The Ender’s Game Trailer!!!!!

So… I’m probably getting a little too excited and may be horribly disappointed, but this trailer makes the Battle Room look way better than I imagined it, and it was pretty amazing in my imagination. Also, Harrison Ford, Ben Kingsley, Asa whatever his name is, and Abigail what’s-her-face!?!?!?!?!?! – I think this might redeem the book-turned-into-a-movie hopes in my heart.

 

 

The Inconsequential Ending

I’ve been thinking recently about the proper process for writing a book review. I wrote a review on Goodreads a few weeks back, and someone I don’t know responded with a bit of criticism because I hadn’t finished reading the book before reviewing it. I frequently review books without having finished them, and I actually believe it’s a good practice.

In the review in question, I mentioned that I hadn’t finished reading the book and didn’t intend to, and therefore, it may not have been a valid representation of the book as a whole. I believe that sort of feedback is more beneficial to prospective readers than reviews in which we struggle tirelessly through the bog of purple prose and nonredeemable characters. Often, if I push myself to finish a book I’m hating, I end up ranting all over the interwebs and to everyone I know about how horrible every aspect of the book is. On the other hand, if I tell readers that I didn’t finish because I didn’t like it, I’m usually more constructive in my criticisms because I don’t feel like I’ve wasted hours of my life reading sub-par work.

Also, I’m just not sure I believe endings are very important.

If, as a teacher, I lecture on how the writing process is at least equally as important to becoming a good writer as the product is, then I also have to believe that the journey is at least equally as important as the destination in other areas of study and life.

I’ve written before about how difficult vulnerability is for me because of the uncertainty of outcomes. And yet, I believe vulnerability is one of the noblest actions of the human experience. Similarly, if a book is worthwhile, the ending is of little importance. What matters is the characters, their desires, their tribulations, and the world they live in. While finishing well is important, a well-run race that ends in defeat doesn’t suddenly become a poorly-run race (unless we’re considering the spiritual realm of heaven and hell here… so don’t think of this too theologically or it won’t work), nor does an amazing story transform into a mediocre one because it ends badly.

Think of poor Frodo’s journey to Mordor.

What if he’d died? What if Sauron had won and covered Middle Earth in a second darkness? Does the rest of the story become a waste? Should Frodo have stayed in the Shire without even trying?

And think of Harry.

What if Voldemort had killed him? Would that mean that Lilly’s sacrifice was stupid? Would it mean that she should have let her son be murdered so that she could be “the woman who lived”?

Of course not.

We all agree that it’s more important to try. We all agree that certain journeys must be attempted, and the while the outcome matters, it doesn’t dictate the choices we make about setting out to destroy the Death Star.

Therefore, I often write book reviews before I know how stories end. For, if I’m unable to estimate the book’s value prior to the ending, it musn’t be a very worthwhile book, because the value of the journey is based entirely on its success or failure. The best journeys justify themselves, as do the best books. They don’t need perfect endings if the journey was worthwhile to begin with, and I’ve never read an excellent book in which the ending significantly altered my judgment of the book as a whole. Never.

 

The Breech of a Loyalty (and why you should love Episode Three)

English: Opening logo to the Star Wars films (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Don’t throw tomatoes at me, but my favorite Star Wars is Episode 3. I get that true fans must only love the originals, and I absolutely LOVE Han, Leia, and Luke… I just find their story a little less interesting than Obi Wan’s.

Here’s the thing: Stories that wrench my heart more than any other depict BETRAYAL.

Betrayal is so relevant, painful, mysterious and true. Being betrayed causes us to question everything we believed, whether or not our lives and actions have meaning, and why we ever try. It cuts to the heart of character and grace, and it displays the horror of human nature.

I know that’s all very dark for me to write, being the idealist that I am, but that’s why I love Episode 3… because it isn’t the end, but it is the rawest moment. It’s the moment that is least veiled and most torturous. It’s the one where poor Obi Wan discovers that a friend has not only turned against him, but has also betrayed who they both were and everything they both stood for. It’s where reality is flipped on its head, because Obi Wan has been blinded by his own idealism. He’s devoted his entire life to helping Anakin become the kind of man who might change the galaxy permanently and for good. He believed he was doing the right thing, but in Episode 3, he has to wonder whether he was merely a fool pawn.

“You were my brother, Anakin. I loved you!” he says.

That’s why I love Episode 3… because underneath all of the political manoeuvrings, battle between good and evil, and epic fights with four-armed, bionic generals… it’s really the story of personal betrayal.

And I don’t give a damn if the dialogue is chessy. I don’t care if you hate the CGI and Padme’s stupid clothes. I don’t care about how lame it is that Anakin didn’t just scramble up the hill, thus taking the high ground, and I find it really annoying that everyone has to point out that the Twi’lek chick starts acting like she’s been shot long before anyone fires at her. I don’t love Episode 3 because it’s flawless; I probably know its flaws better than most people who hate it… I just love it anyways. And I think it’s ridiculous how “true fans” pretend that Episodes 4-6 are perfect. They aren’t. They’re cheesy too. And the acting isn’t as good as you think it is. And there are really stupid-looking aliens (including the Ithorian in the bar scene), that most people just accept because they first encountered them when they were too young to be so cynical as we’ve all become.

