What's up next? Finishing the story, of course. I'm guessing I've got at least another 25,000 words left before the story is complete. I've also got a backlog of short stories wanting to be written. So, during the month of December, I'll be keeping with the prose and shooting for 35,000 words combined between the novel and the short fiction. That'll keep me at a still-productive pace while hopefully not driving me insane in the midst of holiday shopping and celebrating. Plus I've still got to fit in a couple more books to make my 24-books-per-year quota.
I'm also looking forward to being able to fit in a few more movies. And on that note, here's What I Watched for the past two weeks.
- Twilight (3 stars): Having not read the books yet, I was able to go into the movie without preconceived notions. That being said, I was going in with fairly low expectations to be honest. My sister wanted my company at the midnight showing, and since I rarely say no to a movie invitation in general and since I enjoy the unique atmosphere of midnight openings, I said yes. The chemistry between Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson was undeniable. The trailers make this out to be kind of an actiony pic, but it's actually very character-driven, which was a welcome surprise for me. Not a spectacular film by any means, but it's entertaining, and sometimes that's good enough.
- Bolt (3½ stars): Cute animated film about a dog who, having grown up on a TV show set, believes he is, in fact, a superdog. Gets off to a slow start, but the supporting characters (the cat and the hamster) really make the movie. Especially touching if you're a pet-lover, I think.
- He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not (3 stars): This is an interesting little French dark thriller/dramedy. I don't want to give too much away, but the story is told from two vantage points, one following the other. If you're a fan of the genre or of Audrey Tatou, definitely worth a rental.
- Australia (3½ stars): Baz Luhrmann's first movie since Moulin Rouge is basically two movies in one, and with a running time to show it. There are two complete story arcs here, and each is enjoyable, but they really could have been released as two separate films. That being said, it's as pretty as you would expect from Lurhmann (though not as lush as Moulin Rouge), and despite some cheesy moments, it's a welcome return.
- Beowulf [Director's Cut)] (3 stars): If you go into this movie expecting a direct interpretation of the epic poem, you'll more than likely be disappointed. However, if you approach it as an action-adventure, slightly tongue-in-cheek epic variation on that theme, then there's a good chance you'll enjoy it. At least I did. Though, I couldn't help feeling that it would have been so much more impressive as live action rather than motion-capture CGI. The technology has yet to capture the life of the human eye.
- Conversations with Other Women (3½ stars): Helena Bonham-Carter and Aaron Eckhart give excellent performances in this quasi-experimental drama. It's shown entirely in split-screen, and, while it took me a few minutes to acclimate, it actually worked really well for the story. The dialog was some of the best I've heard in smaller films like this.
