Category: Reviews

Troop Beverly Hills: A Fabulous Flashback

On By R. PettyIn MoviesLeave a comment
Troop Beverly Hills
Photo by: drafthouse.com

Troop Beverly Hills is one of the most underrated girl power movies ever. The movie premiered in 1989, a year on the cusp of the ’90s before the Gulf War began when Hollywood was everything. It wasn’t just about the fabulous life of Beverly Hills residents, it’s a coming-of-age story about a group of girls, their troop leader, and the ultimate teen girl power movie predecessor to movies like Clueless and Mean Girls, both of which have similar themes.

I was 7 years old when this movie came out, and I have watched it dozens of times. As a little girl, it was one of my favorite movies because it gave me hope. I may not be rich or a wilderness girl, but I know – and did then – how to adapt and survive.

Reviewers and critics are often hard on this movie, but it’s worth a watch if you love three things: a good story, comedy, and a happy ending.

Here are my favorite things about Troop Beverly Hills:

Shelley Long – I’ve probably never seen another movie she’s been in, but I knew her from Cheers, so I recognized her at a young age. She’s over-the-top, super girly, and a little whiny. But she is a fantastic mother. As a mom, it’s hard not to respect a woman who never gives up and does everything she can to care for her daughter and troop. Long plays a loving and unconditionally accepting woman who goes above and beyond, no matter what obstacles she faces. She’s a great role model.

Unity – The movie brings together a diverse group of girls – both in the background and ethnicity – and shows how anything is possible when you work as a team. Sometimes we women struggle with female relationships because many times women are overly competitive, sneaky, and too cutthroat. Several “girl” movies deal with girl-on-girl crime, but Troop Beverly Hills shows that no matter what problems you have or how different you are, when woman (or people) come together, great things happen. It adds the team factor.

Relatability – Underlying themes include the struggles of divorce, neglectful parents, coming-of-age, money, power, politics, and fashion. It’s a great mother-daughter movie, although I bet there are some great dads out there who would enjoy it as well. When the movie came out, my parents were on the verge of divorce, so I related with Phyllis (Long) and her daughter Hannah (Jenny Lewis) the most. I could understand how the mom and child felt, and even today I bet there are thousands of kids who could do the same. It doesn’t matter how much money you have or what life you’ve lived, the theme of wanting a fulfilling life, sense of accomplishment, and love are something most of us always want.

Fun and Innocence – Sure there’s profanity, but it’s not overly done and used in the most passionate times. It’s a wholesome story that addresses serious issues in a fun, innovative way. Some of the fashion is ridiculous, the dialogue is smart, and there aren’t any shock scenes. I miss movies that work off the story instead of trying to amplify it for shock value. I miss movies with little if no CGI and good acting – movies that take a good story and characters and create a great movie. There are no overly dramatic scenes, and when there is drama, it is often followed with comedy to keep it lighthearted. We could all use a little more fun and innocence in our lives.

If you haven’t seen it or it’s been awhile, you should check it out. And feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below. We love to hear from you!

American Horror Story: 5 Reasons to Love It

On By R. PettyIn TV Shows4 Comments

American Horror Story continues to gain viewers and attract more crazy people who can’t help but get sucked into the story – no matter how messed up.

And that’s what I love about it and one of many things that inspired this week’s post.

If you haven’t seen the show, it may not be your thing, but if you value a good story (as we often talk about here) and great acting it may be worth your time. Aside from the wicked stories and awesome acting, there are some special things I enjoy about the show:

1. It changes every season. New characters, new plot, new time period, and setting. It’s quite remarkable, and Entertainment Weekly revealed there is cross over, which only makes me want to watch it more, so I can put all the pieces together. It’s thoughtful, creative, and refreshing when things feel a little overdone in Hollywood.

2. The acronym. If you Google AHS, you will find American Horror Story. I love that. It wasn’t on purpose and just happened. When I text, “watching AHS,” that person knows exactly what I’m talking about. Not many shows develop a natural acronym.

