Twilight (the movie and update)

After going to Twilight in theatres and talking with afew people about the book series, I found that updating my views would be appropriate.

Let me start with my recommendation. If you are a novice to the Twilight hype and have yet to read the book, I suggest you read the first book, go to the movie, and stop- in that order. Talk to your friends who've read number 2,3,4 and then go to those movies.

So let me explain.
Despite having a great idea and story, Stephenie Meyer did not deliver a great literary work. The concept and some themes are substantial, but she should have cut almost half of the story, often falling into redundance or sensational emotion. Her execution of the story is without risk or notable skill. If you compare her to J.K.Rowling, for instance, I think you will see my point. Her literary allusions are obvious and her characters static and frustrating. She didn't seem to have a large picture in view.

Therefore, I don't see the point in a person wasting their time when the movie does a better job of telling the story, as they weren't able to show half of the gushing and emotional scenes. But the movie itself has some faults. Though I was emensely entertained, the special effects were on the low end and the dialogue lacking. The casting was great: Charlie and Billy, especially Charlie, had a great performance. I just felt the movie was put together hastily. Both the movie and book, it seems, would have benefited from a more tactful editing.

the office season 5

The Office

"When you work on a farm, your sense of smell gets very sharp. For example, there are beets in the condo two doors down that way. And someone over there, I believe, is a fan of olives."
-Dwight

As a magnet for all that is awkward, I have a certain appreciation for the NBC series "the office", but as of the beginning of this season I am left more depressed on Thursday nights because of a subtle change. The humor has become heavy and dark. I've noticed that from the crowd around the TV there are more frequently gasps of sympathy instead gasps of amazement. At the end of the half-hour people look around stupidly wondering if "that's it?". Yet, every Thursday night there is always a loyal group waiting patiently for "the office" to inspire them to greater works of the awkward and uncalled for.

My one thought is that the characters have become too well known, we love them too much to see humiliating or depressing situations occur to them. We want Jim and Pam to be together, we are upset every time Michael looks into the camera with his longing to have a family, and some (shockingly) even have hopes for Dwight.

Have you been disappointed at all by this new season, or are you amazed that anyone could claim it to be anything less than the best? What have you seen different in this season compared to others? What is your favorite season and why?

Welcome

Welcome to "a penny for your thoughts"

My hope for this blog is to bring a new perspective to a variety of topics,

from movie and book reviews to recent news stories in order to reveal beauty, truth, and goodness within each.

The topic I would like to start with is the book series of Twilight by Stephenie Meyer.

Twilight follows the life of a teenage girl named Bella and her romance with vampire Edward. When I first heard about the series, I thought to myself that I would not read it.

But then a friend of mine brought it up months later, and before I could state my ill feelings and assumptions, he began to pitch the novel as a parallel to practicing chastity.

I was caught off guard. This book which was allegdely a teenage girl romance tale was now being proponed by a college guy as a good example of virtue. Hmmm.

The way my friend explained it is that Edward, the vampire, has to protect Bella from himself, from his desires. She is literally endangered by him, and so he must exercise great self control. My friend suggested that it reveals the "vampire in us all" - how we must approach our desires with self mastery and prudence.

Now, after having read the series, I have a few responses.

1. Meyer is Mormon, and this is important because many of the themes are depicted in the Morman thought- something to be aware of.

2. There are some great themes of chastity as well as sacrifice, society, and free will to name a few.

3. It is not well written. The style seems unedited, with much superfluous details and redundancies. Meyer settles for being sensational instead of profound; she didn't take many risks. Many of the scenes read like a soap opera: very dramatic and emotional vs. reasonable. Being in the fantasy genre, it's important to respect the suspence of belief.

4. But the content, the idea of the Twilight series, was the compelling force behind my continued reading. I was hopeful and curious as to where Meyer would take her story, though as of right now, I cannot say she left me satisfied.

So now is your turn. What do you think? What have you heard? What makes a book worth while?