I Am Legend- audiobook review

I am Legend and Other Stories by Richard Matheson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It is just as good the second time around. It has been a few years since I read the book the first time. This time I listened to the audio. The director of the audio book made some different interpretations of the I Am Legend story, but the reading was well done. The other stories, though, I couldn't get through due to the reading. I remember enjoying several of the stories previously, especially the Mad House one and the monster funeral, but there were funny voices and whatnot and It kind of ruined the mood. I would suggest reading instead of listening to this one.

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Mutants Vs. Vampires NCCW

I picked up Mutants Vs Vampires thinking that  one of my favorite characters and her recent vampire transformation (Jubilee) would be in it.  She wasn't.  Major disappointment.  This is actually a bunch of one offs that surround the whole mutant vs vampire storyline. 

There were a couple of stories that were okay, but most were just filler.  The only thing that really made this story worth reading was a joke in the Rogue story with a vampire joking about how much she looked like Sooki from True Blood.  I love that it went there.  Art is all over the place as it is a bunch of one offs with a whole lot of different artists working on it. 

Overall, you can take this one or leave it.  None of the stories have any reall imput to the overall story.  There is no Jubilee so don't pick it up hoping to see her. 

Priest (2011)- Spoiler Free Review

Whew, sorry about the hiatus.  Had a family situation to attend to, was trapped in the gulf coast due to a hurricane... in New England, and I had promised the girls some things before they went back to school (six flags and camping).  So it has been a busy two weeks.  On to the review!

Priest-  I wanted to see this in the theater.  It just looked really cool and looked like the type of movie that would really pop on the big screen.  I have not read the graphic novel but my give it a look now.

Plot-  Vampires are the monsters that haunt the night and the Catholic Church and their Priests are our only hope.  The movie starts with humans as victorious, but trouble is stirring.  Our hero asks to investigate and is denied the right, but defies his orders and goes out of the fortress city in search of the truth.

Characters-  The priests are supposed to be emotional voids.  Being a cold blooded killing machine can do that to you, but we do get to see some emotion and the audience is able to identify emotionally with the priest without him losing that tough/hard edge.  The Maggie Q character is instrumental in this and the movie would not have worked without her.  She had great chemistry with the priest.

Special effects-  The monsters were really cool, but there was something off on the motorcycle through the desert scenes.  The animation sequence at the beginning was really cool and I can see an animated sequel being done in that style.

Overall-  It was a pretty good movie.  I enjoyed it and watched it with the girls and they seemed to like it too.  It had them jumping in some spots.  I would recommend it to almost anyone.  Parental discretion due to bloody violence.  This one was fun.  

Book Review: "A Discovery of Witches" by Deborah Harkness

One thing I’ve noticed since I’ve begun following book bloggers and keeping up with friends on Goodreads is that the quality of book I’ve been reading has been getting better. Surely, this is because most of the books I start now have been reviewed by someone whose tastes I understand might be similar to mine.

So, it’s a bit of a cautionary tale that I began listening to the audiobook of Deborah Harkness’ A Discovery of Witches, which I found by scanning Audible.com’s “Most Popular” list, forgetting perhaps that in a world of chart-busters such as Stephanie Meyer and Dan Brown that “the people” tend to sometimes get into books that aren’t, well, let’s just say, in my sweet spot.

A Discovery of Witches follows the adventures of Diana Bishop, who has eschewed her heritage as a witch in lieu of making it on her own as an academic historian. While on sabbatical at Oxford, she becomes embroiled in subterfuge concerning a mysterious manuscript that just might hold the key to the nature of witches, vampires and daemons. Initially, she wants nothing of it, but becomes intrigued by and then enamored of a vampire, Matthew Clairmont, who for some reason seems to be looking out for her, as well as the book.

When I started all the bones of a great story seemed to be there: witches, vampires, daemons, biology, alchemy, and history. It seemed as though Harkness wanted to upgrade the Twilightian fantasy by taking the particulars out of high school and make them adults (both in age and in outlook).

