Although I'm still waiting to see Milk, Let the Right One In, Synecdoche, The Wrestler, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, Gran Torino, Changeling and Frost/Nixon, I've seen a lot of very good films this year. Up to now, here are the best:
It's the time of year for making lists. 2008 proved a mixed bag for SF films, ending with a disappointing remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still. But the year also brought us the very strong Benjamin Button, the surprisingly good Iron Man, the luminous WALL-E and the DVD of Satoshi Kon's mind-bending Paprika. So in the spirit of year-end lists, and in no particular order, here's my all time top science fiction films:
This is a military history of the first full year of the American Revolution, the year the nation was born. Most Americans remember July 4, 1776 for the Declaration of Independence, and they may know that Washington crossed the Delaware on Christmas. But 1776 was an eventful year. Quoting a wide variety of firsthand accounts and letters, McCullough brings a long, costly and difficult year of military campaigns to life. From the words of sources on both sides of the struggle, the Americans and British are humanized.
As much as anything, this is the story of George Washington's on-the-job training as commander of the Continental Army. In covering the three major campaigns of 1776, in Boston, New York and New Jersey, McCullough tells stories of courage, luck, blunders and betrayals. But in the details of battles and the struggles of soldiers, a nation emerged and a national character began to form. Unlikely heroic leaders emerged, like Nathaniel Green and Henry Knox. Their stories are ours; McCullough melds them into a fascinating and important story.
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is a film with ambitions, though either the ambitions or their execution are a shade too modest for excellence. Still, this is an enjoyable science fiction teen romance, which almost aspires to be an art film. It's a beautiful film to watch.
The story is a sequel to a novel well known in Japan, and recently released as a manga, The Girl Who Runs Through Time. The original, by author Yasutaka Tsutsui, has been frequently adapted as feature films and TV series. The anime, from director Mamoru Hosoda and art director Nizo Yamamoto, plays out like Run Lola Run meets Whisper of the Heart. Studio Ghibli veteran Yamamoto also did backgrounds for Whisper of the Heart and it shows. Once again, Tokyo streets and parks are infused with so much reality they seem like an additional character in the movie.
Author Tsutsui also wrote the original for the film Paprika, so he shows a pattern of playing with perception, reality and time. There's a lot to like in Girl Who Leapt as the story and character develop. But the resolution could have been more tightly woven -- it feels like the film has one ending too many or one too few, throwing away some of its potential.
Thanksgiving (from Via Dolorosa)
Could love give strength to thank thee! Love can give
Strong sorrow heart to suffer: what we bear
We would not put away, albeit this were
A burden love might cast aside and live.
Love chooses rather pain than palliative,
Sharp thought than soft oblivion. May we dare
So trample down our passion and our prayer
That fain would cling round feet now fugitive
And stay them—so remember, so forget,
What joy we had who had his presence yet,
What griefs were his while joy in him was ours
And grief made weary music of his breath,
As even to hail his best and last of hours
With love grown strong enough to thank thee, Death?
- Algernon Charles Swinburne
Hope is the Thing with Feathers
by Emily Dickinson
Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,
And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
I've heard it in the chilliest land
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.
It's been a long week of administrivia, budgets and politics. Some poetical perspecitve, thanks to E. E. Cummings.
Combining elements of Hitchcockian suspense, propaganda for the war effort, Canadian travelogue and paean to the virtues of the Canadian people, diversity and democracy, the 1941 49th Parallel is both fun and compelling to watch.
This is one of the earlier collaborations of director Michael Powell and screenwriter Emeric Pressburger -- who won an Oscar for this film. It's framed as an effective piece of propaganda aimed squarely at encouraging U.S support for the Allies. As the survivors of a destroyed Nazi submarine work their way from Hudson Bay toward neutral America, they encounter an extensive catalog of Canadian types. The contrast between the simple, generous, honest, diverse and proud North Americans and the arrogant, elitist Nazis is drawn ever more clearly, even as the noose tightens on the fleeing Germans.
Well written, directed and acted by a strong cast including Laurence Olivier, Trevor Howard and Raymond Massey, this release of 49th Parallel is fresh evidence that Criterion DVDs are reviving important films.
Saw a few, missed a bunch (many intentionally). Some thoughts in retrospect:
OK, its not new. But some call this the all-time best Youtube video. I wouldn't attest to that, but this clever compilation from Florida librarian Alonzo Mosley is sure fun.
