The last movie I have seen
is The Words which was
released in 2012.
The story follows the young
writer Rory Jansen from New York
who has written a novel but the editors do not accept to publish it since the
story is non-commercial. Rory lives with his girlfriend Dora and is financially
supported by his father. When his father tells Rory that he will give no more
money for him and that Rory should have a conventional job, he works as a clerk
in a publishing house and soon he marries Dora. They travel on honeymoon to Paris and he buys an old
briefcase from an antiques store. When they return to New York, Rory finds the manuscript of a
novel hidden in the briefcase and he becomes fascinated with the story and
decides to send it to the editors. Soon the book becomes a best-seller and Rory
becomes a successful and famous writer. One day, an old man meets him in Central Park and asks for an autograph in his book. When
Rory is leaving the place, the old man asks him if he wouldn't like to listen
to a story of a man that was stolen by a young man. Rory seats on the bench
again and the old man tells a dramatic story of pain and loss to him.Confronted by the Old Man, Rory is
wracked with shame and fear, and he is belatedly forced to contemplate the
moral and ethical issues surrounding his theft and how to handle the
catastrophic fallout should the truth be made public. He is further shamed by
the Old Man’s refusal to accept any financial settlement.
The movie isshowing us that every decision we make in
life has consequences. Some choices will lead us to success, while others, to
failure. Regardless of the outcome, we must live with the results of your
actions. ‘The Words’ examines the price one man has to pay for his
life-altering decision.
Since season 1 began way back in September 2010 I have to admit to
being slightly obsessed with this show. Not that I live week to week to
see what happens or anything. Before I go into season 2 so far lets take a little look back to season 1 for those of you out of the loop.
Lost Girl is a supernatural drama which focuses on a
succubus (bear with me) called Bo. Not knowing why her kiss literally
sucks the life out of people could get a girl down, that is until Bo
realises she is part of a underworld of beings called the Fae. Still
with me? The bottom line of season 1 is that Bo, a bisexual, is in the
centre of a love triangle involving a Fae police detective, Dyson, and a
rather sexy human doctor, Lauren. Season 1 sees a lot of Dyson action
but season 2, now that is all about the lovely doctor and our sexy
heroine.
Of course we can’t forget Bo’s human best friend either, Kensi, the funniest character on TV bar none. As sexy as Anna Silk (Bo) and Zoie Palmer (Lauren) are, Ksenia Solo’s Kensi is comedic gold.
Season 2 kicks off with a travelling circus and continues on with
episodes involving witches, werewolves, characters inhabiting one
anothers bodies and all manner of Fae goodness. However, it is learning
Lauren’s back-story that keeps us hooked.
What we know is that Lauren is enslaved to The Ash, the leader of the light Fae. What we don’t know is why or how this
happened. When a new Ash is elected in episode two the plot thickens.
It is clear that he sees humans as objects to be owned and Lauren is in
for a tough time. Episode six however, It’s Better to Burn Out Than Fae Away, is where it all kicks off.
The Morrigan, leader of the dark Fae, employs Bo to do an
investigation and in return promises her information on freeing Lauren.
When Bo is successful the Morrigan gives her a small box and says it’s
the key to saving Nadia. Who? Exactly! Turns out Lauren has a
girlfriend. So who is this Nadia and does Bo have a right to be peeved
that Lauren never brought her up? Well yes, I think she does.
Lauren explains that Nadia is in a coma, she has been for 5 years.
While in the Congo the doc and her photographer girlfriend came across
an illness, turns out it only affected Fae and our hero doctor found a
cure. However, Nadia also got ill and The Ash offered the doc a deal.
He will give her all his resources to find a cure for Nadia but only if
she enslaves herself to him. I know, nasty stuff but lets all swoon
together at Lauren’s loyalty.
When Lauren and Bo open the box given to them by the Morrigan it
contains a nail. What does that mean, who the hells knows, but I am
hooked!
It’s actually really moving as Lauren is truly torn between the two.
Having spent 5 years as a slave and coming up empty on a cure for
Nadia, she genuinely cares for Bo. Good lord these writers love a good
triangle, issues anyone?
It turns out that the nail is the Morrigan’s way of telling our
ladies that Nadia isn’t ill, she has been cursed. Why and by whom we
don’t know yet but I have two theories. Either she did something to
piss someone off or, more likely, The Ash saw how talented Lauren was in
finding the cure for his people, and set her up to become his slave.
