‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’

I’ve had it. I'm done. I am so done.

This is the last straw. I’m at my limit. I can't take this anymore.

Fuck Disney.

Fuck Hollywood.

Fuck the trendy franchise addition.

Fuck the obsession with cinematic universes.

Fuck the corporate capitalist cult that strangles creativity in the name of profit.

Fuck Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

And fuck me for feeding money to this detestable beast.

... Feel free to keep count of how many times I curse in this post. It's one of those, people, so strap in tight. This rant-review hybrid is not for the faint of heart.

Spoilers, because I have succumbed to the power of the Dark Side, consequences be damned.

Nov 2017 Update: Trying [and Failing] to Dodge Bullets

Hello, dear readers!

Real life remains a priority for me, even though some mild depression has dampened my motivation to get out of my rut of unemployment. I can't say how good things look at this point, but I still have enough energy to keep moving, even if the overly critical voice in my head loves to find new ways to subvert any progress I've made. The fact I'm aware of my current state of mind means I'm starting off on the right foot when I start to take action.

That said, I'm still uploading my Persona 3 fanfic, Through the Empty Spiral, on AO3 (30 chapters as of this post), and I'm trying to get my own original story off the ground. A few scenes have come to life, and a dozen characters are begging for their time to shine, so I have plenty of ideas to sculpt and polish. Once I have a more concrete design plan and an actual narrative timeline structured, I might rant about some of the problems I've run into and other concerns floating around my head as I break down this seemingly herculean project.

Between Rei and Yuuri Katsuki, I don't know who I love more.
And adorable, squee-inducing fanart doesn't help my poor heart.

Entertainment-wise, I've been watching season 2 of March Comes in Like a Lion and fighting every urge to adopt Rei Kiriyama as my son or little brother, and I admit I'm tempted to watch My Hero Academia due to my thirst for shonen anime kicking into overdrive after years of avoiding the genre. Long-running anime with substantial filler content are too great of a commitment and One Piece never did anything for me despite trying multiple times. Thus My Hero Academia, which seems to be running in concise, tight few-episode seasons, may be a safe investment at this point. Maybe a Japanese take on superheroes will provide a different kind of story I can get behind compared to the unavoidable decade-plus-and-still-running Marvel and DC typhoon. If all else fails, an anime reviewer I once followed in high school recommended Busou Renkin many years ago, and I'm enjoying it enough so far. And there is always JoJo's Bizarre Adventure if I'm that desperate. I have options.

My music listening habits has taken a strange turn this year. My Spotify playlists suddenly have 80s, 70s, and 60s hits that radio stations my parents listened to during my childhood, and a few recent pop hits slipped in too. The former is nostalgia hitting me in a sudden wave, and the latter is my best friend's bachelorette party playlist indoctrinating me for an entire weekend during the summer. Although by my own volition I have slowly become a small fan of Charli XCX (hence my Music Mood having "Black Roses" a while ago) after listening to some songs that appeared in The Sims 3 (which I can no longer play thanks to computer problems *sobs*), and I danced for joy when Marilyn Manson dropped his latest album a few weeks ago.

As for movies and video games? The last film I saw in theaters was It, which is both one of the better and more frustrating horror films as of late due to it squandering its diamond-quality potential with severe tonal inconsistencies and an abusive number of tactless and moment-killing jump scares. At least the Nostalgia Critic's review made me laugh harder than I ever had over his content in years. Beyond It and Saw 1, no films impacted me in a meaningful way this year.

The same can be said about video games, since I already discussed (in some detail) Mass Effect: Andromeda and Persona 5. However, I recently impulse-bought Yakuza Kiwami and called it crack on Twitter. The gameplay is addictive as hell, the characters bleed so much delicious ham and cheese, and I get to soak up more little (albeit fictional) things about Japanese culture and the yakuza, so call that game a net positive experience.

All of that said, seeking escapism and looking into myself for refuge against the insanity of the world only works for so long. That might be why I am feeling more melancholic and pessimistic than usual. Being thoughtful and introspective doesn't help when everyone in the world is screaming bloody murder over every little thing until nothing seems to matter anymore. We are in chaotic times, and I wish I knew how to navigate the colossal, seemingly planet-sized hurricane.

It's still too soon to render judgment on the state of things in 2017, but at least beloved celebrities weren't dying on a bimonthly basis like last year. (Oh, yes, I am still butthurt that David Bowie and Alan Rickman died within days of each other in January 2016. That was one of the worst weeks of my life.) Sure, the orange monkey still tweets like a tantrum-throwing toddler with immunity from being banned for some unfathomable reason, cock-measuring contests between the US and North Korea has me fear for Japan's and South Korea's safeties, and reputations are getting slaughtered over things as small as illogical accusations and blatant corruption, but at least getting stabbed with acupuncture needles every day still beats a shotgun to the balls every week! I'm bleeding, but I can still force myself to smile when I have to!

It's a miracle I still retain some sanity and have not succumbed to the "breaking news" bullshit the media farts every second by listening to political podcasts from different sects of the political spectrum back when it still mattered. I try my best to not become too political here despite this being my personal blog, but since I have had some people leave comments who did not agree with my thoughts at all, worrying constantly will do no one any good. You are your own worst critic, and I have said some scathing things about myself that other people haven't conceived of yet. It won't stop trolls and negative comments, but some self-awareness goes a long way.

So if any bridges are to be burned over what I say, so be it. Don't let me stop you. I'm not going to cry over the loss of the negative two hundred followers I actually have. Because I'm not going to throw a tantrum over every stupid thing the president and his administration says or does, and I'm not going to blindly follow a political side or cause solely on the basis of how moral an ideology or person supposedly is. A lot of people in the world are suffering and are in pain, every side has a slither of truth and a slither of falsehoods; the last thing I want is to develop a knee-jerk habit of devaluing a human being because they do not share ideas, educational background, or opinions with me. And yes, that means that I am not going to punch a Nazi unless in legitimate, legally defined self-defense because they tried to physically and deliberately cause injury to me (them simply existing does not count).

