Carrie Review

(This is for the book, not the movie!)

So, the book that started it all.  One might be tempted to overstate the importance of Carrie as Stephen King's first published book, especially as it was a best seller once it hit paperback.

One of the biggest surprises for me when I first read this novel (re-read for the Great Stephen King Experiment) was how short it was.  One of King's greatest strengths as a writer is how well he conveys imagery and burrows into his characters, but in this early work you don't see much of either.  You get a good feel for Carrie White and Sue Snell, with a bit of work thrown in on Tommy Ross and Billy Nolan, but most characters only get a cursory bit of insight.  Part of this stems from the decision to weave into the story 'excerpts' from fictional works about what is referred to as Prom Night in the novel, a decision that helps the reader see reactions to the event, but which also serves to distance them from fully immersing themselves into the story.

The story does move along quite briskly, with no lags despite the excerpts.  From the start, it slowly crescendos up into the pivotal moment at the spring dance, where it then manages to soar higher as Carrie enacts her revenge not only against her classmates, but also against the town of Chamberlain itself.  King conveys Carrie's rage nicely, and the various 'transcripts' taken from various townspeople capture the confusion and terror quite well.

My only critique, aside from rather thin sketches of the majority of the characters, is the lack of a truly strong villain.  Carrie herself is a tragic figure, so she hardly counts.  King makes you feel as if some sort of showdown will occur between Carrie and Chris Hargensen, but Billy Nolan gets more attention once the actual plan is in motion.  Margaret White also appears to be the villain, but she is mostly sidelined until her confrontation with Carrie after the dance.  Despite that confrontation being especially chilling, Margaret never feels like a true threat, even if she does strike what ends up being a mortal blow on Carrie.

Still, the novel is quite good, and a fine start for what turned out to be quite the career for King.

Stats
Pages:  199
Movie?:  2 of them - one in 1976 and another in 2013, plus a terrible sequel and a made-for-TV version.  Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie received Academy Award nominations for the 1976 version.
Dark Tower?:  No references that I can remember.
Child Deaths?:  The various teens at the dance, possibly some younger ones during Carrie's destruction of the town.
Penis Talk?:  Vague references from Sue Snell and Chris Hargensen from when they slept with their boyfriends, and Margaret White refers to her late husband's as The Devil's Serpent (unironically)
Grade:  B+

The Great Stephen King Experiment

So, I have a plan to read all the Stephen King books in order of publication.  As of this posting, I have read 33 of the 63 that have been published (although number 64 comes out on the 3rd of November, so it will be added to the pile).  As someone slightly familiar with Stephen King at this point, I am going to read the book, right a review, and keep track of a few things (for amusement's sake).

Number of Pages:  This is rather self-explanatory, and if I decide to add up the total number of pages read, at least I have a record.
Is There a Movie?:  Also self-explanatory.
Is it Part of the Dark Tower Mythos?:  I love the Dark Tower books and King has woven together quite a universe throughout his many works connecting them all together, so whenever references pop up, I will take note.
Do Any Children Die?:  Stephen King has no problem killing children, so this will also be tracked
Is There Penis Talk?:  Stephen King also talks about penis frequently.  This is obviously a 'for funsies' category
Grade:  Because why not?

I consider myself a fast reader, but there will obviously be some time between posts for these, as I do need to actually read the books.  Hopefully the delays will be short though.

2015 Movie List

The Movies:
Always Watching: A Marble Hornets Story

Ant-Man

Area 51

Attack on Titan (Part 1)

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Aziz Ansari: Live at Madison Square Garden

Backcountry

Chappie

Cinderella

Cooties

Dude Bro Party Massacre III

The Final Girls

The Good Dinosaur

The Hateful Eight

Inside Out

It Follows

John Mulaney: The Comeback Kid

Jurassic World

Krampus

The Last Five Years

Maggie

Mr. Holmes

Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension

Pitch Perfect 2

The Revenant

San Andreas
Spy

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Stung

Tremors 5: Bloodlines

Top 5 Movies:

The Final Girls

Inside Out (winner)

Krampus

The Last Five Years

Spy

Best Actress:

Malin Akerman, The Final Girls

Taissa Farmiga, The Final Girls (winner)

Anna Kendrick, The Last Five Years

Melissa McCarthy, Spy

Amy Poehler, Inside Out

Best Actor:
Jeremy Jordan, The Last Five Years

Ian McKellan, Mr. Holmes (winner)

