Sherlock Holmes Corrections

Looks like I should probably clarify a few things about my previous Sherlock Holmes posts. :-)

You know the ones, where I prefer the recent films to Sherlock?

As it turns out my opinion really wasn't set in stone. Makes me wonder if I should hold off on posting certain thoughts until I've given them a few weeks to simmer. In this case the new Downey Jr. film makes me nervous and uneasy because of the gay overtones. Yes, they are there and no, I don't like them. They became more obvious to me the more I thought about them and within a few months I realized I likely would never watch Game of Shadows again.

Now, I know that people are going to make assumptions about their gayness or straightness regardless of what movie or tv series we're talking about. But you know the difference? WATSON! That is the difference. I look at Martin Freeman and under no circumstances could I imagine that John and Sherlock could be gay. It's bloody impossible, end of story.

Then there's Jude Law. His Watson is written almost as if he were a pansy. Well, that might be a bit extreme but, I ask you, who did teach his Watson to dance? Makes you wonder and I'd rather not have to worry about wondering, period.

So, there we go. My most recent Holmesesque thoughts. A Scandal in Belgravia is still ICK and so far off canon it hit Pluto on its journey out of the Milky Way but I'd still pick Sherlock as my #1 choice of recent Holmes film/tv adaptations. Hands down awesomeness.

"The Great Gatsby" on the Silver Screen

You know how an idea seems brilliant until you actually see it come to fruition? That's The Great Gatsby.

The book is . . . incredibly detailed, with minute little moments of sorrow and depression and beauty that can make you weep for the gloriousness of it all. Fitzgerald, whatever else he might have been, was a remarkable writer and no one will convince me otherwise. A sinner, oh yes undoubtedly, but a skilled artisan of his craft just the same.

It only stands to reason that a book which highlights depravity in the 1920s would eventually make it to the Silver Screen. I'm good with that idea. Except for the follow-through! Has anyone seen the trailer yet? It's on the main page of IMDB and I encourage you to watch it. It's like a massacre of Fitzgerald's original work. I love Leonardo DiCaprio but he is one of the last actors on God's green earth I imagined playing Gatsby. I think I had Jeremy Irons or Jason Isaacs in mind when they were younger. I wouldn't have been averse to an Englishman playing Gatsby. Leo just does not fit the role and Tobey Maguire fits the role of Nick Carraway even less.

I love the book because I analyze it and pity the characters and sense what is missing in their lives, mainly God. That's because it's not displayed on the Silver Screen for all to see, admire, and worship. I know the Roaring Twenties were morally bankrupt. I might even be able to watch a film of The Great Gatsby if it were done right. But this, pardon the word, feels like a complete bastardization of Fitzgerald's original work. It's like the clothing doesn't fit the body of his work.

Don't get me wrong, I imagine it will be a magnificent triumph. Just a pathetic misrepresentation of The Great Gatsby. *sighs* Darn you, Hollywood, when will you ever leave well enough alone!?

One Extra Thought

In the case of The Great Gatsby it's original setting is one that is very clinical, very cold, and very distant because it is all from Nick's perspective. Now, maybe the actual movie reflects that but the trailer really doesn't. Instead we have confetti flying all over the place and everyone looking like they're having a great time when really the book is a tale of loneliness and how you can be in a great whirl of humanity and still be dreadfully alone. That message is better communicated if the filming keeps to the original novel. Instead we may have another Romeo + Juliet on our hands where the only decent thing in the entire film was Leo and Claire. Oh boy, I hope not.

Book Review - Hearts that Survive by Yvonne Lehman

Charity is solely responsible for my new-found interest in the Titanic. Along that same vein, also thanks to her, is my desire to see the story told as accurately as possible. A little romance is fine, awesome even, but only in so long as its in keeping with the actual facts of history. Now, on to my thoughts for Yvonne Lehman's Hearts that Survive.

Colorado Politics

Only a democrat could get away with saying "Ignorance is forgivable. Pride in ignorance never is." These are the words of a supporter of civil unions in Colorado, one of many thousands, who are desperate to overturn the ban on homosexual marriage we managed to pass in 2006. Or rather, the definition of marriage as being between a man and a woman.

Doodles of Thoughts

1) When the room smells of sugar cookies it's because you left a vanilla candle burning on your dresser. Not because your sister is baking at 10:30 at night.

2) It is possible to sell something off Ebay less than half an hour after you posted it. Who knew the original Star Wars trilogy was still so popular?

3) MacGyver fans such as myself are just crazy enough to spend an hour of their lives making up a list of episodes starring Bruce McGill as Jack Dalton so they can reference back to them. There are 19, which you probably didn't want to know but now know anyway! :D

4) Only an Oregonian would jump up and down with glee over a delicious rainfall and then twenty minutes later when the sun breaks through ask "That's it?!"

5) Mothers birthdays are sacred so make them special. Mine is happy with my specialty of the house, Chicken Kiev, for supper and gifts of a huge bouquet of flowers and Poirot DVDs. It's really the love that matters!

6) Sometimes your sister's room will look like WW III just happened, especially when she's cleaning out her Mary-Poppins-carpet-bag of a closet.

7) Book clubs can be fun! Especially when the main character of the book went braless for an entire day and you spend 10 minutes discussing it with a dozen other women!

8) Turn on the lights before heading down the stairs. It'll save you from a lot of grief and a severely angry cat.

9) Life is good. Make the most of it!

10) Cheers!

Salt of the Earth

There's a saying.

"Don't Sweat the Small Stuff, and It's All Small Stuff."

That's all well and good to say but I happen to be of a very different opinion. We have small stuff in our lives (like habits that include smoking, drinking, dancing in 4" red heels at a nightclub, French kissing when you really shouldn't because you're still single, etc.) Okay, so these aren't going to send your to hell. Some Christians drink and some don't. Some play poker and some don't. Christ holds each of us to different standards and so long as we follow His basic precepts of purity then it's probably okay to smoke a cigarette once in awhile. You won't find me doing it but who am I to say that you can't do it?

Reading "Twilight" (Part 2)

So, nearly a month later I make the time to finish reading Twilight. As I expected it took me less than two days to complete the 300 pages I had left. Stephanie is nothing if not an easy read. Now comes the moment of truth. What do I think of Twilight? My ultimate conclusion is that women who are sadly unhappy with their lives will be drawn to Twilight the most. There's something lacking from their existence that Edward fills. Respect, admiration, and yes, love flowing from a "beautiful" man to a painfully ordinary girl would tempt almost any woman in unhappy circumstances to wish for their own Edward. And so the Twihards are born.