After the First Death (novel), by Robert Cormier

This was one of the most satisfying books I've ever read. Let me start with how I found it.

As much as I love reading now, it was not always so. I was one of those high school students that learned the individual requirements of my teachers, studied how they graded, and devised a plan, unique to each class, to get an "A" while doing the least possible work. That included how to pass English without ever reading a novel. For all four years.

That is, with one exception.

My sophomore year, I remember reading a book about the hijacking of a bus full of school children. I don't actually remember if I read it or if the teacher read it to us, but I remember that I was riveted and absolutely loved the story (a secret I kept to myself, of course).

Years later I set out to find that book. My searches always came up empty. I couldn't remember the title or the author, and only a few vague scenes from the story itself. A few months ago, I decided to try my luck again (yes, 20 years later I still thought about the book and was seeking to find it). Google proved worthy this time around and I found the book. After reading the description of After the First Death I knew I had struck gold. I quickly bought it on Amazon for about 50 cents.

This week I got around to cracking it open. It took me a matter of hours to read it. After the first Death is gripping from the first page and compelling to the last word. It is the story of terrorists that hijack a bus full of elementary school children. But this is not the typical fairy tale that you'd see in a Disney-produced movie. It's not even the kind of story you'd see in a dark Hollywood movie. No, this story is real. Not "real" in the sense that it's based on a true story (it's not), but in that it feels real. There is nothing contrived, nothing extravagant for the sake of "good fiction." This novel gets you inside the head of terrorists in a way that, dare I say it, you can almost sympathize with their cause. Or if not, you at least understand where they're coming from, how they were trained and how they think.

I couldn't put this book down. I love a good book that I can't put down. This was not due to the endless action sequences (which there was not) or intense mystery (also not present), but because of the gripping reality of the subject covered. Cormier does not attempt to cater to the typical format of fiction in which the heroes always win. He tells a real-world story where anything can happen. It's hard to explain more without giving away some of the plot developments. But trust me, in Cormier's book anything is possible. We're even treated with somewhat of a twist at the end. It was a very gratifying twist. Very. As a matter of fact, I was about to chalk this up as only a "very good" read until the last 10 pages or so. Suddenly more of the previous story made sense, ends were tied, and the twist put a final gratifying touch to the whole experience of reading this book. "Very good" was now "Insanely amazing."

If I had to complain about one thing it would be Cormier's use of selective omniscience (writing term). In short, from paragraph to paragraph you're sometimes inside the terrorist's mind, and then inside the bus driver's mind, and then inside someone else's mind. That made for occasional sloppy story telling in my opinion. It wasn't so much of a distraction to make me dislike the book or really for it even to become too much of a bother, but it was an annoyance I had to put up with. That's writing 101--stay to the mind of one character at a time.

While it contains small print, it's only 220 pages long so it's a quick read. Some of you faster readers will read this in a single day. I will be seeking out more of Cormier's books after this. I can only hope his other fiction is half as good as this was.

My Rating: 5/5

My Recommendation: Do you have to ask? Get thee to Amazon and buy this book immediately!

John Carter (movie)

I had never heard of this film or (I'm ashamed to admit) this classic book. I saw it as a new release online and watched the trailer to see what it was. The trailer looked great so I decided to give the movie a try.

It. Was. Epic.

John Carter is the story of a man from the late 1800s that is magically transported to Mars. Once there, he quickly learns that his dense bone structure, coupled with his having grown up on a planet with a more intense gravity, allows him to essentially have super strength and near-flight capabilities on Mars. And that's just the beginning.

I won't say much because, as always, my reviews are spoiler free, but he becomes involved with the people on Mars and learns about himself in the process. The special effects are great, the story is epic and (mostly) original.

There is NOTHING not to like about this movie.

Only AFTER watching it did I learn that this movie was basically the largest flop in Disney history. My reaction: WWHHHHAAAAATTTTT!?!?!?!

How is this possible? The movie cost $250 million (money well-spent) and it only grossed $71 million domestically! This is a travesty!

I'm chalking this loss up to poor advertising. Granted, I don't watch TV and so I don't often see previews, but I certainly had never heard of it. I'm guessing it did so poorly because no one else heard it existed either. That's all I can think of. It was a masterpiece of story and cinema.

Everyone must watch this move immediately.

My Rating: 5/5
My Recommendation: See it, buy it, watch it over and over.

11.22.63 (book)

I love Stephen King's writing style. His prose is vivid and gripping. I haven't read many of his books, however (about 5?), for a couple of reasons: he often writes supernatural horror which I'm not expressly into, and he tends to use extremely foul language, which I'm also not into.