Sadly, the story just didn’t hold up for me. Matthew, naturally (or perhaps supernaturally) is supposed to come across as incredibly smart, and incredibly brave, and incredibly handsome, and incredibly strong, and incredibly fast, and incredibly learned on all subjects, and incredibly dangerous and don’t forget incredibly sensitive. What happens is that he becomes incredibly annoying, while Diana gets trapped in the unwilling-but-plucky heroine clichés that make their scenes together – especially after falling for one another – downright painful.


There were two parts during my listening that really shaped my view. One came about two-thirds of the way through during probably the best and most tense scenes in the book. I’d been sort of slogging along and was hoping for something to shake things up and it began to seem like it might be coming together. As I was listening to the climax, I realized that one of two outcomes was most likely: a cliché’ one that you could see coming from a mile away or a courageous one that could really have set the novel in a new and interesting direction. Guess which one Harkness chose? Yeah.

The other moment was as the book was winding down – about 13 hours into the 14 hour total – that my stomach sank as I realized that THIS BOOK IS NOT A STAND-ALONE STORY!

I should have known. Isn’t anything that can possibly be labeled as “paranormal” – especially “paranormal romance” – required to come in multiple parts? Of course it is. Naive Stevil.

Anyway, in the end, I think Harkness has tried to write a romantic, paranormal, action adventure – and it was certainly a book I wanted to like more than I did. Oddly enough, in some ways it’s a cross between Twilight and The DaVinci Code. So, if you’re into either one or both of those, give A Discovery of Witches a try.

If not, listen to your friend and give this one a pass.

Two stars out of five

True Blood?

The Herald Sun is reporting that synthetic blood has been used to save the life of a person that couldn't accept whole blood due to religious observances. 

Will vampires now step out of the shadows to life among us and drink the synthetic stuff from bottles?  Only Sooki Stackhouse and Bill the Vampire know for sure. 

Let Me In (2010)

Let Me In (2010)- This movie is at a disadvantage for me.  I have experienced it in two former incarnations that I enjoyed greatly.  First I saw the excellent Swedish film and then I read the book that it was based on.  I think order of experience will directly affect joy of experience for these works.  It is impossible to go any further without spoiling so note, here there be spoilers. 

Having read the book and seen the original movie, I have to wonder about some of the decisions that were made in this movie.  I think I read somewhere that the American film was written from the source material and not influenced by the Swedish film, but I don't see how that is possible after seeing the film.  It is really just a dumbed down version of the Swedish film. 

They keep the love story between Eli and Oskar (Emmy and Owen), but left out that Emmy was actually a boy, I think the American story is going with her being a girl, although there was a point at the beginning where Emmy is yelling at her "father" that she sounds like a boy.  Walking into the movie blind, it probably didn't make a difference. 

Hit Girl is an awesome actress, but I didn't really feel any empathy for Emmy.  I don't think it was her acting but just the way the story was told.  She never came across as a vulnerable little girl to me, she was always a powerful vampire that could rip out your throat in an instant.  The relationship with the "father" is likely the key here.  It isn't really emphasized and when it is, she comes off as controlling.

A lot of story was cut or condensed for the American version.  Let Me In is 116 minutes while Le the Right One In is 115 minutes.  The shorter movie actually had more characters and more story, but didn't feel rushed.  Both movie version cut quite a bit from the novel to begin with.  The novel is amazing by the way. 

I think that the American version is good, but I couldn't help but compare it to the earlier incarnations of the story.  I may have liked it better had I seen it without exposure to the other two.  Technically, it a beautiful movie, with great acting, and a wonderful score, but the story is condensed from an already condensed version. 

My review for the book and the Swedish Film.

Buffy Quiz

Image via Wikipedia

In honor of the Birthday of Buffy Summers next Wednesday, this week we are having the Buffy Quiz!
All answers must be in the form of a question, answer in the comments, and no cheating. First person with the most correct answers will get a special limited Buffy edition SciFi Media "no prize" button to display on their website.

