Archive for March, 2010

Mar 31

The Last Song (movie)

          Today I went to see The Last Song.  Having read the book, and completely loved it, I was very excited for this movie.  It was great.  I would definitely recommend it to everyone.

         The part that made me most excited for the movie was that Nicholas Sparks actually wrote the screenplay.  I’ve loved all the movies based on his books.  I had a feeling though that this one would be even more emotional because it would be closer to the actual feeling of the book.  Obviously, there were not identical but they were very close.   And yes, I was right, this movie made me cry more than any of the other ones. 

          All the actors did an amazing job.  The little boy was absolutely perfect.  He was exactly how I imagined him in the book.  Same story with all the characters actually.  When Sparks wrote The Last Song, the movie, he already knew Miley Cyrus would play the main character so obviously he wrote the part to fit her.  Every other character was cast perfect though.  Blaze was dead on.  Everyone did great, even Cyrus.

          Speaking of Cyrus,  here is the original post I wrote about her and The Last Song.

http://www.heatherfinley.net/2009/09/10/sparks-new-book-written-with-miley-in-mind/

          I seriously should have given her more credit then I did at the time.  I take back everything I said.  Hannah Montana might not be a show I care to watch still but she was absolutely brillant as Ronnie in The Last Song.  Even before this movie, I finally gave her music a chance and honestly, I love the songs.  Fly on the Wall is so catchy.   She is a talented girl and I feel bad for not giving her a chance to begin with.  After seeing her in this movie, I would love to see her do more roles.

          Overall, The Last Song gets an A+, two thumbs up, five stars, whatever you want to call the top rating from me.  I would even venture to say this is my favorite movie based on a Spark’s novel.  Dear John was great too if you haven’t seen that.  Worth checking out.

          The next Spark’s novel to be converted to film are going to be The Lucky Ones and True Believer. It is not listed yet whether or not Spark’s will be involved in the screenplay. I certainly hope so.  Can’t wait to see these movies!

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Posted in thoughts on movies

Mar 31

Gimme more Twilight!

          In case you haven’t heard, a fifth book to go with the series is being released on June 5th.   The book is titled The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner.  Here is a link to Stephanie Meyers website in which she explains more about the story.

http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/breetanner.html

          First off, I think it is awesome that Meyers is letting more of her work involved with Twilight be seen.  I find it very interesting that she had all these left over stories going as she wrote the series.  It makes sense though.  I haven’t read Midnight Sun but I love the idea of seeing what happened during Edward’s time away.  It didn’t have a place in Twilight but it is something that adds to the overall story.  Bree Tanner is the same situation.  We don’t know what was going on from the other side and now we will. 

          I love the fact that Meyer let the actors playing Victoria and her band of vampires read the story first.  It sounds like Eclipse is going to let the viewers see what happened, at least to some extent, so it is nice that Meyer’s came up with a story verses the film writer doing it all.  Giving the actors more information to add depth to their roles is awesome too.  While on the subject, is anyone else pretty excited to see Bryce Dallas Howard step in as Victoria? I’ve enjoyed her acting in the past so I think she will be a good fit.  I didn’t have anything again Rachelle Lefevre but I am a big fan of Howard so I love seeing her in stuff.

          My favorite part about Meyer’s releasing this novella is that she made it a point to have it available both free and in print form.  Personally, I will buy the book.  I have a huge book collection and can’t wait to add it.  But for those who don’t want the physical book, it is awesome that she is making it available to them.  For anyone with e-readers, that will be a huge plus.  I’m assuming it will be able to be uploaded to them.  It is cool that some of the proceeds are going to the red cross too.  If (hopefully it is more of a when then an if) I become published, once I get to a stable point money wise, I want to donate money or whatever I can to help end world suck.  Nerdfighter reference there but honestly, it is true.  I want the world to be a better place.  I try to donate to charities, especially pet charities, whenever I can.  I don’t have a lot of money but I like to try to help.  There would be no better feeling in the world then to get to a point where I could donate my entire portion of my book to charity.

          So who else is excited for The Short Life of Bree Tanner?