The state of the world at the moment... sadly.

Now that I got that out of the way and my readership fell to -10,000, I can be left to listen to so-bad-it's-fun music on Spotify and vent my frustrations with American politics into another potential novel that likely won't be published until I'm on my deathbed. Or watch teenagers with bizarre hair punch each other in crazy, nonsensical ways.

Bless the age of streaming, even with the obnoxious commercials. My soul feels slightly cleaner now that I can watch a good portion of anime on legitimate websites.

Some of My Thoughts on 'Daredevil'

Now that the semester is calming down and coming to a close, I find myself feeling too tired and annoyed to get any work done. That's the life of a typical college student, of course. But there have been times when I want to sit back and enjoy a good show, only to find that Youtube took down my favorite channel, the old talents at Channel Awesome continue to lose their luster (save for two), and Netflix has one too many crappy shows and movies for me to bother with. These first world problems are more annoying than critical, but I like to feel that my time is well spent... or I have the illusion that my time is well spent. Netflix has been hit and miss on that front, and I was back in a rut with the service for the third time this year.

Until Marvel of all things managed to make something that has a pulse and catches my interest.

I know the vast majority of the internet speaks in hyperbole and memes, but I'm very serious. This is the only Marvel "masterpiece" quality work that I genuinely agree as much as people claim. Kind of. Maybe. I don't know.

A Miserables Cup of Tea Isn't for Me

Joyful day.

I don't have a fond opinion of Les Miserables, but it hardly bothers me enough to get me worked up for the rest of my life about it. It's not the kind of fiction I've experienced that scarred me permanently. Yet this story has tried four times to stir a response from me, and I had a different reaction each time.

The musical version by far has the most inconsistent yet paradoxically consistent track record: it has always been a profoundly disappointing experience short of such infamous torture sessions as Gladiator and The Dark Knight. My high school's version of Les Miserables put me to sleep thanks to the lousy and chaotic sound production; the 25th anniversary had me mock a Jonas brother through the entire second act; and the 2012 film adaptation made me take out my iPod to play sudoku and alleviate my torment.

Just as I was ready to throw the towel and forever give up on Les Miserables, I found another film version to take a stab at on Netflix: the 1992 one with Liam Neeson. I was happy with the glorious absence of singing, and enjoyed it for being a decent movie. Unfortunately by November 1st, the movie is possibly gone forever for streaming. For shame.

Anywho. As a whole I can conclude from my experiences - as I presumed back in 2012 - that for me Les Miserables the musical has a competent source material that fails as a story adaptation.

I love you too. Spoilers ahoy.

'Frozen'

Missing out on films is common for me lately. Frozen came out when I had no money or nearby friend who wanted to see it. Then when it showed on campus, I was busy with exams. But thankfully babysitting fixed this problem in no time.

Now for my typically cynical few cents.

To put it simply, this is one of the best Disney movies I've enjoyed in years. With the exceptions of WALL-E, Toy Story 3, and Wreck-It Ralph (my #1 fav recent Disney movie), I have lost interest in the majority of Disney's works since the turn of the century. Not that their other movies were bad, but I just found them passable and mediocre. If it were anyone but Disney, that'd be a compliment. And I can agree with some critics who say the Princess line-up past Mulan has been especially unimpressive. The Princess and the Frog was forgettable in the long-term and New Orleans does not interest me at all as a setting. Tangled's trailers did not impress and I still feel no obligation to see it. Brave was a committee-intrusive mess with horribly misleading marketing.

So for now it seems Frozen is tapping into something that Disney has been missing in a long while that I'm not sure I can convey reliably. The music is far more memorable and the comedy is as quirky and fun as ever (from the view of a 20-year-old anyhow). I usually hate comic relief gimmicks like Olaf, but his obliviousness to the fact that snow + sun = water is reality is hilarious. The animation is colorful, expressive, and gorgeous, especially the spiraling snow and ice during the "Let It Go" sequence, etc. It's Disney, people. But for some reason, something about the entire film, from the music to the story themes to the comedy and the art somehow struck gold with me. I haven't felt so happy to watch a children's film about princesses in years.

Ok. Between this and gorillas riding horses and wielding two
machine guns, I dunno which one is stupider-looking.

What especially helps is the self-aware commentary and trope discussion throughout. By this point I will admit that is definitely one of my weak-points when it comes to humor. As fun as it was watching Elsa shoot down Anna and Hans' plans for marriage based on love at first sight, it does seem a bit awkward, given the numerous arguments about how "progressive" and "feminist" this movie is. I appreciate Disney taking a stab at shallow attraction, but declaring this to be a triumph of strong independent female characters is ludicrous. This is a whole other rant for when I need to explode, but for now let me say this. A "strong" female character should be a good character in the same way a "strong" male character should be. They must have a compelling, understandable, or relatable arc that the audience can recognize. I believe Anna and Elsa succeed in this regard... for the most part.

Anna is an energetic redhead who is narrow-sighted thanks in part of being isolated from others and especially her sister. She cannot relate to her at all, but she sure as hell wants to try anyway. That is something I admire. Yet, she lacks common sense (like forgetting to bring a coat or dress in pants on a hike in the mountains) and trusts so easily she cannot plan at all (to the point that all she choses for herself is finding Elsa and marrying Hans). She's sweet and kind, but she adorns a majority of traits seen as belonging to a Mary Sue: clumsiness, socially awkward, adorable, sleepy-headed, stubborn, etc.

Guess she is not titanium, huh?

