Transformers: Age of Extinction - Another Michael Bay Action Extravaganza

3 out of 5 Stars

Michael Bay is known for directing action packed movies that focus on action and CGI to the detriment of the plot.  Despite that, I have managed to enjoy his movies over the years.  They can be entertaining mindless action movies.  I have seen the first three Transformers movies and enjoyed them to varying degrees even while finding various flaws.  I honestly wasn’t sure I wanted to see the fourth movie, Transformers: Age of Extinction.  I ultimately decided to go see the movie and I got more of the same - a mindless action movie that is mostly entertaining.

Five years after the battle between the Autobots and Decepticons in Chicago, the US army is no longer working with the Autobots.  Harold Attinger is in charge of a top secret CIA black op that involves tracking down the remaining Decepticons.  Unknown to just about everyone, Autobots are also being hunted as part of the op.  Attinger sees all Transformers as a threat that he intends to eliminate to protect the country. 

Cade Yeager is a struggling inventor who salvages stuff in an attempt to make a living.  His daughter Tessa is furious when he comes home with a battered semi that he hopes to sell for parts.  It turns out the truck is Optimus Prime.  Cade decides to try to fix him, but soon mysterious agents are swarming his farm.  He and Tessa end up on the run with Shane, Tessa’s secret boyfriend rally car driver, and the few remaining Autobots.

There are no extra scenes during or after the credits.  I saw the normal version of the movie.  It is also showing in 3D - including IMAX 3D - in some theaters.  Depending on how the 3D was done, there are some scenes and images that have the potential to look cool in 3D.  I did notice 3D conversion listed in the credits, so I think it was shot normally and then converted to 3D.  

 I was first introduced to the Transformers through the cartoon that aired in the 80s.  I knew there were toys, but I never had any of them.  Over the years, there has been an animated movie connected to that cartoon series, other cartoons, and comic books.  I don’t think the story from this movie has been used in any of the comics or cartoons.

Transformers: Age of Extinction is the longest of the Transformers movies at almost three hours long.  I don’t mind longer movies if there is enough going on to support the longer run time.  That isn’t the case with this movie, just like it wasn’t with the first three.  The movie is mostly a series of jerky action scenes, loosely connected by a thin plot.  I wasn’t expecting the plot to be stronger or make me think.  The fact that the movie is so long makes the plot weakness a bigger problem because there just isn’t enough to the plot to justify a movie this long.  Yes some of the action scenes were cool - like when Optimus Prime rides another Transformer that is a fire breathing dinosaur - but there is such a thing as too much action.  After a certain point, it all blends together and the audience is left watching as one giant robot beats the crap out of another giant robot while destroying a city.   The movie would have been more entertaining if it weren’t so bloated with action scenes. 

The pacing is a bit uneven, dragging in some places, and moving lightening quick in others.  Bay uses slow motion in the middle of many action scenes.  It is overused in this movie and for the most part, I find the change to slow motion like that a bit jarring.  There are even a few sequences that seem to be pulled from the first movies - like people flying through the air because Bumblebee just has to transform out of his car form.  There is violence in several scenes, though it is mostly robots being hurt.  Younger children may not have the attention span to watch a movie this long, something that parents should consider.  The movie is rated PG-13 because of the action scenes and violence.  One character does use the word that rhymes with luck once in a somewhat funny way.  A few characters make suggestive remarks every so often that are more stupid than anything.  Those references would probably pass unnoticed by children.

There are attempts to add a bit of humor here and there to what is going on in Transformers: Age of Extinction through things that different characters say.  Some of them are mildly, and I do mean mildly, funny.  More often than not, the quips fall flat or are just stupid.  I noticed several product placements, some of which seem out of place.  At one point, a male scientist is holding a version of Rainbow Dash, one of the My Little Ponies.  At another point, things practically come to a stand still for Cade to spout something stupid and drink a Bud Light that just happens to be conveniently there.  Several of the action scenes are fine and I don’t mind the CGI for the most part.  There are entirely too many quick cuts during them though, something that Bay has in pretty much every movie he’s directed.  The point of view jumps around so much at times, it is impossible to keep track of where certain characters are, or even which one is which when it comes to the robots.  I hate when that happens and find it highly aggravating.  There is jerky camera work at times too, though it isn’t as bad as it has been in some movies.  In scenes when the Transformers, mostly the Autobots, are shown driving in vehicle form, there are all these sweeping shots that sort of zoom around, barely showing the vehicles.  That is a huge waste given what types of cars some of them transform into.

