Spring, Superhero movies and why your boss should be making you happy

Yesterday was Spring Day here in the southern hemisphere, and the kids celebrated at school today by planting seedlings and parading their spring hats.

With the new warmth in the air (not that I can complain, it's been a lovely, mild winter!) my brain is all over the place, so you're getting a blog post to match.

First up, I've been reading a lot of fascinating articles on the state of the movie business lately. From the dire box office revenues of the latest superhero movies, to the movie goers at my office lamenting decent movies to watch, I think I agree with Steven Spielberg's recent prediction that Hollywood is in imminent danger of imploding.

With Hollywood spending billions on a handful of superhero re-boots, is it any wonder that box office revenues are down? Is there any originality left in Hollywood?
The answer sadly might be 'no': Hollywood is in Deep Trouble.

So I'd like to conduct my own little poll:

• What was the last movie you saw at the cinema?
• How often do you go to the movies?
• If you don't go often, is it because of the price or because the movies just don't capture your enthusiasm?
• Finally, do you enjoy superhero movies? (and I'm not just talking about the eye candy here!)?

On a lighter note, here are a couple of links to some comic relief:

17 Reasons why chicks make better movie directors, and Why your boss should really be making you happy right now. (Actually, that last one has a really good argument!)

The Hunger Games

Just like the Twilight books, The Hunger Games books seem to have overtaken the world these last few months. Everyone who’s read it has raved about it. I haven't read tthem yet and to be honest, I don’t even know what the stories are about.

Today the first movie of the books comes out worldwide.

*This* I’m rather excited about even though I still have no idea what it’s about, lol. This got me wondering why I tend to prefer movies made about books than over the books themselves. Truth is, I’m not sure, because I love books! I never read the Twilight books either and everyone tells me how much better the books are over the films.

On the other hand, I’m told The Help makes a better film than the book!

How about you? Are you a movie first, book later person or the other way round?

One other question – 50 Shades Of Grey. What's that all about? And is the publicity worth it?

Discuss.

Exceeding Expectations

Since it's still Friday in most parts of the world, this blog post isn't technically late. Much.

I would have posted something earlier, but I got caught up watching a Christmas movie. You know, one of those made-for-TV movies that appear at this time of year, with not a single familiar face in the cast and a predictable story line? As you might have guessed, I'm not a big fan of these kinds of movies. [Give me The Proposal any day!] But this one really hooked me.

It was called A Christmas Kiss. Romance readers will recognise the story line as a tried and tested theme: girl kisses hot guy, then finds out he's her bosses' boyfriend. Okay, so the usual trope would be he turns out to be the boss, so the movie makers at least managed to put a fresh spin on this one.

What I enjoyed about this movie was that it has a fresh, young, contemporary feel, and wasn't too schmaltzy. Whether you adore every holiday themed movie out there, or whether you're more picky like me, watch this film. It's guaranteed to put a smile on your face.

There was only one thing I didn't quite like about this film, and it was only as the end credits rolled that I finally worked out what it was. The hero.

As a romance writer, I've diligently studied what makes a good romantic hero, and I've developed my own ideas of how a hero (especially an alpha hero) should behave. And it's spoiled me. I can no longer sit back and enjoy a book or movie without constantly measuring up the hero against my own very high expectations.

A hero who manages to get through an hour and a half of TV time not realising that his girlfriend is a witch spelled with a B, and in all that time doesn't realise that the girl he kissed right at the start of the movie is the heroine, just doesn't measure up for me.

So I'm going to dig out my battered copy of The Proposal and remind myself how a true alpha hero behaves. Because Ryan Reynolds always exceeds my expectations - especially when he's shirtless.

Movie Review: Red Riding Hood

For weeks I drove passed an eye-catching billboard and thought "I have to see that movie!" Luckily it came out on DVD fairly quickly, and this weekend I got to enjoy director Catherine Hardwicke's take on this classic fairy tale.

For those who don't follow these things, Catherine Hardwicke directed Twilight (the first movie in the series). Since she worked as a production designer before becoming a director, it's no surprise that this latest movie is a visual feast. Red Riding Hood is sumptuously designed with stunning costumes and sets.

Don't expect historical accuracy. Do expect a fairy tale quality with more than a dash of sinister thrown in.

The film stars Amanda Seyfried of Mamma Mia and Letters to Juliet fame, and the back up cast is phenomenal: Gary Oldman, Billy Burke (also the dad in Twilight), Lukas Haas and Julie Christie. And for those who enjoy their eye candy (like me!), there are two rather attractive young men to ogle: Shiloh Fernandez and Max Irons (son of Jeremy).

Interestingly, Shiloh Fernandez made the shortlist for the role of Edward Cullen in Twilight. He has a remarkable resemblance to Robert Pattinson, though without the squashed nose. I would have loved to see him in the role, but since that's never going to happen, I'll take whatever I can get of him!

As for the movie itself ... I loved it. Just the right balance of drama, action and romance for my tastes - and it's beautiful to look at! Go take a look for yourself.

Movie Review: The Adjustment Bureau

I sum up this movie in one word: “INCREDIBLE”

As a die-hard movie buff, I tend to get totally anal and do a bit of research before I watch any movie to see if it’s worth my time. This carefully honed craft (aka procrastination) means I can usually tell within three minutes of starting any movie if I’m going to love it or hate it. Yes, call me a movie diva!