Meanwhile Elsa is a psychologist's worst nightmare due in part to the trolls and her parents being absolutely horrible and scaring the poor girl to death. Her running from her problems is what jumpstarts the entire plot and I believe that this is one of the best things about the film. But of course, Elsa's story is only truly interesting because of her sister and how they need each other to bring peace of mind for both their sanities. I may be an only child, so I have little basis for my commentary, but the theme of sisterly love was a great story for Disney to focus on.

But when you start to think more about the movie and bring in all sorts of social commentary, Frozen becomes a mess. (BTW, anyone who says "Let It Go" is a metaphor for coming out of the closet is - to be frank - an idiot grasping at straws that are nonexistent. In the context of everything that happens in Frozen that theme makes no damn sense.) Though I can say I like Anna and Elsa, I know they are very flawed and broken girls, absolutely terrified and trapped in their own little worlds their parents forced them into (with good intentions, mind you). They are not "strong" and "independent" as feminists keep toting. Yes, Anna is a female lead and Elsa a female antagonist, but they are not exactly bad characters. They are deeply troubled. I thank Disney for keeping mind of this fact, especially when either girl does something stupid for the plot, which is very, very often.

Somehow, like Persona 4's Teddie, I end up liking the most
annoying character in theory and practice.

As for the other characters, Kristoff was alright. He was by far the smartest character due to him having the most common sense of the bunch. Hans' character turn-around by the end came out from left-field, but upon a second watch, the build-up may be more noticeable. Still, the subtlety was a bit too subtle. And Olaf grew on me for better or worse. The trolls who cared for Kristoff were insufferable at best and offensive at worst.

Meanwhile, the rest of the movie was pretty solid. There were two or three too many songs that add nothing to the story and act as filibusters to keep children entertained just because. ADHD continues to be a concern we must accommodate for apparently. I didn't mind Olaf's silly song as it gave him some character, but the trolls' short period of time in the spotlight was the worst part of the movie, period. It was so bad, I felt my blood boil in rage. I was very much offended, only for me to slap myself and remember that this is just a movie... with a moment with a shitty message for engaged ladies, regardless of what kind of man she is supposed to marry.

Perhaps my biggest complaint of all is that this movie should have been its own thing, and not a loose "adaptation" or "inspiration" of The Snow Queen. It only seems faithful to the concept and trope of "defrosting the ice queen", which can be key in any kind of story. What could have been an intriguing, magical, and fantastic concept has been stripped to a personal story with limited external involvement or consequence. And almost no sensical magic. I know, it's Disney. They simplify everything. But whatever themes were present (mainly and only the "snow queen") in the original narrative only seem to be superficially referenced here. I know little of the original tale, unfortunately, but I'm sad that there's not even a possible reference to the corrupted glass that blinds the hearts and minds of mankind. The lack of fantasy and an explanation for the origin of Elsa's powers make this movie fall short when you start thinking about plot points, actions, and motivations seriously.

That being said, there is a lot I can rant about, but I still enjoyed Frozen. For once in over a decade I finally cared about a story about a Disney princess (or two this time). I can't say this will be a classic, but it's a step in the right direction. "Let It Go" may annoy some, but honestly, it's one of the most memorable earworms from Disney in a long time.

*_*

And yes, I like both Idina Menzel's and Demi Lovato's versions. Don't harass me about this.

Rank:

3.3 out of 5

For a more qualified and critical look at how this movie is somewhat overstated in its "pro-feminism", read this excellent article.

'X-Men: Days of Future Past'

Been forever since my last movie review. Oh well, this one makes me a bit chatty, so why not?

As a disclaimer, I have not seen any other X-Men movie that was ever released. I never saw the Wolverine movies either. I never even read the comics. To put it bluntly, I never had any interest in them ever. Though I took a graphic novel class last semester, I could respect the medium of comics, but I don't love them. I still prefer Japanese manga over Western comics. And I especially don't give a crap about superhero stories. The Amazing Spiderman, Thor, and The Avengers are exceptions, but even they did not overhaul my apathy for the genre.

So I went to this film completely blind with my cousin's son just for the sake of passing time. And in the end, it still did not convince me that comic books and comic book films are worth getting into. That being said, it does get a few points for supposedly being one of the least awful X-Men-universe films. Better to start with the best than the worst, I guess.

Some spoilers.

200 Posts?!?!?!: Update and Mini Rants

It took me nearly a month to realize how many posts I've published. Holy Crap. O_O

Typically one would say "Thank you for helping me keep this blog strong!", but I won't. I say it on every "update" and it's tired out by this point. Yes, I am still thankful, but that's not going to be the purpose of this post.

Well, I want to mention the state of various posts I'm working on or I've promised I'd put up. Then I'll sprinkle in some things on my mind lately.

'Oblivion'

...

I... um...

...

This is a first.

SPOILERS.

Happy 2013!!: An Update

Lo and behold, everyone was wrong about December 21, 2012. Not only was 2012 one of the stupidest movies ever made, but the Mayan calendar technically sees the day as the end of a time period and the beginning of a new one. Kind of like a "new "year", I guess. Nothing happened. I bet at 16:00 Eastern Time, the Japanese were either asleep or laughing at our ludicrous claims of "ZOMFG, doomsday!!!!!!"

And I lived to see me birthday. And laughed. Very loudly.

I was busy plowing through repetitive missions
with the Mako while y'all caused a ruckus at 12 am.

Anywho, Happy New Year to the few individuals who read my blog!

2012 was a pain in the neck. I would get caught up in college life, video games, music, etc. and forget to update. This may be because I don't like treating this as a "here's what I'm doing today" sort of blog. I've had diaries in the past, but I'd barely use up ten pages. Writing down every single mundane thing I do or think about never had much appeal to me. Sure, there has been a few posts when I would briefly talk about what I've been up to, but I only want to write posts when I feel like it. As a result, I have gone on for weeks without any content.