However, when I heard that he was going to write a novel based around time travel, I couldn't help but to put it at the top of my wish list (time travel is probably the most fascinating fiction topic for me).

11.22.63 (the title of this book is the date that John Kennedy was assassinated) did not disappoint. It was, in a word, fantastic!

My review here doesn't contain anything that you wouldn't find on a dust jacket so read on with confidence (I never post spoilers, just in case you want to read it as well).

11.22.63 is about a high school English teacher that (essentially) stumbles upon what he calls a "rabbit hole": a portal to the past. 1958 to be exact. Stepping through this rift in time will take him back to the same day, the same moment, every time. He could go back for a month and return to the future, and when he went through the portal again, it would be to the exact moment as the first time he went. Each time is the first time.

So what do you do with that? Can you actually change the past then? Would you want to? You'll have to read the book yourself to find out the answers to those questions. But let me assure you that King takes a unique perspective on time travel (something that is hard to find in modern fiction). The tale of this English teacher and the incredibly difficult task he has set himself to is gripping and full of adventure.

I love to read but I can only name a handful books that have pulled me in so deep that I couldn't put it down. Angels and Demons by Dan Brown, Pathfinder and The Worthing Saga by Orson Scott Card, and Jumper by Stephen Gould are among these great novels that make me want to neglect the rest of my life just to read a few more pages. 11.22.63 fits right in.

I haven't decided if I will put it on my top 10 favorite books yet, but if I don't, it's close.

If you're looking for a story with heart-pumping adventure and the excitement of possibility, written by an author with impeccable world-painting and story-telling technique, then 11.22.63 is a must read.

The downside? As is typical with King, there is a bit of language. A bit more than I would have liked but no more than expected.

Also, I'll just put this out there on the off chance that someone actually reads my blog: something VERY uncanny, scary almost, happened to me (based on this novel) on the day I finished reading it. I can't tell you what it was without totally giving away the book. You need to read the full book, all the way to the last page, and then ask me about it. If you're half way through the book, then you'll know what I mean when I say I experienced a "harmonic" of my own.

My Rating: 5/5

My Recommendation: This is a must-read. Put it at the top of your list. You'll love it.

Time Travelers Never Die (book)

I haven't written a review in quite some time (almost three years). Truth be told I forgot I had this blog. :)

Yesterday I finished the book, Time Travelers Never Die, by Jack McDevitt. If you know me, you know I love stories about Time Travel. This novel, by an author I'd never read before, was extremely fun and enjoyable.

I'm not going to pretend that it was a masterpiece of literary genius, but it was a story I couldn't put down once it began. As always, no spoilers, so read on.

The book read, at times, like a travelogue that didn't advance the plot. Even so, I found those sequences interesting due to the nature of where (or when?) they were traveling.

The time travel theory was pretty solid and stayed consistent throughout the book--something difficult to find in fiction. The author found a creative, if not trivial, way around paradoxes that I had never thought of before. Perhaps it was a plot device, but it worked.

If I had to point out one main flaw in the book, I would say that it was extraordinarily predictable. Throughout about 60 percent of the book, I already knew what would happen next, or down the road. Some things were plainly (and painfully) obvious. The main characters didn't seem to be able to figure out how to solve problems they were encountered with until chapters (or even half the book) after I had already figured it out.

Don't get me wrong. It may sound like I'm being nothing but negative about this novel. In spite of the predictability I found it extremely enjoyable to read. It was, as I said, a very fun story. It was not overly nail-biting or suspenseful but it was an adventure that I didn't want to end.

The final few pages were a bit confusing, and there's one major point that was so confusing that I actually went back to re-read the chapter. It didn't help. Still, it wasn't enough to ruin the book for me. It left me wondering a bit, but did not affect the overall story.

One thing that struck me about the book after I had finished it was how clean it was. Hardly any bad language (if any), and no sexual content. Just an overall fun adventure through time with a few small mysteries mixed in. I enjoyed this book, and the author, enough that as soon as I put it down, I went to the computer and bought another book by the same author.

As it turns out, the author is 81 years old and has written many novels (and won many awards). His newest book (which sounded very interesting) turned out to be book 6 in a series. So I went and ordered book 1 of the series: A Talent for War (Time Travelers Never Die is a stand-alone novel and not related to this 6 book series). I'm excited to find a new author to read and hope this next book of his will be just as good.

