Amy H. Sturgis's Blog, page 169

Two Thumbs Up for The Deathly Hallows, Pt. 1

I have seen Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1. It's not a perfect film. But it is, unquestionably, my very favorite of the Harry Potter movies. And I have no doubt that, when I see it again, I will enjoy it even more.

A few non-spoilery, general comments: As I'd hoped it would, the film takes its cues from the novel and is dark, haunting, and adult in tone. It's by far the grittiest and most realistic of the films. The cinematography is breathtaking, and the three young leads prove that they've learned their craft over the years. I suspect people who haven't read the book may have some difficulties with the film; frankly, I haven't ever worried about those viewers, and I'm certainly not going to start now. Knowing it wasn't the novel, knowing it couldn't do everything the novel did, I had a personal list of things I wanted out of this film, and it delivered. In fact, it quite exceeded my expectations on almost every count.

Major Items

The presentation of "The Tale of the Three Brothers" is absolutely stunning.

The initial flight from Privet Drive, the attack at the wedding of Bill and Fleur, and the scene at the diner all are very well realized. The sense of peril is immediate and dire. By the time Harry, Hermione, and Harry leave Grimmauld Place to go on the run, you truly feel how hunted and alone they are.

Over and over again, the film shows restraint in all the right places. The changes at the Ministry are horrifying, as is Ron's splinching. The way the Horcrux pendant works on each of the three is clear. Ron and Hermione's evolving relationship is simply perfect. Ron's destruction of the Horcrux is everything it should be: it's his coming of age.

Everything in Godric's Hollow, especially the cemetery and ruins of Harry's home, appear exactly as I had imagined.

Hearing the radio reports of missing witches and wizards during a montage of the remote and isolated settings of their camp gave me chills. The atmosphere is as bleak and as serious as I had hoped.

Let's face it: I don't require much humor. I'm fine with unmitigated dread and misery. The humor in this movie is well timed and limited, though, and thus it's very, very effective. Perhaps six or eight times I (and everyone else, it seemed) laughed out loud. It never takes away from the story, and several times it offers release just when you need it. ("Three more to go.")

I set a new record for Earliest Crying in a Film, thanks to Hermione's scene obliviating herself from the memory of her parents. Then again, since I was still crying at the end, at Dobby's death, I guess I also set a record for Most Prolonged Crying in a Film. But nothing, nothing, is more wrenching than the split-second look in Molly Weasley's face when she knows something has happened to her son. Heaven help me when it's time for Part 2.

A Few Minor Items

I'd pay for another ticket just to watch Snape walk up to Malfoy Manor again. It's that good.

Post-Azkaban Lucius Malfoy is a changed creature. I love Jason Isaacs' subtle work here.

Neville may only have one scene, but he makes it count. I can't wait to see you in Part 2, Neville.

Remus Lupin takes care of business. Again, what screen time he gets, he makes count. And the mustache has mellowed, which is good news for all, I think.

When all Michael Gambon has to do is lie still and play dead, he almost works as Dumbledore. Okay, not quite. Still, it's his best performance yet in the films. Maybe that's because it only lasts a couple of seconds, and all he's allowed to do is hold his breath.

This film offers so many small, understated, eloquent moments. For example, the scene when Harry searches Umbridge's desk and stumbles upon the individual pictures of the Order of the Phoenix is masterfully done. There's Arthur Weasley and Remus Lupin (two of my most favorite characters, incidentally). Then there's Sirius Black and Albus Dumbledore, both crossed out with a handwritten "X." In mere seconds, you're reminded of the life-and-death import of all that's happening and all that's at stake. Blink and you'll miss it, but it speaks volumes. The film has so many of these moments that I know it will reward many rewatchings.


My regrets are so few and so predictable (I wish the secondary characters had received more time, etc.), they are hardly worth mentioning.

In other news, I'm getting ready to head out tomorrow morning, and I'll be out of state for a week. I'll be online to some degree, and I'll certainly try to keep up. I do, however, want to go ahead and send happy birthday wishes out early to darchildre , doctorwho42 , barbedwriting , and savageseraph . May you enjoy many happy returns of the day, my friends!

Here are some links, FYI:

* From Geek Tyrant: "Now You Can Be Frozen in Carbonite Just Like Han Solo."

* From NPR: "Harry Potter: Boy Wizard... and Real-World Activist?"

* Harry and the Potters have a new album of remixes available for "name your own price" download. The a capella choir (Dumbledore's Chorus) rendition of "Save Ginny Weasley" is a hoot.




"For instance, this new idea that You-Know-Who can kill with a single glance from his eyes. That's a Basilisk, listeners. One simple test, check whether the thing that's glaring at you has got legs. If it has, it's safe to look into its eyes, although if it really is You-Know-Who, that's still likely to be the last thing you ever do."
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling

You Have to Discuss Those Issues

For your Friday amusement, with thanks to penfold_x , an important public service announcement:



"Binks hates puppies. Binks killed Grandma. Whatever it takes to get this idea that Binks is cool out of my son's mind, I'm willing to do it."
- Talking to Your Kids about Star Wars

The Magician and the Maid... and Other News

* I have a new microphone/recording setup, and now I have a new narration! Today my unabridged dramatic reading of Christie Yant's "The Magician and the Maid and Other Stories " is available on the latest episode of StarShipSofa. This story is available in the new anthology edited by John Joseph Adams called The Way of the Wizard , which debuts today. You can download or listen to the reading here. If you listen, I hope you enjoy! (As always, a full list of links to my narrations and podcast segments is here.)