This season’s big bad is the Garuda, basically a creature of immense
strength that feeds off anger. Lachlyn tells Bo that he is a Naga and
his venom is all that will kill the Garuda, he asks her to be his
champion and she agrees. In order to deteat their enemy they must band
together and take him on with Bo leading the way. Lachlyn however
knows that the Garuda will be most vulnerable if he thinks he is
indestructible so he gets Lauren to extract a sample of his venom and
allows the Garuda kill him so he thinks all the venom is gone.
In
the meantime we see Nadia acting a bit odd, she is trying to suss out
Bo and at one point our suspicions are confirmed when we see Nadia cut
herself and taste her own blood, she’s not herself, to say the least.
Nadia has been taken over by the the Garuda! Bo comes over to Lauren’s
when she gets home to find Kenzi has been assaulted by Nadia. She
Lauren and Nadia all seem to realise what’s going on at once and Nadia
asks Bo to kill her, which she does. Nothing kills a flame like killing
your ladies girlfriend whom she enslaved herself to try to save. Bo
slinks off and Lauren is heartbroken, she thinks about leaving the place together but ends up going to help Lachlyn with his plan.
The writers place Bo in some pretty
interesting scenarios, like going undercover at a school as a sub
teacher and being the sexiest teacher ever seen. They also know what
they have in Bo’s best friend, Kenzi, the funniest character on TV with
the best one liners I have ever heard.
The final two episodes are the battle between the group and the
Garuda. Bo, Lauren, Kenzi, Trick, Dyson, Hale and Ciara are all focused
on the battle ahead when Dyson gets a vision from the wolf spirit and
thinks it is he who is chosen to fight, typical man eh! He was wrong
and Ciara gets it in the guts, her death and that of Nadia means our
love triangle is back on track, now both Dyson and Lauren are free
agents.
Bo asks the Nain Rouge (an observer of events) what she need to do to
win the battle and she is told she must unit dark with light, in other
words she needs a dark fae on her team. Bo decides to enlist Vex, I
love Vex, he’s a great recurring character and will no doubt come in
useful in a battle.
Bo discovers that Trick is her grandfather and I love this, it was
kind of obvious, but it was well done and now we can see that the apple
doesn’t fall far from the tree. Trick’s power comes from his blood and
Bo discovers she can control people with hers. she asks the Fae members
of her team to allow Lauren to inject them with her blood, this will
make the circle stronger and eliminate any anger within the group, the
Garuda’s food source if you will. However Vex spills the blood as he is
being injected and so the circle is not complete.
So where is the Gaurda? Well he has kidnapped Trick to try to fool
him into rewriting the laws he wrote to end the war. His hide out is of
course an insane asylum, where else? Hale’s sister Val joins the team
and off they all go to save the world. They split up to
look for Trick, Bo takes Kenzi and Lauren with her, lets hope she is
playing favourites. When Dyson and Vex meet a few bad boys Vex is
injured and as they run back into Bo, Lauren insists she must stay with
Vex in case he goes into shock. Bo is all “I’m not leaving you” and
kisses her, awwww. Kenzi also gets herself hurt and it ends up with
Lauren trying to hlp her and Vex with Hale and Val there for moral
support. Eventually Lauren realised Vex didn’t take the blood and
forces him to do so, immediately every fae in the group gets an
injection of power, especially Bo – go Lauren. She also realises that
Hale can save Kenzi with his sirens call, by cauterizing the wound.
Nice to see someone brought brains to the party.
Eventually they all end up in the Garuda’s layer and he takes over
Trick as he did Nadia. He tried to rewrite the laws himself but Vex
holds him off while Bo injects him with the venom. He heads off but
Trick seems lost, Bo however gives Trick her grandmothers life force
which he had given her to take if the darkness within her became too
much. Trick is fine but that darkness does kick in and Kenzi has to
sever the ties between the group to free Bo from it. However at the
very end we see Bo looking into a mirror and her eyes seem like some
darkness remain.
There are a few things left to sort out. Kenzi come to the rescue
and got Dyson his love back from the Norn, but in doing so something
spilt on her arm and at the end of the finale it looks like something is
going on with her arm. However, as I said, the writers definitely left
the season with Bo more into Lauren than Dyson. Last season ended with
Dyson giving up his love to save Bo but this season ended with some
sexy looks between our ladies and although Dyson suggested to Lauren
that now the Ash is dead she could leave, there is no way his
manipulation will make Lauren walk away.
