Monday Movie Mania - A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

This is the last of the late summer/early fall movies DH and I saw at the theater. We haven't started our holiday viewing yet, though I will try to drag him to the cinema before the weekend is out to see a particular Oz-related flick.


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SPOILERS


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PROS
1) This isn't the typical Hollywood romance film. There's no grand gestures. No wild escapades. It's a bittersweet acknowledgement of the baggage we each bring into a new new relationship, and how, if we let the baggage weigh us down, it can destroy the possibility of love and happiness with the right person.

2) This is the first film of Colin Farell's I've watched that showed a softer side of his masculinity. His everyman David's desire to have a family is transposed with the magical doors showing his parents and his own failed relationships.

3) Margot Robbie's Sarah was the perfect romantic foil for David. Her desire to avoid love in order to avoid pain is also shown through the trips through the magical doors to her own past.

4) Jodie Turner-Smith was pitch-perfect as the GPS trying to get David and Sarah to see their possibilities instead of their past pain.

5) The pacing is leisurely, but appropriate, for this type of a story since it's as much about the characters working through their traumas as it is about them revealing themselves to the viewers.


CONS
1) This is one of those movies you need to be in a certain frame of mind to watch. Otherwise, your lack of attention span will drive you insane.

2) Kevin Kline and Phoebe Waller-Bridges roles as the comedic relief just didn't work. Both people have excellent comedic timing, but their scenes seemed forced. I have to presume the writing, directing, or editing didn't show their real chops.


Overall, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is a poignant look at how our pasts affect our future. I give it 9 stars out of 10.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

You know it's a good song when Shrek can fight to it!

Sporadic Blogging Ahead!

My blogging has already been sporadic thanks to several life rolls this year. Just when I think I'm getting back into a regular routine, Murphy strikes again!

Last week, one of the sisters-in law (SIL #4) and her husband went to collect their daughter (Niece #4) from college in Indiana for Thanksgiving Break. They stopped by SIL #2's house since she lives in the same town, having recently retired as a professor from Niece #4's alma mater.

It turned out to be a good thing SIL #4 and family were at SIL #2's place because she fell and broke her arm. Needless to say, SIL #2 needs a little extra help. SIL #4 is there this week.

I'll be heading to Indiana on Saturday to relieve SIL #4 for a week. After that, we'll see.

I've had a broken arm. It was incredibly painful and awkward when I was nineteen. Now, that we're all on the downhill side of 50, we don't bounce back like we did in our teens.

Hopefully, I will be able to get in some words next week in between cooking and caring for SIL #2 and her three dogs. If not? Well, there's always new goals to set for 2026!

The Number of Books on Amazon

According to a recent report I saw, there are approximately 44 million book titles on Amazon right now. That's right. Two fours followed by six zeros. That's a lot of books.

Do all of them sell regularly? No.

Does it matter? Also, no.

Does it freak me out as a writer? Absolutely not.

But as a reader? The thing that bothers me is that I won't live long enough to read all of them.

Seriously.

The thing is reading trends come and go. What's hot today won't be hot tomorrow, and vice versa. Believe it or not, I love that this many books are available!

We live in a time of plenty. (Here it comes!) When I was a kid (TM), I was forced to read the same dang books over and over because there simply wasn't enough books available.

Now? Now, we're living in glorious abundance! We can find any subgenre of genre we could want. In the mood for a certain trope? It's there! Any older book you loved five, ten, fifty, one hundred years ago? You might be able to find it again! There's no limit!

So, who's complaining about the abundance? The authors who feel that readers owe them a living.

I've never really understood this.  In fact, there's a couple of well-known authors who have been and still complain about the tsunami of swill from those of us who started indie publishing from the beginning of the Kindle Age.

Here's the thing those authors don't get. As a reader, I've tried their books. They are not bad writers. It's just their stories aren't my thing.

And that's all right, too.

Just like I know my stories aren't probably their thing. It doesn't make my stories swill.

But with 44,000,000 books out there, it makes it harder for a voracious reader to read EVERYTHING.

At least in this lifetime.

You see, my idea of an awesome afterlife is a gigantic library. One where I can read as much as I want, where my tea is the perfect temperature and my plate is full of cookies. And by the time I finish the current 44,000,000 books, another 44,000,000 will have been written and ready for me to read.

