Archive
Best Discoveries of 2009–Movies, TV Shows, and Websites
You guys got to see my favorite reads of 2009, but what about all else entertainment? I do, surprisingly, do things besides read with my (little) free-time. So here’s Part One of my best of all-else entertainment list from 2009. I’m not limiting myself to things that came out in 2009, just things that I encountered for the first time in 2009. Consider everything listed as accompanied with the highest recommendations.
Movies
Coraline (2009)
The story of a little girl rightfully frustrated with her parents who discovers another world is delightfully creative, but the animation is what makes this a must-see. It is truly a feast for your eyes.- The Hangover (2009)
Bust a gut, laugh out loud funny. A groom and his buddies go to Vegas a few days before his wedding for his bachelor party, and when they wake up the next morning, the buddies can’t find the groom or remember what they did the night before. Uproariously awkward situations make you feel way better about that one night you can’t remember. 
Inglorious Basterds (2009)
A troop of American Jews led by Brad Pitt go on a Nazi-killing spree in WWII Europe. Confession. I fucking love WWII history. I have ever since I was a kid. I also absolutely love blood and guts movies. The more gruesome the better. I also love Jewish fellas (I blame my undergrad university for that one). Additionally, I love Brad Pitt. *swoon* German is also my foreign language, so I didn’t even need the damn sub-titles. Can you say must-see movie? My only gripe is that not enough time was spent on the awesome group of American soldiers.- Kill Bill Volume One (2003)
The Bride has a score to settle with her old boss Bill and everyone who helped him commit the slaughter of all present for her wedding day (not to mention almost killing her). So many epic fight scenes. So many bad-ass women. Not to mention the whole blood and guts thing previously mentioned. 
South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut (1999)
The boys’ parents get all upset when they sneak in to see the R-rated Terrence and Phillip movie, which clearly leads to a war with Canada. This basically is South Park The Musical and gave us the gifts that are the songs “Uncle Fucka” and “Blame Canada.” Top it off with a giant talking vagina, and you have a seriously hilarious movie.- The Shining (1980), review
Jack takes his family with him on a live-in caretaker job in a remote, empty hotel in Colorado. Did I mention the hotel is sinister? It takes a lot for a film to scare me, and this did.
TV Shows
- Lost (2004 to present)
The tale of the survivors of a flight that crashed on an uncharted island. I remember when this first came out that I avoided watching it because I knew I didn’t have time to get addicted to another tv show. Netflix Instant spurred me into watching it, and holy shit. This show’s mystery and scifi are so good that I am literally yelling at the tv (yes, I bought the complete set). Me yelling at the tv is a sign of a good tv show, btw. I’m on the fourth season and am bound and determined to catch up before the new season starts in February. 
The Simpsons (1989 to present)
That sound you hear is the collective shock of everyone reading this, but I seriously had never watched The Simpsons ever before this year. No, not even one episode. I really can’t explain why. I just never got around to it. Well, now I get what the obsession is with it, and I’ve watched a ton of episodes, let me tell you.- South Park (1997 to present)
No big surprise here with the movie listed above, but I also was newly introduced to this show this year. The pop culture commentary is epic. All you need to do is see the Kanye West fish sticks episode to understand. 
True Blood (2008 to present)
A small Louisiana town deals with daily life and the recent coming out of vampires with the Japanese invention of synthetic human blood. This show has everything: bayou setting, vampires, sex, drugs, comedy, and mystery. Watching an episode is like taking a vacation. It also provided me with the hilarity that is me imitating Bill saying “Sookie is mine!” I can’t wait for the second season to come out on DVD so I can watch it!
