I like this, it looks like sand dunes...
Click here to create your own painting.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Order of the Phoenix spoilers, ahoy!
Still gathering my thoughts, I think. I enjoyed this movie, not with the same instant enthusiasm I had for Goblet of Fire, but even so...
It was surprisingly low-key with a noticeable downplay of the Capslocky parts. Didn't even make a meal of the Sirius thing.
The Ministry interior was beautifully realised and Grimmauld Place was convincingly grim and claustrophobic but there wasn't enough time spent on things, I found. The much anticipated 'Snape's Worst Memory' sequence flew by in about 30 seconds. [pout] And there was So. Much. Missing. - prefects? What? S.P.E.W? What? - or mucked about. Poor Neville was turned into a house elf again! In some respects though the cuts helped move things along - the book suffers from oedema, which led to perplexing plot bulges that looked significant but turned out not to be. The movie skipped a lot of that nonsense but at the same time it meant there was no real build-up of suspense. I came out of there thinking this could have worked better as a series.
Performances were generally good, though unfortunately we hardly got a chance to appreciate some of them. I was impressed with Evanna Lynch (Luna) and very pleased that Jason Issacs - Lucius Malfoy - had a chance to do more than just posture evilly as a panto villain. Imelda Staunton's Delores Umbridge wasn't as revolting as she could have been there were still some amusing interactions with the teachers. And, I have to admit, I was relieved not to be subjected to too much Bellatrix.
I'm going to see this again. The 'wait - what?' parts won't throw me quite as much a second time. :)
Still gathering my thoughts, I think. I enjoyed this movie, not with the same instant enthusiasm I had for Goblet of Fire, but even so...
It was surprisingly low-key with a noticeable downplay of the Capslocky parts. Didn't even make a meal of the Sirius thing.
The Ministry interior was beautifully realised and Grimmauld Place was convincingly grim and claustrophobic but there wasn't enough time spent on things, I found. The much anticipated 'Snape's Worst Memory' sequence flew by in about 30 seconds. [pout] And there was So. Much. Missing. - prefects? What? S.P.E.W? What? - or mucked about. Poor Neville was turned into a house elf again! In some respects though the cuts helped move things along - the book suffers from oedema, which led to perplexing plot bulges that looked significant but turned out not to be. The movie skipped a lot of that nonsense but at the same time it meant there was no real build-up of suspense. I came out of there thinking this could have worked better as a series.
Performances were generally good, though unfortunately we hardly got a chance to appreciate some of them. I was impressed with Evanna Lynch (Luna) and very pleased that Jason Issacs - Lucius Malfoy - had a chance to do more than just posture evilly as a panto villain. Imelda Staunton's Delores Umbridge wasn't as revolting as she could have been there were still some amusing interactions with the teachers. And, I have to admit, I was relieved not to be subjected to too much Bellatrix.
I'm going to see this again. The 'wait - what?' parts won't throw me quite as much a second time. :)
Thursday, July 05, 2007
One of my favourite shows tonight had a Swiss 'oompah' band playing a version of Sweet's Ballroom Blitz. It actually worked quite well. :)
"Are you ready, Sven?"
"Uh huh!"
"Anton?"
"Oh, ja...!"
[giggling] Ah, I love that song. It always reminds me of dancing, and ouzo...
As part of Badger and Rocket's birthday extravaganza (egad, they're 12! My babies!) their father and I took them to see the new Transformers movie. I never much liked any of the cartoon series but this, this I could shamelessly fangirl. It was the best action movie I've seen in ages, with just the right blend of humour and pathos and 'OMG!No!!1!' moments. The cgi wasn't flawless but it was damn good and convincing for the most part, and - yay! - inertia works! Watching Prime tearing up the road cos he'd transformed from vehicle to 'bot while moving at speed. Yes!
I'm not going to start on about Bumblebee's various Camaro forms cos I'll just embarrass myself, but I have to say... rawwrr! Sweet, maaaaate.
The human characters were well-defined with some kickarse women - always good to see in what looks like it's going to be a testosterone flick. And teenage boys, when it comes to girls, can be endearingly stupid. :)
We'll be seeing this again at least once more at the cinemas, then we'll be hovering, waiting for the dvd and all the juicy special features. Mwahahah.
7 more sleeps 'til OotP!
... and the tantalising merchandise starts to appear in the shops...
"Are you ready, Sven?"
"Uh huh!"
"Anton?"
"Oh, ja...!"
[giggling] Ah, I love that song. It always reminds me of dancing, and ouzo...
As part of Badger and Rocket's birthday extravaganza (egad, they're 12! My babies!) their father and I took them to see the new Transformers movie. I never much liked any of the cartoon series but this, this I could shamelessly fangirl. It was the best action movie I've seen in ages, with just the right blend of humour and pathos and 'OMG!No!!1!' moments. The cgi wasn't flawless but it was damn good and convincing for the most part, and - yay! - inertia works! Watching Prime tearing up the road cos he'd transformed from vehicle to 'bot while moving at speed. Yes!
I'm not going to start on about Bumblebee's various Camaro forms cos I'll just embarrass myself, but I have to say... rawwrr! Sweet, maaaaate.
The human characters were well-defined with some kickarse women - always good to see in what looks like it's going to be a testosterone flick. And teenage boys, when it comes to girls, can be endearingly stupid. :)
We'll be seeing this again at least once more at the cinemas, then we'll be hovering, waiting for the dvd and all the juicy special features. Mwahahah.
7 more sleeps 'til OotP!
... and the tantalising merchandise starts to appear in the shops...