There are new Transformers in this movie, and some of them turn into some pretty awesome cars if you can manage to spot them.  One of them, Drift, turns into a Bugatti Veyron, one of the fastest cars in the world, that is extremely expensive and very cool.  Too bad Drift is barely in the form of the Veyron.  I actually had to look it up to find out that Crosshairs turns into a Corvette Stingray.  He wasn’t in that form long enough for me to recognize what type of sports car he was.  Stinger, another new character, is a Pagani Huayra, another very expensive and very fast car from Italy.  The Pagani is seen a little more, but mostly in scenes when it is sitting still.  I recognized the Veyron and Pagani from seeing them on Top Gear, a British show about cars.  Lockdown turns into a Lamborghini Aventador.  It almost seems like Bay or the screenwriter - or both - has seen Top Gear and decided that they just had to use some of the fastest cars featured on the show, never mind that they cost millions of dollars and that the cars themselves would end up having less than five minutes of screen time.  

It is said fairly early in the movie that things are happening five years after the battle in Chicago.  That battle, and the destruction, changed how some people viewed the Transformers, including the Autobots.  Some people still saw the Autobots as allies because of what they have done to help humans previously, but others, like Attinger, see things differently.  There are signs near where Cade and his daughter live in Texas about reporting alien activity.  When Chicago is seen again - and some important scenes take place there - it doesn’t look like there is any lingering damage from the battle, despite what the story tired to establish.  It just seems like the idea of backlash over what happened in Chicago is just used as an excuse for Attinger to be running his top secret op before being forgotten.  It is just another bit of story sacrificed at the altar of action and CGI.  Even with the barely there plot, the movie somehow manages to leave a few things unanswered in what is an obvious set up for yet another movie.

Things connected with Cade, Tessa, and Shane attempt to add other complications to Transformers: Age of Extinction.  Cade is trying his best to provide for his daughter, while she comes off as unappreciative and judgmental.  She thinks nothing of telling her father off for something, putting him down, and ignoring him.  She has been involved with Shane in some way for years, yet Cade only meets him when they are in the middle of running for their lives.  Cade is justifiably upset, especially when finding out that Shane is twenty - Tessa is only seventeen.  Shane pulls out a laminated copy of the Romeo & Juliet law in Texas that says if they the couple were together when they were both underage, then there is nothing illegal about the relationship.  That is a bit ridiculous, especially with how much Tessa seems to like the idea of her and Shane being Romeo and Juliet.  She seems to have forgotten that those two end up dead.  There really isn’t too much to the relationship between Shane and Tessa.  It mostly just serves as a reason for Tessa to clash with her dad and for Shane to make some cracks as well.

None of the characters have much in the way of development, something else that I figured would happen.  Cade is nice enough and it is clear that he loves his daughter more than anything.  Mark Wahlberg is fine in the part.  He seems to be doing the best he can with the material.  He is also much better than Shia LaBeouf.  Tessa comes across as a bratty teenager who has no respect for her father.  She is constantly putting down his efforts to make money and she questions his judgment.  She has kept a boyfriend from her father for years.  While Cade is a bit overprotective that still doesn’t justify her actions.  I don’t like her at all.  She wears super short cut off shorts that I think may even be shorter than ones Megan Fox wore in the first movie, something I didn’t think was possible before.  At least there were no shots lingering on her backside while she bent over or shot angled up, making it seem like some sort of personal medical exam was going on like was done in the previous movies.  While I am no fan of Fox, her character was more likable and memorable.  Nicola Peltz is nothing special in the part.  

Shane is a rally car driver originally from Ireland.  It isn’t said how long he has been in Texas, but it must have been at least three years for him and Tessa to be able to claim that the Romeo & Juliet law applies to them.  Shane is a bit mouthy at times and a very good driver.  Jack Reynor is fine in the part.  Stanley Tucci is pretty good as Joshua Joyce, a rather arrogant business owner who is mixed up in what is going on.  Attinger is a CIA agent who is in charge of the secret op to track down Transformers.  He doesn’t see a difference between Autobots and Decepticons.  He is willing to do whatever is necessary to achieve his goal.  Kelsey Grammar does well with the part and makes a good villain. 

