Sorry for Being Slow

Well, the title says it all. I've had a couple of ideas of what to post, but none so far have materialized, as I'm in the middle of a creative drought at the moment. I'll try to post something soon.

Movie Review: Alice in Wonderland

A few weeks ago, 3/5 of my family saw this film for the first time thanks to Blockbuster, as the other 2/5 had already seen it in theaters.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD



Tim Burton, known for his wacky films like "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (yes, I know it should be in italics) and "Big Fish", at first seems to be made to bring Lewis Carrol's film to the big screen. Instead of sticking to the original material, Burton creates a new and independent story where the original events occurred before the movie begins. Several years have passed, and Alice has grown up into an independently-minded young woman who hates popular society but does not feel she can get out of an arranged marriage. While at her engagement party, she sees a white rabbit running around and follows it down the hole. The viewer soon learns that Alice has been in Wonderland before as a child but that she has virtually no memory of it, believing it to have been a bad dream. Upon her arrival, Alice discovers that Wonderland is being ruled by the bad-tempered Red Queen, whose pet jabberwocky is wrecking havoc on the kingdom, and that it is only she who can kill the jabberwocky and restore the rightful ruler the White Queen to the throne. Alice denies that she can do this, but she goes on a quest to find the needed sword and help her new friends.

On the one hand, I can understand why Burton wanted to give the story a plot because the original lacks a definitive one, but on the other hand it comes across as silly and unoriginal. While watching the movie, I kept thinking of "Chronicles of Narnia": child goes to other world, discovers is object of prophecy but refuses to believe it, then goes on a journey of self-discovery and ends up fulfilling its destiny then returning home to find that normal life can be conquered after all. This, I thought, was a very modern-fied version of Carrol's classic story and did not flow smoothly with it. Not only that, but several elements such as the White Queen and the jabberwocky were not even from the original story but were from other works of Carrol's, and so they really did not fit into the general scheme of things. The characters were not well-done either. Far from being the curious child, Alice has turned into an independent woman, the stereotypical girl not sure what to do who later decides to do things her own way. The rest of the characters are nothing really memorable, and even Johnny Depp's performance as the Mad Hatter wasn't as good as his other roles such as Captain Jack Sparrow or Willy Wonka; plus, the whole implied relationship between Alice and the Hatter was a bit weird.

The movie wasn't that bad, but it wasn't great either. It was worth it for one watch but not to see over and over again.

I give it two out of five stars.

Movie Review: Robin Hood

Last weekend, my family and some friends went to the theater, which is a rare occasion for us, to see Ridley Scott's "Robin Hood".

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD



This adaptation of the legend tries to fit into history and real events. You have Robin as a soldier fighting under Richard Lionheart in France and then returning home to fulfill a promise made to Robert of Loxley as he lay dying. He meets Loxley's widow Marian and her father-in-law Walter, who convince him to stay for a while and pretend to be the dead Loxley. At the same time, you have Godfrey, working for the French king, wrecking havoc all over England and the newly crowned King John trying to deal with this and other issues in his kingdom.

I can see why a lot of reviewers did not like this particular version, as it severely deviates from the original legend. Sometimes this can be a good thing, but in some cases it can cripple the story. Most of the time, Robin uses a sword and leaves the bow behind, only to use it for a few specific shots that last only a few seconds. Prince John and the Sheriff of Nottingham were barely even villains, and the prince only because he refused to sign a version of the Magna Carta. There was almost no mention of the taxes and suffering of the general people so well-known to the legend, and the only thieving that Robin does is stealing corn so Marian can plant. Only three of the Merry Men are shown, and they have very minor roles in the story, mostly as comic relief occasionally called upon to help Robin fight when they're not chasing the women of Nottingham.

The story itself was weak and did not flow smoothly. Besides the fact that it started off slow then had a brief big battle at the end, there was too much going on. You have the Magna Carta (portrayed more as freedom for the people than as something the nobility created) then abruptly shift gears to Godfrey's rebellion with no further mention of it or to the war with France, which was unrelated. It came across to me as if the writers could not decide on what aspect to focus on, so they threw them all together into a jumbled mess. The story ends with the realization that this is meant to be a prequel or an explanation for the legend, which left me feeling unsatisfied and hoping that the story isn't continued into another movie.

In the end, the movie was nothing epic or something that I'd watch over and over again. I should have saved the seven dollars from the movie ticket for something else.

I give it two stars out of five.

