World of imagination, magic, and excitement

Have stumbled onto new (re)discoveries...!

*During the past week I've been watching on YouTube fanmade trailers of the 2015 Cinderella in Non/Disney styles. Very cool! They have reintroduced me to the interesting notion of crossover pairings, too!( Read more... )

*Another discovery I made on YouTube is Grimm Reflections, a fairy tale webseries which has retold the stories of Snow White and Rapunzel. It is an excellent series. In Snow White the characters are layered, there's surprising twists, and the end...! Rapunzel is like a miniseries, short yet brilliant. Suspenseful, beautifully shot and edited, great music. I will go down as a hardcore Will/Rapunzel shipper. Great casts in both seasons. And June 1st kicks off season three: Cinderella. Bring it on!( Read more... )

*So I've seen Disney's The Jungle Book twice at the movies now. I actually wasn't interested in seeing it at first. Growing up I watched the animated cartoon a lot, but it never was among my favorite Disney films. It wasn't until after the live-action movie came out and I kept hearing so many good things about it I finally decided to check it out. And...WOW. It blew me away. Favreau's The Jungle Book may now be my definitive version. Not only was it visually stunning, but had story with heart. The voice cast was all perfect. Neel Sethi made me totally believe in him as Mowgli and in his world. Shere Khan has catapulted into my top 5 Disney villains. Kudos to (terrifying) Idris Elba! I love so much the relationship between Mowgli and Bagheera. Unlike the cartoon, I felt their friendship was stronger, more of a focus point than compared to Mowgli's and Baloo's. (There is no "Papa Bear" or discussion of Baloo adopting the boy in the new film.) Instead Mowgli longs for Bagheera's approval, looking up to him very much as a father figure. And it is so touching.

The Jungle Book I think ties with Cinderella as my favorite live-action Disney film (both are head and shoulders above Maleficent). After the release of that stunning teaser trailer (the music!!!!) last week, I am looking forward to seeing what Beauty and the Beast has in store. :)

LOTR/HOBBIT
Dwarven affections, or; How to avoid to get caught from one for the rest of your live - When they set their minds to it to catch you, they can be surprisingly sneaky! And what is worse, they have helping cousins, meddling friends under the royals and a mean possessive streak that makes all plans on escape pointless!

After - It's easy to be brave before. It's harder to be brave after.

To Be Kings - While in Rivendell, Thorin has an unexpected encounter with an intriguing young lad named Hope. Or, more specifically, Estel.

An Unexpected Slumber Party - The Company enjoys a carefree evening in Rivendell before facing the dangers that await them on the rest of their journey. There is music, beard-grooming, lettuce-roasting and chronicle-writing. Will even Thorin Oakenshield be able to relax and enjoy himself for a while?

The Audacity of Youth - Young Kili accidentally influences Dwarf politics in the way only a sleepy toddler can.

Safe in My Arms - Bilbo's exhaustion after being rescued by the Eagles does not go unnoticed by Thorin and Company.

How to Handle Your Warg -- A Handbook by Bilbo Baggins - Bilbo Baggins goes for a night walk, gains a rather unusual pet and brings new meaning to the words 'it followed me home, can I keep it'

Wounds of Greatness - Wiser men than Frodo Baggins and Gimli, Glóin’s son, have found that greater deeds often bring the touch of darkness too.' At dawn over Minas Tirith, Frodo and Gimli talk of shadows, heroes and greatness.

Sacrifices - Set after the Fellowship losing Gandalf in the mines of Moria. Frodo's thoughts and personal demons on display.

Bilbo Baggins: Frying Pan Wielder - Bilbo Baggins was about as fightening as a baby rabbit, that was to say: not at all. Or at least, that is what Thorin Oakenshield had thought up until that night... The dwarf had worried before over how the hobbit would fare when they reached the mountain, now he wasn't sure who he should fear more for: the burglar or the dragon.

Young Thorin - A set of one-shots about Thorin as he growns into the dwarf he is now.

FAIRY TALES
Flapper Boy - A reinterpretation of "Donkeyskin" set in 1920s Paris. In the Jazz Age and a time of liberation, how does the story change?

