Currently Reading – 02-15-21

I read about a third of Fireborn before I decided to drop it. There were too many male sex partners for my taste. Her phoenix soulmate, her soulmate for her current life, and a fire fae. She loved one as a friend, one romantically, and lusted after the fae. That was more than I could handle lol

Out of my huge stack of library books the one I’ve been wanting to read the most is Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade. I love the fanfiction element as well as having a plus size heroine. I’m looking forward to it.

Library Haul 02-14-21

In this picture you can see the stack of new books I picked up beside the stack of books I’ve yet to read. The reading frenzy from 2020 has not carried into 2021. Instead I’ve been working on editing a couple of books I’ve written. As well as playing a lot of Stardew Valley, and of course there’s the great movie re-watch going on. I’m afraid books have fallen to the wayside.

I really, really want to read most of these a lot. I’m hoping that I can get my butt in gear and knock some of these out fast. Fingers crossed 🤞

I’ve started Fireborn by Keri Arthur. I’m hoping to find something similar to an Ilona Andrews book, but so far I’m not feeling it. I’ve read Arthur in the past and enjoyed her so I should at least enjoy the story, even of it’s not what I was hoping for.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved: Always and Forever (2021)

To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021)

Netflix Movie

Director:

Michael Fimognari

Writers:

Katie Lovejoy

Starring:

Lana Condor

Noah Centineo

Blurb:

Continuing the romantic life of the teenage girl and facing her good and hard times with her friends and family.

Thoughts:

I’m going to do thoughts instead of a review for Always and Forever. For me, there is a difference. I try to be more objective with a review. Not so much with just my thoughts.

Everyone in this movie is beautiful and perfect, inside and out, which was sweet. It’s the end of the trilogy, but it was more like a giant epilogue for the other movies, which was boring.

There is almost no conflict. Nothing new is really introduced, nothing that makes a huge impact at least. I guess you could argue that Peter’s relationship with his dad is new, but that literally takes place in the last twenty or so minutes of the movie. There’s the college selection, but you always knew that was coming. They’re in high school and wealthy. It was assumed they were going to college. The father gets married in the end, but he’d already started dating someone in the last movie, so you knew he’d moved on from Lara Jean’s mother.

If you’re a super-fan of the characters, then Always and Forever was made for you. Which, of course, you’re watching the third movie in a series, naturally you’re going to love the characters. What I’m saying is, there is nothing new here. So if that’s what you’re looking for, then you’re not getting it.

I didn’t expect it to go past high school, but I don’t get the same closure from finishing high school as I’ve gotten older. High school was never a be all end all for me. It was something I had to get through. So, I’m setting expectations.

What is it with the jocks now getting into Ivy League schools? This happened in Always and Forever and The Kissing Booth. While Peter has never seemed more than average intelligence, the Kissing Booth’s dude always came off as a little below average. Yet, there they are in Harvard and Stanford. I guess we’re no longer pretending you get into those schools on merit alone? The bad guys are no longer the ones that buy their way into the schools, it’s now the good guys too?

It’s possible I was in the wrong mood for Always and Forever. I wasn’t in any kind mood at all, so who knows. I love each of the actors in the movie, and I’m looking forward to more from them. I’m just not sure this movie needed to be made.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

The Great Movie Re-Watch

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers:

William Huyck

Gloria Katz

Starring:

Harrison Ford

Kate Capshaw

Ke Huy Quan

Amrish Puri

Blurb:

In 1935, Indiana Jones arrives in India, still part of the British Empire, and is asked to find a mystical stone. He then stumbles upon a secret cult committing enslavement and human sacrifices in the catacombs of an ancient palace.

Thoughts:

I’ve never enjoyed Temple of Doom. It’s too scary. The food is even terrifying. Hearts are ripped from people’s chests. People are burned alive. All of that, and it’s rated PG. It’s no wonder PG-13 was created because of this movie. On top of all of that, Indiana, Harrison Ford, is somehow even a bigger misogynist than in Raiders.

