IT, Chapter 2. (movie review)

After a 2 year wait we finally get to see what happens to the LOSERS.

(source  fortniteinsider ) 

IT's been a long time coming, pun intended ... come on ... give me this one, I did a review of  CHAPTER 1 and gave it a ten out of ten. Read on to see how Chapter two does.

 

So for those who haven't read the book or seen the movie made in 1990 (HERE):

 

Chapter 1 covers the story of 7 young teens battling IT/Pennywise, a malevolent force that feeds off the fears of people, it has the power to appear as anyone or anything that person might fear. Cue ... the Worlds fear of clowns and or spiders. I bet Stephen King is responsible for at least half the cases of people that suffer from Coulrophobia.

 

(source - Bloody Disgusting)

At the end of Chapter 1 the seven friends make a pact to return if IT/Pennywise comes back, perfectly setting up Chapter 2. Only one of the seven friends stay in Derry and he studies and remembers everything, the rest of the friends scatter around the country and persue their careers - forgetting all about that summers activities. But Mike calls them all back to deal with Pennywise once and for all. They all have to go on a quest, to find a personal talisman that helps them to remember what happened.

 

What follows is a rather long drawn out hour of each character as an adult finding their talisman and facing/remembering something horrific that previously happened that they all feared (and fed Pennywise with). Whilst many will see this as an overindulgence I understand these long sequences. A lot of Stephen King movies have been butchered, either by

 

1. Too much material in his books that is difficult to translate to the screen

2. The movie producer/adaptation limiting the movie by their lack of imagination or ability to translate the imagery the mind can manage but the movie budget cannot or

3. An over excitable editor cutting out huge chunks of King's work to conform to a specific movie length.

 

So I can forgive these sections. What is stunning is the special effects and transitions from reality to the mindfuckery that Pennywise creates. These transitions could never have been created in 1990 and this is why I love seeing remakes. We finally have an opportunity to see more of King's amazing vision (and twisted dark soul). It's been many years since I read IT but it will be getting pulled off the shelf in a few weeks. From what I remember this movie adaptation is certainly a lot closer to the book but I can't say that definitively.

 

I have only one negative to say about the movie. All horror movies need a small bit of comic relief but this had too much. There was a quip or funny piece after nearly every big scary scene. Now, don't get me wrong, I understand the need to lighten the mood every now and again but this is a horror movie people, not a comedy. Richie and Eddie had too many one-liners. Of course as the movie progresses we understand why Richie (in both chapters) relied on comedy to lighten the mood. He has been hiding a huge-ass secret. 

 

SPOILER ALERT

 

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The start of Chapter 2 has a horrific murder of a gay character, he was beaten and thrown over a bridge (and Pennywise finished him off). AND don't even get me started about this lazy-ass movie trope, but, as chapter 2 progresses we learn that Richie is gay and is in fact in love with his best friend Eddie (who he never tells of course). It's Richie's biggest fear that the World finds out. There is a nice touching moment and the end where he acknowledges his love. 

As a lover of Stephen King I have to say I love this movie adaptation. The casting was perfect. Bill Skarsgard is a fantastic Pennywise - yes I still love Tim Curry's version but that's like comparing single malt whiskey and triple distilled vodka. The special effects and transitions from reality to the crazy/fear World were amazing. AND the ending was one million times better than the 1990 movie (although that wouldn't be difficult). I even like the couple of comments during the movie about people not liking the endings of Bill's stories (he was a successful writer) - I like to think this is a reference to the poor ending of Under The Dome (IMHO of course). Anyway, the final verdict. I give IT, Chapter 2 a solid 9 out of 10. (overall that's a 9.5 out of 10 for both parts)

John The Captain Ryan

 

 

IT - I Love Remakes.

We all float down here.

