Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Movie 29

My 29th movie was Country Strong.  We saw a preview for this on some other DVD we were watching and my wife thought it looked interesting. I wasn't so sure, but I knew it would count for a fiftyfifty.me movie, so why not? I guess this challenge is having some impact on my viewing habits after all.

Country music is something I can take or leave, and I felt the same way about this movie. Even my wife, who is the country music fan in our family, said it was pretty boring. The actors were okay, Gwyneth Paltrow was even pretty good. But the story just wasn't there, whether it was the comeback tour part or the rising star part.

Not much more to say about the movie. The script was just too cliched to keep our attention.

Monday, June 11, 2012

Book 16

I think I have mentioned before that I have a slightly uncontrollable library habit. I often have more books checked out than I can possibly read in the renewal period the library allows. But what really made me realize it was out of control was when the librarians not only knew when I had items on hold before checking my library card, but also recognized my voice on the phone when I called in about renewing a book one day. I guess I am lucky the library has such a friendly staff.  (Really, it's the Merrimack Public Library in NH. They are great!)

So let's just say I frequent the library a lot. And despite already having a to-read list that will take me at least a decade to complete, I always check out the "New Books" shelves when I am there. You never know what will catch your eye. This is how I found my 16th book, How to Build a Time Machine: The Real Science of Time Travel, by Brian Clegg.

I have found that a residual impact of having studied physics in college (and then never using it again) is an interest in popular science books. I especially enjoy end-of-the-world physics (see Death from the Skies, by Philip Plait) or impossible physics (see Physics of the Impossible, by Michio Kaku). So when I saw a science book on time travel, I had to grab it.

The book discusses theoretically valid time travel possibilities, along with some background on relevant scientists pursuing these methods, which I liked. As expected, time travel paradoxes are also introduced. And I enjoyed those, even if it wasn't that original. But I found the actual time travel science discussion to be a little lacking. I didn't expect it to be like a text book, after all this is a pop science book on some pretty far out theories. But I was expecting at least some explanation of the physics underlying the theory. I actually grew bored with the book because there wasn't enough science in it.

So this is not one I'd recommend. If you want to try a pop science book, pick one of the above, or Hawking's A Brief History of Time. Or if you want something with a gimmick, go for How to Teach Physics to Your Dog, by Chad Orzel. These all made me feel like I actually learned something when I finished reading them. I did not get that feeling when I finished How to Build a Time Machine, no matter how interested I initially was in the subject.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Movie 28

Another treat that the older kids found in their Easter baskets last April was money to go to the movies. Actually seeing a movie in the theater is a rare thing for our large family, so this was a special treat, complete with overpriced candy from the snack bar. And while the boys considered saving the money for The Avengers, we ended up going to see The Hunger Games, which we have all read and enjoyed.

My wife had already seen The Hunger Games at a midnight showing on opening day with a group of girlfriends, so she stayed home with the younger kids. So it was a day out for me and the boys. And while we are not in the target audience of teenage girls that seemed to eat up this movie, I think we all enjoyed it.

The casting was very well done, even Woody Harrelson as Haymitch. I had my doubts about him from the previews, but he pulled off the drunk character rather well. And I thought the young actresses cast as the Everdeen girls, as well as Rue, did an excellent job.

The plot didn't stray too far from the book, which is good. Of course it is always disappointing when they have to cut scenes due to the time constraints of a movie, but it was done well in this case. I guess having Suzanne Collins, the author, involved with the screenplay was a good move.

I don't remember what else I specifically enjoyed, but I remember walking out thinking I wanted to watch the sequel right away.


And the boys later went to see The Avengers with family friends while my wife was still in the hospital after giving birth. I guess I'm waiting for that one on DVD.

Movie 27

Another DVD we found in the kids' Easter baskets was Kung Fu Panda 2. We enjoyed the first one, and Jack Black usually makes me crack a smile, so we watched this one as a family, too.

This was perhaps not as good as the first, but come on, we're talking about animated pandas learning Kung Fu. It was generally enjoyable. I liked trying to identify the voice actors (who were all pretty good) but everyone got tired of me saying, "Hey, you know who that is, don't you?"

I did have some issues initially with the miraculous things Kung Fu could supposedly do. Things like allowing you to change the path of a cannon ball with your hands. But then I remembered movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Forbidden Kingdom and realized this is really a fantasy genre. Perhaps the animated talking animals should have clued me in.

Monday, June 4, 2012

Movie 26

The kids received several DVDs in their Easter baskets this year. One of these was The Smurfs. Most of the family had already seen it, but I hadn't. I mean, a live action Smurfs movie? Really, this is what American audiences have been asking for?

Well, one of the girls picked it for Family Movie Night, so I watched it anyway. I'll admit, I liked it more than I thought I would. I'd even say Hank Azaria as Gargamel was enjoyable to watch. Still, you really need to like Smurfs, or have kids that like Smurfs, to enjoy this movie.

Book 15

I love lists of books, and this includes award winners. I'm not sure how I stumbled on it, but in March or April I found myself looking over the Man Booker prize archives. I have to admit I was a little taken aback that I hadn't read any of these books. Perhaps I've been avoiding the international literary scene.

Literary pretensions or not, some of the books, whether award winners or on the short list, looked interesting. So the next time I was at the library, I picked up The Sisters Brothers, by Patrick deWitt, which was short listed last year for the award. It looked good; a modern Western with a catchy cover illustration. And a fun title. It turned out to be a good book to start with on my Man Booker journey.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed the book. Maybe it was because I had no expectations other than seeing it on the short list. The book was very well done.  The titular brothers, some unsavory mercenary gunslingers, were very well drawn, and quite empathetic given their profession. Well, at least the narrating brother was. They introduced a humor that may have been dark at times, but was equally delightful at others. For example, the novelty of having tooth powder after a visit to the dentist.

The setting of the gold-rush era West, along with the task the brothers go through of tracking down a man for the mysterious Commodore, let them encounter a variety of interesting characters. The sheer number of them occasionally made me feel the narrative was a bit bumpy, but it didn't disrupt the book that much. And if the resolution was perhaps a bit heavily foreshadowed, it at least flowed naturally from the story. Perhaps my biggest problem with it was I didn't want the story to end yet.

I read a review on Goodreads that said this wasn't your father's Western. But when I finished I found myself wishing I could call up my Grandpa and recommend it to him. Who says the Western is dead?

Sunday, June 3, 2012

May List

Media consumption for May:

Books:
18. The Boy in the Suitcase - A Scandinavian thriller, a little dark.
19. Shatner Rules - Yet another memoir by William Shatner, light but made me smile.
20. The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals - enlightening
21. Fever 1793 - YA historical fiction
22. The Diary of a Young Girl - I wanted to like this Anne Frank book more than I did

Movies:
32. Water For Elephants - Love triangle with a circus backdrop.
33. In Time - Sci Fi thriller with time as a currency, but the same old problems with capitalism still exist.
34. Hereafter - A bit boring, especially for a Clint Eastwood directed film.

With my wife giving birth this month, I thought I would be reading less. Turns out it was the movie watcing that suffered. My blog posts are falling behind as well.