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Posted in News/Current Issues

Mar 28

Oh sweet editing

          So I am getting close to being done with my second and well technically third edit.  I printed my first draft out and hand edited it.  From there, I both put the hand edits on the computer and re-edited as I went.

          What I’m realizing now is that I have a long way to go.  It is sad to realize but at least I am getting somewhere.  My first draft had 106 pages.  My second one, hopefully by the time I finish, should be around 150.  I am extremely happy with what I have but the fact still remains, that isn’t enough.

          It is hard to face because part of me says not to push the word count just to push it.  But on the other hand is the reality that for the genre I’m going for, or most adult fiction, my book is so short that it would get passed over easily.  I want to get to 250 but I’m struggling with how to do that.

          At least I am getting there though.   The hard part, coming up with the story, is behind me.  Now I just need to find a way to really make it complete and perfect.

          And of course there is still the matter of a title.  I really, really liked The Beautiful Blood but decided it was way to close to The Lovely Bones so I’m still thinking.  I have post its all over the wall by my bed with ideas.

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Posted in Writing Updates

Mar 27

Life Unexpected

          I really hope that everyone, well more like all girls, are watching this show.  It is phenomenal.  It is well written and the actors are great.  The subject matter is almost hard to watch but in a good way.  It is one of those very rare shows that is emotional and makes you cheer for every character.

          A very brief description is that the story is about Lux, a foster child, that ends up living with the parents, Baz and Kate, that gave her up.  Baz is still kind of a screw up and Kate is a successful radio personality that is dating her cohost Ryan.  The plot revolves around each of them growing up and trying to be a family.

          So let me first say, I am not the kind of girl that cries often.  Like movie wise I can count the times I’ve cried on one hand.  Less.  The only three I can think of is Marley and Me (I’m an animal person) and Adam.  Maybe I got a little misty eyed at Blind Side too.  Can’t remember. Books sometimes make me cry.  Television shows and for the most part real life, never make me cry.

          In just this week’s episode of Life Unexpected, I cried multiple times.  Full on tears rolling down my cheeks, sniffling kind of crying.  Ah when Lux was talking about her childhood I was bawling.  When Baz told Bug, Lux’s boyfriend, that he would like to practice being a dad with him I cried more.  I teared up a little again when Lux came home.  Then I was crying because I was so happy when Ryan was talking about socks at the end. 

          Seriously, this show pulls at the heartstrings.  I hope so badly that it doesn’t get canceled after the first season because people don’t know how good it is.  If you haven’t watched it, go check out an episode.  You will fall in love with every person on the show.

          Personally, I also love that it takes place in Portland.  Always good to see places I know on shows and movies.  Plus I dated a guy that looks so much like Kerr Smith, it is ridiculous.

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Posted in Blah blah blah, Thoughts on tv

Mar 23

Man on Bond Action?

         Let me preface this post by saying two things.  One, I know this is old news but I only heard about it the other day and still wanted to comment.  Two, I am in no way against male on male, female on female or any kind of relationship in movies, on tv, in books, in real life, or anywhere else.  Human rights like who you can love and get married to should be the same for everyone.

           Okay, with all that said, I just heard about Daniel Craig saying that he wanted James Bond to have a same sex scene.  http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/story/craig-wants-gay-bond-scene_1014906

         The fundamental problem I have with this is that James Bond is a very specific character.  Ian Fleming introduced him in his 1953 novel Casino Royale as a sauve ladies man.  The films have lead even more into this image by putting an ephasis on the Bond Girls.  This is a character that has existed for over sixty years.  Why would you change that?  I bet Fleming was rolling over in his grave when Craig said that.

          I’m not against movies or televisions shows changing characters if there really is a reason to.  The only example I can think of off the top of my head is hearing that the writers of Glee changed the character of Curt after meeting the actor and falling in love with him.  His character fits perfectly and it doesn’t fell like the show is just doing that to push the envelope.  That is when it bothers me.  Why do we have to force something? 

           Changing James Bond character isn’t going to do anything for supporting human rights.  It is just going to feel like they are trying too hard.  I mean, add in all the male on male and female on female stuff you want but leave Bond alone please.  I mean the two basic parts of him are that he is a spy and he is a ladies man.  Why not give him a new job while you are at it?