3. Giving actors/actresses work. Before the show, I hadn’t seen Kathy Bates, Jessica Lange, or Angela Bassett in ages. There are several people who want to work in the industry but simply don’t fit into the “popular” crowd of today’s Hollywood. And these people are more talented than the ones getting work. It’s a shame, but that’s what I love about AHS. This show gives them a place and purpose, and they can create a following of their own.
This season also (Freak Show) even more to work with featuring stars and acts from freak shows and characters based on real-life “very special people”.

4. Horror at its best (by modern standards). Some people complain that it’s too disturbing, slow, gory, dark, etc. Well, the horror genre is not a happy place. It is not rainbows and unicorns. The horror genre takes your worst nightmares and discomforts and slaps you in the face. AHS does that, and only true horror fans can appreciate the dark and often disturbing tone of the show.

5. Respect to the genre. With that said, the writers and crew pay homage to many real-life horror stories and work them in. They also use angels and visuals that pay respect to the greats like Hitchcock and Carpenter. The score creeps you out during the opening credits, and who can’t help but love this week’s cover as Come As You Are. Last season, a scene was so deep, it made me cry. The show evokes emotions, makes you think, and can rip your heart it. AHS defines modern horror in the most beautiful way.

We look forward to hearing your thoughts and what you think of the show. Share and feel free to comment below!

King’s On Writing: The Intro

On By R. PettyIn BooksLeave a comment

Stephen King’s On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft is one of my favorite books ever. I’m on my second read and didn’t realize how much I enjoy his honesty and advise on writing, ideas, and life in general.

I decided to review it after one of our featured artists – Kevin Litwin – mentioned what the book meant to him and how it helped him as a writer. The light bulb went off, and I thought … what a great book to review!

So, here’s the intro. The book is not your traditional how-to write; it’s his story about what influenced him and how he got to where he is today. It’s not organized by chapters, rather sections that feel like stream of conscious but flow very well. Each section builds on one another, and you can easily read a couple of pages, laugh, and get back to life. You may not want to put it down though, so consider yourself warned…

I’ve always wondered what made famous writers famous. It’s not the writing quality (sometimes unfortunately), it’s not based on pop culture or what’s in style. Before everyone knew King, no one did. I’ve decided it’s the storytelling and its delivery.

With that said, here are some highlights and things I learned from the first 10 sections:

We tend to remember the traumatic events more than the good times. I’m sure psychologists would say because we are scarred and do not heal, they have more of a lasting effect. Maybe that’s true, and I definitely think it makes a writer better. Writers use that negative energy to tell their story and heal themselves.

We need the bad and the good. The hard times help us appreciate the good ones. They evoke emotion – negative or not – that we need to feel and act human. Artists have to have a muse, and no matter what, emotion is our muse. Certain things evoke the emotions we need, but at the core emotion fuels art.

Get ready to toughen up. I won’t spoil too much, but King refers to not being scared of literary critics thanks to a 200-pound babysitter farting on his face when he was a young boy. (Words wouldn’t scare anyone after something like that!) The point is if you plan to put yourself out there, get ready for people to talk about it. People love commenting – on everything.

Imagination is a wonderful thing. Think of some great fiction writers, Dr. Seuss, J.K. Rowling, Shakespeare, King, and think about what you love about their writing. It’s not because it’s grammatically correct or a best seller, it’s the creativity they put into the story. It’s their incredible imaginations flowing onto hundreds of pages that create a world for the reader. That’s imagination.

Be yourself. I’ve discussed this many times, and the more I learn, the more I realize how true it is. No one cares about your education or social class. No one cares where you came from or who you know. If you pour your heart, soul, and everything that is you into something, people will notice and appreciate you for it.

This week I challenge you to a writing exercise: Pick something that evoked a strong emotion – good or bad – and write about it. No one has to read it, just let the emotions pour out onto the page. What happened and how you really felt about it. Don’t be afraid. Who knows, maybe it’ll turn into something great!

