Book-to-Movie-Review: If I Stay by Gayle Forman

I went to see this movie (1) because the preview made me cry when I saw it at TFIOS premiere, so duh and (2) I'm such a dedicated blogger that even though I didn't love the book, I knew I needed to tell the world how the movie held up.

I mentioned a few times over the last few weeks that I've been having this crying issue - nothing has been making me cry. That is until I read Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins last week and it cured me! So at first I was afraid I was going to leave this movie dry-eyed and heartless, just like I'd been with every book for the past month.

I obviously didn't realize that I had nothing to worry about on the crying front. I was a fuckin mess.

     IT STAYED PRETTY CLOSE TO THE BOOK
I'm quite forgiving when it comes to book-to-movie adaptations when things are changed or moved around for the sake of the adaptation being smoother or portraying a feeling or a message better. I hate when things are totally changed around, but I can forgive when the necessary things are moved around.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that If I Stay the movie stayed rather close to the book. Not much was actually added in or changed - it was more like a lot of the tiny less important details were left out. For example, Kim's crazy mom, while amusing, wasn't necessary and was left out of the movie. A couple of other minor things but nothing that changed the story.

The only thing that was "added" in was this weird fight between Mia and Adam. I mean, don't get me wrong, the fight scene was great, Adam was awesome and rude and an asshole, just like they were trying to pull off, but I don't remember anything like that from the book at all. Mia and Adam were more passive aggressive and Adam in the book was a sweetheart but he could be a dick, too. Otherwise I was pretty pleased with how close the adaptation was.

     THE ADDED BONUS OF MIA'S AND ADAM'S MUSIC
We get to heard "Adam's" music!!! Sometimes when a book has a musician as one of its main characters, albums are made in partnerships with one or two real-life musicians, (e.g., Jodi Picoult, Colleen Hoover). The music is often good, but it's nothing like what we fall in love with on the radio or from our favorite underground artists. In the If I Stay movie, Adam's music comes to life - and it is awesome!

We see him rockin' and rollin' and his voice is even pretty great. Now I did absolutely no research whatsoever as far as the music goes and who wrote it or if Jamie Blackley was the one who was singing, but I suspect it was. I could be wrong, but I'm just guessing here. I have no idea, but I know that it was one of my favorite parts of the movie watching Adam sing on stage and getting to briefly be a part of what he loved.

It was also really awesome seeing/hearing Mia play. Now I also did zero research about Mia's music but I suspect Chloë Grace Moretz was not the source of that wonderful sound. It was mesmerizing though, and beautiful. The cello music was enough to have me tearing up at times. Definitely these were my favorite parts.

     ITS A SHAME THAT THE ACTING WAS... JUST OKAY
This Chloë Grace Moretz girl... she looks familiar to me... and she's got quite a lengthy filmography, but I hadn't ever heard of her before this movie. I think she was a good Mia, but she just didn't really do it for me. She was so clean cut (which yes, is like Mia, but the emotional parts [except for one particularly difficult one] I felt should have been more raw) and sometimes I felt like I was just watching a movie, not like I was part of it. It's just like when reading a book and no one wants to be reminded that they are reading a book, ya know? I hope that makes sense.

Jamie Blackley (Adam), quite the opposite of Moretz's performance, was pretty perfect. What a brilliant portrayal of that character! He just tore my heart right up. Plus seeing him up on stage was hot and he looked like he really belonged there. Contrary to the case with the rest of the cast, Blackley was pretty much flawless.

The parents were cute, quirky, funny, and it was hard not to love them, but acting was a bit awkward. I didn't feel much chemistry between the actors other than between Mia and Adam. OMG I forgot the grandfather. He killed me. He was amazing. And he killed my heart. But overall, it was just alright acting-wise.

     I'VE FINALLY DISCOVERED WHY I DIDN'T LOVE THE BOOK
Finally! After reading If I Stay, and after having not shed one single real tear (my eyes got watery, that's about it) I knew a lot of my blogging pals were going to be wondering what the hell was wrong with me. I know so many of you who sobbed and sobbed over the book and I started wondering what was wrong with me, too.

But the movie kept doing this really annoying thing that I realized the book (kind of) did! Every time a really sad part was happening, it would suddenly rip you from that scene and flashback to some random part of Mia's life, or vice versa - we'd be watching a particularly touching flashback then suddenly jump back to Mia in the hospital. It was hard to connect with it when the transitions seemed to be at inopportune times and not very smooth. My sister and mom even commented to me at one point during the movie, "OMG, why do they keep doing that!?" I wondered that myself. I assume it was some kind of technique to get the emotions all over the place, and for the movie it kind of worked (I mean I was a mess either way, even if it was annoying), but with the book it made it really hard to connect.

Also, I've decided I didn't like how focused the book and movie were on the romance. Is this listed as a romance? Probably, but based on the way the story starts, I felt like it should have been more even, with just as much time spent on Mia's family, friends, music, school, boyfriend, etc. So maybe I'm being picky because this probably is listed as a contemporary romance, but I wish it'd been a bit more contemp and a little less romance.

     THE QUESTION YOU'VE ALL BE WANTING TO ASK: DID I CRY?
F*** yeah I cried. Like a damn baby! I shed about one measly tear for the book while reading it. I cried almost from beginning to end with the movie. Even with the choppy, poorly-timed transitions and Moretz's slightly less than stellar emotional scenes, I was a wreck. A freaking wreck. I remember at one point, I thought I was going to lose it - like not be able to hold in my ugly cry anymore and start sobbing and making strangled noises in the back of the theater. It was rough - really, really rough. The movie connected me to all of the feelings that I was totally missing while reading the book.

