No Harry Potter Book Spoilers

Mostly it was a Harry Potter weekend. Our friend’s retirement ceremony and party went well and we had a great time at the dog show, but basically, it was all about Harry.

I did read the book as soon as I got it because, like everyone else, I wanted to know what happens and I wanted to read it before someone let something slip and ruined all the fun and anticipation. I love anticipation.

So, what do you say when you don’t want to really talk about the book so you won’t give anything away, but you want to say something to express your views? How about: I wasn’t disappointed. And just ask Al, I’m hard to please. I also didn’t think the book was too surprising, but then, we have had something like 15 years of theories and thinking on this. I feel satisfied and won’t be craving another Harry book and wishing she hadn’t ended the series (although I didn't need an epilogue to reinforce that feeling). I did hit a point a little more than half-way through that I thought Oh just get on with it! These books are written for a younger audience and maybe they have a better attention span than I do, but I think that Ms. Rowling lingers a little too long sometimes and drags out scenes that could be wrapped up a little quicker. But that’s just me. I couldn’t get through the Lord of the Rings trilogy because I got bored with 3 pages of scenery description.

I think one of the reasons it took so long was that there were a lot of characters to bring back and events/relationships/secrets to close. It’s the 7th book! We don’t want to leave without knowing what happened to . . .well . . . interject your favorite character here.

Yes, I cried. I couldn’t help it. I’ve been a little weepy anyway—I cried through my friend’s retirement ceremony, I cried watching a slide photo presentation of the retreat that the kids at our church went on this summer, and I cried during some lame commercial on TV. I expected deaths in this book (they are at war after all), but I didn’t realize I would take it so hard. But worth it! I did get a little confused near the end, but I think that’s because I was so anxious to know what was going on that I started to skim a head a little. But you can’t skim these books—you’ll miss some little thing that will end up important later.

I loved this series and I got caught up in all the excitement early on and spent a lot of time discussing what might happen. However, by the last couple of books, I turned off that part of my brain and just read for the pleasure of it. It made them much more enjoyable for me that way.

But, if anyone wants to discuss Snape, let me know! (heh heh)

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I took time out of the reading to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix this weekend also. I can’t believe I wasted 2 ½ hours there when I could have been reading.

OK, it wasn’t that bad, but this definitely was not one of the best of the films. It was so slow and plodding. This book is an emotional turning point for Harry so it’s not going to be constantly full of action like the others, but a little energy would have been nice. It was as if the director said, “Ok everyone, we’re going to have long pauses after each character speaks and sometimes even in the middle of your own lines.” The movie shines when there’s stuff going on, such as Harry teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts and the dueling in the end, but it crawls the rest of the time.

I thought it was pretty obvious that this one was written by someone different than the last 4. Thank goodness Steve Kloves will return to write 6 and hopefully 7. I always thought Kloves did a great job pulling out what really seemed important in the books, while keeping to the spirit of them. There are always things that can’t be filmed from the books (I know, I know. They’d be over 4 hours long if they didn’t cut some things out), but I thought this movie left out some really cool stuff and changed some things around that I don’t think made the story better. Shorter, obviously, but not better. It didn’t seem quite as cohesive as the other films. And the ending was horrible. And there was a lot panting and heavy breathing in this movie, and it had nothing to do with the kissing scene. It was like Harry had asthma or something.

But this was definitely one of the best cast movies. Imelda Staunton as Umbridge and Evanna Lynch as Luna are wonderful and brilliant.

Anyway, I’m a little biased because I still consider the 3rd movie (Prisoner of Azkaban) the best. I even liked the 3rd book best, too. And, who knows. People who haven’t read the books might of thought this movie was brilliant. It’s easier to be harsh when you know where the plot and action comes from.

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I’ll post some pics from the dog show later. I need to recover from magical overload.

Macbeth, How You've Changed

The Washington Shakespeare Company is performing Macbeth with an all-nude cast.

Huh?

Do the witches start signing “The Age of Aquarius” at the beginning? Have they reset the play in the 60s and turned it into a musical? I can kind of see where Hair and Macbeth can be intertwined. Come to think of it, no I can't.

So, I had to read the article and find out what the “artistic” reason was behind what seems like a stunt to shock audiences and fill theater seats. I admit to being intrigued.

I can kind of see where the director is coming from:

The play's director, Jose Carrasquillo, said he was inspired to create a radically different visual presentation after reading the same histories of the Scottish people that Shakespeare is believed to have read before writing Macbeth. They described "a really tribal, almost animallike clan and society," Carrasquillo said. "I thought it would be amazing to do a show with this feel in mind."

Gottcha. So far so good.

Then he focused on the three witches who open the play. Carrasquillo envisioned them as conjurers who actually bring the players in "Macbeth" to life. So in his version, the actors begin on stage as trees and come to life, naked and dirty, only after the witches make it so.

I like it. I can imagine the characters coming out as the witches say “Fair is foul, and foul is fair./Hover through the fog and filthy air.” That’s an interesting opening for the play, even though it really doesn’t have anything thing to do with the scene or the play. I mean, the witches are more a tool of foreshadowing and prophecy, not creation. But that’s why I’m a reader and not a director.