Firstly, let’s get rid of the notion that movies & TV series shouldn’t be remade, rebooted or re-imagined.  That’s just rubbish.  Since the dawning of man (and woman) over 200,000 years ago in the Middle Paleolithic period we have told and retold stories.  You know, sitting around the campfire, char grilling bison and “storytelling” about how you speared that bison to death and how you hoped to be chosen by the good looking woman in the next door cave. 

Drag your humanoid body along to more recent times of around 1600 and there was a famous Bill (not Clinton) writing poems and plays.  Somewhat impenetrable for the reader today without a dictionary and abridged notes (Just read the notes I say) William Shakespeare’s works have been reprinted, re-imagined and made into numerous movies and plays.  Every year there are hundreds of stage productions all across the globe.

Then drag your sorry cantankerous (The original is the best and everything else is rubbish) ass to the middle of the 20^th century.  Everyone has heard of Rogers & Hammerstein.   They were responsible for writing over a dozen musicals, over 300 songs, that spawned numerous movies and many stage productions (go on start humming “How do you solve a problem like Maria”).  To date there are over 480 Broadway musicals and this list is growing all the time.

So you see, remakes are not a modern phenomenon.  We hear or read a story. We then retell, embellish, add-to & sometimes take away.  Go back to old Willy Shakes (that’s his contemporary name for his new Rudai23 blog), he wrote fantastic stories but some would agree with me that they are bloody hard to read.  Now, if they were rewritten in today’s English I think that would make them more accessible and open them up to a whole new audience.  Throw in a 140 character description to tweet and you’re on to a winner.  You wouldn’t take away from the original, it would actually give the reader the motivation to check out the original work.  Ebooks have done something similar.  With a lot of old material readily available to download for free, it has opened up a whole new genre of books to people.  If you read Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray for the first time on your kindle I can bet you will download some more of his work. 

Stephen King’s IT is the perfect example, published in 1986 with a mini TV series in 1990, the remaking of the film has generated interest all over again.  Stephen King, The Master of Horror is responsible for many sleepless nights but some of the most amazing and unforgettable books (and subsequent movies).   And those are the titles and famous lines you associate with King... 

IT                                               The Shining                                            Misery

And then think about the stuff you don’t associate with Stephen King.  Shawshank Redemption (Get busy living, or get busy dying), Stand by Me (movie with River Pheonix), The Green Mile, The Running Man (Arnold Washyknickers), Under the Dome (yes, it was before the Simpsons).  

From a librarians point of view and picking up on a previous point about interest getting regenerated for an original book.  On 14th September 2017, 6 days after the release of IT across the Irish Public Libraries there were about 100 copies of IT available and more than 130 holds.  There were 10 new copies ordered to help meet the demand. This from a genre that was once viewed (and sometimes still is viewed) as “not proper literature” for a library.   

But let’s get back to the remake of IT and a little about movie adaptations.  So, you should now agree with me that we should embrace and welcome remakes.  If the recent version is great, brilliant, something new to watch.  If it’s crap, don’t worry because it will regenerate interest in the original.  Everyone wins and of course most importantly the author wins again with more royalties.  As to the remake of IT, go see it for yourself.  It's the best horror film for years breaking all previous box office records for a horror movie and the next chapter is already confirmed.  Whilst I loved Tim Curry in the original movie, Bill Skarsgard is amazing although unrecognisable in this remake.

The new movie is scarier and flows much better.  The previous version is told through a series of flashbacks which were quite jarring and just didn't work.  The newer version is the first half of the story, told through the kids with no flashbacks, altogether a much easier to follow premise. King's work has for decades translated very badly into movies due to the complex layering of the storyline, intertwining plots and memorable & monumental characters.  Unfortunately, both movies fall down in one area of the adaptation, Pennywise is the manifestation of fear and therefore should be different for everyone.  The character of the clown is developed too much in both movies rather than trying to show each person's fear.  However, this is the only negative I have for IT, it's not enough to lose a planet.  

Final Verdict:  A massive success that will instill a fear of clowns for generations to come.

Movie Review by The Captain. 

