Author Topic: Movies & Books Into Movies (Read 557734 times)

PatH · « **Reply #1440 on:** March 06, 2011, 07:58:43 PM »

So many movies – how do you choose what to watch?
Reviews? Recommendations? Actors? Availability?
Do you choose a movie the same way you choose a book?

And where do you like to watch most of your movies?
Do you stream movies from Netflix and other places?
Where’s the strangest place you’ve ever watched a film?

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Join us in an ongoing discussion of your favorite movies right now.
Pull up a chair, take off your shoes, pour yourself a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, and join in!

Your Discussion Leader: pedln

PatH · « **Reply #1441 on:** March 06, 2011, 08:30:58 PM »

Rosemarykaye, I hope you get a chance to watch Lord of the Rings. I'm a total Tolkien nut, so of course I have quibbles, but I think Peter Jackson did a remarkable job of making visual sense of things I would have thought impossible to put on film.

Gumtree · « **Reply #1442 on:** March 07, 2011, 01:50:59 AM »

I agree with that PatH - I'm not a Tolkien freak as you would probably guess and I had a few quibbles too - but overall I thought the films were brilliant. My son, a Tolkein nutter had more quibbles than I but thought the production was great.
As a boy, this son destroyed a copy of The Lord by his constant reading and eventually would just take a section of it with him to read wherever and whenever he could. We bought him a new copy and gradually he acquired all the paraphernalia (calendars, T-shirts etc) that goes with Tolkein so that now he has quite a collection. We bought him a fine collector's copy of the books -boxed, rice paper, gold tooling etc. - he was pretty young and grubby at the time and I told he must never touch it without first washing his hands - One time I went to pick it up and he pounced on me straightaway and said I had to 'go wash my hands' first!
Kids, don't we just love 'em!

Gumtree · « **Reply #1443 on:** March 07, 2011, 01:59:59 AM »

Actually thinking about Tolkien - he was a fine writer which I think is sometimes lost in all the hoo-ha over the fantasy and the cult following. Of course his credentials are impeccable. I once did a comparison between Tolkien and Joseph Conrad focussed on their powers of description. I concentrating on how they could evoke a dark sense of one being menaced by the forest and conversely a character having a positive sense of well-being generated by the forest. They both knew how to write English.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #1444 on:** March 07, 2011, 04:54:23 AM »

Gumtree - your son sounds just like mine. His copies of the novels have disintegrated and he's still reading them. He does have the DVD set but he took it off to Ardgour with him and Anna has suddenly decided she wants to watch them. I must say I have never read the books or seen the films, they don't really appeal to me, but I am trying to be more open-minded so I will maybe give it a go. At school the Hobbit was a set book, and I loathed it so much I never finished it - just read the notes and still passed the test, I'm afraid

I read somewhere recently that part of the key to staying young is to have an open mind and keep trying new stuff - that's part of my motivation for trying to read more widely. My mother has always read but for the past few years she has been in a complete rut of reading thrillers only. From time to time I pass her books that I have enjoyed, but they never seem to go down too well! My MIL is very well read but has now become so impatient that she just skims everything and usually then pronounces it rubbish. FIL is an avid non-fiction reader - he has diabetes so his sight is poor but he perseveres with a magnifying glass. We always know what to buy him for birthdays - he is a man after my own heart.

Anyway, have first got to go through the nuisance of having to return the weird speaker thing to Amazon - it came from Jersey for some reason, so now I have to get a customs declaration just to send it back! However, I think this is the first problem I have ever had with Amazon, so I will graciously forgive them.

Rosemary

Babi · « **Reply #1445 on:** March 07, 2011, 08:59:08 AM »

I can't imagine not enjoying "The Hobbit" and the 'Ring' trilogy,
ROSEMARY. However, if you have a preference for non-fiction, I can
see why you might find fabulous fantasy trying.
Valerie and I watched on of those silly movies yesterday, about
raising armies of the dead and that sort of thing. We were in the
mood for silly, but I did get annoyed to find the writers had
made an evil monster out of Imhotep! Imhotep!, a doctor, scribe,
priest, architect, and the prime minister of a pharaoh no one ever
heard of, while Imhotep is still remembered and admired. Annoyed
is not the word. I was shocked and scandalized!

