Quick Review: Twilight Saga's New Moon

It's fair to say, that after the monstrosity of an adaptation that was 'Twilight', I was fairly apprehensive about 'New Moon'. While I love 'Twilight' as a standalone film, it misses many of the elements that make the book so appealing. I could rant about the smaller details that were missed that would have truly enhanced the film for fans, but I won't. This review is not about 'Twilight'.

'New Moon' was, in a word, amazing. It had everything it was supposed to, and more. Chris Weitz really did everything that Catherine Hardwick failed to do. It was, simply, the book, on screen.

It's hard to know if it was because of better directing, or just a familiarity with the roles that they didn't have in 'Twilight', but the actors portrayed the characters much better, and it was far easier to see them as the characters we love from the book (in 'Twilight', while the names were the same, the emotions and traits just..weren't there.). They were more comfortable in the roles, and that came across on screen.

I was worried about how the wolf pack, and more specifically, the actual wolves would be created, but I needn't have been. They were exactly as I had pictured..perhaps more frightening. (I'd go on about CGI or whatever you call it...if I knew anything about that type of thing!) There isn't a huge amount of screen time for the wolves in 'New Moon', so I am really excited about 'Eclipse', which should feature them a lot more.

The film also gives us our first glimpse of the Volturi, the royal family and lawkeepers of the vampire world. Being so used to the Cullens, how friendly, and good they are, meeting the Volturi shows us really just how menacing and dangerous their world is. Michael Sheen as Aro was fantastic. He played the role perfectly...I cannot praise him enough.

There's very little I can say without ruining it (though really, as was pointed out to me, all you need to do is read the book to know what the film is like)...it truly was amazing, and I would recommend it to EVERYONE. Go see it. Do it. Do it NOW!

Belly Laughs # 2 - C.R.C. Comedy Show

What? : C.R.C. Comedy Show

Where?: Olympia Theatre

When? : Thursday 15th October, 2009

M.Cd by Des Bishop, the C.R.C. Comedy Show got off to a great start, and the standard really didn't drop throughout the night. With such an exciting line-up, expectations were high, and we weren't disappointed. With 15 acts, featuring some of the biggest names in Irish Comedy, mixing with some of the lesser known, it was a great blend, and everyone left with their sides hurting.

The show featured the comedic brilliance of Des Bishop, Ian Coppinger, Marcus Bergman, Colin Murphy, Willie White, Maeve Higgins and Colm O' Regan. After a 20 minute interval (and some confusion), Dead Cat Bounce started us off again, followed by Neil Delamere, Dermot Whelan, Elenor Tiernan, Dublin Improv (with Ian C., Dermot Whelan, Joe Rooney, and Paul Tylak), Damian Clark, Eric Lalor and last, but most definitaly not least, David O' Doherty.

Was impressed by almost all the acts, especially Des Bishop, Ian Coppinger and Colin Murphy opening the show brilliantly. I was not so amused by Marcus Bergman, Willie White or Colm O' Regan during the first half. It's not that they weren't funny, the laughs all around me could dispute that, they just weren't my style. I was also surprisingly disappointed by Maeve Higgins, which will come as a shock to anyone who knows about me and my girl crush on her. She wasn't playing to a crowd of her fans, and she almost died on her feet (and knew it).

The second half of the show was far more entertaining, with only Eleanor Tiernan leaving me straight faced. I've heard loads of good things about her, but I don't get it..she wasn't funny.

I think the high point of the night, for me, was Dead Cat Bounce's performance. They have quickly become a firm favourite of mine since seeing them in Kilkenny this year (followed closely by the DOD of course!)

All in all, a fantastic night, and a show I will definitely be going to again, and would urge others to go to, next year!

Quick review: Burned Alive - Souad

Lent to me by Evil Vampire Penguin, Burned Alive isn't the usual type of book that I read. I wouldn't have picked it up in a bookstore, it wouldn't have jumped out at me. That said, I will read anything, and since Sarah and myself generally like the same things, I gave it a look.

It's not a new book, you may have heard of it, or read it. But for those of you that haven't, Burned Alive tells the true story of a girl, who calls herself Souad. She was able to write it because of repressed memory therapy, and so the story can seem sketchy and vague at times.

