Character Study: Captain Jack Sparrow

Name: Captain Jack Sparrow

Book/Film/TV Show: Film Series

Personality: As Will Turner so eloquently put it – somewhere between madness and brilliance. He’s lewd, usually half cut, selfish, cowardly and, of course, a pirate. But, he’s also noble, in his own way, and though it can be difficult to work out whose side he’s on,  he usually comes up good in the end.

Why They’re A Great Character: From his iconic, ridiculous and brilliant entry on the sinking boat, Johnny Depp’s down on his luck pirate, Jack Sparrow, is a total show stealer. He has grimy teeth, questionable hygiene and a whole series of conquests in Tortuga whose names he can’t remember – but he is unquestionably very attractive, and that isn’t all Johnny Depp.

There’s something about his wilful madness that makes for fascinating watching. After years of LOST second guessing, I’m a bit burned out of the old ‘which side is he really on?’ game, but Jack walks the line with equal parts swagger and madness in a way that makes you question if he really knows what side he’s on. And though the fact that the film bears a Disney association does make you feel a happy ending is on the horizon, it’s still an adventure to get there.

The funny thing is, Orlando Bloom’s Will Turner was obviously meant to be the heart throb, the hero. But his rather limp character is no more than a comedy side kick, constantly in Jack’s enormous shadow. It’s a fact they clearly play up to in the second and third (less brilliant) instalments with the whole Jack-Elizabeth-Will love triangle thing, and while I’m glad Elizabeth did eventually get married to Will (I mean, Jack Sparrow is far more sexy, but he’s not really the sort of bloke you’d settle down with) I’m glad they played up the sexual tension because, honestly, there would be.

By the third film (I haven’t seen the fourth) Jack Sparrow had become the reason people still watched the increasingly over-ambitious, flabby films. I don’t even remember what happens in the third one (or what it’s called, apparently) except some vague recollection of a giant woman causing a sea storm. But I do remember a number of brilliant moments involving Jack. Particularly the bit where he runs from side to side on the boat to cause it to turn over, releasing them from the land of the dead. Or was that the second film? Regardless, the point stands – every memorable moment in the second and third films comes from Jack being an outrageous, brilliant, totally insane character.

Part of me is still tempted, despite negative reviews, to borrow a copy of the fourth one, just to see what he got up to next.

Review: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Title: Warm Bodies

Author: Isaac Marion

Series: N/A

Publisher: Vintage

Genre: Horror/romance

Summary (from Goodreads)

A zombie who yearns for a better life ends up falling in love—with a human—in this astonishingly original debut novel.

R is a zombie. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse, but he has dreams. He doesn’t enjoy killing people; he enjoys riding escalators and listening to Frank Sinatra. He is a little different from his fellow Dead.

What’s Good About It

With all the ‘oops I fell in love with a zombie’ fiction circulating at the moment, it’s a surprise to me as much as anyone who knows me and my fondness for zombies, that I haven’t read any before Warm Bodies. I guess that, while I love zombies and their  groans and decomposing body parts and their taste for human brains, all the things that I love about them really preclude loving them in that way.

I confess, it was beautiful artwork that prompted me to read Warm Bodies, to put aside the sense of revulsion I had at the idea of zombie romance. I had the image in my head of that episode of Being Human, where the reanimated, and rotting, corpse girl is snogged by some bloke for a dare. Grim. However, Warm Bodies was far from grisly.

R makes for an articulate, and lyrical narrator, exploring the ups and downs of zombie life with delicious humour. There is a vast range of emotion covered – from the frenzied horror of feeding, to the surprisingly tender burgeoning romance between R and Julie. R and Julie… Get it?

That slightly obvious literary reference aside, there was very little to criticise about Warm Bodies. Everything seemed pitched just right – poignant and observant without being schmaltzy, visceral and gruesome without detracting from R’s likability – creating a touching read that questions what it means to be human, and what’s really important about living.

What’s Not So Good

Aside from the aforementioned quibble, I did think Julie got over the death of her ex (not a spoiler, it happens straight away) a little too easily. A bit more exploration of the guilt and the conflict it would have caused her would have pushed this to a five star novel for me.