Next time I'll tell you something about the third season of the Lost Girl. Until then, I strongly reccomend you to watch the both seasons of this show.
I'm always impressed when a TV show can overcome a ridiculous premise
and turn it into something special, which is the case with ABC Family's
newest drama, Switched at Birth (premiering Monday at 9pm).
Despite an awkward idea that would be better suited for a Lifetime
original movie (two families learn that their now teenage daughters were
accidentally switched at birth ... and one of them is DEAF!), the show
has heartwarming and relatable characters, creating a TV show that makes
viewers feel like a part of the family.
Bay is the artistic daughter of John and Kathryn Kennish, a well-to-do
family in Mission Hills, Kan. Daphne is the athletic daughter of
struggling mom Regina Vasquez and occasional lagabout Angelo Sorrento.
But Bay is also the daughter of Regina. And Daphne's the
biological progeny of John and Kathryn. Thanks to a little hospital
mix-up, the two kids got switched at birth.
But you probably figured that out already.
Now,
ever since John and Kathryn invited Regina and Daphne to live in their
guest house, the whole clan is together for the first time. The great
news here is that, after a few first-season bumps, everybody gets along
(at least most of the time), and thus gives audiences a really
encouraging look at how a seriously blended family can go about things.
Bay and Daphne consider the parents who raised them to be their true
parents, even though they're literally a stone's throw away from their
birth moms. They also enjoy hanging out with their birth folks.
For families who've adopted kids or are adoptees themselves (particularly in this era of open adoptions), Switched at Birth
tells us that love doesn't necessarily need to be divided between
members of a family. Rather, it multiplies if allowed to do so.
It's
also cool to see a show that deals with hearing impairment with such
deft humor and refreshing sense of normalcy. Daphne is deaf. And there
are lots of other deaf characters on the show too: Emmett, Daphne's best
friend and Bay's one-time love interest, can't hear and refuses to
speak; and deaf Oscar winner Marlee Matlin plays recurring character
Melody. Travis is Daphne's newest beau. None of them are token figurines
playing, simply, their disability. They're fully fleshed-out people—at
least by teen drama standards—going about their business as anyone else
would. And I love the fact that, when two hearing characters hold a
conversation in the midst of a deaf one, the hearing characters still
often sign—a common courtesy, really. No one's trying to exclude anyone
else here, no one's trying to keep secrets.
OK, some of them are
trying to keep secrets—just not by refusing to sign. This is, after
all, a teen soap opera. And it's on ABC Family. So screenplay writers,
when they sign up to work for the channel, are likely ordered to write
in a full quota of secrets, deceptions and cons.
Switched at Birth contains some really
nice messages about the bonds of family and friendship, even in the
midst of trying circumstances. As such, it feels at first like a
well-meaning series. But when it comes to talking about certain kinds of
morality, this ABC family goes not deaf, but dumb.
Are the "switched at birth" premise and the prominence of deaf
characters gimmicks to help make the show stand out? Yes, but the magic
of Switched at Birth is that it takes those gimmicks and treats
them in a realistic and serious manner. Nothing is as simple as it
appears on this show, and neither is the show itself. Now that Life Unexpected is gone, Switched at Birth has officially taken its place as my new favorite heartwarming family drama on TV.
Emma Paxton hasn’t always had the best life. After her mom abandoned
her when she was young, Emma has been shuffled from foster home to
foster home, never getting too comfortable or finding a real family.
When Emma’s latest foster brother shows her a video of a girl who looks
exactly like her being strangled, Emma is shocked. Who is this girl who
looks completely identical to her? Could Emma have a sister she never
knew about?
Emma turns to Facebook and finds a profile of a girl named Sutton;
Emma’s sister, and twin. Emma sends her a message and the girls make
plans to meet. When Emma arrives at their meeting place in a park near
Sutton’s home, Sutton is nowhere to be found. But when Sutton’s friends
see Emma and drag her to a party assuming she’s Sutton, Emma has no
choice but to play along. Emma tries to convince Sutton’s parents that
she isn’t Sutton, but no one believes her. The next morning Emma
receives a text telling her that Sutton is dead and that Emma should
continue pretending to be Sutton…or she’s next. Emma is shocked, but
vows to herself that she will solve the mystery of Sutton’s death, and
convince everyone that she isn’t really Sutton.