(Rating - 10 out of 10 planets)

#wexworlds #weallfloatdownhere #rudai23 #remakes #IT

The Inexplicable Logic of my Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz (Book Review)

Hi all, I haven’t been blogging for a few months – life has a tendency to get mad at times but I haven’t stopped reading books or binging on Netflix so over the next few weeks I hope to get back on track and catch up on some book reviews.

The Inexplicable Logic of my Life is an amazing book written by Benjamin Alire Sáenz who also brought us Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe which I will be blogged about later in the month. This is Book 5 in my 52-weeks, 52-books challenge.

Plot Summary:

Seventeen-year-old Sal (Salvatore) lives in El Paso, Texas, with his adoptive father, a gay Mexican-American art professor named Vicente Silva. Vicente assumed responsibility for Sal after his mother died, when Sal was just three years old. (The connections between Sal’s mother and Vicente don’t become clear until late in the book, when Sal finally opens a letter his dying mother wrote and left in Vicente’s care.) Although Sal is white, the adoption secures his place in the heart of a loving Mexican-American family, which is headed by the matriarch Sal comes to know as Mima. 

As his adoptive grandmother, Mima refers to Sal as her “hijito de mi vida,” and the adoration is mutual. The warmth of the Silva family magnetically pulls in two other teen characters. Sal’s best friend, Sam (Samantha), is locked in raging conflict with her mom. Another friend, Fito, suffers the effects of a drug-addicted mother and an absentee dad. In order to survive, Fito must hold down two after-school jobs. (more here)

Alternative Book Covers from Goodreads

My tuppence:

There is a huge amount going on and Sal’s best friend Samantha keeps him grounded, their constant communications by text keeping them in contact – they sometimes even text each other when they are in the same room. Sal is dealing with homophobia, losing his grandmother, growing up and all the other stuff that adolescents go through and he’s not doing very well. He is throwing punches and questioning everything. When Samantha’s mother dies in a car accident she goes to live with Sal and Vicente and then the edition of Fito to the mix is fantastic and reinforces to Sal how lucky he is to have a loving and supportive family.

The book deals amazingly with the exploration of self and identity and it’s something we all go through. During the story the love of Vicente’s life –Marco - makes a reappearance. Vicente, once gave up on the relationship with a man he loved when that man said he didn’t want to be a stepfather. At first Sal isn’t in favour of Marco’s return as he knows how hurt his father was but it enables Sal to see how lonely his father is. Sal realises that as he will be leaving for college his father shouldn’t be alone and deserves another chance at love. But central to the story is how we deal with loss, how Samantha comes to terms with the loss of her mother – even though their relationship was always rocky and how Sal deals with losing his Mima when she is diagnosed with late stage cancer – their relationship couldn’t be more different than Sam and her mothers.

There are some great quotes in this book (find a selection of them here) and this is my fave:

(source Bongbong book blog)

Whilst slow moving the book is well worth a read, the way Sáenz deals with the topic of loss and grief is brilliant and heart wrenching. It just keeps you turning the pages. However, this slow pacing style will turn people off and in comparison to other young adult novels it is certainly aimed at the more experience reader.

Benjamin Alire Sáenz (born 16 August 1954) is an award-winning American poet, novelist and writer of children's books. You can read more about him here

Here is another great blog review about The Inexplicable Logic of my Life.

The verdict, a great read for either adults or advanced young adult readers, I give this book an 8 out of 10 planets.

John The Captain Ryan

My Top LGBT reads

Read on to find out my top LGBT reads ...

I'll give you the Sun by Jandy Nelson

“A story of two twins, Jude & Noah both of whom narrate their intertwined story of love, life and bad decisions in a realistic heart-breaking way”

__________________________________________

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by MacKenzi Lee

“A fantastic tale of a spoiled bisexual British Lord romping around Europe – a great story where the aristocracy of the 18th-century meets Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda”

__________________________________________

What if it's us? by Becki Albertalli and Adam Silvera

“A fun story of Ben and Arthur, will they, won't they? A classic story of a doomed romance, or is it. Maybe, just maybe this is the one" 

__________________________________________

Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becki Albertalli

(Albertalli's 2nd book on my list)

“It's an exciting story, intertwining the busy social media driven World of today's teens with the constant struggle for identity and self”

__________________________________________

Noah Can't Even by Simon James Green

One of the funniest books I've ever read. 