NORTHANGER ABBEY
Northanger Abbey: a Short Story - A short story written for my English Literature class on Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey.

HARDY BOYS/NANCY DREW
Codes and Signals - A coded phone call from Frank to Nancy leads both detectives to reevaluate their relationship.

2012 was the year of Snow White (THREE versions). Could 2013 be the year of Cinderella? Disney is making a live-action version with Cate Blanchett as the stepmother. A while back I heard Amanda Seyfried was rumored to play Cinderella in a film; don't know if that one was Disney's or not.

My wish is for Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (making its Broadway debut next year) to be filmed and shown on TV in the tradition of the Julie, Lesley Ann, and Brandy versions. I want to see how much the story differs from the others. Pretty please???

Did anyone catch the sneak peek during Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade?

Don't know German, but...

*I continue to be impressed be how visually stunning the film looks.
*Now THAT was the not the introduction I was expecting the evil queen to make.
*How adorable are little Snow White and William! Makes me wish they are together in the end.

(Am I the only one who thinks Universal may be trying a little too hard with all the recent clips and articles? I feel like they are perhaps unintentionally revealing too much of the who, what, where, when, and how of SWATH, taking away from some of its mystery which should be discovered when I see it.)

Summary: The viridian flame, a magical green power source, is located on Prince Alexander’s land. The elves protect the viridian flame and utilize it’s magical powers to hide from humans. The humans are amid of power struggle after the king’s death and Prince Alexander offers to marry the evil queen to unite their two kingdoms. That is, until Snow White returns from the convent and the mirror reports that Snow White is the fairest in the land. The evil queen sends the huntsman on a mission to kill the princess and he fails when the dragon like creatures protect her. The elves discover Snow White laying unconscious in the woods. They reluctantly nurse her back to health unaware of her status in the kingdom.

I stumbled over Grimm's Snow White (2012) a month ago. A direct to DVD release , it is a low budget film by The Asylum. And it glaringly shows at times: worst CGI I've ever seen; confusing plot; the queen's "army" is about 30 men, and the war is very low-key; the final confrontation between her and Snow felt very anti-climatic; Snow White was pretty but didn't develop much as a character. On the other hand the costumes and music were impressive, some of the outdoor locations were beautiful, and Prince Alexander had it BAD for Snow. When I first saw the trailer, it came across as something SyFy may have done in their string of re-imaginings of classic fantasies since it has dragons, magical elves, and a blond-haired Snow White (thought she could pass as an Alice); only SyFy would have made a more interesting film, I think.



Under a month a to go. Based on articles and this latest TV spot, maybe my wild hunch isn't so far off the mark...

The Snow White fever is getting higher and higher...and my interest is increasing.







(I must say that visually Snow White and the Huntsman looks stunning. Wish there was more to see of Sam Claflin -- hope he isn't reduced to being simply a "cardboard" prince.)







(Of the two Snow White films, Mirror Mirror remains the one I would like to see the most. Julia Roberts' Evil Queen is a hoot, in my opinion, going after her man like that. I like Armie Hammer's prince. And Nathan Lane had me laughing out loud with his...hat at the ball.)

Is anyone planning on seeing either of the films?

I've viewed a lot of films lately and decided to share my thoughts on some of them. :)

Čarodějův učeň (Krabat) – I first heard about this 1977 Czech fairy tale film in a book, The Enchanted Screen, and eventually found it on youtube. It is an original tale about a poor boy that becomes a prisoner of the evil magician and works at his mill. The artwork/style is stunning and unique, and the music lovely. The film is quite wonderful, with understated storytelling – no subplots or big bangs so speak found in most movies – little actual dialogue, and no explicit violence that for me made Krabat all the more touching and memorable. This is now one of my favorite fairy tale films

The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader – Way back when the ’05 Pride and Prejudice first came out, I thought as a period drama standing on it’s own two feet it was great, but was lacking as an adaptation of the book. That is pretty much how I feel about VODT. The first ten-ish minutes of the film were excellent with the reentrance of Lucy and Edmund, and the introduction of Eustace Scrubb, and then Narnia. Eustace was one of the highlights of the film for me. He was Eustace. And his friendship with Reepicheep was quite touching. It was interesting how Lucy’s jealousy of Susan and her longing to be beautiful was handled, focusing on a different aspect of it than in the book. I was so glad Aslan’s comment about being in the Pevensies’s world was included! That whole last minutes of the film was wonderful, my favorite part along with the beginning. Oh! And David Arnold’s score was magnificent.