But solving this mystery isn’t easy. Sutton has many frenemies; many
possible suspects. She’s worshiped at school, but also is known for her
bitchy demeanor. Even her best friends and sister Laurel find it
difficult to stay on Sutton’s good side. Emma is completely lost in
Sutton’s world trying to fit in and understand the many rocky
relationships in Sutton’s life all while attempting o figure out who
killed her sister.
Sara Shepard has done it again! I worked my way through this book in a
day, completely engrossed in Sutton’s head (as the book is told from
her perspective) and Emma’s new world. I love how the story was told. As
I said, Sutton narrates the story. She knows she is dead, but has no
idea what happened. In fact, she doesn’t remember much about her life at
all. As Emma takes over her identity Sutton slowly begins to remember
things about her past, and about when she was strangled. I thought it
was very clever for Shepard to write from Sutton’s perspective, because
without it, all we know is a very mean g irl who I would probably have
no sympathy for. Because Shepard allows us into her thoughts, I’m able
to accept her a bit more, and root for Emma to find out who killed her
sister.
I also quickly fell in love with Emma as a character. She’s had such a
rough past, but she has an amazing attitude. She is so genuine, and
only wants to find good friends and family. She has so much faith in
other humans, exhibited by how she didn’t even think twice about meeting
up with her sister, a complete stranger. She has such good intentions
and such a big heart; you can’t help but adore her. It’s so much fun
watching her try to fit into Sutton’s shoes- shoes she clearly doesn’t
fit in. There are a few funny moments where Emma is nice to someone who
Sutton wouldn’t normally be nice to, and Emma has to backtrack and say
something bitchy to “get back into character.”
I really enjoy how Sara Shepard’s books always feature many
characters. Of course, Emma is the main character, but we also meet
Sutton’s family and friends who all play a big role in the book. I
couldn’t relate to Sutton’s friends, but then again, I don’t think as
readers we were really supposed to identify with them. Those friends
represent the side of Sutton that Emma is yearning to learn more about;
the mean girl Sutton.
Shepard’s writing style is so distinct. Even though this book and
PRETTY LITTLE LIARS are completely different, Shepard’s clear and
fast-paced writing shines and is unmistakable. Her writing really allows
the reader to paint a clear picture of a setting or a character. Every
Shepard book I read, including this one, allows me to perfectly set up
the scene in my head, as if I’m watching a movie.
And once again, I love a good mystery. I loved the on-edge feeling
and chills I got while reading this book. This book truly got a reaction
out of me. Shepard expertly sets up the mystery with just the right
amount of suspense; everyone is a suspect, anyone could have killed
Sutton. At one point in the story, you’ll think that just about everyone
could be the killer.
Shepard writes another page turner. Once you get into this one,
you’ll finish it quickly. I see big things in store for this series.
There are so many different directions Shepard can take these characters
and storylines in. Can’t wait until the sequel NEVER HAVE I EVER comes
out!
The Lying Game centers on Emma (Alexandra Chando), a well-meaning teen
who's been bounced around the foster system her whole life and is
overjoyed to discover that she has a long-lost twin sister, Sutton
(Chando again). Despite having an idyllic life with her wealthy adoptive
family, Sutton's angry with her parents for what she sees as their
deception over the details of her adoption, and she sets out to locate
the girls' birth mother. At her sister's urging, Emma agrees to swap
identities for a few days while Sutton tracks a lead, but when she
doesn't turn up at their arranged meeting place, Emma's stuck keeping up
the charade. She's unsure how long she can fool Sutton's parents and
friends, and she fears that doing so will keep her from discovering the
truth about her biological family.
Dramatic and suspenseful, The Lying Game
is based on a series of novels of by Sara Shepard, who also penned the
best-selling books that inspired another ABC Family teen drama, Pretty Little Liars.
Once again, Shepard's multi-dimensional characters translate well to
the small screen, enticing viewers with their scintillating secrets and
unpredictable motives. If you look a little deeper, you'll even find a
few examples of warm relationships, like those of Sutton's parents and
the one that her sister, Laurel (Allie Gonino), strives to have with
Sutton's stand-in, Emma.