Monday Movie Mania - Roofman

Don't believe the trailers! Roofman is not a romcom, but a dramedy based on a true story. That doesn't mean it's not an excellent film.

We went to see this a few weeks ago before October blew up in our faces. It's definitely cute and enjoyable.


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SPOILERS!


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PROS
1) Kirsten Dunst always delivers, and her Leigh was quite believable. But Channing Tatum was the surprise. He put a little depth in his character Jeffrey. The actors' onscreen chemistry cemented the story.

2) Lily Collins and Kennedy Moyer as Leigh's daughters were realistic, no sappiness or other annoying characteristics.

3) Juno Temple stands out in anything she does, even with her bit part in this flick.

4) Peter Dinklage rocks as Leigh's jerk of a boss. The scene were catches Jeffrey naked at the toy store was side-splitting.

5) Since the story is based on a true life criminal case, I give lots of kudos to the writers and director for not trying to give it a happy ending.

6) the end credit scenes consist of interviews from some of the real life people involved in the case. It's worth watching to understand how the real Jeffrey managed to pull off his con after he escaped from jail.


CONS
1) I can't think of a damn one!


Overall, Roofman is an funny, endearing, and sad look at what people do to survive and love in the modern world. I give it 10 stars out of 10.

Music I've Beem Listening to Lately

For some strange reason, I've been in a Joan Jett mood lately.

Missing in Action

It's been nearly a month since I posted anything. Things have been. . .weird.

There's probably more words that are more accurate. Maybe off-kilter? Unprecedented? Worrisome?

The combination of the federal government shutdown and the Kickstarter Union strike delivered shockwaves through our family. Genius Kid called often, terrified that he wouldn't be able to pay his bills though he was still required to work full time. I beat my head against the wall attempting to put together my planned  October Kickstarter.

We've dealt with things. Somehow.

I put off the Kickstarter until next March for a lot of reasons. I didn't want to rush to finish the last two books. Finding a printer for what I wanted to do for this Kickstarter became a royal pain. Books are getting held up in customs even though books aren't supposed to be subject to tariffs. Shipping companies are using the tariffs to rip off both producers like me and customers. Even if everything went smoothly with me getting the shipment, the US Post Office decided to raise rates during the New Hallowthanksmas season since it's the busiest time of the year.

The stress of pulling this off became so great I halted my efforts because the last thing I need is my blood pressure climbing again after I worked so hard to get it under control. I like not taking so many damn pills!

Genius Kid came through the shutdown okay. He's smart and had enough in savings. The incident became a lesson on how you can do everything right and still get screwed over. *sigh*

In the meantime, I've simply been writing. I figure if nothing else, I can get A Barrel of Vinter written, edited, and published before the end of the year.

Maybe.

Unless some clown decides start World War 3. 

Monday Movie Mania - Tron: Ares

DH is a HUGE Tron fan, so of course, we had to see the latest edition to the franchise.


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SPOILERS


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PROS
1) Right off the bat, this is my favorite movie in the Tron series! The movie kept its pacing and story structure tight. Unfortunately, the first two movies suffered from the Star Trek: The Motion Picture ennui. "Hey! Make the actors stare are these super expensive special effects!" In this iteration of Tron, the effects were in the background, where they should be, compared to the acting.

2) This is the best I've ever seen Jared Leto. There are times to chew the scenery and times to hold back. His Ares was understated and low emotion, but still  sympathetic.

3) ACK! They turned my sweet, innocent Quicksilver into a raging psycho! Seriously, is there anything Evan Peters can't do? Seriously, he does an excellent job plunging arrogant Silicon Valley dudebro Julian Dillinger into psychotic madness.

4) The writers try real hard to shunt Greta Lee's ENCOM CEO Eve Kim into a damsel in distress, but her backbone of steel shines through anyway.

5) Jodie Turner-Smith's Athena is the flip side of Ares. She's going to obey her programming come hell or high water. Turner-Smith does a fantastic job in subtle emoting as Athena reaches sentience right before the end.

6) Holy Crap! Nine Inch Nails delivered on the soundtrack. They did an incredible job blending the original Tron themes (synthesizers and all) into a gorgeous that meld smoothly with the visuals. (I'm definitely getting this album!)