Rating: 4.5/5

Sunday Recap, 27/11

The fact that this post is going up so late is indicative of the sort of week I’ve had. It feels a little, at the moment, like the more I try to take control the more things are thrown my way which I then struggle to manage. I can’t wait for the Christmas holidays, during which I’ll only have to worry about moving house and decorating and other such things which are nice things to worry about.

1. Blogging

Rather than increasing my buffer of posts, I’ve actually now completely depleted it. I’m about to write a review to schedule for tomorrow, but beyond that I won’t have anything. I will have to find some time on Wednesday to catch up with the blog and hopefully rebuild the buffer, otherwise this one area in which I have consistently not been failing will start to go down the pan with the rest!

2. Writing

Much like last week, actual writing has been nil, but I have been adding to my notebook (with a little help from Ivy, the master of finding faces to match your characters) and have made some notes on a story idea I had mid week.

3. Exercise

Unless you count keeping warm in gale force winds for three hours and lugging music equipment into town and back as exercise… none.

4. Music

Not Quite played the town light switch on this saturday, which was really nice. We polished off our christmas repertoire and pulled out a few favourites. We had a few issues with our new sound set up – mostly distortion from wind and too high volumes, and at one point our music did actually launch itself from our music stand, but other than that I thought it went very well. A good practise run for some of the songs we’ll be doing at our upcoming ‘gigs’ and we got picked up for another market. Not Quite – Queens of the Farmers’ Market scene XD

Targets For Next Week

• Blog posts!!

What’s In A Name?

Stolen from Ivy because, frankly, I don’t have the energy to make a real post for this slot!!

YOU HAVE 8 NAMES:
1. YOUR REAL NAME: Liberty Gilmore
2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME (First 3 letters of your first name followed by izzle): Libizzle
3. YOUR SPY NAME (favorite color and favorite animal): Red Narwhal (newly reminded they were my favourite animal when I was little by Frozen Planet)
4. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name): Gilli (that’s just silly)
5. YOUR SUPERHERO/CRIMINAL NAME (Your 2nd favorite color, and favorite drink): Purple Passoa (haha that’s ace!)
6. YOUR TERRORIST NAME (2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, 1st letter of your last name, 2nd letter of your mom’s maiden name, 1st letter of a siblings first name, and last letter of your mom’s middle name): Ilgote
7. YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION NAME (parents middle names): Christine James
8. YOUR GOTH NAME (dark, and the name of one of your pets: Dark Thorn (old pet, dead a long time now, but I don’t actually have any now….)

I actually quite like Libizzle XD

Your turn, world!

Character Study: Damon Salvatore

Name: Damon Salvatore

Book/Film/TV Show: I confess, I’ve never read the books, so my knowledge of Damon is limited strictly to the TV show, which I have been informed is nothing like the book.

Personality: Abrasive, rude, sarcastic, obnoxious, womanising but secretly hiding a tormented side. He is loyal – he’d fight tooth and nail for the people he cares about (though he sometimes takes some persuading) and does it with a charming smile.

Why They’re A Great Character: Damon may have all the Antihero staples in his make-up, but the reason things become cliche is because they work – and if you work it well enough it can be brilliant. Damon is a perfect example of this.

I find the bad boy something of a fascination. It’s that balance between being horrible, but still desirable that makes them so interesting. In real life, I’d run a mile from someone like Damon. The mood swings and the danger really don’t appeal when the threat is real, but in literature and television, I really can’t get enough of them.

I think it’s the thought that you could be the one to save them from themselves that appeals. In real life you wouldn’t chance it, but in fiction you imagine yourself to be the strong, desirable woman who is enough to win the devotion of the previously unattainable bad boy. The fact that he’s played by absolute hottie, Ian Somerhalder, also helps, of course.

The snarky, verging on rude humour is also appealing. And I mean rude in the impolite sense, not the ‘strictly 15+’ sense. Perhaps this is a symptom of my own personality, but I love a character who has the balls to say what everyone else is thinking, who stuffs social etiquette in favour of cutting truths.