My Rating: 4.2/5

My Recommendation: Read this book if you enjoy time travel stories. It was well thought-out and well executed. I didn't give it a 5 only because, while I loved this book, I can't say it's on my top list of best books ever. I just can't bring myself to categorize it with other great books that I've given a 5 to. This is likely due to some sections that seemed a bit slow in travelogue style. But don't let that sway you. It is fun and WORTH READING! :) Enjoy.

Invasive Procedures (book)

After reading Empire, I was hesitant to read another OSC card so soon. But I'm glad I did. I actually "read" this one in the form of an unabridged audio book. I'm putting that out there but I must acknowledge the possibility that I enjoyed this book so much simply because the reader was excellent (I've noticed that some audio book readers are better than others and enjoyment of the book can, unfortunately, be solely based upon that).

Invasive Procedures took place on our real, present, everyday world, but touched upon unlikely (science fiction) ideas. This is right up my alley. Any of you that know my taste in fiction, know that I really want to be able to believe that what I'm reading (or watching) could, on some level, actually happen. This novel did not take place in a distant future or in an alternate reality. The main character was just as mystified by the fantastical events taking place as you or I would be had we actually experienced what he did in real life. I really like that in story telling.

This novel dealt with advanced medicine, a crazy doctor wanting to change the world, and bio-chemical warfare. Very cool stuff.

I can't say that the story itself was extremely original, but it was mostly original.

Also, I did find a few times in which OSC would leave the reader hanging, as if he didn't want us to know the answer to some of his riddles, but to me they were obvious. Then, when the actual riddle is revealed (hypothetical example: THIS is what he was REALLY doing with the vaccine!!!!), I was like... DUH! Wasn't that obvious?

I've been realizing this more and more lately as I read fiction. I wonder if it's because I'm a writer as well. I can sometimes see right through the writer's plot devices.

Another plus for Invasive Procedures was that it grabbed me from the beginning. That's always a good thing.

My Rating: 4/5

My Recommendation: If you want a good relaxing read, pick it up. Relax out in a hammock under a palm tree. You'll enjoy it.

Stargate: SG-1 Season Two & Three (TV Show)

What can I say about this show? It's amazing. And any sane person would love it. I just finished the third season. I think I actually watched about 10 episodes just today (called in sick to work). No I didn't call in sick just so I could watch Stargate. I was actually sick. But when you're sick, sometimes there's nothing better to do than to watch TV. And Stargate fit my craving.

This show is innovative, creative, and captivating. While very episodic, there are serialistic elements to it. Some form of story line continues throughout the show. But even though it doesn't follow the movie-like serials like Lost or Heroes, it is right up there with the best shows ever created, in my opinion. I would easily put it up there with Lost, Heroes, and probably even ABOVE Smallville.

Third best show ever? Quite possibly. Do yourself a favor: rewatch the original movie, then pick up season 1, it picks up right from where the movie left off.

My Rating: 5/5
My Recommendation: SSEEEEEE IIIIITTTTTT!!!!

Speed Racer (movie)

There are NO spoilers in this review. Read with confidence.

What can I say about this film… In three letters: WOW.

A rich and vibrant color scheme and gripping fast-paced story line only start to explain what’s in store for you with this movie. It was exciting, heart-pumping, and featured strange, yet fantastic, cinematography and use of innovative CGI integration.

Watching Speed Racer excited the kid in me without making me feel like I was watching a kid movie. Most ideas portrayed here may have been brought off as cheesy in any other movie, but the Wachowski Brothers, creaters of the Matrix and this film, somehow made it all work in the world they were portraying.

This is not just a racing movie. The story runs deep at every scene, nothing shallow or one-dimensional at all. And the characters are all very well written, intricate, original and developed thoroughly. I felt like they were real people, not just someone on the page of a script. Though based in a fantastical reality with almost other-worldly dialogue and pace, it works. It seems real. It’s believable somehow, in spite of its obviously outrageous stunts.

I felt that the visual aspect of Speed Racer was far more creative than in the Wachowski Brothers previous works. It was superb to the point that I spent half the movie wondering what the next scene or perspective would look like rather than what would happen next. This film wins the Visually Creative award in my book—it simply takes CGI to the next level. There was never a dull scene in which the camera would just rest on someone talking. Instead, the camera would spin as he talked, or the background would change colors or turn into a flashback. In three words, the special effects and cinematography were FAN-TAS-TIC.

There was even some good old fashion kung fu in this movie. I love kung fu (when done well) in movies. Too many films these days try to implement crazy new fighting styles, but I love to see the straight stuff. I especially liked the fight scene done in the snow. Very cool stuff, and fun use of snowfall special FX while fighting. Well played, guys.