Gumtree · « **Reply #1446 on:** March 07, 2011, 09:06:47 AM »

Shocked and scandalised! Babi has spoken!

Babi · « **Reply #1447 on:** March 07, 2011, 09:23:43 AM »

Oh, all right, GUM.

pedln · « **Reply #1448 on:** March 07, 2011, 12:16:48 PM »

You guys crack me up!

maryz · « **Reply #1449 on:** March 07, 2011, 01:17:27 PM »

rosemary, since you've just moved in Edinburgh, here's a link to a blog you might enjoy. http://dancingbeastie.wordpress.com/2011/03/07/saturday-night-and-sunday-morning-a-glimpse-of-edinburgh/ The writer lives in rural Scotland, but in today's entry, she writes about their weekend in Edinburgh.

rosemarykaye · « **Reply #1450 on:** March 07, 2011, 04:31:49 PM »

Thanks MaryZ - I've never seen that before. I would certainly agree about Edinburgh on a Sunday morning. I personally think Aberdeen is ten times worse than Edinburgh on a Friday or Saturday night, but then I have been cocooned in the New Town, which is hardly drunken yob country.

Babi - no, i love fiction, I just couldn't get into Tolkein - but I think I should give him another try. What I meant was, FIL and I are both book addicts.

Rosemary

roshanarose · « **Reply #1451 on:** March 07, 2011, 09:11:18 PM »

Babi - I think you are referring to "The Mummy". I bet you were scandalised watching all those zombie like worshippers of Imhotep, walking through the streets, chanting "Imhotep", "Imhotep" "Imhotep". Actually apart from the Imhotep business I enjoyed that movie a lot. It was pure farce. A send up of the Mummy movies of the past. At least it wasn't boring

Babi · « **Reply #1452 on:** March 08, 2011, 07:56:43 AM »

Close, ROSHANA, but the one we watched was "Return of the Mummy". As you say, pure farce, but fun of the kid's Saturday matinee kind.

I do hope you try Tolkien again, ROSEMARY. You might like "Lord of
the Rings" better than the Hobbit. Tolkien's creation is magical,
beautiful, and full of wonderful characters.

roshanarose · « **Reply #1453 on:** March 08, 2011, 08:35:19 PM »

Babi - Next Saturday you and your daughter should sit down and watch "The Mummy" with the very adorable Brendan Fraser and the lovelier Rachel Weisz (sp?). It is a full-on hoot.

PatH · « **Reply #1454 on:** March 08, 2011, 11:21:03 PM »

Lord of the Rings is on a more adult level than The Hobbit, especially after you're well into the story. Tolkien knew the power of myth and how to use it effectively. But the books make you work hard. There is a huge cast of characters, and a complex background of myth, previous history, and geography to try to keep straight (it still works if you don't keep everything straight). And some people find they just don't care for it. but if you do care, it's a good, suspenseful quest/adventure story.

Just for the record, I tried unsuccessfully to read it about three times before, finally, I was ready or in the mood, and read the whole thing just as fast as I could fit it in, and have reread it several times since.

Gumtree · « **Reply #1455 on:** March 09, 2011, 12:14:17 AM »

PatH: That's something like my own experience with The Lord of the Rings - tried it a few times and couldn't really get into it then one day voila - couldn't put it down. But as you point out keeping content and characters straight takes an effort at least the first time around. I hope I live long enough to read it again - I've a long list of such books and they're all extremely long.

CallieOK · « **Reply #1456 on:** March 10, 2011, 09:13:35 AM »

Those who took part in the book discussion on "Empire of the Summer Moon" might like to know that the movie "The Searchers" will be on TCM tonight at 7:00 p.m. CST.

pedln · « **Reply #1457 on:** March 10, 2011, 10:03:16 AM »

Thanks, Callie. I did not read the book or participate in the discussion, but I may watch the movie tonight. For those like me, not familiar with either, here are two links that may be helpful.