Bad boys speak to that little part of us that wants to rebel, to ditch the various faces we present to the world and to just do and say what we want. But most people don’t also want to be a complete idiot, so the Bad boy has to have a softer, more gentle side. A redeeming feature. Because to liking someone who’s completely obnoxious would make me feel a little obnoxious myself…

Getting that balance of bad and vulnerable right is hard. Too much bad and the character becomes plain unlikeable. A completely soppy back story makes them unlikeable in other ways, or worse – unbelievable. What I liked in particular about Damon’s story is the way he pretends not to care, but then it turns out that he was initially the one who resented vampirism, and wanted to hold on to his humanity. It’s a completely believable story that over the decades he gradually got worn down until he decided not to care anymore – or at least to pretend not to, because we all know that underneath the surface, cuddly Damon is just waiting to be found.

Preferably by me, so we can live happily ever after.

(Just kidding, Boyfriend.)

…

(It’s okay, because he knows I totally think he looks like Ian Somerhalder.)

Moving The Castles Music Video

A slight detour from usual posting schedule for this:

Yay! The music video is finally complete. I shot a lot of the footage, Ivy put it all together, Taylor did the special effects and Charlie stars as the girl who takes off most of her clothes. Not as dodgy as that sounds!

I would love to know what you think, anyone out there who reads this, so please leave a comment.

And if you really like, and would like to buy some of our music, it is available here.

Review: Where She Went

Title: Where She Went

Author: Gayle Forman

Series: If I Stay #2

Genre: YA Contemporary

Publisher: Doubleday Childrens

Summary (from Goodreads)

It’s been three years since the devastating accident . . . three years since Mia walked out of Adam’s life forever.

Now living on opposite coasts, Mia is Juilliard’s rising star and Adam is LA tabloid fodder, thanks to his new rock star status and celebrity girlfriend. When Adam gets stuck in New York by himself, chance brings the couple together again, for one last night. As they explore the city that has become Mia’s home, Adam and Mia revisit the past and open their hearts to the future – and each other.

What’s Good About It

Where She Went takes a step back from If I Stay’s fantasy roots, providing a sharply real exploration of love and hope lost and found. Told from Adam’s perspective rather than Mia’s it picks up three years after the crash.

It’s a very different animal to its predecessor, but, even though it doesn’t have any of that weird, out of body magical stuff going on, Where She Went retains what made If I Stay so powerful in the first place – the emotion at it’s core.

It’s a hard work sort of book. It will string you out, break your heart and keep you coming back for more because you become so emotionally invested in the characters you have to know how it turns out. Poor, poor Adam. You feel every broken emotion he vents through his music. And even though he’s a mess, a total train wreck of a character, you can’t help falling in love with him.

But, and this is where Gayle Forman’s strength really shows – you can’t hate Mia for leaving him either. Every choice is logical, every emotion so true and believable. You’re invested on both sides of the relationship and want more than anything for a happy ending to play out.

An emotionally charged masterpiece of contemporary YA.

What’s Not So Good

Didn’t make me cry like the first one – but then it’s not as shocking in that way.

Rating: 5/5

Sunday Recap, 20/11

1. Blogging

Well, my plan to get my post cushion back has failed miserably – mostly on account of an impromptu trip down south to visit some friends which took up my whole weekend. (Also why I am posting this so late on Sunday.) I am not going to beat myself up about this. It was a much much needed break and it was lovely to see my friends and to have a completely work free relax.

2. Writing

As I’ve been struggling to find the time or the inclination to actually write, I’ve been keeping my writing muscles exercised by planning a story I intend to write soon. I have been filling my moleskine notebook with photos of characters, plot descriptions and world building information (it’s a fantasy story). My aim is to have a beautifully filled notebook and all the information I’ll need to actually write the story, so when it comes to putting words on a page it will be comparatively easy.

3. Exercise

Again, does dancing count? I also walked to a train station and back several times, amounting to probably at least 40mins of brisk walking. This is up on last week anyway.

4. Music

I have been practising my songs, and Ivy has just posted a video of a song which sounds interesting. The band is playing for the Christmas Lights switch on in town next week, which will be good. Better get practising really!!

Targets For Next Week

• Master the christmas tunes for the Lights
• Keep up to date with blog posts, even if I can’t get a few extras written

Gender Swapping Toothbrushes

The Boyfriend and I have never conformed well to gender stereotypes. While he cooks and fusses about cleaning, I program the television and fix our computers. He squeaks about bugs, I get the hoover. His favourite film is Little Miss Sunshine, mine is Aliens.

