In Anticipation of The Mortal Instruments

I'll admit to being just as much of a cinephile as I am a bibliophile. Accordingly, I get extremely pumped for the release of movies to the point I'm like a school girl awaiting Justin Bieber's next tattoo. Lately the list of movies I've been dying to see have included a few screenplays based off books I was less than enthused about (i.e. World War Z, Beautiful Creatures, and The Mortal Instruments). As a writer, I've come to accept that everyone has different tastes when it comes to reading, and for some reason those three books were unable to hold my interest, even though by all means they should've as their subjects were right up my alley (well, technically gravel road since I live in the country). While the World War Z movie completely hit the mark I was hoping for, Beautiful Creatures completely missed it by lightyears, disappointing me to astronomical levels.

The Mortal Instruments seems to have the biggest built-in fan base of the three, leading me to believe it will achieve the biggest success. They're already filming the second book in the series (and p.s. I just stumbled across a major spoiler upon reading the storyline for movie #2 on IMDB, so if you're not familiar with the series, don't go there). I'm already a fan of Lily Collins (playing Clary), and Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace isn't so hard on the eyes (unless you're watching his stiff performance in Twilight). But it all comes down to the screenplay writing, and TMI's writer, Jessica Postigo, has virtually no resume in the cinematic world for us to consider.

Therefore, being the major audiophile that I also am (wow I have a lot of addictions), I go to the soundtrack. Many times I'm able to tell just how a good a movie will be just by considering how much time and money the movie spent on finding its musical talent, even though you don't always hear the songs in the actual movie itself (has anyone figured out this strange phenomenon?). To my dismay, the list of performers on this soundtrack is less than stellar, and the songs don't do much for me, which makes me extremely nervous. Add the fact that the trailer uses as great song, just as Mortal Instruments did (Florence + The Machine's Seven Devils), and I'm downright paranoid. BUT, after listening to the beautiful musical score by Atli Orvarsson, there's still hope.

RIP Cory :(

As a last resort, I looked into some of the comments on YouTube. Those who have seen the movie have really good things to say, with the exception of "they didn't follow the book", which obviously won't bother me one bit. So I still hold on to hope that this flick, with a vibe of Constantine meets Flowers in the Attic (if you don't get this reference, don't go looking into it unless you've read TMI), will end up being my favorite movie of the summer.

Finally, I leave you with the trailer. No only does the movie look crazy good, but it would appear they've spent a healthy amount of money on special effects (another sign of good things to come). Unfortunately, I won't get to the theatre until next Tuesday, but you can expect a review as soon as I form my completely biased opinion.

Vlog Celebrating New Release and a Discussion on Horror Movies

I'm baaaaack. Today I celebrate the release of Cheating Death *throws confetti* and review a couple of horror movies, as well as discussing horror movies today in general. Oh, and I wear a really cool t-shirt that may quite frankly be my favorite.

Sorry for the funky lighting. It was a gloomy day here in Minnesota!

Check out Cargo (the 7 minute zombie movie I mentioned)

Read my review of Hannibal

Listen to the fun crew at Zombiecast

Chasing the Magic of the 80s

Very few movies in recent years have managed to nail that magical plateau the block busters of the 1980s were able to achieve. I mean that era gave birth to the epic series of Indiana Jones and Star Wars, the brat pack of Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club, and the phenomenal children's stories of E.T. and The Goonies. And that's only naming a very select few.

I'm dying to see more of that enchanting magic in today's films. Not to say that we haven't had our own epic films in recent generations, because we definitely have. But they don't have that 80s touch. And I'm not even going to try to pretend to compare Harry Potter to anything as it's in a whole universe of its own. I mean yes it's a children's series and yes it's freaking brilliant, but (don't get me wrong - I'm a diehard fan of the series) there's something to be said about an average group of kids who stumble onto an adventure of a lessor scale than a decade-long series.

The only teen and children's movies on a smaller than HP level that I can honestly say have accomplished the great feat for me are Easy A and Super 8. They each brought back a legendary feeling that can only be achieved by brilliant writers and sensational casting. But I'm still waiting for more like these. More of that gut wrenching teen angst and more of boys' adventures that dig deep into your soul, making you want to watch them over and over again to capture that special feeling.

Recently, Hollywood seems to be set on either remaking old films or adapting best sellers to the big screen (you'll hear no complaints from me on the latter). But where is that old magic? Are screenwriters not able to understand what it was it about those 1980s movies that made them so amazing? Is it just because it was such a simple time and things weren't so complicated?

Maybe I'm just getting old and nostalgic.

What do you think?

