When Receiving Bad News: A Shakespearian Styled Sonnet

When Receiving Bad News

Discordant chords disrupt the dying day.

News from lips leaves one empty. No more joy

pours from the once bright eyes, now dull and grey.

A story starts which will soothe, not destroy.

Evening ends with burdened ears and spent hearts.

Spare thoughts drift, aimless, in the aftermath,

then find darkness to hide the broken parts,

far from the minds that roam the sunlit path.

Wandering a forest, lost and broken,

hiding from the cold, shivering touches,

the world wishes prior words unspoken,

and the night saddens the hearts it reaches.

But with the dawn, the path is found. Above,

night fades on the back of the mourning dove.

Book blog!!

I have decided to create a book blog! It is called The Very Hungry Book Reader, and it will be all books. Check it out here!!!

Love Affair vs. An Affair to Remember

I have mentioned this before in my Irene Dunne post, but I wanted to elaborate on why Love Affair (LA) from 1939 is a superior film to An Affair to Remember (AATR) and maybe rant about how unfair it is that AATR is more popular than LA.

Note: There is another Love Affair from the 1994, Katharine Hepburn's last movie. I have not seen the film, so I will not discuss it. 

Love Affair stars Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. An Affair to Remember stars Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. Now, they are essentially the same when it comes to plot and dialogue. In fact, it is directed by the same person, Leo McCarey.

The story (without spoilers) is about a couple that meet on a cruise ship and fall in love. They agree to meet on top of the Empire State Building after six months to see if their love is real.

Reasons why Love Affair is superior:

1. Acting: Dunne is the better actress. Boyer is the better actor. I am biased. Irene Dunne is one of my favourite actors of all time, male and female. Anything with her is far superior to other films because of her performance alone. However, I truly think she is the better actress in this case. The film has a very comedic first half and a melodramatic second half. The balance is precarious as the the female lead walks the fine line of tragic and corny. Dunne performance never made me role my eyes. Her Terry McKay never asked for pity. As for Boyer, for me it is the scene when he realises what happened. It made me cry. The realisation is just so real. 

2. Chemistry: Dunne and Boyer have better chemistry. My heart melts for these two. No one can really describe what it is exactly that makes people more compatible on screen over another, but in this case it is easy to see the chemistry in LA is far better than in AATR. I find Grant and Kerr a little sitff. 

3. Pacing: LA is just 90 minutes. AATR on the other hand is almost two hours. This is because scenes are added or expanded to the second film. For the most part they are very irrelevant, and the quick pace of the first film is lost. I remember watching An Affair to remember and wanting to skip some of the long talking scenes that Grant and Kerr had on the boat. They were just so stilted and drawn out. 

So then why is An Affair to Remember more popular?

Why AATR is more popular than LA:

1. Sleepless in Seattle: This film with Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks was quite popular. It references An Affair to Remember as its inspiration for meeting on top of the Empire State Building. This introduced a new generation to the 1956 film.

2. Cary Grant: One of the most popular stars ever. People who don't watch classics know the name Cary Grant. 

3. Colour: Today colour is standard. All of our movies are in colour and it is what people are most comfortable with. If the option is between a coloured film vs. a black and white film, most people would choose the coloured. 

4. Public domain: LA is in public domain. Something happened with the copyright. I have no idea what, but this means that no one wants to clean up the film and release it on DVD. However, this does mean that it is on Youtube, and you should all go there right now and watch it. Here is a link even: Love Affair. Go watch!

Ingrid Bergman Centennial 1915-2015

Ingrid Bergman:

A Centennial Celebration 1915-2015

Ingrid Bergman (29.08.15-29.08.82)

Happy 100th Birthday Ingrid Bergman! I can't express how much I adore Ingrid, an actress who stayed true to herself.  Her down to earth outlook and her courage got her through many obstacles, and that alone makes me love her.  She is also my favourite actress of Hollywood's so called "Golden Era,"but Ingrid is not really a Hollywood actress. She was from Sweden and had acted there long before Hollywood. A truly global actress, Ingrid spoke five languages and acted all over the world, so I can say with confidence that the whole world is celebrating her centennial with me.

Her beautiful smile                                    

How did I fall for Ingrid Bergman? I don't really know. I remember being incredibly pleased at her height. Most actresses seemed to be very petite, especially in old Hollywood, but Ingrid was the exception at 5'10''. Her accent? I remember I loved hearing her speak. I found out that she was born in Sweden and had not come to America until her twenties. Maybe it was her eyes. I was impressed at the range of emotion her could convey with just her eyes. They sparkled with tears, clouded with worry, sparked with anger. They made her acting just that more convincing. Her beauty? She had a natural beauty that never needed to be covered over with make up and that lit up the screen. It was all these things or maybe it was none of them. All I know is that Ingrid Bergman, who would have turned 100 today, steals my breath and stops my heart. 

With Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, 1942

I have seen 18 of her films: Gaslight, Spellbound, Notorious, Cactus Flower, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Bell's of Saint Mary's, Elena et les hommes, Interrmezzo, Interrmezzo: A Love Story, En kvinnas ansikte, Juninatten, Stromboli, Europa '51, Viaggio in Italia, Anastasia, The Inn of Sixth Happiness, Indiscreet, and of course, Casablanca. Notorious is my favourite performance of hers, and Casablanca is my favourite movie of all time and my first Ingrid Bergman movie.

Ingrid Bergman 1915-2015

Ingrid Bergman is a legend. I am not the only one celebrating her centennial. All over the world people are showing their love for this amazing actress. For example, to commemorate her centennial MoMA is showing many of her films with introductions done by her children. A new documentary premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival, Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words. The AFI is also doing a centennial film festival in Washington D.C. It is evident that Ingrid Bergman lives on in the hearts of film goers today and will continue to shine for many years to come. 

A bat catching experience

I live in a very old house, and so from time to time, especially in the heat of summer, we get bats. Tonight, a bat decided to visit me. Here is the complete tale:

First off, I hate bats. They scare me so much. I don't know why.

I just finished this book. Upon completion of this book I climbed upstairs to my bedroom. I sat down at my computer to update my reading status on Goodreads when I heard a rustling behind my curtain. I took hold of the curtain and drew it back...and there was the bat. The bat flew up at me, and I leapt back and out of my chair. It started circling.

 I ran out of my room, closed the door, and ran down to get the butterfly nets. I gathered my sister and we did a pep talk outside my room, peeping in occasionally and seeing it fly around my room. We were freaking out. Our voices shrill as we discussed what to do. I eventually knew I had to go in, and so I did. It was resting over top of my washroom door.

I slowly approached, but alas, it started flying again. I dropped to the ground and cowered next to my bed. It circled and circled my room. I watched, observing its flight path and trying to calm down so I could be cool enough to catch it. Cool wasn't coming so I hefted my net and jabbed at the air as it came around again. I missed. It came around again and I hit it. It slammed into the my bookshelf and fell through a couple of shelves then landed on the floor. Quickly, I slammed my net down onto the bat trapping it.

Then came the dilemma of what to do with the bat now that it had been caught. I don't like the idea of bat guts all over my bedroom floor, actually I don't like killing animals period. I needed to get it outside. I yelled at my sister to come in. She entered.

"I don't know what to do, but I want to get outside. Go and open the front door."

 She did after some wrangling on how I was going to transport the bat downstairs and to the front door. I was working on it. Magazine? Nope. Oh my grade 8 grad photo! Yes. I carefully slid the photo under the net and the bat after putting my hand on the other side so I didn't shove the bat threw and out the other side. Then it was easy.

 I picked up the picture holding down the sides of the net so that the bat was sealed in. I was scared for the net is mesh and if the bat wanted to it could bite me through the netting, but it didn't. My sister had the door open and I ran out. I placed the bat on the front porch then ran back inside, leaving the bat trapped under the net. Inside I mentally kicked myself and after thinking about it. Told my sister to open the door a bit. I leaned out on hands and knees to grasp the end of the net and flip it over as the bat had attached itself to its underbelly. I quickly withdrew inside again and my sister shut the door. The bat flew off and I went to check how it got in. Then I decided to write about it, and I have since realised that I have left the net and my photo out on the porch.

Reading YA

Before reading this post, read this article.

So...

...Young Adult (YA) books are not "literature"? If you are an "adult" you should be ashamed to read YA?

First off: What constitutes as an adult? I have been legally one for over a year now, but I am not an adult in my eyes, and I doubt I am in the eyes of most people who know me.

Secondly: What constitutes as a YA novel? I understand that the market is for teenagers usually 13-17, but the concept of a teen itself is relatively new especially compared to the age of literature. I saw Pride and Prejudice with a new cover in the teen section of the library. I have seen The Book Thief in the children's, adult's and teen's section of different book stores.

Thirdly: I disagree that YA is poorly written. I have read plenty of beautifully written books for both teenagers and children. Kate DiCamillo anyone?

Finally: Why should anyone be ashamed of reading a book? I mean, yes, I would be embarrassed to find myself reading certain books, but never ashamed. A good book is a good book, and one can be found in all age groups.

READ WHAT YOU WANT!!!

Viriginia Woolf on fiction: But what about movies?!

In Virginia's Woolf's essay "Phases of Fiction," from the collection On Fiction, mentions how novels are the newest art form. It is ever changing, growing, and expanding. Different formulae and patterns will be discovered.We are still learning different ways to create novels just as we are still learning different ways to create music.  She is comparing it other art forms such as music, painting etc. Both these art forms have changed considerably, for example, music used to be highly religious, used only to serve God. Then, gradually, for monarchsan now personal expression. New instruments were invented which allowed the music to change. Same with painting. But one question...WHAT ABOUT MOVIES? They were invented in 1898 (years after the novel), so shouldn't they be the newest art form? The essay is from 1926, so movies are well known and a popular art form on the verge of having sound. They have definitely changed overtime, with the invention of sound, colour, CGI, 3D etc. Why didn't Woolf acknowledge movies. Were they still just theatre to her? Did she dismiss them as not art?

I wrote this months ago and wasn't going to post it, but why not?