We'll see how 2013 goes. I make resolutions and act when I need to, not when people cheer because the clock struck 0:00 on the first day of 2013. Ah, cynicism! ^_^

Before I disappear again, let me say a few more things.

Thanks for the those who voted in my small poll. I wanted to get a sense on how to even talk about Mass Effect. Since I quickly became a fervent fan over the summer [and came up frequently in my posts] it seemed inevitable that I would have a desire to ramble on talk about it. Because so much could be said, I wanted an idea on how willing some of you would be when you read the posts. Currently three drafts have been composed over the past few months: two of which still need extensive editing before being ready to be put out.

My dad gave me Mass Effect Trilogy for Christmas, so now I have extra copies of 2 and 3 as well as a physical copy of the first game. Until I played through it a few times, it will be the first post on the series as a whole. In other words, this whole thing might take a really long time. Once Spring semester starts, I will not have access to my PS3 and the game will be put on hold. For now, I'm trying to play it as much as possible to get a feel for it. Plus I have heard about how frustrating the glitches can be. The PS3 version of Mass Effect seems to have all new problems that have ruined the experience (i.e. game files not being transferable to Mass Effect 2, audio issues, mini game issues, etc.)

First impressions?

After spending about 40 hours on the game and completing one of my two save files... It's a whole different kind of difficult. Frustrating at times, but it was definitely worth it. Thankfully my experience was only ruined by problems that most likely existed with the original XBox 360 version. No game-breaking crashes, no mini-game problems. Heck, I'm only happy I could transfer my file into Mass Effect 2 without any penalty. Now I can experience everything from start to finish, the right way.

Enough about video games though.

The other week I had the chance to see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in 3D. Hearing mostly negative things about it from critics - hmph... figures - I got a bit worried. Diehard Tolkien fans, however, seemed a bit less angry about the film. (Can't say about the 3D gimmick though...) As much as I loved film versions of The Lord of the Rings, I'm far from being a Tolkien fan. He put so much content and love in Middle Earth that I'd have to dedicate my whole life to his fiction. I'd be open-minded about the lore, but it's too overwhelming to dive into. At least what little I have seen (and read) the material is not too hard to swallow.

Anywho.

The Hobbit was probably one of the only books I ever enjoyed reading for school. Even then, the extremely particular and detailed notes and tests we had to take nearly killed the experience. So I reread it in my free time once or twice. So, yeah, I was damn happy to see a film adaptation.

Looks like I'll have to review it sometime soon. I could easily rant on about it without trouble. I still have ideas, people, I just need the motivation to write sometimes.

Well, Happy New Year everyone!

May/June Update: Holy Crap Exams Are Almost DONE!!

Thank goodness I graduate in a few days, because I'm at the end of my rope. While I was finishing up last-minute projects, I spent hours on TV Tropes, hoping I could get a jumpstart into a story I wanted to write for years, and sat on my ass playing video games and reading manga. Most of my time has been... unproductive... to a degree.

As some of my dear readers may know, I suffer from ADHD when it comes to blogging about my meager existence. One month I squee like a fangirl over a new album I just discovered, then I'll jump onto movie reviews, and then without warning video games pop up out of the blue. Inconsistent, but hopefully refreshing.

Anywho...

Other than school, my brain has been exposed to such a crap-load of information that it's on the verge of frying. My dad asked what I wanted for a graduation gift, even if it was a video game console. This was not long after I heard about Sonic Generations, and I finally had the incentive to reeducate myself on the video game world. (I stayed comfortably under a rock with my Playstation 2 and Gamecube.) After months of browsing console libraries, interviewing my peers, visiting various stores, and watching Youtube videos, I finally settled with the PS3. I know that new consoles are coming up in the next year or two, but at least for me, I can get a bunch of games under $60. Sure, I'll need a job to keep my expensive hobby going, but I can survive.

Yes, Link talks.
No, his dialogue doesn't suck.

While still in the similar realm of video games, I recently discovered a series of manga adaptations of various games from The Legend of Zelda. I plowed through them within hours and squealed for days. With no updates on the series I read (looking at you, Dengeki Daisy!), I needed something to nom on. Maybe when I do get that miracle job that will help make my wallet grow, I might buy a box set.

"Du bist hier im meinem Land"

And my other loves have not been ignored! I recently got Rammstein's Made in Germany greatest hits album and love every second of it. Dark Adrenaline still plays often on my iPod, and Apoptygma Berserk's You and Me Against the World is fantastic as well. A few other albums have been on my mind and I wish to check them out as soon as possible.

Movies, however, have been very hit-or-miss. Cabin in the Woods was pretty campy but badass for a horror film, touched by the awesomeness of Joss Whedon. Dark Shadows was a billion times better than the terrible Alice and Wonderland, but it's still in the lameness that Tim Burton has been trapped in. The Avengers... ... maybe I should review that one later. Ever since my violent vomit episode, I need something else to talk about.

So much potential wasted...

The past several months have been me trying to enjoy everything I can while I'm still a spoiled little kid. I'll be in college, I'm gonna have to find work, I'm going to take care of myself soon. It's a series of spiked and flaming hoops that I have to jump through. I am all for going through it not just because I have to, but because I hope that something fun and rewarding is on the other side.

In the meantime, this blog still exists and I will continue to update it... on a not-so-regular basis. 

I'm baaaaaack! XD

The Hunger Games... Maybe I'm Just Too Cynical

I guess I couldn't ignore this for long...

I saw The Hunger Games the other day... Where to begin.