There was also an interesting mixture of technologies and decorative styles that left it ambiguous as to when it was taking place. The cars, buildings, and a lot of the technology seemed to be from the future but men in 50s clothing used Tommy Guns and some homes had 70s print wallpaper. But don’t get me wrong, I actually liked this about the movie. Somehow it all fit into the style of the film and helped me fall into the world they had created.

I loved the race courses. They were over-the-top and something out of an unrealistic video game. But as I’ve said before, it somehow worked in the context of the film. Usually I am a fanatic for wanting realism in my movies. I always seem to find things that make me say “yeah right.” But even though some things, like the race courses, were out of this world unrealistic, the thought never crossed my mind while watching it. On the contrary, as I saw the new courses throughout the movie, I smiled at how awesome they were.

If I had to complain about one thing it would be Spritle, the kid brother of the kid brother, that has a pet monkey. The monkey was cute, and the boy wasn’t SO terribly annoying that it ruined the movie for me (usually), but some of the boy’s lines and scenes were in fact cheesy. Leave it to a kid to take a genuinely great movie and ruin a few scenes. As a matter of fact, the only time I felt that I wanted the movie to hurry along were the times that he was on the screen.

Another fantastic and unexpected thing about this movie is that the themes were very adult. Much of the story line had to do with corporations, big business, sneaky takeovers, monopolies and stock market conspiracies. I would have expected from the previews that this was only a racing movie. Far from it. The stories went much further.

When I watch my favorite TV shows (Heroes, Lost), I find myself wishing it would never end. I felt similar watching this movie. When I was only 40 minutes into the film I was sad that so much had already passed. I wanted it to go on and on.

Ever seen someone do a jump kick, round-house 360…. with a car? It’s pretty dang cool. There was some pretty awesome Car-Kung-Fu in this movie and it was super creative and original.

Now, to be fair, I have never seen the original tv show (cartoon?) that this movie was based on. But I’m thinking that this is a good thing. I had nothing to compare the movie to, no pre-judged bias for the film. It was all fresh, new, and original for me. Having said that, I am now excited to go watch a couple episodes of the original series just to learn more about what the movie was trying to accomplish.

In the end, I can’t say enough about the visual aspect of the film. The vibrant colors and fantastically creative cinematography put this movie right at the top of my list. The Wachowski Brothers are in fact, geniuses.

This movie kept me riveted to the end. A nail-biting, heart-stopping, gripping, final climax, coupled with stunning visuals and creative scene work, completed this more-than-well-made film.

My Rating: 5/5 (or 6/5 if that’s possible)

My Recommendation: GET. THIS. MOVIE. It’s MORE than amazing. See it, watch it, rinse and repeat.

Stargate: SG-1 Season One (TV Show)

Ever seen the movie Stargate? If you have, I'm sure you'll agree it's a great movie. Even my wife liked it and she isn't much of a sci-fi fan.

If you didn't know (I'm always surprised how many people don't), Stargate became a TV series in 1997. It was amazing. I just rewatched the whole first season (2nd time seeing it) and I'm getting ready to start season 2. The show has 10 seasons.

Stargate SG-1 is action packed sci-fi bliss. The story lines are original and entertaining, and, while episodic, they tend to maintain some sort of running storyline.

I remember watching seasons 4 and 5 with my parents after my mission. Friday night was Round Table and Stargate Night. This show was so good that I'd have friends call me to hang out and I opted to stay because I didn't want to miss the show (that was in the days before DVR).

Even though I've seen the first 5 seasons, rewatching season 1 was still VERY entertaining (I had forgotten a lot). I'm excited to move on to season two and eventually catch up to where I had left off. I left for college after season 5 and never watched the rest of it.

My Rating: 5/5 (amazing show)

My Recommendation: SEE IT. Go netflix season 1. You won't be disapointed.

Men in Black (movie)

I pretty much like every Will Smith movie. He's good in anything he does. It came to my attention that Megan had never seen Men in Black, so we had to watch it.

It's amazing to me that this film is 12 years old. I still think of it as a reletively new-ish movie, but wow... twelve years.

You've all seen it, you don't need my review. But here's my 2 cents: It's entertaining, funny, clever and original.

Any drawbacks? A bit of cheese every here and there.

My Rating: 3.8/5 (I did not rate this as a 4 because, while entertaining and a great movie, I couldn't justify putting it up there with other great movies that I had given 4's to)

My Recommendation: See it

Get Smart (movie)

General Zod, Hiro Nakamura, Steve Carrell and the Rock... Best Cast Ever.