Off the Top of My Head: Media Realism and Doom

On By James CastroIn Games, OpinionsLeave a comment

Off The Top of My Head

There has been an odd move in video media to make things more “realistic.”  I’m not sure where this trend originated but having grown up in the 80s and 90s I find it more than a little troubling.  I have spotted a few trends that cross various kinds of media but I’ll use some specific examples to try and make the broad points.  There will be a few of these but I’ll start with one that’s been nagging me the most.  Realism in First Person Shooters.

DOOM.  Yes.  When I think 1st person shooters I still think of Doom.  In Doom you could about 8 weapons, you moved like you were wearing roller skates on a conveyor belt, and the rocket launcher fired out of the middle of your character’s chest.  But while playing Doom I don’t recall ever thinking, “You know what this game needs?  More realism.”  If I played Doom II and I could only carry a shotgun and a plasma rifle I’d be pretty pissed…  Likewise, to heal yourself all you have to do is run over various sizes of health power ups.  I’m not sure how much the game would have been improved by making me stop and actually treat my wounds realistically.

Yep firing a rocket out of the middle of my chest. What?

Fast forward to the modern FPS.  You are usually restricted to carrying a limited number of weapons, running makes the camera (and I use the word CAMERA) bob around like mad and healing somehow takes place just by hiding and not taking damage for a while.  It’s like people forgot how to video game…  All of this was done in the name of realism. Without getting into the fact that for some reason hiding behind a building and breathing until you regain color to the screen is a more realistic way of healing gunshot wounds than running over health packs, why did the industry feel this was necessary?  How does limiting the number of weapons I can carry improve the gaming experience?  How does making the movement look more like “actual” movement help the game play?  I never thought the movement in Doom, or even Wolfenstein, felt bad.  It felt like a video game and since that’s what I was playing it was a-ok.

The addition of seeing a characters hands filling part of the screen has greatly improved my gaming experience. Having NPCs do all the work helps too.

Even stranger is the idea that you can make something like this realistic, but not too realistic as that would be crazy.  How about one-hit kills?  I don’t know too many guys who can take a half dozen gunhits before crouching behind a wall and shaking it off.  How about completely limited ammo?  You have your primary weapon and a couple reloads.  Your secondary weapon and a couple of reloads.  You can’t interchange ammo and when you run out you’re SOL unless a realistic supply depot is nearby.  Or powder burns.  Or misfires.  We don’t see our characters eat very often.  Or go to the bathroom.  (unless it’s the Sims) but no one is clamoring for those additions.  Of course no one really clamored for the others either.

To me an FPS is essentially watching a wheeled humanoid, nearly impervious to wounds, with a Go-Pro on its head and a weapon for its right arm navigate an environment, shoot the other humanoids and make them dead.  There’s no adding realism to that really…  Or if realism MUST be added it shouldn’t be done so at the cost of fun.  I can’t remember having fun with an FPS made after 2006.  Of course the new generation of Modern Military Shooter fans will rend their garments and tell me why Call of Duty is far superior to Quake; and just looking at the shiny their case looks sound.  But when it comes to fun there’s no competition.  Give me the brown castles and 2D sprite enemies of Quake any day…  At least its level of “realism” makes sense!

Best Horror Story: Rats in the Walls

On By James CastroIn Books, ReviewsLeave a comment

I’m going to take a departure from movie reviews and do something a little different.

Films and TV shows rely on visual and audio to frighten. Either something looks creepy or out of place and unsettles the viewer or an unusual or a loud noise is used to startle the audience.

The written word however is more malleable. It has to rely on mood, tone, and the use of description or dialogue to let the reader’s imagination frighten itself. It’s because of this that written works can often be far more scary than anything you can watch or listen to.

One that in particular got to me is H. P. Lovecraft’s Rats in the Walls.

I will try not to give it away which will be difficult because I will have to try to say why it is scary without saying what happens. The brief story set up is as follows:

Narrator/protagonist Delapore leaves his home in Massachusetts (a place his family settled after being run out of their ancestral home) but returns to his family estate, Exham Priory, in England where the locals are unhappy of his return. During his stay in the old house he hears a sound like rats scurrying through the walls and his cat responds to them as well. He has dreams throughout the story featuring strange demon-like beings overseeing fleshy humanoid creatures, and these dreams become more clear as the story progresses. After following the sound of the rats to a stony cellar Delapore and a group of adventurers explore the dank caverns beneath the priory and find the horrors within.