I think may have mentioned at least once that when it comes to majority opinion, I tend to get very skeptical. When people were raging over the books, I backed off without hesitation. Twilight fooled me once and I was not going to fall for another trap. This series is more than likely far better written but I was not ready to examine the bandwagon. An overreaction? Perhaps. It didn't help that one of my friends obsessed about it, because I'm not always as impressed by the stuff she loves. I try her cup of tea, enjoy it mildly, and return to mine.

That aside, I heard and read everyone's outcry on the whole issue of a "lack of racial diversity" and "twenty black people in the background doesn't count as diversity." Because I have not read the books, I have no comment. While watching the film, I saw nothing of that nature to complain about.

Now, as a "typical movie fan", The Hunger Games was rather entertaining. The pacing and build-up was nearly flawless, the set was fantastic, the second half was more suspenseful than a horror film, and the costumes were great. The shaky camera was very annoying in the beginning and during some of the action scenes, but it did help to hide some of the gruesome murders.

The best part of the film was the commentary on the reality TV-crazed American media. Everyone is obsessed with sitting back at home and watching the drama, death, and violence the kids face during the game of survival. The well-off citizens in the Capital looked like overdressed candy wrappers in an elegant, futuristic store shelf. Despite how ludicrous appearances were, this aesthetic was surprisingly... beautiful. This was far more appropriate and tasteful than Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

The world of Panem is very easy to understand, even if you never touched the books. For all of these, I was very pleased. Honestly, I was looking forward to the later films just to see this where this political dystopian universe will go.

But I walked out of this film pissed off.

I'm sorry, who are all of you again?

Despite the easy-to-follow plot, most of the characters fell dangerously behind. Other than Katniss, Gale, Rue, and Peeta, I cannot remember anyone else's names. I'm not sure if it's the actors' faults for poorly enunciating (for a while, I heard Cinna being called "Sinner") or the writers' faults for not clearly defining who was who. We never get to know any of the other kids fighting in the games, except Rue and the generically aggressive blonde jerk. The former gets fleshed out too late, but still done well enough; the latter was essentially pointless.

Out of the entire crew, only Gale and Katniss made great first impressions through their believable dialogue. But only Peeta stood out as the most likable character despite his quiet introduction. Everyone else was forgettable, especially Haymitch, who only served as the stereotypically incompetent mentor. Even Naruto pulled off that trope better... twice.

Above all else, I absolutely despised every single moment Katniss and Peeta exchanged words. Katniss treated him like crap in the beginning for no clear reason. I get that she's not exactly into having a relationship with anyone, but here she looked more rude than self-confident or being a "survivor." Even when everyone tells the two to pretend to have a "star-crossed romance" for the sake of entertainment for the Hunger Games, I could not take them seriously. Their "romance" was almost at Twilight levels of aggravating and sugary mush. Though I was glad Katniss went out in the midst of danger despite Peeta's whiny protests like most guys are portrayed in romances, I struggled to contain my frustration.

*sigh* I'm just so cynical and nitpicky.

I'll pass.

Look, this movie is worth checking out. Seriously. After the lack of good movies after the last Harry Potter film and Chronicle, this is worth two and a half hours of your life. All my complaints aside, this was a well-made movie that's fun, easy to follow, suspenseful, and emotional. Don't take my mixed feelings to heart.

There's only one thing I know for certain. I am still not convinced to read the books.

3.3 out of 5

Happier Holidays

I'm a legal adult! *blink, blink* And I got accepted into my first-choice college! *screams*

By this time it might as well already be Christmas, especially when my birthday present is always a "sneak peak" into what Santa gave me. This might be the only positive outlook I ever adopted. XD As a bonus I have no worries about applying to other schools and the nightmare of waiting. I was mentally getting off track for a while.

Depressed no longer is the Fangirl of earlier this month. The doom and gloom and cynicism that bleed profusely has been stopped... for now. I dunno what I'm talking about now. Haha!

My vacation started off today with me waking up at noon - which happens rarely. Then after spending alone time for myself, me, my mom, and some friends saw The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I always wanted to read the book, but thanks to summer reading I did not have the chance to pick it up. After watching it though, my mom said the movie stayed loyal to the book. I figure I'll pick it up someday, as well as watch the Swedish version.

Kind of like with Sucker Punch, I was so impressed with the music that I bought the soundtrack. The opening sequence - though very different from the rest of the film - is pure platinum. The video below only shows about 20% of what's going on. When it played in the theaters though... damn. 0.O

I might squeeze in one last entry before the new year... a top 10-ish list. Big emphasis on "-ish" though.

And to be a good sport, here's another Christmas song. On the bright side, it's not as oppressive as most! :D

Happy Holidays!!! :D

'Anonymous'

Strikingly awesome poster. 'Nuff said.
(CREDIT: found on Wikipedia)

Shakespeare, a fraud? Try saying that to your English teacher. I know I did... playfully.

The greatest playwrite of the English language. Any pieces of fiction writen in books, sung in poetry, and performed on stage or film is subject to copywrite thanks to a dead man. The Einstein, the god, of literature. And it has been a solid fact for hundreds of years. Denial and skepticism will send you to the guillitine, electric chair, or the gallows.

But honestly, this whole debate about the authorship of Shakespeare is long and heavily researched to the point that an average human brain will hemorrhage. You might catch me spending more time in a library than the science lab, but even I don't have the attention span to tackle a controversy on life support thanks to stubborn scholars. I'll stick to extensive research on vampire mythology, thank you very much. Both might be overrated topics, but I have more patience with the latter.

Anonymous is a movie you should not take as historically acurate or factual. (For that matter, doubt that anything "based on a true story" is completely authentic.) And unless you are a Shakespearian scholar or history nut, don't overanalyze every single thing this film does wrong. Again, your brain will explode and I won't be there to clean you up.