1.  Buffy has been played by two actresses. Give me one. 
2.  He is the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
3.  This is the title of the musical episode.
4.  He is the big bad in season 8. 
5.  This is Buffy's middle name. 

Bonus-She was Buffy's love interest in season 8. 

Thirst-2009

Directed and written by Park, Chan-Wook and starring Song, Kang-Ho and Kim, Ok-Bin.

Plot-Yes it is a vampire movie, so the plot will center around either a vampire’s love interest or someone becoming a vampire and learning to deal with it.  This movie is able to but a pretty unique twist on the subject matter by making the person infected a Catholic priest.  Not just any priest, a miracle priest that has followers.  The movie is dark and brooding from start to finish.

Characters- Song has been in a lot of different movies, and his experience shows with his performance here.  He portrays the dark brooding priest that has inner conflict to a T.  Relative new comer Kim does an excellent job as well.  She is the character that goes through the greatest transformation during the movie.  She is extremely attractive and I see her going places.

Cinematicly-there are some great scenes in this movie.  the camera work and music all work.  The white washed apartment was bright but still eerie.  This might be the most provocative Korean movie I have ever seen.  There is a lot of nudity in this movie including male full frontal.  There is a whole bunch of gore in this as well.

Overall-  This movie is one for horror fans and vampire aficionados.  I don’t mean twilight girls either.  They would be in for a shock.  I wouldn’t let my kids watch this one and my wife chose to sit it out due to the sex and violence.  If either of those things bother you, you may want to stay away from it as well.  I liked it and thought it was a pretty good movie with an interesting take on the very popular and overdone vampire genre.
 

blogger Tags: chan-wook park, Kang-ho song, ok-bin kim, vampires, korean vampires

 

Friday Quiz

Image via Wikipedia

All answers must be in the form of a question, answer in the comments, and no cheating. First person with the most correct answers will get a SciFi Media "no prize" button to display on their website.


1.  Today is the 5th of November, do you remember?  This comic, and later movie, used the Guy Fawkes mask to hide the protagonists face. 
 

2.  Towers of Midnight is the new book in this series being finished by Brandon Sanderson.

3.  Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, and Dan Akroyd reprised their roles for this 2009 video game.

4.  This movie, currently in Theaters, is a remake of a Swedish film and book about a child vampire. 

5.  She was the little girl that is sucked into another dimension and must communicate through the TV in Poltergeist. 

The quiz has been fun to put together, but I want to know if you are having fun taking it.  I realize that the first responder usually wins, so, am I making the clues too easy? Do you think it should be harder, longer, or themed?  Let me know with your answers in the comments. 

Dick and Jane and Vampires

I don't know if you have seen the classic reading primer turned into a book about vampires, but it is at every bookstore. 

I detest this book.  At best it is apologetics for vampires and at worst it is indoctrination that vampires are your friends and that they want to help you and play with you.  Some pro vampire publisher is trying to get your child comfortable with vampires so that your child will invite them into your home and make you easy pickings. 

This book is irrisponsible, insane, and really cute. 

My youngest read it, laughing the entire time. 

Book Review: "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter" by Seth Grahame-Smith

In the brief author interview that follows the conclusion of “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”, Seth Grahame-Smith relates that he got the idea for this book by going into bookstores in 2008. At that time, historians were gearing up to commemorate the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth and of course there was “Twilight” fever. Everywhere he looked were books about Lincoln and books about vampires. Lincoln and vampires... Lincoln… vampires… – hey, I got an idea!

Now, I’m usually not one for “gimmick” books and I have not read Grahame-Smith’s “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies”, which I know spawned a torrent of similar classics-into-horror knock-offs. But after Budd’s positive review the other month, I had this book in the back of my mind when I was thinking about downloading an audiobook to listen to during my daily commute.

I have to say that this book was a lot of fun. The premise is pretty clearly spelled out in its title and the fun conceit of it that Lincoln – probably the American with the most studied and examined life in history – had a secret life as a vampire hunter (vampires in America were enjoying a bit of a heyday in the first half of the 19th century as it turns out).