The Searchers

Empire of the Summer Moon

jeriron · « **Reply #1458 on:** March 10, 2011, 11:57:30 AM »

I am going to try to watch the movie :The Searchers" tonight. I have a feeling I won't stay with it because I get really annoyed with westerns that were filmed at that time. Most indians were white men painted to look like indians which they never did. And the indians were always savages. It wasn't until recent years that that stereotype has changed.

CallieOK · « **Reply #1459 on:** March 10, 2011, 05:47:01 PM »

I suspect anything like this from 1956 is a vehicle for John Wayne and will take great liberties with the book.
I just looked at the link you provided, pedlin, and - just like the original "True Grit", it was filmed in an area that looks absolutely nothing like western Oklahoma/northern Texas where the true events it's based on took place.
Looks as if I'll be on my soapbox...again!!

However, I think the movie was mentioned a time or two during the discussion so I thought I'd say something.

CallieOK · « **Reply #1460 on:** March 10, 2011, 10:05:35 PM »

Well, if that wasn't the most contrived, cliched, bits-and- pieces-of-a-dozen-different-stories movie I've ever seen!!! Yuck!
I hope you didn't bother!!

MaryPage · « **Reply #1461 on:** March 11, 2011, 07:43:38 AM »

I saw that movie eons ago. Decades into the past. This week I have been glued to MSNBC from six in the morning until midnight watching the real life drama of Wisconsin. It boggles my mind and is almost too much for me to take in. Fiction seems trivial in times such as these.

Babi · « **Reply #1462 on:** March 11, 2011, 08:51:49 AM »

How do you manage that, MARYPAGE? Three hours of TV and I'm so stiff I have trouble getting out of my chair!

MaryPage · « **Reply #1463 on:** March 11, 2011, 12:37:26 PM »

Oh, I do not mean literally! I just mean I have all 3 of the televisions here in my condominium apartment tuned in to it. I keep on puttering and doing chores and getting up and down from my chair and doing my reading and talking on the phone and coming in here and running errands and falling into one of my old lady naps when esconced in my favorite chair. I, too, Must move every 15 minutes or so!

Babi · « **Reply #1464 on:** March 12, 2011, 07:38:38 AM »

Ah, now that sounds like my own routine, MARYPAGE. Up, down, puttering, puzzles, reading,
errands, chores and a nap. And laughing at the quilted pattern on my feet when they start
swelling in my house shoes.

jeriron · « **Reply #1465 on:** March 12, 2011, 09:31:09 AM »

In case anybody missed this PBS news

Downton Abbey Returns
to PBS in 2012
Good news for viewers who are suffering from Downton Abbey withdrawal: the wildly popular Masterpiece miniseries will return with new episodes in winter 2012.

Julian Fellowes will continue as the writer for upcoming series, and members of the "superstar" cast have committed to the second season, among them Dame Maggie Smith. Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern will also return as Lord and Lady Grantham.

pedln · « **Reply #1466 on:** March 12, 2011, 10:49:32 AM »

Thanks, jeriron. It's good to know they're coming back. I just wish it was a little sooner. When they say "winter" I hope they mean January and not December.

Last night I watched Rachel Getting Married. Totally a waste of time. It was simply full of emotional upheaval in a dysfunctional family. Good to watch if you want to be put through the wringer.

On the other hand, the other night -- an oldie, but goody, The Pelican Brief with Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts. I've seen it before, read the book, and will no doubt see it again. Just a good yard with lots of activity.

MaryPage · « **Reply #1467 on:** March 12, 2011, 05:09:13 PM »

http://www.smittenbybritain.com/2011/02/second-season-of-downton-abbey

Tomereader1 · « **Reply #1468 on:** March 12, 2011, 05:25:10 PM »

Pedlin, "The Pelican Brief" is one of my all-time favorite movies, by that I mean, I watch it when it comes on TV, I have the DVD and play it whenever I'm in the mood for that type film. I've probably seen it between 25-50 times. I also love "The Interpreter", Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn. Watched that about 25 times. Don't know if it was ever a book, but still I love it.