To simplify things this film states that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford was the real "Shakespeare" who gave his written works to Ben Johnson, who was to take the credit. But the real actor Shakespeare decided to take it for himself. ...It's complicated.

Standing on its own as a film, Anonymous is very entertaining. The look and atmosphere of London is absolutely beautiful - though the darker imagery made it felt more Victorian than Elizabethan, especially when it feels dark and cold all the time. (Even though I went to England over the summer, I had no clue the country was always like winter!) However, the cast is very good and solid with great performances. Shakespeare was an annoying drunken idiot, but he grows on you albiet very slowly. Everyone else... great. There is a lot of personality in the cast, but it gets so hard to remember names past the "big players."

The story, however, is a mess. The main cast is easy to recognize, but everyone's roles blur together and create an entangled confusion. Once Anonymous dives into the political drama - or "facts" - it gets really hard to stay on top on the banter. Some information was either extraneous or poorly conveyed to the casual viewer. Furthermore, most of the characters contradict their historical counterparts.

Worst of all the sequence of events were severely disconnected as the jump cuts jerk you back and forth between various periods of time. At first, the film was nice enough to give you the years but later you will be left asking "when in the heck are we?" The flow of time simply makes no sense.

If you can easily sit through an entertaining movie, you might enjoy this. Everyone else might bust their brains into the wall. As for me, I might or might not watch it again to pick up on the bullshit. It looks nice, but the storytelling is pretty darn confusing. At the end of the day, this conspiracy theory did not make me believe everything really happened. But then again I'm mature enough...

Maybe I'm too moderate for this type of thing...

FINAL VERDICT:

2 out of 5

"And everyone wears a mask..."

To briefly break the anime mood that my blog has indulged in lately, I just found this and wanted to post it.




It's been a looooooooong time since I last saw it, but I love MirrorMask. I find movies where artistic and surreal (severe understatement in this case) designs are the main focus tend to be a hit or an unwatchable miss - for subjective reasons - but this is a really fascinating film. This song should have been in the movie because "Wake the White Queen" by The Crüxshadows really captures the spirit of the film beautifully.

Guess that's another band to research. Haha!

It's All Over

Fangirl is predictable when it comes to this. This has saddened me so much that "The Funeral of Hearts" would tempt me into performing seppuku rather than cry in a celebratory manner.

The Harry Potter films... have been completed. Dear god... the end of an era.

While watching the midnight premier last night without my friends (T-T), I cried at least four times within three hours. It will be very hard to get over the series I followed loyally since the autumn of 2001. I'm sure almost every fan on the planet who is as sad as I are complaining on the internet or any other communicative media, but still... This is the first time I felt a huge part of me has died in the a very bittersweet way. As much as I'm dying to get a time machine and go through the experience of waiting for these films all over again, I'm still happy that Harry Potter ended and left me entertained until the end.

But now I need something else to heavily and emotionally invest in...


I won't review this movie yet, since I might watch it again so I can observe it more objectively. Sorry for the silence for the past few days; I just finished a four page essay for class. Looks like I'm gonna have to get more than three hours of sleep tonight! XD

'Thor'

(CREDIT: to the creators of the comics and this movie.)

Rank: 3 out of 5 <-- a superhero(-ish) movie that I like? *gasp*

Superhero films annoy me. Superhero films based off of comics that never end piss me off. Superhero films based off of never-ending comics that suck... well, run away or else a mushroom cloud will consume you.

Admittedly I was only interested in Thor because of it being based on Norse mythology. The general topic always caught my attention as a kid, but in the past few years I have been curious about mythologies that often are glossed over (Chinese, Japanese, Norse, Finnish, etc...) I figured that this movie would at least give me a few hints about the Norse myths that I know so little about. When I came out, I still didn't know too much, but at least a few names will stick.

As for the film... I liked it! It did many things right that I like it films: the secondary characters were easy to remember (if only by appearance), comedy reigned at some great times, and Asgard looked absolutely otherworldly and gorgeous. On the surface the plot flowed pretty well for two hours and nothing really dragged. The characters were not very complex, but as simple and predictable as they were, they still were generally likable. Thor was even willing enough to be humorous at times, which tells us that the movie is an action flick where fun stuff happens. The special effects were decent as were the fighting scenes (too many close-ups) and the music was really epic.

While these work well, the overall story is just plain average with a fun and visual kick to it. Because these superhero-ish movies are not my cup of tea, I cannot say I love this film completely. Sure, the characters were not whiny and bitchy, the plot stayed somewhat on course, and I was amused. That's it. As much as I can say these good things, the film made a mistake that a good story should never - ever make. PLOT HOLES.

There are Ice Giants, but they have only twenty minutes of relevance in Thor. What was the point in having them? How did they get into Asgard without the notice of the guard at the Bifrӧst? What are the other ways of traveling between realms? Is this gaping hole open for a sequel to bury it or not? What if you never get a sequel to continue this? Explain, movie, EXPLAIN!!!!!!!

Plot holes, especially obvious ones, are one of the biggest killers for the ever nitpicky critic in me. Sadly that is why I cannot give Thor a higher score. But if there will be a sequel, maybe I can overlook the poor, abandoned, empty hole where I fell in head-first. A superhero(ish) movie that I like and saw how great it might have been if they took better care? *gasp!*

"Suck the Blood Right of my Heart..."

The Vampire Diaries. Twilight. True Blood. Vampire Academy. Vampire Knight. Moonlight. House of Night.Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. Underworld. Tales of Vladimir Todd. Dracula. Nosferatu. And many more tales that I failed to come up with in... my brain hurts...

Thankfully in the past several months the whole vampire trend in the media seemes to have calmed down to reasonable levels. However, the trend is still seen as destructive to the dignity of the entire vampire concept.

