Eclipse
So I made a pact with a couple of friends that we would see this series together. To date, my favorite movie has actually been New Moon, even though I liked (as much as you can say that for a book that you solely read for the plot, and not actually for the style) Eclipse better in book form. That being said, this movie is pretty bad. It's like they've just given up chasing the real movie goer's dollars and are satisfied with "twi-hard" ones. The acting was atrocious, there weren't enough scenes with the Volturi (the only decent actors in the bunch) and the story was even more stagnant that in the book. We giggled through most of it, which I suppose was the most fun. Props to J for putting up with it, and looking forward to making fun of the fourth one! :)
Dinner For Schmucks
A little bit funny, but mostly made me want to see the original French version. Steve Carell had some good lines, but mostly just reminded me of his dumb character on The Office. J enjoyed it more than I did, but I did laugh some. The mice were pretty clever. Gross, but clever. Not a must see, but fun to rent.
How Was It For You?
Carmen Reid
Uggg. I pretty much had given up on Reid, but had forgotten about this hold at the library until I got the call. Since it was there, I gave it a read, but honestly I really wish I'd given it a miss. Sloppy writing, bad plot (woman doing IVF with husband, can't get pregnant, moves to country, has affair with local farmer, husband still takes her back afterward...yada yada yada) and even worse ending. The Personal Shopper was great. This, not so much. Give it a miss.
This Charming Man
Marian Keyes
Another brilliantly dark and funny book. This time dealing with alcoholism and partner abuse, it was as hard hitting (please excuse the lame word-smithing going on here) as it was humorous to lighten the load. Keyes often keeps her reader guessing until the end, and this book is no exception. My only complaint would be that I didn't care for one of the voices she used. There were two in the 3rd person, one in the 1st person in complete sentences, and one in the 1st person using incomplete sentences, mostly leaving out the definite and indefinite articles and pronouns. In today's world of short speak texting, I suppose it was an effort to show that she was in her twenties. It wasn't consistent, which is why I really didn't like it. The style may be ok for something like Twitter, but really annoying to read in a book, and frankly, reminded me too much of Bridget Jones. The character Lola, who's voice it is, is really great, which makes up for the bad voicing somewhat. I'm getting towards the end of her published novels, which is making me kind of sad!
Inception
An astonishingly clever concept. Planting an idea through monitored and constructed dreaming. It's really not possible to describe details without giving the plot away. I was really captivated, from start to finish. My only issue was with the very ending, because I really didn't find it satisfied my need for closure. I know that I can get very picky when something isn't explained to my liking, so I'm sure others won't have as much of a problem. It's a brilliant film, definitely go see it!
