How to use this Page

Based on the novel Penelope by Marilyn Kaye this urban fairytale could best be described as a reversed Beauty and the Beast chick-flick.  A curse is placed on the rich aristocratic Wilhem family, after their son slights the local witches daughter.  The curse entails that the next born Wilhem girl will have a face like a pig.  Fast forward to present day and Penelope Wilhem (Christina Ricci) is born, the first girl heir to the Wilhem family in decades.  She is told the only way to break the curse is to find “one of her own kind” to love her.  In an attempt to break the curse her parents (Catherine O’Hara and Richard E. Grant) subject her to a plethora of blue-blooded suitors. However, the suitors often run for their lives after seeing Penelope’s snouted face. In an attempt to get Penelope’s picture a nosey reporter (Peter Dinklage) hires a destitute gambler (James McAvoy) to act as a pseudo suitor.  Even though he never sees Penelope, the destitute gambler begins to gain a connection with her. However, when Penelope proposes marriage the destitute gambler turns her down.  Broken hearted, Penelope runs away from home to the see the world and finds more than she ever expected.

This is one of those movies where you don’t have to read the book to understand it.  I loved it and didn’t even read the book, but I think I will now.  Christina Ricci does a great job playing an innocent doe eyed oddity, who likes herself just the way she is no matter what obstacles she faces.  Thus, because her character is so endearing one forgets the snout and begins to really see how beautiful Ricci is.  Also, can I just say James McAvoy is pure hotness in this movie! (BTW can’t wait to see him in Wanted with Angelina Jolie.) His blue eyes literally pierce your soul.  In addition, the costuming and settings in the movie were equally beautiful, and had a lighter Tim Burton feel. (I’d compare it to Big Fish) However, I did get a little confused over the location settings. It looked like they shot some scenes in New York and others in London.  This is definitely not a dude movie, but will appeal to teenage girls and women who love magical romantic fairy-tales with fabulous outfits. See the trailer below!

Author Blake Nelson conducted an interview with director Gus Van Sant about the movie Paranoid Park in the Sunday New York Times.  Here’s the link to the article.  

 *Imagine here me speaking in valley girl*

“At first I was like huh, what? Omigod, Blake Nelson is the author of Paranoid Park what’s he doing interviewing Gus Van Sant?  Isn’t that like J.R.R. Tolkein interviewing Peter Jackson?” 

Then I thought a bit about interviewing and writing.  As an amateur blogger/writer it’s pretty neat to interview someone.  There’s an indescribable excitment, thrill, and sense of cache after interviewing someone you respect.  Interviewing brings a new layer to a book, movie, or personality.  You get an inside scoop on the stories behind the stories.  On that note, I’m looking forward to the SBBT.         

Really bad dubs.  It hurts my ears when I hear really bad dubs for movies that originated in a different country.  Main case in point being anime from Japan.

I was watching Howl’s Moving Castle this weekend and saw the preview for My Neighbor Totoro.  The way they said “Totoro” made my skin crawl.  Suffice it to say, I watched Howl’s Moving Castle with the original Japanese voice cast and English subtitles.  Funny how it’s okay for me to listen to Japanese pronunciation of western words but not vice versa.

I heart Hayao Miyazaki’s films.  I’m ashamed to say I’ve never read the novels by Diana Wynne Jones on which some of his anime is based.  I think that’s a short term goal for 2008, read something by Diana Wynne Jones before the Miyazaki movie comes out.  Part of the reason why I want to read Howl’s Moving Castle is that there was quite a bit of ambiguity and not enough closure for my taste in the anime version.  I know that’s asking for a lot and why mess with near perfection, but I have to say that it’s pretty cool that a movie version actually makes me want to read the book.  I’m usually in the school of the book is way better than the movie and reading the book is far more fulfilling in the long run, so I tend to read the book first and lament the missed parts in the movie.  Who knows, maybe this is a positive new trend for me, watch the movie then read the book.  Seems to have worked in getting me hooked on Harry Potter.