Plagiarism

A note to my readers: I may be hiding this blog and only letting certain people read it, though I've yet to make a decision about this. I was doing a random google search earlier today and discovered that the book review for "How to Save the World" Book 1 that I posted back last summer was re-posted elsewhere... alongside some atrocious grammar and spelling plus a couple of unintelligible sentences, but it was most certainly my review... like someone taking credit for writing it. I know reviews aren't copyrighted unless you publish them for a magazine or something like that, but it makes me a bit nervous about how many of my reviews have been re-written on the internet.

Lynn Hilary: "Take Me with You"

Ok, sorry for disappearing for a month. I had to think of what music review to do next, as there are several Celtic CDs I want to do. For now, I'll review the solo album of new Celtic Woman member Lynn Hilary.

Since my first Celtic Woman show was in 2009 (despite discovering the group in early 2006), I was not acquainted with Lynn and her voice very well besides recordings that made their way on youtube. From what I did hear, I thought she had a nice voice though could not stand up to Meav. I still think that way for reasons that I will talk about later. Anyway, it was because of this that I did not buy Lynn's album or listen to it in great detail for a while. However, listening to it on pandora, lala, and youtube, I was convinced it was good and ended up buying it for eight dollars in MP3 form (cheaper than paying $20 for it at a Celtic Woman concert or paying $15 for it on Amazon). And now, on to the review.

" Melody of Life"

The album opens up to a gentle piano piece accompanied by a fiddle and Lynn's quiet voice. It is a very pretty song.

" Swimming in the Barrow"

The pace picks up with this John McGlynn song (it was actually because of this song that I discovered and fell in love with the original). It's nice, but I prefer McGlynn's solo version.

" Erin Beo"

A minor theme of this album is the departure of the Irish to America due to the Potato Famine, and this quiet song is the first out the two to discuss this. The depressing tone of the song turns hopeful and brighter during the chorus. A pretty and haunting piece.

" Sunset of Gold"

This song is a duet between Lynn and Don Mescall, who worked with her on this album in co-writing songs and such. It takes on a more intimate, jazz feel with the guitar, singing about sailing away from the bustle of the world.

" Carolina Rua"

Because Celtic Woman decided not to air their version of this song, I have grown to love this one. Lynn sings about a boy's crush on a girl named Carolina and is accompanied by her guitar. I like this version better than Celtic Woman's because this one captures the air of childhood innocence present in the song, rather than trying to turn it into a "Dulaman" or "Si Do Mhaimeo".

" Annie Watches"

This song, written by Lynn and by Anuna's John McGlynn (who wrote "Swimming in the Barrow"), is a gentle love song.

" What Makes the Sun Set?"

Another lovely jazz song with the piano and electric guitar.

" Take Me with You"

This song is probably one of the prettiest ones on the album and one of the more haunting ones. Once you hear it, you will never forget it.

" Shona Mara"

The immigration theme re-appears on this song about two lovers who are separated when one crosses the ocean and leaves the other behind. A tragic love song.

" Slan Le Maigh"

The only traditional song on the album is sung acapella. A pretty piece and one where Lynn slightly shows off on the high notes.

" Road to Glory"

Lynn picks up the pace with something fast-paced. Sung to the same tune as "Fields of Glory" (performed by The High Kings), this song talks about people searching for meaning in life.

" Angel Doves"

The album closes out with this Mindy Smith cover. It is a quieter piece but has a hopeful air about it.

A big plus about this album is that, which is rare to find, there is not one song on here that I dislike. I do have favorites, of course, but the entire album is beautiful. One thing that I really like about it is that this is pure Lynn, what her style of music is, and it perfectly suits her and her quiet, shy personality. This, to me, is what defines her, and not the songs she has performed with Celtic Woman (as I think they're forcing her into Meav's shoes). I wish they would let her do more of her own style, but I'm not going to go down that road.

I give the album four and a half stars out of five.

Movie Review: "2012"

Last night, my family decided to watch Roland Emmerich's movie "2012", as the previews of world destruction looked pretty cool. In the end, it turned out to be nothing more than a cheesy movie with a script that made us want to give it the Mystery Science Theater treatment.

Basically, the premise is that neutrinos from the sun are making the earth's core heat up and start melting the crust (the science completely escapes me on this), causing the 2012 Doomsday. So, several characters try to survive California falling into the ocean, the Yellowstone Caldera erupting, large earthquakes, and huge tsunamis while battling their own personal demons, largely with family members.