WALL-E is a treat to watch. It is cute, funny, horrifying, and touching. WALL-E is the last of the robots that were left to clean up Earth while humanity went on a five year cruise. However, it has been 700 years and WALL-E hasn't come close to making Earth livable again. Enter EVE who changes WALL-E's life forever.
There is little to no dialog for the first half or so of the film, but it still manages to draw you in. WALL-E is probably one of the best movies of the year. It has wonderful characters, a good strong plot, beautiful animation and backgrounds, and it works on enough levels to keep adult sci-fi nerds interested (that would be myself and another certain blogger included). The fate of humanity in WALL-E will hopefully make people take a look at their lives and the way we treat not only the Earth but also our own bodies. The way WALL-E lives should gives us hope and remind us to enjoy the wonder that is our world.
I gotta say that this movie had a theater full of 20 and 30 somethings on the edge of their seats and not making a sound. Go see this movie.
The American Film Institute has created a new list of the top 100 films by creating lists of the top 10 films in 10 different genres. Check out the list on their website. Movie buffs will also enjoy trying their quiz.
Recommended article: the June 1 issue of LJ has a terrific overview of urban fantasy literature: The City Fantastic by Nanette Wargo Donohue. 
There's an introduction and a fairly extensive annotated bibliography. Sections of the essay include:
This useful reference guide, published in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution, gives a good overview of the scope of Asian cinema and the works of prominent directors. The author, Tom Vick, does Asian film work at the Smithsonian, and this 274 page guide, published in 2007, provides a timely introduction to a subject of increasing interest.
While many Americans are familiar with major Chinese and Japanese film-makers, well established and influential here, other noted artists are less familiar. The book provides general coverage of more familiar subjects, but devotes more individual attention to those about whom less is known. There is also an emphasis on films that are available in the U.S.
Separate chapters deal with China, Japan, India, Hong Kong, Korea, Iran, Taiwan, South & Southeast Asia, and Central Asia & the Middle East. There is a good index and bibliography.
At a time when the world seems smaller, and American attention is often drawn to Asia in negative ways, this book points to another dimension of the many peoples and cultures from Turkey to Japan.
I've been spending a lot of time in the early 19th century lately. Without premeditated intent, I've found a pattern in recent reading and viewing:
So sue me, I like Jackie Chan movies. Thus it happens that I really enjoyed The Forbidden Kingdom. It's more of a guilty pleasure than great cinema, but I thought it was a fun time. A bit predictable, but still fun.
The story of the Monkey King and the Journey to the West is a classic of Chinese literature. This American-Chinese production seems to fuse many elements from the classic story with plot devices from The Wizard of Oz, -- an American teenager mysteriously journeys to a magical place and has to journey with strange companions to defeat an evil ruler, before he can be sent home. And it works pretty well, as long as you don't think too hard and enjoy the ride.
Jet Li gives every appearance of gleefully portraying the Monkey King, but things kick up a notch when Jet Li and Jackie Chan are fighting together. Jackie seems to be reprising his Drunken Master character. This sure seemed like classic Saturday matinee fare, updated with 21st century FX and martial arts wire work. I was waiting for the double feature -- would it be Tarzan or Roy Rogers?
All things considered, the Monkey King has fared worse. The graphic novel American Born Chinese may have done the legend better justice, but as screen adaptations go, this is a durn sight better than Dragonball Z!
As Gillian mentioned in the previous post, Bruce Coville and the folks at Full Cast Audio have been producing dramatized audio versions of Robert A. Heinlein's juvenile novels. With three books adapted thus far (Have Spacesuit Will Travel, The Rolling Stones, and The Star Beast), and three more to come (including Red Planet and Between Planets), Full Cast is doing a great job of bringing these somewhat forgotten titles new life.
The Star Beast was first published in 1954 and is out of print in book form, though it's fairly easy to find a copy. The story shows its age a bit, particularly in the portrayal of female characters and in failures to predict technology. Some of our current technology has already overtaken Heinlein's 23rd century predictions. As for the female characters, Heinlein was always sexist, though not necessarily in a bad way -- he had a firm sense of gender roles. This softened somewhat in his later works, but in the 1950s, it was decidedly a traditional and old-fashioned, occasionally unflattering view. And his juveniles were squarely aimed at pre-adolescent and teen boys, and sometimes serialized in Boy's Life magazine.
A 1985 article in Children’s Literature Association Quarterly, "Heinlein's Juveniles: Still Contemporary After All These Years" calls attention to the timeless nature of Heinlein's work, despite the dated sociology and technology. There's still tremendous humor, satire, and the exaltation of personal responsibility, common sense, kindness and practical science. But mainly, Heinlein was a gifted storyteller, with a fine sense of character and plot. For all these reasons, it's a good thing that Full Cast Audio is reviving these neglected works.