          I  guess this kind of comes down to how much a movie or book can deviate it’s characters from the books before it becomes a big deal.   My feelings are pretty mixed on the issue.  I bet I’m not making much sense as I type because I’m going back and forth.  I think if you are going to change the character, have it make sense.  If any of the people on Gossip Girl have same sex relationships that they didn’t have the in book series, fine.  It could fit in with the story.  If some of the vampires on True Blood go same sex, well they better anyways because that is definately in the books.  If Harry Potter has a scene making out with a boy, I don’t feel like that would make any sense. I don’t know, what does everyone else think about this?  Where is the line for changing a book character?

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Posted in Blah blah blah, News/Current Issues

Mar 22

The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith

+++++++Contains spoilers from the book series The Vampire Diaries+++++++++

+++++++Contains a some spoilers for the Sookies Stackhouse novels+++++++++

****Seriously, I’m not trying to ruin anything.  Read the books before reading this****

 

          I’ve always been the kind of person that once I start a series of books I like, I tend to read them straight through.  The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith certainly has me hooked right now.  Insert cheesy vampire reference about biting in to the series here.

          In the first book, The Awakening, we are introduced to the love story between the vampire Stefan and the high spirited Elena.  The Struggle introduces the third part of the love triangle, Stefan’s brother Damon.  In The Fury an unknown threat looms over the city.

          The fourth book, Dark Reunion stands out against the other three for me.  The main storyline is that yet again, there is an unknown treat looming over the city.  The huge different between the other books and this one is that the main character completely shifts.  In the first three, Elena is the center of the story even though it is an omniscient third person point of view.  Dark Reunion shifts to being focused on Bonnie who is one of Elena’s best friends.

         The shift is natural when you read in within the series.  The Fury ends with Bonnie writing in Elena’s journal which sets up for her to take over in the fourth book.  Since we are still gettings lots of different people’s view, the story is still told similar to the others. 

          I found this shift is the center character interesting because I really can’t think of another series that did the same thing.  If anyone else knows of one, let me know.  Harry Potter books all centered around Harry.  The Twilight Saga centered around Bella although I guess the last book did have a huge shift in perspective.  Hmmm.  Maybe that idea came from The Vampire Diaries since they were written almost 20 years ago.  I’m not being serious about that last one.  I think that lots of idea in books overlap and a lot of times, it isn’t intentional.  I know that when I wrote 60 or so pages about a girl and Greek gods, I had absolutely no clue that Percy Jackson was out there with the exact same concept.

          Sorry, I’m getting off point.  Sometimes a series is all told from different people, like the Vegas Vampire books by Erin McCarthy are each centered around a different person even though the same characters are present.  Wasn’t the Babysitters Club books written that way too? 

          Like I already said, in the series, this shift worked.  LJ Smith was taking a risk getting rid of the character she had attached her readers to but it definitely worked.  This made me think though, how will that work for the tv show?  I still haven’t watched it.  I fully intend to buy the dvd when it comes out so when that happens, I’ll blog again with comparisons.  I don’t know how close the book and the show are but I have a feeling that even if they are close now, they will not follow the story line of moving Elena out of the way.  It just wouldn’t work as well on tv. At least I don’t think it would.  It is kind of like how New Moon the movie had to find a way to put more Robert Pattinson in because fans are so obsessed with him.

          Guess we will have to wait and see if Vampire Diaries makes it that far on tv.  Kind of like we have to wait and see what True Blood does with Bill.  After the first few books Bill fades out to a minor character and Eric becomes more prominent.  I hope so much that True Blood sticks with the books.  Eric’s character is so much more interesting and funny and charming.  So far on the tv show they have showed a little of that but I want more.  Plus this season I am excited to see Alcide. 

         Hmm, maybe I see why people always associate me with being vampire obsessed, lol. I hate when people say that but I guess it is kind of true.  I think I’ve always loved supernatural books.  Then of course I got hooked on Buffy and Angel.  Oh Angel.  And Spike.  Okay, I’m going to stop typing now since I’m going off on too many tangents.