7) No stupid, forced romance between Eve and Ares. I don't want to give away the ending, but it was so very appropriate between these two characters.


CONS
1) The only thing I would change is give Gillian Anderson (Elisabeth Dillinger) more time to explore the twisted relationship between mother and son. But Julian killing Mommy Dearest was telegraphed a mile away. It would have been more interesting to have her live instead of him. But no, we can't do that in today's culture. *sigh*


Overall, I really did love Tron: Ares. But make no mistake, it's a standard hero story with enough tweaks to keep it interesting. I give it 9.5 stars out of 10!

Here We Go Again

Back in the spring of 2020, COVID-19 swept through the world, causing massive disruption to everyone and everything. Millions of deaths, trade and economic collapse, people refusing to protect themselves or others from contamination.

And now, it's happening all over again. Except the cause is greed and power, not a virus.

*sigh*

If you're a history buff like me, we're seeing an action for action repeat of the first half of the 20th century. Back in 2020, Kris Rusch posted about Black Swan events disrupting the expected path of things. Go read it. I'll wait.

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So, what does this have to do with me and my writing? I had planned to do a Kickstarter this month for The Books of Apep series. I've been prepping for this campaign for two freaking years, and...

Of course, shit hit the fan. Not mine, for once. But everyone else's. And this Black Swan event is even weirder than the last one.

Everyone in the U.S. is suffering from the current, and rather deliberate, chaos in D.C. to dismantle the government. I won't get into my fury about my son's panic at not getting paid as a soldier.

But on top of that, the employees of Kickstarter have gone on strike. Ironically, the workers unionized back during the pandemic. And now, they are looking for nothing more than to continue their four-day work week and a cost of living increase in their wages. Management isn't even trying to negotiate in good faith. Kind of like Congress right now.

So, I delayed in putting up my campaign, hoping that the strike would end soon. Both of my parents were in unions. I remember us dropping off Dad at the picket lines during strikes in '70's. Frankly, I feel a little funky about crossing the Kickstarter United virtual picket line.

Company owners seem to forget who makes the products they sell. They forget who buys the products they sell. And if people aren't earning a decent wage, they can't buy the products these companies sell. It's a vicious cycle that no one seems to want to stop.

In my own case, my book sales are down because of the uncertainty of the economy. I can't blame my readers. DH and I are also nervous about what will happen next, too.

What am I going to do? After waffling over the last three weeks, I'm going to bite the bullet and launch the campaign at the end of the month. If it funds, great! If it doesn't, I'll try to do it again next year. But I've got to look after my own interests, especially if GK needs financial help!

In the meantime, I'll keep writing to keep from weeping over the disaster my country has become. Which is how I wrote 2600 words on A Barrel of Vintner yesterday.

Monday Movie Mania - Nobody 2

This is another late review, because we saw the movie in August and because I almost forgot to post it.

DH and I saw the first Nobody on streaming before we went to see the sequel. I mainly know Bob Odenkirk from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, but in the Nobody movies, his Hutch is family man who tries so very hard to do right thing and you really want to root for him, which is why I like these movies.


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SPOILERS

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PROS
1) The actually story is much better than the first movie. Hutch and the family have a new home, and on the surface, they seem to be doing okay. However, since Hutch is un-retired from his original job and has to pay off the debt to the Russian mob from the first movie, his work is putting a strain on his family life. As he tells his handler, he and his family frankly need a vacation. The result is a wild mix of National Lampoon's Vacation and John Wick.

2) In this version, the entire family, from Becca and the kids, to Hutch's brother and dad are in on the shenanigans. I never would have thought of RZA and Christopher Lloyd would work so well together, but I'd love a sequel with the just the two of them!

3) Since the talents of Hutch's son Brady surprised his father and his uncle, DH and I had a debate on the way home of who's been teaching the kid how to fight. DH thinks it was Grandpa David. I say it was Mom, especially since she is no stranger to fighting or weapons as shown here.

4) Out of the cast, I have to give special kudos to Colin Hanks for playing the annoying corrupt sheriff.


CONS
1) Honestly, there's not a damn thing wrong with this movie.


Overall, this is a fun popcorn movie with lots of butter and cheesy flavoring to enjoy on a weekend! I give is a solid 10 out of 10 stars for crazy, violent fun.