Optimus Prime is back and still leading the Autobots, or at least who is left of them.  His faith in humans has been strained, though Cade’s actions help to fix that.  Peter Cullen returns to provide the voice of Optimus Prime.  Cullen originated the voice of Optimus Prime in the 1980's cartoon.  He has done other voice work over the years and has done the voice of Optimus again since the release of the first Transformers movie in 2007.  Optimus changes into a semi truck.  When he is first seen in this movie, he looks like a much older cab that is very damaged.  It isn’t long before he upgrades to a newer model semi.  Bumblebee is back too, first as an older Camero before also upgrading to a newer model.  He continues to be a bit sensitive about his appearance at times and he is unable to talk.  He uses sound clips to communicate.

Hound is somewhat large and transforms into some sort of military vehicle.  He does crack a lot of jokes, most of which really aren’t that funny.  John Goodman provides his voice.  He wasn’t in any of the previous movies.  Drift looks like a Samurai in robot form.  He can also change into a helicopter in addition to the Veyron.  Ken Watanabe’s voice works for the character.  Crosshairs is pessimistic about most things, including the other Autobots.  John DiMaggio provides his voice.  I don’t think Hound, Drift, or Crosshairs has been in any of the previous movies. 

Galvatron is a new robot who may have a connection with Megatron.  Frank Welker does his voice.  Stinger, as well as other robots who seem to be new Decepticons, don’t talk.  Stinger is the only one I remember.  Lockdown is neither Autobot or Decepticon.  He is basically a bounty hunter on a job.  Mary Ryan does his voice.   Later in the movie, ancient Transformers are found who turn into robotic dinosaurs instead of cars.  Optimus rides one of them, a tyrannosaurus rex that breaths fire, into battle.  The others also take part in the battle.  They aren’t identified by name, though I thought I heard Crosshairs call one of them Spike at one point. 

Transformers: Age of Extinction has issues with plot and acting, much like the first three movies.  It is also entirely too long.  Despite those things I did enjoy the movie overall.  For a mindless action movie, it is ok.  This is not a movie that everyone will like.  People who liked the first movies may also like this one.  People who didn’t like them should probably skip this one.  I didn’t love or hate this movie.  It isn’t great, but it isn’t awful either - I have seen much worse. 

This review is part of Elvisdo’s 7th Annual Funny Pages Write Off.  Elvisdo is another former Epinions member, and he hosted this write off there for six years.  It was something that several members - myself included - looked forward to each year.  I am very happy that he has decided to do it again.

Maleficent - Angelina Jolie is Magnificent (Spoiler Free)

Disney has created many wonderful animated movie, fully of memorable characters, some good some evil.  One of the most memorable characters from a Disney movie - Sleeping Beauty - is Maleficent, the villain of that story.  On May 30, 2014, the live action movie Maleficent was released.

I am only going to briefly discuss the plot of Maleficent.  I will probably mention some things that could be spoilers for people who haven’t seen Sleeping Beauty or who don’t know the story. 

** Minor Plot Discussion **
A young and powerful fairy, Maleficent, lives in the magical land of The Moors which is next to a human kingdom.  The two lands do not get along and the people of each have no contact with each other.  One day Maleficent meets a boy, Stefan and they develop a friendship that lasts for years.  Stefan eventually betrays her in order to be named the next king.  Maleficent turns darker which causes changes to The Moors.  When she learns that Stefan, now the king, has a daughter, Maleficent shows up uninvited and curses Aurora.  Maleficent and Stefan spend the next sixteen years dealing with the consequences of the curse.
** End of Minor Plot Discussion **

Maleficent is being shown in 3D and 2D.  I ended up seeing the movie in 3D because of when the show times were.  The 3D is more subtle, which could disappoint some viewers.  It mainly adds depth to the various scenes, especially the ones set outside.  There really aren’t any images coming out of the screen, something else that could be disappointing to some people.  Personally, I like when that is done in 3D and think it looks cool.  There are definitely points in the movie when that could have been done.