Websites
- Etsy
Buy and/or sell handmade or vintage items and supplies. It’s kind of like having a craft fair in your browser, and I love buying one-of-a-kind earrings there. - Regretsy
My friends and I were doing what this blog does for a while–finding the hideous things people offer up as “vintage” or “handmade” on Etsy (not the majority of things found there at all) and mocking them. This blog is sure to send many giggles your way. (or horror) - Sock Dreams
I love wearing snazzy socks, tights, and legwarmers, and this website has the best selection for the best prices. - Tor
I’m a scifi freak, and their theme months are great. This month was Cthulu Christmas, for instance. Also they host a bunch of amazing give-aways.
Coming up in Part Two, Boston places, web clips, and recipes!
Book Review: All I Want For Christmas Is a Vampire By Kerrelyn Sparks (Series, #5)
Summary:
Toni never meant to wind up working as a daytime security guard for vampires. She meant to be spending her December focusing on finishing up her masters degree so she and her best friend Sabrina would be one step closer to their dream of running a high-quality orphanage. But Sabrina was attacked and her claims that vampires orchestrated the attack has led to her uncle locking her up in a mental institution. Toni is determined to prove to Sabrina’s uncle that vampires are real, so she has gone undercover guarding the good vampires seeking some definitive way to prove their existence. Much as she wants to hate vampires, a certain Scottish highlander vamp named Ian has a way of making her feel very much alive.
Review:
Since I received this book as a present and there was no indication on the cover, I had no idea it’s the fifth book in the series until I was partway in and did a little bit of investigating. So, I haven’t read any of the other books in the series.
Of course, I don’t particularly think I would want to. The book starts out strongly. Toni is a character who it is easy to identify with. She’s a young adult with dreams and struggling with her self-esteem via a list of positive affirmations she says every morning. She is fiercely loyal and intelligent. Toni’s character does develop throughout the book, unfortunately not in a good way. Instead of realizing her own strength, she now has a whole new set of people–vampires and shape-shifters–to feel inferior to.
The vampire world that Sparks creates is simply not appealing. She sets up two groups of vampires–the good guys and the bad guys, or as the good vampires call them, the “Malcontents.” The Malcontents enjoy making others feel fear and pain and want to kill off all of the good vampires. The good vampires, no kidding, have their own priest and Mass. Yeah, you read that right, the vampires are Catholic. WTF?! That’s almost as bad as vampires that sparkle.
Additionally, the good vampires seem to have a thing for marrying mortals, and the leader of the good vampires has come up with a way to splice male vamps’ genetic material so that the mortal mother can give birth to a child who is half-vampire. Naturally these children have super-human abilities, such as levitating, but they also seem to be able to miraculously heal the sick. Reading these scenes gave me the same feeling as fingernails on chalkboard.
On the other hand, the romance portion of the plot is actually quite good. Toni’s and Ian’s witty banter reads realistically, and their sex scenes are fun.
If you’re just after the romance element and won’t mind the world Sparks has created, you’ll enjoy the book. All others should stick to Charlaine Harris and Nora Roberts.
2.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Gift from a friend
Previous Books in Series:
How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire
Vamps and the City
Be Still My Vampire Heart
The Undead Next Door
Book Review: Truly, Madly by Heather Webber (ARC, Feb 2010)
Summary:
Boston socialite Lucy Valentine isn’t too keen on running the family’s matchmaking business while her mother and father take a necessary trip out of country to let a scandal settle down. You see, she lost the family’s genetic ability to see auras that has led to their matchmaking success. When she was a kid, she was hit by an electrical surge that removed her ability to see auras and replaced it with an ability to see lost objects when her palm touches the owner’s palm. When a potential client shakes her hand, and she sees a dead body wearing his ring, she gets caught up in a bit more adventure than she ever thought her ability would lead her into. It doesn’t hurt that she manages to enlist the aid of the hunky private investigator whose office shares the matchmaking business’s building.