What is truly unsettling is the tone and the flashes of imagery used to uncover the history of the Delapore family. The story starts slowly, in the deliberate pace used by Lovecraft in all his writing. Unlike the more famous Call of Cthulhu or the more in-your-face Herbert West Reanimator this story doesn’t even sound like a horror story in the beginning. He establishes the character of Delapore. We learn of his family, his son, and his reasons for returning “home.” The tension builds as he spends more time in his family estate. As you plunge into the cavern and more and more is found out the darkness takes hold and the story is told in primal flashes and in maddening staccatos. I think of this story like Berlioz’s Symphony Fantastique where a slow, sometimes curious pace leads up to a conclusion that rips you into vertigo as discordant strains make your hairs stand on end.

I truly think it’s the best horror story I’ve ever read, better than anything earlier or anything more modern. It’s imagery that will stay with you after you’ve read it. Lovecraft told you what was there…but your own mind gave it life to haunt the darkest places in your thoughts for years to come.

Best Horror Sequel: Halloween 2

On By R. PettyIn MoviesLeave a comment

The best horror sequel stumped me: Friday the 13th part 2 or Halloween 2? Jason or Michael? Ginny or Laurie? Both are classic sequels to classic slasher movies. Most everyone recognizes the hockey mask or white William Shatner mask. I have seen both an equal amount of times and enjoy watching both every year. So, what’s a girl to pick?

In the end, Halloween 2 wins in my book. It was a week-long thought process that led to the decision, and in order to tell you lovely readers why, I must discuss both movies. If Halloween 2 is the best, Friday the 13th part 2 is runner-up. Here’s why:

Opening credits – From the very beginning music, the camera spans deep into the blank, black pumpkins eyes – dark holes if you will – which symbolizes Micheal’s character. Evil, dark, hollow. What I didn’t realize was that this foreshadows the point of view throughout the movie as the audience sees the killings more through Micheal’s’ eyes than in the first one. From the start, you already know things are going to be a little different.

The time frame – Halloween 2 takes off from the exact moment the first one ends. There’s no waiting, no anniversary, nothing to trigger it. The first one might as well have ended with, “To be Continued…” This is pretty cool because not many, if any, good horror movie sequels take place the same day/night, continuing the story. This adds a different element because as you think it can’t possibly be worse for Laurie, it gets much worse and a whole new cast of characters will become victims as the manhunt continues. The setting is also different. Halloween 2 takes place in the hospital where Laurie is taken, whereas Friday 2 is set at a camp again. The setting almost makes it feel like a different movie and not a sequel based on the setting change alone.

Micheal’s development – In the sequel, he pops up and stalks his victims more. It seems like a game to him, and he becomes a better killer. In Friday the 13th, Mrs. Voorhees is the killer, and Jason appears in the sequel to avenge his mother, which does take the story to the next level. However, he seems to already know how to kill, whereas Michael develops the game of killing. He becomes a predator instead of just a slasher.

The final girl – Both final girls are epic, however Laurie deserves a deeper admiration because she is a teenager. We often forget that Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis) is 17 years old because she looks much older. Ginny (Amy Steel) is in college and studying Psychology, so she has the upper hand on Jason. She knows behaviors and how to manipulate Jason, even if only for a short time. Laurie struggles more and has no idea why things are happening. You see her broken, tired, and weak, yet she has the energy to survive and fight back. She’s already beat him once but has to continue to fight him. She is a stronger final girl.

Photo by: jennyshouseofhorrors.blogspot.com
Photo by: jennyshouseofhorrors.blogspot.com

If you haven’t watched this yet, I recommend you pop some popcorn and watch all four to compare and enjoy. Both are fantastic sequels, so you can’t go wrong!