My main problem with VODT is the premise of the voyage. When Eustace, Lucy, and Ed meet up with Caspian, he is indeed seeking the lost seven lords. But that takes a back seat when they learn about the evil mist and that it can be defeated by bringing the seven lords’ swords to Aslan’s table. I personally thought it wouldn’t be a problem to have the driving force of the book – quest for the lost lords – be the same for the movie. Yet once again, it seems the whole point of being in Narnia has to do with saving it. …From evil that is not really an evil to Narnia, just has the potential to be someday. Evil green mist! I still don’t get it. And Edmund…he pained me. It seemed sort of like he was Peter in PC, with how different he was, and not exactly for the best. *shakes head sadly*

Tangled – Such a great film. Moving and funny. Awesome story, characters, animation, and music. It was like going back to the Disney classics. Gothel I think is right up there with Ursula as my favorite villain. She was not complex, a fully drawn character. And Donna Murphy’s voice! I could listen to “Mother Knows Best Reprise” for hours. Wow. I loved how Eugene was sort of a nod to the actor Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood. There were definitely similarities between the two. A new Disney favorite.

Miss Marple: The Body in the Library (1984) – The Body in the Library was my introduction to the great Miss Marple, and made me an Agatha Christie fan. This film adaptation features Joan Hickson as Miss Marple who solves the baffling case of an unknown murdered girl discovered in the library of the Bantrys. At over two and a half hours, the mystery was flushed out well with its twists and turns building suspense and wit, and the characters were all nicely developed. Joan Hickson’s Miss Marple was splendid, who at first glance seems a bit withdrawn but has a sharp mind and brilliant wit. The supporting cast likewise turned in fine performances. The script is good, and is quite faithful to Christie’s novel. Despite knowing how it all went down, I was drawn into the suspense, and enjoyed seeing it all unfold.

Marple: The Body in the Library (2004) – Maybe if I had not watched this and the 1984 versions of The Body in the Library back-to-back I might have liked this a little bit more than I did. It is much shorter than the 1984 version, causing the mystery to be crammed and rushed, with characters never really established. While the sets and costumes were quite lovely, there was too modern a feel to the whole thing. The script was lacking despite some occasional humor. Most of the cast’s performances were strangely over the top. Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple was too cheeky and smug for my taste. This adaptation was pretty faithful to the book until the very end when suddenly the identity of the murderer was changed, and a lesbian affair was thrown in. WHY?? Also, having Miss Marple spell the whole thing out to the police before the murderer was apprehended sucked out all the suspense in the end. I think I’m going to stick to the older Miss Marple adaptations. This newer version did not cut it.

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My favorite fairy as a child was The Prince and the Princess by Marianna Mayer. A retelling of a Bohemian fairy tale, it is a story with magic windows, a prince on a dangerous quest, three unusual companions, loops of iron, an evil wizard, and a princess turned to stone whose spirit roams the world.

I recall the wonder I felt each time my mom bought this book home from the library and read it to me and my brother. I marveled at the prince's strange companions -- growing as tall as the highest tree, able to become very wide, and see for miles away -- who used their special talents to help the prince; loyal, faithful friends. The wizard frightened me with his cruelty and ability to change into terrifying monsters (the illustrations of him the book were so creepy). And I was in awe of the prince who went through so many dangers to rescue the princess, how much he loved her.

I found The Prince and the Princess again at the library several years later, and since then I have revisited the tale many times, and its enchantment has yet to wear off.

Title: Inescapable Darkness
Rating: PG-13 (T)
Disclaimer: The Brothers Grimm and Allerleirauh do not belong to me; this story gives me no profit but fun. No copyright infringement is intended.
Warnings: Tragedy, dark themes, emotional and (not carried out) sexual abuse.
Summary: [The Brothers Grimm's Allerleirauh] She has escaped her enemy, but not her prison.

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