I LOVED Get Smart as a kid. Even though it was before my time I loved watching the old series. This movie adaption did not disappoint. It was clever, funny, creative and paid the right ammount of homage while keeping real with the times.

The types of jokes in Get Smart could have easily been over the top and silly/stupid rather than funny, but (thankfully) the director had a good eye for when too much was too much. The end result was an amazingly funny movie.

Steve Carrell is brilliant as he is in every movie. General Zod (known on some planets as Terrance Stamp) is just awesome because he is Zod. Hiro Nakamura is awesome because, well, DUH! And the Rock, Dwayne Johnson.... I've got to say this was my favorite performance of his. It was very real and believable.

I can't say that I saw the "twist" at the end coming, but then again I wasn't really looking for one.

If I had one complaint it'd be a couple of "yeah right" moments throughout the film. Like when Zod pulls out a key chain that has a little laser that cuts through concrete or titnaium or something like that: YEAH RIGHT.

All in all, I am still in shock a day later that this movie wasn't cheesier than it was. Given what they had to base a film off of, and given today's ideas about what is "funny" in a family film, it could have been a disaster. Thankfully it was far from disaster; it was a success.

My Rating: 4.5/5

My Recommendation: See it. Rent it at least. If you're the kind of person that likes to pop in a random comedy every now and then, buy it.

The Good Guy (book)

I have now read 38 Dean Koontz novels. Needless to say he's my favorite author. That either means that I'm a bit biased when it comes to reviewing his work or it means that I can afford to be a little more nit-picky and critical since I've read so much of what he's written... or a little of both.

The Good Guy caught me from the beginning. I'd say only about 70% of his books have done that. This book was fast paced, energetic, and fun the entire way through.

I can't say it was the deepest story he's ever written. Some guy is mistaken for a hitman. They pay him to kill someone, but he's not the killer. So he devotes himself to finding the target and then protecting her. The real killer gets wind of this, and hunts them down. It's gripping.

I did find the ending a bit anti-climactic and quick. And then the final explanation of what was actually going on was a bit over the top and, in my opinion, completely unnecessary in comparison to the rest of the book.

If you've never read Koontz, then this might be a good one to start with, though I could give you a list of other favorites as well.

When this book first came out, the publishers did a YouTube contest in which they released the first chapter of the book and had Koontz fans create a video trailer for the book. They gave $5000 to the winner. Here is the winning video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfOv-4LhyJk

My Rating: 3.9/5 (honestly, 3 chapters before the end I would have given this book a 4.5/5, but the ending just really left a sour taste in my mouth, so even 4/5 sounds generous at this point. But don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoyed this book)
My Recommendation: Buy it. Read it.

The Goonies (movie)

Okay, I'm sure everyone that ever reads this post will say something like "yeah, I used to love that movie when I was a kid." Well look again, you just might still love it.

During finals at school this last week we had extra long testing periods and a lot of time to do nothing when the tests were over. So I got a pile of movies from another teacher and I let my kids choose what they'd want to watch. They almost unanimously chose the Goonies. I put it on thinking I'd head into my office to get some work done. Nope. I was rivited from the first scene.

Though I had seen this movie hundreds of times as a kid, re-watching it for the first time in probably 10 years was a fantastic experience. The movie is STILL as good as it ever was, if not BETTER. It's filled with adventure, suspense, reality and fun. Who doesn't love a treasure hunt? Chases? Booby-traps?

One thing that really stood out to me is the fantastic character development. Each kid had a very distinct character and personality. I loved chunk as a kid, but WOW, that kid is SO FUNNY!

I was thinking as I watched, this movie is 24 years old. You'd think they'd do a remake of such a successful and beloved movie by now in this age of remakes. But then as I watched more and more, I realized that no remake could EVER top this movie. The filming, the acting, the script, it's all perfect in every way. Even today's generation loves this movie. I've shown a lot of movies to my kids in the past but NO movie has EVER come close to holding their attention like this one did.

In spite of how many times you may have seen this movie in the past, go watch it again. I think you'll thank me.
My Rating: 5/5
My Recommendation: DUH! Buy this movie!

Wall-E (movie)

I finally got around to seeing this. I've been wanting to ever since it came out in the theaters. It was well worth the wait. Wall-E is a fantastic movie.

I don't know how they did it, but they managed to make robots cute. And I just loved every time Eva would say "Wall-E." So cute!