RATING: ★★★★ - Enjoyed it!

I really liked this movie. The book was alright for me (I rated it 3 stars) but nothing to write home about. I wanted to feel something when I read it and finally after seeing this movie, I do! Everything I wanted to cry over, wanted to rage about, I got the chance to while watching If I Stay in theaters. It was well done, the actors, while not amazing, were great, the music was fantastic, and I fell in love with this story once and for all. I actually left the theater wanting to read Where She Went which I'd written off after finished If I Stay and not loving it. I might actually pick it up!

Did you go see If I Stay this past week? What did you think? Were you like me, blubbering like a baby regardless of the small annoyances? Or did you find it not up to your expectations? Did you read the book first or did you not bother? Loved it or hated it? Let's talk about this book and movie!

A.

Book-to-Movie Review: The Giver, and How it Kind of Surprised Me

Some of you may remember my post last week on 6 Reasons Why I'm Terrified to See the Giver Movie. You may also remember my crazy ranty-ness throughout the post and through other social media avenues the past few weeks as I re-read and reviewed The Giver and had a lot of time to think about everything. I was thoroughly convinced that I would hate every single aspect of the movie and that we'd have a repeat of Beautiful Creatures (I really should write a review on that one for reference, huh?).

I went to see the movie last Friday night with my cousin who grew up on The Giver as I did and had crazy high expectations, and my sister who recently read The Giver for the first time and didn't hold the crazy love in her heart for it like I do, and had little to no expectations. Basically, here's what happened.

THE BEGINNING: My first impressions

As I expected, the beginning started off a lot like Divergent, talking about times of great unrest or something like that. They showed this weird map of the community which I of course scoffed at. The map showed many communities, not just one, and it was this whole strange set up. It looked a bit like a floating island in the sky. That then reminded me of a book by Lauren DeStefano, Perfect Ruin, which indeed was about a floating island in the sky - and the government constantly referring to people as being "lost to the edge" or something to that effect. It was weird - out of place. They could've done anything else to reinforce the fact that the community was isolated and that once you got past the border, memories would go back to the people living there. There was no need for the floating island look with fog around the border. At all.

I was annoyed already, but it was hard to stay mad when I started getting choked up at Jonas' "graduation" ceremony (aka Ceremony of Twelve - because Jonas is like 18 in the movie). It was modern and weird and aged up, but I still couldn't stop the chills skating up my spine at hearing the community chant his name when he was selected.

THE ROMANCE: Did it really affect the story?

I will admit it distracted the crap out of me. I think the movie would have stood just fine if they had played up Jonas lusting after Fiona, developing feelings of "love" as described in the book, but I think the mistake came from making her have feelings back, making her skip her injections, making her rebel, too. Like I mentioned in my post last week, in reality, Jonas would've only had someone else's memory to go off of, and Fiona would have had nothing. Hormones maybe, but don't we think that after living life the way they did, they wouldn't just jump into a romance with ease? I mean, Fiona was freaked out, but I don't think she was freaked out enough considering how things ended up.

I stand by what I said - the actual romance should've been out. Let Jonas feel how he feels, but watching him try to make out with this chick because he had someone else's memories of love and people kissing was just too much.

ASHER WAS A PILOT?: Of all the WTF-ery!

When the kids were assigned their jobs, Fiona was assigned Nurturer. Oh, wait, you noticed something wrong with that, too? Yeah, she was not a Nurturer in the book, she was a Caretaker of the Old. This didn't bother me all that much just because the Nurturing Center played somewhat of a part in story. But Asher, our dear Asher was assigned as a Pilot who flew out of the community limits, probably to deliver things to other communities, but not outside of the real boundaries. Our irresponsible friend almost instantly turns serious, abiding by the rules that Jonas is developing a distaste for. This adds for some extra drama when - gasp - Asher has to hunt down his own friend when Jonas tries to escape. It was wayyyy overdone and not necessary. I think the near-capture scenes would've been just fine if they altered things a little and left that tidbit out. Does it effect anything all that much? No, but like I said, way overdone and it was another thing that made me roll my eyes.

WHAT I LOVED: Yes, there were actual things I enjoyed!

Even with the things I didn't enjoy, e.g., the romance and the overly modern nonsense that you can see right from the trailer, a good portion of the movie stayed marginally close to the book. Surprise, surprise.

I loved Jonas' passion for the memories, the world as he's never seen before, his passion for love and happiness and doing what is right. Brenton Thwaites really pulled this off well. In the book, Jonas' passion doesn't develop until later on, whereas in the movie it's almost instantaneous after Jonas becomes the Receiver, but it was wonderful to watch his thought process play out (even if it was on fast forward).

The acting was on par. In fact, it was above par. Brenton Thwaites did a lovely job as Jonas. I especially loved Odeya Rush as Fiona. Yes, I thought Fiona has too much of a part, but Rush was fantastic playing what was given to her. She got me all worked up at the end. Katie Holmes, Alexander Skarsgård, they were fantastic. TayTay (Swift), however, whom I adore because she's so adorable, was just alright playing Rosemary, a character that had no real part in the book.