Watching this movie after the Me Too movement has not been eye-opening, but certainly uncomfortable. I never liked how women were treated in the film, but I just accepted it. Now it actively pisses me off. Indy’s treatment of Willie, Kate Capshaw, was disgusting. He repeatedly dismissed her, even though he literally dragged her with him. She has a right to complain. Willie had been singing at her club, and all of a sudden she’s in a jungle surrounded by a foreign nature. Naturally, she’s scared, and Indy just laughs at her and rolls his eyes. Women, amirite?

Temple of Doom is technically a prequel, which explains why I don’t like it. I tend to hate prequels. There’s no explanation for why it happens before Raiders. Indy is a bit more mercenary, looking for only fame and glory. He starts off willing to ignore the plight of an entire village because he doesn’t believe them. I guess he hadn’t yet been shown that the supernatural was alive and well in his world.

Willie was a female version of Indy, but he’d never acknowledge it. They were both the top of the careers and complete narcissists. So sure of how amazing they are and only capable of the barest minimum of self-reflection. That was at least amusing to watch.

Even harder to look past than the sexism is the blatant racism in the film. It’s just soooo bad. You’ve got the heavy-handed Indian racism and the casual racism with Short Round, Ke Huy Quan. They covered as many bases as they could with Temple of Doom and racism. I refuse to allow the whole ‘it was a different time’ excuse to be used either. Fuck that noise. The Indian government actually told them they didn’t like several things in the script, and instead of changing them, they changed location. They knew exactly what they were doing.

Also, if anyone ever complains about how unrealistic certain scenes in Crystal Skull are, just point them to the beginning of Temple of Doom. They fall out of a plane in a life raft onto a snowy mountain. Ride down the mountain at breakneck speeds and then fall off a cliff into a raging river. It’s beyond ridiculous, which is fine for the type of film. My issue is more with people complaining about Crystal Skull.

I own Temple of Doom in a boxset, and I’m a completionist, or otherwise, I’d be fine not owning it. It’s definitely not a movie I feel the need to re-watch at frequent intervals. Normally, it’s not until I forget just how bad it is that I re-watch it.

Ghostbuster (1984)

The Great Movie Re-Watch

Ghostbuster (1984)

Director:

Ivan Reitman

Writers:

Dan Aykroyd

Harold Ramis

Starring:

Bill Murray

Dan Aykroyd

Harold Ramis

Sigourney Weaver

Rick Moranis

Annie Potts

Ernie Hudson

Blurb:

Three former parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service.

Thoughts:

Bill Murray in Ghostbusters is hilarious. He’s dry and sarcastic and makes the movie. Reading more into the film, though, it sounds like he was a bit of a diva. He said he’d do the movie but never actually signed anything, so it was never a sure thing. He also took a lot of time away from Ernie Hudson, who took a pay cut to be in the film because he liked the role so much. So while I love Bill Murray’s character in the movie, I feel bad for the people who worked with him.

Ghostbusters is one of those films that a LOT of people have truckloads of nostalgia connected with it. Oddly enough, I don’t. It wasn’t one I got to watch much growing up, so while I think it’s great, I do feel like I get to look at it from a distance. It’s fun and entertaining, and unique. The closest modern equivalent, besides the reboot, would have to be This is the End. Even that’s a stretch, though. It’s crazy that no one tried to emulate it. That’s what Hollywood does, after all.

And now it’s time for Random Facts from the Wikipedia Article!

-The day before the deadline for Slimer’s puppets Richard Edlund, his creator, was informed they wanted it to look like John Belushi. Edlund took three grams of cocaine and believed Belushi’s ghost guided him in Slimer’s creation.

-Universal owned the rights to the name Ghostbusters because of a children’s show but allowed Columbia to buy the rights for $500,000 and 1% of the profits. Which, of course, never happened because movies never make a profit. This only happened, though, because one of the people originally attached to Ghostbusters became the head of Universal.

-One of the only things that made it through all versions of the script was the Marshmallow man. It sounds like it was Aykroyd’s favorite part, and the movie wouldn’t get made without it.

– Julia Roberts was considered for the role of Dana Barrett

And that’s the end of another edition of Random Facts from the Wikipedia Article!

It’s always interesting to know who potentially could have been cast. I can’t imagine anyone else in the role of Dana after seeing Sigourney Weaver. Likewise, I can’t imagine Eddie Murphy in the role of Winston.

Ghostbusters is a highly quotable, classic comedy that everyone should see at least once.