Review:
I was excited to discover a book set in Boston that has nothing to do with the Irish mob or the Kennedy’s. Unfortunately, I have this problem with reading about the modern wealthy. I simply can’t identify, and it tends to irritate me unless the book is all about how they’re a serial killer or something. Lucy is decidedly in with the Boston wealthy. Her family owns a building on Newbury Street; they employ a driver; and she has a trust fund. Of course she refuses the trust fund, but she’s still living in a cute, perfect cottage on her grandmother’s land in the South Shore. She calls her grandmother by her first name, “Dovie,” and her mother “Mum.” *shudders* I cringed every time she said either.
On the plus side, once I manage to overlook the whole poor rich girl scenario, the plot is good. It is full of twists and turns that have a slight supernatural bent without going full-tilt building an entirely populated other world of faeries, sprites, vampires, etc… that is seen in a lot of paranormal fiction. Lucy’s attraction to Sean, the PI, is believable and progresses at a good rate. The main mystery actually managed to surprise me with the ending, so that’s a major mark in its favor.
I also enjoyed the little life details Webber put into the story, Lucy’s cat’s activities, exactly what T lines are nearby where the action is happening, etc… However, I did not like Lucy’s personality quirk of doing math problems in her head when she was nervous. I don’t know what it is with romance writers lately having their characters do some annoying thing when they’re nervous, but to me it screams that Webber couldn’t figure out a better way to signal this emotion to the reader.
On the whole, it was a fun mystery plot with a dash of paranormal set in Boston marred by the choice of making the main character part of the wealthy elite with an annoying, unnecessary personality quirk. If you enjoy paranormal and wealthy characters, you will enjoy this book.
3 out of 5 stars
Source: Received from publisher, St. Martin’s Paperbacks, through LibraryThing‘s Early Reviewers program
Projected Publication Date: February 2010
Book Review: All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris (Series, #7)
Summary:
Against her fairy godmother’s better judgment, Sookie accompanies the Louisiana vampire contingency to Rhodes, Illinois for the vampire summit to work for the queen reading human minds at the various wheelings and dealings. She is excited that Quinn will be there as well, but a wrench is thrown in the works of their relationship when she is forced to exchange blood for a third time with Eric. To top it all off Sookie and fellow telepath Barry have the odd sensation that something isn’t quite right at the summit. It’s a lot for small-town girl Sookie to handle in one week in the north.
Review:
I want to say the action in this entry into Sookie’s adventures is excellent, but it isn’t quite there. The minor side-mysteries are quite good, but they are meant to distract from the main event, which frankly I had figured out way way way before Sookie. It was pratically hitting her in the face, and she didn’t get it. So the mystery leaves a little to be desired.
On the other hand, the plot point where Andre is trying to force Sookie to exchange blood with him, and Eric steps up to exchange blood with her instead is excellent. Quinn is unjustifiably angry, and Sookie discovers that trading blood three times is a magical number. She is more closely tied to Eric than she is comfortable with, and she is left incredibly confused about her feelings for him vs her feelings for Quinn. This is a love conflict that is bound to prove interesting because she has feelings for Eric but intellectually believes Quinn is a wiser choice. Now this is juicy romantic conflict!
Something that has been bugging me about the series that is featured epicenter of this book though is the whole idea of the vampires arranging their kingdoms based on the states. There’s the King of Tennessee and the Queen of Louisiana, and they even call each other simply by the state (as in, “Oh hi, Louisiana”). This makes zero sense. Why would the super-powerful and, for the majority of existence, hidden vampires arrange themselves based on arbitrary human dividing lines? Sure having multiple kingdoms in the US makes sense, but not arranged based on the human-created state lines. It doesn’t fit into the characterization of what a vampire is.
I think what really bothered me about this book though was that it made me dislike Sookie. I don’t like how she behaves, her superficial focus on clothing, or her prejudiced view of northerners. (Not a single northern woman she runs into does she view as anything other than a rude bitch). I don’t always need to like my main characters, but I think in a paranormal romance that’s problematic.