Alec Owen, Dude Bro Party Massacre III

Paul Rudd, Ant-Man

Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maggie

Best Supporting Actress:
Cate Blanchett, Cinderella

Rose Byrne, Spy (winner)

Toni Collette, Krampus

Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight

Phyllis Smith, Inside Out

Best Supporting Actor:
Adam DeVine, Pitch Perfect 2

Walton Goggins, The Hateful Eight

Tom Hardy, The Revenant (winner)

Adam Scott, Krampus

Jason Statham, Spy

Gleewind: Pilot

So, Glee is ending its run after 6 seasons (2 of those abbreviated).  I, at one time, loved this series unashamedly, but somewhere along the way (specifically midway through the 3rd season) I started to hate the show.  Reading that it was ending made me revisit the pilot to see if the show always had problems, and no:  this show was so very promising at the start.  And I think I am going to marathon it on Netflix (powering through that exceptionally rough patch in season 3) to kind of honor the series for what it was and what it did.

So, the pilot episode:  As far as these things go, it is one hell of a start to the series.  Great character intros all around, excellent song choices, and the show really managed to grasp that outsider feel so many feel in high school.

The Main Players:
Will Schuester:  For the first part of the series, it really felt like this was going to be Will's story.  You lose it a bit later on in the series, but he really was a good teacher at the start of it all.  The episode focuses on his desire restart the Glee club that he was once the star of, and you really feel his passion for it.  Matthew Morrison wasn't always given the best material, but this groundwork that the character was built on is solid, and it is somewhat a shame that he wasn't able to pick up an Emmy for at least this first season's work.

Faves of the Year: 5-1

My favorites of the year, the top 5 (see my selections for Best Actress, Actor, Supporting Actress, and Supporting Actor at the Movie List page)

I should also note that this list is subject to change once I see the slew of movies waiting on deck (Birdman, The Grand Budapest Hotel, etc.)  So enjoy the time capsule that will most likely change throughout the year.

5)  Captain America:  The Winter Soldier

4)  Godzilla

3)  Nightcrawler

2)  Blue Ruin

1)  The Babadook

Faves of the Year: 10-6

My favorite movies from 2014, from number 10 through number 6.

10)  Under the Skin

9)  X-Men:  Days of Future Past

8)  The Lego Movie

7)  The Rover

6)  Selma

Reviews: Horror Edition

The Babadook

Man, I have found horror to be disappointing for the most part this year, but what a gem this turned out to be.  Filled with great atmosphere and a truly unique creature, this is the horror film I wanted with Oculus.

Following Amelia (Essie Davis) and her son Samuel (Noah Wisemen) as they are haunted by a mysterious creature called the Babadook, the film explores depression, loss, and family with a deft hand and a great screenplay from first-time director Jennifer Kent.  Light on jump scares, and heavy on atmosphere and tone, the movie slowly builds, giving horror fans something they don't get very often:  Likeable, if flawed, characters to root for.  Special mention to Essie Davis for giving one of the best performances of the year in any genre.

The trailer is slightly misleading:  The Babadook itself appears very little in the movie, and it leans more toward a character study/psychological thriller than a creature feature.  Still, this is a great movie that I highly recommend to any horror fan.  9.0 out of 10.

Willow Creek

A found footage movie that follows a couple trying to prove that Bigfoot exists, this effort from writer/director Bobcat Goldthwait is a solid, if unspectacular.

One thing I appreciate is the slow build up:  You get to know the couple (Alexie Gilmore and Bryce Johnson) and see a bit of their travels before getting to the meat of the movie.  Again, by creating characters that we care about, the stakes are raised in the latter part of the movie when the actual scares occur.

While both Gilmore and Johnson have onscreen chemistry and charisma, the film does drag in a few spots, most notably when interviewing locals and during the initial backpacking into the woods.  However, an extended sequence involving the couple waking up in the middle of the night is a great moment that the movie could have used more of.

Not the greatest horror film, but there are worse ways to spend your evening,  7.0 out of 10.

Annabelle

This was just a quick cash grab of a movie, and it shows quite a bit.  Following the creepy doll from The Conjuring, the movie could have been worse, but it definitely could have been better.

To give credit where it is due, the lead performance from Annabelle Wallis (yes, the main actress is the film also has the name Annabelle) is fairly strong, and there are two sequences that are exceptionally well done, but this is by-the-numbers horror cranked out to make a quick buck off the prior movie's great reception.

It's competent, but nothing extraordinary, which is a shame, because there was some good stuff to build off of.  6.5 out of 10.