Gumtree · « **Reply #1469 on:** March 13, 2011, 01:50:42 AM »

Tomereader : Pelican Brief didn't do it for me - film was great but haven't read it - I haven't watched The Interpreter 25 times as you have but I've seen it quite a few times. There was a realism in that and they didn't overdo the drama.

marjifay · « **Reply #1470 on:** March 14, 2011, 12:47:01 PM »

Good grief, Tomereader--25-50 times. I saw Pelican Brief once. Don't care for Denzel Washington's films, altho I liked Glory, but that's just me. I know many think his films are great.

The most times I saw a film was about 8 times, in the 1960s, in the theater, and that was The Graduate with Dustin Hoffman. I grabbed everyone I could to see that one with me -- loved it. He did some good films once, including Tootsie. Don't care for his Fockers films.

Marj

marcie · « **Reply #1471 on:** March 14, 2011, 09:39:37 PM »

I, too, enjoy The Pelican Brief film. I've seen it several times when it's been on TV.

If you have a subscription to HBO, watch, starting on March 27, for a "mini-series" production of MILDRED PIERCE staring Kate Winslet. The "Making Of" half-hour video at http://www.hbo.com/mildred-pierce/index.html#/mildred-pierce/about/article/about.html (see the left column on the page) is very compelling.

I don't remember the 1945 film version starring Joan Crawford very well. Maybe I've only seen the famous clip that's been shown quite a bit of an especially emotional scene between Mildred Pierce (Joan Crawford) and her ungrateful grown daughter Veda (Ann Blyth).

I've requested the 1945 film version on DVD and the book, Mildred Pierce by James M. Cain, from my library.

MaryPage · « **Reply #1472 on:** March 15, 2011, 04:39:35 PM »

I will never forget the movie with Joan Crawford. I found it very, very depressing at the time, and I was only 15 or 16 years old, depending on the month I went to see it. I have seen the ads for the new one, but am left with absolutely no desire to see it. Still shiver at the bad vibes it left in me.

jeriron · « **Reply #1473 on:** March 15, 2011, 05:16:48 PM »

I don't think I ever saw it because I never liked Joan Crawford. So I probably didn't. I will watch the new one though.

Babi · « **Reply #1474 on:** March 16, 2011, 08:54:50 AM »

Ditto, JER. But I don't think I'm interested in the new one, either.

MaryPage · « **Reply #1475 on:** March 16, 2011, 10:26:22 AM »

Product warning: It was one of those "you can't win no matter how hard you try" stories. It's a downer.

But then again, knowing Hollywood maybe they changed the ending this time. One can but Hope.

pedln · « **Reply #1476 on:** March 16, 2011, 10:01:49 PM »

Was it Joan Crawford who was the subject of Mommie Dearest?

jeriron · « **Reply #1477 on:** March 17, 2011, 07:50:07 AM »

YES it was.

pedln · « **Reply #1478 on:** March 18, 2011, 03:39:31 PM »

Has anyone heard of or seen a film titled Gift to Stalin? It's a foreign film in both Russian and Hebrew, about a small Jewish boy who escapes death while being deported from Moscow to Kazakhstan. He's discovered by a railway worker who takes him to his small Muslim village where the boy is cared for.

Netflix apparently does not have it, at least not yet, nor can I find if it is on DVD. I don't think it is. I saw a short trailer this am and would definitely like to see it.

mabel1015j · « **Reply #1479 on:** March 20, 2011, 02:14:26 PM »

For you movie buffs, here's one woman's list of the fifty best films re: women's history month. Some are apparently documentaries, but they may be available from netflix. Would you add any others even their wasn't a finite "50"?

http://www.mastersdegree.net/blog/2011/50-best-movies-for-womens-history-month/

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Author Topic: Movies & Books Into Movies (Read 557734 times)