Souad, at the age of seventeen, commits the worst crime imaginable to her strict Palestinian family. She falls in love with her neighbour, loses her virginity out of wedlock, and falls pregnant. Betrayed by her beloved, she tries to hide her pregnancy for as long as she can, but, inevitably, she is found out.
With her family deeply shamed, they decide that to get their honour back, Souad must be killed. What follows is absolutely horrific. She is doused in petrol, and set alight.
She is rescued by some women in her community, and left in hospital. She recieves no care from the medical staff, and is treated with scorn and distaste. However, luckily for Souad, an aid worker takes on her case, and, eventually, manages to get Souad and her young baby out of the country, and into a hospital in Switzerland. From there, she begins to get her life back on track.

I'm not going to go into more detail, in case anyone reading this post decides to try the book. I will just say that it ends on a happy note, with Souad getting the better life that so many of the women from The West Bank deserve, but don't recieve.

Sometimes hard to believe, sometimes sad, always shocking, this is a book I'm glad to have read. It has opened my eyes wide to the suffering of women still treated lower than second class citizens.

(No rating for this book, I feel it would be slightly crude to rate a story like this..)

Quick review: Handle With Care - Jodi Picoult

The name 'Jodi Picoult' always jumps out at me in bookstores. It genuinly excites me when she releases a new book. Although some of her books are, admittedly, a bit similar, and repetitive, every so often she'll bring out a novel that blows me away. 'My Sister's Keeper' was one. 'Nineteen Minutes' is another.

Her latest book, 'Handle With Care', in my opinion, follows the above in the list. And now I'm going to attempt to do a quick review of it.

Willow O'Keefe is the same as any other six year old girl. She loves her family, loves playing, and loves life. Unlike any other six year old girl however, she suffers from a severe case of Osteogenesis Imperfecta (Brittle Bone disease). She risks breaking bones from doing as little as sneezing, or rolling over in bed.
Her parents, Charlotte and Sean are paying money hand over fist for everything she needs to help her in everyday tasks, and it's putting a strain on their marriage. Willow's sister Amelia feels invisible, and is compelled to do things that make her be seen.

Financial relief is offered in the form of a lawsuit. (This is what Picoult does best after all.) All Charlotte has to do is file a wrongful birth case against the doctor she was seeing during her pregnancy. The doctor, however, also happens to be her best friend. She has to lie to her daughter, and tell the world that, given the option at the time, she would have had an abortion.

Picoult really is at her best here, asking the difficult questions...could you make someone that you love believe that you wish they'd never been born, if it made their life better in the long run? How far exactly would you be willing to go just for the payout? Could you betray a best friend? Lie to your children? Risk losing your spouse?

Completely absorbing, with a completely unexpected twist to the tale, I would without a doubt encourage you to read this book...if you're a fan of Picoult's already, then you're sure to love it, and if you haven't read anything by her before, then it's a great way to start! 4 stars!

Have you ever thrown a fistful of glitter in the air?

"This used to be a funhouse
But now it's full of evil clowns

9, 8, 7, 6 5 4, 3, 2, 1, fun"

No doubt about it, P!nk knows how to put on a show, and how to do it well. Last night's concert was one of the best I've ever been to. If not THE best.

I should probably say something about the support act.. (who was NOT Lady GaGa as I had been told - disgusted is not even the word..guh.) They were enjoyable, but much the same as any other support group...the songs blended into each other, they got the crowd going by making numerous references to the headline act, and they stayed on a little bit too long. They also came on late, which resulted in the already impatient 'mosh pit' becoming irritated and more bitchy than necessary. (check them out here: Raygun Myspace page)

But, anyway, they came, they sang, we jumped and whooped, and they were gone.

Then, I decided to take a little trip to the paramedic. Yep...I nearly fainted BEFORE P!nk even came on. That's how hardcore I am. If it's never happened to you...almost fainting in the pit, and being hauled over the barrier is rather horrible..and embarrassing. And there is no graceful way to do it..(always wanted to try it though, so I suppose I can tick it off my 'to do' list..)
After the paramedic was happy that I was ok, and had given out to me for trying to live off a yoghurt for the day, he sent me back out to the crowd to fend for myself..

And so the show really began!