The movie was extremely entertaining. The plot was thin (humans dirty and fat, they destroy planet, they feel bad and try again), and the acting... well... not only was it CGI but there were hardly any words in the movie at all so I can't really comment on acting.

If there was one downfall, it'd be the blatant Dan Quail-ism. It was like the movie was screaming at me to stop being so fat and lazy. Oh, and if you litter or don't recycle, you're the scum of the Earth.

Sounds like I'm saying only "bad" stuff, but... it's really not. Good CGI, very entertaining, continuous movement of story....

I don't know what else to say about this movie. It's good. Watch it.

My Rating: 4/5 (I give a lot of 4 out of 5's don't I? I think I want to reserve the 5's for stellar, nearly-perfect, favorite movies. A 4 is any other really great movie that I wouldn't classify as a top 10) p.s. I reserve the right to have more than 10 on my top 10 list. :P

My Recommendation: Get it, rent it, buy it, watch it, see it

The Day The Earth Stood Still (movie - 2008)

I was very excited to see this movie when I saw the preview and, while it wasn't the most epic and fantastic movie of our day, it did not dissapoint.

Keanu Reeves, interestingly enough, is probably one of the worst actors ever, but he makes great movies. I must admit that I've pretty much liked every movie I've seen him in even though he himself pretty much sucks (Bill & Teds, Speed, Matrix Trillogy, and this movie).

This modern day adaption of the 1951 movie kept to the original story line fairly well but deviated enough to keep modern day audiences interested. As a matter of fact, while interesting, I found the original movie mostly dull and boring. This one, however, I would buy and add to my collection.

All that said, I would also agree that this movie is perhaps for a more sci-fi discriminating fan. Those who are not avid (or at least moderate) sci-fi lovers might find this movie a bit odd or strange, and perhaps even slow at parts.

I found it to be a great mixture of story, special FX, acting, emotion, and culture.

There is one major flaw, however, and it involves a spoiler. So if you plan on seeing it (and you should) then stop reading here.

The Flaw (spoiler alert): At the end of the movie, Klaatu agrees with the woman and the scientist that Earth deserves a second chance because it is only in the face of annilation that a culture can change. They assure him that they can change. So Klaatu stops Earth from being destroyed. But this informtion NEVER gets out to anyone! So far as the rest of the BILLIONS of people on the plannet, some weird things happened inexplicably and then they suddenly stopped and now everything is back to normal. What's to make them change??? No one ever told them that they SHOULD change! In this respect, the original movie was much better.

Also, the Earth "standing still" played little to no part in this movie. That was dumb.

My Rating: 4/5

My Recommendation: Buy it, See it. If you're not into sci-fi, rent it, you still may enjoy it.

The Road (book)

I actually read this book before I started blogging, but it was a good book and I wanted to put my short review out there.

This was an Oprah book of the month, which made me really hesitant to read it. But the premise behind the book (post apocolyptic world) made it interesting enough for me to pick it up.

It was very strange how the whole book was written without any quotation marks. But after a few pages I got used to it.

It's just a father and a son, trying to survive in a world where it rains ash and people would kill you if you had two beans in a can. It was very real and I really got to know the characters. There was one really touching scene in which the two find an old storm cellar full of food. I never thought I would cry when I read that a 10 year old ate a canned peach, but I did.

I would say that the style of this book is more for the literary fiction crowd and not so much the sci-fi crowd. But I do think both parties would enjoy the book.

My Rating: 4.5/5 (minus half a point for some drag, and seemingly repeated scenes)
My Rating: Get it. Read it.

James Bond: Quantum of Solace (movie)

I love Bond flicks. Who doesn't? No matter how many they make, they are always entertaining and somehow, suprisingly, they manage to drum up newer and newer ways for action scenes to be at least somewhat original.

This was the "chase" movie in my opinion. They had some pretty good chases on foot, in cars, on boats, and even one in airplanes. These writers didn't let any idea pass over thier desks without snatching it up.

Daniel Craig did a great job, of course. But I do miss the nonchelant, nothing worries me, suave smile of Pierce Brosnan. I didn't start watching Bond movies until Pierce's first movie so for me, he is my Bond in the same way that Christopher Reeve is my Superman. I love Daniel Craig, but he just seems so emotionally distraught by everything around him. It's like a new side of Bond: inner termoil.

Now for the negative stuff. The movie took place in La Paz Bolivia, where I lived for 2 years. The problem is that none of the movie was actually filmed in Bolivia, and it was very apparant to someone like me who spent so much time there. Thankfully these things would not be noticed by others. The hats the "Bolivian" women wore were so obviously peruvian. The streets in the movie were all paved (95% of Bolivian streets are stone or dirt, rarely do you find a paved road).