With The Adjustment Bureau, although I’d seen posters for it, nothing really pulled me to research it. All I knew was that it starred Matt Damon and Emily Blunt. To be honest, I don’t even physically remember requesting this movie, so when I came across it, I just shrugged with a “why not” attitude.

It started off a bit dull – a young, charismatic front-runner in an election campaign, effing up at the last minute due to something he’d done back in his even younger and stupid days. How many times have I seen that in a movie? But then I started wondering why Matt’s character (David Norris) was being portrayed as so young? What was it about him that had made so many people want to vote for him?

Heh, I soon found out his political career had nothing to do with the move! Well, it did in a way…but…read on…

**Spoiler alert**

This was more, so much more than a political movie. At the heart of it was a gut-wrenching love
story. Cue my writer’s happy-ever-after-loving wheeeeeee! Basically, the powers that be - “the adjusters” or angels in men in black suits, had been tasked with keeping David Norris's career on track no matter what.

His destiny, laid out on some funky moving paper tracker thingy, was supposed to be “adjusted” so that it absolutely did not collide with Elise's (Emily Blunt’s character) for the simple reason that their love would impede his intended meteoric rise to become President of the United States.

So he was given a choice – lose the love of his life or watch her lose the one thing she yearned for most – to be the incredibly amazing dancer she was.

At first he arrogantly believes he can have his cake and eat it and boy, does he try hard to! But when the very thing she cares about it threatened, he makes the hard choice.

He gives her up. For a while. But fate being what it was, she crosses his path again. And the fireworks really kicks off when his “guardian angel” tells him that Elise is about to marry someone else.

My heart was in my throat the whole time he was evading the “the adjusters” in order to get to his true love. I cried when he got his girl. And cried even harder when the big boss, “The Chairman”, finally agreed to let him keep her because…well…their love was just too damn strong.

I defy any romance reader or writer to watch this movie and not be moved or inspired to let your fingers fly over your keyboard after your very own happy ever after.

It was awesome, awesome, awesome! Ten out of ten and definitely a keeper for me.

My Favourite Love Triangle

A good love triangle story always grabs my attention, and for me, the Kate / Sawyer / Jack love triangle from Lost  is hard to beat. It has it all - a beautiful girl, and two hot as hell, but different as chalk and cheese men.

Lucky Kate, eh?

Kate is a complex character, her tough life experiences have left her battle scarred and defensive. Sawyer is her equally embittered male mirror image - they are drawn to each other because they understand each other perfectly and are haunted by the same demons. Two peas from the same dangerous pod, they are explosive together, both in  and out of bed.

Jack, on the other hand, is Kate's complete opposite. He's responsible, calm and dependable, and it helps of course that he is easy on the eye. He nourishes Kate's soul in all the ways Sawyer can't, he's rock solid and offers Kate safe harbour and security. He meets her emotional needs in a way Sawyer couldn't possibly hope to, and in the end these qualities turn out to be what she needs most of all.

Turning full circle, Sawyer later found true love with the serene Juliet, who shared many of the same attributes as Jack. I know many people were unhappy with the ending of Lost, but for me it shone in the way it crafted characters I really cared about and invested in emotionally.

How about you? What's your favourite love triangle? Just don't get me started on Bella, Edward and Jacob, I could be here for hours...

Making Sacrifices

The Prince & Me is a sweet romantic comedy that I last watched several years ago. I remembered it as a fun, light movie, aimed mostly at the young adult market. A bit of fluff. But when I flicked through the TV channels yesterday to find something innocuous to play in the background with the kids around, it seemed the perfect answer. Until I got so engrossed that they nearly went without supper!

Yes, this movie is entirely predictable. Yes, the idea’s a tad far-stretched. No, it was never going to win any awards. But I was riveted! Because this film ticked the most important box of all: it got me invested in the characters.

I also learned something important while watching this movie yesterday: the resolution of any story (the Happy Ever After) is so much more satisfying if one (or both) of the characters have first had to sacrifice something really significant in the Black Moment.

[Spoiler Alert ahead]

In The Prince & Me, both hero and heroine make a sacrifice. The Black Moment scene is incredibly poignant. There are no raised voices, no slammed doors. It’s a quiet moment between two people who have already acknowledged their love for each other.

But they cannot be together without the heroine giving up everything she has ever dreamed of doing and being. In that moment she has a terrible decision to make: to choose between love or her dreams.

I hadn’t thought of this movie as being an example of award-winning acting, but in this scene Luke Mably is simply superb. With a completely under-stated performance, he conveys so much emotion. The viewer absolutely gets that the Prince is losing the only woman he’ll ever love. Without the heroine at his side, he faces a life of duty without the one person who has brought meaning, joy and love to his life. He will be lost without her. But even so it is a sacrifice he makes willingly, as he only wants her happiness.

Aaaaw.

That tear-jerker moment really made the resolution so much more satisfying.

I’m still far away from the black moment and ending of my WIP, but when I get there I’m definitely going to make a meal out of the sacrifice my heroine will make to ensure the happiness of the hero (or in this case, heroes!)