I did struggle a bit with Meryl Streep. Not because of the acting - obviously Meryl Streep is a goddess and is amazing. I just struggled because she was another character who has a significantly smaller part that was played way up. It added to the drama and excitement but she was not a likeable character, so that was hard for me.

JEFF BRIDGES. Oh my heart, Jeff Bridges. He played the Giver and he was amazing. He made the movie for me. He was absolutely brilliant. He was exactly what I imagined, though maybe a tad younger and a tad more groomed than the book-Giver. He is one of the main reasons I didn't hate this movie, or why I actually kind of enjoyed it. Jeff Bridges brought the Giver's character to a new level but not like all the other characters, by adding in things about them that aren't true. He was just... perfect. He was another character who brought me to tears.

Which leads me to the main reason I actually kind of enjoyed the movie: THE MEMORIES. The most perfect parts of this movie were the parts that were actually adapted directly from the book. Watching Jonas receive memories was so fun (like his first memory of the sled, or of being on a boat in the ocean at sunset), but then the movie did this thing: it showed a montage memories, of what the world is. We see everything, people dancing, laughing, crying, praying, going to concerts and parties, having babies, dealing with heartbreak, fighting a war, EVERYTHING. Everything that makes this world beautiful and horrible all at once. Let me also point out how beautiful and appropriate it was for them to end of the montages on a picture of Nelson Mandela. Freaking brilliant. It was the one of the most moving things I've ever seen and every time they showed it, I was tearing up like a fool.

OVERALL: It got the point across

All I could think of when we left besides "I don't know what to think" (which is what a ton of people were saying when it was over) was that Lowry was right. Before I went to see the movie, the production company tweeted me a link to a video of Lois Lowry talking about the adaptation:

She mentions how true the movie stays to the book. I remember watching this clip last week before the movie and thinking, psht, how could you call that staying true to the book? Like, was she even watching the same clips that I was?

But after watching I know exactly what she meant. They changed a lot, they really did, and in my opinion some of it was so simple and it didn't even need to be changed (like the weird birthmarks in place of light-colored eyes on the ones who could see/hear Beyond). But still, she was right. I could plainly see that the movie still delivered its message: making people think about what is important, making people appreciate the world in all of its beauty and glory, realizing that we can't forget our history no matter what horrible things have happened, we need to learn from it in order to grow and be better people. If we forget the bad, we lose the good, too. We lose what makes life worth living. I may not have loved the execution but it stayed so true to Lowry's core values and message in the book that I couldn't be mad.

SHOULD YOU GO SEE IT?

Well... that's for you to decide. Like I said, they've changed a lot. If random little changes, the romance and overly-modern work and rebellion are going to bother you that much then honestly, no. I'm not saying you should pass it up entirely, I'm just saying wait for red box, rather than spending 10 bucks to go see it.

If you're more generous like me and you can see past Hollywood's need to make everything more sexy and exciting and focus on the amazing beautiful scenes between Jonas and the Giver which really made the movie for me, then I say yes. It's only 10 bucks right? And if you're as big of a fan as I am, even though some things will down right piss you off, you'll still find that it did its job. Oh and, FYI, for any changes or stupid things I didn't mention specifically, you can just assume that it wasn't important enough to make any kind of impression on me, and if you see this adaptation at all like I do, then those things won't really matter to you either.

And finally, for those of you who haven't read the book and don't plan to, GO SEE THIS MOVIE (even though I'd really love it if you read the book, too). If you have nothing to base it off of, I promise you, you will love it. The things that annoyed me will seem like nothing if you don't have anything to compare to. It's action packed, meaningful, well done as far as production and acting go, and its overall a good movie when it's totally separated from the book.

If I had a chance to re-do the movie, of course there are things I'd change - lots of things. But there are also things I'd leave exactly the same (the memories, mainly, and the wonderfulness that is Jeff Bridges). The Giver movie really, really surprised me by not being the complete disaster I was expecting. I honestly think I'll be going to see it again, to analyze a bit more.

Did you go see the Giver movie yet? What did you think - and were you a fan of the book first? If you haven't seen it, what do think about the trailers and other reviews? Do you think you will go see it or are you staunchly against this adaptation? I can't wait to hear what you thought!

A.

Movie Review: The Fault in Our Stars

It's been exactly one week since the release of the book-to-big-screen adaptation of John Green's The Fault in Our Stars and it seems to be all anyone can talk about - me included. There are a million and one things to say about this movie but at the same time, I feel like there is one sentence that just about sums it up (for me): It was better than the book.

Hey, whoa! Hold your fire - put down your pitchforks or tomatoes, or whatever you were going to throw at me after that blasphemous statement. I know what you're thinking - you run a book blog, you ninny! How can you say that a movie was better than the book!? Well, let me explain.

For those of you who know me, you know that I'm not John Green's biggest fan. I won't get into here because this is a movie review, not a book review, but I've read one other book of his besides TFiOS and I don't plan on reading anymore unless it comes highly recommended from a trusted source. With that being said, I enjoyed TFiOS (the book) a lot, and definitely connected with the characters and the story. I was a blubbering mess by the end, but the fact that it was so pretentious and even "too smart" for me, if you will, it left me with a "meh" overall.

I handed the book over to my sister, Chelsea, who is 17 years old, so she is the target audience for this book in the truest sense of the term. She absolutely adored the book, was beyond excited and obsessed with seeing this movie, while I was just expecting a pleasant adaptation in which I would shed a few tears. Alas, I was wrong.

