I thought my earlier post today would be my only one for at least the next few days, but I feel compelled to write a little something about a phenomenon that has, in a roundabout way, made an impression on me. It's being reported that New Moon, the second movie in the Twilight series, is breaking all kinds of box office records: third biggest opening ever, #1 movie for two weeks, and "80% of New Moon tickets went to women." I am not here to either praise or denounce the Twilight series itself; it's that third statistic that caught my eye.

It amazes people, especially Hollywood execs and those whose job it is to predict how well a movie will do, whenever movies owe their success to the hoards of women who go to see them. They seem to think that it's an oddity or an anomoly. I remember people being surprised at how well Sex and the City did, surprised that - gasp! - women would turn out in droves to see a movie about - get a load of this - women (and clothes and shoes, but still). The thing with Hollywood is, they are convinced that their main target audience - the people most likely to plop down $10 to go see something their TV isn't currently showing - are men. Young men, to be exact. So they tailor their movies to appeal to the 18-49 age set: lots of action, plenty of babes, and brave men who end up saving the day. (I don't deny that some of my favorite movies have at least two of these elements).

It hardly occurs to the suits that women - old and young - would be another, perhaps even richer audience to tap. And when it does, it seems that it's only because it has a following in book or TV form: Sex began as a successful show on HBO, Twilight is - dur - a hugely popular book series. I can only think of a handful of movies geared specifically toward women (I'm not counting rom-coms in general, since they can be considered "date movies" with both men and women paying to see them). Juno is a good example; Julie & Julia probably even a better one. I recently saw Whip It!, an awesome female-centric film that got a lot of praise for being such.

New Moon, while also made with the loyal fan base in mind, is more or less a typical guy's flick (dick flick, if you will) made for girls. There's angst instead of action, sure, but Bella does end up saving the vamp she loves (otherwise there wouldn't be two more sequels) and there's some gratuitous half-nudity provided by the buff newcomer Taylor Lautner. A throwback to the bikini-clad damsels-in-distress of action movies? I don't know. But it's an intriguing coincidence.

I guess what I'm trying to say here is, if Twilight is what convinces the Hollywood suits that girls are willing to empty their wallets, then it certainly has my blessing. Then maybe they'll start making other, different movies about girls who save the day and kick ass - without having to look like Lara Croft. Or more low-key, thoughtful movies like J&J, which boast well-rounded female characters that women can relate to. Because, as much as I love them, I don't want Pixar movies and Austen adaptations to make up my entire movie collection.

(And Hollywood, when are we going to see a schlubby girl get the handsome, caring hottie? And do not just give me another Bridget Jones movie.)

Recently I was looking at EW.com's 40 Bad Romantic Comedies, not for the first time, and it got me thinking.  Now, I think I need to start trying to be more positive, but sometimes a good "Worst" list just helps you blow off some steam.  So in the interest of keeping the peace, I thought I'd do a little ditty about Some Romantic Comedies I Find Problematic.

You see, a lot of these are movies that I like to watch (maybe not pay moolah for them, but spend a couple hours watching them on TBS).  However, a part of my viewing pleasure comes from pointing out what I don't like - a plot twist, annoying characters, silly lines, or just plain predictability.  But I will acknowledge that there are people - in some cases, tons of them - who enjoy these movies and would rather not think about them too deeply.  Which is probably just as well.

Let's get it on:( There's 10 of them. It just worked out that way. )

I still can't believe I made myself do it, but I can't deny it now: Over the weekend, I watched The Clique, the movie based on Lisi Harrison.  What was I thinking?  Well, in the spirit of total honesty, there is something about teen movies that I find intriguing.  Hell, I watched Where The Boys Are, a 60s-era spring break movie, just a few days ago.  Even sub-par movies made on the cheap will spark my interest (for the first few minutes or so, and then I usually switch back to USA for a Monk marathon).  I know to expect the convoluted story, the bad acting, and the trying-too-hard "jokes," but that never stops me.  There's something fascinating(ly wrong) about the way Hollywood likes to portray high school life.  Of course, it's occasionally worth it if it's well-done and feels natural.



Feast your eyes, people.  Hatwear, multiple layers, leather gloves, knee-highs, and wavy locks.  These are the most stylish and sickeningly rich 12-year-olds at Octavian Country Day School.  That's their leader, Massie, in the foreground.  How can you tell she's their boss?  Her dog is a pit bull.  Or the leash represents her tight hold on her friends, constantly controlling where they go and what they do. 

Ha, no.  Symbolism in The Clique?  Not likely.