* Tremendous thanks to everyone who responded to my request for recommendations of Sherlock Holmes pastiches! Your suggestions were most helpful.

* Via ankh_hpl : Poe and Hawthorne fans might want to check out "A Murder in Salem" on Smithsonian.com, which discusses the brutal killing of one Captain Joseph White of Salem in 1830, and the inspiration it provided for the works of Edgar Allen Poe ( "The Tell-Tale Heart") and Nathaniel Hawthorne (The Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables).

* Speaking of brutal murders, I recent caught The Discovery Channel's documentary Jack the Ripper in America, which I found to be quite well done--and quite different from the other (albeit limited) documentaries I've seen on "Ripperology." There's a good summary of it here.

* Less than two days until Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I ! Who's going? *raises hand*

* Happy early birthday to crazywritergirl ! May you have a most excellent day and a wonderful year to come.

I'll leave you with a parting shot from Someecards.com:




"There is nothing more to be said or to be done to-night, so hand me over my violin and let us try to forget for half an hour the miserable weather and the still more miserable ways of our fellow-men."
- Sherlock Holmes, "The Five Orange Pips," by Arthur Conan Doyle

Reminder! Holiday cards

Reminder: I would love to send a holiday card to my friends, no matter where they are on the planet or which holiday they celebrate. If you'd like a card, but you haven't yet replied, please reply here. Thanks!

News & Request for Recommendations

** So NASA is holding a special televised news conference on Monday "to discuss the Chandra X-ray Observatory's discovery of an exceptional object in our cosmic neighborhood." Now that sounds interesting. Hmmm.


** Thanks to the brilliant Sherlock , I've decided to correct my heretofore scattershot and disorganized reading of Arthur Conan Doyle's Holmes works by reading through them all in their original order of publication. I'm two novels into this project now and enjoying myself quite a bit. I'll probably use this as an excuse to revisit the Professor Challenger stories, too. (I love The Poison Belt!)

I wanted to ask you, my friends, for recommendations of Holmes pastiches. I know that the field is vast, and I want to sample the best (and leave the rest). I'm particularly interested in those that lean toward science fiction and speculative literature, as opposed to straight mystery. Neil Gaiman's "A Study in Emerald" is one of my favorite short stories of all time, and I need to read all of Shadows over Baker Street . I've noted that Sherlock Holmes in Orbit , The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes , Gaslight Grimoire , and Gaslight Grotesque all seem like good starting places. As for the subgenre of Sherlock Holmes versus Jack the Ripper fiction, I gather that Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson is the novel most respected by scholars of "Ripperology."

Do you have any suggestions for me?


** In other news, I'm quite intrigued by the new official trailer for 2011's Jane Eyre, starring Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench, and Alice in Wonderland's Mia Wasikowska as Jane. It looks like the film may emphasize the gothic aspects of the story, rather than just focusing on the period romance. If so, that's very refreshing. I look forward to seeing it.


** Happy early birthday wishes to adamantrealm , sneezythesquid , and m_stiefvater . May you enjoy many happy returns of the day!


"I had no idea that such individuals exist outside of stories."
- Dr. Watson, A Study in Scarlet, Arthur Conan Doyle

Link salad!

Apologies for being quiet lately. My husband and I both caught a nasty stomach virus that's making its way around the area, and I lost several days to the ick. Food and I still aren't on friendly terms. Fortunately, I was fit enough at least to catch a terrific performance of Much Ado About Nothing yesterday by the L-R Playmakers, which perked me up a bit.

R.I.P. to Glen GoodKnight (1941-2010), the founder of an organization that's near and dear to me, The Mythopoeic Society. He won't be forgotten. My heart goes out to everyone who has been touched by this loss.

Happy early birthday wishes to actourdreams , coppervale , and st_crispins . May all three of you enjoy many happy returns of the day!

Reminder: If you'd like to receive a holiday card from me this December, please reply here. Thanks!


