My Proverbial Turkey Pt. 1

I'd give a longer intro but I must be quick: Here are just a few things to be thankful for this November....the rest I'll have to tell you this weekend AFTER I go and spend Thanks-giving with the greatest family ever (not biased.)

Thor 2: The Dark World

Set after the events of "The Avengers," Thor is face with a threat of....Dark Elves (something about that name is strange to me) taking over all Nine Realms (including Earth) with some magic darkness powder. King Odin has shut down all entrances to Asgard to protect his people, but Thor believes there is another way to stop the Elves. In order to do that, he must enlist the help of his adopted brother Loki (aka the Young Snape), who is in prison for his crimes. The sibling rivalry is real. TOO REAL. And the entire movie I was on the edge of my seat begging them to just STOP HATING EACH OTHER CUZ YOUR SIBLINGS AND SIBLINGS ARE FOREVER! Besides that, the effects were dope, the humor was witty and light-hearted. And I love the onscreen chemistry between Chris and Tom as brothers with issues, real issues, like "I'm adopted and never felt part of this family while you just got a ll the glory and didn't care about me" kind of issues.

Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Digging the "fake promo within a real promo" concept here. Promoception...

I saw this movie in X Plus in my theater, which is a beautiful 64 speaker surround sound system powered by Dolby's. (HYFR HYFR) Although I did have to stick paper in my ears so my eardrums wouldn't explode, I did enjoy the experience and it did enhance the movie. Which is about Katniss and Peeta trying to convince the world they are really in love, failing miserably, and forcing President Snow to create a special Hunger Games where the only people who can be reaped are.....every visitor from the past 75 years. DUN DUN DUN!!!!! In addition, since Katniss and Peeta's stunt with the berries in the last movie, a rebellion has begun within the districts, defying the Capitol and its dictatorship, using Katniss's mocking jay pin as a symbol of their attempts at a revolution.
In a nutshell, the effects, the plot, the underlying message, and the acting all gelled perfectly together. Whoever did the casting for this movie was brilliant. I for one could not see anyone other than Lenny Kravitz playing Cinna. What's more, all the cast members have the kind of onscreen chemistry that makes you forget it's not real. I for one am excited for the last installment.

Love Story By Erich Segal

"Love Means Never Having To Say You're Sorry."

It's not even 200 something pages and this book will forever be engraved into my mind. It dives immediately into the 1960's, when Oliver Bennett the Preppie jock meets Jennifer Cavalleri the Snotty Bookworm. Opposites attract, attraction becomes love, and the whirlwind romance becomes marriage. Sounds like it's been done before, but given that this book was released in the 1970's, I highly doubt you've read a version of romance like this recently. The dialogue is intriguing, the banter between the two lovers biting and humorous. THe pace of the book going the same way the pace of all-consuming love does, and it all feels so real. I can't give away the ending--I won't. But I can tell you you will never forget tho book when you read it. As the description says, "Love Story makes no claim to showing where it's at. Rather, it simply shows how it feels."

The Child Who By Simon Lelic

I picked up "Love Story" in the first pace because I was looking for something to take the taste out of my mouth from reading this book. That is not an insult to the book, rather a compliment to how strongly I was impacted by it. In most basic terms, the story is about a 12 year old boy charged with killing an 11 year old girl. The entire little community is out for blood, but the one man who takes his case is determined to look into the whole story--why would a 12 year do it? What led him to such a point? Problem is, the rest of the community doesn't want those questions answered. They want the boy in jail. And now this attorney is being made a target if he doesn't drop the case, putting everything he loves--including his own family--in jeopardy. 

It's not an easy book to read. But I believe it is an important one. Asking the kind of tough questions no one wants to hear in the throes of grief and tragedy, the most important one being: "Who is truly responsible when one child kills another?" I found out just who in this book. It's worth the taste in your mouth afterwards to read it now.

Almost Human

I will be curling up to Michael Ealy this winter. 

It premiered last Sunday and Monday on Fox 5. It's in the far future, about a damaged Cop getting back into the game and getting used to the addition of Robots as partners within the FBI. Or is it CSI.....whatever. the Point is, he has to partner with a particular kind of robot to help him get the job done. And he gets Dorian, a robot that was rejected by the FBI for its excessive emotions. Sounds kinda hilarious? That's because it is. But it's also attention-grabbing. I suggest it to anyone whose Monday night's have a hole where 24 used to be. :)


Tune in soon for Part 2! Enjoy your thanksgiving!

-CDM