We went to the premiere the night before (10:00 p.m., not midnight. You should know my feelings about this. I hate non-midnight showings.), completely unprepared in the tissue department, and in the mental and emotional fortitude department. If I'd know what I was about to experience at the hands of a movie, I would've brought several boxes of tissues and started chanting "My name is Celaena Sardothien and I will not be afraid" on the ride over.

In my opinion, the movie, by leaving small details from the book out (which usually pisses me off) made the story so much more relatable, the characters so much more believable. Not once did I feel annoyed at Gus and Hazel's dialogue or their "disdain for the conventional" as the movie description so eloquently puts it.

I fell in love with Gus in a way that I never really was able to with the book. I related to Hazel so much more, just as a girl struggling with the life she was given. As TFiOS fans always say, this is a cancer movie, but it isn't. It's about so much more than that.

And I know what you're all wondering: did it make us cry? If you've already seen this, you should know the answer to that question. For those of you who haven't seen it yet - let me paint a picture for you: picture a theater full of women (and the occasional man), more than half of whom have read the book and know what to expect. Fast forward and picture the scene in Amsterdam when Gus delivers his shocking news to Hazel. Picture a hundred women, tears streaming down their faces, sniffling for almost an hour straight. Picture the ending, where these hundred women are now holding in their ugly cry... orrrr not holding it in. Some were downright sobbing. It was a mess, but it was wonderful. When we walked out of the theater, every last person coming out had a red face and swollen eyes.

AND THEN... I went to see it again. We took my mother this time, who cried basically the whole time. Even before the bad news. She happy cried through all the wonderful parts in the beginning, when Gus is being his swoon-worthy self, pretty much all the way through to the end. My mother, a woman of very few words, gave this movie 5 out of 5 stars. She loved it!

I also took this opportunity to ask my sister what she thought about the movie, her being, as I said, the target audience for the book itself. This is what she had to say:

"It's such a realistic love story, it just hits all the right spots. [I] may sound biased because I'm an emotional teenage girl, but there is no way this book/movie does not his a sore spot for any person with a soul. I have never felt so sad yet so enlightened after watching a movie/reading a book until TFiOS and for so long after. I have to say... the movie was better than the book. There were little details in the book that weren't necessary for the movie to be absolutely outstanding. With that being said, [I give this movie] 5 out of 5 stars. The movie significantly better."

So HA! See - I'm not delusional!

No, but really - this is coming from someone who adored the book, as compared to me who liked it but didn't absolutely adore it.

All in all, this movie was amazing enough to go see twice, and if I'm being completely honest, I might go see it one more time before it's out of theaters. It was just that good.

TFiOS goes down in my history books as one of the best (if not the best) book-to-movie adaptation I've ever seen. I loved it and I recommend it for fans of John Green and everyone else in the world, even if you've never heard of John Green or TFiOS.

Okay?

★★★★★

Did you see this movie yet? What did you think? Was is a disappointment for you, or did you think it was pulled off wonderfully? Are you a huge John Green fan and huge fan of TFiOS or are you somewhat of a skeptic like me? Let's talk about this movie! It was so wonderful that all I want to do is spread the word and discuss the intense feels!

Okay.
A.

Divergent, The Movie: Am I The Only One Who Liked It?

IT'S HERE, people! Divergent, the movie, is HERE! Technically the premiere date was today but of course there were several showings last night, one of which I went to. Duh. Before I get into the movie, can I just talk about how disappointed I was with the lack of people attending the movie?

With the last few movie releases I've been to, the movies are no longer released at midnight, but there are several showings the Thursday before starting at around 8:00 p.m. continuing with at least four more performances up to and including midnight. I don't know if this is the case where you all are, but I don't know how I feel about it. At first I thought it was great cause I hated getting home at 3:00 a.m. after a midnight premiere to have to go to work the next morning. But to be totally honest... it was kind of lame this time.

I don't know if it's because Divergent is not "big" enough, which seems unlikely because I mean, it's Divergent. Even if society could care less about the release, there is still all of us, the blogging/reading community that tends to become obsessed and fangirl and all that. So I wonder if it is due to the lack of midnight showings. I think midnight showings gave more of a sense of urgency - you want to be one of the first to see it so you must be there that day.Well, whatever the case was, I was pretty disappointed. I got there more than an hour early and they were already seating - no lines, no wait. Again, doesn't seem like something to complain about, but half the fun of a midnight premiere is having to wait outside the theater doors for an hour squishing up against people you don't know and stampeding into the theater trying to get a seat that is not those ones in the first two rows where you break your neck. Sigh... I think you get what I'm trying to say.But anyway, besides the fact that the premiere atmosphere itself was pretty lame, I really, really enjoyed the movie. That's not to say it didn't have its issues, but overall I really enjoyed it.

     WHAT I LIKED:

First and foremost, I honestly enjoyed seeing the story come to life. I think that is something that I love about (almost) every book-to-movie adaptation, though. I thought seeing each faction in "real life" was insanely cool. Getting inside the Dauntless compound past the point of in my head was awesome. See Four up close and personal (yum!) was great.

