Catching Fire Movie Review

Movie Title: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Book the Movie is Based on: Catching Fire - by Suzanne Collins
Director: Francis Lawrence
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Stanley Tucci, Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Elizabeth Banks, Jenna Malone, etc.

Summary (from the goodreads summary page): "Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and her longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.

Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying."

My Thoughts: I cannot think of a better book to movie adaptation that has ever graced my eye holes.  Since seeing the movie when it first aired near the end of November, I have failed miserably at thinking of a single one. This movie was practically flawless. I was enthralled by the story from beginning to end with no lag time in the middle. It completely held my attention and truly took me on a cinematic journey from start to finish, which is a true accomplishment, I think.

First off the cinematography was just beautiful, the acting was captivating, and nothing was cut from the story that didn't need to be cut. So much of the dialogue was nearly word-for-word from the book as if the scenes were ripped from the pages. And Jenna Malone as Johanna Mason was pure genius.  I mean when I first read Catching Fire, I thought of Johanna as important, but she wasn't my favorite. Now after seeing this movie she has reached my top five favorite characters of the Hunger Games trilogy, which is a hard title to come by what with Suzanne Collins writing so many incredible characters in her novels.

In addition to Johanna Mason's character, I cannot get over how wonderful Sam Claflin is as Finnick Odair. He embodied the character that the Capitol knows and the character development that the audience gets to see later on.  Not only that, but he embodied this subtly that I can't quite put a finger on all while winning over the viewers and the citizens of the Capitol with his beaming charm.

And let's not forget how powerful Jennifer Lawrence's performance as our protagonist, Katniss, was.  I still get chills whenever I think about the end scene of the movie. Heck, I still get chills thinking about all of Jennifer Lawrence's scenes from this movie.

I loved the first installment of the Hunger Games movie franchise, but I have to say that this one stepped the game up.  Everything was done up just a notch more and this whole world and the situations were expanded so much more. I'm in awe of how well done this movie was and I along with so many other fans will be waiting with bated breath until Francis Lawrence next installment in the movie franchise is released this coming November, the movie adaptation of Mockingjay. So yes, now I have the date of the DVD release for this movie marked on my calender and I plan on watching it on a loop once that day comes. Who's with me!?
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

The Silver Linings Playbook

Title: The Silver Linings Playbook
Author: Matthew Quick
Pages: 289
Published: January 2008
Summary: Meet Pat. Pat has a theory: his life is a movie produced by God. And his God-given mission is to become physically fit and emotionally literate, whereupon God will ensure a happy ending for him -- the return of his estranged wife Nikki. (It might not come as a surprise to learn that Pat has spent time in a mental health facility.) The problem is, Pat's now home, and everything feels off. No one will talk to him about Nikki; his beloved Philadelphia Eagles keep losing; he's being pursued by the deeply odd Tiffany; his new therapist seems to recommend adultery as a form of therapy. Plus, he's being hunted by Kenny G!

In this enchanting novel, Matthew Quick takes us inside Pat's mind, showing us the world from his distorted yet endearing perspective. As the award-winning novelist Justin Cronin put it: "Tender, soulful, hilarious, and true, The Silver Linings Playbook is a wonderful debut."

My Thoughts:  After being in a four month long reading slump, I have come back with flying colors.  I started reading this novel after having fallen in love with the David O. Russell adaptation and when I was struggling to get out of my aforementioned reading slump.  I watched, I saw, I loved.  Then I decided this past year that it was high time I read the book one of my favorite movies was based upon, so I ponied up and bought the novel.

The beginning left a little to be desired, but once I reached the climax of the book I couldn't put it down.  Our protagonist, Pat, has such an honest, stream-of-consciousness voice that you can't help but relate to.  He is on a mission to win back his estranged wife, Nikki, and ends up befriending a kindred spirit, Tiffany, along the way.  Tiffany sometimes serves an antihero, as does Pat at times, however I always found myself cheering on these two birds of a feather the entire time.

 The book touches on depression, anxiety, and manic depressive disorder in realistic, believable ways.  Almost everyone has seen the effect of these mental illnesses or experienced them themselves, which makes this book all the more relative to what is happening today in society.  And seeing the novel through Pat's eyes and his "silver linings" mentality was truly inspiring to me as a reader to search for my own silver linings.

In terms of the movie being a close adaptation of the novel, it dropped some aspects in order to save for time, which is what happens a lot with book to movie adaptations.  But honestly, I think I enjoyed the movie more than the book. I found myself getting bored whenever I got to the football parts of the story and that made the story seem to drag in those section. That is not to say that the writing is lacking or anything, it's just slightly easier to follow Pat's journey when the fat was cut in the movie version of Matthew Quick's novel, and they did so without sacrificing the plot and character development that make this story so loveable.

