Thursday, November 6, 2008

NabloPoMo #6 (5)

You will notice I didn't post yesterday. It wasn't for any good reason other than I had an errand to run when hubby came home, and then I just forgot! I finished my newsletter (volunteer work for our parent support group), dropped it off and was so relieved that I just fell onto the couch and was promptly swallowed up. Maybe posting twice on Tuesday will make up for it...yeah, I know. Probably not.

We watched the movie "Stardust" last night...finally. It was fantastic! I read the book quite a few years ago and remembered only the bare bones of the storyline. It's a funny thing that I'm fairly picky about the fantasy that I read...I am generally not a fan of fantasy fiction, with a few exceptions in titles and genres. I loved Lord Of The Rings, for example...I remember reading the series all the way through when my family went to Alaska when I was fifteen. It was surreal to be reading that series, which takes one so far out of your reality, and yet looking around at the scenery and envisioning the story so clearly. I think the movies were very well done, partly because of the way and the location used to film them. There aren't many similarities between Alaska and New Zealand, but the rugged terrain are something they have in common...and I could think of the story and how it fit into the scenery I was seeing.

I think the thing I enjoy about fantasy on film is how far it takes me away from the real world. I like the escapism of movies. Action is okay, I like more than my share of romances, but those all still have ties to the real world. Fantasy movies are more like fairy tales made real, and I enjoy that in a film. One thing I really liked about Stardust that can be really dicey for a fantasy film is the acting. Many tend to be overacted, in my opinion. This one was just right; and Di Nero was really really excellent. The comedy in here was great as well....just right, not overdone to get the laugh at the punchline as some fantasy can be. Hubby and I both agreed that we would like to own this movie to watch with T someday.

Next up on our Netflix queue is the "Planet Earth" series from the BBC. I think we're the only people left on earth who haven't seen this...everyone raves about it. I think for a long time I shied away from it thinking it would be like old "Wild Kingdom" videos or some crazy British nature special on PBS (don't get me wrong, I love me some PBS, but some things are just too much). Anyway....I'm really looking forward to seeing what all the fuss is about and hope I'm not disappointed.

2 comments:

Susan said...

We saw Stardust at the theater with some friends, I had never heard of it before, but I agree, it was great! DeNiro was hilarious (I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it yet).

You will LOVE the Planet Earth series. Like no nature series I've ever seen.

Relatively Painless said...

You are going to LOOOOOOVE Planet Earth. It is amazing! And with your new TV, its going to look so great!!