I particularly enjoyed the way the romance was done in the movie. I've read Divergent twice and while I liked Tris and Four because they obviously belonged together, I never felt as though the chemistry between them in book one warranted an "I love you" at the end of it. I never really felt it the way I wanted to. But in the movie, all the chemistry was there. Theo James is delicious for starters, so not only is he easy on the eyes, but he works well with Shailene Woodley in my opinion. But I really enjoyed the way they progressed, learning to respect each other, trust each other then, finally, love each other. It was a hundred times more believable on screen than it was on the page and I was swooning all over the place.

While I didn't love all of the things Hollywood chose to add in (see below), I really did like the action aspect of the movie, especially toward the end. I thought it was wonderfully done and it was so intense, I had a death grip on Sean's hand the entire time. So I was able to (mostly) forgive the unnecessary additions because it made the movie pretty damn exciting.

Let me just talk about the actors/actresses for a minute, because a lot of my love for the movie came from the feelings they caused in me while they were playing these characters:

Theo James/Four: Not only is he sexy beyond belief, he comes off a little more mature in the movie rather than just mean and brooding, which only made him sexier. He seemed more like a man than a boy. I think he did a fantastic job portraying Four and bringing to life the chemistry and love between him and Tris.

Ben Lloyd-Hughes/Will: I just loved Ben playing Will! Though I wish he'd played a bigger part in the movie such as he did in the book, I was happy with the casting and I really enjoyed him.... and then... yeah. That was rough. :'(

Jai Courtney/Eric: OMG. Oh. My. Goodness. I am in love with Eric. I never thought I would say those

Look at that face. And those lips. Sweet
Baby Jesus... I'm in love.

words. I thought he was hot before I saw the movie and before I actually saw him  play the part of Eric, and then I saw him acting and I am in love. Jai Courtney is a delicious specimen of a man, but I also think he did a fantastic job of playing Eric. He came off as cold, calculating, uncaring, and a little bit of a douche, but he did it perfectly while causing me to melt into a puddle every time he came on screen. I had a hard time remembering that he was a bad guy. :/

Shailene Woodley/Tris: I am going to be completely honest - I thought I was going to hate Woodley as Tris. At first, I thought she was too... rough, not skinny and "birdlike" enough (that sounded rude, didn't it?).. I just didn't think she was going to portray the Tris I wanted and had been seeing in my head all this time. I was so pleasantly surprised when I started seeing her evolve from Abnegation Beatrice to Dauntless Tris and I really loved her. Not to mention she showed off her acting chops in a major way toward the end of the movie in a couple of insanely emotional scenes. I was a blubbering mess and Woodley really showed the emotions Tris was feeling that sometimes get lost in translation when imagining it in our own heads. I thought she was fantastic even if she isn't exactly the perfect embodiment of Tris in the books.

     WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

Really, the only thing I actually did not like in this movie were the things they added in with Jeanine and Tris. I felt like they changed their dynamic entirely and tried to make it seem as if Jeanine wasn't out to get Tris and that she was even being friendly toward her, if not entirely truthful. They actually threw Jeanine into the story (in regard to Tris) a whole lot earlier than in the book. I guess I can see why they did that, so as not to throw Jeanine in as a threat at the last minute (especially for people watching who haven't read the books), but I didn't like the way they tried to portray the relationship between Jeanine and Tris.

There was one character that I hated: Zoe Kravitz/Christina: I was actually really excited to see her play Christina. I am a huge Lenny Kravitz fan and yes, I know, her father's talent doesn't necessarily translate to her, but Christina was one of my favorite characters in the book and I was really counting on Kravitz to play the role well. I thought she was pretty lame for starters. Her acting wasn't horrible but it certainly wasn't anything to write home about. Not to mention that she looked like she was high the entire time. That, or deathly ill. WTF is that about? It was awful and it made it seem like she didn't care about being there or being Christina. Needless to say, I was disappointed by her.

To touch on a topic some non-blogging friends of mine brought up (and one fellow blogger, Nikki, who said the same thing on Twitter), it seems like the movie was put together in a way that could be confusing for people who have never read the books. Even with the movie being almost 2 1/2 hours long, it seemed to move really fast and didn't exactly expand on things that may have needed to be explained a little better. I, myself, didn't necessarily notice this until after the fact because I read it very recently and remembered most details, and I still think I need to see it again to form a solid opinion on this aspect. But I can totally understand this and see how it may have been confusing to some people who haven't read it, or even people who read it quite a while ago and don't remember all of the details.

     BUT, ALL IN ALL

I am one of the few who seem to have really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was action packed, kept pretty well to the original story line, had really awesome acting, and was so cool to see come to life in general. I don't want to get up on my soap box here in debate with people who absolutely did not like it, but I really just want to know why? If those who disliked it actually didn't like it as a movie, I completely respect that. My problem is with the comments about disliking it because of the things they changed. I just feel like.... where have you been? This is the nature of book-to-movie adaptations. They change things, take things out, add things in. When I go see adaptations, though I compare to the book, I really just try to watch the movie and see everything coming to life. There are some exceptions, like if they change major things and even endings or something (Beautiful Creatures, cough cough). I just hate when people hate on an adaptation because things are different. They call it awful, when as a movie, it really wasn't. I just want to know, why are you even bothering to see it if you know that they are going to leave out about half of the book and probably a lot of things you really liked?

Maybe I'm being harsh, but I don't mean to be, I promise. I just think that fans need to go into these things with this in mind: things will be changed. There's usually a reason (not always, so don't stone me, please, but usually).