With that being said, I still loved this book.  The narration was incredibly well done, the plot was great, and I completely fell in love with Quick's characters.  And now if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to re-watch "Silver Linings Playbook" for the umpteenth time and swoon over Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper's acting talents every ten minutes.
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones Movie

Movie Title: The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
Book the Movie is based on: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
Director: Harald Zwart
Starring: Lilly Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, Kevin Zegers, Jemima West, Robert Sheehan, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Godfrey Gao, etc.
Summary: 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.

My Thoughts: Initially, I wasn't super excited about this book being made into a movie. Out of all the books I've gotten the chance to read in the YA juggernaut that is The Mortal Instruments series, this was definitely not my favorite (with City of Glass being my absolute favorite). But then I, along with the rest of the "shadowhunter" community, saw the first movie trailer for this film and my interest automatically piqued. I was so excited! And I was quite pleased with the end result of this movie.

It wasn't perfect, but I found it to be very entertaining (Clary's mom and Isabelle are such a BA's). The casting was amazing, but the script could sometimes drift towards the cheesy and was kind of hit or miss (mostly hit though, don't worry). And the changes they made when adapting the book to a film medium made sense from a cinematic perspective. The parts they cut out weren't too noticeable to me as a fan, and didn't ruin the chance of a sequel to the movie franchise. Honestly, I think I might like the movie adaptation better than the actual book in this case. I know. It's sacrilege.

My biggest problem, though, lies in the monstrosity that is Valentine's hair. Rat tails? Really? There is no reason you need multiple rat tails protruding from your head, Valentine. They don't make you any more intimidating, and I'm pretty sure those aren't even in style in the Downworld.
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters Movie Review

Title: Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Released: August 7, 2013 (USA)

Directed by: Thor Freudenthal

Starring: Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, Leven Rambin, Brandon T. Jackson, Douglas Smith, Stanley Tucci, Nathan Fillion, etc.

Summary of the Movie: In this retelling of Rick Riordans book, "The Sea of Monsters", Percy Jackson, accompanied by his friends Annabeth Chase, Clarisse La Rue and Tyson, his half brother, goes on a journey to the Sea of Monsters to retrieve the Golden Fleece and save Camp Half-Blood.

My Thoughts: Anyone who has read the Percy Jackson series and then saw the first installment of the movie franchise, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, knows how badly they did at adapting the first book into a film format. I'm not usually one to be snobbish when it comes to book to movie adaptations, but this one was a pretty off compared to the amazing series written by Rick Riordan.

First of all, Percy and his friends in the first few books are in their early teens, while in the first movie they had Percy be about 16 years old. That was probably one of their biggest mistakes if they had any intentions of this series going as far as the books go, time-wise. Not only that, but the way it translated just didn't sit well with the majority of the fans who had read Riordan's series before, including myself.

So when they announced there would be a second installment of this movie franchise, I was instantly interested. Did Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief do well enough in the box office to warrant a sequel? Apparently so. Not only that, but it seems to have been revamped. Many of the fans can just watch the trailer and tell that this movie would be a lot more true to the book than the last, therefore more people were anticipating it's release, including myself.

But upon leaving the theater, I was sorely disappointed. Even though many characters from the series that weren't in the first movie were put into this one, some of them were misrepresented entirely (such as Silena Beauregard or the sass-less Percy).

It was like they took a few plot points from Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters book, and threw out the rest. Nothing was considered when it came to staying true to the Greek mythology roots or the continuity, especially when it comes to the possibility of a third Percy Jackson movie. I actually came out of the theater feeling a little bit angry, to be honest. Being such a fan of Riordan's works and seeing one of his novels be botched this much was hard to watch. Not only that, but the movie lacked natural flow, and as a film I felt like it fell short of my standards of a good movie.

So no, I don't think I'll be buying this one when it hits the shelves on DVD, but I definitely won't let this movie put a sour taste in my mouth when it comes to Riordan's brilliant series.

My Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

The Death Cure

Title: The Death Cure
Author: James Dashner
Series: The Maze Runner series (#3)
Pages: 325 (paperback)
Published: October 2011
Summary: Thomas knows that Wicked can't be trusted, but they say the time for lies is over, that they've collected all they can from the Trials and now must rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission. It's up to the Gladers to complete the blueprint for the cure to the Flare with a final voluntary test.

What Wicked doesn't know is that something's happened that no Trial or Variable could have foreseen. Thomas has remembered far more than they think. And he knows that he can't believe a word of what Wicked says.  The time for lies is over. But the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever imagine.
Will anyone survive the Death Cure?

My Thoughts: Wow, what an ending to The Maze Runner trilogy! So many twists and turns (in more ways than one). James Dashner once again weaves a wonderful adventure that is easy to read, easy to keep up with, yet will keep you on the edge of your seat for most of the book.