I've listened to several Full Cast books and have never been disappointed, but The Star Beast is the best yet. With a large cast of over twenty performers, the production is engaging and the performances, particularly by the leads, are excellent. The book is eight hours on eight discs.
At the ALA conference in Toronto in 2003, I talked with Bruce Coville about the then-fledgling Full Cast Audio. I thanked him for reviving Edward Ormondroyd's David and the Phoenix, another childhood favorite. He was pleased that others remember these books, and was committed to bringing back some of the old classics as well as providing opportunities for contemporary writers to get their work dramatized.
Coville is working to make "family friendly" audiobooks, which he defines as "Can an intelligent adult and an intelligent youngster listen to the recording at the same time with mutual pleasure and a lack of embarrassment?" So he helps remind us that you don't have to outgrow children's books and that one of the strengths of audiobooks is the way they create opportunities for sharing.
He's succeeding admirably in all aspects.
Just finished listening to the Full Cast Audio production of Kathleen Karr's Gilbert and Sullivan Set Me Free. I think it is one of the best done audiobooks I've heard. Based on the true events, it is the story of a women's prison that put on Pirates of Penzance in 1914. We hear the story told by a young prisoner, Libby Dobb, of how a new chaplain comes to the prison and starts a choir. After their first performance, of Handel's Hallelujah chorus, is successful, the chaplain decides to put on a full scale production of Pirates of Penzance.
The book draws you in, as Libby and the other women struggle with not only prison life, but also the issues of the day: i.e. oncoming war, a woman's position in society, birth control. The characters feel real, and are made all the more so by the talented actresses that have each role. Along with the full cast there is music, and that really brings the book to life. Snippets of Gilbert and Sullivan and Handel play through out the book, taking the place of page breaks, and of course the women actually sing.
This is a wonderful audiobook for any library to have, or even to own for yourself if you like Gilbert and Sullivan. I have yet to listen to a bad Full Cast Audio production, and there probably won't ever be one. This is a company to trust. They are also the ones making Heinlein audiobooks, but that's a different post.
-Gillian
I've been reading a lot of books and watching a lot of films lately -- I just haven't been writing about them. Here's a piece of catch-up:
Graphic novels & comics
The Cybils winners were announced a few weeks ago. Check 'em out! Read 'em all! Thanks to Jennie at Biblio File for the reminder!
My dad has kindly invited me to post reviews to his blog here. I'm a YA Librarian in small town Virginia, to give you a little bit of background knowledge. Not much to do in our town, but we have a great library. So here's a quick run down of my reading and its highlights for 2007:
The Childrens' and YA Bloggers Literary Awards finalists for 2007 have been announced. I'm going to touch on a couple of my favorite categories here, but encourage anyone who appreciate literature for kids and teens to check out the Cybils. It's encouraging to see recognition of quality graphic novels. Annotated listings and more are available on the Cybils website.
Teen/Young Adult:
This was Yasujiro Ozu's first color film in 1958. Throughout his work, Ozu controlled his elements so tightly and formally that adding color must have been a big step for him. The color serves to punctuate and tie together many scenes, though compared with the later Floating Weeds, the color sometimes seems overstated. But it enhances the visual imagery, as do several instances of reflected images which seem to comment on the characters. Ozu fans will relish this film, a poignant blend of family drama and societal change.
The story is similar to Early Summer in dealing with a daughter who wishes to make her own marriage decisions. But in Ozu, story doesn't count for much -- it's all about characters and relationships. The characters here are harder-edged, sometimes rude and manipulative, and in at least one case, blatantly hypocritical.
Much of the drama is watching the traditional father make a fool of himself as he publicly praises romantic love and privately condemns his own daughter for practicing what he has preached. He is utterly insensitive to his long-suffering wife. When the wife says, without apparent irony, that she was really happy when the family was all together in a bomb shelter during an air raid, her husband should have some clue as to what his family has endured since. Workaholic affluence has brought about greater distance between the father and his wife and two daughters. Can he ever see it, or will he left the family fall apart in his pride?
Relationships in other families mirror these dysfunctions in different ways. Ironically, the father who is driving his own family apart is seen as a source of wisdom and advice by other troubled parents. The end result is characteristically engaging and thought provoking in the quiet way that is uniquely Ozu.
