Attitude of Gratitude #10

And, again, some catching up to do.

Yesterday, I was grateful for:

Cristy Waters
Immortals Midnight Premier

 Tuna Melts

I had a meeting with my Navy recruiters and then had some time to kill between that and work, so I went and hung out with my sister and my nephews for a bit. We had lunch which was some delicious Tuna Melts. I love how certain foods can just hit the right spots. Never ceases to amaze me. 

 

 Immortals Midnight Movie Premiere

I feel like I've been waiting forever for this movie to come out, so it was only fitting that I go to the midnight premiere. I was even going to go by myself if I couldn't get anyone to go with me. All in all it was a really good movie. The whole experience was even better because it was all in 3-D. I definitely think that the movie will be less impressive without the 3-D, but still a really good movie. It's good that it's not one of those movies that does things just because it will be shown in 3-D. Sometimes directors sacrifice artistry for the thrill of throwing something at the screen to make the audience jump and it comes off forced and just wrong. This one never felt forced. I love what they did with the legend of Theseus. I especially loved the minotaur scene and the payoff at the end that ties everything together. (I'm being vague because I don't want to spoil anything. Go watch the movie! You won't regret it!) Warning: There is lots of blood and gore. Huh. A movie about the Greeks? Rated R? Blood and gore? A little bit of sex? I think it's definitely a more accurate depiction of the Ancient Greeks if it has all that, so get over it. 

 

Cristy Waters

It's funny how life works out. I've known Cristy since junior year in high school when I moved to Idaho. She has always been someone I thought was cool, but we never really hung out. I found her again on Facebook a couple years ago (?) and we've talked a bit on there (she's a member of my book club) and, just recently, have started talking more now that I'm in the Navy. She was in the Air Force and so we have the military in common. Anyway, I got to hang out with her last night. She's the poor schmuck I convinced to go to the Immortals midnight premiere with me. So, yesterday, I was very grateful for old-new friends who are willing to go to awesome movies with me. 

(I will publish my 11-11-11 Gratitude post tonight.) 

Befall as a Movie

The book I'm writing would translate very well to the silver screen. Maybe I think that because I'm biased. It plays like a movie in my head as I'm writing, so it would seem natural to jump into the box office. Whether or not that actually happens is another story altogether. Let's just focus on getting into book form before we start thinking of a movie of it.

It has always been a habit of mine to line up actors to play my characters as a way of getting their looks solid in my mind. What I find with this book is different from other books I've tried to write. Where I usually have one actor in mind, this book has me bouncing around from actor to actor to the point where I have two or three actors for each character that I think would be good.

There really aren't a whole lot of characters in this book. It's a far cry from my last novel attempt which became such a fiasco full of characters that even I got daunted by it. So here is the list of actors I have lined up with each character. I realize this won't mean much to you if you haven't read the story yet. Oh well. It's for my own entertainment.

Olivia:
Emma Stone (current favorite because she can do sassy and independent very well)
Rooney Mara (definitely has the look I picture for Liv)
Rachel McAdams (probably a little older than Olivia but I absolutely love her)
Lea Michele (I'm pretty sure it would be nice if whoever played Olivia also had a nice set of pipes, looks-wise Lea doesn't fit my vision of Olivia though)
Emily Blunt (not sure why...but she'd be great)

Grady:
Penn Badgley (it would be interesting if he and Emma Stone were in another movie together)
Chris Fisher (relatively unknown but he has the look and an accent)
Anton Yelchin (He's an excellent actor)
Chace Crawford (I know next to nothing about him. And I'm not a Gossip Girl fan but he has the look for Grady)

Harper:
Chris Pine (the constant favorite for him. For Harper it really would depend on who was cast as Olivia)
Chris Evans (haven't hated anything he's done. He's proving himself to be a good leading man)
Cam Gigandet (huh. Another cast member of Easy A. Coincidence?)

Nikki:
Hilary Duff (she'd be a good bff)
Kristen Bell (Not sure if she'd play the best friend in a movie but she's got the look...)
That's all I've got.

Queen Maeve:
Charlize Theron (basically Charlize is who I think of when I think of classic beauties)
Olivia Wilde (She's everywhere lately. And she has an exotic beauty about her that would be perfect)

Red Man:
Cam Gigandet (if he isn't cast as Harper, he'd be great as the crazy Red Man)
Paul Bettany (he's actually probably perfect for the role)
Karl Urban (Probably one of the most versatile actors out there right now)

Vanessa:
Zoe Saldana (I'm seeing a lot of Star Trek cast members in this list too. Huh.)
Aunjanue Ellis (She was great in The Help as Yule May)

Ok. That's all I've got right now. Below is a mock movie poster I made for fun.

The Help Movie

Last night I went and saw The Help movie. I have trained myself to look at movies made from books as two separate entities. Both have different audiences usually. I was absolutely traumatized for life when I went to see The Bourne Identity and found that the only similarities to the book was the opening scene when Jason Bourne is floating in the water and he gets saved by fishermen. Oh, and the character names. Everything else was a complete departure from the book which saddened me.

There are those rare movies that come along that go so well with the book that it's a breath of fresh air. Lord of the Rings trilogy, Harry Potter and we'll even go with Twilight are among those movies that stick really closely to the books from which they are adapted. It has taken me years to realize that Hollywood makes these movies, yes, to hop on the buzz train that the books have caused and, therefore capture the already-fans. But they are also trying to get their hooks into a different audience. Ya know the type. The ones who wait til the movie of the book comes out because they don't want to read it. (I'm guilty of this too. I have no intention of reading all of the Harry Potter books because I would rather just watch the movies. Someday I may read the books, but for now the movies will suffice.)

Back to the original topic on hand. The movie of The Help was fantastic! Here are a few reasons why:

A. I love Emma Stone! I have loved her since her days in the flop Drive. A series which only lasted for, literally, three episodes. It was supposed to be a dark spin on the Rat Race movie but it just didn't work. Anyway...she is fantastic. And she showed her emotional/dramatic acting chops beautifully in this movie.

B. The story is amazing. And you still get the symbolism of the characters in the movie.

C. The actors are wonderful. The directing was great. Everything about it. I even got choked up in several parts of the movie.

D. It has humor and drama. The best of both worlds.

One critique I do have is that they don't really build up the Skeeter/Stewart relationship. She hates him, he apologizes, they have a great date, kiss, and suddenly are together. The scene where Stewart freaks out on Skeeter comes abruptly in the movie. It would have felt less out of place if they had done the scene where Skeeter and her family meet Stewart's family. That was really the only thing that bothered me.

My absolute favorite character is Celia Foote. She, like I said before, represents innocence and lack of ignorance. She is blinded to societal boundaries and color. Jessica Chastain does an excellent job of portraying her. I'm interested to see how Chastain's career develops as she is an up-and-coming actress.

Anyway. There is my two cents on the movie from the book The Help. Go see it. I don't think you need to read the book beforehand. If you have read the book I don't think you'll be disappointed in Hollywood's take on it.

Challenge Day #16

Post a picture of the last thing you purchased.



I went to the cheap seats last night and watched The Eagle for a whopping $3.50. It was actually a really good movie. I also had great company, sitting between two awesome girls. All in all I would recommend seeing this movie. Channing Tatum is not the best of actors, but I do like the story line and the cinematography is amazing in it. So check it out.