Overall, the action is excellent, even if some of the world-building doesn’t make sense and the characterization can be off-putting. I think this may be a set-up for a major, character-changing circumstance in Sookie’s life, which would make it more understandable. We’ll see if I’m right.
3 out of 5 stars
Source: Bought on Amazon
Previous Books in Series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead To The World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
Book Review: Definitely Dead By Charlaine Harris (Series #6)
Summary:
Sookie needs to go to New Orleans for both personal and business reasons. Her cousin Hadley had been a vampire but died her second death leaving everything to Sookie, so she needs to go clean out her apartment. As far as business goes, the queen of Louisiana has also requested her presence to figure out if she will require Sookie’s services for the upcoming vampire summit. When Sookie finds out that Hadley was the queen’s lover, a connection between the two purposes for the visit shows up that may be more significant than she at first realizes.
Review:
I’m glad I learned on some blog (wish I could remember which one) that a short story comes between the previous book and this one in the series, otherwise I would have thought I missed a book or something. That annoying tendency to retell things that already happened? Actually awfully helpful here, since I haven’t read that short story. You don’t need to read the short story to enjoy this book, but I wish I had and advise you to as well. If you’re interested, some investigation reveals that short story is contained in the collection of Sookie short stories called A Touch of Dead.
Also thankfully, my prediction that Dead as a Doornail was a random clunker and not a death toll for the series was correct. Definitely Dead is a step back up in quality. The multiple storylines actuall do reveal to be related and not just random throwaways designed to throw you off the scent of the main mystery. We also get the addition of a new supe–part-demons–and some serious reveals. I mean makes you rethink how you look at the entire story reveals. To give you non-spoilery hints, you learn something about Bill and something about just why Sookie is so darn appealing to the supe guys. I personally love that sort of thing, and I’m hoping these two reveals will help the series continue to grow and expand.
On the minus side, I have to come right out and say it that I am not impressed with Quinn. I’m glad Sookie has become a bit more savvy about pursuing a long-term relationship, but with Quinn? Really? The man’s looks don’t match what has been established to be Sookie’s type at all–tall and lean–he is instead the muscle-bound guy. That suits some women, but it comes out of the blue that Sookie’s at all attracted to him. Also, what’s with the purple eyes? On what planet is it sexy for a man to have eyes not only an unnatural color, but an unnatural color that’s girly? I of course dislike him for nonsuperficial reasons too. He seems far too perfect. He says those puke-inducing gushy things to Sookie that, I’m sorry, perfectly nice men just don’t say in real life, and you know why they don’t say them? Because they sound corny and false and how the man treats you is far more important than what he says to you. There’s also the fact that he originally came on to her when there was a fight to the death going on in front of them, something I find indicative of just how sympathetic he really is to other people. Frankly, I just don’t find Quinn or Sookie’s interest in him believable. Something just rings false about the whole thing. It isn’t like her interactions with Eric, for example, that are full of witty banter and internal conflict about liking this person on both sides. Quinn and Sookie’s conversations literally make me want to puke at how disgustingly sweet and false they sound. Reading their conversations is like eating a twinkie. A deep-fried twinkie.
Thankfully, there isn’t much Quinn in this book, so it’s still an enjoyable read and a sign of better things to come in the series.
3 out of 5 stars
Source: Bought on Amazon
Previous Books in Series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead To The World
Dead as a Doornail
Book Review: The Waste Lands By Stephen King (Series, #3)
Summary:
This entry in the Dark Tower series opens with Eddie, Susannah, Roland, and Jake dealing with the paradox created when Roland saves Jake from being killed in his own world. Now Jake and Roland are both living with the knowledge of two different ways a time period of about three weeks went down, and it is driving them both mad. They must solve the paradox before it is too late. After working out the paradox the ka-tet faces a post-apocalyptic city stuck in an age-based civil war. Can the ka-tet who fit into neither side survive? More importantly, can they hitch a ride on a long-forgotten train to speed up their quest for the tower?