This movie is based on Disney’s animated Sleeping Beauty as well as a few fairytale versions of the story.  I have seen the animated movie several times - it is actually one of my favorites - but I have never read any of the fairytales.  The movie is definitely connected to the animated movie, telling the same main story focused on Maleficent instead of Aurora, but there are differences as well.  Some people may not like the differences or that certain things have been changed.  I really enjoyed the movie and like the different take on the character.  I guess I am able to look at this as a different version of the story, so I am able to appreciate the changes the story take.  Other people may not be able to do that.  I have had issues with that sort of thing in other movies, but I think it works well this time.

The movie starts by showing Maleficent as a child before showing the betrayal that ultimately causes her to curse Aurora.  I have always thought that Maleficent was intriguing, so I have been interested in seeing this movie since I first heard about it.  A few younger versions of her are briefly shown early in the movie.  She is an adult for the majority of the movie.  I had thought that her horns were just part of a headdress when watching the animated movie.  This movie shows that the horns are part of her.  Younger versions of Aurora are in a few scenes, with the older version seen the most for her too.  Slightly different versions of other characters from Sleeping Beauty turn up as well, including King Stefan, who is shown at different ages.  Versions of Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather appear as well, though they have different names - Knotgrass, Thistletwit, and  Flittle - and they are pixies.  I remember them being called fairies in the animated movie.  I think the story is straightforward and makes sense, though others may not agree.  It is interesting and entertaining.  The story is somewhat dark, so parents should keep that in mind when making a choice for this movie.  It is possible that some people won’t think that the movie is dark enough.

Special effects are used throughout Maleficent to show magic different characters use as well as to show fairies, pixies, and other magical creatures of The Moors flying.  Certain parts of the movie wouldn’t have worked without the special effects.  They were done well overall, though one thing seemed a little off or odd.  The pixies start off small and then later in the movie they make themselves human size to blend in.  When they are small, something with their heads look a little off.  Action turns up in some scenes as well without making the movie action packed. 

The characters are interesting overall, though some of them, like the Queen, are barely shown and have no development.  The pixies seem to mean well, but they are far from the best caretakers for a child.  Stefan seems to be nice at first, but his ambition takes over, twisting him into someone different.  Aurora is shown to be sweet, loving, curious, kind, and gentle even though she doesn’t receive as much development.  In this version of the story, she is more of a supporting character.  Elle Fanning is good in the part.  Diaval is a crow who becomes Maleficent’s servant when she saves him.  She uses magic to transform him into a man or any other creature that would be helpful in a situation.

This version of Maleficent is much more complex than the version from the animated movie.  While that version is one of the great Disney villains, she really is kind of flat.  That is not the case here.  She starts off kind and trusting before she is betrayed.  She is justifiably angry while also showing a softer side every so often.  Angelina Jolie is absolutely stunning and magnificent as Maleficent.  She is perfect in the part and makes the movie.  I honestly don’t think anyone else could have portrayed this character.  I know that some people don’t care for Jolie, so those people may want to avoid this movie.

Maleficent is a very entertaining movie that gives a different take on a classic Disney movie.  Some may not like that difference, but I think it is well worth checking out.  Angelina Jolie is absolutely magnificent as Maleficent.

X-Men: Days of Future Past - Time Travel and a Naked Hugh Jackman

The X-Men have been popular Marvel characters for years.  I use to watch a cartoon, which is where I first learned about the characters.  I have read a few of the comics over the years and I eventually picked up a book that has a lot of information about the various characters and storylines.  I have seen all the movies and enjoyed them to varying degrees.  I have been interested in seeing X-Men: Days of Future Past since I found out it was being made.

There have been three X-Men movies that were sequels to each other, a prequel, X-Men: First Class which is set back in the 1960s, and two movies focused on Wolverine.  X- Men: Days of Future Past is sort of a sequel to all the movies and also a prequel for the original three X-Men movies, depending on what is happening, because of the time travel aspect of the plot.  It can be a little confusing, especially how certain things and events were already changed in X-Men: First Class.  Some of what I mention while discussing X-Men: Days of Future Past will be spoilers for people who haven’t seen the previous movies.  Read at your own risk.

