The 2001 film adaptation with Renee Zellweger is one of my favorite romcoms, so when I spied the original novel on the book shelf at my Mum’s I decided to give it a go. With some reservations, as I’ve read a couple of other books my favourite chick flicks were based on, which turned out to be very disappointing. I ended up gulping down the book in a space of one evening, while waiting for the drying machine to finish its business, it was that readable.
Category: Reviews
Insomnia by Stephen King – Book Review
Insomnia takes its sweet time to set things up and it tends to ramble on. But whether it’s because I was in a right mindset or simply enjoyed the setting and the characters, I didn’t mind the slow pace and ended up really liking the book.
Snowpiercer – Film Review
This dystopian parable had one of the nuttiest premises I’ve seen in a movie. In the not-so-distant future, the entire planet is frozen solid after the attempt to solve the problem of global warming goes spectacularly wrong. All life is wiped out, and what remains of the human race is gathered on a single train, which is powered by an eternal engine and whose rail network spans the entire globe, so it takes the train one year to complete the full circle.
Crimson Peak – Film Review
I’m glad I watched it, but dear lord this was one silly movie. I overheard one person say that this was the worst film he’s ever seen, and while personally I don’t concur, if you don’t have a soft spot for the overblown gothic melodrama I can see why this movie would not agree with you.
Laura Marling @ Hamer Hall
Saw Laura Marling at the beautiful Hamer Hall yesterday – she performed as part of the Melbourne Festival. Monday night is a weird night for a concert, but then a break in the routine is always nice.
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – Book Review
I ended up reading this book twice, simply because I didn’t feel like I gave it justice the first time around: I read it in a terribly rushed, haphazard manner and this is simply not a book to read in 15-minute bites. Plus I have a bad habit where sometimes I get impatient about two thirds into the reading, and start scanning and skipping through the final pages in a race to the finish.
The Martian – Film Review
Really loved this movie. It’s a strange one coming from Ridley Scott, whose previous sci-fi films are not exactly known for their sense of optimism and belief in the best in people, yet with The Martian he strikes a perfect tone: it’s entertaining, inspiring, enormously good-natured and with a perfect mix of seriousness and silliness. It celebrates science, intelligence, perseverance, teamwork, and is full of likeable characters I wanted to give hugs to. It is also a love letter to that humble vegetable, a potato (no, seriously).
The Diary of a Teenage Girl – Film Review
For the first time ever, I ended up watching a movie in an empty theatre. It wasn’t a surprise: I went to an early session in the morning after the AFL Grand Final, in a cinema whose main demographic probably wouldn’t find the movie all that enticing. To be honest I don’t think I liked my solitary viewing; as much as I seethe against the inconsiderate talkers and rustlers at the movies, cinema is a shared experience and even a single other person in the audience makes a difference as far as the atmosphere goes. As it was, it just felt rather weird and off.
Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult – Book Review
It didn’t occur to me until later, but this book bore very strong similarities to My Sister’s Keeper, probably Picoult’s best-known novel. Let’s see, it’s about a family with a special needs child, a mother who is well-meaning but blinded to some truths about her family in her single-mindedness, another daughter who feels neglected and misunderstood, a father who is caught in the middle, a lawyer who has her own side story; there’s a court case and a big shock ending. Still, as the legal battle at the centre is completely different, it wouldn’t be fair to call it a rehash.
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