Well anyways, regardless, I really enjoyed this movie and I'd really love to hear from you, whether you agree with me or not, because I feel like I'm missing something when everyone says how horrible it was. But if you liked/loved it, I would really love to gush together so please, tell me what you liked - or didn't like.

If you haven't seen it, do you think you will? And is your decision based on preconceived notions about adaptations or because of the reviews that are surfacing now that it has been released? Let's talk books... er.. movies!

A.

Book-to-Movie Review: Vampire Academy

Happy Sunday everyone!! Who went to see Vampire Academy this weekend?

THIS girl did! To be completely and totally honest with you, I expected it to be really, really bad. Have you seen Beautiful Creatures? Remember how god-awful that was? That's basically what I was expecting. Nonsensical, cheesy, alternative endings... etc.

I was so, so wrong. The usual concern for a book-to-movie adaptation are plot changes and things being added in or taken out. I won't lie: things were left out - but it worked for the movie. It moved swiftly and hit all the major plot points including things with Natalie and Victor Dashkov, and I thought it was awesome that they added in some of the tiny little details that are used in later books and could be used in later movies. ***SPOILER*** They did add in this weird little thing about Moroi spraying blood on the walls with their wrists like some strange fad which was awkward and incredibly stupid but, hey - ya win some, ya lose some. ***END SPOILER***

Vampire Academy was hysterically funny. I originally hated the trailers because they seemed cheesy and silly but the movie really played up Rose's sarcasm while still keeping the air of darkness that is part of the books. I was cracking up the whole time and even the "let's make tonight our bitch" line from the trailer seemed less cheesy in context.

Zoey Deutch did an awesome job playing Rose! She was the perfect mix of sarcasm and bad-ass, I just loved her! Lucy Fry who played Lissa made me like her character when I never liked her much in the books. She was brought to life and was a little bit more 3-dimensional in the movies. I wasn't entirely crazy about the casting for Christian but I think Dominic Sherwood did a good job, even if he didn't look exactly how I'd pictured him in my head.

Okay, so maybe I didn't hate the casting of of Dimitri that much..

And I know you're all wondering: Dimitriiiii! I was not happy with the casting for Dimitri. Danila Kozlovsky looked too old (and I think he was actually older in the movie than in the book) and he wasn't.... sexy, for lack of a better term. I think we've all pictured Dimitri as this sexy guy with a hot bod but what we got was a little more mediocre. Attractive but not sexy, stocky but not chiseled. Not to mention the creep factor of him looking like he's 34, not 24. So needless to say, I was not happy with the choice for Dimitri..... until that secretly-hunky man SMILED. I about died when he smiled...those dimples... and when he says "Roza, my Roza"... Sweet Baby Jesus, I was a goner.. He did have a heavier accent than I was expecting though, which sometimes made it hard to understand him, but it was adorable and I loved it. I went in there expecting to hate him but I actually kind of love him, just wish he was hotter (and um.. younger..).

As further evidence of the awesomeness of this movie, I dragged my fiance with me (it was our anniversary and how could he tell me no?) and he said he fully expected to hate every second of it,  but he didn't. He actually gave it a rating of 3.5 out of 5. Again... an almost-30-year-old man, hates vampire crap, hates YA crap, hates everything I'm into... and he actually kind of liked it. He said he granted the extra .5 because it made him laugh out loud. I'm still amazed.

Rating: ★★★★ 1/2

Overall, I really, really liked Vampire Academy. I was pleasantly surprised and I think it did a great job of bringing the story to life! I actually liked it more than I liked the first book (it feels blasphemous to say this). I hope they make a movie for the next book too (kind of hoping they combine some of them so it's not a 6 movie series, eek). They definitely did everything right and left it open for the movie series to continue (instead of changing the ending, *ahem Beautiful Creatures ahem* to provide "closure"). Great movie and I actually kind of want to see it again.

Did you see Vampire Academy? What did you think? I loved it, I hope you all were as pleasantly surprised by it as I was!

A.

Catching Fire! - The Movie

How many of you went to see Catching Fire last night?! I went last night to the 10 p.m. showing with my sister who is an equal fan of the series, and a friend who had stopped reading mid-Catching Fire and I had to convince to come see the movie because she'd lost interest.

(If you have not read Catching Fire, or seen the movie, please note that this post has spoilers. If you want to know more about Catching Fire, see my spoiler-free book review here)

To give you an idea on how we felt about it, my sister and I spent the entire time covering our faces and whimpering because we knew what horrible thing was coming next (i.e., speech in District 11, Quarter Quell announcement, Cinna, Mags...). My friend sat through it all silently and occasionally curled up and whimpered also. At the end, my sister and I immediately made plans to go back on Saturday and see it again. My friend didn't say much until we got out of the theater and she exclaimed "I'm so impressed!" She went on to say that this movie was so much better than the first, she can't believe how good it was, and that she wants to come back with us on Saturday to see it again. WE. LOVED. IT.

I saw some tweets immediately after about it being good despite the changes. I say, who cares about the changes, it was amazing! They did leave some things out and change the way some things happen, most notably:

     There are no escapees hiding in the woods trying to get to the fabled District 13, so Katniss has no idea of District 13 until the very end.

     Gale gets whipped not for selling game but for attacking a Peacekeeper.

     Katniss doesnt get whipped in the face, just punched.

     There are a ton of scenes with President Snow and Plutarch Heavensbee that don't actually happen in the books, but for some reason I actually like them. Especially the ones with Snow and his granddaughter... good set up for the next two movies, especially.