Review:
This book opens with a bang. I thought King was going to gloss over the obvious paradox caused by Roland saving Jake in The Drawing of the Three, but a significant portion of this book is spent dealing with just that paradox. I think King is at his best when he writes about psychological horrors, and he gets to really exercise his hand at this with this plot point. That’s not to say there aren’t physical horrors here as well. Of course there are. They mainly show up as the guardians of the ends of the beams that function like spokes around the tower. Decaying beasts and demons haunt the ka-tet’s every move. I actually had serious issues putting the book down during its first half.
The problem arises in the second half. First of all, this book really should have been divided into two. The plots are almost entirely different between the first and second halves, and this was more jolting than if the second storyline was started knowing that it was the next entry in the series. Even King acknowledges in an Afterword that the second storyline stops extremely abruptly. I believe this is because of the sheer length the book was getting to. This wouldn’t have been a problem if this storyline was its own book entirely.
I also personally don’t like plots revolving around kidnappers out to hurt children, which is essentially what this plot is, only in a more fantastical world and with a side-mission for Eddie and Susannah. I’m sure some people enjoy this plot idea, but I personally am far too disturbed at the thought to become thoroughly sucked into the story.
I could forgive these things, mainly due to the addition of a lovable critter to the ka-tet, if it wasn’t for an event toward the end of the book that I felt was too over-top, unbelievable, and done purely for shock value. I won’t tell you what it is here, because that’d be a major plot spoiler, but suffice to say you’ll know it when you see it, and it’ll probably upset you too. It read like lazy writing, and that made me feel like I was being talked down to as a reader.
In spite of the disjointed ending that was also a bit uncomfortable for me, the beginning was truly excellent. I’m hoping the next entry in the series reads entirely like the beginning of this one, but this book is still worth the read for the first half alone.
3.5 out of 5 stars
Source: Borrowed
Previous Books in Series:
The Gunslinger, review
The Drawing of the Three, review
Movie Review: The Thing with Two Heads (1972)
Summary:
A white racist transplant doctor has figured out how to transplant a head onto a new body. When he encounters an accident and is in danger of dying, his staff desperately try to find a donor body. They finally snag a volunteer from death row–a black convict. The catch is that the two heads must live on the body simultaneously for the first month. When the convict escapes with both heads still attached, the race is on for ownership of his body.
Review:
This movie is hilarious, even though I’m sure it doesn’t mean to be. The effects are bad. The same car crash scenes are used repeatedly from different angles to show at least ten different car crashes. The two heads do not look realistic at all, and that is all part of what makes it awesome.
The soundtrack is classic 70s music, that of course wasn’t classic yet at the time. Watching the cops walk down death row to a disco beat is exactly the type of juxtaposition that makes this movie so funny.
I honestly have no idea what racial statement this movie was trying to make, but I can tell you that everyone is a caricature regardless of their race. It’s just that kind of over-the-top writing found in B movies. I would caution anyone reading the description against taking this movie too seriously. I’m pretty sure it was entirely the result of a “Wouldn’t it be hilarious if a racist was stuck with a black guy? Awesome!”
This is one of those rare instances of a movie so incredibly bad it actually is insanely good.
5 out of 5 stars
Source: Netflix
Movie Review: Bruno (2009)
Summary:
In this mockumentary Sacha Baron Cohen takes on the role of Bruno–a fabulously gay Austrian fashion reporter who comes to America in the hopes of becoming famous. Cohen places Bruno into situations with real people who don’t know he’s just a character and sees what unfolds.
Review:
If you’re easily offended at all, don’t watch Bruno. I, however, am not so I didn’t hate it. I also didn’t love it either.
A few of the set-ups are great. The episode where Bruno adopts an African baby because that’s what famous people do is an excellent commentary on celebrity culture. The scene where Bruno sees a come out of gayness counselor is also thought-provoking. Unfortunately, Cohen primarily goes for over-the-top sex shock value over commentary. To me there’s just nothing funny about him and another man bound together in S + M gear taking the bus because they can’t get unlocked from each other. I was just sitting there going “Wouldn’t the camera crew unlock them?”