I have a few links to share:
From Ryan Britt at Clarksworld Magazine: "Sherlock Holmes and the Science Fiction of Deduction."
Support Neil Gaiman's The Price!
From New Scientist: "SF Books That Got Away."
From Douglas Clegg and M.J. Rose at Borders Sci-Fi: "Gothic Unease."
This particular post at Historic LOLs cracked me up. What can I say?


see more Historic LOL


Librivox has been releasing some terrific new unabridged recordings in some of my favorite genres. In case anyone's interested, here are some of the latest available:
Science Fiction
The Flying Inn by G.K. Chesterton
The Hate Disease by Murray Leinster
Two Thousand Miles Below by Charles W. Diffin
"The World That Couldn't Be" by Clifford D. Simak
Fantasy
Eric Brighteyes by H. Rider Haggard
Lady into Fox by David Garnett
Gothic
The Marble Faun by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Pocket Island by Charles Clark Munn


"The wild November come at last
Beneath a veil of rain;
The night winds blows its folds aside,
Her face is full of pain.
The latest of her race, she takes
The Autumn's vacant throne:
She has but one short moon to live,
And she must live alone."
- Richard Henry Stoddard, November

Remember, Remember the Fifth of November

Happy Guy Fawkes/Bonfire Night. Today's a great day for reading a good book or watching a good film. :)

Happy birthday to madkestrel . May your day be fantastic and your next year the very best yet!

Reminder: if you'd like a holiday card from me this December, please go here. Thanks!


Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I see of no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

Happy November! News and Recommendations

Happy November, everyone! And happy early birthday wishes to madkestrel and crackferret . May both of you enjoy many happy returns of the day.

For the record, my love for the BBC's Sherlock is devouring my brain. I had to share.

In publication news, I'm happy to report that my proposed article "From Amerind to Dorvan: The Future History of Native America in Star Trek" has been accepted for the upcoming History and Star Trek collection to be published by Wiley & Sons in 2012. I've been wanting to write a piece on this topic for a long time (tracing the subject of Native America through all of the incarnations of Trek), and I'm really pleased to have the opportunity now to do it.

Last, I wanted to let everyone in the United States with access to PBS to know that, beginning on November 2, the Independent Lens series will be featuring the documentary Reel Injun: On the Trail of the Hollywood Indian . I recommend it. Once more with feeling, here's the trailer:




"How silently they tumble down
And come to rest upon the ground
To lay a carpet, rich and rare,
Beneath the trees without a care,
Content to sleep, their work well done,
Colors gleaming in the sun.

At other times, they wildly fly
Until they nearly reach the sky.
Twisting, turning through the air
Till all the trees stand stark and bare.
Exhausted, drop to earth below
To wait, like children, for the snow."
- Elsie N. Brady, "Leaves"

Holiday Cards - Request!

I would love to send a holiday card to my friends, no matter where they are on the planet or which holiday they celebrate. (We make our own cards each year, starring the world's most beautiful Boston terrier, Virginia.) If you would like to receive a card from me this December, please reply with your name, mailing address, and, if you like, which holiday(s) you celebrate.

All replies are screened so that only I can read them.

Thank you!

Happy Halloween!

The day is here, my friends! We made it! Happy Halloween, Happy Samhain, and (slightly early) Happy Día de los Muertos!

Thank you so much for joining me in my month-long holiday celebration. I truly hope you've enjoyed it. I have! Please stop by, grab a virtual latte or cider or hot cocoa, a candied apple or some roasted pumpkin seeds, or even a goblet of blood and a plate of brains, and say hello!

Happy birthday to greenhoodloxley , and also happy early birthday to ithiliana , as well! May you both enjoy a wonderful day and a fantastic year to come.



Halloween Links:
* If you haven't checked out the Halloween posts of magicwondershow , mamomo , mguibord , vivien529 , stinabat , and Book Chick City, or any of the other participants in Countdown to Halloween, you have time to catch up on all the goodness today!
* As always, you can find all of my past Halloween posts here.

Would you like to find some appropriate Halloween reading online? Here are my recommendations for archives to visit:
* The Literary Gothic (organized by title and author)
* Horror Masters (organized by subgenre, such as Classic Horror, Horror History, and Ghost Stories)
* The Works of Edgar Allan Poe (poetry, fiction, and non-fiction)
* The Works of H.P. Lovecraft (works written by Lovecraft)



Spooky Text of the Day: What can I say? This is my favorite. I hope you enjoy "Hallowe'en in a Suburb" by H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937).

The steeples are white in the wild moonlight,
And the trees have a silver glare;
Past the chimneys high see the vampires fly,
And the harpies of upper air,
That flutter and laugh and stare.

For the village dead to the moon outspread
Never shone in the sunset's gleam,
But grew out of the deep that the dead years keep
Where the rivers of madness stream
Down the gulfs to a pit of dream.

A chill wind weaves through the rows of sheaves
In the meadows that shimmer pale,
And comes to twine where the headstones shine
And the ghouls of the churchyard wail
For harvests that fly and fail.

Not a breath of the strange grey gods of change
That tore from the past its own
Can quicken this hour, when a spectral power
Spreads sleep o'er the cosmic throne,
And looses the vast unknown.

So here again stretch the vale and plain
That moons long-forgotten saw,
And the dead leap gay in the pallid ray,
Sprung out of the tomb's black maw
To shake all the world with awe.

And all that the morn shall greet forlorn,
The ugliness and the pest
Of rows where thick rise the stones and brick,
Shall some day be with the rest,
And brood with the shades unblest.

Then wild in the dark let the lemurs bark,
And the leprous spires ascend;
For new and old alike in the fold
Of horror and death are penned,
For the hounds of Time to rend.