The effects were really cool, which is typical Emmerich, but the story itself was poorly written and at times even seems more like a cut and paste job from other movies like "Day after Tomorrow" and "Armaggedon." You have the typical divorced guy whose kids hate him and his wife wants to get back together, a jerk of a billionaire who cares for nothing except his spoiled sons, the young scientist trying to save the world and instill us with a sense of emotion with his speech about the good in people... I could go on, but let's just say the characters are cardboard cutouts. Even if your characters are typical stereotypes, it could be forgiven if the story and dialogue make up for it, but this sadly was not the case. A common theme, which became annoying quickly, was how most of the characters have family issues ranging from divorce, dead spouses, little relationship with their children, etc... As if a broken family is behind every good story. This is bad writing and has been overdone so many times, only serving to ruin the plot. Not to mention the sappy, predictable dialogue that pitifully tries to evoke emotion but instead makes you want to retch.

The story itself had plenty of potential, to be more than just a film with great effects, but sadly it fell far short of it. I give it one star out of five.

Brief Critique of Atlanta Show

After writing a full-length Celtic Woman review on my family's blog, I was still on cloud nine and was not in any mood to critique it. But, after a few days (and a few small yet nonetheless embarrassing mistakes at work), the mood has passed on, though what I have to say is nowhere near as harsh as the "Songs from the Heart" DVD.

As I said in my other review, the candles used at a few points during the show reminded me more of an attempt to be like Anuna (who uses candles at times during their performances), which I don't give as a compliment. The lighting was not as annoying as my first show, where I felt like I was being blinded, but I thought they could have made the colors a little more subtle and not so bright.

The song choices, I thought, were good yet interesting. I think Celtic Woman was paying attention to fan reviews that said the new show was far too slow with not enough lively tunes because they sure made up for that, adding "Orinoco Flow", "At the Ceili", "Granuaile's Dance", "Mo Ghile Mear", and "Spanish Lady." It was a smart move on their part to add some variety. I liked Alex's new solo "My Heart Was Home Again" and thought it really showed off her voice so that she doesn't look like "the Orla stand-in with Lisa's voice yet the simplest songs out of all the girls". The new group piece was amazing, and I loved how they combined three (or four) songs into one, which is a very Irish thing to do. I wasn't disappointed that "True Colors" and "O America" were not in there, as I'm not fond of either, so pretty much I enjoyed all the songs performed.

However, that being said, I did have one major issue with one song: "Dulaman." I expected "Carolina Rua' to be performed; I like "Dulaman," but to me it's a Meav song while "Carolina Rua" is a Lynn song. If it's because of a supposed copyright issue or something similar, like is being claimed, I find it completely stupid and nonsensical; if you don't have the copyrights for it, then why do you perform it on a tour, then for a new show, release it as an Amazon-only download for both song and video, and then completely remove it from the new tour? It doesn't make sense to make fans all excited about it when it's performed on the "Isle of Hope" tour and performed at Powerscourt and then not release it at all, especially because I've seen that it's a fan favorite and there has been much disappointment over it's "disappearance". I could rant about this, so I'll just shut my mouth and get off my soap box.

Another disappointment at the show to me was Chloe's voice. When I first discovered Celtic Woman back in January of 2006, Chloe's "Walking in the Air" was what captured my attention, especially when later I found out she was only fifteen at the time of the recording; I was amazed that someone so young could sound so beautiful, with a sense of youth yet maturity at the same time. However, as I've noticed over the past few years, her voice and performances have not been as well-done as in the past. What I heard earlier this week sounded like (as another reader put it and which I agree with) Mariah Carey or an attempt at the R&B genra. It's completely out of line with her Classical voice, and I find it is very weak. The motions she does on stage, both at the live recording and what I saw live in Atlanta, were meant to convey emotion, but they did not seem real. Her voice used to sound so young and yet mature (much like Hayley Westenra), but now that has passed into lacking its original power. I'm not sure if Chloe is consciously doing this on her own accord or if management or the musical director is pushing her that way, but it does not sound good on her. I find her earlier performances, even if she looked stiff during them, to sound more powerful (I'm thinking of "To Where You Are", one of my favorites by her, as well as "Nella Fantasia").

Back to the positive. The girls looked like they were having fun that night, and I think Mairead was simply on fire. The show, as a whole, looked a lot less commercialized than what I saw last March, which was a big plus. I also enjoyed the girls speaking to the audience and using microphones on occasion, which made it seem a little more intimate and less like a show. I'm positive part of the show was lip-synched, but I'm actually puzzled about how much, as the microphones slightly threw me off. I did thought I heard two sour notes from Alex during "You'll Be in My Heart," but that song seemed live to me.

All in all, I enjoyed this show much better than the DVD and better than the show I saw last March.