( Teleplay by Liz Tigelaar; directed by Micheal Lembeck; and, duh, based on the book series )

The Johnson County library system has again made it possible for me to enjoy a nice selection of YA lit without having to part with my money - and threw in a couple treats for me, as well.  Get ready for a doozy of a reading list:


Boy Girl Boy
If I Stay*
Guyaholic
Shrimp
Princess Ben
The Luxe

How great is that?  No less than three books I've had my eye on every time I went into Borders, and here they are, sitting in my room.  Hell, I was so excited for Luxe that I'm already at chapter 7!  I'm going to have to slow down, though, because I've just began The Season which has many similar themes.  I think I've also noted Stay is something that I've been eager to try; Shrimp is the second book in Rachel Cohn's Gingerbread series.  Guyaholic was written by Carolyn Mackler, the wonderful author of The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things, and itself was featured on Pop Culture Junkie.    I honestly can't wait to read it.  Princess Ben looks like a clever book about a strong feminist princess, as well as quite a popular fantasy novel (judging by the number of copies there).  And Boy Girl Boy looks like a quirky read, and its third-wheel narrator - or so I gleaned from the summary - appeals to me.  This list does mean that I'll have to put a hold on the few books I've just bought (plus one or two on their way to me from amazon.com).

And - you won't believe this - I found the craziest thing.  Someone made a Clique movie!  The horror!  I had had HAD to pick it up, if only to see how bad it is, of course.  Apparently, it actually came out in theaters  (sorry, I was mistaken) in 2008 and was produced by Tyra Banks.  Good (terrible) news - they've stayed true to the weird spelling, as one of the special features is entitled Ehmagawd!  We're Rolling: Stars on the Set.  (Do me a favor: try to sound that out.  What does it sound like?  Is it a word?  What accent is that?  Doesn't it sound like how the South Park characters talk?)

I am sure I will have a review of The Pillars of the Earth up in a few days.  Until then, :)

I am a girl with unsophisticated tastes, so it should come as little surprise that I'm a fan of Judd Apatow and Co.  Truth be told, I was a little late to the game - The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up were both out on DVD by the time my interest was piqued.  But something appealed to me in those movies, where immature humor co-exists with real grown-up problems and issues.  These movies show that comedy and drama aren't exclusive, and that movies that embrace both can succeed (Funny People, I admit, didn't do such a great job of demonstrating this).  As someone who can appreciate both, I like the idea of more movies showcasing both of them equally - a more-bang-for-your-buck kind of appeal.

There's one person in particular whose career I follow most intently: Seth Rogen.  I think his biggest appeal is that he's funny and talented while also coming across as completely normal, so it's easy to relate to the guy.  He's a screenwriter as well as a funny guy, and he's said that he only writes the kind of movies that he and his friends would pay to see.  Would that more people wrote like that.  I can relate to that because I'm busy writing the kind of books I'd want to read.  Rogen (as well as his friends/like-minded set of actors) is a game-changer, which is something I believe Hollywood has needed for a long time.  Let me put it this way: I'd rather pay $10 to go see him do his best in Funny People than watch a bunch of romantic cliches be exploited in The Ugly Truth. 

After a few off-beat movies - Pineapple Express, Observe and Report - I was eager to see what came next.  Apparently, the choice was so odd to everyone that many declared outright it would be a major bomb.  Rogen is writing and starring in The Green Hornet, a full-on action movie based on a TV show from the 60s.  Unfortunately, at first it seemed like the naysayers were right: it was a TV-to-movie adaptation a la Get Smart; they had to replace the director and the actor playing sidekick Kato; the release date was set back from summer 2010 to winter 2010; and perhaps most glaringly, Rogen is not known for action movies - he makes jokes and looks fat and doesn't give a damn.

Even I was unsure.  Why should I care about a crime-fighting superhero who's best known for his TV show sidekick, Bruce Lee?  But Rogen, it turns out, was deadly serious: it's a straight-up superhero flick, he's doing his own stunts (at least, those that the studio will let him do, I imagine), and he lost quite a few pounds in order to really look the part.  And you know what?  He's way hot:



Dude!  Green is so your color.

 

( I don't say this often, but - Squee! )

I've been waiting to read this book for literally months.  I put off reading it mostly because it looked longed and the plot summary on the back sounded a lot like a story I'm still currently writing.  Well, I read this book on Saturday afternoon ... and finished Sunday morning.


Based loosely on the frog prince fairytale.  As you can see in the small type below, Robin Palmer has also writtien something called Cindy Ella.  I'll definitely keep a lookout for it the next time I go to Borders.

( Okay, so, there's three levels of popularity ... )