There were many other little changes, and probably some big ones I didn't care enough about to remember. I think the changes made were good for the movie adaptation and I absolutely loved it. The action was so well done, so exciting to watch. All of the emotions that leave us so bereft in the books come to life and do it to you all over again in the movie. By the time we left, I was so emotionally drained.. I just wanted to curl up in my bed for a few days. I will be seeing it several more times over the next few weeks, you'd better believe it!

So, please, please, please tell me - have you gone to see this movie? If not, are you going some time soon? I need to discuss how amazing it was!

A.

Book-to-Movie Co-Review: City of Bones

With the recent release of the movie adaptation of Cassandra Clare's City of Bones, my dearest blogging friend,Amber from Paradise of Pages, and I both read the book around the same time (a re-read for me) and went to see the movie within a couple of weeks of each other. Here's the thing: Amber did not like it, and I found it had some redeeming qualities. So for those of you who thought you might want to see this movie but are feeling a bit unsure, we thought it would be a good idea for you to get both points of view, one from someone who didn't like it and one from someone who did.

IMDB.COM SYNOPSIS:

When her mother disappears, Clary Fray learns that she descends from a line of warriors who protect our world from demons. She joins forces with others like her and heads into a dangerous alternate New York called Downworld.

OUR REVIEW(S):

CASTING:

     Amber (Paradise of Pages):
I didn't like most of the appearances of the characters. I think it is more that they just didn't look like what I expected them to. Some of them were closer than others. Jocelyn, didn't expect the British accent from that one, it threw me off. Luke- he was okay for me, not anything special but he was one of the better ones for me. Clary- It mentioned bright red hair throughout all the books, short, freckles, light eyes....then she looks nothing like this in the movie. She is tall, no freckles really and really dark dyed red hair. I think she was quick in her lines she had. It was like she had them memorized and just wanted to spit them out so sometimes it seemed to cut the other one off. Jace- He looks close to what I expected. I just wish he had a little more emotion. He just seemed boring through most of it. I know he comes across as arrogant and full of himself in the book but in the movie I just didn't feel that. Simon- He was okay, like I said with Luke, but he still didn't stand out to me. Isabelle- She probably is one of the most that I disliked. She was supposed to be tall and very slender. Her whip isn't also a snake coil on her arm, it's a real whip she wears as a belt in the books. I just felt like she was corny and her acting was bad. She was nothing like the Izzy I've grown to love. Alec- He was pretty good. Had the hair, the eyes, all of it. even the hatred for Clary in the beginning. Magnus- ugh. Horrible. Nothing what I expected and was nothing like the book. all his flair wasn't there or any of his High Warlock attitude he had. He was just bland, bland, bland.Valentine- WTF is all I have to say. second I saw him come out, I wanted to leave. I was like okay, you did alot wrong with the others, but this, this is unforgivable.

     Amanda (i solemnly swear):

Going into the movie, I hated the casting for Jace, but I actually ended up loving him. He may not have been as sarcastic and witty but he was very convincing as a vulnerable boy with feelings for a girl that he didnt want to have. I was thrilled with the casting of Jocelyn, but I may be biased. She plays a character on the HBO series A Game of Thrones so I loved her, point blank. Everyone else was pretty good for me, I liked the attitudes they protrayed if not the way they looked. Magnus was a disappointment. Had the look, but absolutely awful acting. The only casting I HATED was Valentine. He looked ridiculous, and he played this outwardly crazed short slender man with an awful hairdo, not the large, composed, handsome Valentine we know. Otherwise I was OK with the way the casting turned out.

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS/COMPARISON TO THE BOOK

     Amber:

I think the book and the movie were nothing alike. From the first few minutes I could tell it was really different. things happening out of order, things from the second book coming into the first book instead, stuff being in places it's not supposed to be. I kept holding out for the movie to become more like the book and it never did. more and more changed and I just couldn't take it anymore. They were definitely staying on a budget and not wanting to put any extra than they had to, which took away from so much. I don't want to say more than that because of spoilers, but I just didn't like it, at all.

     Amanda:

I'll admit that the movie was very different from the book. The movie only kept the basic story line and switched the order of some scenes, combined some, took some out and even added some. Certain ones didnt bother me, such as the beginning where the club scene comes after the cafe scene followed by another cafe scene. Pointless, yes, but it was fine, it didnt take away from the story. Some parts were changed completely such as where the final fight scene took place and how it actually happened, which bothered me. It worked for the movie, for someone who was going to see it without reading the book, but for someone looking for a close adaptation, it kind of messed things around.

MAJOR SPOILER AT THE END (One involving Simon and one involving Clary and Jace)

     Amber:
This drove me nuts. Everything with Simon was just wrong. The events that unfold were just messed up and I don't know who decided it was a good idea, but whoever it is should be fired. And what is this, Spiderman?? Seriously. Ahhh I wanna scream just thinking about it again. [As for the Clary and Jace spoiler...] I spent a whole lot of time reading the books in the anticipation [of certain information] but for Hodge to throw that out in what comes out a lot later feels like they robbed us all on the suspense of the other movies that made a lot of the story more intense. They ruined it in ways they shouldn't have.