Soundtracks That Are Good for the Soul

It's no secret how much I love music. My family is always teasing me because I declare every other song to be my favorite. I'm one of those people who literally has music playing wherever I go (when I do chores around the house, my phone is in my pocket). I live for concerts (I've ben to dozens in my lifetime). I encourage my children to play instruments (piano, violin and bass guitar). I tear up when I hear the adult choir sing at church. I even have three music-themed tattoos.

While I appreciate all kinds of music, there are select few songs that can really reach down into my soul and move me to the point that my eyes water and I'm rendered speechless. Most of those songs just happen to be movie soundtracks. When searching for a song to use in the Shymers book trailer (the amazing winner is The Holy Grail by Olive Musique), I considered what goes into a truly memorable musical score and considered my favorites. Each of them usually features a piano and/or string instruments, sometimes paired with haunting voices.

Here are some of my favorite songs from soundtracks that really got to me. Maybe these songs are so moving because they come from excellent movies. Maybe I just have a fetish for this genre. Or maybe these songs are just all that amazing. Click on the songs' titles to hear them.

Lily's Theme: Alexandre Desplat

Safe Now: Mark Isham

Family Matters: Michael Giacchino

May It Be: Howard Shore & Tara Scammell

Forrest Gump Suite: Alan Silvestri

The Abyss: Alan Silvestri

E. T. Soundtrack Suite: John Williams

The Dream: James Horner

The Walking Dead: Bear McCreary 

While I could have listed everything John Williams has ever done, I decided that would be redundant so I only chose one. And while I know The Walking Dead theme song isn't necessarily a "soundtrack" and it's not actually a movie, I think the song deserves to be listed.

Are there any powerful soundtracks that you would add to this list?

Coming To a Theater Near You

Whenever my three favorites (books, paranormal and movies) come together, I get a little bit anxious and a whole lot of excited. Can there be anything more thrilling than seeing your beloved characters coming to life before your very eyes? I know at times it can be a major letdown when there's bad casting or if favorite scenes are cut, but you have to keep in mind that there is a time limit to how long you want your butt placed in that uncomfortable chair while stuffing your face with junk. While the books cover every little detail, on the big screen we are given the bare bones.

With the plethora of upcoming flicks I have discovered in the past few weeks, I just may explode. Here is a rundown of the three that have me fan-girling like a fool:

Warm Bodies

Since I am looking forward to this movie the most, it's up first. A Twitter friend told me a while back to read this book. I put it in my queue and kind of forgot about it. Then the movie trailer came out and I was totally kicking myself for not listening to my friend sooner. I devoured this delightful read in a matter of a few days and became a big fan of Isaac Marion. I wrote my own zombie book The Day Zombies Ruined My Perfectly Boring Life when I was craving something unusual and wanted a realistic heroine who wasn't prepared to shoot guns and run for her life. Warm Bodies takes the unusual one step further by telling it from the point of view of a zombie who only goes by "R" (he doesn't remember everything from life before he turned). When he meets a girl (and eats the brain of her boyfriend, thus absorbing some of his memories) he slowly begins to evolve into a regular human again. The book had some very light-hearted and comedic parts to it, but there was a deeper story of humanity and love that really sucked me in. If you haven't read the book, I suggest you drop everything and do so now. The trailer makes it appear that they did a good job of following the story in Isaac's book.

World War Z

Interestingly enough, I recently started reading this book and can't get into it as much. Part of the problem was probably that I just finished Warm Bodies, which is more of an adventure while this book is told as a report of events as they happened. Still, the preview for the movie look insanely good. I read somewhere that the creators of this movie felt zombies would have a primal instinct, much like a lioness chasing her prey, and let me tell you, these zombies definitely have that! If you haven't seen the trailer yet, these zombies are crazy fast. While I lack any kind of athletic skills, I still think I could outrun the traditional zombie so long as I wasn't injured. If I saw a zombie coming at me on a dead run, however, I ask to be shot by someone immediately. This movie has potential to be a big blockbuster, considering the growing number of The Walking Dead fans. And it doesn't hurt that Brad Pitt is looking as hot as ever with his long hair, either.

The Mortal Instruments

Again, this was a book I couldn't really get into. It was okay, but I think that I had just read a string of paranormal books and was getting burned out by them. After seeing the trailer, however, I've decided to give it another chance and have returned it to my to-read list. The movie looks to have a bit of a Constantine feel to it (one of my all-time favorite movies), only the main characters are young. I love the idea that there are certain things in this world others can't see. As an added bonus, there is a battle with honest-to-goodness vampires, not the sparkling kind who want to be your boyfriend.

I'll admit, I'm both thrilled and insanely jealous to see these books come to the big screen. After all, having your story come to life is the ultimate compliment. Are any of these movies on your "must see" list, or are there other book adaptations coming out in 2013 that you are looking forward to?