 1st, give or take a week.

I'm quite pleased with the progress I'm making, but in letting the story tell itself, the word count has increased, which—obviously—is why the publication date has slipped.

Again, there's no title as of yet. That's the very last thing I do before publishing.

Let me take a moment now to mention an album I picked up last week. It's called the "Wrecking Ball," and it's by Bruce Springsteen. I'm really impressed with the album. Most of the songs hit home with me.

Of course, I know not everyone is a fan of Bruce's, but if you've liked his albums in the past, check out this latest one. You can pick up singles on ITunes.

Movie Comments--Bonsai

Note: This review/comments are cross posted under the South American Movies Folder.

Last night I felt in the mood to watch a movie. So here are my comments.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this Chilean film (Bonsai (2012), but since it had been nominated at several film festivals, I wanted to give it a try. The movie is based on a book/novella by the Chilean author Alejandro Zambra.

Now I seem to remember reading somewhere that the movie was a funny romantic comedy. I'd have to disagree. Though there were a few humorous spots, I wouldn't consider it funny. Or if it was funny, it was with a very light touch.

The film is definitely romantic, though. It's also sensual and tender, and of course, there's some nudity. The movie has four main actors: one man and three women. The male, Julio (Diego Noguera), is the primary, the pivotal point for the others.

This is a slow moving story and there isn't any outstanding action and/or tension. I expected to soon be bored, especially as it periodically jumped eight years into the past before coming back to the present. Surprisingly, I wasn't bored. Rather I found myself interested in watching this gentle story unfold.

I agree with another commentator who mentioned that the DVD packaging gives the impression that the film is somewhat frivolous. It isn't.

The movie opens in the present with an unemployed Julio trying to find work with a famous author, seeking the job of typing the hand-written notes of the author's latest novel. At the same time, Julio is living alone while having an ongoing affair with his next-door neighbor.

When he fails to get the job, he tells his girlfriend (the next-door neighbor) that he did get it, and then proceeds to write his own novel, claiming it's by the famous author.

While Julio's writing his novel, the movie periodically jumps eight years into the past when Julio was living with Emilia (Nathalia Galgan), the love of his life, a woman he let slip through his fingers. In a real sense, there are two alternating storylines here: present and past. But then the novel Julio's writing is about his ill-fated love with Emilia eight years ago.

Plot/Storyline

The film is a character story of a man who while writing about his ex-lover finally comes to realize what he has lost.

Now not everyone will appreciate this movie, especially those who don't like slow unfolding stories. As for myself, however, I liked it a lot.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Book comments: CW

Here's what I thought about the latest book I've just finished reading: Cyber War by Clarke and Knake.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up this book, but I was familiar with Clarke's reputation. Also, I felt it was time I knew something about what cyber war entailed.

The premise of the book is that the Internet is an unsafe environment, a dangerous environment, and that America's enemies are now preparing this battlefield for cyber war. Though the authors (Clarke and Knake) list a number of potential enemies, their writing focuses mostly on the Chinese threat.

The book stresses that America's survival depends on having dominance in this new area of warfare. According to the authors the situation is critical. Supposedly, we only have a dominant (or near dominant) offensive capability, whereas our defensive capability is dangerously porous. They harp on that fact throughout the book.

The authors then offer some suggestions to rectify the situation, all of which make sense to some degree, but all of which could potentially lead to the loss of more personal privacy. Now given that since 9/11 our personal privacy and freedoms have been repeatedly compromised under the guise of security, I would expect that to happen here also.

Then what's the solution? And is the situation as dire as the authors state?

I found the book to be quite informative, but it made for some dry reading. It was also somewhat depressing and a lot longer than necessary. This won't be for everyone.

I rate it between 3.5 and 4 stars out of 5.

book comments: TSofR

Last night I was in the mood for something to read, so I picked up a book (Kindle version) I'd recently purchased.

The Story of Rose: A Man and His Dog by Jon Katz.

Once I began the book, I went ahead and finished it. Here are my comments.

I enjoyed this book. It was an excellent read, an emotional read, and I finished it in one evening. It's what I would term a semi-tearjerker tale.

The book commences when the author purchases a working-farm in upstate New York. He then buys Rose, a border collie, to help him run the farm and manage its animals, which started out with sheep.

Rose turned out to be the perfect companion for the author and for running the farm. I have to admit, however, that at times this non-fictional story seemed too good, the dog too perfect.

Plot/Story line

It's about the relationship between the author and Rose, the emotional and working bond between them, the lessons learned, and what they taught one another through the years.

I highly recommend this book, albeit with this caveat: If you don't like animals, especially dogs, the story may not appeal to you.

I give it 5 stars out of 5.

Fan-Fiction

As I was scanning headlines of the Guardian (a UK paper), I came across this brief article on the history of Fan-Fiction. I found the information quite interesting, but then I knew next to nothing about the subject. For those of you that read and/or write fan-fiction, you may find it worth your time to peruse the article.

Or if you're like me, you may just want to understand what it's all about.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/...