Movie Monday: Hook

This week for Movie Monday I’m back with a cult classic. It’s Hook!

Plot: The plot is okay, and while Hook has critically received a incredibly low rating it’s still supposedly gained a cult following in the years since. Though whether that’s due to it being terrible or great I couldn’t really say personally as I’m not a huge movie fan as I’ve stated before.

Casting: The casting is good, although the script and directing did lead to actors not really doing their best, which is a pity when you consider that Robin Williams and Dustin Hoffman were the two big stars, with Julia Roberts playing Tinker Bell. The rest of the cast is okay, and if you pay close attention you might even see some other famous faces in some cameos, like Carrie Fisher.

Cinematography: The set pieces weren’t that amazing, and the special effects were merely okay, which considering that Spielberg directed this film is saying something since he usually does a pretty good job.

Music: The music is okay, but again not the best, and amusingly enough Hook lost the Academy Award for Best Original Song to a song from Aladdin, which Williams was a part of.

Overall: This is a decent movie, but it’s not super amazing and the special effects leave a lot to be desired.

For those who like: Fantasy, Peter Pan, Robin Williams.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

Bookish Wednesday: Holes by Louis Sachar

I’m back for this week’s Bookish Wednesday with another classic novel I read when I was a kid. It’s Holes by Louis Sachar!

Plot: The plot is a mix of interconnected stories with characters from the 18th century to the present day. It’s all pretty interesting, although a younger kid, who isn’t like me, would most likely be confused by the constant timeline changes that take place over the course of the book. Still it was a good story and I enjoyed it as a kid despite not meeting the “advised” age. Of course considering I’d read books like War and Peace, The Stand and Stranger in a Strange Land by the time I was 12 that isn’t too surprising.

Characters: The entire cast is pretty good, although my favorite character was Stanley the protagonist. Still every character is unique and has their own “charm” so I don’t dislike them all that much, though when I was younger I definitely had some characters I wouldn’t mind tossing into a few holes myself.

Overall: A solid book, and definitely worth a read if you never read it before, this is a book for almost anyone of any age, except maybe kids younger than 8, unless they are oddballs like myself.

For those who like: Triparite Storylines, Great Plot, Good Cast of Characters.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.

Anime Sunday: Märchen Episode 01 Impressions

This week for Anime Sunday I’m back with another series from Winter 2018. It’s my Märchen Episode 01 Impressions!

Plot Synopsis: Kagimura Hazuki is a 15-year-old high school student who is painfully shy and socially inept; and as a result of this, she has no friends or even a love interest. She is very imaginative and a dedicated fan of fantasy fiction, traits which were ingrained by her mother, who died when Hazuki was still little; and whenever she is upset, she immediately finds herself a story book to immerse herself in.  One day after school, Hazuki comes across a cloaked figure and decides to follow her to an unused library…

Plot: The plot is pretty decent, although there are some detractions to the story with some fanservice that occurs. That being said I did find this series particularly interesting prior to this season’s start due to the fact that the author had died before finishing the original Light Novel series. Whether they can make a functional Anime out of an adaptation of an incomplete series remains to be seen.

Characters: Hazuki is a female lead who is fairly stereotypical, although I did find her trait of escaping into a good book particularly relatable. The rest of the cast is okay, although like I said above there is more than a bit of fanservicey parts that detract from the plot.

Art: The art is excellent with character designs done by the novel’s illustrator Kantoku, who I’ve mentioned before as being one of my favored artists in the Japanese scene. Feel free to look up their work, although fair warning that much of it is incredibly NSFW.

Music: The music is okay, but it’s nothing too memorable either.

Overall: A decent series, but the fanservice that happens really detracts from the actual story.

For those who like: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy in General, Fairy Tales, Decent Plot, Awesome Artwork.

Not for those who don’t like: Any of the above.