“Skittles and Haribo will solve all problems”

__________________________________________

Boy meets Boy by David Levithan

"The book takes us on the usual journey for teens; that of love, lost love and love found again only of course this time it’s two boys"

__________________________________________

Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde

“You can’t pick and choose whose equality you support. That’s not equality” 

__________________________________________

When Everything Feels Like the Movies by Raziel Reid

“Raunchy, riotous and real”

__________________________________________

History is all you left me by Adam Silvera

(Silvera's 2nd appearance on my list)

“A beautifully written book, heartfelt, touching and simply amazing”

__________________________________________

Willful Machines by Tim Floreen

“A fantastic book with great characters and a central theme about life and freedom”

__________________________________________

Release by Patrick Ness

“A poignant story of loss and rebirth”

__________________________________________

And that's me done, hope you enjoy these books like I did, comment and let me know what you think?

John The Captain Ryan

I’ll give you the sun by Jandy Nelson (Book Review)

A story of two twins, Jude & Noah both of whom narrate their intertwined story of love, life and bad decisions in a realistic heart-breaking way. This is Book 4 in my 52-weeks, 52-books challenge.

Check out the official website of Jandy Nelson here. 

Rather than get straight into the story, just a quick comment about the artistic page scrawlings. Throughout the book some of the important lines are scrawled across the pages (at least in my version; the one with the yellow cover). I really like these, what I call … moments. Like a painting or photo with a shaft of bright light or surprising bright colour, to me, they are an attempt to enhance the story of the twins who are also artists. Another interesting tool the author uses is how Noah files away ideas for future paintings; the author perfectly captures how the mind of some artist’s work. I particularly like this and it reinforces the idea that artists and writers should always carry a notebook with them to jot down ideas and observations.

 

So, the plot.

"At first, Jude and her twin brother Noah, are inseparable. Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude wears red-red lipstick, cliff-dives, and does all the talking for both of them. Years later, they are barely speaking. Something has happened to change the twins in different yet equally devastating ways . . . but then Jude meets an intriguing, irresistible boy and a mysterious new mentor. The early years are Noah's to tell; the later years are Jude's. But they each have only half the story, and if they can only find their way back to one another, they'll have a chance to remake their world". (source Goodreads)

The intriguing thing about the book is how the author tells the story of both main characters, she gives them separate identities and styles but writing Jude’s story at age 16 and Noah’s story at age 13 doesn’t work for me. Some might think it’s a clever tool to tell the story but I didn’t like it at all. Now, I understand it’s difficult to come up with a way to tell a story without relying on the old fashioned flashbacks but in this case, I think the old fashioned method would have worked better. I also much prefer when two authors work together when writing a story focusing on two main characters like Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green or What if it’s us by Becki Albertalli and Adam Silvera.

 

Even though telling both stories at different ages is not a game changer it’s still annoying. Like when you notice a plot gap or continuity error in a movie or TV series, to some it might seem like a small inconsequential thing but to others it causes a distraction that keeps gnawing like a dripping tap. But, this is the only negative thing I can say about the book.

It’s an interesting story told in a refreshing way and you keep turning the page to get to the juicy bits;

* What’s the story with Jude’s premonitions?

* How did Noah not get into art college when Jude did?

* How did their mother die?

* AND FOR GAWD SAKE when would they speak to each other and sort things out?