In the future, mutants are being hunted by large robots called Sentinels.  A group of seven, including Kitty Pryde find a way to deal with the situation by constantly sending the consciousness of  Bishop back in time to himself.  The group meets up with Professor Charles Xavier, Magneto, Storm, Iceman, and Wolverine to discuss a plan.  The consciousness of Wolverine will be sent back to 1973 while the others stand guard in case of a Sentinel attack.  He is then to find Charles and Erik so they can stop Mystique from doing something that leads to the creation of the Sentinels. 

There is a short scene after the end of the credits.  It is definitely a big hint at what is to come in another X-Men movie. 

I saw X-Men: Days of Future Past in 3D because of the start time.  There is one scene early in the movie that has falling snow.  It very briefly looks like the snow is falling out over the audience.  That is really the only 3D effect that I noticed, so there really isn’t any reason to see that version of the movie.  

Days of Future Past is one of the more well known stories from the X-Men comics.  I haven’t read the original comics featuring that story, but I do know the basics of it so I am aware of some of the changes made for the movie.  Logan/Wolverine is the one who does the time travel thing back to his younger self instead of Kitty.  It is said that Logan is the only one who would be able to survive traveling back as far as is required for their plan because of his ability to heal.  He has to go back to 1973, an earlier time than from the original story as well.  I think those changes work for the movie overall. 

While I really enjoyed X-Men: Days of Future Past, I did have issues with a few things.  Those things were mostly connected to things changed by X-Men: First Class that resulted in changing backstories for Charles and Mystique in kind of a big way by making them meet as children and then basically grow up together.  It seems to have been done just to find a reason to have Mystique running around in her naked blue form.  That didn’t come up too much in this movie, though in a few scenes, it seems like a love triangle including Charles, Mystique, and Erik is hinted at.  I just don’t care for that change so I was happy when it didn’t play too much of a part in the plot. 

Certain parts of the plot for the movie can get a little confusing because of the part that time travel plays.  When the movie begins, it is in the future - I’m not sure what year it is, but it is made clear that it is the future.  That part of the movie, when Kitty is helping Logan do the mind time travel thing, takes place after the previous X-Men movies.  The events in 1973 are set after X-Men: First Class, but before all the other X-Men movies, including the two Wolverine movies.  In that part, Logan is back to just having bone claws.  What happens in 1973 may or may not change future events for the different characters, including things that happened in the other movies.  It is entirely possible that a certain mess from one of the previous movies has now never happened because of what is done in 1973.  I’m being deliberately vague about this in an attempt to avoid saying too much.  Some may not like that or the fact that time travel plays such a big role in what is going on.

There is a decent amount of action throughout the movie which helps to keep the pace moving.  Within the first few minutes, there is a fight between a few mutants and the Sentinels in the future.  When Logan wakes up in the past, naked, he barely gets his pants on before he is in a fight.  The water bed is the first casualty, but he quickly deals with the guys who show up right after.  Different mutant characters are involved in different fights throughout the movie.  Those scenes do require a lot of special effects, mostly tied to the use of the different mutant powers.  I do think the effects were done well.  

There are a lot of characters in X-Men: Days of Future Past, something that has happened in the other X-Men movies as well.  Unfortunately, because of that, some characters end up with very little to do.  While that is disappointing, I would rather see that and have the story handled well than have too many subplots crammed in as an attempt to give more characters more to do.  That has not worked well in the past. 

Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen return to play the older versions of Professor Charles Xavier and Erik/Magneto.  I love them in those parts, so it was really nice to see them again even though the younger versions of the characters had more to do.  James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender are fine as the younger Charles and Erik, but they are no Stewart or McKellen.  The young Erik is a massive jerk, which is sort of expected for the character.  The younger Charles has turned into a massive jerk in his own right, which is a big contrast from how the character has been portrayed before.  I don’t really like jerk Charles, though I can see how he becomes the older Charles that is more familiar. 