However, there were a few parts that did lull a little bit and seemed slightly unnecessary which is why I didn't give it a 5 out of 5 stars. The first two books in this trilogy were a little bit more fast paced, twisty, and less predictable, but this third installment tied up the series very nicely. I did have a few questions at the end but I assume they will probably be answered in the prequel to the series, The Kill Order. It gave me a sense of finality, even though there were quite a few emotionally distressing moments (the deaths! THE DEATHS! My poor heart broke because of all the deaths in this book).

Finishing this series only makes me even more excited for The Maze Runner the movie (premiering in the U.S.A on February 14, 2014). If you haven't read The Maze Runner yet, I highly highly recommend it! It was one of my favorite books I read last year, and it's a quick exciting read that I feel anyone can love. So definitely expect updates and a review about this highly anticipated movie adaptation. It looks like it's going to be a good one!
My Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars 

Books I Bought in July

(A late update, but nevertheless an update)

Adding on to my book collection and enabling my book-buying addiction, I've been to a few used bookstores and Barnes & Noble a few times this month. I am proud of myself, however, because I didn't buy as many books as I did last month and I think that's progress, right? Anyways, enough about this growing addiction to feeding my bookshelves, here's my book haul from the month of July:

Grave Mercy - by Robin LaFevers
I've seen a number of great reviews on this book, and my best friend even recommended it to me, and I trust her judgment, book-wise. And on top of that, it looks really interesting! A total BA female master assassin who's the daughter of death?! How awesome is that? Downside, though: it's really long and it'll probably take me a while to get to it let alone to get through it.

Agatha Christie short stories
I found this one at the used bookstore and ended up buying it because I don't have any collections of short stories so I thought, "why not start with the queen of mystery?" I'm starting my university classes in a couple of weeks, one of which is creative writing where we write and read a lot of short stories, so you could say I was inspired by that.

The 5th Wave - Rick Yancey
This is one of those books that defines a year. Last year I feel like it was The Fault in our Stars, and after seeing only positive, raving reviews about this sci-fi adventure, I'm certain that this will be one of the best books of 2013. If you click on the title above it'll link you to the goodreads page for this novel where you can read the summary (it was a bit long to put in this post). It seems slightly vague, but only in the best of ways. I hate it when a book summary tells the reader exactly what happens. It makes it too predictable, and I love to be kept guessing while reading. It's exciting!

Pretties - by Scott Westerfeld
No I haven't yet read the first book of this series, Uglies, but once again I was recommended to read this series and I've seen many-a-blogger enjoy this book so I bought it. Also, it was on sale and I had a coupon. How could I resist!?

Hallowed - by Cynthia Hand
This book is the second of a trilogy about fallen angels and angels in general, and if you read my book haul post from earlier last month you'll know how much I loved the first of this series, Unearthly. It was lighthearted yet kept your attention the whole time, which is perfect for me when I'm at university during the semester and busy with college-y stuff (is that a real term? my brain is fried from summer classes I apologize). On another note, this series has some of the most beautiful covers. I usually don't like covers with girls in dresses on them because they've been a little overdone, but these are so gorgeous that I can't get enough of them.

Maybe I won't buy as many books this month seeing as how I'm starting back up with my college classes and on top of that I'll be doubling my time with my internship which means less time to buy books or read. But I always seem to find time between classes, so don't expect an official hiatus. It'll be more like a-post-every-other-week kind of hiatus as opposed to where I (attempt to) put up a post every week. Whatever the schedule, I wish you happy reading!

July Wrap-Up and YALLFest News

Well to say that I didn't get much done in the month of July is kind of putting it lightly. But I have an excuse! I had two finals for my summer classes within a couple of weeks of each other and in the end, I only ended up finishing one book (The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen) and starting one other book (The Death Cure by James Dashner) this month. And on top of my summer classes ending, I had to help plan my family vacation to Disney World (which will be this weekend!) and finish my paperwork for my internship and yeah July just was not a good reading month for me. I may or may not have found myself in another reading slump, which will hopefully be broken by my 12 hour drive to and from Florida this coming week.

However I do have some good news! I'm planning on going to YALLFest, which is Charleston, South Carolina's, young adult book festival. It'll be held on November 9, 2013, and it's a one day shindig in one of my favorite cities and admission is absolutely free. There are going to be 50 young adult authors there (among the list are Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia of Beautiful Creatures fame and Stephanie Perkins, author of Anna and the French Kiss) along with a keynote speaker, who will be Veronica Roth this year. Yes. THE Veronica Roth! As in the author of the Divergent series (the last book of the trilogy, Allegiant, is set to release October 22 of this year). Her book signing is going to be a huge even in and of itself especially with the first book of the series, Divergent, getting it's own movie next year. On top of that, this is one of my favorite series at the moment, so I will definitely be bringing my own copies for her to sign at the event and yes I am fangirling over the thought of just meeting her (but only a little).

A more complete and detailed description of when, where, and who will be attending YALLFest can be found here if you're interested in learning more about the event.

I've never been to a convention or book festival of any kind before, so this should be a wonderful and exciting new experience for me and I absolutely cannot wait!