Primarily, the book reads (what verb do you use here for an audiobook? “The book is presented?” anyway…) as a biography derived from Lincoln’s heretofore unknown private journal. With surprising depth and cleverness, Grahame-Smith interweaves the vampire yarn into the fabric of Lincoln’s life (and American history) – from his youth, through his adulthood and even to his Presidency and the Civil War. In fact, most of the book could be described as non-fiction, which is a weird thing to say. Real people, real events are all re-interpreted and re-presented. I couldn’t help but smile at the ingenuity of it all. It’s not all played for wry smiles though; there are definitely some parts in there that give a few chills and are not for the squeamish. And somewhere in there, I started to really like this Lincoln. I was rooting for him, even though you sort of know how it’s going to turn out on April 14-15, 1865.

Yes, this book is a lark, and I’m really not going to line up to read (or listen to) all the knock-offs, but if you want to take a stab at this mini-genre, this one is pretty fun.

Way of the Wolf

Are you tired of the sparkling vampires of Twilight?  Do you want some vampires that you can be afraid of?  Way of the Wolf by E. E. Knight should take care of those two things in an entertaining quick read. 

This book follows the adventures of Dave Valentine as he becomes a wolf (a scout for a freedom fighting group) in a post apocolyptic world where vampires rule.  The vampires in question are actually alien beings that feed off of life aura.  They have not only infected our planet but through a use of a star gate like technology have invaded the universe.  There are some non evil Kurians that didn't go down the vampiric road that helps hummanity by awaking humanities more savage nature. 

This is the first novel in the Vampire Earth series and as so it is more concerned with world building and really only develops Valentine as a character.  It intentionally mixes science fiction and fantasy, giving fantasy aspects with science fiction explanations.   An example are the grogs.  They are your basic orc but Knight has them genetically created. 

It was a pretty good book and makes me want to read the others in the series.  This one isn't for the kiddies as the end of the book has to do with rape and prostitution.  Fantasy and Science Fiction fans should enjoy it.  Not sure about twilight fans as the vampires are not romanticised at all. 

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

This book had me with the cover.  I know, I know; don't judge a book by its cover.  Well I do.  Quite a bit, really.  And this cover sold me.  When I looked it up on the library website, I saw that it was available in audio and requested it immediately. 

I wasn't sure what I was expecting with this book.  I think I was expecting it to be really bad.  I am sure I wasn't expectiong what I got though.  This book is quite simply a biography of Abraham Lincoln. It really is.  A majority of the book is non fiction.  Strangely enough, vampires just kind of fell in to the open places in Lincoln's history.  It didn't feel forced.  Grahame-Smith did an excellent job with it.  I actually learned quite a bit from this book, which is strange because it is about fighting vampires. 

Let the Right One In

This was an excellent movie. The vampires in this movie don't shimmer in sunlight and seemingly can only sustain themselves on HUMAN blood. There is a love story here, though.

I jokingly tried to get my wife to watch it by calling it a Swedish Twilight. It kind of is, if twilight had real vampires and was dark and scary. The movie itself isn't all that scary, but it has some tense moments.

The story centers around Oskar, a 12 year old boy that gets bullied at school, and Eli, a strange 12 year old girl that moves in next door. Eli, it turns out, is a vampire. That doesn't stop Eli and Oskar from becoming best friends.

Gimmick Books

In the recent past there have been more than a few gimmick books come out. They are perpetually coming out, really, but the ones I am refering to are the horror gimmick books.

I guess it all started with The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. This excellent book was both funny and launched a zombie craze in literature. This was soon followed by the very novel (pardon the pun) idea of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Not saying that P&P&Z is a great book, only that the idea was very clever.

Now, it seems, every book ever written is bein given the treatment. I hear they are going to rewrite I Am Legend and put more Vampires in it. Then call it I Am Legend and Vampires. It is kind of rediculous and I imagine some of these books are selling quite well, but they are just a novelty.