Logan/Wolverine may end up with the most to do and he more fully connects the future and past portions of the movie.  Logan is the one who travels mentally back in time and it is up to him to find the younger Charles and Xavier and convince them he is from the future and what they need to do.  Logan is back to having his bone claws in the past, and that is a little different since I’m more use to seeing him with the adamantium claws.    Hugh Jackman has played the character several times now, and I think he is very good in the part.  Once again he is in crazy good shape, which is put on display when he emerges from bed naked.  He is seen fully from behind and a lot of his front is shown then as well.  Mystique spends a lot of time in her naked blue form.  Something about the look of her in that blue form looks slightly off to me this time.  It could be because they came up with a new method for the makeup involving a body suit.  Mystique does have a useful ability that helps her in several situations.  In this movie, she is able to take on the appearance of anyone she sees.  I thought that she had to touch them to do that, but I could be wrong about that.  Jennifer Lawrence is fine in the part. 

Hank McCoy/Beast is back as well, mostly in 1973.  Evidently, in this version of the story, Hank came up with some kind of serum or something that allowed him to revert back to looking fully human instead of being furry and blue.  That just doesn’t seem right to me since Hank/Beast has always stayed furry and blue once he took on that appearance.  Peter Maximoff/Quicksilver is a new young mutant that is recruited to help get to Erik.  Peter can run really, really fast.  So fast, that he seems to just disappear at one place and reappear in the next.  He doesn’t get much to do, though there is a really cool sequence done with him moving at his super speed. 

Kitty, Bobby/Iceman, Colossus, Blink, Sunspot, Warpath, and Bishop take part in the future part of the movie.  I had not heard of Blink, Sunspot, or Warpath before.  I have no idea if they are characters from the comics or created specifically for the movie.  Havok and Toad turn up briefly, but they end up with not much to do.  A few other more well known characters also briefly appear.  I’m not going to say who because I don’t want to spoil anything for people who haven’t seen the movie yet.

Bolivar Trask is the scientist who designs the Sentinels.  He is trying to get the government to use the Sentinels to protect people from mutants.  Trask has experimented on mutants as part of the development of the Sentinels and he has military contacts.  Trask fully believes in what he is doing, believing that what he is doing is a good thing.  He is rather arrogant.  He will try to manipulate different situations to help his cause if possible.  Peter Dinklage is very good in the part.  A younger William Stryker turns up, helping to hunt down mutants and send them off to Trask to experiment on. 

X-Men: Days of Future Past is a very entertaining movie.  I do think it is one of the better comic book movies that I have seen.  People that are more familiar with the comic books may not like some of the changes.  People who have enjoyed the previous X-Men movies should give this one a chance.  I plan to add the movie to my collection once it is available no Blu-ray.

This review is part of Elvisdo’s 7th Annual Funny Pages Write Off.  Elvisdo is another former Epinions member, and he hosted this write off there for six years.  It was something that several members - myself included - looked forward to each year.  I am very happy that he has decided to do it again.

The End of My Movie Drought

I love movies and I enjoy going to the theater to see new movies, even when I get annoyed by rude people sitting near me.  For the first several months of this year, I wasn’t able to make it to the theater.  Work was crazy for a while but the extremely bad winter here also played a part.  There were a few times when I had a day off that I wanted to go see a movie.  Then the winter weather struck again, dumping more snow, ice, freezing rain, or a combination of all three.  When the weather was better, I either didn’t have days off or there were no movies that I wanted to see.

At the end of March, I was finally able to end my movie drought when I went to see Muppets Most Wanted.  I have loved the Muppets since I was a child and there was no way I was going to miss seeing that movie in the theater.  Since then I have managed to see a few more.  I have been meaning to write about them, but that hasn’t happened so far.  Hopefully I will get motivated to write again and fix that.  I have a fairly large movie collection as well as a lot of tv shows on DVD.  In the past, I would at least take the time to watch some of those even when I wasn’t able to get to the theater.  I didn’t watch many of those in the last several months either, but I have started to fix that as well.

Changes

Something beyond my control that happened on February 25th 2014 is causing me to make some changes tied to how I post things online.  Epinons.com, the review site I have been a member of for almost thirteen years, is no longer allowing members to post reviews, rate reviews, edit, or even delete reviews.  Members will no longer be able to log on after March 25. 

The site had problems over the years, but I remained optimistic that things would get better, or at least, not get any worse.  I really didn’t think they would close up completely like this.  I guess that makes me a bit gullible.  The site has been a huge part of my life for these almost thirteen years and I feel like something is missing.  I truly love writing about books, movies, and television shows.  Now that Epinions is no more, I have been thinking on how I would continue to write about those things.