Because the show is geared toward teens, you can expect the requisite
romance, betrayal, and cattiness of a "normal" TV teen's life. But the
content feels a little exaggerated (and thus its silliness is exposed),
since down-to-earth Emma usually observes, rather than partakes in, the
unbecoming behavior. And the good news is that the content is fairly
mild for the teen set, with minimal violence and marginal language
("hell" and "ass," mostly), and only kissing and some physical contact
within relationships. That said, the chilling suspense and pending sense
of danger require a certain sturdiness from viewers.
Sherlock Holmes may hail from two centuries ago, but “Elementary,” this
latest incarnation of the old chap, produces the the season’s best new
broadcast drama.
Jonny Lee Miller
plays Sherlock exactly as we would expect to find him today. He’s
brilliant, exasperating, self-obsessed and altogether ideal for the sort
of show CBS has virtually perfected: a “procedural” in which a crime is
solved each week by troubled good guys while their larger psychological
issues roll ominously across the broader sky.
The show’s
boldest innovation is transgendering Sherlock’s loyal assistant, Watson. Dr. Watson here is Lucy Liu, and she plays the character as anything but a novelty act. She enters the picture as a caretaker assigned to shadow Holmes while
he emerges from drug rehab. Since she used to be a top-level surgeon,
taking this much more menial gig clearly indicates she has issues of her
own. Naturally it takes Sherlock about five seconds to start digging them
out and begin needling her about them in a way that’s all the more
annoying because it seems so completely matter-of-fact.
His real mission is driving away this annoying baby-sitter, and it almost works.But she’s smart, perceptive and curious, too. And just when she’s about
to walk, she gets reeled in by the irresistible lure of helping
Sherlock figure out the hows, whats and whys of an offbeat murder case
he’s probing as a police consultant.
The challenge for the writers will be to create murder cases intriguing
enough to match the fascination of the Miller/Liu partnership and the
viewer’s inevitable curiosity about where it will go. It’s a formidable dramatic test, one that by all indications will be worth watching
.
Another difficulty will be to define the relationship between two
characters this smart and this flawed. While all the laws of TV
tradition say they will inevitably head toward romance, “Elementary” at
the very least may not take a traditional path.Or maybe it will.
And last, an important footnote to fans of the brilliant PBS series “Sherlock.” Yes, Miller’s portrayal here will remind you of Benedict Cumberbatch’s
there. But Miller, a little more reflective and brooding, also makes
this one his own. TV has plenty of room for two superior Sherlocks.
Yesterday I was talking about the TV series Gossip Girl. Today I've decided to say something about the books that have been an inspiration for the TV show. So, if you love drama, teen romance, or the show Gossip Girl,
then you will love these books written by Cecily von Ziegesar. It all
takes place in New York, mainly the Upper East Side, and follows the
lives of the rich and fabulous students of two prep schools in
Manhattan. There are many characters in this series but the two that are
featured are Serena van der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf, the queen bees
of the Upper East Side.
The series begins with Serena van der Woodsen returning to school
after mysteriously escaping to boarding school for several months. No
one knows why she disappeared but they are all desperate to find out. We
find out quickly that Blair is not happy to see her best friend return
because it has been rumored that Blair’s boyfriend, Nate, is in love
with Serena. Blair is also bent out of shape that her one and only best
friend left town without telling her. Wouldn’t you be angry if that
happened to you?
The book series and the television show have similar concepts but
there are many things that are different about it. In the book series,
Blair and Serena smoke cigarettes on a regular basis but on the show
they are never seen smoking. The book series also features many cuss
words, but the show does not have cussing at all. The entire nature of
the book series is more edgy and adult than the TV series. I personally
love the show better than the book series. The books are entertaining
but the show has much more depth than the books. Also, my favorite
character, Chuck Bass, is a main character in the show but is barely
mentioned in the book series. So overall, I prefer the television show.
Even though the book series is not as good as the television show, I
still strongly recommend the book series. It is very entertaining and
much more rebellious than the show, if you are looking for something
more edgy to read. Fans of the show and those who are not fans of the
show can both enjoy these books.
The Gossip Girl Books in order are :
1. Gossip Girl
2. You Know You Love Me
3. All I Want Is Everything
4. Because I’m Worth It
5. I Like It Like That
6. You’re The One That I Want
7. Nobody Does It Better
8. Nothing Can Keep Us Together
9. Only In Your Dreams
10. Would I Lie To You
11. Don’t Forget About Me
12. It Had To Be You (prequel)
13. I Will Always Love You