Overall, none of the Star Wars movies are that well-executed. That’s not why we love them; we love them because they invoke story archetypes that always work unless the writer is completely incompetent. Episode 4 is about David beating Goliath and the heroe’s journey. It’s about the redemption of a dashing rogue. It’s about hope. Which is why I like it second-best. Because those are all beautiful, favored stories in the realm of literature. They just don’t get to me the way betrayal does.

Because I’ve been betrayed.

I have not beaten Goliath (although we could probably come up with some metaphors to suggest that I have).

I am not a hero. I do not trust the dashing rogue, because I’ve never seen one redeemed.

I have, however, betrayed others and been betrayed. I, like Obi Wan, have known what it is to try to believe and hope after the betrayal. I’ve been blinded by idealism and friendship, and I’ve cried out, “You were my brother! I loved you.” And the only place I find hope and the ability to forgive in that is the knowledge that the gospel is a story of betrayal, but Christ said, “Forgive them; they know not what they do.”
…

And, therefore, you really have a biblical duty to love and honor Episode 3 above all the others.

I’m just saying…

 

Film Review: ARGO

English: Cover movie poster that was created by the CIA as part of their cover legend. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The movie Argo is spectacular, and you should see it.

Argo is based on the true story widely known as “The Canadian Caper.”

Basic History: In 1979, the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran was taken by dissidents who supported the Iranian Revolution. They held 52 embassy workers captive for more than a year (this is also frequently referred to as the Iran Hostage Crisis). During the seizure of the embassy, six American diplomats managed to escape, and sought refuge in the nearby Canadian and Swiss embassies. Argo relates the story of how the CIA partnered with the Canadian Government in a covert mission to get the six out of Iran. This was accomplished under the cover story that the six diplomats were part of a Canadian film crew scouting locations.

So.. after discovering what this film was about, and discovering the ‘R’ rating, I thought I was probably in for some brutal violence that would cause me to cover my eyes as I watched.

That’s not what I got.

Argo wasn’t good because of the action (there wasn’t nearly as much as you’d expect). It wasn’t good because of Ben Affleck,although he gave a very good performance.

It was good because I felt like my time and money were well-spent on it. I learned a little about my nation’s history, experienced empathy, and considered my place in the world. I was reminded that, while America has its flaw, I’m blessed to have been born here.

On a side-note, the only prior knowledge I had going into the theater last night came from reading Azar Nafisi’s best-selling memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran. For a brief time a few years ago, I was trying to make a book club happen, in spite of the fact that no one I’d recruited seemed able to follow-through with any of our plans. In an effort to make sure people were invested in the book choices, each member of the club got a turn to pick a book, and the first person selected this memoir for us to read.

So I read it, and while I’m still slightly bitter that I was the only person in the club to read all (or really any) of the books in their entirety, I also have to admit that Reading Lolita in Tehran is one of the only books I’ve read as an adult that profoundly impacted my understanding of the world. It wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read, but it depicted a world that was completely foreign to me. I read it before I’d traveled much; I’d been a tourist in Italy, but hadn’t yet lived as a teacher in Mongolia. So I didn’t know what it’s like to sleep in a one-room house with five other people and no toilet. Therefore, the injustices Professor Nafisi included in her story were shocking and enlightening… which is a similar strength in the film Argo. It’s a story about things I’ve never experienced and probably never will, as I hope to live a life safely separated from angry mobs who hate me because of my birth nation, and because the CIA isn’t likely to recruit me as a covert agent anytime soon.

But one of the things I learned in reading Reading Lolita in Tehran is that the greatest value in literature is its effectiveness in teaching empathy for characters we shouldn’t be able to understand.

 

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS: A Review

Water for Elephants (film) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This week, I finished reading WATER FOR ELEPHANTS by Sara Gruen. It tells the story of Jacob Jankowski, who takes a job as a circus veterinarian after the deaths of his parents and loss of his home.

This is one of the few books I’ve read after seeing the film, and I’m sad to admit that I enjoyed the film much more than I enjoyed the book. Although the story is engaging, mostly because it gives us a glimpse into the dark and marvelous world of a traveling circus, I thought it was better suited to the screen than the page. When I read passages that described animal cruelty and other psychotic behavior, I was a bit too distant from the action to feel the weight. However, the film version of this story brought me to tears as I observed the brutal beating of Rosie the elephant.

Despite my preference for the film over the book, WATER FOR ELEPHANTS is certainly worth reading. I enjoyed it thoroughly, especially those chapters that focused on the senior years of Mr. Jankowski. The writing was both elegant and entertaining.

*My only caution for readers is that there are some graphic sexual scenes that might offend.