Last year, I joined another site, Bubblews as MarieDragonfire.  People can post about anything there and some people say they have made a lot of money there.  I posted different things there last year, though mostly still connected to books, movies, or tv shows in some way.  Other things happened to sort of suck my motivation for writing in general for a while.  In the last few days, I have started to post there again. 

I have decided that I will post here about movies more again.  I am thinking that some of what I post will be like the reviews I posted at Epinions - and I may even rework reviews that were originally posted there.  I think I will also post some other things that may just be me talking briefly about upcoming movies or things like that.  I have also decided to start another blog just for writing about books, Purple Dragon Books.  I may make one for television shows as well, once I think up another name.  I will leave the posts about books that I did previously here.

I still think about writing and posting about books, movies, and tv shows all the time.  Hopefully, I can post more actively this year between my blogs and Bubblews than I managed to do last year.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - Book

Like I mentioned previously, I recently read all of my Harry Potter books again. I started Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets right after I finished the first book.

This book picks up about a month after the end of the first book. Harry is still stuck with the Dursleys and hating the time he has to spend there. Things get more complicated when Doby, a house elf, shows up claiming it will be too dangerous for Harry to return to Hogwarts. The story is just as entertaining as the first book, and a little more complicated since time doesn’t have to be taken to introduce all the characters and situations. There are a few new characters, the main one being the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Gilderoy Lockhart. He isn’t evil or anything like that, but he is still one of the worst teachers for that class ever. The man is a pompous jerk who loves fame and assumes Harry is the same. The man is clueless, but all the girls, even Hermione, think he is handsome.

 The story does get a bit darker, something that continues to happen with the rest of the books. Each one is darker than the previous one. This book is also a little longer than first one. The story is entertaining and more about You Know Who is shared by the end of the book. This is the first time it is established how powerful he was while still in school and how twisted he already was. That comes up again in later books and something is more important than it seems at first.

The movie adaptation of this book is one of the better ones I think. It stays very close to the book, which is why I think it works so well. The important things and explanations are left in the movie, though there are a few things that are condensed for the movie. There are some more details to a few things in the books. It would have been nice if more of Harry’s time at the Burrow had been included. I also liked that Hermione’s parents are in the book and meet Molly and Arthur, something that never happened in the movies. Christopher Columbus, the man who directed the first two movies, didn’t direct any more of the movies. From interviews, it seems like he wanted to stay true to the books, and keep the magic in the movies. I think some of that left the movies when he did. I do wonder how some of the other movies would have been different if he had directed them.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a strong second book to the Harry Potter series. It definitely deserves to be read, but start with the first book. These books need to be watched in order. People who have only seen the movies really should read the books.

I did post a longer review on Epinions several years ago.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone - Book

I quickly got hooked on the Harry Potter books after I received the first one for my birthday in October of 2001.  I picked up the other books that were out at the time and went to see the first movie within days of it being released.  I have all of the books and have read them multiple times.  I recently decided to read them again, the first time in just over two years.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone - Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone is the original title in England - is the first book in the seven book series.  It gets off to a good start, setting up things well and it does a good job of introducing the main characters.  The story is interesting, and while it may not seem like it on a first reading, there are little hints and things being introduced that will be important later in the series. 

While I love the movies overall - though there are things about them I don’t like - I like the books more and think they are better.  I know many people have only seen the movies.  It is definitely worth it to read the books for those people, and they should definitely start with this book.  It is wonderfully detailed and very magical.  The story ends up being very interesting and entertaining. 

Reading the book again, I rediscovered some little details I had forgotten about, and some other things I just hadn’t thought about in a while, like Peeves.  He would have been a very interesting addition to the movies, especially since he was frequently turning up to cause some mischief or complications.  For the most part, I think the movie version of this book was done very well and stayed very true to the book.  I remember some people complaining about that when the movie came out, saying it wasn’t different enough, something I don’t agree with.  In this book,  Neville was a little more involved in a few things, which ties into his overall development and it helps to set the foundation for what he ultimately does in the final book.

I feel that the books have more of a sense of magic and they definitely deserve to be read.  I still love them and I really enjoyed reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone again.  I will not let so much time pass before I read them again.

I did post a longer review on Epinions in 2003 that has been updated.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone