Memoirs of a Geisha

I finally finished the book yesterday afternoon. And wow, the payoff was good, though not what I was expecting. A very good story from start to finish which swept me off my feet. Feeling somewhat saddened that the story was over, I immediately went to the video store to rent the movie. Don watched it with me. It was a good movie, though not nearly as powerful as the book, and a little less satisfying. Don really enjoyed it since he was able to watch it as a stand alone movie, as opposed to myself who was comparing it to the story in the book. He particularly appreciated all of the symbolism they were able to portray cinematically such as water imagery, etc, which I confess I missed much of focusing on other things. In my case, much of the movie felt a bit rushed and a little more shallow than the depth of layers and emotions the book was able to bring out. Still, it was interesting to see what kinds of adjustments and changes they made from book to movie to convey the same story. In the end, I recommend both but the book is much better.

So after finishing such a satisfying book, I'm now on the hunt for the next interesting read. Perhaps a new book club is in my not to distant future.

Cloverfield

Don, Jeremy and I just got back from seeing the movie Cloverfield in the theaters - the new thriller by J.J. Abrams (director of the T.V. series Lost). Don't worry, I won't give any spoilers away but I do have to say a brief word on the style of the movie and encourage everyone to go and see it. The consensus from all of us was that the movie was great. It was a high budget Godzilla type creature feature filmed similar to The Blair Witch project, a first person hand held camera documentary of the accounts taking place. I'm not really into monster movies but I loved this take on it.

The problem with monster movies is that you know they are not real. No matter how much you suspend disbelief, you are constantly aware that this is all make believe and you are watching a fictional story unfold. Because of the first person perspective from which this is shot, you never have time to think about the unreality of it all. You are too busy feeling like you are actually running for your life through the streets of Manhattan with the characters on the screen and thinking what your next move is going to be and how you are going to get away to have any time whatsoever to think about the fact that this is not real and could never happen. And even more amusing, we spent more time on the car ride home talking about what our strategy for escape would have been and how we would have reacted similarly or differently than the actual characters did than we did critiquing the movie itself. Well done J.J. Abrams.

I am really picky these days about what movies I will actually go to a theater to see and what I will wait for to come out on DVD. This movie is definitely best experienced in a theater. So go and see it and let me know what you think.

Another Day

Still the same old thing here. Getting tired of being home all day. Working really hard on the job hunting thing. I've surfed all the sights, researched all the employers in my field, sent out applications for all of the appropriate positions. Now I have to wait a few days to see if I hear back from anyone or for new positions to open up and post to start the application cycle all over again. The job search takes up so much time that I am having trouble keeping up with the rest of my life. So I am taking a break today from actively job hunting and doing a few other things around the house like: laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, and preparing dinner for our gaming group tonight.

Also, Don and I watched a new movie last night called "Fido". It didn't get a lot of press which is why I wanted to spread the word. It is a zombie comedy set in 50's era about people who have tamed zombies and now keep them as household pets/servants. Also, the lead zombie in the movie is played by Billy Connelly. While it was not drop you on the floor hilarious, it still was very amusing and quite clever. I recommend seeing it if you get a chance. And if you do, let me know what you think. It is available on Netflix. Maybe if I had my own Zombie I could get more done around here.