And one more thing: What the heck is "Quantum of Solace" and what does it have to do with this movie? It was never explained (or if it was, it was brief and not obvious). I would have rather this movie been called: "Bond Blows Up Bolivia." That would fit nicely.

My Rating: 4/5

My Recommendation: Rent it. Buy it if you're a Bond fan, Rent it if you want a good popcorn flick for a night.

The Incredible Hulk - 2008 (movie)

Well let me start out by saying that this film far surpassed its 2003 predecessor--but I expected no less from Edward Norton.

The Incredible Hulk did something AMAZING in the first 5 minutes of the movie. It did something that Superman Returns sorely lacked. This was, in fact, a sequel to the 2003 film, which I was not expecting (I thought it was going to be a reboot). But instead of just assuming that everyone knew the back story and going on (like Superman Returns did), they spent about 5 minutes flashing newspaper headlines and flashbacks to remind (or even tell) audiences what the upcoming move was based on. After seeing this superbly played out, I sincerely believe that if Superman Returns had used this same tactic, it would have been twice as successful as it actually was.

The Incredible Hulk was super entertaining, had pretty good (though not perfect) cgi, and some awesome action and fight scenes, but it was not without its flaws.

Edward Norton is pretty much great in every movie he's in, and while this was no oscar-worthy performance, he did a fine job. The movie was complete with a great King Kong scene on the cliff in the rain, a cameo by Lou Ferrigno (original Hulk from the 1978 TV series), and of course a cameo by Stan Lee, and even paraded Liv Tyler's pouty-face, slow-walking, teary-eyed poor excuse for acting.

If I had to find flaws in the movie (other than Liv Tyler), it would be, one, why on earth can't the Hulk talk when he becomes the Hulk? He suddenly becomes Frankenstein or something. Weird. And two, the plot. While a pretty awesome movie, the plot was basically: "Me am green monster, Army chase me. The End." Aside from VERY small side stories here and there, that was basically the premise of the movie. Oh well, guess you can't win them all.

My Rating: 4/5 (for poor plot and some bad cgi -- though most of it was good)

My Recommendation: See it! Great movie. Maybe rent it. I'm on the border between rent and buy. I guess it depends if you're a super hero fan or not. If you're not huge into super hero movies, then just rent it, you'll still like it. If your a hero-nerd like me, buy it.

Live Free or Die Hard (Movie)

John McClane is my hero. No I didn't say John McCain. But I digress...

I just saw Live Free or Die Hard (finally) and all I have to say is WOW! This honestly has to be the best shoot 'em up blow 'em up action movie I've ever seen. I think it was better than Eraser in that category if only for the modern aspect of the visual effects.

John McClane, played by Bruce Willis, is the best action hero ever. He tops James Bond, Ethan Hunt, and Rambo, and here's why: the guy just walks around and does some seriously AWESOME stuff all in the name of nonchalant luck. Rambo and the Governator had attitude and seriously big guns and you could tell they weightlifted 23 hours a day. James Bond, Ethan Hunt and Jason Bourne are highly trained special ops spies. But John McClane is a city cop. He has no skills but always seems to come out the winner. And let me tell you: it ain't boring to watch how he does it.

This is by far (in my opinion) the best of the Die Hard films. It had funny moments in which I laughed out loud (which hardly every happens with me). There was a great scene in which the Keanu Reeves character convinced the OnStar person to start the car for him. If you've seen the film, you know what I mean. You know, the kid was a bit cliche but I have to admit that I found him funny and entertaining. Good job, kid.

There were also some amazing moments of action, too many to name, but one that comes to mind is when McClane drives an SUV into an elevator shaft and proceeds to make it out alive. And of course there's this one here (pictured) in which he drives a police car into a helecopter. Awesome.

And of course, as in every action movie, there were a few unrealistic, yeah-right moments, like when McClane drives up a crumbling freeway bridge, gets demolished by a jet and then just jumps out unharmed.

The movie was about computer hackers and in my opinion it was all done very well. It was not without flaws--even I found a few things that were inconsistant. For example they took all the power down on the whole east coast but I saw a stop-light working in the background. My brother would be able to more accurately tell you how plausible and accurate the computer hacking stuff was portrayed.

If you like action movies, if you like explosions or Bourne Identiy/James Bond style action, sweet moves and amazing feats of incredible and highly unlikely strength and skill... you will LOVE this movie.