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Posted in Book Reviews

Mar 20

Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang Tour

Before I even talk about the tour, I want to say congradulations to Chelsea Handler for completely taking over the Times Best Seller list this week.  Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang hit number one for Non Fiction Hardback.  Are you there Vodka, It’s me Chelsea comes in second on Non Fiction paperback and My Horizonal Life is third in the same category.  That is amazing.  She deserves it.  Her books are so funny and great to read.  Job well done girl! Can’t wait to see what is next!

 

Alright, now that I’ve said that, I was so excited this week to actually see Chelsea live.  Guy Branum opened and he was just as funny as on tv.  I would have liked to hear more Twilight jokes but that is okay. His hipsters ones cracked me up.

 

Of course the highlight of the night was Chelsea’s set.  Do you call them sets in comedy? I don’t know.  Anyways, from start to finish I was cracking up.  My favorite parts were when she talked about her dog Chuck.   I was a little scared she was going to do a bunch of stories from the book so I would already know them all but she only did a couple.  Her saying that the reason she broke up with her boyfriend was that he said he was going to give Chuck Alpo dog food was so funny.  Yes, she talked about the Alpo in this book too but her phrasing it so it sounded like she was a mother deciding to take her child out of an abusive relationship was hilarious. 

 

So yeah, I had a great time.  I suggest anyone else that gets a chance, go see her.  Hopefully one day I will go to the actual show.  Do I hear a Cali trip coming?  I miss Long Beach. Oops, getting off subject.  If you haven’t read Chelsea Handler’s books, I highly suggest checking them out.

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Posted in Blah blah blah, Book Reviews, News/Current Issues

Mar 09

Who is excited?

          Chelsea Handler’s new book Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang came out today.  Did anyone else go pick it up? 

          Not going to lie, the first chapter made me nervous about life.  If you read it, you will know what I’m talking about.  Can’t wait to read the rest though.  Her writing style is very funny.

          Speaking of Miss Handler, I cannot wait to see her next week.  I hope I will make it to the signing too but the girl going to the show with me can’t so not sure if I want to go by myself or not.  Plus in general, it would be easier if I wasn’t downtown when she got off work.  Guess we will see what happens.  Not the end of the world if I don’t meet her.  I mean, when I’m a famous author I’m sure we will end up being besties anyways.

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Posted in News/Current Issues

Mar 09

Another bite

          Imagine that, I read another vampire book.  Maybe people making comments about me loving vampire stuff are onto something.  Sookie Stackhouse series, Twilight, Vegas Vampires….yeah I’ve read a few.

   Well finally I caved and decided to read The Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith.  I used a date a guy that made fun of me so bad saying that I would love the show.  Note, I never watched it.  I forget what it ran the same time as but I had something else I loved to watch.  Plus I didn’t want him to be right.  He did admit to watching and liking it though.  Anyways, the book caught my attention the other day and honestly, once I started, I couldn’t put it down.

          As stories go, it wasn’t anything groundbreaking.  Vampire love triangle.  Hmm, seen that in lots of books.  Personally, I was a fan of the Eric, Bill, Sookie one (team Eric).  The flashback’s in Smith’s book are an interesting way of setting up the story. 

          So far I have only read The Awakening.  It was basically a lot of set up for the other stories from what I can tell.  We get some story on all the main characters and it sets up some town drama.  It got me hooked so I can’t wait to start the next part of the series.

          The Awakening reminded me of The Immortal Series by Alyson Noel.  You’ve got the new kid that is dark, mysterious a from Italy.  Someone like him followed him.  Actually come to think about it, in the third Immortal book, Shadowland, a sort of brother like character shows up and trys to steal the girl.  The main character is a girl that is super pretty.  Popular in one case but not in another.  Noel’s series is more original though in my opinion.  I absolutely love her books and can’t wait for Dark Flame.

          As for the tv series, I am currently trying to find the episodes online.  If someone knows where to find them, let me know.  I only see the latest four.  If I’m going to watch them, I want to start from the beginning.  Once I watch, I’ll try to do some comparing stuff. 

          So, what is your favorite vampire book? 

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Posted in Book Reviews

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