     Amanda:

I took my sister to see this movie, and she's never read the book. I spent the entire movie thinking how shocked she would be at the end when she finds out the big bombshell (about Clary and Jace) that is revealed at the end of the first book. Then I was instantly deflated when Hodge opened his big mouth and ruined it for me. I mean, my sister didnt really catch on to that (guess she wasnt paying very great attention, lol) and she was shocked when the scene went on just like I wanted her to be, but I then felt like a fraud! How could they take that suspense away from all the movie-goers that way? So mad! As for Simon, I mean, it seemed like they were trying to do some sort of foreshadowing there that fell flat. Something that happens in a later book is almost revealed here and that kind of sucked too.

FAVORITE AND LEAST FAVORITE ASPECTS OF THE MOVIE

     Amber:
Least Favorite- Valentine/Simon. I didn't like either of them. Simon as an actor wasn't horrible but how they made his character was bad. Valentine, everything about him to me was bad. His look, how he does things, all of it.
Favorite- This took some thought to be honest, I didn't really like anything about this movie. But I guess if I had to pick anything, I would say Jace. Especially about the part of if you want me to take my clothes off you should have just asked.

     Amanda:

Favorite for me was Clary and Jace's scene in the greenhouse except for the awful cheesy pop music they played!! If I close my ears and pretend that didnt happen though, I loved their chemistry and the budding of their romance. It brought that aspect of the book to life for me.
Least favorite for me was the scene where Hodge revealed that major info. Also when Jace and Valentine reunite kind of fell flat for me because it did nothing to portray the love Jace had for his father and how vulnerable he became upon his return.

OVERALL IMPRESSION

     Amber:
I know my opinion is way different than Amanda's. I give this movie a 0 out of 5. and I HATED it. I seriously regret spending the money on it. Unless the whole cast is different and they fire all the people that worked on the movie, AKA start completely over, I will not see the others. This movie ruined the books completely. If I was Cassandra Clare I would be embarrassed to say this was based off my book.

     Amanda:

Based on my enjoyment of the movie overall, I'd give this one a 4 out of 5. Factoring in how I felt about it in relation to the book I'll lower it to a 3 out of 5. I think many of the changes in the movie worked for the adaptation and made it more exciting and action packed, while being able to fit it into a 2+ hour movie slot, but I was still disappointed with some of the major changes.

We hope our differing opinions help you and that they don't make you more confused on whether or not you want to see it, haha. For those of you who have seen it, did you agree with either of us? Anything else to add? Love hearing from you guys.

Huge thanks to Amber for paying a visit to i solemnly swear, and make sure you all pay her a visit too!!!

A.

Book-to-Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

IMDB.COM SUMMARY:

Released: November 16, 2001 

"Rescued from the outrageous neglect of his aunt and uncle, a young boy with a great destiny proves his worth while attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

REVIEW:

Wow, well isnt that summary an understatement for this magical beginning to Rowling's wonderful world?! How can you not love this movie? Before last week, I hadnt watched it in ages. I usually watch movies 3, 5, 6 and 7-part 2. I dont know why, but those are the ones I usually gravitate to.  Even Sean, whom I've been with for almost 7 years, told me he doesnt think he had ever seen this one with me! I know - crazy right?! So, anyhow, watching it was really refreshing for me. I got to experience the first movie all over again, and also got to look at it from a review standpoint. Sean says I was "working" while watching it. Its true, I was. Taking notes and whatnot. What I came up with was that, based on how movies are usually butchered when transformed into movies, this one was great. There were a few things that were changed or left out, as always. That doesnt bother me much and I'm used to it. Obviously they cant put everything into the movie. But Some things did, such as:

•  When Hagrid goes to get Harry from the hut on the rock, they leave immediately after he tells Harry everything. What sense does that make? It was midnight when you went to get him, Hagrid, why would you take an 11-year-old out shopping at midnight. And how long did it take them to get wherre they were going, because in the next scene, it was morning and they were about to go into the leaky cauldron!
• No Peeves. Enough said.
• Skips the wizard's duel that Malfoy challenges Harry to in the book, and they kind of just stumble upon the third floor corridor without Neville.
• In the Mirror of Erised, Harry only sees his mom and dad, not his whole family. This kind of disappointed me. I think its really important that Harry saw where he came from, and that his parents came from somewhere too, ya know? I wanted to see the knobbly-kneed grandpa!
• Hagrid's dragon simply gets taken away. They completely skip the entire scene where Harry and Hermione bring the dragon up to the tower for Charlie's friends, and they get detention simply for being late at Hagrids. And Ron gets detention instead of Neville. WTF!
• Completely skips Snape's logic defense! Which, mind you, was my favorite out of all of them! NOT FAIR!
• Harry attacks Quirrell rather than the other way around, and instead of Quirrell being abandoned by Voldemort and subsequently dying, Harry's attack causes Quirrell to disintegrate and then Harry passes out after that. That was an outrage!

The above listed things were the things that were changed which, to me, didnt need to be in order to make a good movie. They changed a bunch of other things, but either they didnt bother me, or I knew they were changed or left out for the good of the movie. But the things I listed, I cannot forgive.

Anyhow, what I did like was how the magicality (is that a word?) of it all came to life on screen, and it was action-packed and stayed true to the overall idea of the book. Even with the things that I listed that were changed, which I mentioned are unforgivable, I love this movie so much and I'm so glad I finally sat down to watch it after so many years.

How do you guys, as fans of the books, feel about the first movie? Do you agree with me, and think those things are unforgivable? Do you think there were other things left out that were also unforgivable? I'd love to hear what you think! :)

A.