However, moving on:

At no point are any of the actors covered, except for some mudlike makeup on their bodies. And all 10 performers remain on stage for the entire performance.

I don’t get that. Granted, I tend to overanalyze things, but I think that even though tribal clans may have been the inspiration, Macbeth is too complex to be conveyed by some form of intelligent cavemen. I think that at their core, most of Shakespeare’s plays, besides being written to flatter some member of royalty, define humanity, but I don’t think the play has to be that stripped down (so to speak) to relate that to an audience.

Not that I have a problem watching naked people on stage. I wish I lived in Washington because I would like to see it and make comments from first-hand knowledge rather than assumptions. But alas, ‘tis not to be. For I the new Harry Potter will see.

Open Letter to Christopher Nolan

Dear Mr. Nolan,

I love your movies. I don’t hesitate seeing them because I know I’ll be in for an intense and wonderful experience. I’m not an expert at film-making and am not really interested in how everything is done—that just takes away from the magic. So, this letter isn’t a dissertation of your skill as a writer, director, film-maker, skillful as you are. No, just an old fashioned, “Gosh Mr. Nolan, I really liked your movie” letter.

What brought all this on is that I finally saw The Prestige. I love being challenged and surprised in a movie. I sat enthralled as I watched Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale reading each other’s journals, intermingling real time with flashbacks. I admit to a little confusion at times, but I caught on. I have a problem with always trying to figure out where a movie is going instead of just enjoying where it’s taking me. Once I gave up that control, I enjoyed myself a lot more.

I think the fact that your movies challenge me is what I like best about them. They don’t take the easy way out by telling a straight-forward story. They have layers and elaborate twists of logic and are thought-provoking. The movie may end, but that doesn’t mean my thinking ends. I need time to recover before I can move onto something else. It’s the same when I read a good book; I can’t just pick up another one immediately. I have to contemplate it for a while, and if someone is around, I’ll talk about it. I really should watch your films with someone so that I can have a conversation afterwards.

Memento was mind-bending and brilliant, Insomnia was disturbing, and Batman Begins was fantastic. I can’t wait for The Dark Knight and I still need to see Following; I know I won’t be disappointed.

So, thank you. I’ve enjoyed your movies and look forward to what’s to come.

The Fuzz

We rarely go to the movies together. Al has what I have come to call “bad movie karma.” Inevitably, a small child who is too young to be there sits next to him or the tobacco-chewing good ol’ boy sits in front of him or the so-much-important-than-you person who can’t be bothered to turn off the cell phone sits behind him, and of course, the phone rings at least once.

So, Al doesn’t go to the movies very often. But this weekend, I made a command decision when my friend R called and asked if we wanted to go to the movies with them. They were going to see Hot Fuzz, even though she really didn’t have any idea what it was about or what to expect. I, on the other hand, couldn’t wait for the movie to come out, and since I knew Al wanted to see it, too, I told him we were going.

Actually, I wasn’t nearly as decisive as that. I told her we’d meet them there but would call if we couldn't make it. Then I asked Al if he would like to go. But I knew he’d say yes.

Hot Fuzz is by the same people who made Shaun of the Dead, which is one of our favorite movies. Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright wrote the screenplay and Wright again directs. Pegg and Nick Frost pair up again, leading a long list of talented and famous actors, including Timothy Dalton, Jim Broadbent and Edward Woodward just to name a few.

So, you knew I’d love it, right? Well, I did. It’s hilarious and oh so very clever. I don’t think calling it a parody, which some do, does it justice. Hot Fuzz is an homage to cop movies. They take their adoration very seriously, as they did with zombie movies in Shaun. Even within the movie, there’s Danny (Frost) who loves cop movies and peppers newcomer Angel (Pegg) with questions, wondering if he had ever done the things he’s seen in the movies. And as the movie goes on, he’s able to act out all his favorite movie moments.

Londoner Angel (Pegg) is an outstanding police officer (not policeman, that’s sexist). He’s so good that he’s making everyone else look bad, so he’s transferred to quiet and quaint Sandford. There is no crime in Sandford, but there are an awful lot of accidents. Angel begins to think there’s more to these “accidents” and starts investigating, uncovering the serial killing of townspeople. To tell you any more would ruin the fantastic second half of the film.

Pegg and Frost are brilliant. This is not Shaun of the Dead in police uniforms. No recycling here—new story, new characters, new conflicts.

The jokes are so fast and so many that you may want to see it twice to try to catch them all. And then, unless you know every cop and cop-buddy movie inside and out, I’m sure you’ll still miss something. But in the end, who the hell cares? Just enjoy it because it’s good movie.

For All the Nerds Out There

I watched Wordplay the other day. This movie is a documentary about the NY Times Crossword Puzzles and the people who play them and the people who create them. I really liked it, especially the part where the guy creates a puzzle using the theme WORD PLAY right there in front of the camera! That was just too cool.

So, how big a nerd am I that I liked a movie about crossword puzzles?