There are loads of times when being a vampire fan embarrasses me; even blogging for a whole month on nothing but vampires scares me. (Thus, I thank my viewers who still stick around when all hell broke loose.) Out of all the posts on the subject, every single piece of media portrays them as dark, attractive, mysterious, and sexual creatures of the night. Wasn't it only a few centuries ago when vampires were unfeeling, heartless, horrible servants of the devil?

Though I can't remember specifically, vampires fascinated me long before Twilight. Brief mentions of such creatures in Harry Potter? Mentions of Dracula? Sights of vampire costumes? Mini history lessons about Halloween monsters? Debates of superiority between vampires and warewolves? Playing with dolls with my friends and imagining they had supernatural powers? Whatever sparked my interest (though I'm sure the Count from Sesame Street didn't start it,) I knew the basic, semi-universally accepted characteristics of these creatures: repelling from holy water, the sun, and garlic; drinking blood from the living; roaming around at night; having pale skin, fangs, and dark hair; and dying from a stake to the heart.

Because I grew up knowing this, these tend to be the limits of my standards and

I never seemed to mind the various interpretations of these monsters. Though the vampire mythology of Buffy is far different then that of Vampire Academy, I still relish both interpretations for the sake of an enjoyable story.

But I obviously will join in the traditionalist bandwagon in the crusade against the sparkling ones. Thank you, Stephanie Meyer.

To further prove how much of a sucker (pardon the awful pun) I am for them, I have always wanted to write my own vampire story. Maybe it wouldn't bring dignity to the mortally bleeding horse, but at least it isn't beyond dead completely. But for now, I continue to research, watch movies and TV shows, read books, surf the web (who says that anymore?), and use my noggin to create something - if cliched - that won't suck to the point of people puking out their organs.

Regardless, the process is moving very slowly, but having sources and saving them never hurts.

In the meantime, I still have to dive into several books that people have asked me to read, specifically Dracula, Interview with the Vampire, and The Historian. Well, I'll get there in the next three years or so at the rate I'm moving. Hopefully I can get something, somewhere one of these days: just as long as my blood doesn't run dry.

Since I didn't update as much as I wanted to, I will wrap up this month with maybe two more posts: one on a basic summary of the origin of some vampire legends and a review of something else. Look out for them, or dance for joy that the topic will get stabbed in the heart and sealed into a hell dimension for a very loooong time.

... ... ... maybe I should really stop watching Buffy. At least the title came from a HIM lyric... *sigh* Making references with no feedback is great for my ego. I have no life... *sniff*

'Queen of the Damned'

(CREDIT: to owners. obviously.)

Rank: 2.8 out of 5 <- unfortunately mindless entertainment

There's nothing wrong with mindless entertainment (hell, I liked Eagle Eye and Live Free or Die Hard just for the intense car chases and guns!) Such films are needed to make us relax as well as to not overanalyze or expect much from any aspect of the story; we save that for films like Inception or The Sixth Sense. However, we don't need films that insult our intelligence or leave us numb towards suffering onscreen. Thankfully Queen of the Damned does the former, but it does the latter in some cases.

To start things off, I have never read any of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. I have never even seen the movie adaptation of the well-known Interview with the Vampire. By now, dear viewers, you should have turned off your internet server and planned to never return to my blog again for typing such blasphemy. "A self-proclaimed vampire fan has never read Anne Rice? What is wrong with her?! How dare she!!"

And yes: I dared. And I digressed. :P

Despite not reading into this universe, I have at least heard of the series as well as the two movies based on them (be thankful that I am somewhat cultured.) I especially heard of Queen of the Damned, partially because I heard "System" by Linkin Park's Chester Bennington on Pandora. I was rather curious and I looked up the movie's soundtrack on Wikipedia, where Marilyn Manson, Disturbed, Godhead, Papa Roach, and Kidneytheives contributed songs. Months later, a Youtube user I follow made a very direct, but detailed review of the film. Though she did warn that Queen of the Damned was "in the middle" I checked it out anyway.

And she was right.

This film can be compared to a child taking a visual exam. The doctor says to read line 5 as best as the child can; he decides to read line 6 very efficiently instead. Though he did a very good job at reading words far smaller than planned, he failed to meet to the basic standard the doctor placed. Queen of the Damned does this by telling the story of Lestat instead of Akasha, the character who has the movie named after. And I know that the Vampire Chronicles mostly focuses on him, but Lestat gets far more screen time and well-written development than any other character. By the time the movie ended, I was shocked this wasn't called Lestat's Damned Adventure or something... It is especially confusing when many believe that Akasha would be touched upon much more.

Everything except Lestat was average or poor at best. Akasha was more of a force than a character; Jesse was only a love interest for everyone who likes human/vampire romances; Marius is portrayed completely wrong (I have done my research: Magnus was the one who sired Lestat;) Maharet was a waste of 20 undeveloped minutes; and everyone else was forgettable beyond belief. The plot wasn't too horrible, but with bad characters to begin with, one cannot expect much. As for special effects... I can't complain, especially after seeing far worse (sorry Buffy!)

Only see this movie for a time when you want some mindless entertainment, because despite its strong flaws, Queen of the Damned is not awful. This not quite bad but not quite great film earns a 2.8: enjoyable mediocrity. Such a thing can exist.

But I must ask, why would someone butcher some of the major plot points of a well-loved book series? Something I won't ever understand or tolerate I guess...

'The Rite'

(CREDIT: to the owner. by now, you should know it's not moi.)

Rank: 2.5/5 <- stuck in limbo

Two scary movies in a row? Maybe I need to go back to light-hearted fairy tales of sugar and bubblegum. ...NAH.