The stage was like a carnival funhouse (go figure) on steroids, complete with slides, and huge, creepy inflated clown and devil court jester type things. She performed all the favourites, including a truly gorgeous acoustic version of Family Portrait, which resulted in a few tears from the people around me.

It's these parts of the concert that show you just how much talent this girl really has. She doesn't have to rely on flashy lights and sparkly costumes...all she had at that time was two backing singers, and an acoustic guitar, and it really was captivating.

Unsurprisingly though, my absolute favourite part was when all the circus acts appeared. Acrobats, Cord Lisse performers, and P!nk herself on a trapeze way above the crowd. Of course, due to my love and obsession of all things circus, I was instantly spellbound. I don't think I heard half of what she sang, I was just too busy watching everything. Again, she surpassed all by singing live (and she was live, you could hear her voice catching every so often, it wasn't recorded..) while flinging herself from a trapeze, somersaulting and spinning through the air.

And, as if all that wasn't good enough, she completed it all with a brilliant cover of Bohemian Rhapsody (I'm wondering how many casualties were caused by the simultaneous head banging..), and the finale, with my song of the moment, Glitter In The Air (which you can hear in my previous blog, by the way..)


She's coming back in October to do it all again, I'm seriously considering going to it, and I would recommend everyone else go to it too. It's spectacular!

J'aurais voulu ne pas mourir. J'aurais voulu ne jamais grandir...

"Quidam, a nameless passerby, a solitary figure lingering on a street corner, a person rushing past, a person who lives lost amidst the crowd in an all-too-anonymous society"

Skipping out of the o2 tonight, it was almost like waking up from a vivid, amazing dream. Everyone around me was buzzing, wide eyes and smiles surrounding. Tonight, we all saw something we'd never seen before, something special, something spectacular.

I've been waiting for a Cirque du Soleil show to come to Ireland ever since I heard about the group I don't know how many years ago. I have a love of all things bizarre and circus-y, and from there, an obsession formed. And tonight, finally, the obsession was fed.

The main character, Zoe, a bored, impatient with everything she's seen, child takes us into her imagination, an Alice In Wonderland type place, with everything from clowns, and trapeze (sorry, cloud swing!) artists, to walking targets and a man with a hat, and umbrella, but no head.

The show was perfect, from start to finish. From the moment Zoe's parents started levitating in their chairs, it was obvious that this was a show like no other. The level of skill and obvious dedication those performers have is extraordinary. The balance of humour (with John the clown) and breathtaking stunts (my favourite being the Banquine) was impeccable, the music creating the perfect atmosphere, and background performers ensuring that there was always something to look at.

The one negative I have is nothing to do with the show itself. More to do with o2 and their stupid rules...no cameras allowed. I tried, of course, to break this rule but I was caught by an usher. I tried again, but it was too dark to get any decent shots, and I didn't want to risk using my flash. Rather annoying, my way of thinking is, if I pay 70e for a ticket to a show, I want to take pictures and remember it. Grr!

Below are just pictures of the...unbelievable performances I just saw...not mine, but they're still amazing!

Zoe and her levitating parents

German Wheel


Diabolos


Handbalancing


Aerial Hoops


Statue


Cloud Swing


Contortion


Skipping Ropes


Spanish Webs


Banquine 1


Banquine 2

Now...if you'll excuse me, I'm off to run away with the circus!

Friday the 13th (the film, not the day...)

So, me and a friend decided to go to the cinema tonight. Being fluffy girly film type girls (see previous film review for proof..), we had our hearts set on Confessions of A Shopaholic. I've read the books, liked them, so was optimistic.

After a brief stop in Tesco, for yummy liquid treats (Yop anyone?) and a mango, we headed off...power walking to Cineworld.

In the queue, giggling and chattering, I saw something. Something awful. Confessions etc etc was sold out!! We decided to try our luck anyway, and it turned out there was like..one seat left. I asked the guy if I could just sit on my friend's knee...and he laughed at me. I don't think he realised that I was serious....

So we decided to see Friday 13th...yeah, we're both big wimps, afraid of our own shadows but a film is a film...so with trepidation we headed in, found our seats (at the back, by the wall, in front of the stairs so we could make a hasty escape should a crazed Jason leap out of the screen at us), Yops to hand, and jackets to cover our eyes with. Yep, we were all set.