I’m not going to spill the beans, you’re going to have to read the book yourself to find out which (if any) of these plots will be resolved. All of the characters are relatable and real, the author does a fantastic job of allowing the reader to empathise with each of them, whilst the twins do horrible things to each other at the end of the day they’d still give up so much to make the other happy and eventually forgive each other. It’s also a great story following the lives of two artists, Noah confident in his abilities and Jude not so much but the way their individual struggles are captured is artistic and real. For me Jandy Nelson perfectly captures the inner thoughts and worries most artists (and writers) experience at some stage. The book covers all the usual topics; love (hetro and homo), heart break, death, loss, life struggles and forgiveness. All of these stories are well told and avoid cliché except for the homo relationship of Noah but the artists can’t get everything right. The book has won numerous awards and been shortlisted on several occasions. The highest accolade being the The Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature, awarded in 2015 by the ALA.

This is a book I will definitely be rereading to see can I get over MY  flashback issue, now that I know the ending I should be able to concentrate more on the style and content. The fact I’m willing to reread a book is probably incomprehensible to some people but to me it’s a high accolade, I read so much but there are few books I will reread. For now I’m giving this book a solid 8 out of 10 planets. After a reread it may climb to the lofty heights of 9.

John The Captain Ryan

As Brexit looms, let’s look at WHEN the BBC banned Star Trek The Next Generation

 Yes, you read that correctly … I used the word WHEN … not if or maybe … It already happened.

Space, the final frontier, these are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise, Its continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilisations. To boldly go where no one has gone before!

EXCEPT the BBC weren’t willing to boldly go with us.

Episodes of the Original Series had been banned (those with torture or difficult story-lines involving children - remember it was the 1960's) but this was the first time an episode of The Next Generation was banned...

(source - IMDB)

Stardate 43510.7

(Season 3, Episode 12 – On High Ground – original airing should have been in 1992)

This episode see the Enterprise at Rutia IV and getting heavily involved with a violent civil war. Lieutenant Commander Data notes that the Irish Unification of 2024 was an event that resulted in the creation of a single unified nation-state controlling the entire geographical island of Ireland. This unification came about due to the use of terrorism rather than peaceful acts to bring about political change.

We need to look at this in context. The "Troubles" were still ongoing and since 19th October 1988, when the Home Secretary, Douglas Hurd, issued a notice under clause 13(4) of the BBC Licence and Agreement to the BBC and under section 29(3) of the Broadcasting Act 1981 to the Independent Broadcasting Authority prohibiting the broadcast of direct statements by representatives or supporters of eleven Irish political and military organisations.

(source - NY Times)

The BBC were not alone, such a ban also existed in Ireland from 1981 - 1994. The logic was to not give those groups a voice on the airwaves to defend the use of violence. Both the BBC & RTE got around this on the news by having a voice over segment if someone like Gerry Adams was on, but many interviews and documentaries could not be aired (or in some cases not even made). Born in 1976 one of my abiding memories is the 9 o' clock news reporting on yet another bombing, revenge attack, punishment beating or killing by both sides. We all knew the names of the different groups, the areas and streets where the action was happening but couldn't really comprehend what was going on. When you're ten you don't really understand what's happening and unfortunately you even become immune to the daily announcements. More than 3,500 lost their lives, 52% of them were civilians. Whichever side of the conflict you lie on, I think we can all agree it is a dreadful part of our history. Some families are still waiting for the remains of their loved ones to be found.

But this doesn't answer why the episode was banned, it didn't fall under the censorship ban of not giving terrorists a voice on the national airwaves so I wonder what the BBC was afraid of, the idea of a unified Ireland or the fact it (fictionally) came about due to the use of terrorism. And now the old adage the more things change the more they stay the same.

If you are under 20 years of age and you see a picture like this, you wouldn't be blamed for thinking it was a photo from Russia or Israel. But you'd be wrong. Are we going to see British army on duty like this on the island of Ireland again - hopefully not.

But to get back to the topic and let's give some props to journalists and the job they do. It most cases they want to tell the important stories and those involved with television programming and planning want to bring us the viewer a wide variety of ideas and shows. It doesn't matter if some of us don't like it, you can always switch station. BBC staff at the time staged a one-day strike in protest that the BBC's independence was being undermined and we still see today where the press is being curtailed. 