Overall, Bruno falls flat. It tries to be shocking, but mainly comes across as adolescent.
2 out of 5 stars
Source: Netflix
Book Review: Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris (Series, #4)
Summary:
Just because Sookie has broken up with Bill doesn’t mean her relationship with the supernatural world is over–especially when she finds Eric naked and suffering from amnesia on the side of the road. When she discovers from Pam that a league of evil witches have their sights set on ruling Shreveport, she agrees to hide Eric while the vampires, werewolves, and Wiccans attempt to fend off the witches. To top it off, Sookie’s brother has gone missing, which may or may not be related to the near-war going on.
Review:
While the books in the series so far have been improving, Dead to the World is definitely a step back.
The individual plot lines aren’t so bad, but Harris doesn’t do a good job of keeping them integrated and flowing. The book reads as if it has too many sticks in the fire. Just too much happens in such a short book. The reader is left feeling a bit of whiplash from the rapidly changing storylines and situations.
I knew Sookie would have a rebound after Bill, but I’d hoped Harris would be more creative than having that rebound be Eric. Don’t get me wrong. I like Eric better than Bill, but I also enjoyed the tension between him and Sookie. I wish that had lasted longer. Similarly, I don’t think giving Eric amnesia was a wise character development choice. I’m pretty sure anyone with amnesia plopped into the supernatural world would be a cowering mess. That doesn’t tell us anything about who Eric is underneath his persona. Sookie’s interactions with him therefore felt so fake that I not only couldn’t take real interest in them, I was also a bit grossed out by the falseness of them. I didn’t expect Sookie’s rebound to be emotional, but I did expect it to be more real.
On the other hand, Sookie’s character development takes a nice turn. Without Bill in the picture, she may have expected the supernatural world to pretty much leave her alone. Instead she finds out they still depend on her. Through the various situations, she starts to become a more empowered version of herself, and I enjoyed seeing that.
The best part of the book by far is Jason’s plot-line. I can’t say much more or I’ll give away the secret, but suffice to say that I hope True Blood gets to this part of the story sooner rather than later.
While I’m irritated by some of the character development choices Harris has made, I am still enjoying the world she has created. I am hoping though that the series returns to the tight, witty writing found in Club Dead.
3 out of 5 stars
Source: Bought on Amazon
Previous Books in Series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Movie Review: The Shining (1980)
Summary:
Jack Torrance thinks he’s found the ideal job. He, along with his wife and son, can move into a Colorado hotel and take care of it for the winter in exchange for a living stipend. An aspiring novelist, Jack sees this as such a perfect opportunity to write that he shrugs off the story of the previous caretaker who murdered his wife and daughters and then committed suicide. At first everything is fine, but soon the sinister forces in the hotel start to work on Jack and his psychic son.
Review:
Wow. I love horror movies, but it takes a certain combination of plot and visual to really scare me. The Shining has scares in spades.
For the person who’s freaked out by visuals, there’s blood pouring out of elevators, corpses, and of course Jack Nicholson’s amazing facial contorions when his character turns sinister. Truly the movie would not have been anywhere near as frightening without Nicholson’s ability to contort his face into so many different frightening combinations. The man’s face was made to act.
What really got to me though is the psychological aspect of this story. What really makes this story worth it is the question of how much of what is going on is in the characters’ minds. The truly evil things that happen are performed by characters whose minds are not all there. They have lost their tenuous grasp on reality, and that is more frightening than any axe murderer, because anyone could go crazy. Essentially, anyone could turn into a monster.
Take these two elements and toss in a bit of a last-minute puzzle at the end, and you’ve got the perfect formula for an excellent horror movie.
5 out of 5 stars
Source: Netflix
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Opinions of a Wolf 