In case you haven't noticed yet, I'm rambling to hide the fact that there is actually no review here...

I would love to be able to give you a review for this, I really would. But...I can't. Because even when I wasn't cowering in fear behind my coat, I was too terror stricken by what I was seeing to even focus enough on anything to put in a review. I was screaming at one of the ads before the actual film started...

I left the cinema pale, shaking, and not in the least bit impressed with the prospect of the walk home from town (walking off the Yop y'see..) and I also left with one question burning in my mind: Why won't Jason fuck off and die already?!

Enjoy the film!

He's just not that into you..

Ok, so here it is:

Warning: MAJOR chick-flick alert! He's just not that into you (based on the book of the same name, by Greg Behrendt of Oprah fame..) is a laugh out loud rom-com, with all the happy ending, feel-good gooeyness that a good chick flick needs.

It follows the stories of the desperate for love GiGi (Ginnifer Goodwin - Walk the Line), happily unmarried Neil (Ben Affleck), and his not so happily unmarried partner Beth (Jennifer Aniston), internet romantic Mary (Drew Barrymore), the would-be cheat Ben (Bradley Cooper - Yes Man) and his neurotic wife Janine (Jennifer Connolly), temptress Anna (Scarlett Johansson), and the man hopelessly in lust with her, Connor (Kevin Connolly)
Still with me? Good...
Throw Alex (Justin Long) in as the straight talking voice of logic, and you got...well, not movie magic, but a lot of big names and a decent film!

It has a lot of what you'd expect, the usual girly film way of making men out to be the spawn of satan, with all their male ways (boo hiss and the like...) but this is kinda equalised by Anna (Johannson), the brazen hussy one, and I found her to be very unlikeable as a character (but whether or not this is just a general dislike of Johansson in general, I don't know..)

Justin Long, as Alex, is the one to watch, playing the role of sarcastic (but caring!) love cynic to perfection, of course, delivering the line we all love to hate: 'he's just NOT that into you!!' (I think I fell a little bit in love with him by the end though...)

Ginnifer Goodwin is also fantastic, playing the hopeless romantic, just looking for love. I think we've all been her at one stage or another, which makes her so likeable. I couldn't help but cringe as she made excuses for her disastrous dates ('maybe he lost my number' or 'he's sick'...sound familiar??) and left the babbling message on the voicemail...she's genuinly endearing, and a great character.

All of the other performances are delivered well, as you would expect from such names (apart from possibly Barrymore's, it seemed a bit underplayed, and IMO there wasn't much need for her character at all..)

And of course, as I said before, you get the Hollywood happy ending that we all so secretly love, So hey...go see it. Even if it is just a chance for director Ken Kwapis to drop some heavy names...it's 2 hours of fluff that'll keep you entertained and put a smile on your face. I give it six and a half out of ten...


So! There it is...my overdue and first ever review. And now you see why I don't write them!

P.S. - Interested to see what any guys think of this movie...if they can be dragged into it, of course!

The Strangers..

This is possibly one of the scariest films I've ever seen (admittedly...I haven't seen many scary films but that kind of takes away from the scariness of it...)

I was apprehensive from the mere mention of this film. But, I decided to not be a big girl wuss, or a spoilsport, so I went along with it, telling myself that it 'really can't be that bad anyway'! Boy...was I wrong!

It started off innocently enough, easing us all into it. But then it just snowballed! It's far more of a suspense film than gore and obvious frights (but it has that too). It really uses music as a frightener, and you knew, when you heard the music come on, that something bad was going to happen!

I'm not going to say too much about it, because one of my many readers (!) may be going to see it and I wouldn't want to spoil it! But don't go expecting a fluffy 'so unscary it's almost funny' film...this one had me screaming, and jumping and covering my eyes and ears on more than one occasion!!

I was discussing it with one of the people I saw it with afterwards, and we both agreed that the fact that it was based on true events, and the whole 'motive' behind it were the scariest aspects of it. Usually how I get through a scary film is to tell myself 'it never happened, it's just a story!'. Knowing this did....well...that's what got me!

I'm going to stop rambling now, no doubt someone will be able to do a far better review of it!!