As of now, I have to question what makes a horror movie good? In fact what makes any story great? How did Inception blow away so many people last summer? How did Aeris's death in Final Fantasy VII become one of the most shocking scenes in video game history? How has Shakespeare's works become literature that every living being in civilized culture must learn about? Why did Star Trek have a humongous, continuous cult following after the cheesy show went off the air decades ago? How can some subjective ideals be more universally agreed upon than others? And why are there some things one can either love or hate, with no middle ground? Like the meaning of life itself, maybe there is no absolute and definite answer.

"Why sound so philosophical, Fangirl," you may ask? Well, I do overanalyze things or I babble on and on to the point you want to hit me with a metal baseball bat. Once again I might be over-thinking this movie and wondering why I gave it this rating.

As far as horror films go, The Rite is by no means a god-awful film, but it sure as hell isn't great. Of course it doesn't suck because Anthony Hopkins is in it, and he is fantastic; but the other actors didn't impress me much. The plot brings some bits of stupidity: a young man in the seminary who suffers with a crisis of faith and goes to the Vatican to study exorcisms. As a skeptic I found myself arching my eyebrow every time people pushed the man in that direction. Either the man has issues that surpass his eyeballs, or he is a big pushover. Actually with him being surrounded by so many Christians I'm surprised he hasn't complained about the emphasis on faith IN THE VATICAN. (It's bad enough with me being in a CATHOLIC SCHOOL.)

Basically, every character, except Hopkins', has little to no personality. However, they have more personality than those of the cast of Twilight.

This shouldn't taint your idea of seeing or avoiding this film, but as a doubter of almost any religion, I was a bit turned off by the black-and-white logic presented here. It basically spelled this out to me: "If you believe in the one, true Christian God, you have power to cast the Devil away. If you are a doubter or an atheist, the Devil has deceived you and has lead you into his grasp." I do appreciate that the movie highlights the importance of not just citing words for the fun of it, but that mindset is extremely myopic and not an objective truth.

Regardless, there are far better scary films with exorcisms to see, but this film isn't horrible. I don't really care what you want to do with this. Besides, my mom and I saw it mostly because of Anthony Hopkins, who didn't disappoint us, and without him, the film might have sucked. Sometimes execution is key. :)

Because this and Silent Hill are getting to me, I think I should avoid horror films for now. On the other hand, I should avoid romances too. *sigh* [For the most part] I hate February...

'Silent Hill'

(CREDIT: to the creator. I do not own this pic or the movie.)

Rank: 3 out of 5

Yeah, yeah, this movie is a few years old, but don't give me grief. I review albums that are a few years old anyway!

Quite frankly, I'm not the most avid fan of the genre, but I love having a horror film to creep me out and scare me every now and then. The Last Exorcism, The Grudge, One Missed Call (the superior Japanese 2004 film,) The Uninvited, and Carrie are some of my favorites. Unfortunately, the horror film genre can be plagued by really terrible, corny fests of excretion (The Unborn, The Messengers, and the American lame-ass version of One Missed Call.) It seems that scary movies can be loved or hated, depending on the person.

Now as for Silent Hill...

Thankfully I did A LOT of research on the universe of Silent Hill, so know that I am aware of it's concept. From reading Translated Memories and SilentPyramid's analyses, watching Dena's videos in Game Den, and watching several Let's Plays on thatguywiththeglasses.com and Youtube, it took me almost two months to know a decent amount of information. Fortunately, a friend just let me borrow her copy of the film as well as the Playstation 2 version of Silent Hill 2. I am no longer sitting on my butt and watching videos: I finally have the chance to experience the universe.

But now about the film... OBVIOUSLY.

In my research I have heard many complaints about it, especially adding the "sexy nurse" monsters, the cockroaches (I think? o_O), and Pyramid Head without stating any relevance for their existences. The Silent Hill games always had various monsters as portrayals of an aspect in the life of the main character or the creators once living in the accursed town. For example in SH2,Pyramid Head symbolizes punishment, hinting at the fact that James can't forgive himself for the crimes he committed, and bears a resemblance to the executioner found in a painting somewhere in the town. Because fans know this, several feel confused as to why would a monster of punishment would be in the movie when Rose has no known desire to punish herself.

The bottom line is simple: Silent Hill is a cursed town, shaped by the subconsciousness of the souls who set foot there. Monsters representing their dark feelings come alive to haunt the weary traveler who was led there. The town has a dark history of people who believe in a dark cult, wanting to bring the birth of their god by filling the Mother with hatred. It is a hell one cannot leave until the main character comes to terms with the feelings within them. Silent Hill is a survival horror game with plenty of symbolism, complex characters, deformed but creative monsters, and tortured solitude.

The film creatively took the spirit of the games and captured the imagery beautifully, however, the concepts were shaky. The plot wasn't terrible, but its aspects strayed too far from the source material. Technically, it's almost exactly like the plot of the first game with edits:

Game:

- Harry Mason is looking for his missing daughter Cheryl

- Silent Hill has either very few to no residents left

- Alessa was burned in an attempt to bring the birth of the cult's God

- Alessa is 14

- Dahlia is the head of the cult

Movie:

- Rose Di Silva is looking for her sick daughter Sharon

- several people, who follow the cult, live there in a purgatory-like state

- a coal fire burned down the town and the residents

- Alessa, who was burned for being a witch, is at least 37

- Christabella (where the hell did she come from?!) is the head of the cult

I could go on forever on this, but I don't want to confuse you all too much.

Overall, I don't think this film was terrible as many fans say it is. Silent Hill made numerous changes to the characters and the plot, but the execution was pretty good. The monsters weren't too corny since they are all humanoid to begin with, so there's not too much crazy or stupid CGI. And, because there were almost no male characters for some reason, the actresses all did excellent jobs. Could it have been better? Of course: the symbolism was severely lacking. But Silent Hill is one hell of a fun movie.

At least, that's what I think, especially when I don't call myself a fan...