My Rating: 5/5 (No question)
My Recommendation: SEE IT. BUY IT.

Across the Universe (Movie)

I grew up loving the Beatles. I practically worshiped them through high school. I not only had all their albums and memorized all of their songs, but I would go to the library, check out books on the Beatles, read them, and memorize them.

When Across the Universe came out, I had to see it.

It is one of my favorite movies of all time. You'll find it in my sidebar on the list of my favorite movies. You'll also find some of the songs from the movie soundtrack in my playlist in the sidebar (the music was so amazing I just had to get the soundtrack to this movie after I saw it -- more on this later)

The story is of the 60s. The war, drugs, the lifestyle, love, music. Coupled with this is a unique way of doing a quasi-musical movie. All the Beatles songs are sung by the main characters rather than just played as background music as in all other movies.

The voices of these actors are amazing. Megan and I watch American Idol religiously but the talent in this movie surpasses American Idol 10-fold.

Aside from the imense talent and extreme entertainment value, the movie is visually amazing. The director has an eye for original scenes and creative exposition. It starts off normal like you'd expect in any movie, but as the plot thickens, so does the visual aspect of the film. You'll just have to see it to see what I mean.

My brother claims that he didn't like it because it felt like they were cramming Beatles songs into the movie just for the sake of cramming them in and that they didn't add to the movie or even belong. While perfectly entitled to that opinion (and I'm sure there are others that will agree with him), I have now seen the movie three times and I am going to have to mostly disagree. You'll notice I said "mostly." I do admit that there is occasionally a scene in which a song is sung and it is a bit overboard and doesn't add to the movie. Still, the vocals and visual aspect is enough to make me overlook that.

This is an amazing movie all around. The acting is perfect. Very believable perforamces by every actor. If I had one complaint it's that the middle portion of the movie (the drug phase) lasts a bit too long. At first, it was very cool to watch how the director would choose to show a drugged-out world using music, colors, singing, etc. It was cool for the first song, okay for the second, over-done for the fouth, and downright annoying for the fourth. Still, a minor setback for an amazing film.

My Rating: 5/5
My Recommendation: Buy it. It's amazing.

Hancock (movie)

This movie was full of poor special FX, little to no character development, a lack of motives for anything, cheesy sequences, and too much information packed into a short movie, not to mention it wasn't the deepest plot in the whole world.

I loved every minute of it.

From my comments above you can see that I won't pretend that it was a perfect movie. It had a great deal of flaws but I have two things to say: Will Smith, and Superhero. I love both of these things and this movie brought them together.

The special FX were poor only in thy flying sequences. Apparantly it is difficult to make it look like a man can actually fly. the other FX were actually quite good--especially the downtown fight scene with lighting and tornadoes happening. It was great.

There was a lack of character development and character motive and this was my biggest complaint. Characters just seemed to appear out of nowhere and we were supposed to care about them but there was no time given to developing these characters enough to accomplish that. Here's an example: Hancock bad. He mean. "hey Hancock, you should be good instead." Okay, I try that too now." There you go, I just gave away the first 15 minutes of the movie.

Last but not least, I felt the movie went too fast. Things were just happening left and right. Scenes changed and characters moved on to different ideas and events before you could digest the event that just occurred. The filming and direction seemed too clipped and edited and I would have liked a bit more time spent on each event.

Now that that's out of the way: the movie was great. While it was not Smith's best performance, i would say that it is a nice addition to his portfolio. When compared his other movies such as Legend of Baggar Vance, I am Legend, the Pursuit of Happiness, i Robot, etc etc.... it rounds out his amazing acting ability. Just take a look at his movie list and you'll realize what a stud the Fresh Prince really is.

I loved seeing Hancock do all the things that we all wished Superman could do on the big screen. You know, things like mess with the bad guys, or stop a train by simply smashing into it. That was pretty cool. Not to mention that Hancock seemed immensely more powerful than Superman.

The story line wasn't terribly deep, but it wasn't the kiddie pool either. The guy's got amnesia and you slowly learn about his past. It was a good enough story to keep the interest going.

I must also admit that I found the movie unpredictable. Every turn of events was something that I could not have seen coming.

Over all I'd say great stuff. If you like Will Smith, see it. If you like superheroes, it's a must-see. If you're a movie critic with acute criticism and no taste for rubbish or sub-par literary works... then skip it.

My Rating: 4/5 (maybe 3.7/5 but the extra 0.3 points are for superheroes being cool)
My Recommendation: See it. Rent it. If you're a superhero fan or a Will Smith fan, buy it.