This non-conformity has always been interesting and amusing in the past, but recently a whole new problem has developed. Our toothbrushes.

People who know me usually learn pretty quickly that I am not squeamish about many things. Blood, guts and gore in general phases me no more when it’s on an over the top action flick, a hospital documentary, or right in front of me in the form of a slashed palm or bleeding nose. I am, however, squeamish about mouths.

I really don’t like them. I won’t eat off a plate someone else is using, unless it belongs to certain family members or the Boyfriend. And even the Boyfriend took a long time to get used to (heavily aided by his amusement at trying to make me put things in my mouth that had been in his. Sweets, ice cubes, partially chewed mouthfuls of dinner… he’s disgusting like that.) My rugby playing cousin once took great delight in grinning at me with his gum shield in and watching me gag at the sight of it. And don’t get me started on those horrible fake vampire teeth.

I’m heaving just thinking about it.

Therefore, the idea of sharing a toothbrush, or using someone else’s toothbrush even accidentally horrifies me. I had a green toothbrush until the Boyfriend came into the study while I was working with my toothbrush in his mouth to tell me (with a mouthful of spit and toothpaste – also disgusting) that he was using it. If he’d never said anything, I’d never have know, and could have continued brushing my teeth in blissful ignorance. As soon as I knew, the poor green toothbrush had to take a premature nosedive into the bin.

We bought new toothbrushes. They are pink and blue, and therein lies the problem, for the blue one is mine. And the pink is the Boyfriends.

His and... hers?

There was a logical reason for this. The Boyfriend likes softer bristled toothbrushes, while I prefer firm. The toothbrushes were buy one get one free, and the soft version was only available in pink. There were only pink and blue of the firmer version. To avoid having identical toothbrushes, the gender role-reversal was necessary.

And while I’m all for subverting the gender stereotypes, I guess there are just some things that are far to in ground to overcome. The colour associations of pink and blue are an example of this. Every morning I reach for the pink toothbrush, before stopping myself and switching to my blue one. I dread to think how many times the Boyfriend has used mine by mistake.

Here’s hoping he learned his lesson and doesn’t ever tell me about it.

Character Study: Christopher John Francis Boone

Name: Christopher John Francis Boone

Book/Film/TV Show: He’s the main character and narrator of Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.

Personality: Stubborn, logical, brilliant at maths, unable to understand jokes or metaphors, rigid in thought, fond of animals but confused by people, and a keen detective. He is high-functioning Autistic, which means his thought processes are very different, but he is intelligent, articulate and an absolutely fascinating character.

Why They’re a Great Character: I thought it was about time I actually wrote about a character in a book. Then I remembered why film and TV characters are easier – you can find pictures of them on Google… So, you’ll have to use your imagination, and settle for a picture of the book’s front cover.

Christopher John Francis Boone is one of the most original characters I’ve read in a long time. There was a bit of controversy over labelling him with Asperger’s Syndrome as some felt the portrayal of his behaviours didn’t accurately reflect the condition. Whether that is true or not – I don’t know enough about Aspergers specifically to comment – Christopher certainly seemed authentic from my experience of Autistic Spectrum Disorders. And to exist inside the mind of someone with such alien thought patterns makes for a fascinating, enlightening reading experience.

I think, in a lot of ways, that’s what reading is all about. It’s nice to spend some time with someone familiar, but most of the time reading takes us outside of our general day to day experience, be that because it’s full blown fantasy or simply because the protagonist does the things we think about, but never actually do.

Christopher’s story is one of hope and triumph over adversity. He’s difficult, stubborn and thinks so differently, but you find yourself growing to like him very quickly, and rooting for him. You’re yelling at the people who don’t understand his condition – the police officers and the strangers on the street and the shop workers – and that’s where the power of the story truly lies, because you understand Christopher as a character, and you empathise with him, and it makes you hate that other characters in the story are so ignorant.

Through his murder mystery adventure, Christopher teaches the reader a valuable lesson about tolerance and understanding. It’s never preachy or overbearing, because Christopher himself isn’t preachy or overbearing. A lot of schools I know of teach this book, and I can understand why.