(source Gerardela Fistiniere)

But I wonder if a disastrous Brexit happens, coupled with the growing force of right-wing politics across Europe what other freedoms will be curtailed. At least with the advent of technology and the internet we can see what we want even if the established broadcasting companies refuse to air controversial shows. It's still a sad state of affairs when a geek's daily fix of Star Trek is limited due to some stupid small minded ideas. In the same way that schools across America are refusing to teach LGBT history, will schools in the UK stop teaching children about the different European cultures and faiths? Will the right-wing conservative xenophobic agitators win or will the UK figure a way out of this mess before they start down a path of cutting themselves off from the rest of the World, because if they get far enough down that path they may not be able to backtrack.

In conclusion, it's a mess and if it leads to the British Army enforcing a border that nobody wants on the island of Ireland ... well all bets are off.

John The Captain Ryan.

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee (Book Review)

A fantastic tale of a spoiled bisexual British Lord romping around Europe – a great story where the aristocracy of the 18th-century meets Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda. This is Book 3 in my 52-weeks, 52-books challenge.

In The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee  we follow the adventure of Henry “Monty” Montague who was born and bred to be a gentleman, but he was never one to be tamed. The finest boarding schools in England and the constant disapproval of his father haven’t been able to curb any of his roguish passions—not for gambling halls, late nights spent with a bottle of spirits, or waking up in the arms of women or men.

As Monty embarks on his Grand Tour of Europe, his quest for a life filled with pleasure and vice is in danger of coming to an end. Not only does his father expect him to take over the family’s estate upon his return, but Monty is also nursing an impossible crush on his best friend and traveling companion, Percy. His sister Felicity is along for the ride – she is also one to buck convention, always has her head stuck in a book and wants to become a scientist or doctor when society expects her to be a “lady”.

We embark on a break-neck speed journey around Europe detailing a “Grand Tour”; the aristocracies 18^th century version of finding who you were, “one” got drunk, slept around and had fun. "One" spent the time schmoozing with other well-to-does around Europe, nurturing family ties and basically having a ball. But for Monty this goes spectacularly wrong – he gets drunk and rips the bodice from the wrong lady, he has to escape naked across a well manicured lawn but not before he steals a memento, something small that won’t be noticed – except it proves to be very valuable.

What follows is a marvellous chase death-defying chase; they are attacked by highwaymen, lose their chaperone, get jailed, drugged and then kidnapped (kind-of) by pirates. Then to Venice, a sinking island and finally … hang on there … you’ll have to read it yourself. Along the way in this historical accurate story we learn about class & racism in a unique and interesting way. We feel Monty’s heart breaking when he learns about his best friend – Percy – who has epilepsy and when their tour ends will be locked up in an insane asylum. They’ve never slept together but have loved each other for many years; their life and awkward love for each other is intelligently intertwined within this story – will they, won’t they – will it ruin their friendship – and will Monty find a cure or stop Percy being locked up for the rest of his life.

This book for me straddles the YA book World really well, for an experienced reader; it’s over 500 pages long, it’s historically accurate and the plot meanders a little but it’s still a fantastic, perfect for an avid reader that isn’t quite ready for the massive epics like Stephen King’s The Stand, or fantasy epics by Brent Weeks or Brandon Sanderson.

It’s an exciting read with a vivid picture of 18^th century Europe, a forbidden romance and pirates, frankly what else do you need. It’s definitely the case that the three main characters were born in the wrong century and this book if read in the classroom would generate lots of interesting debates and discussion.It is very well researched and written. 

The verdict, a great read for either adults or advanced young adult readers, I give this book an 8 out of 10 planets. For me there was a little too much history and not enough attention given to the plot, but, then again, I always hated history in school. It’s still a great read.

John The Captain Ryan